Three days ago we closed our breakdown of the first Neo Geo AES+ hands-on video with one question left hanging: what about CRT output? There was no analog monitor at Plaion's Tokyo Game Show booth, and it was the one piece of the puzzle we cared about most. Well, it now has an answer, and it came from the least expected place: not from Plaion, but from a fan.

NeoGeoNow has published a second video, also shot by their collaborator Lolo Gallipat, with a title that leaves no doubt: "We Tested the NEOGEO AES+ on a CRT!". Watch it above or directly on YouTube: We Tested the NEOGEO AES+ on a CRT! (NeoGeoNow).

A Sony PVM smuggled onto the show floor

According to the channel, Plaion's booth had no analog device on hand: no CRT, no RGB. So Lolo brought his own Sony PVM-9042Q, the reference professional monitor for any retro purist, and got exclusive permission to plug it straight into the console's analog output. No middleman, no capture card: a direct cable from the AES+ to the PVM.

Metal Slug with real scanlines

The result is the scene we had been waiting for since the announcement: the Metal Slug logo — "SUPER VEHICLE-001" — filling the screen of an actual tube, with the real scan lines no digital filter ever quite nails. You can hear the excitement in the video: "I am absolutely mesmerized by how well this looks," the host says, holding the camera on the monitor a few extra seconds just so we can enjoy it.

This isn't post-production trickery or a simulation: it's the AES+'s own analog output driving a professional CRT, with the texture, glow and motion softness that not even the best HDMI scanline filter fully replicates.

HDMI and CRT, no need to pick a side

With this video, Plaion closes the loop left open in the previous hands-on: the AES+ works just as well on a modern TV over HDMI at 1080p as it does on a CRT through its analog output. That's exactly the call a relaunch of this size had to get right: not forcing anyone to pick a team. Whoever hooks it up to an HDTV gets a crisp picture; whoever still has a tube in the living room can plug it in directly and feel like it's 1996 again.

Our take

Between the hands-on with real hardware and now the confirmation that CRT output doesn't just exist but works "fantastically" (the channel's own words), this Tokyo Game Show week is turning into the best proof of life the AES+ could give after the scare of the delay. There are still things to confirm — final accessory pricing, whether scanline options make it into the HDMI output for anyone without a CRT handy — but the video leaves one thing clear: the console delivers on its promise, in both formats.

The channel already teases more exclusive content tomorrow. We'll cover it as soon as it drops.

Published: September 21, 2026