Hardware Review: Evercade VS-R

The Evercade VS-R is a very intriguing console. It is a modern cartridge-based home console, with modern amenities like HDMI video connection, usb power, and a current publisher releasing games for it. 

The spirit behind it is play physical cartridges. Most cartriges are collections of licenses that perhaps are too niche for major publishers to want to bother with, indie developers, and collections of surviving companies looking to earn off of past catalogs (Data East, Technos, etc.). 

Four USB ports is smart planning

These game collections are very economical, ranging from $20-25 for each collection cart. Carts will have anywhere from 2-10 games (usually 6-8), which is a great value. In my opinion this fills a very important niche in the retro gaming space, as individually, retro games would never be rereleased on physical cartridges, nor would they sell well under that model, but as collections, the appeal for buyers increases significantly. The carts come in clamshell cases, with a little manual! Granted, the cases are not the highest quality, and some of mine fail to stay closed, but for a $20 price, it is more than reasonable. I would pay a few extra dollars for a better case though.

Manuals are back!

The releases keep coming on a regular schedule, so there is definitely the vibe of a thriving company working to provide a lot of choices. Of particular note to me are the Toaplan arcade collections. There are four volumes so far, each with about seven games, most of which were never previously released! Another collection I was very happy to see was the Technos Arcade collection, as Mania Challenge was a favorite arcade game of mine when I was growing up, and it was never available for play at home until now. These are the kinds of collections that make this console shine.

New release announcements are a newer convention

The hardware itself feels good enough for the $100 price point of a system with one controller, one pack in game. The build quality is appropriate for that range. There are two cartridge slots, and all games contained within the cartridges appear on the user interface simultaneously, which is a nice touch. The carts can be hot swapped, and the UI reflects those games available in real time.

Two carts inserted side by side

All games on both of the carts appear at once

It should be mentioned that the Evercade VS-R shares the same game library as the Evercade handheld line, which is a bonus to those who have that hardware as well. I myself am not a big fan of handheld gaming, so I don't own that device. Evercade has also recently released a series of bar top arcade consoles, which also utilize the same cartridges. The company is really cross pollinating its ecosystem very well, and why not? Their plans and philosophy appear to be a sustainable one.

The controller has all of the standardized functions that a retro-inspired console would need, and it feels OK, but I don't love it. Fortunately, the console is compatible with many USB controllers with x-input. I am using the 8Bitdo wired SN30 pro as well as the 8Bitdo arcade stick. I have also tried the Retro-Bit line of controllers, but the home button function is not recognized on those that I have tried.

The controller is serviceable

The emulation is on par with what you expect from modern emulation solutions; it's pretty good. Input latency is not noticeable, so without scientific testing I can say that most people won't notice any. Aspect ratio choices are original, pixel perfect, and wide (stretched- yuck). Hard or soft scan lines can be applied if so desired. Save states are available as well. The system emulates hardware through the fifth generation, as seen by the Tomb Raider collection. I'm not sure of its capabilities beyond that, but who knows. The UI is clean and simple, and fairly intuitive. Firmware updates can be done via wifi, which is a  convenience that not all modern retro consoles have embraced. 

Select a game and read about it before playing

In conclusion, this is an awesome little console that delivers well beyond its price tag, and the potential is vast. At $100 for the console and $20 per game the price point is very reasonable, it is perhaps the best value available today in the retro gaming space. With each new set of game releases there is enough variety to appeal to all retro gamers. I highly recommend it to those who are looking for legal methods of playing classic franchises on a dedicated console.