Turrican
Turrican — frequently asked questions
- What platforms is Turrican on?
- Turrican was released on BlackBerry OS, Commodore C64/128/MAX, ZX Spectrum, Sega Mega Drive/Genesis, Atari ST/STE, TurboGrafx-16/PC Engine, Commodore CDTV, Amiga, Amstrad CPC, PC-Engine/TurboGrafx-16, Game Boy, CDTV.
- When did Turrican release?
- Turrican was first released on December 31, 1990.
About Turrican
Turrican is a 1990 video game programmed and designed by Manfred Trenz. It was first developed for the Commodore 64 by Rainbow Arts, but was ported to other systems later. In addition to concept design and character creation, Trenz personally programmed Turrican on the Commodore 64. A sequel, Turrican II, followed 1991 for the Commodore 64 and other platforms.
Summary via IGDB.
Game details
- Platforms
- BlackBerry OS, Commodore C64/128/MAX, ZX Spectrum, Sega Mega Drive/Genesis, Atari ST/STE, TurboGrafx-16/PC Engine, Commodore CDTV, Amiga, Amstrad CPC, PC-Engine/TurboGrafx-16, Game Boy, CDTV
- Developer
- Rainbow Arts
- Publisher
- Ballistic
- Game modes
- Single player
- Themes
- Action, Science fiction
Details via IGDB.
Reception
Every version compared
Prices, contemporary reception and the studio credited for each release
| Platform | Year | Loose | Complete | Sealed | Period reviews | Fake risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sega Genesis | 1991 | $18 | $73 | $198 | 2 reviews | Low |
Also released on: BlackBerry OS · Commodore C64/128/MAX · ZX Spectrum · Sega Mega Drive/Genesis · Atari ST/STE · TurboGrafx-16/PC Engine · Commodore CDTV · Amiga · Amstrad CPC · PC-Engine/TurboGrafx-16 · Game Boy · CDTV. We haven’t priced or authenticated those versions yet.
Collector value & authenticity
Sega Genesis · PriceCharting sold data · Verified 2026-10-29
Other releases and variants
| Release | Loose | Complete | Sealed |
|---|---|---|---|
| European (PAL) release | $26 | $75 | $562 |
How often it sells
- Loose: about once a month
- Complete: about once a week
- Sealed: about once a year
Prices marked “few sales” rest on about one recorded sale a year, so treat them as a rough guide: the next copy could sell well above or below. Expect to wait for one to come up.
Sales frequency from PriceCharting's completed-sale records, as of 2026-10-29.
Price over time
- Loose
- Complete
A loose copy sold for about $1.54 in Oct 2007, $19.99 five years ago, and $17.99 as of Oct 2026.
Show as table
| Month | Loose | Complete |
|---|---|---|
| Jan 2008 | $1.20 | — |
| Jan 2009 | $0.99 | — |
| Jan 2010 | $1.99 | — |
| Jan 2011 | $2.88 | — |
| Jan 2012 | $6.99 | — |
| Jan 2013 | $8.50 | — |
| Jan 2014 | $8.25 | $20 |
| Jan 2015 | $9.50 | $47 |
| Jan 2016 | $11.00 | $33 |
| Jan 2017 | $11.90 | $41 |
| Jan 2018 | $19.39 | $42 |
| Jan 2019 | $14.00 | $54 |
| Jan 2020 | $21 | $49 |
| Jan 2021 | $16.48 | $56 |
| Jan 2022 | $17.44 | $81 |
| Jan 2023 | $19.99 | $56 |
| Jan 2024 | $14.99 | $59 |
| Jan 2025 | $14.87 | $71 |
| Jan 2026 | $15.29 | $47 |
| Oct 2026 | $17.99 | $73 |
Monthly price estimates from PriceCharting's completed-sale records, sampled quarterly, through Oct 2026.
Release record
| Territory | Date | Barcode |
|---|---|---|
| North America | July 1991 | 015605031045 |
| Europe / PAL | 15 October 1991 | — |
- Region
- NA+EU
- Released
- 1991
- Authenticity
- Low
A faithful if dated port of the computer run-and-gun, and a US cart priced a bit above the middle.
Turrican began on the Commodore 64 in 1990. The Genesis version was ported by The Code Monkeys and published by Accolade, and it came out in North America in July 1991 and in Europe in October 1991. The Genesis game was later modified into Universal Soldier, a tie-in with the film.
Opinions split at the time. Mean Machines found it identical to the computer original and not strong enough against Genesis platformers like E-SWAT, Spider-Man and Sonic, though the play was fun. Mega Play's reviewers were very positive about the variety of weapons and techniques, and one called it the ultimate action game for the Genesis.
What the press said at the time
| Mean Machines Sega Issue 3 | December 1992 | 73% |
| MegaTech Issue 18 | June 1993 | MT RATING: 55% |
“With gameplay tweaks and enhancements, this could have been good. As it stands it's too easy and not exciting enough.”
“A fairly enjoyable platform/shooting game which has one flaw - it starts out fairly tricky, but gets eas ier the further you go!”
“Loads of powerful weapons which are quite good fun. … The graphics aren't up to much, and the gameplay is frustratingly hard to begin with (touching a baddie for just an instant is enough to drain all your energy) and gets progressively easier!!?”
How the Sega Genesis version differs
Mean Machines expected a beefed-up version of the Amiga original, but found the Megadrive game identical to the computer version, which hurt it against the system's other platformers.
The same review said the game gets very easy after a difficult first stage, so competent players should finish it within a few sessions.
Also on other platforms
Commodore 64 · Amiga · Atari ST · Amstrad CPC · ZX Spectrum · PC-Engine/TurboGrafx-16 · Game Boy · CDTV · TurboGrafx-16
| Amiga | Factor 5 |
| ZX Spectrum | Probe Software |
| TurboGrafx-16 | The Code Monkeys |
| Game Boy | The Code Monkeys |
- Commodore 64. The Commodore 64 original became popular for technical achievements, showing graphics many did not believe possible on a C64.
- ZX Spectrum. The Spectrum version went to number 2 in the UK sales charts, behind Shadow Warriors.
Before you buy
Among US carts it sits above the middle. The European loose cart usually costs more than the US one, while a complete European copy usually costs about the same. A complete US copy means the case, cartridge and manual.
Turrican screenshots
Watch on YouTube
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