TurboGrafx/PC Engine Collector's Guide part one (rest in comments, RES recommended)

The PC Engine was released in 1987 in Japan to great success. A couple years later it came to the US as the TurboGrafx, to great failure. It's a really nice system, but can be rather daunting if you're just starting out. This guide attempts to clarify most of what the PCE has to offer.

Some Notable Games

The PC Engine had 737 games released for it. The TurobGrafx had a measly 138.

• Gate of Thunder -- absolutely stellar shmup
• Jackie Chan Action Kung Fu -- great platformer
• Devil's Crush -- great pinball game
• Dragon's Curse -- a cute Metroid-like game, known as "Wonderboy 3 the Dragon Trap" on the Sega Master System
• Soldier Blade -- great vertical shmup
• Ys book I and II -- a primitive by today's standards RPG that despite that is addicting and quite fun
• Lords of Thunder -- another stellar shmup
• Galaga 90 -- killer update of the classic (known as Galaga '88 in Japan)
• Spriggan -- of the 110 shmups for the system, this one stands out (Japan only)
• Dracula X: Rondo of Blood -- Easily the best of the traditional Castlevanias, and a game the system is quite famous for (Japan only)

Game Formats

The PC Engine confusingly has 6 different game formats, and a huge variety of hardware released over the years to address them all. Before diving into the mess that is the hardware, it's good to understand the game formats.

Japanese HuCards

The original format. These are small, credit card sized game cartridges. They will only work on a Japanese PC Engine (see region lockouts section below for details). They offer the smallest amount of storage and overall the simplest games for the system.

American HuCards (aka TurboChips)

NEC officially called them "TurboChips" in America, but nobody ever calls them that. These are identical to the Japanese HuCards, except only work on American systems.

img: some HuCards

CD-ROM2 games

Despite the confusing "2" in the name, this was the first CD-ROM game format for the system. Offering more memory, red book audio, FMV cutscenes and generally bigger and more advanced games. I have no idea why all the CD-ROM formats have a "2" in their name.

Super CD-ROM2 games

An improved CD format that utilized more memory and a better OS for more advanced games.

Arcade CD-ROM2 games

An even more improved CD format with even more memory. Arcade CD-ROM2 games for the most part are ports of Neo Geo games.

SuperGrafx HuCards

HuCards that only work on a SuperGrafx. See the SuperGrafx section for more details

Systems and System Cards

How does a Super CD-ROM2 game have more memory? It's just a CD! Through the use of system cards. These are HuCards that contain RAM and a system (think OS for a computer). In order to play a certain type of CD-ROM game, you have to have the correct system card to go with it. System cards are backwards compatible.

img: some CD games and system cards

• Game type: CD-ROM2
  • Min sys card: System Card 1.0
• Game type: Super CD-ROM2
  • Min sys card: Super System Card 3.0
• Game type: Arcade CD-ROM2
  • Min sys card: Arcade Card (either Duo or Pro)

Why the jump from 1.0 to 3.0? There is a 2.0 card (and a 2.1 card). The only real difference is 2.0 adds support for CD+G discs. 1.0 and 2.0 cards allow playing the same games.

Another confusing thing is some systems have System 3.0 built into them, meaning you don't need a physical card for them at all. Generally speaking you just want to get 3.0 capabilities (either via a card or built in) as it is backwards compatible with 2.0 and 1.0. If you are interested in the Arcade CD-ROM2 games, then you just need an Arcade card (it is backwards compatible with 3.0)