Super Nintendo Entertainment System

{{Short description|Home video game console}} {{Redirect|Super Nintendo|the themed area at Universal Parks|Super Nintendo World}} {{Redirect-distinguish|SNES|Sens{{!}}''Sens''}} {{Use American English|date=April 2023}} {{Use mdy dates|date=April 2023}} {{Infobox information appliance | name = Super Nintendo Entertainment System / Super Famicom | logo = frameless|upright=0.84 <div style="margin-top:5px">frameless|upright=0.85</div> | image = frameless|250px|The North American Super NES frameless|250px|A Japanese Super Famicom frameless|250px|The PAL Super NES | caption = '''Top:''' North American Super NES with controller '''Middle:''' Japanese Super Famicom with controller '''Bottom:''' PAL-region Super NES with controller | aka = {{ubli|SNES|Super NES|Super Nintendo|KOR: Super Comboy}} | developer = Nintendo R&D2 | manufacturer = Nintendo | type = Home video game console | generation = Fourth | discontinued = {{Video game release |EU|1998 |NA|1999<ref name=discdate>{{cite web|url=http://www.cnet.com/news/does-the-xbox-360s-lack-of-longevity-matter/|title=Does the Xbox 360's 'Lack of Longevity' Matter?|first=Don | last=Reisinger|website=CNET|date=January 21, 2009|access-date=October 23, 2015|archive-date=December 8, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151208132920/http://www.cnet.com/news/does-the-xbox-360s-lack-of-longevity-matter/|url-status=live}}</ref> |BR|2003 |KOR|April 1, 2003<ref>{{cite book |last1=Wolf |first1=Mark J. P. |title=The Routledge Companion to Media Technology and Obsolescence |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oYZ-DwAAQBAJ&q=super+nintendo+discontinued+april+2003&pg=PT856 |publisher=Routledge |access-date=August 16, 2019 |language=en |date=November 21, 2018 |isbn=978-1-315-44266-2 |archive-date=August 1, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200801221020/https://books.google.com/books?id=oYZ-DwAAQBAJ&pg=PT856&lpg=PT856&dq=super+nintendo+discontinued+april+2003&source=bl&ots=nvCVJq3rPW&sig=ACfU3U2YjlMOLKzZ7IHotcvfy6hxD91eLA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiRtMaI2obkAhUCUa0KHe4ADSoQ6AEwF3oECAgQAQ#v=onepage&q=super%20nintendo%20discontinued%20april%202003&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> |JP|September 25, 2003<ref name="End" /> }} | media = Super NES Game Pak | sound = Nintendo S-SMP | predecessor = Nintendo Entertainment System | successor = Nintendo 64 | release_date = {{Collapsible list|title={{nobold|November 21, 1990}}|{{Video game release |JP|November 21, 1990<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Retro Diary: 08 November – 05 December |magazine=Retro Gamer |issue=122 |date=December 13, 2013 |page=11}}</ref> |NA|August 23, 1991<ref group="lower-alpha" name="NAReleaseDateNote" /> |FR/GB/IE|April 11, 1992<ref name="giantbombreleasedates">{{cite web |title=Super Nintendo Entertainment System (Platform) |url=https://www.giantbomb.com/super-nintendo-entertainment-system/3045-9/ |website=Giant Bomb |access-date=August 16, 2019 |language=en |archive-date=March 30, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190330233608/https://www.giantbomb.com/super-nintendo-entertainment-system/3045-9/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |title=Super Nintendo, Préparez-vous ! |magazine=Player One |issue=17 |date=February 17, 1992 |page=12 |quote=…la date officielle de lancement de la plus fabuleuse des consoles est fixée au 3 avril prochain (information officielle du service marketing de Nintendo). |language=French }}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |title= En avril, la Super Nes se découvre d'un fil ! |magazine=Player One |issue=15 |date=December 15, 1991 |page=14-15 |quote=C'est officiel, la Super NES sera lancée en France le 1er avril 1992 ! |language=French }}</ref> |EU|June 1992<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nintendo.co.uk/Corporate/Nintendo-History/Nintendo-History-625945.html |title=History | Corporate |publisher=Nintendo |access-date=February 24, 2013 |archive-date=September 4, 2012 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120904134155/http://www.nintendo.co.uk/NOE/en_GB/service/nintendo_history_9911.html |url-status=live }}</ref> |CHL|June 8, 1992<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.latercera.com/noticia/los-juegos-mas-recordados-a-25-anos-del-lanzamiento-de-la-super-nintendo|title=Los juegos más recordados a 25 años del lanzamiento de la Super Nintendo|author=C. Portilla|date=November 21, 2015|newspaper=La Tercera|access-date=January 20, 2022|archive-date=January 21, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220121022914/https://www.latercera.com/noticia/los-juegos-mas-recordados-a-25-anos-del-lanzamiento-de-la-super-nintendo/|url-status=live}}</ref> |AUS|July 3, 1992<ref name="giantbombreleasedates" /> |DE|August 15, 1992<ref>{{cite web |title="I Want It All": Ein Blick auf 30 Jahre Super Nintendo in Europa |url=https://www.notebookcheck.com/I-Want-It-All-Ein-Blick-auf-30-Jahre-Super-Nintendo-in-Europa.613276.0.html |website=Notebook Check |quote=Der 11. April 1992 gilt als Europa-Release. Formal feiert Nintendo Deutschland diesen Tag auch. Deutschland war beispielsweise nicht dabei. Die Packungen erreichten erst Mitte August den Handel. |language=German}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Es war einmal Nintendo: Alle Konsolen, die jemals unter Nintendo erschienen sind |url=https://de.ign.com/nintendo-switch-2/147102/lists/es-war-einmal-nintendo-alle-konsolen-die-jemals-unter-nintendo-erschienen-sind |website=IGN |quote=21. November 1991 (15. August 1992 in Deutschland)|language=German}}</ref> |BR|August 30, 1993<ref>{{cite news|url=http://acervo.estadao.com.br/publicados/1993/08/30/g/19930830-36475-nac-0064-inf-30-not-qhksphk.jpg|title=Nintendo chega hoje ao mercado|author=|date=August 30, 1993|newspaper=O Estado de S. Paulo|access-date=May 6, 2018|archive-date=February 27, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140227190701/http://acervo.estadao.com.br/publicados/1993/08/30/g/19930830-36475-nac-0064-inf-30-not-qhksphk.jpg|url-status=live}}</ref> |RU|November 15, 1994<ref name=komm>{{cite web | url=https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/94004 | title=Соглашение Steepler и Nintendo | date=November 1994 | access-date=December 7, 2022 | archive-date=April 27, 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190427025842/https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/94004 | url-status=live }}</ref> }}}} | price = {{ubli|{{JPY|25000|1990}} | {{USD|199|1991}}}} | cpu = Ricoh 5A22 @ 3.58{{nbsp}}MHz | online_services = {{video game release | JP | Satellaview | JP/NA | XBAND | GB | BT Interactive TV (Trial)<ref>{{cite magazine | date=June 28, 1995 | magazine=Telecompaper | title=BT Joins Forces with Nintendo | url=https://www.telecompaper.com/news/bt-joins-forces-with-nintendo--59186 | access-date=May 20, 2025 | archive-date=February 23, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200223230622/https://www.telecompaper.com/news/bt-joins-forces-with-nintendo--59186 | url-status=live }}</ref> }} | units_sold = {{Tree list}} * Worldwide: 49.10 million<ref name="consolidatedsales">{{cite web | title=Consolidated Sales Transition by Region | publisher=Nintendo | url=https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/library/historical_data/pdf/consolidated_sales_e1509.pdf | access-date=October 25, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180613134338/https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/library/historical_data/pdf/consolidated_sales_e1509.pdf|archive-date=June 13, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> ** North America: 23.35 million ** Japan: 17.17 million ** Other: 8.58 million {{Tree list/end}} | top_game = {{Indented plainlist| * Pack-in: ''Super Mario World'' (20.6 million)<ref name="nintendohistory1">{{cite web|url=http://www.edge-online.com/features/nintendo-years|title=The Nintendo Years: 1990|website=Edge|page=2|date=June 25, 2007|access-date=June 27, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120820031228/http://www.edge-online.com/features/nintendo-years|archive-date=August 20, 2012}}</ref> * Standalone: ''Street Fighter II: The World Warrior'' (6.3 million)<ref name="capcomplatinum">{{cite web|url=http://www.capcom.co.jp/ir/english/business/million.html |title=Platinum Titles |publisher=Capcom |access-date=August 21, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110605002550/http://capcom.co.jp/ir/english/business/million.html |archive-date=June 5, 2011 }}</ref> (list) }} | memory = {{ubl|128 KB "work" RAM|64 KB SRAM|64 KB PSRAM}} | graphics = S-PPU1 and S-PPU2 | display = 256 × 224, 512 × 224, 512 × 448 }}

The '''Super Nintendo Entertainment System''' ('''Super NES''' or '''SNES'''){{efn|Often referred to as the '''Super Nintendo''', though Nintendo of America's official guidelines discourage the use of this shorthand in favor of "Super NES", as written on many of its products such as Super NES Control Deck, Super NES Controller, Super NES Mouse, and Super NES Multi-Player Adapter.<ref name=nintendoguide>{{cite web|url=http://folk.uio.no/sigurdkn/snes/snes_manual1.pdf|title=SNES Development Manual|access-date=February 5, 2016|archive-date=February 6, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160206084401/http://folk.uio.no/sigurdkn/snes/snes_manual1.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>|group=lower-alpha}}{{refn|The name "SNES" can be pronounced by English speakers as an acronym (one word, like "NATO") with various pronunciations, an initialism (a string of letters, like "IBM"), or as a hybrid, like "JPEG". In written English, the choice of indefinite article ("a" or "an") is therefore problematic.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://forums.nintendo.com/nintendo/board/message?board.id=legacy&message.id=309753&view=by_date_ascending&page=1 |title=Do you say NES or N-E-S? |work=Nintendo NSider Forums |access-date=September 23, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080505032911/http://forums.nintendo.com/nintendo/board/message?board.id=legacy&message.id=309753&view=by_date_ascending&page=1 |archive-date=May 5, 2008 }} Additional archived pages: [https://web.archive.org/web/20220611202816/http://forums.nintendo.com/nintendo/board/message?board.id=legacy&message.id=309753&view=by_date_ascending&page=7 2] [https://archive.today/20240524050255/https://www.webcitation.org/5S4Mni9y1?url=http://forums.nintendo.com/nintendo/board/message%3Fboard.id=legacy&message.id=309753&view=by_date_ascending&page=6 3] [https://archive.today/20240524050136/https://www.webcitation.org/5S4MmYPog?url=http://forums.nintendo.com/nintendo/board/message%3Fboard.id=legacy&message.id=309753&view=by_date_ascending&page=4 4] [https://archive.today/20240524050215/https://www.webcitation.org/5S4MnGTYh?url=http://forums.nintendo.com/nintendo/board/message%3Fboard.id=legacy&message.id=309753&view=by_date_ascending&page=5 5] [https://archive.today/20240524050417/https://www.webcitation.org/5S4MpGQEN?url=http://forums.nintendo.com/nintendo/board/message%3Fboard.id=legacy&message.id=309753&view=by_date_ascending&page=10 8] [https://archive.today/20240524050335/https://www.webcitation.org/5S4MoqqtM?url=http://forums.nintendo.com/nintendo/board/message%3Fboard.id=legacy&message.id=309753&view=by_date_ascending&page=9 9] ; {{cite web |url=http://uk.gamespot.com/pages/unions/forums/show_msgs.php?topic_id=25234640&union_id=177 |title=Pronouncing NES & SNES |work=GameSpot forums |access-date=May 16, 2007 |archive-url=https://www.webcitation.org/65RQSpsfb?url=http://uk.gamespot.com/unions/177/forums/25234640 |archive-date=February 14, 2012 }}</ref>|group=lower-alpha}} is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released as the {{nihongo foot|'''Super Famicom''',|スーパーファミコン|Sūpā Famikon|officially adopting the abbreviated name of its predecessor, the Famicom|lead=yes|group=lower-alpha}} in Japan on November 21, 1990, as the Super NES in North America on August 23, 1991, and internationally throughout 1992. It was Nintendo's second programmable home console, following the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). A fourth-generation console, the Super NES primarily competed with the Sega Genesis in the console war, a fierce battle for market share in the United States and Europe.

Masayuki Uemura, a Nintendo engineer, designed the 16-bit Super NES in response to the introduction of the Genesis and NEC's TurboGrafx-16. The Super NES had advanced graphical and sound capabilities compared to its competitors, with features such as Mode 7 to simulate 3D perspective and eight-channel ADPCM audio. Its CPU was designed to accommodate ongoing technological innovations by allowing it to interface with enhancement chips, such as Super FX, integrated into game cartridges. Its controller built on the NES's with additional face buttons and two shoulder buttons. Nintendo released many accessories, including the Super Game Boy adapter to play Game Boy games and the Japan-exclusive Satellaview modem peripheral.

Nintendo released the Super NES with ''Super Mario World'' (1990) as a pack-in game. It introduced the Super NES relatively late in the fourth generation amidst intense competition with Sega, which positioned the Genesis as the preferable console for adolescents through aggressive youth marketing. Nonetheless, the Super NES quickly became a success, helped by Nintendo's retention of key third-party developers such as Capcom, Enix, Konami, and Square. Over 1,700 Super NES games were released, and Nintendo loosened its previously strict licensing requirements to better compete with Sega. The release of ''Donkey Kong Country'' (1994) helped maintain the Super NES's popularity into the 32-bit era. Nintendo sold 49.1 million Super NESs, making it the best selling fourth-generation home console.

Nintendo released the successor, the Nintendo 64, in 1996, but continued to support the Super NES into the 64-bit era. It ceased Super NES production in 1999 and Super Famicom production in 2003. Video game journalists regard it as one of the greatest consoles; its library includes acclaimed games such as ''The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past'' (1991), ''EarthBound'' (1994), ''Final Fantasy VI'' (1994), ''Super Metroid'' (1994), ''Yoshi's Island'' (1995), and ''Kirby Super Star'' (1996). It remains popular among collectors and retro gamers, and via emulation with applications such as Snes9x and ZSNES. Nintendo has released emulated Super NES games through the Virtual Console and Nintendo Classics services and the Super NES Classic Edition dedicated console.

== History ==

===Background=== In order to compete with the popular Family Computer in Japan, NEC Home Electronics launched the PC Engine in 1987, and Sega followed suit with the Mega Drive in 1988. The two platforms were later launched in North America in 1989 as the TurboGrafx-16 and the Sega Genesis respectively. Both systems were built on 16-bit architectures and offered improved graphics and sound over the 8-bit NES. It took several years for Sega's system to become successful.<ref>Sheff (1993), pp. 353–356. "The Genesis continued to flounder through its first couple of years on the market, although Sega showed Sisyphean resolve.... [By mid-1991] Sega had established itself as the market leader of the next generation."</ref>

Bill Mensch, the co-creator of the 8-bit MOS Technology 6502 microprocessor and founder of the Western Design Center (WDC), gave Ricoh the exclusive right to supply 8-bit and 16-bit WDC microprocessors for Nintendo's new system.<ref name="CHM - Mensch">{{Cite interview |title=Oral History of William David "Bill" Mensch, Jr. |last=Mensch |first=William David Jr. |interviewer=Stephen Diamond |url=https://archive.computerhistory.org/resources/access/text/2015/06/102739969-05-01-acc.pdf |date=November 10, 2014 |subject-link=Bill Mensch |access-date=July 19, 2023 |publisher=Computer History Museum |place=Mountain View, California |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150920082736/https://archive.computerhistory.org/resources/access/text/2015/06/102739969-05-01-acc.pdf |archive-date=September 20, 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> Meanwhile, Sony engineer Ken Kutaragi reached an agreement with Nintendo to design the console's sound chip without notifying his supervisors, who were enraged when they discovered the project; although Kutaragi was nearly fired, then-CEO Norio Ohga intervened in support of the project and gave him permission to complete it.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Fahey |first1=Rob |title=Farewell, Father |url=https://www.eurogamer.net/farewell-father-article |access-date=October 6, 2023 |work=Eurogamer |date=April 27, 2007 |language=en}}</ref>

===Development=== On September 9, 1987, then-Nintendo president Hiroshi Yamauchi revealed the development of the Super Famicom in the newspaper ''Kyoto Shimbun''. On August 30, 1988, in an interview with ''TOUCH Magazine'', Yamauchi announced the development of ''Super Mario Bros. 4'', ''Dragon Quest V'', three original games, and he projected sales of 3 million units of the upcoming console. In that same interview, Yamauchi pointed out that sales of the Famicom were slowly dropping ever since it hit its peak about two years earlier, and that if they continued supporting it, players would eventually "get bored" and move on in favor of better-quality games, which would be "a dangerous situation" for them. ''Famicom Hissyoubon'' magazine speculated that Yamauchi's early announcement was probably made to forestall Christmas shopping for the PC Engine, and relayed Enix's clarification that it was waiting on sales figures to select either PC Engine or Super Famicom for its next ''Dragon Quest'' game. The magazine and Enix both expressed a strong interest in networking as a standard platform feature.<ref name="CMSFAug88">{{cite web|url=https://www.chrismcovell.com/secret/SFC_1988Q3.html|title=Super Famicom: August 1988|last=Covell|first=Chris|access-date=March 13, 2021|archive-date=May 1, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210501033349/https://www.chrismcovell.com/secret/SFC_1988Q3.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://sp.ch.nicovideo.jp/gamemusic/blomaga/ar304408|title=スーパーファミコン発売前夜|language=Japanese|website=Niconico|date=August 1, 2013|access-date=March 13, 2021|archive-date=July 9, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210709184738/https://sp.ch.nicovideo.jp/gamemusic/blomaga/ar304408|url-status=live}}</ref> The console was demonstrated to the Japanese press on November 21, 1988, and again on July 28, 1989.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.chrismcovell.com/secret/SFC_1988Q4.html|title=The First Super Famicom Demonstration|last=Covell|first=Chris|access-date=March 13, 2021|archive-date=April 21, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210421203041/https://www.chrismcovell.com/secret/SFC_1988Q4.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.chrismcovell.com/secret/SFC_1989Q3.html|title=The Second SFC Demonstration|last=Covell|first=Chris|access-date=March 13, 2021|archive-date=February 24, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210224160941/https://www.chrismcovell.com/secret/SFC_1989Q3.html|url-status=live}}</ref> During the second demonstration, Nintendo also announced that they were forced to delay the release of the Super Famicom to the fall of 1990, as a result of problems such as a distinct lack of software for third-party developers and a global chip shortage – due to a new generation of semiconductor and chip technology that forced manufacturers to split production capacity, which also drove prices up considerably.<ref name="Mario4Story">{{cite video|url=https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=s2bTQK6vbKI|date=May 6, 2022|title=The Story of Super Mario World|author=Gaming Historian|work=YouTube}}</ref>

The final design of the Super Famicom unveiled at the second Shoshinkai show, which was held between August 28–29, 1990.<ref name="Mario4Story"/> This included late prototypes of ''Super Mario World'' and ''F-Zero''. The demonstration garnered positive results by the public in terms of gameplay.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.chrismcovell.com/secret/OTH_1990Q3.html|title=Japanese Secrets!|work=chrismcovell.com|access-date=January 9, 2017| url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200221041017/http://www.chrismcovell.com/secret/OTH_1990Q3.html | archive-date=February 21, 2020}}</ref> It gained so much popularity that Nintendo received 1.5 million pre-orders for the Super Famicom from wholesalers, making them worried that launch day would get a little chaotic. To solve this, they encouraged retailers to install a reservation system when selling the console. On November 20, the day before launch, Nintendo loaded 100 trucks with boxes of Super Famicom consoles, alongside cartridges of ''F-Zero'' and ''Super Mario World'' early in the morning. In that same day, Nintendo executed "Operation: Midnight Shipping" by sending these orders late at night, in the hopes of warding off thieves.<ref name="Mario4Story"/>

===Launch=== {{multiple image | width = 120 | footer = The four-color Super Famicom mark is part of the logo in the Japanese and PAL regions, with colors corresponding to those of the control pad buttons. The North American logo has a striped background outlining four oval shapes. | image1 = Super Famicom logo.svg | alt1 = JPN/EU logo | caption1 = | image2 = Super_NES_USA_logo.png | alt2 = USA logo | caption2 = }} Designed by Masayuki Uemura, the designer of the original Famicom, the Super Famicom was released in Japan on November 21, 1990, for {{JPY|25000|1990}}.<ref>Kent (2001), pp. 422–431.</ref> It was an instant success. Nintendo's initial shipment of 300,000 units sold out within hours. This gained the attention of the yakuza criminal organizations, so the devices were shipped at night to avoid robbery.<ref>Sheff (1993), pp. 360–361.</ref>

With the Super Famicom quickly outselling its rivals, Nintendo reasserted itself as the leader of the Japanese console market.<ref>Kent (2001), pp. 431–433. "Japan remained loyal to Nintendo, ignoring both Sega's Genesis and NEC's PC Engine (the Japanese name for TurboGrafx).... Unlike the Japanese launch in which Super Famicom had outsold both competitors combined in presales alone, Super NES would debut against an established product."</ref> Nintendo's success was partially due to the retention of most of its key third-party developers, including Capcom, Konami, Tecmo, Square, Koei, and Enix.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/virtual-console-snes-review|title=Virtual Console: SNES|author=Kristan Reed|website=Eurogamer|date=January 19, 2007|access-date=February 12, 2009|archive-date=March 4, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304060429/http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/virtual-console-snes-review|url-status=live}}</ref>

Nintendo released the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, a redesigned version of the Super Famicom, in North America for {{US$|199|1991|round=-1}}. It began shipping in limited quantities on August 23, 1991,{{refn|Kent says that September 1 was planned but later rescheduled to September 9.<ref name="Kent 432">Kent (2001), p. 432.</ref> Newspaper and magazine articles from late 1991 report that the first shipments were in stores in some regions on August 23,<ref>{{cite news |title=Super Nintendo sells quickly at OC outlets |first=Ron |last=Campbell |newspaper=The Orange County Register |date=August 27, 1991  |quote=Last weekend, months after video-game addicts started calling, Dave Adams finally was able to sell them what they craved: Super Nintendo. Adams, the manager of Babbages in South Coast Plaza, got 32 of the $199.95 systems Friday.}} Based on the publication date, the "Friday" mentioned would be August 23, 1991.</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |title=Super Nintendo It's Here!!! |magazine=Electronic Gaming Monthly |date=November 1991 |issue=28 |page=162 |publisher=Sendai Publishing Group |quote=The long awaited SNES is finally available to the U.S. gaming public. The first few pieces of this fantastic unit hit the store shelves on August 23, 1991. Nintendo, however, released the first production run without any heavy fanfare or spectacular announcements.}}</ref> and it arrived in other regions at a later date.<ref>{{cite news |title=New products put more zip into the video-game market |author-last1=O'Hara|author-first1=Delia|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-4070124.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121103060509/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-4070124.html |archive-date=November 3, 2012 |format=abstract |newspaper=Chicago Sun-Times |date=August 27, 1991 |access-date=March 5, 2010 |quote=On Friday, area Toys R Us stores […] were expecting SNES, with a suggested retail price of $199.95, any day, said Brad Grafton, assistant inventory control manager for Toys R Us.}} Based on the publication date, the "Friday" mentioned would be August 23, 1991.</ref> August 23 is also the release date officially recognized by Nintendo of America.<ref>{{cite tweet|number=1429820774907584512|user=NintendoAmerica|author=Nintendo of America|title=On this day 30 years ago, the Super...|date=August 23, 2021}}</ref>|group=lower-alpha|name=NAReleaseDateNote}}<ref>{{cite news |title=Super Nintendo sells quickly at OC outlets |first=Ron |last=Campbell |newspaper=The Orange County Register |date=August 27, 1991  |quote=Super Nintendo began showing up in Southern California stores Wednesday, nearly three weeks before the official Sept. 9 release date. ... Until the official nationwide release Sept. 9, availability will be limited.}}</ref> with an official nationwide release date of September 9, 1991.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/09/10/business/company-news-super-nintendo-now-nationwide.html|title=COMPANY NEWS; Super Nintendo Now Nationwide|newspaper=The New York Times|date=September 10, 1991|access-date=August 23, 2016|archive-date=August 28, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160828110252/http://www.nytimes.com/1991/09/10/business/company-news-super-nintendo-now-nationwide.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The Super NES was released in the United Kingdom and Ireland in April 1992 for {{GBP|150|1992|round=-1}}.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-04-11-snes-celebrates-20th-birthday-in-uk|title=SNES celebrates 20th birthday in UK|first=Tom|last=Phillips|website=Eurogamer|date=April 11, 2012|access-date=September 13, 2020|archive-date=May 14, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190514071321/https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-04-11-snes-celebrates-20th-birthday-in-uk|url-status=live}}</ref>

Most of the PAL region versions of the console use the Japanese Super Famicom design, except for labeling and the length of the joypad leads. The Playtronic Super NES in Brazil, although PAL-M, uses the North American design.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.snescentral.com/article.php?id=0869|title=Playtronic SNES Games|publisher=SNES Central|access-date=February 9, 2015|archive-date=August 9, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140809131107/http://www.snescentral.com/article.php?id=0869|url-status=live}}</ref> Both the NES and Super NES were released in Brazil in 1993 by Playtronic, a joint venture between the toy company Estrela and consumer electronics company Gradiente.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://nintendoworld.ig.com.br/home/nobrasil/index.php|title=Nintendo Brasil |publisher=Nintendo |language=pt |access-date=August 2, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070717104708/http://nintendoworld.ig.com.br/home/nobrasil/index.php|archive-date=July 17, 2007}}</ref>

The Super NES and Super Famicom launched with few games, but these games were well received. In Japan, only two games were initially available: ''Super Mario World'' and ''F-Zero''.<ref>Sheff (1993), p. 361.</ref> ''Bombuzal'' was released during the launch week.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Big in Japan: Nintendo 64 Launches at Last|magazine=Next Generation|issue=21 |date=September 1996 |pages=14–16}}</ref> In North America, ''Super Mario World'' was launched as a bundle with the console; other launch games include ''F-Zero'', ''Pilotwings'' (both of which demonstrate the console's Mode 7 pseudo-3D rendering), ''SimCity'', and ''Gradius III''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.1up.com/features/launch-wii |title=Out to Launch: Wii |author=Jeremy Parish |date=November 14, 2006 |website=1UP.com |access-date=July 3, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110804230313/http://www.1up.com/features/launch-wii |archive-date=August 4, 2011 }}</ref>

===Console wars=== {{Main|Console war#Sega versus Nintendo}}

The rivalry between Nintendo and Sega was described as one of the most notable console wars in video game history,<ref>Kent (2001), p. 431. "''Sonic'' was an immediate hit, and many consumers who had been loyally waiting for Super NES to arrive now decided to purchase Genesis.... The fiercest competition in the history of video games was about to begin."</ref> in which Sega positioned the Genesis as the "cool" console, with games aimed at older audiences, and aggressive advertisements that occasionally attacked the competition.<ref>Kent (2001), pp. 448–449.</ref> Nintendo scored an early public-relations advantage by securing the first console conversion of Capcom's arcade hit ''Street Fighter II'' for Super NES, which took more than a year to make the transition to the Genesis. Though the Genesis had a two-year lead to launch time, a much larger library of games, and a lower price point,<ref>Kent (2001), p. 433.</ref> it only represented an estimated 60% of the American 16-bit console market in June 1992,<ref>{{cite news |title=16-bit games take a bite out of sales — computer games |first=Pete | last=Hisey|date=June 1, 1992|publisher=Discount Store News}}</ref> and neither console could maintain a definitive lead for several years. ''Donkey Kong Country'' is said to have helped establish the Super NES's market prominence in the latter years of the 16-bit generation,<ref>Kent (2001), p. 496–497. "The late November release of ''Donkey Kong Country'' stood in stark contrast to the gloom and doom faced by the rest of the video game industry. After three holiday seasons of coming in second to Sega, Nintendo had the biggest game of the year. Sega still outperformed Nintendo in overall holiday sales, but the 500,000 copies of Donkey Kong Country that Nintendo sent out in its initial shipment were mostly sold in preorder, and the rest sold out in less than one week. It (''Donkey Kong Country'') established the SNES as the better 16-bit console and paved the way for Nintendo to win the waning years of the 16-bit generation."</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/1996/01/14/game-system-sales.html |title=Game-System Sales |magazine=Newsweek |access-date=January 21, 2012 |date=January 14, 1996|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130513145332/http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/1996/01/14/game-system-sales.html|archive-date=May 13, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |title=Don't expect flood of 16-bit games |journal=Video Business |last=Greenstein |first=Jane |year=1997 |quote=1.4 million units sold during 1996}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|date=March 2, 1998 | title =Sega farms out Genesis |magazine=Television Digest}} "Sega of America sold about 400,000 16-bit consoles in N. America last year, based on estimates extrapolated from NPD Group's Toy Retail Statistical Tracking Service. That compares with just over one million Super Nintendo Entertainment Systems (SNES) sold by Nintendo of America."</ref> and for a time, maintain against the PlayStation and Saturn.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.pcworld.com/printable/article/id,128295/printable.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080508011331/http://www.pcworld.com/printable/article/id,128295/printable.html |archive-date=May 8, 2008 |title=A Brief History of Game Consoles, as Seen in Old TV Ads |author=Danny Allen |magazine=PC World |date=December 22, 2006 |access-date=July 15, 2007 }}</ref> According to Nintendo, the company had sold more than 20 million Super NES units in the U.S.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nintendo.com/systemsclassic?type=snes |title=Classic Systems: SNES |access-date=January 21, 2012 |publisher=Nintendo|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20031209153741/http://www.nintendo.com/systemsclassic?type=snes|archive-date=December 9, 2003}}</ref> According to a 2014 Wedbush Securities report based on NPD sales data, the Super NES outsold the Genesis in the U.S. market by {{nowrap|1.5 million}} units and gained its lead in the US/North American 16 bit market.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Pachter|first1=Michael|last2=McKay|first2=Nick|last3=Citrin|first3=Nick|url=https://equities.wedbush.com/clientsite/Research/ActionAlertFilePreview.asp?UUID=E4AFF57F-DDBC-437F-8520-AF38BEDD3E43|title=Post Hoc Ergo Propter Hoc; Why the Next Generation Will Be as Big as Ever|work=Wedbush Equity Research|page=36|date=February 11, 2014|access-date=November 9, 2015|archive-date=March 4, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304224941/https://equities.wedbush.com/clientsite/Research/ActionAlertFilePreview.asp?UUID=E4AFF57F-DDBC-437F-8520-AF38BEDD3E43|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Changes in policy=== During the NES era, Nintendo maintained exclusive control over games released for the system – the company had to approve every game, each third-party developer could only release up to five games per year (but some third parties got around this by using different names, such as Konami's "Ultra Games" brand), those games could not be released on another console within two years, and Nintendo was the exclusive manufacturer and supplier of NES cartridges. Competition from Sega's console brought an end to this practice; in 1991, Acclaim Entertainment began releasing games for both platforms, with most of Nintendo's other licensees following suit over the next several years; Capcom (which licensed some games to Sega instead of producing them directly) and Square were the most notable holdouts.<ref>Kent (2001), pp. 308, 372, 440–441.</ref>

Nintendo continued to carefully review submitted games, scoring them on a 40-point scale and allocating marketing resources accordingly. Each region performed separate evaluations.<ref name="reeder199211">{{cite news | url=http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1992&pub=2&id=100 | title=Why Edutainment Doesn't Make It In A Videogame World | magazine=Computer Gaming World | date=November 1992 | author=Reeder, Sara | page=128 | access-date=July 5, 2014 | archive-date=January 10, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200110163522/http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1992&pub=2&id=100 | url-status=live }}</ref> Nintendo of America also maintained a policy that, among other things, limited the amount of violence in the games on its systems. The surprise arcade hit ''Mortal Kombat'' (1992), a gory fighting game with huge splashes of blood and graphically violent fatality moves, was heavily censored by Nintendo.<ref group="lower-alpha">In both ''The Ultimate History of Video Games'' and ''Purple Reign: 15 Years of the SNES'', the disparity in sales is directly attributed to the Super NES version lacking the excessive blood which was recolored grey and described as "sweat", and lacking some of the more gruesome finishing moves. See the Talk page for details.</ref> Because the Genesis version allowed for an uncensored version via cheat code,<ref name="1UP_MK">{{cite web|url=http://www.1up.com/features/15-years-snes?pager.offset=3|title=Purple Reign: 15 Years of the SNES|author=Ray Barnholt|date=August 4, 2006|website=1UP.com|page=4|access-date=July 13, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121102222834/http://www.1up.com/features/15-years-snes?pager.offset=3|archive-date=November 2, 2012}}</ref> it outsold the censored Super NES version by a ratio of nearly three to one.<ref name="Kent_MK">Kent (2001), pp. 461–480. "nearly three to one".</ref>

U.S. Senators Herb Kohl and Joe Lieberman convened a Congressional hearing on December 9, 1993, to investigate the marketing of violent video games to children.{{refn|Some contend that Nintendo orchestrated the Congressional hearings of 1993, but Senator Lieberman and NOA's Senior Vice President (later Chairman) Howard Lincoln both refute these allegations.<ref name="Kent_MK" />|group=lower-alpha}} Though Nintendo took the high ground with moderate success, the hearings led to the creation of the Interactive Digital Software Association and the Entertainment Software Rating Board and the inclusion of ratings on all video games.<ref name="1UP_MK" /><ref name="Kent_MK" /> With these ratings in place, Nintendo decided its censorship policies were no longer needed.<ref name="Kent_MK" />

===32-bit era and beyond=== While other companies were moving on to 32-bit systems, Rare and Nintendo proved that the Super NES was still a strong contender in the market. In November 1994, Rare released ''Donkey Kong Country'', a platform game featuring 3D models and textures pre-rendered on Silicon Graphics workstations. With its detailed graphics, fluid animation, and high-quality music, ''Donkey Kong Country'' rivals the aesthetic quality of games that were being released on newer 32-bit CD-based consoles. In the last 45 days of 1994, 6.1 million copies were sold, making it the fastest-selling video game in history to that date. This game conveyed that early 32-bit systems had little to offer over the Super NES, and proved the market for the more advanced consoles of the near future.<ref name="Kent_DKC">Kent (2001), pp. 491–493, 496–497.</ref><ref name="Gamespot_DKC">{{cite web |url=http://www.gamespot.com/gamespot/features/video/dk_history/p04.html |title=GameSpot Presents: The History of Donkey Kong |author=Doug Trueman |website=GameSpot|page=4|access-date=July 13, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120515044631/http://www.gamespot.com/gamespot/features/video/dk_history/p04.html|archive-date=May 15, 2012}}</ref> According to TRSTS reports, two of the top five bestselling games in the U.S. for December 1996 are Super NES games.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Nintendo Boosts N64 Production|magazine=Electronic Gaming Monthly |issue=93|publisher=Ziff Davis|date=April 1997|page=22}}</ref>

In October 1997, Nintendo released a redesigned model of the Super NES (the SNS-101 model referred to as "New-Style Super NES") in North America for {{US$|99|1997|round=-2}}, with some units including the pack-in game ''Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gamespot.com/news/2467396.html |title=Super NES Lives! |author=Chris Johnston |website=GameSpot|date=October 29, 1997|access-date=June 14, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120124213537/http://www.gamespot.com/news/2467396.html|archive-date=January 24, 2012}}</ref><ref name="EGM102">{{cite magazine |title=Classic System Gets New Shell|magazine=Electronic Gaming Monthly|issue=102|publisher=Ziff Davis|date=January 1998|page=22|url=https://archive.org/details/electronic-gaming-monthly-issue-102-january-1998_202406/page/n25/mode/2up|access-date=2026-02-01}}</ref> Like the earlier New-Style NES (model NES-101), this is slimmer and lighter than its predecessor,<ref name=EGM102/> but it lacks S-Video and RGB output, and it is among the last major Super NES-related releases in the region. A similarly redesigned Super Famicom Jr. was released in Japan at around the same time.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gamespot.com/news/2462190.html |title=Super Fami Gets Face-Lift |author=Yutaka Ohbuchi |website=GameSpot|date=January 16, 1998|access-date=June 14, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120118185425/http://www.gamespot.com/news/2462190.html|archive-date=January 18, 2012}}</ref> The redesign stayed out of Europe.

Nintendo ceased production of the Super NES in North America in 1999,<ref name=discdate /> about two years after releasing ''Kirby's Dream Land 3'' (its final second-party game in the US) on November 27, 1997, and one year after releasing ''Frogger'' (its final third-party game in the US) in 1998. In Japan, Nintendo continued production of both the Family Computer and the Super Famicom until September 25, 2003,<ref name="End">{{cite web |url=http://www.gamespot.com/news/6029220.html |title=Nintendo to end Famicom and Super Famicom production |first=Hirohiko |last=Niizumi |website=GameSpot |date=May 30, 2003|access-date=July 15, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120122010006/http://www.gamespot.com/news/6029220.html|archive-date=January 22, 2012}}</ref> and new games were produced until the year 2000, ending with the release of ''Metal Slader Glory Director's Cut'' on November 29, 2000.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nintendo.co.jp/n02/shvc/index.html |title=スーパーファミコン (Super Famicom) |access-date=May 19, 2007 |publisher=Nintendo Japan |language=ja |archive-date=August 28, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190828103950/https://www.nintendo.co.jp/n02/shvc/index.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Many popular Super NES games were ported to the Game Boy Advance, which has similar video capabilities. In 2005, Nintendo announced that Super NES games would be made available for download via the Wii's Virtual Console service.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://cube.ign.com/articles/615/615089p1.html|title=E3 2005: Nintendo's E3 2005 Press Conference|access-date=April 14, 2007|date=May 17, 2005|website=IGN|archive-date=February 14, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120214011355/http://cube.ign.com/articles/615/615089p1.html|url-status=live}}</ref> On October 31, 2007, Nintendo Co., Ltd. announced that it would no longer repair Family Computer or Super Famicom systems due to an increasing shortage of the necessary parts.<ref>{{cite news|title=Nintendo's classic Famicom faces end of road|url= http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5jAJfrC1k8lDKLOCGJu4VonjOYxBg|format=Reprint|publisher=AFP |date=October 31, 2007|access-date=November 9, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130527161543/http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5jAJfrC1k8lDKLOCGJu4VonjOYxBg|archive-date=May 27, 2013}}</ref> On March 3, 2016, Nintendo Co., Ltd. announced that it would bring Super NES games to the New Nintendo 3DS and New Nintendo 3DS XL (and later the New Nintendo 2DS XL) via its eShop download service.<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Gwaltney |first1=Javy |title=Super Nintendo Games Are Coming To New Nintendo 3DS |url=https://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2016/03/03/super-mario-world-a-link-to-the-past-and-other-super-nintendo-games-coming-to-new-nintendo-3ds.aspx |magazine=Game Informer |access-date=January 21, 2019 |language=en |archive-date=October 18, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181018043311/https://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2016/03/03/super-mario-world-a-link-to-the-past-and-other-super-nintendo-games-coming-to-new-nintendo-3ds.aspx |url-status=live }}</ref> At the Nintendo Direct event on September 4, 2019, Nintendo announced that it would be bringing select Super NES games to the Nintendo Switch Online classic games library, later renamed Nintendo Classics.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nintendo.com/nintendo-direct/09-04-2019/|title=Nintendo Direct - 09.04.2019|website=www.nintendo.com|access-date=September 10, 2019|archive-date=September 4, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190904233213/https://www.nintendo.com/nintendo-direct/09-04-2019/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nintendo.com/switch/online-service/nes/|title=NES and Super NES – Nintendo Switch Online – Nintendo Switch Official site|website=www.nintendo.com|language=en-US|access-date=September 10, 2019|archive-date=September 9, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190909211539/https://www.nintendo.com/switch/online-service/nes/|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Hardware== {{Multiple image | image1 = SNES-CPU-RGB-01 motherboard.jpg | caption1 = Early Super NES motherboard (Annotated version) | image2 = Super-Nintendo-1Chip-Motherboard-Top-Flat.jpg | caption2 = Later (1CHIP) Super NES motherboard (Annotated version) | alt1 = | width1 = 200 | width2 = 215 }}

=== Technical specifications=== The 16-bit design of the Super NES<ref name="fullsnes">{{cite web|url=http://problemkaputt.de/fullsnes.htm|title=Fullsnes – Nocash SNES Specs|access-date=February 6, 2015|archive-date=January 2, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150102185304/http://problemkaputt.de/fullsnes.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> incorporates graphics and sound co-processors that perform tiling and simulated 3D effects, a palette of 32,768 colors, and 8-channel ADPCM audio. These base platform features, plus the ability to dramatically extend them all through substantial chip upgrades inside of each cartridge, represent a leap over the 8-bit NES generation and some significant advantages over 16-bit competitors such as the Genesis.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.1up.com/features/ps1-turns-10 |title=PS1 10th Anniversary retrospective |author=Jeremy Parish |website=1UP.com |date=September 6, 2005 |access-date=May 27, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110523085605/http://www.1up.com/features/ps1-turns-10 |archive-date=May 23, 2011 }}</ref>

====CPU and RAM==== [[File:Nintendo Super NES S-CPU.jpg|thumb|S-CPU, the main CPU of the SNES, a Ricoh 5A22 ]] The CPU is a Ricoh 5A22, a derivative of the 16-bit WDC 65C816 microprocessor. In NTSC regions, its nominal clock speed of 3.58 MHz will slow to either 2.68 MHz or 1.79 MHz when accessing some slower peripherals.<ref name="SNES Development Manual S4">{{cite web |url=https://archive.org/details/SNESDevManual |title=SNES Development Manual - Book I, Section 4 "Super NES CPU Data" |author=Nintendo |year=1993 |publisher=Nintendo |access-date=September 11, 2018 |archive-date=November 28, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181128232051/https://archive.org/details/SNESDevManual |url-status=live }}</ref>

This CPU has an 8-bit data bus and two address busses. The 24-bit "Bus A" is designated for general accesses, and the 8-bit "Bus B" can access support chip registers such as the video and audio co-processors.

The WDC 65C816 supports an 8-channel DMA unit, an 8-bit parallel I/O port, a controller port interface circuit allowing serial and parallel access to controller data, a 16-bit multiplication and division unit, and circuitry for generating non-maskable interrupts on V-blank and IRQ interrupts on calculated screen positions.<ref name="SNES Development Manual S4"/>

Early revisions of the 5A22 used in SHVC boards are prone to spontaneous failure which can produce a variety of symptoms including graphics glitches in Mode 7, a black screen on power-on, or improperly reading the controllers.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://nintendoage.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=8&threadid=173952 |title=NA » Need help » SNES Gen 1 Video Repair more than 50 units |access-date=March 31, 2019 |archive-date=March 31, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190331204451/http://nintendoage.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=8&threadid=173952 |url-status=live }}</ref> The first revision 5A22 has a fatal bug in the DMA controller that can crash games; this was corrected in subsequent revisions.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://forums.nesdev.com/viewtopic.php?p=223539#p223539 | title=Is the SNES a realible console? | access-date=September 13, 2020 |archive-date=August 17, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180817051252/https://forums.nesdev.com/viewtopic.php?p=223539#p223539 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The console contains 128{{nbsp}}KB of general-purpose "work" RAM, which is separate from the 64{{nbsp}}KB dedicated to the video subsystem and the 64{{nbsp}}KB dedicated to the audio subsystem.<ref name="Copetti 2019" />

====Video==== thumb|The two Picture Processing Unit (PPU) chips The Picture Processing Unit (PPU) consists of two closely tied IC packages. It contains 64{{nbsp}}KB of SRAM for video data, 544 bytes of object attribute memory (OAM) for sprite data, and 256 × 15 bits of color generator RAM (CGRAM) for palette data. This CGRAM provisions up to 256 colors, chosen from the 15-bit RGB color space, from a palette of 32,768 colors. The PPU is clocked by the same signal as the CPU and generates a pixel every two or four cycles.<ref name="fullsnes" />

====Audio==== {{Multiple image | width = 125 | image1 = S-SMP 01.jpg | image2 = S-DSP A 01.jpg | footer = The two main audio chips, from left: the S{{nbhyph}}SMP CPU and the S{{nbhyph}}DSP digital signal processor }}

The S-SMP audio subsystem consisted of a 16-bit digital signal processor (DSP) to mix the sample sequences, an 8-bit SPC700 CPU to drive the DSP, and 64{{nbsp}}KB of dedicated PSRAM.<ref name="Copetti 2019">{{Cite web |last=Copetti |first=Rodrigo |date=June 28, 2019 |title=Super Nintendo Architecture - A Practical Analysis |url=https://www.copetti.org/writings/consoles/super-nintendo/ |access-date=November 14, 2024 |language=en}}</ref> It was designed by Ken Kutaragi and produced by Sony<ref>{{cite web |title=The Nintendo PlayStation is the coolest console never released |first=Andrew |last=Hayward |website=TechRadar |date=March 12, 2017 |url=https://www.techradar.com/news/gaming/the-nintendo-playstation-is-the-coolest-console-never-released-1327988 |access-date=September 12, 2018 |quote=Nintendo and Sony first linked up for the Super Nintendo itself, as Sony produced the S-SMP sound chip for the iconic 16-bit console. |archive-date=September 12, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180912132857/https://www.techradar.com/news/gaming/the-nintendo-playstation-is-the-coolest-console-never-released-1327988 |url-status=live }}</ref> and is completely independent from the rest of the system. It is clocked at a nominal 24.576 MHz in both NTSC and PAL systems. It is capable of stereo sound, composed from eight voices generated using 16-bit audio samples compressed using BRR and capable of applying effects such as echo.<ref name="SNES Development Manual - S3">{{cite web |url=https://archive.org/details/SNESDevManual |title=SNES Development Manual - Section 3, Super NES Sound |author=Nintendo |year=1993 |publisher=Nintendo |access-date=September 11, 2018 |archive-date=November 28, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181128232051/https://archive.org/details/SNESDevManual |url-status=live }}</ref> On early revisions of the motherboard the S-SMP audio system was spread across four chips: the DSP, the CPU, and two RAM modules. On later revisions, the sound hardware consolidated to a single chip, the S-APU.<ref>{{Cite web |title=SNES Model Differences |url=https://consolemods.org/wiki/SNES:SNES_Model_Differences |access-date=2024-11-15 |website=ConsoleMods Wiki |language=en}}</ref>

===Regional lockout=== [[File:SNES-SFAM-Cartridges.jpg|thumb|alt=Regional cartridge differences|'''Top:''' North American cartridge '''Bottom:''' Japanese/PAL Super FX-enhanced cartridge]] Nintendo employed several types of regional lockout, including both physical and hardware incompatibilities.

Physically, the cartridges are shaped differently for different regions. North American cartridges have a rectangular bottom with inset grooves matching protruding tabs in the console, and other regions' cartridges are narrower with a smooth curve on the front and no grooves. The physical incompatibility can be overcome with the use of various adapters, or through modification of the console.<ref name="palconverter">{{cite web|url=http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2013/07/soapbox_why_region_locking_is_a_total_non_issue|title=Soapbox: Why Region Locking Is A Total Non-Issue|author=Nintendo Life|work=Nintendo Life|date=July 6, 2013|access-date=October 24, 2015|archive-date=September 5, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150905131853/http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2013/07/soapbox_why_region_locking_is_a_total_non_issue|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/df-hardware-the-ultimate-console-collectors-guide|title=The Ultimate Retro Console Collectors' Guide|date=May 6, 2012|work=Eurogamer.net|access-date=October 24, 2015|archive-date=August 22, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150822055915/http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/df-hardware-the-ultimate-console-collectors-guide|url-status=live}}</ref>

Internally, a regional lockout chip (CIC) within the console and in each cartridge prevents the PAL region games from being played on Japanese or North American consoles and vice versa. The Japanese and North American machines have the same region chip. This can be overcome through the use of adapters, typically by inserting the imported cartridge in one slot and a cartridge with the correct region chip in a second slot. Alternatively, disconnecting one pin of the console's lockout chip will prevent it from locking the console; hardware in later games can detect this situation, so it became common to install a switch to reconnect the lockout chip as needed.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://home.freeuk.com/markk/Consoles/SNES_Lockout.txt |title=Disabling the SNES/Super Famicom "Lockout Chip"|access-date= April 14, 2007 |author=Mark Knibbs|date=December 27, 1997 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030121165526/http://home.freeuk.com/markk/Consoles/SNES_Lockout.txt |archive-date=January 21, 2003}}</ref>

PAL consoles face another incompatibility when playing out-of-region cartridges: the NTSC video standard specifies video at 60 Hz but PAL operates at 50 Hz, resulting in an approximately 16.7% slower framerate. PAL's higher resolution results in letterboxing of the output image.<ref name="palconverter" /> Some commercial PAL region releases exhibit this same problem and, therefore, can be played in NTSC systems without issue, but other games will face a 20% speedup if played in an NTSC console. To mostly correct this issue, a switch can be added to place the Super NES PPU into a 60 Hz mode supported by most newer PAL televisions. Later games will detect this setting and refuse to run, requiring the switch to be thrown only after the check completes.<ref name="SNES-pal-switch">{{cite web |url=http://home.freeuk.net/markk/Consoles/SNES_50-60Hz_Switch.txt |title=Super NES/Super Famicom 50/60 Hz Switch Modification |access-date=April 14, 2007 |author=Mark Knibbs|date=January 25, 1998 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010502190046/http://home.freeuk.net/markk/Consoles/SNES_50-60Hz_Switch.txt |archive-date=May 2, 2001}}</ref>

===Casing=== {{Gallery | title = Super NES control deck variants | align = center | File:Nintendo-Super-Famicom-Set-FL.png | Japanese SHVC-001 model (1990–1998) | alt1 = Original Japanese Super Famicom | File:SNES-Mod1-Console-Set.png | North American SNS-001 model (1991–1997) | alt2 = Original North American Super Nintendo Entertainment System | File:Wikipedia SNES PAL.png | PAL-region SNSP-001A model (1992–1998) | alt3 = Original PAL Super Nintendo Entertainment System | File:SNES-Model-2-Set.png | New-Style Super NES SNS-101 (1997–1999) | alt4 = New-Style Super Nintendo Entertainment System | File:SuperFamicom jr.jpg | Japanese SHVC-101 model (1998–2003) | alt5 = Super Famicom Jr. | File:Hyundai Super Comboy - Main Body.jpg | South Korean SNSN-001 model | alt6 = Super Comboy | File:Nintendo Super System controller.jpg | Nintendo Super System controller | alt7 = Nintendo Super System controller }}

All models of the Super NES control deck are predominantly gray, of slightly different shades. The North American version, designed by Nintendo of America industrial designer Lance Barr<ref name="NP25" /> (who previously redesigned the Famicom to become the NES),<ref name="barr-interview">{{cite web|url=http://www.nintendojo.com/archives/interviews/view_item.php?1130801472|title=Lance Barr Interview|access-date=March 2, 2013|last1=Margetts|first1=Chad|last2=Ward|first2=M. Noah|website=Nintendojo|date=May 31, 2005|archive-date=July 22, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160722231242/http://www.nintendojo.com/archives/interviews/view_item.php?1130801472}}</ref> has a boxy design with purple sliding switches and a dark gray eject lever. The loading bay surface is curved, both to invite interaction and to prevent food or drinks from being placed on the console and spilling as with the flat-surfaced NES.<ref name="NP25">{{cite magazine |date=June 1991 |title=Super Nintendo Entertainment System |magazine=Nintendo Power |volume=25 |pages=45–46 |location=Redmond, Washington |publisher=Nintendo of America}}</ref> The original Japanese version, which shares its design with the European version, is more rounded with darker gray accents and buttons.

All versions incorporate a top-loading slot for game cartridges, although the shape of the slot differs between regions to match the different shapes of the cartridges. The MULTI OUT connector (later used on the Nintendo 64 and GameCube) can output composite video, S-Video and RGB signals, as well as RF with an external RF modulator.<ref name="Nintendo - AV hookup">{{cite web|url=https://www.nintendo.com/consumer/systems/supernes/hook_avtotv.jsp|title=Nintendo Support: Super Nintendo AV to TV Hookup|publisher=Nintendo|access-date=March 2, 2010|archive-date=August 5, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160805180114/http://www.nintendo.com/consumer/systems/supernes/hook_avtotv.jsp}}</ref><ref name="Nintendo - SNS-101 RF hookup">{{cite web|url=https://www.nintendo.com/consumer/systems/supernes/hook_rftotv_snn.jsp|title=Nintendo Support: New-Style Super NES RF to TV Hookup|access-date=June 30, 2010|publisher=Nintendo|archive-date=May 20, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100520034927/http://www.nintendo.com/consumer/systems/supernes/hook_rftotv_snn.jsp}}</ref> Original versions additionally include a 28-pin expansion port under a small cover on the bottom of the unit and a standard RF output with channel selection switch on the back;<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nintendo.com/consumer/systems/supernes/hook_rftotv_sns.jsp|title=Nintendo Support: Original-Style Super NES RF to TV Hookup|access-date=February 28, 2010|publisher=Nintendo|archive-date=March 10, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100310154344/http://www.nintendo.com/consumer/systems/supernes/hook_rftotv_sns.jsp}}</ref> the redesigned models output composite video only, requiring an external modulator for RF.<ref name="Nintendo - SNS-101 RF hookup" />

The Nintendo Super System (NSS) is an arcade system for retail preview of 11 particular Super NES games in the United States, similar to the PlayChoice-10 for NES games. It consists of slightly modified Super NES hardware with a menu interface and 25-inch monitor, that allows gameplay for a certain amount of time depending on game credits.<ref name=Bposter>{{cite web|url=http://flyers.arcade-museum.com/?page=thumbs&db=videodb&id=3920|title=Nintendo Super System: The Future Takes Shape|access-date=April 19, 2008|publisher=Arcade Flyers Archive|archive-date=December 3, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191203225318/https://flyers.arcade-museum.com/?page=thumbs&db=videodb&id=3920|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.snescentral.com/article.php?id=0792 | title=Nintendo Super System on SNES Central | access-date=December 3, 2019 | archive-date=December 3, 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191203225201/http://snescentral.com/article.php?id=0792 | url-status=live }}</ref> Manufacturing of this model was discontinued in 1992.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://archive.org/details/cashbox56unse_0/page/28|title=Nintendo Will No Longer Produce Coin-Op Equipment|magazine=Cashbox|date=September 5, 1992|access-date=December 8, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://archive.org/details/cashbox56unse_1/page/28|title=Nintendo Stops Games Manufacturing; But Will Continue Supplying Software|magazine=Cashbox|date=September 12, 1992|access-date=December 8, 2019}}</ref>

====Redesigned model==== A cost-reduced version of the console, referred to as the '''New-Style Super NES'''<ref name="Nintendo - SNS-101 RF hookup" /> (model SNS-101)<ref name="NL - Nintendo refreshes" /> in North and South America and as the {{Nihongo foot|'''Super Famicom Jr.'''|スーパーファミコンジュニア|Sūpā Famikon Junia|lead=yes|group=lower-alpha}}<ref name="Nintendo - SF Jr.">{{cite web|url=https://www.nintendo.co.jp/n02/shvc/shvcjr/index.html|title=Super Famicom Jr.|website=Nintendo|access-date=February 21, 2009|archive-date=December 26, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081226062831/http://www.nintendo.co.jp/n02/shvc/shvcjr/index.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |title=Super Nintendo La Diversion Es Para Todos |journal= Club Nintendo Chile |issue=12/1997 |page=68}}</ref> in Japan, was released late in the platform's lifespan; designed by Barr,<ref name="NL - Nintendo refreshes">{{cite web |last1=Lane |first1=Gavin |title=Nintendo Hardware Refreshes Through The Ages |url=https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2021/07/feature_nintendo_hardware_refreshes_through_the_ages |website=Nintendo Life |access-date=July 8, 2023 |date=July 12, 2021 |archive-date=May 31, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220531131043/https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2021/07/feature_nintendo_hardware_refreshes_through_the_ages |url-status=live }}</ref> it incorporates design elements from both the original American and Japanese/European console models<ref name="NL - Nintendo refreshes" /><ref>{{cite web |last1=Goulter |first1=Tom |title=The history of console redesigns |url=https://www.gamesradar.com/history-console-redesigns/ |website=GamesRadar+ |access-date=July 8, 2023 |language=en |date=December 3, 2012 |url-status=live |archive-date=May 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230501160013/https://www.gamesradar.com/history-console-redesigns/ }}</ref> but in a smaller form factor.<ref name="GameSpot - SNS-101 NA release" /><ref name="IGN - Nintendo redesigns">{{cite web |last1=Plant |first1=Logan |title=A History of Nintendo Console Redesigns |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/a-history-of-nintendo-console-redesigns |website=IGN |access-date=July 8, 2023 |language=en |date=July 7, 2021 |url-status=live |archive-date=July 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230709064101/https://www.ign.com/articles/a-history-of-nintendo-console-redesigns }}</ref> Unlike the original console models, the redesigned model is virtually identical across both regions save for the color palette (the American model receiving purple buttons and the Japanese model receiving grey buttons).<ref name="IGN - Nintendo redesigns" /> The redesign did not receive a release in Europe.<ref>{{cite web |last1=McFerran |first1=Damien |title=Nintendo's History of Hardware Revisions |url=https://www.eurogamer.net/nintendos-history-of-hardware-revisions |website=Eurogamer |access-date=January 5, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220523053644/https://www.eurogamer.net/nintendos-history-of-hardware-revisions |archive-date=May 23, 2022 |language=en |date=July 27, 2012 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Externally, the power and reset buttons were moved to the left-hand side of the console while the cartridge eject button and power LED indicator were omitted.<ref name="GameSpot - SNS-101 NA release" /><ref>{{cite news |last1=Byford |first1=Sam |title=A brief history of cutdown game consoles |url=https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2019/7/11/20690011/nintendo-switch-lite-game-console-redesign-xbox-playstation |access-date=July 10, 2023 |work=The Verge |date=July 11, 2019 |archive-date=February 25, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225144433/https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2019/7/11/20690011/nintendo-switch-lite-game-console-redesign-xbox-playstation |url-status=live }}</ref> Internally, the redesigned model consolidates the console's hardware into a system-on-chip (SoC) design.<ref name="NL - Ultimate SNES">{{cite web |last1=Buxton |first1=Matt |title=Powering Up Super Power - Finding The Ultimate SNES Console |url=https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2017/10/guide_powering_up_super_power_-_finding_the_ultimate_snes_console |website=Nintendo Life |access-date=July 9, 2023 |date=October 31, 2017 |url-status=live |archive-date=July 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230709200855/https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2017/10/guide_powering_up_super_power_-_finding_the_ultimate_snes_console }}</ref> The redesigned console lacks the bottom expansion slot, rendering it incompatible with the Japan-exclusive Satellaview add-on.<ref name="IGN - Nintendo redesigns" />

For AV output, the redesigned console features the same multi-out port used on the original models.<ref name="Nintendo - AV hookup" /><ref name="IGN - sexy 27">{{cite web |last1=Petty |first1=Jared |title=27 Sexy Console Redesigns |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2016/08/23/27-sexy-console-redesigns |website=IGN |access-date=July 8, 2023 |language=en |date=August 23, 2016 |url-status=live |archive-date=July 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230709064111/https://www.ign.com/articles/2016/08/23/27-sexy-console-redesigns }}</ref> Unlike the latter models, the former's AV port only supports composite video output natively as support for RGB video and S-Video was disabled internally; however, they can be restored via a "relatively simple" modification.<ref name="NL - Nintendo refreshes" /><ref name="IGN - sexy 27" /> The internal RF modulator was also removed, requiring an external one for such output if needed.<ref name="Nintendo - SNS-101 RF hookup" /><ref name="GameSpot - SNS-101 NA release" /> Due to the SoC design, it is highly sought after by Super NES/Famicom enthusiasts since its RGB video quality (if restored) is improved over earlier internal revisions of the console.<ref name="NL - Ultimate SNES" />

The redesigned console first released in October 1997 in North America, where it originally retailed for US$99.95 in a bundle with ''Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island'';<ref name="GameSpot - SNS-101 NA release">{{cite web|url=http://www.gamespot.com/news/super-nes-lives-2467396|title=Super NES Lives!|last=Johnston|first=Chris|date=October 29, 1997|website=GameSpot|access-date=February 21, 2009|archive-date=November 3, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121103210823/http://www.gamespot.com/news/super-nes-lives-2467396|url-status=live}}</ref> it was subsequently released in Japan on March 27, 1998, where it retailed for ¥7,800.<ref name="Nintendo - SF Jr." /><ref>{{Cite magazine |title=任天堂、家庭用で 4月に「GBライト」発売新製品を次々と |date=April 1, 1998 |magazine={{ill|Game Machine|ja|ゲームマシン}} |url=https://onitama.tv/gamemachine/pdf/19980401p.pdf |publisher={{ill|Amusement Press|ja|アミューズメント通信社}} |issue=561 |page=14}}</ref> Nintendo marketed it as an entry-level gamer's system for consumers who were apprehensive about the higher price of newer systems such as the Nintendo 64.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gamespot.com/news/super-fami-gets-face-lift-2462190|title=Super Fami Gets Face-Lift|first=Yutaka|last=Ohbuchi|website=GameSpot|date=January 16, 1998|access-date=February 21, 2009|archive-date=November 3, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121103210843/http://www.gamespot.com/news/super-fami-gets-face-lift-2462190|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine |title=Playing with Power: The Super Nintendo 25 Years On |date=November 2015 |magazine=Retro Gamer |page=58 |publisher=Imagine Publishing |issue=148 |issn=1742-3155}}</ref> Nintendo also introduced a slightly altered controller for it, with the console's logo replaced by an embossed Nintendo logo.<ref name="GameSpot - SNS-101 NA release" />

====Yellowing==== thumb|The plastic casing, yellow with age The acrylonitrile butadiene styrene plastic used in the casing of some older Super NES and Super Famicom consoles is particularly susceptible to oxidation with exposure to air. This, along with the particularly light color of the original plastic, causes affected consoles to quickly become yellow; if the sections of the casing came from different batches of plastic, a "two-tone" effect results.<ref>{{cite web |first=Benj |last=Edwards |title=Why Super Nintendos Lose Their Color: Plastic Discoloration in Classic Machines |url=http://www.vintagecomputing.com/index.php/archives/189 |publisher=Vintagecomputing.com |date=January 12, 2007 |access-date=August 19, 2009 |archive-date=January 1, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120101130907/http://www.vintagecomputing.com/index.php/archives/189 |url-status=live}}</ref> This issue may be reversed with a method called Retrobrighting, where a mixture of chemicals is applied to the case and exposed to UV light.<ref>{{cite web |first=James |last=Dziezynski |title=Retrobright Restoration Project |url=https://www.mountainouswords.com/mountain-air/retr0bright-restoration-project/ |publisher=www.mountainouswords.com |date=October 24, 2013 |access-date=October 24, 2019 |archive-date=October 24, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191024191222/https://www.mountainouswords.com/mountain-air/retr0bright-restoration-project/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

===Game cartridge=== {{Main|Super Nintendo Entertainment System Game Pak}}

Super NES games are distributed on ROM cartridges, officially referred to as Game Pak in most Western regions,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nintendo.com/consumer/systems/general/trouble_game.jsp |title=Game Pak Troubleshooting |work=Customer Service |publisher=Nintendo of America, Inc. |access-date=August 23, 2010 |archive-date=August 14, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100814093216/http://www.nintendo.com/consumer/systems/general/trouble_game.jsp |url-status=live }}</ref> and as {{nihongo|Cassette|カ��ット|Kasetto}} in Japan and parts of Latin America.<ref>{{cite book |title=ゼルダの伝説神々のトライフォース取扱説明書 |publisher=Nintendo Co., Ltd. |date=November 21, 1991 |page=1}}</ref> Though the Super NES can address 128 Mbit,<ref group="lower-alpha" name="binary prefix">Unless otherwise specified, kilobyte (KB), megabyte (MB), and megabit (Mbit) are used in the binary sense in this article, referring to quantities of 1024 or 1,048,576.</ref> only 117.75 Mbit are actually available for cartridge use. A fairly normal mapping could easily address up to 95 Mbit of ROM data (48 Mbit at FastROM speed) with 8 Mbit of battery-backed RAM. Most available memory access controllers only support mappings of up to 32 Mbit. The largest games released (''Tales of Phantasia'' and ''Star Ocean'') contain 48 Mbit of ROM data,<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Ogasawara |first=Nob |date=November 1995 |title=Future Fantasies from overseas |magazine=GamePro |volume=7 |issue=11 |page=126 |publisher=Infotainment World |location=San Mateo, CA |issn=1042-8658}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |date=July 1996 |title=Star Ocean |magazine=Nintendo Power |issue=86 |pages=60–61 |publisher=Nintendo of America |location=Redmond, WA |issn=1041-9551}}</ref> and the smallest games contain only 2 Mbit.

Cartridges may also contain battery-backed SRAM to save the game state, extra working RAM, custom coprocessors, or any other hardware that will not exceed the maximum current rating of the console.

==Games== {{Main|List of Super Nintendo Entertainment System games}}

{{See also|List of best-selling Super Nintendo Entertainment System video games|List of cancelled Super NES games}} 1757 Super NES games were officially released: 717 in North America (plus 4 championship cartridges), 521 in Europe, 1,448 in Japan, 231 on Satellaview, and 13 on Sufami Turbo. Many Super NES games have been called some of the greatest video games of all time, such as ''Super Mario World'' (1990), ''The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past'' (1991), ''Final Fantasy VI'' (1994), ''Donkey Kong Country'' (1994), ''EarthBound'' (1994), ''Super Metroid'' (1994), ''Chrono Trigger'' (1995) and ''Yoshi's Island'' (1995).<ref>{{Citation |title=Top 100 SNES Games of All Time - IGN.com |url=https://www.ign.com/lists/top-100-snes-games |access-date=2023-08-11 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-01-30 |title=50 Best Super Nintendo (SNES) Games Of All Time |url=https://www.nintendolife.com/guides/50-best-super-nintendo-snes-games-of-all-time |access-date=2023-08-11 |website=Nintendo Life |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-02-19 |title=The 15 Greatest SNES Games of All Time |url=https://www.destructoid.com/best-snes-games-of-all-time-ranked/ |access-date=2023-08-11 |website=Destructoid |language=en-US}}</ref> Many Super NES games have been rereleased several times, including on the Virtual Console, Super NES Classic Edition, and the Nintendo Classics service on Nintendo Switch Online. All Game Boy games are playable with the Super Game Boy add-on.

== Peripherals == {{main|List of Super Nintendo Entertainment System accessories}}

thumb|right|The layout of the Super NES controller became the basis for many other controllers. The Super NES controller design expands on that of the NES, with A, B, X, and Y face buttons in a diamond arrangement, and two shoulder buttons. Lance Barr created its ergonomic design, and he later adapted it in 1993 for the NES-039 "dogbone" controller.<ref name="NP25" /><ref name="barr-interview" /> The Japanese and PAL region versions incorporated the four colors of the face buttons into the system's logo. The North American version's buttons were colored to match the redesigned console; the X and Y buttons are lavender with concave faces, and the A and B buttons are purple with convex faces. Several later controller designs have elements from the Super NES controller, including the PlayStation, Dreamcast, Xbox, and Wii Classic Controller.<ref name="IGN-top-25" /><ref>{{cite web |url=http://wii.kombo.com/article.php?artid=6355 |title=Evolution of Controllers |author=Sud Koushik |publisher=Advanced Media Network|date=January 30, 2006|access-date=May 25, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090207024218/http://wii.kombo.com/article.php?artid=6355|archive-date=February 7, 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.1up.com/features/controller-history?pager.offset=3|page=4|title=Controller's History Dynamite|author=Chris Kohler|website=1UP.com|date=September 13, 2005|access-date=May 25, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120929215736/http://www.1up.com/features/controller-history?pager.offset=3|archive-date=September 29, 2012}}</ref> This face button layout is on future Nintendo systems since the Nintendo DS.

Several peripherals add to the functionality of the Super NES. Some are required by certain games, such as the Super Scope light gun, and the Super NES Mouse for a point and click interface. Hudson Soft released the Super Multitap in conjunction with ''Super Bomberman'', a multi-player adapter for the Super NES that allows up to four additional controllers to be connected into the control deck's second controller port for up to five possible simultaneous players in supported titles. Many other peripheral manufacturers would follow suit with their own multi-player adapters for the Super NES, both officially licensed and off-brand, such as the Super Links by Bulletproof Software (based on the Hori Multitap by Hori in Japan) and the Super 5-Play by Performance. All Super NES titles that support the Super Multitap or its compatible derivatives feature a "Super NES Multi-Player Adapter" logo on their packaging or cartridge label. Japanese Super Famicom titles used a {{nihongo|Multiplayer 5|マルチプレイヤー5}} logo instead, which was Nintendo's generic name for the Super Multitap and its compatible derivatives.

Various specialized joypad and joystick controllers were created by third-party companies such as Asciiware (the AsciiPad and the Super Advantage), Capcom (the Capcom Fighter Power Stick and the Capcom Pad Soldier), Hudson Soft (Super Joy Card), Hori (Super Commander and the SGB Commander) and Konami (the Hissatsu Command Controller), among others. Unusual controllers include the BatterUP baseball bat, the Life Fitness Entertainment System (an exercise bike controller with built-in monitoring software),<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Use Your Super Nintendo to Play Your Way to Perfect Health |magazine=Electronic Gaming Monthly |issue=67|publisher=Ziff Davis |date=February 1995 |page=54}}</ref> the TeeV Golf golf club,<ref>{{cite AV media|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYfqfZAXWnI|title=Super Nintendo ( SNES ) Controller – TeeV Golf by Sports Sciences|date=August 22, 2015|via=YouTube|access-date=October 24, 2015|archive-date=March 17, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160317144016/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYfqfZAXWnI|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M2YEAAAAMBAJ&q=%22TeeV+Golf%22&pg=PT76|title=Popular Mechanics|work=google.com|date=March 1995|publisher=Hearst Magazines|access-date=October 24, 2015|archive-date=May 5, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160505063721/https://books.google.com/books?id=M2YEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PT76&lpg=PT76&dq=%22TeeV+Golf%22&source=bl&ots=iCtb5oqLsU&sig=LdBm6gvBYZnaTo-DN6AbETPOgvA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0CDMQ6AEwBGoVChMIzrC-ifPZyAIVzEkmCh2LhAQx#v=onepage&q=%22TeeV%20Golf%22&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref> and the Justifier (a revolver-shaped light gun made by Konami for ''Lethal Enforcers''). [[File:Nintendo-Super-Game-Boy.jpg|thumb|The Super Game Boy cartridge adapts Game Boy games to the SNES.]] Though Nintendo never released an adapter for playing NES games on the Super NES, the Super Game Boy adapter cartridge allows games designed for Nintendo's portable Game Boy system to be played on the Super NES. The Super Game Boy touts several feature enhancements over the Game Boy, including palette substitution, custom screen borders, and access to the Super NES console's features by specially enhanced Game Boy games.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2014/04/remembering-the-games-that-made-nintendos-game-boy-a-phenomenon/360982/|title=Feature: Remembering the Super Game Boy|author=Eric Levenson|work=The Atlantic|date=April 21, 2014|access-date=July 13, 2017|archive-date=October 25, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171025190241/https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2014/04/remembering-the-games-that-made-nintendos-game-boy-a-phenomenon/360982/|url-status=live}}</ref> Japan also saw the release of the Super Game Boy 2, which adds a communication port to enable a second Game Boy to connect for multiplayer games.

Like the NES before it, the Super NES has unlicensed third-party peripherals, including a new version of the Game Genie cheat cartridge designed for use with Super NES games. One of the most infamous are backup units, such as Super Wildcard, Super Pro Fighter Q, and Game Doctor.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.emucamp.com/red/SNES/index.shtml |title=SNES Backup Units |publisher=RED #9 |access-date=September 17, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070626053528/http://www.emucamp.com/red/SNES/index.shtml |archive-date=June 26, 2007|work=Emucamp.com}}</ref> Super Wildcard allowed a backup of a catridge to be saved to floppy disk, allowing users to copy games.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.computinghistory.org.uk/det/32519/Super-Wild-Card-ROM-Copier/|title=Super Wild Card ROM Copier - Peripheral - Computing History|work=Center for Computing History}}</ref>

[[File:Satellaview with Super Famicom.jpg|thumb|right|The Satellaview add-on allowed for subscribers of the BS-X service to download games and participate in hosted events with a special adapter.]] The Japan-only Satellaview is a satellite modem attached to the Super Famicom's expansion port and connected to the St.GIGA satellite radio station from April 23, 1995, to June 30, 2000. Satellaview subscribers could download gaming news and specially designed games, which were frequently either remakes of or sequels to older Famicom games, and released in installments.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/feature/27669/nintendos-expansion-ports-satellaview|title=Nintendo's Expansion Ports Satellaview|first=Danny|last=Bivens|date=October 27, 2011|access-date=January 22, 2016|archive-date=January 27, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160127055807/http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/feature/27669/nintendos-expansion-ports-satellaview|url-status=live}}</ref> In the United States, the relatively short-lived XBAND allowed users to connect to a network via a dial-up modem to compete against other players around the country.

Nintendo attempted partnerships with Sony and later Philips to develop CD-ROM-based peripherals, aiming to compete with add-ons like the TurboGrafx-CD and Sega CD. Sony's effort resulted in a prototype known as the PlayStation, a Super NES with a built-in CD-ROM drive, which never reached the market but laid the groundwork for Sony's later independently produced console. The Philips project was canceled before a prototype was produced. However, under the original development agreement, Nintendo had granted Philips the rights to use certain franchises for games intended for the planned peripheral. After the project's cancellation, Philips retained these rights and used them to develop Mario and Zelda titles for its CD-i multimedia system.<ref>{{cite web |author=Edge staff |date=April 24, 2009 |title=The Making Of: PlayStation |url=http://www.edge-online.com/features/making-playstation |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120516003333/http://www.edge-online.com/features/making-playstation |archive-date=May 16, 2012 |access-date=March 7, 2012 |work=Edge |publisher=Future Publishing}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author= |date=August 27, 1998 |title=History of the PlayStation |url=http://psx.ign.com/articles/060/060188p1.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120218120358/http://psx.ign.com/articles/060/060188p1.html |archive-date=February 18, 2012 |access-date=March 8, 2012 |website=IGN}}</ref>

==Enhancement chips== {{Main|List of Super NES enhancement chips}}

[[File:SNES Star Fox.png|thumb|The Super FX chip allowed ''Star Fox'' to have 3D polygonal graphics on the Super Nintendo.]] As part of the overall plan for the Super NES, rather than include an expensive CPU that would still become obsolete in a few years, the hardware designers made it easy to interface special coprocessor chips to the console, just like the MMC chips used for most NES games. This is most often characterized by 16 additional pins on the cartridge card edge.<ref>[http://wiki.superfamicom.org/snes/show/Schematics,+Ports,+and+Pinouts#cart_connector_6 "SNES Development--Schematics, Ports, and Pinouts"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150504180144/http://wiki.superfamicom.org/snes/show/Schematics,+Ports,+and+Pinouts |date=May 4, 2015 }} "Many carts connect only to pins 5-27 and 36-58, as the remaining pins are mainly useful only if the cart contains special chips."</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-06-28 |title=Super Nintendo Architecture {{!}} A Practical Analysis |url=https://www.copetti.org/writings/consoles/super-nintendo/ |access-date=2023-08-11 |website=The Copetti site |language=en}}</ref>

The Super FX is a RISC CPU designed to perform functions that the main CPU can not feasibly do. The chip is primarily used to create 3D game worlds made with polygons, texture mapping and light source shading. The chip can also be used to enhance 2D games.<ref name="snes9x-readme" />

The Nintendo fixed-point digital signal processor (DSP) chip allowed fast vector-based calculations, bitmap conversions, both 2D and 3D coordinate transformations, and other functions.<ref name="overload-dsp">{{cite web|url= http://users.tpg.com.au/advlink/dsp/ |title= Digital Signal Processing |work=Overload's Puzzle Sheet |access-date=May 9, 2007 |author=Overload |date=May 29, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070311122346/http://users.tpg.com.au/advlink/dsp/  |archive-date=March 11, 2007}} Refer to the command summaries for all four DSP versions.</ref> Four revisions of the chip exist, each physically identical but with different microcode. The DSP-1 version, including the later 1A and 1B bug fix revisions, is used most often; the DSP-2, DSP-3, and DSP-4 are used in only one game each.<ref name="nsrt-chip-info">{{cite web |url=http://nsrt.edgeemu.com/INFO/chipinfo.htm |title=SNES Add-on Chip information |access-date=May 9, 2007 |author=Nach |author2=Moe, Lord Nightmare |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070708061024/http://nsrt.edgeemu.com/INFO/chipinfo.htm |archive-date=July 8, 2007}}</ref>

Similar to the 5A22 CPU in the console, the SA-1 chip contains a 65C816 processor core clocked at 10.7 MHz, a memory mapper, DMA, decompression and bitplane conversion circuitry, several programmable timers, and CIC region lockout functionality.<ref name="snes9x-readme" />

In Japan, games could be downloaded cheaper than standard cartridges, from Nintendo Power kiosks onto special cartridges containing flash memory and a MegaChips MX15001TFC chip. The chip manages communication with the kiosks to download ROM images and has an initial menu to select a game. Some were published both in cartridge and download form, and others were download only. The service closed on February 8, 2007.<ref>{{cite web | title=Nintendo Closes Nintendo Power | work=Computer and Video Games | date=February 8, 2007 | first=Andy | last=Robinson |url=http://www.computerandvideogames.com/157280/nintendo-closes-nintendo-power/?attr=CVG-General-RSS | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130509023928/http://www.computerandvideogames.com/157280/nintendo-closes-nintendo-power/?attr=CVG-General-RSS | archive-date=May 9, 2013 | access-date=May 9, 2015}}</ref>

Many cartridges contain other enhancement chips, most of which were created for use by a single company in a few games.<ref name="nsrt-chip-info" />

==Reception and legacy== [[File:Nintendo Super NES Tietokonemuseo.JPG|thumb|European version of the Super NES control deck at the Computer and Video Game Console Museum of Helsinki in 2012]] Approximately 49.1 million Super NES consoles were sold worldwide, with 23.35 million of those units sold in the Americas and 17.17 million in Japan.<ref name="consolidatedsales"/> Although it could not quite repeat the success of the NES, which sold 61.91 million units worldwide,<ref name="consolidatedsales" /> the Super NES was the best-selling console of its era.

In 2007, ''GameTrailers'' named the Super NES as the second-best console of all time (only behind the PlayStation 2) in their list of top ten consoles that "left their mark on the history of gaming", citing its graphics, sound, and library of top-quality games.<ref>{{cite video |date=April 19, 2007 |title=Top Ten Consoles | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211001225228/JlNbK7S2shg | archive-date=October 1, 2021 | url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlNbK7S2shg |format=Flash video |publisher=GameTrailers |access-date=September 14, 2017 |time=9:00}}{{cbignore}}</ref> In 2015, they also named it the best Nintendo console of all time, saying, "The list of games we love from this console completely annihilates any other roster from the Big N."<ref>{{cite video |date=March 28, 2015 |title=Top Ten Nintendo Systems |url=http://www.gametrailers.com/videos/slu4pc/gt-countdown-top-ten-nintendo-systems |format=Flash video |publisher=Gametrailers |access-date=March 29, 2015 |time=10:48 |archive-date=March 29, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150329105219/http://www.gametrailers.com/videos/slu4pc/gt-countdown-top-ten-nintendo-systems |url-status=live }}</ref> Technology columnist Don Reisinger proclaimed "The SNES is the greatest console of all time" in January 2008, citing the quality of the games and the console's dramatic improvement over its predecessor;<ref>{{cite web |url=http://news.cnet.com/8301-13506_3-9858188-17.html |title=The SNES is the greatest console of all time |first=Don |last=Reisinger |date=January 25, 2008 |publisher=CNET Blog Network |access-date=October 24, 2010 |archive-date=February 19, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120219084718/http://news.cnet.com/8301-13506_3-9858188-17.html |url-status=live }}</ref> fellow technology columnist Will Greenwald replied with a more nuanced view, giving the Super NES top marks with his heart, the NES with his head, and the PlayStation (for its controller) with his hands.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-9858826-1.html |title=The greatest game console of all time? |first=Will |last=Greenwald |date=January 28, 2008 |publisher=CNET Blog Network |access-date=October 24, 2010 |archive-date=February 19, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120219084612/http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-9858826-1.html |url-status=live }}</ref> ''GamingExcellence'' also gave the Super NES first place in 2008, declaring it "simply the most timeless system ever created" with many games that stand the test of time and citing its innovation in controller design, graphics capabilities, and game storytelling.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gamingexcellence.com/features/15.shtml?page=4 |title=The Top Ten Consoles of All Time |first=Andrew |last=Sztein |date=March 28, 2008 |publisher=GamingExcellence |access-date=October 24, 2010 |archive-date=May 10, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120510210711/http://www.gamingexcellence.com/features/15.shtml?page=4 |url-status=live }}</ref> At the same time, ''GameDaily'' rated it fifth of the ten greatest consoles for its graphics, audio, controllers, and games.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gamedaily.com/articles/galleries/top-10-greatest-consoles/?page=6 |title=Top 10 Greatest Consoles |first=Chris |last=Buffa |date=March 5, 2008 |publisher=GameDaily |access-date=October 24, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080309153306/http://www.gamedaily.com/articles/galleries/top-10-greatest-consoles/?page=6 |archive-date=March 9, 2008}}</ref> In 2009, ''IGN'' named the Super NES the fourth-best video game console, complimenting its audio and number of AAA games.<ref name="IGN-top-25">{{cite web|url=http://www.ign.com/top-25-consoles/4.html |title=Top 25 Videogame Consoles of All Time |website=IGN |date=September 4, 2009 |access-date=October 24, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100304153903/http://www.ign.com/top-25-consoles/4.html |archive-date=March 4, 2010 }}</ref>

===Emulation=== {{See also|List of video game console emulators#Nintendo}} Super NES emulation began with VSMC in 1994, and Super Pasofami became the first working emulator in 1996.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GBXqCAAAQBAJ&q=pasofami&pg=PA304|title=I Am Error|isbn=978-0-262-02877-6|access-date=October 24, 2015|archive-date=April 28, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160428044911/https://books.google.com/books?id=GBXqCAAAQBAJ&pg=PA304&lpg=PA304&dq=pasofami&source=bl&ots=vdE8h38pvP&sig=y-lPGH6XIIHYORopyRbwC-eYeNo&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0CBwQ6AEwADgKahUKEwjMj5rN9tnIAhUCYiYKHROAChY#v=onepage&q=pasofami&f=false|url-status=live|last1=Altice|first1=Nathan|date=May 2015|publisher=MIT Press }}</ref> During that time, two competing emulation projects, Snes96 and Snes97, merged to form Snes9x.<ref name="snes9x-readme">(2007-05-01) Snes9x readme.txt v1.51. ''Snes9x''. Snes9x. Retrieved on July 3, 2007.</ref> In 1997, ZSNES development began.<ref name="zsnes-games">{{cite web |url=https://zsnes-docs.sourceforge.net/text/about.txt |title=ZSNES v1.51 Documentation |work=ZSNES |access-date=July 16, 2007 |archive-date=January 19, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160119175813/http://zsnes-docs.sourceforge.net/text/about.txt |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2004, Bsnes development began with the goal of preservation through maximal accuracy and compatibility, and was later renamed to Higan.

Nintendo of America maintained its stance against the distribution of Super NES ROM image files and the use of emulators, as it had with the NES before, saying they represent copyright infringement.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nintendo.com/corp/legal.jsp |title=Legal Information (Copyrights, Emulators, ROMs, etc.) |publisher=Nintendo of America |access-date=June 14, 2007 |archive-date=June 18, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160618141515/http://www.nintendo.com/corp/legal.jsp |url-status=live }}</ref> Emulation proponents assert that the discontinued hardware production constitutes abandonware status, the owners' right to make a personal backup, space shifting for private use, the development of homebrew games, the frailty of ROM cartridges and consoles, and the lack of certain foreign imports. Nintendo designed a hobbyist development system for the SNES, but never released it.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=What Does This... Have to Do with This?|magazine=Electronic Gaming Monthly|issue=94|publisher=Ziff Davis|date=May 1997|page=22}}</ref>

Unofficial Super NES emulation is available on virtually all platforms, including Android,<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.pcworld.com/article/203154/android_a_gamers_guide.html |title=Android: A Gamer's Guide |first=Chris |last=Head |date=August 12, 2010 |magazine=PCWorld |access-date=August 22, 2010 |archive-date=March 9, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120309055852/http://www.pcworld.com/article/203154/android_a_gamers_guide.html |url-status=live }}</ref> iOS,<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2008/01/snes-emulator-f/ |title=SNES Emulator for iPhone |first=Charlie |last=Sorrel |date=January 23, 2008 |magazine=Wired |access-date=August 22, 2010 |archive-date=March 17, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120317182329/http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2008/01/snes-emulator-f |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/06/video-snes-for-ipad-controlled-by-iphone/ |title=Video: SNES for iPad, Controlled by iPhone |first=Charlie |last=Sorrel |date=June 9, 2010 |magazine=Wired |access-date=August 22, 2010 |archive-date=January 13, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120113130659/http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/06/video-snes-for-ipad-controlled-by-iphone/ |url-status=live }}</ref> game consoles, and PDAs.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.smartphonemag.com/cms/blogs/3/1939|title=The definitive guide to playing SNES games on Windows Mobile (and Symbian)|author=Werner Ruotsalainen|date=May 10, 2007|work=Expert Blogs|publisher=Smartphone & Pocket PC Magazine|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120111131030/http://www.smartphonemag.com/cms/blogs/3/1939|archive-date=January 11, 2012|url-status=usurped|access-date=February 12, 2009}}</ref> Individual games have been bundled with official dedicated emulators on some GameCube discs, and Nintendo's Virtual Console service for the Wii introduced diverse and officially licensed Super NES emulation.

The Super NES Classic Edition was released in September 2017 following the NES Classic Edition. This emulation-based mini-console, which is physically modeled after the North American and European versions of the Super NES, is bundled with two Super NES-style controllers and 21 games, including the unreleased ''Star Fox 2''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kotaku.co.uk/2017/06/26/yes-the-super-nintendo-mini-is-actually-happening-and-itll-feature-star-fox-2|title=Nintendo Announces SNES Mini, and it'll Include Star Fox 2|website=Kotaku UK|access-date=June 26, 2017|archive-date=June 27, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170627130327/http://www.kotaku.co.uk/2017/06/26/yes-the-super-nintendo-mini-is-actually-happening-and-itll-feature-star-fox-2|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Notes== {{Reflist|group=lower-alpha}}

==References== {{Reflist}}

==Bibliography== * {{cite book |last=Kent |first=Steven L. |author-link=Steven L. Kent |title=The Ultimate History of Video Games: The Story Behind the Craze that Touched our Lives and Changed the World |year=2001 |publisher=Prima Publishing |location=Roseville, California |isbn=0-7615-3643-4}} * {{cite book |last=Sheff |first=David |title=Game Over: How Nintendo Zapped an American Industry, Captured Your Dollars, and Enslaved Your Children |year=1993 |edition=First |publisher=Random House |location=New York |isbn=0-679-40469-4}}

==External links== {{Commons category|Super Famicom and variants}} * {{official website|https://www.nintendo.co.jp/n02/shvc/index.html}} {{in lang|ja}} * {{official website|https://www.nintendo.com/en-gb/Hardware/Nintendo-History/Super-Nintendo/Super-Nintendo-627040.html|Official European website}} {{in lang|en}} * {{Wikibooks inline|Super NES Programming}}

{{Super Nintendo Entertainment System}} {{Nintendo hardware|SNES}} {{Fourth generation game consoles}} {{Home video game consoles}} {{Portal bar|Video games|Electronics|1990s|Japan}} {{Authority control}}

Category:Super Nintendo Entertainment System Category:2000s toys Category:65xx-based video game consoles Category:Discontinued video game consoles Category:Fourth-generation video game consoles Category:Home video game consoles Category:Nintendo consoles Category:Products and services discontinued in 1999 Category:Products and services discontinued in 2003 Category:Products introduced in 1990