Classic NES Series

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Classic NES Series
Famicom Mini Classic NES box comparison.jpg
The Famicom Mini (left) and Classic NES Series (right) packaging of Super Mario Bros.
Genre(s) Various
Developer(s) Nintendo [a]
Publisher(s) Nintendo
Platform(s) Game Boy Advance
First release Super Mario Bros.
February 14, 2004
Latest release Dai-2-Ji Super Robot Taisen
December 16, 2004

The Classic NES Series, known as the Famicom Mini [b] series in Japan [1] and NES Classics in Europe and Australia, [2] is a line of emulated Nintendo Entertainment System and Famicom Disk System games, published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Advance (GBA) in 2004 to commemorate the NES's 20th anniversary. In Japan, the series was released in three "volumes" of ten games, plus two additional games available in limited quantities as raffle prizes. A smaller selection of these games were released in Western territories, split between two waves of releases. The games received mixed reviews, with critics praising how enjoyable most of the games remained to play after 20 years, but criticizing the high price point of each game.

Contents

Overview

Three special collection boxes could be obtained from Club Nintendo by purchasing all of the Famicom Mini games. Famicom Mini collection boxes 1.jpg
Three special collection boxes could be obtained from Club Nintendo by purchasing all of the Famicom Mini games.

The Family Computer, commonly shortened to Famicom, was Nintendo's first cartridge-based home video game console, originally released in Japan in 1983. [3] The system would later be redesigned for Western markets as the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), which was released in North America in 1985 and Europe in 1986. [3] The Classic NES Series was developed to celebrate the collective 20th anniversary of these systems' launches. [4] [5] Each game was priced at ¥2,000 in Japan, US$20 in North America, and £15 in the United Kingdom. [2] [6] [7]

The Classic NES Series games run through emulation and are largely unchanged from their original releases, though some games have received minor modifications, such as an updated translation in The Legend of Zelda and a new autofire function in Xevious . [8] [9] Due to having to fit the GBA's lower screen resolution, the games are not displayed in their original aspect ratio, and have been modified to fill the screen. [1] [10] All games in the series include a sleep mode feature to temporarily suspend play. [4] The games also allow data to be saved to the cartridge, such as high scores or game progress, a feature not present in many of the original Famicom and NES releases. [4] Games with multiplayer functionality support single cartridge multiplayer using the Game Link Cable or the Game Boy Advance Wireless Adapter. [11] [12]

In Japan, the Famicom Mini series was targeted at collectors. [6] Games were individually numbered and sold in clear packaging with cartridge-sized cardboard sleeves that resembled miniature versions of the games' original Famicom box art. [1] [6] The cartridges in the first two volumes were colored red and white to match the Famicom console, [4] while the cartridges in the third volume, dubbed the Disk System Selection, were colored yellow to match the Famicom Disk System's disks. [13] The Famicom Mini games' availability was limited, with each volume's games being discontinued after three months. [6] [13] Members of the Japanese Club Nintendo rewards program could register the serial numbers for all ten games in each volume to receive a free collector's box in which to store them. [14] In the West, the games used standard GBA packaging designed after their original NES box art, and were released on light gray cartridges based on the default color of NES cartridges. [1]

A special edition Game Boy Advance SP in Famicom colors was released in Japan alongside the series, while Western regions received a system patterned to resemble a NES console and controller. [1] A Game Boy Micro variant designed to resemble the Famicom controller was also available when the system launched in September 2005, commemorating the 20th anniversary of the Super Mario franchise; a reissue of Famicom Mini: Super Mario Bros. was released alongside it. [15] [16]

List of games

A total of 32 games were released, only 12 of which saw release outside of Japan.

List of seies entries
TitleFamicom
Mini
no.
JP release
[4] [6] [13]
NA release
[7] [17]
PAL release
[2] [18]
Note
Super Mario Bros. 1February 14, 2004June 7, 2004July 9, 2004
Donkey Kong 2February 14, 2004June 7, 2004July 9, 2004Also available on GBA via Animal Crossing download play and Nintendo e-Reader cards. [19]
Ice Climber 3February 14, 2004June 7, 2004July 9, 2004Also available on GBA via Animal Crossing download play and Nintendo e-Reader cards. [20]
Excitebike 4February 14, 2004June 7, 2004July 9, 2004Also available on GBA via Animal Crossing download play and Nintendo e-Reader cards. [21]
The Legend of Zelda 5February 14, 2004June 7, 2004July 9, 2004
Pac-Man 6February 14, 2004June 7, 2004July 9, 2004Licensed by Namco. Also available on GBA via Pac-Man Collection and Namco Museum 50th Anniversary . [22] [23]
Xevious 7February 14, 2004June 7, 2004July 9, 2004Licensed by Namco.
Mappy 8February 14, 2004UnreleasedUnreleasedLicensed by Namco.
Bomberman 9February 14, 2004June 7, 2004July 9, 2004Licensed by Hudson Soft. Also available on GBA via Hudson Best Collection Vol 1: Bomberman Collection. [24]
Star Soldier 10February 14, 2004UnreleasedUnreleasedLicensed by Hudson Soft. Also available on GBA via Hudson Best Collection Vol 5: Shooting Collection. [24]
Mario Bros. 11May 21, 2004UnreleasedUnreleasedAlso available on GBA via Animal Crossing download play, Nintendo e-Reader cards, the Super Mario Advance series, and Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga . [25]
Clu Clu Land 12May 21, 2004UnreleasedUnreleasedAlso available on GBA via Animal Crossing download play and Nintendo e-Reader cards. [26]
Balloon Fight 13May 21, 2004UnreleasedUnreleasedAlso available on GBA via Animal Crossing download play and Nintendo e-Reader cards. [27]
Wrecking Crew 14May 21, 2004UnreleasedUnreleased
Dr. Mario 15May 21, 2004October 25, 2004January 7, 2005Also available on GBA via Nintendo Puzzle Collection download play. [28]
Dig Dug 16May 21, 2004UnreleasedUnreleasedLicensed by Namco. Also available on GBA via Namco Museum and Namco Museum 50th Anniversary. [23] [29]
Takahashi Meijin no Bōken Jima 17May 21, 2004UnreleasedUnreleasedLicensed by Hudson Soft. Also available on GBA via Hudson Best Collection Vol 6: Bōken Jima Collection. [24]
Makaimura 18May 21, 2004UnreleasedUnreleasedLicensed by Capcom.
TwinBee 19May 21, 2004UnreleasedUnreleasedLicensed by Konami.
Ganbare Goemon! Karakuri Dōchū 20May 21, 2004UnreleasedUnreleasedLicensed by Konami.
Super Mario Bros. 2 21August 10, 2004UnreleasedUnreleased
Nazo no Murasame Jō 22August 10, 2004UnreleasedUnreleased
Metroid 23August 10, 2004October 25, 2004January 7, 2005Also available on GBA via Metroid: Zero Mission . [30]
Hikari Shinwa - Palutena no Kagami 24August 10, 2004UnreleasedUnreleased
Zelda II: The Adventure of Link 25August 10, 2004October 25, 2004January 7, 2005
Shin Onigashima 26August 10, 2004UnreleasedUnreleased
Famicom Tantei Club: Kieta Kōkeisha 27August 10, 2004UnreleasedUnreleased
Famicom Tantei Club Part II: Ushiro ni Tatsu Shōjo 28August 10, 2004UnreleasedUnreleased
Castlevania 29August 10, 2004October 25, 2004January 7, 2005Licensed by Konami.
SD Gundam World: Gachapon Senshi - Scramble Wars30August 10, 2004UnreleasedUnreleasedLicensed by Bandai.
Mobile Suit Z Gundam: Hot Scramble March 18, 2004UnreleasedUnreleasedLicensed by Bandai. Only 2000 copies were printed as raffle prizes for purchasers of Kidō Senshi Gundam: Senshitachi no Kiseki . [31]
Dai-2-Ji Super Robot Taisen December 16, 2004UnreleasedUnreleasedLicensed by Banpresto. Only 2000 copies were printed as raffle prizes for purchasers of Super Robot Wars GC . [32]

Reception

Upon launch of the Famicom Mini series in Japan, one million units were sold within eight days. [33] The re-release of Super Mario Bros. went on to become the 13th best selling Game Boy Advance game, selling over 2.2 million copies. [34]

The Classic NES Series garnered mixed critical reception. While most reviewers found that the games were still enjoyable to play, the cost was a common point of criticism. Many believed that the price for a single game compared unfavorably to that of contemporary video game compilations, which often featured multiple games from the same era. [35] [36] Craig Harris of IGN noted that several of the available games were already playable on the Game Boy Advance in less expensive formats, such as via cards for the Nintendo e-Reader and as unlockables in Animal Crossing . [19] [21] [20] [35] Metroid 's inclusion in the series was considered redundant by Bob Colayco of GameSpot , since it was already included as an unlockable extra in its GBA remake, Metroid: Zero Mission . [30] Both GameSpot and IGN noted that Nintendo had recently given away The Legend of Zelda and Zelda II: The Adventure of Link for free in the Legend of Zelda: Collector's Edition bonus disc for GameCube, although they conceded that the Classic NES Series versions were portable. [37] [38] Reviewers generally believed that while some games like Super Mario Bros., The Legend of Zelda, and Castlevania were potentially worth their asking price, others like Ice Climber , Donkey Kong , and Dr. Mario did not offer enough gameplay to justify the high cost of the cartridge. [36] [39] [40] [41] [42]

Some critics were annoyed by the games' altered screen ratio, which caused odd graphical artifacts. [1] [10] [43] Reviewers additionally noted that because the games were based on their NES releases, some games were missing features present in other versions. Jeff Gerstmann of GameSpot said of Bomberman that "a Bomberman game without multiplayer is hardly a Bomberman game at all." [44] Similarly, reviewers lamented a missing level in Donkey Kong, which was present in its original arcade version but removed from the NES release. [19] [39] [45] Harris also felt that the new autofire function in Xevious removed much of the game's challenge. [8]

Notes

  1. Specific entries were originally developed by Namco, Hudson Soft, Capcom, Konami, Bandai, and Banpresto.
  2. Famikon Mini (Japanese: ファミコンミニ)

References

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