The 7 Best Retro Gaming Devices To Buy in 2024
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At a Glance: The Best Retro Video Game Devices
More from Rolling Stone
EDITOR’S PICK: Nintendo NES Classic Edition
BEST ARCADE CABINET: Arcade1Up
BEST FOR OLD SCHOOL GAMES: Atari 2600+
BEST FOR ’90s KIDS: Nintendo SNES Classic Edition
BEST FOR SEGA FANS: Sega Genesis Mini
BEST SEGA ALTERNATIVE: Sega Genesis Mini 2
BEST FOR SONY FANS: Sony Playstation Classic
In This Article
What Are the Best Retro Video Game Devices?
Buying Guide: How to Pick a Retro Video Game Device
Over the past few years, retro gaming has been growing in popularity. Many gamers just want to be taken back to a simpler time when old school 8-bit and 16-bit graphics and audio reigned supreme and filled after school hours.
To scratch that nostalgic itch, gaming company’s like Nintendo, Sega, Sony, and others created retro gaming devices that are easy to set up, pick a game, play a few levels, and then get on with the rest of your busy day — only to return to your game a few hours later. These devices are a lower barrier of entry with a pick-up-and-go design. In fact, many of them come with dozens of pre-loaded games inside, so it’s like scrolling through your favorite streaming service for something to play instead of watch.
We’ve rounded up some of our favorite retro gaming devices, including picks we’ve tried ourselves, along with 4.0+ star-rated devices from top brands. Here are our top choices, below.
What Are the Best Retro Video Game Devices?
If you’re looking to pick up a new retro video game device, here are seven of the best ones to get in 2024, based on hands-on use, consumer reviews, performance, and library of games available.
1. Nintendo NES Classic Edition
$139.99 $199.99 30% off
The Nintendo NES Classic Edition is a much smaller replica of the original Nintendo Entertainment System from 1985. Although it doesn’t have the same RCA TV input as the original, it’s updated to HDMI for modern TVs. It comes with one retro controller, as well as 30 pre-loaded classic games — including Super Mario Bros., The Legend of Zelda, Metroid, Mega Man, Dr. Mario, Kid Icarus, and much more. Check out a complete list of NES games here.
Meanwhile, there are even modern features, like save state and rewind with three modes of gameplay available — such as 4:3 aspect ratio, Pixel Perfect for the best image quality for modern TVs, and CRT (cathode ray tube) filter, which has scan lines to mimic games on an old TV.
This retro gaming device is best for anyone who wants to experience what playing video games was like in the ’80s, or anyone who wants to go back to the good old days of gaming.
2. Arcade1Up
Long are the days of playing cutting edge video games at your local arcade, but you can have those experiences gripping a joystick and smashing action buttons with Arcade1Up. They’re a video game company that specializes in making affordable and smaller scale replicas of classic arcade games from the ’80s and ’90s.
Games — like Street Fighter II, The Simpsons, NBA Jam, X-Men, and Terminator 2: Judgment Day — play exactly how they were played back in the day with original action button and joystick layouts and the same artwork adorning arcade cabinets, but with modern LCD displays, Wi-Fi-connected systems for up-to-the-minute leaderboards, online multi-player, and even various other games included inside. This means you’re not getting one game, you’re getting a handful of games.
For example: The Arcade1Up cabinet for Mortal Kombat II, also comes with the original Mortal Kombat and Mortal Kombat 3, as well as Rampage, Joust, Paperboy, Gauntlet, and much more.
If you have the space and you’d like to re-create a classic arcade in your home, then Arcade1Up is the first place you should check out for other classic titles, like Pac-Man, Ms. Pac-Man, Dig Dug, and Galaga.
3. Atari 2600+
Released in 1977, the Atari 2600 was the first success home console. It effectively moved video games from the arcade to the home. For those who want to play classic hits from the late ’70s and early ’80s, the Atari 2600+ is our pick for best old school retro gaming device.
The Atari 2600+ is a little bit different. Instead of coming with pre-loaded games inside, it stays true to the original console and has the ability to actually play games from the Atari 2600 and Atari 7800. If you have game cartridges from this classic era of gaming, then you can slide them in and start playing. However, if you don’t have any old games laying around, the Atari 2600+ comes with a 10-in-1 cartridge with classic titles — including Adventure, Combat, Dodge ‘em, Haunted House, Maze Craze, Missile Command, and others.
Meanwhile, it comes with the CX40+ Joystick Controller and HDMI cable for modern TVs. The Atari 2600+ is essentially an Atari 2600 that’s also compatible with Atari 7800 games.
4. Nintendo SNES Classic Edition
$139.99 $159.99 13% off
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System is the quintessential home console of the ’90s, thanks to its then-cutting edge 16-bit graphics and audio, wide range of games, and ubiquity with gamers. Now you can re-live the glory days of ’90s gaming with the Nintendo SNES Classic Edition — thanks to Amazon’s Renewed Store.
The mini-console is a replica of the original SNES, which comes with two SNES controllers, an HDMI cable for modern TVs, and 21 pre-loaded games — including Super Mario World, The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Super Metroid, F-Zero, Star Fox and Star Fox 2 (never before released), EarthBound, Street Fighter II Turbo: Hyper Fighting, and others. Check out a complete list of SNES games here.
The Nintendo SNES Classic Edition also has a few modern features, such as gameplay save, rewind, and much more.
5. Sega Genesis Mini
One of the biggest rivalries in gaming is Nintendo and Sega during the late ’80s and early ’90s. The Sega Genesis features stranger and off-the-beaten path games with a little bit more attitude compared to Nintendo, but games were just as fun and re-playable as those found for the NES and SNES. And not to be outdone, Sega has their own mini-console with the Sega Genesis Mini.
It comes with two classic Genesis controllers that connects to the retro gaming device via USB, while it connects to modern TVs through HDMI. The Sega Genesis Mini, which is a smaller replica of the first generation model, comes with 40 pre-installed games — including Sonic The Hedgehog, Altered Beasts, Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master, Eternal Champions, Comix Zone, Ecco the Dolphin, Earthworm Jim, Alex Kidd in the Enchanted Castle, and much more.
Meanwhile, it even comes with two bonus games, Darius and Sega’s version of Tetris, which has never been released in the U.S. until it appeared on this mini-console. Check out a complete list of Sega Genesis games here.
6. Sega Genesis Mini 2
For even more bizarre Sega games from the ’90s, there’s the Sega Genesis Mini 2. It’s a replica of the second generation model of the home console, which features a sleeker design compared to the original, that comes with the Sega Genesis’ six-button controller instead of the classic three-button layout. The mini-console connects to modern TVs via HDMI.
In addition, not only does the Sega Genesis Mini 2 feature games from the Genesis, but it also has games from the Sega CD — including Streets of Rage 3, ToeJam & Earl in Panic on Funkotron, Ecco: The Tides of Time, Sonic The Hedgehog CD, The Revenge of Shinobi, Ristar, and others. There are 60 pre-loaded games in total available to play. Check out a complete list of Sega Genesis and Sega CD games here.
7. Sony Playstation Classic
Step into the world of digital gaming with the Sony PlayStation Classic, a mini-console replica that’s more than 45% smaller than Sony’s first home gaming console. It comes with two original PlayStation controllers that connect to the replica through USB, while the mini-console itself connects to modern TVs via HDMI. It comes with a virtual memory card to save your progress when playing games.
Speaking of games, the Sony PlayStation Classic features 20 pre-loaded games for the first PlayStation era during the late ’90s, such as Final Fantasy Vll, Grand Theft Auto, Jumping Flash, Resident Evil Director’s Cut, Ridge Racer Type 4, Tekken 3, Twisted Metal, Wild Arms, and others. Check out a complete list of Sony PlayStation games here.
Buying Guide: How to Pick a Retro Video Game Device
There are many factors to think about when choosing the best retro video game device for you. Ahead, you’ll find a few important factors that we considered when putting this list together.
Games: Unlike traditional gaming consoles, where power and speed are two of the main factors, retro video game devices are all about the games. Since you can’t add or take away any of the games out-of-the-box with most of these devices, you’re pretty much have a limited amount of games pre-installed onboard.
If you’re a fan of Nintendo games, then the NES Classic Edition is a no brainer, but if you like Sega games, then go with the Sega Genesis Mini. If you’re happy with both mini-consoles, then go for their sequels: SNES Classic Edition and Sega Genesis Mini 2, respectively.
Size: Although most of these retro gaming devices are compact, the Arcade1Up arcade cabinets do take up a lot of space in your home. In fact, it might be beneficial to have a large portion of a room dedicated to Arcade1Up since cabinets are about two feet deep, about two feet wide, and about five feet tall — especially if you plan to get more than one.
Features: While the Arcade1Up arcade cabinets are Wi-Fi-enabled for leaderboards and online multi-player, most of the other retro gaming devices do not connect to the internet. But, devices like the NES Classic Edition offers, rewind features to go back to fix mistakes, save state to save progress without starting the game over again, and various gameplay modes to mimic what it felt like to play on an old boxy CRT (cathode ray tube) TV.
Price: Most retro gaming devices are relatively inexpensive, between $100-$200, compared to buying older hardware and cartridges. However, because these devices are also limited edition, prices might be higher than what they were orginally. For instance, when the Nintendo NES Classic was released in 2016, it retailed for $60, but because of demand and inventory scarcity, it goes for around $140-$200.
In addition, Arcade1Up arcade cabinets are on the pricier side ranging from $299-$700. But, you get a lot of bang for the buck with impressive cabinet art, premium build quality, and smooth and accurate gameplay emulation.
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