Nintendo Entertainment System: Difference between revisions

The NES supported multiple accessories throughout its lifetime, beginning with the Famicom BASIC computer, with was released alongside the Famicom data recorder/tape deck. Another accessory was a Family Computer Network System (a collaboration between Nintendo and {{wp|Nomura Securities) in 1988, a modem attachment for the Famicom which allowed users to access a server which provided downloadable content, cheat codes, jokes, on-going stock trades, the weather, and equine betting. The server was discontinued in 2001, with 130,000 units sold. According to the book ''Super Mario: How Nintendo Conquered America'', the reason the modem was not a commercial success was that the concept of using a modem to access an internet-like server was mostly foreign at the time. <ref>https://www.google.com/books/edition/Super_Mario/9_JvDwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0</ref> A 1990 American release of the modem was reportedly considered by Nintendo through a partnership with {{wp|AT&T}}, though this failed to materialize. While an American version of the modem was never released, the modem port on the bottom of the NES was still implemented into the final design. <ref>https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/gxyXUi336egC?hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjoloO6kNKAAxVoPkQIHUH-DncQre8FegQIAxAY</ref><ref>https://niwanetwork.org/wiki/Famicom_Network_System</ref> Both Sega and Nintendo refused to grant a license to [[wikipedia:Teleplay Modem|an unofficial NES modem]] with only three titles, which ultimately went unreleased.  <ref>https://niwanetwork.org/wiki/Famicom_Network_System</ref> Other peripherals for the Famicom included a stick controller which worked primarily the same as the NES Advantage controller and a pair of 3D glasses which received a lukewarm reception. <ref>https://www.google.com/books/edition/Super_Mario/9_JvDwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0</ref>

The NES was also bundled with R.O.B. the robot in 1985, a battery-powered accessory to the NES system that could purportedly play games alongside you on the system. A seeming cross between {{wp|R2-D2}} and {{wp|E.T.}} <ref>https://www.google.com/books/edition/Power_Up/VuA7DQAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0</ref>, R.O.B. functioned by using a series of flashing LED lights emitted from the TV set during the games ''[[wikipedia:R.O.B.|Gyromite]]'' and ''[[wikipedia:R.O.B.|Stack-Up]]'' to manually maneuver round plastic objects to place on its tray, which was connected to a standard NES controller with R.O.B.'s actions acting as its inputs. R.O.B. has the same optical electronics as a NES Zapper and likewise only functions correctly when coupled with a {{wp|cathode ray tube (CRT)}} television set and not an {{wp|LCD}} TV set. Games can send six distinct commands to R.O.B. by flashing the screen, with R.O.B. having an included visor to tolerate brighter CRT sets better <ref>https://www.reddit.com/r/nes/comments/izwk4e/how_to_find_a_visor_for_rob/</ref>. The test feature within ''Gyromite'' and ''Stack-Up'' sends an optical flash that should activate R.O.B.'s red light. <ref>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R.O.B.#cite_note-HTG_Zapper-15</ref> R.O.B. was short-lived, as he merely served as a trojan horse to get the NES into American homes, but he helped to give the NES a beginning, which led to the system becoming an American phenomenon only a year later. Along with being bundled with the NES system, a standalone R.O.B. was also released in 1986 for $49.99 <ref>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R.O.B.</ref>, which was released alongside a big box version of ''Gyromite]]'' that contained the R.O.B. attachments included in the 1985 set. The standard (and only) ''[[wikipedia:R.O.B.|Stack-Up]]'' release also contained a set of colorful gyro blocks, which could be used by R.O.B. to play ''Stack-Up''. In short, you could acquire R.O.B. and all of his accessories in two ways: you could purchase the October 1985 bundle/NES Deluxe Set and ''Stack-Up'', or you could purchase R.O.B., the big box ''Gyromite'', and ''Stack-Up'' individually. The same R.O.B., Stack-Up, and Gyromite bundles were released for the Famicom in Japan as well, with R.O.B. having the same maroon and cream color scheme as the Famicom; this would later be present as an alternate color option in R.O.B.'s subsequent [[smashwiki:R.O.B|''Super Smash Bros.'' appearances]].