The PC Engine CPU is highly underrated. People like to go "haha, it was the TurboGrafx-16 but its CPU was 8-bit" like that makes it a joke, but that clock speed boost on top of the 6502 architecture is a big deal. (The S-CPU on the SNES still has an 8-bit data bus too, so the 16-bit advantage isn't as strong as it seems)

The Arcade Card add-on was designed specifically around using the transfer instructions to rapidly transfer graphics into VRAM, something it was very good at. Made some really good Neo Geo ports possible.

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snvzz 2 hours ago | parent | next [-]

>"haha, it was the TurboGrafx-16 but its CPU was 8-bit"

Amusingly, TurboGrafx-16 is a US-specific name, so is the huge shell.

In Japan, the console was called PC Engine and was really compact. Later revised as CoreGrafx and CoreGrafx II, both still the same fundamental hardware.

I own the later variant. Very solid little box that sips power and produces stable a/v output.

	▲	dfxm12 an hour ago \| parent [-]
		NEC made some great looking consoles, in Japan. The PC Engine, the PC Engine Shuttle, the IFU-30 unit "briefcase", and the SuperGrafx. I think console design peaked with the SuperGrafx. In the back of my mind, I have the idea that US regulations required extra shielding that the Japanese model lacked. Maybe this isn't the case. Maybe some American marketer decided it was just too cute or too small.

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dfxm12 an hour ago | parent | prev [-]

The amazing Street Fighter II' port didn't even need any add-ons! (Well, aside from the 6 button controller)

	▲	fredoralive an hour ago \| parent [-]
		The article notes that the cartridge had some extra bank switching inside it though, as it went over the address space limit for HuCards.