Nintendo has released the classic Game & Watch handheld for the 21st century to celebrate the 35th anniversary of Super Mario Bros.
And it is sold out in the United States, United Kingdom and Japan -- because nostalgia.
And also, it is small.
Reviews of the handheld say it is about 30 per cent smaller than the average smart phone, so the handheld fits into the palm of your hands -- but might be too small.
The LCD screen is 2.5 inches.
Reviews have been mixed, with about half loving it and the other half hating on it for its size, artificial hype, and banking on the nostalgic factor to sell more of such devices which get resold at marked-up prices because of scarcity.
3 games
The new handheld comes with a modern update but still relies on the same classic design from 1980.
It includes:
- the original Super Mario Bros. game,
- Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels (released in Japan as Super Mario Bros. 2) and
- the classic Game & Watch: Ball.
Clock
The handheld also serves as a digital clock with 35 different animations that play at random, such as Mario running from left to right, avoiding Goombas, grabbing power-ups, and ducking into a pipe.
The animations contain Easter eggs and guest appearances from the Mario world.
However, there is no kickstand to hold up the handheld as a timepiece.
The limited production run of the Game & Watch: Super Mario Bros. handheld is out now at S$139 and will start shipping from Nov. 16 for Amazon Prime members.
Unfortunately, the listing says it is currently out of stock.