These mini consoles are interesting. We have them coming from not only Konami, Turbografx-16 Mini, but also Sega, Sega Genesis, to compliment previous releases. Nintendo has gone to this well twice now with re-releases representing the NES and Super NES platforms respectively. The Turbografx-16 Mini is one that got a lot of fans excited, at least those of us that remember this overlooked first casualty of the 16-bit wars. Unfortunately, as with most anything, you cannot please everyone all the time and Konami missed a grand opportunity many times on this one. So close.
<h2>The game lineup could be better</h2>
There are about 50 games included on the Turbografx-16 Mini. That seems to be the goal number for these devices for some reason. Is memory a problem? What is interesting about Konami’s entry is that they are including at least a few CD-ROM, and Super CD-ROM, games. They are also including quite a few Japanese games (probably due to the North American game library being less than stellar originally).
Still though, there are many games that could have been included here, so much missed opportunity. Sometimes contracts and licenses suck but they protect IP owners, even at the expense of fans.
<h2>At least there is only one version of China Warrior included</h2>
While it is great we are getting another way to play <em>Castlevania: Rondo of Blood</em>, it would be nearly equally awesome had they included some other key titles. One that jumps to mind is <em>Splatterhouse</em>, which had more than a couple changes made to it for release in North America. Why is <em>Nectaris</em> and <em>Military Madness</em> on here? It seems like a waste of “space” to include a heavy Japanese language turn based strategy game that doesn’t offer much different than the North American version. Same for <em>Dungeon Explorer</em> – were there major differences between the two regions to warrant including the Japanese version? Snatcher is one I wish they would have worked with the fan translation community on (I interviewed one such team that translated <em>Policenauts</em>, and many Snatcher releases in issue #2 of RGM).
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According to <a href="https://hothardware.com/news/turbografx-16-mini-us-launch-march-2020-amazon">Hot Hardware the TurboGrafx-16 Mini</a> will begin shipping on March 19<sup>th</sup>, 2020. That is a long way away considering you can pre-order one now on its <a href="https://www.amazon.com/TurboGrafx-16-mini-Electronic-Games/dp/B07QD9GQ9J/ref=sr_1_6?keywords=TurboGrafx-16+mini&qid=1563237157&s=gateway&sr=8-6&_encoding=UTF8&tag=cwilliams0a-20&linkCode=ur2&linkId=538abcf8af1471f5e0ff7e92c57cf9e0&camp=1789&creative=9325" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">exclusive home on Amazon</a><img style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" src="//ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=cwilliams0a-20&l=ur2&o=1" alt="" width="1" height="1" border="0" />. The full list is <a href="https://kotaku.com/turbografx-16-mini-launches-in-march-with-50-ish-games-1836300247">available over on Kotaku</a> and fans will notice a serious lack of Bonk games. This is odd considering that caveman was the closest thing NEC/TTI had to a mascot character.
<h2>The games I wanted to see on the TurboGrafx-16 Mini</h2>
First, <em>Street Fighter II</em> by Capcom. Come on, seriously, this is probably the one game that most fans would want on this mini console. Next, <em>Splatterhouse</em> by Namco, considering the TG-16 release is the only home version available it is almost shocking in its absence. <em>The Dynastic Hero</em> would have been a great addition (who knows what game that is based on without cheating?).
I am quite an easy gamer to appease when it comes to the games Konami missed on their TurboGrafx-16 Mini. Mainly because the lineup is solid already. Konami deserves kudos for not overloading this thing with scrolling shooters. The original TurboGrafx-16 was overloaded with shooters almost to a detriment.
Head over to <a href="https://www.amazon.com/TurboGrafx-16-mini-Electronic-Games/dp/B07QD9GQ9J/ref=sr_1_6?keywords=TurboGrafx-16+mini&qid=1563237157&s=gateway&sr=8-6&_encoding=UTF8&tag=cwilliams0a-20&linkCode=ur2&linkId=0f293d67eddf9730bd9afe5788513c13&camp=1789&creative=9325" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Amazon and secure</a><img style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" src="//ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=cwilliams0a-20&l=ur2&o=1" alt="" width="1" height="1" border="0" /> your pre-order of the TurboGrafx-16 Mini while you can.
This article was originally published on <a href="http://retrogamingmagazine.com/2019/07/15/turbografx-16-mini-details-revealed/">Retro Gaming Magazine</a>, a gaming website I own.