So you managed to forget retro consoles were a thing? Allow Konami to remind you with the release of the TurboGrafx-16 Mini, which is now available to pre-order.
Yes, retro consoles are still coming out. I thought the tepid release of the Commodore 64 Mini and the apparent abandonment of the trend by Nintendo would have put an end to the flow of retro consoles. But apparently we’re going to drag every single gaming device from the 80s and 90s into the 21st century, kicking and screaming.
Go go go! TurboGrafx-16 and PC Engine Mini is live on @amazon
ORDER HERE: https://t.co/ugS71AKJRT
Some of 50 retro games containing select titles overlap in both the TurboGrafx-16 and PC Engine lineup.
Details here: https://t.co/crbI7R9BpX#AmazonPrimeDay #PrimeDay #Retro pic.twitter.com/HEOSoMOZ9e— Konami (@Konami) July 15, 2019
If you don’t remember the TurboGrafx-16, don’t worry — the console wasn’t exactly a hit in America. But it was quite a hit overseas, where it was called the PC Engine. It was released in Japan first in 1987, and everywhere else in 1989 or thereabouts. So it’s definitely one of the older consoles to be brought back — that’s not a bad thing, but it doesn’t shrink the pool of potentially nostalgic customers, and without the name recognition of Nintendo, it’ll have to sell itself to youngsters of my generation or after on its game selection.
The 💜 of EU tech
The latest rumblings from the EU tech scene, a story from our wise ol' founder Boris, and some questionable AI art. It's free, every week, in your inbox. Sign up now!
To Konami’s credit, the Mini model does come with around 50 games, with around half of those being Japanese PC Engine games (the list says 50, but there’s a bit of overlap between the two). The highlights include Space Harrier, Bomberman ’93, Snatcher, Neutopia I & II (which will be available in Japanese and English), and Gradius. You can view more of the titles in the promo video:
That’s a pretty large number of games. With that number however, does come an inflated price tag — the pre-order price is $99 on the Amazon page. I have a feeling we’ll see a come-down in that price. To give a point of comparison, that’s the original price of the PlayStation Classic, which was roundly mocked for being overpriced compared with the NES and SNES Classics and which dropped to $20 on Amazon’s Prime Day.
Konami’s selling three versions of the console: one based on the TurboGrafx-16 model, which will be available in North America, one based on the PC Engine for Japan, and one called the PC Engine CoreGrafx Mini, which is based on an upgraded version of the PC Engine and will be available in some European countries.
Pre-orders were originally opened yesterday as part of the Amazon Prime Day event. They’re currently open on Amazon here. The console will officially released on March 19, 2020.
Get the TNW newsletter
Get the most important tech news in your inbox each week.