BS-X Broadcasting System
From Zelda Wiki, the Zelda encyclopedia
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This article is a short summary of BS-X Broadcasting System. Nintendo Wiki features a more in-depth article. |
| BS-X Broadcasting System | |
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| Type | Console add-on hardware |
| Release date |  November 21, 1990 |
| Media | Downloadable Content, rewritable ROM cartridge
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The BS-X Broadcasting System was an add-on piece of equipment for the Super Famicom/Super Nintendo gaming systems. The "BS-X" stood for "Broadcast Satellite X[1]".
One could access the BS-X service via the St. GIGA satellite station between 4:00-7:00 PM. The user was required to have a subscription to the St. GIGA station as well as a BS tuner in order to operate the BS-X. During this time, a player could download and play games. The BS-X system broadcasted for 5 years, up until June 2000. A very large catalog of games previously released in cartridge format as well as a few new games was made available for download through the service. A deluxe package came with a rewritable 8-megabit memory card that plugged into a slot on the top of the boot cartridge. Without such a cartridge, the BS-X saves downloaded content to its 512 KB of built-in memory [2]" .
A feature called SoundLink allowed the use of streaming music or voice clips (most famously used in BS The Legend of Zelda: Ancient Stone Tablets) while playing a game.
The Legend of Zelda games that were released were BS The Legend of Zelda, BS The Legend of Zelda: Ancient Stone Tablets, and BS The Legend of Zelda: Triforce of the Gods.
Along with other and earlier game download services, the BS-X service paved the way for modern downloadable content distribution, which allows the purchase and download of full retail games as well as original download-only titles, much as the BS-X allowed.
Trivia
- Each of the eight dungeons in the first BS Zelda quest are in the shape of a letter. When put together, it spells out STGIGA (St. GIGA), the company that provided satellite service for the BS-X.
- Similarly, the Second Quest's dungeons spell "NiNtENDO".
