PCEngineFans.com - The PC Engine and TurboGrafx-16 Community Forum
NEC TG-16/TE/TurboDuo => TG-16/TE/TurboDuo Discussion => Topic started by: kid_rondeau on April 19, 2007, 05:13:18 AM
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Let's take this time to share how we got into the TurboGrafx 16, Turbo Duo, or PC Engine.
Me, well I was your average video-game-obsessed youth in the early nineties. I had NES, and SNES. I even had an Atari 7800 that I played when I was feeling retro.
But something was lacking...I read EGM religiously every month, and I always spent the most time reading TurboGrafx reviews ("Wow...Ys Book I & II looks AWESOME!") and I wanted to be a part of the action.
I was able to piece together how the hardware worked and I thought I'd have the best luck getting my dad to buy me just the TG16, and ask for the CD add-on next Christmas.
The next time we went to Toys R Us, I saw they had a few Turbos left on clearance for $50 each. I asked for one as a birthday present, but my dad didn't want to buy it so he made me pay for half of it.
That night I spent about 8 hours playing Keith Courage!
I missed my chance to buy a TG-CD from Toys R Us, but I was able to get the LAST ONE IN STOCK from some company called "SmartWorks Corp." The price? $50! I got it on Christmas Day, 1994.
Finally, after getting my first real part-time job in July 1995, I called Game Dude to see if they had any Super System Cards in stock. As my luck would have it, they had just gotten one in that same day, and it wasn’t even put on the sales floor yet. I told them I wanted it, and it cost me $47.
Since then, my library has grown significantly. Sometimes slowly, sometimes rapidly. But my love of all things Turbo remains constant, and I’ve always felt there was something very unique and special about it...as though people of a certain personality tend to gravitate towards the Turbo.
What about you?
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Got my TG-16 in '89 after reading some articles in VG&CE and EGM. The mags were raving over it, and the games looked amazing in screenshots--especially Legendary Axe, but also Keith Courage, Victory Run, Deep Blue, Fantasy Zone, R-Type, and even Vigilante.
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Well, way back in the day, I had a SNES. Christmas after it came out, even. However, I had come to belive (rightly) that Nintendo Power was biased and otherwise full of it. So I started reading other gaming mags.
That's when I discovered the turbo. Everything about it impressed me. of course, I had an allowance, but rather than save for a new system, It made more sense to buy games for the one I had. Also, The only place around that carried Turbo stuff was TRU. Nowhere that I knew of rented the stuff.
And then there was the express incident; I've said this before, but my parents accidentally got the wrong AC adapter (they bought an Express AC adapter, but a Game Gear system) and I opened the AC adapter first.
Years passed, and the end of the 16 bit generation loomed. The Jaguar was out and being hyped to death, but the Recently released Duo was what I was interested in. I actually put in applications at a few places, to get a job for which to pay for the lovely duo, but never got a response.
Years passed, and FF7 was the latest thing; my brother got a playstation. I was so disillusioned with it, I basically stopped being a console gamer for that gen. (yay internet.) The duo drifted off into the back of my mind.
At some point, i started surfing 'classic' gaming sites, and remembered the turbo. then I discovered ebay (actually, Yahoo! auctions, but I digress) and got a tg16 base unit for cheap. Squee!
I've been obsessed with it ever since. I belive it is my 'best' console collection, as far as ebay value, so far; I have more NES games, but unlike the turbo, most of those are loose carts.
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As for me, I think I plunked down for a Turbo+CD when it went on clearance, when TCD was reduced to $99 or something like that. And I got the Turbo second hand somewhere.
Then after some time, I sold those off, and got me a used Duo -- from Gamedude, coincidentally. I don't remember what I paid, but it couldn't haven been much, considering I'm a cheap ass.
Ah... Game dude. I'd take a drive there once in awhile back early to mid 90's just to check stuff out. That place is HUGE. Though when I first went there in 92 or so, it was a small shop next to their current location, but they took over that whole side of that building a few years later. I haven't been in So Cal for years, so I don't know what it's like anymore, but I bought whole bunch of "x" condition games from that place for around $3 each when they used to sell those. In fact, I still have a "x condition sticker" on back of my Gate of Thunder 4-1 CD with a price tag of $2.50. Pretty good deal if you ask me. Of the dozens of those I bought, I think only a single one had music that skipped - I think it was a Saturn game. Don't remember which one...
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I sold my trusty ol' Gameboy and library of games to pick up a Duo shortly after its release and have never looked back. I can still be found on weekends out stabbing hobos for their aluminum cans to help pay for my Turbo addiction.
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I had a tg16 in the early 90s. I had keith courage, dragon spirit. I received a CD game as a present (which I dont remember), but couldnt play it since I had no cd addon :( I used to always trade in my games in those days, mostly due to lack of cash to buy new ones. I never really got into the Turbografx, and ended up trading everything in.
About 2 years ago or so, I discovered the PC Engine, and picked up a Duo-R. Ive been buying games since. Its really a nice system. But I guess we all know that :)
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I only actually bought a PC Engine last year; but it had been on my mind since about '93, it appeared in a few UK games magazines, particularly Edge. I knew if I bought one it would start to cost me as there were so many good games so I held off for as long as I could.
In the last couple of years my interest in order systems and games really has taken over from things like the 360 etc. Once I had my Jap Saturn, Asian Mega Drive, arcade cabinets, Jaguar, Nuon, SNES etc. I ran out of excuses not to own one.
Best (and expensive) decision I ever made.
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I received the TurboGrafx-16 as well as the CD-ROM system as a high school graduation present in 1991. It came with Bonk and Keith.
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In 1989 I was in grade school. Up until that point I was an NES fanboy, if there was such a thing in 1986-1989.
When the 16-bit generation hit around that time, all I could do was read gaming magazines and dream. Of course, at that age, all I really wanted was killer graphics. Screenshots of the Genesis didn't get me going, so I asked for a TG for Christmas. Best Christmas ever! To this day, no joke.
I got a basic TG system with Keith Courage and my parents also bought me Space Harrier so I'd have something else to play. (Best game ever made, BTW.) I was literally floored by the graphics in Space Harrier. I'd never seen such graphics outside the arcade.
The rest is history. My interest in the console has ebbed and flowed since then. I was a little late on the CD scene-- I got my first CD-ROM attachment in 1997 while working in a job I got just for that specific purpose. I also bought a TurboExpress. Then I quit. Up until that point I had been collecting "chip" games.
In 1996/1997 I joined the Turbo List and wasted a lot of time on that. Met some cool friends there, some I still correspond with to this day.
I skipped the "generation" of consoles that followed the 16-bit era, the 32/64/whatever-bit generation. I thought (and still do, even more so) the PlayStation's jagged, jerky polygons were a step backwards in game aesthetics and I never got into the Saturn or PC-FX (until more recently) since I didn't know anyone that had either and I wasn't willing to risk the money.
Around 2000 Eagan Rackley (another Turbo List member) and I started working on a Keith Courage port for the PC. It was abandoned before completion.
Around 2001/2002 I had no job and no money. I sold a good portion of my collection including the CD-ROM addon and the TurboExpress (still regret that). I kept a few things, including the original TG deck I got as a Christmas gift so many years before.
In 2003 things were looking up for me personally-- new job, new girlfriend (still happily together today) and I suddenly had extra cash around a lot. I got into this generation of consoles a little bit- PS2, GameCube, etc since the horrible polygons of the 90's had been cleaned up and smoothed out quite a bit since I had last checked in 1996. I also bought another CD-ROM attachment for my TG and started collecting TG games again.
Since '03 I've picked up a PCE GT to replace the TurboExpress I stupidly sold, a PC-FX, SuperGrafx, etc and I'm still into these consoles full-swing. I'm still collecting, though lately I've been a PC-FX glutton.
I have a few titles left to complete my US collection, including (unfortunately) the holy grails.
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Throughout the 90's I never owned a Grafx/Duo personally but had access to it at a friend's house...until 2000, when I got my own TG16 for 5 games as a trade for Dragon Ball Z Ultimate battle 22.
I 2004 I got a black PC Engine Duo, but it crapped out on me in a matter of months (in fact it died a day before my Dracula X copy arrived in the mail)
I was on Turbo hiatus for 5 or 6 months until I got a modded XBox and sold it 3 months later. Put the money along with my old TG16 deck which led me to where I'm at now, a region modded Duo-R from D-Lite.
Then after the first play session on my Duo-R, I found you guys :D
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Holy shit, Batman! GundarN is the only person that I've heard of that not only owns a Nuon but will actually admit to it (not that there's anything wrong with that). Is there much of anything for Nuon to get excited about - other than the novelty?
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I bought one on clearance at a JC Penney outlet store with about 6 games (dirt cheap.) Instantly fell in love. Kept that until TTi sent me a Duo for Christmas. The rest is history.
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I tell everyone my first crush was Sarah Jessica Parker in LA Story, but it's all LIES. It was Laura from Cosmic Fantasy 2.
It was 1990. Van Halen was still cool, there was only one version of the original Star Wars trilogy, and baseball card trading was in it's zenith. I opened up a pack of Upper Deck baseball cards like any cool 13 year old does and pulled out an autographed Harmon Killebrew heros of baseball card. The neighbor kid (whom nobody liked) tells me that card will fetch about 2 bills at the local card store. So I convinced my skeptical father to drive me to the card store (can't remember the name) and he ranted that the guys in that "jip joint" would only give me 5 bucks for the card.
Three firsts happened that day. The first first: my dad was wrong. The incarnate of the comic book guy gave me exactly $200 without batting an eye. The second first: I met my first 40 year old man who had no idea what it was like to (legally) touch a woman in a romantic way. The third first: I bought a Turbo Grafx-16 at Toys R Us. This third first would be my placebo to a cocaine addiction.
It started quickly. I heard they had better coke on CD's. So after a summer of mowing lawns and a year baby sitting for two raging alcoholics, I saved up the $300 to buy a Turbo Grafx-CD. Picking up used Chip games as I went to quell the thirst. Much to my surprise, the CD player was $150 so I had some surplus cash to feed my habit. Now it was 1992. I heard they had better coke in Japan. So I saved money mowing lawns to buy a converter and started paying $69.99 a pop for imports games. Then I heard they had better coke on the Super Systems Card. So I saved up the $79.99 and had my dad order the SSC3.0 and the 3-n-1 on his mighty Visa (TTI didn't take Amex). I waited all summer for that card so show up. I wanted that Super System Card so bad that I cut out the life-sized photo of the SSC3.0 and taped it over my existing system card. I'd insert it into my TG-16, open up the Turbo Force Magazine, and pretend I was playing Dragon Slayer. I was 15 when I did this (oh the shame). The the super system card showed up in late August. I don't remember the next 6 months of my life that followed, but I remember having to get a job sometime in early 1993 to pay for the habit or my folks were going to kick me out. I bought a Turbo Express so I could play Street Fighter II with a diving board converter on the bus to hockey tournaments. I started playing between games. I started playing at school. Everyone laughed, but they all wanted to watch TV on my Turbo Tuner...
The job plan hugely back-fired on my well intended parents. I got a job that was right next door to my coke dealer, the Video Game exchange. I traded used golf discs to the stoners that worked the counter at VGE for Turbo games. Soon everyone was talking about the Ultra 64 and Super Duper Lucidris Street Fighter MCMXI Champion Turbo Cubed Edition and the bottom fell out of the Turbo Market in 94. My coke became cheap and easily available. The 3DO became the new drug, but I was so dependant on the Turbo, I never switched over.
1995 came along and it was off to start developing one of two career paths. The turbo stayed home while I traveled the globe. I 'found' girls soon there after, and I was able to ween myself off the Turbo. Somewhere around 1998 I heard the market fell out on Japanese coke and I dropped two grand on PCE hardware out of nowhere. BINGE CITY. You name it, I had it (except the Power Console for the Super Grafx, I would have OD'ed and died). I had a power base unit/Core II/PCE CD/Arcade Card here and a Super Grafx, Tennokoe Bank, Super CD Unit there, PCE Duo w/ Monitor over over that way, and the PCE LT w/dock/Super CD unit and Arcade Card Duo as the crown jewel. Luckily, my girlfriend at the time straight-jacked me back to the life of a horny 21 year-old and I recovered from my Turbo lapse. The turbo addiction became a closet thing. Only rearing it's ugly head when friends of my youth visited, or the drinking binge called for Bomberman '94. My world was abruptly shattered in July of 2000 when all my turbo hardware and half my game library was stolen from my campus apartment my senior year. The rest of my collection has languished in one closet or another, until late last week...
You could say the stress of planning a marriage and building a house pulled me back to the habit. But I am currently trying to re-acquire some modest hardware and fire up the old games, and maybe pick up some new ones. If all goes well, I'll be able to post some blogs while I play my games casually and relive a video gamed youth. If things go badly, I'll need a roommate and a good divorce lawyer in the southeast michigan area....
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When I first saw the TG-16 and some of the early HuCard games, I was less then impressed. I had an Amiga and Master System at the time and was happy. (I went from Radio Shack's TV Scoreboard [Pong], to Atari 2600, to Vic-20, to CoCo3, to C=64 to the Amiga and Master System.).
Some years later, If I remember correctly, I already had an SNES and the SegaCD hype machine was blaring... My friend had bought the SegaCD on release a few months prior and I was itching for a new system (especially since I was going to get a nice tax refund...) I was going to possibly make a jump to the SegaCD, but then I saw an interesting site at CompuCenter... It was a TurboDuo. I asked the salesclerk if I could try it out and he hooked everything up and put in the 4 in 1 disk. I looked at the intro, and picked Gates of Thunder from the menu (sorry, at the time I wasn't a big Bonk fan)...
My jaw hit the floor...
I wasn't expecting to be impressed but here is this game with good graphics, (pseudo) scaling, parallax scrolling... I bought the system when my tax refund came in...
My jaw hit the floor once I was actually able to play Gates with the volume ON...
From that day on I would hound the different stores to buy all of the CD games I could find (on release).
I made a few exceptions but I was a little bit of a snob and avoided most HuCard games... Eventually I saw the light and allowed HuCard games into my library. ;)
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Is there much of anything for Nuon to get excited about - other than the novelty?
It's all about Tempest 3000. I bought the system a couple of years ago to play that one game alone.
http://www.cyberlead.co.uk/old_school/tk3.htm
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i got into it after the TG16 was being price cut to stay cheaper than intendo and sega, i had always wanted one before then, but it was difficult to not go out and buy what you want when you are still a kid. of course that year it was the vote of my brother wanting a sega cd or me wanting a tg 16 , of course'n my mom took the cheap route. i bought as many 9.99 games as i could and got into used ones as well. all in all it was fun experience that no one else in town could claim as they were nintendo or sega diehards, i liked sega too, but it was an overload of jock type games, and nintendo's (still to this day) frustrating policies, despite that they made some decent 1st party games, that drove me to the love of the turbo
years later in college i had a talk once about the insane prices of somethings compared to what the same monet gets you today ( like a ps2's price now vs the NES then, etc.) of course i mentioned my turbo fandom which was met with looks of shock and/or confusion. since no one had actually ever played one and only went by word of mouth, which of course that word was 'sucks' but i disagree of course
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When I was a little kid, I begged my parents for the turbo grafx, they said no. Then when the duo came out, I begged them for that, they said no. Then go many years into the future and I'm a senior in Highskool. I saved money and bought one on ebay. Now years later from then, I'm still buying games and enjoying the system :D
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You should disown your parents.
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haha :lol:
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don't remember well. first got in contact in early '88 when i saw the first time pictures of r-type and kato chan - ken chan (fabulous game btw.), as well as the small quadratric an practical white core, in one of our main gamemags. first time i play on it in a warehouse which also sold some import systems around '89. then in the '90 my friends dad with the big wallet, buyed him a core grafx and the bomberman sessions started weekly. later i bought me US DUO with jap. hucard adaptor and RGB mod, which i still own nowadays.
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Late 80's a rental store had the (TG16+Turbo CD) that you could try out.
Afther playing, Monster Lair and Valis II i couldn't get enough of it.
The rest is history... even when i traded the console+games away in the "early 90's i ended up missing the system any ways
So back in 05 i pickup a, Duo-R and CoreGrafx+SCDR2 and starting collecting games again for it.
My only regert that it took so long... to do it given what the value is now for some games :evil:
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I used to see them in the JC Penney catalogues and wanted one pretty badly, but knew I'd never get one. So I just kept on wanting one until I was 16, I believe. I saved up money I had earned from the internship I was working at a TV station and went out and bought one. When I got it back to the place I was living, the damn thing didn't work! The unit was all scratched up and broken, they had sold me a damn display model. I brought it back in the next day and demanded a replacement (amidst badgering that I should shell out an extra $50 for a Genesis). They gave me the replacement unit and I took it back home, set it all up, and got completely hooked on Keith Courage. The second game I owned, awhile later, was Fantasy Zone. I don't remember what came next, but I picked up Neutopia, Legendary Axe II, Sidearms, Parasol Stars, Sinistron, Cadash, Vigilante, Turrican, and a bunch of others. It would be awhile later that I was able to pick up the CD unit at a good price, and immediately got into all kinds of CD games; Cosmic Fantasy 2 (I had a major crush on Annie, she was so f*cking HOT all grown up), Exile, It Came From The Desert, etc etc etc. A couple of years later, I picked up my first TurboDuo and immediately set out to build a good collection of SuperCD games...of course, I got Exile II, Camp California, Lords Of Thunder, and any other good game I could get my hands on. Also, Neutopia II and Air Zonk had become available at our local store and I just had to have them.
But alas...I lost that beautiful collection in 1996 while living in Tennessee. A few years later, I managed to snag another regular system from a friend, but it came with mostly sports games (which I detest). I ended up selling that a few years later I believe.
Skip forward to the recent past...I managed to score a region-modified briefcase+ACD setup from D-Lite...unfortunately, it arrived somewhat broken (the CDROM wouldn't power up, but the main system would so I could at least play cards). I had also picked up another copy of Legendary Axe II from someone here on this forum (this is still the only card I own, to this day). I played it once on the system I'd bought from D-Lite before I shipped the unit back to him for repairs. When I got it back, I couldn't get it to turn on...at all. Not even to play cards. To this day, it sits in its briefcase, waiting for the day when D-Lite will finally answer my dozens of messages...or I find someone else who can fix the thing and make it work.
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nod,
Sucks about your Briefcase model. Was the unit shipped in bubble wrap?
I had an issue sending electronics, only once. That was because I didn't wrap it in bubble wrap and allow enough breathing room all around the unit. Something banged into the box and hit the unit inside, damaging it.
Also nod, what happened with your TG-16 stuff in 1996?
I first acquired my Turbo Grafx when it was pretty cheap. I purchased about 5 games and the system, all new, for about $100. I was a bit later than others to jump on the Turbo Grafx.
I remember ads for the system, commercials and seeing the display at Children's Palace (Splatterhouse looked awesome), however the cost was a bit prohibitive.
I had a Nintendo at the time, neighbour had a Nintendo and an Atari 2600 (I later acquired a 2600 after playing on his system). I had enough video game stuff to keep me busy. We could excange games back and forth, no need to transport systems. It worked out pretty well with us both having Nintendo and an Atari 2600.
I remember the orange console box, as when I would purchase a Nintendo game at Toys 'R Us and take my claim slip up to the booth where the video games were kept, I could see the system box through the plexi glass. The orange box was easy to recognize.
Later I met someone who had a Turbo Grafx 16, we had some fun with Bloody Wolf. Though, he didn't like to play the system often. He preferred his Genesis and new Sega Cd attachment. After playing Bloody Wolf, I knew I would EVENTUALLY get this system.
While at a department store, I saw TG-16 stock being cleared out. I wasn't too interested at first, 'til I asked the price, hahaha. I forget the exact cost for the system, it was somewhere between $25-50, the games I purchased were all between $5-10 a piece. I ended up with a system, and about 5 games. The first games I purchased were Timeball, Final Lap Twin, Chew Man Fu, Raiden (I think...), and probably one other game.
Upon hooking up the system, I wasn't terribly impressed with my selection of games, though I did feel they were all decent (Though Timeball didn't have too much replay) however I remembered Bloody Wolf and Bonk, I knew there had to be more stuff out there!
From there I went to out of business sales, Stores clearing out TG-16 stock, Yard sales, Mail Order (Found TZD this way), Video Rental Stores, etc.
Another memory I have is some of the crap games I'd buy from TZD sometimes the folks there would say, "Are you sure you want to buy that? Are you sure? You could buy Bomberman '93, we have ____ special going on", etc. I purchased Deep Blue and Fighting Street with those warnings, hahaha. I wish instead of spending money on games like that (Deep Blue was alright) I had purchased something else that now costs more $$$.
I got into the TG-16 a bit late in it's life. I scrambled a bit to find new stuff. I got a pretty awesome find at a video store. All in all, it's a fun hobby. Some folks who visit still remember the system.
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I think I posted my story on the board before, but I guess I could elaborate a little more. :)
I got my NES for Xmas in '86. Of course I was hooked on that for a little while. In mid '87 I moved to Japan and I pretty much NES deprived for a couple years. Anyway, I soon learned of the Famicom/NES connection and begged my parents for a Famicom (they were about $60 at the time for the basic unit). They said no since I just got the NES... ignoring the fact that it was basically impossible to get NES games at the time.
Later on I asked again for a Famicom and we were all set to buy it... the money was in hand and everything. But the Japanese sales person convinced my Dad NOT to buy it! WTF! The guy basically lied about it not working on US TVs and 120V vs 100V, etc ,etc. I was so pissed. The bastard was persistent about not wanting us to buy it! From that point on, asking for a Famicom was an automatic "no" from my parents just because of that one guy.
Maybe a couple months after that incident, I found out about the PC Engine and basically the rest is history. I was there for its launch, but it wasn't anything special. A few stores close to me had demo units so I mostly played those. Honestly, I wasn't impressed at first with the games (was still trying to be a Nintendo fanboy. :P), but I loved the compact design. It wasn't until R-Type came out that I really wanted to get one. Eventually I got one for Xmas... but even then, I had to convince my parents it would work on US TVs and all that nonsense. By the time I was able to work part-time or whatever, I just spent my money on PCE stuff. NES/Famicom died for me in '89/'90 at that point.
Looking back, I guess it was good that I didn't get a Famicom that day. I probably would have never gotten a PCE, or at least never would have gotten into it as much as I have.
- akamichi
Incidentally, I bought my first Famicom in 2003.
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I joined the family a few years ago when I picked up a Core Grafx II while I was in Okinawa. I was at a used CD/DVD store when I
caught it out of the corner of my eye... I snatched it up with the quickness. After that I frequented used CD/DVD stores picking
up HuCards galore on the cheap. Good times. I always wanted a Turbo Grafx when I was a kid, but couldn't afford one so over the past
few years I've been on cloud nine.
A couple months ago I scored a Duo-RX and I've been pile'n up the CD games like crazy. Damn I love this machine.
Thanks for readin'.
--Woody
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akamichi thats a great story! was your family military? or how else did you get to live in japan as a kid!? i live here now but to do as a kid i would have loved it (at least so i thought from my 'japan gets the best games first' mindset)
but i have also been told the famicom (or any RF) does not work with USA tv sets by a few people. that the picture will show up on channel 96 and the sound on 95, if your lucky. did your PCE work on a USA tv set?
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nod,
Sucks about your Briefcase model. Was the unit shipped in bubble wrap?
I had an issue sending electronics, only once. That was because I didn't wrap it in bubble wrap and allow enough breathing room all around the unit. Something banged into the box and hit the unit inside, damaging it.
Also nod, what happened with your TG-16 stuff in 1996?
Yeah, it was packaged correctly, but the connector on the base that attaches to the CDROM unit became loose. I sent it back to get fixed, it came back solidly in place, but the unit didn't power on at all. I was pretty upset, as was my wife who had forked out the cash for the thing in the first place. As for my stuff in 1996...it's a very long story but it ends with me leaving Tennessee, heading back for Vermont, and my family telling me they'd ship my stuff up to me...never happened, they kept it for themselves. Backstabbing mofos.
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akamichi thats a great story! was your family military? or how else did you get to live in japan as a kid!? i live here now but to do as a kid i would have loved it (at least so i thought from my 'japan gets the best games first' mindset)
but i have also been told the famicom (or any RF) does not work with USA tv sets by a few people. that the picture will show up on channel 96 and the sound on 95, if your lucky. did your PCE work on a USA tv set?
Yeah, we were with the military. Great times back then. My friends and I used to ride our bikes to these 3 stores every week if not more just to check out all the games. Same places I went to for MD and SFC's launch.
As for the RF situation, I did get it to work on a TV I had. The picture was a little fuzzy and kept going out of sync, but I would just tune it in again. It happened every 20 or 30 mins, so it wasn't too bad. I used channel 2 because the TV only went up to 50-something. About a year after, I got the CDROM unit, so the RF issue didn't matter anymore. I did have a friend who had a Famicom w/Disc system hooked to a US TV via RF working just fine. Dunno how he did that. Then another person I knew had PSX via RF on channel 98 or around there working fine also. I guess it depends on the TV.
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I sent it back to get fixed, it came back solidly in place, but the unit didn't power on at all.
Trying turning on the power for the briefcase (not the PCE core) with the big slide switch without the AC adapter plugged in.
With that power in the ON position, plug in the AC adapter. Will it power up that way?
I have a briefcase that behaves like this. If the AC adapter is plugged in first, the whole thing will not power on at all no matter how many times you slide the switch. But if the switch is in the "ON" position before plugging in the AC, you're golden.
Worth a try, anyway.
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I sent it back to get fixed, it came back solidly in place, but the unit didn't power on at all.
Trying turning on the power for the briefcase (not the PCE core) with the big slide switch without the AC adapter plugged in.
With that power in the ON position, plug in the AC adapter. Will it power up that way?
I have a briefcase that behaves like this. If the AC adapter is plugged in first, the whole thing will not power on at all no matter how many times you slide the switch. But if the switch is in the "ON" position before plugging in the AC, you're golden.
Worth a try, anyway.
Thanks for the tip, I'll give it a try when I actually have some free time. :D
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What a great thread.
I grew up with an atari 5200 and then moved on to an NES. When the SNES came out it was like 200 bucks and I guess Santa wasnt that rich that year so I didnt get it. But my cousin did. I marveled at how awesome it looked. Still wanting a SNES I noticed the TG16 was cheaper and the games looked better then NES. I asked for it the next christmas and Santa delivered! I only had keith courage and bonk in the beginning but I loved that TG16. My collection grew pretty quickly, nothing like a lot of your fancy collections with the awesome rare import titles just basically collected the games Toys R Us sold. I also found some small time video rental place on Long Island that actually rented TG16 games as well. Back then TRU had a TG16 display and it ran a video about the TGCD. I was hooked instantly. Somehow Santa stepped it up again and christmas that year was bad ass. (thinking back it prob would have been cheaper for santa just to pony up the 200 beans for the SNES, ohh well since my cousin had it its not like I really missed out on it anyway). I collected a bunch of games from TRU and EB before the system finally took a dive in the States. The best deal I ever got was a super system 3 card for 10-15 bucks at a flea market. I basically collected all the games I could until they just became super hard to find. I was able to score a copy of fighting street from TZD back in the day but was wary of mail order because I hate bying games on name alone. I was a die hard street fighter fan and had played the original before and just wanted ot have it on my home console since it was the only port availible. To this day I'll never forget the first time I played Valis III those Animiated intros and cut scenes kicked my ass, beautiful. Once day I need to post a picture of my collection, although its not that great as far as rare items are concerned.
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Worth a try, anyway.
Now that my computer is out of service for awhile and we finally have a weekend off for once, I gave your idea a try. Unfortunately, no dice...same effect as before, the unit appears "dead". The only thing I can think of is that the power supply itself might be dead. I don't have a voltmeter to test it with though. :( Any other reason you can think of that might be causing this problem? I don't have the right tool to take the thing apart with though, what the frig do you use to open this monster with?
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I may as well tell my story.
My first experience with a Turbo(sounds sexual), was at a new friends house, no one else seemed to have on, or atleast none of my close friends. He had several games, including Bonk which I dug. I'm not sure I was convinced yet if it was for me.
I still had my NES, & our Sears multi game machine(seemed like they were all the same game) was long toast. Now, I had another friend that eventually got a TG, but, I can't remember if it was before me or not. Either way, I eventually decided to get into the next generation, & something about the TG, rather then the Genesis, attracted me. So, I saved up my money, & bought a used one with some games from my friend Scott, around the middle of February 1991. I got Keith Courage, Vigilante, Ninja Spirit, Splatterhouse, & Tiger Road, I think for about $100+(can't remember the exact figure). I was loving the Turbo.
Later that year, when the Genesis dropped to $150, both my friend Daniel & I picked one up. I remember my mom buying me Sonic 1 for passing whatever grade I was in. I wasn't really impressed with it, or the Genesis. I had several games, but, it just didn't do enough for me. So, I sold it to my older brother not that long after buying it.
Then, when the Turbo CD dropped in price to $150, I knew it was on, I had money saved, & I remember that morning, right before buying it, eating at Arby's, all excited, as we were about to head to Babbage's! So, we got there, & I had enough money for the CD Rom, & one $30. There were 2 to choose from, Last Alert & Valis 2. I decided to go with Valis 2. And I remember being so excited, seeing the cinemas, hearing the sounds & music. I would bring it over to my friends house to show it off, & it did wow them!
Frankly, in a short time, I became a Turbo nut. I looked forward to every EGM 's CES reports, with loads of games shown by TTI. Not to mention my Turbo Plays & Duo World's. And I saved up my money to get the full Super CD package, boy was I happy when that came.
I even became known at TTI, because I'd call up & ask questions alot, & became friends with their secretary, who sent me a bunch of her free games(some of which hadn't been released yet, most notably, Bonk 3 CD). She even came up north to visit me, though, now that I look back at it, I do wonder if she was looking for company outside of her marriage. Back then, I said, there's no way, but, now, it all feels a little fishy, & supposedly her husband divorced her for cheating on him. I remember one time calling her at home, & her husband picked up, & he was all protective wondering who I was. And later I found out from her that I got her in trouble. I sometimes wonder if I was the guy that she was supposedly cheating with :roll:
Anyways, so, obviously TTI closed their doors, but, that didn't stop me, I next continued to the Arcade card. So I saved up for that, & bought some deal of it, with a converter, & Strider from TZD. That converter sucked, as it made Strider act wierd. Plus, when I was able to get Strider working, I didn't think it was all that great(though I enjoy it now), so I tried to return both, though, they would only let me trade in my converter for a better one. Anyways, I proceeded to get various games from some shops, like Die Hard out in Woodland Hills until they closed down. And some here & there from TZD as well. Things pretty much kept escalating.
Ebay came my way around 99, & then I really started to get games that I had been drooling over for years. My first ebay transation, was for a brand new Psychic Storm for $26. That was a happy time! I eventually pretty much got every game I ever wanted for the Turbo, I'm missing a couple though.
At some point, I became a member of the Turbo Grafx Network on Yahoo, along with Kabuki aka Black_Tiger. I can't remember who started that club, but I think he eventually gave power over to Kabuki. There were some other guys there, one which I eventually met in person, when I was trying to figure out how to burn games, it turned out that he volunteered to help me, & ended up living in Burbank, about 30 minutes away. But, I was known as Projectblowed_mc over there, for anybody here who might remember me. I know there was another guy over there, who I used to trade burns with, named Geoff Bucholz. I haven't heard from him in several years.
When Implode came out, I was really excited, even though I'm not a puzzle nut. So I started talking to BT via email, keeping track of his next project, which I ended up beta testing for(& have a special mention in the thanks at the end :D).
Eventually I noticed Nodtveidt's thread about him porting Mysterious Song to the Turbo. I downloaded the original game, & offered to spruce up the soundtrack a bit. After doing that, I decided to fix up my studio. I had a keyboard, but, it was trashed, so I threw it away, got a new one & some extra sound module's, & now I do music for Turbo games! Not to mention helping in planning various aspects of the games. Plus, I have my own projects I've worked on, along with the help of Lord_cack. And, someday, my own personal idea's for games, will be made! Weeeeeeeeeeee!
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I wanted that Super System Card so bad that I cut out the life-sized photo of the SSC3.0 and taped it over my existing system card. I'd insert it into my TG-16, open up the Turbo Force Magazine, and pretend I was playing Dragon Slayer. I was 15 when I did this (oh the shame). The the super system card showed up in late August. I don't remember the next 6 months of my life that followed, but I remember having to get a job sometime in early 1993 to pay for the habit or my folks were going to kick me out. I bought a Turbo Express so I could play Street Fighter II with a diving board converter on the bus to hockey tournaments.
There is no emoticon to express the mixture of amusement, empathy, and horror I got from reading this.
Also, I thought Street Fighter wouldn't work on the Turbo Express for some reason?
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Oh, I should mention, that I too bought alot of my Turbo stuff(as well as Jag & 3DO) at Game Dude! I would drive over to North Hollywood maybe once a month, & sometimes there would be PC Engine games there! I'll never forget when I found Ys 4 & Sidearms Special mint, for $12 each, when Ys 4 was going for $200 on ebay, & Sidearms, about $80. I already owned them, but, I bought them anyways!
Oh, & the place looks the same now, as it did in the late 90's, on the corner of Laurel Canyon & Sherman Way. The only things that have changed, is where various stuff is located, & "some" of the employee's. There's atleast one employee there, named Pat, who lives in his parents basement, that's been there for yeeeeeeeears. He's a nice guy, but, some people think he looks sinister.
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Interest piqued: In the late summer of '89 commercials aired on WPIX 11 NYC for a new video game system. The commercials were very short, and the gameplay footage even shorter, so we (my brothers and I) videotaped the after-school cartoons in hopes of investigating things further.
Backstory: I had not paid much, if any, attention to the magazine coverage devoted to TG-16 / Genesis since I was thoroughly entrenched in NES / SMS. Honestly, when I opened a magazine, I went straight for the NES reviews. We couldn't afford NES games, so buying expensive new hardware was not an option for us. I'd even look at computer software reviews, since my friends had computers, but that was it.
THEN WE SAW FOOTAGE OF BLAZING LAZERS & LEGENDARY AXE.
We re-watched the taped commercials in slow-motion, savoring every moment.
As luck would have it, Toys R Us had a nice TG-16 display and Blazing Lazers was the game that I tested!
It was fun as hell, and suddenly we wanted TG-16 for BL alone. We figured that we could sell our NES stuff, plus save our Xmas money, and buy TG-16 and a few games.
We did so, selling off NES games to our friends. And so, the day after Xmas '89, we brought a huge wad of cash (mostly small bills) to Toys R Us and bought TG-16, tap, extra pad and a game or two. Good times...
Later: A local mom-n-pop had the TG-CD on display. For some reason, they ran Final Zone II as the demo whenever I was in the store, although I saw an opened Ys I & II next to the unit as well. I saw screenshots of Valis II and wanted to play it.
Eventually, this store (it was called "Video Dynasty" in Belleville, NJ) sold their TG-CD display to us for $300, which was awesome since it went for $400. The TG-CD display simply didn't generate sales for them, so they put a TG-16 in its place. They were happy to get rid of TG-CD; we were delighted to get it "cheaper".
Eventually my brothers and I acquired other consoles and handhelds, but we always had a soft spot for TG-16, probably because it was an underdog and we had worked so hard to buy games for it. NES/SMS/Genny/SegaCD/SNES games could be rented, borrowed from friends, traded, etc. TG-16 stuff had to be purchased new (high cost of entry) and not every store had a great selection of titles...
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I wanted that Super System Card so bad that I cut out the life-sized photo of the SSC3.0 and taped it over my existing system card. I'd insert it into my TG-16, open up the Turbo Force Magazine, and pretend I was playing Dragon Slayer. I was 15 when I did this (oh the shame). The the super system card showed up in late August. I don't remember the next 6 months of my life that followed, but I remember having to get a job sometime in early 1993 to pay for the habit or my folks were going to kick me out. I bought a Turbo Express so I could play Street Fighter II with a diving board converter on the bus to hockey tournaments.
There is no emoticon to express the mixture of amusement, empathy, and horror I got from reading this.
Also, I thought Street Fighter wouldn't work on the Turbo Express for some reason?
Oh, it worked. Giant Diving board sticking way out the back of the express. playing that game on an express and pressing select like crazy sucked. But I NEEDED to play.
By sheer happen stance, I just found the flyer where I had cut the picture of the SS card out.
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HI,
I started out buying a TurboGrafx system when my brother started bragging about the GEnesis and how good it was..So i decided to by it...by readding EGM magazines.. Some games were better then the Genesis with bright colors grafx. So i heard about games being made on a CD.in japan and how the games were better quality and sound..So i went to Childrens Palace to by the CD add..399.99 The lady cashier was staring at me..and asked me that i was the first person to buy one.. i guess she was in shock but i guess she wasnt a gamer... so i bought Y' 1 and 2.. cuz it did not come with a game.. 8-[ i think the game cost 59.99... i liked it so much i bought every cd game that came out.....didnt have a girlfriend so the money went to myself.. money welll spent :dance: this all happen 89-94 :dance:
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Were there gamers and people that hated systems for no other reason than to hate them in 1990???
I guess so. My first impression of a gamer was circa 1984. My dad took me to an actual "outside the mall" video arcade so he could play Galaga and Centepede. I saw a guy standing in front of asteriods wearing a Buck Rogers tank top. He was probably 6'2" and 135 pound. He was jacking the joystick around like he was pulling off a 99 hit combo on Killer Instinct. Hey yelled at the screen like it was yelling back at him (or did a double Flawless using Cheap-Rax on MK2). Then he mumbled something about a car payment and a girlfriend that didn't like to hang out anymore.
It was then my dad pulled me away from the Pac-Man machine mid-game, put me in the car, and sped off never to return.
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...this is my first post here :mrgreen:
The TurboGrafx 16 was my favorite console of the 16-bit era by far, and I was in love with it the first time I played R-Type on it... I was working part time at a local video game store (back when small, independant video game stores were common) and took a rental TG16 home to try it shortly after its NA release... I don't remember what games I played, but I know R-Type was one of them, and I was sold! As time went on, Bloody Wolf, Devil's Crush, Aero Blasters, Splatterhouse, Ninja Spirit and Chew Man Fu (yes, Chew Man Fu! I love that game!! ) solidified my appreciation of the console, even as the market began to turn against it... I bought a Turbo Express around 1991, and the CD add-on few months later. I took a picture of the "The End" screen from Y's Books I & II :oops:. Then I traded the TG16 & CDROM towards a Duo and Gate of Thunder absolutely blew me away!
By 1994 I had a collection of more than 100 games (including some Japanese games I played with a diving board adapter). I also had a wife in a doctoral program at Uni, a 3 year old daughter, and a new house. My wife kept pushing me to "grow up" and sell off everything so we could afford a new computer, which I eventually did, reluctantly... Then about six months later she left me for one of her Professors and kept the computer... #-o
Kick on about 12 years and I'd been playing some TG16 stuff via emulation for a while, and then about six months ago I picked up a GP2X, largely on the strength of the rep of it's PC Engine emus... I played DracX and a bunch of other stuff on it, but it wasn't quite the same as having the real thing (more so because the current emulators aren't really that great - good, but not perfect), so a week or two ago I decided to find me a Turbo Express and some games... which I have done, though I haven't received any of them yet. But the payments have been made and I'm eagerly awaiting my return to the fold!
I have to admit I was somewhat shocked by what I had to pay for some of the games I bought - so far I've picked up Splatterhouse, Devil's Crush, Alien Crush, Bonk's Adventure, Space Harrier, Bloody Wolf and Legendary Axe (all from Ebay ) - with Devil's Crush being BY FAR the most expensive ($29 Buy It Now) but as it is my FAVORITE TG16 game for the Express, I just had to break down and grab it... There are a few more "core" titles I'll look for as time goes on - Bonk's Revenge, Ninja Spirit, Air Zonk, Blazing Lazers, R-Type, Chew Man Fu, Aero Blasters and Legendary Axe II are all "must haves" to my mind - but these first few should keep me busy for a while. :dance:
For the record, the person I purchased my Turbo Express from pointed me to these forums... I look forward to lurking for a bit and participating when I can... 8)
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My wife kept pushing me to "grow up" and sell off everything so we could afford a new computer, which I eventually did, reluctantly...
This right here should have been the alarm that sent you running for the hills.
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My wife kept pushing me to "grow up" and sell off everything so we could afford a new computer, which I eventually did, reluctantly...
This right here should have been the alarm that sent you running for the hills.
The Mrs and I got in a discussion about getting rid of my games. We never fight about stuff because we communicate well. But, It is understood that if anything were to happen to the games, that every holiday decoration we (she) owned we be burned on the driveway. Her purses would burn if my golf clubs dissappeared, and her shoes would go to goodwill if anything ever happend to my skates.
Here's the funny thing. She has no problem with me spending $50 on Metal Gear Solid 3. Be she thinks I'm the biggest dork if I spend $10 for Neutopia.
In a recent developements, she has learned to appreciate that I'm sitting at home on the couch playing games. Not going out drinking after playing golf or hockey.
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From what I've seen, it's not uncommon for some males to junk certain past enjoyments when they're, "owned".
Sometimes the excuse is some dumb shit as simple as, "Well, she said....". hahha, I often wonder why some don't say, "Is this yours? Is it in your way? no? Leave it be then".
If you can't afford the hobby, have moved on (by yourself) to something else, etc that's one thing. Though getting rid of stuff because someone else says so is possibly going to lead to you regretting your decision later.
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My wife would never tell me to give up my collection or "grow up". Then again, she plays games sometimes too.
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Welcome aboard jimid2 - Opus for President! Sucks about the ex-wifey and selling the collection, but at least she's gone now and you can enjoy some Turbo action sans nagging. My standard response whenever somebody tells me to get rid of my Duo is "Go f*ck yourself". It might eventually end a relationship, but better now than after I'm married.
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I look at it this way.....
When all is said and done, who's gonna be there for you through thick and thin, through the ups and downs, and who's not gonna judge you?
Wife or Duo?
That's what I thought.
That said, I'm in a happy relationship of 5 years and the woman and the Turbo are able to peacefully co-exist.
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Interest piqued: In the late summer of '89 commercials aired on WPIX 11 NYC for a new video game system. The commercials were very short, and the gameplay footage even shorter, so we (my brothers and I) videotaped the after-school cartoons in hopes of investigating things further.
Backstory: I had not paid much, if any, attention to the magazine coverage devoted to TG-16 / Genesis since I was thoroughly entrenched in NES / SMS. Honestly, when I opened a magazine, I went straight for the NES reviews. We couldn't afford NES games, so buying expensive new hardware was not an option for us. I'd even look at computer software reviews, since my friends had computers, but that was it.
THEN WE SAW FOOTAGE OF BLAZING LAZERS & LEGENDARY AXE.
We re-watched the taped commercials in slow-motion, savoring every moment.
As luck would have it, Toys R Us had a nice TG-16 display and Blazing Lazers was the game that I tested!
It was fun as hell, and suddenly we wanted TG-16 for BL alone. We figured that we could sell our NES stuff, plus save our Xmas money, and buy TG-16 and a few games.
We did so, selling off NES games to our friends. And so, the day after Xmas '89, we brought a huge wad of cash (mostly small bills) to Toys R Us and bought TG-16, tap, extra pad and a game or two. Good times...
Later: A local mom-n-pop had the TG-CD on display. For some reason, they ran Final Zone II as the demo whenever I was in the store, although I saw an opened Ys I & II next to the unit as well. I saw screenshots of Valis II and wanted to play it.
Eventually, this store (it was called "Video Dynasty" in Belleville, NJ) sold their TG-CD display to us for $300, which was awesome since it went for $400. The TG-CD display simply didn't generate sales for them, so they put a TG-16 in its place. They were happy to get rid of TG-CD; we were delighted to get it "cheaper".
Eventually my brothers and I acquired other consoles and handhelds, but we always had a soft spot for TG-16, probably because it was an underdog and we had worked so hard to buy games for it. NES/SMS/Genny/SegaCD/SNES games could be rented, borrowed from friends, traded, etc. TG-16 stuff had to be purchased new (high cost of entry) and not every store had a great selection of titles...
great post Steve!
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My story:
In fall of 1990 (don't remember what month) I got a new TurboGrafx-16 with Keith Courage packed in, of course, and Legendary Axe, from Babbage's. maybe I also got another game, maybe not
(if yes, it might've been Blazing Lazers, don't remember).
There was an offer going to get a free game, via mail-in. I selected R-Type. perfect choice too, because IIRC, R-Type was one of the most expensive HuCards. In the Chicago area it was $69.99 at Toys 'R US.
on Christmas Eve, 1990, the UPS truck arrived in the afternoon with my free R-Type!
What a glorious day that was!
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From what I've seen, it's not uncommon for some males to junk certain past enjoyments when they're, "owned".
Sometimes the excuse is some dumb shit as simple as, "Well, she said....". hahha, I often wonder why some don't say, "Is this yours? Is it in your way? no? Leave it be then".
If you can't afford the hobby, have moved on (by yourself) to something else, etc that's one thing. Though getting rid of stuff because someone else says so is possibly going to lead to you regretting your decision later.
Marriage and family is leaps and bounds beyond being pussy wipped by some tight stomached 19 year old chick that doesn't know the first thing about giving a decent blow job or taking it in the can.
It's checks and balances. It makes sense and it's fair. She has every right to put the literal foot down if I don't do stuff around the house because I spent 7 hours playing Cosmic Fantasy yesterday. Not to be snobby, but the Mrs and I do well financially, so the cost is irrelevant, but you do have to keep discretional spending fair too.
What we do with our time or money is arbitrary. Guys on the 'transistor radio' or 'harley' forums bitch about the same things.
My blissful hours of Turbo-ing are done for a while July 1st when she rotates back to mornings. However, playing chess or PS2 Wheel of Fortune on a Thursday night with her to decide who gets to pick the 'position' is WAY more fun than playing the turbo.
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Welcome aboard jimid2 - Opus for President! Sucks about the ex-wifey and selling the collection, but at least she's gone now and you can enjoy some Turbo action sans nagging. My standard response whenever somebody tells me to get rid of my Duo is "Go f*ck yourself". It might eventually end a relationship, but better now than after I'm married.
But if Opus is President, who'll pick up the tuba duties in DeathTöngue?!? I dunno that Portney's up to it... ;)
The current mrs. jimid2 is much more amenable to my material idiosyncracies (I tend to collect guitars, too) - she plays a lot of video games and is a musician herself, and as money's no longer the issue, things are much better all around... Today the issue is time; with a house full of teenagers, it can be a challenge to find a few minutes to play anything, not to mention finding a free TV on which to play it, which is why I've drifted away from consoles to handhelds over the past five years or so - almost all my gaming is done on portable systems now.
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As many folks have already said, time is the most limited resource. The only reason I started playing cellular games is because it is the only way I can squeeze a few minutes of games into my daily schedule.
Cellular gaming is lame, but when it's your only option, well, it doesn't seem like the lamest thing in the world anymore.
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Last weekend, when I told my wife and daughter that my dream was to find some TG-16 or Vic-20 stuff at the thrift store we were going to... well, my wife said, "I wish you had grown out of that by now, but I guess it is too late for that."
I laughed and responded, "I suppose so...".
I had been on a rather strict video game diet for the last year, you see: nearly all $$$ went towards fixing-up our home.
Of course, I have never been lucky enough to find a *single* TG-16 item in southern californian or northern new jerseyian thrift stores. NOT A SINGLE GODDAMMED THING.
Even my wife will be happy if I should be so lucky.
OK, now I'm off to mow the lawn.... :)
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But if Opus is President, who'll pick up the tuba duties in DeathTöngue?!? I dunno that Portney's up to it... ;)
The country needs penguin leadership now more than ever. It's no big loss anyway, as they weren't the same after their conversion to Billy and the Boingers. Just imagine - spandex, eye shadow, and fishnet stockings in the Whitehouse. Kinda like if J. Edger became president. :lol:
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My story is a little different actually. I remember seeing ads in magazines and commercials of kids playing Legendary Axe 1 back in 89-90 kind of wanting one. Well, I was always a hardcore Nintendo guy and also played my friend's Genesis which at the time it was pretty bad ass actually. At his house I played Altered Beast, Herzog Zwei and Revenge of Shinobi. Then I the SNES came out and it was all that I wanted for christmas of that year after playing all the great games at another friends house. My dad was a cheap-ass for a Lieutenant Commander in the NAVY. So instead my parents buy me a TG16 that costed $99 with 2 free games being Keiths Courage and Final Lap Twin. I was pissed actually. Then I learned to really like Final Lap Twin and realized I was just stuck with this. Later on I got Cadash which rocked ass in 1992.
After that I havn't jumped back into NEC systems until 2000-01 when I got my a brand new US Turbo Duo from TZD and some Super/Reg CD titles. I felt like I had to get it after finding a copy of the 4 in 1 Super Cd for like $3 at a thrift store in 1998. Now, I am growing my collection somewhat.
I will be honest though, I played the hell out of my Sega CD since 1994 with games such as Snatcher, Lords of Thunder (I actually like this version, the music has a more bad ass band sound even though less colors), Rise of the Dragon, Final Fight CD, Lunar 1 + 2, Cobra Space Adventure, Silpheed and Robo Aleste. As for the CD-Rom2/Super CD games, there are equal amounts of good games on it as well. I just never got a taste of TGCD until after 6 years of playing Sega CD. Hell, I have only played like 5 Turbochip games other than everything on the emulators. I need some Turbochips and Hucards bad though. I have around 10 CD titles now.
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I myself, bought my American Turbo Grafx in something like '95 when they were being sold off at toys r us for 50 bucks. I wanted to get one earlier, but at the time I was busy with SNES, it wasnt until later that I had the money and power to aquire more systems of the 16 bit era, now I have just about everything with the exception of Neo Geo AES, Im not enough of a high roller to build a decent enough collection with that though.
As for the Turbo, I only had about 4 games for it, and spent time collecting for other systems, until recently I bought myself a japanese duo and a region free PC engine GT. Its probably my favorite system of my collection, has the perfect balance between graphics, gameplay and old school appeal.
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My parents bought me and my brother a Turbo Grafx for christmas when I was a kid because they were only $50 while SNES and Genesis were still $100+, plus some Toys R Us $10 clearance games like Parasol Stars and Ordyne. Man that was a good christmas.
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I got that same deal, parasol stars 10 bucks, I still have the original cardboard box and the jewel case with the instructions, that was one of the best purchases I think ive made when it comes to video games, because the value of it now is over 100 I think.
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Awesome, yeah we went back and bought all the $10 games they had over the next few months, but it was only a handful more and they weren't very good- just stuff like Tricky Kick.
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Well I be damned!!! I just ask my parents just for the hell of it and they got my system at Toys R Us and apparently the system probably was the same deal at $50 or so. My grandmother bought Final Lap Twin for like $10-$15 or so as well. I am suprised they remembered that. Was this the Christmas right after the SNES came out in August with you guys?
You know what is gay though is that my grandmother bought me a $200 Atari Lynx first model when it came out the Christmas before that. But no, no SNES next year??? Man whatever. I was very deprived of new console happiness untill 1994. Finally in 1996 I got my first job and bought SNES, Neo Geo CD and PSX stuff like mad.
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Awesome, yeah we went back and bought all the $10 games they had over the next few months, but it was only a handful more and they weren't very good- just stuff like Tricky Kick.
I reckon Tricky Kick is great fun, albeit very tricky indeed.
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Yeah the christmas of 1991 I think, or was it 1990? I can't remember which year the SNES came out, I do remember it was right afterwards though. Toys R Us always had a display unit of every system in big glass cases and I remember always drooling over the Turbo Express and Master System 3D goggles.
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One of my bros found it at a garage sale. It came with Final Lap Twin and Keith Courage. I’m guessing he got it around 95 – 97, I don’t know when. I heard about this system from reading magazines and I knew someone who owned it in the early 90s. I asked her to sell to me but she didn’t want to.
A few years later I found a store that sold TG games so we bought Bonks Adventure and Neutopia. The store was called Treasure Island, and it had a huge selection of systems and games. The owner moved about 4 years ago, his business probably wasn’t doing well. A lot of the stuff was expensive.
So now my bro got married, and gave me the TG-16. His wife doesn’t like when he plays games. What a dumbass, but good for me. :D He did take his Atari 2600. I hope his wife didn’t trash it.
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I would never marry anyone who couldn't mesh with my edge-of-your-seat Turbo lifestyle.
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I never owned a PCE when I was young - not all that many people in the UK did at the time. I always had sega stuff, starting with the Master System and then the Megadrive. After joining ebay in 2002 I started filling in the gaps in my master system collection until I had virtually every master system game, system and accessory known to man :) I needed something else to concentrate on and had always fancied getting hold of a PCE, so I did. Still didn't really know all that much about what games to get etc. and it was only really when I discovered sunteam's PCE software bible that I really got into the system. At the moment, I play using PCE-Duo and have a pretty good mix of CD & Hu-Card games, and getting into the PCE was definitely one of the best decisions I ever made.
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I joined the Turbo family when a shady looking character traded me a copy of Far East of Eden II and Missile Defense 3D for 24 Tele-Games and Combat at my town's midnight game swap in the Cyberpunk Alley.
It was a deal I just couldn't refuse. Thankfully, we made the trade before the police busted the swap meet.
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I still haven't played my copy of 24-Tele Games yet, but I plan to soon since the Atari is hooked up! Thanks for the trade again!
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A+++++ will cyberpunk again
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Back in the early 1990s a friend gave me a copy of the first edition of the Complete Guide to Consoles. Of all of the machines in it, the PC Engine really stuck out.
By the way, if anyone has that magazine and is willing to sell it, I'd be more than happy to buy it.
I really wanted a PCE—the games looked brilliant and, I have to admit that, in retrospect, I have always loved the underdog. Unfortunately it cost what would now be about €450 to buy a so-called grey import. Needless to say, I couldn't afford it.
I also remember the TG16 being advertised in American comics, particularly Bonk and Splatterhouse, but for some reason I was never particularly interested in the TG16. Stupid, I know, because it's the same machine but my interest in the PCE was twofold:
- the form factor
- Japanese games
Anyway, in early 1991 my friend bought a Super Famicom. It was pretty amazing and I enjoyed playing, among other things, Actraiser on it, thought it was tough with all of the Japanese text. A while after it appeared on European shores as the Super Nintendo I caved in and bought one. My PC Engine dream died. Or so it seemed.
A little while later, my SF-owning friend was booted out of school for an infraction and we lost touch. With that my interest in these things dropped off quite quickly. Time passed.
In 1998 I was at art school and had just bought a Mac. I discovered the site emulation.net (now emulation.victoly.com) and downloaded a PCE/TG16 emulator and happily played away. I was kind of busy, though, with both college and socialising so I didn't really get into it.
Fast forward eight years and I am self-employed and spend all day researching various things. As a result I spend a lot of time on-line and, well, the mind does wander. I downloaded a PCE emulator again. And Neutopia. Being gainfully employed—or at least no longer being a student—I occasionally find one or two euros rolling around in my bank account and so, in a moment of madness, I went on to E-Bay and bought a PCE, Bomberman and a few other games. I don't regret the decision, in fact, I regret not having bought one back in the day. Still, what could I do? Working class kids could scarcely afford localised consoles, let alone Japanese imports.
Anyhow, there you go—a pointless personal story. I hope it wasn't too boring.