A Taiwanese variant of the Game Master handheld (said by its seller to be one of only three documented examples) has appeared on eBay with a buy-it-now price of EUR 1,000 / £838 / US$1,120, as Retro Dodo reports. The listing was brought to the site’s attention by the seller himself, a reader of the publication.
The unit stands apart from other Game Master variants through a handful of physical details the seller points to as evidence of an early production run: the buttons are grey rather than silver, there are no factory stickers or markings around the battery compartment, and the screen uses a red-and-blue colourway not seen on later models. The seller describes it as a possible Taiwanese exclusive, though he notes that is unconfirmed. The console comes with a cartridge of Continental Galaxy 2020, the battery compartment shows no corrosion, and the display is fully working.
What the Game Master was up against
The Game Master was manufactured by Hartung and designed to compete with the Nintendo Game Boy. According to Nostalgia Nerd, writing in January 2025, the console was originally an Asian system distributed by Watara before Hartung picked it up and pushed it into European markets. The first European release came in France and Germany sometime in 1990, with Spain, Italy and Portugal following by 1991. The source article notes it also reached the UK, China and other territories, and went by various names along the way, Game Plus, Systema 2000, Super Game and Game Tronic among them.
Hartung’s pitch, as Nostalgia Nerd described it, was straightforward: sell a Game Boy-alike at a lower price in markets where Nintendo had not yet taken hold. The hardware and a limited games library made that difficult, and the machine never found a mainstream audience. Its form factor closely resembles the SEGA Game Gear.
How rare is rare?
The seller is candid about the limits of what can be confirmed. He states that only three examples of this specific Taiwanese variant have been documented, but the Retro Dodo article is equally clear that no factual data exists to verify that figure, and that the true number produced or surviving is unknown. As the seller puts it: ‘There’s only been 3 known to exist that I can find, this is one of them. The best knowledge I could gather was that this could be a Taiwanese exclusive, but it’s unconfirmed for now.’
He also explains the timing of the listing: ‘I wasn’t selling this until next year but I’ve got some unexpected vet bills to pay for, so I’ve listed it now before Christmas.’ The eBay listing is live now for anyone who wants to take a closer look.
