As of today, Nintendo has announced a Mini NES micro console, releasing on November 11th and coming bundled with 30 games and a controller. America has a price of around $60, so barring the pound falling any further, I’d have wagered a £40-50 price tag.
This feels like those terrible knock off cartridges you saw in the back of magazines that came with 100 games, where 3 were fine, and the remaining 97 were terrible knock offs. So this is hardly ground breaking territory.
No need to worry though, this seems to have Nintendo quality behind it, with the selection of games seeming excellent. All of the main line games that began on the NES are there, plus some classic non first party games like Castlevania, Double Dragon 2 and Final Fantasy.
The full list is:
Balloon Fight
BUBBLE BOBBLE
Castlevania™
Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest™
Donkey Kong
Donkey Kong Jr.
DOUBLE DRAGON II: THE REVENGE
Dr. Mario
Excitebike
FINAL FANTASY®
Galaga™
GHOSTS‘N GOBLINS™
GRADIUS™
Ice Climber
Kid Icarus
Kirby’s Adventure
Mario Bros.
MEGA MAN™ 2
Metroid
NINJA GAIDEN®
PAC-MAN™
Punch-Out!! Featuring Mr. Dream
StarTropics
SUPER C™
Super Mario Bros.
Super Mario Bros. 2
Super Mario Bros. 3
Tecmo Bowl™
The Legend of Zelda
Zelda II: The Adventure of Link.
However, this isn’t a true NES, with the games appearing to be virtual console re-releases through an emulator. The box is just a casing. The benefit of this though is that the machine is only powered by a USB cable, and will be running everything to any standard screen with a HDMI port. No more need for searching for adapters.
In terms of controllers, a new NES controller is shipping alongside it, though the machine seems designed to fit the controllers that should attach to a Wii remote nunchuk port. So the Classic controller and Wii Pro controller will work too. And games that allow Co-op are going to work with both controller ports.
Honestly, I never had a NES. That was a little before my time. My first Nintendo Game was Super Mario Bros Deluxe on my gameboy colour. So for me, this is a handy way to pick up something neat and compact that can compile all those classic experiences.
Even more than that, this is the perfect device for introducing people to those classic games. No faffing about with cables and weird controllers as you try and go through virtual storefronts. Just plug, play and enjoy.
Obviously, this is Nintendo’s solution to their drought of WiiU games for the holiday season. And honestly, it’s not even that bad an idea, keeping their brand in people’s minds, and refreshing their memories of those classic games before the NX launches in early 2017.