Handheld consoles have been instrumental to the growth and popularity of gaming as a whole. Without the likes of Nintendo's own Game Boy, DS, or even the Switch, we frankly dread to think what the industry would look like.
Gaming journal publisher 'Lost in Cult' is looking to celebrate the storied history of portable consoles with a new book, simply titled 'A Handheld History'. It will dive into the systems and games that define handheld gaming, and is said to be "less of a historical account and more of a poignant, introspective adventure across decades of gaming memories".
The book will include multiple writers pitching in with their own remarks and memories, including a couple of familiar faces here at Nintendo Life (see if you can spot them!). The full list includes:
Brandon Saltalamacchia, Jason Bradbury, The Retro Future, Kevin Kenson, Mike Diver, Bob Wulf, Janet Garcia, James Mielke, Ashens, Jeff Grub, Retro Game Corps, Larry Bundy Jr., Brian Crecente, Anthony Wallace, TristaBytes, Faith Johnson, Alex Olney, Austin Voight, Sandeep Rai, Jason Brown, Ben Bulbeck, Laurie Eggleston, Ryan Stevens, Priscilla Wells, Diana Green, Jeff Zoldy, Jamie Sharp, Paulo Kawanishi, Abram Buehner, Shaun Hughes, Ryan Easby, Jess Elizabeth Reed, Jamie Fox, Jim Hargreaves, Scott Russell, Georgina Young, Mitchell Brownson, Nate Ellingsworth, Madeline Blondeau, and Andrew Oysten
Lost in Cult is looking for £21,000 by 6pm GMT on May 9th in order to produce the book. The project is currently sitting at £15,500, so hopefully it won't be long until they meet their end-goal.
You can pre-order a copy of the book over on Lost in Cult's official website. Should the project fail to reach its goal, all orders will be fully refunded. Let us know in the comments if you're looking to pick up a copy!
[source lostincult.co.uk, via twitter.com]
Comments 15
@Royalblues jU5t Mi3 hUm8l3 0p1n10n... Hello! Nostalgia speaking!
@Royalblues I really couldn't choose between GBA and Gamecube (Gameboy player and link cable between consoles included), DS and Wii, or 3DS and Wii U, in terms of quality, creative first party hardware and software. I would add GBC and N64, in retrospect, but I never had an N64 during its time, and GBC was really limited in what it could do, in pure strength. So yeah, Wii and DS was an amazing combo, both strong by themselves as well, but I can't pick a favourite generation really.
I had the purple see through colour gameboy back in the day, but only played Link's Awakening on that, also have an original Gameboy, which is my wife's, but was never in to hand helds but when 3DS came out, I got hooked.
This publisher makes some really lovely magabookzines. I would have liked to see more of the content on this one though, due to its price.
I play my Switch mostly in handheld and some of my favorite Nintendo experiences were handheld. Hopefully they never abandon it.
This looks great, and I love the clear passion for handheld gaming!
If I put yet another gaming book on my coffee table I think I'll end up divorced though...! Just me, perhaps, but it does raise a valid point... why is the default always to capture this stuff in a book?
I'd love to see this content filtering through into VR headsets and other interactive experiences.
Too many coffee table books...
@Royalblues the 3DS and Wii U were peak Nintendo.
Yes, the Wii U hardware was a flop, but the first-party games output on both systems (both big titles and little eShop ventures) were bold, inventive, and just plain good.
You had Nintendo partnering up with other studios to do things like Hyrule Warriors and Tokyo Mirage Sessions. Nintendo doing experimental things like NES Remix or Nintendo Land. Nintendo also made "little" eShop games that felt like big experiences, such as Dillion's Rolling Western and Pushmo (they were less shy about new IPs during the 3DS/Wii U era too).
Wii/DS era was very good. but Wii U/3DS era definitely had it beat by a wide margin.
Handheld gaming is my favorite kind. It's the main reason I bought the Switch. Heck, it's the only reason I have any interest in the Steam Deck.
Funny thing though, I do believe the DS era was peak Nintendo but the DS wasn't my favorite console of theirs. Before the Switch, I was all about the Game Boy Advance. Something about the dual screens never really sat right with me. Although I certainly played my fair share of games on all the DS line of consoles, I felt the PSP/Vita were a more natural progression of handheld consoles, and I really wish the Vita had more time and attention from Sony.
That being said, the Switch is a great console and I hope Nintendo continues to grow the concept in the future.
@Royalblues I agree with the DS side of things 100%. That system made me a hardcore Nintendo gamer again like I was in the NES/SNES Era.
Thank you for this article. I'm not sure if I would have ended up knowing about the project otherwise, and I'm happy to help support it.
@spacemoe505 don't be a douchebag man cmon
@Royalblues i think nintendo has a lot of different peaks for different people. I grew up with the era you tout as the best, but i think the gamecube/gba might've packed more of a punch gamewise
NO ANYTHING BUT A BOOK AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH
@Royalblues Agree with you here, I think Zak and Wiki Quest for Barbedos Treasure was one of those underrated gems. Along with all of those hours actually gaming with my family thanks to the accessible controls (Stand out was my Grandma playing the chicken game from Wii fit and my Grandfather tapping into the golf!)
And there are moment when Mario 64 DS gets a playthrough!
The Switch lite is the handheld I've dreamed of since I was a kid. My psp go is the perfect portable console.
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