Manual Stimulation: PC Genjin (PC Engine)

Like many folks, PC Genjin (aka Bonk's Adventure, if you're a North American like I am) was the game that prompted me to pick up a PC Engine (or, rather, a TurboGrafx-16) back in the day.

I liked everything about it: The big-headed protagonist, the prehistoric setting (and the dinosaur-based baddies that populated it), the punchy, synth-heavy soundtrack. Oh, and I even liked the North American version's box art.

That said, I like the Japanese version's box art even more. And, of course, since the instruction manual of pretty much every PC Engine game serves as its box art (this system's HuCards are housed in fairly typical CD cases), I'm quite fond of the cover of PC Genjin's manual, too.



How does the inside of this platformer's instruction manual compare to its outside? Pretty darn well, if you ask me.



The colorful illustration above is nice enough, of course, but I much prefer the map that takes up the booklet's next two pages.



And then there's the page below, which takes a look inside ol' Genjin's body. You'd think such a drawing would reveal that the character's noggin is reinforced with steel, but that appears to not be the case. Harrumph.



The last few pages of PC Genjin's manual aren't quite as interesting as the ones that came before them, but they do include a couple of nice illustrations of the game's protagonist and bosses.





All in all, PC Genjin's instruction manual is appreciably colorful, but also somewhat lacking in the wacky charm that's packed into the game itself. Thankfully, the manuals made for this title's PC Engine-based sequels are zany enough to make up for this one's slightly mundane content. Look for "Manual Stimulation" write-ups on both booklets to appear here soon.

See also: Previous 'Manual Stimulation' posts