This DIY Mini NES Console Is What Nintendo Should Have Made

However, with it getting confirmed by March 2017, Nintendo is pretty sure that fans can forgive them for delaying the game for so long.

Tech blogger DaftMike has built a mini 3D printed version of the classic Nintendo Entertainment System.

“The NES was the first console I had growing up”. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. An Arduino board has been placed in the case and connected to the status light and an NFC card reader.

Mike’s mini NES doesn’t actually play games off the cartridges, there isn’t any data stored on them.

“The front-loading game slot, lifting the door and inserting the cartridge, pushing it down with that satisfyingly-sprung *click*”. But the cartridge thing in particular-which uses NFC instead of any sort of mechanical element-is particularly awesome. Since he’s running RetroPie emulators off of a Raspberry Pi, he’s also able to make cartridges for games that never launched on the original NES system like Pokémon Red and Blue.

Since its initial announcement, gamers have been seemingly desperate to gain any new information about Nintendo’s Mini-NES console.

You could also run games developed for GameBoy, Super Nintendo, or other consoles. Revealed just a few weeks ago, the miniature device will come packed with 30 classic NES games as well as a wired NES controller.

If you’re wondering if this project was inspired by the upcoming official NES Classic Edition, it wasn’t. The original Game Boy and NES both had remarkable industrial design that, like the Apple II and IBM Thinkpad, weren’t quite appreciated until many years after production ended.

For folks without access to a 3D printer though, Nintendo’s model might be an interesting option. “I’ve got strong memories of playing Nintendo games with my brothers when we were younger”, explained Mike.