Handheld electronic game

An LCD game is a small, portable video game system. Controls, screen, speakers, and the game itself are permanently installed in the device.

Graphic

Instead of a normal screen ( with a grid of pixels ) is mostly a special display for displaying each of a match found. All " mobile " game elements (eg, character, enemies, balls) are not composed of pixels, but are present as finished, tailored to the respective game LCD segments before. How else can a single pixel the whole game character is controlled comparable here graphically, which requires less technical effort, it also reduces the display options accordingly. Permanent game elements (eg background) are static " painted " images that lie behind the " mobile " graphics and are also visible when the unit is off. These simplifications make it possible to produce LCD games from the size of a digital watch. Often there at the games a reset function, which also makes it possible to display all existing graphic segments ( figures, moving around, Score ) simultaneously.

The use of fixed images allows a higher level of detail without pixelated graphics as console screens, but not without disadvantage. All graphics are fixed at a certain point, so that each position of an object in the game has to be determined in advance, without the individual items may overlap. The illusion of movement is created by light up the objects in a certain sequence in their various positions.

History

Already in the 70s, the first LCD games were released, but they enjoyed only during the 1980s and 1990s great popularity, as the price for LC displays significantly decreased. The most popular LCD games are the games of the Nintendo Game & Watch series, published 1981-1990, as well as titles from other manufacturers, for example tricOtronic, Tomy or Tiger Electronics, were popular. Many genres have been implemented, it found particularly Arcade games attention. Also in calculators, the technique of LCD games was used. An example is the CASIO BG 15 boxing game (1981). The first mobile games, like Snake, based on the black / white LCD technology.

LCD games today

Technically LCD games have been replaced by portable game consoles. Nevertheless, LCD games are often made as a promotional product these days still. Also sink to implement simple games such as ships or board, card and puzzle games (such as Sudoku) they are still used. These are hardly different from the much older models. Few games have such as a storage option.