The Story of the Aladdin Deck Enhancer

Learn about the history of a unique NES accessory, the Aladdin Deck Enhancer! In the early 90's, the 16-bit war between Sega and Nintendo was heating up. But one company was thinking about the past: Camerica. In January of 1993, they announced the Aladdin Deck Enhancer, a device for your 8-bit NES that played proprietary compact cartridges. Why? Watch the video to find out!
▶️ Subscribe | kzbin.info...
Follow Gaming Historian:
🐦 Twitter | / gaminghistorian
💻 Facebook | / gaminghistorian
🕹️ Twitch | / gaminghistorian
📷 Instagram | / gaminghistorian
For a list of sources, visit www.thegaminghistorian.com
#AladdinDeckEnhancer #NES #GamingHistorian

[@thorrollosson]

Haha this is a great video :) Some additional context from the inside. David Harding and Terry Hickey, the guys I dealt with mostly from the Camerica side of things, were very nice guys and probably pretty good businessmen with more traditional products. Then they hit a home run out of nowhere with that game genie, and I don't believe they ever understood the actual gaming market itself. I wish I had more input on the whole thing, but I was just a kid, and ultimately, a prop. As my mom was very ill after our house burning down and a heart condition/brain damage, and my dad wasn't able to find work, it fell on me to earn our roof. Micro Machines were the only toys to survive our fire in 1989, picking through the ashes. The fact that I'd later end up endorsing the video game had a certain poetic logic to it. The game genie and Micro Machines were my introduction to Camerica and Codemasters. Although I had very little say in the matter, being signed to do this did seem promising at first. Unfortunately, the following releases of games were a mixed bag of mostly decent to below average stuff. Worse, I absolutely knew that the 8-bit days at that time were extremely limited. I nearly begged for 16-Bit titles, and the replies I received were either vague promises or flat out ignoring the question. Seeing their plans for the Alladin made it clear they had the exact opposite idea in mind. Logical on the surface, but gamers are always looking for the next best thing, not something that played old titles on an old console. If it had been more ambitious, say with some of the more exotic add-on DSPs and processors, and had extensive cooperation with other devs, the prospects would have been at least hypothetically promising instead of an obvious dead end. After all, the PC Engine/TG16 is basically an 8-Bit with some hopped up features. Ah well, I got to meet a lot of wonderful people, and see some interesting stuff from the ground during that era. I was at the CES where Nintendo and Sony broke up their PlayStation plans and saw a great many obviously furious Japanese execs storming around. I won a New Geo by playing Fatal Fury against Chad Okada (aka The SNK Game Lord, an amazingly nice guy), I got to travel extensively and talk games with kids across the country, and of course drop by any SF2 machine I saw :) It just makes me a bit sad, if at least no longer outright angry, that the bulk of the games they stuck my name on were never as great as I felt Micro Machines was. And some series such as Dizzy, were in their own right pretty good games, but the US market was not really used to these in the context of NES experience. European gamers playing on 'home micros' such as Speccy, Sinclair, etc, were much more used to more involved and slower paced games. Even the dev cycle of putting out budget titles on tape or floppy at extremely low production costs and sticker price was a bad match for expensive to produce cartridges and $50-$60 game prices. All in all, bravo for the video. If anyone feels like they bought a bad Camerica game on my account, drop me a line when in Texas, and I'll buy you a Shiner or a Dr Pepper and apologize in person. Much love Thor

[@Sauciflash]

Too many comments I guess, yours might be lost in the sea. You could try his email, gaminghistorian at the g to the mail dot com, I'm sure a Skype call would be epic ;)

[@Xx1SailorScoutxX]

Norm should pin this comment

[@angelsapon9894]

The legend himself.

[@TransCanadaPhil]

Wow, it's neat to see you on here. I remember as a kid reading magazines like EGM, GamePro, VG&CE and always seeing your name and face on so many of the ads in those days and and my 12-13 year old self was always thinking "Wow that guy must be like the best video game player in the world". This was circa 1991-93 or so. I'm 40 now and it amazes me that I can still remember your name from those days, somehow certain things stick.

[@n64ra]

I’m in Texas and ready for that shiner 😀

[@dataecto6135]

"If the Aladdin Deck Enhancer was never released...how am I holding one right now?" *The box in his hands begins to fade away into dust*

[@laineyzzz6]

Now my hard hat friend your safe from that turbo sapper

[@jacklong6106]

@@laineyzzz6 SPAH SAPPIN MAH SENTRY

[@KRDecade2009]

Mr. Nerd I don’t feel so good

[@parimabartender]

Thanks obama, I mean thanos

[@gc3k]

Great Scott

[@titanium_rocket1505]

I freaked out when this was in the AVGN episode!

[@Marcusthedingus]

I know

[@SonicFanDU]

Had to watch this after AVGN recent episode!

[@WWE-Fan-420]

same

[@DarkMetalSpider]

same! somehow I had missed this one.... watching this right now!

[@PlutoniumPanda]

Yup lol even though I'm subscribed to both I hadn't caught this video yet.

[@dubyaw9511]

Calm and collected video game nerd

[@trevorrandom]

Me too

[@GamingHistorian]

I bought an Aladdin Deck Enhancer back in 2015. The only thing I knew about it was that it was from the same people who made the Game Genie. It sat on my shelf for years until a few months ago, when I decided to finally dive in. The history behind this crazy accessory was way more interesting than I ever thought. Hope you all enjoy!

[@YousefCat21]

Wow back then camerica really wanted the audiance...but they failed =|

[@smallsthetimelord4066]

Interesting!

[@mrhick01]

Interesting piece of video game history. Thank you for this video.

[@ObiTrev]

Speaking about Deck Enhancers. I've heard of an add-on for the Artari 2600 that turned it into a computer. And one that allowed it to play much more advanced games, such as an RPG.

[@scottiejordan1064]

And u think this is more interesting than GENREAL COMPUTER the guys who invented game modding. when I was a kid early 80s I saw super missel attack, took years to figure out what it was.

[@TugsP]

"One of my favorite games...on the Aladdin Deck Enhancer". Well played, sir.

[@gusrendell6083]

James Rolfe makes a passing remark in his latest video which I think defines the appeal of Gaming Historian. While describing the undoing of Camerica thanks to the Deck Enhancer™ the Nerd says ‘not even the Gaming Historian found any clear proof,’ a statement which goes by quickly but rather poignantly exemplifies the thoroughness and depth which Norman examines his topics and subjects. He himself mentions in a video about his own history that he saw a niche to fill with a detailed historical approach to looking at gaming, and there’s truly no one offering content on the same level as Norm. His background in education and research is bolstered by slick and utterly charming production, all of which is a means of conveyance for exceptional and compelling insight into a history that holds many interesting and critical stories. Norm’s offerings set the bar very, very high and there aren’t any contemporaries that provide content that teaches about the nooks and crannies of gaming in such an engrossing way. Thanks for the great content.

[@cilonrs]

If even the Nerd respect you, you are doing a great job

[@funnyperson4027]

I would like to point out that even if they don’t do primarily history videos, the guys at my life in gaming and gaming quarterly are some other great retro game youtubers that give a more focused look at the hardware

[@AllGamingStarred]

I appreciate your educated backhanding of the AVGN's comments

[@briantaylorcloe7725]

@@funnyperson4027 MLiG and CGQ are incredible - along with Jeremy Parish - may be my Mount Rushmore of Gaming History

[@funnyperson4027]

BeeTeeCee _ agreed I don’t know why I watch them, I don’t even play retro games but the retrospective look at games, consoles, and a multitude of similar things in the medium really makes for a user friendly approach

[@marcinkuc9349]

Fun fact: Those Camerica games were very popular in Poland in the 90s, where we could play them on Pegasus, a Famicom clone distributed here. Micro Machines is one of my favourite childhood games.

[@craigland7349]

Oh DECK enhancer...I seem to have clicked on the wrong video.

[@matthewpalmer4543]

Were you looking for a duck enhancer too?

[@amso7169]

Matty Palmer I hope he meant that instead of.... yeah.

[@TheOofaloofa]

Or dock enhancer

[@TheOofaloofa]

Also ew dude WTF

[@nthgth]

🤣🤣 good one

[@howiefeltersnatch8148]

Anyone else see a young Paul Rudd in the first commercial?

[@calebreader5818]

That *is* a young Paul Rudd. I had to do a double take!

[@jacefiore6203]

@@calebreader5818 How did you that?

[@troublemagnett]

God I was hoping someone would mention it

[@SidNightWalker]

I instantly recognized him, holy crap! I totally forgot about that badass commercial too.

[@mawinstallation6626]

Holy... it's him!

[@Fondoofus5542]

11:15 “It almost feels like a sonic game.” Nerd: But with all the fun taken out!

[@hecatialapislazulli5426]

0:40 Wait a minute... He has two of them? Nobody has two! Who would own multiple copies of something that's shitty?

[@gelo0894]

Lol

[@Koridai011]

Then why does James Rolfe have Multiple Cartridges of et

[@Koridai011]

Actually, the reason why he has two so he can review both different versions of it

[@handlessuck589]

AVGN has like, a hundred Intellivoice modules.

[@supakusuta]

@@Koridai011 It's because people kept sending copies of ET to AVGN, He even has sealed copies and some of the copies are the PAL version.

[@ricemenarq6230]

this video already better than the upcoming Aladdin movie.

[@PH96Official]

Oh Dammnnn 😎

[@blackheartgamingonline]

OOF

[@DanielAyy]

Ah das hot! Das hot!

[@GamingHistorian]

oof

[@DanielAyy]

@@GamingHistorian big oof

[@BlakeBaggott]

I love how the Gaming Historian makes me care about things I didn’t even know I wanted to care about

[@JW666]

And now all the Aladdin Deck Enhancers have been blown up! ;P

[@MonadoBoy16]

Dr JW They’re still there in real life

[@michaelkeehan8094]

@@MonadoBoy16 r/wooosh

[@JW666]

Monando Boy 16 I guess you have no humor.

[@AllHailKingKurt]

I wonder what nerd wish for that to happen

[@dereklouden7415]

@@AllHailKingKurt probably a video game nerd. An ANGRY video game nerd.

[@TransCanadaPhil]

These were definitely available at retail in Canada for awhile when they first came out. I remember seeing them on retail shelves at places like "Zellers" back in the day.

[@The_RadicalOne]

Dang, now I wish I had kept mine. Nice throwback memory though.

[@herbderbler1585]

I feel your pain. I still regret selling my old Atari 2600 at a garage sale back in the 90s because I had a NES and SNES and didn't need that old piece of junk anymore. If only I could have foreseen what video game nostalgia would mean to us in the future.

[@TanukidLeaf]

So it WAS released in stores?

[@Kashmir23]

No never

[@Kashmir23]

That’s what Norm said? So how did you get one?

[@aguyandhiscomputer]

@@herbderbler1585 I'm 38 and threw my Commodore 128 in the garbage when I was 16 or so because I didn't play it anymore. I weep a little every night.

[@SonofMrPeanut]

I will always grin seeing that Paul Rudd SNES ad.

[@mrhashbrown8283]

That man will never age I fucking swear

[@twicethemegapower3995]

Cant-Man: Mom Said No

[@austinfrazier7325]

@@mrhashbrown8283 I was literally about to say the same thing!

[@thestwinner680]

I wanted to comment on the same thing, but wasn't sure/aware *it was actually HIM?!* Hahaha LOL, yeah, dude looked practically identical to today, except maybe skinnier, of course. ;D

[@MartyM.]

Did he crank up the 4D3D3D3? (Tim & Eric reference lol)

[@SarahLJP]

I just recently found out about a similar product in Japan for the Super Famicom called スーファミターボ Sufami Turbo released by Bandai. Which was actually officially licensed by Nintendo. Unlike the Aladdin Deck Enhancer. It has two slots and had a linking feature where data could be shared between cartridges. Maybe you could do a video on it sometime.

[@alswo9628]

Came from AVGN, you earned my subscription.

[@youjuhwan9697]

yessss

[@PACKERMAN2077]

You mean you didn't know who the Historian was?..... You missed a lot of quality stuff

[@alswo9628]

@@PACKERMAN2077 Don't worry; I normally don't binge-watch, but when I do it's for the occasions like this.

[@xiaolongdrake5353]

I was brought here by AVGN

[@FalloutLibertyHell]

Paul Rudd knows gaming ;)

[@syxx7wun]

Ok yea, i thought that was him lol

[@brianm5563]

Was going to comment on that and looked to see if anyone else did first 👍

[@IamSpeedyWay]

lol imagine if he added the rudd roll.

[@paulngo4631]

Damn he aged well. I look nothing like my teenage years.

[@captainpalsy2092]

I knew it 😁

[@ZoeKirkRobinson]

The Dizzy games are wonderful. Dizzy is essentially the British 8-bit Mario. His games are held in high regard by so many British retro gamers. :)

[@ZoeKirkRobinson]

The SNES Man The New Zealand Story wasn’t just popular, it was an absolute craze. I recall people who didn’t even Game talking about The New Zealand Story.

[@minibigs5259]

....the help line....

[@ZoeKirkRobinson]

Mini Bigs Don’t get me started on the CodeMasters helpline. What a money-grubbing scam that was.

[@Lost_n_Found_1]

Did anyone assume that Dizzy was either the son or relative of Humpty Dumpty there? Just wondering, lol.

[@ZoeKirkRobinson]

SykosymatiK Asking for a friend? ;)

[@darkstarx3085]

10:45 "It's....me?" 10:47 **X-Files theme plays**

[@lordofthecats6397]

He set that to his twitter avatar for some time.

[@DaxSchaffer]

I'm 99% sure that's Tony Jay narrating the SNES commercial at the beginning.... which basically means that Megabyte liked Nintendo games. No one else had a voice like him, it's just so iconic. Also, your videos are always so well researched. I'm glad there are thoughtful people like you on KZbin who don't just scream information at their audiences like a moron.

[@acvieluf]

I bought a deck enhancer once. It was not what i thought it was.

[@DebonairOfTheWind]

One letter makes a difference in life

[@Lentoron]

I also bought a Deck enhancer. I couldn't figure out how it was supposed to enhance my Deck.

[@Lentoron]

@acvieluf you spelled I wrong

[@DebonairOfTheWind]

@@Lentoron ask your boyfriend

[@Clay3613]

@@DebonairOfTheWind Seriously dude?

[@Renebean]

I wish we had Gaming Historian when I was in school back in the day he'd be right up there with Bill Nye and LeVar Burton

[@stevePHXD]

Except then he wouldn't be the gaming historian, he would just be gaming current events

[@SomariTheAdventurerJam6]

The Super Sonic Joystick

[@karlhans6678]

@@stevePHXD the paradox

[@technimechanical]

Except he really wouldnt be on that level whatsoever especially considering there wouldnt be a whole lot to talk about back then considering everything was still relatively new

[@favoritemustard3542]

Butterfly in the sky..? *I Can Fly Twice As High !*

[@terraticeras4312]

Me:Draws an Mario and put in to my fridge Nintendo:LAWSUIT

[@HeavenlyFloodofRegen]

This is one of my favorite games...on the Aladdin Deck Enhancer. Best qualifier of all time.

[@UltimateTechHub]

I love this gaming history. I grew up in the 80s and 90s and loved video games.

[@Munden]

NES Cartridges that didn't boot correctly (yes, I too blew into cartridges) would sometimes boot more reliably when plugged into a Game Genie.

[@catsaregovernmentspies]

That was probably because the Game Genie would put more pressure on the 72 pin connector, helping the contacts make a connection

[@TheHeartlessAlchemist]

BTW, nice cameo on the AVGN episode about the Deck enhancer.

[@pokehybridtrainer]

Shoutouts to those who saw this before the nerd's video. Both still kicking after so long.

[@jackmeacham3]

Who's the nerd?

[@adhamwashere5320]

@@jackmeacham3 angry video game nerd

[@skunksecond]

[Theentiledpersonwhichisme.png]

[@WordsmithVG]

I can confirm that this was sold on either QVC or Home Shopping in the early '90s. I had (and still have) this, though we never found any other game than Dizzy. We got our hands on the original Bignose game this way as well. EDIT: It was definitely '93-ish.

[@AbbreviatedReviews]

I had no idea Micro Machines wasn't a licensed Nintendo game. I remember playing it and loving it and playing the more recent spiritual successor Toybox Turbos and also enjoying it as well. The original was way too difficult for me to beat as a kid though toward the end. Those super fast cars and the boats would end it for me.

[@cattyfang4289]

I thought you would’ve known that if it the cartridge was different

[@ExtremeWreck]

@@cattyfang4289 I think he didn't know that because of how good of a game it was.

[@mancubwwa]

@@cattyfang4289 Zelda also came on gold cartridge and it was as official as offical gets.

[@cattyfang4289]

mancubwwa but Zelda used the same cartridge design but with a different color

[@ariel78_]

@@cattyfang4289 im not sure if a kid can be aware of an unlicensed game soley because of a cartidge deisgn

[@samuelcorreia1696]

Rewatching all the GH videos for the 2nd time, and still astonished with the quality of the content in every single video. Undoubtably one of the best channels in all KZbin. Huge thumbs up for Norman and all GH collaborators, from Portugal with love!

[@Movie_Games]

Why didn't Nintendo build whatever hardware that was in the Aladdin deck enhancer into the NES itself? Then sell carts for $20? EDIT: He just said exactly what I was thinking at 18:20

[@taylord5381]

Probably would of made the actual consoles more expensive.

[@CaptainCat101]

Don't you love it when you write a comment that asks a question, then it's immediately answered a few minutes later?

[@paradoxzee6834]

Well it was about piracy, it was harder for unofficial 3rd party support and pirates to get acess to the chips than just to get the rom cards

[@CaptainCat101]

@@paradoxzee6834 most of their anti-piracy measures don't work. Famicom Disk System's embedded slots, the lock-out chips, the N64 using cartridges, the GameCube using mini-disks, and Super Mario Run needing to be online. It either doesn't work, or it backfires. Even Sony imitated them by using proprietary memory cards for the PSP and Vita. They need strategies that will work, but not hurt them in the long run.

[@outtrigger]

Greed

[@adam_wynne]

...Linus, who must prove to his buddies that he discovered the planet Earth... *SPEAKING OF DISCOVERING THINGS, TODAY'S SPONSOR IS SKILLSHARE...*

[@shiiriogami1422]

*intro plays*

[@SRBAnimate]

Use code 69420 at checkout

[@DGR_Dave]

I feel like Camerica got the idea for their name after watching that Seinfeld episode where Kramer creates his own company called Kramerica lol

[@Lostmymind1]

Except for the fact that in this video it's stated that they began operations in 1987. Seinfeld wouldn't hit airwaves until 1989.

[@sithcritic8906]

My guess is that it's a combo of Canada and America since the company was based out of Toronto.

[@supakusuta]

DGR lol, and I didn’t know you watched gaming historian.

[@Kashmir23]

Seinfeld is way after

[@connor_bell]

@@Lostmymind1 shhhhhh

[@controlcommerce]

Congrats on being featured on AVGN. Making KC proud!

[@DoctorTalon]

This is always fun piece of history to revisit. Camerica products fascinated me ever since my mom got me Fantastic Adventures of Dizzy as a Christmas present 28 years ago. I hadn't seen anything like it, because it was a gold cartridge and I didn't know until about a decade ago that it was an unlicensed game. Learning about Camerica's history with The Game Genie and the curious Deck Enhancer truly made this a rabbit hole of gaming. Thank you for sharing this! Your million views are well-deserved!

[@lh9591]

I want Paul Rudd to decide to get serious about gaming with a Nintendo Switch. Literally the same commercial but with present day Paul Rudd.

[@rastamouse7861]

yes!

[@benmalsky9834]

He's too much of a big star for that stuff. Can you imagine a Nintendo Switch commercial done in the style of the 90's commercials, and one of the guys in the commercial was in what is now the highest-grossing film of all time?!

[@sunsolaris]

@@benmalsky9834 I mean I assume it's no different when you see an ad for a mobile game feature Arnold Schwarzenegger or Ryan Reynolds. And those are just crummy mobile games!

[@0oidiedinatimemachineo024]

@@sunsolaris yeah exactly. if a company pays a high price many celebrities will do commercials. I mean Japan does this all the time gets big American movie actors to do commercials.

[@KrolKaz]

dudes like 60 years old, most people under 20 don't know who he is

[@GenerationGapGaming]

The switch disabling the lockout chip is savage lol! Great video as always and love finding new bizarre NES hardware.

[@muz426]

GenerationGapGaming really man,Savage =^\

[@katherineberger6329]

Atari: Goes through the trouble of stealing a copy of the 10NES code to make a backward-compatible "Rabbit" chip that ends up getting them sued by Nintendo. Camerica: "Ha ha ha, microcurrent pulse goes brrrrr."

[@justanotheryoutubechannel]

@@katherineberger6329Unfortunately, the clone chip method was the only true solution, Color Dreams/Wisdom Tree were never able to get 100% reliability with a pulse-switch method despite using up to 9 different methods and configurations. A bunch of their documents got leaked and you can read about how they tried to get 100% reliability but many consoles took up to 9 attempts to work, and the last model released was so reliable that even with their best efforts 13% of their test consoles couldn’t be cracked. Camerica presumably would’ve had the same trouble.

[@roflmewaffles]

"that uhhh....people market things to make you spend more money..." oh shit we got a quick one

[@cilonrs]

I, for once, tried to pay my things with hugs. Never worked out. Damn greedy money-grubbers...

[@jesselockhart1230]

Boy, how'd that lesson go? lol

[@BagOfMagicFood]

Consumerism is a trap!

[@jrjard]

This is crazy! I got the 4-in-1 with Super Robin Hood when I was 5 or 6 at some thrift shop and could never remember what it was. I couldn't find it on ROM sites, and this would explain it. It's like a veil of Mandela Effect just lifted from my life!

[@Dylan_thebrand_slayer_Mulveiny]

liar

[@nensondubois]

I have a second revision B Aladdin Deck Enhancer. The reason why it can damage top loader NES consoles is because it sends the voltage spike to the console instead since it was designed without the lockout chip. Sending a voltage spike to other parts of a circuit other than it;s original pin can cause damage.

[@RockstarMazy]

My man, I love how you've grown and your content is always quality. Thank you for your hard work and insight

[@atomicdeath10]

Damn I miss Micro Machines. Spent many, many hours playing that game. If I remember correctly my mom got it for me as a surprise one Friday. If a game was releasing and it was in the budget she would usually buy it before it hit the shelves. One of the few perks of working for Kmart at the time.

[@AssociationAdmirer]

Very interesting. Codemasters/Camerica's Firehawk is one of my all-time favorite NES games; I had so many hours of fun with it. It's good to hear some of the story of the company behind it.

[@beemer9108]

This is one of the first times I've seen a video by the Gaming Historian, and I can say that I'm impressed by the quality of the video. It was very, very well produced and written. Easy to follow and informative, while also being entertaining. I'm surprised I haven't heard of this channel sooner.

[@Hailinel]

This is all really interesting to hear! I remember renting Micro Machines when I was a kid and almost immediately returned it. It was the only unlicensed game I had ever come across and had no idea what was going on with the weird cartridge with the exposed part of the underside that just refused to work in my NES. I guess the switch was just flipped in the wrong way.

[@rickyj3034]

gaming historian is like a drug to collectors ( well for this collector)...after every video I find myself at the local retro video game shop or ebay. cant help but feel that my bank account hates you but my heart loves you

[@gideonwaxfarb]

I've been watching these kind of videos for years, and never heard of this thing. Thanks, Gaming Historian :)

[@JD92205]

I found this interesting, I think their plan of selling the Deck Enhancer for one price and then sell the cartridge games for $19.99, at less than half the price of the of the Nintendo game cartridge at $49.99, to market to the working families might have worked. To put that in perspective, the Nintendo games adjusted for inflation would cost $87.07 while the Alladin cartridges would run about $30. Shame the games just weren't that good, and they poured too much of their resources into an old system in addition to their other financial problems. I think this concept would have changed the video game industry at the time

[@Dargonhuman]

When I was in middle or high school, I had a teacher that broke the class into groups and tasked us with inventing something that would drastically change some part of our lives then come up with a marketing campaign for that product to sell to our classmates. One of the ideas my group came up with was a SNES game cartridge that had a slot you could put a Game Boy cartridge into like the Super Game Boy, except the SNES cart contained a full RPG game and the Game Boy carts were different characters you could play as in the SNES game. The idea was that when you put the Game Boy cart in a Game Boy system, you could train the character with a series of minigames to boost their stats, then when you put them back in the main game, those stats would carry over so that you wouldn't have to grind enemies for hours in the main game. Essentially, we came up with the Pokemon N64/Gamy Boy sharing system before the N64 was even a rumor. We rejected that idea for the class project as we figured that wasn't quite "world changing" enough to meet the project's requirements and instead went with some kind of medical something or other but the idea of having a game where you could swap customized characters or other assets basically on the fly was still intriguing to me. Even after that class, I kept coming up with ideas for games that could utilize that kind of technology, like a space shooter where you could swap out different weapons loadouts for the ship or entirely different ships all together, or a fighting game where you could have a base selection of fighters built in to the main game then get special expansion carts to plug in to use additional fighters, things like that.

[@IamR3D88]

@@Dargonhuman sounds like your idea was similar to not only pokemon, but the dreamcast vmu and a bit of skylanders with the buy other heros separately. Way before its time!

[@justanotheryoutubechannel]

It’s a good idea, Sega almost did something similar with their SVP chip. In the end Virtua Racing was the only game released using it, and it bumped up the cost significantly, so they came up with an idea of using a separate SVP-cart that would use Lock-On Technology to connect future 3D games to it, meaning they wouldn’t need an SVP in every game and they could be launched at normal retail price. At one point they had prototypes of Virtua Fighter, Star Wars Arcade, and Daytona USA using this system. Unfortunately, all these plans were dropped to focus on the 32X, which in a way was an evolution of that original idea.

[@ExtremeWreck]

@@Dargonhuman That actually sounds awesome, not gonna lie.

[@noahwashburn1949]

It's a great day when Gaming Historian uploads

[@falondonahue8457]

0:40 Little did Norman know he has owned two Aladdin Deck Enhancer's.

[@jojoface4940]

Thank you, Gaming Historian. I appreciate your informative content.

[@ElComanche]

Your stuff really is amazing. I WISH you did stuff more frequently. But I bet it’s a ton of work to get all the info properly and all that. Keep up the good work!

[@sammichu1906]

Aladdin deck enhancer sounds like a mod for an aladdin card game lol

[@LuckyBird551]

This channel, and Ahoy, are the best two in KZbin to find in depth information about video game history.

[@MikeCantGame]

Love how you were featured on AVGN. 2 of my favorite youtube channels coming together. i would love to see more projects in the future. It would be really cool to see both of your styles clash on an AVGN episode side by side

[@JustinHarrisTV]

I never knew about this. That's why I love your channel! It teaches me cool things. 👍🏿

[@acebharath]

A new Gaming Historian video. Wooohooooo !!!

[@Bwianman85]

Right?! Get so excited when I get the notification!

[@15-Peter-20]

Indian 😥

[@acebharath]

SkyBlue 1988 Indian Nintendo fans are rare right?

[@MITOMANOx]

So glad I've discovered your channel! Love your careful research and narrative style! Super duper enjoyable and mind tingling! Thanks for sharing!

[@fronttowardsenemy1332]

Thank you so much for this video! I remember getting the 4 in 1 adventure pack when I was a kid and never knew why the cartridge was so weird looking!

[@FrancesBedoya89]

LOVED this episode!! I never knew this thing existed and tbh when I read the title of this video in my subscriptions I assumed it was about a version of the Game Genie. Keep creating great educational content like this! ❤️

[@LordBarros]

I had both the Quatro 4 in 1 games for NES. Not the Aladdin version but the regular games. The BMX game is actually fun once you learn the physics. And Super Robin Hood is a lot of fun, but very challangeing.

[@MrPhange]

I actually had a game for Sega Genesis called Cosmic Spacehead, and it came out of cartridge that looked almost exactly like a standard Camerica cartridge. The difference was that this version of the game was more of a point-and-click adventure game, with occasional side-scrolling elements that were rare and kind of broken. It actually wasn't that bad of a game, and the art design was the most 90s looking thing you've ever seen.

[@ScreamyngYoshi]

Did you survive the explosion? Tell me your computer still works...

[@Gojiro7]

is that a callback to Norms cameo in the AVGN Deck enhancer video?

[@hhjohn2766]

Rip aladin deck enhancer Reason of death: explosions

[@DeLuchaMan164]

AVGN

[@benmalsky9834]

That was just a joke, done with a cheap digital effect. I'm sure they still exist.

[@rycegabrielmajor9847]

@@benmalsky9834 hello and welcome to the joke

[@mindblow7617]

@@benmalsky9834

[@HelloKittyFanMan.]

13:57: "...and then forms Linus Tech Tips!"

[@davehedgehogUK]

Brilliant vid. I remember this and have been waiting for someone to post a decent video about it. Top marks, subbed.

[@HellOnWheel]

AVGN's Aladdin episode randomly came into my feed today, which is how I first learned about your channel 4 years ago! I know you're working on something big right now, so I'll just watch some classic episodes to help keep your views up 😉

[@weasel2htm]

I actually have the Aladdin Deck Enhancer / Dizzy game, along with the Quattro Adventure cartridge. My parents bought them from QVC around when the SuperNES came out. I recall enjoying the Dizzy games, but not caring much for the others. The video makes me want to pull out the NES and play it, but I took my NES and games to my dad after he mentioned wanting to play some of the NES games again.

[@AVUltra]

This was one of the best things I’ve ever seen. Amazing. I’d love to talk about the origin of Nintendo as a thing for nec etc.

[@Electromancer1]

I had Bee 52. This video brought back a bunch of memories of being completely lost as to what that A/B switch was for.

[@DarkmanPoe]

Funny you should mention people returning Camerica products. I actually bought “Quattro Adventure” back when it was new (I fell for the hype from all the magazine adverts) and did indeed return it after I couldn’t get it to work on my NES (I could only see half the screen). I got store credit for it and got “F-Zero” for the SNES instead. Major upgrade.

[@milesblack5839]

You were mentioned in the latest AVGN video

[@NickSamon]

I watched it now.

[@PACKERMAN2077]

I wonder if this was planned in some Grand conspiracy months in advance, maybe even James ghost wrote the script

[@HisVirusness]

I have a sneaking suspicion that he's known before we did.

[@pummisher1186]

He was IN it. So I think he knows. AVGN made a genie blow up every Aladdin game enhancer in the world at the end.

[@SegaDream131]

He was IN the video......watch before commenting jackson.

[@vincea2996]

It did release. I remember seeing the Aladdin boxes every where never knowing what it was. I remember thinking it was a cheap Aladdin game ripoff.

[@templet45]

Excellent video as always and I truly love and appreciate your content and the time you spend on every video. I have a quick suggestion...I think a history/life of (or at least career of) Reggie video would be excellent since he is now retired and has been instrumental in Nintendo's history. We could all pay tribute to the man and get to learn more about him and I think that would be excellent!

[@mach1mustangguy992]

You’re the not angry video game nerd! Very friendly and informative. Cheers!

[@Koridai011]

8:35 well I learned that the hard way - Avgn

[@racechamp2280]

“It’s still one of my favorite game’s on the Aladdin Deck Enhancer” Me: Thats not saying much there were only 7 games lol

[@VenomStryker]

Looked like Thor was trying to hold back a giggle when he was saying that the Baseball game was the best ever. :-)

[@acidreighn]

The Game Genie AND Micro Machines were great! I even had a few of the mail order books (the skimpy small ones you could sign up for after buying the thing)

[@jadetraveler]

0:48 - Inserts the cartridge into the NES and turns it on without pushing the cartridge down :P

[@mentholdeathray]

CalicoSkies *necro post* toaster doesn’t have to be pushed down to run the game.

[@thehussiteking]

He had a mod that makes the NES run without having to push down the cartridge

[@ErnestJay88]

I don't even know that Linus Sebastian is an alien looking for planet earth. so shocking !

[@MandrakeFernflower]

Accidentally drops earth Oh shi- *loud explosion*

[@chriscab8333]

Man who needs cable when there's content like this. Unbeatable.

[@jasonsangwin4006]

I must be one of the few that loved Quattro Sports. BMX was near impossible as well as Tennis at the start but you could get the hang of both quickly. I loved Baseball Pro's and Soccer Simulator, I played those a lot.

[@FoolsGil]

This was quite bittersweet. I'm a business oriented person myself, it's sort of sad to hear when someone makes such a big hit, or several, make a wrong turn and they're done.

[@EYTPS]

First the Game Genie, then the Aladdin Deck Enhancer. What next, the Magic Game Carpet?

[@mushroomhead3619]

Or the Jafar Game enhancer?

[@WebVManReturns]

No, the Magic Lamp.

[@teddzagan5178]

LOL!

[@Dargonhuman]

The could have done Magic Game Carpet as a Power Pad knockoff...

[@OneThousand98]

you mean this? en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_Pad

[@Yagamiar15]

Love your insanely high Quality content. Watching all of your vids

[@MegaJoojee]

"jumping on mushrooms reveals powerups" hmm I have to try that next time I take mushrooms.

[@thehoodybadger3402]

Beware of accidentally picking up the Debuff "Existential Crisis" however. MND and DEX was reduced by three after that and the entire game became unplayable.

[@KomradeMikhail]

Quattro Sports Baseball Pros sucks because of the fatal flaw that no batter can hit a Slider. Meanwhile on the flip side, Base Wars is a fondly beloved NES game that suffers from the same exact Slider flaw.

[@h347h]

Tommorow Ebay will be full of Deck Enhancer listings...

[@Dikwili]

They’ve been on there for ages. You can get a decent packaged deal if you’re a smart shopper.

[@McdonaldeS1986]

The dizzy the adventure music is unbelievable! So damn jolly

[@adzooks44]

Micro Machines was a very underrated NES title

[@FamousWolfe]

I had MM on my NES back in the mid 90s. I'll never forget that gold cartridge, or wondering what the little switch on the back was for (I know now that it's the lockout chip bypass mechanism). Still, had tons of fun playing that game for hours with my brother.

[@fatmanjumprope]

Young Paul Rudd made the entire video worth it within the first 10 seconds.

[@enthusiasticgamer88]

I'm so glad we're finally getting to the point where backwards compatibility is all but guaranteed for all next gen consoles. I've always felt it should be mandatory and see what Microsoft has done with One X back compat enhancement just makes me even more excited for the future. I hope this keeps going in this direction so that it's more like PC gaming where it's just upgrading hardware and all your old games still work on the new console out of the box. Regardless gaming in 2019 (retro particularly) is incredible, truly the golden age of gaming.

[@MrMarinus18]

The thing with older consoles though is that technology was still developing. So one system was drastically different from what came before. PC's also have that. You can't really play most 90's games on a modern PC without a good emulator. There are some that you can but the majority of them you can not. Building in backwards compatibility either requires reusing parts and having a weaker console as was the case with the Wii. Or requires dedicated hardware in addition to the current hardware, pushing the price up significantly as in the PS3.

[@KBXband]

The AVGN led me to your channel and now it's my favorite

[@wadmodderschalton5763]

It's very likely that the Aladdin Deck Enhancer was released exclusively in Canada in 1992 before they went under in 1993 before they could release it in the United States & Europe presumably to be distributed by Galoob in those regions.