It's fast turning into 1990 all over again. Within the next few months, Nintendo's iconic NES is being shrunk down and loaded up with games, and Sega is following suit with a new mini Mega Drive. But for those whose gaming nostalgia brings up memories of noisy arcades and dingy bars, the Retro-Bit Generations takes over 100 classic games from the arcade era and jams them onto one little machine.
Previous Retro-Bit devices have relied on existing cartridges from consoles like the NES, SNES and Genesis, but unless you have a garage full of games, it's a fair investment to start collecting now. Retro-Bit Generations does away with the cartridge compatibility, loading all the games onto the device itself, much like the NES Mini and Mega Drive Classic.
Retro-Bit worked with developers like Capcom, Data East, Jaleco and IREM to build up a sizeable library for its new machine. A full list of the 100+ games isn't available yet, but so far we know the console houses the likes of Ghosts' N Goblins, Gun.Smoke, Kid Niki Radical Ninja, Kung-Fu, Captain Commando, Kickle Cubicle, Rival Turf, Super R-Type, Knights of the Round, Brawl Brothers, Ring King and the Super Bases Loaded series.
Like the Mega Drive remaster, Retro-Bit's console comes with two USB-connected, old school-styled controllers out of the box, while Nintendo charges extra for player two to join in. On the other hand, Retro-Bit connects to the TV via either composite or HDMI ports, with the more modern option sorely lacking from the mini Mega Drive. To top it off, there's also an SD card slot for transferring game save files between consoles, which could help bring back memories of taking games over to friends' houses.
Retro-Bit Generations is estimated to be available in September or November for US$59.99.
Source: Retro-Bit