As fond as we are of the Watara Supervision, as much as we love its oversized screen and the interesting if pointless nature of its initial bendy design, there’s no getting around the fact that the majority of its software library simply isn’t very good.
This alone wouldn’t be a problem. Here at Obsolete Worlds, we are firm believers in finding fun in the effort and in exploring even the most risible software libraries to see what coders managed to create from often difficult hardware constraints.
That being said, there are other reasons that make collecting all 66 of the Supervision’s commercially released titles a chore.
The decision by most territories to package the games in vacuum sealed plastic, means that boxes must be at least partly mangled in order to gain access to the cartridges. However, even those that do come in regular cardboard affairs, contain the sort of artwork that might normally be deemed substandard work when displayed on the wall of a third-grade classroom.
The problem, therefore, is that, While the interesting design of the Supervision handhelds themselves make for a unique conversation piece in any self-respecting game room, trying to find the space for all of those ugly looking games can be far less appealing.
Wouldn’t it be great, we've fund ourselves pondering, if a flash-cart existed that could comfortably house the entire Supervision collection and do away with the need to scour eBay for extortionately priced and inherently ugly physical games?
Enter A2-heaven, a Bulgarian based company, lovingly catering to our niche market by providing exactly this solution along with a variety of other exciting projects in the works for equally obscure handhelds.
Launching a few months ago, they have produced a flash-cart that is instantly one of the most lovingly crafted and impressive feats of innovation retro gaming has seen in years; finally providing the go-to Supervision solution we have been yearning for.
Let’s break down the features:
This alone wouldn’t be a problem. Here at Obsolete Worlds, we are firm believers in finding fun in the effort and in exploring even the most risible software libraries to see what coders managed to create from often difficult hardware constraints.
That being said, there are other reasons that make collecting all 66 of the Supervision’s commercially released titles a chore.
The decision by most territories to package the games in vacuum sealed plastic, means that boxes must be at least partly mangled in order to gain access to the cartridges. However, even those that do come in regular cardboard affairs, contain the sort of artwork that might normally be deemed substandard work when displayed on the wall of a third-grade classroom.
The problem, therefore, is that, While the interesting design of the Supervision handhelds themselves make for a unique conversation piece in any self-respecting game room, trying to find the space for all of those ugly looking games can be far less appealing.
Wouldn’t it be great, we've fund ourselves pondering, if a flash-cart existed that could comfortably house the entire Supervision collection and do away with the need to scour eBay for extortionately priced and inherently ugly physical games?
Enter A2-heaven, a Bulgarian based company, lovingly catering to our niche market by providing exactly this solution along with a variety of other exciting projects in the works for equally obscure handhelds.
Launching a few months ago, they have produced a flash-cart that is instantly one of the most lovingly crafted and impressive feats of innovation retro gaming has seen in years; finally providing the go-to Supervision solution we have been yearning for.
Let’s break down the features:
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What's in the box: The quality of workmanship easily outranks any official Supervision release!
- An 8MB user flashable ROM (enough to hold over double the actual number of commercially released Supervision games.)
- A Built in Game selection menu with the entire Supervision line-up already preloaded plus a few interesting extras.
- 8 slots free for user programs and homebrew games
Sounds pretty appealing? Let’s take it for a ride and see how it stacks up!
Not being an expert in dumping ROMS, nor having any real need to do so here, we opted for the standard package available from A2Heaven meaning that we can’t comment on the dumper and the fancy leather handheld case available in the deluxe set.
Indeed, a plain cardboard box may not exactly have had us salivating but, on opening it, the quality and attention to detail was clear to see.
Functional instruction manual aide the wholly unnecessary but still wonderful leather pouch with embossed Supervision logo immediately signal the care and attention to detail that A2 Heaven have put into this product. Unlike the unprotected circuitboards of some flash-carts the handcrafted cartridge of the Supervision Multi feels solid, weighty and sturdy with metal screws holding the case in place over a fitting design including the GB-2000 model Supervision (although it is compatible with all variants we were able to test). The protruding contacts, while perhaps annoying to some, are a clear design choice meant to mimic the original cartridges so can be forgiven out of retro aesthetic.
Now let’s move on to what it actually does when you power it up!
Indeed, a plain cardboard box may not exactly have had us salivating but, on opening it, the quality and attention to detail was clear to see.
Functional instruction manual aide the wholly unnecessary but still wonderful leather pouch with embossed Supervision logo immediately signal the care and attention to detail that A2 Heaven have put into this product. Unlike the unprotected circuitboards of some flash-carts the handcrafted cartridge of the Supervision Multi feels solid, weighty and sturdy with metal screws holding the case in place over a fitting design including the GB-2000 model Supervision (although it is compatible with all variants we were able to test). The protruding contacts, while perhaps annoying to some, are a clear design choice meant to mimic the original cartridges so can be forgiven out of retro aesthetic.
Now let’s move on to what it actually does when you power it up!
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Why does a previously hidden LED light up and flash blue and red upon startup? No reason other than because it can!
Right from the off there is an air of quality and personalisation to this multi-cart not usually present in such devices. From the moment the custom boot screen dings into place, replacing the usual Supervision screen with an image of a cart sliding into the bendy supervision and the A2 Heaven logo. A cheerful and familiar little ditty (confirmed to be the theme from the Apple 2 version of Ultima!) plays as you are presented with a beautifully curated menu far removed from the usual plain lists so often found on these things.
As mentioned, the cart comes preloaded with every Supervision commercial release that is capable of running on the standard tech. The menu presents these alphabetically via a list in the top right that can be scrolled through one by one (you can also jump straight to user content by pressing right on the d-pad). Each game presents you with information on the bottom half of the screen covering file size, publisher and year of release. While many of these are similar due to the short-lived nature of the Supervision’s life, it’s a nice museum style touch. Accompanying this is a small picture on the bottom right of the title screen of each game's title screen to give you more of a feel of what you are about to play. Rather than the bare bones nature of many flashcarts, it really does feel something more akin to a professionally curated collection here.
While there is no option to shortcut through the list of games, the fact that it only takes 30 seconds to scroll through the complete list means that it isn’t too time consuming to find what is on there. Of course, at this point your enjoyment entirely depends on how much you enjoy the Supervision’s games, but there is no denying the value for money you get on this cartridge with the games alone! Despite this, there are still a couple of neat surprises to behold!
As mentioned, the cart comes preloaded with every Supervision commercial release that is capable of running on the standard tech. The menu presents these alphabetically via a list in the top right that can be scrolled through one by one (you can also jump straight to user content by pressing right on the d-pad). Each game presents you with information on the bottom half of the screen covering file size, publisher and year of release. While many of these are similar due to the short-lived nature of the Supervision’s life, it’s a nice museum style touch. Accompanying this is a small picture on the bottom right of the title screen of each game's title screen to give you more of a feel of what you are about to play. Rather than the bare bones nature of many flashcarts, it really does feel something more akin to a professionally curated collection here.
While there is no option to shortcut through the list of games, the fact that it only takes 30 seconds to scroll through the complete list means that it isn’t too time consuming to find what is on there. Of course, at this point your enjoyment entirely depends on how much you enjoy the Supervision’s games, but there is no denying the value for money you get on this cartridge with the games alone! Despite this, there are still a couple of neat surprises to behold!
A beautiful custom intro dings into place upon booting.
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The menu, meanwhile is both slickly designed and professional in appearance. |
In addition to the regular Supervision library, scrolling to the end of the list you’ll also find a few extras! Both 2-1 carts released for the system have been included and are selectable. While these contain the same games you’ll find in the regular list, the fact that they can be accessed and loaded with their original menus is another aspect of attention to detail that adds to the preservation of the system's history.
Another addition is the ability to load up the original artwork that would display when using the Supervision with the TV-Link. While this may seem an entirely useless addition (it’s literally just some static artwork) it’s another sign of A2 Heaven trying to give you everything they can with this product.
The final oddity included is titled ‘Wataratest’ and appears to be designed specifically to test if your Supervision handheld is working correctly by running a series of diagnostics including the ability to test the d-pad and buttons with on screen displays and check waveforms and different types of scrolling! It’s fascinating, although a bit mindboggling to non-techy types like us. Again though, a really interesting inclusion.
Another addition is the ability to load up the original artwork that would display when using the Supervision with the TV-Link. While this may seem an entirely useless addition (it’s literally just some static artwork) it’s another sign of A2 Heaven trying to give you everything they can with this product.
The final oddity included is titled ‘Wataratest’ and appears to be designed specifically to test if your Supervision handheld is working correctly by running a series of diagnostics including the ability to test the d-pad and buttons with on screen displays and check waveforms and different types of scrolling! It’s fascinating, although a bit mindboggling to non-techy types like us. Again though, a really interesting inclusion.
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Despite having little clue what was going on ourselves, this bonus software is no doubt fascinating to those interested in technical side of the Supervision and coding for the machine.
Given how excited we were to acquire one, a big question we had about this flashcard was whether or not it would be compatible with the Supervision’s hard to find TV-Link output. We are not sure whether or not A2 Heaven were able to test this before release but we can confirm that it does indeed work exactly like any other cartridge on the flawed yet interesting peripheral.
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As with the actual games the TV Link displays the flashcart in glorious stretcho-vision along with inverted colours for your...err...enjoyment?
Conclusion
If this review reads like a paid advert then its only because we are so impressed that (a) someone somewhere is so dedicated to a handheld as unloved and ridiculed as the Supervision as we are and (b) that it really did turn out to be such a professional and well-crafted tribute to the system, incorporating an almost museum-like love for detail and preservation of the system’s history.
We bought the flashcart direct from A2-Heaven for the price of 55 GBP (it's also available via their eBay store) and, when one considers the cost and time it would take to otherwise assemble a complete Supervision collection, it more than represents value for money.
If you have been interested in the Supervision but put off by collecting games from overpriced eBay auctions then this is the perfect all in one solution, especially when the handhelds themselves can usually be purchased for around half this price it’s a small price to pay to own an almost complete slice of one handheld’s history.
We bought the flashcart direct from A2-Heaven for the price of 55 GBP (it's also available via their eBay store) and, when one considers the cost and time it would take to otherwise assemble a complete Supervision collection, it more than represents value for money.
If you have been interested in the Supervision but put off by collecting games from overpriced eBay auctions then this is the perfect all in one solution, especially when the handhelds themselves can usually be purchased for around half this price it’s a small price to pay to own an almost complete slice of one handheld’s history.
