The Nintendo Entertainment System
The revolutionary Family Computer and Nintento Entertainment System lived on for so long due to a lot of great hardware and software tricks.
The NES: Cartridge Constraints
Constraints can be annoying. Being limited in what you are able to do is frustrating. But the great thing about constraints is that they force you to think of new, creative solutions to work around them, ones you wouldn’t ordinarily try out.
A common thing I’ll do in creative projects is use random generators to determine names, species, clothing, scenarios, whatever I need to make the project work. Once I’m given these immutable choices, it’s up to me to craft a story, design, or piece around them. It can be freeing to know what the limits are, so you can focus on the parts you can change.
The NES: The Game State That Lasted Seven Days
Before the first NES game with battery backup, The Legend of Zelda, came out, you had two options:
The NES: Playing Volleyball with Three of Your Friends
Playing a video game with a friend is great. You get to have fun and bond while you stop the aliens together or compete for the high score. But what if you have more than one friend? Weird to think about, right? And what if you wanted to play a bodacious new volleyball video game with more than one friend at the same time. Well, if you were gaming in the early 90s, this required some creative hardware and software tricks to make happen.