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====== Sega Chihiro ======

The **Sega Chihiro** is an arcade system board developed by **Sega** in collaboration with **Microsoft**, released in **2002**. It is based on the original Xbox hardware with doubled RAM (128 MB vs 64 MB) and additional arcade-specific boards for GD-ROM loading, JVS I/O, and VGA output. It was Sega's last arcade board derived from a home console. Notable games include //The House of the Dead III//, //OutRun 2//, //Virtua Cop 3//, //Ghost Squad//, and //Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune//.
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==== Quick reference ====

  * **Emulator:** [[#xemu|xemu]]
  * **Folder:** ''/userdata/roms/chihiro''
  * **Accepted ROM formats:** ''.iso''

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Sega Chihiro emulation requires an **x86_64** system. ARM devices (Raspberry Pi, Odroid, etc.) are not supported.
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Only a handful of Chihiro games are currently playable through xemu. See the [[#game_compatibility|game compatibility]] section below.
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===== BIOS =====

The following BIOS files are required and must be placed in ''/userdata/bios/'':

^ File ^ MD5 ^ Description ^
| ''mcpx_1.0.bin'' | ''d49c52a4102f6df7bcf8d0617ac475ed'' | Xbox/Chihiro boot ROM (MCPX) |
| ''cerbios.bin'' | ''f23d7e00ae8fbf88908ed1f9165f35eb'' | Cerbios custom flash ROM |

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Unlike regular Xbox emulation which uses ''Complex_4627.bin'', Chihiro requires **Cerbios** (''cerbios.bin'') as its flash ROM. Batocera handles this automatically.
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===== ROMs =====

Place your ROM files in:

''/userdata/roms/chihiro/''

ROMs must be in **XISO format** (''.iso'' extension). These are Xbox-compatible patched versions of the original Chihiro GD-ROM disc images. Standard MAME ROM sets (.zip / .chd) are **not** used for this system.

==== Game compatibility ====

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Only a few Chihiro games have been converted to work with xemu. The following games are known to be supported in Batocera:
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^ Game          ^ Year  ^ Input type               ^ Status    ^ Note                                                    ^
| Ghost Squad   | 2004  | lightgun                 | Playable  | Light gun not supported in xemu. Only controller.       |
| OutRun 2      | 2003  | steering wheel / pedals  | Playable  | Steering wheel not supported in xemu. Only controller.  |
| Virtua Cop 3  | 2003  | lightgun                 | Playable  | Light gun not supported in xemu. Only controller.       |

==== Full Chihiro game library ====

The complete Chihiro arcade library includes the following titles. Most of these are **not yet playable** through xemu in Batocera.

=== Lightgun games ===

^ Game ^ Year ^ Notes ^
| The House of the Dead III | 2002 | 2-player lightgun + reload button |
| Virtua Cop 3 | 2003 | 2-player lightgun + foot pedal (bullet time) |
| Ghost Squad | 2004 | 2-player lightgun + weapon/mode switch buttons |

=== Racing games ===

^ Game ^ Year ^ Notes ^
| Crazy Taxi High Roller | 2003 | Steering wheel + pedals |
| OutRun 2 | 2003 | Steering wheel + pedals + gear shift |
| OutRun 2 Special Tours | 2004 | Steering wheel + pedals + gear shift |
| Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune | 2004 | Steering wheel + pedals + 6-speed shift (Namco) |
| Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 2 | 2005 | Steering wheel + pedals + 6-speed shift (Namco) |

=== Other games ===

^ Game ^ Year ^ Notes ^
| Ollie King | 2003 | Skateboard controller |
| Sega Golf Club Network Pro Tour 2005 | 2004 | Joystick + buttons, network game |
| Sega Club Golf 2006 Next Tours | 2005 | Joystick + buttons, network game |
| Quest of D | 2004 | Card reader + joystick, network RPG |
| Quest of D Ver. 3.02 | 2007 | Card reader + joystick, network RPG |
| Quest of D The Battle Kingdom | 2007 | Card reader + joystick, network RPG |
| Sega Network Taisen Mahjong MJ 2 | 2005 | Mahjong panel, network game |
| Sega Network Taisen Mahjong MJ 3 | 2006 | Mahjong panel, network game |
| Sega Network Taisen Mahjong MJ 3 Evolution | 2007 | Mahjong panel, network game |
| Gundam Battle Operating Simulator | 2005 | Special cockpit controls (Banpresto) |
| Mobile Suit Gundam 0079 Card Builder | 2005 | Card reader + joystick (Banpresto) |
| Mobile Suit Gundam 0083 Card Builder | 2007 | Card reader + joystick (Banpresto) |

===== Emulators =====

==== xemu ====

[[https://xemu.app/|xemu]] is an open-source Xbox emulator that also supports Chihiro arcade hardware. It is the only emulator available for Chihiro in Batocera.

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Batocera automatically applies Chihiro-specific settings when launching games from the Chihiro system:
  * Memory is set to **128 MiB** (double the standard Xbox 64 MiB)
  * Flash ROM is set to **Cerbios** instead of the standard Xbox flash
  * Renderer is forced to **OpenGL** due to a known Vulkan bug with Chihiro games
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=== xemu configuration ===

^ ES setting name \\ ''batocera.conf'' key ^ Description => ES option ''key value'' ^
| **EMULATOR** \\ ''chihiro.emulator'' | Emulator to use. => ''xemu'' (default) |
| **RENDERING RESOLUTION** \\ ''chihiro.rendering_resolution'' | Internal rendering resolution multiplier. => ''1x'' (default) through ''10x'' |
| **SCALING MODE** \\ ''chihiro.scaling_mode'' | How the image is scaled to fit the screen. => ''scale'' (default), ''center'', ''stretch'' |
| **ASPECT RATIO** \\ ''chihiro.aspect_ratio'' | Display aspect ratio. => ''native'' (default), ''4:3'', ''16:9'' |
| **VSYNC** \\ ''chihiro.vsync'' | Vertical sync. => ''on'' (default), ''off'' |
| **BIOS BOOT LOGO** \\ ''chihiro.skip_bios'' | Show or skip the boot animation. => ''show'' (default), ''skip'' |

===== Controls =====

Chihiro games use a wide variety of input devices. Standard gamepad mapping works for most titles.

**Lightgun games** (House of the Dead III, Virtua Cop 3, Ghost Squad) require a compatible lightgun device (not supported yet). See the [[lightgun|lightgun setup guide]] for configuration. Virtua Cop 3 additionally uses a **foot pedal** for the bullet time feature — this can be mapped to a button.

**Racing games** (OutRun 2, Crazy Taxi, Wangan Midnight) benefit from an **analog steering wheel and pedals** (not supported yet), but can also be played with an analog gamepad.

**Specialized controllers** (mahjong panels, card readers, skateboard controllers) used by some Chihiro games are difficult to emulate with standard input devices. Games requiring these controllers may not be fully playable.

===== Hardware specifications =====

^ Component ^ Specification ^
| Manufacturer | Sega / Microsoft |
| Year | 2002 |
| CPU | Intel Pentium III @ 733 MHz |
| GPU | NVIDIA NV2A (GeForce 3-class) @ 200 MHz |
| RAM | 128 MB DDR (shared, 2× Xbox) |
| Extended RAM | Up to 512 MB or 1 GB (DIMM board) |
| Sound | MCPX AC'97 + Motorola DSP56362 coprocessor |
| Media | GD-ROM (loaded entirely into DIMM RAM) |
| Display | 640×480 VGA @ 60 Hz |
| Polygon performance | 125 million polygons/sec |
| I/O | JVS (Japan Video Standard) |
| Based on | Microsoft Xbox |

=== Board variants ===

  * **Type 1** — Uses a removable NAOMI-style DIMM board. Less common.
  * **Type 3** — Integrated DIMM board in a compact cube form factor, 512 MB or 1 GB RAM. Most common variant. Some early games (Crazy Taxi High Roller, House of the Dead III) are reportedly incompatible with Type 3 hardware.

Games are copied entirely from GD-ROM into DIMM RAM before execution, eliminating disc loading times during gameplay.

===== Troubleshooting =====

=== "BIOS file not found" error ===

Make sure both BIOS files are present in ''/userdata/bios/'':
  * ''mcpx_1.0.bin''
  * ''cerbios.bin''

You can verify BIOS files via the Batocera menu: //System Settings → Missing BIOS//.

=== Game doesn't boot or shows black screen ===

  * Verify your ''.iso'' file is a valid XISO-format image. Standard ISO-9660 images will not work.
  * Ensure the file is a Chihiro-patched version, not a raw GD-ROM dump.
  * Try toggling //BIOS Boot Logo// to ''skip'' in the per-game settings.

=== Graphical glitches ===

Batocera forces OpenGL for Chihiro due to a known Vulkan bug. If you experience graphical issues, ensure no manual override is set in ''batocera.conf'':

<code>
# Remove or comment out this line if present:
# chihiro.gfxbackend=vulkan
</code>

=== No sound ===

Audio emulation in xemu for Chihiro games may be incomplete. Some games may have missing or distorted audio. This is a known limitation of the emulator.

=== Performance is poor ===

Chihiro emulation is demanding. Ensure you are running on an **x86_64** system with:
  * A modern multi-core CPU (Intel Core i5/i7 or AMD Ryzen recommended)
  * A dedicated GPU with OpenGL 4.0+ support
  * At least 4 GB system RAM

=== Why can't I use MAME for Chihiro? ===

The MAME Chihiro driver (''chihiro.cpp'') has **preliminary** status for all games — no game is playable, sound is completely unemulated, and 3D rendering is non-functional. This is due to the extreme complexity of emulating the Xbox-derived hardware (NV2A GPU, MCPX APU, modified Xbox kernel). Batocera uses xemu instead, which provides significantly better compatibility through its Xbox-focused emulation approach.