Evercade EXP

GOOD THINGS REALLY DO COME IN THREES

When we first heard news of the Evercade EXP it felt like it was coming too soon.

The Evercade VS had only been on sale for a few months and the original Evercade was only a couple of years old. Did we really need a third machine? The answer is a resounding yes, and while Blaze’s new console is certainly a little rough around the edges, it is a suitably significant upgrade over the original 2020 handheld.

Aside from its new Tate mode, the most obvious difference between the original Evercade handheld and the new EXP is the big gulf in price - £129.99 versus £59.99. So what do you get for this extra cash? Quite a bit as it turns out, including a copy of Irem Arcade 1 (see Irem: Hit Or Miss?). The machine itself looks lovely, with well-designed responsive buttons, another great d-pad and that all-important Tate-mode button which rotates the screen 90 degrees. The packaging is rather neat and it comes with a manual for the included Capcom games, as well as a USB-C charging cable.

The screen itself is a vast improvement over the original handheld, being a 4.3-inch high-resolution IPS screen with an improved resolution of 800x480. The screen bleed that some users complained about on the previous handheld is greatly improved and the overall contrast of it is superb. Shimmering also doesn’t seem to be as noticeable as before and the screen’s improved sharpness means Pixel Perfect mode isn’t as necessary as it was on the original Evercade. Input lag is also good, either on the device itself or via a TV. It’s just very satisfying to use.