The global semiconductor shortage, colloquially dubbed 'RAMageddon,' is severely impacting retro gaming hardware manufacturers, forcing them to procure components years ahead of schedule. Andrew Byatt, CEO of Blaze Entertainment, the company behind the Evercade retro gaming consoles and cartridges, revealed that the firm has exhausted its cash reserves to hoard essential parts.
Evercade devices, priced between $70 and $200, utilize flash-based cartridges for classic games, a model that appeals to collectors seeking a tangible connection to their gaming experiences. The cartridges themselves, ranging from 128MB to 1GB in memory, are sold for approximately $30. Byatt explained that Blaze Entertainment has already purchased the majority of cartridge chips needed through 2027. "We bought as much as we could in terms of cash flow," he told FRVR. "We bought as many cartridge chips, as much RAM, and as much processors and all the rest of it."
The escalating prices are a significant concern. "The 512 [megabytes] are more expensive [now] than the 1GB chips were…and the 1GB ones are very, very expensive right now," Byatt noted. The impact extends beyond just RAM, with the entire supply chain for components experiencing unprecedented chaos.
Unlike previous supply chain disruptions, such as the heightened freight costs during the pandemic, Byatt characterized the current situation as far more severe. "It’s bigger than anything else that’s happened," he stated. "It’s bigger than [when] we had massive freight costs." He added, "We didn’t sort of have a life before covid pricing to compare against. So we were in 2020 onwards, but this is vastly different to everything else we’ve ever seen, actually."
Industry observers note that companies are no longer waiting for prices to stabilize, anticipating continued worsening conditions over the next few years. This is largely attributed to the intense competition among artificial intelligence companies vying to develop advanced models and expand their data center infrastructure, both of which are heavy consumers of memory and processing chips. One Valve engineer, speaking anonymously, observed that current retail stock levels are a lagging indicator, reflecting bulk supply conditions from three to six months prior.