Retro gaming can prove to be a nuisance, a pastime that caters to clutter. It festoons living rooms with a host of tangled wires and weathered, troublesome consoles that may still need a ritualistic blow in the cartridge slot to bring them to life. It’s a situation the much-delayed RetroN 5 hopes to address. This Frankenstein’s monster of a machine runs, in a single box, NES, SNES, Mega Drive, Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance games, as well as those of their international variants such as the Famicom. However, while it uses emulation technology, you will still need the original cartridges to play; hence the row of slots on its surface.

The RetroN5 comes with its own controller that covers all the formats, but has ports to support original SNES, NES and Mega Drive pads. It outputs exclusively via HDMI, and while the games look adequate on a modern screen, they the visual sharpness and vibrancy of the original consoles hooked up to a muscular CRT TV. But it’s tremendously convenient, and while its ungainly casing and rather lacklustre bundled controller do little to dazzle, its ability to save old games at any point rather than predetermined positions offers a one-up on the classic hardware.

There’s a good chance that those who already own ageing games will also have the original consoles, but if you’re looking to revisit your retro collection without weaving dusty cables across the lounge, the RetroN 5 offers a functional and convenient alternative that might just encourage gamers to dig some classics out of the attic.

Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones

Wii U Virtual Console, Nintendo, cert: 7

One of the few Fire Emblem entries to makes its way west, Sacred Stones is a rousing example of how great Nintendo’s tactical RPG series can be. It follows Ephraim and Eirika, twin heirs to the kingdom of Renais, who build and lead armies to restore their homeland, which has been overthrown by former allied nation Grado. Originally released on the Game Boy Advance in 2005, the gameplay remains sharp a decade on, requiring keen attention and calculating manoeuvres to win the many turn-based battles. Units offer a range of magical or martial skills, with each type or weapon class having strengths and weaknesses. Although 2013’s Fire Emblem: Awakening is more sophisticated, this remains a challenging, engaging game.

However, reissuing it for the Wii U rather than the 3DS (though it had an exclusive release, in 2011, to those who purchased the handheld before its price drop) results in a blocky, pixelated big-screen experience that can be tricky to follow, and is likely to deter players from the long-play sessions Fire Emblem thrives on. Matt Kamen