Konami delays Turbografx-16 mini due to coronavirus impact

Konami will not meet its March 19 release date for the TurboGrafx-16 and PC Engine mini retro consoles, the company announced Friday. Manufacturing and shipping in Chinese facilities have been affected by the global novel coronavirus outbreak.

“We deeply apologize to our customers for the significant inconvenience, and we humbly ask for your understanding and patience while we keep our close attention on the situation,” a Konami representative said in a statement emailed to Polygon. “We are investing all of our efforts to deliver the TurboGrafx-16 mini as soon as possible, and will provide further details on the deliver timing once confirmed.”

No information is available regarding a new timeline.

The TurboGrafx-16 — known as the PC Engine in Japan — is considered an underdog of the 16-bit console era. The console was originally manufactured by NEC Home Electronics, but Konami announced it was bringing the console back, in mini form, at E3 2019 last year. Fifty-seven games are expected to come with the console’s mini release, including classics like Bonk’s Adventure and The Legendary Axe.

Though the spread of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, may be slowing in China, it’s increasing throughout the rest of the world. The virus will continue to impact production and shipping as countries implement travel restrictions in effort to contain the spread.

Nintendo said in February that it, too, would be impacted by closures and quarantines in China. Production for Nintendo Switch consoles may be delayed, with a shortage of devices shipping to Japan. Developers are affected, too: The Outer Worlds publisher Private Division said its Nintendo Switch port will be delayed indefinitely while Chinese developer Virtuos was closed following the outbreak.

—
Nicole Carpenter
Polygon