Here in spain was/still is very popular, still have lot of games, machines and accesories

I will take some pictures later when in home

alf

Aui wrote on 2025-01-03, 06:43:

Graphics and color palette are colorful and vibrant and the gameplay in most titles is not too involved but rather snappy and immediate.

that's perhaps the reason. compared to the nes it just seems more colorful and graphics seem sharper, although they may not be technically. there are great games on both nes and sms though, i don't think there is a clear winner overall.

Many parts of the world probably consider the Master System more popular than a NES, which it outsold in Europe by about 40%.

Certainly in my case, everyone around me owned a SMS when I was a kid, whereas until 2017 I had only ever even seen one NES in person!

The absolute dominance of NES in North America does cause a significant skew in English-language reportage that must make its ubiquity seem global in retrospect.

Anyway... Yes I love 8-bit Sonic, and Alex Kidd in Shinobi World FTW.

Technically more colors.... less sound.
In eastern europe it was the explosion of famiclones. And nobody even did not know about sega before the megadrive.

When I was a kid (in the US) my older brother bought a master system before I even had an NES (I was still playing Atari 2600 at this point). He had a black and white TV in his bedroom with the Master System hooked up to it, and I still remember sitting in the old recliner spending hours playing that thing... I have memories of playing:

Double Dragon
Rastan
Shinobi
Global Defense
Pro Wrestling
Alien Syndome
Enduro Racer
After Burner
Safari Hunt
F16 Fighting Falcon (it came on a tiny card!)
Hangon
Outrun
Thunderblade
Zillion 2: Tri-Formation
Great Football
Walter Peyton Football
... and of course, the Snail Maze game built into the system! I discovered it accidentally when I put in a game cartridge along with the F-16 game card, which caused it to load the built-in game for some reason. I remember my Mom and brother being so surprised that I discovered a hidden game. I mean, Snail Maze wasn't that far off from what would have been a $40 Atari game a few years prior. 😁

I don't think I got terribly far in most of the games because I was just so young and the games were tough back then (and generally lacked passwords or saving), but I did actually beat Double Dragon, playing completely solo. What an insanely hard game that was...

Also, at some point in the last 15 years I played Global Defense on an emulator so I could save progress every few minutes and I actually finally beat that. Great gameplay but just waaaay too hard back in the day.

I also played the Switch release of the original SMS Phantasy Star earlier this year and I was super impressed. I know there were some tweaks to this version, including the much-needed dungeon automap, but the quality of this game was just incredible... absolutely no other 8bit console game had the attention to detail and variety that this game had. I think it was the second best game in the series, right behind PSIV. Certainly better than PSII (ugh... the horrible HORRIBLE mazes, repetitive graphics and constant random encounters...) and the mess that was PSIII (I enjoyed it more than PSII but I had to play a community ROMhack to clean it up a bunch)... but I digress.

If I had known Phantasy Star existed back when I was playing the SMS in probably 1990-1993, I would have gone crazy. Looking back on it, the huge variety and the quality of the graphics, combined with a very solid RPG system in late 1987 made The Legend of Zelda from 1986 look like an especially advanced Atari 2600 puzzle game in comparison... I mean, just look at how detailed and fluid the first person movement is in the dungeons. Mind blowing for the time.

The SMS really had some amazing and unique games. Definitely the most underrated console from the 80s\90s, at least here in the US, where the NES and Mario\Zelda kind of took over everything. NES had some really unique lesser-known games too (Solar Jetman, Faxanadu, Excitebike, Star Wars - Empire Strikes Back, River City Ransom, TMNT) but I think the Sega's better graphics really took it to the next level, and there were a lot of very talented developers making use of the system's capabilities.

Aui wrote on 2025-01-03, 06:43:

(some ideas if you want to venture a bit outside of DOS Space) On about every corner of the Net I hear that the Sega Master Sys […]
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(some ideas if you want to venture a bit outside of DOS Space)
On about every corner of the Net I hear that the Sega Master System is the most underrated system of all time. Even in the Wikipedia article there are some citations of a “criminally undervalued machine”. So I will very briefly summarize why I think this system is so awesome and why it is absolutely worth to explore this machine during the remaining holidays even if you have zero nostalgia for that platform (this also includes the GameGear which essentially IS a Master System with a screen size of a mobile phone). In short to me the Master System is the Pinnacle of the 8Bit era on par with the NES but sometimes surpassing it. Even more surprising perhaps I often prefer it to the Mega Drive (aka Genesis). Graphics and color palette are colorful and vibrant and the gameplay in most titles is not too involved but rather snappy and immediate. So here is a short list on how to approach this system:

- “Sonic the Hedgehog” This classic title from the Mega Drive also exists on the Master System. What is less well known is that it is a completely different game. What is even less know is, that it is the BETTER GAME! Hard to believe but true and I am not the first person to notice that. The graphics, the music and the gameplay is just incredible. And mind you I absolutely also love the Megadrive version.
- “Castle of Illusion” a brilliant platformer and again clearly better than the Mega Drive Version. I would even say it is better than Super Mario 3, but have to acknowledge that it “borrows” heavily from the Brothers. So if you are looking for an 8 bit platformer that is truly on par with Mario check out Castle of Illusion and Land of Illusion.
- “Ultima IV – Quest of the Avatar” The most faithful conversion of the Original and today perhaps the most approachable version of this timeless classic. Music overworld map and general gameplay are the same. The only difference is that the wireframe Dungeons are replaced by an top down view – which may actually be an improvement to some people as it is easier to get started.
- “Phantasy Star” an epic adventure crpg with an atmosphere between Star Wars and Dune and a gameplay between Zelda and Dungeon master. This game series made it onto several GOAT lists and it all started on the humble Master System.
- “Kings Quest I” While I am personally rather a purist with classic adventures, I will give the Master System version a nod for bringing an adventure to the console world. If you ever wanted to play the first Kings Quest but could not be bothered with a text parser – this may be the version to try.
- Want more awesome platformers – try “Asterix the Gaul”, “Danan the Jungle Fighter” or Wonder Boy – the Dragons Trap
- Looking for some really good Arcade Games – try “R-Type” or “Outrun”
- Finally if you do not have any nostalgia for the machine, don’t start with Alex Kidd. It is one of the most well known titles but imho not a good place to start.

So yeah – for me really the Master of all Systems. If you have some additional personal favourites please add suggestions and hidden gems

Like i said in my last post, SMS is very very popular en Europe, and in Brazil. Im argentinian, in argentina Famiclones was the most popular choise, but every time i read magazines from brazil i always wanted to have sms games. Finally i buy a Game Gear with master system converter! great childhood

I still have some boxed master system stuff and a lot of consoles and games without box stored

MS2 alex kidd and sonic version, Mark3 and SG-1000 II

MS1 european version and SC-3000

Multiple GG machines, love game gears!

Of course a SG-1000

And some games, in cart and cards

I think it was mostly due to marketability you had the pc/atari/commodor/nes as your home consoles/pc and everything else was arcades which were popular for quite some time more profitable as arcade machines than home consoles.
I noticed the difference when I moved to Europe but the older I got the more pc and consoles took off.

I have a soft spot for the Mastersystem. Did quite a few composite video mods for SMS 2 consoles..
I have fond memories of playing games on MEKA on DOS, too.
The easter egg about Mario in the config file made me laugh, I recall. ;)
Last time I checked for news on Mastersystem games, I noticed that Tails' Adventure had been ported from GameGear to the SMS.

Jo22 wrote on 2025-01-03, 19:23:

I have a soft spot for the Mastersystem. Did quite a few composite video mods for SMS 2 consoles.. I have fond memories of playi […]
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I have a soft spot for the Mastersystem. Did quite a few composite video mods for SMS 2 consoles..
I have fond memories of playing games on MEKA on DOS, too.
The easter egg about Mario in the config file made me laugh, I recall. 😉
Last time I checked for news on Mastersystem games, I noticed that Tails' Adventure had been ported from GameGear to the SMS.

My greatest memories are from Massage in DOS, great emu, support sg1000/3000, and works great in my 486. Sadly only uses 320x200 70hz then not smooth scrolling, back on time for sure most of us we dont care about this

I would also agree that here in the UK the Master System seemed to have a bigger presence than the NES... In the late 80's I reckon I only had one friend with a NES, all the rest had a SMS.

Most would had an 8bit micro *as well* - Spectrum, Amstrac CPC or C64.

Only after becoming an adult and having access to the internet that I learned that the Master System was less popular than the NES in most places.
Here in Brazil, the Master System was always considered the “premium” console compared to the NES. In fact we didn’t even have the official NES sold here, only its clones (some which were really cool btw).
Lots of exclusive games only released here, some of them based on popular characters and TV shows from our culture. This video sums it up quite well:
https://youtu.be/aq8xrw__LfI?si=d5vyzVY7bbbK12dV

gaffa2002 wrote on 2025-01-03, 21:47:

Only after becoming an adult and having access to the internet that I learned that the Master System was less popular than the N […]
Show full quote

Only after becoming an adult and having access to the internet that I learned that the Master System was less popular than the NES in most places.
Here in Brazil, the Master System was always considered the “premium” console compared to the NES. In fact we didn’t even have the official NES sold here, only its clones (some which were really cool btw).
Lots of exclusive games only released here, some of them based on popular characters and TV shows from our culture. This video sums it up quite well:
https://youtu.be/aq8xrw__LfI?si=d5vyzVY7bbbK12dV

I really want a Gradiente Phantom famiclone! i had one while kid in argentina and is amazing

theelf wrote on 2025-01-03, 22:41:

gaffa2002 wrote on 2025-01-03, 21:47:

Only after becoming an adult and having access to the internet that I learned that the Master System was less popular than the N […]
Show full quote

Only after becoming an adult and having access to the internet that I learned that the Master System was less popular than the NES in most places.
Here in Brazil, the Master System was always considered the “premium” console compared to the NES. In fact we didn’t even have the official NES sold here, only its clones (some which were really cool btw).
Lots of exclusive games only released here, some of them based on popular characters and TV shows from our culture. This video sums it up quite well:
https://youtu.be/aq8xrw__LfI?si=d5vyzVY7bbbK12dV

I really want a Gradiente Phantom famiclone! i had one while kid in argentina and is amazing

Haha! The Phantom System! The console looked like an Atari 7800, the controllers looked like Mega Drive ones and the lightgun looked like the Master System’s… but it was in fact a NES clone 😁. Awesome console that was very popular over here, too.

My favorite was the Geniecom which I used to play at my cousin’s home (the console had built in game genie and came with a book filled with codes for it). The thing even had wireless connection to the TV and headphone connector on the controller (keep in mind this was released in 1992)!

PS: Sorry about that, this is supposed to be a thread about the Master System and here I am talking about the NES. Blasfemy…

I think even within between European countries, the 8-bit console wars had different outcomes. It's indeed well-documented that Sega dominated the game console market in the UK, but as far as I remember, the Netherlands was pretty much Nintendo country, at least in the 8-bit console era.

My best friend had a NES, and I didn't know of anybody who had a Master System at home. Not a large sample size, I admit. But the toy store in my home town had a coin-op NES kiosk which was very popular. It saw constant use, even though it took a guilder (less than half a Euro) to play. And there was always a crowd of kids gathered around the kiosk as spectators, often myself included. Sega never had that kind of presence in toy stores then.

I do remember the Sega Master System being advertised on Dutch TV as well, but much less so. Seeing a commercial for the Master System actually felt refreshing to me, probably because I have a soft spot for underdogs.

In the 16-bit era, the Sega Mega Drive and the SNES seemed to be more evenly matched in terms of dominance of the Dutch market. At least, that's the impression I got from the media attention and advertising around both these systems going on at the time. I guess what helped Sega's position in that round was that they beat Nintento to market with their 16-bit console, and also the Mega Drive was marketed as the more edgier system of the two, having things like uncensored versions of bloody fighting games such as Mortal Kombat on it, where Nintendo continued to go for the "family-friendly" image.

Full disclosure, by the way: We never had a game console at home when I was a kid. I did all gaming on my Dad's PC back then. The first console I ever bought was a Wii, as an adult. 😁

Hi, since the NES/Famicom had been mentioned, I'd like to also quickly mention the Dendy for sake of completeness.
It was a very succesful series of Famiclones in the 90s in, err, eastern Europe.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dendy

When I got my Genesis, they were running a promotion that let me get a free "Power Base Converter" which is really an SMS cartridge adapter.
I never used it back then though. I didn't even get my first SMS cartridge (Phantasy Star) until about 15 years ago, and I've still barely used it.
But I do want to play more SMS games at some point.

Sonic on Genesis is overrated. It was hugely important for Sega's marketing though. It sold a lot of consoles and brought more development to the system. But I don't think the game itself is that great.
I've hardly ever seen the 8-bit version. I do remember seeing the Game Gear version of Sonic once and it looked interesting at the time. Based on that memory, I wouldn't mind playing the SMS version.

Phantasy Star is awesome. A friend had that game and I think it's the best in the series of the ones I saw.
I had PS2 on Genesis which I did like but it was a long grind. I doubt I could get through it again today.
PS3 was kind of dull. 4 possible ways through that game but I couldn't stay interested beyond beating it once.
Seems like the series declined with each iteration in the first 3 games.
I never played PS4 - by the time that came out I was a PC gamer and not paying attention to Sega anymore.

shamino wrote on 2025-01-04, 11:40:

I never played PS4 - by the time that came out I was a PC gamer and not paying attention to Sega anymore.

Highly recommend it. One of the greatest JRPGs of all time, and it will be made even better since you have played all the previous ones. It was actually the first PS game I ever played, and many people consider it the only "must-play" one of the series. In my opinion it is excellent as-is, where as the previous games all benefit greatly from ROMhacks that make pretty heavy tweaks to the gameplay, script, etc.

If you play the game emulated, I recommend giving this Bugfix ROMhack a shot. I beat the standard game at least 4-5 times since I was a kid, and when I played it with the bugfix a year ago I didn't notice any big changes to the game (unlike lots of ROMhacks that totally butcher the original experience for whatever reason), but lots of minor issues and inconsistencies are taken care of.

... that said, PSIV was fantastic even without the fixes. I played it that way for 30 years. 😀