|
|
|
History
In the early 1990s, the Taiwanese video game market was booming. The Super Famicom (SFC), the Mega Drive (MD) and the PC were all making a lot of money, and there was no sign of a slowdown. Funtech Entertainment Corporation (also known as Dunhuang Technology, 敦煌科技), a Taiwanese company, decided to release its own console, hoping to take over the local market. Funtech was founded on September 10, 1983 in Taiwan. Its business was geographic information systems, office equipment and office supplies, so, at that time, Funtech had no experience in video games. It was known for geographic information systems, office equipment and office supplies. However, as a subsidiary of United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC), it was well positioned to create such a device. UMC had already go the right for the Gamate in 1992.
Funtech’s strategy was to release a console that was more powerful than its competitors’ and to rely heavily on local developers to create content exclusively for the Taiwanese market. With the SFC and MD hardware starting to show their age, it was easy for Funtech to build a device with more capacity while staying in the same price range.
The console’s design and the programming of its games turned out to be more complex than Funtech anticipated, and the release was pushed back to October 25, 1995. By then, the 32-bit era was already beginning, so Funtech was forced to plan a video-processing add-on 
similar to the Sega 32X, as well as a CD-ROM add-on, in the hope of salvaging the project.
Release
The Super A’Can was officially released on October 25, 1995. With only a few titles available at launch, Funtech started an aggressive marketing campaign comparing the Super A’Can with the SFC and MD. It printed a magazine filled with upcoming releases and praised the 30+ games that would be released imminently. From January to March 1996, the company held a 65,000-yuan prize contest. Strangely, the contest was not a gaming competition but a knowledge-based one, in which contestants were quizzed on Super A’Can games.
Demise
Many factors explain the demise of the Super A’Can. The delay in production was obviously a major one, as the console now had to compete with the PlayStation, Sega Saturn and Nintendo 64 instead of the SFC and MD. Game development was another problem for Funtech, which gambled everything on local developers. Programming for a new console took more time, and the development tools for the Super A’Can were crude, which slowed development even further. Many planned games were never released. While original content was a great idea, opening development up to Japanese and American developers could have led to ports of popular game franchises on the Super A’Can. Lastly, the console’s design was visibly borrowed from the SFC, to the point that Nintendo pressured various retailers and manufacturers into dropping the Super A’Can.
Funtech Entertainment Corporation lost $6 million USD on this venture. In 1996, it pulled the plug, and unsold units were disassembled and sold off for parts to various companies in the USA and abroad. The massive loss of revenue caused by the Super A’Can’s failure forced UMC to close Funtech Entertainment Corporation.
Games
 |
 |
 |
|||
| Formosa Duel Fú Ěr Mó Shā Dà Duìjué (1995) [F001] |
Sango Fighter Sānguózhì Wǔjiàng Zhēngbà (1995) [F002] |
The Son of Evil Xié’è Zhīzǐ (邪惡之子) (1995) [F003] |
|||
 |
 |
 |
|||
| Speedy Dragon Yīnsù Fēilóng (音速飛龍) (1995) [F004] |
Super Taiwanese Baseball League Chāojí Zhōnghuá Zhí Bàng Liánméng (1995) [F005] |
C.U.G. Xī Yóujì (1995)[F006] |
|||
 |
 |
 |
|||
| Super Dragon Force Chāojí Guāngmíng Zhàn Shǐ (1996) [F007] |
African Adventures Fēizhōu Tànxiǎn (1995) [F008] |
Gambling Lord Dǔ Bà (1996) [F009] |
|||
 |
 |
 |
|||
| Magical Pool Mó Bàng Zhuàngqiú (1996) [F010] |
Boom Zoo Bào Bào Dòngwùyuán (1996) [F011] |
REBEL Pàn Xīng (1996) [F012] |
Technical Specifications
| CPU | Motorola 68000 clocked at 10.738635 MHz |
| Memory | 256 KB SRAM clocked at CPU speed |
| Graphics |
|
| Audio | UMC UM6619 outputting stereo 16-track PCM |
| Cartridge | Max size of 112Mb, with built-in SRAM of 16-64kb |