GameStop Is Selling An Exclusive ModRetro Chromatic

Very cool. I'm so close to ordering one of these.

There's just something special about old consoles that are so pure and that cuts out all the faff and fuss of modern systems: No day-one patches, no online accounts, no setting up avatars, no EULAs, no "social" media integration, no long load times for the games to simply start, no over-designed home environments and menus to navigate, no having to install and link up to smartphone apps just to get some things working properly (I'm looking at you Meta Quest 3), no micro transactions or loot crates, physical boxes and manuals you can actually touch and smell, you actually get to own your games properly for all time, etc.

Now all the guy needs to do is make some ModRetro SNES console like this, as well as support it with proper brand new SNES titles too as he has done for the Chromatic, and I'd be all over that in a heartbeat. 😃🤤

What did this guy sell his soul or something? How is this thing even getting traction? It's like an analog pocket but ugly and stupid and generally less useful.

Wow, you guys are really pushing this thing.

@Peteykins Kinda makes sense given then website's entire schtick is all things retro gaming in modern times. If the ModRetro Chromatic doesn't epitomize the idea of "Time Extension", nothing really does.

all I can think about now is getting screened for cancer.

Crazy that they are such big fans of Germany

Really cool machine but I can't justify the price with the $200 analogue pocket still available on the market, not only it can play gba games but the screen is way better and it can play others titles too including arcade games and other retro consoles.

@Damo Good job on the website, time extension is my daily reads for gaming news nowadays, excluding nintendo and indie I'm way more interested in retro stuff rather than the current gaming landscape 😃

The decals on this thing really rub me the wrong way. Hideous.

@gingerbeardman Me too with the coloured ones, and even this white one a little. But I think the black model looks totally fine. They do give it more of an '80s/'90s retro vibe though, I guess.

If only it was cheaper, at that price I'd rather get a more versatile Analogue Pocket

I do like the idea of this, but I won’t be preordering one until I see real reviews, by which point they may be unavailable. Oh well.

Those wondering what’s the point of this compared to the Anologue Pocket, I’d say it has its own niche. It actually looks and (I guess) feels like a real Game Boy, and the screen sounds like it will look like an idealised version of the original. We don’t all want ultra super HD 4K screens for playing retro games, I’d much prefer one that’s more authentic. And the batteries. More modern gaming devices should take AA or AAA batteries. I have a few original GBA SPs and their battery life is rubbish. I’ve bought brand new after market ones and they’re just as rubbish brand new, and they don’t even fit properly. Same with my DS Lites. All the batteries in our Switches, Anologue Pockets and so on are going to be rubbish in 10 years time and we’re not going to be able to replace them. AA and AAA batteries have stayed the same for decades!

Rant over.

@RetroGames sorry, I can't rationalize any of them. Just garish compared to the understated sophistication of Nintendo devices or even the form over function of Analogue devices.

@Azuris Palmer Lucky is just a big fan of 1920-1945 Germany. 😏

@LioKizer I thought that was well!

@gingerbeardman That's fine and your opinion.

I'd certainly be totally fine owning the black model, which I think has a great balance of a more retro "toy" gaming device like those old handhelds were and a modern take on that.

For example, I actually think the Analogue Pocket looks too bland and clean, such that it come across more like some poncy businessman PDA or hipster Apple device than a fun handheld games console imo. I'd be scared of getting fingerprints on the Analogue Pocket and that the screen might shatter at the slightest drop. But I would be able to play a device like the Chromatic with no such worries. And I'm really not a fan of none of the buttons having any labels and everything being a single colour on the Analogue Pocket either, which makes it almost look like an unfinished prototype mold to me, even as clearly slick and expensive as it looks.

So the ModRetro Chromatic appeals to me because it feels more whimsical and playful yet still clearly very well put together and high quality at the same time, and also because of how just simple and pure it is as a device and experience. That's something I miss from classic games consoles like the SNES, Genesis, GB/GBC/GBA, etc.

But that's just my personal take.

You guys are hilarious. Those colors are clearly GameStop's colors. Just look at the picture where it's in front of the GameStop store where you can clearly see the logo. It makes sense since it's a GameStop EXCLUSIVE device.

You're all like "Palmer Lucky must be a big fan of 1940s Germany, Herp Derp."

JFC.

Wait, GameStop sells games?

@Bonggon5 Well, that's my take on it based on how it looks. It is what it is.

@RetroGames I agree with you about Analogue Pocket, that's what I was trying to convey with "form over function".

I'm looking forward to reviews of the Chromatic once it's in hand. Let's see!

Can we all just collectively agree to not give Gamestop any money or publicity, please? Let them drown in their mountains of poor decisions and die the death they should have years ago.

I'd get one, but for years their site always throws an "access denied" error. Sucks for them.