The Official Turbografx 16 Thread!

[Project C.O.E.]

Sorry for the double post, even though it is days later, but it has just been confirmed that Aetherbyte Studios, the folks behind Insanity and Atlantean are now going to be working on Saber Rider and the Star Sheriffs game for the PC-Engine. Interested parties have about 20 more hours to pledge before the campaign ends. I've already got my Limited Edition secured for both the PC-Engine and Dreamcast.

 

More info: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/saberridergame/saber-rider-and-the-star-sheriffs-the-video-game?ref=nav_search

[Andromeda Stardust]

Sorry for the double post, even though it is days later, but it has just been confirmed that Aetherbyte Studios, the folks behind Insanity and Atlantean are now going to be working on Saber Rider and the Star Sheriffs game for the PC-Engine. Interested parties have about 20 more hours to pledge before the campaign ends. I've already got my Limited Edition secured for both the PC-Engine and Dreamcast.

 

More info: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/saberridergame/saber-rider-and-the-star-sheriffs-the-video-game?ref=nav_search

Man, I wish homebrewers would do Hucard releases... All I got is the base console.

[CatPix]

It's a Super CD-ROM release even. I guess they had to, the game seems beefy. It need the extra RAM probably.

I ordered it ^^ need to feed the PC engine =3

 

I suppose there would need for more PC engine homebrews, then for someone to get the right PCB and cards.

The worst is that PC-Engine/TG-16 homebrews would be easy to do. A slab of plastic, that could even be 3D printed, and a PCB. I guess the hardest and maybe mroe costly part would be to get SMC ROM chips that can fit into the card.

[Andromeda Stardust]

It's a Super CD-ROM release even. I guess they had to, the game seems beefy. It need the extra RAM probably.

I ordered it ^^ need to feed the PC engine =3

 

I suppose there would need for more PC engine homebrews, then for someone to get the right PCB and cards.

The worst is that PC-Engine/TG-16 homebrews would be easy to do. A slab of plastic, that could even be 3D printed, and a PCB. I guess the hardest and maybe mroe costly part would be to get SMC ROM chips that can fit into the card.

It's telling that they expect everyone to have the Rolls Royce console option when it comes to homebrews. The CDROM is stupid expensive (look it up on eBay) and highly unreliable. There is also that weird yellow gear issue. I mean, people sell Genesis homebrew and nobody expects the buyer owns a Sega CD or 32X to play it. Telling that all the early 90s CDROMs are breaking down now. People said N64 was a bad call to stick with carts but I'm glad for it now for longevity. Also I noticed Nintendo consoles never suffered from capacitor plague like every other console in the early-to-mid 90s. Prolly because they used Japanese caps instead of Taiwan. Luckily the base model Turbo 16 (like I have) is immune it seems.

Edited October 4, 2015 by stardust4ever

[robotwo]

Man, I wish homebrewers would do Hucard releases... All I got is the base console.

 

I know Aetherbyte releases stuff on their own HuCard equivilants called AbCards.

From what I understand they're pretty decent quality 3D printed ones. But you get the jewel case for them too

[Andromeda Stardust]

 

I know Aetherbyte releases stuff on their own HuCard equivilants called AbCards.

From what I understand they're pretty decent quality 3D printed ones. But you get the jewel case for them too

Thanks for the link. They have some free homebrews available that I will put on my Everdrive. Sadly their SHMUP is OOS.

Edited October 4, 2015 by stardust4ever

[CatPix]

It's telling that they expect everyone to have the Rolls Royce console option when it comes to homebrews. The CDROM is stupid expensive (look it up on eBay) and highly unreliable. There is also that weird yellow gear issue. I mean, people sell Genesis homebrew and nobody expects the buyer owns a Sega CD or 32X to play it. Telling that all the early 90s CDROMs are breaking down now. People said N64 was a bad call to stick with carts but I'm glad for it now for longevity. Also I noticed Nintendo consoles never suffered from capacitor plague like every other console in the early-to-mid 90s. Prolly because they used Japanese caps instead of Taiwan. Luckily the base model Turbo 16 (like I have) is immune it seems.

I know hos the US CD-ROM is expensive compared to the Japanese one (I bough one for a friend, for 50 $ on eBay) gears are 8$ for a brand new one, so the Japan way is much more available.

The advantage to them is that CD is all standard printing, jewel case and stuff.

Plus, more storage, and the added RAM, and included save.

But yea for American amateurs, it sucks.

[Andromeda Stardust]

Also there's this:

http://www.gamingenterprisesinc.com/Flash_HuCard/

 

But they say they will not do repros...

 

 

A Hucard is actually be very affordable to 3D print unlike the vast majority of cartridges.

[Project C.O.E.]

If you want to experience an amazing homebrew HuCard, check out Atlantean. Like mentioned above they call them AbCards for Aetherbyte Cards, which is a nice touch. I actually have a review going up for it in three week's time, which I can link here if you'd like.

 

The reason why almost all the games are on CD format is because it's easier to do. I know it may seem foolish, but it's much easier in the long run. The best route to take is to pick up a Duo R or RX from Japan. They play 90% of all releases. Remember that CD games are all region free and this unit included the latest system card and has internal storage. It also has composite output by default and reliable capacitors.

[Andromeda Stardust]

I know hos the US CD-ROM is expensive compared to the Japanese one (I bough one for a friend, for 50 $ on eBay) gears are 8$ for a brand new one, so the Japan way is much more available.

The advantage to them is that CD is all standard printing, jewel case and stuff.

Plus, more storage, and the added RAM, and included save.

But yea for American amateurs, it sucks.

I think also homebrewers assume that everyone who purchases homebrew is a hardcore collector who pays top dollar for all the expensive stuff. Actually I just really like good games. Atari homebrew are cheap and worth it. NES a bit higher for loose cartridge but tons of good stuff now that rivals commercial releases. Now we have 16-bit SNES and Genesis homebrew although much of it is simpler 8-bit style games with nicer graphics. NES, SNES, and Genesis are far more popular though for hacks and repros than actual new homebrews.

 

If you want to experience an amazing homebrew HuCard, check out Atlantean. Like mentioned above they call them AbCards for Aetherbyte Cards, which is a nice touch. I actually have a review going up for it in three week's time, which I can link here if you'd like.

 

The reason why almost all the games are on CD format is because it's easier to do. I know it may seem foolish, but it's much easier in the long run. The best route to take is to pick up a Duo R or RX from Japan. They play 90% of all releases. Remember that CD games are all region free and this unit included the latest system card and has internal storage. It also has composite output by default and reliable capacitors.

Maybe someday I'll get a CD unit. I just kind of dove in with the US console before I realized how expensive the Super CD and many of the good Hucard releases were. So i got the Everdrive and a handful of hucards but sadly no access to CDROM games.

Edited October 4, 2015 by stardust4ever

[CatPix]

If you want to experience an amazing homebrew HuCard, check out Atlantean. Like mentioned above they call them AbCards for Aetherbyte Cards, which is a nice touch. I actually have a review going up for it in three week's time, which I can link here if you'd like.

 

The reason why almost all the games are on CD format is because it's easier to do. I know it may seem foolish, but it's much easier in the long run. The best route to take is to pick up a Duo R or RX from Japan. They play 90% of all releases. Remember that CD games are all region free and this unit included the latest system card and has internal storage. It also has composite output by default and reliable capacitors.

 

Or if you're a bit tech savvy, a PC engine, interface unit and CD-ROM².

From what I see, Turbo Duo RX are a hot 400 to 500$ bill.

Turbo Duos are more 200/250$ but suffer from the same caps and gear issues than the separate Cd-ROm² units. But, it's one convenient all-in-one unit.

And there is the CD-ROM²+Interface Unit+PC engine.

A white PC engine (the interface Unit have composite out, so let's get the cheaper option here) : about 15/20$ on eBay from a Japanese seller.

Interface Unit : anything between 20 and 40$, tho with 50$ the seller better give a Cd-ROM card with it.

CD-ROM² unit : 50 to 80$, most likely in unknow state, very likely dead gear.

a Super CD-ROM² card : 15$

Total : 100$ on a lucky day, 155$ at best.

That's a large saving from the Turbo Duo who will suffer from the same issues than this combo, and way less money than a Turbo Ruo R.

 

In fact that saving even cover the money to give the Cd-ROM² unit to someone who can replace the gear and caps if you don't feel like it.

 

And no, I'm not pulling those figures from my hat. I bough myself all of those parts, once for me, and a second time for a friend, from a Japanese seller on eBay, so I got enough time to watch the prices of those, and waiting for the lesser bids. It can get this cheap to get into the world of the PC Engine Super CD-ROM games.

Edited October 4, 2015 by CatPix

[Project C.O.E.]

 

Or if you're a bit tech savvy, a PC engine, interface unit and CD-ROM².

From what I see, Turbo Duo RX are a hot 400 to 500$ bill.

Turbo Duos are more 200/250$ but suffer from the same caps and gear issues than the separate Cd-ROm² units. But, it's one convenient all-in-one unit.

And there is the CD-ROM²+Interface Unit+PC engine.

A white PC engine (the interface Unit have composite out, so let's get the cheaper option here) : about 15/20$ on eBay from a Japanese seller.

Interface Unit : anything between 20 and 40$, tho with 50$ the seller better give a Cd-ROM card with it.

CD-ROM² unit : 50 to 80$, most likely in unknow state, very likely dead gear.

a Super CD-ROM² card : 15$

Total : 100$ on a lucky day, 155$ at best.

That's a large saving from the Turbo Duo who will suffer from the same issues than this combo, and way less money than a Turbo Ruo R.

 

In fact that saving even cover the money to give the Cd-ROM² unit to someone who can replace the gear and caps if you don't feel like it.

 

And no, I'm not pulling those figures from my hat. I bough myself all of those parts, once for me, and a second time for a friend, from a Japanese seller on eBay, so I got enough time to watch the prices of those, and waiting for the lesser bids. It can get this cheap to get into the world of the PC Engine Super CD-ROM games.

Good suggestion. I got very lucky and got the RX donated to the channel so I didn't have to spend a dime on it. It was hands down the best donation we have ever recieved.

 

I just want to mention it again for everyone, seriously go check out Atlantean as it is an incredible HuCard homebrew game that is relatively cheap, and offers hours of arcade Defender-style shooter fun.

[Andromeda Stardust]

Good suggestion. I got very lucky and got the RX donated to the channel so I didn't have to spend a dime on it. It was hands down the best donation we have ever recieved.

 

I just want to mention it again for everyone, seriously go check out Atlantean as it is an incredible HuCard homebrew game that is relatively cheap, and offers hours of arcade Defender-style shooter fun.

They are OOS atm. I would love to get one though. How much does Atlantean normally sell for?

[Project C.O.E.]

They are OOS atm. I would love to get one though. How much does Atlantean normally sell for?

I checked my Paypal account and I paid $75 USD, so likely it was $60 or around there since they had to ship it to Canada.

[Andromeda Stardust]

I checked my Paypal account and I paid $75 USD, so likely it was $60 or around there since they had to ship it to Canada.

Not too bad for a Hucard release. Is it for US Turbografx or Japan PCe? Or do you select the format at checkout?

[Project C.O.E.]

Not too bad for a Hucard release. Is it for US Turbografx or Japan PCe? Or do you select the format at checkout?

 

You selected the region from what I recall. I have mine for the PC-E only because I have a Duo RX, which I use for just about everything, except my North American HuCard games as I could never find a Japanese converter that would allow North American 'import' games.

[CatPix]

If I recall right, the PC-E zoning is just two lines of the card port swapped. I guess you could make a zone selector with a slider switch.

I don't know hos much this is feasible tho in regard of which lines are swapped, or how tightly the pins are soldered, etc...

[Project C.O.E.]

If I recall right, the PC-E zoning is just two lines of the card port swapped. I guess you could make a zone selector with a slider switch.

I don't know hos much this is feasible tho in regard of which lines are swapped, or how tightly the pins are soldered, etc...

 

It's all good, as I have my original TubroGrafx-16 for North American HuCards. Sadly my CD attachment went the way of the do-do years ago, but I now use my RX for everything except North American Turbo Chips. I'm a really big fan of the Turbo, and am loving the new homebrew titles. I sure hope Arkhan from Aetherbyte continues to support the platform.

[Project C.O.E.]

I wanted to ask the community a question that has come up recently, what are your thoughts on reproduction discs or compilations? I know some people love them, and some hate them. I fall somewhere in the middle myself. Most of the time the people who sell quality reproduction discs don't give credit to the people who did the translation work, or the patches, or anything else. Often they invest solely in pressing the discs and the packaging and the rest has essentially been stolen. There are those that argue that these translations and patches being done are in the public domain since the original copyright owner never comissioned the work to begin with.

 

I think the ones that bother me the most are the ones where people try and make reproductions that mimic the originals so they can sell them as such. That's just wrong, period. I have been given a few reproduction bundles from PCE Works and the quality is second to none. They do an incredible job, however they're also highly controversial thanks to the whole Sapphire-gate from a few years back.

 

So what do you all think of reproductions?

[Andromeda Stardust]

At current prices of Super CD drives? Only if they can cram it into a Hucard. Unless someone comes up with a good interface to connect an off-the-shelf CDROM drive...

[CatPix]

I don't mind repros, if they are sold for the price of CD+printing.

On the other hand;

 

"There are those that argue that these translations and patches being done are in the public domain since the original copyright owner never comissioned the work to begin with."

Honestl, if I ever heard someone claiming this, I'll send a link to his repros to whoever is in charge of the IP. Since patches and fan translations might be "free to use", but except for some rare occurences (Vectrex games by Jay Milner, all the Amsoft software from Amstrad) games are still copyrighted. And the fact that the game is modified to run an "unprotected" translation doesn't invalidate the copyright of the game.

[Project C.O.E.]

I don't mind repros, if they are sold for the price of CD+printing.

On the other hand;

 

"There are those that argue that these translations and patches being done are in the public domain since the original copyright owner never comissioned the work to begin with."

Honestl, if I ever heard someone claiming this, I'll send a link to his repros to whoever is in charge of the IP. Since patches and fan translations might be "free to use", but except for some rare occurences (Vectrex games by Jay Milner, all the Amsoft software from Amstrad) games are still copyrighted. And the fact that the game is modified to run an "unprotected" translation doesn't invalidate the copyright of the game.

Well said

[Gentlegamer]

I wanted to ask the community a question that has come up recently, what are your thoughts on reproduction discs or compilations? I know some people love them, and some hate them. I fall somewhere in the middle myself. Most of the time the people who sell quality reproduction discs don't give credit to the people who did the translation work, or the patches, or anything else. Often they invest solely in pressing the discs and the packaging and the rest has essentially been stolen. There are those that argue that these translations and patches being done are in the public domain since the original copyright owner never comissioned the work to begin with.

 

I think the ones that bother me the most are the ones where people try and make reproductions that mimic the originals so they can sell them as such. That's just wrong, period. I have been given a few reproduction bundles from PCE Works and the quality is second to none. They do an incredible job, however they're also highly controversial thanks to the whole Sapphire-gate from a few years back.

 

So what do you all think of reproductions?

 

I think Tobias is scum and anyone who buys or promotes his work is participating in scamming.

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Akumajo-Dracula-X-Rondo-of-Blood-Deluxe-Edition-PC-Engine-Castlevania-Japan-/121772174395?&_trksid=p2056016.m2516.l5255

[CatPix]

Well this is bidding. A 1/4 second of search on Internet will let you know that such a budnle was never made. It's obviously a remade item.

If people are ready to bid 710 bucks on 7$10 worth of printing paper and CD, well they are free to do so. It's not like this specific item was sold as an authentic PC-E item.

 

In fact, searching for "PCE memories" brings you to a website where you can see the price of the bundle is 99€. Still a steal, but it doesn't pretend to be a REAL item either. I'm not sure Konami and NEC and whoever own Hudson now would liek to see their logos all over it, but the website state "We strive to bring you beautiful repros" so it's not like it come without warnings.

[Andromeda Stardust]

Well this is bidding. A 1/4 second of search on Internet will let you know that such a budnle was never made. It's obviously a remade item.

If people are ready to bid 710 bucks on 7$10 worth of printing paper and CD, well they are free to do so. It's not like this specific item was sold as an authentic PC-E item.

 

In fact, searching for "PCE memories" brings you to a website where you can see the price of the bundle is 99€. Still a steal, but it doesn't pretend to be a REAL item either. I'm not sure Konami and NEC and whoever own Hudson now would liek to see their logos all over it, but the website state "We strive to bring you beautiful repros" so it's not like it come without warnings.

And the fact that people are bidding $700+ on a fake PCe repro that can be had for 100€ shows that some poor sap is being decieved. Surely they wouldn't bid unless they believed it was worth the high price?