Physical? DIGICAL? Alwa's Awakening 8-Bit Edition Cartridge & Digical

In this episode, we unbox and test out Alwa's Awakening 8-Bit Edition Cartridge & Digical versions for the Original Nintendo Entertainment System and Emulators.

Retro-bit and Elden pixels have joined forces to release something truly unique, the Alwa's Awakening 8-Bit Edition. While available on modern consoles, Playstation, Switch, and Xbox, having a game like this with roots deeply entrenched in the 8-Bit era is truly fun and unique. What is even more fun and unique is the two different versions of the game that you can purchase. You can get a traditional 8-bit NES compatible cartridge, or something new that they are calling Digical.

Looking at the NES cartridge first, it is packed with Retro-bit's traditional high quality features. There is an envelope inside that includes a numbered certificate of authenticity, a lenticular card, poster, and a full color manual! I don't know about you but I miss manuals. You also gets a traditional NES style cartridge sleeve and the frosted cartridge in south. One of the things I noticed looking at the back of the cartridge it is the fact that it has an onboard user replaceable battery! No more tabbed batteries, hank you Retro-bit!

The Digical version is pretty unique in that it is a physical release of a digital game. Retro-bit has placed all of the files on a thumb drive shaped like an 8-bit Sprite of zoe from the game, it looks really good. I dare say it rivals some of the fig pins they've released in the past. This 8 GB thumb drive features the ROM of the game itself, a digital manual, behind the scenes interview with the developers, digital wallpapers, and much, much more. It's pretty much everything from the NES cartridge in digital form which is amazing. Now one thing that I noticed right away is there's no security on the thumb drive or to the files. So if you have multiple computers in the house or emulators you can install it and run it multiple times without issue

I have not played the original on the Switch, and I was expecting something similar to the original Legend of Zelda. I was wrong! This is much more of the side scrolling Zelda 2 or Castlevania 2, which I was perfectly okay with. Having played about an hour's worth of the game, I have to say the graphics are bright and cheery, the music is exceptional, and it feels like it has just the right amount of challenge to be fun without frustrating. I can't wait to be able to sit down and play through the entire game.

The controls of the game did feel a little bit floaty, specifically with the way Zoe jumps. You can alter your characters direction in flight with the d-pad, which makes me think this was a deliberate design choice. It's an interesting one, and it works. Hit detection boxes seemed accurate, and, beyond the floatiness of jumping, jumping and landing at platforms as it should.

Why it RoX:
- Terrific graphics and sound
- Great pack-ins such as lenticular cards and posters
- Thumb drive is actually usable for other purposes if you desire
- Great play control
- Easy battery replacement on the cartridge

What could be improved:
- Add video or audio of the interviews to the digital version

Should you buy one?
There are a few things to consider on whether or not I would recommend this. First and foremost let's just talk about the game itself. It's wonderful, if you are into a side scrolling adventure platformer like Castlevania, this could be right up your alley. The mystical and fantastical sort of story definitely lends itself to fans of Zelda as well. Being able to play a game inspired by 8-bit platformers on an 8-bit video game system is wonderful. If you have an NES or a system capable of playing NES games, this is something definitely to consider. Digical is definitely an interesting concept, and it provides a much lower barrier to entry to try out title such as this. I love the looks and the design of the thumb drive, but I am admittedly not a huge fan of playing through emulators. I know I'm not the majority. That being said, overall I thought that Retro-bit and Elden Pixels did an amazing job with this release and I cannot wait to spend more time with Zoe in her world.

#AlwasAwakening #RetroBit #Digical #NES #Nintendo #RetroGaming

The footage used in this review are used under the Fair Use laws, referenced below:

https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/17/107

Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a copyrighted work, including such use by reproduction in copies or phonorecords or by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright.