I can't believe I FINALLY got to try the Unico Nova Blast! Review & First Impressions

I spent a couple hours with the Unico Nova Blast prototype thanks to King Cade. Here are my first impressions, the good, the bad, and the ugly. Could this be the 2024 home arcade product of the year or are we being setup for another let down?
#Unico #KingCade #DragonBallZ #CandyCab #jamma #fpga #arcade #homearcade #atgames #prototype #phoenixmonitor

[@videogamevegas]

James, Glad to see an in-depth hands on look at a production Nova Blast! I love my Unico MVSX and want to see this new product do well. I just released a video review for my 3/4 scale sitdown arcade cabinet from a company called Rec Room Masters, the Alpha-Cade, which provides a similar experience to the Nova Blast. I make some comparisons in the video between these two products if you're interested in seeing what another player in this space came up with. I skinned my cabinet to look like a Berzerk machine after not having faith that Arcade1Up could pull off a decent licensed Berzerk cabinet after my first Arcade1Up purchase. And since Arcade1Up never got around to making a Berzerk cabinet, I'm glad I didn't wait 😁 I'm glad other companies are keeping the Home Arcade hobby alive with new products! vgv

[@JamesHatesEverything]

I'll definitely check it out!

[@videogamevegas]

James, So cool! I hope you like it :) vgv

[@jaymason9888]

@James we believe it was Dragon Ball Z board issues as the boards capcom marvel vs capcom, midway umk3 and contra evolution we were testing did not have clipping. This could be caused by what you explained the resizing issue which has now been addressed as it eoukd most likely be the cause. This is not the final converter board that customers will get this is the first converter board so those issues are addressed such as clarity, color, contrast, saturation, resizing and moving of image etc. I'll be visting end of July with final parts to change them out with what will ship to customers. As for joystick no issues were apparent at last three shows or when 19K Fox played it but it has been manhandled pretty good at numerous shows it has been shown at and lots of transport. The solution is easy fix and we always stand behind our products with warranty and 9:17 customer service.

[@JamesHatesEverything]

Appreciate the update. Thank you!

[@copyrightstrike6910]

good review. turn down the background music, its not very good, and its distracting. 8 minutes of it was torture.

[@matthewmorton7386]

Ditto

[@JamesHatesEverything]

@@copyrightstrike6910 noted

[@ToxcynTV]

Wish they would have picked a better game to demo lol

[@JamesHatesEverything]

@@ToxcynTV How's Japan? Very jealous. Would love to go and fill some gaps in my famicom collection sometime.

[@Blas4ublasphemy]

KOF 13 would have been cool...

[@tattoomaniacsalina]

Cool! I just picked up a Bad Dudes arcade machine that plays blind at the same Kingcade last week! I didn't have time to play anything, as I've never been there before. I plan on going back sometime to check out their games out on the floor. Right now, they're selling a broken Ridge Racer 2 standup for $300

[@JamesHatesEverything]

@tattoomaniacsalina ah, that was you that bought that! Lol I just saw the ad on market place the other day and saw it already sold. Congrats, that's a great pickup.

[@tedadamgreen]

Way cool you got a look at the prototype and great review with the proper context! Thanks

[@kullanma]

Great review! I purchased it and can't wait for the delivery. I have a Neo Geo Jamma kit for it right now, but I plan to put in a Mister whenever misteraddons has them back in stock. Thanks for the preview though!

[@GameroomGuru]

Thanks for going to check it out and sharing.

[@tappersreviews4677]

Thanks for showing this. I have one ordered and look forward to it. Too bad they showed it with a game that doesn’t display well on that unfinished monitor PCB, but I know they’re tweaking things to work better.

[@kmastamine]

I definitely want one for the square screen. I already have a vewlix and I think this would look great next to it. Thanks for the share

[@carlo1132]

Nice I'd pick one up man!

[@neocvera]

Cool video dude. Couple of things about the monitor. If the game is connected via the jamma side then you have complete control of the vertical and horizontal adjustment (that clipping could easily be adjusted). As far as the blur or fuzzy, there is one setting in “Luminance” setting under “SuperResolution” - if that is set to OFF, it causes a blurry/smoothing effect. Maybe try going back and see if they’ll let you mess with the settings.

[@JamesHatesEverything]

@@neocvera thanks for the tip! I wish I had seen your audio issue before this morning. I'd have tried to test that, but in a busy arcade, who knows if I'd have heard it.

[@neocvera]

@@JamesHatesEverything yeah you wouldn’t really notice it in that setting. I’m sure it has it also as it is still that prototype. I’ve been assured and shown that It’s been resolved.

[@SatoshiMatrix1]

One thing that is quite dissapointing for me is the lack of a Component input. Consoles such as the original Xbox, Gamecube, PS2 and Wii will instead require a Component-to-HDMI adapter, which will be an added cost and probably introduce lag.

[@jimpacersfan]

Nice job on the review.

[@DeVstatrOmga]

I'm curious to see how it performs against the Qanba2009. I'm undecided between the Nova Blast and Qanba2009

[@JamesHatesEverything]

@DeVstatrOmga for me the deciding factor is the 4:3 screen. If you are into more modern, the qanba 2009 is probably the way to go.

[@kmastamine]

I would go with a vewlix for modern games, a little more expensive but worth it.

[@Gendo3s2k]

Qanba is just a desk with a stick and buttons. How are they comparable?

[@Reaperman4711]

5:01 when you are talking about the controls being loose, do you mean literally? Because that balltop looks like it's coming off at the timestamp. Sometimes I have to hit them with the blue loctite. 🕹

[@JamesHatesEverything]

@Reaperman4711 the ball top was not loose, I mean how broken in it feels.

[@jaymason9888]

We will get Lance @KingCade some new springs or Joystick that unit has been to ten shows and lots of tough hours of play.

[@JamesHatesEverything]

@@jaymason9888 that was my assumption. Player 2 was nice and crisp.

[@gmoneygrungyg]

Wait, how did I not know about that place. I literally live across the street from that mall.

[@ignignxkt]

It’s not an arcade 1up sort of low tier, but for the money this is disappointing on so many levels, from how the screen rotates and how it’s mounted, to the phoenix displays themselves, and the general build quality. I just wish they did it better. Going with a bartop design severely screwed the storage space on the top half that under their own admission could have been used by an easy screen rotation system aka the Taito egret 2 mini.

[@gargamel3966]

Polycade.

[@cMARVEL360]

5:08 Na I wouldn't call the buttons or sticks as cause for any sort of concern. Reason being is that all controls, Amercan, Korean, Japanese all have a sort of degree of degreation in regards to firmness. So to reall gauge the response of s stick or buttons you would gauge it after its 'Broken In' Phase. Japanese controls are already really soft and have what is considered Minimal Return To Center, So a Worn in Stock Sanwa Stick will leave some with a desire for something more firm. Hence why people asked A1up for something that used a Heavier spring because as a Sanwa Clone it was decent for the average, With a Firmer Spring its good for the Average. The same is true with the Sanwa Stick hence many prefer a 4lbs Spring at a general max, and many settle for a 2lbs spring. Now those are general terms because there are those including myself who enjoyed a 6lbs Spring on a Sanwa for a cab. In summary, its cool that you noticed a difference between a set of broken in controls, but with those being authentic that's just how the dice rolls. Everyone who has a preference will tell you that there is a difference between a set of brand new unused controls, vs what they feel like a week in to playing. A stock sanwa Stick uses a 0.5lbs Spring and the most recent A1UPs as a Comparison are using something like a 4Lbs spring.

[@JamesHatesEverything]

@cMARVEL360 thanks for the breakdown. For me personally, I found it much harder to execute specials with the lose controls, but I'm more of a casual fight game player.

[@cMARVEL360]

@@JamesHatesEverything Ya you're welcome! Thank you for the exposure to the cab! All I can do as a Viewer is watch and then comment with honesty and Knowledge and of course those things being mixed with my own POV so I'm not selling absolutes just Perspective. For everything you mentioned is why when I do use Japanese Controls, on say a Japanese console Arcade Stick, I use Seimitsu Buttons, and a Sanwa with D44X Microswitches and a 4lbs spring standard length shaft. All those things factor in to how the game feels. Seimitsu Buttons have a bit of a bounce back almost like American style but very much Japanese in comparison to an American button. So for me it's a great in between. I had the impression that you were looking at this from an American Gamer perspective. There is nothing wrong with that but it does allow form preference to become Perspective. So I will like to also mention that this cab has a Universal Mounting plate and will support BOTH American and Japanese Controls! So the user will have the freedom to swap the controls out to their capabilities.

[@JamesHatesEverything]

@@cMARVEL360 definitely from an American perspective. I don't have really any experience with candy cabs... though I am an avid famicom collector.. lol

[@arcadeages3917]

Looks nice, but I’m just not down with LCD. I’m more into the Quanba 2009 and a CRT (I already have a New Astro City)

[@arcadeages3917]

Respect on them for fitting a 4:3 monitor though!

[@19kfox]

🦊👊🏼

[@tdog9762]

You and cronies from supergame room dudes could learn a thing or too from this honest review

[@billlumburg7594]

First thing I notice is the low frame rate. Especially for a VS game that’s supposed to be fast pace like DBZ this is not a good showpiece. I think they should put a better demo game in for reviews just like this

[@TheCornerCade]

What is the name of this song!?

[@tom11zz884]

Quality on the unit seems to be questionable. I would get a used Taito Vewlix over it, because at least you know those will last.

[@ignignxkt]

So, Atari, polymega, then Amico. Next scam? We’re blitzing from one to the next!

[@tdog9762]

Too bad all the jabronies from the self described leaders of the community couldn’t do an honest review like you did. Good review bro. ( talking to you Mike B)

[@NegativeYoutube]

cool baby toy do you have any of those cones with the doughnuts that get smaller as you stack them? those are sooooo cool i love playing with baby toys

[@ToTBoO]

They should sell one barebones without the shitty monitor.

[@tigheklory]

Nice video, maybe try speaking a little faster?

[@JamesHatesEverything]

Thanks for the tip

[@PapaBradsGaming]

That monitor looks blurry. The image looks terrible. No thanks dealing with monitor issues and gameplay artifacts. Hard pass for me on this one. How can the joystick be worn out already? Still not ready for prime time. They should send one to therexershow for an honest review if it is good quality.

[@JamesHatesEverything]

I did point out the monitor issues in my review.

[@PapaBradLive]

@@JamesHatesEverything Oh yeah. You did. Great video. I have so many multicades I really do not need this one. I want something more forward thinking. Are you buying one or getting one for review?

[@JamesHatesEverything]

@PapaBradLive I'm likely buying one. I want to use it as an fpga arcade cabinet. Probably going to focus on shmups with it.

[@tappersreviews4677]

It’s a Sanwa stick. You can switch it out if it goes bad. Has nothing specifically to do with the Nova Blast or Unico.

[@tappersreviews4677]

As for the screen, I’ll be running a PC inside. Any blurriness here is likely due to the upscaling algorithm in the monitor. I believe they are still finalizing the monitor anyway. That will not be an issue if using a PC. That game was probably not a good choice to show running on that unfinished test unit, they should’ve run something inside that showed better what it can do.

[@jeffreypeters5578]

Question what song is playing thru the video

[@JamesHatesEverything]

@@jeffreypeters5578 it's a song I created using AI.

[@jeffreypeters5578]

@@JamesHatesEverything Damn i liked it reminded me of my 20"s down in florida nightclubbing nice vid btw

[@alexgee365]

What dbz game is that?

[@JamesHatesEverything]

@@alexgee365 It's a Japanese dragon ball z arcade game released in 1994.

[@fourthhorseman04]

Wow! Those look so nice.$1,100 is a lot of money though.

[@Judes234]

Thats cheap compared to any new “ANY” arcade

[@jaymason9888]

Very sturdy construction and very versatile

[@JamesHatesEverything]

💯

[@copyrightstrike6910]

@@Judes234 not really, since it doesn't come with any games, boards, pc,etc, all of that adds up. so no, it's not cheaper, unless you're buying an empty cabinet.

[@yandman26]

Poor screen and worn control's, not great for a preview unit to pull in possible buyers.

[@JamesHatesEverything]

@yandman26 keep in mind it's a prototype that's been all over at different shows and seen a lot of play. I expect most of these issues to be resolved on the final production model.

[@kenmys]

So you put it on display to win people over. The monitor isn't calibrated and the game looks terrible. You had one job unico. I want to like you and support this by you're making it hard. Hard pass until the monitor is proven by the community.

[@JamesHatesEverything]

@kenmys so to be fair, kingcade is got it for review and put it on display. It is the prototype and kingcade chose the game. This is not the final production version, just an early look.

[@TheBigb1973]

Not my jam. I'll pass. Japanese cabs are not my thing.

[@kmastamine]

I thought the same until i got a vewlix. Most played cab I have

[@_Majoras]

japanese cabs are soulless