FC Mobile II Review and Compatability Thread (56K beware)

[Sonicwolf]

So here is my review with photos of Hyperkin's new handheld system, the FC Mobile II. It plays Nintendo Entertainment System games.

http://i575.photobucket.com/albums/ss191/Sonicwolf359/DSC09762.jpg

I payed around 55 bucks for this system and I am very, very pleased with it. Here is what you get:

- FC Mobile II system
- 2 Wireless controllers
- A wireless zapper
- AC Adaptor
- AV Out cord

The FC Mobile II when used portably requires 4 AA size batteries. The controllers require 2 AAA size batteries each and the Zapper requires 3 AAA's.

The system itself is extremely solid feeling and very easy to use. It is a definite cosmetic improvement over its predecessor. The buttons and d-pad on the system work and feel great. I had some reservations due to the D-pads PlayStation styling but, in my opinion, it kicks the crap out of the PlayStation d-pad. Much easier to use and control. Playing cartridges in it is pretty easy and their can be the usual NES style problems. It does hold the cartridges very firmly but once and a while you will have to blow on the cart or reseat it on the connectors to get the game to play but I am pretty sure we are all used to that :D

http://i575.photobucket.com/albums/ss191/Sonicwolf359/DSC09749.jpg

The screen is beautiful and crisp with minimal blur. Its very bright too so its a joy to play in any light setting.

http://i575.photobucket.com/albums/ss191/Sonicwolf359/DSC09765.jpg
(FC Mobile II screen closeup)

I found only 3 things with the system itself that bug me. There is an inconvienent screw on the battery compartment which I think is unnecessary because the compartment is latched on by a normal remote style clip anyways. (I removed the screw)

http://i575.photobucket.com/albums/ss191/Sonicwolf359/DSC09750.jpg

The second thing is that the images displayed by the systems screen seem a little shifted to the left at times. Not really a big problem and it is barely noticeable most of the time. Its a very small shift too. Just thought I should make it known. The third thing is that there is a bit of noise when using the headphone jack.

The Zapper I have yet to use due to my current lack of availiable CRT television. The two controllers are light weight but work very well with the buttons being basically the same as the system itself. They are infrared and respond quickly. The only problem I found with the controllers is that the d-pad does feel a little bit cheap and slippy at times. After playing with the controllers for a while and utilizing the av-out on the system to my lcd tv, I didnt find that the controller's d-pad detracted from the game play at all. The controllers and zapper also have the odd screw on the battery compartment which includes the remote style clip.

http://i575.photobucket.com/albums/ss191/Sonicwolf359/DSC09773.jpg

http://i575.photobucket.com/albums/ss191/Sonicwolf359/DSC09771.jpg

I have played many games of mine and here are the ones I have found to work: Super Mario Bros, SMB 2, SMB 3, SMB/DH/World Class Track Meet, SMB/DH, Donkey Kong Classics, TMNT, A Nightmare on Elm Street and Castlevania.
I could not get my only multigame to work and I have not been able to play Gradius on it yet. I have been informed by a fellow DP'er that it does work. Probably just my cart.

http://i575.photobucket.com/albums/ss191/Sonicwolf359/DSC09776.jpg
(av out above to my lcd)

http://i575.photobucket.com/albums/ss191/Sonicwolf359/DSC09764.jpg
(FC Mobile II screen closeup)

http://i575.photobucket.com/albums/ss191/Sonicwolf359/DSC09769.jpg

So all in all Its a must buy for any NES fan. Its an excellent little system and a real joy to play. The detractors are minimal compared to the benefits and fun you can get out of this thing at such a cheap price. If you already have the FC Mobile original, buy this one and if you dont have any portable NES yet... Buy this one. Its really worth it!

Anyone who has purchased and used this already, post the games that you have found to work and not work so we can get a good compatability list going.

[StoneAgeGamer]

Many of my gripes are the same as yours. IMO it is a big upgrade over the original. The controller D-pad bugs me, but I too felt the IR was responsive, but you must lay the system on its back with the IR receiver faced towards you.

I thought the cart slot was nice. I don't know how it will hold up over time. However, I shook mine pretty hard to try to get it to screw up and it didn't. Your games do have to be pretty clean for everything to work as it should though.

P.S. We do sell these for $57.99 + free shipping to U.S. over at our store. :-D

[swlovinist]

Overall not a bad way to play nes games on the go. I agree with Sonicwolf with many of the same things. I would add one though....I have already hit the reset button twice on accident while playing. I also would have preferred the AC adaptor port to not be on the top but coming out from the bottom of the unit. Overall I am happy with what I bought.

Punch out Works!

[MachineGex]

I have played a ton of PAL games on it and I am very impressed. I have not found a game that doesnt work on it. Gradius(US version) & Gradius 2(inside a gyromite) both play perfect. Currently I am having fun playing "Over Horizon" on it. I have over a dozen multi-carts that I need to dig out and try, but so far everything works great including all my PAL & reproduction games. A+ for this little guy, I love it!

[braddrad]

Just ordered mine yesterday. Can't wait to get it!

[Classicgamesdepot]

received mine today. I am very pleased with it, This is my third portable nes/famicom. My first was a game axe ... what an amazing improvement.

[Classicgamesdepot]

don't believe little Samson works ... can anyone else confirm?

[swlovinist]

received mine today. I am very pleased with it, This is my third portable nes/famicom. My first was a game axe ... what an amazing improvement.

Boy that thing was a piece of crap :), Looking at mine right now, boy the technology has came a long way.

BTW I will try to test my Little Sampson later today

[megasdkirby]

I may purchase this...how is the sound and graphics? Are they faithful to the original? How long does a pair of good batteries last? Can I use NiMH on it?

[Sonicwolf]

I may purchase this...how is the sound and graphics? Are they faithful to the original? How long does a pair of good batteries last? Can I use NiMH on it?

The sound is pretty accurate and can be very loud if you wish and I have not tested battery time. I heard its around 10 hours though. Not positive about NiMH.

[iloveguns]

wow that's really cool....

[megasdkirby]

P.S. We do sell these for $57.99 + free shipping to U.S. over at our store. :-D

Nice. What is the shipping method to be used? Parcel Post? Media Mail? Priority Mail?

I'm currently looking at locations to purchase from. Would love to get it at a great price from an excellent source.

[blue lander]

I have played a ton of PAL games on it and I am very impressed. I have not found a game that doesnt work on it. Gradius(US version) & Gradius 2(inside a gyromite) both play perfect. Currently I am having fun playing "Over Horizon" on it. I have over a dozen multi-carts that I need to dig out and try, but so far everything works great including all my PAL & reproduction games. A+ for this little guy, I love it!

The PAL version of Turrican works, but doesn't look quite right. All the sprites are solid black. Other than that, I haven't found any incompatibilities.

[bangtango]

The sound is pretty accurate and can be very loud if you wish and I have not tested battery time. I heard its around 10 hours though. Not positive about NiMH.

I'd like a "final answer" on battery time, too.

Be a lot more likely to buy this if the AA battery life is closing to Game Boy systems than a Game Gear.

[StoneAgeGamer]

Nice. What is the shipping method to be used? Parcel Post? Media Mail? Priority Mail?

I'm currently looking at locations to purchase from. Would love to get it at a great price from an excellent source.

Priority Mail.

[Sonicwolf]

I am going to go out and buy a 4 pack of rechargables just to test full battery life at medium volume. Give me a bit of time. Those rechargable arent cheap either...

[Sonicwolf]

Ask Tofu about the battery life. I dont have the patience to baby sit the thing for a large amount of time.

[braddrad]

Got mine today. This thing is absolutely awesome. I always held off on getting the first version because the buttons were backwards. I love this thing. So far I tested SMB3, Defender 2, and Duck Tales. All carts fired on the first try. Man, this thing is going to keep me busy. If I had to choose one thing to change on it, it would be the segmented D-pad, but overall that is such a minor issue. Love it!

[tofu]

Ask Tofu about the battery life. I dont have the patience to baby sit the thing for a large amount of time.

I'm trying to stay out of this thread because it's more important what consumers experience - not what I did with my prototypes.

I'd very much like to know what another person manages to get in terms of battery life. I got 13 hours on Bionic Commando and Adventures of Link using Energizer Lithium batteries.

[Arcade_Ness]

I splurged and bought one today. I'll be going on a trip to Dallas, so I figured I could bring the FC Mobile 2 along with me. I really enjoyed hooking it up to my big screen tv to play Mike Tyson's Punch Out! and Castlevania 3. The sound is quite loud, which I found quite surprising. I wonder if the sound quality is on par with the NES.

[Sonicwolf]

I splurged and bought one today. I'll be going on a trip to Dallas, so I figured I could bring the FC Mobile 2 along with me. I really enjoyed hooking it up to my big screen tv to play Mike Tyson's Punch Out! and Castlevania 3. The sound is quite loud, which I found quite surprising. I wonder if the sound quality is on par with the NES.

(off topic) Is that a Guy with the glasses video in your signature and if so, which one?

[Diosoth]

(off topic) Is that a Guy with the glasses video in your signature and if so, which one?

It's the most recent geek fight. Started as NC vs AVGN,then lots of other people just kept showing up at random.

[MachineGex]

don't believe little Samson works ... can anyone else confirm?

Little Samson works fine on mine. I played about 10-15 mintues on the first level and it played perfect.

I have been playing "Over Horizon" a lot. I do not know why this game isn't more popular. Well, I just since it is a PAL game and not too many people know about it is a pretty good reason why it isn't more popular. ;)

[Classicgamesdepot]

[QUOTE=MachineGex;1563122]Little Samson works fine on mine. I played about 10-15 mintues on the first level and it played perfect.

Thanks for the info, I must not have cleaned my cart good enough. Hands down, the FC Mobile II is well worth the money.

[Diosoth]

I just don't see myself buying this. Game stores want too much for NES games and anything I stumble upon via CL is usually the same common titles no one ever wants. Not worth the money overall when you factor in $7 or more per game.

[Sonicwolf]

I just don't see myself buying this. Game stores want too much for NES games and anything I stumble upon via CL is usually the same common titles no one ever wants. Not worth the money overall when you factor in $7 or more per game.

This isnt just for people starting a collection. It is also for people who have a large NES collection already.

(I guess that reply doesnt matter considering you were banned for some reason...)

[Tupin]

This isnt just for people starting a collection. It is also for people who have a large NES collection already.

(I guess that reply doesnt matter considering you were banned for some reason...)
He was banned for several Craigslist related posts, mainly about something he couldn't sell.

[Sonicwolf]

Oh. I see. I was wondering why.

I have gotten about 5 hours out of my FC Mobile II with 4 really worn out rechargable NiMH batteries. It is still chugging along too. I will continue to play and I will eventually post a pretty good aproximation of average battery time.

[ButtonMasher123]

I just got my FC Mobile II in the mail yesterday and overall I'm very pleased with the purchance. The buttons and control pad feel nice and I'm was happy that games sounded and looked pretty much the same as they do on my real NES. One thing I have to warn people about is the volume output of the headphone jack. It is extremely loud and I would advice anyone who is using headphones to turn the volume all the way down and adjust ever so slightly from there so you don't damage your headphones or your ears.

I have also been testing out a ton of games over the past few days. I have a decent size collection of about 100 games and out of all those these are the ones I'm having issues with.

The following games have not worked at all for me

Castlevania II
Castlevania III
Friday the 13th
Little Nemo the Dream Master
The Three Stooges

These games power on, but tend to freeze at the title screen

Anticipation
Blaster Master
GI Joe: A Real American Hero
Guerilla War

This was after I gave these games a good cleaning as well. GI Joe actually worked yesterday, but now it is freezing at the title screen and if it makes it past there the sound and graphics start to glitch up. If anyone could help confirm any of these games working or not that would be great.

[Akito01]

I have one order on that should hopefully arrive tomorrow, but now I'm concerned. Earlier in this post, I know someone said that they were playing Castlevania 3 on it, and I think Little Nemo was mentioned as well? Most of the impressions have been so positive compared the original FC Mobile that I'd have to think something is up.

It sounds like you may have gotten a bum unit, or more disturbingly, not all FC Mobile IIs are using the improved NOAC. I don't know how likely that would be, so it just really sounds to me like something is jacked in your particular unit and needs to be replaced or refunded.

[Arcade_Ness]

I too haven't been able to get CV 3 to work. Also I was playing Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! for awhile, and then couldn't get it to boot up. I really hope there isn't something wrong with my system.

[Sonicwolf]

The only game I have tried and still have yet to get to work is Gradius.

[ButtonMasher123]

I have one order on that should hopefully arrive tomorrow, but now I'm concerned. Earlier in this post, I know someone said that they were playing Castlevania 3 on it, and I think Little Nemo was mentioned as well? Most of the impressions have been so positive compared the original FC Mobile that I'd have to think something is up.

It sounds like you may have gotten a bum unit, or more disturbingly, not all FC Mobile IIs are using the improved NOAC. I don't know how likely that would be, so it just really sounds to me like something is jacked in your particular unit and needs to be replaced or refunded.

My unit plays perfectly expect with those games mentioned. It's ok though because I never expected it to be 100% compatible anyway. I knew already before I bought it that Castlevania 3 wasn't supposed to be able to work with the FC Mobile II. I not completely positive either that all those other games are really imcompatible especially the ones that get at least to the title screen before messing up.

I still think it is a pretty awesome for the price you are paying in the end and it looks like a giant step up from the FC Mobile. It is definitely worthy of the good reviews it is getting.

[GOLDEN KEYS]

I just don't see myself buying this. Game stores want too much for NES games and anything I stumble upon via CL is usually the same common titles no one ever wants. Not worth the money overall when you factor in $7 or more per game.

This isn't even accurate. The average price for an NES game is not $7 unless you have no patience and refuse to spend any time hunting them down.

For the games that are rare or even slightly rare, get them off of ebay for a fraction of what your local used game store sells them for. For common games, I'd suggest you buy a few "lots" off of ebay. You can typically get about twenty five games for forty bucks. Also, when I go to used game stores I only buy the cheap games ($1 - $3) because for the most part you can't get an NES game much lower than that. If the person pricing the game even recognizes a title they'll put some outrageous price on it half the time. I saw a copy of "Mega Man 2" for almost twenty bucks last week.

[Arcade_Ness]

I'm postive that I have a bad unit now, since games like Batman and Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! used to work, but are unable to work now. From my meager collection the following games don't work: Batman, Castlevania 3, Dragon Warrior, Ice Climber, MegaMan 3, Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!, StarTropics, Super Mario Bros. 2, The Adventure of Link, and Zoda's Revenge. That's practically half my NES collection!

I'm going to head down to Game Over Videogames to see if I can get an refund/store credit for my defunct FC Mobile 2.

[Sonicwolf]

Mine is still working pretty fine. Very few games dont work on it.

[ButtonMasher123]

I'm postive that I have a bad unit now, since games like Batman and Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! used to work, but are unable to work now. From my meager collection the following games don't work: Batman, Castlevania 3, Dragon Warrior, Ice Climber, MegaMan 3, Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!, StarTropics, Super Mario Bros. 2, The Adventure of Link, and Zoda's Revenge. That's practically half my NES collection!

I'm going to head down to Game Over Videogames to see if I can get an refund/store credit for my defunct FC Mobile 2.

Are those games not working at all or are they freezing? If they are freezing up one thing I have found that helps is to fold up a index card or something of that nature and stick it in the back of the unit so the games don't have room to wiggle around while your playing it and mess up. Otherwise I have tested my copies of Batman, Mike Tysons Punchout, Startropics, and Mario 2 and they all work in mine.

[Arcade_Ness]

Well I took it to the game store, and they tested it out and it worked fine. One of the guys told me that my problem could be the batteries running low, or to just clean my cartridges. I ended up trading it for store credit anyway. It's a great device, just probably not for me personally. I did have some good times with it though, and it prompted me to purchase five NES games.

[Schmidt-Dudley]

Hi folks,
I have a quick question.
I read that the FC Mobile II plays PAL Games.
Does this Games run faster?
Or does the machine recognise PAL and make them run at 50Hz?

MfG.: Schmidt-Dudley

PS.: Sorry for my english, I am from Germany. ;-)

[Akito01]

My unit finally arrived today, and I couldn't be happier. Even before I turned the thing on, I was smiling. It just looks so much better than the previous model, by far. So far I've tried it out with Iron Tank, MegaMan 3 and Zelda: Outlands, and they all work perfectly fine. There's no need to switch the thing on twice to get the colors right. Indeed, the color reproduction in general is much much better than the older FC Mobile (dark greens now look dark green, and not bright neon green). I assume the screen is the same, but the better colors and the added brightness (I assume that's due to the extra battery?) give it a much better appearance.

The D-Pad and buttons feel a bit strange, but I haven't had any problems with them not reading my commands. The action buttons being completely flat rather than concave or convex is a bit troubling. Since your thumb tends to rest more on the edge of the button rather than the center, it kinda digs in a bit with the sharper corners. Other than that, I can't say I have any complaints at all.

Now that the realm of the portable NES has been more or less conquered, can we hope to hear news of a Super FC Mobile any time soon?

[Sabz5150]

The only game I have confirmed that does not work on the FC Mobile II is Gauntlet. It still does the "I dont know how to lay out the map!" thing.

Other than that, it's a top notch console.

[Sonicwolf]

I am now around 6 hours with my old worn out rechargable NiMH batteries and its still going fine.

[WizDawg]

I read somewhere that for Gauntlet 4K ram is tied to pin 58.

It's a bummer that the PowerPak does not work.

[tofu]

Hi folks,
I have a quick question.
I read that the FC Mobile II plays PAL Games.
Does this Games run faster?
Or does the machine recognise PAL and make them run at 50Hz?

MfG.: Schmidt-Dudley

PS.: Sorry for my english, I am from Germany. ;-)

Since nobody else has answered this question...

The FC Mobile II does play PAL games and the game speeds run normally without any speedup.

[Schmidt-Dudley]

:villagepeople:
Ohh thats great.
So I have to order it. ;)
And did anybody know if there´s a shop how shipps to germany?
Or is the only possibility buying it at ebay?

MfG.: Schmidt-Dudley

[Sabz5150]

What's the internal difference between the Player 1 and Player 2 controllers?

[tofu]

What's the internal difference between the Player 1 and Player 2 controllers?

They're just tuned to a different infrared frequency, the controllers are universal so you can take your controllers and screw with anybody playing their portable.

Edit: One thing left off the box: hold down the start button on the wireless controller for five seconds and the system will restart.

[Sabz5150]

They're just tuned to a different infrared frequency, the controllers are universal so you can take your controllers and screw with anybody playing their portable.

Edit: One thing left off the box: hold down the start button on the wireless controller for five seconds and the system will restart.

So there's no special jumper point soldered inside the 2P controller to make it any different, it's all in the glob-top on the board?

EDIT: I ask because I plan to cram the guts of one of the Mobile's controllers into a traditional NES controller and I'd love to have a 1P/2P switch.

[OldSchoolGamer]

So there's no special jumper point soldered inside the 2P controller to make it any different, it's all in the glob-top on the board?

EDIT: I ask because I plan to cram the guts of one of the Mobile's controllers into a traditional NES controller and I'd love to have a 1P/2P switch.

Cool keep us posted on that project!

[Sabz5150]

Cool keep us posted on that project!

Will do. I plan the same with the gun. It's not a Zapper without the "PKANG!" :)

[tofu]

Will do. I plan the same with the gun. It's not a Zapper without the "PKANG!" :)

Dude! I argued for days to get that nostalgic "KPWANG" sound built into the trigger. In the end, everybody but me thought adding a stupid spring for a sound effect was silly.

Let me know how your project turns out, I don't know enough about electronics to do my own modding (especially since I can request custom made prototypes at anytime).

[Akito01]

Is it everyone else's experience that game freezes are a sign that the batteries are running low? It was a little alarming at first, with MegaMan 3 repeatedly freezing, but testing with the AC adapter made it pretty clear that it was the batteries that were the weak link. I'm guessing battery life is a touch shorter than for the previous FC Mobile? It's probably a worthy trade off, given how much brighter and sharper the LCD screen is. It makes sense to use the AC adapter indoors anyway, really, unless I'm taking it out. I don't like being tethered to a cord, so I might invest in some rechargeables as well.

[Sonicwolf]

Is it everyone else's experience that game freezes are a sign that the batteries are running low? It was a little alarming at first, with MegaMan 3 repeatedly freezing, but testing with the AC adapter made it pretty clear that it was the batteries that were the weak link. I'm guessing battery life is a touch shorter than for the previous FC Mobile? It's probably a worthy trade off, given how much brighter and sharper the LCD screen is. It makes sense to use the AC adapter indoors anyway, really, unless I'm taking it out. I don't like being tethered to a cord, so I might invest in some rechargeables as well.

Rechargables are good but arent totally necassary with this system. I have gotten over 6 hours with my batteries and they are old NiMH's. My system is still going on fine too. Still can play gradius. Probably just the cartridge. I dont have the patience to battle the toaster right now to test it otherwise though.

[Sonicwolf]

Okay. I just ran my batteries down on my FC Mobile II. I got about 6 and a half hours with my old worn out rechargables. There is a big symptom of imminent battery fail. The games have problem starting or get a lot of garbleness in the picture. Kind of like when you have a nes toaster and dirty connecters.

[T2KFreeker]

Got one today and I must confess I am impressed with the system. It is a solid build and so far I am impressed with the compatibility as well. However, I disagree that Castlevania III works in the system because it does't. I have two of them and neither works in my unit. Gauntlet also has the graphical glitches that most NES clones have. Those two games thus far hare the only ones that haven't worked yet. Here's what I have tested thus far though that worked.

Bionic Commando
Burger Time
Castlevania
Castlevania II Simon s Quest
Contra
Double Dragon
Double Dragon II
Dragon Warrior
Duck Tales
Excite Bike
Fester's Quest
Friday the 13th
Galaga
High Speed
Legend of Zelda
Mario Bros.
Metroid
Mike Tyson's Punch Out
Millipede
Ninja Gaiden
Ninja Gaiden III
Pac-Man (Tengen Cart)
Pinbot
The Punisher
Star Soldier
Star Tropics
Super Mario Brothers
Super Mario Bros. 3
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II The Arcade Game
Willow

Games that don't work thus far:

Castlevania III
Gauntlet (Tengen Cart)

That's it so far. I have a ton of games though and as I get them going, I'll update the list.

[ButtonMasher123]

Got one today and I must confess I am impressed with the system. It is a solid build and so far I am impressed with the compatibility as well. However, I disagree that Castlevania III works in the system because it does';t. I have two of them and neither works in my unit. Gauntlet also has the graphical glitches that most NES clones have. Those two games thus far hare the only ones that haven't worked yet. Here's what I have tested thus far though that worked.

Castlevania
Castlevania II Simons Quest
Double Dragon
Dragon Warrior
Fester's Quest
Friday the 13th
Galaga
High Speed
Legend of Zelda
Mario Bros.
Metroid
Millipede
Ninja Gaiden
Ninja Gaiden III
Pac-Man (Tengen Cart)
Pinbot
The Punisher
Star Soldier
Star Tropics
Super Mario Brothers
Super Mario Bros. 3
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II The Arcade Game
Willow

Games that don't work thus far:

Castlevania III
Duck Tails
Gauntlet

That's it so far. I have a ton of games though and as I get them going, I'll update the list.

My copy of Ducktales works prefectly on my unit. I still have had no luck with my copies of Friday the 13th and Castlevania II though. I think the games have to be in really nice condition and clean to work on the FC Mobile at all. The strange thing is the games that give me trouble on my real NES will work fine in the FC Mobile while others that I have never had trouble with won't.

[Sonicwolf]

Seems kind of erratic in which games work for which people. I still cant get gauntlet to work for the life of me yet others can get it to do so simply.

[T2KFreeker]

Seems kind of erratic in which games work for which people. I still cant get gauntlet to work for the life of me yet others can get it to do so simply.

I have seen some interesting information on Gauntlet. It appears that if you have the official release of Gauntlet in the grey Nintendo case, it works just fine, but that the TENGEN version in the black case does not as there are differences in the code itself. Not sure how accurate it is because I only have the TENGEN version and not the actual Grey Cart.

I'll clean up my Duck Tails and see if I can get it working.

Okay, I cleaned Duck Tails really good and the game works fine now. Still no luck with Castlevania III though.

[ButtonMasher123]

I was just messing around my FC Mobile II and I had a big breaktrough concerning the compatability of certain games.

I was noticing that as my batteries were dying more of my games were not working and the ones that were working were having graphical glitches that were not there before. It struck me as being kind of odd so I went ahead and plugged in the ac adaptor to see if it made any difference if the unit was at full power or not.

Well to my surprise not only did the games I was having trouble with at the time start working perfectly again, but nearly every game I ever had problems with worked flawlessly including Castlevania III! In fact the only game I couldn't get working out of my entire collection of about 100 games was Friday the 13th which I'm not worried about that because it was already confirmed to be compatible by someone else in this thread. That level 2 glitch in Battletoads is still there as well.

So this ends up being a good news/bad news scenario in the end. The good news is that with my Castlevania 3 now working that the FC Mobile II seems to have 100% compatability. The bad news is that if your batterys are not at full power than all of your games will not work and as your batterys drain down more of your games will begin to have issues.

[Akito01]

That would go a long way to explain why MegaMan 3 was the game that started freezing, while Iron Tank (the other game I was playing often at the same time) was still working fine. Changing the batteries obviously got everything working again.

It would be interesting to know what is going on internally with all that. Based on prior experience (at least with the first FC Mobile), I'd have expected the brightness of the LCD screen to exhibit the first signs of battery death.

The last 'big' handheld that used regular AA batteries was the original GameBoy Advance. It had that little green light that would turn red to let you know the batteries were going to die soon. I don't know how hard such an indicator would be to implement in future devices, but I dare say it would cause less concern and consternation based on the confusion that is going around with game freezes and questions of compatibility.

[T2KFreeker]

Well, with all that information, it is now nice that I can confirm then that there is something wrong with my Castlevania III cart. Not really the kind of news I wanted to discover, Damn It!

[ButtonMasher123]

Well, with all that information, it is now nice that I can confirm then that there is something wrong with my Castlevania III cart. Not really the kind of news I wanted to discover, Damn It!

Well it might just not like your cart because like I said I never got my Friday the 13th cart to work and you said that it works fine in yours. When I put it in my NES it works perfectly too so it isn't broken, but it just doesn't get along with my FC Mobile II for whatever reason.

[Sonicwolf]

Some games could be different software revisions or something. Little differences could be disasterous for compatabilities.

[T2KFreeker]

Well it might just not like your cart because like I said I never got my Friday the 13th cart to work and you said that it works fine in yours. When I put it in my NES it works perfectly too so it isn't broken, but it just doesn't get along with my FC Mobile II for whatever reason.

Yeah, I actually got it running for a few minutes last night. Not sure how that happened, but once I hit the Stained Glass level with the bats, at the end it crashed. I guess I have to try and track down yet another Castlevania III cart, oh joy! And yeah, Friday the 13th starts right up for me. Funny thing is that I actually have to fiddle with it to get it working right on my NES but it works just fine on the FC Mobile II. That's a kick in the crotch for sure.

[Sabz5150]

Got one today and I must confess I am impressed with the system. It is a solid build and so far I am impressed with the compatibility as well. However, I disagree that Castlevania III works in the system because it does't. I have two of them and neither works in my unit. Gauntlet also has the graphical glitches that most NES clones have. Those two games thus far hare the only ones that haven't worked yet. Here's what I have tested thus far though that worked.

My copy of Castlevania III works beautifully in the FCII. It was the first game I tried.



Tofu... another question :D Where on the Mobile II's board is the audio amplifier located? I intend to wire in the pins for external audio chips (LaGrange Point comes to mind) and knowing where it's located on the board would be a great help towards that particular mod.

Also, why'd the speakers get wired in series? I ask because one of my speakers is (was) apparently wired in reverse so the audio was all out of phase. When I snipped one speaker wire to fix the issue, I lost all sound until I crossed the two newly disconnected wires which brought audio out of the remaining speaker.

[tofu]

Tofu... another question :D Where on the Mobile II's board is the audio amplifier located? I intend to wire in the pins for external audio chips (LaGrange Point comes to mind) and knowing where it's located on the board would be a great help towards that particular mod.

Also, why'd the speakers get wired in series? I ask because one of my speakers is (was) apparently wired in reverse so the audio was all out of phase. When I snipped one speaker wire to fix the issue, I lost all sound until I crossed the two newly disconnected wires which brought audio out of the remaining speaker.

Wow um... that's English right?

I'll translate your question and forward it to Hong Kong because I have no clue.

Speakers? Series? no comprende.

[Sabz5150]

Wow um... that's English right?

I'll translate your question and forward it to Hong Kong because I have no clue.

Speakers? Series? no comprende.

I'm guessing one of the electronics guys has a reason for it, basically I had to open my Mobile II again to bring my audio back to life... nothing world ending. Just a geek picking nits, that's all :)

[T2KFreeker]

Sad as it is, it's time for me to find a new Castlevania III cart. I even tried sandpaper, which I hate even thinking about, which removed a ton of green stuff from the pins, but the cart still isn't working right. Not sure what else to do.

[ButtonMasher123]

Sad as it is, it's time for me to find a new Castlevania III cart. I even tried sandpaper, which I hate even thinking about, which removed a ton of green stuff from the pins, but the cart still isn't working right. Not sure what else to do.

Have you tried it out in a actual NES to see if it works there?

[Sonicwolf]

Have you tried it out in a actual NES to see if it works there?

yes, do that before you jump to the point of buying another cart.

[cracked8ball]

Just got one today and am enjoying it alot.

So far I tested these games and all worked:

Xexyz
Robodemons
Sqoon
Mega Man
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Faxanadu
Clu Clu Land

Bugs Bunny Birthday Blowout worked as well but has lines up and down the screen

So far only 3 havent worked

Journey to Silius
Ghostbusters
Ghostbusters 2

[Sonicwolf]

Ghostbusters
Ghostbusters 2

Those work for me. Wierd.

[JohnnyBlaze]

HOLY SHIT! THEY FIXED THE BUTTONS!

Anyways, it looks cool. My biggest questions are as follows(probably answered already but am too lazy to check):

-Does it work with Castlevania III?(a biggie as most NES Clones including the NEX have trouble with it)

-When in turbulence(i.e. a bus or car) and the NES carts shakes, will the freeze or is it steady?

-Can it play Famicom games(provided I'm guessing you have a 60 to 72 Pin Adapter)?

-That's a lot of friggin' batteries needed. 4 AA for the system, 2 AAA each for the controllers, and 3 AAA for the Zapper.

-Why Nightmare on Elm Street? That game was horrible!

[cracked8ball]

I can't seem to get CV3 to work. Tried cleaning it. All it shows is a tan screen. The cart is fine as it works on my NES. Odd. Can't seem to get Journey to Silius working either. Anyone try that one yet and can confirm it works?

[T2KFreeker]

yes, do that before you jump to the point of buying another cart.
Yeah, the cart isn't working right on my NES either. Really crap. I guess I do need a new Castlevania III cart. Man, this really bites.