Pictured on right: the legendary Yobo FC Twin. Ignore the thing on the left, thanks.
The Yobo FC Twin was one of the earlier 2-in-1 clone consoles released in the mid-2000s. Essentially a combo NES/SNES clone system, it was a step up on prior NES clones with improved NES cloning and somewhat better quality. But the reason for this tribute is simple – it was the console that got me back into classic gaming when I first picked one up back in October 2007 and the console that I frequently play today – and it still works wonders, meaning I’ve been rather fortunate.
Just to give you some sense of context when reading this, the following tribute was originally written/compiled back in November 2009 – a short two years after my initial purchase of the system – and it still holds up rather well – although I have made some tweaks and updates to the included incompatibility list. I’ll probably do a video overview in the near future, but right now, here’s a shitload of text regarding the wonder machine that brought me back into the fold and started me off on a journey of personal enlightenment. Enjoy.
From the Oct. 14, 2007 Bite commentary:
Picked up an FC Twin this past week. For those wondering, it’s a third-party console that plays your old NES and Super NES games. Although I can’t speak for the SNES compatibility yet, I can tell you that NES games work fairly well. I say fairly because the sound is off in some games (most notably the SMB games). It looks well-built and sturdy too. If you need to find a replacement console and can’t find a new system, this is a close alternative.
From the Oct. 21, 2007 Bite commentary:
Last week, I had mentioned that I had picked up a sleek FC Twin console, which allows you to play all your old NES and Super NES game cartridges. I already stated how I felt about the NES functionality on last week’s commentary, but having sold off my old SNES along with games (but no controllers – so the joke’s on the bastard who bought it and swindled me) years ago, I had no SNES games to test the system. So I picked up a couple SNES games a week later (Super Mario World and Super Castlevania IV – amazing that I found the ‘Vania game). Anxious to try out my new purchases, I head home and plug up my FC Twin, slapped in ‘Vania IV into the SNES slot and turned on the console to the 16-bit position.
Nothing.
So I blew the cartridge and tried it again. Nothing. Blew the connectors in the console. Nothing.
Then I looked at the console itself and noticed that the green light (which indicated the 16-bit mode is active) doesn’t turn on. The 8-bit light (red light) turns on and the games work, but the green light doesn’t. It was then I realized that my spanking new console was defective. Funny how this works, because this was something I’ve never heard happen when reading up on the console.
So this past Wednesday, I brought it back to the shop I bought it from and explained my plight. The shopkepper’s (a different one from the guy who sold me the unit) first reply was “Did you blow the cartridge?” Blow the cart, you say? Why, that’s a WONDERFUL idea! I never knew that in order to get the green light to work, I needed to simply blow the cart. Unfortunately for the genius, I told him I did, but the light didn’t come on. Fortunately, I got my replacement unit… along with a used copy of Wing Commander. Now I got a fully functional FC Twin with both NES and SNES slots working fine. From what I can tell, SNES games run fine here without much problem. Wing Commander played pretty smoothly despite my initial fears that it would run slow due to the crappy intro (which tries to recreate what was done on the PC but fails miserably) and I am able to play Castlevania IV on a TV screen. Yay. Now I’m truly satisfied with my purchase. I’ll probably post a review of the console in the near future.
The Written Review, From DTM Blog #1200 (November 3, 2009)
A long time ago in a galaxy two feet away, in the days before there was Blu-Ray this and HD that, the purpose of a video game console was to play video games. Nothing more, nothing less. It didn’t play movies or music; it played video games. It didn’t need a fancy set-up like a hi-def television or Internet connection; all you need was a TV, a wall outlet to plug the power in, a working controller, and a game cartridge. This was the gaming life. But then they introduced CDs to the mix and the multimedia revolution began its course; turning what were simple games with deep gameplay and fun into beautiful eye-candy with little to no substance… and no, fifteen-minute long unskippable cutscenes are not my idea of substance. Soon, video game hardware developers attempted to turn simple video game machines into second-rate computer systems that can play CD music, DVD movies, browse the Internet, and even watch porn… wow, it’s just like using a computer, except on a computer, these are standard features that serve somewhat of a purpose while on game consoles, they are tacked on extras so developers could bump up the prices.
Maybe I should just review the damn console before this turns into a rant on the current gaming scene… although that’s not a bad idea.
To relive the old days of gaming, we have game compilations on CD/DVD, X-Box Live Arcade, Wii’s Virtual Console service, and even entire websites offering game downloads for a reasonable fee. However, for those of us who still have those old cartridges, we have to find vintage working consoles to play the classic we already own. Those that work cost an arm and leg and the dirt cheap ones are likely not to work. There is the option of repairing your faulty console, but if you’re like me, chances are you’re not much of an expert in taking things apart and putting them back together in the same shape it was before. Fortunately, we have third-party alternatives as a group of Asian developers have made a bunch of clone consoles. One of them is a 2-in-1 clone console called the FC Twin, developed by Yobo. This console is a follow-up to their NeoFami/FC Game console which was basically a NES clone system.
THE GOOD: Probably the FC Twin’s best feature over other Fami-clones (at the time of its initial release, there were only NES clone systems) is its ability to play classic NES (8-bit) or Super NES (16-bit) games on the same console. The NES side of the unit actually plays fairly good and sounds fairly accurate compared to original hardware (read: SMB plays sound just as you remember them), although there might be a hiccup or two. But for the most part, sound is crisp and clear; something that seems to be an issue with the Retro Duo, a later 2-in-1 clone system with better compatibility, but weird sound issues with certain NES games.
SNES gameplay is also exceptional, with every pixel, soundbyte, and control movement almost perfectly replicated. Some games might cause some glitching when playing on the system, but those are few and between.
The console itself looks to be fairly well-built (albeit a little lightweight) and the controllers aren’t too bad either. They function a little stiff for my tastes, but nonetheless, they are a pretty good reproduction of the SNES controller, which is quite possibly one of the best controllers I’ve ever laid my hands on. For $70 Canadian, I found it to be a steep but fair price, considering what I was getting; a dual NES/Super NES console that requires one plug and one set of A/V wiring.
THE BAD: It’s been stated that certain games won’t work with the console due to special chips and designs in these games and this is somewhat true. Castlevania III on the NES side of things is a perfect example, as the game would just halt before any gameplay would take place. Earlier models of the FC Twin would have some sound issues on the NES side, but later FC Twin models seemed to have rectified this issue, but some minor flaws in the emulation do exist.
Also, the FC Twin only outputs in composite. The Retro Duo does have S-video support. Just thought I throw that out there.
Another discerning criticism (and one that is used often against the FC Twin) is the exclusive use of SNES controller ports. While you can use your SNES gear without fault, this means no slots to use classic NES gear such as the Zapper or Power Glove. Whether this is a big loss is dependent on whether you actually need a dose of Duck Hunt or Gyromite in your life… although Yobo did release a light gun specifically for the FC Twin, so that seems to elevate some of the sorrow.
Finally, as a personal peeve, the included controllers have really short wires, so you’ll probably want to dump those for actual SNES controllers with longer wires (or even no wires) fairly quickly.
OVERALL: The FC Twin is a very nice, affordable, and space-saving alternative to the NES and Super NES in a time when both consoles can be hard to come by in a functional (read: either with working pin connectors or not turning piss yellow) state. While the lack of compatibility for select titles will scare a few folks away, I wouldn’t mind sacrificing a few games for something as sweet as this. It’s certainly easier than to take your old NES apart and replacing the connectors unless you’re a soldering saavy person, in which case you wouldn’t be reading this review and started ordering the required pieces.
In any case, if you’re looking to replay some classic games of an era long gone and are hard-pressed to find original hardware that still works – not to mention save a bit of space in the process – the FC Twin is your best bet.
NES Incompatible Game List
The following list is based off the Wikipedia list posted in December 2011 – significantly updated from the iniitial 2009 list. Some notes are from Wikipedia, while others are my own observations since I have a few of the games listed. Some games have additional comments based on either third-part sources (Wiki, for example) or from first-hand experience.
Any game requiring the Power Pad accessory is incompatible with the FC Twin as it cannot be used on this system. The following games are such Power Pad games.
– Athletic World
– Dance Aerobics
– Short Order Eggsplode
– Stadium Events
– Street Cop
– World Class Track Meet
AfterBurner
Bandit Kings of Ancient China
Battletoads
*The game hangs at the second level, however, if warps are used, this is passable and the rest of the game works perfect.
Captain Planet and the Planeteers
*The game will boot up but won’t recognize any of the controller inputs. This tends to be an issue with most Mindscape games.
Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse
*The game freezes after inputting a password or the opening intro sequence – basically any point before gameplay. The game does work on the Retro Duo and FC Mobile II systems.
Cheetahmen II
*Why would you want to play this in the first place?
Challenge of the Dragon
Crystal Mines
Dirty Harry: The War Against Drugs
Dragon Warrior II
*While Wikipedia lists this as an incompatible game, my copy of the game works fine. It might be possible some versions of the game don’t work.
Ducktales
*Wikipedia states that while the game does work, but it won’t respond to the B button. However, my copy of the game responds to the B button just fine.
Gauntlet (Tengen version)
*Some older sources suggested that Tengen cartridges in general are not compatible with the FC Twin, but the Tengen cartridges I do have (Tetris, Rolling Thunder, Pac-Mania, and Ms. Pac-Man) work without a hitch.
Gauntlet II (?)
*I’ve heard some accounts say the game works, but I’ve had the same problem here as I did with Captain Planet. It’s been a while since I last played it, so I may have to retest. Hence the (?).
Gemfire
Gyromite (kinda)
*The game normally requires the Robotic Operating Buddy accessory to play normally and that accessory reportedly (read: I wouldn’t know from personal experience) can’t be used with the FC Twin. However, since most of R.O.B.’s functionality involves pressing buttons on the second controller, you can have a second player substitute for the robot and loads of fun can be had there without issue. The same cannot be said for Stack-Up, which makes use of R.O.B. exclusively.
Laser Invasion
L’Empereur
Mad Max
Miracle Piano Teaching System
*The piano accessory cannot be used on the FC Twin… so yeah.
Paperboy
Pipe Mania
Quattro Arcade
Rad Racer II
Stack Up
*The Robotic Operating Buddy reportedly cannot be used with FC Twin.
The Krion Conquest (?)
*Some people claim that Krion Conquest doesn’t work on FC Twin, but I personally tested the game on my FC Twin and can say that it works fine. In fact, I posted a video demonstrating this gameplay (on one hand). Again, it’s entirely possible that some copies might not work, but my copy works fine.
The Last Starfighter
*Like Captain Planet, The game will boot up but won’t recognize any of the controller inputs.
Uncharted Waters
As a sidenote, Wikipedia claims that certain copies of Dragon Warrior and Super Mario Bros. 2 won’t function with the FC Twin, but my copies of both games seem to work fine without issues. The Wikipedia list also lists Dragon Warrior II as an incompatible game, but again, I tested the game personally and it works just fine. Hence, why it’s not on my list.
SNES Incompatible Game List
The following list is based off the Wikipedia list posted in December 2011 – significantly updated from the iniitial 2009 list. Some notes are from Wikipedia, while others are my own observations since I have a few of the games listed. Some games have additional comments based on either third-part sources (Wiki, for example) or from first-hand experience.
As an additional note, the FC Twin does play Super Famicom games, but require circumvention of the plastic tabs within the SNES slot (either an adaptor or ripping the tabs off).
BatterUP
Contra III: The Alien Wars
*For some reason, walking under bridges in Stage 2 doesn’t obscure the sprite from sight. The game works fine otherwise.
Doraemon – Nobita to Yosei no Kuni
*According to Wikipedia, the game’s overworld map will not display, leaving only sprites on screen.
Dragon Quest I & II
Dragon Quest III
Front Mission: Gun Hazzard
Kirby’s Dream Land
Kirby Super Star
*Both Kirby games apparently require the Nintendo SA-1 Chip to function… this is in dispute. Even on Wikipedia. Go figure.
Star Ocean
*The S-DD1 chip does not function.
Street Fghter Alpha 2
*According to Wikipedia, the game is incompatible due to the lack of the S-DD1 chip… HOWEVER, I personally tested the game myself and can say that my copy works fine on the FC Twin. It doesn’t work on the Retro Duo for some reason.
Stunt Race FX
*Wikipedia states that Stunt Race FX is incompatible with the FC Twin due to the Super FX chip. While I do not have a copy of Stunt Race FX on hand – nor do I ever plan on it – I do have copies of Star Fox and Doom, both of which use the Super FX chip. And they work just fine. The more likely reason would probably be due to the S-DD1 chip.
Super Empire Strikes Back
*While the game works, there are issues. During the battle of Hoth mission, the ground texture goes “missing” and results in a battle over “black snow”.
Super Ghouls ‘n Ghosts
*Everything works up until the 3rd level boss which is incorrectly invisible.
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
*Due to Nintendo SA-1 Coprocessor built (disputed) into the Cartridge. My copy won’t work on FC Twin, but works fine on the Retro Duo.
Super Turrican 2
*Certain bosses display incorrectly with messed-up colors, but the game plays fairly well otherwise.
Terranigma
*The game has a special lockout chip which prevents use on famiclones.
Tiny Toon Adventures: Buster Busts Loose
*Part of the title screen is discolored, but the game plays fine.
Winter Gold
dtm666 