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At this point, the original Nintendo DS and DS Lite have been discontinued for almost a decade and the Gameboy Advance SP and Gameboy Micro have been discontinued for even longer. Still, fans of games on these systems are probably still in possession of a large number of games for the Gameboy, Gameboy Color, and Gameboy Advance that are hard to play because of how hard it is to get ahold of the hardware to play these games. Fortunately, Hyperkin has released the RetroN Sq HD that allows players to play their old games on a television or, with the help of an outside capture card, on their computer. Clocking in at around $100, it is a fun way to jump back into old games from the past.
Hyperkin has basically cornered the market on legacy consoles that allow for people to play games for the NES, SNES, and Sega Genesis without having to shell out hundreds of dollars to get ahold of an original console and then, in many cases, invest in conversion kits to run a standard tri-color Aux cable in a modern television that usually only has HDMI ports. The RetroN 1 is specialized for NES games while the RetroN 5 plays all the above plus Gameboy through Gameboy Advance. The Retron Sq HD however is solely to play the portable titles on a television.
I tested out a number of games on the console, both of which I acquired from GameOn in Smithtown and Miller Place, across both the Gameboy Color and the Gameboy Advance. I played the console in 16:9 mode, which can be swapped to 4:3 for Gameboy Color and original Gameboy games if the player so chooses. Playing in 16:9 will stretch the non-Advance games to appear the way they did when playing them on a Gameboy Advance or Gameboy Advance SP when stretched to full screen.
The easiest frame of reference for how good this console can make old games look is to compare the video and sound quality between Pokémon Gold Version, the Gameboy Color game from 2000, to the Virtual Console edition that was released on the 3DS in 2017. Maybe it is the fact that the RetroN Sq HD is running directly through HDMI into a 4K television, but the quality is so much better than anything that was made available through the 3DS Virtual Console that it is actually shocking. Even when stretched to 16:9, the video quality is top-notch and the sound does not sound garbled or poor quality, even when the television’s factory speakers are used. Other games like Rugrats: Castle Capers (Gameboy Advance), Power Rangers: Time Force (Gameboy Advance), Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (Gameboy Color), and Pokémon Emerald all look better than they ever looked before when played in high definition (even if it caps out at 720p).
While the average person who is just a fan of older games may get use from this, streamers and content creators will definitely find the greatest appeal in this console. Considering its HDMI output, it will seamlessly integrate into existing capture cards like Elgato’s HD60 S+ to allow for easy streaming or video capture from these older games. While mileage will vary for speedrunning games (for example, the Super Gameboy add-on for the NES was banned from speedrunning competitions because the frame rate was different from the original Gameboy’s), it is definitely something an aspiring YouTuber or Twitch Streamer should consider adding to their arsenal.
I reached out to Hyperkin in advance of releasing this review to see where they were going next. Since the RetroN 5, they have released the RetroN 77 for the Atari 2600, as well as the Supa RetroN HD for an HDMI compatible SNES clone console and the Mega RetroN HD for an HDMI compatible Sega Genesis clone console. At E3 in 2019, they announced the RetroN Ult which would serve as a Nintendo 64 clone system, displaying in 720p as is the standard with these consoles. While the representative could not go into specifics of what to expect next, they did say there are plans to support other consoles beyond just what has already been supported by the RetroN 5. Whether or not this refers to simply the new Nintendo 64 console or could be something like the Sega Game Gear or something beyond all of that is up for speculation though.
If someone is interested in picking up a RetroN Sq HD, it is available through Hyperkin’s website, though personally I do the vast majority of my retro game shopping at any of the GameOn locations in the area. They have full stores in Miller Place on Route 25A, Smithtown on West Main Street, and Patchogue on South Ocean Avenue, as well as an arcade in the Smith Haven Mall near the food court. On top of selling the consoles themselves, they also sell a massive variety of games across all consoles and generations, making it a great place to shop if one considers themselves a fan of retro video games. For more information, check out their website.
Final Rating: 9/10
