Gizmodo: Famicom

Famicase Exhibition Fuses Yesterday's Famicom Cartridges With Today's Curious Artistic Minds

Jack Loftus — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 21:00:00 EDT

Rounding out our Nintendo news trifecta today is the annual Famicase art exhibition. It's like many other art exhibitions from around the world, made infinitely cooler by the fact that the artwork is composed of imaginary games pasted to old 8-bit Famicom carts. More than 50 designers, illustrators and authors contributed to event this year, which is organized by Super Meteor game shop owner Satoshi Sagagami. Some are crazier than others, but all have a home in this Nintendo lover's heart. Personal favorite? Overly promiscuous R.O.B.—now we know what he's been up to all these years!

[Famicase via Technabob]

Nintendo Famicom Business Card Holders Combine Your Idealistic Childhood With Your Sellout Adulthood

Jason Chen — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 18:30:00 EDT

What better way to bring your childhood into the present with these Nintendo Famicom business card holders. Your $8.80 will get you one random cartridge or controller, which may or may not be a that really horrible knockoff one made by that one lousy company in the mid '80s. We're looking at you, Ice Climber. If you're lucky, you'll get Zelda, Ballon Fight, or Mario instead. [GameAsylum via Nerd Approved]

Coin-Op NES Requires Serious Magic Fingers

Mark Wilson — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 09:20:00 EDT

While a slew of hotels feature sad, generic video game controllers ready to play whatever crappy IP-streaming games the chain may offer, many Japanese hotels were once stocked with these coin-op Famicom (NES) systems. A 100 yen coin would buy you 10-15 minutes of play, which is a pretty great deal compared to the mini bar or, uhh, "video on demand" services. To check out the Super Famicom (SNES), hit the jump.

With the more advanced Super Famicom, players only scored 5 minutes for 100 yen—or not quite long enough to meet Yoshi in Super Mario World. So the next time we stay at the Four Seasons, the concierge can anticipate our request (a coin-op SNES with an unlimited stack of quarters...along with our standard hooker suspended in a giant mold of green Jello). [Business Use Home Consoles via Kotaku]

Play Famicom Cartridges on Your DS With CYBER Familator Lite

Adrian Covert — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 00:07:57 EST

The CYBER Familator Lite is an Akihabara-esque gizmo that snaps onto your DS Lite and lets you play old Famicom cartridges on your DS screen (If you can hunt down an adapter, you can play NES games as well). I think we should forget the Familator Lite is bigger than the DS, and that an emulator can do the same thing, because you get real 8-bit goodness on your DS. It's like drinking Coke in a glass bottle – it just tastes better. The CYBER Familator Lite is expected to surface in Japan next month. [CYBER Gadget via DS Fanboy via Technabob]

Nintendo's finally ending their support (read: ...

Jason Chen — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 14:20:46 EDT

Nintendo's finally ending their support (read: repair) of the Nintendo Famicom (NES), as well as the Super Famicom, the N64, the Gameboy and the Gameboy Pocket in Japan. You'll have to play those games on an emulator like the rest of us who moved past the '90s. [itmedia via Arcade Renaissance via Kotaku]

Hudson's Yellow Button Press Controller Counts Spasms

Jason Chen — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 18:30:52 EDT

First made in 1987, this Famicom-esque "Shooting Watch" counts how many times you can push a button in 10 seconds. Only 10,000 of these are being made in Japan (the only place they're being made), so if you like to eschew modern graphics for more spastic gaming, a big yellow bus will come by your Japanese house and sell this to you. Man above? 16 pps. [ITmedia via Kotaku]

Japanese Famicom (NES) Ads

Jason Chen — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 13:00:25 EDT

After watching this collection of old Japanese Famicom ads from the '80s, we can pretty much say there's not all that much difference between these ads and the Wii ads of today. There's definitely more of a focus on the games and accessories compared to the "what do people look like while playing them" ads of today. But in the end, you're not seeing some crazy console alone in a room with a demonic baby. [PlasticBamboo]

Super Famicom/PlayStation Prototype?

Jason Chen — Fri, 08 Jun 2007 13:37:31 EDT

For those of you with short memories, Sony and Nintendo were working together in the mid '90s on a CD-based Nintendo console when negotiations fell apart and both Japanese companies went their separate ways. Sony with the PlayStation and Nintendo with the N64—and we all know what happened since.

This console posted on game-rave is supposedly a prototype of the PlayStation/Super Famicom unit. They claim it's real, but whether or not Sony and Nintendo actually got to the point where they made prototypes is unclear. Still, this seems like an interesting box and gives us a chance to stroll down memory lane. Ahh, look, there's the house of noogies to your right. – Jason Chen

Game Rave

Nintendo Famicom Voice Recorder

Jason Chen — Tue, 24 Apr 2007 13:00:05 EDT

Most of you won't be familiar with this Famicom-styled voice recorder since the US got a differently styled NES controller, but for people who grew up in Asia in the '80s this will feel right at home. The voice recorder features a volume slider, a place to shove two AAA batteries, and a couple of buttons that aren't labeled well.

If you're into getting all retro when you conduct your interview with the Prime Minister of Japan, this is the way to go. – Jason Chen

Product Page [Play Asia via Gadget ~~Madness~~ Sparta]

PS3: Only $10! Best Deal Ever!

Jason Chen — Tue, 27 Feb 2007 20:50:07 EST

This has to be the best deal ever on a Sony PS3. $10! Could you believe that? Imagine all those Blu-ray movies we're going to watch and Resistance we're going to play when we get this home. Oh look, it's even got wired controllers and is styled like my old Famicom from the early '80s. Waaaaaaiit a second... – Jason Chen

PlayStation 3 for $10! [Destructoid]

Famicom Powered Drum Machine

Travis Hudson — Fri, 20 Jan 2006 06:32:39 EST

Japanese Jason has been planning this drum machine since the 90s and it has finally come to life. The drum machine is built from eight Famicom consoles and a Roland 606 drum machine. All of it was nicely mounted in a flight case. He also documented the entire process here. Audiophiles and vintage Nintendo connoisseurs around the world salute you, Jason.

Vast drum machine built from 8 Famicoms [Music Thing]

Famicom Micro Makes Me Nostalgic

johnb — Fri, 04 Nov 2005 18:22:38 EST

Ahh, the good old days—grandma cookin up frozen chicken cutlets, me sitting in my pajamas leafing through Nintendo Power where the mere mention of the Famicom was like spotting a unicorn. What was this famous precursor to the NES? Would I ever own one? Did Mario look different in far-off Japan?

Now Nintendo is bringing it all back home with the Famicom Micro. It's a cute, $99 Micro with a burgundy color scheme and loads of fresh, tasty hubris:

"The Special 20th Anniversary Edition Game Boy Micro is an anniversary present to millions of Nintendo fans, who 20 years ago single-handedly built this entire industry," says George Harrison, Nintendo of America's senior vice president of marketing and corporate communications.

Atari? Midway?

Old Favorite Nintendo Is New Again With Retro-Styled Game Boy Micro [PRNewswire]