ColecoVision rolls out full-size arcade cabinet with 40 classic games and ROM support

[Shawn Knight]

Guess who's back: It's been well over four decades since the ColecoVision sold over two million units in an attempt to reinvent the home console market. Now, it's back with a brand new offering aiming to appeal to retro enthusiasts and modern gamers alike.

The new variant is a full-size, stand-up arcade cabinet developed in collaboration with the American Gear Company, a Utah-based firm specializing in arcade equipment and outdoor sporting goods. It comes pre-loaded with 40 classic ColecoVision games, and an open-source design (MAME) that allows users to add additional games from other platforms including the NES, SNES, Sega Genesis, and PlayStation, among many more.

The cabinet is constructed of white birch with measurements of 26.5" (D) x 34 .5" (W) x 67" (H), and sports a 32-inch HD display for "vibrant visuals." The system features switchable joysticks, Suzo-Happ buttons, and a trackball, complete with a powder-coated steel controller deck for an authentic arcade experience.

The company says the machine is also scalable, allowing users to add accessories like spinners, driving wheels, and light guns. Bluetooth connectivity enables the use of wireless controllers, and can effectively turn the system into a four-player machine on game night.

The cabinet is also Wi-Fi connected, enabling downloads, updates, online play, leaderboards and more. Other extras include native aspect ratio support, shaders to customize the look of the screen, save states, and even a built-in subwoofer.

The ColecoVision arcade cabinet is available to order now, but it doesn't come cheap. Pricing is set at $2,300 for the 32-inch model; a cabinet with a smaller 24-inch display commands $1,950. A 10 percent off coupon code will ease sticker shock, but just barely. All models come backed by a three-year warranty.

For comparison, a standard 32-inch retro arcade cabinet from The Arcade Guys will set you back $1,494 while a four-player model with a 55-inch screen goes for $2,995. If I was spending that kind of money on a cabinet, I would probably rather have something original, but to each their own.

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ColecoVision rolls out full-size arcade cabinet with 40 classic games and ROM support

 

[Hellbishop]

Hot diddly darn! I can't wait to break those ColecoVision joysticks like I did back in 1980 but this time with my almost sixty year old hands!

ColecoVision talk about memories. It was our family's first console system that could actually play a huge library of games unlike PONG and 3D TIC TAC TOE which came with their own console and 3D TIC TAC TOE even had its own monitor. The sights and sounds were so Italian doomsday movie futuristic playing the likes of MISSILE COMMAND on it. Of course feeling so futuristic it was rather shocking to see how quickly the joystick controllers broke. Fortunately my dad was a television repair man so he taught me and my little brother how to open up the joysticks and glue back the broken plastic part.

 

[zx8086]

This wide monitor will break the aspect ratio for most games this thing is supposed to emulate.

 

[ferrellsl]

This thing is ridiculously over priced and I'm fairly certain they intend to charge fees to download ROMs that could normally be found online for free since the heart of this thing is running MAME. Since it's emulating ColecoVision games, the hardware is mostly likely a lowly R Pi as well. This is a hard pass

 

[Endymio]

This thing is ridiculously over priced ...This is a hard pass.

A coworker has a similar one he paid well over twice as much for; I'm sure this one will find a market as well. Obviously the bill of materials for this cabinet is only a few hundred dollars, but you forget that such low-volume fringe products always have high markups.

This wide monitor will break the aspect ratio for most games this thing is supposed to emulate.

I'm fairly sure the monitor has an option to either pillarbox or stretch the content.