News – Nintendo Unveils Mini Famicom For Japan
Earlier in the year Nintendo announced the Nintendo Classic Mini / NES Classic Edition. A tiny homage to the Nintendo Entertainment System and the glorious days of 8-bit gaming. What’s more, with 30 of the best games from the 8-bit days pre-loaded for $60 / £50, this really is an offer that any retro fan will find hard to turn down.
All in all, this really was amazing news for any retro gaming fan, and was certainly out of the left field given that Nintendo is hard at work on the upcoming NX. However, if you thought that was good, well things just got an awful lot better. You see, that’s because today Nintendo revealed the Mini Famicom for the Japanese market.
Yes you read that right, the Mini Famicom! Now of course, we all love the NES, but who in the heart can say that it’s better than the Japanese Famicom? What with its beautiful red and white top loader shell and attached controllers, the Famicom is quite simply one of the all time classic gaming consoles, and now that gorgeous shell is available in mini form.
Just like the Nintendo Classic Mini you can tell that Nintendo have taken recreating this classic console in miniature form seriously. For example, whereas the the upcoming tiny NES comes with the one detachable controller, just as the NES did in 1985, this isn’t the same for the Mini Famicom. Instead, the Mini Famicom comes with two detachable controllers just as it did back on its Japanese debut in 1983.
What’s more, for those who have already pre-ordered the Nintendo Classic Mini like myself, there’s an added incentive that you can use to justify buying this one as well. You see, in a happy turn of events, the Mini Famicom actually includes a slightly different list of 30 games pre-loaded. In fact, some of these games have never even left Japan despite being decades old.
Here’s the full list of included games:
- Donkey Kong
- Mario Bros.
- Pac-Man
- Excitebike
- Balloon Fight
- Ice Climber
- Galaga
- Yie Ar Kung-Fu
- Super Mario Bros.
- The Legend of Zelda
- Atlantis no Nazo
- Gradius
- Ghosts ‘n Goblins
- Solomon’s Key
- Metroid
- Castlevania
- Zelda II: The Adventure of Link
- Shoving Sumo
- Super Mario Bros. 3
- Ninja Gaiden
- Rockman 2
- River City Ransom
- Double Dragon Ⅱ: The Revenge
- Super Contra
- Final Fantasy Ⅲ
- Dr. Mario
- River City Athletic Meet
- Mario Open Golf
- Super Mario USA (Super Mario Bros. 2 outside Japan)
- Kirby’s Adventure
As you can see, these changes have been geared more at the Japanese market, and as such there’s a good chance you may not have heard of one or two of these. All in all, those new and exclusive to the Mini Famicom include: Yie Ar Kung-Fu, Solomon’s Key, Final Fantasy III, Mario Club Golf, River City Ransom, River City Athletic Meet, Atlantis no Nazo, and Shoving Sumo. As such, this leaves Bubble Bobble, Castlevania 2: Simon’s Quest, Donkey Kong Jr, Final Fantasy, Kid Icarus, Punch Out, StarTropics, and Tecmo Bowl all as Nintendo Classic Mini exclusives.
The Mini Famicom will be available in Japan on November 10th for￥5,980 and looks set to be just as exciting as the Nintendo Classic Mini. Actually, dare I say a little bit more exciting. Though as someone who owns an original Famicom I would say that wouldn’t I?
Either way, keep your eyes peeled to Rings & Coins as November hits to find out our thoughts on the Nintendo Classic Mini, and if I have my way, more than likely the Mini Famicom too.