So I was checking out of Best Buy with some cheap retro Blu-rays, and I happen to see something stuffed in a box called “Classic NES.” I saw that it had thirty games built into it and had a tiny NES console, so I price-checked it and found out it was $60. I had to get it!
How was it? Unbelievably good! It just loaded right up with a menu of thirty games, all representing the classic original NES games but in high definition. My main interest in buying the system was to see if the games held up or if I was just wallowing in nostalgia. The answer to this query is that the games mostly do hold up, and some of them almost seem better today than when they were first available.
“Punch-Out,” for example, from which Mike Tyson appears to have been deleted, is still one of the greatest boxing games ever made. Even with 8-bit graphics and sound, the game rules. I also still really like “Donkey Kong” “Donkey Kong Jr.,” “Mario Bros.,” and the first three “Super Mario Bros.” games. I was very surprised that I still found these games addictive.
Other games include the first two “Castlevania” games (which still hold up beautifully), the original “Metroid,” the first “Kirby” game, “Super Contra” (still insanely hard), “Ghosts ‘N Goblins” “Kid Icarus,” “Ice Climber,” “Balloon Fight,” “Ninja Gaiden,” “Gradius,” “Double Dragon II: The Revenge,” and “Tecmo Bowl.” I did not find playing the old RPG’s on there like “Final Fantasy” and the first two “Legend of Zelda” games to be worth my time; it was just impossible to make a good RPG back then, apparently. The graphics and gameplay on these just aren’t as good.
I ultimately discovered from this “NES Classic” release that sometimes the oldies are goodies and that it can be worthwhile to revisit games from the past. It was a bit irritating that the system came with just one controller and a tiny cord, so I’ll have to order a second controller and two extension cords. I was happy to discover that the tech-savvy can use a USB cord to download 100 plus more games from the internet for free, and the system comes with an HDMI cord. Overall, this “NES Classic” release surpassed my expectations and I recommend it to all video game fans!
