TurboGrafx-16
TurboGrafx-16, fully titled as TurboGrafx-16 Entertainment SuperSystem and known in Japan as the PC Engine (PCエンジン Pī Shī Enjin), is a fourth generation video game console developed by Hudson Soft and NEC; released in Japan on October 30, 1987, and in North America on August 29, 1989. In the United Kingdom, Telegames released a slightly altered version of the US model, known simply as the TurboGrafx, around 1990 in extremely limited quantities. Although there was no full-scale PAL region release of the system, imported PC Engine consoles were largely available in France and Benelux through major retailers thanks to the unlicensed importer Sodipeng (Société de Distribution de la PC Engine, a subsidiary of Guillemot International).
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  From top to bottom, the North American/UK design and the Japanese design. | |
| Manufacturer | NEC Corporation |
| Type | Video game console |
| Generation | Fourth generation |
| Retail availability | JP October 30, 1987 NA August 29, 1989 |
| Discontinued | JP December 16, 1994 NA 1995 |
| Units sold | Worldwide: 10 million United States: 2.5 million |
| Media | HuCard, CD-ROM (only with the CD-ROM² add-on) |
| CPU | Hudson Soft HuC6280 |
| Successor | PC-FX |
The TG-16 is a very small video game console, due primarily to a very efficient three-chip architecture and its use of "HuCards" (known in the US as TurboChips, roughly the size of a credit card) for game storage. The console featured a 16-bit custom video color encoder chip, 16-bit video display controller, and an 8-bit CPU with an integrated custom programmable sound generator. This three chip architecture allowed the TG-16 to have more sprites, a larger pallete, and better sound capabilities compared to its 8-bit competition at launch. However, its very early release in the fourth generation put it into a situation akin to the later Dreamcast: it was better than the third generation hardware, but inferior to its fourth generation competitors. While the TG-16 was comparable to other 16-bit consoles, it had very little RAM, no hardware parallax scrolling (a feature widely used to demonstrate the advantages of the 16bit era), and a single controller port. NEC attempted to address these technical concerns with the SuperGrafx, an enhanced version of the TG-16. It had a duplicate set of video chips (and an extra chip to coordinate the two), four times as much RAM, twice as much video RAM, and a second layer/plane of scrolling. However, its high price, minimal improvements, and the prompt release of the TurboDuo condemned the variant to obscurity; only 5 games were released for the SuperGrafx.
The TurboGrafx was the first system to ever have a CD-Rom add-on, known as the TurboGrafx-CD in the US and as the Super CD-ROM² in Japan. In addition to having much more storage space compared to cards or cartridges, the add-on gave the console a much needed increase in RAM. A combination of the console and the CD-Rom addon was later released, known as the TurboDuo in the US and the PC Engine Duo in Japan. The TurboDuo did not have any of the enhancements of the SuperGrafx.
The console initially competed well against the NES and Master System, especially in Japan, where it benefited from better marketing and the success of its CD-Rom add-on. However, the TG-16 was unable to compete against the SNES or the Genesis, reaching fourth place (behind even the NES) in both North America and Japan by 1991.
The TurboGrafx-16/PC Engine was discontinued in 1994 with the arrival of the Japan exclusive PC-FX. The PC-FX never achieved the success of the PC-Engine, and NEC abandoned the video game market in 1998.
Virtual Console Global Problems (TurboGrafx-16)
Virtual Console Compatibility List (TurboGrafx-16)
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| Compatibility | Description |
|---|---|
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Perfect: No issues at all! |
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Playable: Runs well, only minor graphical or audio glitches. Games can be played all the way through |
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Starts: Starts, maybe even plays well, but crashes or major graphical/audio glitches |
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Intro/Menu: Hangs/crashes somewhere between booting and starting |
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Broken: Crashes when booting |
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Unknown: Has not been tested yet |
| Region indicator | Region description |
|---|---|
| AU | Australia |
| CA | Canada (NTSC /w French translation) |
| EU | Europe, PAL/SECAM territories |
| JP | Japan and Asia (NTSC-J) |
| KO | Korea |
| NA | North America and NTSC territories |
| RU | Russia |