“Retro,” “Mini,” and “Classic” consoles are the bee’s knees this holiday season, with notable offerings from Nintendo, Sony, and (sort of) others. But which one is the best?
There’s a pretty clear standout among the current crop of officially-licensed mini-consoles, and it’s no spoiler to say that it’s the Super NES Classic. But there are a few other options you should consider, especially if you (or your gift recipient) are unimpressed with the limited and non-expandable selection of games in these devices. A premium remade “clone” that plays original cartridges, or a device that runs emulators and nigh-unlimited game ROM files, might make a better choice for some gamers.
Before we dive in, be aware of a recent development: Nintendo recently announced they will be discontinuing the NES and SNES Classic after this holiday season. If you want to pick one up (and you don’t want to pay outrageous scalper-level prices for one a few months from now), now is the time to do so.
The Best Retro Console: Nintendo Super NES Classic Edition ($80)
The NES Classic may have started off this craze, but going all the way back to the 80s might cause a bit of gaming jet lag. The older 8-bit games, with their extremely simple graphics, sounds, and two-button control schemes, haven’t aged as well in reality as they might have in your memory.
The SNES Classic is the way to go. Not only are the Super Nintendo games featured in its collection much more palatable than the older NES games, it’s an overall better group. Timeless Nintendo classics like Super Mario World, Super Metroid, Zelda: A Link to the Past, Mario Kart, and Donkey Kong Country are joined by third-party all stars like Mega Man X, Street Fighter II, and Super Castlevania IV. The SNES’s rich RPG legacy is also honored, with Earthbound, Super Mario RPG, Final Fantasy III, and Secret of Mana, but Chrono Trigger is an unfortunate no-show. Star Fox 2, an SNES sequel that was developed but never released, gets a world premiere on this new hardware. Naturally, the SNES Classic plays all of these games over HDMI, and there are some excellent accessories offered for the hardware, too.
Nintendo’s classic offering is getting the nod over the PlayStation Classic. Sony’s entry has some serious technical issues since some games run slowly due to PAL ROMs. While there are some standout titles in the PS Classic like Final Fantasy VII and Metal Gear Solid, it doesn’t have the wall-to-wall greats that Nintendo’s hardware does.
But the most unfortunate fact is that the early 32-bit 3D era has simply aged poorly: the low-resolution, low-framerate, and low-polygon visuals aren’t as clear or as appealing as the 16-bit sprites on the SNES games. It wasn’t until the PS2 era that 3D graphics on consoles really started to shine, while the Super Nintendo was the pinnacle of 2D console gaming. Plus, many of the PS Classic titles are available to play on the PS3 and PS4, which isn’t true with the SNES Classic and Nintendo Switch.
