The Casio Loopy

Picture pending. Picture of my Loopy, taken on February 9, 2015.

Background/History

The Casio Loopy was a system released in Japan on October 19, 1995, marketed to female gamers.

Casio is a very large multinational electronics company, founded in Japan in 1946. They are primarily known for their calculators and watches, but have released a wide variety of electronics over the years. In October 1983, they launched their first video game console, the PV-1000. This console was very unsuccessful, being discontinued within a matter of weeks after its introduction. Casio threw their hat into the video game market again in 1995, with the Loopy.
The Loopy was launched in the "fifth generation" of video game consoles. These consoles, launched in the mid-1990s, typically had 32 or 64 bit CPUs and usually used CD-ROM technology. This generation saw 3D graphics become widespread.

What Makes it Obscure?
The Loopy was unlike any other video game system ever released. The system was exclusively marketed to female gamers. Like its predecessor, the PV-1000, the unusually-named Loopy did not sell well, and today is a very rare system. The Loopy used cartridges, at a time when most consoles were switching over to CD-ROM. The Loopy also featured a thermal printer; players could print out game screenshots to create stickers. An optional accessory, called Magical Shop, even allowed the Loopy to be connected to another device (such as a VCR) and make screenshots and print out stickers. Even the color is unique; the system, its cartridges, and its accessories are purple. Cartoon hearts are prominently featured on the system box and cartridge boxes. The system was released only in Japan and only 10 games were ever released for it. The game library included many dating and "dress up" games.

Other Aspects of the System
The system used a 32 bit RISC CPU. The controller for the Loopy featured four front buttons (labeled A, B, C, and D) and two shoulder buttons, and was the same color of the console. A mouse was also included with the console. There was only one controller port.

Here's a video of the Loopy I took on February 9, 2015: