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Neo Geo AES+ pre order sales have shattered all expectations

Mr_JPF

Member
"Within the first 24 hours, we took more paid preorders than our entire annual forecasted volume of the Neo Geo AES+. Since then, sales have continued strongly through our own channels, online retailers, and specialist stores. Seeing the console currently ranked #1 on Amazon US across the entire Video Games category is both humbling and deeply inspiring."


 
I definitely don't need 90$ games.
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I remember being in an import shop in the 90's trying to get the screen on my Atari Lynx fixed and this 10 year old kid and his mother come in and start browsing the NeoGeo games. I remember her saying to him "You can only get two games". I was like, fuck, I didn't know I was in the company of billionaires here.
 
I definitely don't need 90$ games.
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I have you ever seen a Neo Geo cartridge in real life ? The size alone explains why they are so expensive, plus you need cases big enough to fit the cartridge, and lastly the new cartridges for the AES + are the real deal, they work even in the original hardware, they're not just cheap plastic with rooms stuck inside.
 
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I wish Sega would do something like this with the Genesis( it goes without saying Nintendo won't so I wouldn't even bother wishing for it).
That wouldn't be a bad idea, but I think we can all agree that it's about time that Sega brings back another console besides the Genesis, we need Saturn and Dreamcast+ consoles and we need them now !
 
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explains why they are so expensive
I know perfectly well the size of the cartridges. Unless I am mistaken, plastic has yet to reach the value of gold. If the internals are a ultra simplified single chip PCB, the price will not be justified in the slightest. Source ? Me. I had a Game Gear game published and it wasn't necessary to sell it for 90$ to make a profit... and it was paying back for the development of the game. Which in these cases have already been paid for decades ago.
 
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Nothing stops the original-official-1:1-replica-vintage-hardware-and-games-train! Choo choo mofos!

I've made my peace with the price tag for the games, as current reproduction games can easily cost 60 and above for CD based games including case and manual.

This is historical as this is the first time in the history of the medium that a classic home console is rereleased, right? Safe to say most people thought this to be absolutely impossible before this announcement. Plaion single handedly giving fans new hope that some day, someone at Sega gets his head out the ass and greenlights new Saturn and Dreamcast consoles. I acknowledge that this would be more difficult than rereleasing a cartridge based machine as these were build like tanks, so there's no need to fundamentally change anything about the design. Nobody wants to use the disc drives found in Saturns or Dreamcasts these days. They'd have to make some changes to the hardware in order for it to be good, but it's totally possible and Plaion delivers proof of that.
 
The Neo-Geo is a beautifully designed, sleek looking console. IMO, the best looking console in general. I think that alone plays a part in this because it's not like there aren't many other ways to play those games. People just want to decorate their gaming shelves.

If it looked like that...

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...nobody would want it.
 
have you ever seen a Neo Geo cartridge in real life ? The size alone explains why they are so expensive, plus you need cases big enough to fit the cartridge, and lastly the new cartridges for the AES + are the real deal, they work even in the original hardware, they're not just cheap plastic with rooms stuck inside.
It's not the size of the plastic shell that made these games expensive back in the day, it was the size of the ROMs. Nowadays these sizes are considered nothing. The biggest Neo-Geo game is what, 150-200MB? That's literally nothing.

Now, i don't know what's inside those new cartridges. But i assume it's niche old-tech parts nobody really produces nowadays, which means they can become expensive to produce despite their minuscule specs. That's where the cost comes from, not the size of the plastic or the ROM.
 
That is great to hear. It would be awesome for this to sell like crazy and open up the door for other companies (Nintendo, etc) to actually start re-releasing their old consoles that are based on real hardware and not emulation/fpga. I think there is definitely a market for it, especially for companies like Nintendo.
 
Every time I get tempted to preorder, I just load up Turf Masters on the Analogue Pocket and remind myself that it's actually not that good, and not worth anything close to what they're asking.

(I've played a lot of Turf Masters recently.)
 
I remember being in an import shop in the 90's trying to get the screen on my Atari Lynx fixed and this 10 year old kid and his mother come in and start browsing the NeoGeo games. I remember her saying to him "You can only get two games". I was like, fuck, I didn't know I was in the company of billionaires here.
 
That wouldn't be a bad idea, but I think we can all agree that it's about time that Sega brings back another console besides the Genesis, we need Saturn and Dreamcast+ consoles and we need them now !
Oh I agree. I'm thinking strictly from an engineering standpoint the Genesis would be easier/cheaper to produce( I have no clue what I'm talking about, FWIW).
 
Help me think through this.

Can I AFFORD $1k? yes. Do I WANT it? yes, a ton.

But I'm not going to actually PLAY it, yeah? I've had access to these games for decades on different emulation setups or home ports (Saturn, etc). And I don't play them. I think of them fondly, I look at them every once in a while, I appreciate them and respect them.

I'm picturing myself. I'm sitting down after a day of work after the kids are in bed. I get this running and I play Pulstar. I die over and over bc it's been years since I played these kinds of games regularly. I swap it out for Metal Slug. I get to the third level and die like always. I put it away and go to bed. Work and kids and responsibilities the next day. I look at the shockboxes lovingly. After a few months they're getting dusty and I wonder if I really want all these cords and things lying around.

It's not worth it, right?

...right...?
 
I'm super hyped for this. Like many others I couldn't afford these growing up and now I'm not missing my chance. I've ordered like $730+ worth of stuff so far and looking forward to seeing what games get announced in Wave 2. I'm really hoping they include SvC Chaos in the next wave. I hope they take it as far as they can by re-releasing tons of NG games and even getting SNK to make some new ones.

Help me think through this.

Can I AFFORD $1k? yes. Do I WANT it? yes, a ton.

But I'm not going to actually PLAY it, yeah? I've had access to these games for decades on different emulation setups or home ports (Saturn, etc). And I don't play them. I think of them fondly, I look at them every once in a while, I appreciate them and respect them.

I'm picturing myself. I'm sitting down after a day of work after the kids are in bed. I get this running and I play Pulstar. I die over and over bc it's been years since I played these kinds of games regularly. I swap it out for Metal Slug. I get to the third level and die like always. I put it away and go to bed. Work and kids and responsibilities the next day. I look at the shockboxes lovingly. After a few months they're getting dusty and I wonder if I really want all these cords and things lying around.

It's not worth it, right?

...right...?

YOLO. You've never owned one before and now you've finally for the chance. Do you know how satisfying it feels to play NG games on actual hardware? To slide the cartridge in and then use the actual arcade sticks? Now's you're chance. I've never seen a company re-release a console like this and who knows if they'll ever do it again. I'd recommend taking a look at what the games and consoles cost right now before the AES+. $5500 for one game, $2500 for one game, etc... This is a steal. Even if all you do is buy the base console at $250 and then one game, that's all you need to finally get that authentic Neo Geo experience you've always wanted as a kid. Let's say you miss out on this and then they stop making them and prices skyrocket... how will you feel then? Plus this would be great to play with your kids and introduce them to gaming with 2D games.
 
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I know perfectly well the size of the cartridges. Unless I am mistaken, plastic has yet to reach the value of gold. If the internals are a ultra simplified single chip PCB, the price will not be justified in the slightest. Source ? Me. I had a Game Gear game published and it wasn't necessary to sell it for 90$ to make a profit... and it was paying back for the development of the game. Which in these cases have already been paid for decades ago.


This is just the first example I could think of. I'm not a part of the retro neo geo community, but from what I remember reading in some forums some time ago, independent releases usually are in the $300-400 range. But we'll find out once the AES+ is out.
 
Lots of pent up demand for this console over the decades. Besides the cost when it was new, it has always been a pain to get aftermarket. I went to one of the best flea markets in the US almost every weekend between 1997-2006 to hunt retro games. I built an insane collection over that time, but i found absolutely zero Neo Geo systems or games.
 
Proerdered the white one since Ultimated is not avaliable at My country.

Is Nice for old folks like me to be able to get a "new" console that does not needs internet or patches to play , not subscriptions Just plug and play

I don't see Nintendo or Sega having a great success if they release a regular size SNES or Genesis because those systems where for the masses and are tons on cheap systems around.

Aes+ success is because original Aes console and games were just for a small rich group of gamers plus the system was avaliable on few countries, my bet is less than 5% of gamers got the original Neo Geo Aes, so basically for most players Aes+ is a new console interms of owning a new ecosystem of games , controles, etc.

I know the console is for arcade type games but would be great in the future to have and RPG like Octo Traveler or old FF3 , and games like Castlevania.
 
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Proerdered the white one since Ultimated is not avaliable at My country.

Is Nice for old folks like me to be able to get a "new" console that does not needs internet or patches to play , not subscriptions Just plug and play

I don't see Nintendo or Sega having a great success if they release a regular size SNES or Genesis because those systems where for the masses and are tons on cheap systems around.

Aes+ success is because original Aes console and games were just for a small rich group of gamers plus the system was avaliable on few countries, my bet is less than 5% of gamers got the original Neo Geo Aes, so basically for most players Aes+ is a new console interms of owning a new ecosystem of games , controles, etc.

I know the console is for arcade type games but would be great in the future to have and RPG like Octo Traveler or old FF3 , and games like Castlevania.
Yeah since the system has memory cards and the NG CD style controllers, it would be sick to have some more traditional console games like RPGs and stuff too. I guess only having 4 buttons may be an issue though since the SNES and Capcom CPS 2/3 had 6 buttons. But the Genesis only had a 3 button controller so...
 
Honestly I would love to see what they are doing with this AES+. Is it 1-to-1, chip to chip reproduction? (expectation) - FPGA type of recreation? (alternative) - or just some souped up custom hardware emulation?
Also the rom cartridges.... Will they be the same exact rom chips on dual layer - or will it be just some simplified version of dual layer setup with 1 chip per board to ensure compatiblity with older h/w?

For that reason alone, (and me being broke with kitchen renovation) - I'm going to wait on the actual hardware review with internal differences and all.
 
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