3DO Interactive Multiplayer is the name of a number of video game consoles released in 1993 and 1994 by Panasonic, Sanyo and Goldstar.  A 3DO Interactive Multiplayer from Goldstar The consoles were manufactured according to specifications created by The 3DO Company which were originally designed at the New Technology Group (which later became part of the 3DO Company) by Dave Needle and RJ Mical. The consoles had very advanced hardware features at the time: an ARM60 32-bit RISC CPU, two custom video co-processors, a custom 16-bit DSP and a custom math coprocessor. They also featured 2 megabytes of DRAM, 1 megabyte of VRAM, and a double speed CD-ROM drive for main storage. Up to 8 controllers could be daisy-chained on the system at once. In addition to special 3DO software, the system was able to play audio CDs (including support for CD+G) and view Photo CDs. However, many titles that did not utilize the console's full potential, a high price (roughly US$800 at release), and the inability of the console market to support multiple consoles put it in an early grave.
The 3DO software library really did exhibit some of the worst aspects of home video games at the time, even if a few gems were to be found. This was the dawn of CD-ROM gaming, so cutscenes of pixelated video footage dominated many titles at the expense of good gameplay. The best titles were usually ports of games from other systems--including Myst, Out of This World, and Star Control II. Other notable titles include Need For Speed, Cannon Fodder, Slayer , Killing Time, and the first console port of Super Street Fighter II Turbo,
which was superior to the original as it included CD sound.
In addition to the consoles, a 3DO Blaster ISA peripheral card for PCs which offered all the features of the home console was manufactured by Creative Technology.
The 3DO Company also designed a next-generation console called the M2, which was to use a PowerPC 602 processor, but the company abandoned the console business and sold the technology to Matsushita who never brought the system to the market.
See also
External Links
- Console Database (http://www.consoledatabase.com) - Information on the 3DO Interactive Multiplayer and the unreleased 3DO/Matsushita M2
- The 3DO FAQ (http://www.classicgaming.com/3dotoday/page1/3dofaq.txt)
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