Over the last few years with retro gaming achieving a more mainstream status we have seen a variety of new systems launched that have a set amount of games included ready to plug in and play. When Nintendo started releasing their own official mini consoles this attracted the serious retro gaming collectors too but overall these systems are aimed at giving the average person who probably isn’t a serious collector a quick and easy gaming nostalgia hit and the chance to reminisce about their gaming memories from the past. So, what is currently on the market? Let’s look at some of the Retro Gaming Consoles with Built in Games that you can buy right now.
The Systems I own:
First off let’s take a look at the ones I actually own.
Nintendo Entertainment System Classic Mini
I got this for my Birthday last year. Having been reluctant to pre order one the first time round and then regretting it I was pleased when Nintendo announced that more stock was being released in 2018 and was lucky enough to get one as a present (thanks to my lovely wife). My only bug bear with this is the length of cable on the control pads (you only get one), as they are way too short and you must sit right next to the console when playing. The 30 games included are made up of some real classic NES titles with big hitters such as the NES Super Mario Bros trilogy included along with Castlevania and Punch Out. The control pads respond well, and the menu system is very easy to use. If you are an NES fan, I would definitely recommend one.
You can find the latest price on Amazon here.
Super Nintendo Classic Mini
Now this Nintendo Mini I pre ordered as soon as it was announced. The SNES mini comes with two control pads (with longer cables too) and 20 games installed. There are loads of top SNES games included like Super Mario World, Donkey Kong Country and Earthbound. You also get the previously unreleased Star Fox 2 which really sold it to me. Like the NES mini the menu system works really well, and the control pads work to a really good standard too. Do have a look at the games list for the SNES mini if you haven’t got one as it is a very strong line up.
You can find the latest price on Amazon here.
Atari 2600 Plug n Play
Now the plug n play Atari 2600 joystick that I have was a car boot sale find and cost me all of 50p, but I must admit it is a lot of fun with Breakout being one of my favourite games to play. You can still get these, and I will put a link below.
You can find the latest price on Amazon here.
Sega Mega Drive Plug n Play
This one I have had for a long time. My wife got it for me for Christmas when we lived in our first house and this was long before I had the space for a retro gaming collection. At the time it was fun to play Sonic and Golden Axe amongst other again, so I am not going to knock it too much but looking back it wasn’t the greatest of products. You can still find them on eBay and are a handy way to introduce younger kids to some Mega Drive fun if you don’t trust them on their own yet with a proper console (or space maybe an issue)
You can find the latest prices on eBay here.
The Other Retro Gaming Consoles with Built in Games Systems Out There
Commodore 64 Mini
64 games are included with the C64 Mini along with a Competition Pro style USB joystick. Famous titles loaded onto the system include California Games, Uridium and Boulder Dash to name a few. If you were a C64 gamer back in the day, then this is definitely a great way to get a nice nostalgia hit without worrying about the cassette not loading. Do note though that the keyword is purely for looking at and is not a functional keyboard.
I did look at this one when it was announced but having an SD Card reader for my own C64C I decided against it as I can already play all the C64 games I want with relative ease.
You can find the latest price on Amazon here.
Playstation Classic
Another one that I have so far held back from getting and I am glad I did as they are still widely available (at the time of writing) and the original price dropped over Christmas 2018 from 89.99 to 49.99 which was surprising. I already have quite a few of the 20 games loaded on to the PS Mini so that did put me off but if the price does drop again, I will certainly think about getting it.
It was a shame that some games such as Castlevania Symphony of the Night weren’t included but there is wide range of different styles of games with Metal Gear Solid, Resident Evil and Final Fantasy VII standing out amongst a solid selection of titles.
You can find the latest price on Amazon here.
Atari Flashback 8
With 120 games included and 2 wireless controllers this mini console offers a lot of games with some classic Atari and Activision titles such as Frogger, Centipede and Adventure. If you want an easy access Atari setup without having to buy an original system and all the cartridges, then this mini console will happily do that job as you connect it up to your modern HD television (it has 720P HDMI output).
You can find the latest price on Amazon here.
Sega Genesis/Mega Drive Classic Console
Now this one will actually play your Genesis/Mega Drive cartridges unlike the previous mini consoles mentioned. Advertised as having 85 games do not expect these to be all 16-bit Sega titles. There are 28 pretty much junk titles along with seven Master System Games and five Game Gear games! That leaves 45 actual Genesis/Mega Drive games most of which are good titles however, the menu system isn’t very user friendly either. You may have guessed that I haven’t purchased this one.
You can find the latest price on Amazon here.
Pandora’s Box
There are a quite a few variants of these floating around to purchase. Basically, it is a 2-player control panel with a Pandora’s Box PCB inside allowing you to play in most cases over 1000 arcade games usually by a HDMI connection straight into you TV. If you haven’t got space for an arcade machine this may be worth considering for a fun game night with friends.
You can find the latest price for some of these on Amazon here.
Neo Geo Mini Console
When this was first teased in 2018, I got very excited about it but, the actual finished product looked a little too small and toy like for my tastes and I didn’t get one. You can purchase additional control pads for the unit if you don’t fancy using the small arcade stick configuration. This is an all in one unit with built in screen although you can connect to a TV or Monitor.
There are 40 games included with the system including a variety of Metal Slugs and King of Fighters titles. Other titles that stand out to me include Shock Troopers and 3 Count Bout. If you are a Neo Geo fan and don’t mind the design of the system you will probably have fun with this one.
You can find the latest price on Amazon here.
Retro-Bit Super Retro-Cade
This small white console comes with two wireless controllers and includes over 90 games from a mixture of arcade games and home systems (a bit of a mish mash). These are all apparently officially licensed Capcom, Irem, Data East and Technos games. This one has an SD card reader to so you can add more games which may make this an interesting option.
You can find the latest price on Amazon here.
Atari Retro Handheld Console
A small hand-held version of the Flashback but with o70 games and a 2.8” screen. It has a built in USB chargeable battery and can connect up to a TV. This one might make a good gift for someone who used to have an Atari 2600 back in the day.
You can find the latest price on Amazon here.
Retro Gaming Consoles with Built in Games
There are quite a few Retro Gaming Consoles with Built in Games options nowadays if you are after an easy plug n play retro gaming fix without buying original hardware. These may not be what the serious retro collector necessarily wants but some of the above can make great gifts for others or can be a great way to get into the hobby. The cheap n cheerful Mega Drive Plug n Play was certainly an early gateway for me many years ago to revisit some of the games I was playing in the early 1990’s.
Thanks for reading this article. Why not take a look at My Top 10 Commodore 64 Games Here.
If you haven’t seen it yet my previous article is here.
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