Game Boy Color

ゲームボーイカラー Game Boy Color

A Game Boy Color

Release dates Japan: October 21, 1998 North America: November 18, 1998 Europe: November 23, 1998 Australia: November 23, 1998 South Korea: 2000 China: N/A Hong Kong: N/A Taiwan: N/A

Technical specs 160×144 pixel resolution Shows up to 56 different colors simultaneously on screen from its palette of 32,768 32 KB RAM. Infrared communications port Full list

Related information Console generation: Fifth generation Pokémon generations: I, II Console type: Handheld Colors: Teal Strawberry Atomic Purple* Dandelion Kiwi Grape Pikachu & PichuSp

External links Wikipedia NintendoWiki StrategyWiki

The Game Boy Color (Japanese: ゲームボーイカラー Game Boy Color) is Nintendo's 8-bit gaming handheld which succeeded the Game Boy; it was later succeeded by the Game Boy Advance. It is slightly taller and thicker than the Game Boy Pocket. The main feature of this model, as the name suggests, is the color screen. It is also the first Game Boy not to include a contrast knob. Its most popular games are Pokémon Gold and Silver, selling approximately 14.51 million copies in Japan and the US combined. The Game Boy Color was discontinued in 2003, shortly after the release of the Game Boy Advance SP.

Like all systems in the Game Boy family, it is not region encoded.

Console colors

The logo for Game Boy Color spelled out the word COLOR in the five original colors in which the unit was manufactured. They were named:

Strawberry

Grape

Kiwi

Dandelion

Teal

Several other colors include:

Atomic Purple*

Pikachu & Pichu^Sp

Other colors were sold as limited editions or in specific countries.

Special Pokémon editions

• Pokémon Yellow Game Boy Color: A yellow and blue GBC was decorated with Pikachu, Jigglypuff, and Togepi. It retailed for US$109.99.
• Clear Green Pokémon Game Boy Color: A clear green GBC was decorated with Pikachu, Jigglypuff, and Togepi. It was sold in Taiwan.
• Clear Blue Pokémon Game Boy Color: A clear blue GBC was decorated with Pikachu, Jigglypuff, and Togepi. It was sold in Hong Kong.
• Pikachu and Pichu Silver Game Boy Color: A silver GBC that is decorated with Pikachu and Pichu
• Pokémon Gold and Silver Game Boy Color: A gold faded to silver GBC that was decorated with Pikachu and Pichu was released in 2001 to celebrate the release of Pokémon Gold and Silver. It retailed for US$99.99.
• Pikachu and Pichu Game Boy Color: A yellow version of the special Gold and Silver Game Boy Color was released and sold separately.
• Orange and Blue Game Boy Color: An orange (front) and blue (back) Game Boy Color featuring Pikachu, Bulbasaur, Charmander, and Squirtle released to celebrate Pokémon's third anniversary (Japan only)
• White Game Boy Color: A white Game Boy Color featuring Pikachu, Chikorita, Cyndaquil, and Totodile released to celebrate Pokémon's third anniversary (Japan only)

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  Special edition Game Boy Color that was bundled with Pokémon Yellow

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  Special edition Game Boy Color sold in Taiwan

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  Special edition Game Boy Color sold in Hong Kong

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  Special edition silver Game Boy Color

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  Special edition Game Boy Color that was bundled with Pokémon Gold and Silver

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  Yellow Pikachu and Pichu Game Boy Color

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  Orange and blue Game Boy Color released to celebrate Pokémon's third anniversary

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  White Game Boy Color released to celebrate Pokémon's third anniversary

Color palettes used for original Game Boy games

When playing an original Game Boy game on a Game Boy Color or Game Boy Advance (including the Game Boy Advance SP and the Game Boy Player), the user can choose which Game Boy Color color palette is used. This is achieved by pressing certain button combinations, namely either A or B (or neither) and a direction key while the Game Boy logo is displayed on the screen.

These palettes each contain up to ten colors. In most games, the four shades displayed on the original Game Boy would translate to different subsets of this 10-color palette, such as by displaying movable sprites in one subset and backgrounds, etc. in another. The grayscale (Left + B) palette produces an appearance essentially identical to that experienced on the original Game Boy.

Some licensed Game Boy games have a special default palette. Pokémon Red and Blue use primarily red and blue palettes, respectively.

Button combination	Palette
Up	Brown
Up + A	Red
Up + B	Dark Brown
Down	Pale Yellow/Pastel Mix
Down + A	Orange
Down + B	Yellow
Left	Blue
Left + A	Dark Blue
Left + B	Gray
Right	Green
Right + A	Dark Green
Right + B	Reverse

Technical specifications

The processor, which is a Z80 work-alike with a few extra (bit manipulation) instructions, has a clock speed of approx. 8 MHz, twice as fast as that of the original Game Boy. The Game Boy Color also has four times as much memory as the original. The console boasted an impressive palette of 32,768 colors and was capable of simultaneously displaying 56 colors at once. It could also add basic four-color shading to games that had been released for the ordinary Game Boy. Additionally, a new palette-change feature was added for original Game Boy games; by holding the B button and any one of the directional arrows, the user could change the basic color palette for the game.

Game Boy Color games cannot be played natively on the Nintendo DS or Nintendo DS Lite handheld. The Nintendo DS lacks the Game Boy's Z80-like microprocessor, as does the Game Boy micro. Game Boy Color cartridges also do not fit in the Game Boy Advance slot of the Nintendo DS.

Pokémon games

These are games made for the Game Boy Color. Non-Japanese Pokémon Yellow has Game Boy Color features, but is officially classified by Nintendo as an original Game Boy game.

Title	Genre	Release
Pokémon Trading Card Game	Card game	1998
Pokémon Pinball	Pinball	1999
Pokémon Gold and Silver	Core series RPG	1999
Pokémon Puzzle Challenge	Puzzle	2000
Pokémon Crystal	Core series RPG	2000
Pokémon Trading Card Game 2: The Invasion of Team GR!	Card game	2001

By backwards compatibility

Due to backward compatibility, all Pokémon games from the original Game Boy are also playable.

Title	Genre	Release
Pokémon Red and Green	Core series RPG	1996
Pokémon Blue	Core series RPG	1996
Pokémon Red and Blue	Core series RPG	1998
Pokémon Yellow*	Core series RPG	1998

Unreleased

Title	Genre
Pokémon Picross	Puzzle

Trivia

• Although the walls of Fuchsia Gym are normally invisible in the Generation I core series Pokémon games, the Game Boy Color exposes them when using a multi-colored palette.
• If Pokémon Puzzle Challenge is being played, it is possible to input a code at the title screen that boots the game into Game Boy mode which will allow the player to input a code to play Panel de Pon as the game was mostly left intact while being remade into Pokémon Puzzle League.