Nintendo M82

Background

The M82 was a demo unit by Nintendo for NES games that could hold 12 games at once. The console was exclusively used in stores so people could play the games as demos before buying them. The Japanese equivalent to the M82 was the FamicomBox, a system with a similar purpose that could hold 15 Famicom games.

(August 1985)

Logo: On a starfield, the red letters of "Nintendo" shoot in from above one-by-one. The oval border of the logo then draws in from the sides. "ENTERTAINMENT" and "SYSTEM" slide in from the sides and place below the logo. The logo cuts into another screen with the same background telling how to use the console and play a game. The animation loops until a game starts to play.

Variant: For FamicomBox systems in Japan, the logo appears with the Nintendo text in yellow. "ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEM" fades in below, while the green "FAMICOMBOX" logomark scrolls in below near the bottom.

Technique: The starfield, the letters zooming in, the drawing of the oval, the sliding words.

Music/Sounds: A triumphant 8-bit theme.

Music/Sounds Variant: The Famicombox variant used another 8-bit theme, quite similar to the one from the Famicom Disk System startup.

Availability: Ultra rare. The M82 was only used in stores to promote the NES and its video game library, and very few M82s are known to still appear today, mostly by the hands of video game enthusiasts. They might appear for sale very occasionally on websites like eBay, usually for very high prices. (one was sold at 5,500,000 dollars with the arcade cabinet!) But this is a must for collectors. As for the Famicombox variant, it is ultra rare as well, having been exclusively presented at Japanese stores; finding them at Japanese marketplace sites is the most viable option.