TOKYO — Akihabara is overrun with inexpensive copies of the Family Computer, but the price on this one is remarkable.
In a store called Akiba Ookoku, a little ways down a side street of Tokyo’s electronics district, I found this stack of consoles called “Fami-Compatible.” They are 400 yen each, or a little over $4. I’m sure they’re worth every penny. Picking it up, you can tell the whole thing is constructed of the cheapest plastic known to man. Most of the other Famiclones around Akihabara cost $30 and up.
As usual, the best part is the sign, which reads in part: “Buy the hardware here, then go to Potato!” By this they mean Super Potato, the popular retro game store right down the street.
Copies of the Family Computer, known as the Nintendo Entertainment System in other parts of the world, are popular here since the games are available in abundance, but original Famicom hardware is kind of a pain in the neck. The controllers are hardwired to the console and it doesn’t have AV output, only RF. Nintendo made an AV-enabled version, but it sells for around $70.
I’m in Tokyo all this week, and will continue to update with pictures and stories from the gaming world.
Photo: Chris Kohler/Wired.com