Thread by @Lord_Arse

So, here is my review of Blaze's Evercade Retro Games Console, a brand new cartridge-based handheld system for playing licensed retro video games.

DISCLAIMER: This item was provided to me for review purposes. I did not purchase it myself.

Before putting the Evercade through its paces, I installed the day one firmware update which swaps the A/B button layout to match the layout for SNES games. Turned out to be a very simple procedure and there was even a video to guide you through the process.

Now onto the Evercade! Whilst there are many handhelds that can run retro video games, the Evercade is different. Rather than come preloaded with games or require an SD card to load them into the unit, it uses bespoke physical cartridges…

…which slot into the rear of the handheld, each holding a compilation of fully licensed emulated console games from classic publishers. This gives the Evercade something that other similar handhelds don't have, the ability to build a collection. Old school!

On release there are already 10 cartridges available (that's 122 games) from the likes of Atari, Interplay, Namco, Data East and more. 50 to 100 cartridges are planned to be released in the next few years so that's plenty to collect and display.

The Evercade itself measures approx. 83mm deep x 183mm wide x 22mm thick (3 1/4" x 7 1/4" x 7/8") and weighs in at 217g (7.6 ounces) minus the cartridge. This makes for a pleasant hand-feel and the weight is about ideal.

The build-quality of the unit is very good, particularly for this price point. It's a solid device. It has a 2000mAH internal battery which will supply 4-5 hours of play. A green flashing light indicates that you have around 20 minutes left of game time…

…and the unit can also be played whilst charging. The Evercade comes with a micro-USB cable included, though you will have to find your own plug adapter if needed.

The console uses a 1.2ghz quad core processor and its screen has a resolution of 480 x 272 pixels. This seems quite low to me (it's the same as a Sony PSP) but seeing as how the resolution of the emulated games is lower than this, it is generally adequate.

Screen options are limited to just a brightness setting (low/medium/high) and screen ratio - "original size" and "full screen" - 4:3 or 16:9.

The screen itself is okay, and representative of a handheld of this price. Whilst not super crisp, the colour and brightness are good and perfectly adequate for most players. There is a minimal amount of LCD blur, but shimmering is noticeable in some games whilst scrolling.

Also, because there is no 1:1 pixel option in the settings, you will occasionally have a slightly soft image on the handheld's screen due to scaling.

If you wish to play on a bigger screen, there is a mini HDMI port which allows you to connect to your HDTV. Note: a mini HDMI to HDMI cable is not included and you will have to provide your own.

The HD output is 720p and is generally very good with no noticeable lag. My own consoles are connected to my HDTV via SCART and an expensive OSSC upscaler and I have to say that whilst this doesn't match, it's not far off at all.

Now, the HDMI is where I did have some annoying issues. One time, I managed to reproduce the sound issues that @GameSack experienced. Another time, the video only filled up a quarter of the screen. Occasionally, the TV wouldn’t recognise that it was plugged into the Evercade.

It’s not a deal breaker but I really hope that these problems are something that they can fix with a future firmware update.

Note: not everyone who has reviewed the Evercade has experienced these issues, so YMMV.

Onto the controls. Let's start with the highlight which is the d-pad. Reminiscent of the pad on the Sega Saturn pad, this is genuinely a joy to use and felt perfect under my thumb. The shoulder buttons are big and clicky and well located.

Onto the four face buttons. As you probably know, not all pads use the same configuration and on the Evercade, these are fixed. This means that some games button locations just felt… odd. I really hope that they decide to include full button mapping in a future firmware upgrade.

Let’s talk about the games! Five systems are emulated on the Evercade: Atari 2600, 7800, NES, SNES and Mega Drive/Genesis. The emulation is very good and without comparing each emulation game against real hardware, I didn't notice any slow down or glitches.

It would have been nice to have had the arcade versions on the cartridge but the console versions we have on here are good ones. Maybe future cartridges will have arcade versions on them? It's entirely possible as the design of the carts allows for…

…emulation of many more systems. In fact, a couple of Atari Lynx carts have already been confirmed. Cartridges cost £14.99 (US$19.99) and contain between 6 and 20 games. Remember as well, you are getting a fully licensed set of games on each cart. No illegal downloading here!

Overall, I'm pleased with the Evercade and would happily recommend it. For the price, you are getting a very competent device and the ability to be able to buy cartridges is a collector's dream.

There ARE issues but hopefully, the majority of these can be ironed out with future firmware updates. They have clearly put a lot of work into getting some top class publishers on board and I'm excited to see what the future holds for the Evercade.

The Evercade costs £59.99 (US$79.99) for the starter pack (includes one cart), and £79.99 (US$99.99) for the premium pack (includes 3 carts).

Check out the website for a list of retailers.
evercade.co.uk

Threadreader link for those who want to read this the traditional way (thanks @Phlum!)
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