SEGA worked with Nintendo on a Gamecube Arcade System Called the TRIFORCE!

[@VOAN]

Namco, Sega, and Nintendo were like best buddies during the GameCube era. It's this partnership that we were able to get Sega making F-Zero GX, how Link got into Soul Calibur II, how Miyamoto is involve with Pac-Man Vs., how we got online play with Phantasy Star Online Episode 1, 2, & 3, how we got Super Mario Kart Arcade GP, how Namco was able to make Star Fox Assault, and how Sonic games were able to be release on Nintendo systems for a time.

[@syafnilata1547]

Also as now because Sega made the ALLS PC for the arcade right now based on windows 10 iot edition found on wmmt 6RR and the Mario kart arcade (southeast Asia)

[@im.a.nickel]

F-Zero AX was an amazing experience in the arcades. The version I played back in the day had a cockpit that would swing, which made all the difference compared to the console version. Also the fact that you had pilot cards and could bring your memory card to unlock stuff in the console game was really cool. I would love to get my hands on one of those systems now.

[@MachoNachoProductions]

That is so cool! Would have been awesome to play back in the day! Thank you for sharing your experience 🙏

[@Dan-TechAndMusic]

@N.Dpendent Or on a modded Wii, they can play Triforce games too.

[@muhaxiiii]

Also AX was not a port

[@Lost_Kappa]

Early build of AX is on the GX disc, you can play it on your GC

[@Willy-tt6ez]

@@Lost_Kappa Can confirm, it's super fun with a Logitech speed force wheel.

[@stephenshelottiii3272]

It’s amazing what crazy arcade hardware is out there in the wild.

[@MachoNachoProductions]

Totally agree! It’s a fascinating world.

[@kevinroscom]

At around 3:43 that should be a USB (likely full speed) Type B port. The spec for Usb-c was released in 2015, so this unit would have predated that

[@MachoNachoProductions]

Yep it is usb type b

[@partyman_x]

@@MachoNachoProductions It should be noted that it is just a USB type B connector. It's using a different standard for communication that people tend to just refer to as JVS and is incompatible with other USB devices. Also I wanted to note that I'm reasonably sure that power supply is not original, it appears to be a standard ATX pc power supply that the previous owner modified to use JVS power connectors. Original PSUs tend to have different shaped mains inputs

[@SheddysGaming]

It's all good. USBc is just what we're so used to saying. I've made the same fumble many times! ✌️

[@NeoTechni]

@@SheddysGaming just wait till USB-D comes out, and everyone makes jokes about everyone wanting the D

[@SheddysGaming]

@@NeoTechni my first name is Dustin so I await this happily 🤣

[@AlanLopez-rd6fj]

I remember reading about this in a video game magazine . Didn’t think they ever brought it to fruition. I had friends who thought I was lying and making it up . So nice to see it was real and not a dream lol.

[@MachoNachoProductions]

Haha now you can prove them wrong by showing them this video 😁

[@MistressNeviah]

Show it to them now

[@Larry]

The Chihiro was a bit of a mistake. it was based on the Xbox's Debug console, which had twice as much RAM as the retail version, so games like Virtua Cop 3 made for the system could never get home ports. (well, not without a load of comprimises or annoying loading screens)

[@ZX3000GT1]

Virtua Cop 3 is playable on a 128 MB RAM upgraded Xbox though (granted upgrading the RAM on the Xbox is complicated). Outrun 2 also proved that you can port Chihiro games with minimal compromises. I still wish WMMT1 and WMMT2 are playable though. -From what I heard those games use even more RAM, so it's unplayable even on RAM upgraded Xbox.- Read the replied comment below.

[@MachoNachoProductions]

I definitely plan on doing a Ram upgrade on the Xbox soon. Would be cool if I could run chihiro games on it

[@TrimeshSZ]

@@ZX3000GT1 I don't think it's a RAM issue - the "Xbox Arcade" board in the Chihiro has 128MB, just like a debug or an upgraded Xbox - there is also and additional 512MB or 1GB of media board RAM, but that's basically accessed like a HDD (it's connected to the IDE interface). I think the reason a lot of stuff doesn't work on a retail Xbox is simply that it's coded to expect to find the extra hardware that the Chihiro has (like the JVS interface and the accounting EEPROM) that is simply missing on the retail box.

[@GoTeamScotch]

In total there were 10 arcade games made for the Chihiro, of which 3 are playable on an Original Xbox (with a 128mb RAM upgrade): Ghost Squad, Outrun 2, and Virtua Cop 3. Folks who are curious to try these Chihiro games can play them on PC using the Xbox emulator "Xemu". They're interesting novelties, but not really worth upgrading an Xbox's RAM for- unless you're also wanting to take advantage of the other perks of having a RAM-upgraded Xbox.

[@ZX3000GT1]

@@TrimeshSZ Ah ok. It has been years since I've searched about this. Thanks for clearing that up.

[@kitterbug]

the weird screen fading is definitely an issue of capacitors, I've seen the same issue on a Wii from a video by MattKC. your case isn't as severe, but I wouldn't doubt it considering that the Wii and triforce are both essentially GameCubes

[@billymerritt420]

Matt is a really rad guy. Love his content!

[@duskshade520]

Also, that loops back to my comment about the cube's optical control board having it's 3 caps go bad, typed out both in premiere livechat and the comments

[@Reecetafarian]

I made this exact same comment the scrolled down and found this comment 🤣

[@LennyQUMFIF]

Apparently my Wii had the same issue in 2019... (I hit it because of Rage) but it fixed itself like 3 weeks ago lol. (I booted that Wii in the end of 2019, still the same issue, booted it again in the start of 2021, Still same issue, but not as dark, Then 3 weeks ago it automatically fixed itself, i didn't even do anything lol)

[@yasunakaikumi]

I played some games with this at the nearest arcade when I was in high school in Japan, I got to play F-zero AX for sometimes, and to be honest, I think most of the games came in to that system was pretty much shadowed by a lot of games that came out at that time, the only machine that I saw at my time was Mario Kart and F-zero so I didnt even knew Virtual Striker was in it (although maybe it's because I live in Ishikawa prefecture and not Tokyo where all happens.) I remember a lot of people where in to playing, Initial D, Majong card game and dynasty warrior card based machine system back in 2003-2004.

[@MachoNachoProductions]

That’s so cool that you got to go to school in Japan! I used to love paying inital d, I still have my card for it 😁

[@Kelusf0x]

I played F-Zero AX in a movie theater arcade. With a Game Cube Memory card, The arcade version brought some extra aesthetic features and ranking in the home GX version.

[@TrimeshSZ]

The top section of the Triforce is basically identical to the later ("Type 3") Chihiro - you can also make a specially programmed security PIC that has the key set to zero and move some jumpers on the communications board (the bit with the LAN and serial sockets on the top of the media board) to download the code over the network - at which point you don't need the GD-ROM at all.

[@MachoNachoProductions]

Whoa that’s awesome! Is there any info in how to do all that somewhere online?

[@TrimeshSZ]

@@MachoNachoProductions This is a basic description of the process, although it's talking about the older versions that used the Naomi type NetDIMM (like the older Triforce and the Type 1 Chihiro): 8bitplus.co.uk/projects/netboot-sega-naomi-netdimm/ The deal with the Triforce is similar, although IIRC the boot mode is set by a DIP switch on the media card baseboard. There is also a switch that selects the RAM size (although annoyingly the physical RAM size has to match). There are a bunch of people selling zerokey PICs and a bit of googling will find the hex if you have a suitable programmer. The official tool for sending files to the board is called "transfergame.exe" - it's (c) Sega, so I probably shouldn't post a link, although it's not hard to find. If you want a little standalone solution, then there is an uploader that runs on a raspberry Pi - github.com/ian57/piforcetools-1.X. Unfortunately, it's been a while since I played with this stuff and it's all in storage, but it wasn't especially difficult to get working.

[@commandtheline]

Also posted about this. There are several ways to do it but what I like to use is a raspberry pi and piForce. Though I don't specifically own triforce hardware on chihiro and Naomi there's different ways of going about ROMs. You can use a zero key and use encrypted ROMs or you can use decrypted ROMs with no key on those systems. You can add an LCD shield to the raspberry pi and you got yourself a nice remote control to pick which game to load.

[@TrimeshSZ]

@@commandtheline If you actually have a "zero key" PIC (I.E. all 56 key bits are set to zero) then the encryption is entirely bypassed and you can send plain files to the unit - the other option is to use whatever PIC you have and just encrypt the files to match that. One other nice feature of the zero key PIC on the Chihiro is that it lets you change the main board region - just go to the "System information" menu in test mode and press "Service" 30 times :)

[@cemsengul16]

I had read about the Triforce arcade cabinet on Wikipedia a few years ago and thought it sounded cool. Thank you very much for finding a unit and filming it for us.

[@Hikikomorisama]

I wasnt aware of it until you mentioned it but I've played the mario arcade 2 years ago at galloping ghost here in brookfield, IL.

[@jessragan6714]

I tend to think of systems like the Triforce, Type X, Chihiro, Atomiswave, Naomi, et al as the last dying gasp of the arcade scene. The Neo-Geo was finally retired, and game companies rushed in to fill that gap with 21st century hardware. The problem is that the technological gap between home and arcade games had been closed, and there was no longer a reason to leave home to play games. I don't think I've ever played any Triforce games in an arcade, but I have sampled some of the games with Nintendont, and they're, yanno, okay. The two Mario Kart titles are suitably different from Double Dash, but rely on gimmicks that don't translate well to a home system... a camera for representing the player, a steering wheel that becomes hard to turn when you're hit with a power up, etc. You can't do any of that on the Wii, so that part of the experience is lost. What's left are flashy but flat tracks and power ups that lack the appeal of the bread and butter attacks from the home games.

[@MachoNachoProductions]

I couldn’t agree more with your first statement. Great explanation! The gap between home and arcade has finally been closed negating the need for them moving forward. I do however miss the arcade atmosphere.

[@ZX3000GT1]

Yeah, no. Type X3 is still going strong, ALLS hardware is still running. Also, MKAGP's sequel, MKAGP DX, is much better. It has online mode too.

[@jessragan6714]

@@ZX3000GT1 If you think arcades are doing as well as they were twenty years ago, I don't really know what to tell you. Some arcade hardware is still actively supported by its developers, but the market is not nearly as vibrant as it was in the 20th century. That technological edge over home consoles is just no longer there.

[@ZX3000GT1]

@@jessragan6714 Of course it's not as strong as it is 20 years ago. But in some parts of the world (like mine), it's certainly more thriving than other parts. For example, there are still things like tournaments over here, games are online with matchmakings and the like. More than technological prowess, the other thing that most people neglect about the arcade is multiplayer - personally it's just much more fun for me to go to the nearest arcade with friends, then play some PIU or WMMT together, compared to play any of the current games online in my room (especially other than splitscreen, companies neglect better local multiplayer ways like LAN/System Link). It's just much more fun to me to play WMMT 4 players with 4 different cabinets than playing equivalent console game with controller and splitscreen.

[@iamTinoSon]

I remember seeing a couple of mario kart cabinets side by side at an arcade in Okinawa Japan while stationed there in 2008.

[@PowerPandaMods]

I've been leaving comment on The Gaming Historian's videos for years asking him to cover this. So amazing that you found one!

[@MachoNachoProductions]

I love the gaming historian! He makes fantastic documentaries.

[@ViewtifulSam]

The only Triforce game I've ever played was F-Zero AX at a mall in São Paulo. It was so exciting to play on an actual cabinet (cockpit) even though the core gameplay was essentially the same as F-Zero GX that I had back home!

[@MachoNachoProductions]

That’s awesome! Yeah, I think that’s why the triforce wasn’t super popular, a lot of the games were on the GameCube too

[@TheMagpyeTrader]

Definitely looking forward to you doing a deep dive into the hardware and what it's capable of.

[@MachoNachoProductions]

I hope you enjoyed the video. Definitely plan on doing a deep dive on the hardware and compare it to the GameCube

[@m00sician]

Great Video. I'd love to see some more occasional odd hardware reviews besides console mods. 👍

[@clebbington]

I'm kind of amazed that I haven't seen any videos on the Triforce on KZbin before! I've heard all about the Chihiro and Naomi from channels like MVG but have never even heard of the Triforce. Thanks for the coverage - can't wait to see more about it :--)

[@natethebad]

Thanks for another great video showing off a neat little piece of gaming history I had never heard of before! If I ever fully commit to collecting GameCube era stuff someday I might have to track one of these down.

[@MachoNachoProductions]

So glad you enjoyed it Nathan!

[@rgm4646]

Ive said it before but Sega and Namco are MASTER hardware creators, and with Nintendo's software? Just awesome.

[@pankbot]

Very interesting video. I was not aware this existed. I worked in an arcade as a teenager never saw anything like this. When Marvel vs Capcom 2 came out it looked exactly like a Dreamcast. They put a lot of arcade games using that system prior to its actual release.

[@samuraispiritsx]

I got to play this in September of 2003, me and my friends drove about 2 hours to play F-Zero AX in the cabinet, I still have the AX license cards. One of Sega's finest games ever produced.

[@yearls]

You could try a Noctua fan, they're dead quiet, I have several hooked up to my 3D Printer and they're so quiet I can sleep through a print.. I'd recommend a 3-pin, easier to modify into a 2-pin, though, I believe you can get adapters, I personally prefer modifying. :D I also have a tiny one on my Pi4, with it sat next to me on my desk, I can barely hear it. They're pretty awesome fans.

[@markedone9778]

We need more videos of this! you should put a Noctua fan in it and definitely upgrade the ram and do some mods. It would be super cool to see.

[@IdiealotPSN]

Damn Tito! I had rewind to see the awesome B roll of the Triforce spin at 0:30 , that shot was so clean!

[@JMLRetroRoom]

Yeah they added compatibility for triforce into Nintendont Homebrew. Just add them in like a regular GameCube game.

[@GMack523]

Really great to see this and learn about the partnership. In regards to the capacitors maybe being bad, that is a definite possibility. The OG Xbox and Dreamcast both have known capacitor issues that require replacements. This has to do with an incorrect 'recipe' for the chemical compounds that were used; being stolen and then shared with two other companies during the early 2000's. It's known as the 'Capacitor Plague':en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capacitor_plague

[@MachoNachoProductions]

Thanks for this insight! I’m definitely going to be checking the caps out during the teardown

[@GMack523]

@@MachoNachoProductions You're most welcome! It'll be interesting to see what you find.

[@squeeeb]

Fascinating, never heard of this hardware! A gamecube motherboard utilizing a GD-ROM drive - wild shit!

[@hadesmcc]

This is a really cool addition to your collection. Thanks for showing us this!

[@MachoNachoProductions]

Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed this episode!

[@CyclonesWorld]

"USB-C Type B"" port. I chuckled cause I've definitely screwed up saying stuff like that before. So easy to slip lol

[@MachoNachoProductions]

Haha, yeah I definitely misspoke, meant to say type B

[@blueroseknight]

I was well aware of the Triforce system, due to it being heavily talked about in Nintendo Power. I live in a semi rural area that doesn't have arcades though, so I never thought that I'd be able to play one of the Triforce games. One time when I was visiting my dad in Columbia SC about 15 years ago, he took us to an arcade there, and unfortunately I can't remember the name. I was really excited because they actually had F-Zero AX, AND a four player Mario Kart setup, in addition to a Donkey Kong/Donkey Kong Jr./ Mario Bros. machine. The F-Zero machine was awesome, it had a moving cockpit and everything. I wished that I knew the machine was there, because it one of the ones that I could have brought my memory card to. The Mario Kart one was unimpressive though. There was little that couldn't have been done at home, and in addition, the controls were actually simpler than its console cousins. are he only reap unique thing about the Mario Kart machine was the fact that you could take a pic before the race that acted as a profile pic, and it had features of the racer that you were playing as overlaid. For example, I had Peach's hair, crown, and earrings.

[@MachoNachoProductions]

Awesome! Thank you for sharing!

[@facebag666]

get a noctua fan to use as a replacment, they are awesome and quiet.

[@awnordma]

It's impressive how much hardware came out of the Dreamcast parts bin.

[@MachoNachoProductions]

Haha, true

[@ZX3000GT1]

It's even more successful than you think. SEGA System SP is a Dreamcast based system and has new games up to 2014.

[@MarcoFD]

one of the few ways to unlock the AX cup in f zero GX was to bring your memory card to the ax machine and plug it into the machine. this for sure must have been powerful hardware for arcades back in the day cause that f zero arcade machine looked ultra modern next to the other machines at he local arcade.

[@IIARROWS]

F-Zero AX was not a port of GX. If you load the right save data into a NGC memory card, you run F-Zero AX instead of GX. It was basically the same game. Beside the fact that the system were designed to transfer game data between both (like records and special vehicles). EDIT: I remembered it wrong, it's not a special save, but a specific Action Replay code. So basically it's a software switch in the game image.

[@luckyluke95]

The Triforce is an arcade system board developed jointly by Namco, Sega, and Nintendo, with the first games appearing in 2002. The name "Triforce" is a reference to Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda series of games, and symbolized the three companies' involvement in the project. The system hardware consists of a retail GameCube board, with a microcontroller-based "Media Board", which connects to a GD-ROM drive or a NAND cart reader. As with most arcade systems, each Triforce game has its own custom peripherals and functions

[@MachoNachoProductions]

Thanks for the comment! Yes, it would be cool to see if other jvs boards support the system to accommodate the different games that were supported.

[@GimmeTOKYO]

I definitely remember playing F-Z AX in an arcade outside of Nashville, TN. It was a big deal because they were one of the first arcades with it. It was very shiny and snappy at the time.

[@tonymcnamee2741]

I have played all the Mario Kart Arcade GP games so many times. Was on the DX version a few days ago at my local bowling alley.

[@MachoNachoProductions]

Nice! The new DX one doesn’t use triforce but it’s really cool that you are able to play the other! Thank you for sharing!

[@tonymcnamee2741]

Oh really? I didn't know that. It was awesome to actually see the Triforce itself and I'm looking forward to seeing the full disassembly.

[@arthurand1006]

Such an amazing piece of hardware. I played the Mario Kart Arcade game at one of Disney's Resorts in Orlando, Florida on January 2008. I remember it had some sort of webcam that took a photo of my face and I could put some overlay on the picture like Yoshi's eyes or Mario's cap and the photo was used on the map hud to show the player's position instead of the character face I think. Seeing the hardware closely now, I guess it was connected on the USB port through that secondary I/O board. Thanks for the video!

[@RoyalLeoKnight]

Disneyland Resort in California also had Mario Kart Arcade as well all the way in 2012! I remember seeing it and being shocked, since I’d never heard of Nintendo games ever being in arcades like this. What was interesting was in addition to your standard Mario characters playable, Pac-Man, Ms. Pac-Man, and Blinky the Ghost were also playable! Most likely Namco wanting to get a bit of rep in-game beyond just the dev splash screens.

[@arthurand1006]

@@RoyalLeoKnight absolutely, I had no idea what kind of hardware was behind all of that, it turns out it was some kind of enhanced Gamecube with USB ports. Nowadays we are a bit used to Nintendo making partnerships to have other characters in some games like Smash Brothers on Switch, but at that time it was not usual for Nintendo, quite remarkable.

[@PhantomDZ01]

For JVS controls, there's YAJVSemu and OpenJVS now that allows you to connect standard USB peripherals/controllers through a RPi. Pretty useful program if you want to consolize the arcade system.

[@MachoNachoProductions]

Whoa! That’s awesome!

[@royallblood]

Can't stop thinking about some 3D printed brackets, so all the components can merge together!

[@commandtheline]

Don't know if this is covered somewhere in the comments but, the 512 MB RAM referred to by the sticker is for the dimm board. This is a holdover from the Naomi where the GD ROM was an add-on. The Naomi was also cartridge-based but when you add the GD ROM you would have the dimm board or net dimm. What would happen at boot up is the contents of the GD ROM get copied into the 512 MB RAM that was battery backed so as to save wear and tear on the gd-rom. Also if the battery is working correctly it would detect whether the game had changed or not and simply load the game out of RAM. You need these things: a raspberry pi. Piforce or piforce single, a zero key, an SD card and copies of the ROMs (that you already own😁). You can use the features of the built-in net dimm to remotely load a GD ROM image using raspberry pi as a server.

[@TrimeshSZ]

You can actually expand that type III Triforce to 1GB - just plug in an additional 512MB DIMM stick and change the switch on the media board. But there is absolutely no point in doing so - all the released games were designed to work with 512MB systems and the size is checked, so all that having a 1 GB Triforce will do is give you a "RAM SIZE ERROR" for any game you try to boot on it!

[@CodeAsm]

Awesome, I really need to repair my chihiro and get this too :D (also upgrade to Type3 im afraid, i got the type 1 top)

[@TrimeshSZ]

@@CodeAsm I can't remember if anything complained about 1GB on a Chihiro - I do know there are some games (Crazy Taxi High Roller and House of the Dead III for sure) that won't boot on a type 3. Outrun 2 SP is the other way around - it won't boot on a type 1 and needs a type 3. If you have a dead Chihiro, the first thing to check is the Xbox motherboard - they had a really bad failure rate, especially with the GPU fan failing and cooking the GPU. The upside of this is that there are a bunch of spare Type 3 media boards floating around because the xbox board failed. Everything else seems to be highly reliable.

[@CodeAsm]

@@TrimeshSZ yeah I suspect either the GPU or mcpx (which also gets really really hot, way hotter then any of my retail or dev xboxes). I might have the tools to get an arcade bios to work on a retail modded board, which might help arcade enthusiasts aswell. hope the kernel and kernel init doesnt need the mcpx2 specific things (the mcpx-x2 and SMC do need eachother, but we also found maybe a way to replace the smc with a opensource clone) anyway, I really hope I get the media board working somehow. if the xbox board turns out to be dead I atleast have a legal source for teh chihiro bios and eeprom. Im not good at BGA soldering yet, so I wont be swapping the gpu or mcpx yet. Im guessing if I get it to work somehow (with the Type 1 top,) the type 3 will too. Do you happen to know if a chihiro should output some video signal without the " Naomi style DIMM board" going on the mating Type 1 board? I dont have the top part (a friend was willing to lend his from his Triforce but he moved places to far away)

[@TrimeshSZ]

@@CodeAsm As long as the media board baseboard is plugged in, it should boot to the point where you can run the test mode - if the media board is completely disconnected then it won't do anything because the Segaboot is stored in a flash on the media board and the flash on the xbox board is basically just a bootloader. The type 1 and type 3 media boards seem to be completely interchangeable. Unfortunately, most of this stuff is in storage, but I do still have a type 3 Chihiro lying around, so if you want me to test anything specific let me know.

[@crimsondreams9634]

The triforce games can be natively played on a hacked wii using Nintendont

[@BrainSlugs83]

Regarding the fan, depending on the voltages it needs, you could probably get away with swapping in an appropriately sized Noctua. They're kind of the industry standard for being quiet with high CFM ratings. Edit: also, the 2000s were the heyday of bad capacitors, and 15 years is plenty of time for a capacitor to die.

[@souljastation5463]

Don't do it: this is a piece of arcade history, don't mod it.

[@MachoNachoProductions]

Very true, plus with all the heat the cabinets generated and the fact they were left on for long periods of time could have contributed to their degradation.

[@dcfuksurmom]

@@souljastation5463 replacing a bad fan or bad caps is not a mod, its a repair

[@bobbydilley]

A good replacement for the Triforce fan is a SUNON HA60151V4-1000U-A99 - makes the triforce pretty much silent :)

[@Doyle69]

Noctua fan is what most Console Modders use, would recommend also. 🙌

[@Keppernito]

I got to play Mario Kart Arcade GP as a kid at Dave & Busters, it was fun especially when I got to play with other people around, last time I went to the same Dave & Busters, they had 8 Mario Kart Arcade GP DX machines installed.

[@JPHarringtonJr]

As someone who loves F-Zero GX so so so much, I cannot believe you have this system. I'm pretty jealous. If I could have one arcade machine in my house, I would choose an F Zero AX machine with the seat / wheel. so dope. Nice find man!

[@MachoNachoProductions]

Yeah dude! The whole f-zero arcade setup was really cool! That would be a neat item to have in the man cave (although it would take up a lot of space 😅)

[@hodjaev_ruslan]

I'm so fascinated by the arcade cabinets hardware. Can't describe how amazing is it to see some of that stuff being used outside of the dedicated cabinet. Maybe someday I will get my hands on some cabinet guts as well. :) Thank you for the amazing video!

[@icewolf762]

I've known about the Triforce boards for a good number of years now and own a few units myself with at least one of each of the three types. Yes. 3 types. Did you know this? Type 1 boards were more rectangular and required a RAM module from a SEGA NAOMI board along with a GD-ROM drive. Type 2 boards are the ones shown in the video. Internal RAM, required a GD-ROM drive. Type 3 boards are identical to Type 2, but have an SD Card slot on them rather than requiring a GD-ROM drive. Not sure if any of the boards actually work as I bought only the boards just to have them! Anyways love the video, always nice to see someone cover these boards.

[@adonian]

This is AWESOME. I would LOVE it if you could do "History" lessons like this one. The Chihiro or Naomi and other arcade systems. I really want to own a Sega system 16, ST-V, and other mulit game type systems. Etc you are VERY knowledgeable and I love you clearly you explain things.

[@SylvesterAshcroft88]

This seems like an extremely rare find!

[@BowsettesFury]

I remember hearing about the TriForce not to long ago, never thought I’d see how it operated. Really enjoyed this vid.

[@_longgaming]

Really cool. I learned something new today! I had no idea the Triforce was an actual piece of hardware. I thought Triforce was just a project name for the Arcade just like Dolphin was for the Gamecube. I've actually played a bit of the Triforce via the Dolphin emulator. The Triforce is a fork build of the Dolphin emulator, and because of that I just thought maybe the devs named the fork "Triforce" for fun. Awesome to see it was physical hardware.

[@crestofhonor2349]

This looks like it would be amazing with a VGA CRT since it has VGA out. I wish the Wii and Gamecube supported VGA out

[@CodeAsm]

converter ic on the media board I think, altho it might be using component out and some sync signal separation. the original xbox in its developement fase had VGA out, but MS dropped support before retail (the chihiro uses a dev mcpx and probably gets its sync signals from the xbox just fine) There where Xbox mods to add the sync signal and have somewhat of a VGA out. I can imagine the Triforce doing the same and Wii/GC being able to do so aswell in certain screenmodes

[@TrimeshSZ]

@@CodeAsm The Triforce gets it's video from the digital port and all the cabs I've seen are running the video at 31kHz (I.E. "480p") - DIP SW 6 on the Triforce lets you select either 31kHz or 15kHz video, but most software just throws an error if it's not in the expected position. If you set SW 5 = ON and SW 6 = OFF then it outputs 15kHz with composite sync, but although you got an image and could get into test mode nothing I tried would actually boot in this configuration.

[@looneybinjim]

I remember seeing (not playing) a Triforce F-Zero setup in the lodge at Lake Placid Ski Resort back in the day.

[@MachoNachoProductions]

Nice!

[@jojloj7348]

Encountered an F-ZERO AX machine years ago at Adventure Dome while visiting Las Vegas. The machine seemed in need of some repair as the steering wheel had some issues and the GC memory card slot looked busted but the game was operational.

[@MachoNachoProductions]

Very interesting! Yeah, I can imagine these machines took a beating when in use. Thanks for sharing!

[@Pixelody]

There's a place near my old home that had food, bowling, and an arcade. You could have birthday parties there. I remember there being a bunch of Mario Kart GP 2 units. Oh boy. That was always the highlight of every birthday party. At the time I wasn't as nerdy. But I knew it was powered by the Gamecube hardware from the look alone. But seeing this is something completely else. Really interesting video. BTW: This is in Sweden cuz... I live there

[@SuperNicktendo]

I'm from Chicago where Namco arcade is based so I saw fzero and Mario Kart. The Namco restaurant in Schaumburg still has them today.

[@MachoNachoProductions]

That’s awesome! I’ve been to chicago once and would love to visit again! I didn’t know they had a namco arcade! Very cool!

[@CMM1215]

At AGDQ 2020, Tokyo Attack brought an F-Zero AX machine for the arcade at the event and it was heavenly! I wish I'd have known it'd be there so I could've brought my memory card with F-Zero GX save data on it. It's a unique game with different physics from GX, and it's even different from the 'AX mode' that has been found in GX. The rotating seat was fun, and the cabinet itself was very cool looking and pretty. Would love to play it again!! I was quite bad at it!

[@ArcadeStriker]

It is pretty cool to see you talk in-depth about the Triforce; the Star Fox game by Namco *might* have been scrapped, replaced or actually just turned into Star Fox Assault, which while didn't release into Arcades, it was STILL developed by Namco and for the Gamecube. Regardless of if it was a different project altogether that got scrapped from constraints, an idea similar to F-Zero GX and AX where Assault would be for homes and the unreleased one for Arcades (though the poster has a Gamecube logo so this might not be the case), or simply turning into Assault at the end of everything, it is still cool that we got a Namco- developed Star Fox in first place.

[@NiGHTSaturn]

GD-ROM… On GameCube hardware… Mind Boggling. 🤯

[@MachoNachoProductions]

Haha, yes! We can call it the dreamcube 😅

[@NiGHTSaturn]

@@MachoNachoProductions One would think they were done with GD-Rom going forward with DVD, but nope! I’m glad the technology was used elsewhere than DC and Naomi!

[@LordRayken]

Play F-Zero AX all the time at Kidstar Park in Florida. Really cool to know it's a Triforce.

[@AislingPhoenix]

You should be able to replace that fan with a Noctua fan, just make sure to verify what fan connector they used for it before you order one.

[@MachoNachoProductions]

I was looking at noctua, but the ones I found were all too thick

[@AislingPhoenix]

What size is the stock fan?

[@exaltedb]

My local round1 actually has four Triforce systems linked together running Mario Kart Arcade GP and it’s a pretty fun game, especially with others there

[@TribalScience]

This is cool! I played the Mario Kart arcade game at a Dave & Busters in the Denver CO area a few years ago. It had a camera to take photos of your face too!

[@bit-ishbulldog2089]

I have played triforce games, on my Nintendo Wii, Fzero, Mario Cart GP 1 and 2, Virtual Soccer's etc I have had them on my Wii for about 5 years.

[@MachoNachoProductions]

Awesome!

[@abrahamrodriguez1205]

I actually played an F-Zero AX machine in an arcade in an unexpected town near home, in Parral, México.

[@blackhawkthepirate]

I used to work for a vendor who provided arcade machines (in addition to other things like ATMs and gambling machines) to businesses like bowling alleys and bars. That fan noise is very familiar to me. It doesn't sound like a server fan, it sounds specifically like an arcade machine fan. I mostly did delivery of machines, but I also did some repair work. I didn't work on any Triforce game cabs, but we did have a Mario Kart GP2 that I played a few times. The "Key Chips" were on pretty much every arcade game in one way or another. The only exceptions I ever saw that didn't have some form of physical key were cabs from smaller indie developers. Some of the newer games from Raw Thrills won't work if they don't have a connection to the expected display(s) as an additional protection measure.

[@wrexhammusic]

It's crazy to think that in the 80s and 90s the video game consoles were trying to bring arcade games like Street Fighter amd Donkey Kong to our living rooms, while in the 2000s the arcade hardware was trying to bring home console games like F Zero and Mario Kart to the arcade. How times change.

[@perpetualcollapse]

I remember a forum where people discussed homebrew for the Wii U. Someone there made custom injects for Wii, GameCube, and Triforce games among other platforms. What I remember is that this person made Triforce injects that had widescreen patches so I played the two Triforce Mario Karts and F-Zero AX in 16x9 on my gamepad screen. The games wiped themselves off my crappy USB drive from the time so I only have one of the Mario Kart Triforce games now lol.

[@sdraak1284]

Played Fzero ax and Mario kart GP2 at Nationaal Videogame Museum, The Netherlands. They are fully operational, great games!

[@dr.decker3623]

for the fan,.. literally any fan that will fit with a switch / nob to control fan speed. or,... a fan speed controller

[@albertwayne2323]

Just a point: F-Zero AX is not a port of F-Zero GX, it's its own game, in fact even vehicle physics are slighty different between the two games. Both games were developed at the same time and with the connection idea but were independent. At the same time, people who think is playing AX through GameShark codes using GX are not playing the real AX because those physics. And even music is slighty different.

[@alexanderjones9241]

Joysticks Arcade Bar in Lincoln, Nebraska has a two player Mario Kart Arcade GP system setup.

[@wordyballoons]

I feel like you pulled this out of a parallel dimension...

[@MachoNachoProductions]

Haha, yes, a dimension where Sega and Nintendo were friends 😅

[@pwnswoggle]

This channel is rad, can’t believe I only just found it but better late than never.

[@MachoNachoProductions]

Thank you! So glad you like the channel 😁

[@lalo2509]

The hardware it's similar to Capcom's CPS III, that board requires a CD ROM unit and a specific key card for each game.

[@grinbrothers]

2:49 - My first thought seeing this video was "Didn't Sega make an Xbox equivalent as well?" Neat to see that detail get mentioned and neat to see the Triforce hardware get shown off like this.

[@shadowikr2457]

there's an arcade called the galloping ghost arcade near me and it has a ton of retro arcade cabinets and a fzero ax with the whole moving chair set up etc. kinda like a sim racing setup

[@senornaranja2364]

played the hell out of that mario kart in korea in the arcades, it had a feature that let you put your face on a character. fun game overall

[@sfauvelle]

I played the deluxe version of F-Zero AX at Funland Arcade in Toronto back in 2003. It truly was amazing, especially with the moving seat. I brought my gamecube memory card and was able to unlock several AX-only courses for play at home in F-Zero GX.

[@dashboots376]

I played F-Zero AX in a Mexican Arcade a few times, it was a lot of fun since it was just F-Zero GX but with different tracks and pilots and with this huge Blue Falcon cockpit cabin with very nice feeling controls and a hydraulic seat that moved based on how you moved the wheel I think, I don't remember too well since I was a child, but I loved it, they had 2 arcades hooked up to each other and you could play multiplayer if you started playing at the same time. I know it had memory card functionality because it had the slots, but I don't think I ever carried my memory card in my pocket to try it out, I can however say that it's by far one of the best arcade experiences I've ever had, and those hydraulics gave an actual sense of vertigo while playing, it was amazing. Honestly if I had the space and cash I would get one.

[@snesfan8935]

I knew about this hardware since it was new on the market. Back in the day video game magazines covered this hardware as well as games. Also played F-Zero AX and it was superb.

[@artstrange3230]

In Mexico (I live in the north), we had a Triforce Arcade with F-Zero AX loaded in a movie theater that was around the time Superman Returns released. In my hometown, when we were waiting for the movie to start, I'd spend more than a couple of quarters on it. It was good fun and the cabinet was shaped like one of those Racer Cabinets from similar Arcade machines. Steering wheel, pedals and stuff. A couple of years ago, around 2015-2016, I spotted another one in a local Arcade plaza where I'd go to spend free time during college with some friends. The cabinet was busted, though. Didn't work, but it was there. I wonder if it was the same one I saw all those years ago, in that movie theater. That theater went bankrupt a couple of years after the franchise launched. I don't even recall its name, but I do know it's locations were purchased by another local movie theater franchise called Cinemex.

[@dj9volt]

A addition to the statement about the triforce being on for extended periods of time if not mentioned already these were also in enclosed cabinets which were also in tight spaces which is also why the fans were always in high gear also my only experience with the triforce hardware is and was the first mario kart arcade GP at my local barcade of which they still have it in full operation in a 2 player setup

[@losalfajoresok]

I live in Argentina and I got the chance to see the F Zero game in a shopping mall. Very interesting data Tito!

[@dylanwillyams]

usb c type b port. back in 2002 .... 3:42

[@lagia5]

Was epic getting to play F-zero AX, the full motion seats were too awesome, brought my GX saves and got the hidden racers and tracks back in the day it was epic!

[@197Reaver]

A Tear down of This Would Be Awesome to See!

[@MachoNachoProductions]

Definitely planning to do that! I want to see how different the GameCube motherboard it to a regular one (and also clean it 😅, so much dust)

[@ItsABassDammit]

Great video as always Tito. For a replacement fan for the GD rom drive, check the size on the fan, and see if there's a Noctua fan of the same size. Extremely quiet fans, are usually a brown color. Depending if the fan is either a 2 pin or 3 pin interface you may need an adapter, or you can jump the wires together.

[@MachoNachoProductions]

Unfortunate it seems the noctuas are too thick. I think I may have found a replacement though

[@wolfgangpuff7030]

Another thing that’s cool about a soft modded Wii is that you can play all Triforce games on it.

[@dariusq8894]

I did actually play the F-Zero AX cabinet regularly. I had to travel a little bit to downtown Toronto in Canada but it was totally worth the effort. I also had a copy of F-Zero GX which allowed me to bring my custom cars to the arcade on the GC memory cards. The tracks were mostly the same so the biggest incentive to play AX was to use the motion simulator cockpit which not only featured feedback in the steering wheel but moved the entire seat. In some ways the motion was a huge distraction since F-Zero already requires laser focus to stay on the tracks but it was an incredible rush. Maybe the Triforce system itself was a failure, but it brought two former rivals together to craft perhaps the most blindingly fast racer of all time. Glorious.

[@Cory_]

I didn't know that anything besides the Dreamcast and Naomi used GD-roms. Very interesting!

[@Owazrim]

What a cool peice of history. Looking forward to future tear downs.

[@MachoNachoProductions]

Coming soon 😁

[@ClaspedDread]

I'm a huge fan of F Zero GX, I 100%-ed the game a while back. A few years ago I went to an anime convention to my shock they had an original F Zero AX machine. I played on it and holy moly it was so much more fun than the standard GameCube game. The steering wheel really adds a level of intensity to a game that's already extremely chaotic on its own. I'd love to own an AX cabinet someday Oh, and you bet I set the record lap time for each track before I left the convention. F Zero GX has some crazy physics and exploits, and it ALL carried over to AX. Hehe

[@Gineventura]

Really nice memories! I played a lot of FzeroAX that I remember really well ! The cabinet has a dimension and shape of a futuristic car. I played in - Rimini , Italy around 2002 - 2004 during my summer holidays. I remember that I bring with me the year after my GC memory card and in this way I found my car in AX ! It also unlock some special stages in my GX game ! Thanks for the video , can't wait to see your other videos.

[@RiddleWhisperer]

such an obscure piece of hardware, new knew it existed. Thanks for this video.

[@JuicyJakeRepairs]

must admit, never heard of it before. I wonder what other crazy arcade systems are out there..they dont seem to get as much love as other retro consoles!

[@bartender_billy6229]

Hey Tito, I’m not sure what kind of connection is used on the fan, but if need be, you could splice a small noctua fan in, it’ll run quieter AND cooler