How did you find out about the Turbo Grafx 16 PC Engine.

[Randell]

Hello I'm new here. How did you find out about the machine and what made you fall in love with it.  :

[Tatsujin]

here I found out

imageshack.com/a/img541/2690/lz3s.jpg

[Psycho Punch]

To be honest I don't remember... but what matters is that my 1st game was (probably) R-Type and I was amazed by the quality of the port, cementing my love with the PCE for years to come.

[yoyo]

A little funny actually. I grew up with an NES game that's been in my library for a long, long time, Dragon Spirit: The New Legend. I didn't know anything about it, just that I had it on NES, it was a shmup (the first I'd ever played at that), and it was good with great music. When I was around 10 or 11, I did a little research on the game and found it'd been in the arcade and on a console that I'd never heard of, the TG16. I looked at screenshots and I was like "Holy shiiiit I've gotta play this" and I did and I don't regret it. After that I discovered more and more titles in the library that I fell in love with, and still do today

[CrackTiger]

Hello I'm new here. How did you find out about the machine and what made you fall in love with it.  :

Welcome aboard!

That's a very good question Randell.


I can't get into all of it again, so short version:

Game mags.
Trade show with Keith Courage.
Dungeon Explorer + Neutopia.

[technozombie]

I read a ton of gaming mags in the grocery store while my mom shopped. I was probably the only kid who liked going grocery shopping. Somewhere at the end of TG16's retail life I found one at a yard sale that I thoroughly enjoyed but only had a couple of games. Now I'm trying to relive the early 90's like a boss lol.

[esteban]

Autumn of 1989: TG-16 commercials aired during after-school cartoons (GI Joe, Transformers) on WPIX (NYC)...I videotaped the commercial so I could pause/examine each game closely. I wasn't following the magazines closely, so the whole 16-bit generation seemed to jump out of nowhere when my friends and I started the school year.

The footage for Blazing Lazers in the commercial made me pick TG-16 over Genesis.

 

I could have easily picked Genesis, but I don't think I would known anything about TG-16 or it's games until late 90's. Really.

[Xak]

When i was  a kid in 93 i saw the awesome "street  fighter 1" Fighting Street in a videogame magazine that showed the many faces and facts of SF2. i was like turbografx!? then it was my mission to find one. i was like 9 years old

[jelloslug]

It was either in VG & CE or EGM in early '89.  Both of them ran cover stories for the upcoming new systems and I was infatuated with the TG-16 right from the start.

[GohanX]

I can't remember which came first, tv commercials or info un game mags, but it was one of the two. I used to also check out the box for the TG16 and look at Game boxes at my local rental place. I didn't actually get a system until 2000 or so though.

[deubeul]

Felt in love seeing pictures of Shinobi, R-type, Gunhed and so on, in old french magazines back in 1989.

Got my first Gt back in 93, my first duo in 95, and the PcE became a real passion.

Sold or lost nearly everything few years later, played  my favourite games on emulators once in a while during the following years.

Back on real hardware and real games since 1 year and a half, one-lifed GOT in devil, played YS4 in full english ( thank you guys, you rule!), Hudson is my god.

[Xak]

i just wanted Bonk Volleyball

[Nazi NecroPhile]

I don't remember which was first - either mags or playing Keith at Service Merchandise.

[majors]

It was either in VG & CE or EGM in early '89.  Both of them ran cover stories for the upcoming new systems and I was infatuated with the TG-16 right from the start.

Ditto, I picked up the VG&CE with the cover shot of the turbob on the Lotus while attending a summer camp for computers at ASU. Legendary Axe gfx sold me and I waited till '90 to score a sweet price on a package deal from a local seller. Bought a CD-ROM in '91 and never looked back.

[hoobs88]

Saw one at Toys R Us...it was love at first sight.

[Sparky]

Welcome Randel, for me it was the TV commercial back in the day (i do not remember which one ) I had a sega master system at the time and my buddy got the genny... i wanted the tg16 as it looked way better then anything else i saw, never did get it back in the day, If it was not in the Sears Wishbook you were out of luck with my parents

<<off to look for the tv commercial>>

[jlued686]

I'm pretty sure it was in a video game magazine like EGM or VG&CE, shortly after the TG16 launched. It looked awesome.

[xcrement5x]

Much later in life I was researching Working Designs stuff and I realized they did games on the system.  Since I'm a big WD collector and was working on a full set of their games I dug around until I located the games, and I didn't even have a system to play them on! 

I figured that was kind of silly so I came on here to find out more about the best hardware to get (I got a RX) and eventually finding out about tons of really awesome PCE games I'd never heard of!  Plus, this place is full of assholes I can't get enough of now.   

[glazball]

Mine is a similar tale: video game mags.  I do clearly remember the first time I saw it in action though, in a display at McDuff Electronics at the mall.  I was blown away by Keith Courage, which still makes me smile when I see it.  We couldn't afford the Turbo, but my cousin would rent one from a local video store all the time, usually with Blazing Lazers and Splatterhouse.  Damn those were great times.

[munchiaz]

Much later in life I was researching Working Designs stuff and I realized they did games on the system.  Since I'm a big WD collector and was working on a full set of their games I dug around until I located the games, and I didn't even have a system to play them on! 

I figured that was kind of silly so I came on here to find out more about the best hardware to get (I got a RX) and eventually finding out about tons of really awesome PCE games I'd never heard of!  Plus, this place is full of assholes I can't get enough of now.   

Pretty similar to my story. I wanted to have/play all the working designs games. So did some research and found there was a good amount on the turbo grafx. Also i played gate of thunder on my Wii's virtual console, and that sealed the deal for me. I picked up a turbo grafx at a local game store, and got cadash. I joined this site, and discovered so much more. Bought a duo-R from Keith, and never looked back.

[Sparky]

i m pretty sure this was the commercial that hooked me... it makes me tingle so it has to be it.

NEC TurboGrafx 16 TV Commercial

[YANDMAN]

In  batman comic book in 1990.........Ahh that beautiful advert

[RoyVegas]

TV commercial is how it first got my attention.  Then seeing a Turbo playing live, Keith Courage of all things, in an electronics store got me hooked.

And welcome aboard!

[reno5]

Tv Commercial and Radio Shack flyers.

[SmaMan]

I seem to remember one of my cousins having one and I played it with them years ago on a big screen TV. I can't remember what game it was, and I was barely cognizant of different systems at that point. (I think I was just a bit past 5.)

Anyway, fast forward around the early 2000s when the internet and my passion for gaming was really taking off. I remember it being referenced in some online articles I was reading. It began to fascinate me.

Then, when the Wii came out I decided to try out Bomberman '93 on the Virtual Console. I was not disappointed. 5-player battle mode is as fun as it sounds!

Then, around 2009 or so, once I finally got fed up with the Virtual Console for not putting out the games I wanted, I started getting into retro gaming. I started with a Retro Duo (NES/SNES famiclone), picked up a cheap refurbished PS2 to play PS1 games on, then a Genesis, then I ditched the Retro Duo and got a real SNES and NES, then a Sega Saturn, and a Dreamcast.

Then just about this time last year, I was snooping around looking at prices for TG16 stuff, but wound up finding a PC Engine that was much cheaper... and boom goes the dynamite.

Guess I told you a bit further in than just my first encounter, but hey, I'm a writer. It happens. 

[PukeSter]

Got a PC game containing Bomberman 90 and 93. Years later, re-discovered them and more amazing Turbo games on the Wii Virtual Console.

Also the first system I played Street Fighter II on, oddly enough. Still my preferred version.

[pulstar]

I remember reading an article in C&VG here in the UK with a picture of the white PC Engine and a montage of screen shots from R-Type, Bonk and a few others. I remember seeing the white machine and thinking it looked much nicer than my brother's Megadrive.

[MotherGunner]

Turbo Zone (Retail Island Mall Store) at Serramonte Shopping Center, Daly City, CA.

Circa 1990-1991.

[ToyMachine78]

The Sears Wishbook.  I was so torn between the TG16 and the Genesis. I wanted to be different so I went with the turbo.

[Psycho Punch]

Turbo Zone (Retail Island Mall Store) at Serramonte Shopping Center, Daly City, CA.

Circa 1990-1991. 

I wish there was visual record (pictures, tapes) of this legendary Turbo Zone physical store. (not that I'm doubting anything btw, but it would be cool to see how they operated in the mall, their marketing of the turbo products, etc.)

[esteban]

Turbo Zone (Retail Island Mall Store) at Serramonte Shopping Center, Daly City, CA.

Circa 1990-1991. 

I wish there was visual record (pictures, tapes) of this legendary Turbo Zone physical store. (not that I'm doubting anything btw, but it would be cool to see how they operated in the mall, their marketing of the turbo products, etc.)

Agreed! I didn't even know of its existence until recently.

[MotherGunner]

Turbo Zone (Retail Island Mall Store) at Serramonte Shopping Center, Daly City, CA.

Circa 1990-1991. 

I wish there was visual record (pictures, tapes) of this legendary Turbo Zone physical store. (not that I'm doubting anything btw, but it would be cool to see how they operated in the mall, their marketing of the turbo products, etc.)

Agreed! I didn't even know of its existence until recently.

Yeah, I am terribly sorry I didn't bring it up before as I thought this was common knowledge, but it was at Turbo Zone that I purchased my systems.  (TG-16 and Turbo Express along with a copy of Chase H.Q.).  When the physical stores folded, they sent all of the inventory to what became known as Turbo Zone "Direct" or the old www.tzd.com.   I have contacted Serramonte Shopping Center in hopes that they have records of the store (hopefully including pictures).  Any information that I find, I will share.  =)

[Keith Courage]

The first I heard about it was on some nickelodeon TV show. They were giving one away to whichever team was first place on some game show. After that I remember seeing Vigilante and Keith Courage on display at Montgomery Wards Electric avenue.

I wasn't entirely sold on the system until my dad and I saw a Turbografx+CD attachment for sale for a good price at our local pawn shop. I think it was $315 for the system, CD attachment, CD carrying case, Fighting street, Ys1 &2, Monster Lair, and Keith Courage.

From then on I was a TG fan boy and never second guessed my decision. I want to say a year later all the local rental stores in my area were selling off all of the TG16 games for only $5 a piece. My dad went and picked up a copy of every game for me and then gave me one every time I got an A on a test in school.

[GohanX]

That's really awesome Keith!

[Psycho Punch]

Yeah I can imagine anyone having Ys I+II on their 1st day with the turbo to become a fanboy. Awesome story.

[Tatsujin]

So did anyone of you already knew about the PCE before the TG was even advertised?

[roflmao]

So did anyone of you already knew about the PCE before the TG was even advertised?

Nope.

I remember seeing ads for the TG-16 in comic books, on TV, and in game magazines, but it wasn't until a friend of mine brought his TG-16 over and showed me R-Type that I knew I had to get one.  I had SMS R-Type (which I still love) but that 1st level music...  I'd never heard anything like it. And the bigger, more detailed sprites.  It was love at first sight.

[CrackTiger]

So did anyone of you already knew about the PCE before the TG was even advertised?

Console game magazines in North America started up pretty much at the time that 16-bit systems were announced. So we heard about the PCE at the same time. I believe that there were some PCE import reviews in at least GamePro before any officially for TG-16. Games which stayed imports too (Shinobi, Kyoukyu Tiger?).

[awack]

I lived in Durham NC during the 16bit era, I'm pretty sure it was a commercial that brought the turbo grafx 16 to my attention, i of course bought it that Christmas, i should point out that i had already knew about and bought the sega genesis a whole year prior, i remember seeing commercials all the time for the Genesis, but nothing for the turbo, that system really had no chance of succeeding in the US,  it was doomed from the beginning.

[esteban]

So did anyone of you already knew about the PCE before the TG was even advertised?

I didn't, since I wasn't following the magazines and the entire 16-bit era just jumped out of nowhere (for me). My friends had been mentioning some stuff, but I had no reference points (I.e. I hadn't seen pictures of consoles, or screenshots from games). 

Plus, I was happy as hell playing NES. 

[majors]

I lived in Durham NC during the 16bit era

So Mark at Buy-rite was your dealer? So much wrong there, but so many good stories too!

So did anyone of you already knew about the PCE before the TG was even advertised?

I think my first knowledge of PCE was from the March 1990 Gamefan with the Shuttle/SGX/Core spread.

[jelloslug]

So did anyone of you already knew about the PCE before the TG was even advertised?

There were some rumblings about it in the gaming magazines in very early '89. At least in the US though there were not really any gaming magazines before very late '88 so getting info was hard to do.

[jelloslug]

So did anyone of you already knew about the PCE before the TG was even advertised?

Nope.

I remember seeing ads for the TG-16 in comic books, on TV, and in game magazines, but it wasn't until a friend of mine brought his TG-16 over and showed me R-Type that I knew I had to get one.  I had SMS R-Type (which I still love) but that 1st level music...  I'd never heard anything like it. And the bigger, more detailed sprites.  It was love at first sight.

The first time I actually played a TG-16 was in the speaker demo room in the electronics department of Brendle's (a regional department store).  They were a big NEC electronics seller and they had a TG-16 with R-Type in it set up on an NEC bigscreen TV. 

[SmaMan]

That reminds me there's actually an NEC distributor store not far from my house. They probably don't, but wouldn't it be awesome if they had some back room that you had to ask for by name where all the PCE stuff was? 

[Nazi NecroPhile]

That reminds me there's actually an NEC distributor store not far from my house. They probably don't, but wouldn't it be awesome if they had some back room that you had to ask for by name where all the PCE stuff was? 

OBEY pr0n behind the beaded curtain.

[Randell]

I seen a magazine article. I think I still have it. I remember the TV commercials. Game magazine's. I also think I saw a news broadcast on CNN or another network. Nickelodeon talked about it all the time. I was addicted to games in the day. My family rented one for the game Battle Royal. I was big fan of wrestling. I still am to a point. Loved wrestling games. Tecmo World Wrestling, WWF Wrestling Challenge, and all the wrestling arcade games are still my favorite. Love wrestling belts. Zinc and gold plated. I always looked at the magazine add 100 and 1 reasons to own a Turbo Graftx 16.

I went to Toys R US and saw Battle Royal. I was in love with the machine. I asked a school teacher about it. he also loved video games. He said his family member worked at a store and told him it was not as good as a NES. I played it at Radio Shack. I played Keith Alpha Courage. I then saw magazines selling left over games and imports. I saw the Turbo Express at a flee market with the box and games. My school teacher that loved games had a assistant school teacher that sold used and new games, comic books and toys sold it. My friend stole a Turbo Duo and I touched it. KB Toys sold the Turbo Duo for a cheep price when they quit selling the machines. They blew them out. liquadtion price. I still have comic books that have the game adds about the machine. I just had to hold a Chip Card, Hue Card, Sega Chip Card, and Turbo Chip Card. Sega's Chip Cards are all most the same. Made by the same company. I have yet to touch a Sega version.     

Years later I still thought about the games. I got a computer. I found this site in 1998. I studied about the machine. I downloaded the game Battle Royal. I could not believe  I could download games for free. Arcade games Sega Genesis etcc.... It had no sound. The emulator did not produce sound. I tried to sign up here. But could not due to the Verification  catch program. This club was hard to get in. I read the forums a lot.  jorpho at ClassicGaming.Com helped me with emulation back in the day. Fast  forward a few years I found Ebay when it was new. I saw the prices of the CD machine, PC Engine, PC Engine Lab Top, games, controlers, Etcc..... The brand new Turbo Grafix sold through Telegames. Fast forward a few years a lady I worked with told me she had the Turbo Grafix and the CD unit in the carrying case. She told me about buying it at a yard sell. she said they tried to beat Boink. Had not played it in years. The case has on snap broke. 

I talked her into selling it to me for 20 bucks. I then cleaned it up. It was dirty but in perfect condition. It was real dirty. Still looks dirty. It the plastic it is made of. I thanked God for it. I'm a Christan. I still could not believe I had one plus the Hue Cards. The games I got was Boink, Vigilant, Keith Courage In Alpha Zones, Silent Debuggers, Real Sports Football, Ball, Tricky Kick, Cosmic Fantasy 2, Exile, Fighting Street, Final Zone 2, and Vesteel. 

I then a year later Bought off Ebay Battle Royal, Blazing Lasers, Boinks Adventure, Bravoman, Devils Crush, Double Dungeons, Impossmole, Keith Courage In alpha Zones, The Legendary Axe, The Legendary Axe 2, Neutopia, Ninja Spirit, Pac Land, Psychosis, Raiden, R-Type, Bomber Man, Alien Crush, Aero Blaster, Taking it to the Hoop, and Veigues Tactical Gladiator that game dose not work.

The guy on Ebay was a great seller. I bought a few repeats because it was a bulk lot. Paid almost 200 for it all. 10 dollars a piece. It is my favorite machine of all time. I just had to have Battle Royal. dreamed of the game forever. It is a real fun overlooked over hyped game. Boink is real great. The CD games rock.         

[RyuHayabusa]

Commercials and old issues of EGM and Gamepro. First time I played it was a demo unit in Toys R Us.

[Otaking]

My response from a similar topic  https://www.pcengine-fx.com/forums/index.php?topic=8067
 

Can't remember the exact very first game, my friend at schools older brother had bought an imported pc engine (around 1988 ish), I went round to his house to play it and played a selection of games, Kato and Ken sticks out in my memory as the toilet humour was novel for the time and R-Type was was incredible!
Anways I was blown away by the little white machine and it got me heavily into video gaming, up untill that point my experience of gaming other than the Arcades was 8 bit home computers like the Sinclair Spectrum and Commodore 64 and they were a load of Bollocks.

[RoyVegas]

Boink is real great.           

I was amused at all of the games you spelled wrong, which is fine as I'm no English teacher but the fact you kept calling Bonk (Boink) had me ROFLing.

[Mzo]

My friend's cousin had one.  This is well past the Genesis and the SNES were out, so I wasn't too impressed and wrote it off for years.

Eventually my love for the Wonder Boy and Adventure Island games brought me back for a second look.  It's easily one of my favorite consoles now.