The competition and the NeoGeo Pocket Color, sadly it never had a chance. Can we say wipe out?
 SNK takes on the King by jumping into the ring with their own Handheld!




I Released in Japan by SNK March 16, 1999.
Neo Pocket Color Review
      Back when the SNES and the Sega Genesis were the darlings of the video gaming industry, at the arcades one could find the crowds around the then popular fighting game from Capcom called Street fighter 2. If one was fortunate enough to have a really good arcade in their neighborhood, there would be standing near by, arcade games with the name SNK or Neo Geo as their origin. They had, to me, the most in-depth fighters around. I felt, and still feel to this day, that they were better than the Street Fighter 2 games. But that is another argument and I do not want to dig up any old bones.



In the US our game carts came in a thin cardboard box like the one shown, while Japan got a nice plastic case.
        SNK had a very big arcade presence with lots of great games, the Metal Slug series comes to mind. They even launched a home console that did not make it due to the price point, which only die hard, hard core fans, would put out the money for. It had the same internal hardware as their arcade machines, so you could play the same games at home as in the arcade with no watering down, unlike the popular and much cheaper  home consoles of the day. Why am I saying all this? I feel you must understand where this little portable gaming system is coming from to understand the joy that can be in your hands.
      I read about this little system and then went out and hunted for it. I found it in a Toys-R-Us at the time. I grabbed it up and a game. The in-box pack-in at the time was, surprisingly, Sonic the Hedgehog. Shortly there after, SNK was having bad financial troubles and was closing their doors with eventually being bought out by another company, Playmore. They did something then that really irritated me at the time, they bought back, recalling and pulling, all of their merchandise from store shelves and had them shipped back to Japan. I had just barely gotten my hands on this portable and had only a couple of games.
The system itself had started out as black and white, but its second generation was color. This is the one that made it here to the US. The system itself had a very short lifespan. Another thing I think that helped kill it was the coming GBA that was on the horizon, everyone was talking about it. Several years later the Neo Geo Pocket Color started showing back up on store shelves repackaged for liquidation. The name was not even used in the repackaging. The system was sold along with six games in a bubble pack. I found one in a local “EB Games” at the time and I bought it. I have since then added some more titles to my collection through ebay. The system came in a variety of colors, including some camouflage color designs.
      Holding the system in your hands, you will notice that it is chunky, chubby, fat, hhhmmm.. lets say a hand full. Yet it is only slightly smaller in size as an "original" GBA or almost the size of the Gameboy Color, yet much thicker. Thick as in you can set it up on it's edge and it will sit there, but it does make it feel very comfortable in your hands, more so than the Gameboy Color. It feels very solid with a quality build. Weird screen size and no backlight. The Gameboy Color, which was the competitor, didn't have backlight either. A headphone jack is located at the bottom of the unit. If you turn the unit on without a game inserted you are greeted with a menu containing Calendar, Horoscope, Alarm Clock, and International Time. So what is so special about this little system? SNK games.









Pros:
 NeoGeo fighters & Metal Slug in your hand.
 A NeoGeo system that is affordable.
 40 hours of battery life.
 That directional joy pad.
 Uses same AC adapter as Game Boy Color.
 Nice colorful TFT LCD
 
 Cons:
 No backlight.
 Game availability limited with hard to find titles.
 Screen not recessed.
 Fighters dominate the available game library (this could be a con for some).


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With then rival Gameboy Color cart at the bottom left you can see that the NeoGeo pocket carts are a little smaller



     Sonic plays great on the Neo Pocket Color.





The Neo Pocket Color was introduced into the US on August 6, 1999, and pulled from store shelves in 2000. A sadly short life for such an awesome little system.
 Games:
    The game carts have their own little plastic storage cases somewhat similar to the Gameboy carts. The unit is touted as being 16 bit. The competition, Gameboy Color, was 8 bit. I think it shows well in the game's animation and gameplay and this is where this little system shines much better than the Gameboy Color. If you have ever heard of or played,
 Fatal Fury: first contact
 Samurai Showdown 2
 King of Fighters R2
 SNK vs. Capcom: Fight of the Millennium
 The Last Blade
 Metal Slug 1
 Metal Slug 2
      Then you will understand me when I say that this system is worth having just for these games alone. I feel that this system has the best handheld fighters out there when it comes to 2D fighters. Some of you might need to know that the fighters in the games are "Chibi" in design. For those of you out there who don't know anything about Japanese Manga or Anime, this means that they have short bodies and big heads. So if you are into realistic looking people in your fighters, it is not here. "Gals Fighters" is also another fighter worthy of mentioning, which includes only girls from SNK fighters in their own fighting game. The fighters have been very well translated to the small "pocket size" giving you completely that NeoGeo gaming fun on the go. Control has went from 4 buttons to 2, but even that handles well. There are even "Card Fighter" games, for those who enjoy those. SNK vs. Capcom comes in two versions, the SNK version and the Capcom version. If you are into those type of games you will want both.
      But the library of games is really not that deep for this system due to its life span in the market. There were a lot that were Japan only, but there is no regional lock out, so they would be no problem in playing, if Japanese is not required. I have read that there is a possible, maybe 80 games total, but I do not know if that is accurate. Though that might seem like a lot to some, game availability is limited with even some titles being very elusive and hard to find. (I would love to find a copy of Cotton, which is a great little shooter). There were really not a lot of games released for the US and Europe, maybe around 30, or more, combined and I could be very wrong about that. I am saying this because the NeoGeo Pocket Color was pulled from the shelves here in the US within the same twelve-month period it was released. The good thing is that a lot of the fighters and Metal Slugs can be found in the repackaged bubble packs. On the down side, the repacking does not include any game manuals or original boxes. At least the games are in their original plastic storage cases.
      There are some games, though not many, which are from the earlier non-color model of the Neo Geo Pocket. (The black & white system did not sell well.) The Color system can play all of the available games. The black and white titles, which were for the first Neo pocket, are dealt with in the same manner as the Gameboy Color deals with the "Original" Gameboy titles. Colors are assigned to various shades of gray giving you a few choices to pick from, along with the original shades of gray.
      Among the available games, there is a great strategy RPG called "Faselei" in which you control a mech unit. For puzzles you have Magical Drop Pocket, Pocket Reversi, Shanghai and Bust-a-move pocket. There are only a very few sport games that I know of, Cool Boarder, Baseball, Tennis, Soccer, and Golf. Only one choice of each sport is available with the exception of Baseball. Pacman is also available for those with a taste for him. But I will stress that, it is the fighters and Metal Slug that makes this system stand out from all other portables. Metal Slug is the first reason I chased this system down and made it mine!

Controls:
       In my opinion, the directional pad on this portable is the best that I have ever used. Nothing compares with it when it comes to portable fighters. Controls are very responsive and tight. Also with the directional button we have, "A," "B," Power, Option, and an analog volume control. The power and option buttons are rubber. There is an AC adapter jack and headphone jack at the bottom of the unit beside the volume control. At the top of the unit there is an outlet for using a link cable, which is a separate purchase, to connect two units together for two player games. I have rarely seen the link cable available. You were also supposed to be able to link up to the Sega Dreamcast with a special cable and an SNK game. There were several of the fighters, that I am aware of, was able to do this, one being King of Fighters R2.
 Power:
  The unit is powered by 2 AA batteries and one CR2032 button cell. The button cell is for game saves and clock. You get 40 hours of gameplay on two AA batteries. You read right, 40 hours. There is also a jack for an AC adapter. I have an add-on unit that plugs into the bottom giving me stereo sound that also has an adjustable vibration function, plus battery pack and AC adapter. It is called "Shock and Rock" for the NeoGeo Pocket Color. The vibration function can be adjusted for intensity or switched off.
 (Hint: the Gameboy Color AC adapter will work as a power source for the NeoGeo Pocket Color.)



     There is nothing like the portable versions of Metal Slug. You get the same humor and feel as in the bigger games that were on the home console. They translate very well for the small screen.

   As you can see the game carts fit nice and snug. The AA batteries go in the place on the left while the button cell goes under the round lid on the right.

The Neo GeoPocket, the first Black & White Version, was released in Japan in late 1998, but poor sales caused it to be discontinued in 1999.



  






The large color screen is a joy. It is easy on the eyes, especially when you are in a well lit area.
 Screen:
      A 160x152 Pixel TFT LCD screen able to display up to 146 simultaneous colors, is a very odd aspect ratio for a gaming system. It is pretty much almost square, but I guess it is not that much different than the Gameboy Color except it is much bigger. This screen is non-backlit. This was before the time when a back light was the norm. So you need a good light or daylight to see the screen well. The color can only be compared to the Gameboy color, maybe a slight better, and not as rich as the Gameboy Advance.  Which is understandable because the Gameboy Color was what the system was up against when it hit the market. To me, it seems that the games did not take full advantage of the color palette that was available. The controllable sprites were most of the time, two toned. The games are well animated and the nice color graphics are great. No blur or ghosting in any of the action on screen. And we are talking Sonic here. (Sonic is probably the most colorful game that I have and it is a lot better than the Game Gear Sonic game.) The screen is not recessed, which leaves it an easy target for scratches.



     The directional button that is made for the NeoGeo Pocket Fighting games. You have to really experience this to know what I am talking about.  The control is tight.

    In the bottom picture you can see the NeoGeo Pocket Color with the "Shock and Rock." On the back and sides of the "Shock and Rock" are soft rubber grips. The Shock & Rock does compliment the gameplay. You have that combination of stereo sound and vibration that adds to the fighters.
Final Thoughts: This system is really for that retro gamer that loves the quality SNK fighters and feels that it would be worth their time, effort, and money to tract them down. Because, for me, that is where the fun is at in this system and the gameplay is perfect. I love the Metal Slug games too and put them right beside the fighters. Metal Slug was the main reason I purchased this system in the first place. I like dragging this little system out, from time to time, and having another go at it. For me, these games survive long after they have been beaten and serve up a high replay value. Kind-of wish that there had been more third party support. It lacks that and it shows in the game Library. But then again, this system had a short life. If you love this type of 2-D gameplay, I would suggest you find one and own it. A "big thumbs up" here, especially for SNK fans.

 


Redesigned by Retro Junkie