Model 1

Say hello to my boxed Sega Genesis. This was my last retro pick-up before COVID-19 put Canada on lock-down.

It was actually full on Winter when Nintendo Joe and myself visited Retro Game Bros.; where I made this purchase. I was on the hunt for some affordable boxed NES and SNES games when I noticed this boxed ‘launch edition’ Sega Genesis. “Launch Edition” wasn’t a thing back in the day but what was important to me is that this is the packaging variant I got as a kid. (“Variant” also wasn’t a thing back in the 90’s.)

I already had a very similar boxed Genesis but the condition of this replacement is much better and I could not resist. When I asked for the price the Retro Game Bros. asked me to offer a fair price and after seeing a ‘sold listing’ for a similar boxed Genesis for $150 USD that is what I offered; which was about $200 CAD at the time. Knowing that I’d have my previous boxed Genesis to sell helped make this an easy purchase.

My new boxed Genesis (above) is compete with everything: console, hook-ups, game pad, Altered Beast, adapters, manual and a Golden Axe poster. All in really great condition!

If you look close you can see the original retail price of $189.99. Because it’s says Kay Bee Toys I’m pretty sure that price tag is in USD. I don’t think Kay Bee Toys ever made it to Canada. $189.99 is the launch day price of the Genesis in the US which makes me believe this is a pretty early release; not that it’s particularly important but just cool trivia.

My now dethroned boxed Genesis you can see below. It’s OK. The hardware is in very good shape. It’s only the box that’s a bit battered. This one cost me $40 CAD (~$30 USD) years ago.

This variant is actually pretty interesting. I believe this is one of the last Altered Beasts boxes to sell at retail. You can see a black sticker stating ‘Game Cartridge Not Included, Sold Separately.’ It’s placed right over the area of the box that says (if it was visible) “Included Arcade Hit Altered Beast”. I image when Sega was slowing down on the Altered Beast bundle they had more consoles to unload before moving onto new packaging and new bundles.

I had no idea how satisfying this upgrade would be. I was pretty content with the battered and beat-up box but now that I have a new champ I find it very gratifying!

For kicks have a look at why I don’t bother with eBay anymore; here’s what some serious gougers feel this same boxed Genesis is worth:

Between $800-$2,800 CAD (~$600-$2,000USD) Really?! This is why I haven’t had an eBay account since Dec. 2016. And I don’t miss it at all.

What did Nintendo Joe end up scoring at Retro Game Bros.? He purchased a used copy of Metroid: Samus Returns for his Nintendo 3DS. And like a good lad he’s already beaten it.

Go visit Nintendo Joe at his Instagram NintendoJoe1985 and MyNintendoDimension.

For a very long time I’ve mostly ignored Sega’s CD add-on for the Sega Genesis. Known as the Sega CD in North America and the Mega CD for the rest of the world.

Back in the day it came out when my interest in my Genesis was fading (shame on me) and for decades beyond when I got into collecting I put most of my attention on just cartridge games for the Sega Genesis and Sega Master System.

Then in the past year after diving in and getting a chance to try out some really great Sega CD games (Snatcher, Dark Wizard, Popful Mail and Lunar) this add-on hardware that was, in its day, tainted by terrible ‘Full Motion Video (FMV) Games‘ has since won me over.

So much so, that I took some time to take a really pretty picture of it.

I’m going to start by saying the Model 2 Sega CD is just fine. Sure, optical drives are prone to wear out but that being said Sega made a pretty good piece of kit.

I’ve read that the model 1 Sega CD is actually more prone to failure and is harder to find as it had a shorter production run before being replaced by the model 2.

But there is something about the look of the Model 1 Sega CD that I really like. Stacked with a Model 1 Sega Genesis it some how pulls off looking part retro and modern; and combines to make something very unique and just plain awesome.

What I don’t love about the Model 1 Sega CD is that it typically costs about double the Model 2. So if the Model 2 Sega CD’s cost about $100 then we’re looking at about $200 for a Model 1 Sega CD.

What did I pay for my very pretty Model 1 Sega CD?

It cost me $240 CAD (~$180 USD). But wait! Just hold on… I can explain. I first saw this exact unit at one of my favorite local retro game shops (Retro Game Bros.) about 6-10 months ago when it’s sticker price was $350 CAD (~$260 USD). It had this steep price tag because it had been fully refurbished. It had the motor and laser replaced in addition to a full capacitors replacement. In fact, I’m told that the laser is a NOS Sega CD laser. The exact model originally used for the Model 1 Sega CD. I don’t know if that really matters but if nothing else it is cool and note worthy.

It’s my hope that this translates into a Sega CD unit that is going to have a very healthy and long life span. And that is easily worth the $40 premium.

I was able to get it for $240 discounted from $350 because of a wildly amazing Black Friday day sale put on by the glorious Retro Game Bros. Thank you guys!

And the steep discounts didn’t stop there. Oh, no… they did not.

There was another item at Retro Game Bros. that I had previously passed up and as fate would have it I found myself staring at it again this past Black Friday.

For $140 CAD they had a good condition Model 2 Sega CD box. Complete with packing and papers, everything except the hardware. I didn’t really want it at $140 but I asked about the sale price and they told me it would be $120 but before I could even blink they offered it up for $100 CAD (~$75). This is what I call a feel good price. Thanks guys!

Now my model 2 Sega CD will get packed away in a good condition Sega CD box while my new Model 1 Sega CD becomes the newest show piece for the man-cave. It still needs the Sewer Shark game disc (which wont be hard to find) but otherwise it’s complete.

Here’s a another photo of my New Sega CD along with one of my more recent favorite Sega Genesis games, Tanglewood.

I also bought a very nice Alien Crush for the TurboGrafx-16 from Retro Game Bros. that I already owned and it should have been Devil’s Crush that I bought… but I don’t want to talk about that blunder any longer. Kijiji will fix it.

Don’t forget to head over to see Nintendo Joe at My Nintendo Dimension for his Black Friday Retro Game Bros. scores.