 | |
 The first 3DO machine, Panasonic FZ-1 R.E.A.L. 3DO Interactive Multiplayer | |
| Developer | The 3DO Company |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Panasonic,Sanyo,GoldStar,Creative Technology |
| Type | Home video game console |
| Generation | Fifth |
| Release date | |
| Introductory price |
|
| Discontinued |
|
| Units sold |
|
| Media | CD-ROM |
| CPU | 32-bit customRISC CPU (ARM60) @ 12.5 MHz[5] |
| Memory | 2 MBRAM, 32 KBSRAM, 1 MBVRAM |
| Storage | 32 KBSRAM |
| Display | 320×240 @ 60 Hz, 384×288 @ 50 Hz; 16-bit palettized color (from 24-bit) or 24-bit true color. |
| Graphics | Panasonic FZ-1 "Madam" graphics accelerator |
| Sound | Panasonic FZ-1 "Clio" DSP: 16-bit stereo @ 44.1 kHz, 4-Channel Dolby Surround; |
| Online services | Planned but canceled[6] |
| Best-selling game | Gex (1+ million)[7][8][note 1] |
| Successor | Panasonic M2 (canceled) |
3DO is avideo gaming hardware format developed byThe 3DO Company and conceived byElectronic Arts founderTrip Hawkins.[10][11][12] The specifications were originally designed byDave Needle andRJ Mical of New Technology Group, and were licensed by third parties; most hardware were packaged ashome video game consoles under the nameInteractive Multiplayer, andPanasonic produced the first models in 1993 with further renditions released afterwards by manufacturersGoldStar,Sanyo,Creative Labs, andSamsung Electronics.
Centered around a 32-bitARM60RISC-type processor and a custom graphics chip, the format was initially marketed as amultimedia one but this had shifted into purely video games within a year of launching.[12] Despite having a highly promoted launch (including being namedTime magazine's "1993 Product of the Year"), the oversaturated console market and the system's mixed reviews prevented it from achieving success comparable to competing consoles fromSega andSony, leading to its discontinuation by 1996. In 1997, The 3DO Company sold its "Opera" hardware toSamsung,[13] a year after offloading itsM2 successor hardware to Panasonic.
The 3DO format was the brainchild ofElectronic Arts (EA) founderTrip Hawkins; while at EA, he found himself frustrated with the limitations of developing software for different platforms that were incompatible with each other. Hawkins was inspired to create his own platform from his repeated recollection of acartoon he saw on a wall at his previous employer,Apple Computer: it consisted of twovultures on a branch, with one suggesting to the other that they kill something instead of waiting toscavenge.[14] Hawkins formed a unit within EA to work on the platform, but when it was spun off asThe 3DO Company on September 12, 1991, he found no one willing to oversee it; he ultimately relinquished his role aschief executive of EA to oversee it himself while remaining at EA as itschairman.[14][15] The 3DO name itself was an abbreviation of "three-dimensional optics", though it was also a play on the words "audio" and "video".[14] The 3DO Company's objective was to create a next-generation, CD-based video game/entertainment standard which would be manufactured by various partners and licensees; 3DO would collect a royalty on each console sold and on each game manufactured. Togame publishers, the lowUS$3 royalty rate per game was a better deal than the higher royalties paid toNintendo andSega when making games for their consoles. The 3DO hardware itself was designed byDave Needle andRJ Mical (designers of theAtari Lynx), starting from an outline on a restaurant napkin in 1989.[15] Trip Hawkins was a long-time acquaintance of Needle and Mical and found that their design very closely fit his philosophy for architecture and approach, so he decided: "Rather than me start a brand-new team and starting from scratch, it just made a lot of sense to ... join forces with them and shape what they were doing into what I wanted it to be."[15] The company demonstrated a prototype unit at the WinterConsumer Electronics Show in January 1993, where attendees marveled at the console's graphical capabilities;[16] industry analysts considered them unprecedented compared to those of contemporary consoles and personal computers.[17][18]
The 3DO Company lacked the resources to manufacture consoles, and instead licensed the hardware to other companies for manufacturing. Trip Hawkins recounted that they approached every electronics manufacturer, but that their chief targets wereSony and Matsushita (now namedPanasonic),[14] the two largest consumer electronics companies in the world.[15] However, Sony had already begun development on their own console, thePlayStation, and ultimately decided to continue work on it rather than sign with 3DO.[15] According to former Sega CEOTom Kalinske, The 3DO Company was engaged in very serious talks for Sega to become involved with the 3DO, though Sega ultimately passed on it due to concerns over cost.[19] In contrast, Matsushita agreed to partner with the company as it was seeking reassurance for its investment inMCA Inc., which ownedUniversal Pictures and had yet to see substantial success since its acquisition by Matsushita in 1990.[14] Matsushita launched the 3DO with its Panasonic FZ-1 model in 1993, though Goldstar (nowLG) and Sanyo would later manufacture the 3DO as well. Companies who obtained the hardware license but never actually sold 3DO units includeSamsung,[20]Toshiba,[21] andAT&T, who went so far as to build prototype AT&T 3DO units and display them at the January 1994Consumer Electronics Show.[22]
Licensing to independent manufacturers made the system extremely expensive. The manufacturers had to make a profit on the hardware itself, whereas most major game console manufacturers, such as Sega and Sony, sold their systemsat a loss, with expectations of making up for the loss with software sales. The 3DO was priced atUS$699,[23][24] far above competing game systems and aimed at high-end users and early adopters. Hawkins has argued that 3DO was launched at$599, and not "higher myths that are often reported".[25] In a later interview, Hawkins clarified that while thesuggested retail price was$699, not all retailers sold the system at that price.[15] Goldstar, Sanyo, and Panasonic's later models were less expensive to manufacture than the FZ-1 and were sold for considerably lower prices. For example, the Goldstar model launched at$399.[6] In addition, after six months on the market, the price of the FZ-1 had dropped to$499.[26][27]
Hawkins' belief was that the 3DO system could become a dominant standard in a similar way to that achieved by theVHS video cassette format, with several companies being able to promote the standard effectively against individual competitors with their own technologies. It was also believed that companies would be able to more effectively compete by being able to leverage a common standard, as opposed to having to attract developers to individual formats, with Hawkins noting that this would be "tough for Atari and Sony". Indeed, Hawkins believed that the failure of NEC to establish itsTurboGrafx system, and yet being "much bigger than Sony", illustrated the difficulties faced by new entrants to the console market and thought that Sony, in following the business model of Sega and Nintendo, "would have had a better chance if it had partnered with some of the others". Meanwhile, other products were not regarded as competitive threats: theAtari Jaguar was perceived as "primitive" and "slightly better than a 16-bit system", and thePhilips CD-i was regarded as "really obsolete by today's standards". Both 3DO and Philips, seeking to pioneer the broader concept of interactive entertainment, aimed to sell in the order of one million units during 1994 and into 1995.[28]
Hawkins claimed that the console wasHDTV-capable, and that the company could use its technology for aset-top box.[29] It was believed the platform would appeal to cable companies seeking to provide digital interactive services, with broadcasts being accompanied by digital information, eventually leading to the development of video-on-demand services on what was described as a "client-server interactive network", with an interactive networking trial having been announced in collaboration withUS West in Omaha, Nebraska for the autumn of 1994.[28]
The launch of the platform in October 1993 received a great deal of attention in the press as part of the "multimedia wave" in the computer world at the time.Return Fire,Road Rash,FIFA International Soccer, andJurassic Park Interactive had been slated for launch releases but were pushed to mid-1994 due to the developers' struggles with the then-cutting-edge hardware.[15] Moreover, the 3DO Company made continuous updates to the console hardware almost up to the system's release, which resulted in a number of third-party titles missing the launch date, in some cases by less than a month, because the developers were not left enough time to fully test them on the finalized hardware.[30] The only 3DO software available at launch was the third-party gameCrash 'N Burn.[15][31] Panasonic also failed to manufacture an ample supply of the console in time for launch day, and as a result most retail stores only received one or two units.[1] By mid-November, the 3DO had sold 30,000 units.[32]
The system was released in Japan in March 1994 with an initial lineup of six games. The Japanese launch was moderately successful, with 70,000 units shipping to 10,000 stores.[21] However, sales soon dropped and by 1995 the system was known in Japan as a host forpornographic releases.[33]
Computer Gaming World reported in January 1994 that 3DO "is poised for an avalanche of software support to appear in the next 12 months", unlike theAtari Jaguar andPioneer LaserActive. The magazine predicted that "If 3DO's licensees can get enough machines and software out in the market, this could very well become the interactive gamer's entry level machine" and possibly "the ideal plug-and-play solution for those of us who are tired of playing circuit board roulette with our personal computers".[34] Electronic Arts promoted the console in two-page advertisements, describing it as a "technological leap" and promising "twenty new titles ... over the next twelve months".[35]
The 3DO's claim to the title of most advanced console on the market was lost with the 1994 Japanese launches of theSony PlayStation andSega Saturn. The 3DO Company responded by emphasizing their console's large existing software library, lower price (both the Panasonic and Goldstar models were$299 by this time), and promised successor: theM2.[36] To assure consumers that the 3DO would still be supported, the M2 was initially announced as anadd-on for the 3DO.[37] It was later revealed that the M2 would be an entirely separate console, albeit one with 3DObackward compatibility. Eventually the M2 project was cancelled.
Unlike Panasonic, Goldstar initially produced only 3DO hardware, not software. This made it difficult to manage competitive price drops, and when the price of the Goldstar 3DO dropped to$199 in December 1995, the company took a loss of more than$100 on each sale.[38] Goldstar tried switching to the usual industry model of selling hardware at a loss and profiting on software, but though a handful of Goldstar games were published for the 3DO, Goldstar's software development operation arrived too late to allow them to turn a profit on the 3DO. This lack of a profitable business model, combined with Panasonic acquiring exclusive rights to the M2 technology, were cited as the two chief reasons for Goldstar dropping support for the 3DO in early 1996.[38] During the second quarter of 1996 several of the 3DO's most loyal software supporters, including the software division of The 3DO Company themselves, announced they were no longer making games for the system, leaving Panasonic as the only company supporting active software development for the 3DO.[39]
The 3DO system was eventually discontinued towards the end of 1996, with a complete shutdown of all internal hardware development and divestment of the M2 technology toPanasonic. The 3DO Company restructured themselves around this same time, selling off their hardware division to become a multi-platform company focused on software development and online gaming.[40] After The 3DO Company sold its "Opera" hardware toSamsung in 1997,[13] the 3DO platform had achieved more attention in South Korea, where LG had opened a '3DO Plaza' inSeoul on its 1994 launch and many games had been localized.[41] It competed there against Samsung's local version of theSega Genesis andHyundai's "Comboy"Super Nintendo.[citation needed]
The initial high price is considered to be one of the many issues that led to the 3DO's failure, along with lack of significant funding that larger companies such as Sony took advantage of.[6] In an interview shortly after The 3DO Company dropped support for the system, Trip Hawkins attributed its failure to the model of licensing all hardware manufacturing and software to third parties. He reasoned that for a console to be a success, it needed a single strong company to take the lead in marketing, hardware, and software, and pointed out that it was essentially a lack of coordination between The 3DO Company, Panasonic, and the 3DO's software developers which had led to the console launching with only one game ready.[42]
| .jpg) |
Panasonic FZ-1 | Panasonic FZ-10 |
 |  |
GoldStar GDO-101M | Sanyo IMP-21J TRY |
A number of different manufacturers produced the 3DO system. The Panasonic versions are the best known and most common.
The original edition of the console, the FZ-1, was referred to in full as the3DO REAL Interactive Multiplayer. The console had advanced hardware features at the time: anARM6032-bitRISCCPU, a custom graphics processor with a math co-processor, and a custom 16-bit DSP with a 20-bitALU. It also featured 2megabytes (MB) ofDRAM, 1 MB ofVRAM, and a double speedCD-ROM drive for mainCD+Gs orPhoto CDs (andVideo CDs with an add-onMPEG video module).[6] The 3DO included the firstlight synthesizer in a game console, converting CD music to a mesmerizing color pattern.
Theoptical disc format for 3DO software uses a proprietaryfile system named Opera.[59] The 3DO is one of few CD-based units that feature neitherregional lockout norcopy protection, making it easy to useillegal copies orhomebrew software.[60] Although there is no regional lockout for 3DO systems, a few Japanese games cannot be played on non-Japanese 3DO consoles due to a specialkanji font which was not present in the English language console firmware. Games that have compatibility issues includeSword and Sorcery (which was released in English under the titleLucienne's Quest),Twinkle Knights and a demo version ofAlone in the Dark.
All 3DO consoles have integrated power supplies. Some models (Panasonic 3DO FZ-1, Sanyo TRY 3DO, and Goldstar 3DO) have hardwired power cords, others (Panasonic 3DO FZ-10) use anIEC 60320 C7 "figure 8" power cord. All North American model specifications are AC 120 V 60 Hz 30 W.
Most 3DO systems shipped with a standard controller, as well as A/V and power cables. The 3DO controllers were unusual in that the system base unit contained only one controller port and the controllers could be physicallydaisy chained together via a port on the top of each controller. Up to eight controllers could be linked together in this fashion. All controllers for each 3DO console are compatible with one another.
In addition, standard 3DO controllers released with the Panasonic FZ-1 also contained a headphone jack and volume control for silent play. The GoldStar (LG) model also included a controller with this feature.
Third party controllers were produced by a number of companies includingLogitech. World International Trading Corporation also released an adapter that allowsSuper NES controllers to be used with the 3DO.[63]
The only light gun released for the 3DO was theGamegun, a product of third-party developerAmerican Laser Games. Despite this, no fewer than 10 games with light gun support were produced for the system. Most of these were arcade ports from American Laser Games (includingMad Dog McCree), butVirgin Interactive andDigital Pictures also released 3DO light gun games.
The 3DO Gamegun uses the same design as the Gamegun released for theSega CD: an orange "Old West"revolver. Select Gameguns house a controller port so that another Gamegun may be daisy-chained for two-player gameplay, which is supported in most of American Laser Games's 3DO titles.
Though no light gun was released for the 3DO in Japan, the Japanese localizations ofDemolition Man andCorpse Killer retain light gun support, and could be played by Japanese gamers using imported Gameguns.
Panasonic and Logitech both released the 3DO mouse. The Panasonic FZ-JM1 and Logitech 3DO mouse are identical aside from their markings. Fewer than 20 games supported its use, some of which were optimized for the standard controller or light gun rather than the mouse. Of the 3DO games which were optimized for use with the mouse, the best known areMyst andLemmings. The Panasonic mouse was also bundled with Konami'sPolicenauts Limited Edition in Japan which came with a Policenauts mouse pad.[64]
Home Arcade Systems released a steering wheel for the 3DO which is supported by several racing titles, includingThe Need for Speed.
The Panasonic FZ-EM256 is a 256 KB Expandable Memory Unit that plugs into the 3DO expansion port on the back of the console. It was released in 1994 and sold in Japan only.[15]
The Panasonic 3DO Karaoke Mixer allows 3DO owners to play a standard music CD, turn the vocals down, plug in one or two microphones and sing over the music. This unit was released in limited markets.[65]
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Some of the best-received titles were ports of arcade or PC games that other systems of the time were not capable of playing, such asAlone in the Dark,Myst andStar Control II. Other popular titles includedTotal Eclipse,Jurassic Park Interactive,Gex,Crash 'N Burn,Slayer,Killing Time,The Need for Speed,Road Rash, andImmercenary. The 3DO version of arcade titleSamurai Shodown was the only port with faithful graphics for some time, and the 3DOSuper Street Fighter II Turbo was the first port with its CD-quality audio.
Since its release coincided with the arrival of the modernfirst-person shooter, the 3DO also had some of the earliest members of the genre as exclusives, such asEscape from Monster Manor, the previously mentionedKilling Time, andPO'ed, as well as ports ofWolfenstein 3D andDoom.
However, the 3DO library also exhibited less successful traits of home consoles at the time. The 3DO was one of the first CD-ROM consoles, and some early titles on the 3DO frequently attempted to useinteractive movie-style gameplay. Such titles rendered all or nearly all of their graphics in full motion video, which necessitated that any interactive influence from the player be limited to a greater extent than other games of the time. Some games followed a single unfolding of events simply bycorrectly timed prompts executed by the player.Night Trap,D,Mad Dog McCree, andThe Daedalus Encounter are among the more famous examples of full motion video driven games.
Reviewing the 3DO,GamePro gave it a "thumbs sideways". They commented that "The 3DO is the first CD-ROM system to make a real jump forward in graphics, sound, and game design." However, they questioned whether it would soon be rendered obsolete by the upcomingJaguar CD and "Project Reality" (later released as theNintendo 64)[note 2] and felt there were not yet enough games to justify a purchase, recommending that gamers wait several months to see if the system would get a worthwhile library of games.[66] The 3DO was awarded Worst Console Launch of 1993 byElectronic Gaming Monthly.[67] In a special Game Machine Cross Review in May 1995,Famicom Tsūshin would score the 3DO Real console a 26 out of 40.[68]Next Generation reviewed the 3DO in late 1995. They noted that due chiefly to its early launch, it had a larger installed base and more high quality games than the newly launchedSaturn andPlayStation, making it a viable alternative to those systems. However, they debated whether it could remain a serious contender in the long run, in light of the successor M2's imminent release and the Saturn and PlayStation's superior hardware. They deemed the 3DO hardware overhyped but still very good for its time, especially praising theDMA engine. They gave it 2 out of 5 stars, concluding that it "has settled out as a solid system with some good titles in its library and more on the way. The question that must be answered though is this: Is having a 'good system' enough?"[1]
Citing a lack of decent exclusives and an "astronomical asking price", in 2009 video game websiteIGN chose the 3DO as its 22nd greatest video game console of all time, slightly higher than theJaguar but lower than its four other major competitors:Super NES (4th best),Genesis (5th), PlayStation (7th), and Sega Saturn (18th).[69] OnYahoo! Games the 3DO was placed among the top five worst console launches due to its one-game launch lineup and high launch price.[31]
Gaming retrospectives have also accused the 3DO of having an abundance of poor qualityinteractive movies.[70] Trip Hawkins' business model for selling the 3DO was widely derided by industry figures.[71]
The 3DO Company designed a next-generation console that was never released due to various business and technological issues. TheM2 project, which began as an accelerator add-on for the 3DO,[72] was to use dualPowerPC 602 processors in addition to newer 3D and video rendering technologies. Late during development, the company abandoned the console hardware business and sold the M2 technology toMatsushita.
The latest contender for the next generation of games formats, the Japanese giant Panasonic, is to launch its CD-based Real FZ-1 3DO Interactive Multiplayer today (Thursday).
Global sales stand at around 750,000, with 300,000 sold in the US.
3DO-CDチェンジャー ROBO
ROBO 3DO Entertainment System
ROBO 3DO Entertainment System
Nistec
Kabushiki-gaisha Naisuteku株式会社 ナイステック [Nistec Co., Ltd.]
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