“It’s so hard to find the NES Classic Edition! Why can’t Nintendo just put all those games on a cartridge and call it a day?”
It was the same story with the Super Nintendo version.

Nintendo fans and collectors, left baffled by supply issues, often bemoan the fact that these collections of retro games aren’t made available for Switch.

What if Classic Editions weren’t miniature reproductions of the original consoles, but simple game carts or eShop downloads?

Pros:
+ More convenient
+ Cheaper
+ Portable
+ Easier to purchase
+ Less clutter

Cons:
– You don’t get the original controllers
– Only lasts one console generation
– Less of a collector’s item
– Not as nostalgic
– Well… you can’t hack it to add more games.

Personally, I’m really glad Nintendo chose to recreate the consoles. I’ve been wanting NES to return to store shelves for a decade, but I never predicted the genius of shrinking it down to the size of your palm and preloading it with games.

I can also now say that I own an SNES, which is the only console I missed while growing up.

It’s easy to beg Nintendo to make things more convenient and cut some corners, but the experience just wouldn’t be the same.