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LEGO Botanical Collection: flowers for eternity
by Pia Seidel
The Lego Game Boy is a Nintendo nerd’s dream
8.10.2025
Translation: Katherine Martin
Pictures: Domagoj Belancic
In a bid to find out if the Lego Game Boy was any good, I decided to put it together. This grey block is a homage to the iconic handheld and a must-buy for nostalgic Nintendo nerds and Lego lovers alike.
Lego’s new building set combines two pivotal nostalgic moments from my childhood. Little Domagoj used to spend hours in his room, creating his own make-believe TV series with Lego. Later, the little rascal would repeatedly nick his older sister’s Game Boy to play Super Mario Land 2.
This considered, getting my hands on the Lego Game Boy feels like two journeys into the past rolled into one. It’s a well-made set that packs a punch with an array of carefully thought-out details. Basically, it’s a dream for a Nintendo nerd like me.
But let’s start at the beginning.
The building process: two hours of nostalgia
It’s been a long time since I put together a Lego set. Though building Lego models felt magical when I was a kid, it started feeling like tedious work as I got older. I reckon grappling with cryptic Ikea furniture manuals when I moved into my first flat was the final nail in the coffin for my childhood love of building blocks.
However, when I open the Lego Game Boy set, I don’t get that «Ugh, I’m not in the mood for this» feeling. After all these years, I’m actually really looking forward to getting my hands on the brightly coloured bricks again.
Plus, I can’t wait to breathe new life into an old, grey friend.
The set doesn’t contain a crazy amount of stuff. You get 421 individual pieces in a total of six bags, along with a 104-page instruction manual to guide you through the building process.
Alternatively, you can put your Game Boy together using the Lego Builder app. But come on. If you want an old-school experience, you’ve got to go the whole hog and use paper instructions.
The process begins and ends with a cartridge that you can slot into the Lego Game Boy later on. I start off with Super Mario Land, then do The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening. Once I stick the artwork onto the finished cartridges, they’re dead ringers for the originals.
I shed a nostalgic tear thinking back on all the great games I played on this iconic handheld.
I really like the fact that the cartridges’ innards have been modelled on the originals too. When you’re putting them together, you see the round «batteries» that were built into Game Boy games.
These mechanical details aren’t visible once you’re done building the model, but it feels great to know they’re there.
After that, I move on to the main part of the set. It takes me just under two hours to put the Game Boy together.
I realise I’m out of practice. All these Lego-free years have made me pretty ham-fisted. But I’m sure that more experienced building-block aficionados will make faster progress.
I occasionally worry about my mental state during the building process. Unsure which way some elements are pointing in the instructions, I end up turning them this way and that about ten times.
And sure, I’ll admit that I end up having two or three mini tantrums over some «missing» parts that I later find amongst the mess on the table.
I also sometimes get confused about leftover parts that I haven’t managed to fit in anywhere. The confusion flows seamlessly into panic. What have I missed? Will I need to take the Game Boy apart as soon as I’ve finished it? Or, if things go really wrong, start from scratch because something deep inside doesn’t actually fit?
But moments like these are part and parcel of making a Lego model. Fortunately, I don’t run into any more serious difficulties.
The instructions are easy to understand, and there aren’t any tricky steps requiring super nimble fingers. Even the flexible rubber elements, such as the ones on the operable D-pad, don’t cause me any bother.
The end result is wonderful
Two nostalgia-soaked hours later, I look at my finished piece of work. I’m more than happy with the result.
You can compare the Lego version (left) with the original (right) in the photo below. Aside from the housing being a slightly different shade of grey and the buttons being a slightly different size, the two Game Boys look seriously similar.
I love that you can actually use the D-pad and press the A and B buttons. The Start and Select buttons are made of pressable rubber elements too. And yes, you can even turn the volume and contrast dials on the sides of the Game Boy just like on the original. The on/off button on the top, which feels almost like the real thing, is especially satisfying.
I just have one cosmetic quibble with the Lego Game Boy. You can see and feel unsightly sprue residue on the A and B buttons. However, that’s the only criticism I have of the otherwise excellent build quality.
Just like with the original Game Boy, you slot cartridges into the back. Not only that, but you can replace the device’s «screen». The set includes three versions: the Nintendo loading screen («ba-bing!»), a screenshot from Link’s Awakening and a screenshot from Super Mario Land.
All three of them are lenticular prints, so they move depending on which angle you’re looking at them from. Mario, for instance, jumps up and down.
It looks fantastic. Suddenly, I feel like I want to play the classics again.
The set also includes two stands for displaying your Game Boy and the additional cartridge.
Conveniently, you can use the cartridge stand to store your lenticular prints.
To finish off, I’d like to explicitly point out that you can’t play games on the Lego Game Boy. It’s «just» an «empty» collector’s item for Nintendo nerds like me.
That being said, some resourceful modders have actually filled their Lego models with «real» Game Boy hardware. In fact, Natalie the Nerd has written about doing this on her blog.
In a nutshell
A dream for Nintendo nerds
The Lego Game Boy is a painstakingly designed replica of the iconic handheld. Going through the nostalgic process of building it took me right back to my childhood. With its array of details and working buttons, the finished model really is a sight to behold. And the icing on the nostalgic cake? It comes with exchangeable cartridges, moving lenticular screens and practical stands.
Enough to make my Game Boy-mad heart skip a beat.
Pro
- Fun, unproblematic building process
- Loads of small, carefully thought-out details
- Exchangeable cartridges
- Practical stand
Header image: Domagoj Belancic
Domagoj Belancic
Senior Editor
Domagoj.Belancic@digitecgalaxus.chMy love of video games was unleashed at the tender age of five by the original Gameboy. Over the years, it's grown in leaps and bounds.
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