Scans from a 1994 Turbo Zone Direct Catalog

[roflmao]

So I was digging through some old boxes in my garage the other day and came across some ancient treasures - My original Duo's user manual, my original Turbografx-16's manual and the pack-in game catalog, a Sears flyer from 1990 (I'm guessing where I got the TG16 from bitd), and this game catalog from 1994.  It's 30+ pages, and may be awhile before I get it completely scanned, but thought some of you may remember getting these in the mail and would get a kick out of how game prices have changed for our beloved system.





There isn't a date printed on it, but it seems to have been released in 1994 because they reference upcoming games being released in '95 for the Arcade Card.  And Bomberman '94 is listed.  And there's no mention of www.tzd.com yet.

As I mentioned, there's over 30 pages with screenshots and descriptions of nearly every US Turbo game so when I have a free weekend, I'll scan the rest and post 'em up!

[Sadler]

Nice! I had almost the exact same experience last year: clicky. I like to refer to this as suburban archaeology.

EDIT: I'm curious why TZD didn't offer Rondo of Blood?

[roflmao]

Nice! I had almost the exact same experience last year: clicky. I like to refer to this as suburban archaeology.

Awesome!  That same box had high school newspapers that I submitted movie reviews to, which reminded me a lot of your "Club Turbo" magazines.  They were all done with typewriters and copy machines.

[SMF]

Well if anyone wants to sell their Magical Chase game ill give them $39.99. Even tho the game is prolly open up and used now. But ill still be happy to pay the new price tag 

[DragonmasterDan]

EDIT: I'm curious why TZD didn't offer Rondo of Blood?

It was difficult to come by from import stores from what I recall, I got it from Die Hard Game Club around Christmas time in 1993, and if I recall correctly it took them a while to get a restock. By the time TZD was open (May 1994 at the earliest?), Rondo of Blood was out of print and semi-difficult to obtain already.

[SignOfZeta]

Heh, I remember this catalog and what REALLY looks like two of the Night Sabers on the cover. I remember where I was working when it was released. I remember making a phone call to TZD from work and talking with them about Macross 2036 and the last few US games, Godzilla in particular.

As for Rondo, they would have loved to have stocked it. They only dealt in brand new stock directly from Hudson in Japan though, so what they could get was limited. Rondo was a huge hit for import PCE players and was kind of hard for us to get from day one.

[VestCunt]

I'm pretty sure they did stock Drac X at one point.  I'll try to find a source...

[SignOfZeta]

I'm pretty sure the game came out before TZD existed, and unlike SFII', it didn't sit around in huge piles for years on end. They could certainly have had a few copies, but I can only remember their explaination for why they didn't carry this title (ie: We can't get it.")

[CrackTiger]

I had to wait a while (2 or 3 months?) to get Drac X from the import mail order store I got most of my games from.

[roflmao]

I don't remember seeing Dracula X advertised at TZD (either in catalog or online) but that was a looong time ago.  And there are lots of things from back then I don't remember.

[Sadler]

LOL, what am I missing here? tzd.com redirects to a mandrin lesson on sexy time? That's completely awesome!

[BigusSchmuck]

Hmm didn't know Populous was a CD game. lol
I remember ordering from tzd back in the late 90s when they had a sale on turbo sticks (surprisingly all 5 of them work flawlessly to this day) $5 a piece. Man I wish I would have kept those card board boxes and the adverts if I only knew they would be collectible.

[Sadler]

Hmm didn't know Populous was a CD game. lol

I think it was both chip and CD.

[CrackTiger]

Populous CD has an exclusive Bomberman world.

[VestCunt]

Regarding Drac X, I can't find the scan or web archive that I remember, but Aaron's Turbo Memoirs describe the interior of this flyer:  

One of the first mail flyers from Turbo Zone Direct (unknown date). In this flyer just some of the rarer items available were Dracula X ($79.99), Arcade Card ($149.99) and Flash Hiders ($79.99).

TZD also alludes to it here:  

In a perfect world we'd still be selling new copies of Dracula X, Dungeon Explorer II...

[Bernie]

Man, I wish I had saved all my TZD stuff that I had from back then.  I ordered a lot from them.  I just noticed something though.  They have the Super System Card listed, then the Super System Card Deluxe listed...  What's the difference?  I was thinking CD card, and then the 3.0 card, but I thought the Super System Card WAS the 3.0?

[DragonmasterDan]

Man, I wish I had saved all my TZD stuff that I had from back then.  I ordered a lot from them.  I just noticed something though.  They have the Super System Card listed, then the Super System Card Deluxe listed...  What's the difference?  I was thinking CD card, and then the 3.0 card, but I thought the Super System Card WAS the 3.0? 

Deluxe came with the Gate of Thunder, Bonks Adventure, Bonks Revenge and Hidden Bomberman disc.

[DragonmasterDan]

Regarding Drac X, I can't find the scan or web archive that I remember, but Aaron's Turbo Memoirs describe the interior of this flyer: 

One of the first mail flyers from Turbo Zone Direct (unknown date). In this flyer just some of the rarer items available were Dracula X ($79.99), Arcade Card ($149.99) and Flash Hiders ($79.99).

TZD also alludes to it here: 

In a perfect world we'd still be selling new copies of Dracula X, Dungeon Explorer II...

Interesting, if they carried it, it was for a VERY short amount of time and they had very very limited quantities of it.

[SignOfZeta]

I think I missed the very first mailing they did, and that's probably where this was mentioned.

[tlaloc]

Check out this link. It is, basically speaking, a chronological mirror from late-1996 on:

http://wayback.archive.org/web/*/http://www.tzd.com/

Look, it even mentions Bomberman and [the late] Hudson Soft.

[VestCunt]

Regarding Drac X, I can't find the scan or web archive that I remember, but Aaron's Turbo Memoirs describe the interior of this flyer: 

One of the first mail flyers from Turbo Zone Direct (unknown date). In this flyer just some of the rarer items available were Dracula X ($79.99), Arcade Card ($149.99) and Flash Hiders ($79.99).

TZD also alludes to it here: 

In a perfect world we'd still be selling new copies of Dracula X, Dungeon Explorer II...

Interesting, if they carried it, it was for a VERY short amount of time and they had very very limited quantities of it.

Why say "if"?  Isn't an interior description and price quote of a mailing Aaron owns and scanned the cover to pretty good evidence?

[Bernie]

That link depresses me.. 

[NecroPhile]

Why say "if"?  Isn't an interior description and price quote of a mailing Aaron owns and scanned the cover to pretty good evidence?

Not really.  It's evidence that they wanted to sell it; I have a brochure that proclaims that King of the Monsters is coming soon, but we all know how that worked out.

[Shrapnoid]

ROF, You are the, Dude! Can I save that scan? I HAD that catalog! I had lots of TZD flyers! I wish I could find where I put them! I'm gonna cry! It's not fair!

Oh! Yes, it's true that they had Rondo. I remember because I wanted it pretty badly but, I at the time I thought that the price was too high so, I passed it up in the hopes that it would come down but, instead it got sold out.

Same thing with Strider. Seems like that one was over 100.

Remember the whole thing they kept going on about how they would only have games like that for a short time because something to do with Japanese companies "...like to "train" gamers into paying full price for fear of not being able to get the game later..."
It was on a slip of paper that came with some of the flyers you'd get in the mail.

Come to think of it, it seems like that's around the time that I quit placing orders.
That message just pissed me off so, much. Nobody was going to train me. That was for sure.

[roflmao]

ROF, You are the, Dude! Can I save that scan? I HAD that catalog! I had lots of TZD flyers! I wish I could find where I put them! I'm gonna cry! It's not fair!

Yeah man.  Have at it.