Hands-On with the NES Mini

Even though it's pre-selling like hotcakes and it's going to be hard to find one for this Christmas due to the level of demand, the other day when we paid a visit to Nintendo's showroom in Madrid, the NES Mini console we were able to see, examine, and test was actually one of just four units manufactured so far in the world. Before it was all about models and prototypes, and even if we know it'll show up non-stop this autumn - mostly on social, you'll see - the nature of our hands-on session was pretty exclusive and to some degree exciting.

It's tiny. Really petite. More than you could've imagined by watching the official videos and looking at the pictures. It literally fits in the palm of your hand, and at first glance looks like a collectible toy, a decorative paperweight, a miniature to sit on your shelf instead of a real, functional console. And the same feeling arises when you pick it up: it's extremely light (so it won't double up as a paperweight, sorry to get your hopes up), and it almost feels empty.

But if it actually were decorative - and we know many will use it just for that purpose most of the time - we have to say the quality of the replica is high. You can see the effort and love that has gone into reducing the old machine down to its new size, with respect to the finishing and features of a device that we all wanted to have at home as kids. The colours are exact, the angular design is accurate. The essence of the classic console has been properly preserved.

It's almost funny when considered in contrast to the controller, which has retained more natural dimensions and thus looks like a 1:1 replica of that controller that changed it all with its d-pad and its two face buttons. Next to the NES Mini the controller looks huge, but feels just as good (and of course hurts your palm as much) as it did 30 years ago. If you take a look at the pictures and the footage accompanying this text, the NES Mini controller is almost as wide as the console itself. Neat.

There's little more we can tell you about the casing. Its connectivity is as simple and friendly as, well, that of a NES. At the front there's a fake lid as if it still had a bay for miniature cartridges. Beneath you can find the Power and Reset buttons to switch on the machine or restart (it actually takes you back to the home menu). Next to them, as always, you can find the two controller ports so that you can play either alone or with two players.

The connection ports for the controllers are just like the ones you have at the bottom of your Wii Remote controllers, and this means that you can connect both the NES Mini Controller included in the box, a second one you can buy separately, and the Classic Controllers you had for the Wii and perhaps the Wii U via the Wiimote. And vice-versa: the NES Mini controllers can be used, via the Wiimote, to play Virtual Console games on your Wii or Wii U.

At the back of the unit we find the HDMI 1080p video output (the cable itself is thankfully included) and the power input for a mini USB cable you can plug into another device (your TV, perhaps) or directly into the wall by way of the adapter.

However, it's when you press Power that the real fun begins. The first thing you'll see when you turn the NES Mini on is a home menu with a design and layout which is as retro-styled as it is easy to use. The pixelated style and chiptune music isn't confusing at all, and you always have what you need at hand. And if you leave the menu idle for a while, a vintage screensaver is activated.

The catalog of games can be browsed using the d-pad, but you can also sort the games by alphabetical order, number of players, recently played, most played, launch date or publisher. And if you find the controls or the systems too tricky, you also have the digital game manuals at your disposal.

The row with the games is shown centred on the screen. At the bottom, and related to the currently highlighted game, you will have the Suspend Points menu, which stores up to four save games you can restore at any point. This feature is user-friendly as well, and we're sure it'll be useful for people who want to finally complete that tricky classic or to tackle a game in a whole new way. Purists won't even think of stopping by here, though.

At the opposite, top area of the home screen, there's a shortcut to the different video formats and graphic filters available. By default the games are played in Pixel Perfect (well, it's obviously scaled up to 1080p), which for those unaware means a completely square picture, based on the old NES output. If you want to stretch that a bit, the 4:3 format is also available. Finally, for an even more nostalgic touch, you have the old TV CRT filter. Surprisingly enough, this filter doesn't feel like a gimmick, but actually recreates the visual results produced by an old tube TV, with scanlines, sprite deformation and chromatic aberration on each line.

The filter looks well crafted, and it could very well end up being a favourite for older players, but the truth is that the Original Resolution mode looks really, really good. Clean, brilliant, without blurry elements, with huge, sharp pixels filling up the screen. Those of you who come from Virtual Console emulation on Wii, Wii U and even 3DS will notice the difference: this looks like the prettiest way to play a NES game to date.

And what about input lag? Well, the truth is we can't accurately measure this as yet. Obviously, having a delay between the button press and the action on screen is always a concern with these emulations, more when we're talking about unforgiving old games with archaic systems that rely on accurate presses. In this respect it's great that the controllers are wired. Having seen the annoying lag found on the Virtual Console NES games on the Wii, here's hoping this will work much better (same as with the graphics), even if getting it back to CRT speeds is pretty much impossible.

From the thirty games included we tried ten or so. As to whether there's too many, not enough, and the overall quality; we'll offer our verdict later, closer to launch and after playing for a while longer. However, it's only natural that personal taste and memories will play an important role here, although the selection is already looking varied.

In fact, one of the most beautiful things about this little device, more so than the obvious nostalgia factor, is its educational value. People - not just gamers, as this will no doubt seep into the mainstream - will learn how many genres and mechanics were born, how many modern video games were initially designed when the industry took its second, significant steps following the fall of Atari and the rise of Nintendo.

So our first impression of the Nintendo Classic Mini: Nintendo Entertainment System was evidently rather positive. We're loving its quality build, what it offers, and its value, and the £49.99 / 59.99 euro price point looks spot on. After we've spent more time with it and we're better positioned to evaluate things such as emulation and the balance between authenticity and desirable modern features (for instance, we think an achievement system would've been great...), we'll finally see the full potential of what could very well be the best-selling console this upcoming Christmas season.