View Full Version : Did Messiah Entertainment close up shop?
RampantOctopus
08-07-2008, 06:26 PM
Hi folks-- I'm new to this forum, so please be gentle. I've been on the hunt for a Generation NEX system for a little while now and it's clear that there are none to be had... I tried contacting Messiah Entertainment and they don't return e-mails... Does anybody know what happened to these guys? Seeing as their online store has been all but disabled (reporting errors on all pages) for weeks, I have to wonder if they have gone out of business. Does anybody know what's up?
I thought they just turned like whole-sale seller only. But maybe I dunno :o They don't answer the customer service (at least they didn't the 5-6 times I called 2 weeks ago). You can still get em off amazon though I think?
DDCecil
08-07-2008, 06:34 PM
Meh, they still owe me one from Jibbajaba's CGE2K6 contest 2 years ago. I sent a few e-mails, but they never answered them.
DreamTR
08-07-2008, 06:37 PM
From what I understand, there's only one person there now, which might make sense as to why that stuff is not answered. They are still in business, though.
RampantOctopus
08-07-2008, 06:40 PM
No love on the Amazon site or any of their online retail partners.
I hope I didn't miss out on this one like I did the Dina.
Frankie_Says_Relax
08-07-2008, 06:40 PM
Well, honestly it was bound to happen sooner or later.
They didn't continue to produce any "new product" post Gen NEX, which was a very decent US attempt at a NES/Famiclone with a very nice aesthetic design, they never moved into the growing Genesis or SNES clone market, and they never updated the hardware on the NEX to deal with any of the compatibility issues it faced.
Interesting that they have potentially shut down ... but not shocking.
I'd really have liked to see more from them. :(
Well, honestly it was bound to happen sooner or later.
They didn't continue to produce any "new product" post Gen NEX, which was a very decent US attempt at a NES/Famiclone with a very nice aesthetic design, they never moved into the growing Genesis or SNES clone market, and they never updated the hardware on the NEX to deal with any of the compatibility issues it faced.
Interesting that they have potentially shut down ... but not shocking.
I'd really have liked to see more from them. :(
I wanted wireless DC Controllers :(
Tupin
08-07-2008, 06:56 PM
I wanted wireless DC Controllers :(
That would have been freaking sweet.
Pantechnicon
08-07-2008, 06:58 PM
There might - might - be some NEX's and controllers knocking around some of the Hastings stores. Apparently it wasn't that hot of an item locally.
Daria
08-07-2008, 07:18 PM
Messiah's never answered emails as far I can tell. Couple years ago I tried to contact them regarding faulty SNES controllers. They never responded.
Rev. Link
08-07-2008, 07:29 PM
Yeah, after being severely disappointed with the NEX, I wouldn't miss them either.
pookninja
08-07-2008, 07:50 PM
if you have a gamecrazy near you,see if they have one.the gamecrazy near me still had a couple nex systems left and that huge nes advantage looking joystick
DreamTR
08-07-2008, 08:42 PM
They didn't "stop" making products after the NEX, they have been working on stuff for current generation consoles, which have higher possibilities of creating revenue.
Frankie_Says_Relax
08-07-2008, 09:17 PM
They didn't "stop" making products after the NEX, they have been working on stuff for current generation consoles, which have higher possibilities of creating revenue.
Good to hear.
It would probably help staunch public "speculation" over their demise if they made an occasional blog post, take out a page ad in a gaming mag, or do a press release about such things.
Kitsune Sniper
08-07-2008, 09:18 PM
I wanted wireless DC Controllers :(
I sold some last year - DOCS brand. They were OK, but were rather iffy.
I sold some last year - DOCS brand. They were OK, but were rather iffy.
I've seen those if they're the boomerang ones, god damn those are fugly :| And probably use IR too.....
Gapporin
08-07-2008, 10:56 PM
There might - might - be some NEX's and controllers knocking around some of the Hastings stores. Apparently it wasn't that hot of an item locally.
Seconded. I know my local Hastings has a couple of each item as well.
YoshiM
08-07-2008, 11:20 PM
Try The Goat Store (http://www.goatstore.com/). That's where I bought mine back at MGC 2008. They don't list it on their site but they might have some in stock. To be honest, it isn't that great of a system. The only good thing was that wireless Advantage-like stick. I loved that thing.
retro junkie
08-07-2008, 11:42 PM
eBay is a good place to look for a Generation NEX. That is where I got mine. I am very satisfied with it. It is a favorite little console in my collection. Great for Famicom and NES games.
Pink Godzilla used to have some but are now out of Stock.
Ed Oscuro
08-08-2008, 02:11 AM
They didn't continue to produce any "new product" post Gen NEX, which was a very decent US attempt at a NES/Famiclone with a very nice aesthetic design
Up to the point when they outsourced the design of the chip to a company in a certain country that just made a Famiclone, thus negating the entire reason for the project's being made.
Bottom line - unless this magically changed since we all went throught this before - it's an overpriced Famiclone with no better reliability or compatibility than normal.
They get good marks for the controllers, but hell there's always Hori's old metal Famicom joysticks if you wanna get tough.
rbudrick
08-08-2008, 11:53 AM
Their packaging and presentation and, gasp, hype were excellent.
However, they lost 90% of their fanbase when their hype killed them and they failed to deliver what was expected of them. People lost trust and it's hard to recover from that...unless you pull a Sega, which Messiah can not do.
Their products are very pretty, though, and their wireless controllers pretty sweet.
I was very let down by the NEX, but I'm more than willing to give them more than one more chance. Everyone makes mistakes.
-Rob
retro junkie
08-08-2008, 12:13 PM
Does any one think that if they had just said, "We are putting out an NES clone system," and left out all the hype that the system itself would have been perceived differently today? I think that it would have. I really don't think there would have been all the negative feelings toward the system floating around the net like we see.
I look at it as just being another clone system. It has a better compatability toward NES games than my other clone system, the FC Mobile.
Frankie_Says_Relax
08-08-2008, 12:14 PM
I was fortunate enough to not have caught their early advertising and appearances with the system at conventions and such which I hear was a lot of "It'll have 100% compatibility" type hype.
Being a hardware clone enthusiast, and not ever hearing that hype pre-purchase, I went in buying a NEX fully expecting it to have limited compatability, just like every other clone to date, so I never felt as betrayed as some, and I can't fault anybody for feeling that way.
I like my NEX just fine. It's no subsitute for a top loader NES, but I'm hard pressed to find another clone with such nice controllers and dual Famicom and NES cartridge ports.
RetroYoungen
08-08-2008, 12:23 PM
I seem to be feeling somewhat opposite from many of the people in this thread... I'm not disappointed by my NEX at all. As far as being a clone, it's done me fairly well; none of the weird color adjusting that clones like my Yobo have given me at start-up, and I don't have to use an adapter to plug in the opposite regions' game. And it looks pretty sharp.
I was more disappointed by the controllers. When I play a round of Tetris I need the D-pad to be as precise as absolutely possible, and the little disc in the controller can't get what I need down.
As far as where to find them... I guess everybody else has given better options than I can give, I haven't seen any of their materials around at all for at least a year, maybe longer. @_@
I seem to be feeling somewhat opposite from many of the people in this thread... I'm not disappointed by my NEX at all. As far as being a clone, it's done me fairly well; none of the weird color adjusting that clones like my Yobo have given me at start-up, and I don't have to use an adapter to plug in the opposite regions' game. And it looks pretty sharp.
I was more disappointed by the controllers. When I play a round of Tetris I need the D-pad to be as precise as absolutely possible, and the little disc in the controller can't get what I need down.
As far as where to find them... I guess everybody else has given better options than I can give, I haven't seen any of their materials around at all for at least a year, maybe longer. @_@
Ya they shoulda stuck with the d-pads :|
ooXxXoo
08-08-2008, 04:03 PM
If you are a NES/FAMICOM fan gamer and don't really mind playing your favorite games in colors that didn't existed, then the Generation NEX is just for you, check it out (excuse the flashes):
Official NES/ AV FAMICOM composite video
http://usera.imagecave.com/capcom2000/HPIM7234-copy.jpg
GENERATION NEX video
http://usera.imagecave.com/capcom2000/HPIM7220-copy.jpg
As you can see in these pics, the background goes from tan to a hot yellow color....
What a cruel JOKE!....At least earlier NOAC's were much better than this!....
diskoboy
08-08-2008, 04:42 PM
If you are a NES/FAMICOM fan gamer and don't really mind playing your favorite games in colors that didn't existed, then the Generation NEX is just for you, check it out (excuse the flashes):
Official NES/ AV FAMICOM composite video
http://usera.imagecave.com/capcom2000/HPIM7234-copy.jpg
GENERATION NEX video
http://usera.imagecave.com/capcom2000/HPIM7220-copy.jpg
As you can see in these pics, the background goes from tan to a hot yellow color....
What a cruel JOKE!....At least earlier NOAC's were much better than this!....
Wow. Talk about anal...
Wow. Talk about anal...
It's like that for practically everything, and some don't end up as good as that so no it's not really being anal :|
CosmicMonkey
08-08-2008, 06:01 PM
If you just want to play the games then a Famiclone is perfectly fine. But you get what you pay for, and it is after all a clone machine.
If you want technical accuracy get a real NES/Famicom hooked up with decent composite A/V leads to a decent telly.
Simple.
ooXxXoo
08-08-2008, 06:26 PM
If you just want to play the games then a Famiclone is perfectly fine. But you get what you pay for, and it is after all a clone machine.
If you want technical accuracy get a real NES/Famicom hooked up with decent composite A/V leads to a decent telly.
Simple.
Yes indeed.....
Generation NEX = $59.99....Another sick Joke!
retro junkie
08-08-2008, 11:48 PM
I seem to be feeling somewhat opposite from many of the people in this thread... I'm not disappointed by my NEX at all. As far as being a clone, it's done me fairly well; none of the weird color adjusting that clones like my Yobo have given me at start-up, and I don't have to use an adapter to plug in the opposite regions' game. And it looks pretty sharp.
I was more disappointed by the controllers. When I play a round of Tetris I need the D-pad to be as precise as absolutely possible, and the little disc in the controller can't get what I need down.
I agree with you, my experience has been the same. I have had a very positive experience with my NEX too. I seemed to have been missing somewhere when all of the hype was going on. But then again I went straight from the Commodore 64 to the Sega Genesis back then. I missed out on the NES until now. So game colors are not that ingrained in my gamer being as it is in some gamers. My FC Mobile sometimes can have some odd colors with certain games.
When it comes to the controllers, have you tried using original NES controllers?
If you just want to play the games then a Famiclone is perfectly fine. But you get what you pay for, and it is after all a clone machine.
If you want technical accuracy get a real NES/Famicom hooked up with decent composite A/V leads to a decent telly.
Simple.
the reason everyone hates on it so much is that they kept toting that it was 100% accurate and all that BS when it really had all the compatibility and color issues of a normal clone. If they didn't say it was different then no one would bitch or whine, promising and not delivering is a different story ^^
swlovinist
08-09-2008, 12:53 AM
I have never been a fan of the NEX after the HUGE F up after CGE years back, but the NEX turned out to be a decent familclone that is can play both US and import FC carts in one shot. If anything, I use mine to play FC multicarts. It still is one of the best looking units out there for a famiclone, and with the FC playbility, most people getting it wont be dissapointed. While I was pissed off when it was finally released(not being what it was stated as being new hardware and being really late), It deserves a place in any NES collecton and overall is a neat Famiclone that got some US shelf space. If anything, it looks pretty
RetroYoungen
08-09-2008, 12:58 AM
I agree with you, my experience has been the same. I have had a very positive experience with my NEX too. I seemed to have been missing somewhere when all of the hype was going on. But then again I went straight from the Commodore 64 to the Sega Genesis back then. I missed out on the NES until now. So game colors are not that ingrained in my gamer being as it is in some gamers. My FC Mobile sometimes can have some odd colors with certain games.
When it comes to the controllers, have you tried using original NES controllers?
Yup, I have to. When I said that, I was thinking more along the lines of the wireless NES controllers I picked up (with similar wired controllers coming with the NEX), and can't play with them... so I only use official NES controllers with my system. I really wanted to love the disc, it's a good idea for some precise control... just not as well implemented as I would've liked. Too skiddish like I've said before.
Nothing quite matches the original.
ooXxXoo
08-09-2008, 01:17 AM
And btw, for those that don't like the NEX system composite video picture color, I've wrote a quick fix mod...Its not perfect but somewhat better.....You can either use the pot or resistor instead....It can be found here:
http://assemblergames.com/forums/showthread.php?t=19316
Jibbajaba
08-09-2008, 08:56 PM
Meh, they still owe me one from Jibbajaba's CGE2K6 contest 2 years ago. I sent a few e-mails, but they never answered them.
This REALLY pisses me off. DDCecil let me know more than once in the past 3 years that he hadn't received his NEX, and each time he did so I sent an e-mail to the folks at Messiah, who each time apologized profusely and promised me that they would take care of it.
I ran quite a few contests here on DP during my active years, and this one was the contest that I was by far the most proud of. Not only did I spend a lot of time designing and writing the contest, but another forum member (I'm sorry, I can't remember who) designed an AWESOME web page with a custom logo (without asking for anything in return) that Joe put up on the DP servers. I administered the contest while I was at CGE 2k5, where I was able to personally thank the folks at Messiah for basically donating not only a NEX but also a set of the limited edition wireless NES controllers (which they volunteered to do.) They told me right to my face that not only was I very welcome, but they thanked me for putting on the contest.
I understand that they were certainly very busy at the time, but it's not like I twisted their arm and got them to reluctantly agree to participate. They were all over it when I e-mailed them about it. They even typed up a little blurb for me to include with the contest:
Sitting at home wishing you were at CGE? Worried that the Generation NEX systems available at the show are already sold out? Messiah and Digital Press have a solution for you! We understand that not everyone is able to make the trek to San Francisco, so we want to give Digital Press members only a chance to be a part of an exclusive piece of CGE history. Messiah is donating a Generation NEX system, which is making its debut at the CGE, and a set of Limited Edition 2.4 GHZ Wireless NES Controllers to the winner of the NES History contest! Be the first to correctly identify all 50 NES games from the hints below, and you’ll win a piece of history! If no one is able to get all 50, the prize will be awarded to the first person who correctly identifies the most as of Sunday, 8/21 at 3:00 PST.
Don’t miss out on this opportunity to be one of the first people in the WORLD to play with the Generation NEX system and become a part of history!
People who were around back then will recall that Messiah were really trying to ingratiate themselves to this community because we were a huge community of retro gamers and because Joe is someone with a good amount of influence in the community at large.
DDCecil deserves a lot of props for being so cool about the fact that he got totally hosed. I assumed that they had finally gotten their shit together and sent him one since I hadn't heard anything more. That's some seriously unprofessional shit. If Messiah really is gone, then good riddance indeed.
Chris
This REALLY pisses me off. DDCecil let me know more than once in the past 3 years that he hadn't received his NEX, and each time he did so I sent an e-mail to the folks at Messiah, who each time apologized profusely and promised me that they would take care of it.
I ran quite a few contests here on DP during my active years, and this one was the contest that I was by far the most proud of. Not only did I spend a lot of time designing and writing the contest, but another forum member (I'm sorry, I can't remember who) designed an AWESOME web page with a custom logo (without asking for anything in return) that Joe put up on the DP servers. I administered the contest while I was at CGE 2k5, where I was able to personally thank the folks at Messiah for basically donating not only a NEX but also a set of the limited edition wireless NES controllers (which they volunteered to do.) They told me right to my face that not only was I very welcome, but they thanked me for putting on the contest.
I understand that they were certainly very busy at the time, but it's not like I twisted their arm and got them to reluctantly agree to participate. They were all over it when I e-mailed them about it. They even typed up a little blurb for me to include with the contest:
People who were around back then will recall that Messiah were really trying to ingratiate themselves to this community because we were a huge community of retro gamers and because Joe is someone with a good amount of influence in the community at large.
DDCecil deserves a lot of props for being so cool about the fact that he got totally hosed. I assumed that they had finally gotten their shit together and sent him one since I hadn't heard anything more. That's some seriously unprofessional shit. If Messiah really is gone, then good riddance indeed.
Chris
woah that's pretty messed up :o
Carey85
08-09-2008, 10:01 PM
I really don't want Messiah to go away. I get entirely too much joy out of asking them if I can demo Maniac Mansion, Rad Racer II, or Castlevania III on the NEX at conventions. For the record, I have a NEX, NEX wireless controllers, an NEX arcade stick, and their SNES wireless controllers, and think they're all pretty good products. I get a little pissed off about the compatibility issues of the NEX, but no hardware clone has done it better thus far, save for Kevin Horton's FPGA NES.
rbudrick
08-11-2008, 03:23 PM
I really don't want Messiah to go away. I get entirely too much joy out of asking them if I can demo Maniac Mansion, Rad Racer II, or Castlevania III on the NEX at conventions. For the record, I have a NEX, NEX wireless controllers, an NEX arcade stick, and their SNES wireless controllers, and think they're all pretty good products. I get a little pissed off about the compatibility issues of the NEX, but no hardware clone has done it better thus far, save for Kevin Horton's FPGA NES.
Pedobear. Nice.
Kevin's FPGA NES needs mass production. When's he gonna start dishing them sumbitches out?
-Rob
I really don't want Messiah to go away. I get entirely too much joy out of asking them if I can demo Maniac Mansion, Rad Racer II, or Castlevania III on the NEX at conventions. For the record, I have a NEX, NEX wireless controllers, an NEX arcade stick, and their SNES wireless controllers, and think they're all pretty good products. I get a little pissed off about the compatibility issues of the NEX, but no hardware clone has done it better thus far, save for Kevin Horton's FPGA NES.
the retroduo did better actually ;p I don't know about maniac mansion and rad racer, but it is definitely compatible with CIII
swlovinist
08-11-2008, 08:09 PM
the retroduo did better actually ;p I don't know about maniac mansion and rad racer, but it is definitely compatible with CIII
Agreed, the Retro Duo and the Twin FC are better US Nintendo clones and can play more games than the NEX. If you are looking for a decent US Nintendo Clone, either one of those is pretty good.
Tupin
08-11-2008, 08:15 PM
Yeah, but one thing I've noticed about the Retro Duo is that the color is washed out on NES games. The SNES games also have problems, mainly with vertical lines.
Other than that, the Retro Duo is awesome.
ooXxXoo
08-11-2008, 08:24 PM
The Retro Duo NES composite video is so much better than the NEX, due to the fact that the manufacturer decided to go softer in the video output color....All NOAC's suffer from these stripey lines syndrome and thats the Main reason the NEX went crazy with the colors ( saturated) to hide them instead.....
Fuyukaze
08-11-2008, 08:26 PM
I'm enjoying my Gen-X. Plays genesis, megadrive, most nes games, and with a converter, most famicom games. Plus it cost 45 shipped. If you realy have to have one though, try hastings or gamecrazy. Those two still carry em.
I dont know if they are on the verge of going under but I'll be the first to drink in celebration to it.