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PC Engine CD-ROM² System

CD-ROM²（シーディーロムロム）

No. 0064 Dec 1988

PC Engine CD-ROM² System

Manufacturer
NEC / Hudson Soft
Type
Add-on / peripheral
Note
Model CDR-30 (CD-ROM player) + IFU-30 (interface unit)

03

Overview

Overview

A CD-ROM player and interface unit that connect to the PC Engine, bundled with a System Card. Wikipedia describes it as making the PC Engine the first video game console to use CD-ROM as a storage medium.

Name in Japan
CD-ROM²
Name in North America
TurboGrafx-CD

04

Industrial Design

Industrial design

Consists of two devices: the CD player itself and an interface unit that connects it to the console and provides a unified power supply and output.

05

Technical Specifications

Technical specifications

Model number
CDR-30 (CD-ROM player) + IFU-30 (interface unit)
Memory
64 KB SRAM buffer, 64 KB ADPCM DRAM, 2 KB backup SRAM
Generation (Wikipedia)
4th generation

Values are from the sources below. Where sources differ, see the notes under Sources.

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Controller

Controller

No verified information.

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Media Format

Media format

  • CD-ROM (approx. 540 MB)
  • Audio CD

  • CD-ROM

    Optical discs sharing the audio CD format, used for data. Sources describe the PC Engine's CD-ROM² (1988) as the first use of CD-ROM as a home console game medium.

08

Launch & Context

Launch & historical context

Release (Japan)
4 Dec 1988[2]
Launch price (Japan)
¥59,800(初期は分売：CDR-30 32,800円＋IFU-30 27,000円。1989年4月以降セット販売57,300円)[2]
Units
2.02 million(sold, as reported · Japan · )[2]

In 1991 the Super CD-ROM² followed, updating the BIOS to version 3.0 and increasing buffer RAM from 64 KB to 256 KB.

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Notable Games

Notable games

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Gallery

Gallery

    11

    Timeline

    Timeline

    1. 1986.02.21Famicom Disk SystemNintendo
    2. 1987.10.30PC EngineNEC
    3. 1988.10.29Mega DriveSEGA
    4. 1988.12.04PC Engine CD-ROM² SystemNEC
    5. 1989.04.21Game BoyNintendo
    6. 1990.04.26Neo Geo AESSNK
    7. 1990.10.06Game GearSEGA

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    Related Consoles

    Related consoles

    About NEC Home Electronics →

    13

    Sources

    Sources

    1. [1]
      TurboGrafx-CD

      Wikipedia (EN)

      ReferenceAccessed 2026-09-26
    2. [2]
      CD-ROM2

      Wikipedia (JA)

      ReferenceAccessed 2026-09-26
    3. [3]
      「PCエンジン」生誕37周年！ カートリッジではなくHuCARDを採用。コンシューマ機世界初のCD-ROMにも対応

      GAME Watch (Impress)

      NewsAccessed 2026-09-26
    Notes on conflicting sources

    North American TurboGrafx-CD date conflicts (EN TurboGrafx-16 article: November 1989 at US$399.99; JA CD-ROM2 article: 1989-08-29) — omitted. EN Wikipedia unit figure is 1.92 million (CD-ROM² and Duo combined) vs JA 2.02 million (with Super CD-ROM²). Later models CD-R30 / CD-R30A exist per JA Wikipedia.

    14

    Image Credits

    Image credits

    No images are used on this page.