The Mattel Hyperscan was released in 2006 to lukewarm consumer reception. Parents viewed it as a teenager’s system due to some of its “T for Teen” game ratings and teenagers viewed it as a children’s system due to its almost exclusive use of licensed characters from comics/movies/TV series. It had an innovative concept and nice design, but was ultimately plagued by long load times and minuscule developer support.

The first thing you’ll notice about the system is that Mattel did not go into this endeavor with their whole ass, so to speak. No, it was very much half-assed. There’s no reason the system should have had such slow load times, considering the fact that it uses basic CD-ROMs as its media format. The system has no shortage of RAM, which means the actual speed of the drive is to blame. 52X drives were incredibly common, and even dated, by the time the Hyperscan was on the market.

The console itself is relatively well-made, but the connection cords are flimsy by comparison. The a/v cables (composite) are wired directly into the console, which sucks because if the cords go bad you have to replace the whole unit. And the AC adapter uses a Genesis/NES style brick transformer (though it is a bit smaller) rather than an in-line power supply, so plugging into a power strip is a pain. Further, the cord on the power supply is pretty thin and doesn’t seem very durable. But thankfully, it’s just a common connector and a replacement power supply can be found at any Radioshack or similar store.

Perhaps the most obvious sign that Mattel was trying to save on costs is the packaging of the games. They come in cardboard cases (think Nintendo 64), but they’re NOT RE-SEALABLE. The top flap is actually glued down, so once you open a game it stays that way forever. Could it really have been difficult to use a simple flap design, so we could tuck the lid back into the case and close the damned game? And once you get into the box, what do you see? You see that your game comes in a fucking paper sleeve. Too cheap to spring for a damned jewel case, Mattel?

These cost-cutting measures are puzzling, because Mattel really went after Atari with the Intellivision back in the day. They spared no expense with manufacturing, development, advertising, sponsorships, etc. That’s clearly not the case with the Hyperscan.

So far the review has been mostly negative, but there are actually a few redeeming factors. First off, I like the controller. The controller layout is pretty familiar to most gamers. Essentially, it’s a Dualshock with only one analog stick and no D-Pad. The secondary shoulder buttons are also trigger-style, but other than that it’s going to be very similar. Here is what it looks like:

When you hold the controller in your hand, it feels a little weird at first. It’s very light and it doesn’t seem like there’s a lot to it. But once you get the feel of it, it’s actually a very nice controller. I like the tactile response from the buttons and the joystick works very well. As an aside, the controller connects with an old-school PS/2 (keyboard and mouse) connector, meaning it could easily be adapted to USB and used on your PC.

Getting more into the hardware of the system, there’s a few things to look at. One is the main draw of the system, the scanner, which we’ll get to later. Right now we’re going to take a look a the technical aspects of the system:
108mhz RISC 32-bit processor (for reference, the Dreamcast’s CPU runs at 200mhz)
16MB RAM (Dreamcast has 26MB total RAM)
640×480 native resolution
4X CDROM drive

The system should be able to push some decent looking 3D games, as those specifications far outclass those of the Nintendo 64 or Playstation. But 3D games cost money, so what we ended up getting was 2D games with poorly rendered 3D character models.

The system itself actually feels very sturdy. It has a folding clamshell design to reveal the scanner, and the disc tray is accessed via a pop-up lid not unlike that of the SEGA CD. It has a good weight to it and feels like it would hold up if you dropped it or stepped on it by accident. This is one thing Mattel got right; if you’re going to market a system to children, you have to make it tough.

Now, let’s take a look at the system itself:

It actually looks decent. It’s very compact and it lights up red while in use, like those sneakers you used to have that lit when you walked (how awesome were those?). Unlike most “children’s systems”, the Hyperscan doesn’t look out of place on my shelf between the Nintendo 64 and Playstation 3. It looks like it belongs next to other game consoles, whereas something like a V-Smile or Leapfrog looks like it belongs in a toy box.

And now is the time to talk about the scanner, which is the system’s big gimmick. Each game comes with the disc and six scannable cards. Booster packs are available for each game to expand things like the amount of characters, special attacks, abilities, levels, modes, and all sorts of other things. A prime example is X-Men, the pack-in game. When you go to play a game, it asks you to scan a character card. When you do so, your character loads on the screen. Then you can scan some stat upgrades or attack bonuses. As you play, your character gains experience and his attributes change. After you’re done, you re-scan the card and it saves the changes. It’s actually a pretty neat design, and it was made to combine two major childhood obsessions: video games and collectible card games. It adds a level of customization to every game you play, and you can trade cards with friends or use your character at his house on his system (now all you have to do is find someone else with a stupid Hyperscan). I suppose it is somewhat comparable to today’s DLC, except that you take physical ownership of the content and it’s way less expensive. Plus you can get rid of stuff you don’t like. But the idea is that you can customize and trade and build a game that you like; your levels, your characters, your attacks, your boss fights. If your friend has a Cyclops character card with badass stats, you could trade him your low-level Lady Deathstrike for it. Maybe you want to have a strong character and he wants to complete his collection.

A novel concept, really, but I kind of like it. It would have been cool to see how major publishers and developers could have utilized it.

As I mentioned earlier in the review, load times are an issue with the system. Remember waiting for Tomb Raider to load on PS1? Or the 3DO to boot up a game of Samurai Shodown? Well, that’s about how long it takes the Hyperscan to load. Maybe a little longer. Definitely a big check mark in the “negative” column.

There were only seven games made commercially for the system, and only five or six were released. Here is the entirety of the Hyperscan’s library:
X-Men
Marvel Heroes
Ben 10
Interstellar Wrestling League
Spider-Man
Avatar: The Last Airbender (May have been released in small quantities)
Nickelodeon Sports (finished but never released)

The games are on a standard CD-ROM, making them exceedingly easy to pirate. I own legitimate copies of the first two games on the list. X-Men is a poor Mortal Kombat clone. It has terrible load times and poor collision detection. One of those games that manages to be fun not because of its good aspects, but because of how ridiculous it is. You can even scan a finishing move card when you beat your opponent (FATALITY!). It’s really just a button mashing fest with some ridiculous moaning and voiceover work.

The other game, Marvel Heroes, is (surprisingly) pretty good. It’s nothing you’d actually buy a system over, but I found myself enjoying it. It’s a side-scrolling beat ‘em up in the vein of Streets of Rage. You can play as one of many Marvel comics characters including Hulk, Daredevil, and Captain America among others. The controls are simple enough. One face button jumps, two of them punch, one blocks, and the shoulder buttons do special attacks. There is plenty of action and the controls are responsive. My one complaint is that bosses don’t really react when you’re damaging them, but it didn’t really subtract from the fun. Also, your character seems to actually run slightly above the ground, but it doesn’t make a difference in the gameplay. You dodge obstacles, fight bad guys, and run through levels just like in the good ol’ days. You can even climb background objects like buildings or trees to collect powerups and other such things. Card expandability provides for more characters, more bosses, more levels, and even story modes for specific characters. Load screens during story modes contain nice little comic book panels. Overall, the game is nothing special, but it’s a lot better than I expected any Hyperscan game to be.

I haven’t played the rest of the system’s library, but the consensus online is that most of the games are actually pretty playable. I’m going to have to verify that for myself, but they’re so cheap that I don’t anticipate it taking me very long to complete my collection.

The biggest reason I bought the system, aside from the price, is that it has been cracked by the homebrew community. A few Atariage.com users have recently booted up proof of concept “Hello world” programs that let us know independent games are possible. The system has its own USB port and the games are once again on standard CD-ROM, so it will be trivially easy to distribute and load homebrew software. And the system’s relatively strong hardware capabilities mean that some pretty advanced games are definitely possible.

Overall, the Hyperscan is probably the worst system I own. But then again, there is a possibility for a bright future and the damned thing is crazy cheap. Young children actually seem to like its games more than you might think, so if you have a niece or nephew you might consider getting it for them. I bought a brand new system for less than 20 bucks and brand new games are generally under 5. You can easily find used systems in the ten dollar price range, and I would actually recommend buying one for that. There’s even a combo package that comes with two controllers, one game, and twelve scan cards on eBay right now for 16 bucks+shipping.

If I had to put a score on it, I’d probably give it a 4/10. But really, if homebrew takes off on it, it could be a hell of a lot higher.

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