With the almighty power of video game emulation, every classic CD RPG can be played right on your computer! Yup, it's true. They emulate almost 100% accurate to the real thing too. There's not much of a need to own the real thing. The only drawback is that Sega CD emulation is Windows-only at the moment.

>> SEGA CD

Sega CD emulators can emulate Sega CD games via the real thing (or a CD-R copy) through your CD-ROM, or through ISO/MP3 files on your computer. There are two popular Sega CD emulators: Kega Fusion and Gens. Both of them emulate Sega CD games equally good. Kega Fusion is probably the better emulator of choice since it is easier to use and makes Sega CD emulation less of a hassle, versus a few kinks that Gens has. Both emulators can be downloaded from my video game emulators page. But keep in mind that these emulators won't play Sega CD games out of the box. In order for Sega CD games to work at all, they require you to download the proper BIOS first and configure it. You can download the Sega CD BIOS from my video game emulators page right below the Gens and Kega Fusion downloads. Confused? I have detailed tutorials for Kega Fusion and Gens in my emulation help subsite: Video Game Emulation for Newbies.

Q: What's ISO/MP3?
A: ISO/MP3 is how Sega CD games are distributed over the internet. The ISO is the game's data and the MP3s are the audio tracks. The memory size of a Sega CD game in ISO/MP3 form can range from 20-200 MB; average is 40-120 MB. The Kega Fusion and Gens tutorials in my emulation help subsite Video Game Emulation for Newbies cover usage of ISO/MP3s in more detail.

>> TURBOGRAFX16-CD

I highly recommend you use MagicEngine - it's the best emulator for TG16-CD (on both Windows and Mac). MagicEngine can be downloaded from Magicengine.com. This emulator has 3 strings attached: (1) it's not free, (2) like Gens/Kega Fusion, you need to download the proper BIOS first, and (3) games must be burned to CD, for it does not boot ISO/MP3. The registration fee is $29 US. Is it worth paying for? Most definitely! It emulates virtually every TurboGrafx16 and TurboGrafx16-CD game flawlessly. Anyway, go to my MagicEngine tutorial for the CD BIOS and assistance with MagicEngine if you need it.

Don't want to pay for MagicEngine? There's also Ootake, which is a free emulator. It's not as great as MagicEngine, but it's decent. I suppose it's worth giving a try before coughing up some green for MagicEngine. You can download Ootake from my video game emulators page.