Sega is following in the footsteps of Nintendo and Sony with the release of an upcoming console based on the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive, which was detailed in the recent Sega FES 2019 fan event.
Sega will be releasing two versions of their retro console, with North America receiving the Sega Genesis Mini, and Europe and Japan receiving the Sega Mega Drive Mini, as the system had a different name and appearance in each region. The console will be referred to as the Sega Genesis Mini from this point on for simplicity’s sake.
The Sega Genesis Mini will retail for $79.99 and will come with two controllers, a power cable, a USB power adapter, and an HDMI cable. Japan has a slightly cheaper bundle that only has one controller.
The Sega Genesis Mini will feature forty different games, of which ten have been announced so far. The ten games are Altered Beast, Castlevania: Bloodlines, Comix Zone, Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine, Ecco the Dolphin, Gunstar Heroes, Shining Force, Sonic the Hedgehog, Space Harrier II, and ToeJam & Earl. The lineup of games is already pretty strong and only equates for a quarter of what will be available on the system.
The Japanese Sega Mega Drive Mini will feature a different lineup of games, with Madou Monogatari, Powerball, Puyo Puyo 2, Rent-a-Hero, and Sonic the Hedgehog 2 appearing on the system.
The emulation software of the Sega Genesis Mini is being created by M2, the company that is responsible for the Sega Ages games, the most recent of which have been appearing on the Nintendo Switch.
It’s odd that Sega has waited so long to put out an official retro console, as Nintendo had great success with their Classic Mini line, and even Sony was able to shove the PlayStation Classic out the door in time for a holiday 2018 release, yet Sega’s system won’t be out until later on this year. It seems like it would be easy for Sega to bundle some games onto a device and release it onto stores, as they have been packaging their games like this since the days of the PlayStation 2.
It’s possible that Sega wants to take its time and release a quality product to the public. The only question is whether people will fork out almost eighty dollars for a device that plays Sega games, especially when there are already compilation titles of Sega Genesis games available for the PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and PC.
The Sega Genesis Mini/Mega Drive Mini will be released on September 19. 2019.
