Virtual Console (Ohga Shrugs)

Virtual Console is a section of the Nintendo eShop that sells retro games. It is accessible on the Revolution, Game Boy 3DS, and Stream in various forms.

History
The Virtual Console was first announced at E3 2006, when it was announced that Nintendo, including the newly acquired Hudson Soft, was working to bring their best classic games to the Revolution.

The Virtual Console was the original component of the Nintendo eShop, launching with the Revolution in late 2006. Early on, the Virtual Console received many titles, with over 100 from various systems being available by the end of 2007.

Neo Geo support was announced at E3 2007. Arcade games would be introduced in 2009.

The Game Boy 3DS launched with a Virtual Console in March 2012. Although it would also come to feature NES games, the focus was put on Game Boy and Game Boy Color titles, with the original Game Boy launch lineup being available on launch day in some territories. The 3DS's emulator is more advanced than the Revolution's, featuring functions such as save states and a reset option.

The Stream's Virtual Console is functionally identical to that of the Revolution. Nintendo has announced that they would be "optimizing" certain games in the future, but has yet to describe what this would entail.

Pricing
The Virtual Console has fairly consistent pricing, usually based on a game's platform of origin.


 * $5 for NES games
 * $5 for arcade games
 * $8 for SNES games
 * $8 for TurboGrafx-16 games
 * $9 for Neo Geo games
 * $10 for N64 games

Note that up to $2 might be added due to a game's localization costs or other factors. Prices are similar in other countries.