Taking a cue from Apple and their iMac line of computers (remember those from the mid to late 90’s?), the RETRO VGS will also be available in multiple colors (for an additional financial pledge).  These colors are exclusive to the IndieGoGo campaign so once this is over, they are apparently not going to make any more of them.

There are basic colors like red, green, blue and yellow and then there are eight “jewel series” color variations.  On top of that, there are three additional “treasure” series in gold, silver and bronze.  Only the jewel series will be see through.  There is no word if you will receive a similarly colored controller when purchasing one of these premium colors.

This is a nice novelty to offer but it also could be a costly mistake.  What happens if only one backer picks a certain series console?  Will they still be able to turn a profit making ONE of that particular shell?

Also, same thing for the games.  Will they produce one label for the cart, one manual and one box art label if only one person pledges enough to purchase any of the games?  That could be a costly situation to face also.

One thing that worries me is that we have yet to see anything other than Adventures of Tiny Knight, supposedly, running on the hardware.  The actual console is not shown in operation and we are left seeing only the video which leaves plenty of room for it to be running on a dev kit.  For anyone that remembers the great announcement of the Nintendo 64, it was purported to be running on an SGI Onyx scaled down to a console.  The early videos shown at trade shows were amazing and awesome and were not running on the hardware that was sitting on the table next to the TV.  What we got when the Nintendo 64 finally launched was not so much a detailed adventure but more a fuzzy textured mess for many developers outside of Nintendo themselves.

Don’t get me started on the whole FPGA situation.  There are simply no decent 100% accurate cores available for it, at least not for free.  This can add development costs for companies that may be interested in continuing to program in a familiar environment (such as SNES or Game Boy) but release on the RETRO VGS.  With an ARM processor those developers may be able to use freeware emulators to bring their games over but honestly, if that is what is happening then why wouldn’t potential backers simply use the various hardware they already have (such as original or those capable of running Android) and skip the high cost of entry for a RETRO VGS?

This method would not work for developers looking to simply emulate the other hardware if there is a BIOS file required (Intellivision, Neo Geo, Game Boy Advance, PSOne, Sega Dreamcast, etc) as the BIOS file is illegal to distribute without a license.  Good luck getting Nintendo to license out the GBA BIOS file or Sega to license you the Dreamcast file.

Also, there is no prototype of the RETRO VGS available at this time.  If the specs are finalized, or close to it, shouldn’t it be rather easy (though costing money to do) to produce a working prototype that could be shown in the IndieGoGo campaign to build trust with potential supporters?

Also, there has been little to no discussion about any kind of quality control system.  We are effectively at the mercy of indie developers being able to produce good/great games the first time (there is no way to patch/update or otherwise change the games or the console after release).

Head over to the RETRO VGS IndieGoGo to read more about it and possibly make a pledge.

I will be following the RETRO VGS as it develops.  If you are interested in seeing more of it let me know by liking, sharing, commenting/yelling etc.  We pay attention to that stuff and the more popular stuff gets covered more.

Previous RETRO VGS coverage here on RGM:
RGM Interview with RETRO VGS Team (unofficial copy from audio interview)
New Hardware- RETRO Video Game System in Development
Prototype Designs of RETRO Video Game System Shown, New Developer Confirmed
First Game for Retro Video Game System Announced, First Screenshot Here
RETRO Video Game System and the Looming Identity Crisis Within
Rumor: Shovel Knight Could be coming to Retro Video Game System, RETRO Talks with Retro City Rampage
Possible Method of New Game Releases for Retro Video Game System Revealed

Carl Williams

It is time gaming journalism takes its rightful place as proper sources and not fanboys giving free advertising. If you wish to support writers like Carl please use the links below. https://www.paypal.me/WCW https://www.patreon.com/CarlWilliams

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