Game & Watch

The Game & Watch series is a series of handheld games developed by Nintendo from 1980 to 1991. Each Game & Watch had its own game built in, in addition to a clock and an alarm. The units are based on a 4-bit CPU from the Sharp SM5xx family, and they include a small ROM and RAM area and an LCD screen driver circuit. Some of the titles available in Game & Watch format were games as random as Ball, a simple juggling game, to well-known games such as Donkey Kong Jr. The Game & Watch was Nintendo's earliest product to be very successful, with the series selling a combined 43.4 million units worldwide.

Most Game & Watch titles have two modes: Game A and Game B. Game B is usually a faster, more difficult version of Game A, but in some titles, such as Flagman and Bomb Sweeper, Game B is slightly different from Game A. In a few others, such as Judge and Boxing, Game B features a two-player mode. The titles Climber, Balloon Fight, and Super Mario Bros. do not have a Game B.

The Game & Watch games normally become harder as the player progresses, but the gameplay usually slows down every 100 points the player receives. The games usually end when the player receives three misses (generally meaning "lives that are lost"). In most games, misses can be removed if the player reaches a certain number of points; in some games, doing so with no misses will increase the score either temporarily or until a miss is made.

Mario Game & Watch games
Four of these were re-released in the Mini Classic series.

Game & Watch Gallery series
These games are Game Boy-era ports of the classic Game & Watch titles, most of which are also given "Modern" versions featuring Mario characters. The "Classic" versions remove the timekeeping functions from the original games, in order to allow the player to accomplish the compilations' goal of getting the highest score possible. There were plans for a Game & Watch Gallery series of e-Reader cards, but these did not surface due to the abrupt cancellation of the e-Reader overseas due to low sales.


 * Game Boy Gallery (Europe and Australia only; not to be confused with the Japanese name for Game & Watch Gallery)
 * Game & Watch Gallery (Game Boy Gallery 2 in Australia)
 * Game & Watch Gallery 2 (Game Boy Gallery 3 in Australia)
 * Game & Watch Gallery 3 (Game Boy Gallery 4 in Australia)
 * Game & Watch Gallery 4 (Game Boy Gallery Advance in Australia)

Games with a Mario-themed "Modern" version
In addition to all the games listed below, the Mario Game & Watch games also reappear, with their "Modern" versions featuring updated graphics and gameplay.

Games marked with an asterisk (*) have no Modern modes in their ports.

Alarm function
Starting from Gold Series' Manhole, the Game & Watch titles started to have an alarm function, which was only accesible by gently pressing the ALARM switch with a sharp-pointed instrument. Alarm time can be set by pressing the left buttons (hour set) and the right buttons (minute set). Games with 2 buttons in the same side use only the top button for time setting. Here is a complete list of Game & Watch alarm indicators:

Appearances in the Mario series
In Wario: Master of Disguise, there is a parody of the Game & Watch, called the Game & Watch 9000.

WarioWare: Smooth Moves
In WarioWare: Smooth Moves, 9-Volt holds up a Donkey Kong double-screen Game & Watch.

Super Smash Bros. series
Starting with Super Smash Bros. Melee of the Super Smash Bros. series, Mr. Game & Watch has made an appearance as a playable character, representing various games as his attack moves. The stages Flat Zone, Flat Zone 2, and Flat Zone X are inspired by the handhelds.