Video games are welcome at the table of popular art, alongside movies, music, and television. Home consoles get a lot of attention, but portable gaming has done the heavy lifting when it comes to expanding the reach and acceptance of the medium.
The road to ubiquity began with the peculiar rise of the Game Boy. An outdated piece of hardware upon its release in 1989, Nintendo would nonetheless sell over 115 million Game Boys and Game Boy Colors. Nintendo advertised the portable as a hobby device not just for the kids, but for the family. Countless adults lots entire nights to Zelda and Tetris.