Those Famiclones

[+kisrael]

By Famiclones, you mean those 87-in-one (or whatever) NES games in a N64 looking controller you see at the mall these days? Why doesn't Nintendo come layeth down the legal smack on those? Are they licensed in any way?

[MegaManFan]

They couldn't possibly be. They're cheaply made, work like shit, and usually the "games" are all variations of the same 20-30 titles starting at different levels, and by and large all date back to Super Mario Bros. or earlier.

[+kisrael]

They couldn't possibly be.  They're cheaply made, work like shit, and usually the "games" are all variations of the same 20-30 titles starting at different levels, and by and large all date back to Super Mario Bros. or earlier.

That's what I'd guess, but then, why isn't Nintendo in full righteous lawyer mode? These things are in every frickin' mall...

[raindog]

I don't get it either.... maybe they're made by a licensee in another country and are therefore grey-market, not black market. Or maybe Nintendo wanted a piece of the "games in a stick" market and is actually getting a piece of this action.

 

I seriously doubt it though. Even if that were true, Jakks could sue them because nearly all of them include Pac-Man and I'm sure Jakks has exclusive rights to Pac-Man for "videogame systems without cartridges" or whatever.

[Mock]

I have one of those carts...if i had an adapter i would try it out in an NES...has anyone else done this and do they work?

 

I have a stack of NES carts in the basement, does anyone remember the link to the carts that had the adapters in them? Might look to see if I have one...doubt it but I can look.

 

I tried to search for the link here but I got a bunch of off topic related stuff

 

[+kisrael]

You mean, like, there's the equivalent of a single NES cart in there that might be pluggable into a real NES? Huh. (Oh I guess it makes sense, the menu looks relatively NES-like...I just hadn't thought of it as possibly a "single ROM" of sorts...)

[JB]

You mean, like, there's the equivalent of a single NES cart in there that might be pluggable into a real NES? Huh. (Oh I guess it makes sense, the menu looks relatively NES-like...I just hadn't thought of it as possibly a "single ROM" of sorts...)

Precisely.

 

The cart-based famiclones come with a normal cart, aside from the fact that the bank-switching hardware is decidedly NOT one of the chips used by the licensed developers.

 

All-in-one units just have the cart built onto the motherboard.

I would bet that hypothetically you could add a cart slot onto them for soemthing more useful.

[Trip_Cannon]

My guess would be that the cost to track down these fly by night manufactors, slap a lawsuit on them, fight them in court, and then have them claim bankruptcy and start up all over again as something else probably just isn't worth it to Nintendo at this point when they're fighting for air in the market against MSoft. And these products come from all over the world so it would be tough to fight these people in court and get a fair shake from it.

[+kisrael]

My guess would be that the cost to track down these fly by night manufactors, slap a lawsuit on them, fight them in court, and then have them claim bankruptcy and start up all over again as something else probably just isn't worth it to Nintendo at this point when they're fighting for air in the market against MSoft. And these products come from all over the world so it would be tough to fight these people in court and get a fair shake from it.

You think it would be pretty damn easy to bust the retailers...I mean, those little vending carts aren't fixed addresses or nothin', but they're obviously licensed by the malls, and I'm sure a mall staff is pretty frickin' lawsuit adverse so a nastygram would do wonders...I mean, it seems so consistent, like one per mall...

[Radio F Software]

Oddly, the 2 malls in Corpus Christi: Sunrise and Parde Staples don't have those veders. The CC Trade Center does though.

[Godzilla]

i just love how they all boldly claim '9,034,345,346,876,867 game in one fun!' or something like that.cracks me up everytime I see them. Another intersting thing is a lot of the ones I see never have a price posted.

[+kisrael]

i just love how they all boldly claim '9,034,345,346,876,867 game in one fun!' or something like that.cracks me up everytime I see them. Another intersting thing is a lot of the ones I see never have a price posted.

Huh, yeah, I was wondering how much they were going for.

[raindog]

At the mall vendors I'm thinking it's a haggle type of situation.

[JB]

i just love how they all boldly claim '9,034,345,346,876,867 game in one fun!' or something like that.cracks me up everytime I see them. Another intersting thing is a lot of the ones I see never have a price posted.

Huh, yeah, I was wondering how much they were going for.

5 cents a game, of course...

[+kisrael]

At the mall vendors I'm thinking it's a haggle type of situation.

God, seriously? Anyone know the range in general they expect?

 

You know, just the other day when I walked past one and got accosted by the vendor (who wanted to massage my scalp or something) it occurs to me that those carts really making malling into a third-world-feeling experience...so loud and pushy to passerbys, it's really not how retail has traditionally been done in this country. AFAIK.

[MegaManFan]

Last year around Christmas time they wanted $40-$45 for one at the malls around here, which I thought was excessive. Now I hear some are trying to charge $75 - and I say GOOD LUCK.

[+kisrael]

Last year around Christmas time they wanted $40-$45 for one at the malls around here, which I thought was excessive.  Now I hear some are trying to charge $75 - and I say GOOD LUCK.

hahaha, seriously? Damn. I was thinking 20-30 tops.

 

They're trying to "value add" w/ the light gun and what not, but still...what a joke.

[raindog]

You know, just the other day when I walked past one and got accosted by the vendor (who wanted to massage my scalp or something) it occurs to me that those carts really making malling into a third-world-feeling experience...so loud and pushy to passerbys, it's really not how retail has traditionally been done in this country. AFAIK.

Yeah, I got the "run up and throw a warm, smelly thing on your neck" treatment at the mall not too long ago myself by one of those cart people, I think I mentioned it in another thread on here. I would agree that it's like some kind of third world thing except that there's like 2 or 3 of each kind of cart in the mall and I get the distinct impression the same people run all of them.

 

It's like the pushiness of a bazaar crossed with the chintziness of a chain.

[+kisrael]

Well, Nintendo has begun cracking down:

http://yahoo.reuters.com/financeQuoteCompa...01669718_newsml

[raindog]

Well, glad I bought my 2 units last year then