PC Engine CoreGrafx Mini review – cult retro cartridge system returns

Konami
A mini reissue of this forgotten 16-bit era console brings back 50-plus pixel art classics such as Super Bomberman, Air Zonk and Splatterhouse

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.