Nintendo's NES Classic Edition Returns This Summer

MovieWeb

By Brian Gallagher

Published May 14, 2018

After an overwhelming demand for the NES Classic console following its release in 2016, Nintendo has announced more will be available soon.

For those who couldn't snag one of Nintendo's popular NES Classic consoles when they were available between November 2016 and April 2017, you're in luck because the NES Classic is coming back. Nintendo announced on Twitter last night that the NES Classic will available for purchase once again starting on June 29, while also revealing that both the NES Classic and the SNES Classic console will be available through the end of the year. That means both consoles will be available during the holiday shopping season, and both will likely be among the hottest items for consumers this year.

The NES Classic was first released in November 2016, originally intended to be a "one-off item" available only for the holiday season, featuring 30 popular video games from the original NES console. The demand was so high for these consoles that several retailers started selling out right away, with Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime telling Time in an interview last April that the company, "didn't anticipate how incredible the response would be," adding that they, "added shipments and extended the product for as long as we could to meet the consumer demand." Still, Nintendo announced in April 2017 that they were discontinuing the NES Classic, and when all was said and done, Nintendo manufactured and sold roughly 2.3 million units.

After the NES Classic was discontinued, Nintendo announced the launch of the SNES Classic console, which came with 21 original Super Nintendo (SNES) games, including the first official release of Star-Fox 2. The SNES Classic went on sale on September 29, 2017, and by the end of October, Nintendo had sold over 2 million units. In the company's report about the end of their fiscal year, which ended on March 31, 2018, Nintendo reported that over 5 million SNES Classic units had been sold.

The tweet from Nintendo last night included a link to Nintendo's official NES Classic website, which includes a full list of all 30 games that will be available, which are the same games that were available during the console's initial run. The games are Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros. 2, Super Mario Bros. 3, Mario Bros., Dr. Mario, The Legend of Zelda, Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, Donkey Kong, Donkey Kong Jr. Mega Man 2, Pac-Man, Final Fantasy, Metroid, Kirby's Adventure, Castlevania, Castlevania 2: Simon's Quest, Ninja Gaiden, Punch-Out (not Mike Tyson's Punch-Out), Balloon Fight, Excitebike, Ice Climber, Kid Icarus, Double Dragon II: The Revenge, Bubble Bobble, Tecmo Bowl, Super C, Galaga, StarTropics, Ghosts 'N Goblins and Gradius.

Shortly after the NES Classic was released, it was discovered that there are ways to "hack" the console and add more games than the ones which come with the system. While the SNES Classic was less susceptible to hacks, it was still possible, but it remains to be seen how vulnerable this new edition of the NES Classic will be to hackers. The console will be priced the same as its original run, going on sale for $59.95 SRP starting June 29. You can take a look at the tweet from Nintendo's Twitter below, announcing the return of the NES Classic, and you can also head over to the NES Classic official website for more details, including a link to all of the original manuals for the games on the NES Classic.