The popularization of portable consoles comes hand in hand with the popularization of ‘retro’ video games. More and more people prefer to look back and enjoy the classics again, because they feel disconnected from current games or have lost interest. Now comes a new alternative that focuses on recovering the experience of one of the best-selling consoles in history.
Many of the new consoles, whether portable or desktop, launched in recent years already come with the necessary emulators to run games released on classic consoles; However, compatibility often leaves something to be desired, and the experience is not genuine. Emulators are software designed to literally ’emulate’ the behavior of the original console, but they have limitations and are demanding on the processor.
The R2 One presented this week solves this problem, betting on an FPGA console to offer greater compatibility and a more reliable experience with lower latency. An FGPA chip can be programmed at the hardware level to perform specific and specialized tasks; Therefore, this console does not use emulators per se, but rather it is the chip itself that is programmed to behave like that of the original PlayStation. Additionally, it will be compatible with MISTer FPGA cores to run games from other consoles, ironically including rivals such as the Sega Saturn and Nintendo 64.
The R2 One has been developed by the company Retro Remake (hence the name), led by Taki Udon, a famous YouTuber specialized in retro consoles, and therefore, there is no doubt that it is designed by and for console fans. The design is clearly inspired by that of the PS One, a revision of the smaller and cheaper original console that even competed against the next generation.
But the design is more than just a wink, it is functional, since the ports for the devices are also included. original controlsand even for the original memory cards; Yes, before you needed to buy a separate memory card to save your games. The R2 One even supports light gun for games like Time Crisis.
R2 One
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The only aspect of the original console that has not been maintained is the CD player, and this is where we realize that this is a modern product. To load the games, we have the option of using a microSD cardalthough we also have three USB-A ports to connect external storage (plus 1 USB-C for power), and even a network Ethernet port.
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If we prefer to play our games directly on disk, it will be offered an external reader as an accessory which will connect to a dedicated port. As for video outputs, we have HDMI, but also options that offer a more appropriate experience such as VGA, component video and composite video.
The R2 One will have a starting price of $149, something surprising considering that the negative aspect of FPGA consoles has always been their high price; However, keep in mind that this price will be offered only to reservations and those who have already purchased something from the company before. It has not been confirmed what the final price will be for the public, nor its final release date beyond “this month.”
