The BrickBoy upgrade kit costs more than twice as much as the Lego Game Boy

Upgrading Lego's Game Boy using the BrickBoy kit will cost you a lot more than many handheld emulators that are far more capable. | Image: Kickstarter

After being announced last week, the BrickBoy kit that turns Lego's buildable Game Boy model into a functional handheld through emulation has finally launched on Kickstarter, but its pricing could be a serious deterrent.

Three versions of the BrickBoy are being offered with the cheapest option being the Essential Kit that can only play Game Boy titles in grayscale and is limited to a mono speaker for sound. It's priced at 129, or around $150, which is more than twice the price of Lego's $60 Game Boy which the BrickBoy doesn't include. Early backers can get it discounted to 99, or around $115, but that's still far more expensive than many of Anbernic's handheld emulators that are far more capable and ready to play right out of the box.

The more capable BrickBoy Gamer Kit that adds support for Game Boy Color and Game Boy Advance games, compatibility with Bluetooth headphones, and a rechargeable battery is 169, or around $197, without discounts. The Collector's Edition that can turn the Lego Game Boy into a functional display piece running demos is 189, or around $220, and all versions are estimated to ship sometime in March 2026. That's a lot to pay for a Game Boy replica with questionable ergonomics and controls, but since it relies on ROMs, the BrickBoy won't require you to source original game carts like Natalie the Nerd's upgrade kit will.