![]() ![]() | |
![]() TurboDuo with gamepad | |
Manufacturer | NEC Home Electronics, Hudson Soft |
---|---|
Type | Home video game console |
Generation | Fourth generation era |
Release date | |
Lifespan | 1991–1995 |
Introductory price | US$299.99(equivalent to $670 in 2023) |
Discontinued |
|
Media | TurboChip, CD-ROM |
CPU | HuC6280 @ 1.79 MHz or 7.16 MHz |
Memory | 8KB work RAM, 64KB video RAM, 192KB additional memory (System 3.0) |
Display | 256 × 224, 512 × 224, 512 × 240 screen resolutions. 512 available colors, 481 on-screen colors |
Graphics | HuC6270 VDC, HuC6260 VCE |
Sound | HuC62806, PSG audio channels |
Input | Gamepad |
Predecessor | TurboGrafx-16 (PC Engine) TurboGrafx-CD (CD-ROM² System) |
Successor | PC-FX |
The TurboDuo (later rebranded as simply the Duo) is a fourth-generation video game console developed by NEC Home Electronics and Hudson Soft for the North American market. It combines the capabilities of the TurboGrafx-16 and its CD-ROM drive add-on, the TurboGrafx-CD, into a single, redesigned unit. Initially test-marketed in Los Angeles in October 1992 before a nationwide rollout in May 1993, [2] TurboDuo is the localized version of the Japanese PC Engine Duo, which was released in September 1991.
Compared to TurboGrafx-16 and the TurboGrafx-CD, TurboDuo has an updated BIOS and 192 KB of additional RAM. The RAM increase and BIOS update afford the TurboDuo and PC Engine Duo compatibility with all CD-ROM² and Super CD-ROM² based software (Japanese and North American). Like the TurboGrafx-CD, the TurboDuo can read Compact Disc Digital Audio and CD+G discs. TurboDuo, however, cannot read PC Engine HuCards without modification or an adapter. With a HuCard adapter and an Arcade Card Duo, the TurboDuo can also read Arcade CD-ROM² games (which were sold only in Japan).
When the PC Engine Duo launched in Japan on September 21, 1991, it retailed for ¥59,800. The product garnered a Good Design Award. [3]
NEC later revised the design of the console to reduce both manufacturing costs and the sale price. This new version, the PC Engine Duo R (PCエンジンDuo-R, Pī Shī Enjin Duo Āru), went to market on March 25, 1993 [1] with a retail price of ¥39,800. The Duo R omits the 3.5 mm phone connector for headphones, and the locking switch for the lid of the Duo's top-loading CD-ROM drive. The Duo R has a differently shaped, off-white casing.
NEC released its final variation of the PC Engine Duo on June 25, 1994. [1] The PC Engine Duo RX (PCエンジンDuo-RX, Pī Shī Enjin Duo Āru Ekkusu) has a bluer case, and was bundled with the Arcade Pad 6, a six-button controller, instead of the standard Turbo Pad controller.
TTI released the TurboDuo to consumers in North America in October 1992, at a retail price of US$299.99. The price was, in part, a consequence of the relatively high cost of CD-ROM drive manufacturing. In the United States, the TurboDuo was marketed by Turbo Technologies, Inc. (or TTI) of Los Angeles, a joint venture of NEC Home Electronics and Hudson Soft. It was established to market NEC consoles in North America after NEC Home Electronics USA failed to effectively market the platform.
Since TTI understood that the price was too high for many people in their target market, they included a booklet of coupons for TurboDuo games and accessories, plus several pack-in games on two CD-ROMs: Ys Book I & II (1990) and a Super CD compilation of four of Hudson Soft's more popular TurboGrafx-16 titles: Bonk's Adventure (1989), Bonk's Revenge (1991), Gate of Thunder (1992), and Bomberman (1983). (Bomberman was hidden in an Easter egg.) The package also included one TurboChip game: Dungeon Explorer (Hudson Soft 1989). Later, TTI replaced Dungeon Explorer with one of a variety of TurboChip titles, such as Ninja Spirit (Irem 1988) and Final Lap Twin (Namco 1989).
With the release of the TurboDuo, TTI reduced the retail price of the TurboGrafx-CD peripheral for the TurboGrafx-16 to $150.00, and began marketing the Super System Card, which enabled the TurboGrafx-CD to play the new Super CD games. The Super System Card is programmed with the updated v3.0 BIOS, and increases the TurboGrafx-16's RAM by 192 kilobytes. The TurboGrafx-CD requires the updated BIOS to read Super CD discs, and the additional RAM to run the software capably. The Super System Card retailed for US$65 or, when bundled with the TurboDuo's Super CD compilation disc, US$95. TTI also offered the Super System Card via mail order, which provided the original TurboGrafx-CD with the 192 KB RAM upgrade.
Unlike the previous consoles which used actual game characters as mascots, for the TurboDuo marketing campaign TTI created a character called "Johnny Turbo". [4] Turbo, a superhero character, was the alter ego of Jonathan Brandstetter, who himself was based in part on real-life game developer and TurboDuo brand manager John C. Brandstetter. [5] [6] Consisting of a three comic campaign that ran in issues of Electronic Gaming Monthly , [7] [8] [9] the stories featured Johnny opposing agents of the company "FEKA" (a thinly veiled parody of Sega) who were tricking children into buying their CD-based add-on instead of the TurboDuo. [10] Reactions to the advertising campaign were negative, with Jonathan J. Burtenshaw of GameSpy descring them as "petty" and "overly confrontational," and further conjectured that it hurt TurboDuo sales. [11] Despite this Turbo would later resurface as a playable character voiced by Brandstetter in the 2019 puzzle game Crystal Crisis , [12] and in name and image only for Johnny Turbo's Arcade, a Data East arcade game compilation for the Nintendo Switch produced by Brandstetter's company Flying Tiger Development. [13]
The Neo Geo, stylized as NEO•GEO and also written as NEOGEO, is a ROM cartridge-based arcade system board and fourth-generation home video game console released on April 26, 1990, by Japanese game company SNK Corporation. It was the first system in SNK's Neo Geo family.
The PC-FX is a 32-bit home video game console co-developed by NEC and Hudson Soft. Released in December 1994, it is based on the NEC V810 CPU and CD-ROM, and was intended as the successor to the PC Engine. Unlike its predecessor, the PC-FX was only released in Japan.
The TurboGrafx-16, known as the PC Engine outside North America, is a home video game console designed by Hudson Soft and sold by NEC Home Electronics. 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 (CPU) coupled with a 16-bit graphics processor. It was released in Japan in 1987 and in North America in 1989. In Europe the Japanese model was unofficially imported and distributed in the United Kingdom and France from 1988. In Japan, the system was launched as a competitor to the Famicom, but the delayed United States release meant that it ended up competing with the Sega Genesis and later the Super NES.
In the history of video games, the fourth generation of video game consoles, more commonly referred to as the 16-bit era, began on October 30, 1987, with the Japanese release of NEC Home Electronics' PC Engine. Though NEC released the first console of this era, sales were mostly dominated by the rivalry between Sega and Nintendo across most markets: the Sega Mega Drive and the Super Nintendo. Cartridge-based handheld game consoles became prominent during this time, such as the Nintendo Game Boy, Atari Lynx, Sega Game Gear and TurboExpress.
The LaserActive 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, separately sold add-on modules accept Mega Drive/Genesis and PC Engine/TurboGrafx-16 ROM cartridges and CD-ROMs.
The FM Towns is a Japanese personal computer built by Fujitsu from February 1989 to the summer of 1997. It started as a proprietary PC variant intended for multimedia applications and PC games, but later became more compatible with IBM PC compatibles. In 1993, the FM Towns Marty was released, a game console compatible with existing FM Towns games.
The PC Engine SuperGrafx, 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 known as the PC Engine 2 during production stages, it was purported as a true 16-bit home console, featuring improved graphics and audio capabilities over its predecessor.
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 portable version of the TurboGrafx-16 home console that came out one to three years earlier. Its launch price in Japan was ¥44,800 and US$249.99 in the U.S.
TurboPlay Magazine is a bi-monthly, U.S.-based video game magazine which was published by L.F.P. from June/July 1990 through August/September 1992. It was available via subscription only. A total of 14 issues were released, on schedule. TurboPlay exclusively covered NEC's line of video game consoles, especially the North American models: TurboGrafx-16, TurboGrafx-CD (TG-CD), Turbo Duo (DUO) and the handheld TurboExpress. NEC's SuperGrafx also received some minor coverage.
HuC6270 is a video display controller (VDC) developed by Hudson Soft and manufactured for Hudson Soft by Seiko Epson. The VDC was used in the PC Engine game console produced by NEC Corporation, and the upgraded PC Engine SuperGrafx.
The HuCard 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.
Valis II is a 1989 action-platform video game originally developed by Laser Soft, published by Telenet Japan and NEC for the PC Engine CD-ROM²/TurboGrafx-CD. A home computer version was released for PC-8801, MSX2, PC-9801 and X68000. A super deformed-style remake was also released in 1992 for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis. It is the second entry in the eponymous series. It stars Yuko Asou, a Japanese schoolgirl teenager chosen to become the Valis warrior by wielding the titular mystical sword, after defeating the demon lord Rogles. The dream world Vecanti fell under the rule of emperor Megas, whose hatred towards his brother Rogles and bloodthirsty tendencies seeks to wipe out traces of the former tyrant, including his supporters. Gameplay varies between each version but all share similar elements, as the player explores and search for items and power-ups, while fighting enemies and defeat bosses.
Dragon Slayer: The Legend of Heroes is a 1989 role-playing game developed by Nihon Falcom. It is the sixth game in the Dragon Slayer series and the first in The Legend of Heroes franchise.
Gate of Thunder is a 1992 scrolling shooter video game developed by Red Company and published by Hudson Soft for the TurboGrafx-CD. It was the first game released in North America to support the Super CD-ROM² format and served as one of the pack-in games for the TurboDuo, a two-in-one system which runs both TurboGrafx-CD and TurboGrafx-16 titles, where it was bundled with Bonk's Adventure, Bonk's Revenge and Bomberman on the same disc. In the game, the player controls the Hunting Dog space fighter craft, piloted by space cop Hawk. Alongside his ally Esty, piloting the Wild Cat support ship, Hawk must stop General Don Jingi and his Obellon armada from obtaining the powerful "Starlight" energy source from planet Aries.
Lords of Thunder is a horizontally scrolling shooter developed by Red Company and published in 1993 by Turbo Technologies and Hudson Soft for the TurboDuo. It is the unofficial follow-up to Gate of Thunder. The player controls the knight Landis, donning the armor of his ancestor Drak on a confrontation against Zaggart of Garuda Empire, who resurrected the evil god Deoric, and his six dark generals across the land of Mistral.
PC Engine Fan was a Japanese magazine dedicated to the PC Engine, published by Tokuma Shoten. It ran from 1988 to 1996.
The TurboGrafx-16 Mini, also known as the PC Engine Mini in Japan and PC Engine CoreGrafx Mini in Europe, is a dedicated home video game console modeled on NEC's TurboGrafx-16, released in 2020. It is developed by Konami, who owns the properties of Hudson Soft, the designer of the original system. The Mini emulates the original's 8-bit hardware and comes with 57 or 58 games built-in.
Seirei Senshi Spriggan is a 1991 vertically scrolling shooter video game developed by Compile and published by Naxat Soft in Japan for the PC Engine CD-ROM². In the game, the player assume control of Jega and Rikart piloting the Spriggan in order to protect their country from the Buraizubara empire.
Rayxanber III is a 1992 scrolling shooter video game developed and published by Data West for the PC Engine Super CD-ROM². It is a follow-up to Rayxanber II, which was released earlier in 1991 for the PC Engine CD-ROM², and the last entry in the Rayxanber trilogy. In the game, the player assumes the role of a fighter pilot controlling the ES3 Donner Kyle space craft deployed into the homeworld of the Zoul Empire, in retaliation for the destruction of a mother ship from Earth. It retains the same gameplay as its predecessors, with the players fighting against an assortment of enemy forces while avoiding collision with their projectiles and other obstacles.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)