1up.com: Saving the System - TurboGrafx-16

[BigusSchmuck]

We've oddly left the DC out of the debate on failed systems in this thread. The DC actually did really well in the US up until Japan pulled the plug. It was the Japanese market that had the most trouble with the DC, and there were actually some really interested games programmed by US and EU developers. This is largely a reversal of the problems with the PCE and Saturn, both of which did well in Japan and less well in the US and were dominated by Japanese developers in terms of the higher-quality output

Yeah I definetely got down on my Dreamcast. To this day, I don't think there has been any other consoles that have sold a million units the first week it was out (9/9/99). Don't forget that thing can run most emulators like a champ too (except for snes strangely enough lolz) and homebrew! Might as well go on about the endless add ons on the genesis while we are at it.

[geise]

Doesn't the DC though still hold the record in Japan as the "most systems sold" on launch day?  With how long it was still getting games in Japan it sure wasn't a total failure. 

[KingDrool]

Yeah, good point about the Dreamcast. Next to the Turbo, the Dreamcast is my all-time favorite system. I've said that though the Turbo is my favorite, the Dreamcast was the best. It was the last console that I really geeked out about, subscribing to the official magazine, nabbing all the demos, and playing it obsessively. It was a true "gamer's" console, and for the year (or less) that Sega supported it, it had some amazing games. I'm not sure what could have saved it, though, other than EA signing on as a publisher and Sega not having f*cked up their handling of the Saturn in the US, thus not losing assloads of cash.

[DragonmasterDan]

Doesn't the DC though still hold the record in Japan as the "most systems sold" on launch day?  With how long it was still getting games in Japan it sure wasn't a total failure. 

No, they shipped only around 170,000 units. Far less than they expected to have ready, there was a very initial shortage. The PS2 and even Wii sold better on launch day.

[Arkhan]

http://worrydream.com/ABriefRantOnTheFutureOfInteractionDesign/

[KingDrool]

http://worrydream.com/ABriefRantOnTheFutureOfInteractionDesign/

Not quite sure what that article has to do with the topic at hand, but at least it's interesting. That said (and maybe a mod can split this thread and move it), the touch screen interface found on tablets and phones is a one-size-(sorta)-fits-all remedy. The alternative would be to build a new interface for every single app, game, program, etc. And there's nothing I hate more than a million accessories for my game consoles. Just gimme one that mostly does the job.

[Arkhan]

it has to do with the Wii/upcoming Wii-U crap, since we were talking about wii!

[KingDrool]

Yeah...  (You really hate the Wii).

So guys, how 'bout that death of the TurboGrafx-16?

[Necromancer]

So guys, how 'bout that death of the TurboGrafx-16?

'Twas more of a still birth, considering how they stumbled with it from day one.  Ah well, I still love the little Turbob that could.

[sheath]

I think 1989 and 1990 was a pretty close race with the Genesis honestly.  It wasn't until 1991 that the Genesis really started to pull away in software.  Their software libraries were comparable up to about summer of 1991.  Also, there was quite a bit of visibility for the TG16 on its own and even in relation to the Genesis and SNES.

[DragonmasterDan]

I think 1989 and 1990 was a pretty close race with the Genesis honestly.  It wasn't until 1991 that the Genesis really started to pull away in software.  Their software libraries were comparable up to about summer of 1991.  Also, there was quite a bit of visibility for the TG16 on its own and even in relation to the Genesis and SNES.

Yep, Sonic was the big rocket that moved the Genesis permanently forward in 1991.

[sheath]

I don't think Sonic could have been responsible for all of those games coming out the same year.  It certainly wasn't responsible for the drop off in HuCard releases that year.  Really though, with the Turbo CD included the Turbo was still competitive even in 1991.

[BigusSchmuck]

I don't think Sonic could have been responsible for all of those games coming out the same year.  It certainly wasn't responsible for the drop off in HuCard releases that year.  Really though, with the Turbo CD included the Turbo was still competitive even in 1991.

I think we all agree it would have been more competitive if Nintendo didn't have such a grip on its third party developers and if we saw a U.S release of Sega arcade games like Outrun, Altered Beast and even its god awful port of Golden Axe. Or even as the article stated if we saw a Mortal Kombat exclusive for the Duo.

[DragonmasterDan]

I think we all agree it would have been more competitive if Nintendo didn't have such a grip on its third party developers and if we saw a U.S release of Sega arcade games like Outrun, Altered Beast and even its god awful port of Golden Axe. Or even as the article stated if we saw a Mortal Kombat exclusive for the Duo.

Mortal Kombat didn't come out in US arcades until 1992, by then it would have been too late.

[BigusSchmuck]

Mortal Kombat didn't come out in US arcades until 1992, by then it would have been too late.

Who knows for certain? It could have competed against the likes of the Sega CD version and stomp the piss out of it with more colors to display! We all know how much better looking the pce port of Street Fighter 2 Champion Edition compared to what the likes of the Genesis and the SNES had at the time, so why not considering Nintendo took the blood out of Mortal Kombat, changed the finishing moves and made it all wussified. We may never truly know..