How clones and copycats shaped the Brazilian games industry

What was your first console? A Commodore 64, SNES, Sega Megadrive, or Nintendo 64? Perhaps even a PlayStation?

Well, how about a Phantom System? If you're from Brazil, I imagine your eyes just lit up. The rest of you are probably sat there scratching your head, wondering what on earth a 'Phantom System' is.

Don't worry, you're not alone. You see, the South American nation has had a very different relationship with the video game industry than the rest of the world.

The hardware many around the globe were brought up with simply didn't arrive in the country until much later. So, while others were busy marveling at Nintendo's latest creation, developers and designers in Brazil were hard at work building up their own video game industry by any means necessary. 

As shown in the new Red Bull Parallels documentary series, the Brazilian game scene was founded on clones and copycats.

With no other way to get hardware into the country, the industry's best, brightest, and most daring began to create hugely popular console clones such as the Phantom System, a NES compatible Famiclone release by Gradiente. 

The copycat console would play legitimate NES titles smuggled in from countries such as Paraguay, and could also run Famicom titles through the use of an adapter. 

Due to its success, the Phantom System eventually caught the attention of Nintendo, which chose to fight back using the 'hearts and minds' tactic by manufacturing and selling its hardware in Brazil with the help of Gradiente themselves. It was a huge win for the Brazilian company, and the region's burgeoning games scene. 

For more bizarre tales from the Brazilian games industry, from stories of copycat arcade cabinets and pinball machines to game-changing mods, you can watch the complete Red Bull Parallels series right here.