There’s nothing better than playing old-school classic games on the original hardware. Sure, software emulators, Nintendo’s Virtual Console, and Steam re-releases may make it far easier to play older games and even bring them with you, but there’s just something about using the original controllers and playing on dedicated hardware that just feels right. Problem is, when those consoles are approaching three decades old, are chunky as hell, and the cartridges likely to now be rusted-out and playable – not to mention they use the kind of outputs like coaxial cables that are practically unheard of on modern generation TVs – who really wants to go to the effort of setting up an original NES once again to play games like Castlevania the way they were meant to be played?

If you’re one of the people who agrees with everything I just said, you might find Nintendo’s newest product announcement of interest. Enter the Nintendo Entertainment System: NES Classic Edition, a mini replica of the original console. The NES Classic Edition is designed to give you the feel of playing on original NES Hardware – the controller even looks and feels like the original – while removing all the inconveniences. While it won’t read your cartridges, the NES Classic Edition packs in 30 of the NES’s classic titles, which together offer a well-rounded sample of the best of NES history even if there are some decidedly odd choices – SUPER C but not the original Contra? Come on, Nintendo!

The full list of included games runs as follows: Balloon Fight, Bubble Bobble, Castlevania, Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest, Donkey Kong, Donkey Kong Jr., Double Dragon II: The Revenge, Dr. Mario, Excitebike, Final Fantasy, Galaga, Ghosts’n Goblins, Gradius, Ice Climber, Kid Icarus, Kirby’s Adventure, Mario Bros., Mega Man 2, Metroid, Ninja Gaiden, Pac-Man, Punch-Out!! Featuring Mr. Dream, StarTropics, SUPER C, Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros. 2, Super Mario Bros. 3, Tecmo Bowl, The Legend of Zelda and Zelda II: The Adventure of Link.

All this is packed into a miniaturised replica of the original NES hardware that’s small enough stand on your outstretched palm. The package also includes a HDMI cable so that the games can be played on modern HDTVs, and a single NES Classic Controller. The controllers and ports use the Firewire standard as used on the Wii Controller for its accessories – so sorry, original NES peripherals won’t work here, like they’d have much use anyway.

The system launches this November 11th for $59.99 across North America and the UK. However, it is interesting to note that the UK edition will not launch with its own AC adapter, which is included with the North American edition. Cheers for that, Nintendo. We still remember the 3DS XL…