Pegasus (video game system)
Encyclopedia
Pegasus was a video game system sold in Poland, Serbia, and Bosnia. It was a hardware clone of the Nintendo Famicom aka Nintendo Entertainment System (NES).
, Serbia
, and Bosnia, where it has gained cult status, and is still
widely available on auction websites and flea markets.
The system was manufactured in Taiwan
by an unknown company, and was built to resemble Nintendo's Famicom. Pegasus, like most known Famicom clones, was compatible with 60-pin Famicom cartridges, and partially compatible with some NES
games, which could be played using a special converter. Original Nintendo games weren't popular however, due to raging piracy and lack of officially licensed products on the market. The majority of the games sold with and for the system were cheap pirated copies, manufactured mostly in Russia
and China
. Games for Pegasus are widely available in Poland to this day, mostly on street markets and in small toy stores.
The typical retail set included the system, two detachable controllers
(both with "turbo" buttons, which meant 4 buttons in total; 6-button controllers also existed.), a light gun (very similar in design to NES Zapper
), power supply, RF cable, as well as audio-video RCA connectors. The system itself didn't include any built-in games, but was bundled with a pirated cartridge labelled "Contra 168-in-1", which contained a few of the best-known NES
titles, like Contra, Super Mario Bros.
, and Tetris
, listed multiple times with slight variations. Most of the games had a "trainer" feature, which allowed the player to adjust the number of lives, and even the starting level of the game.
The 8-bit Pegasus was originally released in two versions:
There was also a 16-bit version of the Pegasus system, known as "Power Pegasus 16-bit", a clone of Sega Mega Drive
.
Hardware
| Processor | 8-bit MOS 6502 1,79 MHz | |
| Video | Clock | 5.37 MHz |
| Resolution | 256×240 | |
| Color Palette | 25 on screen (out of 64 possible) |
|
| Standard | NTSC ("forced" to PAL standard, 50 Hz refresh rate) | |
| Sound | 5-channel mono | 1 channel noise 1 PCM 3 channels for sounds |
| Media | ROM cartridge ROM cartridge A ROM cartridge, sometimes referred to as a cart, is a removable enclosure containing read-only memory devices designed to be connected to a computer or games console.... (Nintendo 60-pin equivalent) |
|
Background
This particular Nintendo-clone was hugely popular in PolandPoland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
, and Bosnia, where it has gained cult status, and is still
widely available on auction websites and flea markets.
The system was manufactured in Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
by an unknown company, and was built to resemble Nintendo's Famicom. Pegasus, like most known Famicom clones, was compatible with 60-pin Famicom cartridges, and partially compatible with some NES
Nes
-Localities:In Norway:* Nes, Akershus, a municipality in the county of Akershus in Norway* Nes, Buskerud, a municipality in the county of Buskerud in Norway* Nes, Hedmark, a former municipality in the county of Hedmark in Norway...
games, which could be played using a special converter. Original Nintendo games weren't popular however, due to raging piracy and lack of officially licensed products on the market. The majority of the games sold with and for the system were cheap pirated copies, manufactured mostly in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
and China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. Games for Pegasus are widely available in Poland to this day, mostly on street markets and in small toy stores.
The typical retail set included the system, two detachable controllers
Gamepad
A gamepad , is a type of game controller held in two hands, where the digits are used to provide input. Gamepads generally feature a set of action buttons handled with the right thumb and a direction controller handled with the left...
(both with "turbo" buttons, which meant 4 buttons in total; 6-button controllers also existed.), a light gun (very similar in design to NES Zapper
NES Zapper
The NES Zapper, also known as the Beam Gun in Japan, is an electronic light gun accessory for the Nintendo Entertainment System and the Japanese Famicom. It was released in Japan for the Famicom on and alongside the launch of the NES in North America in October 1985...
), power supply, RF cable, as well as audio-video RCA connectors. The system itself didn't include any built-in games, but was bundled with a pirated cartridge labelled "Contra 168-in-1", which contained a few of the best-known NES
Nes
-Localities:In Norway:* Nes, Akershus, a municipality in the county of Akershus in Norway* Nes, Buskerud, a municipality in the county of Buskerud in Norway* Nes, Hedmark, a former municipality in the county of Hedmark in Norway...
titles, like Contra, Super Mario Bros.
Super Mario Bros.
is a 1985 platform video game developed by Nintendo, published for the Nintendo Entertainment System as a sequel to the 1983 game Mario Bros. In Super Mario Bros., the player controls Mario as he travels through the Mushroom Kingdom in order to rescue Princess Toadstool from the antagonist...
, and Tetris
Tetris
Tetris is a puzzle video game originally designed and programmed by Alexey Pajitnov in the Soviet Union. It was released on June 6, 1984, while he was working for the Dorodnicyn Computing Centre of the Academy of Science of the USSR in Moscow, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic...
, listed multiple times with slight variations. Most of the games had a "trainer" feature, which allowed the player to adjust the number of lives, and even the starting level of the game.
The 8-bit Pegasus was originally released in two versions:
- MT777DX
- IQ-502 (much rounder casing with controller ports on the sides of the system and an eject button instead of a lever, manufactured by Micro GeniusMicro GeniusMicro Genius is a brand name used for Famicom clone consoles marketed in several countries around the world, particularly areas where Nintendo did not have an official presence, including the Middle East, Southeast Asia, South America, Eastern Europe, South Africa and East Asian countries...
)
There was also a 16-bit version of the Pegasus system, known as "Power Pegasus 16-bit", a clone of Sega Mega Drive
Sega Mega Drive
The Sega Genesis is a fourth-generation video game console developed and produced by Sega. It was originally released in Japan in 1988 as , then in North America in 1989 as Sega Genesis, and in Europe, Australia and other PAL regions in 1990 as Mega Drive. The reason for the two names is that...
.
External links
- EMU-NES, a Polish website about Pegasus and similar systems
- Cartridges/carts gallery