It was only when faced with stiff 16-bit competition in the form of the Sega Genesis (Mega Drive) that Nintendo shifted its focus from the Famicom to the Super Famicom. The system was amazing at the time - capable of generating colours and sound that no other home console could hope to emulate.
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System was released in 1991 in the United States, with slightly remodelled hardware, giving it a more angular look (the European release went for the much more pleasing Japanese design). The system was a runaway success, paving the way for some of the finest 2D games ever to be created.
The system was capable of more than even Nintendo imagined, and two UK developers were responsible for Nintendo's biggest surprises on the system. Argonaut developed the Super FX chip, allowing the system to generate textured 3D polygons, and developed a demo to show it off that was developed into the game Star Fox. Rare (a company Nintendo had worked with on the NES) displayed their technique of scanning 3D CGI models onto the high-colour sprite plane of the Super NES - and developed the Donkey Kong Country and Killer Instinct games to show it off. These are just a handful of the games that has made the Super NES one of the most beloved consoles ever.
