Back when we spoke to Slade Dude Suzuki from Hyperkin on the Retro Dodo podcast (which could be the coolest name ever), he told us that while the company were looking to create new products for next-gen systems, retro would always be the lifeblood of the company. Hyperkin have become synonymous with clone consoles and retro accessories over the years, and now their long-awaited take on the PC Engine/TurboGrafx-16 (depending on where you grew up) is releasing this month.
The new RetroN GX console drops on August 20th and will cost $99.99, which is a small price to pay if you've been a die-hard PC Engine fan since the original console first released back in 1987 in Japan. And if you still have your HuCards to hand but haven't had anything to play them on for a long old while, then the RetroN GX has you covered. Experience your old games with improved audio and framerates, as well as the removal of dithering and much better game compatibility.
Nowadays, the PC Engine is somewhat of an enigma, but back in the 80s, it was poised to go 'toe-to-toad' with Nintendo's Famicom, though it sadly fell short of the mark of Ninty's greatness. Still, there's a cult following for it and its North American counterpart, the TurboGrafx-16, and Hyperkin's new machine will allow you play games for both versions of the console.
As it's an emulation station, so to speak, it comes in cheaper than FPGA devices like the ever-absent Analogue 3D. Still, there's no need for ROMs here, and you'll get all of the benefits that emulators provide like save states and rewind functions, with the added bonus of habing a physical machine that you can hook up controllers to that can sit in situ in your games room next to your other consoles, as opposed to just running your favourite games off your laptop.
The quality of life features that Hyperkin have implemented into the RetroN GX, like improved frame rates and the removal of dithering, mean that you'll be able to enjoy PC Engine games on your big TV via HDMI without feeling like the image is being distorted to heck. With only 16 days to wait till the new console drops at the time of writing, it's definitely time to get your pre-orders in and to start scouting through the attic for your favourite PC Engine games!
