The latest games are of course fascinating, but retro games released in the past have a unique charm.
Of course, purchasing game software and hardware from those days at game stores and playing them has its own flavor, but it is also difficult to keep track of the physical damage that has occurred to the old games.
Recently, however, there have been a number of new game consoles that include multiple game titles from the same era, as well as new game consoles such as " Family Computer & Super Nintendo Entertainment System Nintendo Switch Online " and " au Smart Pass Premium Classic Games ". In this age of retro gaming, anyone can enjoy retro games anytime, anywhere.
D4 Enterprises, Inc., which distributes retro games through " Project EGG " and other services, has released a new retro game service for iOS and iPad OS.
PicoPico", a subscription-based all-you-can-play retro game service, is now available!
A Wide Variety of Playable Titles
Even if you say you can play as many retro games as you want, if there are only a few titles available, you may feel like you can play as many as you want.
Don't worry! PicoPico has the following game titles available at the time of release!
- Wit's (rights holder: Athena Corporation/Trinity Corporation, genre: ACT)
- Sword Master: Master of Swords (Rights holder: Athena Corporation/Trinity Corporation; genre: ACT)
- Championship Bowling (Rights Holder: Athena Corporation/Trinity Corporation; Genre: SPT)
- DE-BLOCK (Rights holder: Athena Corporation/Trinity Corporation; Genre: ACT/PZL)
- FAMILY BLOCK (Right Holder: ATHENA Corporation/Trinity Corporation; Genre: ACT)
- Argus (Rights holder: City Connection Inc.; Genre: STG)
- Exelion (Rights holder: City Connection Inc.; Genre: STG)
- City Connection (Rights holder: City Connection Inc.; Genre: ACT)
- Field Combat (Rights holder: City Connection Inc.; Genre: STG)
- Ninja Jajamaru-kun (Rights holder: City Connection Co., Ltd.; Genre: ACT)
- Diva (Rights holder: D4 Enterprises, Inc.; Genre: SLG/ACT)
- Hydride Special (Rights holder: D4 Enterprises, Inc.; Genre: RPG)
- Zanuck (Rights holder: D4 Enterprises, Inc.; Genre: STG)
- Battletoads (Rights holder: Extreme Inc., Genre: ACT)
- B-WINGS (Rights holder: G-mode Inc.; Genre: STG)
- Burger Time (Rights holder: G-mode Inc.; Genre: ACT)
- Heavy Barrel (Rights holder: G-mode Inc.; Genre: ACT)
- Pole to Finish (Rights holder: G-mode Inc.; Genre: RCG)
- Introduction to Go (Rights holder: Imax Corporation; Genre: TBL)
- Shogi Ryuoh Tournament (Rights holder: Imax Corporation; Genre: TBL)
- XEVIOUS (Rights holder: NAMCO BANDAI Entertainment Inc.; Genre: STG)
- Pac-Man (Rights holder: Namco Bandai Entertainment Inc.; Genre: ACT)
- Dragon Buster (Rights holder: Namco Bandai Entertainment Inc.)
- Battle City (Rights holder: Namco Bandai Entertainment Inc.)
- COSMIC SHOOTER (Rights holder: SUZUKIPLAN, Genre: STG)
- BATTLE MARINE (Rights holder: SUZUKIPLAN; Genre: ACT)
- SNOW BROTHERS (Rights holder: TATSUJIN Co., Ltd.; Genre: ACT)
- Spelunker (Rights holder: Tozai Games Co., Ltd.; Genre: ACT)
- NEO Heian-kyo Alien (Rights holder: Columbus Circle Inc.; Genre: ACT)
- 8bit Rhythm Land (Rights holder: Columbus Circle Inc., Genre: RHY)
...and a whopping 30 titles!
There are titles from a variety of genres, so you're sure to find something you'll enjoy!
Personally, I'm very happy to see "Battletoads" and "Dragon Buster".
These 30 titles are just the current list and will be updated in future versions!
There is a possibility that new titles will be added to the list of games that I would like to play, or games that I never thought I would play, so I am looking forward to the updates!
Various useful functions included
The service is not worth mentioning again just for playing retro games.
PicoPico" is equipped with various convenient functions that make playing games even more enjoyable and comfortable!
Save and share your super plays with "Video Save
Video Save" is a feature that allows you to save your game play as a video.
You can replay and watch them in the application, and you can also play the rest of the game yourself from anywhere you like in the video.
This is a revolutionary feature that allows the " distributor and viewer to take turns playing " since not only your data but also the data posted by other users can be watched in the same way or played from the middle of the video.
Quick Save & Load
Many retro games are extremely difficult to play.
This is where the "Quick Save & Load " function comes in handy!
You can save your game at any time during the game and quickly load it back up to the saved stage, which is useful for repeatedly playing through high difficulty areas.
Score Attack
You can challenge "Score Attack" once a day for free.
You can aim for a high score to keep your game at the top of the rankings, or you can watch the posted data like a video and use it to study the games played by the top players.
You can challenge once a day for free, but if you purchase paid items (120-610 yen *at the time of writing) within the app , you can challenge for a certain amount of time without limit, so if you really want to get into the rankings, take advantage of it!
Communication battle & cooperative play
Some game titles support 2-player play, such as competitive or powerful games.
With PicoPico, you can use Bluetooth to play with friends and family nearby, and you can even find other PicoPico users to play with via the Internet!
If you can't complete the game by yourself, you can cooperate with your friends or other PicoPico users around the world, or you can play against them to improve your skills.
24-hour offline mode
You can play in offline mode without internet connection within 24 hours after you last went online.
Offline, you can play even in situations where you have to be in airplane mode or where there is no signal.
Browsing the manual of the game at the time of release
For some games, you can view the manuals from the time the game was released.
The manuals from the time of the game's release are quite interesting in themselves, containing not only instructions on how to operate the game, but also various other information about the game, so you may even subscribe to the service just to read the manuals!
Gamepad can be used
It is nice to be able to play games easily with a virtual pad on the screen of your smartphone, but for ease of use, you may want to use a physical gamepad.
PicoPico is compatible with PS4 and Xbox One gamepads with Bluetooth connectivity!
Whenever there is a challenge that you just can't get over, a physical gamepad is an option to help you overcome it!
Easy streaming with NicoPico
You can easily broadcast your game on Nico Nico Live by clicking the "LIVE" button on the menu bar at the bottom of the app screen.
Not only can you enjoy playing retro games, but it is also a great way to entertain your audience with your own games!
The hurdle to distributing games will be lowered dramatically, so why not use this as an opportunity to make your debut as a distributor?
All you can play for 550 yen/month!
PicoPico" is a subscription service that costs 550 yen per month and will be available from October 16, 2020 (Friday )!
The application itself is free to download, and you can play " BATTLE MARINE " and " ZANUCK ", and there is also a one-week free trial of unlimited play.
PicoPico is compatible with iOS and iPad OS, so you can play it on your iPhone and iPad, so if you are interested, download it from the App Store now!
There are many services that allow you to play retro games, but I doubt that there is any other service that offers such a full range of features.
If you have used a similar service before, you may be able to experience the convenience of the features.
For more information, please visit the official PicoPico website!