REVIEWS | NEC PC ENGINE; TURBOGRAFX-16 & CD & SUPERGRAFX
Fourth generation | 1987-1994 | HuCard & CD-ROM
Games: 678 (combined) | Units sold: > 6.59m
The PC Engine (TurboGrafx-16 in North America) was notable as the first entrant in the 16-bit console market, and for having the first (and perhaps only truly successful) CD-ROM add-on. It’s diminutive form and attractive, fast games proved a hit on the import scene of the late eighties. A CD-ROM add-on released in 1988 in an attempt to keep pace with the superior power of the Mega Drive and SNES, and despite the reduced install base and complicated compatibility (3 tiers of games required different variants on the hardware or an Arcade Card), it would host almost 400 additional games. The PCE required a multitap for 2-player gameplay. The platform outsold the Mega Drive in Japan, and was known for its numerous hardware revisions, including the portable PC Engine GT (or Turbo Express), and the SuperGrafx, which possessed four times the RAM of the original model, but saw only five games take advantage of it.
Games: 678 (combined) | Units sold: > 6.59m
The PC Engine (TurboGrafx-16 in North America) was notable as the first entrant in the 16-bit console market, and for having the first (and perhaps only truly successful) CD-ROM add-on. It’s diminutive form and attractive, fast games proved a hit on the import scene of the late eighties. A CD-ROM add-on released in 1988 in an attempt to keep pace with the superior power of the Mega Drive and SNES, and despite the reduced install base and complicated compatibility (3 tiers of games required different variants on the hardware or an Arcade Card), it would host almost 400 additional games. The PCE required a multitap for 2-player gameplay. The platform outsold the Mega Drive in Japan, and was known for its numerous hardware revisions, including the portable PC Engine GT (or Turbo Express), and the SuperGrafx, which possessed four times the RAM of the original model, but saw only five games take advantage of it.