NEC PC-FX

Background
The PC-FX is a 32-bit home video game console developed by NEC and Hudson Soft. It was released in 1994 and discontinued in February 1998, as NEC's final home video game console. Based on the NEC V810 CPU and CD-ROM, it was intended as the successor to the PC Engine (known overseas as the TurboGrafx-16). Unlike its predecessor, the PC-FX was only released in Japan. Its form factor is like that of a tower PC, intended to be similarly upgradeable. The PC-FX is considered a commercial failure in contrast to the PC Engine, mainly because of the system's specialization in anime games, lack of 3D graphics capabilities, high price, and limited developer support.

(December 23, 1994-February 1998)


Logo: We fade into a blue NEC logo on a white background. The NEC logo fades out, and "PC-FX", in Century Gothic Bold font, bursts through the white background like a wall (much like the Kool-Aid Man), and bounces toward and away from the viewer against a sky background. "PC-FX" then zooms-out to the right as the sky background changes into another white background, and a weird jack-in-the-box looking shape (colored yellow, purple, and pink with a purple spring inside) appears to the left, piece-by-piece. Two copyright dates for NEC and Hudson Soft (which had the rights to all of NEC's consoles as far back as the original PC Engine) appear below, and we fade out to the menu, which takes place on a rainbow background.

Variant: When starting up a game on a computer using the PC-FX GA board, the sky background becomes more orange.

Music/Sounds: A "BURST!" sound as "PC-FX" crashes through the wall, then a synth choir sound (like DiC, OPB, etc.) when the text zooms out.

Availability: Seen when an NEC PC-FX is turned on. The system itself is very hard to find, as it did not sell very well (it only sold in Japan, selling about 100,000 units, and putting out only 62 games).