Facts About the Game Boy Color

System Specifications

• The Game Boy Color utilizes an 8-bit microprocessor, called the "Z80," which has a clock speed of 8MHz. It also has 32 kilobytes of system RAM, 16 kilobytes of video RAM, and a screen resolution of 160x144 pixels. The handheld features a total of 32,768 possible colors, and can display 56 at once. An infrared communications port for wireless linking was also added to the Game Boy Color (this feature was largely unpopular, however, and was later scrapped altogether from newer iterations of the Game Boy series).

Backwards Compatibility

• The Game Boy Color was the first handheld video game console to utilize backwards compatibility, namely the ability to play video games designed for a previous console. Nintendo Entertainment made this feature a major part of the Game Boy series, because it gave each new version of their handheld system a much larger library of video games than its competitors.

Original Game Boy Games with Color

• While the Game Boy Color cannot alter the monochromatic design of original Game Boy games, it can change the color palette that is utilized. By inputting special button combinations at the start screen displaying the Game Boy Color logo, players can choose from 12 different monochromatic schemes, each utilizing 10 different shades of that color.

Game Cartridges

• Games designed specifically for the Game Boy Color are housed in clear cartridges. Games designed for backwards compatibility--meaning that they can work in either system--are housed in black cartridges. The last game produced for the American Game Boy Color was "Dragon Warrior Monsters 2," which was released in 2001.

Sales

• Combined with the original Game Boy, the Game Boy Color has sold 118 million units worldwide.