Nintendo

Ken Kutaragi Explains PlayStation Was Not Born of Revenge

Ken Kutaragi Explains PlayStation Was Not Born of Revenge

Ken Kutaragi, widely credited as the father of the PlayStation, has pushed back on the popular story that Sony built the console purely to get revenge on Nintendo. He explains that the project instead grew out of the collapse of Sony and Nintendo's planned SNES CD partnership, combined with Sony's resulting push toward independence in the console market. The account reframes PlayStation's creation as a response to circumstance rather than a grudge. PlayStation went on to launch in 1994 and became one of the best-selling console families in gaming history. via console-classics.com

Pokémon Epsilon Emerald Hack Gets Trailer Ahead of Release

Pokémon Epsilon Emerald Hack Gets Trailer Ahead of Release

A new trailer has been released for Pokémon Epsilon Emerald, a fan-made Pokémon ROM hack, ahead of its upcoming release. The project is notable for being made entirely by hand without AI assistance, standing out amid a wave of ROM hacks released this year. The trailer arrives just days before the hack's planned release, giving fans a look at the project before it launches. via retrododo.com

Mario Fangame Rainbow Stars Gets Second Chapter in 2026

Mario Fangame Rainbow Stars Gets Second Chapter in 2026

Starshi, developer of the fan-made Mario game Super Mario & The Rainbow Stars, has announced that a second chapter is coming in 2026. The announcement follows two years of teasers and previews for the project. The new chapter introduces a character called Ralle. The game itself is a PC fangame that has been in development for several years and has built up a following among Mario fans. via timeextension.com

NESCD Add-On Brings CD Playback and Games to NES

NESCD Add-On Brings CD Playback and Games to NES

The NESCD project adds CD-ROM functionality to the original Nintendo Entertainment System through a custom hardware add-on. It allows the console to play CD-ROM based games as well as handle music, video experiments, and standard audio CD playback. The add-on effectively turns the classic 8-bit console into a disc player, expanding its capabilities well beyond its original cartridge-only design. via console-classics.com

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night SNES Port Demo Released

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night SNES Port Demo Released

Homebrew developer Kaffeeware has released a playable v0.1 demo of a SNES port of Konami's Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, originally released in 1997 on PlayStation and Saturn. The developer says the conversion is being done "by eye" without AI assistance, though they are looking at decompilation sources to improve accuracy. Kaffeeware intends to keep native SNES specs but expects to need a larger ROM size to fit the full game. The demo has drawn attention online for how polished it already looks at this early stage. via timeextension.com

Pokémon Phoenix Red ROM Hack Reaches v2.0

Pokémon Phoenix Red, a fan-made ROM hack, has been updated to version 2.0, announced by its creator on PokeCommunity as a major update to their first-ever hack. The update adds 54 new Pokémon to the roster for a total of 386, gives TMs unlimited use, and lets players choose two of Professor Oak's starter Pokémon instead of one. It also reworks the intro, moving much of Oak's speech into an optional in-game journal, and adds new sprite designs for Red and Blue's children. The hack is built on the Generation 1 Pokémon games for Game Boy. via pokecommunity.com

Pokémon Repurpled Edition ROM Hack Reaches v1.0.0

Pokémon: Repurpled Edition, a fan-made ROM hack, has reached version 1.0.0, as announced on PokeCommunity. The project reimagines the original Generation 1 games, exploring how Pokémon Red and Blue's gameplay systems and engine might have developed under a different design philosophy. Alongside cosmetic and quality-of-life improvements, the creator has made substantial non-canon changes to moves, types, Pokémon and maps, while aiming to preserve much of the original game's feel. via pokecommunity.com

Glitch Boy Handheld Lets Users Corrupt NES Games Live

Glitch Boy Handheld Lets Users Corrupt NES Games Live

Melted Electronics has developed the Glitch Boy, a portable NES emulator built around real-time game corruption rather than straightforward play. Games are loaded via SD card and output to an external monitor or display. Twin dials on the device let users deliberately glitch the audio and video as the game runs, producing distorted visuals and sound akin to datamoshing. The project is described as a departure from typical retro emulation handhelds, treating corruption itself as a creative tool. via timeextension.com

Pokémon Lost Silver Creepypasta Gets GBC ROM Hack

Pokémon Lost Silver Creepypasta Gets GBC ROM Hack

A YouTube video from channel Cello2WC is titled Pokémon Lost Silver: ROM Hack, covering a fan-made Game Boy Color ROM hack based on the well-known Pokémon Lost Silver creepypasta. The Reddit post notes that the hack was released roughly a month earlier and had gone largely unnoticed until now. Lost Silver is one of the better-known pieces of Pokémon-related creepypasta, a horror-tinged story originally presented as a player's account of a corrupted Pokémon Silver cartridge. via YouTube

FujiNet Networking Adapter Brought to NES With Rev0 Cart

Work has begun on bringing the FujiNet network adapter to the NES. A FujiNet Go NES Desktop app already runs the combination in emulation on Linux, Windows and macOS, letting users configure network hosts and load games across several common NES mapper types. On the hardware side, an open Rev0 cartridge built around an RP2354B chip, two 512K SRAM chips and an ESP32-S3 has been designed with gerbers, BOM and placement files ready for the first physical boards, and the firmware has been merged into the main fujinet-firmware project. Early software ported to the setup includes card and board games such as 5 Card Stud, Battleship and M.U.L.E., along with network-connected tools like Gmail and Google Calendar access. FujiNet originated as a WiFi and peripheral emulation device for Atari 8-bit computers before being adapted to other retro platforms. via reddit.com/r/thisweekinretro

Japan-Only Casper Game’s Castlevania Composer Link Revisited

Japan-Only Casper Game's Castlevania Composer Link Revisited

Time Extension has published a retrospective on a Japan-exclusive video game based on the 1995 film Casper, itself an adaptation of the Casper the Friendly Ghost cartoon character. The feature notes the film's commercial success, having grossed an estimated $290 million at the box office, which led to a wave of merchandise including the game. The article highlights that the game's soundtrack was composed by a musician known for work on the Castlevania series. via timeextension.com

Super Mario Land Demade for ZX Spectrum 128K

Super Mario Land Demade for ZX Spectrum 128K

Developer Kirby2000 has released a public beta of Super Mario Land ZX, an AI-assisted demake of Nintendo's 1989 Game Boy launch title for the ZX Spectrum 128K. The conversion fits the entire game into a single 128K load, covering all 12 levels across four worlds. It supports both keyboard and Sinclair joystick controls, and reportedly recreates every element of the original, including its submarine stage. Super Mario Land was one of the launch titles for the original Game Boy. via indieretronews.com