RELEASED: 1987 // NEC

PC Engine / TurboGrafx-16

Name: PC Engine / TurboGrafx-16
Brand: NEC

The little giant. Tiny console, huge power. It dominated Japan with its shoot-em-ups and was the first to have a CD-ROM attachment.

Legacy & History

Released in 1987. It was a joint venture between Hudson Soft and NEC. In Japan, it outsold the Famicom for a time, but struggled in the US market.

Cultural Impact

It pioneered the CD-ROM format for games with the CD-ROM² add-on, years before the Sega CD or PlayStation. This allowed for voice acting and Redbook audio soundtracks.

Modern Legacy

The PC Engine Mini and the Virtual Console releases have kept its library of legendary shooters alive.

Under the Hood

Despite being marketed as 16-bit (TurboGrafx-16), it actually had an 8-bit CPU (a modified 6502) paired with a dual 16-bit GPU setup. This unique architecture allowed it to push huge, colorful sprites and fast scrolling, making it the ultimate machine for "shmups" (shoot-em-ups).

CPUHuC6280 (8-bit)

MEMORY8 KB RAM

DISPLAYUp to 512 x 242

AUDIO6-channel wavetable