← All Failed Consoles

TurboGrafx-16

NEC / Hudson Soft · 1989–1994 · ~2,500,000 (US)

A technically capable NEC/Hudson joint venture that dominated Japan as the PC Engine but found only modest success in North America against entrenched NES and arriving Genesis competition.

The PC Engine launched in Japan in 1987 to tremendous success, becoming the country's second-most popular platform behind the Famicom. Its HuCard format (a thin credit-card cartridge) was innovative, and the CD-ROM² add-on made it the first console with CD-based media in 1988. In North America, branded as TurboGrafx-16, the launch was hampered by limited distribution and a small library. The console lacked a pack-in game and launched a year after the Genesis. Japan received dozens of exclusive titles — including Castlevania: Rondo of Blood and Dracula X — that never crossed the Pacific.

Worth Playing:
  • Bonk's Adventure
  • Blazing Lazers
  • Dungeon Explorer
  • R-Type
  • Splatterhouse
Key Facts:
  • The PC Engine was the first console to offer a CD-ROM add-on, in 1988
  • In Japan the PC Engine outsold the Mega Drive for much of the early 1990s
  • Castlevania: Rondo of Blood, considered one of the greatest Castlevania games, was exclusive to PC Engine CD-ROM until 2007
  • NEC's retail distribution deal with Turbo Technologies limited US availability significantly
  • The PC Engine SuperGrafx, a more powerful variant, was launched briefly in 1989 and supported only 5 games
Verdict: A Japan success story and North American footnote with an extraordinary Japanese library.