Does the NES Have a Secret Master System Port? | Nostalgia Nerd

Go to www.brilliant.org/NostalgiaNerd to sign up for free. And also, the first 200 people will get 20% off their annual premium membership. Ahhh, yes, the NES, a think of blocky curiosity. On the bottom of the NES is a rectangular insert, and behind that lies, well, an expansion slot. This video explores the NES expansion slot as well as some of the rumours surrounding it.
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Some material in this video may be used under Fair Dealing / Fair Use. Where under section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976 (UK: Sections 29 and 30 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988), allowance is made for purposes including parody, quotation, criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, education and research. Fair Dealing / Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing.

[@Nostalgianerd]

Gentle reminder: Japanese pronunciation is not my forte. It's not even my moat.

[@XiaosChannel]

It's okay. It's english. I'm used to it.

[@eurocrusader1724]

Drawbridge then?

[@ArcadeCabNBud]

tim vine would be proud of that one lol

[@letsdiscussitoversometea8479]

You might just do well to learn the correct pronunciation - sadly, a lingering sense of disappointment persists for those who feel "vocally" disconnected from the origins of such wonderful technology. Not just in terms of phonics, but also in terms of how one might treat the items. A very noticeable pattern I tend to have found, is that the Japanese - in general - seem to look after their property alot better than those of us in the UK. We tend to be...maybe 3rd best, behind Japan, and South Korea. Alot of catching up to do!

[@Jolis_Parsec]

ZeOverman Only if it’s a Bailey by the name of Justin. 😋

[@musiclabmn]

I’m a Minnesotan and my parents were one of the test families for the NES/MN lottery system. I remember my dad taking over my NES several times during the week to check his numbers. We were forced to give back the modem at the end of the test, but I remember the device and the interface very well.

[@jodyhunt4699]

Music LabMN I would like to find one.

[@ilkerozyavuz604]

Would you mind to share some more details on how this actually worked. E.G. did it have an own game cartridge, or was the software embedded into the peripheral. Appreciate to get access to your memories :)

[@musiclabmn]

Ilker Özyavuz As far as I remember the software was embedded. That way it would always be available when powering on. If you had a regular cartridge installed it would overrule the NES modem and start the game instead. I’m trying to see if I maybe have some random pictures of my gaming setup from back then in case the modem is pictured.

[@crowmigration8245]

Forced? Did they come to your door with guns?

[@musiclabmn]

@@crowmigration8245 Nothing that exciting.. but it had to be mailed back or risk possible legal action by Nintendo. I'll have to ask my dad, he probably remembers more details.

[@offrails]

"Gambling on a device marketed towards children" It looks like EA succeeded where the Minnesota Lottery failed

[@AwesomeHairo]

EA: "You're weak" Minnesota Lottery: "I'm you"

[@Galerak1]

It's not gambling, it's surprise mechanics 🤣

[@uiopuiop3472]

yaaa, bannerjack

[@cmdraftbrn]

its not gambling. it's redistribution of wealth, to the wealthy.

[@nthgth]

@@cmdraftbrn to be fair, it's entirely voluntary

[@-redacted_by_youtube]

I still remember getting up super early on Christmas only to find my parents playing the nes. My brother and I had to wait an hour lol.

[@jayste9334]

Ahhh 😂😂..my best friends parents..used to kick our butts..in certain Nintendo games..i used to get so mad

[@mathgasm8484]

That is a funny memory.

[@werewolffox8918]

fake no parent would do that

[@r.jclark4641]

@@werewolffox8918 "HOW DARE YOUR REALITY NOT EXACTLY MATCH MY REALITY! EVERYONES' LIVES ARE THE SAME AS MINE!"

[@EhCloserLook]

This would have traumatized me if it had happened to me.

[@seabomb1]

it’s an expansion slot for peripherals that weren’t released, saved you 12 minutes

[@Ayixlia]

There are 3rd parties that made those things for it

[@FRESHx913x]

How about a spoiler alert? Dick nose.

[@BrendonGreenNZL]

Not really, you didn't say _why_ the peripherals were never released.

[@JPROP-vb7sv]

Thanks

[@CASLOAcademy]

idiot. thats why he has a great youtube channel and you dont! dick head!

[@ash36230]

The irony of banning "gambling on a device marketed towards children" considering today with modern games

[@SYXX-II]

Gta v: 👀

[@4eyes2killingyou]

I still wanna know why there isn't the same energy towards gambling mechanics as is all the violence

[@cpufreak101]

@@4eyes2killingyou pretty sure at this point it's largely a point of the only people that care don't know, or know and don't care.

[@4eyes2killingyou]

@@cpufreak101 believe it or not, there are people who still think certain games should go away cuz of violence but don't seem to mind having slot machines pretending to be sports games. Like if people still hate the violence then they need the same energy towards micro-transactions.

[@DmanLucky_98]

Mario party games in a nutshell

[@opportunityasskicker6333]

1991: “Kids gambling on consoles is a big no-no!” 2020: “Hold my lootboxes.”

[@Vitz_atelier]

Good times.

[@BrianBurke06]

EA ruined Madden and FIFA. Things that originally were packed in are either gone or cost like 20 dollars.

[@GoldenPickaxe]

money is more important than children it truly is the 20s all over again

[@Nails077]

@@BrianBurke06 EA ruined all the things.

[@nickarmitt4722]

I would like to be the one to point out the first microtransaction was on an Arcade game back in the boomer years. And that games today are at least games you complete and for the most part don't need to spend extra on... That is before we talk about the fact the most magazines lied and you didn't have youtube to see gameplay so ports of these great games weren't always great... Which meant that even buying a game in 1988 would have been a gamble. I really don't get this modern obsession with boomers over lootboxes... Yes they are bad in most cases but games like Borderlands and Diablo use random loot as a mechanic. In Overwatch you never have to buy a loot box... They throw them at you to the point that if you've been playing since launch you probably have nearly every skin, emote, spray, etc. To me it's a case of rose-tinted goggles being used. I mean most games from the 8/16 bit era were made to eat coins in arcades and the console ports were sometimes good but mostly bad... I am looking at things like Final Fight, Mortal Kombat, etc. And don't get me started with movie licences. Over the last 20 years we have had everything from the amazing KOTOR all the way up to the Jurassic World park building game... Not like the great movie tie ins such as ET, Terminator, Alien (which is funny considering Metroid took huge influence and managed to be a good game.) Then we get to modern instalments of games... I am sorry but GTA V is way better than the original. I am sorry but the first 2 Castlevanias aren't the best... Simon's Quest is so badly designed. Modern Mario's are way better... Mario 64, Sun Shine and Odyssey are way better than the first game and the "sequal" that was a reskin of another game. I mean even Metroid Prime is better than the original. Final Fantasy 9 was way better than the first 3. It's like with Battlefield games. 3 was amazing until you go back and you miss the QoL improvements... Like vaulting over walls as just one example. I am not saying old games are bad. Or that any is better. Simply saying the boomer logic is flawed. There has always been lootboxes and microtransactions in the form of arcade with RNG. There has always been pay to win... Someone willing to put £100 into a machine has a better chance of completing the game than the kid with £2.50. Difference being that now transactions are used to remove grind whereas in the 80s/90s they used mechanics and design to make you put in more coins. Oh and now microtransactions appear more in F2P games. I mean look at this way... On PC right now you can play Fortnite, Apex, Warzone, Valorant, etc... All for free. Tell me where that was back "in the day" I would much rather spend £5 supporting a dev for a skin than spend hundreds of pounds to get a top score on a machine that is now dead and that score long gone. I would rather have lootboxes in Overwatch and have paid £20 for it as opposed to spending hundreds of pounds to get to a boss battle in a beat em up only for the game to suddenly spike in difficulty just to eek another few coins out of the punter. I would rather have Jeff Kaplin now than Jack Tremiel back then.

[@duane8620]

One of my friends dad was a traveling businessman and often went to Japan. This kid I was SO jealous of, he had Japanese releases of NES/Famicom titles I never seen before. He had this "Game Genie" looking thing that would slide into his NES and would allow the non US versions to be played on his US NES. He then was the FIRST KID to own a NeoGeo that I knew. Envious moments in childhood :D

[@Olkv3D]

The NeoGeo was crazy, man. ~ The NG arcades cabinets had slots in them above the coin box in the front. If you has the same game card at home, you could bring there and put in to the cabinet. It would recognize your save file; all you Stats, Unlocks, High Scores, etc. ~ Then, it would update the game card with all new info and when you take it home pop it the NeoGeo console, bam! It's all there. ~ And sh t, man, This was like, what, early to mid 1990's. Crazy stuff. Way ahead of it's time. ~ ✌😎🕹

[@zagnut48219]

I had a friend who had one of those "game genie" adapter things to play non-US games. If I recall, it was yellow.

[@douglasjarnagan3835]

I had a friend that had a CDi. I felt bad for him.

[@duane8620]

@@zagnut48219 YES, yes it was!

[@iampoch01]

I had that, too! It may seem moot in hindsight since I also have a Famicon but I still remember it getting some use. I'm in the Philippines, BTW so the Famicom and its cartridges are much more prevalent here than the NES. I got the latter as a gift from my aunt in the US.

[@Kylefassbinderful]

I remember as a kid always wondering what the audio and video ports were for. It was the early 90's and none of our two TV's had such a port. It wasn't until I got a Playstation and had to hook that up through the VCR that I realized what a composite port was and then a little while later to learn that it was called the composite port.

[@CurlyFromTheSwirly]

I was pleasantly surprised later to realize my SNES has AV ports and was so easy to use on modern TVs.

[@zacharyrollick6169]

​@@CurlyFromTheSwirly Praise be the Nintendo multi out!

[@CurlyFromTheSwirly]

@@zacharyrollick6169 praise be the video game gods

[@datamanmachine]

I always thougt the NES would get a Disc System upgrade like the Famicom!

[@swoll1980]

The UK was allergic to floppies, so they probably didn't bother adapting a NES for floppies. I'm surprised they didn't make a cassette drive for the west. Either that or ROM got really cheap.

[@Aquarirus]

Thought*

[@Aquarirus]

@@swoll1980 wrong

[@swoll1980]

@@Aquarirus No shit... My keyboard doesn't work all the time. I dropped it. I've been spelling thought since I was 5. What's wrong?

[@Aquarirus]

@@swoll1980 you dropped ur entire fucking keyboard lmfao

[@SolarMechanic]

Remember folks: If the title is a question, odds are the answer is "No."

[@ncot_tech]

Mike Carson “What is this for?” “No”. Hmm... 🤔

[@DenkyManner]

@@ncot_tech see, you proved the point.

[@ZipplyZane]

Well, obviously. But I still wonder what that port is for.

[@ncot_tech]

ZipplyZane it’s an expansion port that could have been used for plugging other devices into the NES. Except nobody wanted to do anything other than play Mario on a kids toy. I’m sure there’s a video explaining this somewhere 😉

[@danieledwards3376]

Indeed - see my video titled "When the title is a question is the answer 'no'?".

[@cpljimmyneutron]

You mentioned the Gamecube ports, those are probably the ones that had the most real world use. I had a portable gamecube that I had built for myself. In one port you put the modem or network adapter, attached directly to the bottom was a battery pack, and attached using the very stiff carry handle was a screen. The system would play for about 2 hours on a single charge. Nothing compared to today, but amazing for the time... however, I eventually stopped using it portable and changed the bottom expansion... I added the Gameboy Player that allowed me to play ALL gameboy games from any series of gameboy on my gamecube. In my opinion this is the best expansion ever created for any video game console, it is literally an entire 2nd game console that plays and entire family of other games. And of course Nintendo kept this idea when they released the Wii, with the ability to play gamecube games and even use gamecube controllers and memory cards... at least until someone figured out how to hack the console through the gamecube port to play copied games forcing nintendo to stop selling Wii's with this feature.

[@CleverGirlAAH]

Yeah, God forbid we have fun with our game consoles.

[@SuperM789]

cutting gamecube backwards compatibility was done for cost cutting on the later, cheaper models, but yeah the wii had a piracy problem

[@charlenewoods7631]

Nostalgia man: breaks the plastic protector on the nes Me: physically writhing in pain

[@MidiFister]

someone said that word for word 3 months before you (and who knows, probably twenty others before that)

[@zenmello7616]

@@MidiFister The same could be said about your comment, or mine for that matter. Don't be a twat.

[@Crimsonedge1]

@@zenmello7616 And yet you still commented. As did I. Difference between us? I can admit to being a cunt.

[@thewhitemustang]

I am also a cunt

[@Crimsonedge1]

@@thewhitemustang Good for you my man. Respect on the honesty. End of the day, you can trust a cunt. Its the liar you can't trust.

[@Vokabre]

When 1:52 was playing fireworks had started outside my window and the first thought was "those are intense sound effects"

[@ksquidplaysminecraft]

@Speedstar yeah, that's me

[@DenkyManner]

It's a port for a water-feature, hence the water runoff channels.

[@bsharpmajorscale]

Water-cooled NES. Eek out a bit of extra performance so you can play Nightmare on Elm Street with a reasonable frame rate.

[@RockRedGenesis]

Where's Charlie Dimmock when you need her?!

[@HicSvntDracones]

I remember getting my NES when I was like 6 or so, and I also remember finding that port on the bottom and wondering what it was, I think it was one of the things that really kicked off my childhood hobby of taking apart everything possible.

[@madisonhasson8981]

I remember the original AV connector that came with the NES. It had a coaxial connection and a wire to attach to the TV, both attached to a box that fit perfectly in that box hole- without having to break out the cover for that slot, with the grooves in the bottom being perfectly sized for the coaxial cables and connections to fit under the NES as it sat on the floor. This prevented many younger sibblings from tripping over and accidentally disconnecting the NES from the TV.

[@functionatthejunction]

My first gen NES just 2 av ports on the side. Never heard of one needing a breakout box like that.

[@customsongmaker]

​@@functionatthejunctionhe's just talking about the grey RF modulator that plugs the NES into the TV's cable input. It doesn't plug into the bottom of the NES, but you can just put it there to keep your cables tidy.

[@taotechnique]

For the longest time, I have thought of that slot/port as something that the factory used for testing and calibration. I work for a medical device manufacturer, and we build automated pharmaceutical equipment. We have ports, much like what you see under the NES, where we plug into before full on stress testing, to install the OS, calibrate controls, etc. Once we are finished, we close off that port before shipment. It looks like I way off in my assumption. Great video, I learned something new today!

[@SimonBuchanNz]

You do find that stuff on consumer hardware on the internal boards, of course: presumably they don't think the plastic shell will affect the performance, which seems like a dangerous assumption!

[@CONSOLETRUTH2]

Not a bad guess at all though, that is for sure

[@HappyBeezerStudios]

Like the J_Tag connector on macbooks. Ohh, my DVB-T reciever got a RS232 port on the back. No Idea what that would be for, but my guess is for updating the firmware.

[@thedarkcave8403]

@@SimonBuchanNz Pretty much every Roomba model has a serial port somewhere for OSMOs that were sent out to customers and update the Roomba's firmware if needed, so there's another example.

[@vvv6666]

Idexx?Sysmex?

[@Joostinonline]

It's depressing how rarely Nintendo uses their expansion slots.

[@Joostinonline]

@John wasted potential isn't better than no potential

[@enricopassoni1]

It means that the systems are well designed

[@ElectroDFW]

Gotta blame the marketplace for that: too much competition and the breakneck speed of technology to keep up with meant manufacturers were desgining newer consoles rather than accessories for models that would be woefully out-of-date by the time those accessories were designed, developed, tested and shipped. Plus, they never really considered America a primary market to develop for/cater to, nor were any licensing agreements lucrative for any third-party vendors to try, hence things like the Game Genie being unofficial, unlicensed, and unsupported by Nintendo.

[@Joostinonline]

@Joe Cassidy I said rarely, not never.

[@Halbared]

I suppose the cartridge chips superseded it.

[@thestamper]

I died a little inside every time the plastic tabs broke.

[@kenrickeason]

I was screaming at my phone screen *"What are you doing?! No!!"* LOL!

[@dakat5131]

@@eclogites KZbin in a nutshell. "Here's an extremely rare artifact, very few were made and I've got one. Time to destroy it for the views"

[@sepg5084]

@@dakat5131 it's their device, they can do whatever they want.

[@williamblack1214]

Me too

[@antoniogallegos1652]

We can say an NES console was hurt and raped today. And we couldn't do nothing about it

[@pappagetti]

Every once in a blue moon, KZbin recommends something I'll actually enjoy watching.

[@TombstoneChris]

Oh yes. Nintendo saw into the future and that Port is actually for a broadband adapter so that we can connect ethernet to it and play games online.

[@BottomOfTheDumpsterFire]

The saddest part is that port could have been used for expansion audio. Imagine if Nintendo released an addon chip that functioned like a 6-channel N163 (instead of 8) and let developers go nuts with it. It would have been amazing.

[@Aquarirus]

Mhm

[@fluffycritter]

@@BottomOfTheDumpsterFire I remember reading a book about the future of the NES (back in the late 80s) where it predicted that audio expansion would be coming via that port, and said it might even be *in stereo*.

[@BottomOfTheDumpsterFire]

@@fluffycritter See, and I believe that because if you bridge two of the pins, you can get audio out of your Famicom audio expansion games. Real shame Nintendo didn't keep those pins on the cart, Castlevania III could have had a VRC6 on the NES.

[@kidnamedfingor]

@@BottomOfTheDumpsterFire im waiting for that mario odyssey soundtrack on smb3

[@kavya1638]

You can access the microphone from that port. Also, yes, USA Zelda does still have the microphone function. There were also some home brews a few years back that you could karaoke to 8-bit tunes with the microphone and it would have you an good/great/perfect if you sang on beat. I have no idea where the hell they went..

[@WolfVsWolf82]

I remember getting an NES for Christmas 1985 & remember specifically opening up that bottom expansion slot cover & wondering what it was for, realizing the system didn’t come with anything that fit into it I put the cover on & left it alone

[@sirMAXX77]

I've always wondered about that and I even took mine apart to take a closer look. It didn't take me long to think it was some kind access a tool would plug in for diagnosis, or some kind of dev tool and I wanted to have access to something like that. Thinking I could make my own games. I would have loved one of those NES modems.

[@Troutslayer_]

My neibor called the nintendo hotline in 1990 and asked what the port was for. They told him it was for a modem so that you can play online with friends

[@AwesomeHairo]

Bruh

[@luislizano7025]

He is saying the truth, I was the Nintendo guy in the phone.

[@doordieace5high]

@@luislizano7025 And I was the CIA agent who secretly recorded the whole thing, for 'research purposes.'

[@dano8902]

And I'm the legendary uncle who worked for Nintendo who had early access to all those amazing games you were salivating in anticipation for :)

[@zeriben12]

And im the phone who was used to call the nintendo hotline

[@nitrous36]

Great video! I always wondered what that covered port on the NES was for. The best I came up with was a diagnostic port for repairs and troubleshooting by Nintendo or maybe a docking point used on retail displays. Thank you for making this.

[@slimmdogg420]

It was an expansion port, we were supposed to get the disk system

[@Nexis]

7:05 the best part of this sequence is The Neverending Story score.

[@Z0MBUSTER]

Erm nope..it's called "Rain in New-York" by RIJKO ... It sounds quite similar though haha, what a ripoff ^^

[@leex187]

@@Z0MBUSTER nope never ending story

[@Z0MBUSTER]

@@leex187 Ok then, which song title? I bet you won't find it ;p

[@ericnear4273]

Not exactly the same but very similar!

[@Z0MBUSTER]

@@ericnear4273 Yes like I said, NOT from the movie but very close... lee is wrong !

[@iviaverick52]

this title made me think you were saying you could connect the NES to a Sega Master System

[@magicvampirelver1321]

Click baited smh

[@anotherhunkydory]

you can.....but it won't do anything..lol ..lol

[@aussiehtc5635]

@@anotherhunkydory why did you say that twice

[@The_Notorious_N.O.E.]

Well, thirty years later and I lived long enough to finally find out what that damn plastic cover and slot was for.

[@Wrestlelamia]

I loved the callback to the Red Dwarf 'Shash' insertion 😂

[@fastestfatboi755]

lol

[@sheldenrocks]

Captain Rimmer !

[@RealRedRabbit]

How to spot a British person.

[@stigmartin3072]

Any red dwarf reference makes it a good day 😂👍

[@Welcome2TheInternet]

@@RealRedRabbit "How to spot a British person." Probably could have just listened to his English accent tbh. Wanna know how to spot a NON-"British" person? They use the word "British".

[@anthonynorton666]

First, thanks you for the video. Second, I think the idea of having an undesignated expansion port makes sense on any gaming machine. It allows for up selling options without requiring the user to forfeit their original investment. Third, I'd like to see a convention with demonstrations and awards for home-spun peripherals for that port. 🥳

[@guybroyles48]

I've never seen one with the plastic tab that required being broken.

[@electron2601]

I owned several.

[@guybroyles48]

​@@electron2601It seems like I kind of remember those. The ones that I remember most just had a cover that was held in place with a couple tabs you pushed in to remove it. As kids we wondered what it was for. My memory sucks, because I have no idea what it was for, and I'm sure this video explained it. lol

[@lliaolsen728]

The N-ever E-nding S-tory

[@SegaDream131]

Dude, they made two movies.... They BOTH END And so did the story....

[@AndyMitchellUK26]

@@SegaDream131 The music at 7:04 in the background...

[@drewgates1167]

@@SegaDream131 total rip off for theater goers..

[@SegaDream131]

Never ending popcorn tub plus the mega cup o coke= the never ending theater piss.... Oh and the sodium concentration is caustic....

[@03bgood]

@@SegaDream131 They made three of them, actually.

[@iankempster7007]

This system never gets old. My friend when I was a kid used the av side ports to hook up to his commodore monitor. Great video as always.

[@ElectroDFW]

The composite ports are the only reason to own one of these 'VCR' versions versus the top-loader one.

[@fireheartgames]

I'm subscribing because I love the 80's sounding tracks you use in your video here. Great music goes a long way when making a video like this one.

[@Milesyamiga]

Beverage’s law of headline states - any headline that ends in a question mark, the answer is always no.

[@Sniper257]

1:58 Okay seriously, does EVERYONE have at least one of these exact screwdrivers kicking around?

[@SegaDream131]

Mines red AND black....

[@86twin]

Yes.

[@dreammfyre]

1980s: “Kids gambling? That’s illegal!” 2020s: “Kids gambling? It’s free tax money!”

[@MosoKaiser]

Developers: "Kids gambling? But those are probability-based surprise mechanics."

[@ablemagawitch]

Looks at "Wall Street Kid" en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wall_Street_Kid And Casino Kid en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casino_Kid and tell me that weren't targeting kids top gamble

[@markstewart8171]

It's a gamble to let my kid play fortnite with my card attatched to the ps4.

[@TheSuperiorLite]

@@markstewart8171 get them an NES

[@MrProPics]

8:07 Experience head to head without leaving your house! 2020: May I have that?

[@skookum42]

I worked in the Nintendo Call Center back in the late 80s, early 90s. We used to joke that the port was for catching all the Marios that fall down pipes and that it needs to be emptied from time to time.

[@CantankerousDave]

Fingers crossed that the answer is gonna be one of those “The plastic bits at the ends of shoelaces are called aglets. Their true purpose is sinister.” kind of things.

[@Soitisisit]

Could you please link me to that video?

[@redlady222]

I respect anyone who knows the wonders of the Aglet. Well done sir.

[@mattw6993]

Few even think to ask... The Question!

[@christopherrobyn4416]

Nice Question reference lol

[@JesusisJesus]

I thought they were called “Flugel Binders”

[@jonathanellis6097]

It's amazing how ambitious they were with such (relatively speaking) basic tech.

[@johnnymnemonic69]

It was cutting edge stuff at the time.

[@Yeen125]

mmhmm yep Eh, maybe back when the Famicom was first released in 1983. But by 1985-86 (when the NES was released in the US), we already had 16-bit computers being sold to the public. It’s why the NES was marketed as a toy for kids here (and sold for much cheaper than a new PC).

[@meetoo594]

@@johnnymnemonic69 by the time it reached the UK it was looking pretty crap compared to the master system and the St and Amiga. It wasn't cheap and neither were the games. I never knew anyone who had one or even wanted one.

[@crnkmnky]

@@meetoo594 🤔 I never knew this, until the first lines of this video. Interesting perspective; we yanks have so much love and nostalgia for that crap machine. Did the 1983 market crash only affect consoles in USA?

[@meetoo594]

@@crnkmnky yup, the first I heard there was a crash was American KZbinrs talking about it. Computer mags etc didn't even bother mentioning it as it really didn't effect us at all, in fact in the UK it was a boom time with soft and hardware manufacturers thriving. We were a nation of home computer users rather than consoles so it was easier for anyone to publish a game or form a software house. I imagine this had a huge impact on the market.

[@UnumNecessarium]

Love that you mentioned the product Chykn offered, it is amazing. You can connect a 4-player Famicom adapter and play Nekketsu Fighting Legend on your toaster NES. Proto-Smash Bros!

[@DiscoDashco]

Dude, what a great video! Excellent presentation on something I always wondered about. That cover made a GREAT hiding spot back in the day.

[@TheCantrell]

I’ve got one of Chykn’s ENIO expansion port boards. It works well for Famicom accessories and provides the pin connection for expansion audio. He was planning to do more with it, but not sure what happened to the project.

[@zackschilling4376]

Id love to see if someone could make a modem to play NES to NES, even though it would be a stupid amount of work. Each game would have to have some sort of header or front end to match up with someone else online. Is that even possible doing it peer to peer and not a central server? I know emulation has some network features but I never tried them

[@supers0nic77]

I still have cables for genesis and ps1 you can link up 2 of the same systems together with 2 tvs and play 2 player like that. Doom ps1 and zero tolerance for genesis. I know it's not what you were saying though

[@customsongmaker]

There was the Xband Modem for SNES and Genesis that allowed dial-up multiplayer for Mortal Kombat, NBA Jam, and a few other games.

[@yy19aos]

The NES is my favorite console. I found mine in an old drawer, it was my dads form the early 80’s. Works good on my old CRT TV

[@LorenHelgeson]

I remember seeing that on my NES when I was a kid. I got one of the later models, which had that port covered up. I always saw it as something along the same lines as what Sega would eventually do with the Sega CD. There was mention in the Excite Bike manual of future hardware updates to allow saving and loading courses. There was also the Advance Video System, which I imagine Nintendo wasn't 100% ready to ditch. Of course, as you mentioned, the top loader did away with it altogether.

[@merman1974]

Great video, I knew about the Famicom expansion port but didn’t realise it was so different (and hidden) on the NES.

[@huangjun_art]

3:38 Until now I never knew what 'minus 144p' looks like. I've learned so much from this video.

[@doomsboygaming1988]

You sir, are a absolute delight to watch. Keep up the great work!

[@jamielofts]

7:05 got to love The NeverEnding Story music.

[@Rick_Todd]

It came from epidemicsound Try searching for 80s fantasy

[@HippieMumboJumbo]

Fa la laaaa la la laaaa la la laaa la la laaa laaaa. FALCOR!

[@Larry]

Should you really be divulging such Nintendo secrets, you might find Luigi hovering over your bed one night giving you the death eye!!!

[@xenos_n.]

I read this comment in your voice

[@bigballrecall]

Buttholes poop

[@Pehmokettu]

That only happens if you burn the Luigi board. kzbin.info/www/bejne/Z2bRf4xtqtSZhNk

[@vivimannequin]

Oh shit

[@WTFBOOMDOOM]

@@xenos_n. But hello, you!

[@tragic4life]

Love the 80’s soundtrack in this video.

[@Remigrator]

pls leave ma weed in the hidden compartment, I will be around shortly to pick it up 🤣

[@gwarrichmond6232]

I remember hiding "stuff " in there - in my early years HA HA HA HA HA HA 😂 👍

[@wisteela]

I've always wondered if it was used for the multicartridge display/test units in shops here in the UK.

[@nmlss]

I like this video for two reasons: 1. It's quite interesting, I was a Sega kid and never saw this before. 2. It's the proof that retro/tech youtubers CAN clip their nails.

[@BlameThande]

Same, I never even saw the NES growing up, was vaguely aware something had come before the SNES but I only ever knew people with Master Systems.

[@nessamillikan6247]

What do you mean? I have never seen LGR without his nails clean and cut to the quick.

[@nmlss]

@@nessamillikan6247 Watch any video from The 8-bit Guy or Retro Recipes where they show their hands in close up shots.

[@yamaforever]

Lovely trip down memory lane, thanks for sharing this knowledge Cheers from Sweden:)

[@Renatodonadio]

The expansion port was also under the SNES (anyone heard about a partnership with Sony for a CD reader peripheral named "Play Station"?) and under the Nintendo 64 (where it was used to connect a reader of backup copies of games on CD) ;-D

[@jamessm4401]

"Sinful rectangular way" ooooo baby keep going. I'm half there.

[@EnigmaBarry]

The track at 7:00 reminded me of the flying themes from The Neverending Story. Very 80's. You can tell whoever made it for your video had a whimsical, fantastical childhood. Thanks for the nostalgia!

[@Thejoeking75]

Yes! Exactly what I thought.. love that movie

[@milesaway1980]

I thought the same! Glad I'm not the only one.

[@klax001]

It does! This is the song he used kzbin.info/www/bejne/aJ6XiJ6HpNOnr9k

[@compuyoutub]

It's perfect for putting the coaxial converter in, the cords even slide through the slots perfectly.

[@davidokeif8304]

Interesting, I always wondered what the intent was for the hidden area, had no idea that there was a port hidden under the breakable plastic cover.

[@lucasRem-ku6eb]

we knew it was an expansion port, but we never needed any peripherals for it anyway. Why is the Video so long, and why he needs brillant ?

[@gerrygalactic]

Bruh i remember in the village where my grandma lives in Poland, the neighbours had duckhunt on NES in the 90's

[@themanfromroomfive9445]

That sounds about right, Christmas of 1990 I got my first Nintendo and that game came standard with the system

[@themanfromroomfive9445]

UnFun fact: you can't even play duck hunt (or any shooting based NES game) on newer model (flat screen) TVs Because the light gun won't register

[@BrainSlugs83]

Interestingly, we visited our local Nintendo headquarters in the 90s (in Redmond I think?) and I specifically asked about that port. And they told me it was a diagnostic port, that when faulty devices were sent in for repair, they said they had a diagnostic harness that connected to that port. That's probably not quite accurate, but that's what they told us.

[@CurlyFromTheSwirly]

Sounds like they wanted to keep the reason top secret.

[@christophermichael.w.7577]

I think that it is actually pretty amazing that they had the foresight to put the expansion pack adapter on the bottom of the unit. It would have seemed like such a technological leap to most of us if we would have been able to use them. Kind of like playing online in the 80s

[@CurlyFromTheSwirly]

Seems more like they were trying to keep it a secret by putting it on the bottom.

[@bricaaron3978]

@@CurlyFromTheSwirly *"Seems more like they were trying to keep it a secret by putting it on the bottom."* Unfortunately Sherlock Holmes turned it upside-down and discovered it.

[@ethaneveraldo]

It took him 4 and a half minutes just to say the expansion port, the “mysterious” port hidden underneath almost every consoles, is an expansion port.

[@Wheelio]

Lol. Seriously, even I was starting to get annoyed at how it was taking him multiple spoken sentences to basically say one word.

[@morrisz2]

@Cutting Yoko’s bra! Apparently monetized videos have to be 10 minutes long as a minimum. Just something I've heard a few weeks ago. Never checked if it's true

[@DanielFerreira-ez8qd]

i see no problem with explaining it first, it's not like he says absolute meaningless fluff, like other youtubers.

[@cornfarts]

@ how dare you!

[@williamgorsich150]

@@Wheelio understand the more descriptions given in first part?..lol it slows down many questions by making severl graphics to visualize.

[@XrisD147]

I like the Neverending Story jingles, I had to say it, it's like one of my most fond memories that film.

[@masterlangtau]

I came to the comments to see if anyone else recognized that chord progression. 🏆

[@BoringOats]

its for hiding weed.

[@guidancefromjah]

Funny thing is, I vividly recall playing Super Mario (NES) on a Sega Genesis, but this was in Cairo, Egypt while on vacation as a child back in 1998. This is specifically what opened my eyes to emulation... except this was actual hardware. Found out about the underrated Sega Nomad because of this little find as well!

[@darkinertia2]

its just old systems used to have weed stash spots like the ps2

[@bsharpmajorscale]

The Atari 5200 has HUGE stash spots. :P

[@syntaxerror9994]

@@bsharpmajorscale that was for all that 80s cocaine

[@darnellhagood1052]

@bsharpmajorscale AVGN already used it to store his beer 😂😂😂

[@HIDHIFDB]

Man of culture. that hdd space can hide a lot of things

[@dontneedtoknow5836]

The amount of heat that was produced lead to many inspections for such.

[@r.j.434]

This is crazy because I was asking myself what that was for only 2 days ago. Never looked it up and then this shows up on my feed. Thanks for the answer! 👍🏿

[@bufordmaddogtannen5164]

CIA: You are welcome Ron..

[@gregm5408]

Lol always wondered what that was for. Cool vid. Really enjoyed it. I like the 12 minute version versus the one liner.

[@leopard_sato_]

In Korea, Hyundai, a well-known car manufacturer, even created Hyundai Comboy, which is similar (actually identical) to the NES back in 1989😂😂

[@MurderMostFowl]

If we’re going to talk about classic consoles, you can’t use the word “bespoke” ... custom at best... proprietary is more like it 😉

[@Bramon83]

NO ONE EVER should use bespoke. Ever. Brits over use the absolute fuck outta it.

[@energyflow7564]

@@Bramon83 English in general no matter which version is pretty much primitive and idiotic on it's own yet we are forced to use it worldwide. If you want to learn a simple language that should be spoken worldwide that is Serbian. But what do I know, politics know better then me so my fact is just an pointless opinion...

[@Bramon83]

@@energyflow7564 interesting diatribe. Clearly something else on your mind... 🤣

[@flygonbreloom]

Is that The Mysterious Cities of Gold music partway through the video?...

[@timshel11]

I got this.The red circles are used by youtube content creators to emphasize parts of the image on screen, commonly in the image "thumbnail" they feel are important, or otherwise would like to call attention to. They can even be different colors, like blue or black, or even pink! Thanks for asking!

[@TrojanHell]

The sound of the pins being snipped @2:00 is so satisfying

[@travismcdowell954]

"What is this for?"...To hide your pot.

[@tonythedonluciano]

Any other Nerds in here recognize the "Never Ending Story" beat that played in the background music?? 🤔😎

[@UpIrons777]

I noticed it too. Even in a 8-Bit keyboard mode, it still sounds amazing.

[@Xetheon]

The NES

[@cassidybb10]

Just when I thought I knew all about the expansion port. Your video came up and filled some gaps. Thank you.

[@williamvillagomez69]

Good stuff man. As a kid ( back in the 80s ) I’ve always wondered what the hidden slot was for. I was too afraid of braking through that bottom slot because I was afraid to break the entire system. Lol

[@fluffycritter]

The "Nintendo Entertainment System NES version?" What, were there other versions of the NES in Europe than... the NES? Here in the US it was just labeled "Nintendo Entertainment System." (And why is "NES Version" in a completely different font than everything else?) EDIT: Okay so later in the video there's a European Version. Now I'm even more confused.

[@wich1]

Yeah, don’t know what that nonsense is, never had anything like it on my NESes and I’m in Europe

[@meetoo594]

There were a few different distributors Tonka and Mattel and the machines were slightly different iirc. They both balsed the marketing right up do nintendo eventually marketed the thing themselves.

[@fluffycritter]

Okay so the Wikipedia article has more information: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nintendo_Entertainment_System#Configurations Basically there were a few different versions released in Europe and the UK, and they were apparently incompatible with each other via lockout chips, so the labeling was so people would know which games to buy. Which seems like a really bad move in retrospect, since it would just cause more confusion than anything.

[@aaronosborne4906]

My NES has "Mattel Version" on it.

[@DystopianOverture]

Mattel thought that selling NES in chemists was a good idea, spoiler it wasn't XD

[@marinustennapel2661]

Secret expansion ports with lots of ambition for future upgrades, that end up never being used. The NeverEnding Story...

[@cartoonraccoon2078]

That finally explains why their theme song had that line: "Visionaries! Jam em into your expansion ports!"

[@Splurr]

7:07 i love the soundtrack from "The Neverending Story". A great movie from the 80´s. Emojis about the movie: 🎼🎹🎬⚔📖🏅🏇🐌🦇🐢⛅🐶🐉🐺🏰💓👸🎼

[@hdestotallyunoriginalgamin3555]

Fascinating stuff, as ever.

[@DjTinnio]

11:57 Song slaps. What is its name ? Cool video. I was on Sega Master System 2 back in the days :-p . It is still functioning.

[@bigcheeze]

I seriously always wondered WHAT THIS WAS when I was a kid haha! Thank you for explaining!

[@lutello3012]

What's he saying? I'm distracted by the NeverEnding Story ripoff!

[@SabretoothBarnacle]

I was going to write pretty much the same thing..

[@WhatTheHellMang]

Spot on!

[@QunMang]

Just what I was thinking too.

[@SirBuffton]

The music around 7 minutes? My brain was doing flips trying to work it out! Came to the comments to see if anyone else had asked.....

[@surfteejay]

Same here... The video became even more nostalgic by that moment.

[@17R3W]

As Adam sandler might tell you, "you can put your weed in there"

[@iankempster7007]

🤣

[@imnegan935]

Wrong guy, it’s Rob Schneider

[@keithseratt4562]

No, it was Adam Sandlers stoner shop worker character in The Hot Chick ( which is a Rob Schneider film ) that said "you can put your weed in there"

[@freedustin]

@@keithseratt4562 Rob Schneider did that gag on SNL in 1993. kzbin.info/www/bejne/eXyylGmejbJ3nsU

[@17R3W]

@@freedustin At any rate, this was clip I was referring to kzbin.info/www/bejne/jX-4oKeFltaBb68

[@ericblair4921]

Love the never ending story music in the background

[@3mate1]

7:10 I spit out my coffee! My dad and mom worked for Control Data in Minnesota back then lol

[@GroovingPict]

dont know what youre talking about mate, the NES was massively popular in Europe, at least here in Norway. I remember as a kid I would collect 10øre coins (basically equivalent to 1cent US, slightly more), and since it was our lowest value coin and also physically very small I would always find them on the ground and like relatives would maybe give me some etc. Well eventually I had over 10,000 of the fuckers and an NES cost 1000 kroner at that time, so I bought an NES with 10,000 10øre coins (we did go via the bank first, to have them counted and exchanged :p )

[@Slavolko]

That's insane.

[@Halbared]

Yeah, Nintendo owned Scandinavia.

[@MasterMayhem78]

Why do I all of a sudden want to watch The Neverending Story?

[@Abigart69]

Lol

[@pgrobban]

Recognized the song too!

[@crnkmnky]

I really want to know who composes the music here, and where I can get more. _Hop on yer luck dragons, kids!_

[@pgrobban]

@@crnkmnky Giorgio Moroder composed the theme song of the movie

[@crnkmnky]

@@pgrobban I don't think that was the real Moroder music though. 🎶

[@eljugadorescaldenc4002]

Woao amazing video. Always I asked myself about that. Thanks for this marvelous video.

[@AIex_Kidd]

The three things of my life I'm most proud of: 1) To be alive 2) To be a gamer 3) To be credited ("thanks to...") in the ending of Alex Kidd in Miracle World 2

[@neon_one]

I like how the movie wizard said "I love the power glove it's so bad" which it turned out to be

[@Vanhook4456]

Lucas will always be a deuce bag!!!

[@toddburgess5056]

Yeah, it really sucked big time.

[@projectmayhem6898]

Can you imagine online gaming on the NES in the 80s? Some guy shoots you in an Ikari Warriors death match and you hear, "Oh yeah? Your mom shot JR! "

[@themanfromroomfive9445]

😂😂😂

[@themanfromroomfive9445]

This joke is only funny to old ppl lol

[@projectmayhem6898]

@@themanfromroomfive9445 That really rustles my jimmies.