Speedrunners Left Scratching Their Heads After New Discovery Suggests the SNES Works Faster as It Ages

The speedrunning community is grappling with an intriguing technological phenomenon: it appears that the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) is running games faster as it ages. This surprising discovery was first brought to light by Bluesky user Alan Cecil (@tas.bot) in early February, suggesting that the nearly 50 million SNES units sold worldwide might be performing better now than when they were first produced in the 1990s. This theory posits that classics like Super Mario World, Super Metroid, and Star Fox could be benefiting from this unexpected boost in performance.

The notion that a video game console could improve its efficiency over time may sound far-fetched, but Cecil's research points to a specific component—the audio processing unit (APU) SPC700—as the potential source of this change. According to an interview with 404 Media, official Nintendo specifications claim that the SPC700 operates at a digital signal processing (DSP) rate of 32,000Hz, controlled by a ceramic resonator running at 24.576MHz. However, enthusiasts have noted that these figures can vary slightly depending on environmental conditions like temperature, which in turn can affect the speed at which games run.

Cecil's investigation took a deeper turn when he asked SNES owners to record data from their consoles. The results, gathered from over 140 responses, show a clear trend of increasing DSP rates over time. Previously recorded averages around 32,040Hz in 2007 have now risen to 32,076Hz, indicating that the SNES is processing audio faster than before. While temperature does influence these rates, the change is not significant enough to account for the overall increase observed.

In a follow-up Bluesky post, Cecil detailed the data, noting that "Based on 143 responses, the SNES DSP rate averages 32,076Hz, rising 8Hz from cold to warm... Warm DSP rates go from 31,965 to 32,182Hz, a 217Hz range. Therefore, temperature is less significant. Why? How does it affect games? We do not know. Yet."

Despite these fascinating findings, Cecil acknowledges that further research is essential to understand not only the extent of this speed increase but also its underlying causes. Historical data on console performance from the first decade is scarce, but it's evident that as the SNES approaches its 35th anniversary, it seems to be aging gracefully.

The potential implications of this phenomenon have stirred significant interest within the speedrunning community. If the SPC700 is processing audio faster, it could theoretically shorten load times in certain game sections, affecting performance. However, the impact on actual game speed is not straightforward. Even under the most extreme scenarios, the time shaved off a speedrun would likely be less than a second. The effect on longer speedruns remains unclear, and the community's research is still in its early stages.

As Cecil continues to explore what drives this unexpected boost in the SNES's performance, the console is thriving into its 30s. For those interested in the SNES's legacy, it's worth noting its place on the list of best-selling consoles of all time.