Analogue is responsible for some of the most accurate hardware clones money can buy, having already released systems that emulate the performance of the NES, SNES and Mega Drive at a hardware level, bringing reference-quality emulation to a burgeoning retro market.
Having created FPGA-based clones of the leading 16-bit consoles, many have been waiting expectantly to see what Analogue does next. A recent trademark filing may have given the game away; the company has filed trademarks for a handheld console called the Analogue Pocket, as well as another mystery system called the Analogue 8.
What these machines will run is anyone’s guess at the moment, but in the case of the Analogue Pocket, it’s highly likely that it will run Game Boy software, given the massive popularity of that particular line of portables. We could potentially see an FPGA-based handheld which runs Game Boy and Game Boy Color cartridges, and perhaps even GBA games – a mouth-watering prospect, we’re sure you’ll agree.
As for the Analogue 8, it could be a system based on a popular 8-bit console, such as the PC Engine. Or, more outlandishly, it could cover all 8-bit consoles – something the incredibly expensive Analogue Nt Mini already does, thanks to a firmware update that adds support to multiple console cores. The difference with the Analogue 8 could be that it has cartridge slots for all supported systems.
We’ve reached out to Analogue for comment on these trademarks, and will update this story when we hear back. In the meantime, feel free to ponder just how amazing a FPGA-based Game Boy clone would be...
[source retrorgb.com, via trademarkia.com]
Comments 30
And why not both ? Every portable 8 bit systems??
How exactly do you trademark something that's a ripoff of something else?
@ALinkttPresent That's never stopped anybody, nor should it. Generic cereal and non-Lego building blocks get trademarked all the time.
I mostly want an Analogue 3DS that can run games like Luigi's Mansion, Super Mario 3D Land, Animal Crossing, Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, Mario Golf world tour, Starfox 64, and Metal Gear Solid Snake Eater at 60fps with 3D turned on. That would be worth a lot of money to me!
Something that could be like a Nomad, Turboexpress, GBA, portable NES, and portable SNES all combined in one, with the quality of Analogue, well that would be special too!
Heck, I want an Analogue Switch that can run Breath of the Wild, Kirby, Fire Emblem 3 Houses, Okami, Katamari Damacy, CTR, Ritual of the Night, Luigi's Mansion 3, Astral Chain, Dragon's Dogma, FF X, FF 12, Octopath Traveller, Dark Souls, etc at 60fps!
Looking forward to the reveal very satisfied with my Super NT, and Mega SG! FPGA technology is amazing! The hype is real!🙌🏼
Instead of bothering with an FPGA Game Boy, they should just make an FPGA Game Boy Player similar to the GBA HD Consolizer. Make it so it support GB, GBC and GBA games and I'll definitely be buying it day one.
My dream classic handheld is an original style GBA that is as well built as the real deal but with a modern backlit screen and all the Game Boy classics I could want.
Portable Game Boy? Isn't that just a Game Boy?
@JayJ you can buy a backlit IPS screen for $50 for the GBA and it is pretty easy to put in, no soldering.
Cool.
But I just want an official Game Boy Mini (+ Color).
Basically, make the outside look just like a classic Game Boy brick but say about 30% smaller and maybe 30% as thick, and include say 25 of the very best GB games alongside 25 of the very best GBC games, and have a really decent backlit colour screen and as long a battery life as humanly possible. There's even a possibility of still including a working full-sized GB/GBC cartridge slot so we could play the original physical carts and even add new physical games too (in the form of both compilation carts and even brand new titles from indies). And put it out there for maybe £70.
And sorted!
Oh, and by God put Warlocked on there as one of the 25 GBC games that's included!
It's a frikin' proper RTS game on a dang GBC portable--and it's genuinely great to boot.
super mario land 2 <3
nintendo need to have gameboy games on their NOS already
Meh. The only thing the original needed is a backlight, and I already own one that has one professionally modded in, and only costed $60, which I'm sure will be way less than whatever these guys come up with. @_@
If it can't be connected to a television, I ain't interested
More than Game Boy I hope. GB through GBA PLEASE!
I'm hoping for a GBA or NDS/3DS (or all of these things) that you can plug into the TV via HDMI. Now THAT would be amazing!
...or buy orginal GB or Color or GBA (SP-to play all gb games with screen lit)
@60frames-please 3DS and Switch are still too new to receive clone consoles. Patents haven’t expired for either of those consoles and while they could possibly reverse engineer the elements that are still protected, I’m sure that Nintendo would at least try to stop it from being on store shelves. (Similar to Sony and Bleem).
I already have a modded GameBoy (mostly to play my favourite GameBoy Games Pokemon Gold and Silver) with backlight, improved sound, and better screen but I’d still jump at the chance for a GameBoy Mini from Nintendo.
"We’ve reached out to Analogue for comment on these trademarks, and will update this story when we hear back."
@NintendoLife @damo YES! Thanks! This is what I want to see every time you reach out to a company. Thumbs up!
They make incredible consoles, I love them. Hoping for an N64 at some point
I'm definitely interested if it takes AA batteries. Rechargable battery packs are great in the short run, but trying to find replacements for them that actually work and hold a charge 20 years down the line is a real headache. Don't get me wrong, I love my Switch, but it's going to be a serious annoyance when it becomes a retro system in a couple decades.
On the flip side, my AGS-101 backlit original Game Boy Advance is great but custom projects like that always have little imperfections that annoy me, and I know Analogue makes all their products to a quality standard that is sure to satisfy even the most OCD retro gamer; so I'd certainly be down for a new GBA or other multi-system portable from them. =)
@tkgaming
It would presumably have a vastly superior screen, better battery life, and be much smaller.
Analogue 8 = relive the glory days of gaming on Windows 8?
Look at all those live tiles! Who even needs a desktop!
@ramu-chan Oh it sounds great. The "portable game boy" just made me laugh.
Analogue Pocket? I’d buy it, sign me up.
Either Pocket and 8 being GBA and GB/GBC... or maybe one is Game Gear, it was the only other 8-bit portable I can think of popular enough to warrant a clone (though I hear getting a cart port can be an issue these days).
@Jin15 I have the same way of thinking as you. I have a backlit original GBA that I know will work in 30 years time, assuming AA batteries still exist. I just use rechargeable batteries and it’s almost as convenient as a built in lithium one.
I have a real worry that in 30 years time I won’t be able to use my DS, 3DS, Wii U gamepad, PSP, Vita etc because those batteries will have long since died and it’s not like any of them have standard off the shelf replacement batteries you can just buy.
@GravyThief Same here! I use rechargable AA batteries in my backlit GBA and they work great, I just buy a new pack every 3 or 4 years when they eventually wear out. Having a handheld that runs on AAs is excellent future proofing, since rechargable AAs are available pretty much anywhere and I can't sele them dissapearing from store shelves in my lifetime. =)
Whatever happened to that suppsoed metal bodied Gameboy thatw as going to release at the end of last year from Hyperkin or somebody???
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