• Welcome to Touhou Wiki!
  • Registering is temporarily disabled. Check in our Discord server to request an account and for assistance of any kind.

PC-98: Difference between revisions

From Touhou Wiki
Jump to navigation Jump to search
mNo edit summary
(19 intermediate revisions by 6 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
The '''[[wikipedia:NEC PC-9801|NEC PC-9801]]''' ('''PC-98''' for short) is a series of personal computers developed by NEC, equipped with 16 and 32-bit [[wikipedia:x86|Intel x86]] CPUs. While outwardly similar to IBM's [[wikipedia:IBM PC compatible|PC and compatibles]], including the use of [[wikipedia:DOS|DOS]], it was for the most part a proprietary architecture. It succeeded NEC's Z80-based [[wikipedia:NEC PC-8801|PC-88 series]] computers.
"PC-98" is a term used by the Western community to refer to the first 5 games of the ''[[Touhou Project]]''. "PC-98" is named after the [[wikipedia:NEC PC-9801|NEC PC-9801]] computers on which they ran on. The Japanese community's equivalent is {{nihongo|"old works"|旧作|kyuusaku}}, a term reflecting the technologically inferior [[wikipedia:Frequency modulation synthesis|FM Synthesis]] music & [[wikipedia:16-bit|16-bit]] colour graphics. [[ZUN]] has used both the Japanese and English terms interchangeably. Additionally, PC-98 games are distinguished from later "[[Windows]] games" for having been distributed by [[Amusement Makers]] instead of [[Team Shanghai Alice]].


The first five ''[[Touhou Project]]'' games, described with the term "PC-98", were developed for this platform. They're distinguished from "the [[Windows]] games" (the 6th Touhou game onwards) for having been distributed by [[Amusement Makers]]. Upon his graduation, subsequent employment and the release of ''Mystic Square'', [[ZUN]] paused development of ''[[Touhou Project]]'' games. At the time when the PC-98 games were released, the PC-9801 series of computers were on the decline, facing increasing competition from the aforementioned IBM PC and compatibles. Because of this, the games weren't considered as well known.  
Factors which caused the end of the PC-98 games include a hiatus brought on by [[ZUN]]'s graduation & employment at [[wikipedia:Taito|Taito]], as well as the decline of PC-9801s. The PC-98 games are less well known, possibly due the aging hardware they ran on, their release during the dawn of the Touhou community & their relatively limited circulation. ''[[Highly Responsive to Prayers]]'' and ''[[Story of Eastern Wonderland]]'' were sold simultaneously at Comiket 52, with the former initially selling only 30 copies and the latter 50.<ref>[[The Untold History of Japanese Game Developers Interview]] - interview between John Szczepaniak and ZUN</ref> 200 to 300 copies of ''[[Lotus Land Story]]'' were sold on its release,<ref>[http://twitter.com/#!/korindo/status/8951043502 twitter message on 2010 February 11]</ref> while ''[[Phantasmagoria of Dim.Dream]]'' sold fewer than 100<ref>According to [http://web.archive.org/web/20050410015719/http://www16.big.or.jp/~zun/cgi-bin/diary/nicky.cgi?page=0 a post by ZUN on 2005 April 01].</ref>. On 19 September 2002, ZUN ceased sales and support for PC-98 games. ZUN later released arrangements of many themes from the PC-98 games in MIDI format on his [http://www16.big.or.jp/~zun/html/music_old.html old website]. ZUN has stated in ''[[Akyu's Untouched Score vol.3]]'' that he loves FM Synthesis, but would much rather not go back to 16-bit graphics.


On 19 September 2002, ZUN ceased sales and support for the games. Except for ''Highly Responsive to Prayers'', it's still possible to download the trial versions of the games<ref>http://www.kt.rim.or.jp/~aotaka/am/get.htm</ref>, but compared to the Windows games the circulation of the full versions is very limited, and it's extremely difficult to obtain them. Only 200 to 300 copies of ''[[Lotus Land Story]]'' were sold during the time of its release,<ref>[http://twitter.com/#!/korindo/status/8951043502 twitter message on 2010 February 11]</ref> with ''[[Phantasmagoria of Dim.Dream]]'' selling fewer than half as many copies<ref>According to [http://web.archive.org/web/20050410015719/http://www16.big.or.jp/~zun/cgi-bin/diary/nicky.cgi?page=0 a post by ZUN on 2005 April 01].</ref>.
==PC-98 Titles==
 
==Games for this platform==
*{{HRtP}} ([[Amusement Makers]]/[[ZUN Soft]] 1996)
*{{HRtP}} ([[Amusement Makers]]/[[ZUN Soft]] 1996)
*{{SoEW}} (Amusement Makers/ZUN Soft 1997)
*{{SoEW}} (Amusement Makers/ZUN Soft 1997)
Line 12: Line 10:
*{{MS}} (Amusement Makers/ZUN Soft 1998)
*{{MS}} (Amusement Makers/ZUN Soft 1998)


==System Details==
==Setting Overview==
ZUN targeted the PC-9821 series for these games, which included [[wikipedia:Intel 80386|Intel 386]] or faster processors. Various expansion cards could be installed in PC-98 systems, including more capable video or audio cards, but only the base hardware is required for the Touhou games. Said base hardware includes dual [[wikipedia:NEC µPD7220|µPD7220]] video display processors, one each for text and graphics. In graphics mode, they can display sprites with four 16-color palettes selected from 4026 possible colors.
 
ZUN specifies a [[wikipedia:Intel 80486|486]] at 66MHz as the bare minimum for play, but suggests that even then the games may have issues with slowdown.
 
As for sound hardware, the PC-9801VX and many subsequent models came default with the PC-9801-26k soundcard. This includes the [[wikipedia:Yamaha YM2203|Yamaha YM2203 OPN]] FM synthesizer, providing three 4-operator FM synthesis channels plus the three channels of the integrated [[wikipedia:General_Instrument_AY-3-8910|YM2149 SSG]] unit. Users could replace this with the PC-9801-86 soundcard with the much more capable [[wikipedia:Yamaha YM2608|YM2608 OPNA]] chip, doubling the amount of FM channels and adding a few other features. As such, the PC-98 games include two versions of their in-game music, made for either the three or six FM channel hardware. All of the music was programmed in [[wikipedia:Music Macro Language|MML]] with M. Kajihara's Professional Music Driver (PMD), except for ''Highly Responsive to Prayers'' which used Mdrv2 for the music driver. ''Story of Eastern Wonderland'' also supports outputting to a MIDI device.
 
ZUN subsequently released arranged versions of many of the music themes from the PC-98 games in MIDI format onto his [http://www16.big.or.jp/~zun/html/music_old.html old website]. ZUN has stated in ''[[Akyu's Untouched Score vol.3]]'' that he loves FM music and would continue to create FM music in the modern world.


==Overview on the Touhouverse==
{{Main|Canon#Canonicity of Windows and PC-98|l1=Canon: Canonicity of Windows and PC-98}}
===Terminology===
Unlike the Windows era, the PC-98 world was mostly undefined. Initially, the games were simply set in an "Eastern Country". Locations in the Eastern Country included [[Makai]], the [[Human Village]], the [[Fantasy World]], [[Mugenkan]], [[Reimaden]] as well as the recurring [[Hakurei Shrine]]. The world was inhabited by [[human]]s, [[youkai]] & [[demon]]s. However, the term ''Gensokyo'' has been used since the title of Lotus Land Story. As of Mystic Square, it's been used as the name of the world the games take place in.<ref>[[Mystic Square]] - [[Mystic Square/Music|music comments]]</ref> ZUN has confirmed it to be the very same Gensokyo as in the Windows games.<ref name="AWA 2013">[[ZUN's AWA Q&A Panel]]</ref>
"PC-98" as a term refers specifically to the five first games of the ''[[Touhou Project]]'' by the Western community. The Japanese community's equivalent usually is {{nihongo|"Touhou old works"|東方旧作|Touhou kyuusaku}} or more commonly {{nihongo|"old works"|旧作|kyuusaku}} for short; [[ZUN]] has used both the Japanese and English term. This terminology is supposed to distinguish the games from the modern Touhou series from ''[[Embodiment of Scarlet Devil]]'' onwards. The term is also used to reflect the [[wikipedia:Frequency modulation synthesis|FM Synthesis]] music, [[wikipedia:16-bit|16-bit]] colour graphics, basic stories and characters that only occur in these games.


===Setting===
As in the later works, a [[shrine maiden]] named {{nihongo|[[Reimu Hakurei]]|博麗靈夢}} lives at the shrine, with her friend [[Marisa Kirisame]] visiting occasionally. In PC-98, Reimu's turtle [[Genjii]] also lives at the shrine, along with [[Mima]] who haunts and torments visitors out of boredom. Like their successors, the PC-98 games begin with Reimu or another character going out to investigate and resolve incidents. However, there was no mention or use of the [[spell card]] rules in the PC-98 universe, as they were put into use in the gap between Mystic Square and [[Embodiment of Scarlet Devil]].
{{Main|Canon#Canonicity and comparison between windows and PC-98|l1=Canon: Canonicity and comparison between windows and PC-98}}
Unlike the modern era of the ''[[Touhou Project]]'', there haven't been many details on the location of the PC-98 series. Various sources suggest that the games are set in "an [[Eastern Country]]", with a statement in ''[[Highly Responsive to Prayers]]'' saying it's in a "strange world" and ''[[Mystic Square]]'' calling it the "Human World". There's various locations in the Eastern Country, such as [[Makai]], the [[Human Village]], the [[Fantasy World]], [[Mugenkan]] and [[Reimaden]]. There's also the [[Hakurei Shrine]] at the east, being the prime location in the PC-98.


The place is inhabited with various [[human]]s and [[youkai]], with [[demon]]s living throughout said list of locations. There's known to be a young [[shrine maiden]] called {{nihongo|[[Reimu Hakurei]]|博麗靈夢}} who lives at the shrine with [[Genjii]], having [[Marisa Kirisame]] visiting her at times and [[Mima]] being notable around the shrine for tormenting Reimu when bored.
The [[Windows]] era may be considered a soft reboot - while the series kept the name "Touhou Project", [[ZUN]] stated that it was a "clean sweep"<ref>[[Imperishable Night]] - [[Imperishable Night/Afterword|Afterword]]</ref>, with the current setting of the Touhou Project coming together for the first time in EoSD. Hence, no PC-98 [[character]] has reappeared in a Windows game except for [[Reimu Hakurei]], [[Marisa Kirisame]], [[Alice Margatroid]] and [[Yuuka Kazami]] due to the awkwardness of fitting older characters into the story. They have, however, "retired and are warmly watching over things".<ref>[[Strange Creators of Outer World/Who's Who of Humans & Youkai in Gensokyo/Yuuka Kazami|Strange Creators of Outer World vol. 3]]</ref> [[ZUN]] has mentioned in at least 2 interviews that [[Genjii]] is "probably still living in the lake behind the shrine"<ref name="MU talkshow DoT">[[Meiji University talkshow "Dawn of Touhou"]]</ref><ref name="ZUN's Genyou Denshou Lecture">[http://www.gensokyo.org/archives/92#more-92 Notes on ZUN's Genyou Denshou Lecture]</ref>.  


Unlike the incidents that have happened in the [[Windows]] games, the incidents in the PC-98 mainly involve youkai destroying the Hakurei Shrine, with Reimu going out to find out why. Other characters who may also solve such incidents may have their own personal reasons rather than figuring out why the shrine was destroyed.
Despite the above, however, the PC-98 era cannot be taken entirely at face value - the tone of the games is much more light and tongue-in-cheek, with a fair bit of references to other, non-Touhou works (particularly those of [[wikipedia:Izumi Takemoto|Izumi Takemoto]]). Additionally, ZUN has said that HRtP was simply a study project<ref name="MU talkshow DoT">[[Meiji University talkshow "Dawn of Touhou"]]</ref>, and had once compared the games to "derivative works"<ref>[[ZUN/ZUN's_E-mails|ZUN's E-mails]]</ref>. In case of any plot holes, ZUN has said to take latest material as the most accurate.<ref name="AWA 2013">[[ZUN's AWA Q&A Panel]]</ref>.


The story of the ''[[Touhou Project]]'' drastically changed when the [[Windows]] era started after the PC-98. Both share the same series name "Touhou Project", but it was never stated that the location setting in the PC-98 was "[[Gensokyo]]". [[ZUN]] stated that it was a "clean sweep" when ''[[Embodiment of Scarlet Devil]]'' started, which he states was where the current setting of the ''Touhou Project'' came together. Hence, no PC-98 [[character]] has ever appeared in a Windows era game except for [[Reimu Hakurei]], [[Marisa Kirisame]], [[Alice Margatroid]] and [[Yuuka Kazami]]. There's been no information about [[Mima]] and her relation with the Hakurei Shrine in the Windows era, but [[ZUN]] has mentioned in at least two interviews that [[Genjii]] is "probably living in the lake at the back of the shrine"<ref name="MU talkshow DoT">[[Meiji University talkshow "Dawn of Touhou"]]</ref><ref name="ZUN's Genyou Denshou Lecture">[http://www.gensokyo.org/archives/92#more-92 Notes on ZUN's Genyou Denshou Lecture]</ref>. In addition, there's no mention or use of the [[spell card]] rules in the PC-98.
==Hardware Overview==
The '''[[wikipedia:NEC PC-9801|NEC PC-9801]]'''s were a series of personal computers developed by NEC, which were equipped with 16 or 32-bit [[wikipedia:x86|Intel x86]] CPUs. While outwardly similar to IBM's [[wikipedia:IBM PC compatible|PC and compatibles]], including the use of [[wikipedia:DOS|DOS]], it was for the most part a proprietary architecture. PC-9801s included dual [[wikipedia:NEC µPD7220|µPD7220]] video display processors, one each for text and graphics. In graphics mode, they could display sprites with four 16-color palettes selected from 4026 possible colors. Various expansion cards could be installed in PC-98 systems, including more capable video or audio cards, but only the base hardware is required for the Touhou games. ZUN developed the PC-98 games with the PC-9821 computer as a hardware benchmark and specified a [[wikipedia:Intel 80486|486]] at 66MHz as the bare minimum.


As ZUN has previously referred to the world of PC-98 as a "study project" which could be ignored in light of the later contradictions of the Windows era, it is safe to consider the PC-98 and Windows canons as separate. While the Windows games are set in a time period which appears to be later & continuous with the events of PC-98, it is more accurate to consider them as alternate universes which coincidentally occupy adjacent time periods. The Windows universe is a reimagining & reboot of the PC-98 universe, with no actual connection in time or space. Despite the numerous names, events, roles, personalities & relationships copied to the Windows universe, similarities in the Windows era should be considered as tributes towards PC-98. Some characters or locations may reference their original counterparts closely (by their roles in their respective eras), while others may only share a few superficial traits & harbour stark differences. This lack of consistency means any pre-EoSD Windows backstories theorised from PC-98 sources should only be considered as conjecture at best. For example, it is an open possibility that [[Alice]] never visited [[Makai]] in the Windows universe, despite the reintroduction of [[Makai]] in [[Unidentified Flying Object]].
As for sound hardware, the PC-9801VX and many subsequent models came default with the PC-9801-26k soundcard. This includes the [[wikipedia:Yamaha YM2203|Yamaha YM2203 OPN]] FM synthesizer, providing three 4-operator FM synthesis channels plus the three channels of the integrated [[wikipedia:General_Instrument_AY-3-8910|YM2149 SSG]] unit. Users could replace this with the PC-9801-86 soundcard with the much more capable [[wikipedia:Yamaha YM2608|YM2608 OPNA]] chip, doubling the amount of FM channels and adding a few other features. As such, the PC-98 games included two versions of their in-game music, made for either the three or six FM channel hardware. All of the music was programmed in [[wikipedia:Music Macro Language|MML]] with M. Kajihara's Professional Music Driver (PMD), except for ''Highly Responsive to Prayers'' which used Mdrv2 for the music driver. ''Story of Eastern Wonderland'' also supports outputting to a MIDI device. ''Phantasmagoria of Dim. Dream'' was presumably also planned to have MIDI support, but it was scrapped during development.<ref>[https://tcrf.net/Touhou_Yumejikuu:_The_Phantasmagoria_of_Dim.Dream The Cutting Room Floor]</ref>


==Additional Information==
==Trivia==
*It has been shown in an interview that ZUN still owns a PC-98 computer, on which he played ''[[Highly Responsive to Prayers]]'' for the first time in years. He felt nostalgic.
*It has been shown in an interview that ZUN still owns a PC-98 computer, on which he played ''[[Highly Responsive to Prayers]]'' for the first time in years. He felt nostalgic.
*Since any software made for Windows 2000 or earlier can be run both on the IBM-compatible Windows 2000 and the PC-98 Windows 2000 without compatibility problems, technically all Touhou games up to at least ''[[Undefined Fantastic Object]]'' should be able to run on a PC-98 as long as the appropriate DirectX version is installed. However, since the last PC-98 system was released in 2000 (the PC-9821Ra43, which had a 433MHz Celeron, whereas the system requirements of ''[[the Embodiment of Scarlet Devil]]'' ask for a 500MHz Pentium) this is generally not viable in practice.
*Since any software made for Windows 2000 or earlier can be run both on the IBM-compatible Windows 2000 and the PC-98 Windows 2000 without compatibility problems, technically all Touhou games up to at least ''[[Undefined Fantastic Object]]'' should be able to run on a PC-98 as long as the appropriate DirectX version is installed. However, since the last PC-98 system was released in 2000 (the PC-9821Ra43, which had a 433MHz Celeron, whereas the system requirements of ''[[the Embodiment of Scarlet Devil]]'' ask for a 500MHz Pentium) this is generally not viable in practice.
*ZUN intended to cease all doujin activites after the PC-98 games - his initial idea was to do so after ''Lotus Land Story'', then after ''Mystic Square''<ref>[[Mystic Square]] - [[Mystic Square/Music|music comments (東方幻想的音楽 arrangements)]]</ref>. Alas, he could not wash his hands clean.


==Fandom==
==Fandom==
*Because PC-98 computers are no longer sold, many fans use an [[wikipedia:emulator|emulator]] to play these games on modern PCs. The emulators most commonly used for the PC-98 games are [http://www.zophar.net/pc98/anex86.html Anex86], [http://www.zophar.net/pc98/t98-next.html T98-Next], and [http://yui.ne.jp/np2/ Neko Project 21] (for the latter it's advised to use the unofficial fmgen builds that're linked from [http://www.shrinemaiden.org/forum/index.php/topic,11117.0.html here] instead).
*PC-98 characters are often shown in fanworks with their similar [[Windows]] counterparts (for example, [[Sakuya Izayoi]] with [[Yumeko]]).
*Many fans consider the PC-98 in general to be old or obsolete, to the extent that nowadays the PC-98 can give a bit of nostalgic feeling to some fans who strongly advocate the PC-98.
*Because PC-98 computers are no longer sold/manufactured, fans use [[wikipedia:emulator|emulators]] to play these games on modern PCs, but they can also be played on [https://www.zophar.net/consoles/wii/pc98/neko-project-ii.html homebrew Nintendo Wii systems] as well. The emulators most commonly used for the PC-98 games are [http://www.zophar.net/pc98/t98-next.html T98-Next], and [http://yui.ne.jp/np2/ Neko Project 21] (for the latter it's advised to use the unofficial fmgen builds that're linked from [http://www.shrinemaiden.org/forum/index.php/topic,11117.0.html here] instead).
*PC-98 characters are commonly shown in fanworks with the modern [[Windows]] era characters as though the two canons are connected.
*Many fans consider the PC-98 ecosystem to be old or obsolete, to the extent that it is generally associated with nostalgia.
*There are [[wikipedia:Frequency modulation synthesis|FM Synthesis]] remixes of many of ZUN's creations that mimic the PC-98 style. One notable example is the album ''[[PC-98 Perfect Cherry Blossom]]''. There's also artwork of modern Touhou characters drawn in the PC-98 style.
*There are [[wikipedia:Frequency modulation synthesis|FM Synthesis]] remixes exist of later songs mimic the PC-98 style. One notable example is the album ''[[PC-98 Perfect Cherry Blossom]]''. There's also artwork of modern Touhou characters drawn in the PC-98 style.


==References==
==References==

Revision as of 17:39, 3 June 2019

"PC-98" is a term used by the Western community to refer to the first 5 games of the Touhou Project. "PC-98" is named after the NEC PC-9801 computers on which they ran on. The Japanese community's equivalent is "old works" (旧作 kyuusaku), a term reflecting the technologically inferior FM Synthesis music & 16-bit colour graphics. ZUN has used both the Japanese and English terms interchangeably. Additionally, PC-98 games are distinguished from later "Windows games" for having been distributed by Amusement Makers instead of Team Shanghai Alice.

Factors which caused the end of the PC-98 games include a hiatus brought on by ZUN's graduation & employment at Taito, as well as the decline of PC-9801s. The PC-98 games are less well known, possibly due the aging hardware they ran on, their release during the dawn of the Touhou community & their relatively limited circulation. Highly Responsive to Prayers and Story of Eastern Wonderland were sold simultaneously at Comiket 52, with the former initially selling only 30 copies and the latter 50.[1] 200 to 300 copies of Lotus Land Story were sold on its release,[2] while Phantasmagoria of Dim.Dream sold fewer than 100[3]. On 19 September 2002, ZUN ceased sales and support for PC-98 games. ZUN later released arrangements of many themes from the PC-98 games in MIDI format on his old website. ZUN has stated in Akyu's Untouched Score vol.3 that he loves FM Synthesis, but would much rather not go back to 16-bit graphics.

PC-98 Titles

Setting Overview

Unlike the Windows era, the PC-98 world was mostly undefined. Initially, the games were simply set in an "Eastern Country". Locations in the Eastern Country included Makai, the Human Village, the Fantasy World, Mugenkan, Reimaden as well as the recurring Hakurei Shrine. The world was inhabited by humans, youkai & demons. However, the term Gensokyo has been used since the title of Lotus Land Story. As of Mystic Square, it's been used as the name of the world the games take place in.[4] ZUN has confirmed it to be the very same Gensokyo as in the Windows games.[5]

As in the later works, a shrine maiden named Reimu Hakurei (博麗靈夢) lives at the shrine, with her friend Marisa Kirisame visiting occasionally. In PC-98, Reimu's turtle Genjii also lives at the shrine, along with Mima who haunts and torments visitors out of boredom. Like their successors, the PC-98 games begin with Reimu or another character going out to investigate and resolve incidents. However, there was no mention or use of the spell card rules in the PC-98 universe, as they were put into use in the gap between Mystic Square and Embodiment of Scarlet Devil.

The Windows era may be considered a soft reboot - while the series kept the name "Touhou Project", ZUN stated that it was a "clean sweep"[6], with the current setting of the Touhou Project coming together for the first time in EoSD. Hence, no PC-98 character has reappeared in a Windows game except for Reimu Hakurei, Marisa Kirisame, Alice Margatroid and Yuuka Kazami due to the awkwardness of fitting older characters into the story. They have, however, "retired and are warmly watching over things".[7] ZUN has mentioned in at least 2 interviews that Genjii is "probably still living in the lake behind the shrine"[8][9].

Despite the above, however, the PC-98 era cannot be taken entirely at face value - the tone of the games is much more light and tongue-in-cheek, with a fair bit of references to other, non-Touhou works (particularly those of Izumi Takemoto). Additionally, ZUN has said that HRtP was simply a study project[8], and had once compared the games to "derivative works"[10]. In case of any plot holes, ZUN has said to take latest material as the most accurate.[5].

Hardware Overview

The NEC PC-9801s were a series of personal computers developed by NEC, which were equipped with 16 or 32-bit Intel x86 CPUs. While outwardly similar to IBM's PC and compatibles, including the use of DOS, it was for the most part a proprietary architecture. PC-9801s included dual µPD7220 video display processors, one each for text and graphics. In graphics mode, they could display sprites with four 16-color palettes selected from 4026 possible colors. Various expansion cards could be installed in PC-98 systems, including more capable video or audio cards, but only the base hardware is required for the Touhou games. ZUN developed the PC-98 games with the PC-9821 computer as a hardware benchmark and specified a 486 at 66MHz as the bare minimum.

As for sound hardware, the PC-9801VX and many subsequent models came default with the PC-9801-26k soundcard. This includes the Yamaha YM2203 OPN FM synthesizer, providing three 4-operator FM synthesis channels plus the three channels of the integrated YM2149 SSG unit. Users could replace this with the PC-9801-86 soundcard with the much more capable YM2608 OPNA chip, doubling the amount of FM channels and adding a few other features. As such, the PC-98 games included two versions of their in-game music, made for either the three or six FM channel hardware. All of the music was programmed in MML with M. Kajihara's Professional Music Driver (PMD), except for Highly Responsive to Prayers which used Mdrv2 for the music driver. Story of Eastern Wonderland also supports outputting to a MIDI device. Phantasmagoria of Dim. Dream was presumably also planned to have MIDI support, but it was scrapped during development.[11]

Trivia

  • It has been shown in an interview that ZUN still owns a PC-98 computer, on which he played Highly Responsive to Prayers for the first time in years. He felt nostalgic.
  • Since any software made for Windows 2000 or earlier can be run both on the IBM-compatible Windows 2000 and the PC-98 Windows 2000 without compatibility problems, technically all Touhou games up to at least Undefined Fantastic Object should be able to run on a PC-98 as long as the appropriate DirectX version is installed. However, since the last PC-98 system was released in 2000 (the PC-9821Ra43, which had a 433MHz Celeron, whereas the system requirements of the Embodiment of Scarlet Devil ask for a 500MHz Pentium) this is generally not viable in practice.
  • ZUN intended to cease all doujin activites after the PC-98 games - his initial idea was to do so after Lotus Land Story, then after Mystic Square[12]. Alas, he could not wash his hands clean.

Fandom

  • PC-98 characters are often shown in fanworks with their similar Windows counterparts (for example, Sakuya Izayoi with Yumeko).
  • Because PC-98 computers are no longer sold/manufactured, fans use emulators to play these games on modern PCs, but they can also be played on homebrew Nintendo Wii systems as well. The emulators most commonly used for the PC-98 games are T98-Next, and Neko Project 21 (for the latter it's advised to use the unofficial fmgen builds that're linked from here instead).
  • Many fans consider the PC-98 ecosystem to be old or obsolete, to the extent that it is generally associated with nostalgia.
  • There are FM Synthesis remixes exist of later songs mimic the PC-98 style. One notable example is the album PC-98 Perfect Cherry Blossom. There's also artwork of modern Touhou characters drawn in the PC-98 style.

References