CP System
The CP System (CPシステム, shīpī shisutemu, CPS for short) is an arcade system board developed by Capcom that ran game software stored on removable ROM cartridges. More than two dozen arcade titles were released for CPS-1, before Capcom shifted game development over to its successor, the CP System II.
 A CP System board | |
| Manufacturer | Capcom |
|---|---|
| Release date | July 29, 1988 |
| Discontinued | May 11, 1995 |
| CPU | Motorola 68000 (@ 10 MHz) |
| Display | Raster, 384 × 224 pixels (horizontal), 4096 colors |
| Input | 8-way joystick, from 3 to 6 buttons |
Out of all 33 released arcade games, titles such as Capcom's Street Fighter II, Street Fighter II', Street Fighter II Turbo as well as their previous 1989 spin-off Final Fight were perhaps the most popular and successful installments within the CPS library that would later be converted to various home consoles and handheld ports such as the Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Commodore 64, PlayStation, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Portable, Sega Genesis, Sega CD, Sega Saturn, ZX Spectrum, X68000, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Super NES, Virtual Console, Nintendo Switch, Game Boy Advance, Microsoft Windows, iOS, etc.
History
After a number of arcade game boards designed to run only one game, Capcom embarked upon a project to produce a system board that could be used to run multiple games, in order to reduce hardware costs and make the system more appealing to arcade operators.
The system was plagued by many bootleg versions of its games. In particular, there were so many bootleg versions of Street Fighter II that they were more common in some countries than the official version. This problem was virtually eliminated by Capcom in the later CP System II.
The CP System hardware was also utilized in Capcom's unsuccessful attempt at home console market penetration, the CPS Changer, a domestic version of the CP System similar to the Neo-Geo AES.
Technical specifications
- CPU:
- Primary: Motorola 68000 @ 10 MHz (some later boards 12 MHz)
- Secondary: Zilog Z80 @ 3.579 MHz
- Sound chips:
- Yamaha YM2151 @ 3.579 MHz
- Oki OKI6295 @ 1 MHz (7.576 kHz samples)
- Display
- Sprites:
- Simultaneously displayable: 256 (per scanlines)
- Sizes: 16x16, max. 16 colors (15 unique + 1 transparent)
- Vertical and horizontal flipping capability
- Tiles: Sizes 8x8, 16x16, 32x32 with 16 colors (15 unique + 1 transparent)
- Tile maps: 3 maps, 512x512, 1024x1024, 2048x2048 pixel
- 68K RAM: 64 KB WORK RAM + 192 KB VRAM (Shadow)
- PPU: 192 KB VRAM + 16 KB CACHE RAM
- Z80 RAM: 2 KB WORK RAM
List of games
| English title | Release date | Developer | Japanese title | Genre | Arcade System |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Forgotten Worlds | 1988-07-29 | Capcom | Lost Worlds (ロストワールド) |
Shoot 'em up | CP System |
| Ghouls'n Ghosts | 1988-12 | Capcom | Daimakaimura (大魔界村) |
Platformer | CP System |
| Strider | 1989-03 | Capcom | Strider Hiryū (ストライダー飛竜) |
Platformer | CP System |
| Dynasty Wars | 1989-04 | Capcom | Tenchi o Kurau (天地を喰らう) |
Beat 'em up | CP System |
| Willow | 1989-06 | Capcom | Willow (ウィロー) |
Platformer | CP System |
| U.N. Squadron | 1989-08 | Capcom | Area 88 (エリア88) |
Shoot 'em up | CP System |
| Final Fight | 1989-12-01 | Capcom | Final Fight (ファイナルファイト) |
Beat 'em up | CP System |
| Pang | 1989-12-31 | Capcom/Mitchell Corporation | Pang (パン, Pan), also known as Pomping World (Japanese: ポンピング・ワールド, Hepburn: Ponpingu Wārudo) |
Action | Capcom Mitchell Hardware |
| 1941: Counter Attack | 1990-02 | Capcom | 1941 (1941) |
Shoot 'em up | CP System |
| Mercs | 1990-03-02 | Capcom | Senjō no Ōkami II (戦場の狼Ⅱ) |
Run and gun | CP System |
| Mega Twins | 1990-06-19 | Capcom | Chiki Chiki Boys (チキチキボーイズ) |
Platformer | CP System |
| Magic Sword - Heroic Fantasy | 1990-06-23 | Capcom | Magic Sword (マジックソード) |
Platformer | CP System |
| Super Pang | 1990-09-19 | Capcom/Mitchell Corporation | Super Pang (スーパーパン) Super Buster Bros. (North America Also known as Super Buster Bros.) |
Shooter | Capcom Mitchell Hardware |
| Carrier Air Wing | 1990-10-09 | Capcom | U.S. Navy (U.S.NAVY) |
Shoot 'em up | CP System |
| Nemo | 1990-11-20 | Capcom | Nemo (ニモ) |
Platformer | CP System |
| Street Fighter II: The World Warrior | 1991-02-06 | Capcom | Street Fighter II: The World Warrior (ストリートファイターⅡ -The World Warrior-) |
Head-to-Head Fighting Game | CP System |
| Three Wonders | 1991-05-20 | Capcom | Wonder 3 (ワンダー3) |
Multigame | CP System |
| The King of Dragons | 1991-07-11 | Capcom | The King of Dragons (ザ・キングオブドラゴンズ) |
Beat 'em up | CP System |
| Block Block | 1991-09-10 | Capcom | Block Block (ブロックブロック) |
Puzzle | Capcom Mitchell Hardware |
| Captain Commando | 1991-09-28 | Capcom | Captain Commando (キャプテンコマンドー) |
Beat 'em up | CP System |
| Knights of the Round | 1991-11-27 | Capcom | Knights of the Round (ナイツオブザラウンド) |
Beat 'em up | CP System |
| Street Fighter II: Champion Edition | 1992-03-13 | Capcom | Street Fighter II′ (Dash): Champion Edition (ストリートファイターⅡダッシュ -Champion Edition-) |
Head-to-Head Fighting Game | CP System |
| Adventure Quiz: Capcom World 2 | 1992-06-11 | Capcom | Adventure Quiz Capcom World 2 (アドベンチャークイズカプコンワールド2) |
Quiz game | CP System |
| Varth: Operation Thunderstorm | 1992-06-12 | Capcom | Varth: Operation Thunderstorm (バース -オペレーションサンダーストーム-) |
Shoot 'em up | CP System |
| Quiz & Dragons: Capcom Quiz Game | 1992-07-01 | Capcom | Quiz & Dragons (クイズ&ドラゴンズ) |
Quiz game | CP System |
| Street Fighter II′ Turbo: Hyper Fighting | 1992-12-09 | Capcom | Street Fighter II′ (Dash) Turbo: Hyper Fighting (ストリートファイターⅡダッシュターボ -Hyper Fighting-) |
Head-to-Head Fighting Game | CP System |
| Ken Sei Mogura: Street Fighter II | 1994-04-18 | Capcom/Togo/Sigma | Ken Sei Mogura (拳聖土竜) |
Whack a mole | CP System |
| Pnickies[2] | 1994-06-08 | Capcom/Compile | Pnickies (ぷにっきいず) |
Puzzle game | CP System |
| Quiz Tonosama no Yabō 2: Zenkoku-ban | 1995-01-23 | Capcom | Quiz Tonosama no Yabō 2: Zenkoku-ban (クイズ 殿様の野望2 全国版) |
Quiz game | CP System |
| Pang! 3 | 1995-05-11 | Capcom/Mitchell Corporation | Platformer | CP System |
CP System Dash
 A CPS-1.5 board | |
| Manufacturer | Capcom |
|---|---|
| Release date | February 1, 1992 |
| Discontinued | December 6, 1993 |
| CPU | Motorola 68000 (@ 10 MHz) |
| Display | Raster, 384 × 224 pixels (horizontal), 3072 colors |
| Input | 8-way joystick, from 3 to 6 buttons |
A year before releasing the CP System II, Capcom released an enhanced version of the original CP System dubbed the CP System Dash, which had some features that would later be used in the CP System II, such as the QSound chips.
The CP System Dash boards have four interlocking PCBs and are contained in gray plastic boxes. To combat piracy, "suicide batteries" were implemented, which power the volatile RAM which contained the manual configuration of the display hardware registers, as well as the priorities registers. The CPS-1 Dash 68000 code is not encrypted at all. If the batteries' voltage should drop below +2V, the registers manually defined in factory by Capcom in RAM would be lost, and the PPU would no longer have access to the hardware specific register set on the game used, rendering the game inoperable, and necessitating the operator sending the board to Capcom to be fixed, at his own expense. Unlike the CP System II, CP System Dash sound ROMs were encrypted using "Kabuki" Z80s.
List of games
| English title | Release date | Developer | Japanese title | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cadillacs and Dinosaurs | 1992-02-01 | Capcom | Cadillacs Kyōryū Shinseiki (キャディラックス 恐竜新世紀) |
Beat 'em up |
| Warriors of Fate Sangokushi II (Asia) |
1992-10-02 | Capcom | Tenchi o Kurau II: Sekiheki no Tatakai (天地を喰らう2・赤壁の戦い) |
Beat 'em up |
| The Punisher | 1993-04-22 | Capcom | The Punisher (パニッシャー) |
Beat 'em up |
| Saturday Night Slam Masters | 1993-07-13 | Capcom | Muscle Bomber: The Body Explosion (マッスルボマー -The Body Explosion-) |
Sports game |
| Muscle Bomber Duo: Ultimate Team Battle | 1993-12-06 | Capcom | Muscle Bomber Duo: Heat Up Warriors (マッスルボマーDUO -Heat Up Warriors-) |
Sports game |
Capcom Power System Changer
A home version of the CP System, the Capcom Power System Changer or CPS Changer was released in late 1994 in Japan to compete against SNK's Neo Geo.[3] Capcom released the CPS Changer as an attempt to sell their arcade games in a home-friendly format. The CPS Changer adapter was basically an encased SuperGun (Television JAMMA adapter), and was compatible with most JAMMA standard PCBs. Capcom's "protection" against people using the CPS Changer on other arcade boards was the physical shape of the device. On a normal JAMMA PCB it would not attach firmly and tended to lean at odd angles, but it would work. The CPS Changer has outputs for composite video, S-video and line-level mono audio.
The CPS Changer featured Super Famicom controller ports, allowing the use of all Super NES controllers, including their six-button joystick, the "CPS Fighter".
All of the CPS Changer games used the CPS arcade hardware. The CPS Changer games were simply arcade PCBs in a special plastic shell suitable for home use. This concept was later re-used in the CP System II hardware. Some CPS1 games were changed slightly for home release, sometimes including debugging features or other easter eggs.
The CPS Changer was sold as a package deal of the console itself, one CPS Fighter joystick controller, and the Street Fighter II ′ (Dash) Turbo game for 39,800 yen. Additional games were sold for about 20,000 yen.
The final game for the CPS Changer was a back-ported version of Street Fighter Zero. Originally released on the CP System II hardware, this special CPS Changer version, released at a premium 35,000 yen, was degraded slightly for the older hardware: it had fewer frames of animation for the game characters, fewer onscreen colors, and the sound and music effects were sampled at a lower rate.
List of games
| Release date | Developer | English title | Japanese title | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Capcom | Warriors of Fate Sangokushi II (Asia) |
Tenchi o Kurau II: Sekiheki no Tatakai (天地を喰らう2・赤壁の戦い) |
Beat 'em up |
| 1994 | Capcom | Capcom World 2: Adventure Quiz | Adventure Quiz Capcom World 2 (アドベンチャークイズカプコンワールド2) |
Quiz game |
| 1995 | Capcom | Captain Commando | Captain Commando (キャプテンコマンドー) |
Beat 'em up |
| 1994 | Capcom | Final Fight | Final Fight (ファイナルファイト) |
Beat 'em up |
| 1995 | Capcom | Knights of the Round | Knights of the Round (ナイツオブザラウンド) |
Beat 'em up |
| 1995 | Capcom | Muscle Bomber Duo: Ultimate Team Battle | Muscle Bomber Duo: Heat Up Warriors (マッスルボマーDUO -Heat Up Warriors-) |
Sports game |
| 1994 | Capcom | Saturday Night Slam Masters | Muscle Bomber: The Body Explosion (マッスルボマー -The Body Explosion-) |
Sports game |
| 1994 | Capcom | Street Fighter II′: Champion Edition | Street Fighter II Dash: Champion Edition (ストリートファイターⅡダッシュ -Champion Edition-) |
Versus Fighting |
| 1994, pack-in | Capcom | Street Fighter II′ Turbo: Hyper Fighting | Street Fighter II Dash Turbo: Hyper Fighting (ストリートファイターⅡダッシュターボ -Hyper Fighting-) |
Versus Fighting |
| 1995 | Capcom | Street Fighter Alpha | Street Fighter Zero (ストリートファイターZERO) |
Versus Fighting |
| 1995 | Capcom | The King of Dragons | The King of Dragons (ザ・キングオブドラゴンズ) |
Beat 'em up |
See also
References
- "CP System arcade system by Capcom Co., Ltd. (1988)".
- "Pnickies". Killer List of Videogames. 2017. Retrieved October 16, 2017.
- "Capcom's Home Arcade System". Electronic Gaming Monthly. Ziff Davis (67): 50. February 1995.
External links
- CPS-1 at System 16 - The Arcade Museum
- GameSX Power Stick Analysis — looking at the features and functions of the A10CA stick
- CPS-1, CPS-2 and CPS-3 releases comparison at UVL
- Full list of CP System ROMs