Nintendo Game & Watch Review and Teardown!
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- čas přidán 28. 08. 2024
- Nintendo's third retro console differs from its predecessors -- it's handheld, but also only has 3 games. Is its charm and portability enough to overcome its limitations? (And what's inside its sleek exterior anyway?)
Sources:
Pair of Game & Watch consoles photo: d2mpxrrcad19ou...
Game & Watch Ball photo (modern Club Nintendo version): www.flickr.com...
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This Nintendo Game & Watch can be hacked to add your own custom ROM, however it's not for the faint at heart. You need to open it up and connect to the 5-pin unpopulated debug header port. You can actually see it in your video. With the battery on the bottom the pins from left to right are: SWCLK, VDD, GND, SWDIO, RESET.
Here's a video link showing the detailed process on how-to do it (not my video) czcams.com/video/Rsi8p5gbaps/video.html
I genuinely wish Nintendo would release some sort of GameBoy classic
So do I. I suspect the Analogue Pocket is the closest we’ll get.
Look at the RetroFlag GPi case or the PiBoy DMG. Similar form factor to a Gameboy. Expensive tho.
Nintendo should consider using this hardware to do it. Perhaps as another game & watch too.
Amen
Well game and watch came first so hopefully next or it could be a n64 classic
That battery is the same one used in the Joycons, down to the part number (HAC-006). Even the speaker is the same design as used in the Switch itself.
I had a feeling they reused switch parts because of the usb c port
Yeah, the other teardown video of this that had already been done revealed the battery to be a Switch Joycon battery.
@@RWL2012 thought that battery looked familiar
Nintendo as of late liked to used existing parts of the components when they can, which is a really effective strategy in my opinion as it allows for cheaper producing cost, and allow for more to be made. Same thing happens with the Switch Pro Controller and the Switch itself (Use the 3DS battery and, at least at launch, came with the HDMI cable for the Wii U respectively)
That’s smart design
1:57 You can select the world you want to play from the main screen. But you can only select the worlds you have reached.
I'm 100% down for a Mario 3 version if it ever happens
I would love that. I was lucky enough to get this one today. Target had 1 left in my local store. I don't normally shop at Target but Best Buy and Gamestop were completely dry.
Tall Order I got one at GameStop for Christmas
@@dad251 I was surprised that a couple weeks after I got mine, I was checking out the video games at walmart and they had 6 of them behind glass. I just about facepalmed. lol
Mario 3 is one of the NES games i could enjoy revisiting on such handheld.
But the current selection of games makes this edition of game & watch a hard pass for me.
I would really love it if they tis this for a few of their classic nes games. Zelda, Metroid, Mario 3, kirby etc
Looks a much better handheld implementation, than SEGA's "Game Gear micro".
It released in Japan
When I was a school kid these were the rage- my favorite was one called Parachute. Anyone remember that??
Yes my friend had it. I got Donkey Kong junior instead. Excellent game! Still play it from time to time :)
Yea when I was a school kid in the 80s in NYC these game & watch games were the rage! My favorite game was and still is Mario's cement factory!🙂
The SOC isn't a glob top which is pretty cool.
I've seen a few glop top systems that are REAL systems. Like one that I have, which is a glop top with a real NES-on-chip with good AV output under it, and another that is a real SMS. Both are older, but when connected to a CRT TV would be very hard to distinguish between a real NES/SMS. Not trying to 'dunk' on you here, but some glop tops can be good. just not when it comes to reverse engineering.
@@xero110 oh no I'm not necessarily against glop top chips, I'm just saying it's not as easy to work around or hack a glop top. You of course can get around a glop top in a few ways and there are for sure some great SOC glop tops like what you mentioned but nonetheless I was just saying that it's pretty cool that Nintendo didn't go the glop top route with one of their cheaper devices. I didn't think you were trying to dunk on me. We're just two nerds talkin' nerd talk is all.
@@Kylefassbinderful Speaking of hacking it, Doom is running now. They are working on a homebrew loader. But with a microcontroller, 1MB of RAM, and 1MB of storage I don't see much running on it. Sill nice to see Doom running tho.
czcams.com/video/sNg_S9UM5ps/video.html
@@xero110 yeah i saw that, f*cking awesome
I would've been more excited about a G&W with most of the old G&W games
Yeah same here, this would have been a golden opportunity for a game & watch gallery 5 honestly
Better still would have been a plain oldskool lcd screen like they used to be but dot matrix with all the old g&w titles on it.
That's why we have Game & Watch Galleries for the Game Boy series
I wish man, I wish. Nintendo confuses me
@@shepherdstar14 Nintendo have been out of touch with consumers for the past 20 years, all they do is keep releasing the same old mario games on the new consoles like the switch, we are getting bored with it all, if they want to re-release something they ought to re-release the old game and watch series. A we would love it and B greedy ebayers wont get hardly any cash for the old ones
The USB port on this thing is really for charging only, it's not physically connected to the SoC, only to the charge controller from the reversing attempts i saw online...
Wonder if one could connect the data pins themselves.
@@christphern simple answer, yes you can, that didn't mean you can easily crack it though.
That's an important distinction. Thanks for pointing it out.
@@mephistovonfaust yeah who knows the rest of system is setup to communicate even the pins are connected.
I like the G&W console. It's pretty nice just for a short round of SMB while you are "working" 😁
I’ve been loving mine. I do wish it had a compilation of all the game and watch games on it tho.
Very late, but that just wouldn't be possible. A lot of the G&W units had drastically different designs.
From simple things such as Widescreen, to having two wired controllers pop out for multiplayer, to having a dual-screen setup that would inspire the DS. While you can adapt them, you can't really do it in the way Nintendo did this one (I.e, 1:1 with minor graphic alteration.)
There absolutely is interpolation from non integer scaling on the X axis. It’s most obvious on the vertical lines on the brick tiles, and there’s a noticeable shimmering when the screen scrolls.
Yep, it's ironically extremely obvious in the close-up while he says Nintendo chose a screen resolution which doesn't require interpolation. Whoops.
@@vaguerant I agree, but there is nothing Nintendo could do about, as pixels on the original NES are not square. So they choose a display with the correct aspect ration and the correct Y-resolution.
I just wish they gave you at least the option for a pixel perfect mode like on the NES classic so you have the option of choosing ether a too skinny - but pixel perfect picture or have it the correct aspect ration but with interpolation.
@@sh4dowde Well, there is nothing Nintendo could do about it on the budget they alloted to this device. But if they had wanted to, they could have had somebody manufacture LCD screens with non-square pixels; it's entirely possible, the Sega Game Gear and Nintendo 3DS both had them.
But for a cheap device using off the shelf parts, that wasn't going to happen, so yeah, a pixel-perfect mode (like they already offer on other systems!) really would have been the ideal compromise.
@@vaguerant There's a lot Nintendo could have done about it. They're giving you 3 games for $50, there's a crapload of profit there. This was just lazy on Nintendo's part, as usual. Nintendo never cares about getting it right, they always release cheap crap for maximum profit.
solid teardown video as always
I brought mine on Impulse for Christmas and it's been hammered by everyone in my family. This and a Fujifilm Intax camera from santa and we were all transported back to the eighties.
First price drop and I will get a 2nd G&W just for me and keep it in the car. 👍
I love my game and watch, I was able to get mine way before the spring of 2021, it's a nice little thing to show off and have around since I love vintage games..
Great review. Fyi you can select worlds you've reached with B and start with infinite lives holding A.
In Ball you can switch to Luigi by holding A, and on the clock hold A to play the Mario Drawing Song.
Next year will be the 35th anniversary of Metroid, Kid Icarus, and Zelda. I can easily see Nintendo selling 35th anniversary Game & Watch units for each of those, especially Zelda.
Thats what I was thinking too. I would collect the Zelda one for sure. Then you may see Sega do something like this with master system titles like phantasy star. They could give it a master system color theme.
And Donkey Kong's 40th anniversary too
PSA: The screen does use interpolation horizontally. However, this is not necessarily a bad thing and is handled well here, well enough for many reviewers not to notice, and it's almost unnoticable to me in gameplay.
Now you may ask, why is the game stretched horizontally? That's because LCD displays have square pixels (generally), however the NES is intended to be displayed a bit stretched. The resolution of the NES is 256x240 which would be an aspect ratio of 16 : 15 if displayed with square pixels, however the video output from the NES was stretched to 4:3 on CRT TVs at the time. The Game & Watch has a resolution of 307x240 (counted the pixels on my unit), which is close to 4:3 (approx. 4:3.13). The vertical resolution obviously matches that of the NES, thus no stretching there, but the horizontal resolution is 20% higher. As a side note, I find it odd that they didn't use a 320x240 resolution which is more standard and would've given them an exact aspect ratio of 4:3, but I digress.
I personally think that they should've added a "pixel perfect" mode like on the 3DS Virtual Console, NES/SNES Classic and NES/SNES services on Switch Online. It would've fit particularly well here since discarding those 51 extra horizontal pixels would've literally made the game pixel perfect and it would've looked razor sharp. But, in a way, this is more authentic, so I don't mind *that* much. And, to be clear, the stretching uses soft scaling that only affects the game horizontally, so most of the time or at a comfortable distance, you won't notice it, especially in movement.
EDIT: Please note that anything said about the Game & Watch in this comment is based off my unit only (model HXA-001, although different revisions with the same model number has not yet been ruled out). I have not seen any external data or information on the console's resolution or stretching properties, so take anything I say here as what it is - very limited information from one source. I hope to see more detailed examinations of the properties of this console and its display soon.
Just got mine in the mail. Have wanted one of these since I was a kid, super nostalgic for me.
I wish they'd updated and put all the Game & Watch Gallery games on it. It's amazingly built (although they forget the stand), but its content is very limited.
Colin great tear down. I hope enthusiasts find a way to add more games to it.
I love mine! In fact I'm playing in the middle of this video! Great job!
30 years ago as a kid I prayed they'll come up with g&w device that will run Smario on color screen...
quite frankly I'm amazed at the small number of components and how low end they are.
They must have some significant profit margins selling this thing for $50, especially factoring in them using Switch components.
The micro isn't cheap. Its probably $5-7. LCD prices have gone way up as well all driven by Covid. My guess is this unit costs nintendo around $25 to make.
I still have the G&W which I had when I was at school around 1981. It was called Fire, and you had to rescue the people jumping from the burning building and bounce them into the ambulance.
I played it to death but it still works ! Still in it's original box too.
I wanted a game and watch duel screen donkey Kong 1 the Orange one when I was a kid in the 80s . I brought a near mint one boxed a few years ago. Had to wait 40 years and buy it myself
These things have been sitting on my Wal-Mart shelf for months
I don't understand why Nintendo keeps releasing the NES version of this game over and over again. They did an amazing job with the Deluxe version released for the Gameboy color, you had saved games, an overworld, and more fancy stuff, yet they chose to re-release this archaic version.
I only wish they hadn't had to crop the amount of visible screen in SMB Deluxe, it hurt the experience of an otherwise excellent port/upgrade
Awesome report in disassembling the little handheld; too bad if doesn't have a save and load feature. Thanks for sharing your time and knowledge.
Pick this one up today, together with the zelda one, new inbox at a retrofair for 70 euro together. Was very happy with it.
it runs on a STM32 which i think is really neat
I'd like to see a raspberry pi project with this screen and modified case.
I'm glad they made the faceplate metal....no finger smudges awesome....
Who plays SMB1 w/o holding the B button?
Oh my god!!! I was hoping I wasn’t the only one who thought this!! I was getting legit triggered 😂🤣
ikr painful to watch
..to game and watch
I do. I have poor reaction times anyway, not a chance I'd be able to to half the things if I was making Mario run at the same time.
Other Game & Watches had little metal pop out stands on the back of them (i.e. the Octopus that you showed) so they can stand up and display the time, I have no idea as to why they didn't include the pop out stand...
Like the physical copies of Super Mario 3D All-Stars, these are already collecting some minor dust on the shelves over here in Sweden.
I found one of these little things in a local Walmart jst this past evening, picked it up cause you know...classic Nintendo. Thankfully didn't get ripped off and paid normal retail!
I could see Nintendo doing this with more NES titles in the future. We may get a Tetris one, a Zelda one, maybe even SMB3 mega man or metroid. You could collect stacks of these. Then you'll see Sega get in on it and put out some mini master system / game gear titles like this. Columns, Sonic collection, Phantasy Star, etc.
I think the most confusing thing about this is that Nintendo actually did make a Super Mario Bros. Game and Watch, and that they didn't use that color scheme (blue and white) along with that LCD game included instead of Ball.
My original early 80s Game & Watch had USB-C!
Definitely looks like it's supposed to be a display piece.
I rember these when I was in the last year of junior school. The rich kids had these.
Hey that’s the same battery that’s in JoyCons.
Thanks for the review of this device, I just got one from ebay, I'm fortunate to get one while it's still available, I didn't get to have a chance to play Super Mario during my childhood.....
Great video! I hope they make one of these with Zelda 1&2! Maybe even Metroid?
Well it's Zelda's 35th anniversary next year, so.. who knows? (Also for Metroid) You can never tell what they create next,
Nintendo almost got me to buy Super Mario *again* just because this looks so good and fun to play on
Super thorough overview. Thank you for the video
For the screen its worth having a gander on panellook, as they have information on nearly every screen.
After having given the Zelda Game & Watch a lot of play time, I think this device is honestly valuable for the same reason the original Game & Watches were valuable when they were first new. I find myself playing a bit of Zelda Arena (as I sort of call the interactive clock) or a few levels of Mario 1 on the subway or during a break. This reminded me of the anecdotal story of Gunpei Yokoi's inspiration for the game and watch; Yokoi saw a passenger on a train fiddling with their electronic calculator. For 50 dollars, despite it's scarcity, this feels like it fills the exact same niche the original units did back in the early 1980's (if for a somewhat different appeal and level of collectability these days).
If you want to see what I mean, watch this old commercial for the GBA Famicom Mini series. Replace his GBA with a Super Mario Bros. Game & Watch, and it fits perfectly. czcams.com/video/_esXTyk1atQ/video.html
Superb video, answered the questions I had that weren't answered elsewhere. I do think we will see another G&W sometime (it's just too easy for them to do it now, just a different ROM image basically), and with that 1 megabyte I wouldn't be surprised if there are "secrets" to be unlocked in the coming months...
Very clear and insightful video. Many thanks
"Doesn't require special tools to replace" except the fact you need a tri-wing bit to open in. I'd consider that a special tool since without it you wouldn't be able to get inside XD
This is the sort of thing you never unbox, in years to come it will be worth a small fortune.
That battery is the same that is in teh joycon's so even if these don't sell weel there will be plenty of battery relpacements out there in the future.
When I was a child in the 80s, Game & Watch was incredibly popular. Every child has at least one.
I was lucky to get both the NES and SNES classics at midnight launches. Showing up a couple hours before midnight. The Sega Genesis mini and this Nintendo Game and Watch have both been at the stores, plenty in stock, not selling out quickly.
I love this Game & Watch!
Before its existence, it never crossed my mind that I would want something like this. But now, I want more! A Castlevania version with Castlevania 1, 2 and 3 and a Double Dragon version with Double Dragon 1 and 2.
I cannot wait for the Zelda version later this year. My favorite NES Zelda game is on it: Zelda II: The Adventure of Link.
The cherry on top is that it will also include the GameBoy version of Link’s Awakening, which I have never played, nor the remake on Switch. What I have planned for that little system is that I will first play Zelda II until completion, then I will move onto Link’s Awakening and complete it and then continue with the remake on Switch so I can see how the original and remake compare. This holiday season will be pure Zelda goodness!
There is one thing I wish Nintendo would do: a remake of Zelda II aptly renamed The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Adventure. Notice what I did there? I changed the subtitle in the same way Metroid: The Return of Samus was changed to Metroid: Samus Returns for the remake.
Thank you for a great review and tear down 💯
The Macronix MXIC25U8035F package mounted is part of the same family of memory chips that are used in plenty of laptops as a ROM chip containing the BIOS.
It's a 25XXX-type flash memory, and judging by its nomenclature, it's a 1.8v compatible part.
You can flash the contents with a CH341A programmer and its 1.8v adapter, but:
- You might have to dump the ROM and see what comprises the games and what is the OS
- You *will* need to desolder the chip, as trying to flash with the SOIC8 clip will not work.
The battery, on the other hand, is the same one found on Nintendo Switch joycons, so it will be easy to source down the line.
You can actually save kind of, as in if you complicate past a level you can skip to that world and level again I think it’s one of the secrets? By clicking b on the game screen before playing.
I just picked us up like two days ago at my local target and I beat Mario on it
Your video made me rush out to Target and get the last one they had, man. lol
Tomorrows my Birthday I'll be 40, and I like to buy gifts for myself. Since I don't have anyone else who will.
I see the LCD and backlight cables separated like that, and all I can think? "Take note, Apple."
I got mine at a target about a month or two after March
You are correct in saying it's target audience is a narrow group of hardcore Nintendo collectors and gamers. I suspect it will not get to the point that store shelves are stocked with an over abundance.
Nice work. I'm tempted to get one but I'm not sure I can deal with a screen that small 🤓
My favorite Game & Watch was Bombsweeper
The battery appears to be just a joy con battery so replacing it if you have to should be nice and simple.
Also this console is way more hackable then the mini consoles. You can just connect an off the shelf stm32 programmer right to it and flash whatever you need, sorta like connecting a programmer to an arduino. The only issue is you need that programmer and the right tools soo not as easy as just connecting it via usb but way more versatile as you have complete control over the device.
I wish they would have made this a GBA+GBC emulator with all the game and watch galleries in it. I think it would have been both more appropiate and interesting than a super mario bros emulator within a game and watch case.
today I went to best buy and bought 2 one for playing one for to keep new in the box
If had been $20 it would have been a hit. But $50....come on......🤦♀️
$50 today is basically $20 in 1985 so there's that.
Needed to come with Mario 2 & 3.
my mum some how got me one just yesterday.
I do understand I'm late to the video, but someone has replaced the games now. Doesn't look like many people are going to be able to go their route though
Only a matter of time until someone flashes Doom onto this thing.
lol... 2 days!!!
czcams.com/video/sNg_S9UM5ps/video.html
its has been hacked but is it possible to replace the flash memory with bigger one
Mine seems to have a weird d-button glitch, every so often mario will just kinda stop dead in his tracks. Not sure if it’s a problem with the d-button or if it’s just the way it is. I did buy 3 of them so I’ll open another one to see if it does the same thing and if it doesn’t then I’ll exchange the glitchy one at Target.
I also remember the really rich kids had the Tomy 3d things. The LED's badly came towards you!
I am seeing them more readily available than the Classics. Best Buy had stock and I was able to score the other version from Amazon UK on preorder. Hopeful that everyone who wants one will get it.
It's nice however $79 on amazon BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA Typical nintendo and the price gougers.
Although, you could hold down A in both mario 1 and lost levels/2 on the start screen for infinite lives
this guy is amazing
would be perfect for me if it had an alarm! :'( still picked up one
I wonder if they could add SuperMario 3 in that G&W console?
At the start screen of either Mario game press B button to select which world you want to start from although you can only go the worlds you’ve actually made it to. Press and hold the A button at the start screen and you will begin the game with infinity lives!
What happens when you do the 2 player option
I'd love to have a Modern G&W with PEANUTS: Snoopy Tennis than a Mario-Skinned Ball. I hate how there is soooo much potential, but Nintendo just always ignores it.
You didn't go into the 35 Easter Eggs. Maybe another video?
I snagged two. I'll be keeping one sealed for my game collection and using the other.
Thats what I should have done today. My local target. Their website said they had 1 in stock. I got there they had 2 in the case. I only bought 1. I should have got both... But then someone else may want one and they'd have to drive 16 miles to get to the next target... I'm just too nice a guy to buy up the whole stock I guess.
At minute 7:02 next to the speaker wiers you can see an unpopulated conector that looks like a serial pin header
If there was one with Snoopy tennis, but screen like this new one, I'd love it and hunt it down! I do have my original one, but it's sort of sad that it doesn't work without lights.
I thought about picking one up, but I have plenty of ways to play Mario already. IF you could mod it like the NES Mini, perhaps
The data pins on the USB are not connected to the pcb so no future updates...
Doesn’t mean people can’t tap into the board directly. That chip was programmed from the factory, so there’s gotta be some way to reprogram it, it’s just a matter of how hard that’ll be.
@@mrb692 yes you can trough debug pins but not trough the USB cable that is what I mean
Luckily they're more common now that the holidays are over
I wonder if it can be modded to be an NES portable.
Its neat but Nintendo sure does like to milk the original SMB. Which I think makes the devices less compelling. $70 CAD is a lot to ask for a game that's already on every Nintendo platform under the sun. Would have made more sense if it played all the original Game & Watch titles.
They could have released a standalone GameBoy Camera, they decided to go for Game & Watch... again...
hello. would you know what the screen material is?
Can you please upload some pictures of the back of the lcd for people to Google around and research the display I need a replacement and thanks to you I may be onto something in trying to find somewhere to get one
Here in Holland it is sold out almost everywhere and shops themselves are jacking up prices