Console Gaming on the Go - Scott The Woz

Hello everyone, Scott here! Hello everyone, Scott heeeee Hello everyone, Scott heeeeeeeAAAAAAAAAA (painful noises) I HATE walls! Why do I live here?! Have you ever realized that there is a reason these things exist? That's how it is. You haven't, because there aren't any. But for some reason, the wall companies have a monopoly on

console

video games. It is simply the reality we live in now, the way God planned it. Super Nintendo cartridges must be played INDOOR! Yes, that's right, God. You know what was the coolest thing ever? Playing a game in an environment you wouldn't normally be able to play it in.

THIS IS FUCKING AMAZING! I'm talking about taking games you can only play on the TV from a home

console

that only worked when plugged into an outlet and making them playable on the go. Look, I loved my Game Boy Advance, but every time I bought a game for the handheld that was also released for the GameCube, for some reason I thought, "Oh my God, it's going to be like playing the GameCube game on the go!" Oh, this is delicious. In reality, it was almost always a completely different game. Handheld consoles simply couldn't keep up with the homegrown ones.

To be fair, many home console games would eventually make their way to handhelds, but they would generally be pretty old by the time they did. But that didn't stop me from wanting Super Mario Galaxy and Smash Brothers Brawl to be playable on my Nintendo DS; I mean, they put Super Mario 64 on the system. Taking the game that defined what 3D

gaming

would become, the game that is arguably the biggest leap forward in

gaming

history, and making it portable is still a sight to behold. Taking things that always required being plugged in at all times to remain stationary in your home and giving you the option to take them on the go will always be a magical feeling.

And while many games that appeared on home consoles eventually made their way to handhelds... No, no, no, no, nonono! I want to play the Super Nintendo version of this game, not the GBA version of the Super Nintendo version. Look at this, it's... ...a little different. I don't want a handheld device capable of playing versions of Super Nintendo games, I want a handheld Super Nintendo. The idea of ​​taking a home console and stuffing it into something the size of a Game Boy has been around for quite some time. Sure, you could buy the Game Boy version of that NES game, but wouldn't you rather play the NES game on the go?

That was the mentality behind some of the first major home consoles to go away, the Turbo Express and Sega Nomad. And with this... we can finally stay outside forever and continue playing console games. Without looking back! The Turbo Express was a portable Turbografx-16. You can play the exact same game cards, although you can't play games released for the console's CD add-on. Now I don't have a Turbo Express because I spent all my money on this. But I have a Sega Nomad! One could say? Yes, this is the size of a worrying growth. It's definitely not the thinnest laptop out there, but come on.

Considering it was released in 1995 and is a full-fledged portable Sega Genesis, I think it's pretty understandable how big it is. Hell, a Sega Genesis cartridge alone is the size of a Game Boy Pocket, so of course the system will be bulky. So to play this on the go, we'll need a battery. Damn. Alright, I'll go in just this once to try this; After that, never again. I have to plug it into an outlet, and at that point you'll be wondering, "What's the point of playing Genesis games on this, when I could just play them on a TV?" It doesn't matter, because look, I'm playing Sonic 1 but now it sucks!

Playing on battery would require six double A batteries, and they would run out in about two to three hours. That, or there was a rechargeable option, but overall, it didn't have the longest battery life, and installing a battery would make it nearly impossible to fit in a pocket. Not being able to put a Sega Nomad in my pocket is my worst nightmare. But in practice, honestly, the Nomad is much better than I expected. Play Sega Genesis games; after all, it is an official Sega Genesis. The screen was always what I heard the most horror stories about; how it hasn't aged as well, and yes I think the biggest problem is how blurry it can get, but it's a lot better than many give it credit for.

It's still quite playable. Now, games like Sonic can be a little fast and a little blurry, but something like Streets of Rage works pretty well. You can adjust the brightness, which helps a lot, and you can even send the Nomad to a TV and connect another controller. This is truly a Sega Genesis in motion! You just can't attach any of the add-ons, like the Sega CD or Sega 32X. I mean, who cares? Was I really going to play Fahrenheit while traveling? (sigh) Yeah... The Nomad is pretty impressive, all things considered. I mean, say what you want about the battery life and screen quality, but it's a portable Sega Genesis from 1995, that's crazy.

But what if we want a little more power with a lot fewer compromises? Well, say hello to the PSOne LCD Monitor, a way to play your favorite PlayStation games on a portable LCD screen whenever you're connected. (aggressive growl) One more trip inland and we can play our PS1 games portable! Released alongside the revised Playstation model was a screen that you attached with a couple of quarters, plugged it in, and BAM! Honestly, it's incredibly simple and the screen and sound quality is excellent. I love that there are no extra cables, it just plugs into the back, plug in an AC adapter and play any PlayStation game you can imagine on a mini screen.

Of course, this isn't completely portable - it needs to be plugged into an outlet at all times - but it makes taking the system around much easier. You can take this to a hotel, a cabin, you can get a car AC adapter and play it on the road! The display accessories business really started here. I mean, here's a third party one for Gamecube. Same general idea, but not as well done, simply because the Gamecube wasn't designed to run something like this, but the PSOne. So we have this fun skin growth thing that we have to attach to here, and attach this... ...I think I'm missing a piece.

But I remember seeing all these cases for Xbox 360, Playstation 3, Xbox One or PlayStation 4 displays, which are essentially a carrying case with a built-in TV screen. This way, your child won't have to go, God forbid, for even a minute to talk to people at grandma's house. They can simply bring their system with them, plug it in somewhere and continue having good times. I mean, I'm guilty of this: When I traveled as a kid, I always packed a portable DVD player and seasons three and four of Wings. He would be totally willing to not talk to anyone during a trip.

God, these cases are excessive. I understand that you want to play your console games on the go, but this isn't that far from simply carrying a TV with you. Sure, as a kid I always had the desire to play my GameCube games on a road trip instead of my DS games, but come on. No one wants to be burdened with this when it offers so much entertainment. It's just great to be able to play non-handheld games handheld, but when that means lugging around a 50-pound sack, the magic wears off pretty quickly. Look, these things aren't necessarily portable.

They allow you to play your favorite consoles in the corner of your bedroom instead of the living room TV. What about things more in line with TurboExpress and Sega Nomad? Well, those things exist on the menu tonight! Look, the technology needed to make something like a Super Nintendo even more affordable and compact for the 2010s. It's definitely more than possible to take that and turn it into a somewhat affordable handheld. That's how we got the SupaBoy from HyperKin. Let's turn it on... Geez, I can't see the screen; the sun is too bright. BASTARD! So the SupaBoy was released in 2011 and is basically the SNES version of the Sega Nomad.

I love how it looks. It's like a Super Nintendo controller. We pop it in the cartridge and bam, we're playing Super Nintendo games on the go! Sometimes. It may be because I bought it used, but it's a bit complicated and doesn't work properly all the time. The D-pad feels much cheaper and more plastic than the official Nintendo one, but I mean, this is one of the most legit ways to play with official cartridges on the go. But if you really want to play Super Nintendo games on the go, I'm not sure you care too much about authenticity.

At this point, you can also download these games on the 3DS or something. Similarly, we have the Retro Duo Portable, also designed for playing SNES games and the design is not as charming. It seems like the most generic design possible for a "video game controller with a screen." BUT it comes with an adapter to play NES games. Portablely. Yes, portable. That reminds me that if you want to play Game Boy games portable, simply plug the Super Game Boy into any of these portable devices and there you have it. The Retro Duo Portable actually had a good number of adapters designed to let you play games from all types of systems.

I would say that if you wanted to play these console games while traveling, this is your best option. but Hyperkin is still releasing new versions of the SupaBoy. This was the original release, later models use a widescreen display that enlarges games. BECAUSE!? What was the point of this!? No Super Nintendo game was widescreen! I understand that widescreen displays (16:9) are more available than 4:3 displays right now, but why couldn't they program these things so they don't stretch games to fill the screen? God, I'm ANGRY at this thing that doesn't belong to me! Well, if you just want a portable NES, here's this guy, the FC Mobile 2.

Look at all the STUFF it comes with! Controllers, a GUN... The screen is the size of a grape. Yeah, I want to say it works, but I think it's too small, like the screen is tiny. An NES cartridge is twice the size of this device. I don't see any reason to try to make this as compact as possible so you can put it in your pocket, if in the other pocket you have to store NES carts. The sound is really harsh and muffled. It feels a little cheap for my taste, BUT if you really HAVE to play these games on the go, it works.

Although it also smells strange, but I don't know if that's really a point to keep in mind when talking about video games. So these modern retro handheld consoles... They're nice, but I don't see them as anything more than a novelty. Like I said, for people who absolutely have to play video games with the original cartridges, the "retro gaming purists", wouldn't they prefer to play them on a CRT with the best possible image quality, with the original controllers and on officially manufactured devices? ? hardware and stuff? It's still amazing to be able to play these games with the original cartridges in the palm of your hands.

I mean, it's pretty good. But many of these are not the best put together, like opening the flat bar on the Super Boy cartridge. Are those cables supposed to be so visible? Pushing the systems a little will cause games to crash or freeze, and these cartridges are very large. I don't see anyone actively thinking, "I can finally play these games portable!" These cars were not designed to be taken on trips and these systems are nothing more than a small thing. But what if we took more modern systems and turned them into laptops? Finally being able to play GameCube and Wii games outdoors?

Oh my god, that's the dream! Well, let's talk about these portable consoles that we can play outside but not play because I don't have them. SHIT! Look at these! Portable Homemade GameCubes and Wiis. These are literally dreams come true! Exactly what I wanted when I was a kid. And all of these are made by fans; you need to have extensive knowledge on how to turn this... thing into this... ...thing. I'm telling you, I would have killed for something like this. Sure, Mario 64 DS was great. But play any of its successors, Sunshine or Galaxy, on the go Woah.

But alas, if you've opted for a portable N64, GameCube, or Wii, you're either going to have to shell out the big bones or have a good idea of ​​what the heck you're doing if you want to build one. If you want to be more upfront about this sort of thing, you can obviously wait until your favorite console games are remade or ported to portable systems. Donkey Kong Country Returns came to 3DS. Marvel vs. Capcom 3 came to PlayStation Vita. Sure, these are degraded in some way, but literally all of these portable solutions are degraded in some way.

Yes, the smaller screen and controls can be strange. It will always be different. Of course, that begs the question: How about a console that you can take with you right out of the box? That's right, I'm talking about Wii U. You canPlug your Wii U console into a power adapter and it will still connect to the gamepad if it's close enough. That means for Wii U games you can play directly on the gamepad screen. They are as portable as the PS1 with LCD monitor. All you need to do is plug in the Wii U and away you go!

It will still stream video to the gamepad screen without an internet connection. Nothing! I've seen dozens of people play it at the airport or in the car... Maybe less than dozens, but it's still possible. In the end, home console games, while amazing to watch anywhere but at home, seem too tailor-made for the TV. Many games like this were created to be played sitting on a couch connected to the Internet at all times and taking advantage of the power you can achieve with a fat box without having to take into account the screen and battery life. Maybe console games were never meant to be played on the go.

Oh.Well, that's a look at console gaming on the go. Look, a lot of this stuff is really cool. But they have many obstacles involved. However, I'm willing to overlook many of them with these portable home consoles, I'll never have to go back in again! (disappointment rains) I still believe it. Look what just happened, it can't rain inside, the outside is incredible. That's right, fuck you, House.