6 Reasons to Own the NES Classic Edition

Collector’s Item

If you’re passionate about video games and enjoy building up a collection of cool items and memorabilia, then the NES Classic Edition is definitely something that’s going to catch the eye of collectors that visit your house. Whether you’ve got any actual interest in using the system or not, having it boxed up completely is a great way to keep a bit of gaming history with your forever.

Not only that, but it’s likely that this will not only hold its value, but increase as the years go by. Therefore, you can almost consider it an investment. That is, if you keep it in good condition, of course.

Excellent Value

At $60, the NES Classic Edition is actually a bit of a steal. With its small form factor and collector’s item status, the fact it’s then packed with 30 games and comes with a normal-sized NES controller actually makes this a bit of a no-brainer if you’re a long-term Nintendo fan or just someone who wants to revisit the early days.

Yes, probably all of these games can be found online or even on the 3DS, but there’s something about plugging it into your TV and playing them with the NES controller as they were intended to that just makes the whole experience that little bit more special.

A Perfect, Smaller Replica

Apart from the original NES’ bulky size, the Classic Edition is a faithful revision of the system that start it all off all those years ago. While it won’t allow you to play any of your old NES cartridges, the Classic Edition is a faithful, perfect, smaller replica.

If you’ve been wanting to add something a little more retro to your setup without having the giant original system plaguing your neat layout, then the Classic Edition is the perfect way to circumvent the issue. You can boot up a bunch of old classics in a far more practical way than having to switch your cartridges all the time and cluttering your media center.

The Best Way to Play

If you’ve already got a Wii or Wii U you may ignore the NES Classic Edition in favor of your more recent Nintendo system’s Virtual Console platform. While you’re free to do exactly that, the NES Classic Edition makes playing these old games a joy with a variety of display options.

By default, the system will display the 30 games available at approximately the same 4:3 ratio you’d have seen on your old CRT television. There are then a number of ways to alter the image from using the “pixel-perfect” mode which displays each pixel as a perfect square, or the CRT filter to get those scanlines, imperfect pixels, and bleeding colors. Basically, you can perfect the image, or make it look awful and soak in all of the nostalgia in the process.

Save Whenever

One of the frustrations that plagued the early days of gaming was a lack of save slots. Instead of the old-fashioned and cumbersome way of returning back to exactly where you were with passwords, the NES Classic makes returning to exactly where you were problem-free.

Each game included on the NES Classic Edition has four Suspend Points that allow you to save whenever you want wherever you are in the game. It also means that your family and friends can join in on the fun without overwriting your save file. Because we all know we’ve been there once or twice, too.

All the Nostalgia… Or a History Lesson

Ultimately, the NES Classic Edition is a great way to take a trip down memory lane and relive all of those glorious 8-bit moments that you loved back in the 80s. It stays faithful enough to the original in terms of design and display methods to take you back all of those years without also plaguing you with the frustrations of the early days of home consoles. If you’ve been looking for a way to go back and relive all of your favorite NES titles, this is possibly the most affordable and stylish way you can do it.

Alternatively, the NES may well have been way before your time, in which case it’s a great way to go and rediscover some of the classic titles that paved the way for the experiences we play today. When you can pick one up for the same price as one PS4 or Xbox One game, you know it’s worth it.