Guide to Import gaming; The Nintendo Famicom

This week we’re going back to one of the greatest years for consumer technology; 1983.  During which the world received its first Compaq IBM computer, was introduced to the arcade game Mario Bros, and more importantly, the year Nintendo released the Family Computer.  The Famicom arguably provided the spark which led to Japan becoming the worlds greatest gaming mecca, attracting thousands of passionate enthusiasts every year.

With its sharp corners, its red, white, and gold colour scheme, and hard wired controllers the Family Computer (Famicom) screams retro-ness

Two years after the Famicom’s release, North Americans were introduced to the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), however little New Zealand wouldn’t see the PAL NES until 1987!  As we all well know in its day the NES didn’t fare well in the PAL regions, losing out to Sega’s Master System which has now resulted in collectors having to have deep pockets to pay for their precious carts.  I for one refuse to pay the current rates for NES games, instead opting to concentrate on developing a concise and well respected Famicom collection.  Yes, 90% of the Famicom games I own were bought in Japan, however, even from New Zealand I still see opportunities to grab epic games at great prices.

The hardware

Similar in size but very different in styling. The decision to loose the concave A and B buttons for the AV Famicom has resulted in disappointed purists

The Famicom is something special when compared with consoles of today.  It was so successful in the Japanese market Nintendo saw the benefit in releasing a revised model in 1993 that did away with the rf modulator and hardwired controllers, instead offering a composite AV connection and dog bone designed pads.  The original Famicom has its use as a great shelf-piece; however it’s the AV Famicom that you definitely want to game on and is without a doubt worth paying that little extra for.  Both consoles are dwarfed by the over sized NES and only take up a small amount of cabinet real estate.

If you must have the original model I would recommend hunting out something that hasn’t turned tobacco yellow.  Sure there’s ways of getting rid of the yellow, however you’re not going to be left an original looking console.  There are often “junk” consoles that make it onto ebay and be aware, there’s a reason why they are sold as junk.  Not only are the often discoloured beyond belief, many suffer from problems such as worn buttons, faulty connectors, or simply don’t work.  It’s well worth spending the extra on something that has been tested and doesn’t look like it’s been pissed on every day for the past 10 years.

As mentioned earlier, the AV Famicom was updated where it needed updating, and is a must have for any serious Famicom gamer.  These units are readily available boxed and strangely enough Nintendo released them without AC adapters.  This isn’t a huge loss, as bizarre as it sounds the original Sega Mega Drive 1 power supply will do the job and negates the need for a step-down transformer.

The Software

Like the NES, Famicom games came in cardboard boxes which can mean complete games demand premium prices.  However, unlike the NES the Famicom was owned by Japanese gamers who obviously take much better care of their games, resulting in more complete games being available at better prices.  It’s not only boxed games which are available at decent prices, Famicom carts are a dime-a-dozen in Japan with most retro-gaming stores having a dedicated bin full of carts priced at 100 yen (about $1!).  Don’t expect to find such prices online, however the prices of the must have games will definitely see you amass a worthy collection a lot earlier than shopping for NES games.

The cosmetic differences between the NES, Famicom, and their carts is obvious, however after spending sometime exploring the Famicoms library the real differences become obvious.  In its time Nintendo wanted to be seen as the “family friendly” system and directed its marketing towards children, and as such enforced a strict policy of censoring sexual, religious, and profanity in games.  Coupled with its long sales life in Japan, owning a Famicom is not only going to give you access to affordable versions of Ninja Gaiden, Megaman (Rockman), Contra, and TMNT, it will open you’re world to a whole range of games NES players have never heard of, such as: Wai Wai World, Devil world, Youkai Douchuki, Demon Castle Special: I’m Kid Dracula, Parodius Da!, and Splatterhouse Wanpaku Graffiti.

So, why not?

One of the biggest drawbacks of owning Japanese released games is definitely the language barrier, although it’s often not as prominent as people initially think.  I’ve discovered that many games actually have English menus and some go as far as having in-game text in English.  Provided you’re somewhat like me and not a fan of RPGs, there will be no trouble enjoy the Famicoms range of platform, shooter, puzzle, and run-and-gun games.

Tell me more..

Now, I hear you all asking where should I buy Famicom games.  Well there is quite a range of websites which sell Japanese games and most of which have a worthy range of Famicom titles.  Expect to pay more for boxed, however if you can live without instructions you can definitely save a few bob.  My main problem with the websites I’ve come across is their postage charges, which are often excessive.  In reality a Famicom cart shouldn’t cost the seller more than 5USD to send to New Zealand, Australia, or the UK. This may surprise a few of you but ebay is a great place to score Famicom games and awesome prices.  There are a number of Japanese sellers who are literally constantly listing games for a wide range of platforms as auctions.  It may involve setting phone reminders and taking impromptu breaks from work (or sleep), however in my experience postage is always fair and depending on how many other bidders there are bargains can definitely be found.

Final Tips:

• Find out how a seller charges for combined postage.  Some let you shop and give you an actual total when you ask for an invoice while others may let you continue to shop and half the postage of each additional item.
• Most Japanese game and thrift stores have shrink wrap machines and shrink wrap their retro-game stock.  I would never buy a supposedly factory sealed Japanese released game, the risk its a reseal is just too high.
• When dealing with less experienced sellers make sure they understand that New Zealand accepts Small Packet SAL postage.  Packages can weigh up to 2kg, with 2kgs costing roughly 24NZD  to send.  Expect to wait 10-14 days.
• Have fun!  This is what its all about isn’t it..

Realising that Quality is better than Quantity

About a month ago I wrote a post which centred on the fact that having a large collection often results in choice overload.  Since then I have been taking a hard look at what I’ve got and reassessing my collecting goals.

In the Beginning:

Like most retro-gamers, nostalgia led me to initially pursue Master System and Mega Drive titles I had played as a kid.  With only 269 odd PAL titles and living in a country that saw continued sales of later released games, completing the PAL Master System library was going to be a realistic goal.  During the early days I did pick up an Xbox, PS2, and N64 which enabled me to buy the odd title I had been longing to play, but my allegiance was primarily with the original system I had owned as a kid; the mighty Master System.

And then..

12 months of collecting in Japan!

Unlike most retro-gamers, in late 2013 I was fortunate enough to head to gaming heaven; Japan.  This wasn’t a flying visit where I would sightseeing for a week or two, this was going to be for a year, yes a whole year!  My original collecting plans were to concentrate on developing my Mega Drive collection as I was often frustrated with overpriced and well worn games that came up for sale back home. But I had a full year, there was no need to rush into anything.  To cut a long story short I quickly discovered that the Mega Drive had been significantly outsold by the Super Famicom in its day and second hand stores had a plethora of Famicom and Super Famicom titles at dirt cheap prices.  However the shortage of Mega Drive games was definitely compensated by the large range of Sega Saturn and smaller, but equally as awesome Dreamcast libraries.

After a year in Japan I had tripled the amount of games in my collection.  I now had worthy Famicom, Super Famicom, Saturn, and PS1 collections to match my Master System library as well as smaller but more concise Dreamcast, N64, and Japanese Mega Drive collections.  With over 650 titles spanning across 11 consoles, 95% of which were obtained over a period of about 2 ½ years I was more than proud!  However that was then..

And now..

Six months after returning home I’ve settled into a routine.  I pretty much work business hours and try to fit in game time over the weekends.  The dream for the past couple of years has been to have a dedicated game room; somewhere I can display my minty boxed consoles, peripherals, and games as well as a large CRT and cabinet to house all the consoles.  My problem is my other passions are starting to get in the way!   I miss riding a motorcycle, I wanna see more of the world, I want a car that I can take on long road trips, I need a house for my games to call home, and of course there are still titles I am hunting for!

Four months ago I hit 100 SMS titles!

Over the past few weeks I’ve been debating a cull.  One to free up some space as I felt I had way too much stuff boxed away in storage and two so I can free up some funds.  Having a large gaming collection is cool, but not necessary to call yourself a gamer.  I can see a lot of quality in my collection, however I can also see filler, so much of which its filling boxes that are stored in cupboards!  I know there are going to be readers who will cringe at this, but there are flash carts.  I mean, when you’re in the heat of collecting its easy to look past how much things are costing.  When I started out I compared buying games to packs of cigarettes (it honestly helped me quit), but these days I’m adding stuff up and thinking about a new set of wheels! With its space impeding boxed games and huge range of titles I hardly look at let alone play I knew from the start that the Master System was on the chopping block, I just didn’t want to admit it.  After spending a couple of weeks looking at the library, debating whether actually killing of a whole console would be better, and considering that I wasn’t even halfway to completing the Master System library I came to the conclusion that I could easily cull the 115 Master System titles I own down to 30, yes that’s right, I’m preparing to cull 75% of the Master System collection!

Well today is Friday and I’m about to head to the post office to ship off items that have sold over the past five days. With 14 already sold and dollar signs in my eyes it actually feels pretty damn good and if I’m honest I am having as much fun selling them as I did collecting them!  All is not lost though, my initial sales have paid for a flash cartridge which is going to allow me to access a massive range of titles, but I am left with one last question.  Who’s next…?

The Forgotten Genre; Arcade Racers

Retro-gaming.  On its own it covers a massive range of titles from an array of genres, however It often feels that the topic centres on specific types of games; namely Shooters, beat ‘em ups, run-and-guns, and platformers.

While there are some games that have aged gracefully there are many that haven’t.  Two dimensional games that fall within the genres listed above often have a fondness among retro-gamers; not because they don’t make ‘em like they used to, but simply because they don’t make ‘em at all these days.  Advancements have resulted in significant developments and changes to the games we play, some for the better and some not.  In my opinion, genres like sport and racing have thrived moving into 3D, whereas it feels like platformers and beat ‘em ups have turned into action/adventure titles, run and guns have turned into first person shooters, and the classic 2d spaceship shooter has pretty much disappeared.

The readers that know me will be familiar with the fact I that I’m partial to classic sport titles, an affection that stems from being forced to share the Mega drive with my brother as a kid.  However I also love my racers, in particular arcade style racers!

This week I’m bringing you my top five arcade racers.  These games share a common aspect; namely fast paced racing that keeps you on the edge of your seat!  So in no particular order:

Hang-on

Originally released in the arcade in 1985 and ported to the Sega Master System Hang-on is one awesome racer and a must have game.  Found on the Master system in card and cart form, and built into the first generation Sega Master System, Hang-on combine’s two attributes which define a great arcade style retro-game, its simplistic and addictive.  Racing against the clock with a behind bike perspective while passing a range of brand billboards which include Shell and Bridgestone, the aim of the game is to reach the end of the stage before time runs out.  Hit too many other bikes and you’re done for!  My personal best is 3,171,020, which took close to two hours to reach, so if you have the time and patience I challenge you to beat it!

OutRun

As one of the most popular arcade games, ever, and a series that saw release on over 20 home consoles/computers you would have to live a pretty secluded life to be a gamer and not have heard of Outrun.  Offering non-linear gameplay and a choice of in game music Outrun provides challenging gameplay with a range of difficulties.  Racing with a view directly behind the classic Ferarri Testorossa, in this high speed arcade racer you’re not only faced with traffic but also curves and dips that seem to appear from nowhere.  The only way to excel at this game is with practice and repetitive play.  While available on a wide range of platforms, my favourite has to be the full 60 hertz,  CD quality sound, and arcade perfect game-play Sega Saturn version, definitely a must have!

F-Zero X

Originally released on the Super Nintendo/Famicom with its mode 7 scaling F-Zero was well before its time, but in my opinion really came into its own on the N64. Released in ‘98 F-zero X has five different game modes (Death Race, Time Attack, GP, Practice, and VS Battle) and puts you in control of plasma-powered hovercrafts that reach outrageous speeds.  There are only a handful of N64 games I truly enjoy and with its wide range of courses and vehicles, tracks with loops and corkscrews, and great sounding soundtrack this is a must have N64 title!

Sega Rally 2

If you loved spending time in the arcade during in the mid and late ‘90s you probably own a Saturn or Dreamcast (or both).  When I visited the arcade it was either Sega Rally or Daytona, but on the home console Sega rally wins hands down.  While the Saturn version fills me with nostalgic goodness and memories of intense concentration and precision I often find myself attracted to the Dreamcast version.  I find the analogue stick on the Dreamcast controller awesome with driving games and am yet to complete the ten year championship and will regularly keep playing it until I do!

Burnout 3: Takedown

Rounding out the titles, Burnout 3 has absorbed the most amount of game-time I’ve been able to muster over the past few weeks.  It’s been a while since an original Xbox game has sucked me in so much, especially considering I have the later released Burnout paradise on PS3 (which offer motorcycles!).  With a combination of super-fast paced racing, a great soundtrack, loads of unlockable cars and tracks, and a wide range of race types I will continue playing Burnout 3 until unlock and receive gold medals in everything!  If you have a PS2 or Xbox and you don’t have this game, you’re really asking to be slapped across the face with a five day old fish!

I have merely touched on a great genre of games which can be found on home consoles and I couldn’t finish without at least offering a few additional honorable mentions:

Action Fighter (Sega Master System)

F-Zero (Super Nintendo/Famicom)

Ridge Racer Type 4 (PS1)

Daytona USA (Sega Saturn)

Star Wars Episode 1 Racer (N64)

I’m sure I’ve missed some worthy titles, if you can think of any please let me know!

What defines a retro-game?

Released in 2000 the PS2 became the worlds best selling console withl over 155 million units sold

I’m starting to see more and more discussion surrounding the Playstation 2 and whether or not it falls within the realms of a retro console.  As a best-selling console with aspects such as; no factory hard drive, wired controllers, no factory online capability, and the fact its best played on a CRT, when compared with today’s consoles it’s definitely dated, but is it retro?  And really, what defines a retro-game?

Anything retro has to be old right? In 2005 the Playstation 2 was celebrating its fifth anniversary and the Sega Mega Drive was turning 15.  At 15, the Mega Drive was a well-respected as a retro-console, so how about the PS2 today?  Its 15, so surely it’s a retro console, right?

Bushnell’s Law

Nolan Bushnell

Nolan Bushnell, founder of Atari inc believes: All the best games are easy to learn and difficult to master. They should reward the first quarter and the hundredth.  To me, this is what really defines a retro game.

The simpleness of pre-analogue controllers and the basic formula of moving and shooting, jumping and attacking, or simply moving make it easy for people to learn how to play shooters, platformers, beat ‘em ups, and puzzle games.  For the most part, average gamers are able to play through the first level of these types of games.  It is however, the difficulty, which can often be abrupt and makes finishing seem a near impossible task, but a challenge worth accepting to some.

In many cases the difficulty can get so severe language, which is usually saved for certain occasions is freely used, often compliment with gargled screams, and followed by hurtling controllers.  Despite the threat to my mental health I continue to play these games, gaining huge satisfaction once I complete a title.  Even once I’ve finished a game I’m not shy to replay it in an attempt to beat my previous score, not use continues, or in extreme cases, speed run!

Masses vs Enthusiast

Games today, and for a large part during the PS2 era left this belief behind and instead adopted a formula of designing games to be enjoyed by the masses, as opposed mastered by the enthusiast.  Don’t get me wrong, there are some difficult PS2 titles, however for the most part it feels that developers wanted to give the gamer a nice, rewarding experience, as opposed to a hair pulling, controller twisting, vocal one!

Nostalgia, but remember, its not the only driver of retro gaming

The 20 year old gamer no doubtably gets nostalgic over the PS2, but let us not forget, that consoles such as the Sega Mega Drive did exist in the 2000s, and would have been, and still be viewed by said 20 year old gamer as retro.  Over the past few years we have all witnessed rising demand and affection for the consoles leading up to the PS2, such as the PS1, Saturn, N64, and even the Dreamcast by gamers of varying ages, but does it end there?

Selling out

In reality, and the nicest way possible, the PS2 can be regarded as a sell-out.  It’s the platform that conformed to what the mass public wanted in a video game library, and did it very well.  Straight out difficulty was replaced by drawn out games which sucked the completionist in and rewarded them for time as opposed to painful, raw, learned, well timed skill. .

The Dreamcast, which shares the same generation and many of the PS2 aspects was in contrast a commercial failure, but rose to become respected among many, and in my opinion become the last of the true, retro consoles.  So what makes the Dreamcast retro and the PS2 not?  Well in my opinion, its due to the fact that many titles in the Dreamcast library are from the arcade, which often follow Bushnells law of being easy to learn and difficult to master.

I’m not saying I’m right, I’m merely providing a fairly uneducated opinion in a hope it sparks discussion, so what do you think?

Overchoice; The negative aspect of an amazing collection

hmmm, what to play…

Have you ever sat down for a gaming session, stared at your collection and mumbled; “What am I going to play?”  You may decide to divert your eyes away from your shelf of titles and instead concentrate on deciding which console to fire up, but this can further antagonise the situation resulting in said gamer screaming “I have nothing to play” with a tone reflective of their ark nemesis Frustration surfacing!

It doesn’t matter if you’re just starting out and buying up large lots of games, or if you’ve peaked and buying the odd title to get your fix, as collectors it’s likely that we can all relate to suffering from choice overload.  Herein lies what I believe is a contributing factor; we often consider ourselves collectors, not gamers…

What is overchoice/choice overload?

It was in the early 1970s when Alvin Toffler first introduced the term overchoice, relating it to consumers and indicating it takes place when; “The advantages of diversity and individualisation are cancelled by the complexity of a buyers decision making process.” by replacing “buyers” with “gamers” we can identify that diversity could be an underlying issue..

So let me get this straight, diversity is bad?

With such a range of gaming genres and systems available, most of us are likely to have a diverse collection and consider this an aspect that makes us proud of our collection.  Now, I’m not going to tell you how to collect, but instead be mindful of what you have, what you want, and your end goal.  In reality, everyone is different and every gamer/game collector is different, but I think there is a lot of merit in identifying an end goal, as having no end goal is likely to result hoardish activity and more time thinking about what to play than actually playing!

There’s no right or wrong way to go about retro-game collecting, but here are some points to consider:

1. Be realistic

Buying a game, or keeping all the games you’ve bought in a lot simply because you don’t own it/them is only worthwhile if you plan on playing them all, or completing the collection for that specific platform.  And let’s be realistic, many platforms have close to or in excess of 1,000 titles with many considerably expensive “rare” titles, which can mean the game is utter sh*t and f all were manufactured, extremely popular and hard to find complete or mint, or if you’re really lucky a combination of both which is guaranteed to see you pay through the nose.  Instead of keeping a title simply because you don’t own it or because someone says it’s rare; put it up for trade and get something you’ll actually play and enjoy!

2. Quality vs Quantity

When I first started buying and collecting games I would watch YouTube videos and come across people who had big, beautiful collections.  I was in awe watching videos and seeing pictures of game-rooms with shelving units that reached the roof along with TV units housing every console you could think of, plus ones I had never seen.  The envy was strong and I soon found it was these people who were inadvertently pushing me to exponentially increase the number of games I owned.  It felt like if telling someone I owned X number of games, or sharing a picture of a half filled shelf would mean I couldn’t be part of the “cool group” and recognised as a true enthusiast.  This resulted in me having games that I never played and simply serve as filler on my shelf!

In reality people within a community or group rarely talk about the size of their collection.  You’re more likely to find people discussing the merits of a specific game, and if you don’t own the title being discussed, emulating or using an everdrive is often an easy way to be part of the discussion and assess whether you should fork out for it.  A true enthusiast doesn’t actually have to own the game; they’ve just had to have played it!

3. Identify an end goal

As I earlier mentioned, having an end goal really does have merit.  If your end goal is to own a complete Mega Drive collection that’s fine. Well, in my opinion its fine as long as you have enough disposable income to throw into your collecting, the space to house it, and of course the time to put into not only hunting out games but also playing ‘em all!  As I think there are very few of us that can meet these points, here’s some suggestions on how you could keep the collecting aspect of your retro-gaming passion under control:

Collect subgroups

If you really must complete something, try completing subgroups.  This could be as small as collecting all the Sonic titles for the Sega Mega Drive or as large as collecting all the beat ‘em ups on a Super Nintendo/Famicom.  This is likely to save shelf space as well as result in greater satisfaction as you will more likely actually achieve the goal as well as enjoy playing what you own.

Make a list

I’m fortunate enough to own a jail broken PSP which is filled with roms from a range of 8 and 16 bit platforms.  This enables me to play games before buying them, really allowing me to get a feel as to whether I would enjoy playing it on the actual system and whether I should add it to my list of must haves.  Lists of game titles for specific platforms and genres can be easily found through searching online, and if you are one of those who refuse to touch an emulator you can always watch someone else play it on YouTube.

Impose limits

This is something I tried and failed out, but has worked successfully for others.  I can see this working well if you have a range of consoles and limited space.  Setting a limit of X number of games per console makes you be selective about what you buy which is likely to ensure that you will buy something you will actually play.

At the end of the day you should just do what makes you happy.  If having a massive collection of games that rarely gets touched brings you enjoyment then more power to you. (However I am assuming you gain more enjoyment from buying and staring at your collection as opposed to actually playing games).  But, if you’re one that likes spending time with the controller in your hand, and you do find yourself facing the problem what to play consider ways to limit your choice.  There’s nothing wrong with being a collector, but if you’re a collector of games try and also being a gamer!