• Tag Archives TurboGrafx-16

  • GamePro (April 1992)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Source: GamePro – Issue Number 33 – April 1992

    Though I preferred EGM and the slightly more obscure VideoGames & Computer Entertainment, GamePro was one of the most popular gaming magazines published in the U.S. lasting from 1989 until the end of 2011. The April 1992 issue includes:

    • Letters from the GamePros
    • The Mail
    • Cutting Edge – Play video games by telephone or by television!
    • Hot at the Arcades – Ride with Sunset Riders. Roll with B.O.T.T.S.
    • Special Feature: Genesis and Super NES Games for ’92 – 16-bit gamers are in for some treats this year, no matter which system you own.
    • Pro Reviews
      • Nintendo: King’s Quest, G.I. Joe: The Atlantis Factor, Wacky Racers, Gemfire
      • Genesis: Kid Chameleon, Earnest Evans, Where in Time is Carmen Sandiego?, Devilish, Toki
      • Super NES: The Super Scope, Xardion, Preview: Out of this World
      • TurboGrafx-16: Ballistix
      • Game Boy: Batman: Return of the Joker; Snow Bros, Jr; Ultima: Runes of Virture
      • Game Gear: Fantasy Zone, Popits
    • Special Feature: Big Basketball Blowout II
      • ProReviews: Jordan vs. Bird (Genesis), Double Dribble: Five on Five (Game Boy)
      • Previews: Arch Rivals (Genesis), David Robinson’s Supreme Court (Genesis), Bulls vs. Lakers (Genesis and SNES), Roundball (NES), Tecmo Super NBA Basketball (NES), NBA Super All-Star Challenge 2 (Game Boy), Basketbrawl (Lynx)
      • Special Review: Michael Jordan Flight for IBM PC
    • Overseas ProSpects – A new Tetris surfaces in Japan – Tetris Plus Bombliss
    • S.W.A.T. (Secret Weapons and Tactics) – The hottest tips and tactics from GamePros everywhere.
    • Ask the Pros – The GamePros answer your questions about G.I. Joe (NES), Mega Man (NES), Streets of Rage (Genesis), Darius Twin (SNES).
    • ProNews – All the video game news that’s fit to print.
    • Advertiser Index – Here’s what’s coming up next in GamePro.

    …and more!


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  • The TurboExpress

    Posted on by Azrael 1 Comment


    https://darth-azrael.tumblr.com/post/634645832379105280/yodaprod-nec-pc-engine-gt-turboexpress-1990



    Released in 1990, the Turbo Express was unique among portable systems in that it was the only portable system that consisted of the same basic hardware and played the exact same games as their main console. Nevertheless, this was not enough to save it from failure and relative obscurity. There are a variety of reasons but they essentially come down to cost and available games.

    The TurboExpress featured the same HuC6280 (a variation of the 65C02) running at 7.16 MHz as the TurboGrafx-16 and the same 16-bit HUC6270 graphics processor with 64KB VRAM. It also played the same HuCard games (though obviously not CD based games that event he TurboGrafx-16 needed an add-on for). The screen has a resolution of 400×270 and just like it’s big brother the TurboGrafx Express could display 481 out of a pallet of 512 colors. All pretty impressive for its time.

    So what was the problem? Well, the biggest problem was lack of good games. While the TurboGrafx-16 and by extension the Turbo Express came out of the gate pretty strong as far as quality games go, for most of their commercial lives the games came at a trickle and were hit and miss in terms of quality. At least outside of Japan. In Japan, the TurboGrafx-16 was one of the most popular consoles that ever was. But there was an order of magnitude more games released there, many of which were very good.

    The next problem was price. The Turbo Express was introduced at $249 and rose quickly to $299 before eventually dropping to $249 again. After inflation, that’s the equivalent of $500-$600 today. Pretty steep for a handheld especially given that the Game Boy could be had for less than $100.

    Battery life probably played a role too. Driving a powerful console with a color back-lit LCD took its toll on batteries. 6 AA batteries would only last 3 hours. By contrast, 4 AA batteries powered the Game Boy for up to 40 hours. That’s a massive difference.

    So how does the Turbo Express stack up today? While I think the TurboGrafx-16 is an incredible system, I don’t think the screen on the Turbo Express holds up well today. This is really true of all those other early color handhelds as well like the Nomad, Game Gear and Lynx. No doubt there are a variety of projects to replace those LCDs with more modern equivalents but unless you want to undertake such a project you are probably better off finding an emulator for your android device instead or buying one of the various modern portable retrogaming systems.


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  • GamePro (May 1994)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Source: GamePro – Issue Number 58 – May 1994 

    GamePro wasn’t my favorite magazine but there’s no doubt it was one of the most popular. Personally, I preferred EGM. It always seemed to me that GamePro was aiming for a slightly younger audience than EGM. The May 1994 issue of GamePro includes:

    • Letter from the GamePros
    • The Mail
    • The Cutting Edge – Virtuality is back! Check out Zone Hunter and more from the virtual wizards at W Industries.
    • Hot at the Arcades – NBA Jam Tournament Edition, Super Street Fighter II Turbo, Power Instinct, and Alien vs. Predator
    • Special Feature: Shooters! – ProReviews of Tempest 2000 (Jaguar), Sub-Terrania (Genesis), Grindstomer (Genesis), Rebel Assault (Sega CD), and Microcosm (Sega CD). Previews of Super R-Type III (SNES) and SoulStar (Sega CD).
    • Cover Feature: The Making of Mortal Kombat II – Inside the minds that brough us Fatalities, Babalities, and incredible digitized graphics.

    ProReviews

    • Genesis
      • Pirates of Dark Water
      • Mutant League Hockey
      • Asterix and the Great Rescue
    • Sega CD
      • Tomcat Alley
    • Super Nintendo
      • The Ninja Warriors
      • Mega Man Soccer
      • Metal Combat
      • Spectre
      • Time Trax
      • King of Dragons
      • Lethal Enforcers
      • Choplifter III
      • Joe & Mac 2: Lost in the Tropics
    • Nintendo
      • Alfred Chicken
    • 3DO
      • The Horde
    • Neo Geo
      • Art of Fighting 2
    • Game Boy
      • Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3 (Preview)
      • Spider-Man and the X-Men in Arcade’s Revenge
      • Sports Illustrated for Kids: The Ultimate Triple Dare!
      • Chase HQ II
      • Stop That Roach
    • Game Gear
      • Disney’s Aladdin
      • Cosmic Spacehead
      • Captain America and the Avengers
      • Zool
      • Ms. Pac-Man

    The Sports Page

    • World Series Baseball (Genesis)
    • Hardball III (SNES)
    • MLBPA Baseball (SNES)
    • RBI Baseball ’94 (Genesis)
    • Super Bases Loaded 2 (SNES)
    • Bill Walsh College Football (SNES)
    • Suzuka 8 Hours (SNES)
    • NHL Hockey ’94 (Sega CD)
    • NBA Showdown ’94 (Genesis)
    • Chavez (SNES)
    • Caesars World of Boxing (CD-I)
    • PGA European Tour (Genesis)
    • Pebble Beach Golf Links (Genesis)
    • International Tennis Open (CD-I)

    Role-Player’s Realm

    • Nobunaga’s Ambition (SNES)
    • Liberty or Death (SNES)
    • Young Merlin ProStrategy Guide: Part III (SNES)
    • RPG Industry Interview: Alex Jimenez

    SWATPro

    • Secret weapons and tactics from the GamePros.
    • Fighter’s Edge – More than 60 Fatalities, three hidden characters, how to play Pong, and more weird stuff.
    • GamePro Labs – It’s the Pro Action Replay 2, SG ProPad 6, and Pro Control 6.
    • Short ProShots – Quick looks at some hot new games.
    • Overseas ProSpects – A look at Dracula X (PC Engine Super CD), Ganbare Goemon 2 (Super Famicom), Zoku: The Legend of Bishin (Super Famicom)
    • ProNews – All the video game news that’s fit to print.
    • Index of Advertisers

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