
Editor's take: Retro gaming enthusiasts have plenty of vintage hardware to run classic games on, but now there's a compelling modern solution that looks quite intriguing from a pure engineering standpoint. We don't yet know how it performs, but it certainly has our attention.
Multi-GPU video cards have been around for decades, but I’m betting you haven’t seen one quite like this.
YouTuber Michael Dale recently shared an unboxing of a custom-designed graphics card featuring both a 3Dfx Voodoo 3 “Avenger” GPU and a PowerVR PCX2 on the same PCB. The Frankenstein creation is the brainchild of Anthony Zxclxiv , who apparently sells the cards over Facebook.
This particular model is known as the Lost Joker 2. It’s a PCI-based card with a 16MB Voodoo 3 3500 clocked at 183MHz alongside the PCX2 ticking along at 66MHz with 4MB of RAM.
The package consists of an all-black PCB with two passive heatsinks accompanied by various components scattered around the board. Around back is a VGA pass-thru so you can install it alongside a primary graphics adapter. There’s even an on-board jumper that allows you to overclock the PCX2 to 80MHz.
Also read: 3Dfx Interactive: Gone But Not Forgotten
The board also has what looks to be a three-pin header, presumably for an optional cooling fan. Rigging up some sort of active cooling probably wouldn’t be a bad idea, especially if you plan to run the PCX2 overclocked.
Unfortunately, Dale's video is just an unboxing, although he promises to do a follow-up video with a build featuring the Lost Joker 2 in the future.