3DO
\θɹˈiː dˈuː], \θɹˈiː dˈuː], \θ_ɹ_ˈiː d_ˈuː]\
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A set of specifications created andowned by the 3DO company, which is a partnership of sevendifferent companies. These specs are the blueprint for makinga 3DO Interactive Multiplayer and are licensed to hardware andsoftware producers.A 3DO system has an ARM60 32-bit RISC CPU and a graphicsengine based around two custom designed graphics and animationprocessors. It has 2 Megabytes of DRAM, 1 Megabyte ofVRAM, and a double speed CD-ROM drive for main storage.The Panasonic 3DO system can run 3DO Interactive software,play audio CDs (including support for CD+G), view Photo-CDs,and will eventually be able to play Video CDs with a specialadd-on MPEG1 full-motion video cartridge. Up to 8controllers can be daisy-chained on the system at once. Akeyboard, mouse, light gun, and other peripherals may alsosome day be hooked into the system, although they are notcurrently available (December 1993). The 3DO can displayfull-motion video, fully texture mapped 3d landscapes,all in 24-bit colour. Sanyo and AT&T will also release3DO systems. Sanyo's in mid 1994 and AT&T in late 1994.There will be a 3DO add-on cartridge based on the PowerPC toenable the 3DO to compete with Sony's Playstation consoleand Sega's Saturn console, both of which have a higherspecification than the original 3DO. The add-on is commonlyknown as the M2 or Bulldog. It should hit the shops byChristmas 1995 and will (allegedly) do a million flat shadedpolygons per second.3DO Home (http://3do.com/).Usenet newsgroup: news:rec.games.video.3do.
By Denis Howe