Neo Geo
A powerful arcade and home platform with identical hardware.
The Neo Geo, often written as NEO•GEO, is a video game platform that SNK Corporation launched in 1990. It came in two cartridge-based formats: the MVS (Multi Video System) arcade board and the AES (Advanced Entertainment System) home console. A CD-ROM version, the Neo Geo CD, followed in 1994. The arcade cabinet could hold several cartridges that could be swapped out, a rare feature at a time when most arcade machines were built around a single game, which made it a favorite among arcade operators.
SNK marketed the Neo Geo as the first 24-bit system, though its main CPU is a 16/32-bit 68000 paired with an 8-bit Z80 coprocessor, while the graphics chipset uses a 24-bit data bus. When it debuted, it was far more powerful than any home console on the market, and it outperformed rival arcade hardware like Capcom’s CPS, which did not catch up until the CP System II arrived in 1993.
The AES originally launched only as a rental unit for Japanese video game stores, called the Neo Geo Rental System, because high manufacturing costs kept SNK from selling it at retail. Strong demand later reversed that decision, and it became a luxury console. Adjusted for inflation, it was the most expensive home console ever released at the time, costing $649.99. The AES shared identical hardware with the MVS, so home players got the exact same arcade experience, but the cartridges were physically different sizes and not interchangeable, meaning each system had its own software lineup.
The MVS thrived in the 1990s thanks to its low cabinet cost, multiple cartridge slots, and compact size. It hosted many hit series, including *Fatal Fury*, *Art of Fighting*, *Samurai Shodown*, *World Heroes*, *The King of Fighters*, *Twinkle Star Sprites*, and *Metal Slug*. Game production for the platform continued until 2004, making it the longest-supported arcade system ever. The AES found a very small audience in Japan, and sales in the U.S. were low because both the hardware and software were extremely expensive, but it later gained a cult following and is now considered a collectible. Worldwide, one million MVS units and 410,000 AES units were sold.
Quick Facts
- Manufacturer
- SNK Corporation
- Generation
- Fourth
- Price
- 649.99
- Discontinued
- 1997 (AES), 2004 (MVS)
- Units Sold
- 1 million (MVS) / 410,000 (AES)
- Media
- ROM cartridge
- Cpu
- Motorola 68000 @ 12 MHz / Zilog Z80A @ 4 MHz
- Memory
- 64 KB RAM, 84 KB VRAM, 2 KB sound memory
- Storage
- Memory card
- Display
- 320×224 resolution, 3840 on-screen colors out of a palette of 65536
- Sound
- Yamaha YM2610
- Dimensions
- 325 × 237 × 60 mm (12.8 × 9.3 × 2.4 inches)
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The Neo Geo hardware was an evolution of an older SNK/Alpha Denshi M68000 arcade platform used in Time Soldiers in 1987, further developed in the SNK M68000 hardware platform as used for P.O.W.: Prisoners of War in 1988. The system's hardware specifications were finalized in December 1989. Takashi Nishiyama left Capcom, where he had created the fighting game Street Fighter (1987), to join SNK after they invited him to join the company. There, he was involved in developing the Neo Geo. He proposed the concept of an arcade system that uses ROM cartridges like a game console, and also proposed a home console version of the system. The Neo Geo was announced and demonstrated on January 31, 1990, in Osaka, Japan. The system was then released in Japan on April 16, 1990. Initially, the AES home system was only available for rent to commercial establishments. When customer response indicated that some gamers were willing to buy a console, SNK expanded sales and marketing into the home console market in 1991. The AES had identical hardware to the MVS, allowing home users to play the games exactly as they were in the arcades; however, cartridges are not inter-compatible due to different physical sizes. The Neo Geo's graphics and sound are largely superior to other contemporary home consoles, computers (such as the X68000) and even some arcade systems.
Reader's Guide
The Neo Geo MVS was a success during the 1990s due to the cabinet's low cost, multiple cartridge slots, and compact size. The arcade system can hold multiple cartridges that can be exchanged out, a unique feature that contrasted to the dedicated single-game arcade cabinets of its time, making it popular with arcade operators. Several successful video game series were released for the platform, such as Fatal Fury, Art of Fighting, Samurai Shodown, World Heroes, The King of Fighters, Twinkle Star Sprites and Metal Slug; game software production lasted until 2004, making Neo Geo the longest-supported arcade system of all time. The AES had a very niche market in Japan, though sales were very low in the U.S. due to its high price for both the hardware and software, but it has since gained a cult following and is now considered a collectable. When real-time 3D graphics became the norm in the arcade industry, the Neo Geo's 2D hardware was unable to produce them. Despite this, Neo Geo arcade games retained profitability through the mid-1990s, and the system was one of three 1995 recipients of the American Amusement Machine Association's Diamond Awards. SNK developed a new home console in 1994, called the Neo Geo CD. A new arcade system was also made in 1997, called Hyper Neo Geo 64. However, these two systems had low popularity and only a few games. While it ceased manufacturing home consoles by the end of 1997, SNK continued making software for the original 2D Neo Geo. The last official game by SNK for the Neo Geo system, Samurai Shodown V Special, was released in 2004, 14 years after the system's introduction.
Did You Know?
- The Neo Geo AES was originally released solely as a rental console for video game stores in Japan called the Neo Geo Rental System.
- The Neo Geo MVS can hold multiple cartridges that can be exchanged out, unlike dedicated single-game arcade cabinets.
- The Neo Geo AES had identical hardware to the MVS, allowing home users to play games exactly as in the arcades.
- The last official SNK game for the Neo Geo, Samurai Shodown V Special, was released in 2004.
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