A Closer Look at the Aladdin Deck Enhancer, an NES Accessory You Probably Never Knew Existed

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Released in November 1992, Codemasters and Camerica’s Aladdin Deck Enhancer is basically a cartridge-based system that enabled you to run software on Compact Cartridges on the NES. Unfortunately, only seven of the twenty-four planned games were released before production was ended. Simply put, this accessory contained a bypass Security Circuit Chip, a Memory Control Chip, and a Graphics Chip that would work with the lock-out chip and other features inside the Nintendo Entertainment System. The goal was to provide a lower-cost way to make the game cartridges.

Since Camerica was one of the major curators of unlicensed NES games, the Deck Enhancer was a logical product for them. Plus, the slot for the actual game was much smaller, which meant less material was needed to produce a cartridge. There was just one problem…by the time it was released, both the Super NES and SEGA Genesis were already on the market, so it never got the chance to really take off. Camerica never recovered from the release and shortly after was forced to close down, but in turn, this made the Aladdin Deck Enhancer a valuable collectible.