In the wake of the Famicom's success, Nintendo decided to explore new frontiers with a handheld gaming system that used a dot matrix display. That system's music would be done by a small girl with big things ahead of her.
Game Boy grew up in a rural area on the outskirts of Kyoto. According to early accounts, she was extremely shy and didn't talk to anyone very much. However her singing talent was exceptional, and because of this her parents signed her up for a talent program for a local TV station. Nintendo noticed this and hired her to become the dot matrix superstar she is today!
When first working at Nintendo, Game Boy had little confidence in herself and doubt she would ever become a success, especially in the wake of Famicom. Even internal morale was low, as some Nintendo employees thought she wasn't fit for the job and even gave her the nickname of "DameGame" ("Dame" means hopeless in Japanese.) But she would soon prove them wrong as her debut brought forth the legendary Super Mario Land and Tetris! She was no doubt a hit and people were more than eager to buy CDs and hardware.
Game Boy's performances took a different approach than Famicom's. While Fami usually performed in large indoor venues, Game Boy would mostly perform on smaller outdoor stages. This included a lot of public places such as malls or plazas. She was also the first Nintendo idol to go on international tours, although these were very infrequent.
While Famicom had little to no competition in the market, especially due to the video game crash of 1983, Game Boy had tough competition on the horizon from both Sega and Atari. This is where her trick came in: Not only was she backed by some of the best music to come out of Nintendo, she was also able to perform for hours on end without stopping! This unbridled tenacity made her one of the best in the business and a significant factor as to why her competitors couldn't keep up.
Like Famicom, Game Boy's works may seem simple by today's standards but many of them are timeless. She has done music for many esteemed Nintendo names such as Super Mario, Zelda, and Metroid, and even some brand new ones such as Kirby's Dream Land. Her biggest break, however, was seven years into her career when Pokemon Red and Blue came out in Japan. This no doubt took the country, and later the world by storm and brought Game Boy from a star to an absolute legend. She was so successful in fact, that Nintendo hired her again as the Game Boy Color! For a few more years she went on the stage again, performing new music for games such as the legendary Pokemon Gold and Silver. This makes her the longest-running idol of any Nintendo system, lasting for 13 years.
While Game Boy's concerts are much better documented than Famicom's, there are still a lot of older ones where no footage exists, and only some have photos. Most concerts with full footage going around are of the Game Boy Color years. If anyone has any never before seen Game Boy or any Nintendo idol footage at all please feel free to contact an archivist! I do not link videos directly here for copyright reasons but I encourage seeking them out regardless.
When not on the stage, Game Boy has been described as having a sweet and gentle personality. She is a fan of video games, but also enjoys other hobbies such as taking photos with her own accessory, the Game Boy Camera. She was born deaf in one ear and wears a hearing aid, but you can't see it in most promotional material. Nintendo has yet to bring her back for a comeback tour, but we are hoping we'll get to see her on stage at least one more time!
