unreleased IMSA Racing footage for the canceled 3DO/Matsushita M2

**parallaxscroll** · 12-14-2008, 12:38 PM

Newly discovered video of a near-final version of IMSA Racing on M2 from 1997

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=2ackXME-pE4
don't forget to watch in high quality

Footage from an older, alpha build from 1996:

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=eMa0DHtf0Sw
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_24GhAwlv0
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=LdujBv7ZG48

IMSA Racing for M2 ran at 640x480 resolution at 30 frames per second with no popup/draw in, no fogging, a high level of geometry detail, and high image quality with trilinear filtered textures, and other graphical trickery.

Although extremely unimpressive by todays standards, or even those of last-gen (DC, PS2, GCN, Xbox) this is beyond what could be done on the original PlayStation, or Nintendo 64. It's even somewhat better than what PCs could do with 3D accelerators (3Dfx or PowerVR graphics cards) in 1996-1997. Only high-end arcade games looked better at the time (i.e. Sega's Scud Race on MODEL 3).

Next Generation magazine article on the game

M2 was canceled in 1997. It wasn't vaporware, it was a very real and completed console. Matsushita/Panasonic chickened out, didn't want to compete with Sony, Nintendo and even Sega, because by 1997 Matsushita reasoned that PS1 and N64 were already established, the M2 hardware although powerful, was no longer state-of-the-art, it had aged over the 2 years since it had been announced (spring 1995) and it would face the next generation consoles (Dreamcast and PlayStation2) only a few years after a 1997 release. Matsushita pulled the plug on the console. However M2 was used in a number of Konami arcade games. M2 was also used in various equipment such as highend DVD players, industrial display kiosks, ATM machines, among other things.

**Kevincal** · 12-14-2008, 12:51 PM

Looks on par with Dreamcast graphics. Daytona on the DC comes to mind.

**parallaxscroll** · 12-14-2008, 12:53 PM

**Poofta!** · 12-14-2008, 12:54 PM

wow and all without popup. had they released this console along w/ the ps1, it wouldve been a true contender.

**parallaxscroll** · 12-14-2008, 12:59 PM

Originally Posted by Kevincal

Looks on par with Dreamcast graphics. Daytona on the DC comes to mind.

M2 was not on par with Dreamcast, not even close.

Texture-mapped, gouraud shaded polygon per second performance with lighting and rendering features / effects applied:
M2: 300,000 ~ 500,000
DC: 3,000,000 ~ 5,000,000

However, there were many Dreamcast games that used only a small fraction of the performance it had, so with that in mind, it's understandable that many Dreamcast games look roughly on par with games developed for M2.

With that said Daytona USA on Dreamcast is miles ahead of IMSA Racing, Daytona DC is 60fps, uses alot more polygons, much more advanced lighting (volumetric) as well as a much higher quantity of more detailed textures.

edit: The Dreamcast game Test Drive Le Mans comes to mind, is much, much more similar to IMSA Racing than DC Daytona USA.

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=nC2A9gErwKM
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=58h_tQWUTjE
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=4_z3hsEpzyM

Both games are 30fps. Still Dreamcast Le Mans is well beyond M2 IMSA Racing grapically, but I don't expect M2 to compete with Dreamcast anymore than I expect Dreamcast to compete with Xbox.

**Rob2600** · 12-14-2008, 02:05 PM

Cool video, thanks for posting!

In terms of frame rate and draw distance, the M2 looks about twice as powerful as the N64. The texturing is a bit clearer too, but the lighting and shadows are about the same...maybe even a little worse than what I've seen in some N64 games.

Compare this video to N64 games like Wave Race, F-1 World Grand Prix, World Driver Championship, Top Gear Overdrive, Beetle Adventure Racing, or Ridge Racer 64. I think those games are as detailed as this M2 game...maybe even more...but again, the M2 game has a higher frame rate. The background geometry in the M2 game is very simple though. There are plenty of buildings, but they're all just simple boxes with the same one or two window textures repeated on them.

I realize this was an early M2 game. Had the console been released, I'm sure later games would've looked even more impressive. Based on the specs, I'd say later M2 games would've looked about two times better than N64 games, which would've been very good.

If the M2 were released in 1997, how much do you think it would've cost? Both the N64 and Dreamcast launched at $199, which I think is the perfect price. Anything more than $300 would've been unacceptable.

**Greg2600** · 12-14-2008, 02:28 PM

Great videos! As a resident self-expressed Sim Racing guru, I have to say those graphics are outstanding for 1997. The smoothness, draw distance, 3D building models, etc., are all pretty amazing. Rob, that IMSA game is head and shoulders above most racing games on the N64. Also RR64 came out in 2000, this thing was being developed in 1997!

I compared it to the PC racing games of that era:
1997's Need for Speed II on Windows: http://www.mobygames.com/game/window...eShotId,28508/
1998's Test Drive 5: http://www.mobygames.com/game/window...meShotId,1392/
1999's EA Sports Car GT: http://www.mobygames.com/game/window...eShotId,99234/
2000' s Test Drive: Le Mans: http://www.mobygames.com/game/window...ShotId,160121/

Can't believe I've never heard of the M2? As for the pricing, I'm sure it would have been way too expensive, providing instant doom in the same vein as the SuperGrafx, Neo Geo, SEGACD and 32X, 3DO, CD-i, etc.

**Rob2600** · 12-14-2008, 02:31 PM

Originally Posted by Greg2600

Great videos! As a resident self-expressed Sim Racing guru, I have to say those graphics are outstanding for 1997. The smoothness, draw distance, 3D building models, etc., are all pretty amazing.

Compare that to the games of that day:
1997's Need for Speed II on Windows: http://www.mobygames.com/game/window...eShotId,28508/
1998's Test Drive 5: http://www.mobygames.com/game/window...meShotId,1392/
1999's EA Sports Car GT: http://www.mobygames.com/game/window...eShotId,99234/
2000' s Test Drive: Le Mans: http://www.mobygames.com/game/window...ShotId,160121/

Can't believe I've never heard of the M2?

The Panasonic M2 was a video game console design developed by 3DO and then sold to Matsushita/Panasonic for $100,000,000.

Regarding the buildings, again, they're just simple boxes with the same textures repeated. Overall, the game looks fairly impressive, though I think it's more because of the excellent frame rate than the amount of detail, which is somewhat low compared to games like Wave Race 64 and Beetle Adventure Racing.

**parallaxscroll** · 12-14-2008, 03:15 PM

M2 codenamed 'Bulldog' was in development in 1993, the first specs and existance of Bulldog were revealed in 1994. The M2 accelerator and standalone console was announced in 1995, for a Christmas release. M2 was delayed and pushed to 1996. During 1996 M2 was upgraded from 4-6 MB of RAM to 8 MB, given a 2nd PowerPC 602 CPU so that its polygon performance was boosted. The accelerator/upgrade was dropped and now it would be a new standalone console. Games including IMSA Racing were developed in 1995-1996 and into 1997. By mid 1997 the console release was canceled.

The 3DO Mark II / Bulldog / M2 upgrade was originally supposed to cost $100 and the standalone console $270 to $400. Keep in mind this was at a time when the original 3DO was selling for $699 or $799, as of 1994-1995.
By 1996-1997 the console was expected to be $300 to $400, not totally outrageous for a system with twice the graphics performance of N64,
two 66 MHz PowerPC CPUs, a 4x CD-ROM drive, 8 MB RAM.

**roushimsx** · 12-14-2008, 03:24 PM

Originally Posted by Greg2600

I compared it to the PC racing games of that era:
1997's Need for Speed II on Windows: http://www.mobygames.com/game/window...eShotId,28508/

Now, now. If you're going to compare it to Need For Speed II, at least compare it to Need For Speed II: Special Edition as it's the one that actually uses 3d hardware. P.O.D. was no slouch either.

Hell, even the software based games didn't look that bad. Look at Screamer 2 from 1996. Not like graphics matter, because we all know Big Red Racing destroyed everything else.

It is nice to see some actual M2 game footage getting uploaded to YouTube to replace those prerendered videos that have been circulating for more than a decade. Really neat stuff. Shame it'll never be emulated for people to actually play them (I'm honestly surprised that CD-I and 3DO emulation are as advanced as they are, all things considered).

**parallaxscroll** · 12-14-2008, 04:02 PM

Originally Posted by roushimsx

It is nice to see some actual M2 game footage getting uploaded to YouTube to replace those prerendered videos that have been circulating for more than a decade. Really neat stuff.

Agreed. That pre-rendered racing game demo was really pretty but not indicative of what M2 could actually do. I would also like to see any demos made for the little-known MX chipset, which was basicly "M2 on steroids", with at least twice the performance of M2, and almost accepted by Nintendo for the basis of their next console in 1997 (which might have launched in late 1999) but a deal with Samsung (who had acquired the 3DO hardware team and MX tech) was killed. This happened before Nintendo commited themselves to partnering with ArtX on the Dolphin/GameCube, before they got bought by ATI.

Shame it'll never be emulated for people to actually play them (I'm honestly surprised that CD-I and 3DO emulation are as advanced as they are, all things considered).

I can only dream of getting to play M2 games via emulation some day :/

**Rob2600** · 12-14-2008, 04:45 PM

Originally Posted by Greg2600

those graphics are outstanding for 1997. The smoothness, draw distance, 3D building models, etc., are all pretty amazing. Rob, that IMSA game is head and shoulders above most racing games on the N64. Also RR64 came out in 2000, this thing was being developed in 1997!

Dont get me wrong, the M2 IMSA racing game is impressive, but it's not miles ahead of what the N64 could do in games like F-1 World Grand Prix, World Driver Championship, Beetle Adventure Racing, Top Gear Overdrive, Wave Race, etc. The backgrounds in those N64 racing games are just as detailed (if not more) than IMSA, but IMSA has a higher frame rate. It looks good for a launch game though.

F-1 World Grand Prix was released in mid 1998 for the N64. Here's a video (impressive car models in the intro, skip ahead halfway for in-game footage):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LT6oYj9tzTI

World Driver Championship was released in mid 1999 for the N64. Here are videos:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gn4pnAKS_d4 (click "high quality")

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9VJjrO5Ql3Y (click "high quality")

And of course, Wave Race 64, which was released in 1996:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYZuzsQxDCI (click "high quality")

Remember, these games are running off of 1996 hardware (the N64) with 4 MB of RAM (no Expansion Pak). Pretty impressive! Again, based on specs, the M2 seems roughly twice as powerful as the N64. IMSA certainly doesn't max out those specs, but for a launch game, it looks good.

And you're right, as I wrote in an earlier post, I imagine later M2 games would look much more impressive than the IMSA game. In the hands of a strong development team, I'm sure the graphics in M2 games would've kicked butt in the late 1990s...until the Dreamcast.

I'd love to see in-game footage of other M2 games.

Originally Posted by parallaxscroll

The 3DO Mark II / Bulldog / M2 upgrade was originally supposed to cost $100 and the standalone console $270 to $400. Keep in mind this was at a time when the original 3DO was selling for $699 or $799, as of 1994-1995.
By 1996-1997 the console was expected to be $300 to $400, not totally outrageous for a system with twice the graphics performance of N64

If the M2 launched at $399, very few people would've bought it. $299 would've been much better...although I don't think the console would've been successful at any price, to be honest. Competing with Sony, Nintendo, and Sega in 1997-2000 would've been financial suicide.

**Poofta!** · 12-14-2008, 07:31 PM

Originally Posted by Rob2600

although I don't think the console would've been successful at any price, to be honest. Competing with Sony, Nintendo, and Sega in 1997-2000 would've been financial suicide.

i would have to agree, and Panasonic did not have the budget as microsoft did to be able to ram its way in.

**Leo_A** · 12-14-2008, 09:58 PM

I wish this had been ported to the Dreamcast. Impressive looking game, if the gameplay was on par with the graphics (Hard to judge since he's using a digital controller that apparantly makes the game impossible to control), I'd of loved this.

I hope someday this gets emulated.

**kedawa** · 12-14-2008, 11:48 PM

Originally Posted by Poofta!

i would have to agree, and Panasonic did not have the budget as microsoft did to be able to ram its way in.

Panasonic didn't have the budget?
Matsushita was the biggest consumer electronics company in the world at that time.

**Scawt** · 12-14-2008, 11:52 PM

I think Panasonic had the money, but maybe not the foresight or know-how. Microsoft had dealt with PC gaming for years before they released the Xbox. What has Panasonic done?

Also, those graphics are PS1-esque at best. Dreamcast? Come on.

**Kevincal** · 12-15-2008, 12:10 AM

Originally Posted by parallaxscroll

M2 was not on par with Dreamcast, not even close.

Texture-mapped, gouraud shaded polygon per second performance with lighting and rendering features / effects applied:
M2: 300,000 ~ 500,000
DC: 3,000,000 ~ 5,000,000

However, there were many Dreamcast games that used only a small fraction of the performance it had, so with that in mind, it's understandable that many Dreamcast games look roughly on par with games developed for M2.

With that said Daytona USA on Dreamcast is miles ahead of IMSA Racing, Daytona DC is 60fps, uses alot more polygons, much more advanced lighting (volumetric) as well as a much higher quantity of more detailed textures.

edit: The Dreamcast game Test Drive Le Mans comes to mind, is much, much more similar to IMSA Racing than DC Daytona USA.

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=nC2A9gErwKM
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=58h_tQWUTjE
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=4_z3hsEpzyM

Both games are 30fps. Still Dreamcast Le Mans is well beyond M2 IMSA Racing grapically, but I don't expect M2 to compete with Dreamcast anymore than I expect Dreamcast to compete with Xbox.

Tech specs aside... Just looking at this M2 racing game, and having played Daytona on the DC extensively...there really is not THAT much difference in graphic quality. Both look and run really smoothly. Hell, this game doesn't even look much worse than GT3 on the PS2.. But ya, I guess it would be closer to Le Mans.

The M2 would have been released sometime in 1997 or 1998 had it been released, correct? The DC was released in late 1998 in Japan right? So, it seems to me the DC would have been its closest rival. Just looking at this racing game, the graphic quality seems closer to the DC than the N64, throwing tech specs out the window...

Originally Posted by Scawt

I think Panasonic had the money, but maybe not the foresight or know-how. Microsoft had dealt with PC gaming for years before they released the Xbox. What has Panasonic done?

Also, those graphics are PS1-esque at best. Dreamcast? Come on.

You need some glasses if you think PS racing games look anywhere near as good as this M2 game... And I'm a big PS fan... I'm also a big N64 fan and my favorite genre is racing games... This M2 game is easily better looking than any racing game on the N64 that I've seen, and that's many. It's smoother, more realistic looking, and has a higher resolution than anything I've seen on the N64. Like I said, this looks more like a DC game than anything if you ask me...

**R.Sakai** · 12-15-2008, 12:28 AM

That racing video screams "Overclocked Nuon"

**Kevincal** · 12-15-2008, 01:04 AM

NUON games are rather blurry though... Kinda like N64 games. This M2 racing game looks very crisp.

**parallaxscroll** · 12-15-2008, 01:55 PM

Originally Posted by R.Sakai

That racing video screams "Overclocked Nuon"

It's funny you say that. Project X / NUON was supposed to be a generation beyond systems like PS1, N64 and M2. It ended up being barely on par with N64 and easily weaker than M2.

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