Lik-Sang Pulls Generation NEX from Sales Catalog
November 18th, 2005 by Benj Edwards
Chris Gregory, a VC&G reader, alerted me today that Lik-Sang, once taking pre-orders for the much-hyped Generation NEX console, has now dropped the product from its sales catalog, citing disappointment with an evaluation model they tested and also the rather negative VC&G review I posted on 11/03/2005. This move on Lik-Sang’s part really impresses me, because it shows that they care enough about their reputation to pull a product that doesn’t live up the promises of the manufacturer. Lik-Sang definitely has class. According to Chris Gregory, they have also gone above and beyond the call of duty for him in tracking down problems with hardware they sell, once even going out of their way to obtain an Australian NES to test product compatibility (incidentally, the product in question was Messiah’s wireless NES pads). Pasted below is the email that Lik Sang sent out to all the people who pre-ordered a NEX. Once again, thanks to Chris for the help.
Dear Chris Gregory,
You are receiving this e-mail because you have pre-ordered a Generation NEX.
We have taken the decision to drop this item from the Lik-Sang product catalogue, as our initial disappointment with an evaluation sample has been confirmed by the bad reviews it has received in the press. For some examples, please see the following sites:
http://us.gizmodo.com/gadgets/gadgets/generation-nex-new
-old-school-suckiness-135324.phpHowever, if you are looking for a famiclone you may be interested in the Pocket Famicom, a portable system that comes with a TV-Out connection. You can read more about it here: http://www.lik-sang.com/info.php?category=182&
products_id=6347&Please note that your order no. xxxxxx will be canceled and refunded within 48 hours. Please note that depending on the payment method used, the refund may take up to a couple of weeks to show up on your account.
If you prefer, you may choose to receive a refund in Store Credit on your Lik-Sang Customer Account. This is the quickest and most convenient available option, as it avoids bank and financial fees that are associated with other money transfers.
Please accept our apologies for this inconvenience.
With best regards,
Your Lik-Sang Team
———————————-
Lik-Sang.com – Alternative Gaming Community
As a side note, it’s kinda funny that the two reviews they cited were actually just one: there’s the one I posted on this blog, and then there’s a link to a news blog that quotes another news blog that quotes my review as its source. Crazy. I bet Messiah really hates my guts now. I hope they don’t hire a hit on me. Of course, they should hate their own guts for releasing such a crappy product.
November 18th, 2005 at 9:55 pm
I will add that their advice about the Pocket Famicom is pretty sound: it’s a nice solid little unit with a TV out and good compatibility, so if you really want to play Famicom games it’s a good way to go. The only hassles are that you need to modify some NES pads to use the old 9-pin Atari style inputs, and that using full-sized NES carts with and an adapter is unwieldy.
November 21st, 2005 at 2:02 am
Red, I guess now you can refer to yourself as “the press”!!
November 21st, 2005 at 5:49 pm
Yeah, it’s scary, isn’t it.
November 25th, 2005 at 2:57 pm
I requested a refund on my order for a Generation NEX about a week ago. PR told me that towards the end of the first 1/4 next year, they will be releasing an improved version of the system.
Their main aim is the music problems, the video shift, and they hope to be able to fix the graphical errors in the majority of the games.
Messiah has also updated their website to clarify that the NEX isn’t 100% compatible. (and don’t forget the campatibility list) What other company would even bother to do this? Messiah screwed up, but they aren’t the slime everyone is making them out to be.
I like messiah as a company, and hope they can resolve the issues with the NEX. Messiah does make good products (in whole). With the exception to the NEX, Messiahs products have no current competitors. I’d hate to see any decent company that is dedicated to making unique classic gaming products just fade and die. Companies like this are few and far between, and I hope messiah sticks around.
I would really like to see this system succeed, so I’m crossing my fingers. You can’t expect full compatibility, but for 60 bucks we should expect a system that is AT LEAST as good as its $40 competitors. I plan on picking a new version when it comes out.
Keep in mind that the concept and design of the system was conceived by two videogamers (the owners and only employees of Messiah), but the internals were not designed by them. They were outsourced. It was a poor call to release it without themselves recieving one and fully testing it first, and make it seem like “the clone to end all nes clones”, but oh, well. Lesson learned.
They didn’t intend to screw everyone. The way I see it, it was an unintentional suicide. Because of a few problems on their first try in making a clone, they get labelled slimey andas a crappy company. Keep in mind, the problems that the NEX has are problems that are common in many of its competitors who are third and fourth generation attempts.
Aside form all the negatives that I hear about it, it seems like a decent clone and a good first effort. Hopefully the major problems will be fixed for the next iteration. I’m not expecting full compatibility, but I do expect the music and video problems will be fixed, and for it to be as good as my buddy’s Yobo.
I don’t think that messiah is just going to let this thing go either. I think they are going to improve the product to meet ther expectations and uphold the reputation they had before all this crap started.
November 25th, 2005 at 3:49 pm
But even if what you say is true, Teknik, until they release a new version, they’re going to let everyone pay $60 for a rough draft. If Messiah offers to replace the “first gen” NEXs that people bought with the revised model for free, I think that would be a great show of good will towards the community. Of couse, who knows whether or not the revised model will actually be better. Only time will tell. Either way, Messiah really dropped the ball with this whole NEX thing; digging their way out will be really tough — if it’s possible at all.
November 28th, 2005 at 4:58 pm
Well I am still glad I got a Generation NEX. I had a good time playing Geomon on it.
November 30th, 2005 at 10:36 pm
Messiah needs to focus on the wireless controllers for now — at least until they can get a more polished product. I’m trying to push gamers to ask for Saturn and Dreamcast wireless controllers to be produced
Want Wireless Dreamcast and Saturn Controllers?
December 2nd, 2005 at 5:28 pm
In a few years, nobody will remember the NEX, and those who ditched their real NES for a NEX will be selling their NEX on Ebay in order to buy a refurbished NES.
December 9th, 2005 at 2:02 pm
I don’t think it is a rough draft, I think they didn’t get what their manufacturer promised, and that’s the way it turned out. It WAS stupid on their part for not knowing the total specs and making them publicly known before shipping.
If in a month a more backaards compatible x360 was released, would you expect microsoft offer refunds to all those that already owned one? do you think they would pull all the x360s on retail shelves and in the warehouses out of their boxes and fix them? Further more, would you expect microsoft to even tell anyone about this imporvement until they sold all their less desirable units?
So after that thought, do you expect a 2 person company to do that? how would they finance it?
The point is, the NEX is a fine clone as is, but they intend to make it better. There are no fatal flaws like the PS2 had with faulty tray motors etc which warrants a return and replacement program.
Again, i too am disappointed that the NEX didn’t turn out as great as it was hyped up to be, but oh well. If people aren’t satisfied, they have the option to return the product. No one said, you bought it so ‘too bad’ you can’t take it back. I bought one, and decided I wanted to wait for version 2. and anyone else that owns one or ordered one had/has the opportunity to do the same.
This was attempt number one for messiah. good show I’d say. I don’t think that we have read the final chapter in the history of the NEX just yet.
I never kenw about Messiah’s interest in dreamcast and saturn controllers, however its probably going to be a wihle before we see them, since the genny 2600 and advantage controllers are next on the list and there is no set date for them. (E3 2206 maybe????) either way I cant wait for the advantage and genny controllers, and saturn and dreamcast controllers would be amazing too!
like i said before, it would be a shame for messiah to go down cuz of the NEX ‘problems’. They have so many other desireable products in the works that it seems no one is going to make, and I’d be seriously disappointed if these products never made it to us, the gamers