Johnny Turbo is a

superhero A superhero or superheroine is a stock character that typically possesses ''superpowers'', abilities beyond those of ordinary people, and fits the role of the hero, typically using his or her powers to help the world become a better place, ...

character created to advertise the

Turbo Duo The TurboDuo is a fourth-generation video game console developed by NEC Home Electronics and Hudson Soft for the North American market. The TurboDuo was test-marketed in Los Angeles in October 1992, before a nationwide rollout in May 1993. It is ...

, a hybrid of the

Turbografx-16 The TurboGrafx-16, known as the outside North America, is a home video game console designed by Hudson Soft and sold by NEC, NEC Home Electronics. It was the first console marketed in the fourth generation of video game consoles, fourth genera ...

console and its add-on, the

TurboGrafx CD The TurboGrafx-16, known as the outside North America, is a home video game console designed by Hudson Soft and sold by NEC Home Electronics. It was the first console marketed in the fourth generation, commonly known as the 16-bit era, though ...

, in

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

. The character was conceived by Turbo Technologies Inc. (a venture of

NEC is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational information technology and electronics corporation, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo. The company was known as the Nippon Electric Company, Limited, before rebranding in 1983 as NEC. It prov ...

and

Hudson Soft was a Japanese video game company that released numerous games for video game consoles, home computers and mobile phones, mainly from the 1980s to the 2000s. It was headquartered in the Midtown Tower in Tokyo Midtown, Akasaka, Minato, Tokyo ...

) as a mascot of the console. Previously, NEC used

Bonk Bonk may refer to: People * Bonk (surname) Arts and entertainment * ''Bonk'' (video game series), a caveman character and video game series *Bonk!, a soft drink company in the first-person shooting game ''Team Fortress 2'' * ''Bonk'' (al ...

as the Turbografx-16's

mascot A mascot is any human, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name. Mascots are also used as fi ...

. Later, continuing this theme, TTi would adopt Air Zonk (a cyborg-Bonk who starred in horizontal shooters ''Air Zonk'' and '' Super Air Zonk: Rockabilly-Paradise'') as the mascot for TurboDuo. Unlike Bonk or Zonk, Johnny Turbo never starred in any games during the Turbo Duo's lifetime. Instead, his only appearances were in three comic book-like advertisements published in gaming magazines of the day, such as ''

Video Games & Computer Entertainment ''VideoGames & Computer Entertainment'' (abbreviated as ''VG&CE'') was an American magazine dedicated to covering video games on computers, home consoles and arcades. It was published by LFP, Inc. from the late 1980s until the mid-1990s. Offe ...

'' and ''

Electronic Gaming Monthly ''Electronic Gaming Monthly'' (often abbreviated to ''EGM'') is a monthly American video game magazine. It offers video game news, coverage of industry events, interviews with gaming figures, editorial content and product reviews. History The m ...

''. The character was briefly revived for a playable appearance in the 2019 puzzle game ''

Crystal Crisis ''Crystal Crisis'' is a competitive tile-matching puzzle video game developed and published by Nicalis, released on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and Microsoft Windows via Steam in 2019. It is inspired by Capcom's '' Super Puzzle Fighter II Turb ...

''. He was also used in the name and banner for Johnny Turbo's Arcade, a collection of Data East arcade games for the

Nintendo Switch The is a hybrid video game console developed by Nintendo and released worldwide in most regions on March 3, 2017. The console itself is a Tablet computer#Gaming tablet, tablet that can either be docking station, docked for use as a home video ...

. Johnny Turbo and his partner Tony were pitted against monsters or androids from a company called "FEKA" (a thinly veiled parody of

Sega is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. Its international branches, Sega of America and Sega Europe, are headquartered in Irvine, California and London, r ...

), which, in the comics, misled children into wasting their money on their CD add-on system (a thinly veiled parody of the

Sega CD The Sega CD, released as the in most regions outside North America and Brazil, is a CD-ROM accessory for the Sega Genesis produced by Sega as part of the fourth generation of video game consoles. It was released on December 12, 1991, in Japan, ...

). Johnny Turbo is the alter-ego of Jonathan Brandstetter, who is based on a real life game developer, John C. Brandstetter. Brandstetter provided the character's voice for his appearance in ''Crystal Crisis''. Tony, the sidekick of Johnny Turbo, is based on Tony Ancona.

Plot

Three issues were published in ''

''. Each issue consisted of four full-color pages. The issues were numbered 43 through 45. The first issue (#43), "The Master Plan!," opens with Mr. FEKA and some FEKA agents discussing the company's master plan: to convince children their system is the only CD console available. "Computer expert" Jonathan Brandstetter learns of this, and, as Johnny Turbo, confronts FEKA agents selling their console on the streets. He informs the kids that the TurboDuo was the first CD system to market, and defeats the FEKA agents. In the second issue (#44), "Let 'em Dangle!!," Mr. FEKA assures his underlings that they can get rich as long as kids are convinced the FEKA CD is a complete system. Johnny Turbo interrupts a FEKA sale at a local toy store, reveals the truth about the FEKA system. Observing from a control room, Mr. FEKA decides it's time to teach Johnny Turbo a lesson. The

surrealistic Surrealism is a cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists depicted unnerving, illogical scenes and developed techniques to allow the unconscious mind to express itself. Its aim was, according to l ...

third issue (#45), "Sleepwalker," opens with Tony heading to bed. In his dream he hears Johnny Turbo's voice, telling him about ''

Gate of Thunder is a 1992 scrolling shooter video game developed by Red Company and published by Hudson Soft for the TurboGrafx-CD. It was the first game released in North America to support the Super CD-ROM² format and served as one of the pack-in games for ...

'' and ''

Lords of Thunder ''Lords of Thunder'' (released as ''Winds of Thunder'' in Japan) is a 1993 scrolling shooter, horizontally scrolling shooter developed by Red Company and published by Turbo Technologies and Hudson Soft for the TurboDuo. It is the unofficial foll ...

,'' and telling him a code to access

Bomberman is a video game franchise originally developed by Hudson Soft and currently owned by Konami. The original game, also known as ''Bakudan Otoko'' (''爆弾男''), was released in Japan in July 1983 and has since spawned multiple sequels and sp ...

on a three-in-one disc.

Reception

Jonathan J. Burtenshaw, who wrote an essay appearing in the Classic Gaming section of the ''

GameSpy GameSpy was an American provider of online multiplayer and matchmaking middleware for video games founded in 1996 by Mark Surfas. After the release of a multiplayer server browser for the game, QSpy, Surfas licensed the software under the GameS ...

'' website, described the advertising campaign as seeming "petty" and "overly confrontational." Burtenshaw believed that the campaign contributed to the demise of the gaming system.ClassicGaming Museum
." ''

''.

References

External links

The Johnny Turbo Story - featuring scans of the ads and running commentary

Johnny Turbo appears in Nicalis' Crystal Crisis game
{{DEFAULTSORT:Turbo, Johnny Video game mascots Male characters in advertising Male characters in comics Advertising characters TurboGrafx-16

Plot

Reception

See also

References

External links