Release date
JP October 29, 1988
NA August 14, 1989
PAL November 30, 1990
I was the weird kid on the block in the late 80's with a Master System, which was great but the schoolyard battles of say Ghost House vs Castlevania were obviously not in my favor. come spring of '89 though, that all changed! A couple friends a few houses down frantically called me over to see Altered Beast, Thunder Force 2, Space Harrier 2 & i wanna say Last Battle? our 8-bit systems were home to many distant ports from the vastly superior arcade offerings, and this was one of the first times I felt I saw that gap close a bit - Tekken 3 would do it years later, and of course the Dreamcasts' Soul Calibur was the one to finish the cycle for me (a fitting end to both closing said gap & sega's hardware finale, i thought).
A year later, we'd mostly play Moonwalker until I finally got my own system with Phantasy Star 2, my first real JRPG (i still have a polaroid shot of the ending!). To this day, I've hadsome of my best co-op experiences on it, from ToeJam & Earl, Streets of Rage 1/2, Bonanza Bros and so many others - i managed to wear out several pads & an arcade stick, and i don't drop those things. Good times.
Not to indulge the aforementioned schoolyard battles too much here, but while SNES is (rightfully) cheered on here for many classics, the Genesis had more than its fair share of fantastic arcade action, JRPG, SHMUPS and many others - if you only play the many rehashed collections Sega puts out now, you'd really miss out.
On that note: what were some of your lesser-known favorites? Mine were:
- Valis 3
- Rolling Thunder 2 (never could find 3!) oh yeah MERCs too
- Gunstar Heroes is kind've a given
- General Chaos
- MUSHA (Elemental Master was dope)
- Shining Force 1 & 2 are still better than any Fire Emblem
- ESWAT
- Wonder Boy in Monster World
- Starflight
- Strider was like the best thing ever
- Castle/World of Illusion - also, the superior Aladdin (i remember Quackshot being fun too)
- Flashback
- Zombies ate my Neighbors (though this is cheating for me, as i had it on SNES)
- Shadowrun
- El Viento
- Thunder Force III + Lightening Force
- Battle Mania Daiginjō/Trouble Shooter 2
- Alisia Dragoon
- Mega Turrican
- Punisher (Spider-Man was fun but Sega-CD had definitive version!)
- Mutant League Football
- The Haunting
- Alien Storm, i'm like the only guy who liked this better than Golden Axe
- Bonanza Bros was my shit - I dug the Crack Down port too
- Micro Machines (Super Off Road too!)
Useful Links:
There's a ton of good info at http://www.sega-16.com/
Sega Genesis / Megadrive 101: A Beginner's Guide
Games That Defined the Sega Genesis / MegaDrive
The cover project - Great place to find official and custom box art to use for Universal Game Cases.
finally: anyone thinking of getting a Genesis :If you're really into getting the good sound, you want the one actually labelled "HIGH DEFINITION GRAPHICS" (it wasn't on all the Genesis 1s), and lacking copyright protection screen at the beginning. The Walkman-style headphone jack gives it great bass. Pop in SoR2.
Look at this god damn ninja man, man.
Also, Streets of Rage 2 is the better game, but Streets of Rage 1 has the better cover. Also the first level soundtrack is the best in the entire series.
Genesis was so dope.
Also, Streets of Rage 2 is the better game, but Streets of Rage 1 has the better cover. Also the first level soundtrack is the best in the entire series.
Genesis was so dope.
By RedHoodedOwl Go To PostI regret never playing Gunstar Heroes.
You should. It's available on Steam and 3DS eShop, but sadly not on the PS4/X1/Switch (knowing SEGA though, it's probably a matter of time before they release their usual Mega Drive compilations on those systems).
By Specter Go To PostAltered Beast is a fun game and it's better than the first Golden Axe. Fight me.
sure, but Alien Storm >>>> Golden Axe #factsonly
By VendettaRed07 Go To PostYakuza, Shenmue, Genesis OTs?
You're killing it my dude
thank you m'man, i talks bout what i know
By VendettaRed07 Go To PostPretty good video on the system's launch and all the launch games.
i really do gotta follow CGQ - but i love stewy of Generation-16, he's doing a legit chronological genesis/megadrive retrospective and it takes a minute to drop but it's great
also bigup mark from CGR for all the genesis love
By IrishNinja Go To Postsure, but Alien Storm >>>> Golden Axe #factsonly
Alien Storm is good. I remember the shooting sections being hard as hell with the pad, though.
By RedHoodedOwl Go To PostCan we talk about other Sega consoles?
see i was down to either make a classic sega thread or just threads for master system, saturn, dreamcast etc in addition tho this one - ya'll let me know, i'm about this life
By Specter Go To PostAlien Storm is good. I remember the shooting sections being hard as hell with the pad, though.
not gonna front, rapid fire was good but it's a weird balance of trying to hit the background for hidden life/energy and not getting tagged
me, i dug the breakup of the monotony otherwise
By IrishNinja Go To Postsee i was down to either make a classic sega thread or just threads for master system, saturn, dreamcast etc in addition tho this one - ya'll let me know, i'm about this life
I can wait for the Sega Saturn OT.
By RedHoodedOwl Go To PostI can wait for the Sega Saturn OT.
y'all just say the word, saturn is in heavier rotation in this household than PS4 and that's saying something
Glad to see all these retro threads popping up IrishNinja. Only missing the 240p pixel masterace and Retro thread.
I am planning to get into the Blast Processing family this year. It is a bit difficult at times to decide which Genesis/Mega Drive to get. Upon investigation I have noticed that the earlier models are best for sound. Will get a Japanese Mega Drive as I already use a framemeister.
Hope to eventually get a PVM monitor but kinda doubt that will happen anytime soon. Will have to reluctantly get an old standard consumer TV.
I never played much of Sega other than Sonic here and there so been missing out I know. I cant wait to play Street of Rage, Shining Force, Beyond Oasis and plenty of other classics soon.
I am planning to get into the Blast Processing family this year. It is a bit difficult at times to decide which Genesis/Mega Drive to get. Upon investigation I have noticed that the earlier models are best for sound. Will get a Japanese Mega Drive as I already use a framemeister.
Hope to eventually get a PVM monitor but kinda doubt that will happen anytime soon. Will have to reluctantly get an old standard consumer TV.
I never played much of Sega other than Sonic here and there so been missing out I know. I cant wait to play Street of Rage, Shining Force, Beyond Oasis and plenty of other classics soon.
I spent a lot of my gaming time this year playing through the Genesis collections on the PSP & PS3 (platinumed it). The Phantasy Star games still hold up if you approach them in the right mindset. I finished the first 3, partway through IV now. And the Shinobi games are still damn good. Trying to finish Shadow Dancer before polishing off III.
By storaføtter Go To PostGlad to see all these retro threads popping up IrishNinja. Only missing the 240p pixel masterace and Retro thread.
it's already in the wild fam
http://slaent.com/thread/1240518/
By IrishNinja Go To Posty'all just say the word, saturn is in heavier rotation in this household than PS4 and that's saying something
I wish SEGA would expand that fancy retro compilation they have released on Steam to include SMS/GG/SEGA CD/32X/Saturn/mid 80's-90's arcade games. There's nothing wrong with Mega Drive's library but I wish their retro releases weren't limited to just those same 30 games over and over. SEGA Forever was trying to change that, but AFAIK it's pretty much dead.
Thanks for this!
My schedule has recently cleared up a bit, so now I can finally finish those games I never could when I was a kid.
My schedule has recently cleared up a bit, so now I can finally finish those games I never could when I was a kid.
By IrishNinja Go To Posty'all just say the word, saturn is in heavier rotation in this household than PS4 and that's saying somethingNot just for you. Over here it's been a rotation of Switch, Sega Saturn and Dreamcast for the past year almost. :)
Actually, this one just came in last week.
Oh and for some reason I'm missing seeing the Mega Drive part next to Genesis in the title. ;)
Also, if you decide to make a Saturn OT, and want to create a nice header, feel free to use these anyway you want if you like:
edit: hmm. Looks like imgur doesn't like transparent png files. :-/
If you like them without the white background I can send them directly.
By meppi64 Go To PostOh and for some reason I'm missing seeing the Mega Drive part next to Genesis in the title. ;)
Seconded.
I love my Genesis I still go back and play and finish some games every couple of years.
The more obscure games I have memories of are:
New Horizons - Ship exploring game.
King's Bounty - I love the fact you can replay and finish this game the same day like 20 times.
General Chaos - I would handicap myself on purpose to make the game more interesting.
Gain Ground - Same as King's Bounty; This is the only game ive ever played where I think Easy and Normal where harder difficulty modes than Hard.
I could keep going but i'll only post those few. There is one Sega obscure game that i played that I can't remember. I think the game had a top down view and was maybe divided into four screens even in single player. Basically you would either choose a race and the begging of the game or maybe hire more troops as you went along ? (its all really fuzzy). The races where all Dungeons and Dragons types like Orcs / Stuff like that.
My biggest Sega regret is that ive never played a Yakuza game due to being older and life getting in the way.
The more obscure games I have memories of are:
New Horizons - Ship exploring game.
King's Bounty - I love the fact you can replay and finish this game the same day like 20 times.
General Chaos - I would handicap myself on purpose to make the game more interesting.
Gain Ground - Same as King's Bounty; This is the only game ive ever played where I think Easy and Normal where harder difficulty modes than Hard.
I could keep going but i'll only post those few. There is one Sega obscure game that i played that I can't remember. I think the game had a top down view and was maybe divided into four screens even in single player. Basically you would either choose a race and the begging of the game or maybe hire more troops as you went along ? (its all really fuzzy). The races where all Dungeons and Dragons types like Orcs / Stuff like that.
My biggest Sega regret is that ive never played a Yakuza game due to being older and life getting in the way.
Add CrackDown and Wardner no Mori to that list. Such great games that barely ever come up for discussion.
Oh and Wonder Boy III: Monster Lair! And Dune: The Battle for Arrakis.
Oh and Wonder Boy III: Monster Lair! And Dune: The Battle for Arrakis.
By IrishNinja Go To Postit's already in the wild fam
http://slaent.com/thread/1240518/
Whoopsies I spoke too soon as always. Thanks!
Any recommendations of youtubers who look at lesser known sega classics? Snesdrunk on youtube is pretty good with his obscure recomendations.
By AliasGreed Go To PostI could keep going but i'll only post those few. There is one Sega obscure game that i played that I can't remember. I think the game had a top down view and was maybe divided into four screens even in single player. Basically you would either choose a race and the begging of the game or maybe hire more troops as you went along ? (its all really fuzzy). The races where all Dungeons and Dragons types like Orcs / Stuff like that.
Gain Ground?
It wasn't Gain Ground ; thats one of the few games I played / loved. Simple yet fun. I'll find it someday searching youtube.
By Specter Go To PostGain Ground?
Sorry for the quick double post but I found it. It was Battle master
By meppi64 Go To PostAdd CrackDown and Wardner no Mori to that list. Such great games that barely ever come up for discussion.
Oh and Wonder Boy III: Monster Lair! And Dune: The Battle for Arrakis.
I adore crack down and yeah, winder boy 3 is a huge favorite of mine, gotta add that...finally played 4 last year and man what a treat that was.
anyone else rocking a Mega Everdrive? man I love that thing
Damn, no Shining love yet? I get you said lesser known titles (then listed Ginstar Heroes) but should give Shining Force some love.
It was the game that for me into RPGs of all sorts. Didn't really 'get' StarTropics as a kid, FFII was too slow when I first played it, hadn't heard of Phantasy Star. Put tons of hours into Shining Force, beating the game multiple times and really grew to like 'cultivating' a team, which transferred over to other RPGs.
Preferred Mutant League Hockey over Football, enjoyed the bodies floating under the ice as you played and the fighting.
Don't think it was a lesser known title, but always had a soft spot for Cyborg Justice. The action is garbage, but making your cyborg was fun.
Haven't got an Everdrive for the Genesis yet, want to, but will probably wait.
It was the game that for me into RPGs of all sorts. Didn't really 'get' StarTropics as a kid, FFII was too slow when I first played it, hadn't heard of Phantasy Star. Put tons of hours into Shining Force, beating the game multiple times and really grew to like 'cultivating' a team, which transferred over to other RPGs.
Preferred Mutant League Hockey over Football, enjoyed the bodies floating under the ice as you played and the fighting.
Don't think it was a lesser known title, but always had a soft spot for Cyborg Justice. The action is garbage, but making your cyborg was fun.
Haven't got an Everdrive for the Genesis yet, want to, but will probably wait.
Hi.
Elemental Master is good fun.
I am particularly fond of (most of) the Toaplan ports. Truxton, Fire Shark, Twin Hawk, Slap Fight MD, Snow Bros., Wardner Special, etc.
I'm pretty sure the Sega CD version of Lords of Thunder is better than the TG16CD version, contrary to popular belief.
Elemental Master is good fun.
I am particularly fond of (most of) the Toaplan ports. Truxton, Fire Shark, Twin Hawk, Slap Fight MD, Snow Bros., Wardner Special, etc.
I'm pretty sure the Sega CD version of Lords of Thunder is better than the TG16CD version, contrary to popular belief.
By Specter Go To PostAltered Beast is a fun game and it's better than the first Golden Axe. Fight me.Altered Beast is a better game than the first Golden Axe simply because the former isn't completely obnoxious to play on a very basic level (i.e. without pumping credits or hemorrhaging lives).
Yeah, wonder boy 4 is fantastic. So glad it finally got an English release.
Don't have any everdrives myself cause I have this weird hang up on playing original copies on original hardware.
But that has gotten so expensive over the past couple of years, and I don't have as much disposable income as I used to have with buying a house and all.
Although for fan translations and such, I keep going back and forth on getting a couple of everdrives or not.
Still, those things aren't cheap eather.
Quick edit.
I never got very far into the top down Shining Force games. Mainly because I get so easily distracted by anything new that comes out or other retro games I buy. I really need to learn some self control. ;)
But I loved shining in the Darkness. Never completed it though.
I somehow missed out on Shining the Holy Ark despite being a huge Saturn fan. Finally bought a Pal copy last year but haven't played it yet. Again, I need to learn how to focus more.
Oh an I have a big soft spot for Toaplan!
Same with Psykio, which is why I'm so excited for their future Switch releases.
Don't have any everdrives myself cause I have this weird hang up on playing original copies on original hardware.
But that has gotten so expensive over the past couple of years, and I don't have as much disposable income as I used to have with buying a house and all.
Although for fan translations and such, I keep going back and forth on getting a couple of everdrives or not.
Still, those things aren't cheap eather.
Quick edit.
I never got very far into the top down Shining Force games. Mainly because I get so easily distracted by anything new that comes out or other retro games I buy. I really need to learn some self control. ;)
But I loved shining in the Darkness. Never completed it though.
I somehow missed out on Shining the Holy Ark despite being a huge Saturn fan. Finally bought a Pal copy last year but haven't played it yet. Again, I need to learn how to focus more.
Oh an I have a big soft spot for Toaplan!
Same with Psykio, which is why I'm so excited for their future Switch releases.
Got a 64 Everdrive and love it. Need to get one for the Genesis and SNES.
I still like playing the games on cart, but it is really nice just having one cart right there with everything on it. Being able to switch games without getting up and getting the game is great when you just want to 'channel surf' games. Play a couple races of Rush, maybe play a level or two of Sin and Punishment, then play a few matches of KI before going in on Majoras Mask is really nice.
And any love for the add-ons? Pretty big fan of the CD, not a huge fan of the 32X, but do like Virtua Racing and Doom. Kind of want to get Blackthorne, but, eh, price and quality. Getting that FMV fix though, along with Lunar and Popful Mail (fuck the haters, translation and VO is great)
I still like playing the games on cart, but it is really nice just having one cart right there with everything on it. Being able to switch games without getting up and getting the game is great when you just want to 'channel surf' games. Play a couple races of Rush, maybe play a level or two of Sin and Punishment, then play a few matches of KI before going in on Majoras Mask is really nice.
And any love for the add-ons? Pretty big fan of the CD, not a huge fan of the 32X, but do like Virtua Racing and Doom. Kind of want to get Blackthorne, but, eh, price and quality. Getting that FMV fix though, along with Lunar and Popful Mail (fuck the haters, translation and VO is great)
By noquarter Go To PostAnd any love for the add-ons? Pretty big fanbase of the CD, not a huge fan of the 32X, but do like Virtua Racing and Doom. Kind of want to get Blackthorne, but, eh, price and quality. Getting that FMV fix though, along with Lunar and Popful Mail (fuck the haters, translation and VO is great)
man I'm a huge sega-cd fan myself (and halfway a 32x apologist haha), we could talk that here but personally, I think the Sega CDs library is underrated enough to warrant it's own thread!
Virtua Racing Deluxe is legitimate. Killer app, actually worth shelling out the money for. Virtua Racing FlatOut is also legitimate. VR is just a good game in general. The Genesis version is ehhhh only ok. Technically impressive, though.
A Sega CD thread should also include TG16CD talk, just because they overlap so much. The eternal Snatcher debate continues on...
A Sega CD thread should also include TG16CD talk, just because they overlap so much. The eternal Snatcher debate continues on...
I just went back and played through Hard Corps last week. Man, that game is incredible. I beat the japanese version which is much easier and then I gave a shot to the US version. After about two days, I managed to beat the shortest route with the robot. Not the joke ending, the one in the space station. Now I'm trying to beat the longest route with the female character. Shit, I think this is now one of my favorite games of all time.
I'm also playing Shadow Dancer here and there, I never tire of that game, a really underrated entry in the Shinobi series.
I'm also playing Shadow Dancer here and there, I never tire of that game, a really underrated entry in the Shinobi series.
By Specter Go To PostCan we get some Dynamite Headdy love in here? Best Treasure game.I've tried but something about it just doesn't click with me. Maybe I need to give it another shot. It took me a while to figure out Alien Soldier but now I absolutely adore that game.
Synamite Headdy is alright, but I'm not a huge fan of it. Dont know what it is, but just feel it is an alright game.
Any plans to do a game club type play through of games in here? Might be a bad time to start one, with November on the horizon, but I do like to have a older game to play when I can't sink into anything.
Any plans to do a game club type play through of games in here? Might be a bad time to start one, with November on the horizon, but I do like to have a older game to play when I can't sink into anything.
By JeanFCP Go To PostI just went back and played through Hard Corps last week. Man, that game is incredible. I beat the japanese version which is much easier and then I gave a shot to the US version. After about two days, I managed to beat the shortest route with the robot. Not the joke ending, the one in the space station. Now I'm trying to beat the longest route with the female character. Shit, I think this is now one of my favorite games of all time.
I'm also playing Shadow Dancer here and there, I never tire of that game, a really underrated entry in the Shinobi series.
Hard Corps is dope because
a) bosses are pattern based; learn it and the game feels fair
b) branching paths/characters was so damn cool
and Shadow Dancer stays crazy underrated; if you love the OG arcade shinobi like i do, there's your sequel
By Specter Go To PostCan we get some Dynamite Headdy love in here? Best Treasure game.
i dig it, i just never sorted if i prefer the US harder one or the JP one thats far more forgiving
not like say Silhouette Mirage where the JP one is the only one worth playing, mind
By R.I.S. Go To PostAltered Beast is a better game than the first Golden Axe simply because the former isn't completely obnoxious to play on a very basic level (i.e. without pumping credits or hemorrhaging lives).
Yeah, I've watched Kim Justice's retrospective on the series where she described GA1 as "strategic" but I find it be a bit sluggish, maybe that's because I grew up with Konami and Capcom's beat'em ups which are much faster-paced by comparison. That's actually why I find Golden Axe II to be much superior.
I've never tried Golden Axe III, but it looks bad, like a barely one step above of a homebrew game. I mean, it looks way worse than the original, which is crazy to me.
By IrishNinja Go To Posti dig it, i just never sorted if i prefer the US harder one or the JP one thats far more forgiving
not like say Silhouette Mirage where the JP one is the only one worth playing, mind
Yeah, one thing I don't really like about this game is a huge difficulty spike halfway through the game. It starts out easy, and then that giant geisha bot pops up out of nowhere and hoo boy.
By IrishNinja Go To Postand Shadow Dancer stays crazy underrated; if you love the OG arcade shinobi like i do, there's your sequelThat's so true!
Till this day I still consider it my favourite Shinobi game even though I can easily understand Shinobi III to be the better game.
It was my first Shinobi besides the arcade game and I clearly remember picking it up in a Tandy shop here back in the day as that was the only shop in town that sold Mega Drive, Master System and even Game Gear games later on.
With nothing to go on but the cover are and the back of the box, picking out a new game for the Mega Drive in it's first year or two always felt like a big adventure. :)
That might have something to do with it, I'm sure.
It's the same way how I picked up Alien Storm, God, I love that game! , Streets of Rage, Quackshot, Truxton, Wonder Boy 3, Alisia Dragoon, Jewel Master and Ex Mutants, just to name a few.
I did a quick scan of my copies of Shadow Dancer and cleaned them up, as I can't seem to find any reviews for it in the magazines I own, which is weird.
I was sure Mean Machines would have covered it, but I guess not. :-/
