A NEW CHALLENGER APPROACHES
The Evercade enters the retro console arena
The market for retro gaming consoles has experienced a boom in recent years, but the popular mini consoles do lack one big aspect of retro gaming that many of us love – the thrill of building your own collection. The team behind the Evercade hopes to offer that excitement to players again, and has created a handheld console dedicated to retro games, with software distributed on multigame cartridges. The system is due for release on 20 March 2020, available with one cartridge for £59.99 or three for £79.99, with additional cartridges priced at £14.99. We naturally had many questions about the Evercade, so we’ve spoken to Andrew Byatt, Evercade’s development director.
Why did you decide to create the Evercade?
The Evercade was born out of a desire to create something that we would love to own. We are collectors and we love retro games. The obvious solution for us was to make a bespoke cartridge that contained a collection of titles. We love the idea of a range of games sitting on your shelf proudly.
This led to conversations with a lot of IP owners, and a lot of them were excited about getting their content to people in this way. We put it all together and the Evercade was born.
Who is the target audience for the Evercade?
We see the Evercade appealing to both the more hardcore retro collector and the ‘gamer dad’ who wants some nostalgia both for themselves and their family at a reasonable price. We have managed to get hold of some really interesting games from the likes of Piko Interactive and Mega Cat Studios that will appeal to collectors, and there are some real classics on the system like Pac-man, Splatterhouse, Earthworm Jim and Burgertime that will appeal to a broad audience of gamers.
What kind of hardware is under the hood of the Evercade?
We have a Linux base and 1.4GHZ quad-core processor. The system comfortably emulates 8-bit and 16-bit games. We have a 4.3-inch screen that offers original ratios or fullscreen. We also have the ability to connect to your TV with a Mini HDMI-OUT option. It is a powerful device for this kind of application. We are especially pleased to offer TV connectivity and the games look great on the big screen at 720p.
Why go with cartridges for game distribution?
Who doesn’t love cartridges? Physical, tactile cartridges really do stir the emotion and take you back to the glory days of gaming. We are working on some beautiful manuals to accompany the cart boxes.
Who has written the emulation software used by the Evercade? We have some emulators being developed for us and we have licensed some of the best emulators for various systems. We believe that good emulation is key to our success and have worked hard to make this the best possible experience.
Does the Evercade offer any way to play multiplayer games?
At this point the Evercade is a singleplayer experience. This has been our focus during development. We did consider adding extra functionality like Bluetooth for multiplayer, but it was decided that this added cost and complexity which wouldn’t
fit with the Evercade’s focus. The games themselves have not been altered, so potentially the same cartridges could be used on a two-player system in the future.
We have seen the promise of
8-bit and 16-bit games, and the ones announced so far cover a mix of systems including Atari 2600, NES, Mega Drive and more. At a maximum level, what hardware can the Evercade emulate
– could we expect Neo Geo games, for example?
The Evercade could run Neo Geo games, for sure. A lot of the restrictions in this area tend to be emulator accuracy versus performance. A highly optimised emulator can deliver good levels of accuracy with high performance to work on modest-spec hardware. The energy and effort needs to go into optimisation to make these two parameters meet at the best possible point.
Some games appear to be console versions, as opposed to arcade originals. Is this the case, and if so how will original formats be indicated to buyers?
The Evercade is focused on home consoles, rather than arcade games initially. We know that the arcade games are often definitive versions of these games, but many people had the home console versions and remember those fondly. We have ambitions in the arcade area, but not in year one. We will indicate the launch year of the game and whether it is 8-bit or 16-bit.
How frequently should players expect new releases after the system’s launch?
We aim to continue to add publishers and games to the Evercade after launch. We have many irons in fires right now and should be able to make regular releases throughout next year and beyond.
In an ideal world, what does the Evercade scene look like a year after launch?
We will be looking for hundreds of thousands of consoles to be played globally. A rich and diverse portfolio of hundreds of officially licensed games. It’s a cliche, but we want people to reach for their Evercade regularly and it to become their preferred way to play retro on the move. We are also exploring options for V2 already – for example (as you rightly asked) multiplayer options and potentially a simpler way to connect to your TV.
We love the idea of a range of games sitting on your shelf proudly