Coleco is bringing back cartridge-based gaming by partnering up with Retro Video Gaming System to develop the console called Chameleon, which is set to be released 2016.
Ubergizmo reported that the console features 8-, 16- 32-bit games. "It will take gamers and their families back to simpler time where games were all about great gameplay and fun factor," said Retro Video Game System president Mike Kennedy.
He said that the new console is a love letter to all the other gaming system that uses cartridge in the past.
According to a report by Gizmag, the new Coleco Chameleon can play reproductions of old games. It will also have new titles, but they will also look like they came straight from the 80s. It is not like the ColecoVision Flashback console that can only play built-in games. There are no official announcements, however, on whether original cartridges are compatible with it.
Meanwhile Gamespot wrote the new console is a "versatile new video game system that serves as a modern day take on classic game console." Coleco Holdings said this new console is a "growing and popular genre."
Retro Video Game System tried to develop this type of system before through a crowd funding campaign that didn't push through. The new Coleco Chameleon is the first console that plays cartridge games in 20 years.
There are no official announcements yet on how much each gaming console would cost. However, developers tweeted that it will be more affordable than its predecessor, the Retro VGS. It will be sold in Toy Fair New York February 2016.
There are a lot of articles out there that are commending the new console, saying it would bring nostalgia. It will remind older gamers how they used to keep all the bulky cartridge games, and blow on them when they don't work. However, Coleco Chameleon makes playing with cartridge-based consoles easier and more fun.
