Palmer Luckey is only 31 years old. He was a co-founder of Oculus and then transitioned to making drones for the US with his new company, Anduril Industries. What is the next logical career move? Making the most perfect Game Boy clone of course.

Meet the ModRetro Chromatic

Color Options Taken from Mod Retro Website

The ModRetro Chromatic is the latest FGPA Game Boy that has entered the ring. The device is available in 6 different colors including inferno, leaf, bubblegum, volt, wave, and midnight. Each device has the option to either have the button markings to be in English or Japanese which adds a fun touch.

The website claims this will be compatible with Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Chromatic cartridges. The site also boasts the worlds only 160×144 pixel sunlight readable backlit display that looks great in the promo videos. The colors seem more accurate from the gameplay footage than that of the Analogue Pocket, which will be a competitor for this.

The Chromatic includes USB out so you can share gameplay from the display. Another unique thing is that it will run on 3 AA batteries, which are said to be included with the purchase. For a list of all other specs for this device, look at the included image from their site below.

Spec List from ModRetro Site

Price and Questions

Pre-orders for the device are $199 and will come with a chromatic version of Tetris. Also, they are said to be built to order and a limited amount being sold at GameStop. Hopefully this will not cause the false scarcity panic buying that Analogue and Nintendo have been keen on doing.

Russ from RetroGameCorps pointed out on X that on their FAQ section there is a troubling line. It states that pre-orders are ineligible for returns. It also states that damage due to shipping is not eligible for exchanges or refunds. This is very worrisome for someone who is about to spend over $200 with shipping for a new device.

Luckily, ModRetro has made a change to this and stated the following, “Hey, thanks for bringing that to our attention. We apologize for the confusion; this was not intended. Returns are indeed available for damage caused by shipping. We’ve updated this in our FAQ. Thank you.”

What are your thoughts on this? Would you rather save money and get the FPGBC or get the Analogue Pocket that can play more systems? If you need help deciding between those two, check out Ban’s article here comparing them. Finally, let us know in the comments your thoughts on this new handheld! You can preorder the ModRetro site.

Pre-order the ModRetro Chromatic

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