Nintendo Classic Mini announced

[CatPix]

Huh, guess I had bad information. How do you like the unit? I've thought a few times about getting one, I like the idea that the Everdrive works on it. I know it stretches the games abit, but is that a big deal? I don't know if I feel like backlighting a Gameboy Colour, so getting what is essentially a pre-backlit one might be better.

 

And to stay on topic, there's no information about how long these might be sold. I imagine as long as the demand is there, they'll be available for sale.

I like it. But I never owned a GBC, only a brck Game Boy, so I can't compare both.

The built quality is decent. The D-pad and action buttons are a bit "gummy" but this isn't as bad as the Master System pads if you know those. The screen ratio is stretched, but so far I havent' noticed it in games. It's not 4/3 to 16/9 stretching. The LCD is of decent quality, no ghosting, no tearing, nothing odd or out of place. The clco kspeed is slightly off so game and music run at a superior speed, but again, not by a huge marging.

I successfully transferred data with the Game Link cable between two Pokemon carts, the second one being into a Game Boy Advance so it's compatible enough to support this at least.

The mains defaults would be that the inner speaker is wired only to one channel, so unless you play with earbuds, you'll be missing some music or sounds in several games, and the plastic facade protecting the screen is very poorly resistant and will catch scratches in seconds.

I use mine with the Everdrive which is know to draw more pwoer than a real cart, and I get about 12/14 hours of gameplay out of two R6 batteries, and 10/12 hours out of two 2500Mah R6 rechargeable batteries.

 

Random comparison pics of real GBC and the GB Boy :

 

 

Bottomline : I like it for that I get to play GB and GBA games on the go with a GB looking device with the advantage of a decent backlit screen. If you do'nt wanna use a SP or mod a GBC, it's a decent tradeoff. Or if you're like me and fidn the GBA SP too small for our big adult hands.

Edited July 15, 2016 by CatPix

[TPA5]

 

Hmm, I see that you sell reproduction cartridges on your Etsy site.

 

 

 

Hopefully this thread won't "speculate" until november, there's not much we don't know aside the quality and how it looks on a TV, menu screenshots that kind of thing.

 

Spent any time in the Coleco Chameleon thread? Speculation is the life-giver around here.

 

 

I like it. But I never owned a GBC, only a brck Game Boy, so I can't compare both.

The built quality is decent. The D-pad and action buttons are a bit "gummy" but this isn't as bad as the Master System pads if you know those. The screen ratio is stretched, but so far I havent' noticed it in games. It's not 4/3 to 16/9 stretching. The LCD is of decent quality, no ghosting, no tearing, nothing odd or out of place. The clco kspeed is slightly off so game and music run at a superior speed, but again, not by a huge marging.

I successfully transferred data with the Game Link cable between two Pokemon carts, the second one being into a Game Boy Advance so it's compatible enough to support this at least.

The mains defaults would be that the inner speaker is wired only to one channel, so unless you play with earbuds, you'll be missing some music or sounds in several games, and the plastic facade protecting the screen is very poorly resistant and will catch scratches in seconds.

I use mine with the Everdrive which is know to draw more pwoer than a real cart, and I get about 12/14 hours of gameplay out of two R6 batteries, and 10/12 hours out of two 2500Mah R6 rechargeable batteries.

 

Bottomline : I like it for that I get to play GB and GBA games on the go with a GB looking device with the advantage of a decent backlit screen. If you do'nt wanna use a SP or mod a GBC, it's a decent tradeoff. Or if you're like me and fidn the GBA SP too small for our big adult hands.

 

Thanks for the review, with how inexpensive they are I might pick one up to use with an Everdrive. Though if I had a choice I'd like a lit Gameboy Colour, I really like that form-factor (well, and of course nostalgia).

[Flojomojo]

If you're considering clone GB hardware, I'd also think about the K101. It's sideways like the original GBA, and plays GBA games, both on ROM and on cartridge. I'm not sure if it can do GB/GBC cartridges, but it can certainly emulate them. http://www.k1gbasp.com

[almightytodd]

Well, I've got a Flashback 2 & 4; a Flashback Intellivision; and an off-brand NOAC plug-and-play with a bunch of look-alike games... ...so this would seem like an appropriate addition. I'm curious about the HDMI output though - this is the main departure from all of the other "Flashback-style" devices. The up-scaling implementation needs to be done right so that it doesn't interfere with game-play. Some video-options would be nice; like those offered by the Stella emulator. It looks like whoever makes the Analogue Nt has figured out how to do it right; albeit at a somewhat excessive price.

Edited July 15, 2016 by almightytodd

[FifthPlayer]

A thought on powering this thing: most HDMI-compatible TVs have USB ports, right? I hope they include some instructions that point to that. I assume they left the power adapter out so this could be a universal package to be sold in every territory, keeping costs low.

 

It's there at the very end of the official Nintendo announcement:

 

 

*Note that an AC adapter for the USB cable is required to play the system but is not included in the packaging.

 

[Flojomojo]

Right, I know the plug won't be there. What I was trying to say was, I hope they point to the possibility of using a powered USB port on a monitor or TV set.

[phoenixdownita]

Spent any time in the Coleco Chameleon thread? Speculation is the life-giver around here.

Yeah a fair bit, trying not to repeat it. At least this time there are no cartridges, nothing at all, so what's to speculate?

If N would make a SNES version? Sure if they make money with this why not?

If the other players may be in for a spin? Sure they are but again unless big N "creates" a big market for this sort of things it may not change much in the end.

 

At this point aside some screenshot of the menu/selection process and how the actual games look like in HDMI glory, there really isn't much to speculate, we know the games, the size of the thing, the price, that it comes with 1 ctrl but they sell more for 10US$, no power supply but USB charging cable, we can see pictures of it (I guess that's how it'll look like in the end .... or so I think).

[roland p]

It looks like whoever makes the Analogue Nt has figured out how to do it right; albeit at a somewhat excessive price.

That's atariage user 'kevtris', who is also working on the 'Zimba 3000'

[Flojomojo]

Do you like old video games? Do you like lazy, click-whoring journalism? The 1990s console wars are back!

 

Junk journalism calling the AtGames Genesis "crappy" no less than 4 times and says it can't compete with the polish of the new NES, though the author has obviously never touched either one

http://www.morningnewsusa.com/mini-sega-genesis-review-tiny-nintendo-nes-better-2390257.html

 

That referenced this equally garbage Verge piece that says "there's a general sense of Sega demise sadness permeating the plastic"

http://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2016/7/14/12188316/nintendo-tiny-nes-mini-atgames-sega-genesis-amazon

[icemanxp300]

Come on why did you have to go and let my secret out of the bag that I sell reproductions.

 

I knew I messed up making a thread promoting them in the marketplace and adding my etsy site to my profile links.

 

http://atariage.com/forums/topic/215394-just-made-a-mega-man-3-clock-nes-8-bit-style/page-2?hl=%2Breproduction&do=findComment&comment=3278737

 

Now what am I going to do?

 

Aside from stating the obvious, me selling reproductions has nothing to do w/me wanting Nintendo to release the games in a manner that we can play them legally for a reasonable price. Right now the only way to play these games other than going in debt is by illegal methods.

[Flojomojo]

Who am I to care about your copyright infringing things that you sell for forty bucks a pop? While you lecture me about the "only way to play these games other than going into debt is by illegal methods?"

 

What annoyed me was your bitching about Nintendo's selection of embedded games on their $60 toy.

 

I think a selection of excellent games, at $2 each, is a more than reasonable price.

[S1500]

So I guess finally Nintendo made their own xxx-in-1 famiclone, while unknown companies have been making unofficial knockoffs(HyperJoy,etc) for years. Heh.

[Flojomojo]

Thanks for the clarification.

 

I'm curious which of these games are currently available for Nintendo's "Virtual Console" and how much they would cost if you bought them all?

 

$150 plus the cost of a Wii, because they're all in the Wii eShop for $5 each. Slightly less if you go on 3DS or Wii U because not all games are available there. So two bucks a game plus a free controller is the price of entry. Not bad from where I sit.

[TPA5]

Who am I to care about your copyright infringing things that you sell for forty bucks a pop? While you lecture me about the "only way to play these games other than going into debt is by illegal methods?"

 

What annoyed me was your bitching about Nintendo's selection of embedded games on their $60 toy.

 

I think a selection of excellent games, at $2 each, is a more than reasonable price.

 

Maybe he's worried repro prices will go down

 

Pot, meet kettle....

 

On topic: I also hope this could be powered by the USB port on my TV, that would make things a little tidier. Another interesting thing this console may allow is some neat case-hacking to make a portable version of it. Depending on what the board inside looks like, it could be a fun project to take one and turn it into a handheld unit. Not that there's much point to it, as there's a bunch of ways to play these games on the go as it is but it's more for the hell of it that anything else.

[Flojomojo]

If you have a small TV (so don't need to sit too far back) and the controller cables are long, it would be nice to power this from the TV. On a big TV, I'd want to sit waaaaaay back, so a long HDMI cable would be preferable. I'm thinking I might get one of these to play over lunch break at the office. Cables are fine in that setting.

 

I like the idea of a handheld, too. It would probably be better if Nintendo themselves made it, maybe in a folding clamshell design we know and love. Maybe that's coming later. I'm curious how big the internal board is, and how much of that case is just to spread out the input jacks. The Atari/Sega/Coleco/Intellivision Flashbacks are mostly air.

 

This is the inside of the Atari Flashback 5, for example.

[Bill Loguidice]

On topic: I also hope this could be powered by the USB port on my TV, that would make things a little tidier. Another interesting thing this console may allow is some neat case-hacking to make a portable version of it. Depending on what the board inside looks like, it could be a fun project to take one and turn it into a handheld unit. Not that there's much point to it, as there's a bunch of ways to play these games on the go as it is but it's more for the hell of it that anything else.

 

It would seem strange to me if it couldn't be powered over most USB ports. If it couldn't, I would think they would have to include an adapter. The lack of an adapter is telling (and yes, I know they did that with the New 3DS XL, which I have, but that's a different situation).

[Flojomojo]

It would seem strange to me if it couldn't be powered over most USB ports. If it couldn't, I would think they would have to include an adapter. The lack of an adapter is telling (and yes, I know they did that with the New 3DS XL, which I have, but that's a different situation).

 

I anticipate a single worldwide SKU with multilingual packaging. I hope it's not a sign of them cheaping out. I guess we'll find out on 11/11.

 

Too bad there's not a 16th month so they could do 16/16/16.

[CatPix]

Reminds me that I was slighty dissapointed with the Zelda Skyward Sword packaging, that is PLASTERED with various European PEGI equivalent. I especially hate the German USK seal that take like 1/4 of the disk surface.

For the lack of power supply, this is apparently the application of an EU directive. It's not a bad idea... but IMO, they should enforce items to have a standard plugging port, and using USB is a decent step.

Because you can't use any USB thing to recharge your New 3DS. And please, I'm blasting 220€for a New 3DS, at least have the decency to include a coupon or something inside the bow that allow me to get a free charger if I need one...

[phoenixdownita]

Maybe they just have a "GBA with HDMI output" in there and they reused their own Famicom Mini SW work of yesteryears?

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Classic_NES_Series_games

 

I mean to say they likely are using an ARM based solution with whatever "advanced"/inhouse emulation they want ..... if the fidelity is high I don't mind, let's watch out for out of pitch audio

[Flojomojo]

Unlikely -- the GBA has fewer vertical lines of resolution, so the NES Classics were squished in an ugly way. We don't want that.

[thegamezmaster]

I have a few questions that maybe someone could help with. How would this be played on an older crt TV? Second will this be available for preorder or just when it comes out 11/11/16? Thanks for any help with these!

[phoenixdownita]

I have a few questions that maybe someone could help with. How would this be played on an older crt TV? Second will this be available for preorder or just when it comes out 11/11/16? Thanks for any help with these!

Like everything else that has only HDMI out, with an HDMI to AV or HDMI to Component or HDMI to Scart converter (you get to chose the one you need given you pay for it).

Amazon is not taking preorders so I guess we'll have to wait to preorder, if at all.

[Austin]

I'm personally skeptical of this being repurposed or revamped Wii or 3DS technology mostly because of the HDMI output and the resolution requirements. It might be more expensive than it's worth to re-engineer that technology when there are inexpensive ARM-based setups they can re-purpose for their needs, particularly since this is just regular emulation we're almost certainly talking about here. I would think the controller connectors are not that big of a deal either on a setup like that for them since it's their own tech and there are obvious advantages to making them "proprietary". With that said, if it's not something like that, I'd be more inclined to believe it's scaled back Wii U technology than either Wii or 3DS since they'd arguably have fewer steps to take to make it do what they needed.

 

I don't think the HDMI output or resolution requirements would be an issue and I highly doubt much if any re-engineering would have to be done. For one, who's to say it's not just going to be 720p? Console hardware prior to the Wii were capable of 720p (XBOX, for instance). While the Wii was locked at 640x480, that doesn't mean the hardware can't handle better. On a side note, upscaler aficionados know that 1080p doesn't provide a noticeable increase in quality for NES games over 720p, so supporting higher would be redundant from a quality standpoint.

 

Of course this is purely speculation right now. But, I do think it's fairly sound. The Wii Mini was $100 at retail and still had a disc drive. Take that out, and you might have a platform that could be sold for $60 like this NES mini. Why create brand new hardware for this, concoct new emulators and potentially sacrifice quality when you don't have to? All of these games are already on the Wii Virtual Console, so it makes perfect sense. Like others have said, I'll be thoroughly interested to see what this looks like on the inside once it's made available.

[thegamezmaster]

Like everything else that has only HDMI out, with an HDMI to AV or HDMI to Component or HDMI to Scart converter (you get to chose the one you need given you pay for it).

Amazon is not taking preorders so I guess we'll have to wait to preorder, if at all.

 

Thanks for the help!

[mstulir]

 

I don't think the HDMI output or resolution requirements would be an issue and I highly doubt much if any re-engineering would have to be done. For one, who's to say it's not just going to be 720p? Console hardware prior to the Wii were capable of 720p (XBOX, for instance). While the Wii was locked at 640x480, that doesn't mean the hardware can't handle better. On a side note, upscaler aficionados know that 1080p doesn't provide a noticeable increase in quality for NES games over 720p, so supporting higher would be redundant from a quality standpoint.

 

While I did not make it crystal clear in my comments above regarding modifying 3DS or Wii hardware for this purpose, I would have to assume we would be looking at 720p as the output resolution. Austin, you are correct about upscaling & the minimal re-engineering of existing technology to make it work. There would be very little here to be changed. In the case of the 3DS, the core software already supports almost all of the included games. Also, the core hardware supports what is needed for HD.....it is just not being used.

 

Many consider the Virtual Console emulation to be adequate. Reinventing the wheel to make this new device would not just be silly, but economically impractical.