With a mini Commodore 64 and a full-sized variant, a VIC-20, a mini Amiga, an Atari 400, and now a ZX Spectrum, Retro Games Ltd has amazing at supporting retro gaming.
But what could be coming next?
While we don’t know, we’ve compiled some possibilities; a sort of slightly-likely wishlist…
1. BBC Micro Mini
A UK-admired system from days of yore. The BBC Micro was in schools up and down the country for the best part of a decade, and is still well-regarded. With bright, colourful graphics, over 200 titles were released, including the original Elite. A BBC Micro Mini could revive the UK’s love affair with the old computer.
Better still, there could be scope in such a device to run Archimedes software.
2. Amstrad CPC 464 Mini
Another UK-originated system, the computer that made Alan Sugar successful was a funny-looking machine that did well on the continent, too.
With its built-in cassette deck (a feature adopted by the AMSTRAD-owned Spectrum 128K), the CPC 464 had a good selection of games available (almost 1800), although generally they weren’t as good as the C64 alternatives.
And with that moniker, the Amstrad was was regularly seen as a poor alternative to the Commodore 64.
3. Dragon 32 Mini
The only computer made in Wales until the arrival of the Raspberry Pi, the Dragon 32 and the later 64 variant had around 50 games, but unless you had the Dragon 34, they were in black and white! Interestingly, the system was based on the TRS-80, a US computer available from Radio Shack.
Nevertheless, while a small Dragon 32/64 might seem unlikely, it was a British system.
4. An MSX Mini
Around 2000 games were released on the MSX, a system that was the fruit of a joint venture between ASCII Corporation and Microsoft, with some devices built by Spectravideo.
While that last interest may mean an MSX mini will never see the light of day, it could be very big in Japan. An amazing 7 million units of its 9 million worldwide sales between 1983 and 1993 were bought in Japan. While there have been various revivals over the years, an MSX Mini, Retro Games Ltd style, would be interesting.
5. Intellivison Mini
You have probably heard about the madness surrounding the failed revival of Intellivision over the past few years. It didn’t have to be that way, however; all they really needed was a mini system playing all the old classics.
Who better to produce it than Retro Games Ltd?
132 games were released on Mattel’s Intellivision, making this a good option for revival. While some are available on Evercade, they could be enjoyed with faithful reproductions of the controllers if RGL picks up the baton.
6. Nokia N-Gage
This might be a bit left-field, but the N-Gage was a surprisingly popular device among those that bought it. An old-style phone with the facility to play games, 64 titles were released, and another 20+ abandoned. That alone offers the opportunity to revisit the platform.
The big question, of course, is whether the N-Gage (which offered everything from FIFA and Sonic to less well-remembeed titles) could support enough interest. But a device like the one above, already pretty small, could give Retro Games Ltd its first release where the community don’t immediately demand a “full size” version…
7. Magnavox Odyssey
No, I’m not taking the piss.
Launched in 1973, the Magavox Odyssey is surely the one game console platform that deserves a revival. Of course, twisting a knob or flicking a switch to select from a handful of games is probably not what the modern retro gamer is looking for. But improved controllers, greater storage, and the ability to play other titles from the same period, would make this a great proposition.
You could even have a mobile version. There might be a slightly ironic aspect to owning a “mini Magnavox” but I guarantee people will have fun with it.
While I never owned a Magnavox Odyssey, I do have a later clone, the Ingersoll XK-600B.
Whatever’s next should be good
It could be any of these, or it could be none of them. It simply be might a big A500, but that would be incredibly obvious and no surprise at all.
However, it would also be incredibly welcome, as would any working replicas of the platforms listed here.
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Christian Cawley is a writer and editor who covers consumer electronics, IT, and entertainment media. He has written for publications such as Computer Weekly, Linux Format, MakeUseOf.com, and Tech Radar.
He also produces podcasts, has a cigar box guitar, and of course, loves retro gaming.
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