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Should You Mod Your New NES & SNES Classic Mini Consoles?

The SNES Classic launched this week to rapturous nerd acclaim following up the epic NES Classic launch of last year. Immediately after the NES Classic came out people were trying to hack it to run Linux and put more games on it. The hacks came and solidified on Hakchi2, a tool that allows you to mod a ton of stuff with your NES Classic. At least, it claims SNES Classic support, i've heard stories of people bricking theirs so i'd wait a bit until that all settles out*.

That said, the path forward to mod your NES Classic is pretty clear but... why should you mod it at all?

Honestly if you're not very technical then i'd stay out of it entirely. You have the chance to brick... Read All The SNES Classic launched this week to rapturous nerd acclaim following up the epic NES Classic launch of last year. Immediately after the NES Classic came out people were trying to hack it to run Linux and put more games on it. The hacks came and solidified on Hakchi2, a tool that allows you to mod a ton of stuff with your NES Classic. At least, it claims SNES Classic support, i've heard stories of people bricking theirs so i'd wait a bit until that all settles out*.

That said, the path forward to mod your NES Classic is pretty clear but... why should you mod it at all?

Honestly if you're not very technical then i'd stay out of it entirely. You have the chance to brick your system and with how hard they've been to get bricking you NES would suck. That said, it's not hard and a couple features of Hakchi2 make it really compelling.

Forget the fact that you can load on more NES roms with Hackchi2, yeah you can do that but I haven't yet. The biggest reason to mod your SNES Classic is to allow you the ability to press down and select at the same time to return to the home menu. This is a lifesaver if the reset button is an annoying distance from you (and it is for me). Another awesome feature of using Hakchi2 is that you can copy the save states from your NES Classic to a local file for backup purposes. It's possible to accidentally (using save states w RPG's) to wipe out a ton of progress so backing up all your save files from time to time isn't a bad idea.

Hakchi2 also mods the included NES Classic kernel to support more controllers out of the box which is nice but they don't mention which ones. I imagine it's a sort of generic USB controller support which is cool if you have USB to that strange Nintendo controller format.

So even if you don't add more ROMS to your NES Classic, and i'm not sure I will, the controller home mod and save state backup is worth the price of admission alone. That said, use it at your own risk because bricking your NES wouldn't be great.

* After looking more at the Hakchi2 code it seems the author is working on SNES Classic support so i'd wait a bit until a new version is launched with SNES Classic support before you use it.

Watch This First Playable Version Of Psychonauts 2!

Tim Schaefer and Zak Mcclendon run through the first playable version of Psychonauts 2 and the game is shaping up really well. Looks like the game is made with the new Unreal Engine from what I gathered from the video and because of that the game looks buttery smooth.

Wondering if anyone played the original Psychonauts and if this game is on your radar as something you are going to play when it launches?

Contra Meets Steamboat Willie

Here are Rich and Jack's take on Cuphead! Spoiler alert, it's beautiful but the game play doesn't blow you away.

Lazy Game Reviews Got Cuphead To Run On A Black And White TV

Does Cuphead look good on a black and white TV? Surprisingly yes... it really does. The games graphical style works well on the old TV and it's made even more pronounced on the black and white TV. Is this the best way to play Cuphead? No but it's a distant second.

The Super Nintendo Classic Launch Train Keeps Rolling With This Definitive DF Retro Review

I've been watching a lot of Super Nintendo Classic video reviews and most of them say basically the same thing. The Super Nintendo Classic is a great, if imperfect way, to play a really incredible collection of Super Nintendo Games. That said, most reviews don't dig into the differences between the Classic and the original hardware and how the SNES Classic compares to it in terms of graphics, sound and framerate. The video review above by DF Retro is an incredibly complete look at the SNES Classic including all it's quirks such as minor artifacts, sound issues and the like.

His wrap up? The Super Nintendo classic improves on the NES Classic quite a bit to make a really... Read All

Come Hang Out With Cheerful Ghost At Portland Retro Game Expo 2017!

Portland Retro Game Expo is one of those things I can't miss. Two days dedicated to retro games, panels, a crazy huge free to play arcade and more retro gear you could ever want? What's not to love?

We are running with a much larger booth this year and because of that are doing more awesome stuff. This year we are running 4 Classic NES Tournaments, hosting Wick showcasing his upcoming Indie game Crescent Loom AND selling an incredible collection of VHS tapes!

Win Awesome Stuff In Our Classic NES Tournaments

This year we are having four classic NES Tournaments (two per day) of some amazing NES classics and the winners of each tournament will walk away with a special... Read All

Jack And Rich Review Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle on Switch!

Jack & Rich from Previously Recorded review Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle and if you are interested in the game or what's out on the Switch I recommend you give this review a shot. They are harder on the game than the general review consensus seems to be (currently 85% on MetaCritic) but they end up recommending the game in the end. Mario + Rabbids is a game I was considering a day one Switch purchase because I do enjoy X-Com like games and Ubisofts particular take on it really looks fun.

The Angry Video Game Nerd Takes On The NES Treasure Master Contest

Remember that old contest for NES Treasure Master? I do and I wanted to play it but I could only get two NES games per year from my parents and Treasure Master didn't make it to the top of my list. Good thing too because the game doesn't actually look very fun. I always thought i'd be able to beat the game to win the prize and it seems like the Angry Video Game Nerd thought the same thing.

Making My Way Through Metroid: Norfair Complete, Ridley Up Next!

When I bought the original NES Metroid I had already completed Super Metroid and played the heck out of Metroid II on Gameboy. I was at the store and had $20 and wanted to walk away with a new game and Metroid on NES was $20. At that time we were all pretty deep into the Super Nintendo era and heading back to the Nintendo Metroid didn't sit well with me then. I played the game a little bit and used the Justin Bailey code to actually beat the game but I didn't put in any serious time with it.

After getting an NES Classic I decided to come back and look at the original Metroid fresh. Does the original NES Metroid hold up or would I never really be able to enjoy this... Read All When I bought the original NES Metroid I had already completed Super Metroid and played the heck out of Metroid II on Gameboy. I was at the store and had $20 and wanted to walk away with a new game and Metroid on NES was $20. At that time we were all pretty deep into the Super Nintendo era and heading back to the Nintendo Metroid didn't sit well with me then. I played the game a little bit and used the Justin Bailey code to actually beat the game but I didn't put in any serious time with it.

After getting an NES Classic I decided to come back and look at the original Metroid fresh. Does the original NES Metroid hold up or would I never really be able to enjoy this game?

Metroid Is Awesome If You Have A Map

Well, come to find out, I really like the original Metroid quite a bit but that doesn't mean it doesn't come with a few things to consider. Firstly the original Metroid is difficult and doesn't hold your hand in any way to make it obvious what you are supposed to do. So if you expected to jump in and have the game help you figure out what to do you're gonna have a bad time. Unless you want to map out the whole game yourself, which you can totally do and honestly how we used to do it. As a youngster I had to map out the original Legend of Zelda so I could beat it because it's impossible to do otherwise. Metroid is no different because of my limited amount of time playing games these days, using a map is essential.

All that to say, I picked up Nintendo's "Playing with Power" guide last year and it includes a really great Metroid map I've been using to play the game. It's fun to look at the map, figure out what to do next and then make it to that point and then refer back to the map. Modern games bring the map in game, as Super Metroid does, but doing it the old way, with a Nintendo guide handy and has been a fun experience.

Metroid Is Ultra Hard, Until You Get Certain Items

Metroid is hard as hell until you get about 3 energy tanks and the Varia suit then it gets much simpler. In fact i'd say Metroid, so far, went from "SUPER CRAZY HARD MODE" to "completely fine mode" the more I play. Since I am making my way through each zone, collecting each missile, item and energy tank I'm pretty well set right now and as such the game has really lessened in terms of difficulty. I'm on my way to take on Ridley now and the difficulty might spike again, but so far things have got much easier.

Metroid is a classic NES game that, until now, hasn't really clicked with me. But playing it now, with a really detailed map and making a breakthrough in terms of being better at playing the game i've reached a pretty fun high of enjoyability. If you don't have any prior experience with the original Metroid and want to give it a shot I seriously recommend you look into some good maps to chart a course through the game. You can take the game at it's own terms and map it yourself, but if you are a bit crunched for time using a guide will save you time and some heartache.

Commodore Is Boarding The Remake Train With The C64 Mini!

With the launch of the crazy popular Super Nintendo Classic other companies want to board the console remake money printing train. The Ataribox is looking to do that and now Commodore wants a piece with the C64 Mini. The C64 mini is a bit more interesting as it is a pretty faithful representation of the original Commodore keyboard system with full HDMI output and USB support. It comes with the base C64 mini system, HDMI cable, Joystick and 64 games including California Games, Uridium, Paradroid, Hawkeye, Nebulus and Monty Mole.

The Commodore 64 was the computer I start programming on so I was wondering if they'd allow you to program on it and it seems they well.

"As... Read All

Will_Ball Game Mod Super Member wrote on 10/02/2017 at 03:32pm

Outside of the C64 enthusiasts, I don't see a big market for this. Maybe I will be wrong.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 10/02/2017 at 03:39pm

> I don't see a big market for this. Maybe I will be wrong.

There isn't but it's still a cool idea. I'm wondering how much of a C64 recreation it will be? Like if it's wrapping a C64 emulator thad be kind of cool.

I think.

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 10/02/2017 at 04:44pm

Before my family had PC, we had a Commodore 128D. That is how I learned BASIC, too. I ended up getting some modems for it and was able to get on BBSs. Someone also gave me a bunch of magazines that helped me get started w/ BASIC. I had fun editing programs a bit.

Will_Ball Game Mod Super Member wrote on 10/02/2017 at 05:02pm

I learned basic on the Apple ][e. At the time I wanted a C64 instead.

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 10/02/2017 at 08:33pm

We had those Apples in school. My cousin had one, too. I remember playing Oregon Trail on them.

I recently remembered a game on the Commodore called Little Computer People. That was interesting. Mission Impossible was tough and confusing, although I was a kid when we had it. We finally got our first PC in 95, when I was about 15.

hardeyez wrote on 10/02/2017 at 11:57pm

I will buy this in a heartbeat. That was the system I spent a ton of time on (had an early C64, then a 128, then an Amiga 512 and an Amiga 4000/40). I taught myself to program on that, bought all the manuals for it and actually had a job for a local user group cracking games for it (back when that was legal -- stupid DMCA). Sadly I sold off all my hardware during the early days of ebay because it became so valuable (to buy other computer gear :) :) ) This will be a fun throwback.

It has Impossible Mission 1 and II (I played Impossible Mission a ton, 2 not as much but it was still great). If it only had Castles of Dr. Creep... :)

Travis Admin wrote on 10/03/2017 at 03:15am

Since it looks like it'll emulate the original C64, to some extent at least, this could be absolutely incredible for new hobbyists wanting some historical tinkering or people wanting to relive their first experiences. It's intriguing!

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