There are some games that I really want in the collection.
I’ve started noticing that a lot of these games are the earlier releases from when I was most into my Genesis. Shadow Dancer is definitely one of those games. It’s a great game from a great series. The mechanic of your companion dog was really well done. It wasn’t over powered but still very useful. You could set your dog on an enemy and while the enemy was busy wrestling with the dog he wasn’t able to do anything else allowing you to easily take him out. This is a very good game.
This copy is in excellent condition and cost me $20 including shipping.
For a long while I’ve known about modifications for the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive. There are several very practical things you can do to a Genesis. I’ve kept these ideas at bay because I don’t have any soldering or electrical skills. But despite this I’m slowly starting to warm up to the idea. This first step is a simple one. I’m going to create a list of the mods I would like to have on a Genesis.
The simplest mod for a Sega Genesis is to widen the cartridge slot so that you can insert Japanese Mega Drive games. For anyone who can’t stand of the idea of cutting into their Genesis then the story might end right here.
But for me I have several Genesis consoles and my original system is already modded. My original modded Genesis slot has been widened and regular Japanese Mega Drive games can fit into it. However, those fat Sun Soft cartridges cannot. Not even close. So the plan is to buy a dremel and expand my Genesis slot enough to fit what I believe to be the largest cartridge created for the system.
Here’s TheDamoMonster who does a great job showing us how this is done.
So what do you get for your efforts? You get a Genesis that can accommodate the larger size of the Japanese Mega Drive games. And with the exception of about 62 games that have region locks built into them you’ll be able to play all other Japanese Mega Drive games on your Genesis.
Thanks to markvergeer who put together a list of 62 games that have region locking encoded on them. These games will run only on systems that match the intended region of that cart.
Twenty one of these games were made in 1992 and 1993. The remaining forty two games where made in 1994 or later. Considering the size of the Genesis/Mega Drive game library the amount of region locked games is thankfully pretty small.
Now, back to my mod wish list. And of course we already know number on the list:
1) Widen Genesis cartridge slot to accommodate the largest Japanese Mega Drive Sun Soft carts.
2) Install Region/Language switches.
3) Install composite Video and Audio jacks.
4) Over clock the Genesis.
The region and language mods will ensure we’ll be able to play all games and possibly see first hand the difference in some games that vary from region to region.
Installing composite jacks will hopefully profide the best audio and visual experience you can have on the Genesis. I believe SCART is a better option available to PAL regions.
I only read about over clocking the Genesis recently and it’s something that will only be noticeable in a few scenarios; such as in Sonic split screen mode or when Sonic loose 100+ rings and the system really slows down when trying to draw all those sprites! I’m sure there are other good example of games that could use a little more horse power but you get the idea 🙂
I’ve wanted the Final Zone the Genesis version of FZ Axis for a long while. It’s one of the few examples where the Genesis had different artwork but was also good. Good game, good artwork and very good condition. It’s a nice one for the collection.
Final Zone
Atomic Runner strikes me as an old style video game that managed to find it’s way to the Genesis. Similar to some of the Wonder Boy games where the levels always move to the right forcing the pace of the game. It’s also a one hit and you’re done game. I played it for a bit and it is very hard! It’s in very good condition and looks pretty good for the collection.
I know stopxwhispering over at retro-video-gaming is getting ready to post a review for this one but I’m guessing she still hasn’t beaten it; which for stopxwhispering is a prerequisite for her review. Good luck with this one! It’s a real challenge.
Atomic Runner
Global Gladiators is a franchised McDonald’s game. I wouldn’t have considered it except it was very cheap, complete and in excellent condition. The graphics are surprisingly good.
Global Gladiators
One of my main interests here is Land Stalker and unfortunately it’s not in as good shape as I thought it would be. I’d say the condition is good and I was expecting very good. I went back to the sellers pictures and there is no fault there. Sometimes pictures can be misleading. It’s a very good game but for the money I wish it was in better shape.
Land Stalker
Batman Forever was cheap and in excellent condition. <– That’s a big weakness of mine. But the game play is horrible. Global Gladiators is much much better.
Batman Forever
Final Zone – $24.95
Atomic Runner- $19.95
Global Gladiators – $5.95
Land Stalker- $29.95
Batman Forever – $8.95
Plus $3 for shipping. It wasn’t actually three but I was able to work out a deal and the seller took it out of the shipping cost. ($18.55 per game)
Here are two nice little Genesis additions. Earthworm Jim is in excellent condition but the price snuck up on me. It was listed for $15 on ebay but shipping was pretty high for a single game at $10 and I got hit with some tax for about $3. Ultimate Qix is in very good condition and came in pretty cheap at $10 with shipping.
Earthworm Jim is a good and well known platformer and Ultimate Qix is a good classic puzzle game. I thought Ultimate Qix was a tough but fun game when I tried it out. However if you watch the video clip below you’ll see this player is way too good at it! Looks like once you know what’s going on the game might be very easy.
Although the end result is a copy of Fatal Labyrinth that is complete and in excellent condition, I’m considering my upgrade method a bit of fail. Some time ago I got the copy you see on the left. It is in great shape but it did not have a manual. Much more recently I found the copy on the right on ebay for $15.25 including shipping. The new copy has some damage but I was going for the manual to complete my first copy. I didn’t really stop to think that I have now spent $15.25 on a manual. Ouch! That’s a lot of money when I think of it that way. True I have this other copy that I could sell or trade but I’ve been pretty bad at posting my doubles and extras. I’ll have to get off my butt and make something happen.
What I only just noticed today when taking the pictures below is that these copies are very different. Both are Genesis but the layout is quite different. Fortunately the cover I like more is in better condition.
One in very good shape, the other a little beat-up.
Here’s my copy of Fatal Labyrinth. I’ve only played this game on Sonic’s Ultimate Collection for the xbox360. At the time I was just achievement hunting but I discovered that it’s actually a pretty good game.
I’m starting to notice that most of the games I’ve been picking up have been Japanese Mega Drive games. It’s not really a problem and it wasn’t a conscious decision it just sorta of happened. I can’t really pin-point why but I’m guessing I have had more luck finding Japanese games that meet my interests; such as being in good condition, having good art work/covers and reasonable prices.
When I first put this little blog together I noticed that my collection was very closely split between Genesis and Mega Drive. Right now after the addition of the items below I’m sitting at 121 Genesis titles and 115 Mega Drive titles (and 189 Master System games). It’s not too critical but I think I’d like to keep this split pretty close. Specially since I’ve been mulling over the idea of getting a second book shelf to help deal with my Growing Pains and Seventh Shelf problem. With a close to even split I’ll be able to display Genesis games on one shelf and Mega Drive games on the other. My Master System and Mark III games might span both book shelves taking up one or two shelves at the bottom of the collection.
These five new additions are all Genesis games. I found them on ebay from the same seller. It was Marvel Land that caught my eye first. If I’m going buy one item from a seller I often look to see if they have any others I might want. This helps reduce the per item shipping cost and I often send a message to the seller and make an offer for a bulk purchase. In this case these games cost me $75 including shipping. So that’s $15 per game. Which is less than what it would have cost if I didn’t send the seller an offer. I find that most will agree or at least have a counter offer if you seem reasonable.
Marvel Land is in Excellent Condition. Near mint but not quite.
Marvel Land
Toxic Crusader is also in excellent condition but there are some speckles on the cart label and I can’t tell if that’s how it is or if it’s damaged. So I’m just going to list this one as in Good Condition.
Toxic Crusader
Wolverine Adamantium Rage would be in mint condition except the cart label on it also has speckling similar to Toxic Crusader so again I’m just going to list it as in Good Condition.
Wolverine Adamantium Rage
Super Street Fighter 2 is in Excellent Condition.
Super Street Fighter 2
ToeJam & Earl Panic on Funkotron
ToeJam & Earl Panic on Funkotron is in Very Good Condition. The manual is keeping it from being in excellent condition.
Shadow Dancer
Retro Megabit 