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Hasbro Is Bringing Back Tiger Electronics' Handheld LCD Games - includes Sonic 3

Discussion in 'General Sonic Discussion' started by Agobue, Feb 20, 2020.

  1. Agobue

    Agobue

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    Toy Fair 2020 is just a couple of days away and soon the internet will be abuzz with all the new toys arriving this year, but all the old toys as well. Continuing a trend seen at the show for the past couple of years, Hasbro today revealed it’s bringing back Tiger Electronics’ handheld video games in four new versions.

    Any kid who grew up in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s and couldn’t convince their parents to shell out upwards of $100 for a Game Boy will remember Tiger Electronics’ expansive line of handhelds. They only played a single game, featured basic controls, and had sound effects comparable to what you’d hear from a musical novelty greeting card.

    But they were cheap, incredibly durable, surprisingly addictive, and were available in so many licensed flavors that it was all but impossible to find a Tiger Electronics handheld that didn’t cater to your pop-culture preferences. Over the past few years toy companies have been digging into their archives and capitalizing on ‘80s and ‘90s nostalgia by reviving toys and brands that haven’t been on store shelves in decades, including Speak & Spell and Micro Machines. Now that the kids who played with these toys are grown up and gainfully employed, there’s another chance to sell them their favorite items all over again.

    Hasbro’s new line of Tiger Electronic handhelds will launch with four titles in the Fall, including Sonic the Hedgehog 3, Disney’s Little Mermaid, Marvel X-Men Project X, and Transformers Generation 2. They are all available for pre-order from GameStop right now for about $15 each. Each game is based on the original versions available decades ago, but with updated designs which ensures these won’t be fooling collectors on eBay as original copies. We’re also hoping that the electronics on the inside have been improved, prolonging how much gaming we can do with a pair of AA batteries inserted.

    https://gizmodo.com/hasbro-is-bringing-back-tiger-electronics-handheld-lcd-1841794271
     
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  2. Sid Starkiller

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    I still don't get why. They were cute novelties, but even at the time they were a last resort, at least for me.

    I didn't have the Sonic one, though. I had Mega Man 2.
     
  3. Powpuck

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    The only worth of reproducing these is to give them to a child and tell them they were what we had before smartphones with free apps on them.
     
  4. Sid Starkiller

    Sid Starkiller

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    That actually gives me an idea for a genuine use: give them to a child whose prone to losing and/or damaging smartphones. I can't imagine these things being expensive (or at least cheaper than the phone).
     
  5. Wafer

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    $15 preorder at GameStop.

    What little footage I've been able to find of the Sonic 3 model is pretty uninspiring, even compared to my memories of the Sonic 2 version. Sadly, it looks as though MAME only has Sonic 1 dumped.
     
  6. Hez

    Hez

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    I have no idea what they cost back in the good ol days, but 15 bucks is a bit steep for such a simple product. A Raspberry pi alone is only 10 dollars. You can't tell me the internals of this costs much at all. Maybe the features will be vastly different.
     
  7. Wafer

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    From what I've read, the only changes are to the exterior, so collectors won't get fooled.

    It seems steep to me (unless printing the LCD background is a special process), but then it's the price of nostalgia. You could just as easily argue that the MD Mini is expensive for a Raspberry Pi in a custom case, but some people (me) still bought it.
     
  8. These will sell like hotcakes, no matter what anyone says.

    It's not about the gameplay / crude LCD graphics, it's about tapping into the consumer's nostalgia.
     
  9. SuperSnoopy

    SuperSnoopy

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    Slice of life visual novel, coming soon...?
    ...I dunno. I wasn't alive when there were relevant, but I don't think people have too many fond memories of these things. The few times I asked people older than me about them, their reaction was always negative (along the lines of "these shitty things I used to have as a kid")

    I think these things are just so crappy not even nostalgia can save them, especially at that price.
     
  10. Speeps

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    Well there's your Sonic 3 re-release :V
     
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  11. So much for asking for a Sonic 3 re-release lol
     
  12. Yes they are crap, but that's not the point of why they will sell.

    They are basically ornaments for older people that like to show off gaming stuff. You have someone round, they take this off your shelf 'oh what's this piece of shit' 'oh that, yeah we used to have those in the playground at school blah blah' its a conversation starter, just like any other piece of shitty gaming history.

    Now I'm not saying I want one myself (I've got the original S3 somewhere I think, and yes it's rubbish) but I can imagine buying one for a friend at Christmas or birthday. Its a stocking filler, not a serious gaming device
     
  13. Wafer

    Wafer

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    Truth be told, if they'd gone for Sonic 2 instead of Sonic 3, I would've ponied up for one. I do kinda miss mine.
     
  14. ICEknight

    ICEknight

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    No.

    Also, if anybody wants more of these emulated, just send them to MAME. It's that easy. =P
     
  15. Wafer

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    @ICEknight Cool! I didn't do a deep dive, just checked what was on the Internet Archive. Thanks!
     
  16. arc

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    I see Tiger is trying to make a niche in the "white elephant gifts only Cybershell would appreciate" category.
    ... seriously though, for what reason would you make a marginally-updated version of this horribly, outdated tech? It's like a school using steel slides instead of plastic ones for that "rustic" appeal.
     
  17. The Joebro64

    The Joebro64

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    WHY DID YOU SAY THAT NAME?!?!
     
  18. arc

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    I can and WILL name the false prophet.
     
  19. FollOw

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    Cum back to us Cybershell I miss you!
     
  20. Prototype

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    I don't get the business decision. Tiger products were always crap. Those chunky LCD games sucked. They were outdated in the 90s, and even then I seem to recall them costing $5 tops. Seems like they're wasting money producing these things for a potential nostalgia buy that people aren't all that nostalgic for to begin with, so they've tripled the price to recoup costs, but the price tag will likely end up dissuading customers anyway.