Game Boy

Towering over #10 Dreamcast and all subsequent handhelds, the Game Boy revolutionized portable gaming by prioritizing battery life and durability over raw power, achieving over 118 million units sold. Its unconventional gray-scale screen and chunky design proved that playability trumps specs, anchored by Tetris and Pokémon Red and Blue—each selling over 23 million and 10 million copies, respectively. These two titles alone generate more cultural impact than the entire libraries of several short-lived consoles. With a staggering 35-hour battery life on four AA batteries—three times longer than the average rival handheld—the Game Boy defined a generation of gaming on the go. Its unmatched library of over 1,000 games and 18 years of production underscore its legendary status as the second-best-selling console of the 20th century.