The Game Boy Color is the first Game Boy to feature a colour screen. It offers bright, pin-sharp game graphics.

Naturally, the Game Boy Color is also compatible with all previous Game Boy games. In the case of games designed for the black and white screen, the player can choose from 12 colour combinations and colour the screen according to his or her personal taste.

Dual Game Boy game cassettes (coloured in anthracite) support both the Game Boy Color (using up to 56 colors from a palette of 32,000 displayable colours) as well as the Original Game Boy and Game Boy Pocket (using 4 grey tones) and the Super Game Boy.

There are also special Game Boy Color games, intended for use with the Game Boy Color. They carry the statement "Only for Game Boy Color" on the packaging and therefore cannot be played on conventional Game Boys and the Super Game Boy. These Game Paks can, however, also be played on the Game Boy Advance.

The Game Boy Color has been released in various colours. These are lilac, lilac-transparent, blackberry red, neon green, yellow and turquoise.