Thank you @Damo for another great article. I really enjoy these features and they're a big reason why I've visited NintendoLife every day for the past 10 years or so.
Patiently waiting for my delayed pre-order of the TG-16 version. If you're on the fence, consider picking this up if only for the inclusion of Castlevania: Rondo of Blood. The original PC Engine version and the SNES port are both very expensive and hard to find these days, and sadly it's too late to download it on the shuttered Wii Virtual Console.
@impurekind you make some great points. Nintendo has been quite litigious of late, so I wouldn't put it past them. However, it's worth noting that Nintendo has left all of the clone console makers alone so far, even though some of their controller designs likely infringe on Nintendo's trademarks.
In the SEGA case you mention, I suspect Nintendo left it alone because any kind of a lawsuit would have led to some very bad p.r. and made them look like sore losers. They took the high road and ultimately won that battle anyway.
Conversely, while SEGA was giving Nintendo the business, Nintendo was furiously suing Atari / Tengen and Blockbuster Video for totally unrelated reasons. I guess that's where their legal energy was focused
@impurekind my understanding is the "fair use" doctrine (not a law per se) does not apply for commercial use. When I worked for a broadcast network, my job duties included ensuring compliance with media usage rights, and while fair use applied to academic and news reporting purposes, it was not considered valid for promotions or advertisements. Either way, we'll see what happens!
The other problem I see here is Polymega / Playmaji's brazen use of game footage in their trailer. Nintendo's lawyers have been on the warpath lately. I will be surprised if they don't run into legal trouble.
I would be delighted if Polymega delivers on its promises, but I am very skeptical. I will wait until actual units are in reviewers' hands before I decide to spend any money on one.
It seems like I have read / heard (can't remember or find where, maybe I'm imagining things) that Nintendo still held some sort of patent over N64 tech that has thus far prevented any clone consoles from emerging. If @DarthNocturnal is correct, that would mean Polymega is either unaware of this, or ignoring it, or I'm completely wrong.
It does seem very strange to me that there are something like a dozen NES and SNES clone consoles, but Hyperkin, Retro-Bit, Analogue, etc. have never attempted a Nintendo 64 HD clone. I'd buy one!
I was cautiously optimistic about the original concept, but I avoided the original crowdfunding campaign over my personal reservations. I'm now convinced this will never happen. Too bad.
True story: This console looks very much like one I "designed" on notebook paper when I was in middle school. It had slots for NES, Super NES, Game Boy, Master System, Genesis, and Atari cartridges. I never thought I'd see a real one, and now there are like a dozen such "consoles".
@ikki5 the Retro VGS would have absolutely no internet connectivity, at all. So, no updates, no patches, no DLC. It's physically impossible. If a game ships with a bug, it's broken forever. If you want DLC... well, you need to buy another cartridge.
Comments 260
Re: Retro-Bit Is Republishing Some Of Toaplan's Best Console Shooters In Physical Form
I'm in. Eating is overrated anyway. Sigh
Re: Feature: How RoboCop's Epic Game Boy Theme Tune Lives On, 30 Years Later
Thank you @Damo for another great article. I really enjoy these features and they're a big reason why I've visited NintendoLife every day for the past 10 years or so.
Re: Hardware Review: PC Engine Mini - Still An Acquired Taste, Even After 30 Years
Patiently waiting for my delayed pre-order of the TG-16 version. If you're on the fence, consider picking this up if only for the inclusion of Castlevania: Rondo of Blood. The original PC Engine version and the SNES port are both very expensive and hard to find these days, and sadly it's too late to download it on the shuttered Wii Virtual Console.
Re: Polymega Launch Trailer Reveals Sega Saturn Support
@impurekind you make some great points. Nintendo has been quite litigious of late, so I wouldn't put it past them. However, it's worth noting that Nintendo has left all of the clone console makers alone so far, even though some of their controller designs likely infringe on Nintendo's trademarks.
In the SEGA case you mention, I suspect Nintendo left it alone because any kind of a lawsuit would have led to some very bad p.r. and made them look like sore losers. They took the high road and ultimately won that battle anyway.
Conversely, while SEGA was giving Nintendo the business, Nintendo was furiously suing Atari / Tengen and Blockbuster Video for totally unrelated reasons. I guess that's where their legal energy was focused
Re: Polymega Launch Trailer Reveals Sega Saturn Support
@impurekind my understanding is the "fair use" doctrine (not a law per se) does not apply for commercial use. When I worked for a broadcast network, my job duties included ensuring compliance with media usage rights, and while fair use applied to academic and news reporting purposes, it was not considered valid for promotions or advertisements. Either way, we'll see what happens!
Re: Polymega Launch Trailer Reveals Sega Saturn Support
The other problem I see here is Polymega / Playmaji's brazen use of game footage in their trailer. Nintendo's lawyers have been on the warpath lately. I will be surprised if they don't run into legal trouble.
I would be delighted if Polymega delivers on its promises, but I am very skeptical. I will wait until actual units are in reviewers' hands before I decide to spend any money on one.
Re: Polymega Launch Trailer Reveals Sega Saturn Support
It seems like I have read / heard (can't remember or find where, maybe I'm imagining things) that Nintendo still held some sort of patent over N64 tech that has thus far prevented any clone consoles from emerging. If @DarthNocturnal is correct, that would mean Polymega is either unaware of this, or ignoring it, or I'm completely wrong.
It does seem very strange to me that there are something like a dozen NES and SNES clone consoles, but Hyperkin, Retro-Bit, Analogue, etc. have never attempted a Nintendo 64 HD clone. I'd buy one!
Re: Coleco Chameleon's Future In Doubt Following Claims That SNES Hardware Was Used In Prototype
I was cautiously optimistic about the original concept, but I avoided the original crowdfunding campaign over my personal reservations. I'm now convinced this will never happen. Too bad.
Re: Hardware Review: Cyber Gadget Retro Freak
True story: This console looks very much like one I "designed" on notebook paper when I was in middle school. It had slots for NES, Super NES, Game Boy, Master System, Genesis, and Atari cartridges. I never thought I'd see a real one, and now there are like a dozen such "consoles".
Re: Retro VGS Crowdfunding Campaign "Dead In The Water" But Work Will Continue
@ikki5 the Retro VGS would have absolutely no internet connectivity, at all. So, no updates, no patches, no DLC. It's physically impossible. If a game ships with a bug, it's broken forever. If you want DLC... well, you need to buy another cartridge.