The designers of the NES made a bunch of design changes to the Famicom for US release. The FC is a top-loading system and has an eject lever to make game removal easier - sound familiar? In fact, the design does look a lot like a early 80's Super Nintendo, doesn't it? There's also the cart size difference - Famicom carts are 60 pins, while NES carts are 72. This means that you can't play FC games on a NES without an adapter, and vice versa.

Here's a complete Famicom in the box. Games and systems usually are not shrinkwrapped in Japan - if you find some that are, chances are it was done by a used game shop. The box has: a Famicom with 2 controllers (they're wired to the console), an AC adapter, a RF switch, several small pieces of paper with warranty reminders and warnings, and the 33-page comic book Kore ga Family Computer da!!. There were no pack-in games afaik. Like in the US, Nintendo released a redesigned NES in 1993. The Japan version looks the same except for two things: it's got a 60-pin connector, and it's composite input only (as opposed to RF input only on the US version). The original Famicom has RF only, although composite can be hacked in fairly easily.

Due to the differences between Japanese and US TV channels, an original, unmodded Famicom cannot be used on US TV sets. Even if you could find a channel that picks it up, the image would be on one channel and the sound would be on another. The redesigned FC can be used on US TVs. You can use the AC adapter that comes with the console (US and Japan electrical outlets aren't exactly the same, but you can get away with using small appliances like a Famicom, as long as you unplug the unit when not in use).

Here are the size differences between old- and new-style NESes and the Famicom. Since the FC's controllers are hard-wired to the unit, there are special pockets on the side to put the controllers when not in use. Joysticks, light guns, and so on are attached to the 15-pin expansion port on the front edge of the FC (visible in the picture on the box). There were a ton of add-ons that used this expansion port. Besides the well-known Famicom Disk System and 3D Glasses, there were a multitude of specialized joysticks, modems, karaoke machines, and more. Games like Arkanoid, Crazy Climber and several quiz show carts came with specialized joysticks meant for use with that game only.

In short, there's a world of Famicom games and accessories that the US audience never got a peek at, and it's one of the most exciting systems to collect for today. The question is: how hard is this stuff to find in Japan itself?

The answer: it depends, as always, on rarity. Quite a lot of Famicom games (especially the insanely common ones like Super Mario Bros., Baseball, Dragon Ball and Family Stadium (aka RBI Baseball) can be gotten for $2 on up. Games from popular anime like Dragon Ball and Gundam go for tons in the US, but are plentiful in Japan; in fact, there are several Japanese and Americans living in Japan making a killing on EBay selling these anime carts at huge profit. It's a shame, because anime accounts for only a small percentage of Famicom games and, like games based on movie licenses, they're usually pretty disappointing to play.

On the other end of the spectrum are the limited releases from companies like Athena and Hacker International. Disk System consoles and especially disks are typically expensive to find (FDS games from Square almost always go for $20-30 each). Still, just as here, bargains are plentiful if you know where to look. Although Japan as a nation normally used to throw away old appliances and games, the Famicom is seeing the beginning of a resurgence in popularity.. hopefully the future will bring a free NES/FC trade between the USA and Japan that the Clinton government could only hope for in other things. =)

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