Collection essentials #149: Game Boy Camera (Game Boy)

Here’s a device that’s obviously outdated, but still has some charm.

The Game Boy Camera is sort of a game/accessory hybrid, and it was released in 1998, before digital cameras were a widely available and affordable thing. Obviously the Game Boy is not a very powerful piece of hardware and does not even have color, so the quality of the pictures it could take was very low, but nonetheless, to a ‘90s kid it was a lot cooler than having no camera at all. And it wasn’t just a simple accessory lazily slapped onto a Game Boy cartridge, as it has various features, modes and personality to make the experience more memorable. You can edit the photos you take and add stuff like stickers to them. There are a few minigames to play that can utilize your face. There’s even a simple music creation program here.

There’s an accessory called the Game Boy Printer (which I do own!) compatible with this game. The Game Boy Printer prints onto small bits of thermal paper with an adhesive back, which were specifically sold to be used with the Game Boy Printer. Apparently most such paper has worn out to the point of not being usable all these years later. I haven’t checked the quality of mine in ages, it may have all gone back by now, but honestly it’s more of a novelty now than actually useful.

I believe I first encountered the Game Boy Camera when my cousin Josh had one, and I thought it was pretty cool. Then my mom found the one shown in the photo at a yard sale circa 2002. I still have my old photos saved on there, and the image of my face you see about to race is me at 12 years old.

If you come across a Game Boy Camera for cheap nowadays, you may find it worth picking up just to mess around with it a little and enjoy its charm. It’s cool that Nintendo put more than minimal effort into it, or else it’d just be a forgotten obsolete piece of technology.