Neo-Geo AES questions

[khog143]

I have been interested in getting an AES for about a year and a half now, hoping to run into one at a flea market or something  .  Since that will seemingly never happen, I'm considering biting the bullet and just buying one.  However, I was wondering a few things.  Is the Neo-Geo AES Region Free?  Also, what is a good price to pay for one?  I was gonna use the next month to build up some funds to score one.

[chany60126]

The Neo Geo will play any game from any region. The language of the game depends on the BIOS of your system. If your system is japanese, the text will be japanese. Some games were censored if you have a US system. For example in Samurai Shodown 2, fighters spew out green blood instead of red.

A good price to pay for an AES with all hookups and a classic stick is about $150-200. Keep an eye on the Neo-Geo.com forums, that's your best bet to find a good deal there.

[SignOfZeta]

If you just want to "own an AES" then by all means buy one for $180-250. If you actually want to play Neo Geo games then buy a consololized MVS. Unless you are rich as hell you can only afford the shittier earlier games on AES.

[GohanX]

Did someone say Neo Geo?

Also Chany is right on the pricing, although if you don't care about condition you can get some beat up but playable units for like $100, but you might have to hunt for your own controllers. Also, I would HIGHLY recommend getting one with a Unibios installed so you can select your mode and region. That way you don't have to worry about language or censorship issues.

[SignOfZeta]

Yeah, the UniBIOS is a no brainer. The thing is amazing.

[khog143]

I just assumed a consolized MVS would be pretty pricey

[TheClash603]

If you just want to "own an AES" then by all means buy one for $180-250. If you actually want to play Neo Geo games then buy a consololized MVS. Unless you are rich as hell you can only afford the shittier earlier games on AES.

This happened to me!

Only thing that sucks with the CMVS is that it is a hell of an initial investment.  I am sure that after a few years of purchasing for the system it pays back 10x over, but expect to pay some cash at first.

[Frank_fjs]

I just assumed a consolized MVS would be pretty pricey

They can be, but the games are dirt cheap so in the long run it works out a lot cheaper. Most of the good AES games go for triple digits, you can spend thousands and only have a handful of games.

[jeffhlewis]

I'll pile on here - I got my AES in good (not great) shape from the Neo-Geo.com forums (it's really the place to go - the prices aren't bad there compared to eBay) with a controller, hookups and a complete U.S. Samurai Showdown 1 for $185. don't pay more than like $225 for a loose system unless it's in box or has 2 controllers.

How expensive AES is going to be for you depends on what games you want to play. I played Neo in the arcades growing up as a kid in the early-mid 90's, so most of my favorite games came out during the heydey and as a result are common and really cheap. Stuff like Metal Slug 3 and the later KOF games came out long after I had stopped going to arcades, so I'm content playing those on my MAME cab if I get the itch. The most I've paid for a game was $110 for a mint KOF '98 and I really have no desire to spend more than that. Everything else I've gotten was between $10-$60 or so and lots of good, popular titles.

So if you're looking for those later titles like MS, Last Blade, etc - go the MVS route for sure. If not, AES is a lot of fun too. Just save some bucks for UniBios and S-Video, it makes a huge difference. Unibios is a must for MVS or AES.

[khog143]

Yeah my main desire was to play some of those classic arcade games I used to absolutely love in the arcades: Metal Slug, KOF, Samurai Shodown, Art of Fighting, etc.  And I was always under the impression MVS carts were pricier.  I guess I was off on that thought lol.  How much is the expected investment on the CMVS?

[SignOfZeta]

I paid $200 for my CMVS, a two slot. This was with a UniBIOS an OG stick and a Neo CD pad. I invested another $70 or so converting it to component video (changed from JROK to NeoBitz).

When released MVS was more expensive since it was aimed at operators, $700+ per cart or whatever, while AES was...well, they started in the mid $200s but ended in the mid $400s. Now it has flipfloped completely with most MVS games being under $100 (many less than $20) and many AES games fetching $1000+.

Say what you want now, but you WILL want to play the newer games. Why the hell wouldn't you? For MVS I have Metal Slug 3, KOF 2003, Rage of Dragons, etc and the most I've ever paid for a cart was $90 and that was for Pulstar. The purchase price of the CMVS can easily pay for itself with the FIRST GAME you buy.

And since you will ask, yes, there are converters but they cost as much as a system so they are, IMHO, as pointless as possible.

Functionally and fiscally the CMVS beats the shit out of AES in every possible way. If you want "that feeling" or you just like staring at systems instead of playing them, then by all means get an AES. If you actually want to play the shit then AES is just painting yourself into a corner.

[khog143]

I have no affinity for the system itself since I never  had one as a kid, so I'll probably go the CMVS route as per you guys' suggestions.  Thanks for all the advice.  Now I just need to go on the Neo forums and hunt one down I guess.

[Deletion]

The decadent CMVS solution. Mmm, gaming wood.

www.analogueinteractive.com

[khog143]

I thought we ditched wood on Gaming systems with the 2600 lol

[Duo_R]

I have been kicking around consolizing a MVS for years. I am just not sure which MVS to get, at least a 2 slot I guess. And haven't found a deal on one yet.