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New Platform: Handheld Electronic Games

LaunchBox Games Database

šŸ“‹ Summary

Add Handheld Electronic Games as a platform within LaunchBox and the LaunchBox Games Database.

This platform would cover self-contained electronic games from manufacturers such as Tiger Electronics, Mattel, Coleco, VTech, Konami, and Bandai.

ā— Problem

Dedicated electronic games do not currently have an appropriate general platform in the Games Database.

Many are categorized under Nintendo Game & Watch, despite not being Nintendo products. Others are incorrectly listed under Tiger Game.com, which was a separate cartridge-based handheld console.

This creates inaccurate platform listings and makes it unclear where new entries should be submitted.

šŸ’” Proposal

Create a Handheld Electronic Games platform for self-contained games with permanently built-in software, displays, and controls.

As part of this change:

  • Keep Nintendo Game & Watch as a dedicated Nintendo platform

  • Move non-Game & Watch electronic games into the new platform

  • Move standalone Tiger electronic games out of Tiger Game.com

  • Reserve Tiger Game.com for software released for the cartridge-based console

  • Publish clear guidance explaining which products belong in each platform

šŸ“¦ Benefits

  • Provides an accurate home for dedicated LCD, LED, and VFD games

  • Prevents confusion between Tiger handhelds and Tiger Game.com

  • Preserves Nintendo Game & Watch as a recognizable product family

  • Improves metadata and media organization

  • Establishes a consistent destination for future submissions

āš ļø Considerations

  • Existing entries would need to be reviewed and reassigned

  • The platform definition should distinguish dedicated games from cartridge-based handheld consoles

  • Devices containing several permanently built-in games may require an explicit inclusion policy

  • Existing Tiger handheld entries should remain in place until the new destination is available

Posted by dukdukgoos Ā·
Status: Open To Community2 comments

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Comments2

  • AstroBob

    Teamā€¢

    Oct 5

    There's a problem with how handheld electronic games are categorized that needs a better solution. Currently it seems like non-software-based handheld electronic games (not true platforms like Gameboy, PSP, etc) are supposed to be put in the Nintendo Game and Watch platform, which is currently defined as a kind-of ā€œcatch allā€ for single-use handheld electronic games. This is confusing and unintuitive for many, and so we get games being miscategorized frequently.

    For example, a large number of Tiger-branded electronic games being put in the "Tiger Game.com" platform, which is wrong because that category is for the software-based Game.com platform cartridges, not random single use handheld games.

    I'd argue that the Nintendo Game and Watch platform should really be re-named as a generic Handheld Electronic platform, as it's more accurate and would reduce this confusion. Game and Watch isn't really a platform per se, it's a brand of similarly-styled single game releases, along with similar Tiger, Mattel, Coleco and other brands who did handheld electronic games. However, if we can't/won't do that, we should at least make it more clear in the platform name that it's where single-use, non-software-based handheld games are supposed to go. There are dozens of mis-assigned Tiger handheld games in the Game.com platform because of this problem.

    I see a few options:

    • Rename the Nintendo Game and Watch platform to ā€œHandheld Electronicā€ and keep Game and Watch games there as they are single-use non-software based games.

    • Same as above but rename it to ā€œHandheld Electronic (Nintendo Game and Watch)ā€ or similar to make it clearer. This is basically what RetroArch doesā€¦ they use ā€œHandheld Electronic (GW)ā€ as their core name.

    • Create a new ā€œHandheld Electronicā€ platform and move everything thatā€™s not Game and Watch from the current platform to the new one, keeping Game and Watch separate. I donā€™t like this honestly, as Iā€™ve said before I donā€™t think Game and Watch is really a platform per se.

    • Something else?

    Iā€™d also like feedback on whether I should go ahead and reassign all the Tiger single-use handhelds currently in the Game.com platform to the Game and Watch platform.

  • dukdukgoos

    ā€¢

    Sep 9

    I went ahead and moved all the mis-assigned Tiger handheld games out of the Game.com platform and into the NG&W platform. Hoping a solution for miscellaneous handheld electronic games is forthcoming.