TurboGrafx-16

TurboGrafx-16 is a video game platform.


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The TurboGrafx-16 is a 16-bit console that sold well in Japan, but failed in the North American market.

The TurboGrafx-16 is a 16-bit video game console made by Nippon Electric Company. It is known in Japan as the PC Engine and was released in Japan on October 30, 1987. It was released in North America on August 29, 1989, and was released in a very limited manner in Europe in 1990. In Europe it was simply called the TurboGrafx.

The central CPU of the TG-16 is 8-bit while the graphics card is 16-bit and can display 482 colors at once. Games were on small cards called Hucards. They were roughly the size of a credit card & about twice as thick. The TGX16 was also notable for having a large expansion dock on the rear of the console. When not used it was hidden under a large plastic cover. But if you had the optional TurboBooster accessory ( approx. $50 ), which boosted the systems video ram, you also had the option of using composite video cables for the TV hookup & limited stereo sound. This was a fairly new novelty in 1989!

The PC Engine was very popular in Japan. It outsold the Nintendo Famicom upon its release. It is considered equal to the Super Famicom which is also a 16-bit gaming console that was not released in Japan until 1990. The PC Engine sales started to drop due to the release of the Super Famicom. Nippon Electric Company then released an Arcade Card that greatly increased the system's RAM. The expansion was not released in the U.S.

The TGX16 came out in North America with a CD-ROM peripheral that cost about $400 USD. It was called the TurboGrafx-CD. This was the first major home console peripheral in the US to use CD's. The debut titles of the TGXCD were considered to be must-have, but the library of TG-CD grew very slow compared to the TG-16 HuCards. Although the library did not grow as fast as the TGX16, the TGXCD had some games considered to be gems by gamers like Dracula X: Rondo of Blood.

The TGX16 is considered a 16-bit console, but struggled against its competition since it was an 8-bit/16-bit hybrid. It also struggled in North America
because many big developers supported the PC Engine, but also made games primarily for Nintendo. Nintendo's licensing policies of the day made developers sign exclusivity agreements with them to insure games on the NES would not be ported to other consoles. Nintendo said at the time this was to insure there would not be another crash of the video game market like 1984. This made it all but impossible for the TGX16 to import well known franchises for it's limited American audience.

According to Gamepro.com, the TurboGrafx-16 is the #9 worst-selling game systems of all time.
 

Hardware Specifications

  

CPU

  • Processor: 8-bit HuC6280A at 7.6 MHz  
 

Graphics

  • Two 16-bit HuC6270A's
  • Maximum Color Palette: 512
  • Maximum Colors On Screen: 482
  • Maximum Sprites On Screen: 64
  • Screen Resolution: 256 x 239
  • Possible AV Outputs: RF, Composite
 

Sound

  •  6 Channel Wavetable at 3.5 MHz
 
Note: HuC6280A is also used to control sound



Memory

  •  Main Memory: 8KB
  • Video Memory: 64KB

TurboGrafx-16 games
Edit
Platform Name: TurboGrafx-16
Release Date: Aug. 29, 1989
Online Support: False
Install Base: 10,000,000
Original Price: $199
Producing Company: NEC Technologies, Inc.
Total Games: games
Game machines
a list of 16 items by effjay
Bonk
first in Bonk's Adventure
4
King Drool
first in
3
Bomberman
first in Bomberman
3
Wonder Boy
first in Wonder Boy
2
Bub
first in Bubble Bobble
2
Dobkeratops
first in R-Type
2
Bob
first in Bubble Bobble
2
Princess Za
first in
2
Ken Masters
first in Street Fighter
1
Vega
first in Street Fighter II
1
Space
first in Spacewar!
10
Jungle
first in
4
Japan
first in
3
Desert
first in
3
Underground
first in
2
Unnamed South American Country
first in
2
The Beach
first in
2
China
first in
2
Soviet Union
first in
2
Japanese Castle
first in
2
Virtual Console
first in
72
2D
first in Tennis for Two Simulator
23
Side-Scrolling
first in
23
Boss Fight
first in DND
22
Lives
first in
15
Game Over
first in
14
Vertical Scrolling
first in Caverns of Mars
13
Jump
first in Donkey Kong
12
High Score
first in Seawolf
12
Cheat Code
first in Manic Miner
10
Sword
first in
10
Laser
first in
9
Bullet
first in Spacewar!
7
Spaceship
first in Spacewar!
6
Bomb
first in B-17 Bomber
5
Fireball
first in Super Mario Bros.
5
Spread Gun
first in
5
Blocks
first in Tetris
4
Car
first in
4
Bat
first in
4


AV_Gamer
45 points

Anarchist4Eva
41 points

Unknown_Pleasures
26 points

PaperPlain
19 points

Sil3n7
12 points


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