Originally released by the Japanese consumer electronics giant NEC in 1987, the PC Engine was the cartridge-based system for hardcore gamers. Designed to compete against the Nintendo Famicom, the machine was an innovative joint venture with veteran developer Hudson Soft, boasting a 16-bit graphics processor and arguably the best sound chip of the era. Released much later in the US as the TurboGrafx-16, and later still in the UK with the catchy name PC Engine CoreGrafx, it never gained the momentum needed to challenge Sega or Nintendo, but its output of faithful arcade conversions and brilliant scrolling shooters ensured its cult appeal.
So now, following the success of the SNES Classic Mini and Mega Drive Mini retro consoles, we have the PC Engine CoreGrafx Mini. It’s a smaller-sized reproduction of the 30-year-old console, with more than 50 built-in games and a USB controller designed to resemble the original PC Engine joypad – including its two-phase autofire buttons, to save your fingers from RSI during prolonged shooter sessions. As with the Sega and Nintendo mini consoles, it comes with a USB power lead and an HDMI cable, and in the settings you can switch between an array of display options, from faithful 4:3 renderings to a stretched widescreen mode. There’s also an effective CRT filter so you can give each game that classic scan line look.
The unit is a pretty faithful reproduction of the Japanese system, down to the weird two-pronged chassis and the plastic lock that held the unique game carts (or HuCards, as they were known) in place. It feels a little cheaper than the Nintendo and Sega minis though, especially as you have to completely remove the rear plastic panel to connect the power and HDMI cables, which will make it very easy to lose. The PC Engine offers two joypad ports on the front, but sadly you only get one in the box. (There’s also a multitap peripheral sold separately, so you can engage in four-player sessions with Super Bomberman or Dungeon Explorer.)
Games-wise, this is a really decent collection, skilfully emulated by Japanese developer M2, a specialist in retro conversions, having previously worked on the excellent Sega Ages collections and many titles on the Nintendo Virtual Console. It’s been wonderful to rediscover true pixel art classics such as Parasol Stars, Air Zonk and the scrolling fantasy adventure Cadash, all looking crisp and colourful on a large HD display. The library is split into two Japanese titles and western releases, and while it’s great to have the former, some of the them are impossible to play unless you can read Japanese (or are prepared to go online and hunt down fan translations). Hideo Kojima fans hoping to experience his cyberpunk classic Snatcher may find themselves particularly frustrated.
But there is still so much to enjoy. Scrolling shooters such as arcade classics R-Type, and Salamander, and luscious Hudson original Soldier Blade, with its beautiful firing patterns and multi-stage enemies, really get to the heart of the machine’s appeal. Then there are memorable scrolling adventures such as horror romp Splatterhouse, martial arts epic Ninja Spirit, and Dracula-X: Rondo of Blood, one of the best titles in the Castlevania series. There are several old-school RPGs too, the highlight being Ys Books 1 & 2, which should be considered alongside Phantasy Star, Mother and Secret of Mana in the pantheon of 2D role-playing greats.
Super Bomberman fans will find three versions of the game, which is perhaps overkill, but as it’s one of the best local multiplayer franchises of all time, we’ll allow it. Military Madness is a fine early real-time strategy game in the style of Advance Wars. I’ve loved discovering the oddities too. The bizarre detective platformer JJ and Jeff, the croquet-alike sports title Appare! Gateball and fighting game The Kung Fu, with its huge sprites, are all worth five minutes of your time.
There are naturally some disappointing omissions: no Street Fighter II, no Gekisha Boy, no Magical Chase. At £100, it’s also £30 more than the retail prices of the SNES and Mega Drive Mini consoles.
However, the PC Engine CoreGrafx Mini covers all the basics and really conveys the spirit of this cult machine. NEC’s console and its CD-based successors represent a fascinating transitional period between 1980s arcade game design and the cinematic aspirations of the modern console era – and this miniaturised replica captures that. There will always be people who insist you should just download an emulator on your PC then hunt around online for game ROMs, but that process is legally and morally dubious – and can be complicated and time-consuming. This neat little gadget gives you excellent translations of the console’s best titles, adds a convenient save function, and lets you enjoy them on your living-room TV. For that convenience, plenty of old-school fans and curious newcomers will be happy to pay.
