Platform / Commander X16

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The Commander X16 is a modern hobbyist 8-bit computer developed^note or rather, still in development by a team of retro enthusiasts, including YouTuber David Murray a.k.a. The 8-Bit Guy, Kevin Williams of TexElec, Christian "Perifractic" Simpson (who once acted in Star Wars, really), and Frank van den Hoef, among others. Its hardware relies mostly on common off-the-shelf parts, a design philosophy that addresses the issues plaguing the retro 8-bit market, such as inflated prices and the deterioration of old equipment.

The Commander X16 is essentially the next chapter in the evolution of Commodore's 8-bit computers like the Commodore 64, VIC-20, and Plus/4. Its name reflects this connection: "Commander" (a rank similar to "Commodore") and "X16" (referring to the original 16-bit CPU address space).^note Initially, it was to be called "C16", but the similar name to the Commodore 16 led to the change. The new name remained unchanged after the switch to the 8-bit 6502 processor was made before September 2019. The X16's KERNAL is a modified version of the one used in the C64 (licensed by Cloanto), allowing it to interface with both vintage Commodore hardware and modern devices like SD cards via the Commodore IEC bus. It also includes Commodore BASIC, so transferring C64 BASIC games to the X16 is straightforward.^note This is especially true for text-driven games, where you type in commands. For games with graphics and sound, however, the difference in hardware must be addressed. The memory architecture of the X16, as well as how it handles graphics and sound, is different from the C64 (see below), therefore its BASIC includes commands for handling these changes. For those who are familiar with C64 programming, it might take some time to adjust to the X16. However, David has had to remind people that this doesn't mean that the X16 is a clone of the C64 or any other machine, or backwards compatible with any of them^note Additionally, despite the X-16 cartridges using Famicom cartridge shells, this also doesn't mean that the computer will run Famicom/NES games..

Specifications:

Processors

• CPU: Western Design Center 65C02S (a descendant of the 6502 CPU), @ 8 MHz
• GPU: FPGA Versatile Embedded Retro Adapter "VERA"
• Sound: VERA and Yamaha YM2151

Memory

• 40K "low RAM": 256 bytes for I/O and about 38K for user programs
• 512K of "high RAM", arranged in 64 banks of 8K each
• Expandable to 1 MB, 1.5 MB, or 2 MB by adding RAM chips to 3 empty slots, allowing up to 256 banks of 8K

Sprites

• 128 hardware sprites, each defined by an 8-byte attribute in video memory
• Sprite sizes available: 8x8, 16x16, 32x32, or 64x64 pixels
• 4 or 8 bits per pixel, providing 16 or 256 color options respectively
• Vertical and horizontal flip options, Z-depth control, and collision detection features

Display: VERA

• 128 KB of RAM
• 640x480 resolution at 60Hz
• Output options include VGA, NTSC Composite, NTSC S-Video, and RGB video
• Two layers with tile and bitmap modes, supporting up to 128 sprites
• 256 colors, with a 4096-color range
• Includes per-tile H-flip, V-flip, 4-bit palette offset, 10-bit tile index, and scrolling

Sound: VERA

• A 16-channel stereo PSG generator with programmable waveforms, based on the SID
• PCM support

Sound: YM2151

• Eight FM synthesis channels with four operators each, featuring sine wave oscillators and envelope generators
• The fourth operator of the eighth channel can be replaced with a noise channel for variable-frequency noise generation

Games:

• Attack of the PETSCII Robots
• Planet X16