Simple 2960 Vol. 1 is one of those weird little GBA collections Japan loved to crank out—basically a grab bag of classic table games with a retro aesthetic. You get shogi, mahjong, hanafuda, and a few others, all crammed into that tiny cartridge. The pixel art’s charming, though some of the rules explanations are a bit rough if you’re not already familiar with traditional Japanese games.

First time I booted it up, I just mashed through menus until I landed on hanafuda because the card art looked nice. Took me a solid five minutes to realize I had no idea what I was doing. But hey, that’s half the fun with these obscure imports. If you’re into niche stuff or just want a portable way to learn shogi between bus rides, it’s got its weird little appeal.

Just don’t expect flashy animations or hand-holding tutorials—this is barebones, old-school tabletop gaming at its most straightforward.