Sega Model 1 and Model 2 on Recalbox 11: ’90s 3D arcade games are here and ready to play online!

With Recalbox 11-patron-1, two monuments of 3D arcade gaming make their entrance: the Sega Model 1 and Model 2. Virtua Racing, Virtua Fighter, Daytona USA, Sega Rally, Virtua Cop… The games that launched the polygon revolution in arcades are now playable on Raspberry Pi 5, on HDMI as well as on CRT screens, and also playable online thanks to Recalbox Online.

Model 1: Sega enters the 3D era

Released in 1992, the Model 1 is Sega's first major 3D arcade board. Its development took about three years, with Yu Suzuki's AM2 team involved in its design from the very beginning. The goal was clear: take on Namco, then the leader in polygon-based games with its System 21 board.

The Model 1 debuted with Virtua Racing (1992), which popularized 3D racing in arcades. It was followed by Virtua Fighter (1993), one of the first 3D polygon fighting games, and Star Wars Arcade (1993). However, the Model 1 did not yet support texture mapping: the scenery in Virtua Racing is made of flat-colored polygons, which gives it its instantly recognizable style.

Model 2: the triumph

To get past this "technical roadblock", Sega teamed up with GE Aerospace in September 1992, whose 3D simulation technology would later come under the Lockheed Martin banner. According to GE, this partnership saved Sega 14 months. The result: the Model 2, which brought texture mapping and filtering, with a announced output of up to 300,000 textured polygons per second at 60 frames per second.

Its first game was Daytona USA (1994), one of the highest-grossing arcade games of all time. The Model 2 had sold more than 130,000 systems by 1996, cumulatively, and Sega also allowed third-party studios to use it, such as Tecmo for Dead or Alive, for example.

The games that defined the Model 1 and Model 2 era

On Model 1:

• Virtua Racing (1992)
• Virtua Fighter (1993)
• Star Wars Arcade (1993)

On Model 2:

• Daytona USA (1994)
• Virtua Fighter 2 (1994)
• Virtua Cop (1994) and Virtua Cop 2 (1995)
• Sega Rally Championship (1994)
• Fighting Vipers (1995)
• Virtual-On: Cyber Troopers (1996)
• Sonic the Fighters (1996)
• Dead or Alive (1996)
• The House of the Dead (1997)

Racing, fighting, light gun shooting: on their own, these titles sum up a large part of Sega's arcade identity in the 1990s.

Model 1 and Model 2 in Recalbox 11

These two systems join the Model 3, already present in Recalbox, completing the family of Sega 3D arcade boards. This is one of the great prides of this version: bringing back these boards, with their immense legacy, is part of our conviction to make these systems known and to preserve them, just as we do with the Namco System 22, added in this same version. The new systems added in Recalbox 11 are not limited to these three arcade systems, and we will publish a dedicated article on them soon.

Faithful display, on HDMI as well as CRT

Model 1 and Model 2 games are displayed faithfully for fans of cathode-ray tubes. They are, of course, also compatible with HDMI. On Raspberry Pi 5, with a Recalbox RGB Dual 2, an RGB JAMMA or a Recalbox JVS, the Dual Output mode even lets you display the CRT image on an HDMI screen at the same time.

Demanding 3D arcade: Raspberry Pi 5 recommended

Emulating a 3D board from the 1990s takes power. We recommend the Raspberry Pi 5 to get the most out of these systems. Recalbox 11 also improves 3D performance on Raspberry Pi 4 and 5, with, for example, Sega Rally 2 on Model 3 now running at full speed on Pi 4.

Recalbox Online: linked cabinets, living room edition

Back in the day, Sega's racing games were often played on linked cabinets, set up side by side to race directly against each other. With Recalbox Online, the Model 1 and Model 2 are playable online, just like the Model 3: you get the same linked-play experience, but with opponents from all over the world.

The principle is simple: create a room or join one, and as soon as two players (or more) are ready, the game starts automatically. You can also, from the system's game list, press the "Recalbox Online" button to invite a friend directly. The network configures itself automatically to keep latency as low as possible. The result: a head-to-head on Daytona USA or Virtua Racing with nothing to set up.

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