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Sega Genesis

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Sega Genesis (known as the Sega Megadrive outside North America) was a 16-bit video game console released in Japan by Sega in 1988. The American release was 1989 and the European release was 1990. It sold for around $200 at launch and was to become Sega's most successful console.

The Genesis initally competed against the 8-bit Famicom system in Japan and the Nintendo Entertainment System in the United States, but although it had superior graphics and sound, had a hard time overcoming Nintendo's ubiquitous presence in the consumer's home. Sega of America competed by focusing on a slightly older user base, with such titles as Altered Beast and the Phantasy Star series.

Eventually, the Genesis' main competition was to become Nintendo's 16-bit Super Nintendo (a.k.a. the SNES) in the United States, over which it had a head start in terms of user base and title numbers. The Megadrive counterpart in Europe also competed with the SNES, while the Japanese Megadrive competed with the Super Famicom, a Japanese version of SNES.

The Genesis continued to hold on to a healthy fan base comprised significantly of RPG fans and sports games fans, but with the release of Sonic the Hedgehog in 1991 began to threaten Nintendo's up-to-then stranglehold on the number one console position in the USA. The release of the highly-anticipated Sonic the Hedgehog 2, coinciding with a rather vicious ad campaign barbed at Nintendo, propelled the Genesis into its heyday, outselling the Super Nintendo for the first time since the SNES's release.

Two add-on components were later designed to enhance the system: the Sega 32X (Sega Mega 32X in Europe and Japan) and the Sega CD (Sega Mega-CD in Europe and Japan). There was also a redesign of the Genesis console itself the Sega Genesis 2, which reduced cost and size by consolidating chips, and integrated stronger region encoding (which broke compatibility with some older games.) The original console itself went through innumerable revisions, unknown to most users save the ones who owned one of the very first consoles, which had trouble playing a few of the newer games. A portable version of the system called the Sega Nomad was released probably too late to ever be successful, though it played the same cartridges as the home console (with some notable incompatibilities.) Sega's successor to the Genesis was the Saturn.

A Sega Master System/Mark III converter was availible for the Genesis/Megadrive. The Powerbase converter is on top of the console and plugs into the cartridge port. On the Master System, the pause button was on the front. All Master System accessories, including the light gun and 3D Glasses, can be used for this converter. A newer version for the Megadrive 2 was released in Europe, but the card port was removed. The Mega Master was a third party Master System converter distributed by Fire and Datel in the United Kingdom. It looked like the official Mega Drive 2 Converter, but the pause button was on the side as a toggle switch. Card games could not be played because of this.

Although Sega had talks about a Game Gear Converter, tentatively named the Mega Game Gear, Sega never made one.

The Sega Megadrive enjoyed considerably more popularity in its native country Japan, and in many parts of Europe was much more popular than the Super Nintendo. However, the Megadrive in Japan was overshadowed by the Sega Saturn, while the Sega Genesis overshadowed the Sega Saturn in North America.

Versions of the Sega Genesis and the Sega Megadrive

  • Sega Megadrive 1 in Japan
    • Japanese-language settings
    • Headphone jack
    • AUX Port
    • Supports Sega CD/Sega Mega-CD and Sega 32X/Sega Super 32X
  • Sega Genesis 1
    • New name (Since "Megadrive" was copyrighted in the United States)
    • English-language settings
  • Sega Megadrive 1 in Europe, Australia, and New Zealand
    • Converted to display Pal 50HZ Signal
    • English-language settings
    • Cannot play Japanese Megadrive games due to shape of cartridge and console
  • Sega Genesis 2 and Sega Megadrive 2
    • New squared shape
    • No headphone jack
    • 1 Custom multi output for picture and sound
  • Sega Genesis 3 and Sega Megadrive 3
    • Cannot support Sega CD/Sega Mega-CD
  • Xeye (named Wondermega for European and Japanese releases) - A combined Megadrive and Mega-CD by JVC
    • Improved sound capabilities
    • MIDI Connections
    • 2 Microphone Inputs
    • SVHS Connector
    • Packaged with a CD called "Game Garden" that had "Flicky" a (quiz game) and "Pyramid" (a puzzle game.) The CD is compatible with CDG (CD and Graphics) enabled CD Players.
    • Later Japanese pack had a platform game called "Wonderdog" by Core.
    • Supported the "Wonder CD" pheripheral that allows someone to create music and connect to MIDI-enabled devices.
    • Supported a music keyboard called the "Piano Player" that allowed you to create music and learn to use the keyboard.
    • Later given a redesign with a softer, more curved look. Some of the extra features were removed, and the joypads were remodeled infra red joypads.
    • Never released in Europe
  • CDX (named Multimega in Europe and Japan) - A Megadrive and Mega-CD console with portable CD Player abilities, aimed at the more affluent market. The British release came at a whopping £350.00.
    • No built-in screen.
    • Could double as a portable CD Player. CD Control buttons (Play, Stop, et al)are on the front of the console. A backlit LCD provided the track number. An extra outline port was provided for stereo equipment.
    • Charged by 2 AA batteries that can only run the CD Player. The unit must be plugged in to play video games.
  • Nomad - see Sega Nomad
  • Megatech - An arcade machine that featured 10 interchangeable Megadrive games in an arcade style cabinet.
    • The games were supplied on a Japanese Megadrive cart, although they are slighty heavier.
    • First released in 1989 with some of the best titles at the time, such as Thunderforce II, Altered Beast, Tetris, Last Battle, Space Harrier 2, and Golden Axe.
    • Games could be changed at any time, and more titles, such as Sonic the Hedgehog, were made availible. The games were identical to their original counterparts, and the cheats also worked.
    • Games were supplied by a Japanese-shaped Megadrive cart, although slightly heavier. The labels were silver and red and only had "Megatech" printed on them. These carts are not compatible with a regular Megadrive/Genesis due to the extra information on them stored to run the second monitor, a different length edge connector, number of pins, pinouts, and spacing.
    • A second, smaller 9-inch monitor is located at the top of the cabinet. It displayed instructions for each of the games. The user pays to play for a certain length of time. When time was starting to run out, the screen flashed green to notify the user that additional credits are needed should he or she want to play more of that game.
  • Megajet - A handheld Megadrive that was rented for use aboard Japan Airlines airliners.
    • The unit has no built in screen, nor does it require one. The unit is plugged into an LCD television that folded from the armrest.
    • Four games for the flight are availible, including Super Monaco GP, and Sonic the Hedgehog. The Megajet was availible in limited quantities in department stores, as it was being marketed in Japan as a portable Megadrive.
  • Laseractive - A laser disc player from Pioneer that can plug in modules. One of these modules allow users to play Megadrive and Mega-CD games. It can display Megadrive graphics over streamed video from compatible laser discs.
    • The Mega LD format only had a handful of games using that format.
    • 3D Glasses have been produced for compatible discs.
    • Other modules could play the PC Engine games and the karaoke.
  • Mega PC (Terra Drive in Japan) - A personal computer released by Amstrad that allows a user to play Megadrive games and to use normal computer applications. The Terra Drive was first released in Japan, but Sega was cooperating with a different company in that case.
    • It was released in the UK in 1993 and the casing color was changed from dark gray to cream.
    • The Mega PC was a 386xs running at 25Mhz. It had 1MB RAM and a 40MB IBM Compatible Hard Disk Drive.
    • The Mega PC can also be used with a Mega CD.
    • The Mega Plus was an updated version of the Mega CD. It used a 486, with a 33Mhz and 4MB RAM.
  • MSX - A name for two machines released only in Arab countries by a company named Universal. The machines were capable of playing Megadrive cartridges.
    • The A330 MSX had a cartridge port on the top of the machine. It has "Painting", "Calendar", "Arabic Writing", and "English Writing" as its programs.
    • The AX990 had 50 programs. They are likely to be an unofficial multicart or other MSX Programs.

Technical Specifications

  • CPU: Motorola M68000 16 bit processor running at 7.67Mhz
  • Sound CPU: Z80a running at 3.58 MHz
  • Main sound Chip: Yamaha YM2612 6 channel FM
  • Additional sound chip: 4 channel PSG
  • Palette: 512 Colors
  • Onscreen colors: 64
  • Maximum onscreen sprites: 80
  • Resolution: 320 x 224
  • Outputs:
    • Separate R.F aerial and R.G.B outputs
    • (AUX connector - Genesis 1/Megadrive 1 only)
    • Stereo headphone jack (Original Model only)
    • 9 pin EXT port (Early original model only
  • Expansion port on the bottom right hand side for Sega CD
  • 2 nine pin controller ports in the front of the machine.

External link

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