New Release (Hardware)

Pick-Ups – Super Nintendo Classic Edition

Posted by Sega Dude on November 6, 2017
Posted in: Games, Hardware, NES, New Release (Hardware), Nintendo, SNES. Tagged: , , , , . 4 Comments

When the NES Classic Edition launched in November 2016 I was super excited to get one. But I never did… stock was so limited and demand so high that the NES Classic Edition became a scalpers dream. I didn’t want to spend $200 CAD (~$157 USD) on an $80 (~$60 USD) product so I ended up empty handed.

More recently the SNES Classic Edition has launched and again it entirely disappeared before many of us could find one for ourselves. And again ebay, local classifieds and game swaps were the only places to find them but at greatly inflated prices. I felt like I was going to miss out yet again on what appears to be an amazing product. My wife even waited in line at a local brick and mortar shop in the hopes of getting one of the few they just received to surprise me with but she could not. In an age of simplified shopping it’s frustrating to fail so hard.

I was starting to think that Nintendo just wasn’t interested in meeting demand. I feel like the hype is more valuable to Nintendo than the money earned from these products.

So I caved. And I am a bit embarrassed to say I that helped legitimize the flipping trend by participating. On my local classified it was very easy to find the SNES Classic Edition for between $160 and $200 CAD. They are everywhere! So I found a seller that was actually walking distance from me and selling his brand new SNES Classic Edition for $180 CAD (~$140 USD). I sent an offer of $160 (~$125 USD) and said I could pick-up right away. He agreed.

We chatted for a little while and I asked how he got it. He said he pre-ordered two from Bestbuy with the intention of keeping one and selling the other. He told me the pre-orders were sold out in just minutes.

In Canada the retail price for the SNES Classic Edition is $100 CAD (~$78 USD). With tax that’s a total of $113 meaning that I paid a $47 CAD (~$37 USD) premium to get one. Not terrible but I still feel a little dirty.


So, how is the SNES Classic Edition? I don’t know yet. The wife has snatched it from me promising that I’ll get it back this December 25th. She finds it hard to buy for me and this year she wants to give me something that I’ll really like! *I was allowed to borrow it for the photo shoot.


What’s your experience with the NES and SNES Classic Edition? Were you able to find one? Did you have to take a hit to score it? How does it look and play on your HD TV? I would love to hear from anyone who wants to share.

Regarding the NES Classic Edition. There is hope. Nintendo is promising new stock this coming Summer 2018. Be ready!

“NES Classic Edition will return Summer 2018.”

This is Paprium! Rule, be ruled, or die!

Posted by Sega Dude on March 27, 2017
Posted in: Community, Games, Genesis (North America), Hardware, Mega Drive (EURO), Mega Drive (Japanese), New Release (Hardware), SEGA. Tagged: , , , , , . 3 Comments

It’s time to pull that Genesis out of the closet and dust off your Mega Drive. The largest ever Sega Genesis and Sega Mega Drive video game now has an official launch date.

Meet Paprium; the meanest, baddest and biggest post-apocalyptic two player brawler ever to grace the 16-bit era!

Available for pre-order right now at paprium.com for $99 USD for the Limited Edition version or $69 for the Classic Edition (Worldwide shipping included). Both with a release date of September 16, 2017. The limited Edition comes in three flavors; styled after the Sega Genesis, PAL Mega Drive and Japanese Mega Drive. All editions of Paprium are region free and all contain English, Japanese, French, German, Portuguese and Spanish languages.

Update: Shortly after Paprium was made available for pre-order the price was increased for the Limited Edition from $89 USD to $99 USD. The Classic Edition and the Grand Stick have remained the same.

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And what better companion for the ultimate beat ’em all  than an all mighty arcade stick; retailing for $150 USD.


This physical release for the Sega Genesis and Sega Mega Drive is the largest game ever for the system; weighing in at a whopping 80 MEGs.

The game cartridge for PAPRIUM features an integrated DT128M16VA1LT semiconductor. The 16-bit experience has never been so perfect: The features, so rich; The audio, so crisp; The MEG power, so intimidating.

But don’t get lost in the technical mayhem, throw your gaming prowess at multiple game modes, 24 Levels and up to 5 selectable characters! You can play in co-op with one or two simultaneous players.


With some of the finest 16-bit graphics I have ever seen Paprium has built up an immense amount of excitement in the retro video gaming community. I believe we’re looking at an absolute blockbuster. Which will likely become a must own for gamers and collectors.

If somehow you’re not entirely shell-shocked from the above screen shots then you’re ready to dive into the rabbit hole and bear witness to the evolution of 16-bit gaming:

Couldn’t catch the in game tunes in the high intensity trailer? Here’s a better video to sample the outstanding audio:

Planning on purchasing Paprium? Feel free to use any one of the follow digital coupon codes to receive a 10% discount:

9479238 (from Sega Dude)
9385087 (from makinagenesis)
9379000 (from Man-Fa Tang)
10027253 (from Daniel)

(The above codes can be used an unlimited number of times [starting March 28th] by anyone until they expire on April 24, 2017)

Nintendo NES Classic Edition in Stores Now!

Posted by Sega Dude on November 11, 2016
Posted in: Community, Games, Hardware, NES, New Release (Hardware), Nintendo. Tagged: , . 8 Comments

NES Classic Edition Gold

It’s November 11th and the Nintendo NES Classic Edition has been released and it’s in stores now!.. I mean it was in stores. It looks like this instant hit is sold out everywhere.

Last night I went online looking for any signs of pre-orders or where I could buy the NES Classic the next day. I found nothing. When does the Internet ever come up empty? This morning every web site I checked showed the product but none had stock to sell.

At 9:40am EST today I called my local BestBuy and I was told they had 40 NES Classic’s and they were sold out instantly. There was a line-up outside before the store opened. There is no ETA on new stock for BestBuy. However, I was told that the next batch will be eligible to reserve online for in-store pickup.
My wife also spent some time today trying to track down a NES Classic for me. She was checking some of the same big name stores but in different locations and she also came up empty. She still gets full points for trying!

I have exaggerated a bit. I actually did find available stock for the NES Classic for sale. On eBay I found several flippers scalping the NES Classic for about $200 CAD compared to the actual retail price of $80 CAD ($60 USD). For myself personally, those sales aren’t an option.

Here’s my prediction (and recommendation). Nintendo’s production of the NES Classic Edition will catch up to demand. If you want to save a lot of money wait for regular stock to come back. I have not read anywhere that Nintendo is making a limited run of the NES Classic. And for the most part ‘limited’ is just a marketing tactic. Products are only limited to the maximum number of units a company thinks they can sell.

**Update 2017-11-06: It’s been many months with very limited re-stocking of the NES Classic Edition. Re-selling of this gem at greatly inflated prices  has become common place. The NES Classic Edition has been so much harder to get than I first thought it might be. But there is some hope. Nintendo is promising more stock this coming Summer 2018.

“NES Classic Edition will return Summer 2018”

But each to their own. If someone where to pay an inflated price for a NES Classic I cannot say it’s a mistake for them. It’s easy for me to wait. Like many of us retro nuts I already have most of the NES games that I want for my original NES. If you really want to play some great old classic and don’t have any access to the 30 games included in the NES Classic I can understand a heightened desire to dive in right away.

What do you think of Nintendo’s NES Classic Edition? Is it for you? When will you buy?

Courtesy of GameXplain have a listen to the ‘Nintendo Power line’ re-opened for three days only for the launch of the NES Classic Edition. It’s not the same service offered in the 80’s and 90’s but instead you’ll hear a prerecording of game tips for the 30 games included in the NES Classic Edition available to anyone curious enough to call. It will give you a good idea of what this decades old Tips Hot-Line service was all about.

Nintendo Power Line (425) 885-7529 Open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. PT Nov. 11-13, 2016

NES Classic Edition, A Retro Blast from the Past!

Posted by Sega Dude on July 16, 2016
Posted in: Community, Hardware, NES, New Release (Hardware), Nintendo. Tagged: , . 8 Comments

NES Classic Edition Gold
Coming November 11, 2016 Nintendo is giving some real TLC to the console that started their legacy. The NES Classic Edition is a compact Nintendo Entertainment System that supports HDMI for the modern HD TV, comes with one classic NES style joystick and 30 built in games:

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™
You can also purchase a 2nd joystick for 2 player gaming action for any of the 30 titles that support two player modes.
For all the details visit www.nintendo.com/nes-classic.
NES Class Add
What’s extra fascinating about this announcement is that my wife and several of my non-gamer friends (including a neighbor) have discovered this news and have shared it with me. The word has definitely gotten out and a lot of people seemed to be getting very excited for this release. With any luck we’ll see a SNES Classic Edition next! *Click here for SNES Classic Edition.
**Update: 2017-11-06: It’s been very hard to get the NES Classic Edition with limited additional stock disappearing instantly. But there is hope. Nintendo is promising more for this coming Summer 2018.

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NESathon 2K16 HD, Streaming Live June 3rd, 2016

Posted by Sega Dude on June 2, 2016
Posted in: Community, New Release (Hardware). Tagged: , , , , , . 4 Comments

NESATHON 2K16 Banner

During my recent visit to Waterloo for the Waterloo Game Swap I was very pleasantly surprised to find a real live AVS by RetroUSB. If you haven’t heard about the AVS, it’s newly made Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) console created by RetroUSB. It does not use software emulation and offers an HDMI port so you can play your NES games on an HD TV.

Unfortunately is was not for sale. The reason the AVS was at the Waterloo Game Swap was to promote the imminent NESathon 2016 HD. In support of Multiple Sclerosis Research the NESathon will be taking donations during this 50 hour video gaming marathon.

“NESATHON 2K16 HD will take place:
Friday June 3rd at 3:00PM EST and run through until Sunday June 5th!
We will be playing NES games for 50+ hours in HD (thanks retrousb.com) and streaming the whole thing live to raise funds for Multiple Sclerosis Research.”
http://nesathon.blogspot.ca

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CjfzMX2XAAAbNvo.jpg

NESATHON 2K16 Official Trailer

You can find all the details here: nesathon.blogspot.ca

Although it was brief I did get some hands on time with the AVS. I was able to play Super Mario Bros. 3 for about 5 minutes. And during that time my impression of the AVS is that it does as advertised. The image was very clear like you’d expect on an HD display and I did not notice any input lag at all. The instant I pressed the button Mario would jump. Super Mario Bros. 3 seemed to play just as well as it would on an original NES.
I asked (who I believe is) the NE$ Pimp if he’d be willing to turn on scan-lines. He did and there was a very noticeable difference. I do believe I prefer the scan-lines. It really made Super Mario Bros. 3 look more authentic while still being an HD image.

My already elevated excitement for the RetroUSB AVS is climbing higher. I am very eager for news of a release date.

Below are a few pictures I of took at the Waterloo Game Swap including some pictures of the HD AVS.

Check out the line to get into the Waterloo Game Swap! Nintendo Joe and I were about half way when I took this picture. And it did not take long to get in once the doors opened.

Waterloo Game Swap 2016 01

What you see below is not quite half the size of the event floor. Nothing but piles of retro video games everywhere.

Waterloo Game Swap 2016 02

What’s this? The retroUSB AVS?! It was great to get a chance to try it out first hand.

Waterloo Game Swap 2016 03

The photo doesn’t show it off very well but this is Super Mario Bros. 3 is being displayed with scan lines. I really to prefer this option on.

Waterloo Game Swap 2016 04

Now’s your chance to see what the HD AVS can do and see NES games played in glorious HD. Tune in to the NESathon 2016 HD, watch some fellow retro fans play the heck out of the AVS and help a good cause while you’re at it.

 

…I wonder if the NE$ Pimp realizes that he met the Sega Dude?

AVS, the HD NES by retroUSB

Posted by Sega Dude on May 14, 2016
Posted in: Community, Hardware, NES, New Release (Hardware), Nintendo. Tagged: , , , , , , . 7 Comments

AVS Banner 01
The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is an awesome video game console and the only place where there is any room for improvement is in longevity.

Thanks to retroUSB we’re getting exactly that and more.

If you’re a retro Nintendo enthusiast you’re likely to have seen this news all over the Internet. Despite the many third party re-invented Nintendo consoles that we’ve seen appear over the years (such as the Hyperkin Retron 5) the AVS by retroUSB has generated a lot of excitement for me for one very specific reason. It does not use software emulation. Which suggests that the AVS has the potential to perform exactly the same as our original NES consoles; without any of those varied anomalies in visuals and audio that we see with software based emulation.

avsRetroUSB

So why not just stick with your classic and 100% authentic NES Console? Well, you should. Keep that gem in the nerd cave hooked up to that beautiful CRT (Tube) TV. The retroUSB AVS belongs upstairs hooked up to your HD TV via HDMI. This is where longevity kicks in. Slowly old CRT TV’s are disappearing as people continually fail to see their value! Now, thanks to retroUSB we can continue playing the NES in what I’m hoping to be a very authentic way on our modern TVs. With the one exception being vastly improved visuals that composite video used on the original hardware could never deliver.

Below  you’ll see a brief list of the AVS’ features and a video demonstration.

SPECS:
Video: 720p Wide Screen HDMI output, 60Hz (NTSC) and 50Hz (PAL)
Audio: 44.1kHz HDMI output with expansion audio from carts.
Display: Variable pixel scaling including integer options (1:1, 4:3, 5:3) with optional darkness scanlines.
Carts: Front loading NES, Top loading Famicom
Ports: Built in NES Four Score Pro, Famicom Expansion Port
Ports: HDMI Type A for video and audio, USB Mini B for power and data.
Cheats: 5 cheat code slots with built in code database supporting Game Genie, Pro Action Replay, Pro Action Rocky, and raw formats
Online: NA Scoreboard online score system through USB
Updates: Upgrade FPGA configuration and menu system through USB

If you’re an Uber Nerd you know about RGB mods that can very significantly improve the video quality of your original NES.
How does the retroUSB AVS stack up against RGB mods and high quality upscalers? Have a look at this excellent video from My Life in Gaming:

For a time I did own a Retro-Bit Retro DUO but the cheap plastics and imperfect emulation compelled me to sell it and stick with my original NES and SNES. I was very tempted to buy the Retron 5 but I never did. Despite seeing it in action (thanks to Nintendo Joe for the loan!) there were enough… differences (I don’t want to say flaws) that held me back from loving it.

At the moment I am very tempted to buy retroUSB’s AVS. It’s not yet available for sale but I believe there will be more news on a release date closer to the end of June 2016. So far it’s been hinted that the cost of the AVS will be under $200 USD.

Are you tempted? Is the retroUSB AVS for you?