Evercade?!

[+Biff Burgertime]

On 5/28/2024 at 2:16 AM, Biff Burgertime said:

Feels weird whenever I'm reminded the Evercade was made by Blaze. Until recently, I only knew of them for this awful MP3 player for Dreamcast. I think I got it for $1, it was dirt cheap when Gamestop was dumping their DC stock.

 

If it worked correctly it would've been cool (for the time) and helped conserve CD-Rs I would've used up burning audio CDs... Problem is half the time you'd swap in a disc to and play a song, and it would just crash. So then you swap back in the MP3 player disc, reboot the console, wait, swap in a CD-R, etc. It was tedious and the success rate was too low to be worth it.

 

It's almost as shocking as when I learned Mad Catz started making Street Fighter-branded sticks that DIDN'T suck! 

 

After my last post, I started craving the sweet sound of MP3's. I was pretty sure that Blaze MP3 player was long gone, but I went looking for it anyway.

 

I FOUND IT! 

 

...but neither of my Dreamcasts have a working disc drive anymore. 😢

[Reaperman]

5 hours ago, Biff Burgertime said:

After my last post, I started craving the sweet sound of MP3's. I was pretty sure that Blaze MP3 player was long gone, but I went looking for it anyway.

 

For old-Blaze, I'm a fan of the 'scorpion' light gun line. Some had recoil, pedal jacks, and lasers, etc. 
And this just reminded me that they have a 'beige whale' of mine that I never managed to find for the right price--the 'scorpion vii.' It was a gun-shaped wiimote, rather than a crappy gun-shell a wiimote fits into.  

 

I checked my own dc mp3/vcd player and it's DreamMovie-branded.

Edited June 6 by Reaperman

[+jgkspsx]

https://evercade.co.uk/evercade-mid-2024-update/
 

Quote

Dear Community,

 

It has been fantastic to see your enthusiastic reactions to the new EXP-R, VS-R, Alphas, and the exciting cartridge highlight of Tomb Raider being announced. We have plenty more to come this year on Evercade with some really cool cartridges arriving.

As we approach mid-2024, I thought it would be good to talk about the Alpha products and give you some insight into why we decided to offer these to customers and what is most exciting about these products for us.

 

For quite a while, we have been trying to broaden our offerings to fans in terms of price points, features, and ways to play. This allows for more people with different tastes to jump into Evercade. With our sister brand, HyperMegaTech!, we have made Evercade more accessible at £50/€60/$60. We worked hard to make the EXP-R and VS-R both available at lower prices and we have found ways to keep cartridge costs low. This year our plan has been to provide something for everyone.

 

With Alpha, our goal was to surpass the competition by improving the product in every conceivable way. We aimed to include high-quality preloaded games and a greater number of them. We introduced new features, full-size controls instead of miniature ones, and designed the unit to have substantial weight for rigorous arcade play. We paid attention to both major and minor details, incorporating unique elements like a light-up coin slot to make the system stand out.

 

After considering an Evercade-branded cabinet and deciding that people would likely prefer a game-themed one, we started to talk to many companies about their arcade titles. It was clear that Capcom had some amazing titles that hadn’t been represented like this before, such as the Street Fighter Alpha series and the two Mega Man Arcade games that were rare in the West when originally released. As with every license, we always start from a place of cartridges, but this is not always possible, and in this case, they are built in. Historically, these official home arcades usually offer between one and three games per unit. We managed to license six titles per unit.

Once we secured these games, we set about enhancing the product further. We created the light-up marquee with panels that could easily be swappable for other titles. We selected improved controls over the competition and even offered a deluxe version with Sanwa controls built-in. Wi-Fi is included for our game of the month feature, adding hidden games and software updates to improve your experience.

 

Expanding our user base allows the arcade community to dive into the Evercade experience and join the excitement. Partnering with industry giants like Capcom enhances our capability to secure top-tier licenses, bringing you more of the games you want.

 

We know Evercade Alpha isn’t for everyone, but what unites every part of this ecosystem are our cartridges. We believe that they make Evercade the easiest and most satisfying way to play these games right now. So, whether you want to play on a handheld, TV, or on a compact arcade, we make sure it’s possible. Cartridges are the heart of Evercade and will be our focus going forward.

 

In the next few weeks, we will announce more cartridges for all customers to enjoy. We hope you continue to have fun discussing your favorite games, working out your dream carts, playing games, completing games, or collecting carts you will enjoy. To us, Evercade is for everyone who wants to enjoy classic and modern retro games in a fun and physical way.

My personal aim at the beginning of Evercade was to build over 50 collections, and we are sprinting past that with many more signed for the future already. I was also proud to see our 1 millionth cart sell, which was a milestone I could only dream of in 2020 when we launched. I recognize that our strength comes from our community, so we will continue to be as open as possible where we can be to give you insight into our products and the decisions that drive our business.

 

Thank you for your continued support and enthusiasm.

 

Andrew Byatt

CEO

 

[+GoldLeader]

21 hours ago, Biff Burgertime said:

After my last post, I started craving the sweet sound of MP3's. I was pretty sure that Blaze MP3 player was long gone, but I went looking for it anyway.

 

I FOUND IT! 

 

...but neither of my Dreamcasts have a working disc drive anymore. 😢

 

Do ya want me to come over and kick one of them for you?  It probably won't work any better afterwards,  ...But still it might be fun!

[famicommander]

Summary of the CEO letter:

 

"You people will buy anything, here is a list of the most basic features possibly imaginable for a ridiculous price, thanks!"

[+madman]

14 hours ago, famicommander said:

Summary of the CEO letter:

 

"You people will buy anything, here is a list of the most basic features possibly imaginable for a ridiculous price, thanks!"

How do you call a 3-pack of mini arcade marquees, including one for the all-time classic Carrier Airwing, for $40 a ridiculous price.

[Hydro Thunder]

17 minutes ago, madman said:

How do you call a 3-pack of mini arcade marquees, including one for the all-time classic Carrier Airwing, for $40 a ridiculous price.

I guess all of this is my real concern; I am a big Evercade / Blaze fan and want them to succeed.  And really much more than any critique I have of the products on their merits / lack of, is the just nonsensical pricing.  The price they're asking on these is frankly enough to drive people away from the brand.  They're working so hard at bringing the price down on the EXP and VS...and why?  I don't think there was ever an issue that those didn't have excellent value.  And they go from that to asking the price of a Switch OLED for a bartop arcade unit...and not even giving away the marquees with it as part of the price?  This just feels so far from the strategy of the company that sold me amazing cartridges for $20 with hard cases and full color manuals.

[famicommander]

7 minutes ago, Hydro Thunder said:

I guess all of this is my real concern; I am a big Evercade / Blaze fan and want them to succeed.  And really much more than any critique I have of the products on their merits / lack of, is the just nonsensical pricing.  The price they're asking on these is frankly enough to drive people away from the brand.  They're working so hard at bringing the price down on the EXP and VS...and why?  I don't think there was ever an issue that those didn't have excellent value.  And they go from that to asking the price of a Switch OLED for a bartop arcade unit...and not even giving away the marquees with it as part of the price?  This just feels so far from the strategy of the company that sold me amazing cartridges for $20 with hard cases and full color manuals.

They worked really hard on lowering the price... primarily by losing the license to the built in Capcom games on the EXP.

 

Thanks, great work!

[+GoldLeader]

13 minutes ago, Hydro Thunder said:

I guess all of this is my real concern; I am a big Evercade / Blaze fan and want them to succeed.  And really much more than any critique I have of the products on their merits / lack of, is the just nonsensical pricing.  The price they're asking on these is frankly enough to drive people away from the brand.  They're working so hard at bringing the price down on the EXP and VS...and why?  I don't think there was ever an issue that those didn't have excellent value.  And they go from that to asking the price of a Switch OLED for a bartop arcade unit...and not even giving away the marquees with it as part of the price?  This just feels so far from the strategy of the company that sold me amazing cartridges for $20 with hard cases and full color manuals.

 

Keep in mind, the Alpha is just one product...If you're not interested,  don't buy it.   It's not like if you don't buy one the company will go down in a BLAZE of Glory (Haa)...

[Hydro Thunder]

18 minutes ago, GoldLeader said:

 

Keep in mind, the Alpha is just one product...If you're not interested,  don't buy it.   It's not like if you don't buy one the company will go down in a BLAZE of Glory (Haa)...

This is fair, and I by no means mean to yuck anyone's Yum.  For my personal part I don't have much point in critiquing as I already have lots of similar options to the Alpha so I'm not their target.  But again, even from the outside looking in, the pricing on the Evercade units and cartridges was phenomenal.  And that is NOT what's being said about these based on what we know.  

[+jgkspsx]

The pricing on these is more than competitive with other bartops. The question is whether any other bartops are selling at the asking price.

 

While famicommander's and madman's usual excessive venom takes away from their points a bit, I do agree that losing the Capcom games from the EXP is a huge blow to the Evercade value proposition, and that the marquee pack price seems a bit crazy if these are just cheap thin plastic. Then again I pay $18 a piece for Vectrex overlays that are cheap thin plastic, so maybe it's not really an unfair price.

 

Personally, this is the first major Blaze product since the Evercade began I have not ordered, though I did ask for the Mega Man one for Christmas and I like my chances. If they got a different license like Williams/Midway I would have been all over this, but when I have all of these games and 10x more on my Switch for $36 it takes away a bit from the excitement.

 

We have been assured that some exciting arcade carts are coming and at least one non-arcade game that is considered one of the top 25 games on its home system. I am looking forward to those announcements. Thalamus is the most exciting cart to be released this year, and Tomb Raider makes them look good and will sell a lot of units even if it really isn't my thing. I am looking forward to the next cart announcements.

 

I think the biggest problem facing Blaze is that there doesn't seem to be that much else in what has been their sweet spot for licensing. Piko seems to be really down on Blaze now, which is especially a shame since Piko 4 is their best cart since Gaelco 1 and Piko Console 1. I think we're likely to get more Data East and Jaleco, we have a decent shot at more Irem and Toaplan, we will almost certainly get a Legacy of Kain dual cart that I am already excited for, we will very likely get more Tomb Raider with the GBC/GBA games that are more my style, and Natsume and Koei-Tecmo are plausible if not likely. There isn't a whole lot else that seems likely. 

 

When you get down to it, I never expected this system to actually release. I couldn't believe it existed. I still can't believe it actually happened. It's given me some of my best gaming memories in a 38 year career of gameplaying, and that's more than I could have asked for four years ago. If it all goes to hell from here, well, it was still one of the best experiences I've had in this hobby.

 

That said, Blaze hired two new people so they seem pretty optimistic.

[Reaperman]

14 hours ago, jgkspsx said:

The pricing on these is more than competitive with other bartops. The question is whether any other bartops are selling at the asking price.

 

I was going to go ahead and disagree with this, but it's confirmed. 😭

In recent history, A1up countercades were $150msrp, and I considered them a rip-off when I bought one at $50 shipped. But both those prices are long gone now.

 

MSRP on the newer (a1up micro) with unbranded controls, unlit marquee, and an 8" screen is $300. That's exactly what paid for my comparably nicer arcade1up ridge racer on sale (in late 2022!). What's wrong with prices? Lemme embiggen that:

$300

(for those freaking a1up counter-turds)

I keep a purchase log:

Edited June 8 by Reaperman

[Giles N]

I love the idea of these Barcade Evercades.

 

In time, very likely I’ll get both.

 

I should wish, - when they do make the decision to go tabletop Barcade that they could at least have 10 inch screen. I would be willing to pay the extra costs of that. 
 

What I feel they should do now:

 

1) make sure a Capcom Arcade and/or console Catridge is released to sort-of compensate that you cannot get to play the full EXP line-up.

 

2) Get Taito to release 1 or 2 Carts with other famous retro-titles.

[+jgkspsx]

3 hours ago, Reaperman said:

That's exactly what paid for my comparably nicer arcade1up ridge racer on sale (in late 2022!).

Yeah, but you got that on deep clearance. MSRP was $700, wasn't it?

 

I got my Galaga '88 countertop on clearance from QVC for $75 but that was much lower than MSRP.

[+GoldLeader]

1 hour ago, jgkspsx said:

 

 

I got my Galaga '88 countertop on clearance from QVC for $75 but that was much lower than MSRP.

 

And you still overpaid,  hahahahaaa!

[+GoldLeader]

One thing I will say is I believe they will put out a quality product.  If for some reason there was a bunch of LAG,  well  that would really make me Angry (and you wouldn't like me when I'm angry).  Given their track record though,  I don't have a care in the world!

[Giles N]

@roots.genoa

 

What’s (or are) my unclear point(s) this time?

 

Edited June 8 by Giles N

[Reaperman]

3 hours ago, jgkspsx said:

Yeah, but you got that on deep clearance. MSRP was $700, wasn't it?

 

Oh for sure--it was a black friday 'special buy'--I think real clearance was even $50 less.

MSRP has still doubled on the little guys over basically 2 years, and is now equals the sale price on the big guys. Which has also nearly doubled over the last half decade or so too.

 

anybody know if we have a HDMI-in & usb encoder access in there? Maybe somebody who hangs out of the discord has asked? it really changes how appealing this is, being able to semi-easily connect a steam deck, MiSTer, pocket, switch, etc either directly or on an hdmi+usb KVM switch or similar--I'm just dreaming at this point.

 

-----------------------------------------------------------------

I'm editing out a whole section about sanwa controls and the render, because it's just a render and may not be enough detail to truly determine button attachment, etc.

 

 

What I will still say is the lever obviously has a bat top which indicates potential further customization from stock--likely a matching stiffer spring, hopefully a gate-swap which IMO completes the upgrade trifecta for making a sanwa lever not suck. and I worry that the funstock's genuine sanwa lever (which shares the render) may come stock vs upgraded. (balltop/square-gate/light-spring).

Lately a few well designed sanwa clone controllers have come around that I've actually loved, so someplace in chinaland offers 'nice clones with upgrade-jimmies already.' 

Edited June 8 by Reaperman

[Bill Loguidice]

Another data point for comparison: https://www.pixelheart.eu/en/produit/visco-mini-arcade-bartop/?utm_source=mailpoet&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=VISCO+Mini+Arcade+Bartop+-+Big+promotion!

[phoenixdownita]

38 minutes ago, Bill Loguidice said:

Another data point for comparison: https://www.pixelheart.eu/en/produit/visco-mini-arcade-bartop/?utm_source=mailpoet&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=VISCO+Mini+Arcade+Bartop+-+Big+promotion!

Interesting note there.

_____________

PLEASE NOTE: Some machines may emit a slight electrical sound that is barely audible when plugged in. This sound interference in no way detracts from the user experience. No “VISCO Mini Arcade Bartop” will be refunded or exchanged for this reason.

[+madman]

4 hours ago, phoenixdownita said:

Interesting note there.

_____________

PLEASE NOTE: Some machines may emit a slight electrical sound that is barely audible when plugged in. This sound interference in no way detracts from the user experience. No “VISCO Mini Arcade Bartop” will be refunded or exchanged for this reason.

Maybe they started out as Vectrex cabs?

[roots.genoa]

9 hours ago, Giles N said:

@roots.genoa

 

What’s (or are) my unclear point(s) this time?

 

This:

12 hours ago, Giles N said:

What I feel they should do now:

 

1) make sure a Capcom Arcade and/or console Catridge is released to sort-of compensate that you cannot get to play the full EXP line-up.

 

2) Get Taito to release 1 or 2 Carts with other famous retro-titles.

It's not unclear, but you keep wishing for things that (unfortunately) won't happen. 😔 And we keep explaining why, and you keep saying "oh OK, I get it", and then you do it again. 😩 Also you remind me of a French guy that tags me on Discord every time I react to his posts so that I explain my reaction. 😬

 

6 hours ago, phoenixdownita said:

PLEASE NOTE: Some machines may emit a slight electrical sound that is barely audible when plugged in. This sound interference in no way detracts from the user experience. No “VISCO Mini Arcade Bartop” will be refunded or exchanged for this reason.

Wow. I'm wondering how many people ordered that thing anyway... Really, how many Visco fans are they in the world? Do they even exist? What's their agenda, their network? 🤔

[+jgkspsx]

"WHAT for heaven's sake do they WANT?"

[Giles N]

3 hours ago, roots.genoa said:

It's not unclear, but you keep wishing for things that (unfortunately) won't happen. 😔 

I think you just seem too ‘set’ or dogmatic in your view ‘it won’t happen’.

 

That they have licensed new/other Capcom titles for the 2 Barcade Evercades, proves that the situation is more dynamic than your view on this.

 

But:

3 hours ago, roots.genoa said:

And we keep explaining why, and you keep saying "oh OK, I get it", and then you do it again. 😩 

…and again, if you by limiting it to defining your estimatimation about ‘likeliness’ as ‘having explained it once and for all’, like it being a ‘carved-in-rock fact’, then your tone is a bit too ‘bezzerwisser’ for my taste, and such a tone probably have little chance of making any pisitive change - even if smaller than the optimal wish (I’m notvreferring to changing my mind, but which mindset creates change in the industry).

 

Your approach may suit you, it doesn’t suit me.

 

And again, - in a economic dynamic reality - ‘having explained why this or that won’t happen’ is a very bombastic wording, and then lamenting ‘I do it again’ is kinda patronizing (if I may be so frank to say so), and insinuates ‘you are right, therefore I have to use your standards’.
Well, if you was right a year ago concerning the economical situation behind, it doesn’t follow you just automatically you’re equally right now. Blaze’s situation may be different both financially and as to partner dialogues.
Which leaves me at wondering why you get hung up, or react at all to such posts as mine (you can just move on to next post you know, leaving me me to my own little world), particulary the way you do - with just a ‘hmmmm?’ emoji and no words to say what makes you go ‘hmm?’.

 

And you do this reacting-without-explanation (not even an attempt) again and again in many threads concerning many different topics.

 

What about just use quote-section and say ‘I believe nothing have changed as to their possibility of getting cart-licenses for Capcom or Taito games?’

 

Or is that too much work?

3 hours ago, roots.genoa said:

Also you remind me of a French guy that tags me on Discord every time I react to his posts so that I explain my reaction. 😬

Yes, - and if you explain your reaction when you react, even if you feel ever-so sure you’ve done your homework perfectly and your calculus is infallible to have explained everything once-and-for-all, regardless of changing times, circumstances, economics, popularity, demand, growth and what-not of dynamic elements in the reality at hand -, if you just explain your reaction, you won’t need for people to tag you and by that take from you any extra time in your life you wanted to use on something else.

 

If you use just a simple quote and answer it with just a sentence (For my part, I’ll accept a short phrase as long as it explains your thougths), you will create less stress for yourselves, as it is common for the human nature to ask what confused someone if see or perceive displays of confusion in persons given at certain behaviours. (This should be quite be obvious)

 

So, if you just use your own words instead of tapping a symbol, you’ll probably decrease such irritating factors as people asking and wondering ‘why your confusion?’.

 

It may be that some of the things I say here may sound harsh, even that it is hard in its wording (its not personal, but feels I want to clear this up), but if you skip communicating at a internet discussion forum, and afterwards says it essentially is because you are right, therefore others who have another opinion are then just of-course wrong, - even if you sincerely believe so, consider that it may come across as fairly patronizing in attitude.

 

So, you seem to set yourself up for frustration just by dodging the most obvious way to go about things in a internet forum: use words.

 

Moreover, you thinking that something won’t happen (realistically) is after all just your estimation, and even misses my point of what I believe would be healthy for Blaze and the Evercade line-up, independent of whether they’ll be able to pull it off at all, or anytime soon or something ‘akin to it’ in a few years.

 

You read some of my posts on a wrong note, where you seem to insert  implications of short-term actions, when a post like to one above was meant to be fluid, dynamic and open-ended. You could call it wishful thinking, and I’d call it it what I believe wouid help Blaze get on - and customer-pleasing isn’t such stupid idea if you don’t go with extreme losses, leaving it up for grabs what timing would be good.

 

So, then I’ve described what I found problematic about some of the repetetive confused emoji use.

 

When you said ‘tags me on Discord every time I react to his posts so that I explain my reaction.’; is that a declaration this is your technique to get attention? If so, - you may come across as a more interesting sparring-partner if you drop the ‘I explained it, I’m right, you’re wrong, why do you ask again’-attitude.

 

That’s just patronizing, even if or when you have (had) valid points.

Getting us nowhere.

 

Did you predict the Capcom inclusions on Evercade EXP, or the dual Capcom and Taito Evercades or the Barcades, in advance of any of their announcements?

 

One month or 6 weeks prior to the Taito Evercade (announcement last summer), I sent a fan-letter to Taito saying Evercade got some retro attention in the West, and said I’d like for them to release their PS2 collections for it.
 

That’s at least active engagement, for whatever its worth.

 

I’d rather be wrong or overtly optimistic about something, but keep trying.

Again, your reasons may be perfectly right given the situation as it is.

 

I don’t care.

 

For the very simple reason that things change.

 

Moreover we can contribute small changes and the dynamic world of economics, production and releases upon demands, may be better understood as looking for the right timing to make something happen, rather than treating it as set in concrete once and for all. 
 

Perhaps it’ll never happen in the history of the Universe … that Taito will release 1 or 2 Evercade cartridges.

 

Perhaps it’ll never happen in the history of the Universe … that Capcom will release 1 or 2 Evercade cartridges.

 

But, it may also be that if popularity and demand increases, it could happen by Q3 2026…

 

And I have my suspicions you don’t know either, with 100% certainty just due lots of engagement here and on discord. 
 

You may have valid points that it may be unlikely.

Now.

 

You don’t know. Your not a time-machine from the future.

 

Therefore sounding a bit less patronizing sometimes, and just say what you think by quoting and responding is in my world a lot nicer way to come across to people.

 

I have no problems with people disliking things or finding corporate decisions bad or ugly and saying that, even with un-nice wording, but thats because its about things and poor decisions.

 

—

 

On that bombshell, perhaps I have my sides too, - or bad days - where I just need for someone to just tell me straight up to straighten up - bucket of ice-water, kick in the balls and all that.

No-ones perfect, I just felt I wanted clear up and out all this communcition stuff that I just don’t get.

 

I have slight feeling one of my weaker sides is sometimes using just way too many words.

 

Edited June 9 by Giles N

[OldSchoolRetroGamer]