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Family Pocket Gamer: Rediscovering the Game Boy heritage

Second in a series that looks at the concept of family friendly pocket gaming

Family Pocket Gamer: Rediscovering the Game Boy heritage
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DS + PSP

When they want to, families have a surprisingly long memory. The strong response to a recent Family Gamer column made me realise that we all have myriad skeletons in the closet and claims to fame that are told and retold over the years. Christmases, summer camps, weddings and funerals offer opportunities for us to get together and tell those old stories again. They are what define us; they are a big part of our heritage.

Video gaming, however, often seems to be almost the opposite. Such is the clamour for new, bigger and better experiences that many defining gaming moments are lost in the past. Bringing my family and my handheld gaming together has made me rethink all this. As I introduce my kids to their first handheld and mobile games, I instinctively want to share the experiences I remember from my younger years.

So, rather than starting my kids (and other half) off on the PSP, DS or high-end Nokia Nseries phones, I handed them a grey and maroon Game Boy from the early '90s. The great thing about this was that with no frame of reference they happily played the games on their own merit, rather than worrying about the four-greyscale graphics or basic synth soundtracks.

Weekends and evenings were spent trawling through my old Game Boy cartridges. They marvelled at each new discovery and I had my memory jogged as I reacquainted myself with my old games. I had forgotten how much enjoyment had been squeezed out of these 64k and 128k carts. No saving, no loading, no customisation, no multiplayer – just pure unadulterated fun. The jewel in the crown for me was laying my hands on Top Rank Tennis, a game I had all but forgotten. Yet just five minutes later and I'd again become addicted to this surprisingly flexible tennis game.

Top Rank Tennis from Nintendo doesn't look like anything special. In fact, it trots out that well-worn forced isometric rendering of tennis court and players that has graced many handheld systems. I was soon reminded why I loved it so much, though.

First, it accurately simulated the connection between player and ball. The trajectory of your shot depended on your shot selection and your relative position to the ball and button timing. These factors combined in miniature pixel precision to produce true nuanced ball control. I often found myself running round a back hand so I could drive a dipping forehand down the line, or backing up to smash away a dipping lob.

Second, it squeezed every last drop of control out of the old Game Boy. Not only did you have the standard top spin and flat shot on the A and B buttons, but it also used the Start and Select buttons in-game to provide slices and lobs. (To pause the game you had to tap up twice before your serve.) This flexibility underpinned by the believable physics encouraged real imaginative play. It sounds slightly absurd to say it, but I genuinely felt as in control of my game here as ever I did in Virtua Tennis on the Xbox 360.

Finally, although not impressive these days, back in the '90s Top Rank Tennis wowed gamers with real voice synthesized umpire commentary. The score and break/match points were enunciated for all to hear. All this from such a small cartridge, and less memory than my washing machine. It still impresses me today.

I've been in the element over the last few weeks as the family vied for position, seeing who could climb highest up the Top Rank Tennis ladder. Breakfast conversations often turned to the merits of serve/volley versus a back court game, or the success of using chip and charge against different computer opponents. Admittedly some of the younger members of the family still prefer the simpler Game Boy games, but there is also plenty for them to play there as well.

In the weeks to come it'll be interesting to see what they make of the newer handheld machines, and whether improved graphics and controls really make the games better. Top Rank Tennis on the Game Boy has certainly set the bar high.

So I'll be back in a couple of weeks with another snippet of family pocket gaming. Until then, why not check in on our progress? You can get to know me by friending me on Facebook, read my mini-blog on Twitter or even watch the tribe mobile gaming pics on Flickr. And, if you missed it, you've also got time to catch up on the first Family Pocket Gamer article.