78 T3 DECEMBER 2021Te s te d
Evercade VSFrom £89.99
evercade.co.ukhe Evercade VS is the latest in a now
long line of modern retro consoles.
There’s a big difference with the
Evercade VS, though. Unlike these
systems, which came with a limited, pre-loaded
selection of games, the Evercade VS is a full-on
console that runs on its own carts of classic
arcade games, all of them legally licensed.
In terms of overall aesthetics the Evercade VS
looks fantastic. It’s got clean lines and the white
finish looks really smart. Attention to detail has
been paid here in terms of design, even though
the console is light and has a hollow feeling
when held, evoking an old-fashioned console
from the ’80s or ’90s.
Other details from that era of home
entertainment consoles include the very NES
evocative controllers, which are larger than the
NES’s and definitely better controllers, but still
not comfortable to hold when compared to
modern gamepads. The good news, though, is
that thanks to the console coming with four USB
ports, third-party USB controllers can be used.
The Evercade family of game carts come as
collections, which again is a bit old fashioned
and in keeping with the retro theme of classic
arcade games. You’ll find, for example, an Atari
Arcade collection on a game cart, or a Gaelco or
Data East collection.
Some modern retro-themed titles are also
licensed such as Xeno Crisis and Ta n gl e w o o d.
This points to a system that, providing the
Evercade VS’ makers, Blaze Entertainment, canT
Retro gaming done right, this is the modern
classic console gamers have been waiting for
Evercade VS
HAPPILY EVER AFTER
WE’RE IMPRESSED Clean,
stylish design; offers over 260
games and counting; dual game
cart slots; slick operating system.
WE’D IMPROVE Included
controllers aren’t comfy by
modern standards; buying all the
game carts will cost you.
THE LAST WORD The arcade
heydays are reborn in the
Evercade VS. The age of arcade
may be over, but it shines on in
the Evercade VS brilliantly.VERDICT
Find great deals on the
Evercade VS at: bit.ly/t3evrcdvslicense the games, will be able to play more
modern titles. And thanks to the Evercade VS
featuring two game cart slots, at any time a
gamer can have north of 20 games loaded up.
When booted, the Evercade VS kicks you to
its home menu, which then displays all the
games you have loaded with large, very visual
flyer imagery of the games in question. This is a
really nice touch as it not only gets to show off
lots of the original key art made for these games,
but it also cements the fact that you’re travelling
back in time to play these titles.
It also has some strong customisation and
screen option settings, meaning that purists can
display these games as they remember them
from their younger days. Games can be played
in widescreen, original ratio and even Pixel
Perfect, and scan lines can be added to really
emulate those old CRT monitors.
Overall, we don’t know what else the
Evercade VS could deliver really in the pursuit
of its brief, which is to make playing retro
arcade games fun, affordable and accessible to
any gamer. Retro gamers who remember the
golden days of the arcades will love this system,
but there’s also plenty here to interest younger
gamers and tech enthusiasts who like to tinker.
Most importantly, though, the Evercade VS
is making sure that this important era in
videogames isn’t forgotten or buried in an illegal
rights-battle-hell grey limbo. Here are these
great arcade games, available to buy and play
now in the comfort of your own living room.