NEOGEO AES+ will be exhibited for the first time in the world at Tokyo Game Show 2026, overcoming the postponement of the release date and attracting the attention of fans

``NEOGEO'', released by SNK in 1990, shared a platform between a commercial system (MVS: Multi Video System) and a home game console (AES: Advanced Entertainment System), making it possible to enjoy professional quality games at home.

In April 2026, 36 years after NEOGEO's debut, an Austrian game publisher called PLAION announced that it would release ``NEOGEO AES+'', a modern reproduction of the home NEOGEO hardware, under the ``PLAION REPLAI'' brand for retro games. This project was realized in collaboration with SNK, and is attracting attention from core gamers, including those in Japan.

PLAION will have a booth as PLAION REPLAI at Tokyo Game Show (TGS) 2026, which will be held until September 21st, and will be exhibiting the actual NEOGEO AES+ machine for the first time in the world. It was originally scheduled to be released on November 12th, but the release date was just postponed to September 16th, 2027. Perhaps because of the timing, there was no shortage of enthusiastic retro hardware fans from Japan and abroad trying out the game during the two Business Days.

The ``mini game consoles'' packed with old games that were popular a while ago are often equipped with processors (SoC) for smartphones and tablets, and the actual operation is performed by emulating the hardware of the time using software.

SoCs for smartphones/tablets have higher performance than older game consoles, so you can get sufficient performance even when running them through an emulator, but there are still some aspects where the behavior differs from when you run them on a game console.

The question is, "So how did NEOGEO AES+ come about?" Actually, it's not software emulation or FPGA reproduction. It is equipped with an xASIC (application-specific integrated circuit) that reproduces the original NEOGEO and has been "re-designed" (re-etched) to match modern semiconductor manufacturing processes.

This allows NEOGEO AES+ to work with previous home-use NEOGEO cartridges "as is." Conversely, cartridges for NEOGEO AES+ that will be manufactured in the future can be used ``as is'' in older home-use NEOGEO units. In the words of a representative, it has "full two-way compatibility."

In addition, the size of the NEOGEO AES+ was the same as that of the home-use NEOGEO at the time. It is said that he faithfully acted and reproduced the rugged design and solid texture of the time.