FAQ - SEGA MEGADRIVE Frequently Asked Questions Version 2.0
SEGA MEGADRIVE
Frequently Asked Questions
Version 2.0
18/11/99
Written and updated by: Chris Foulger (ChrFoulger@aol.com)
This F.A.Q is written from a European (U.K) point of view if anyone
in the U.S or Japan or Hong Kong wants to help me out with regard to
Genesis/Megadrive information I will be more than happy.
Thanks to the following contributors
------------------------------------
Jon Dyton (jon@wibble.powernet.co.uk)
Jon Legg (legg_jon@hotmail.com)
Ron Kiser (kiser@mciworld.com)
Andy Welburn (andrew.welburn@cableol.co.uk)
Matthew Nielson
Distribution notice
-------------------
You are free to distribute this F.A.Q as long as it is kept intact,
Including this notice if you have any corrections or additional
for this F.A.Q let me know.
Also if you put this F.A.Q on your website let me know and I will send
you the updates.
Disclaimer
----------
This F.A.Q is not endorsed by Sega Enterprises or Sega Europe,
or anyone associated with Sega.
No guarantee is made to the accuracy of the information
in this F.A.Q All trademarks and copyrights are recognized.
Where to find the latest version this F.A.Q
--------------------------------------------
WWW: http//www.digitpress.com
http//www.gamefaqs.com
E-MAIL: by request to megadrive@angelfire.com or ChrFoulger@aol.com
Contents
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I. General information
1.1 What is the Sega Megadrive?
1.2 What is the history of the Megadrive?
1.3 What is the difference between Megadrive 1 and 2?
1.4 What are the technical specifications of the Megadrive?
1.5 What are the aesthetic differences between each Megadrive?
1.6 How many different variations of the Megadrive exist?
1.7 What pack-in variations exist?
II. Compatibility
2.1 can you play Japanese or U.S games on a U.K Megadrive?
2.2 Can you play Master System Games on A Megadrive?
2.3 Can you play Game Gear games on a Megadrive?
III. Software
3.1 What games are Available for the Megadrive?
3.2 Who is Sonic the Hedgehog?
3.3 How many sonic games are available for the Megadrive?
3.4 Do any games use extra chips for better graphics?
3.5 In Japanese text mode are there any differences to U.K games?
3.6 What Japanese games had different names in the U.K & U.S?
3.7 What unreleased games were there?
3.8 What games were released in the U.K but not in the U.S?
3.9 what game packaging variations are there?
IV. Accessories
4.1 What accessories are available?
4.2 What multiplayer accessories exist?
4.3 What are J-carts?
4.4 What cheating cartridges are available?
4.5 Were there any unreleased accessories?
V. Upgrades
5.1 What is the Mega CD?
5.2 What are the technical specifications of the Mega CD?
5.3 What is the 32x?
5.4 What are the technical specifications of the 32x?
5.5 Is it possible to play import 32X games on a U.K 32X?
VI. Trivia
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I General Information
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1.1 What is the Sega Megadrive?
The Sega Megadrive was the first true 16 bit video game console and
was made by Sega.
1.2 What is the history of the Megadrive?
After the 1984 videogames market crash cartridge based consoles had
lost acceptance in the consumer market in favor of cheaper disk and
tape based systems such as the Sinclair Spectrum and Commodore 64.
About 1987 things were beginning to change in the marketplace and
consoles were selling again. Master System achieved reasonable sales
of 230,000 units in Europe and the Nintendo N.E.S in America that was
estimated to be installed in one out of three American households.
Sega saw that time was right for a more adventurous console and more
importantly that people were willing to pay for more expensive
Cartridge software.
16 bit machines had already reached home computer users by 1987
through the Commodore Amiga and the Atari ST. A cheap powerful Instant
loading console based on this technology that was more than capable of
replicating the best arcade games of the time was bound to be a top
seller.
The first version of the Megadrive was released in Japan in October
1988. The four games available Super Thunderblade, Alex Kidd and the
Enchanted Castle, Altered Beast and Space Harrier 2 showed how much
better the Megadrive could handle arcade conversions compared to the
equivalent home computers. A large profitable grey import market
quickly grew up around the Megadrive and N.E.C's also powerful console
the PC Engine Supplying gamers with these consoles raising awareness
of the Megadrive before the official release.
The Megadrive was renamed Genesis and released in America in September
1989. sports simulations were very popular in America especially John
Madden and NHL ice hockey that helped sell the machine. The early
launch of the Genesis in America gained a lot of the market from
Nintendo before they could get their 16 bit Super Nintendo on sale. A
European launch followed in November 1990 and caught the Christmas
rush.
Virgin Mastertronic distributed the Megadrive in the U.K. The first
U.K shipment of 30 000 units went to the larger chain stores of the
time Comet, Dixons, Rumbelows and Toys R Us and sold steadily for
£189.99. Western third party publishers like Electronic Arts, Disney
and later on Acclaim were eager to sign up to produce games for the
Megadrive expanding the variety of titles available, Showing that the
Megadrive could handle more than just arcade titles, Castle of
Illusion starring Mickey Mouse from Disney and Populous from
Electronic arts being two such examples. But is was with the release
of Sonic the Hedgehog and a subsequent pack-in that saw sales really
take off. A year later a sequel was created (sonic 2) and Backed by
an imaginative marketing campaign (sonic 2uesday) became the
Megadrive's biggest selling title ever. The Megadrive caught the media
attention in a really big way and Sega sponsored all kinds of sport,
music events and other products, continuing to bring awareness of
video gaming to a wider audience and increasing sales.
The successful sales continued and two separate upgrades were produced
a CD ROM drive and a 32 bit adapter although due to poor software
support they never achieved the same success as the base unit.
The Megadrive was the early 90's most successful console and gained a
huge library of arcade conversions, sports and original titles. The
machines early Success lay in its accurate conversions of popular
arcade games. Later on in its life innovative marketing wide range of
great software and a £99.99 price point for the Megadrive played a
part in its Success. The last games released were at the end of 1997
in Europe and late 1998 in America.
1.3 What is the difference between Megadrive 1 and 2?
In an effort to increase the sales and reduce manufacturing costs the
Megadrive was redesigned in 1993 and this was known as the Megadrive 2.
The technical specifications remained the same but the casing and
some
features were changed as follows:
* Headphone jack removed
* A/V port changed to a custom multi out port that now provides stereo
sound to T.V’s (previously only Mono was outputted on Megadrive 1
as the headphone port was used for stereo sound.)
* RF out port removed
* Auto switching RF lead included
* Power lead port made smaller and a different AC adapter used
* Push button power switch
Japanese Megadrive 2
There are also a few slight differences to the Japanese Megadrive 2 as
listed below, although the size and shape remain identical the western
version of the Megadrive 2.
* Slide switch remained
* Japanese Version had red colored flaps on the cartridge port
* no power LED
* The text "high grade multi purpose intelligent terminal" embossed
just behind the cartridge port
* Packaged with a 6 button pad as standard
1.4 What are the technical specifications of the Megadrive?
C.P.U Motorola M68000 16 bit processor running at 7.67Mhz
Sound C.P.U Z80a running at 3.58 MHz
Main sound chip Yamaha YM2612 6 channel FM
Additional sound chip 4 channel PSG
Palette 512
Onscreen colours 64
Maximum onscreen sprites 80
Resolution 320 x 224
Outputs separate R.F aerial and R.G.B outputs (AUX connector - 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 Mega CD
2 nine pin joypad connectors on the front of the machine.
1.4 What are the aesthetic differences between each version of Megadrive?
Aesthetics for the Megadrive 1 width 28.5 cm height 5 cm length 22.5
cm the original Japanese Megadrive had a Gloss black finish. There was
large logo in gold "16 BIT" On the circular molding on the top of the
Megadrive also around this circle was printed the text "multi purpose
intelligent terminal". At the bottom of the circle is a square section
in purple. To the left side of the console are the cooling
vents. "Sega Megadrive" is printed in white on the lower right of the
console. The reset button on the machine is blue as is the start
button on the joypad.
For the American Genesis the "16 BIT" logo was slightly smaller. Text
in white was printed around the circular molding and reads "High
Definition Graphics" A large Genesis logo was printed in front of the
cartridge port. The reset button and start button on the joypad are
both now white.
The European Megadrive had the text "high grade multi purpose
intelligent terminal" printed around the circle and the smaller "16
BIT" logo was used. "Sega Megadrive" was printed in the same place as
the Japanese machine. The Reset button and start button are white.
There is also an Asian Megadrive had no text printed around the circle
and the larger "16 BIT" logo was used. "Sega Megadrive" was printed in
the same place as the Japanese machine. The Reset button and start
button are blue. This is often mistaken for a Japanese Megadrive
But internally is identical to the U.K Megadrive and has a PAL output.
1.5 What different variations of the Megadrive exist?
Original Japanese version (Megadrive 1) featuring headphone jack and
AUX port with Japanese language settings and a cartridge lock.
American version was identical but renamed Genesis and had English
language Settings. The cartridge lock was removed.
European version similar to the Genesis version but converted to
display PAL 50HZ signal and English language settings.
Slight changes to the Megadrive 1 removed EXT port and added the message
"produced by or under license from Sega Enterprises" to the boot ROM.
1993 totally redesigned Megadrive 2 more square shaped design removed
the headphone jack and only one custom multi output for sound and
picture (See 1.3).
Wondermega was a combined Megadrive and Mega CD by J.V.C that had
improved sound capabilities, MIDI connections, a karaoke function, 2
inputs for microphones and SVHS connector. Originally came packed with
a four game CD called Game Garden that featured the Megadrive game
Flicky, a quiz game and Pyramid a puzzle game. The Game Garden disc is
also compatible with CDG (CD and Graphics) Enabled CD players. A later
pack in Japan was a platform game Wonderdog by Core. The Wondermega
also included a built in sound to graphics program that showed
graphics that moved when a music CD was inserted.
The enhanced audio capabilities of the Wondermega were its main
selling point. Additional peripherals included a cartridge "Wonder
MIDI" that let you create music and connect to MIDI compatible devices
another add on was a music keyboard "Piano Player" that allowed you
with the additional software to learn to play the keyboard and create
music.
The Wondermega was also redesigned and the machine was given a softer
more curved look and some of the extra features and connectors were
removed and the joypads were remodeled infra red joypads.
Renamed Xeye when launched America and did not get a European release.
Multimega was a Portable Megadrive and Mega CD combined and was aimed
at a more affluent market. The launch price for the Multimega was a
staggering £350.00. Although it had no built-in screen it could double
as a portable CD player and was powered by 2 AA batteries that only
had enough power to run the CD payer. To play Megadrive and Mega CD
games the Multimega had to be plugged into the mains.
The portable CD control buttons are on the front of the console (play,
stop, Etc.) and a backlit L.C.D displayed the track number. An extra
line out port was provided for connection to stereo equipment.
The Multimega was known as the CDX in America.
Nomad was a fully portable Megadrive with a built in 3-Inch colour
L.C.D screen that could also be connected to a television using the
same scart or RF lead as the Megadrive 2.
There was a second joypad port on the bottom of the machine for two
player games.
The Nomad played normal Megadrive cartridges so it had the same wide
range of software as the Megadrive. The Nomad had 6 fire buttons for
use on 6 button games. The Nomad was powered by 6 AA batteries that
you fitted to a case that clipped to the back of the unit. A
rechargeable battery pack and AC adapter were also available.
The Nomad was released in America in late 1996 for $149.99 but did not
receive a European release.
Megatech was an arcade machine that featured 10 interchangeable
Megadrive games in a juke box style arcade cabinet. This was first
released about 1989 fitted with the best Megadrive games available at
the time, like Thunderforce II, Altered Beast, Tetris, Last Battle,
Space Harrier 2 and Golden Axe. The games could be changed at any time
and later titles available included sonic. The games were identical to
the Megadrive versions, even the game cheats worked!
The games for this cabinet were supplied on a Japanese shaped
Megadrive cart although they are slightly heavier. The labels on the
games were silver and red and only had Megatech and the name of the
game printed on them. These carts were not compatible with a standard
Megadrive due to the extra information that was stored on them to run
the second monitor,a different length edge connector, number of pins,
pinouts, and spacing.
A second smaller 9-inch monitor was built into the top of the cabinet
and displayed instructions for each of the games. But you paid to play
for a timed period as the time ran out the playing screen would flash
green to inform you that extra credits would needed be inserted to
continue playing.
Megajet was a handheld Megadrive that could be rented for use on Japan
airlines flights. There was no built in screen as you plugged the unit
into the L.C.D television that folded out from the armrest.
The cartridges plugged into the top of the Megajet and it had 6 fire
buttons for compatibility with games like Street Fighter 2. There was
a second joypad port on the bottom of the Megajet for 2 player games.
A selection of four games were available to hire for the flight
including Super Monaco GP 2 and Sonic, although you could use your own
games if desired. The Megajet was also available in limited quantities
at Japanese retail outlets. And was marketed as a portable Megadrive.
Laseractive this was a laser disc player from Pioneer that could take
plug in modules and one of these could play Megadrive and Mega CD
games. It could also display Megadrive graphics over Streamed video
from compatible Laser discs.
The format was known as Mega LD and only a few games were released on
this format. 3D glasses were also produced for the Laseractive for use
on compatible disks. Other modules could play PC Engine games and
karaoke.
Mega PC a PC made by Amstrad that could play normal Megadrive games
and PC games. This was launched in Japan as the Terra drive but I
believe that it was a different company cooperating with
Sega. Released in the U.K in 1993 redesigned and changed casing colour
from dark grey to cream. The specs were 386sx running at 25Mhz, 1 MEG
RAM and a 40 MEG hard disc IBM compatible. Mega PC could also be
connected to a Mega CD. An updated version was later released called
the Mega Plus with improved specs 486, 33Mhz with 4 Meg RAM.
MSX Two of the AX series of machines that were only ever released in
the Arab countries by a company called Universal were capable of
playing standard Megadrive cartridges. The AX330 MSX had a cartridge
port on the top of the machine and had 4 built in MSX program’s
Calendar, painting, Arabic writing and English writing. The other MSX
machine the AX990 came packaged with 50 program’s but I would think
that they are likely to be either MSX program’s or an unofficial
Megadrive multi cart.
1.6 What pack-in variations exist?
Megadrive 1 packs have included the following games at some time
Altered Beast plus one joypad (original pack-in £189.99)
Megadrive 1 altered beast, one joypad, Moonwalker plus Moonwalker
video (special offer pack-in)
Megadrive 1 Sonic the Hedgehog plus one joypad
Megadrive 1 World Cup Italia 90 plus one joypad
Megadrive 2 packs-ins have included:
Street Fighter 2, virtua racing, Sonic 3, The lion king, Aladdin, EA
Double Headder (John Madden, NHL ice hockey) ,Sonic 1,Sonic 2 and
Sonic collection.
Megagames one (columns, world cup Italia 90, super hang on)sonic &
Streets of rage, sonic 2,
Megagames 6 packs there were three different versions of these which
were on 6 game multi game cartridges.
Variation 1 (Revenge of Shinobi, golden axe, streets of rage, columns,
world cup Italia 90, super hang on)
vol.2 (World Cup Italia 90, Alien Storm, Super Thunderblade, Columns,
Super Monaco GP, Super Hang on)
vol.2 variation 2(Revenge of Shinobi, golden axe, streets of rage,
columns, sega soccer, sonic)As of November 1999 this pack is still
available from the catalogue shopping store Argos.
Another limited edition value pack in set was Megagames 3 (Alien
Storm, Monaco GP and Super Thunderblade) Ecco the Dolphin and European
Club Soccer.
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Compatibility
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2.1 can you play Japanese or U.S games on a U.K Megadrive?
Originally the Japanese games did not fit a European Megadrive because
the cartridges were a slightly wider and a different shape to the
European games. This was easy to overcome by either using a converter
cartridge that simply extended the Megadrive’s cartridge connector
and then you just plugged the Japanese game on top.
Or the other way you could overcome this was by cutting two notches
out from the side of the cartridge port so the Japanese game would
fit.
Early Genesis games had no protection at all and could played without
a converter or any modification. July 1992 saw extra protection being
added to a lot of the games by means of a software program that
checked the language setting on the machine and what signal the
Megadrive is outputting (N.T.S.C 60Hz Japan & America P.A.L 50Hz
Europe). If the game was being played in the wrong territory a message
usually appeared telling you that the game was incompatible. Again
this was not too hard to overcome new converter cartridges could be
brought similar to the Japanese converters but on the back of the
cartridge there were a set of dip switches and if you set them in the
right order the import came would play. The settings were often shown
on a sticker attached to the front of the cartridge. The second method
requires an internal conversion to be made to your Megadrive and two
switches need to be added to change the settings of the Machine. One
switch toggles between Japanese and English text the other toggles
between 50Hz & 60Hz display.
The Megadrive could then be set to a European, American or Japanese
hardware configuration.
2.2 Can you play Master System Games on A Megadrive?
Yes but you will need a Powerbase Converter this sits on top of the
Megadrive and plugs into the cartridge port and allows you to play
the Master System cartridges and cards and the pause button was on the
front. You can use light gun and 3D glasses games and any other master
system accessories. A new version was released in Europe that was
compatible with the Megadrive 2 but the card port was removed so you
could no longer play card games or 3d glasses games. A third party
Master System converter called the Mega Master and was distributed by
Fire and Datel in the U.K this looked like the Megadrive 2 converter
but could not play card games the pause button was a toggle switch on
the side.
2.3 Can you play Game Gear games on a Megadrive?
Unfortunately not, although a converter was talked about in some
magazines and referred to as the Mega Game Gear there was no official
announcement was made.
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III. Software
-------------
3.1 What games are Available for the Megadrive
There is not enough space in this F.A.Q to list them all but there is
possibly more than 900 games including variants released during the 10
year life span of the Megadrive. The most popular games were the sonic
series, streets of rage series, Fifa soccer series, John madden
American football series, Street fighter II special champion edition
and the Mortal Kombat series.
3.2 Who is Sonic the Hedgehog?
Sonic was and still is Sega’s mascot character. After witnessing the
success of Nintendo's character Mario and the success of his games
Sega realized that they needed a strong character and game to help
push Megadrive sales. Development started in April 1990 they looked at
their previous mascot character for the Master System Alex Kidd, but
he did not have a real mass market appeal, and was too similar to
Mario.
They decided to make a new Character by holding an internal design
competition at Sega Japan. There were 100 competition entries out of
which 4 finalists were chosen. The 4 designs were a wolf, a bulldog, a
fat man (who was developed into Dr. Robotnic) and a blue hedgehog
created by artist Maoto Oshima. He came up with the character by
crossing Felix the cat with Mickey Mouse and the developing the
character further. The Sonic game was finally released in July 1991
and was a staggering success.
Several more Sonic games were made across all the Sega machines
including 2 arcade games (Sonic the arcade game & Sonic Fighters).
3.3 How many Sonic games are available for the Megadrive?
The games are, Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic 2, Sonic 3, Sonic and
Knuckles, Sonic spinball, Sonic collection (sonic 1,2 and DR Robotnic’
s mean bean machine on one cartridge) and Sonic 3D also known as Sonic
Blast in America.
Also on available on Mega CD Sonic the Hedgehog CD and on 32x Knuckles
Chaotix featured sonic characters but not Sonic.
Sonic made cameo appearances in a few games as follows Soiell, Art
Alive, Wacky Worlds, Ultimate Soccer, Joe Montanna football and was on
the loading screen on some Sega released Mega CD games. DR. Robotnic’
s mean bean machine was a puzzle game with sonic’s main enemy
DR. Robonic taking the lead role.
3.4 Do any games use extra chips for better graphics?
Like the Super Nintendo there is a Megadrive game that uses extra
chips to improve graphic performance.
Virtua Racing from Sega uses the Sega Virtua Processor created in
conjunction with Hitachi.
The specifications of the SVP are as follows:-
Chip Command Type: DSP, 1 command, 1 clock
Speed / Instruction per second: 23MHz (23 mips)
ROM: I-ram (instruction RAM) 2048 bytes
Polygons per second 300-500 (16 colours) with 4 interrupts
RAM: D-RAM (optional installation)
Sound expansion: 2 channels PWM (pulse wave Modulation)
Data BUS bandwidth: internal / external 16 bits
3.5 In Japanese text mode are there any differences to U.K games?
Yes quite a few Megadrive games include bilingual text options some
that I am aware of are as follows:
Mystic Defender / title reads Kujuki 2(Spellcaster 2)also the intro
changes from a page of text telling the story to an animated Cinema
featuring the games characters.
Legend of Ju Ju/ title reads Toki
Ghouls and Ghosts /title reads Daimakumaira, restart points in the
game are different.
Revenge of Shinobi /title reads Super Shinobi
Truxton / title reads Tatsujin
Streets of rage 1 & 2 /title reads Bare knuckle
Mercs /title reads Commando II in Japanese text
Super Fantasy Zone / cinemas are in Japanese text
Cyberball / Modem option is added to the select screen (not selectable)
Also if you use a Powerbase converter there are some Master System
games that show Japanese text or different titles screens when played
through a Megadrive with Japanese settings.
3.6 What Japanese games had different names in the U.K & U.S?
Lots of games were reprogrammed for western releases to satisfy the
growing demand for new software. These changes were often more obvious
then the bilingual text options that were already built into some
games (see 3.5). Sega and particularly Renovation who specialized in
converting games for release in the west converted the most games in
this way. So far the games that I know of that have different names to
the Japanese releases are:-
Axis FZ – Final Zone
Devils Crush - Dragons Fury
Super Masters – Arnold Palmer Tournament Golf
Volfied - Ultimate Qix
Final Blow - Buster Douglas Boxing
Shiten Myooh - Shadow Blasters
Runark - Growl
Assault Suit Leinos – Target Earth
Magical Hat Adventure - Decap attack
Soko Ban - Boxxle
Wani Wani World - Berlin wall
Junkers High - Outrun 2019
Puyo puyo - DR Robotnic’s Mean Bean Machine
3.7 What unreleased games were there?
Due to the fact that the Megadrive was released in three main
territories there are some games that were announced for a western
release but never appeared. Even between the America and Europe some
games were not released (see 3.8) for example X-perts and Vectorman 2
were due for a European release but never arrived although they were
released in America.
These are the games that to the best of my knowledge were announced
but never released in any area.
Wacky Races
Chaos Engine 2
Last Survivor (AKA Battle Isle)
Fireteam Rogue - Interplay
monster hunter (Menacer game)- Sega
Power Drift - Sega
zero Tolerance 2
Zeewolf
Dino racer
Stephen Segal,
House of Fun (a license from the band Madness)
Akira
Shadow of Yserbius
Interplanetary Lizards
Smaartvark (A.K.A Arnie the Ardvark),
Elite (Megadrive version also contained 32X code)
Kartoon Kombat
Mall rats (based on the film).
Four Sega VR games
Outlaw Racing
Iron Hammer
Nuclear Rush
Matrix Runner
all of which were 16 MEG cartridges.
3.8 What games were released in the U.K but not in the U.S?
This section is under construction and more titles will be added, so
far I know of the following PAL only titles. Some of these were also
released in Japan.
Super Fantasy Zone, Alien Soldier, Megaman the Willey Wars, Wrestle
War, Jimmy Whites Whirlwind Snooker, Micro machines Military, Brian
Lara Cricket, Brian Lara Cricket 96.
3.9 what game packaging variations are there?
Often due to the various different shaped cartridges made by the many
companies releasing games for the Megadrive this lead to a wide
variety of different cases for the games. One small thing to note
about Japanese import games is that they have no have no tags on the
top to hang the games from shop racking.
A few of the Sunsoft games were sold in mini boxes that were half the
size of the standard boxes, The lager companies produced their own
dedicated cases and carts Taito capcom and Namcot all had there name
printed inside the box and on the back of the carts. Card boxes were
used for later releases in the US and Accolade games were released in
card boxes that the top lifted off like a box of chocolates. Virtua
Racing needed a special box due to a much larger cartridge although
the size for the case was not changes only the cartridge holder on the
inside of the case.
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IV. Accessories
---------------
4.1 What accessories are available?
Menacer Sega's own light gun the biggest light gun ever created for a home system.
The Menacer was made up of three interchangeable sections, the main
section could be used as a pistol and to this a stock could be added
for extra support and the third section was with twin sights that
clipped on to the top.
The Menacer was powered by 6 AAA batteries and was not connected by a
wire to the Megadrive but by an Infra-red beam that relayed signals to
a receiver box that sat on top of the television. The Menacer was
advertised as the most accurate light gun ever. The Menacer retailed
for £60.00 and came packaged with a 6 game cartridge that was mostly
target shooting games. The best game was based on the Megadrive game
Toejam & Earl which the player fired tomatoes at enemies from the
Toejam & Earl game.
Only three other games were Menacer compatible T2 the arcade game,
Bodycount and Corpse Killer on Mega CD (there is also a 32x CD version
of Corpse Killer)
Arcade power stick this was Sega's own large sturdy three-button
arcade style joystick and was available at launch. There was
adjustable speed rapid fire for each button. The Japanese version and
a micro-switched joystick but the U.K and U.S versions used rubber
contacts.
Analogue control pad this was called the AX-1E controller and was a
black, circular shaped pad. There was an analogue sick and an analogue
throttle control as well as 4 independent fire buttons and a start
button.
This controller was compatible with Afterburner II, F1 Hero and Galaxy
Force II. This pad was only released in Japan.
Infra red control pads sold as a complete set that included a receiver
box and two three button controllers. These were sold as a dual format
peripheral due to the compatibility between Megadrive and Master
System controllers.
6 button joypad Sega made a 6 button joypad for use on games like
Mortal Kombat and Street fighter II that required more than the 3
buttons that the standard Megadrive joypad had.
Features included a rolling base to the D pad and 6 buttons there
is a mode button on the top right of the pad that if held down when
turning on the Megadrive the pad would set to a three button
mode. This was needed for games that were incompatible in 6 button
mode I.E Forgotten Worlds, Alien3, Golden Axe 2 and Decapattack.
The mode button could also be used as a extra fire button or a select
button. The Japanese version of the 6 button pad was slightly smaller
with a shorter lead and a purple start button.
Arcade Power Stick II a joystick similar design to the Arcade Power
Stick except with 6 buttons and a mode button.
CD ROM drive (see 5.1)
32 bit adapter (5.3)
Interactor One of the more unusual Sega add ons was this controller
that was a sort of virtual reality controller. The Interactor had
eight sides and was placed flat on the floor. Infra red beams were
projected up from each of the sides.
The player stood in the middle and broke the beams at different hights
and combinations to produce the moves on screen. compatible mostly
with
fighting games. only released in America.
Mega modem before Sega TV and Edge 16 modems was the Mega Modem that
was only released in Japan in 1991. This plugged into the EXT port at
the back of the original Megadrive. A Sega game net was set up to use
the system but was not a success. The Mega modem was due for release
in America under the name "Tele-Genesis Modem". Three games were
launched with the Mega modem Cyberball by Tengen and the two other
games were a version of Mar Jong and a Baseball game. One of the later
released compatible titles was Advanced world war simulator and all
the instruction books for these games included the Mega modem manual
in the back section.
Batter Up a baseball controller for use on baseball games that are
popular in America. Made by Sports Sciences and was only available in
America.
TV Golf a Golf controller for use on EA golf games like the PGA series
the controller was shaped like a golf club. A second unit plugged into
the control port one and was placed on the floor in-front of the
player. A very expensive item that sold for about £100. This was also
produced by sports sciences.
Master System converter (see 2.3)
Various converters to play imported games made by third party
manufacturers
2 button mouse made by Sega primarily for use on role playing games,
This mouse was a standard shaped mouse with red buttons the left mouse
button had identifying lines on it. The most interesting feature is
that this mouse can double as a trackball by turning it upside down,
pushing the ball acted as another fire button.
Mega mouse A 3 button mouse was also released this had an extra button
but could not be used as a trackball and was only released in America.
2 different modems for use in America. Edge 16, X band
Sega TV Cable games adapter was created in cooperation with Time
Warner and Sega. The adapter was a similar shape to the Master System
converter 2 except it was a bit larger and had a cable TV connector on
the side of the unit. You paid monthly fee like a standard
cable/satellite channel and selected games were provided to play for a
limited time. Playable previews of Games due for release were also
made available on the Sega TV channel. The idea being to promote more
sales of the game on release. Games could not be saved on the adapter
so if you liked a game you could go and buy it. Sega TV was only
available in a few areas of the U.K that had cable TV although not all
areas that had cable were given the option of Sega TV. The service was
eventually stopped late 1997 after a run of a couple of years.
Hyperscore this was a plug through cartridge for recording high scores
that could then be displayed on Teletext. The game Cartridges were
plugged into the top of the Hyper score and then the high scores were
saved into it. Next there was a phone number you could call and upload
your score by means of a speaker on the front of the Hyperscore
similar to a tone dialer. All the game scores were then put into a
national league and the highest score won a prize. Scores could be
checked by going to the Hyperscore Teletext page. The Hyperscore was
made and marketed by Hasbro.
Multi game selector For Genesis this was an adapter that plugged into
the cartridge port and had spaces for ten different games. The idea
was similar to a juke box so you could select to play different games
easily by just pushing a button. This was a third party peripheral
that was only released in America.
Justifier this was Konami's own gun for use on their titles. This was
a more standard looking light gun shaped like a revolver. For two
player games the second gun plugged into the bottom of the player one
gun. the player one gun was pale blue player two's was
pink. Compatible games were Lethal Enforcers 1 and 2 (also the Mega CD
versions) Snatcher and Corpse Killer on Mega CD (there is also a 32x
version of Corpse Killer)
The Justifier was not compatible with Menacer software.
Sega Powerstrip The complete Sega Megadrive set up required four power
supplies Megadrive, Mega CD, 32x and a television as the adapters were
quite large often normal extra plug extension sockets would not
fit. Sega released their own extension unit colored blue with red sega
text printed along the top. This provided 5 plug sockets. Only
available in America.
Miracle keyboard For Genesis this was a complete music keyboard add on
for learning to play the keyboard. A separate game cartridge plugged
into the Megadrive and contained several practice programs and games
to help you learn to play. This was a third party peripheral that was
only released in America. Cost of this peripheral was over $200 due to
the size of the keyboard.
4.2 What multi taps exist?
There are two official multi tap adapters available one from
Electronic Arts and one from Sega, and one third party multi tap
adapter made by Gamester.
The E.A tap was a small adapter that plugged into both the joypad
ports and the four ports were on the front.
The Sega multi 4-player adapter plugged into the player 2 joypad
port. A lead extended from the port to a small box that had four ports
and a sliding selector switch on the top. The selector switch had five
settings 1 to 4 and Multi if you were playing a 2 player game you
could choose which port to use and multi selected the four player mode
five players could be used as a controller could be plugged into port
one.
Colour stickers were provided with the adapter that could be attached
to each of the pads to identify each players controller.
One obvious advantage of the sega adapter was that two adapters could
be used for eight player games like the Japanese released J League
Soccer.
Unfortunately they were incompatible with each other Electronic arts
Four score only worked with E.A games and the Sega multi player
adapter only worked with the sega games. The Gamester adapter provided
the ideal solution to this situation by being compatible with both
multi tap standards. Later released games were programmed to work with
both Sega and E.A adapters.
4.3 What are J-carts?
J-Carts were made by Codemasters and these were cartridges with two
joypad ports built in. The idea being that if you brought the game you
could enjoy multi player games without the need for an additional
multi tap. This was especially useful because as there were already
two incompatible multi tap’s available.
4.4 What are J-carts were made?
Only Codemasters made J-carts the titles are as follows:-
Pete Sampras tennis
Pete Sampras tennis 96
Micromachines 2
Micromachines 96
Micromachines Military
Super Skidmarks
At a later time some of these titles were produced on standard
cartridge for a lower price
4.5 what cheating cartridges are available?
Action Replay made and distributed by U.K company Datel who also make
various console peripherals. They also made a second version the Pro
Action Replay 2 that had a built in code finder. The Action Replay
could be used to play Japanese import games and if the correct codes
were found import games with programmed protection could be played.
Game Genie by Codemasters distributed in the U.K by toy manufacturer
Hornby. The Game Genie had a disadvantage over the Pro Action Replay
and that was due to the fact that the codes had to be provided by
Hornby although you could create your own codes it was very difficult.
4.6 Were there any unreleased accessories?
Yes there were these are the unreleased accessories that I am aware
of.
Virtual reality headset that was shown with four games (see 3.6)at the
1993 C.E.S show in Chicago U.S.A. Sega VR (The official name) was due
to go on sale in America in December 1993.
Graphics tablet was announced when the Megadrive was launched it was
delayed and eventually cancelled. It is possible that development was
changed over to the Sega Pico (an educational graphics tablet).
Keyboard and 3.5 in disk drive were cancelled due to the poor
performance of the Mega Modem in Japan.
Neptune a 32x and Megadrive combined similar in shape to a Megadrive
2.
Only one non-working prototype of this is known to exist, which is
only a case mock up for display purposes and does not contain any
working electronics.
Analogue steering wheel designed by AM2 for use on Virtua Racing was
also shown prior to the release of the game but was never released due
to the expense of the wheel. It was later modifications were made the
base of the wheel was changed and then launched as the Saturn Arcade
Racer.
Modular Cartridge containing the Sega Virtua processor as more games
that used the SVP chip were planned this would have reduced the cost
of these games by containing the SVP on the modular cartridge. The
games would then plug in on top containing the game data for the
chip. This would have saved paying for a new expensive SVP chip each
time a new game came out by using this add on.
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V. Upgrades
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5.1 What is the Mega CD?
The Mega CD is a CD ROM drive that plugs into the expansion port on
the side of the Megadrive and allows specially written CD software to
be played on the Megadrive. The Mega CD could also play normal music
CDs both 5 and 3 inch discs and could play CD+G discs. The Mega CD
also improved the graphics and sound of the Megadrive. There are 2
versions of the Mega CD that are technically the same but with
different casings.
The Mega CD 1 Sat underneath the Megadrive 1 and featured a motorized
front loading CD drive. The Mega CD 2 was released at the same time as
the Megadrive 2 and attached to the side of either version of the
Megadrive and had a top loading CD drive.
5.2 What are the technical specifications of the Mega CD?
Main C.P.U Motorola 68000 running at 12.5Mhz in parallel with the
Megadrive’s C.P.U
Graphics processor Custom ASIC chip that could handle scaling and rotation.
CD Drive Single speed CD ROM with a 150 Kbytes a second data transfer rate
CD Buffer 128 K bit CD ROM data cache memory
Sound Stereo P.C.M 6 channel
16 Bit D/A converter
Save memory 64 K bit back up RAM (back up RAM cartridge is also available)
Outputs stereo phono sockets
The Mega CD did not improve the colours on the Megadrive although it did allow the Megadrive to display film footage F.M.V.
5.3 What is the 32x?
The 32x is a 32 bit upgrade unit that plugged into the cartridge port of
the Megadrive. The 32x improved the graphic and audio capabilities of
both the Megadrive and Mega CD. Extra graphic abilities included the
ability to display graphics layered over standard Megadrive graphics
for example on the 32x version of Mortal Kombat II the backgrounds
were made by the Megadrive whilst the sprites were handled by the 32x.
The 32x could also display 50 000 texture-mapped polygons a second and
hardware scaling and rotation.
5.4 What are the technical specifications of the 32x?
C.P.U Two Hitachi SH2 32BIT RISC running at 23Mhz / 40 MIPS
Co processor A new 32x VDP works with the Megadrive’s 68000 and Z80
Palette 32,768 simultaneous colours
Memory 4 MBIT RAM in addition to the Megadrive and Mega CD
sound Digital stereo PCM, programmable sample rates, audio mixing
with Megadrive sound.
5.5 Is it possible to play import 32X games on a U.K 32X?
It is not possible to play Japanese or American imports on a U.K 32X
due to the poor sales of the 32X no converters were produced. If you
have a switched (50/60hz) Megadrive though an American 32X will
work. This is the only way to play import 32X games.
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VI. Trivia
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* DR Robotnic’s Mean Bean Machine was originally a Japanese game
called Puyo Puyo from Compile. The puzzle section remains the same
but the cinemas feature DR. Robotnic trying to take over Sonics
world. This was done to make the game more appealing to the western
audiences.
* Zero Tolerance is a Doom style corridor shooter that has the ability
to link up 2 Megadrive’s and 2 televisions like the link mode seen
in some Playstation games. The link lead was received through a mail
in voucher that was packaged with the game. The link lead plugged
into each of the second joypad ports and was similar to a joypad
extension lead.
* The main bad enemy character in Sonic the Hedgehog Dr. Robotnic is
known as Dr. Eggman in Japan.
* There are 2 versions of Klax available for the Megadrive one is made
by Namcot for Japanese release. The second version was made by
Tengen for the western release. In my opinion the Tengen version is
the better.
* Some of the best music ever produced for the Megadrive as heard in
The Revenge of Shinobi and streets of rage was created by a top
Japanese musician Yuzo Koshiro he actually had a Megadrive sound
chip built into his recording studio. Music CDs could also be
brought in Japan with his Megadrive music re-mixed.
* Joe Montanna American Football II was the first game ever to feature
a full running commentary as heard in a lot of sport CD games
today. This was revolutionary advance in game sound and was even
featured on a U.K science and technology program (Tomorrows
World). There was also a Sportstalk baseball released in the US.
* Sega's Sonic license was taken into new territory with a Sonic fruit
machine this licensed gambling machine was released through Deith
Leisure a subsidiary of Sega Europe who also run Sega's arcade
machine business in the U.K.
* Virtua racing caused an interesting problem for some people with
cordless phones, the frequency of the SVP chip was picked up by the
phones and they would ring.
* The rarest Megadrive game ever released was the original Phantasy
Star. There were only ever 1000 of these ever made and it was only
sold in Japan. The game was a straight port of the Master System
version with no improvements as it ran on the Megadrive’s internal
Master System chip.
THANKS & SEE YOU IN THE NEXT UPDATE.
[END OF TEXT]
(FAQ source)