Super Nintendo Entertainment System Review

Friends, help me buy (if you have) various old stuff: Help me buy.

I’ve always been impressed by Nintendo’s early consoles. That was a time when they didn’t cheap out on the hardware. Just think about it: for another region they built a console with a completely new shell. Not just a different plastic color — a different design, different molds, different manufacturing costs.

It’s still a mystery to me. Why? Nintendo had already dealt with the fallout of regional differences — remember the NES cartridges, where a Famicom cartridge was basically hiding inside an NES shell along with an adapter.

But those days are long gone, so let’s look at what the SNES actually is. Are there any fundamental differences — or is it only about the looks?

Where to buy?

This is probably the hardest question today. Most of the time it’s easier to buy a console locally (for example, on Avito) and only then consider importing from Japan. But here the situation is different: this is the American version, and it was never officially supplied to Russia. You can find it on Avito, but the odds are low. In Japan the chances are a bit higher, but still not great.

So if you decide to buy one, you’ll likely need a middleman and an eBay order.

The main thing is to pick listings with photos that show the console actually working. Not just a power LED (it’s powered directly from the rail), but a picture on the TV and a game running.

The exact bundle isn’t that critical. Almost everything can be bought separately. A nice bonus is an original controller — it has its own design and color scheme that matches the console.

The US power supply won’t fit European outlets — neither the voltage nor the plug shape. Also note: power supplies from the Japanese SFC and the European SNES use different connectors and won’t fit either.

The TV cable will most likely be a standard AV cable. In any case, it’s better to buy a SCART cable — it gives the best picture quality.

Package contents

The console came in a very nice box.

Inside you could find:

1. The console itself;

2. A controller;

3. Documentation (a lot of it);

4. Power supply;

5. An RF adapter for connecting to a TV.

An AV cable was not included — you had to buy it separately.

Now let’s look at the console itself.

Console

As I said earlier, it’s hard for me to tell why Nintendo went with a different design. I think it’s still related to the post-crash console market: the company was afraid of releasing a system that looked too similar to other devices of that era. So they kept a certain “boxy” continuity between the NES and SNES.

The SNES is smaller, of course — but not radically.

Length: 242 mm

Width: 190 mm

Height: 69 mm

The only truly major change was moving from “front-loading” cartridges to a “top-loading” slot. This solution is noticeably simpler and many times more reliable.

Front panel

On the front you have the controller ports and an LED that shows whether the console is powered on.

Top panel

On top there’s the cartridge slot and the Power, Reset, and Eject buttons.

Funny thing: I only noticed the Eject button after three days of use — it blends into the design that well.

Another interesting detail: on later revisions the Power button was simplified. Originally it was supposed to prevent removing the cartridge while the console was on, but for some reason that function was removed on US units. Hard to say why.

Sides

There’s nothing on the sides of the SNES.

Rear panel

On the back you’ll find Multi Out and RF Out, a 3–4 channel switch, and the power input.

There’s also a Nintendo of America phone number printed there. Curiously enough, it still works.

Bottom

If you flip the console over, you’ll see the usual legal text, the serial number, and an expansion port that was barely used.

Controllers

The controllers are essentially Super Famicom gamepads. Same “dog bone” shape — just a different color palette.

Interesting detail: on the SNES controller the X and Y buttons are concave, while on the SFC they’re convex.

But the differences don’t end there. On SNES the cable length is 235 cm, while on SFC it’s only 95 cm.

Pros and Cons

Traditionally, let’s start with the downsides.

Cons:

1. The biggest downside is that it’s hard to buy and expensive.

As I mentioned above, finding this console isn’t easy. And if you’re a collector and want a complete set, you’ll have to spend serious money. A unit in good condition with full packaging usually goes for around $400–$500.

And that’s before shipping. Getting it delivered isn’t simple either — you’ll almost certainly need a middleman who can receive it in the US and forward it.

2. Most commonly you’ll run into the 3-chip revision.

Roughly five years after launch, Nintendo changed the internal architecture and released the 1-chip revision. Two PPU chips and the CPU were combined into a single chip.

Compatibility got slightly worse, but there was an unexpected upside — the picture became noticeably sharper. Also, one chip turned out to be more reliable than three separate ones.

The real problem is: how do you actually find that revision? Either by brute force (and there aren’t many consoles for sale to begin with), or by asking the seller to open the unit — and not many people agree to that.

3. The best picture is only via RGB.

For that you’ll need a SCART cable and a TV with a SCART port, which is getting rarer. Most likely, you’ll end up buying a retro upscaler.

And the maximum effect comes from using an RGB cable together with a 1-chip revision. If you connect a 1-chip console via regular AV, you’ll barely see a difference.

4. The original power supply won’t work.

It’s made for a different voltage, so you can only use it with a step-down transformer. Or you’ll need to buy a compatible replacement PSU.

Pros:

1. The SNES has the “softest” regional restrictions.

SNES cartridges are wider than SFC cartridges, so you can’t just insert an SNES cart into a Super Famicom. But it works the other way around too — SFC cartridges fit into the SNES if you remove the plastic tabs inside the cartridge slot.

Technically, the SNES and SFC are the same. So Japanese cartridges run without any issues. It’s not always critical, but sometimes it’s really convenient. For example, the best Super Game Boy version — Super Game Boy 2 — was released only in Japan. Once the tabs are removed, you can insert an SGB2 into an SNES without any trouble.

2. You might get lucky and find a 1-chip revision.

Personally, I wouldn’t hunt specifically for it, but if you stumble upon one — it’s a nice bonus.

3. Unlike the SNES Junior, this model has a full Multi-Out port.

Which means you can output even RGB without any hardware mods.

How to play?

This section almost completely repeats what I wrote in Super Family Computer Review. The key difference here is simple: Japanese cartridges are much easier to fit into the American console than the other way around.

You can safely use SFC flash cartridges and not bother looking for them specifically in a US-style shell.

Epilogue

In my opinion, the American version would be the most attractive one to buy — if it were easy to get.

And if you also manage to find a 1-chip revision and remove the tabs, it becomes an almost universal solution for pretty much any cartridges (except European ones).

But honestly, the ability to run Japanese carts isn’t worth all that hassle. So it’s up to you whether chasing this exact version makes sense.