Polymega/Retroblox: New 1080p "Clone" 2600 to PCE-CD to PS1

[Jagosaurus]

Did they take paid pre-orders or crowd funding? Not trying to be funny or troll... been so long I forget. I think I started this thread OP confused.

[bmoc]

They haven't done any crowd funding through the typical means of Kickstarter or Indiegogo. The crowdfunding has been in the form of preorders but they also have unnamed corporate investors.

They started taking preorders in Sept 2018 and that lasted until Nov 2018 if I remember correctly. Then they closed down preorders for a few months thinking they would launch in Spring 2019. When it became obvious the Intel shortage wasn't going to end any time soon, they opened preorders again in May 2019. I think the preorders have remained open since then. They said they were going to close down preorders "soon" back in Dec 2019 but that hasn't happened yet.

[marurun]

Any of these kinds of products manufactured in China (all of them) will be seeing unspecified delays due to China’s COVID-19 outbreak. Even huge, cash-flush manufacturers are seeing delays.

[bmoc]

https://www.polymega.com/2020/03/13/pol ... tail-more/

- first round of beta units are shipping at end of the month. Seems to be mostly streamers and social media influencers based on Twitter reactions.
- a second larger round of beta units will ship in May
- Retailers will start having access to Polymega (preorders?) on April 15. Wal-Mart (online only) in NA and Amazon Japan.
- starting April 15th, MSRP will go up to $399 for the base station and $79 for modules
- delays are due to COVID-19
- release date for non beta preorders will be July 6th.

So if I am reading this right, I might get my unit in May or at the latest early July. The price increase for retail is really steep. I feel sorry for all the international people that waited to preorder due to shipping costs. They likely won't see a difference in price.

[nightrnr]

Still on the fence on this... I guess.

Selling points for me are:
-Light gun for modern TV's (when $99 peripheral is available; really one of my biggest interests in it)
-Neo Geo CD games (plus Saturn Neo Geo ports)
-install random games from my collection on a whim
-curiosity of emulation quality of Sega games (SCD, Saturn, and 32X)
-simplicity
-interface and digital collection options
-possible ease of controller options (using other USB converters, if they work)
-yet another PS1 player, for the few games that my PSIO, PS Classic, PSP and PS2 struggle with (sheesh, maybe that's be a waste of space for PS1 games)

To be clear, I really don't need this. I just want it a little anyways.
I would probably go for the $500 option that comes with one of each module.

But I just can't seem to bite the bullet. Too uncertain...

Even harder when I think of maybe getting a PS4 instead (or future PS5) so I can play Soul Calibur VI and stuff.

...wonders when preorders are officially cut off...

Still interested in how it turns out either way (assuming the world doesn't end this year )

[samsonlonghair]

But I just can't seem to bite the bullet. Too uncertain...

Still interested in how it turns out either way (assuming the world doesn't end this year )

That's another reason why it's a bad time to launch a niche product right now. Aside from the troubles of manufacturing in China, a lot of people are facing job uncertainty and tough decisions. Consumers can't comfortably spend hundred of dollars on a luxury item like this when they're unsure about their financial future. If I wanted to launch a niche product, I would wait until the market had settled.

[nightrnr]

I agree, and it all just adds to my indecision.

I'm actually less affected by all the hoopla than most (not unaffected mind you), but still... Makes me wonder what financial endeavors will survive whenever we get back to normal (or figure out a new normal).

I mean, I could just order the base unit anyway to mess around with, but I think I'd be all in or all out. But I also wouldn't say I'm secure enough in finances to turn my back on caution completely.

Besides, I'm already waiting on the Neo SD Loader (another thing delayed due to C-19).

I'll definitely give a shout out if I do end up getting a Polymega.

[nightrnr]

Alright, so I'm done hmm-ing and ha-ing over this. I went ahead and preordered the thing.

Hope I haven't made a terrible mistake, but ought to be fun to mess with come July (if all goes well).

As I'm getting the module bundle:
Might have to track down some turbochip/hucards that are reasonably priced (my current set fills a card holder page). Will probably track down Super Star Soldier, but not sure what else. My next page should be hucards only to save cash.

At the very least, this'll make collecting fun again as I fill a few gaps in the collection.

[retrosportsgamer]

I've been following Jason Dvorak's tweets on this, and some of the videos/streams he's linked to are wild. 16 second NeoGeo CD load times vs. 1:47.

https://twitter.com/gamerave/status/124 ... 77056?s=20

[bmoc]

Having Neo Geo CD actually usable is certainly one of the reasons I preordered. I watched a recent YouTube video from another streamer playing Last Blade and the difference was amazing.

MVG just posted his initial impression with his beta unit. https://youtu.be/NyCyIqnQ27k