Named after the processor that runs the computer, the X68000 is a fairly rare computer. Famed for its excellent software library, it was way ahead of the competition of the time. Castlevania and Gradius games from Konami are particularly sought after.

The main console media for the games are 5.25 disks, the larger ones that need several to run. Though initial models only had these floppy drives, by 1993 later ones had 3.5 FDD and included the option of an 80MB SCSI HDD.

The operating system was developed for Sharp by Hudsonsoft, the keyboard has two mouse ports, while the machine itself has keyboard, mouse, and joystick ports, and a headphone jack. It had 1MB of RAM expandable to 12MB.

Architecturally very similar to arcade machines of the time, Capcom used it as a development machine for their own CPS system. Its impressive specs made it unrivalled as a games platform, but sadly its high price meant that it was fairly niche, and it is a very expensive system to source today, but highly prized among retro collectors today.

Manufacturer: Sharp
Date: March 1987

This exhibit has a reference ID of CH66851. Please quote this reference ID in any communication with the Centre for Computing History.

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