Tweet
The upcoming Super NES mini console is more than just a SNES emulator. Like its predecessor, it harkens back to a time where physical cartridges allowed for the integration of custom hardware on a per-game basis that would evolve the capabilities of the base hardware. The Super NES - or Super Famicom, if you like - took that to the next level, not least with the introduction of the SuperFX chip, bringing hardware-based 3D to the 16-bit era. The SNES mini features Nintendo's first ever official emulation of that chip, but SuperFX is just one example of custom hardware that improved the console's capabilities. For starters, the SNES mini features emulation of two different SuperFX processors - as evidenced by the retro console's support for Star Fox, its sequel and Yoshi's Island. But it's not just the integration of the hardware that is fascinating - it's the implementation of it, and how Nintendo utilised the extra power alongside the console's native capabilities.
At the most basic level, the SuperFX chip is a 16-bit RISC processor with DSP functions. The original version ran at 10.74Mhz and enabled the system to perform the necessary calculations required for 3D. The chip does not feature any special hardware for rendering polygons, however, and instead relies on the programmer to write their own software rasteriser. Judged by today's standards, Star Fox runs at a very low frame-rate (we regularly encounter sub-10fps areas) but the game is designed well enough that it's still remarkably fun to play. The FX chip is used for most functions in the game.
Read more…
More...