The TurboGrafx-16, known as the outside North America, is a
home video game console
A home video game console is a video game console that is designed to be connected to a display device, such as a television, and an external power source as to play video games. Home consoles are generally less powerful and customizable than ...
designed by
Hudson Soft and sold by
NEC Home Electronics
is a Japanese 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 provides IT and network solut ...
. It was the first console marketed in the
fourth generation, commonly known as the 16-bit era, though the console has an
8-bit central processing unit
A central processing unit (CPU), also called a central processor, main processor or just processor, is the electronic circuitry that executes instructions comprising a computer program. The CPU performs basic arithmetic, logic, controlling, an ...
(CPU) coupled with a 16-bit graphics processor. It was released in Japan in 1987 and in North America in 1989. In Europe, the console is known as the PC Engine,
after the Japanese model was imported and distributed in the United Kingdom
and France from 1988. In Japan, the system was launched as a competitor to the
Famicom
The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is an 8-bit Third generation of video game consoles, third-generation home video game console produced by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan in 1983 as the commonly known as the The NES, a redes ...
, but the delayed United States release meant that it ended up competing with the
Sega Genesis and later the
Super NES
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), commonly shortened to Super NES or Super Nintendo, is a 16-bit home video game console developed by Nintendo that was released in 1990 in Japan and South Korea, 1991 in North America, 1992 in ...
.
The console has an 8-bit CPU and a dual
16-bit graphics processing unit
A graphics processing unit (GPU) is a specialized electronic circuit designed to manipulate and alter memory to accelerate the creation of images in a frame buffer intended for output to a display device. GPUs are used in embedded systems, m ...
(GPU) chipset consisting of a
video display controller
A video display controller or VDC (also called a display engine or display interface) is an integrated circuit which is the main component in a video-signal generator, a device responsible for the production of a TV video signal in a computing ...
(VDC) and video color encoder. The GPUs are capable of displaying 482 colors simultaneously, out of 512. With dimensions of just 14 cm × 14 cm × 3.8 cm (5.5 in × 5.5 in × 1.5 in), the Japanese PC Engine is the smallest major home game console ever made.
Games were released on
HuCard
The is a ROM cartridge in the form of a card, designed by Hudson Soft for NEC's PC Engine and PC Engine SuperGrafx video game consoles, which were originally released in 1987 and 1989, respectively. In the United States, where the PC Engine w ...
cartridges and later the
CD-ROM
A CD-ROM (, compact disc read-only memory) is a type of read-only memory consisting of a pre-pressed optical compact disc that contains data. Computers can read—but not write or erase—CD-ROMs. Some CDs, called enhanced CDs, hold both comput ...
optical format with the TurboGrafx-CD add-on. The "16" in its North American name and the marketing of the console as a 16-bit platform despite having an 8-bit CPU was criticized by some as deceptive.
In Japan, the PC Engine was very successful. It gained strong third-party support and outsold the
Famicom
The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is an 8-bit Third generation of video game consoles, third-generation home video game console produced by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan in 1983 as the commonly known as the The NES, a redes ...
at its 1987 debut, eventually becoming the
Super Famicom
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), commonly shortened to Super NES or Super Nintendo, is a Fourth generation of video game consoles, 16-bit home video game console developed by Nintendo that was released in 1990 in Japan and South ...
's main rival.
However, the TurboGrafx-16 failed to break into the North American market and was a commercial failure, which has been blamed on the delayed release and inferior marketing.
In Europe the Japanese models were
grey market
A grey market or dark market (sometimes confused with the similar term " parallel market") is the trade of a commodity through distribution channels that are not authorized by the original manufacturer or trade mark proprietor. Grey market pr ...
imported, modified, and distributed in France and the United Kingdom beginning in 1988,
but an official
PAL
Phase Alternating Line (PAL) is a colour encoding system for analogue television. It was one of three major analogue colour television standards, the others being NTSC and SECAM. In most countries it was broadcast at 625 lines, 50 fields (25 ...
model (named simply "TurboGrafx" without the "16") planned for 1990 was cancelled following the disappointing North American launch with the already-manufactured stock of systems liquidated via mail-order retailers.
At least 17 distinct models of the console were made, including portable versions and those that integrated the CD-ROM add-on. An enhanced model, the
PC Engine SuperGrafx
The , also known as simply the SuperGrafx, is a fourth-generation home video game console manufactured by NEC Home Electronics and released in Japan in 1989. It is the successor system to the PC Engine, released two years prior. Originally know ...
, was rushed to market in 1989. It featured many performance enhancements and was intended to supersede the standard PC Engine. It failed to catch on—only six titles were released that took advantage of the added power and it was quickly discontinued. The final model was discontinued in 1994. It was succeeded by the
PC-FX
The is a 32-bit home video game console developed by NEC and Hudson Soft. It was released in 1994 and discontinued in February 1998, as NEC's final home video game console. Based on the NEC V810 CPU and CD-ROM, it was intended as the successor t ...
, which was released only in Japan and was not successful.
History
The PC Engine was created as a collaborative effort between
Hudson Soft, who created video game software, and
NEC
is a Japanese 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 provides IT and network soluti ...
, a company which was dominant in the Japanese
personal computer
A personal computer (PC) is a multi-purpose microcomputer whose size, capabilities, and price make it feasible for individual use. Personal computers are intended to be operated directly by an end user, rather than by a computer expert or tec ...
market with their
PC-88
The , commonly shortened to PC-88, are a brand of Zilog Z80-based 8-bit home computers released by Nippon Electric Company (NEC) in 1981 and primarily sold in Japan.
The PC-8800 series sold extremely well and became one of the three major Japane ...
and
PC-98
The , commonly shortened to PC-98 or , is a lineup of Japanese 16-bit and 32-bit personal computers manufactured by NEC from 1982 to 2000. The platform established NEC's dominance in the Japanese personal computer market, and, by 1999, more th ...
platforms. NEC lacked the vital experience in the video gaming industry and approached numerous video game studios for support. By pure coincidence, NEC's interest in entering the lucrative video game market coincided with Hudson's failed attempt to sell designs for then-advanced graphics chips to
Nintendo
is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles.
Nintendo was founded in 1889 as by craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi and originally produce ...
. The two companies successfully joined to then develop the new system.
The PC Engine made its debut in the Japanese market on October 30, 1987, and it was a tremendous success. The PC Engine had an elegant, "eye-catching" design, and it was very small compared to its rivals.
This, coupled with a strong software lineup and third-party support from high-profile developers such as
Namco
was a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational video game and entertainment company, headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo. It held several international branches, including Namco America in Santa Clara, California, Namco Europe in London, Na ...
and
Konami
, is a Japanese multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Chūō, Tokyo, it also produces and distributes trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, pachinko machines, slot machines, and arcade cabinets. Konami has casino ...
gave NEC a temporary lead in the Japanese market.
The PC Engine sold 500,000 units in its first week of release.
The CD-ROM expansion was a major success for the CD-ROM format, selling 60,000 units in its first five months of release in Japan. By 1989, NEC had sold over consoles and more than 80,000 CD-ROM units in Japan.
In 1988, NEC decided to expand to the American market and directed its U.S. operations to develop the system for the new audience. NEC Technologies boss Keith Schaefer formed a team to test the system. They found out that there was a lack of enthusiasm in its name "PC Engine" and also felt its small size was not very suitable to American consumers who would generally prefer a larger and "futuristic" design. They decided to call the system the "TurboGrafx-16", a name representing its graphical speed and strength and its 16-bit
GPU
A graphics processing unit (GPU) is a specialized electronic circuit designed to manipulate and alter memory to accelerate the creation of images in a frame buffer intended for output to a display device. GPUs are used in embedded systems, mobi ...
. They also completely redesigned the hardware into a large, black casing. This lengthy redesign process and NEC's questions about the system's viability in the United States delayed the TurboGrafx-16's debut.
The TurboGrafx-16 was eventually released in the
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
and
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
test market
A test market, in the field of business and marketing, is a geographic region or demographic group used to gauge the viability of a product or service in the mass market prior to a wide scale roll-out. The criteria used to judge the acceptabilit ...
s in late August 1989. However, this was two weeks after Sega of America released the
Sega Genesis with a 16-bit CPU to test markets. Unlike NEC, Sega did not waste time redesigning the original Japanese Mega Drive system, making only slight aesthetic changes.
The Genesis quickly eclipsed the TurboGrafx-16 after its American debut. NEC's decision to
pack-in
This list includes terms used in video games and the video game industry, as well as slang used by players.
0–9
A
...
''
Keith Courage in Alpha Zones
''Keith Courage in Alpha Zones'' is a 1989 science fantasy platform game released by NEC for the TurboGrafx-16. It was the pack-in game for the console in North America. It was originally released in Japan by Hudson Soft on August 30, 1988 for ...
'', a Hudson Soft game unknown to western gamers, proved costly as Sega packed-in a port of the hit arcade title ''
Altered Beast
''Altered Beast'' is a 1988 beat 'em up arcade video game developed and manufactured by Sega. The game is set in Ancient Greece and follows a player character chosen by Zeus to rescue his daughter Athena from the demonic ruler of the underworld ...
'' with the Genesis. NEC's American operations in
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
were also overhyped about its potential and quickly produced 750,000 units, far above actual demand. This was very profitable for Hudson Soft as NEC paid Hudson Soft royalties for every console produced, whether sold or not. By 1990, it was clear that the system was performing very poorly and severely edged out by Nintendo and Sega's marketing.
In late 1989, NEC announced plans for a coin-op
arcade video game
An arcade video game takes player input from its controls, processes it through electrical or computerized components, and displays output to an electronic monitor or similar display. Most arcade video games are coin-operated, housed in an arca ...
version of the TurboGrafx-16. However, NEC cancelled the plans in early 1990.
In Europe, the console is known by its original Japanese name PC Engine, rather than its American name TurboGrafx-16.
PC Engine imports from Japan drew a cult following, with a number of unauthorized PC Engine imports available along with
NTSC
The first American standard for analog television broadcast was developed by National Television System Committee (NTSC)National Television System Committee (1951–1953), Report and Reports of Panel No. 11, 11-A, 12–19, with Some supplement ...
-to-
PAL
Phase Alternating Line (PAL) is a colour encoding system for analogue television. It was one of three major analogue colour television standards, the others being NTSC and SECAM. In most countries it was broadcast at 625 lines, 50 fields (25 ...
adapters in the United Kingdom during the late 1980s. In 1989, a British company called Mention manufactured an adapted PAL version called the PC Engine Plus. However, the system was not officially supported by NEC.
From November 1989 to 1993, PC Engine consoles as well as some add-ons were imported from Japan by French importer Sodipeng (''Société de Distribution de la PC Engine''), a subsidiary of
Guillemot International. This came after considerable enthusiasm in the French press. The PC Engine was largely available in France and
Benelux
The Benelux Union ( nl, Benelux Unie; french: Union Benelux; lb, Benelux-Unioun), also known as simply Benelux, is a politico-economic union and formal international intergovernmental cooperation of three neighboring states in western Europe: B ...
through major retailers. It came with
French language
French ( or ) is a Romance language of the Indo-European family. It descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire, as did all Romance languages. French evolved from Gallo-Romance, the Latin spoken in Gaul, and more specifically in Nor ...
instructions and also an AV cable to enable its compatibility with
SECAM
SECAM, also written SÉCAM (, ''Séquentiel de couleur à mémoire'', French for ''color sequential with memory''), is an analog color television system that was used in France, some parts of Europe and Africa, and Russia. It was one of th ...
television sets.
After seeing the TurboGrafx-16 falter in America, NEC decided to cancel their European releases. Units for the European markets were already produced, which were essentially US models modified to run on PAL television sets. NEC sold this stock to distributors; in the United Kingdom,
Telegames
Telegames, Inc. is an American video game company based in Mabank, Texas, with a sister operation based in England.
Telegames was known for supporting not just modern game systems but also classic game systems, after they had been abandoned by ...
released the console in 1990 in extremely limited quantities.
[
]
By March 1991, NEC claimed that it had sold 750,000 TurboGrafx-16 consoles in the United States and 500,000 CD-ROM units worldwide.
In an effort to relaunch the system in the North American market, in mid-1992 NEC and Hudson Soft transferred management of the system in North America to a new joint venture called Turbo Technologies Inc. and released the TurboDuo, an all-in-one unit that included the CD-ROM drive built in. However the North American console gaming market continued to be dominated by the Genesis and Super NES
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), commonly shortened to Super NES or Super Nintendo, is a 16-bit home video game console developed by Nintendo that was released in 1990 in Japan and South Korea, 1991 in North America, 1992 in E ...
, which was released in North America in August 1991. In May 1994 Turbo Technologies announced that it was dropping support for the Duo, though it would continue to offer repairs for existing units and provide ongoing software releases through independent companies in the U.S. and Canada.
In Japan, NEC had sold a total of PC Engine units and CD-ROM² units . This adds up to a total of more than PC Engine/TurboGrafx-16 units sold in Japan and the United States , and CD-ROM² units sold in Japan. The final licensed release for the PC Engine was ''Dead of the Brain Part 1 & 2'' on June 3, 1999, on the Super CD-ROM² format.
Add-ons
TurboGrafx-CD/CD-ROM²
The ''CD-ROM²'' is an add-on attachment for the PC Engine that was released in Japan on December 4, 1988. The add-on allows the core versions of the console to play PC Engine games in CD-ROM format in addition to standard HuCards. This made the PC Engine the first video game console to use CD-ROM as a storage media. Moreover, the PC Engine was also the very first machine of any type, computer or game console, to offer game software on CD-ROM format. (Whereas the first CD-ROM game software on a computer was a conversion from floppy disc of Mediagenic/Activision's The Manhole for the Macintosh computer, in black & white, released December, 1989, a year after PC Engine Fighting Street, a conversion of Capcom's arcade Street Fighter, and No-Ri-Ko, an adventure/dating simulator notable for the being the first multimedia game, utilizing RedBook Audio digital speech and digitized sprite graphics.) The PC Engine CD-ROM2 add-on consisted of two devices - the CD player itself and the interface unit, which connects the CD player to the console and provides a unified power supply and output for both. It was later released as the ''TurboGrafx-CD'' in the United States in November 1989, with a remodeled interface unit in order to suit the different shape of the TurboGrafx-16 console. The TurboGrafx-CD had a launch price of $399.99 and did not include any bundled games. ''Fighting Street
is a 1987 arcade game developed by Capcom. It is the first competitive fighting game produced by the company and the first installment in the ''Street Fighter'' series. It was a commercial success in arcades and introduced special attacks and so ...
'' and '' Monster Lair'' were the TurboGrafx-CD launch titles;[ ] ''Ys Book I & II
is an action role-playing game compilation released by Hudson Soft and NEC for the PC Engine CD-ROM² in 1989 and TurboGrafx-CD in 1990. It consists of enhanced remakes of the first two ''Ys'' games by Nihon Falcom for the PC-8801 home computer ...
'' soon followed.
Super CD-ROM²
In 1991, NEC introduced an upgraded version of the CD-ROM² System known as the ''Super CD-ROM²'', which updates the BIOS to Version 3.0 and increases buffer RAM from 64 KB to 256 KB. This upgrade was released in several forms: the first was the ''PC Engine Duo'' on September 21, a new model of the console with a CD-ROM drive and upgraded BIOS/RAM already built into the system. This was followed by the ''Super System Card'' released on October 26, an upgrade for the existing CD-ROM² add-on that serves as a replacement to the original System Card. PC Engine owners who did not already own the original CD-ROM² add-on could instead opt for the Super-CD-ROM² unit, an updated version of the add-on released on December 13, which combines the CD-ROM drive, interface unit and Super System Card into one device.
Arcade Card
On March 12, 1994, NEC introduced a third upgrade known as the , which increases the amount of onboard RAM of the Super CD-ROM² System to 2MB. This upgrade was released in two models: the ''Arcade Card Duo'', designed for PC Engine consoles already equipped with the Super CD-ROM² System, and the ''Arcade Card Pro'', a model for the original CD-ROM² System that combines the functionalities of the Super System Card and Arcade Card Duo into one. The first games for this add-on were ports of the Neo-Geo fighting games ''Fatal Fury 2
''Fatal Fury 2'', known as in Japan, is a 1992 fighting video game released by SNK for the Neo Geo arcade and home platforms, and later ported to several other home systems. It is the sequel to '' Fatal Fury: King of Fighters'' (1991) and the s ...
'' and ''Art of Fighting
is a fighting video game trilogy that were released for the Neo Geo platform in the early 1990s. It was the second fighting game franchise created by SNK, following the ''Fatal Fury'' series and is set in the same fictional universe as a pr ...
''. Ports of ''World Heroes 2
is a 1993 in video gaming, 1993 fighting game, fighting arcade game developed and published by ADK (company), ADK with the assistance of SNK. It was originally released for the Neo Geo (console), Neo Geo MVS arcade cabinet on April 26, 1993. It i ...
'' and ''Fatal Fury Special
''Fatal Fury Special'', known as in Japan, is a 1993 fighting game developed and published by SNK and originally released for the Neo Geo (console), Neo Geo arcade and home platforms. It is an updated version of 1992's ''Fatal Fury 2'', introduc ...
'' were later released for this card, along with several original games released under the ''Arcade CD-ROM²'' standard. By this point support for both the TurboGrafx-16 and Turbo Duo was already waning in North America; thus, no North American version of either Arcade Card was produced, though a Japanese Arcade Card can still be used on a North American console through a HuCard converter.
Variations
Many variations and related products of the PC Engine were released.
CoreGrafx
The ''PC Engine CoreGrafx'' is an updated model of the PC Engine, released in Japan on December 8, 1989. It has the same form factor as the original PC Engine, but it changes the color scheme from white and red to black and blue and replaces the original's radio frequency
Radio frequency (RF) is the oscillation rate of an alternating electric current or voltage or of a magnetic, electric or electromagnetic field or mechanical system in the frequency range from around to around . This is roughly between the upp ...
-output connector with a composite video
Composite video is an analog video signal format that carries standard-definition video (typically at 525 lines or 625 lines) as a single channel. Video information is encoded on one channel, unlike the higher-quality S-Video (two channels) a ...
AV port. It also used a revised CPU, the HuC6280A, which supposedly fixed some minor audio issues. A recolored version of the model, known as the ''PC Engine CoreGrafx II'', was released on June 21, 1991. Aside from the different coloring (light grey and orange), it is nearly identical to the original CoreGrafx except that the CPU was changed back to the original HuC6280.
SuperGrafx
The PC Engine SuperGrafx
The , also known as simply the SuperGrafx, is a fourth-generation home video game console manufactured by NEC Home Electronics and released in Japan in 1989. It is the successor system to the PC Engine, released two years prior. Originally know ...
, released on the same day as the CoreGrafx in Japan, is an enhanced variation of the PC Engine hardware with updated specs. This model has a second HuC6270A (VDC), a HuC6202 (VDP) that combines the output of the two VDCs, four times as much RAM, twice as much video RAM, and a second layer/plane of scrolling. It also uses the revised HuC6280A CPU, but the sound and color palette were not upgraded, making the expensive price tag a big disadvantage to the system. As a result, only five exclusive SuperGrafx games and two hybrid games ('' Darius Plus'' and ''Darius Alpha
is a 1987 horizontal-scrolling shooter arcade game developed and published by Taito. Players control a starship named the Silver Hawk in its mission to destroy the Belser empire before they wipe out the planet Darius. Its gameplay involves tra ...
'' were released as standard HuCards which took advantage of the extra video hardware if played on a SuperGrafx) were released, and the system was quickly discontinued. The SuperGrafx has the same expansion port as previous PC Engine consoles, but requires an adapter in order to utilize the original CD-ROM² System add-on, due to the SuperGrafx console's large size.
Shuttle
The ''PC Engine Shuttle'' was released in Japan on November 22, 1989, as a less expensive model of the console, retailing at ¥18,800. It was targeted primarily towards younger players with its spaceship-like design and came bundled with a TurboPad II controller, which is shaped differently from the other standard TurboPad controllers. The reduced price was made possible by slimming down the expansion port of the back, making it the first model of the console that was not compatible with the CD-ROM² add-on. However, it does have a slot for a memory backup unit, which is required for certain games. The RF output used on the original PC Engine was also replaced with an A/V port for the Shuttle.
The PC Engine Shuttle was distributed in South Korea also. It was released in 1990 by Daewoo Electronics.
TurboExpress
The ''PC Engine GT'' is a portable version of the PC Engine, released in Japan on December 1, 1990, and then in the United States as the TurboExpress
The TurboExpress is an 8-bit handheld game console by NEC Home Electronics, released in late 1990 in Japan and the United States, branded as the PC Engine GT in Japan and TurboExpress Handheld Entertainment System in the U.S. It is essentially a ...
. It can play only HuCard games. It has a backlit, active-matrix color LCD screen, the most advanced on the market for a portable video game unit at the time. The screen contributed to its high price and short battery life, however, which hurt its performance in the market. It also has a TV tuner adapter as well as a two-player link cable.
LT
The ''PC Engine LT'' is a model of the console in a laptop
A laptop, laptop computer, or notebook computer is a small, portable personal computer (PC) with a screen and alphanumeric keyboard. Laptops typically have a clam shell form factor with the screen mounted on the inside of the upper li ...
form, released on December 13, 1991, in Japan, retailing at ¥99,800. The LT does not require a television display (and does not have any AV output) as it has a built-in flip-up screen and speakers, just as a laptop would have, but, unlike the GT, the LT runs on a power supply. Its expensive price meant that few units were produced compared to other models. The LT has full expansion port capability, so the CD-ROM² unit is compatible with the LT the same way as it is with the original PC Engine and CoreGrafx. However, the LT requires an adapter to use the enhanced Super CD-ROM² unit.
Duo
NEC Home Electronics released the ''PC Engine Duo'' in Japan on September 21, 1991, which combined the PC Engine and Super CD-ROM² unit into a single console. The system can play HuCards, audio CDs, CD+Gs, standard CD-ROM² games and Super CD-ROM² games. The North American version, the ''TurboDuo'', was launched in October 1992.
Two updated variants were released in Japan: the ''PC Engine Duo-R'' on March 25, 1993, and the ''PC Engine Duo-RX'' on June 25, 1994. The changes were mostly cosmetic, but the RX included a new 6-button controller.
Third-party models
The ''PC-KD863G'' is a CRT monitor
A cathode-ray tube (CRT) is a vacuum tube containing one or more electron guns, which emit electron beams that are manipulated to display images on a phosphorescent screen. The images may represent electrical waveforms ( oscilloscope), pictu ...
with built-in PC Engine console, released on September 27, 1988, in Japan for ¥138,000. Following NEC's PCs' naming scheme, the PC-KD863G was designed to eliminate the need to buy a separate television set and a console. It output its signals in RGB
The RGB color model is an additive color model in which the red, green and blue primary colors of light are added together in various ways to reproduce a broad array of colors. The name of the model comes from the initials of the three addi ...
, so it was clearer at the time than the console which was still limited to RF and composite
Composite or compositing may refer to:
Materials
* Composite material, a material that is made from several different substances
** Metal matrix composite, composed of metal and other parts
** Cermet, a composite of ceramic and metallic materials
...
. However, it has no BUS expansion port, which made it incompatible with the CD-ROM² System and memory backup add-ons.
The ''X1-Twin'' was the first licensed PC Engine-compatible hardware manufactured by a third-party company, released by Sharp
Sharp or SHARP may refer to:
Acronyms
* SHARP (helmet ratings) (Safety Helmet Assessment and Rating Programme), a British motorcycle helmet safety rating scheme
* Self Help Addiction Recovery Program, a charitable organisation founded in 19 ...
in April 1989 for ¥99,800. It is a hybrid system that can run PC Engine games and X1 computer software.
Pioneer Corporation
commonly referred to as Pioneer, is a Japanese multinational corporation based in Tokyo, that specializes in digital entertainment products. The company was founded by Nozomu Matsumoto in January 1, 1938 in Tokyo as a radio and speaker repair s ...
's LaserActive
The is a converged device and fourth-generation home video game console capable of playing LaserDiscs, Compact Discs, console games, and LD-G karaoke discs. It was released by Pioneer Corporation in 1993. In addition to LaserActive games, separa ...
supports an add-on module which allows the use of PC Engine games (HuCard, CD-ROM² and Super CD-ROM²) as well as new "LD-ROM²" titles that work only on this device. NEC also released their own LaserActive unit (NEC PCE-LD1) and PC Engine add-on module, under an OEM
An original equipment manufacturer (OEM) is generally perceived as a company that produces non-aftermarket parts and equipment that may be marketed by another manufacturer. It is a common industry term recognized and used by many professional or ...
license. A total of eleven LD-ROM2 titles were produced, with only three of them released in North America.
Other foreign markets
Outside North America and Japan, the TurboGrafx-16 console was released in South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...
by a third-party company, Haitai
Haitai (Hangul: 해태, Hanja: 海陀) is a South Korean company based in Seoul. Its main businesses are retail and instant foods, especially confectionery, beverage and ice cream.
The company was founded on October 3, 1945, and employs 3900 p ...
, under the name ''Vistar 16''. It was based on the American version but with a new curved design. Daewoo Electronics
Winia Electronics, formerly named Daewoo Electronics, is a South Korean home appliances company and a member of South Korean Winia Group. Established in 1971, it has since grown into a global business with more than 64 production sites, research ...
distributed the PC Engine Shuttle in the South Korean market as well.
Technical specifications
The TurboGrafx-16 uses a Hudson Soft HuC6280
The HuC6280 8-bit microprocessor is Japanese company Hudson Soft's improved version of the WDC 65C02 CPU, an upgraded CMOS version of the popular NMOS-based MOS Technology 6502 8-bit CPU manufactured for Hudson by Seiko Epson and NEC. The most n ...
CPU—an 8-bit CPU modified with two 16-bit graphics processors—running at 7.6 MHz
The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose expression in terms of SI base units is s−1, meaning that one he ...
. It includes 8 KB of RAM
Ram, ram, or RAM may refer to:
Animals
* A male sheep
* Ram cichlid, a freshwater tropical fish
People
* Ram (given name)
* Ram (surname)
* Ram (director) (Ramsubramaniam), an Indian Tamil film director
* RAM (musician) (born 1974), Dutch
* ...
, 64 KB of Video RAM
Dual-ported video RAM, or VRAM, is a dual-ported variant of dynamic RAM (DRAM), which was once commonly used to store the framebuffer in graphics adapters. Note that most computers and game consoles do not use this form of memory, and dual-porte ...
, and the ability to display 482 colors at once from a 512-color palette. The sound hardware, built into the HuC6280 CPU, includes a PSG running at 3.58 MHz and a 5-10 bit stereo PCM.
TurboGrafx-16 games use the HuCard
The is a ROM cartridge in the form of a card, designed by Hudson Soft for NEC's PC Engine and PC Engine SuperGrafx video game consoles, which were originally released in 1987 and 1989, respectively. In the United States, where the PC Engine w ...
ROM cartridge
A ROM cartridge, usually referred to in context simply as a cartridge, cart, or card, is a replaceable part designed to be connected to a consumer electronics device such as a home computer, video game console or, to a lesser extent, electroni ...
format, thin credit card-sized cards that insert into the front slot of the console. PC Engine HuCards have 38 connector pins. TurboGrafx-16 HuCards (alternatively referred to as "TurboChips") reverse eight of these pins as a region lockout method. The power switch on the console also acts as a lock that prevents HuCards from being removed while the system is powered on. The European release of the TurboGrafx-16 did not have its own PAL-formatted HuCards as a result of its limited release, with the system instead supporting standard HuCards and outputting a PAL 50 Hz video signal.
Peripherals
In Japan the PC Engine was originally sold with a standard controller known simply as the Pad. It has rectangular shape with a directional pad, two action buttons numbered "I" and "II", and two rubber "Select" and "Run" buttons, matching the number of buttons on the Famicom's primary controller (as well as a standard NES controller). Another controller known as the TurboPad was also launched separately with the console, which added two "Turbo" switches for the I and II buttons with three speed settings. The switches allow for a single button press to register multiple inputs at once (for instance, this allows for rapid fire in scrolling shooters). The TurboPad became standard-issue with the TurboGrafx-16 in North America, as well as subsequent models of the PC Engine in Japan starting with the PC Engine Coregrafx, immediately phasing out the original PC Engine Pad.
All PC Engine and TurboGrafx-16 consoles only have one controller port; in order to use multiple controllers on the same system and play multiplayer games, a separate peripheral, known in Japan as the MultiTap and in North America as the TurboTap, was required, which allowed up to five controllers to be plugged into the system. The Cordless Multitap was also available exclusively in Japan, sold as a set with a single Cordless Pad, with additional wireless controllers available separately.
Due to using different diameter controller ports, PC Engine controllers and peripherals are not compatible with TurboGrafx-16 consoles and vice versa. The TurboDuo would revert to using the same controller port that the PC Engine uses, resulting in new TurboDuo-branded versions of the TurboPad and TurboTap peripherals, known as the DuoPad and the DuoTap respectively, to be made. An official TurboGrafx-16/Duo Adapter was also produced, which was an extension cable that allowed any TurboGrafx-16 controller or peripheral to be connected into the TurboDuo console (as well as any PC Engine console as a side-effect).
Many peripherals were produced for both the TurboGrafx-16 and PC Engine. The TurboStick is a tabletop joystick designed to replicate the standard control layout of arcade games from the era. Other similar joystick controllers were produced by third-party manufacturers, such as the Python 4 by QuickShot and the Stick Engine by ASCII Corporation
was a Japanese publishing company based in Chiyoda, Tokyo. It became a subsidiary of Kadokawa Group Holdings in 2004, and merged with another Kadokawa subsidiary MediaWorks (publisher), MediaWorks on April 1, 2008, becoming ASCII Media Works. T ...
. The TurboBooster attached to the back of the system and allowed it to output composite video and stereo audio. Hudson released the Ten no Koe 2 in Japan, which enabled the ability to save progress in compatible HuCard titles. In 1991, NEC Avenue released the Avenue Pad 3, which added a third action button labelled "III" that could be assigned via a switch to function as either the Select or Run button, as many games had begun to use one of those for in-game commands. The Avenue Pad 6 was released in 1993 in conjunction with the PC Engine port of '' Street Fighter II: Champion Edition'', adding four action buttons numbered "III" through "VI"; unlike the three-button pad, these buttons did not duplicate existing buttons, and instead added new functionalities in compatible titles. Another six-button controller, the Arcade Pad 6, was released by NEC Home Electronics in 1994, replacing the TurboPad as the bundled controller of the PC Engine Duo-RX (the last model of the console).
Library
A total of 686 commercial games were released for the TurboGrafx-16. In North America, the system featured ''Keith Courage in Alpha Zones
''Keith Courage in Alpha Zones'' is a 1989 science fantasy platform game released by NEC for the TurboGrafx-16. It was the pack-in game for the console in North America. It was originally released in Japan by Hudson Soft on August 30, 1988 for ...
'' as a pack-in game, a conversion of the PC Engine title Mashin Eiyuuden Wataru. The PC Engine console received strong third-party support in Japan, while the TurboGrafx-16 console struggled to gain the attention of other developers. Hudson brought over many of its popular franchises, such as ''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 ...
'', ''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 ...
'', and '' Adventure Island'', to the system with graphically impressive follow-ups. Hudson also designed and published several original titles such as '' Air Zonk'' and '' Dungeon Explorer''. Compile
In computing, a compiler is a computer program that translates computer code written in one programming language (the ''source'' language) into another language (the ''target'' language). The name "compiler" is primarily used for programs that ...
published ''Alien Crush
''Alien Crush'' is a pinball video game developed by Compile for the PC Engine/TurboGrafx-16. It was released in 1988. The game is the first installment in the '' Crush Pinball'' series. It was followed by three sequels, ''Devil's Crush'', '' Ja ...
'' and ''Devil's Crush
''Devil's Crush'' is a pinball video game developed by Compile for the TurboGrafx-16 and released in 1990. The second installment in the '' Crush Pinball'' series after '' Alien Crush'', the game has an eerie occult theme with skulls, skeletons, ...
'', two well-received virtual pinball games. Namco
was a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational video game and entertainment company, headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo. It held several international branches, including Namco America in Santa Clara, California, Namco Europe in London, Na ...
contributed several high-quality conversions of its arcade games, such as ''Valkyrie no Densetsu
''Valkyrie no Densetsu'' is a 1989 action-adventure role-playing arcade game developed and published in Japan by Namco. It is a follow-up to the Family Computer game '' Valkyrie no Bōken'' (1986). Players control the warrior maiden Valkyrie an ...
'', ''Pac-Land
is a 1984 side-scrolling arcade platform game developed and released by Namco. It was distributed in North America by Bally Midway, and in Europe by Atari Games. Controlling Pac-Man (character), Pac-Man, the player must make it to the end of eac ...
'', ''Galaga '88
is a 1987 fixed shooter arcade video game by Namco. It is the third sequel for ''Galaxian'' (following ''Galaga'', and ''Gaplus''). It features significantly improved graphics over the previous games in the series, including detailed backgrounds, ...
'', ''Final Lap Twin
is a hybrid Racing video game#Racing role playing games, racing/role-playing game released for the PC Engine in 1989 and the TurboGrafx-16 in 1990, as a spin-off to the 1987 arcade game ''Final Lap''. The story mode featured in the game revolve ...
'', and ''Splatterhouse
is a beat 'em up arcade game developed and published by Namco. It was the first in a series of games released in home console and personal computer formats. This cult classic would later spawn the parody '' Splatterhouse: Wanpaku Graffiti'', the ...
'', as did Capcom
is a Japanese video game developer and video game publisher, publisher. It has created a number of List of best-selling video game franchises, multi-million-selling game franchises, with its most commercially successful being ''Resident Evil' ...
with a port of '' Street Fighter II': Champion Edition''.
A large portion of the TurboGrafx-16's library is made up of horizontal and vertical-scrolling shooters. Examples include Konami
, is a Japanese multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Chūō, Tokyo, it also produces and distributes trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, pachinko machines, slot machines, and arcade cabinets. Konami has casino ...
's ''Gradius
is a series of shooter video games, introduced in 1985, developed and published by Konami for a variety of portable, console and arcade platforms. In many games in the series, the player controls a ship known as the Vic Viper.
Games
*''Scr ...
'' and ''Salamander
Salamanders are a group of amphibians typically characterized by their lizard-like appearance, with slender bodies, blunt snouts, short limbs projecting at right angles to the body, and the presence of a tail in both larvae and adults. All ten ...
'', Hudson
Hudson may refer to:
People
* Hudson (given name)
* Hudson (surname)
* Henry Hudson, English explorer
* Hudson (footballer, born 1986), Hudson Fernando Tobias de Carvalho, Brazilian football right-back
* Hudson (footballer, born 1988), Hudso ...
's '' Super Star Soldier'' and ''Soldier Blade
is a 1992 vertically scrolling shooter developed and published by Hudson Soft for the TurboGrafx-16. Controlling the titular starship, the player is tasked with completing each of the game's seven stages in order to wipe out the Zeograd Army, ...
'', Namco
was a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational video game and entertainment company, headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo. It held several international branches, including Namco America in Santa Clara, California, Namco Europe in London, Na ...
's ''Galaga '88
is a 1987 fixed shooter arcade video game by Namco. It is the third sequel for ''Galaxian'' (following ''Galaga'', and ''Gaplus''). It features significantly improved graphics over the previous games in the series, including detailed backgrounds, ...
'', Irem
is a Japanese video game console developer and publisher, and formerly a developer and manufacturer of arcade games as well. The company has its headquarters in Chiyoda, Tokyo.
The full name of the company that uses the brand is Irem Softwar ...
's ''R-Type
is a horizontally scrolling shooter arcade video game developed and released by Irem in 1987 and the first game in the ''R-Type'' series. The player controls a star ship, the R-9 "Arrowhead", in its efforts to destroy the Bydo, a powerful a ...
'', and Taito
is a Japanese company that specializes in video games, toys, arcade cabinets and game centers, based in Shinjuku, Tokyo. The company was founded by Michael Kogan in 1953 as the importing vodka, vending machines and jukeboxes into Japan. It b ...
's ''Darius Alpha
is a 1987 horizontal-scrolling shooter arcade game developed and published by Taito. Players control a starship named the Silver Hawk in its mission to destroy the Belser empire before they wipe out the planet Darius. Its gameplay involves tra ...
, Darius Plus'' and '' Super Darius''. The console is also known for its platformers and role-playing games; Victor Entertainment
, also known as in Japan, is a subsidiary of JVCKenwood that produces and distributes music, movies and other entertainment products such as anime and television shows in Japan. It is known as JVC Entertainment in countries where Sony Music Ent ...
's ''The Legendary Axe
''The Legendary Axe'' (魔境伝説 ''Makyō Densetsu'' in Japan) is a horizontal platform game, platform video game for the TurboGrafx-16. It was developed and published by Victor Musical Industries in Japan and by NEC in North America. It was r ...
'' won numerous awards and is seen among the TurboGrafx-16's definitive titles. '' Ys I & II'', a compilation of two games from Nihon Falcom
is a Japanese video game developer, best known for their '' Ys'', '' The Legend of Heroes'', and ''Trails'' series. The company was founded in March 1981, making them one of the oldest active video game companies. They are credited with pioneer ...
's '' Ys'' series, was particularly successful in Japan. Cosmic Fantasy 2 was an RPG ported from Japan to the United States that earned Electronic Gaming Magazine RPG of the year in 1993.
Reception
In Japan, the PC Engine was very successful, and at one point it was the top-selling console in the nation. In North America and Europe the situation was reversed, with both Sega and Nintendo dominating the console market at the expense of NEC. Initially, the TurboGrafx-16 sold well in the U.S., but eventually it suffered from lack of support from third-party software developer
Software development is the process of conceiving, specifying, designing, Computer programming, programming, software documentation, documenting, software testing, testing, and Software bugs, bug fixing involved in creating and maintaining applic ...
s and publishers.
In 1990, ''ACE
An ace is a playing card, die or domino with a single pip. In the standard French deck, an ace has a single suit symbol (a heart, diamond, spade, or club) located in the middle of the card, sometimes large and decorated, especially in the c ...
'' magazine praised the console's racing game
Racing games are a video game genre in which the player participates in a racing competition. They may be based on anything from real-world racing leagues to fantastical settings. They are distributed along a spectrum between more realistic rac ...
library, stating that, compared to "all the popular consoles, the PC Engine is way out in front in terms of the range and quality of its race games." Reviewing the Turbo Duo model in 1993, ''GamePro
Gamepro.com is an international multiplatform video game magazine media company that covers the video game industry, video game hardware and video game software in countries such as Germany and France. The publication, GamePro, was originally la ...
'' gave it a "thumbs down". Though they praised the system's CD sound, graphics, and five-player capability, they criticized the outdated controller and the games library, saying the third party support was "almost nonexistent" and that most of the first party games were localizations of games better suited to the Japanese market. In 2009, the TurboGrafx-16 was ranked the 13th greatest video game console of all time by IGN
''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...
, citing "a solid catalog of games worth playing," but also a lack of third party support and the absence of a second controller port.
The controversy over bit width marketing strategy reappeared with the advent of the Atari Jaguar
The Atari Jaguar is a home video game console developed by Atari Corporation and released in North America in November 1993. Part of the fifth generation of video game consoles, it competed with the 16-bit Sega Genesis, the Super NES and the ...
console. Mattel
Mattel, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational toy manufacturing and entertainment company founded in January 1945 and headquartered in El Segundo, California. The company has presence in 35 countries and territories and sells products in more ...
did not market its 1979 Intellivision
The Intellivision is a home video game console released by Mattel, Mattel Electronics in 1979. The name is a portmanteau of "intelligent television". Development began in 1977, the same year as the launch of its main competitor, the Atari 2600. I ...
system with bit width, although it used a 16-bit CPU.
Legacy
In 1994, NEC released a new console, the Japanese-exclusive PC-FX
The is a 32-bit home video game console developed by NEC and Hudson Soft. It was released in 1994 and discontinued in February 1998, as NEC's final home video game console. Based on the NEC V810 CPU and CD-ROM, it was intended as the successor t ...
, a 32-bit
In computer architecture, 32-bit computing refers to computer systems with a processor, memory, and other major system components that operate on data in 32-bit units. Compared to smaller bit widths, 32-bit computers can perform large calculation ...
system with a tower-like designs. It was a commercial failure, leading NEC to abandon the video game industry.
Emulation programs for the TurboGrafx-16 exist for several modern and retro operating systems and architectures. Popular and regularly updated programs include Mednafen
Mednafen (My Emulator Doesn't Need A Frickin' Excellent Name), formerly known as Nintencer, is an OpenGL and SDL multi-system free software wrapper that bundles various original and third-party emulation cores into a single package, and is driv ...
and BizHawk.
In 2006, a number of TurboGrafx-16 (TurboChip/HuCARD), TurboGrafx-CD (CD-ROM²) and Turbo Duo (Super CD-ROM²) games were released on Nintendo's Virtual Console
A virtual console (VC) – also known as a virtual terminal (VT) – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some Unix-like operating systems such as Linux, BSD, illumos, Unix ...
download service for the Wii
The Wii ( ) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released on November 19, 2006, in North America and in December 2006 for most other Regional lockout, regions of the world. It is Nintendo's fifth major ho ...
, and later the Wii U
The Wii U ( ) is a home video game console developed by Nintendo as the successor to the Wii. Released in late 2012, it is the first eighth-generation video game console and competed with Microsoft's Xbox One and Sony's PlayStation 4.
The W ...
, and Nintendo 3DS
The is a handheld game console produced by Nintendo. It was announced in March 2010 and unveiled at E3 2010 as the successor to the Nintendo DS. The system features backward compatibility with Nintendo DS video games. As an eighth-generatio ...
, including several that were originally never released outside Japan. In 2011, ten TurboGrafx-16 games were released on the PlayStation Network
PlayStation Network (PSN) is a digital media entertainment service provided by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Launched in November 2006, PSN was originally conceived for the PlayStation video game consoles, but soon extended to encompass smartp ...
for play on the PlayStation 3
The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment. The successor to the PlayStation 2, it is part of the PlayStation brand of consoles. It was first released on Novemb ...
and PlayStation Portable
The PlayStation Portable (PSP) is a handheld game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 12, 2004, in North America on March 24, 2005, and in PAL regions on September 1, 2005, ...
in the North American region.
In 2010, Hudson released an iPhone application entitled "TurboGrafx-16 GameBox" which allowed users to buy and play a number of select Turbo Grafx games via in-app purchases
Microtransactions, often abbreviated as mtx, are a business model where users can purchase virtual goods with micropayments. Microtransactions are often used in free-to-play games to provide a revenue source for the developers. While microtransact ...
.
The 2012 JRPG ''Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory
is an action role-playing game developed and published by Idea Factory with the assistance of Compile Heart. It is the third installment in the ''Hyperdimension Neptunia'' franchise. Set in the year 1989, the story takes place after '' Hyperdim ...
'' features a character known as Peashy, that pays homage to the console.
In 2016, rapper Kanye West
Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer.
Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...
's 8th solo album was initially announced to be titled "Turbo Grafx 16". The album, however, was eventually scrapped.
In 2019, Konami
, is a Japanese multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Chūō, Tokyo, it also produces and distributes trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, pachinko machines, slot machines, and arcade cabinets. Konami has casino ...
announced at E3 2019
The Electronic Entertainment Expo 2019 (E3 2019) was the 25th E3, during which hardware manufacturers, software developers, and publishers from the video game industry presented new and upcoming products to the attendees, primarily retailers a ...
and at Tokyo Game Show 2019 the TurboGrafx-16 Mini
The TurboGrafx-16 Mini, also known as the in Japan and PC Engine CoreGrafx Mini in Europe, is a dedicated home video game console by Konami modeled on NEC's TurboGrafx-16, which was designed by Hudson Soft, a video game developer which Konami ...
, a dedicated console
A dedicated console is a video game console that is limited to one or more built-in video game or games, and is not equipped for additional games that are distributed via ROM cartridges, discs, downloads or other digital media. Dedicated consol ...
featuring many built-in games. On March 6, 2020, Konami announced that the TurboGrafx-16 Mini and its peripheral accessories will be delayed indefinitely from its previous March 19, 2020, launch date due to the COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
disrupting supply chains in China. It was released in North America on May 22, 2020, and released in Europe on June 5, 2020.
Notes
References
External links
PC Engine / TurboGrafx-16 Architecture: A Practical Analysis
{{Home video game consoles
1980s toys
1990s toys
CD-ROM-based consoles
Discontinued video game consoles
Home video game consoles
Fourth-generation video game consoles
NEC consoles
Products introduced in 1987
65xx-based video game consoles