Back to the Future

 

After weeks of anticipation and YouTube reviews, ModRetro's Chromatic, the latest Game Boy clone to hit the handheld gaming market, is here.  And both my body and my stack of Game Boy carts are ready.

Given the amount of times he appears on the box, it's a safe bet the character on the right-hand side is ModRetro's official mascot.

Opening the box reveals more of the artwork and doodles one would find in a high school notebook.  If the tiny window on the front wasn't a dead giveaway, the Chromatic I bought is GameStop's retail-exclusive model.  I'd have gone for a more vibrant color--especially at $200 a pop.  But given the option to pay down my pre-order bit by bit, it was much more gentle on my wallet.

Compared to its main competition, the Analogue Pocket, the Chromatic's cartridge slot protects more of the cartridge itself from big hands (like mine).  That's a big reason I chose this over the Analogue Pocket.

ModRetro claims the Chromatic's shiny sapphire crystal display and magnesium alloy shell makes it indestructible.  But after watching one YouTuber test that claim--with his car--this thing's getting its own case.

Though designed to be basically the Game Boy Color 2.0, I found it strange to put both the indicator light and the built-in speaker on the bottom, when having both front and center would've nailed the classic look.  Plugging the Chromatic to a power source via the USB-C port keeps it running without draining the batteries.

And yes, batteries are included, along with ModRetro's officially licenced Tetris port.  Much like with the original Game Boy.  Throw in some wired earbuds and a Game Link cable (and those tiny keychains I see everyone else get with their Chromatic) and you're set.

From when I opened the box, the first cart I wanted to try was Pokemon Pinball and its built-in, battery-operated rumble pack.

Once loaded, though, the game didn't run right off the bat.  No problem; a little blowing made it all better.

Other games like Double Dragon worked without a hitch.

And of course, Tetris works on the hardware for which it's intended.  We should all be used to gaming on a backlit display by now.  But combined with pixel-perfect resolution, this is how we should've been playing Game Boy games all along.

And as everyone knows, black cartridges are backwards compatible with older hardware.  You don't even need a Chromatic to play ModRetro games.  You don't even need a Game Boy; just emulate the roms on your phone.

Comparing the Chromatic with the original Game Boy Color, it's clear the developer aimed to improve on the latter design in virtually every way.  And when compared to handhelds like the Analogue Pocket, I look back to when the Game Boy faced similar competition in its heyday, and came out the winner.  Took me long enough to say it, but the Chromatic's got me on more of a retro binge than before, and I'm excited to see what ModRetro and the modding community can do with it.  On a final note, if it sells as well as it has, we just might just see a ModRetro portable system that plays Game Boy Advance games.  But personally I'd skip the clamshell upgrade.

So I'm finally done with this post.  And with New Year's around the corner, not a moment too soon.  Join me next time as I try out both retro and modern games to kill time on my trip to the Top of the Heap.  Happy Holidays!