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Famiclone refers to any non-licensed or "Pirate" piece of electronic hardware designed to replicate, or "clone", the workings of and play games designed for the Nintendo Famicon (or, as it is called in America, the Nintendo Entertainment System/NES). Famiclones have been around in dozens if not hundreds of forms for almost as long as the real console upon which they're based. Most variations originate from mainland Asian countries, especially China and South Korea, while most European versions come from Russia and other ex-USSR nations.

Note: because of their unlicensed status, all Famiclones are illegal most everywhere (including the USA and UK), and all information provided herein is strictly for educational use only.

Because Famiclones are not officially licensed, they vary extremely in areas such as build/hardware quality, available games and overall performance. Most Famiclones are made extremely cheaply and show it, while a few are comperable to first-party hardware in their manufacture. In terms of appearance and basic build, there are three general types of Famiclones:

1. Console type: This type of Famiclone is designed to look just like a real video game console. Most often this type resembles the original Famicon, but others can look like the NES, SNES, Sega Master System, Sony PSX/PSOne, or simply be in any type of generic console shape. Usually it is easy to tell a Famiclone from the real hardware it imitates by the presence of either alternate coloring, brand names which do not match the real console's, or wak construction. Console type Famiclones almost always utilize cartridges, and they are usually compatible with either real Famicon/NES games or custom-made pirate carts (especially multi-carts, pirate game cartridges which hold a large number of games as opposed to just one) Console Famiclones are most popular in Asia and Europe, with few actively sold in America due to their obbviously pirated origin.

2. Controller type: This genre of Famiclone, popular in America, is designed to hold all the console's hardware in the shape of a regular game console controller, usually the N64's. Also known as "NES-on-a-chip"s due to their extremely miniaturized hardware (relative to the original NES), these controllers usually eschew or at least downplay a game cartridge interface in favor of storing emulated games directly in internal memory chips. These Famiclones can often run off battery as well as AC power, making them popular for portable usage. These clones have become especially popular in the USA thanks to the new "TV-Games" fad of selling legitimately emulated classic arcade games in a traditional-looking controller (Atari games are especially common). Controller clones can usually be found in places like flea markets, mall kiosks or independent toy stores, and most people who sell and buy them in the US are unaware that they are in fact illegally made.

3. Computer type: These Famiclones are designed to resemble either 80's-style computers or the real Famicon's BASIC kit. Usually, these clones consist of the same hardware as the Console type, but put inside a keyboard instead of a console look-a-like. Besides the added keys (which are not always functional) and different shape, however, this type is more or less identical to the console type.

Besides these characteristics, there are many hallmarks of the Famiclone: cheap materials, extremely garbled English speech on the packaging (if bought in an English-speaking country), and, of course, games which are extremely unlikely to have been licensed legally (such as Mario Bros., Donkey Kong, Contra, etc.). Basically, if it looks like a NES, plays like an NES, but isn't an NES, it's a Famiclone.

Famiclone prices also vary wildly, not only because there are so many, but because their illegal nature makes it all but impossible for their makers to effectively impose an MSRP. The same Famiclone can be bought in one store for $70 or more, and in another $20 or less. Price mostly depends on A) who the reseller's source is and what they charge, and B) How much profit the store attempts to make. Price varies mostly depending on clone type, size, number of games included (usually wildly misrepresented, with some clones claiming hundreds of thousands of games as opposed to the usual several dozen), and whether a second controller or light gun peripheral is included. Things like build quality vary wildly as well, with price rarely reflecting how solid a particular clone is. Also, many clones are designed to resemble each other, creating a "clone-of-a-clone" market of Famiclones attempting to undercut each other.