Thursday, July 14

Surprise: Nintendo’s next console is the NES

Let this tiny box transport you to a time when you didn't have a job, mortgage, and loud children to distract you.

After years spent letting the software-based Virtual Console largely rot on its vine, Nintendo is trying to cash in on its nostalgia-filled back catalog with a new piece of old hardware. The NES Classic Edition, announced today, is a palm-sized, HDMI-equipped re-release of the '80s console that will launch on November 11, preloaded with 30 games for $59.99.

“We wanted to give fans of all ages the opportunity to revisit Nintendo’s original system and rediscover why they fell in love with Nintendo in the first place,” Nintendo of America President and COO Reggie Fils-Aime said in a statement. “The Nintendo Entertainment System: NES Classic Edition is ideal for anyone who remembers playing the NES, or who wants to pass on those nostalgic memories to the next generation of gamers.”

Nintendo hasn't said much about the underlying hardware powering the re-release, but it doesn't sound like the new system will be exactly the same as the original. For one thing, the announcement makes no mention of the ability to plug in old NES game cartridges, even though pictures show a familiar, cartridge slot dust-cover styled on the system's boxy case. For another, Nintendo says that "each game has multiple suspend points, so you can start where you left off at a later time, no passwords needed," suggesting that some sort of virtualized, emulated version of the underlying games is being used.

Read 4 remaining paragraphs | Comments

No comments:

Post a Comment