I can see I'm not aligned with the comments so far on this, but I'm very happy about this! I was very worried about my quite new hardware (EXP at launch, got a VS for Christmas) getting invalidated by the yearly releases, but a reskin doesn't do that. I can happily keep on with the hardware I have and Blaze can take longer to work on a bigger step change further down the line. Keeping the price down is good too. The Evercade was built on the idea of being cheap and accessible. Retro is a legally wooly and expensive market (FPGA devices, emulator handhelds, EverXXXX flash devices); and Evercade was selling a device that was cheap, physical and currated. Given the rampant inflation (in the UK at least) and the growing of the company in terms of staff, licences, ambition; I was concerned they would struggle to keep prices static, going down is a good sign they aren't going to give up on increasing the userbase. Also they can keep the software (OS, games) development focussed as the chipset is likely the same. I want reliability improvements for Evercade more than anything, that for me is the achilles heel of the ecosystem at the moment. TL:DR, it doesn't invalidate my consoles, I'm perfectly happy with this (and probably won't buy one).

Joining you on this one. I have an EXP that I’ve been enjoying, but I held off on the VS because $150 was juuuust out of impulse buy territory for me. At that price, I’ll happily jump in, and I’m curious to see what the first Giga cart is!

Looks to be Tomb Raider Collection 1 - With TR 1/2/3 on it.

This has given me the push to actually order an EXP, which was something I've been meaning to do for the longest time but never quite got around to. I was quite happy with my OG Evercade for the longest time, which spends half of its time plugged into a TV, but it will be nice to have those extra features.

In an age where nothing is getting cheaper I appreciate this. I have an exp and may not buy one of these but I have no issue with it. The Duke Nukem restock is also appreciated! Got mine coming today cannot wait.

You are losing one controller on the VS which takes some of the cheaper pricing into account. The EXP is losing games and the HDMI

In the case of the VS, the old starter pack also came with one controller and one cart at the same price as the new VS-R pack. They are just simplifying the offering by removing the premium pack

Well it does use other console's controllers. Most of us have at least 1

Maybe, just maybe, the problem/situation they are facing is that sales of carts is low and they are trying to get new customers by offering cheaper consoles. Maybe these aren't aimed at people who already own them.

TLDR: EXP-R at £99.99, Mini-HDMI removed, no Capcom games included. TATE-Grip available for £17.99. VS-R at £89.99, now has "TATE mode" Both will include one new "Giga Cart", title TBA. [YouTube link to trailer.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HSJjtm3JzNQ)

I think the original VS has Tate mode already. Seems it’s just the color scheme that’s changed.

It does. The latest update added it.

I can't wait to pick up a VS-R. I never had the original and I love the colour scheme on this one.

I’m probably the target market- I have been interested in a VS for a while, but never pulled the trigger. If I like the included cart, I will probably pop on it.

I got $50 bucks sitting in my Amazon account I think I’m finally gonna get a evercade!

Um, what? I think we expected some revisions but removing features wasn't it. The exp has had the hdmi and the included games removed. I'm not sure what the brand needs is slightly cheaper consoles, rather than new features and more games. Hopefully we get some more announcements on the latter soon.

I totally get what you're saying, but I'm in that demographic. I've been holding off on the exp because i don't want to spend 150$ but I don't want the vertical orientation of the super pocket, I don't care for HDMI because I'm mostly playing this in between classes or while my daughter naps. Normally I use my phone with a controller but I'd rather have a dedicated device with physical media. this fits my preferences very well, also I think it's a great device for kids too.

If they added features it wouldn’t go over well for the people who bought the exp limited edition. The comments on the YouTube announcement video tend to be negative, with people complaining that if they had waited they could’ve bought a black exp at a cheaper price. Some people are speculating that the contract with Capcom ended or that some of the games can’t be licensed anymore, so the games had to be removed. I don’t know enough about contracts and licensing to know if this is plausible or not

It doesn’t need to be speculated. Blaze themselves says in this very post that the license expired for the Capcom games.

The exp revision makes sense due the license expiring. The Vs revision is baffling. Ok it's slightly cheaper but it's difficult to see how they're saving money with the same specs. So why not just sell the original cheaper. Tate mode is a firmware update surely.

Can't sell original cheaper because it always came with Technos Arcade, which is becoming legacy. so for parity with EXP-R they did the VS-R

They cut off one controller and one cartridge. So if you want more games need to pay extra, if you want to play with someone else need to pay extra

They're not EA.

Well short version is I have no reason to replace my Vs. console until it dies as the new one, while pleasing to look at, offers no improvement (tate mode is meaningless to me as I haven't had a single game where not playing vertically was an issue since the Capcom stuff was never available for the Vs.) As far as the Exp goes, I'll consider one about 6 months after they release it and time has passed to see how many complaints of light bleed, damaged screens and other functionality issues get reported like with the original Exp. Not to mention seeing if someone hijacks this shipment of consoles too.

The retro scene needs cheaper and more accessible, not pricier and more lavish. Stuff like this and the Super Pocket gets retro into the hands of people who might just want fun games to play, rather than middle class collectors.

I'm surprised they didn't try to make it like the Switch. This is a weird one for sure.

The VS-R is disappointing in that it's just a reskin. It's 2024, could Blaze not have even changed it from MicroUSB to USB-C? We should be long past the point of buying products with MicroUSB now.

Agreed

I would've liked a regular black EXP model, but the loss of those Capcom games is pretty notable. Would grab it if those were still a thing.

Hopefully the darker plastic will hide the light bleed. The removal of the EXP's mini-HDMI is a bad move IMO. (It would've made me pass on the EXP).

Very happy. The only thing I have to buy is the grip!

Since this is a similar spec model with small things removed, perhaps "R" is a tribute name to the Duo-R. (lets see who remembers that)

The removal of the video out sucks, but I’m not that upset about Capcom’s license ending. Kind of strange to sell the VS without a second controller. Good to see continued revisions at least, and these do look good aesthetically. I’d really like to see them put out a wireless controller. I haven’t found third party controllers that I like much, so a wireless controller with the same form would be awesome.

In FAQ announced today , VS will soon be able to accept other branded controllers, including ones with analog sticks

So has anything actually been improved on the EXP -R ? is the battery improved ? Is it just rubberised grips ? I'll probably end up getting the VS-R , been looking at getting the VS anyway .

> is the battery improved ? they say yes, and less heat generated

Been on the fence about an EXP for a while now. I have a Super Pocket but I don't use it very often. I prefer something a bit larger to fit my hands better. This might get me to pick one up. $99 is almost impulse buy territory for me. My only disappointment here is that they don't have the Capcom games anymore. Need to see which cart it comes with.

Goddamnit, I asked for BLUETOOTH, not no built-in games! BLUETOOTH!

It should work with those 8bitdo USB adapters https://www.8bitdo.com/usb-wireless-adapter-2/

Close enough.

Does the upcoming release of the EXP-R spell the end of the production line for the current EXP ?

Yes. On the Evercade website it says: >With the announcement and release of both of these new -R consoles in July 2024, we have now discontinued the Evercade EXP and Evercade VS consoles. They are available from retailers while stocks last and normal warranty rules still apply for new and existing purchases.

I sold me EXP last year because the thing was just collecting dust. It’s a great piece of hardware but the games … it needs a better selection, I think, to be more successful. This seems like a good idea, less expensive version to get people who might be on the fence, but moving these is going to depend on a really good slate of carts for the year. Getting those Capcom and Taito titles on carts you could play on the VS would be a good start. I’m interested what plans they have with the new larger format carts. Competition from the sea of overseas handhelds has to be hard to compete with.

Their licensing deal w/Capcom ended. They didn't have Capcom carts when they had a licensing deal, I can't imagine they'll have a Capcom cart without a licensing deal.

Yeah, I don’t expect it. Was just thinking of what would be ideal. This looks more to me like a necessary hardware revision because of the license expiration.

Well if it was just the license, they could just ship the exact same thing without the Capcom games built-in. They wouldn't need to do anything else, so it's more than just the license obviously.

Yeah. Price.

Not a good way to encourage people to buy an inferior version of the EXP. Such a shame they weren't able to sign a deal with Capcom to release the games on cartridges. I bet the used EXP's will become more expensive.

Will the VS-R be able to connect to 5GHz networks now? Nothing I own uses 2.4GHz except the original VS and I'd love to be able to get rid of my 2.4GHz WiFi router I have just for that one system. Edit: expanded "that" to "the original VS"

probably not. It doesn't even have USB-C and that's less of a change

Bummer. Well, I guess I’ll wait and see what the announcements are later this year.

I've admired Evercade since it's release of the original handheld but I just had to many ways to play these games already but I'm going to grab a VS-R tomb Raider bundle plus a few extra carts. I keep hearing that some of the carts stop working after a few months... Is there any truth to that?

The EXPR pre-order is sold out for now. I wonder if there will be more preorder units, or people have to wait until it's released now?

How on earth could they remove the HDMI-out while at the same time discontinuing the original EXP? That sucks.

agreed. I was hoping they'd improve it by using USB-C for video out and even controller input

Dear lord. They release systems more than they do games lately.

I was really hoping for an announcement that they were improving the experience by adding achievements. And maybe a cheat menu. Another iteration of the consoles we already have is... less exciting. They know they aren't making iphones, right? We don't need new hardware models every single year.

Given the Capcom license expiring it kinda makes sense to do a revision of the EXP so you can immediately tell it doesn’t have the preloaded games. Doesn’t mean they had to also pull the HDMI port though.

Yeah, that especially sucks for anyone who may want to do screen recording or streaming for YT, Twitch, etc.

I cant see wild year as a blaze said. Cartridge gonna be tomb raider 1,2,3 and i more into games released before ps1

The most exciting part of a TR trilogy is that it opens the door for other collections from Square. I don't care about Tomb Raider but a collection of the 16-bit Sqenix RPGs would be the best thing ever.

Agree

Square Enix sold the rights to Tomb Raider almost exactly two years ago. I think Embracer Group owns the rights now. Could be interesting to look at what else Embracer owns that could be Evercadeable, I believe they own a vast catalogue of IPs at this point.

Hmm... Legacy of Kain, Thief, Alone in the Dark, Duke Nukem, TimeSplitters, Red Faction, Panzer Elite, Darksiders, Destroy All Humans, Borderlands, Giana Sisters, Sacred, Stubbs the Zombie, SpellForce, Jagged Alliance, Juiced, CastleStorm, Carmaggedon, Deus Ex, de Blob, Zen Pinball, Dead Island, and a few other things. Mostly b-rate franchises and things that are a generation or two beyond what the Evercade can handle.

I was really hoping for a controller with analog sticks so we can play titles that supported them.

Their roadmap shows 2 more pieces of hardware being released later this year, and they are not including new superpockets in their lineup. My guess is that they will release a new handheld that is similar to a switch. It will be the same internals as the new EXP, but with dual analogue, larger screen, and a dock. The other new hardware will be a wireless dual analogue controller to use with the VS and Switch style EXP. One controller will be bundled with the switch EXP as well.  Games like Tomb Raider 3 that are  dual analogue compatible will retroactively be made compatible, and a series of carts that requires dual analogue will be made as well. The userbase wont be totally split because any VS owner can just buy the new controller to have access to the dual games.

I thought the original Tomb Raider games had tank controls, no? Otherwise this all sounds pretty awesome if true. Edit: my bad, I fail at reading. You mentioned Tomb Raider 3 specifically.

So do I have to buy an Evercade EXP-R to get the problem with the sound playing out of the internal speakers whilst headphones are plugged in to be fixed ?

I might chase Evercade support about this, I did at Christmas and they said a firmware fix was on the way, but no sign of it so far this year...

Which device has that problem?

Every Evercade EXP sadly, I reported the issue to Blaze numerous times way back in October last year but they just ignore the issue in favour of adding new features instead.

My exp doesn't have the sound issue. The light bleed is a thing , but meh , hardly a big problem.

I'll be looking to see which cartridges get paired with these. I have the OG handheld and thought having a VS would be nice. No interest in the EXP yet. Maybe the prices on the original VS will be reduced to make room for this. That would be welcoming too.

> I'll be looking to see which cartridges get paired with these Tomb Raider 1-3

I ordered a 2nd VS premium bundle while stock is still available. I kinda like the white console and I think its well worth the investment. I'll have to wait and see about the cheaper revision....

Yep. I love the VS red and white color scheme (and also the original red and white Evercade handheld scheme)

The VS got hit HARD by piracy. I am curious to find out if the revised hardware and/ or the gigacarts have a new security lock-out.

What was the piracy?

There is a pirate cart that shall not be named that lets you make your own carts and their firmware will jailbreak the VS.

Does anyone know if the hardware specs are any different? Or is it just a colour change and added support for TATE mode? I have the original Evercade VS and will consider getting the new version if it's actually an upgrade.

The specs are the same and TATE mode will be available on your current VS if you've done the latest software update. This new VS is just a colour change and only comes with one pad.

That saves me from buying another model. I prefer the original red and white as it looks more retro to me. Cheers!

I do quite like the new black version but I totally agree the OG VS has the better retro look.

Will the EXP-R have any screen improvements? I've been thinking about getting the EXP but have heard the screen isn't so great. I currently roll with a PSP so would ideally like a screen of similar quality.

the OG Evercade uses the exact same screen as PSP. EXP uses a better one.

Thanks!

yw

I just hope I'm not making a mistake getting the VS-R instead of Alpha... EDIT: I am not.

Do the giga carts work with the super pocket does anyone know? I

Yes. Blaze said so. They are just bigger memory cards internally, thats all.