Sometimes, just the number of games on an Evercade cartridge can be slightly off-putting.

After all, with 20 games on the Piko Interactive Collection 1, for example, you might immediately balk at the fact that a cartridge such as Morphcat Games Collection 1 is only promoted as having three games included.

It’s not even necessarily a quality over quantity argument, as the aforementioned Piko Interactive Collection 1, while not full of masterpieces, definitely contains more than three games that are worth spending plenty of time with.

So that number and its perceived value, rightly or wrongly, may immediately put a cartridge like Morphcat Games Collection 1 on the back foot, from a value perspective.

However, what I can tell you from my many hours spent playing the games included in Morphcat Games Collection 1 is that it’s definitely worth investing in – and it becomes even more essential if you own an Evercade VS.

That’s because 3 of the 3 (plus two bonus games; they really should have just avoided confusion and put a 5 on the box) games included are solid multiplayer experiences, as well as being great single player games in their own right.

First up, we have Micro Mages and its standalone expansion, Micro Mages: Second Quest (the latter of which is one of the ‘bonus games’ on the cartridge).

These are addictive platformers – originally NES ‘new retro’ titles, as are all of the games on this cartridge – with responsive controls and a real pick up and play immediacy.

Basically, you need to get your tiny mages to the level’s exit, avoiding misbehaving enemies, shooting through obstacles and trying to stay ahead of the ever vertically scrolling screen.

Though a superb and very addictive game if approached with a single Mage, in multiplayer – with up to four players supported simultaneously – it becomes an absolutely chaotic, hilarious experience.

If you have an Evercade VS and four controllers (with the VS supporting pretty much any USB controller, you’re highly likely to be able to get four players involved), the Micro Mages titles alone make this an absolutely essential cartridge to get your hands on.

Though Micro Mages: Second Quest is pretty much more of the same, it’s a welcome inclusion and really should have been treated as an extra title, rather than relegated to the status of ‘bonus game’.

How about the second bonus game then?

That’s the Super Bat Puncher Demo, created as a homebrew title for the NES in 2011. It’s a platform game with unique, springy punching mechanics – again, it’s pretty much good enough, if not long enough, to have been included as something other than a ‘bonus’ here.

Water-based title Böbl casts you in the role of a bubble, trying to make your way around a tortuously designed, labyrinthine world to find lost rubber ducks.

The twist here is that anything solid can kill you upon touch (at least initially).

Böbl is definitely a unique experience, but its difficulty level and lack of any kind of map knocks my willingness to recommend it down a few notches – it can veer too far over the thin line between challenging and frustrating at times, though it does at least gift you with infinite lives and a fairly generous, if sometimes inconsistent, checkpointing system.

Lastly, we have my favourite game on the cartridge: Spacegulls.

Taking the flapping, head bouncing mechanics of iconic arcade classic Joust and plonking them into a Mega Man style platformer, Spacegulls is tough – with some difficulty spikes that can be very frustrating – but plays beautifully.

Its level and enemy design is superb – there’s also plenty of checkpoints – plus, you even have the option for two players to take part simultaneously, with both of you attempting to rescue your little space chicks at the same time!

Even if you don’t have an Evercade VS (with the Evercade handhelds, you are of course locked into single player only experiences), Morphcat Games Collection 1 is an excellent addition to any owner of the retro-focused console.

If you do have a VS, this cartridge is one I’d recommend over and above almost any other as one to demonstrate the console’s charms to your friends.

You can purchase the Morphcat Games Collection 1 cartridge from Amazon here.