Famicom Mini

The Famicom Mini series is obviously aimed at the nostalgic. The software's nothing more than reissues of the exact game released twenty years ago, but it's the presentation where Nintendo's put the effort into these games. The Famicom Mini boxes are actually slightly smaller than standard Japanese GBA software boxes, with the cartridges themselves housed in even more miniature versions of the original Famicom game boxes. The cartridges are in unique half maroon, half off-white plastic to mimic the color scheme of the original Famicom system. And for those who actually purchase all ten games in the Famicom Mini library can send away for a Famicom Mini display box...another perk to pick them all up in one shot.

The Famicom Mini series was launched with a Game Boy Advance SP featuring the same color scheme as the cartridges. Most retailers were required to order the games and systems in bundles, one system with one copy of each game, so the Famicom Edition GBA SP might not end up a true collectible due to the amount of systems on the market. But it sure does look cool, and makes us dream for an NES-branded Game Boy Advance SP system that the North American gaming market can call its own.

These games in the Famicom Mini series utilize the same Famicom/Nintendo Entertainment System GBA emulator that was used in Animal Crossing and the e-Reader, with a few new enhancements. The emulator now supports multiplayer, something that was missing in the NES emulations for the GBA in the past. More specifically, this emulator supports not only the link cable for direct connection between two systems, but it also features support for the newly released Wireless Adapter. Most of the multiplayer games in the first edition Famicom Mini games are alternating two player; in these cases, the second system acts as the second controller of the NES/Famicom. The player not in control still has his own view of the game on his screen, but his D-pad and A/B buttons will be disabled until it's his turn again.

The Wireless Link support, specifically, is well produced since the game keeps tabs of the signal strength in the upper right corner of the screen. Like a cell phone, the stronger the signal, the better the connection. Three bars is a perfect link, and if the bars start dropping, performance takes a hit. At one bar, the game slows down significantly, almost to the point of being unplayable. If the signal's lost, the two players have five seconds to get back into sync before it times out and resets. We've tested the games at thirty feet between the two with very little drop in performance.

Even better: each and every cartridge in the Famicom Mini library houses cartridge save RAM. This save RAM records specific data to cartridge. While it's not necessary for, say Super Mario Bros. to have cartridge save, it's used to keep track of high scores in most games. In Bomber Man, the last password earned is kept in memory, and in Legend of Zelda, the cartridge save, obviously, keeps the three file saves recorded. Though players can't save their position anywhere in any game, this is the Game Boy Advance...the emulator still has the "Sleep Mode" so players can take a break.

Here's a look at the debut batch of games in the Famicom Mini series. Click on the boxes to hit up the screens and movies of the games running on the Game Boy Advance.

This is the heavy-hitter, folks. The game that everyone who's anyone wants. The original NES pack-in returns on the Game Boy Advance in a near-perfect emulation. Since the game originally supported two players alternating, this version also has this feature for one or two systems; plug in a link cable or Wireless Adapter, and you can link up with a second system and second player instead of handing off the system.

Well before Mario was smooshing goombas and koopas, he was leaping over barrels and fireballs in order to rescue his girl Pauline from the clutches of the big burly ape Donkey Kong. Since this game emulates the NES/Famicom game instead of the arcade version, you're still going to miss out on the conveyer belt levels; due to tiny cart sizes in 1984, this version only features three of the four original stages.

The original seal-clubbing game is back. Yes, you club seals in Ice Climber, unlike the retooled version in the US where odd little beak-mouth puffballs are your enemies. This is currently the only two-player simultaneous game in the Famicom Mini series, and it's all about getting to the top of the mountain before the other player does.

We've been playing this game in e-Reader form for more than a year and a half now, as well as downloaded from Animal Crossing as well as emulated on the N64 version of Excitebike 64, and now we get to play this awesome arcade racer one more time. And thanks to the cartridge save inside the Famicom Mini version, you can finally save the track you created in the course editor! Hallelujah!

The original Legend of Zelda returns, again. Sure, we got this one for free on the GameCube thanks to the Zelda Collection compilation disk, but this time we get to take the action with us. This is the only game in the batch where language presents a bit of a problem, but in most cases the adventure doesn't have much text...so it's not that big of a deal at all.

It wouldn't be a classic collection without a visit from Namco's Pac-Man. This NES emulation tries to retain much of the arcade's charm by keeping with the maze configuration and many of the same ghost patterns. But this game has been done better in Namco's Pac-Man Collection, and it's currently retailing in the US for fifteen bucks...and it comes with four other games! Not the best value in the Famicom Mini series, that's for sure. But at least you can save the high score to cartridge in this version.

The shooter I spent hours upon hours in my basement playing on the Atari 7800 returns, this time in perfect emulation of the NES version...which is slightly better than the Atari 7800 edition but not quite as good as the arcade original. It's one of the best vertical scrolling shooters of the early 80s...and it still retains a whole lot of challenge even today.

The loveable mouse cop has been away far, far too long. Hopping around trampolines, knocking over cats, and picking up treasures is still a whole lot of fun, twenty years later. The NES/Famicom version, perfectly emulated on the GBA, is a great rendition of a fantastic arcade game.

Before you get all excited for getting the original Bomber Man on the Game Boy Advance, prepare for a let-down: this game is the original Bomber Man, meaning it's a single player action game. This is before our hero broke out into a multiplayer game design...the gameplay is very similar to what we're familiar with, but no dice in getting a buddy in on the action.

Xevious isn't the only vertical scroller on the block...Hudson hands over its own shooter for Nintendo's classic series, and while this game doesn't offer a whole lot of original flair, it's still a pretty fun little action game that caps off the first edition of the Famicom Mini series.

At this day and age, we've grown accustomed to getting bang for our buck when it comes to reissuing the classics. Nobody but Nintendo has been arrogant enough to package each of their games on individual cartridges, especially during a time when we're getting five, ten, even fifty games in a classic compilation. It's clear that Nintendo could easily put a dozen NES games on a single cartridge without breaking a sweat...or the gamer's budget.

And Nintendo of America has already attempted the cheap NES nostalgia with the e-Reader, selling NES games on packs of five cards for five bucks apiece. Unfortunately, the distribution model isn't quite as versatile as cartridges, since e-Reader cards can only hold a couple of kilobytes of data...and many NES games went from 16K to 32K, all the way up to 128K and larger. Even if the e-Reader could handle cartridge sizes this large, the games would have to span ten, twenty, even thirty cards...and scanning this many cards into an e-Reader device is something that gamers might not be willing to do.

Which begs the question: Would gamers be willing to get a similar package in the US? Especially if it's relative in price to the Famicom Mini series; the standard range for GBA games stateside hits at around 30 bucks, with budget titles launching at $20. How does $10 sound for individual Mini NES games? If Nintendo of America offers the same presentation in its nostalgia, I'm all for it.

We're keeping our fingers crossed for a US announcement.