Introduced by Capcom in 1993, the CPS-2 — Capcom Play System II — was the direct evolution of the CPS-1 and one of the most important arcade platforms of the 1990s. Designed for coin-op venues, it used a common motherboard and dedicated cartridges, also recognisable by different colours linked to regional markets. It arrived in an arcade scene that was still very strong but increasingly competitive, facing the Neo Geo MVS, Sega, Namco and Konami, while 3D graphics were slowly beginning to reshape the industry.

Its architecture was still based on a Motorola 68000 as the main CPU, supported by a Zilog Z80 for audio. The CPS-2 refined Capcom’s 2D graphics with large sprites, rich animation, detailed backgrounds and a typical resolution of 384×224 pixels. Its palette was very broad, with thousands of colours on screen, perfectly suited to the bright, readable style of Capcom’s fighting games. The cartridge system also included battery-backed protection, later becoming notorious for the problems caused when the battery ran out.

There are no consolidated public figures for the number of units distributed, but the CPS-2 marked a long run of arcade successes, especially in its rivalry with SNK on the 2D fighting-game front. Its legacy lives through Super Street Fighter II Turbo, Darkstalkers, X-Men: Children of the Atom, Marvel Super Heroes, X-Men vs. Street Fighter, Dungeons & Dragons: Shadow over Mystara, Alien vs. Predator and Progear.