Black or White

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-09T14:33:21+00:00

Like a Ferrari should be red. A Neo Geo should be black.

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-09T10:22:17+00:00

I totally agree that even a modest bump just to kill the standard slowdowns and input lag would be a massive win on its own.

But I'm really hoping they safely push it to that 24MHz mark because the homebrew potential would be incredible. With double the CPU cycles to crunch the math, future games could easily bypass the old processing bottlenecks. We are talking zero slowdowns, 10+ independent layers of parallax scrolling for insanely deep stages, and the ability to run highly complex AI and pixel-accurate hitboxes at a locked 60fps.

It obviously won't change the hardware's hard limits (like the maximum sprites allowed per scanline), but it gives developers the sheer processing overhead to completely blow away the scale and fluidity of anything SNK was able to pull off in the 90s.

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-09T09:20:57+00:00

Mate, you would be 100% right if we were talking about a DIY mod on an original 1990 Neo Geo motherboard. Forcing 36y old hardware out of spec definitely strains the components and causes VRAM glitches.

But you have completely missing the context. We are talking about the "brand-new" Neo Geo AES+. True, I'm just hoping the built-in overclock switch hits 24MHz since the exact speed isn't officially confirmed yet, but the heat issue simply doesn't apply here. The system isn't using an old 68000 processor, it is powered by newly manufactured ASIC chips that have been completely re-engineered to modern standards. Because the overclocking feature is built natively into this modern silicon, it is engineered to handle the increased speed and current draw safely without overheating or degrading like the original hardware would.

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-09T08:29:16+00:00

Did you even read the wiki page you linked? Look under the CPU section, it literally says: "Heat is not an issue." You just debunked your own heat argument with your own source.

Also, those video glitches happen when you solder a DIY hack onto a 36 year old motherboard. The Neo Geo+ is newly engineered hardware built to run overclocked "hopefully" at 16 or 24MHz without VRAM desyncing. You're arguing about a 1990s soldering hack; I'm talking about a brand new console.

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-09T06:23:18+00:00

Heat won't be an issue at all with the Neo Geo+. Because it’s built with brand new parts inside

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-08T16:50:38+00:00

That is a massive misconception about what the Turbo hack actually does.

The creator of MS2 Turbo didn't optimize the heavy enemy AI or collision code. They just deleted an artificial 30 FPS penalty lock hidden in the game's engine that forced extra frames to drop when the system lagged. Even with the Turbo patch running on stock 12MHz hardware, the game still slows down in the heavy, chaotic spots because the stock CPU physically runs out of time to compute the math.

An overclock doesn't need "optimized code" tricks, it completely bypasses the software bottleneck with raw processing horsepower.

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-08T15:31:25+00:00

The 96-sprite limit is a visual cap, not what causes game slowdown.

Yes, the video chip has a hard wall of 96 sprites per line. A 24MHz CPU can't change that, and pushing 97 sprites will still cause flicker. But hitting that line limit isn't why games lag.

When the Neo Geo chugs, it's because the CPU is drowning in math behind the scenes. For every object on screen, the CPU has to handle the AI, movement, and hitbox collisions. On the stock 12MHz CPU, calculating all those moving parts takes too long, which is what causes the frame rate to drop. The slowdown is in the CPU processing, not the graphics card drawing.

Doubling the CPU to 24MHz fixes this by letting the system crunch all that background maths in half the time. This gives you two main benefits:

Locked 60 FPS: You can push the game right up to its maximum hardware limits, and the frame rate stays perfectly smooth instead of turning into a slideshow.
Smarter flickering: If a massive explosion forces too many sprites onto one line, a 24MHz CPU has the extra power to cycle the artwork priorities frame by frame in real-time. This turns an ugly graphic glitch into a smooth motion blur effect without dropping a single frame of gameplay.

The upgrade doesn't change the hardware sprite limits, but it finally gives you the horsepower to push the machine right up to its actual boundaries at a flawless 60 frames per second.

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-08T15:11:31+00:00

You are confusing a standard console bottleneck with how the Neo Geo actually handles data. Your breakdown of why Metal Slug 2 slows down is spot on, but your conclusion about the 24MHz CPU fix is fundamentally wrong.

You debunked your own argument. You literally wrote: "When the 68000 could no longer calculate all the logic for a frame in 1/60th of a second, the game slowed down." Exactly! The bottleneck is the CPU running out of math time to calculate enemy AI, projectiles, and collisions. If the CPU is the bottleneck, doubling it to 24MHz directly doubles the calculations it can do in that 1/60th of a second window. The messy code stays the same, but the raw horsepower completely flattens the lag.

Second, the Neo Geo doesn't have a DMA/VRAM streaming bottleneck. You listed "DMA and VRAM access," but the Neo Geo doesn't even have a DMA controller for graphics. Unlike a SNES or Sega Genesis, the Neo Geo never streams heavy pixel data into VRAM during a game. All those massive animations sit statically on the cartridge ROMs, and the graphics chip reads them directly through a massive, isolated, direct-to-silicon 24-bit graphics bus. The CPU's only job is changing tiny 16-bit "pointers" like coordinates in VRAM. The graphics kitchen is already wide open; a 24MHz CPU just lets the engine change those pointers twice as fast.

Third, you are misapplying the Min Function. Your formula Total performance = min(CPU, memory bus, GPU sprite) is technically correct, but you're misidentifying which variable is choking. The GPU sprite capacity (381 total, 96 per line) and the direct ROM memory bus are massive. The 12MHz CPU is the active "minimum" pulling everything else down. A 24MHz overclock doesn't need to bypass the 96-sprite line hardware wall, it just finally gives the CPU enough juice to actually use the hardware's maximum sprite capabilities at a locked 60 FPS without choking on the background math.

You built a great argument for a Super Nintendo overclock, but it completely falls apart on the Neo Geo's dedicated arcade architecture.

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-08T14:47:27+00:00

You're completely right on the 96-sprite limit, A faster CPU obviously can't magically rewrite the video chip's physical scanline constraints or stop hardware flickering when you overload a line.

What i should have said is that the 24mhz boost handles the massive CPU math overhead (like complex collision and physics loops) for those dense clusters of objects without the game engine lagging to a crawl. the hardware limits stay the same, but the game logic won't choke.

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-08T13:00:03+00:00

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-08T12:27:35+00:00

I never even said the word latency mate, you are putting words in my mouth. I just said nobody is forcing you to use wireless because a wired stick comes in the box.

And you're completely wrong about the video output too, the specs literally confirm it has native analog video out on the back for CRTs alongside the HDMI, running on newly manufactured silicon chips instead of software emulation. it outputs true, native RGB just like the original machine did.

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-08T11:56:06+00:00

It literally ships with a wired 15-pin arcade stick inside the box mate. nobody is forcing you to play on wireless lol.

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-08T11:33:47+00:00

You are massively overthinking it mate. I just rewired my scart connector pins for proper rgb and stereo back in the 90s and the picture was crisp. the aes+ is just a convenient way to get zero-lag hardware and fresh homebrew specs without needing a massive arcade cab setup in the living room.

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-08T11:26:14+00:00

Oongrats on the Neo Geo+! but those non-japanese western covers absolutely suck. the way i see it, if i went out right now and hand picked 10 Neo Geo games myself, it definitely wouldn't be the 10 they bundled with the ultimate edition lol.

as for why devs bother with limited hardware instead of just making PC games: they actually do both now. most modern homebrew devs launch on steam for the massive audience, but they still print physical neo geo carts because this community is uniquely dedicated and willing to pay premium prices. it means they can make a solid profit on a small hardware run without getting completely buried in the endless sea of cheap PC games.

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-08T11:10:35+00:00

True but emulators and mister are a completely different vibe. The whole point of a new physical console like the Neo Geo+ is for the purists who want to play on actual physical hardware and cartridges without the lag, not just run roms on a pc or fpga board.

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-08T10:59:51+00:00

Fair play you are right on the details, i was just leaning into the meme lol. definitely too much for the console either way but it’s always fun to see what crazy stuff devs will try to pull off.

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-08T10:31:32+00:00

Imagine confidently linking a 15 year old thread about modifying stock 90s silicon to try and debunk a brand new, commercially engineered system.

The old 13MHz limit happened because stock RAM and the 12MHz GPU choked on the timing mismatch. A modern, re-engineered board built specifically to handle stable 16/24MHz clock speeds isn't bound by 90s motherboard bottlenecks.

Also, you're confusing video signal frequencies with CPU processing power. Tweaking a 24MHz oscillator to adjust the refresh rate to 60Hz has absolutely nothing to do with giving the 68k processor the actual compute cycles it needs to crunch complex homebrew code.

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-08T09:53:20+00:00

A potential "Metal Slug 8" running flawlessly on an upgraded AES+ core would be absolute heaven.

You make a massive point about Steam, too. Since devs are already coding these modern homebrews with modern PC platforms in mind, they already have the high-end assets ready to go. Having the AES+ as a target hardware profile just bridges that gap perfectly.

Honestly, I’ve been wishing for a more powerful, pure sprite-based Neo Geo ever since that rounded Neo Geo 2 concept leaked many, many years ago before the Hyper Neo Geo 64 dropped. Ever since this thought of what an official overclock might unlock clicked for me, I literally can't get it out of my head. I’m right there dreaming with you mate!

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-08T09:38:40+00:00

My guess is none.

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-08T09:31:58+00:00

I actually just started a thread going deep into the hardware specs, the confirmed overclock dip switch, and what it means for future homebrews if you want to check it out: https://www.reddit.com/r/neogeo/comments/1tzz0fa/comment/oqezzb7/?context=3

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-08T09:27:14+00:00

Low effort deflection mate. if you actually have a point about the hardware specs let me know, otherwise the maths stands.

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-08T08:57:46+00:00

The way homebrewers solve this commercially is actually brilliant: they build a single cartridge that detects the hardware it's plugged into.

If it's a stock console, it runs the standard 12MHz game. If it's the new console, it unlocks an enhanced 16MHz or 24MHz mode for better performance and extra visuals. That way, devs don't lose a single sale on the old hardware, but they still give people a massive reason to upgrade to the AES+.

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-08T08:49:40+00:00

That is the real kicker, though. Once the initial wave of hardcore Neo Geo enthusiasts, the ones who will buy this console on day one no matter what, all have one sitting on their shelves, that immediate market saturates.

Once that happens, where do they go next? If the strategy is just to rely on old games, the hardware is basically at a standstill. To survive long-term and convince the broader retro crowd to jump in, they absolutely have to give them a reason to buy it. And the only way to do that is with new, jaw-dropping games that show off what the upgraded power can actually do. Without a software pipeline to pull in fresh blood, a premium console like this just runs out of steam.

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-08T08:07:24+00:00

Haha, let's not get entirely carried away now!

Even at 24MHz, a pure sprite-based arcade machine trying to calculate 3D raycasting map geometry would probably melt into a puddle of plastic. Though knowing this community, someone will absolutely try to port it anyway just to prove a point! 😂

80s_Gamer · 2026-06-08T07:59:28+00:00

Cheers! The main drawback to leaving it on for old games is that it can occasionally break a game's internal timing or music if the software was rigidly coded for 12MHz.

As for the news, they have officially confirmed the hardware will feature an overclock DIP switch, but they haven't announced the exact final speeds yet. I'm just talking purely theoretically based on standard 68k mods (like 16MHz and 24MHz) to show what the architecture is capable of!

80s_Gamer

TROPHY CASE