Sega Dreamcast
Sega Saturn
Sega Genesis
Sega Master System
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ironically the Mega Drive was basically an arcade board, Sega just took their existing system 16 board and turned it into a console, it was a good choice too.Genesis Does 16 bit arcade
bigM10231
[QUOTE="bigM10231"]ironically the Mega Drive was basically an arcade board, Sega just took their existing system 16 board and turned it into a console, it was a good choice too.Genesis Does 16 bit arcade
Darkman2007
No, the Mega Drive wasn't based on any system board, back then it wasn't viable.
The Mega-Tech and SYSTEM C-2 were based on the Mega Drive, however.
ironically the Mega Drive was basically an arcade board, Sega just took their existing system 16 board and turned it into a console, it was a good choice too.[QUOTE="Darkman2007"][QUOTE="bigM10231"]
Genesis Does 16 bit arcade
Panzer_Zwei
No, the Mega Drive wasn't based on any system board, back then it wasn't viable.
The Mega-Tech and SYSTEM C-2 were based on the Mega Drive, however.
are you sure?, im pretty sure it was based on the system 16 boardas far as specs go , they both run on a 68000 CPU and have the same sound system, though the system 16 board has a higher clocked CPU and more onscreen colours.
[QUOTE="Panzer_Zwei"][QUOTE="Darkman2007"] ironically the Mega Drive was basically an arcade board, Sega just took their existing system 16 board and turned it into a console, it was a good choice too.Darkman2007
No, the Mega Drive wasn't based on any system board, back then it wasn't viable.
The Mega-Tech and SYSTEM C-2 were based on the Mega Drive, however.
are you sure?, im pretty sure it was based on the system 16 boardYes, I'm sure.Altered Beast and Golden Axe were SYSTEM 16. Look at the Mega Drive conversions.
are you sure?, im pretty sure it was based on the system 16 boardYes, I'm sure.[QUOTE="Darkman2007"][QUOTE="Panzer_Zwei"]
No, the Mega Drive wasn't based on any system board, back then it wasn't viable.
The Mega-Tech and SYSTEM C-2 were based on the Mega Drive, however.
Panzer_Zwei
Altered Beast and Golden Axe were SYSTEM 16. Look at the Mega Drive conversions.
well , I did say the MD was a little less powerful, also as far as ive seen the ROM chip in the MD carts have less space then the S16 originals. they basically share the same design as far as the insides go.
also some S16 boards had twin 68000 CPUs, outrun being one of them.
[QUOTE="Panzer_Zwei"]Yes, I'm sure.[QUOTE="Darkman2007"] are you sure?, im pretty sure it was based on the system 16 boardDarkman2007
Altered Beast and Golden Axe were SYSTEM 16. Look at the Mega Drive conversions.
well , I did say the MD was a little less powerful, also as far as ive seen the ROM chip in the MD carts have less space then the S16 originals. they basically share the same design as far as the insides go.If they were based on the same design, then the Mega Drive, wouldn't have less colours, same sprite cababilities, etc. They don't.
This is the list of arcade boards based on other already existing hardware architecture.
http://www.system16.com/base.php
These are the SYSTEM-16 SPECS
http://www.system16.com/hardware.php?id=700
system 16 specs
Main CPU : MC68000 @ 10 MHz
Sound CPU : Z80 @ 4 MHz
Sound chip : Yamaha YM2151 @ 4 MHz & NEC uPD7751 ADPCM Decoder
Video resolution : 320 x 224 (vertical)
Colour's : 4096
Board composition : CPU board + Video board
Hardware Features : 128 Sprites on screen at one time, 2 tile layers, 1 text layer, 1 sprite layer with hardware sprite zooming, translucent shadows
Mega Drive specs
Processor: Motorola 68000 16/32-bit processor running at 7.67MHz Co-processor (Sound Controller): Zilog Z80 8-bit at 3.58MHz Memory: 64K work RAM (68000), 64K video RAM, 8K work RAM (Z80)
Later hardware had an internal 1Kx16 ROM for the license display screen.
Display Palette: 512 colors (3:3:3 RGB) Onscreen colors: 64 (normal) or 183 (shadow/highlight mode) Maximum onscreen sprites: 80 (320-pixel wide displays) or 64 (256-pixel wide displays) Resolution: 256×224, 256×448, 320×224, 320×448, (PAL and NTSC)
256×240, 320×240, 256×480, 320×480 (PAL only), 256×192 (SMS games only)
Sound: Yamaha YM2612 5 channel FM and 1 channel FM/PCM, Texas Instruments SN76489 4 channel PSG (Programmable Sound Generator)
obviously the S16 board is more powerful , but it seems like the MD is a weaker version of the arcade.
I imagine they did that to make porting games like Golden Axe and other S16 games more quickly.
The ST-V was more powerful than the SS. The NAOMI was even more powerful than the DC. However, since the architecture is indeed the same, the home conversions could be optimized so games could be pretty much arcade perfect.obviously the S16 board is more powerful , but it seems like the MD is a weaker version of the arcade.
I imagine they did that to make porting games like Golden Axe and other S16 games more quickly.
Darkman2007
This is not the case with the MD, as it couldn't offer SYSTEM 16 capabilities. It's games were far from being arcade perfect. It's design may be inspired by the SYSTEM-16 but weaker =/= the same. The Mega Drive is not an arcade system board, like the SS and Dreamcast are.
[QUOTE="Darkman2007"]
obviously the S16 board is more powerful , but it seems like the MD is a weaker version of the arcade.
I imagine they did that to make porting games like Golden Axe and other S16 games more quickly.
Panzer_Zwei
The ST-V was more powerful than the SS. The NAOMI was even more powerful than the DC. However, since the architecture is indeed the same, the home conversions could be optimized so games could be pretty much arcade perfect.
This is not the case with the MD, as it couldn't offer SYSTEM 16 capabilities. It's games were far from being arcade perfect. It's design may be inspired by the SYSTEM-16 but weaker =/= the same. The Mega Drive is not an arcade system board, like the SS and Dreamcast are.
as I said, the MD is a weaker system , but unlike the STV board where the main issue was the extra RAM the board had, the S16 board has more powerful specs overall, in CPU , on screen colours and sprite count, its just that they share a similar design. that said, the 68000 was a popular CPU ,so that may have been the reason that both used it.
i liked saturn but loooooved my genisis, i mean sonic 2... splatterhouse... mortal komat with blood... need i go further?
Dreamcast was pretty good, but it wasn't quite as good as the success of the Genesis. When they first came out, they were both WAY better than their competitors, but Genesis stayed in the game longer and had bigger/better selection of games.
Saturn was a big screw up for sega, and the master system was just ok, nothing that great.
The Genesis, of course. It had the biggest library of games, and the best selection of exclusives out of all of them. And as long as you don't beat them, Genesises (or Genesi?) will last a lifetime. And I had such memories of it, so much time spent on Genesis (particularly Sonic games, beat-em ups, and Mortal Kombat games).Emerald_WarriorThe SS has a bigger library than the MD, actually. Not really suprising really, due to the performance of the system in Japan. I remember I already had a long argument about this.
As for the other things, it's a matter of personal taste.
The SS has a bigger library than the MD, actually. Not really suprising really, due to the performance of the system in Japan. I remember I already had a long argument about this.[QUOTE="Emerald_Warrior"]The Genesis, of course. It had the biggest library of games, and the best selection of exclusives out of all of them. And as long as you don't beat them, Genesises (or Genesi?) will last a lifetime. And I had such memories of it, so much time spent on Genesis (particularly Sonic games, beat-em ups, and Mortal Kombat games).Panzer_Zwei
As for the other things, it's a matter of personal taste.
Well I live in the U.S. and I don't read Japanese so I could really care less about the Japanese games.Because anyone with the ability to import games recognizes the pure brilliance of the SEGA Saturn.Genesis...why is there even apoll about this?
KPAXMAN
Saturn a screw up? Radiant Silvergun, Panzer Dragoon Saga, NiGHTS Into Dreams, Shining Force III, Virtua Fighter 2, Waku Waku 7... And Master System was outstanding too.Dreamcast was pretty good, but it wasn't quite as good as the success of the Genesis. When they first came out, they were both WAY better than their competitors, but Genesis stayed in the game longer and had bigger/better selection of games.
Saturn was a big screw up for sega, and the master system was just ok, nothing that great.
Talldude80
[QUOTE="Talldude80"]Saturn a screw up? Radiant Silvergun, Panzer Dragoon Saga, NiGHTS Into Dreams, Shining Force III, Virtua Fighter 2, Waku Waku 7...Dreamcast was pretty good, but it wasn't quite as good as the success of the Genesis. When they first came out, they were both WAY better than their competitors, but Genesis stayed in the game longer and had bigger/better selection of games.
Saturn was a big screw up for sega, and the master system was just ok, nothing that great.
savebattery
And Master System was outstanding too.
the ironic thing about all these "saturn sucks" comments(most of them from people who never played the system) , is that not only does the Saturn have a bigger library of games, both the Saturn and Dreamcast (which is praised to the high heavens), sold around the same number of units, so for all the praise the DC gets, it crashed just as badly as the Saturn (in the business sense).
Albert Odyssey , X-men vs Street Fighter , Street Figther Alpha 3 , Burning Rangers , Winter Heat , Dead or Alive (better then the PS version in most ways) , Last Bronx, Astal. just a few games to add to that list.
Saturn a screw up? Radiant Silvergun, Panzer Dragoon Saga, NiGHTS Into Dreams, Shining Force III, Virtua Fighter 2, Waku Waku 7...[QUOTE="savebattery"][QUOTE="Talldude80"]
Dreamcast was pretty good, but it wasn't quite as good as the success of the Genesis. When they first came out, they were both WAY better than their competitors, but Genesis stayed in the game longer and had bigger/better selection of games.
Saturn was a big screw up for sega, and the master system was just ok, nothing that great.
Darkman2007
And Master System was outstanding too.
the ironic thing about all these "saturn sucks" comments(most of them from people who never played the system) , is that not only does the Saturn have a bigger library of games, both the Saturn and Dreamcast (which is praised to the high heavens), sold around the same number of units, so for all the praise the DC gets, it crashed just as badly as the Saturn (in the business sense).
Albert Odyssey , X-men vs Street Fighter , Street Figther Alpha 3 , Burning Rangers , Winter Heat , Dead or Alive (better then the PS version in most ways) , Last Bronx, Astal. just a few games to add to that list.
There's a big difference between the SS and DC sales though. Around half of the total DC sales came from systems that were sold at a loss after the system was discontinued. This was not the case with the SS, since most of its units were sold in Japan. Some companies even released their own SS units at least in limited quantities, something that did not happened with the DC.
The DC ended up being more popular in Japan, and was supported for more than a year after it was discontinued. However, since all factories had to be shut down, SEGA of Japan was forced to sell refurbished units on its website.
Also, SEGA did screw up with the SS big time though, both in Japan and in the west. Third parties were really digging the SS (the MD was dead in Japan), and then SEGA dropped all support for it in 1998. This was the time when many SS games began getting ported to the PS.
[QUOTE="Darkman2007"]
[QUOTE="savebattery"] Saturn a screw up? Radiant Silvergun, Panzer Dragoon Saga, NiGHTS Into Dreams, Shining Force III, Virtua Fighter 2, Waku Waku 7...
And Master System was outstanding too.Panzer_Zwei
the ironic thing about all these "saturn sucks" comments(most of them from people who never played the system) , is that not only does the Saturn have a bigger library of games, both the Saturn and Dreamcast (which is praised to the high heavens), sold around the same number of units, so for all the praise the DC gets, it crashed just as badly as the Saturn (in the business sense).
Albert Odyssey , X-men vs Street Fighter , Street Figther Alpha 3 , Burning Rangers , Winter Heat , Dead or Alive (better then the PS version in most ways) , Last Bronx, Astal. just a few games to add to that list.
There's a big difference between the SS and DC sales though. Around half of the total DC sales came from systems that were sold at a loss after the system was discontinued. This was not the case with the SS, since most of its units were sold in Japan. Some companies even released their own SS units at least in limited quantities, something that did not happened with the DC.
The DC ended up being more popular in Japan, and was supported for more than a year after it was discontinued. However, since all factories had to be shut down, SEGA of Japan was forced to sell refurbished units on its website.
Also, SEGA did screw up with the SS big time though, both in Japan and in the west. Third parties were really digging the SS (the MD was dead in Japan), and then SEGA dropped all support for it in 1998. This was the time when many SS games began getting ported to the PS.
obviously Sega made some pretty dumb decisions with the Saturn , especially when the system was viable for another year or two at least. the thing is, most people seem to think the Saturn itself was a mistake , and apparently had very few good games (which is of course wrong). and Im wondering why the likes of Hitachi and JVC didn't release western versions of their Saturn models, it would have helped salesGenesis...why is there even apoll about this?
Because anyone with the ability to import games recognizes the pure brilliance of the SEGA Saturn. Alright...that is a given. With more thought put into this I still say the Genesis is my top choice. And I honestly want to say that Saturn and DC are tied for second. I love them all, but that is the way it is.[QUOTE="Talldude80"]Saturn a screw up? Radiant Silvergun, Panzer Dragoon Saga, NiGHTS Into Dreams, Shining Force III, Virtua Fighter 2, Waku Waku 7...Dreamcast was pretty good, but it wasn't quite as good as the success of the Genesis. When they first came out, they were both WAY better than their competitors, but Genesis stayed in the game longer and had bigger/better selection of games.
Saturn was a big screw up for sega, and the master system was just ok, nothing that great.
savebattery
The Saturn flopped commercially in the West. Sure, it wasn't a bad console and it was popular in Japan, but the sales and 3rd party support in the West were poor.
[QUOTE="savebattery"][QUOTE="Talldude80"]
Dreamcast was pretty good, but it wasn't quite as good as the success of the Genesis. When they first came out, they were both WAY better than their competitors, but Genesis stayed in the game longer and had bigger/better selection of games.
Saturn was a big screw up for sega, and the master system was just ok, nothing that great.
nameless12345
Saturn a screw up? Radiant Silvergun, Panzer Dragoon Saga, NiGHTS Into Dreams, Shining Force III, Virtua Fighter 2, Waku Waku 7...
The Saturn flopped commercially in the West. Sure, it wasn't a bad console and it was popular in Japan, but the sales and 3rd party support in the West were poor.
I would say the Saturn had decent 3rd party support, sure it was nothing like what the PS1 got , it but it did have quite a few 3rd party games, both from western and Japanese developers.
it was really later in its lifespan , when Sega was already hinting about the abandoning the Saturn , that 3rd parties started leaving in large numbers.
Though as we all know, 3rd party support is not the only way to judge a system , the N64 also lacked the kind of 3rd party support the PS1 got, and yet its still a great system.
[QUOTE="nameless12345"]
[QUOTE="savebattery"]
Saturn a screw up? Radiant Silvergun, Panzer Dragoon Saga, NiGHTS Into Dreams, Shining Force III, Virtua Fighter 2, Waku Waku 7... Darkman2007
The Saturn flopped commercially in the West. Sure, it wasn't a bad console and it was popular in Japan, but the sales and 3rd party support in the West were poor.
I would say the Saturn had decent 3rd party support, sure it was nothing like what the PS1 got , it but it did have quite a few 3rd party games, both from western and Japanese developers.
it was really later in its lifespan , when Sega was already hinting about the abandoning the Saturn , that 3rd parties started leaving in large numbers.
Though as we all know, 3rd party support is not the only way to judge a system , the N64 also lacked the kind of 3rd party support the PS1 got, and yet its still a great system.
Yeah, but PS1 lasted a whole six years untill PS2 came along and had massive support, while the Saturn was basically a "dead" console by 1998. The PS1 was still strong in 1998. And the N64 had great 1st party games which almost did it for the mediocre 3rd party support.
[QUOTE="Darkman2007"]
[QUOTE="nameless12345"]
The Saturn flopped commercially in the West. Sure, it wasn't a bad console and it was popular in Japan, but the sales and 3rd party support in the West were poor.
nameless12345
I would say the Saturn had decent 3rd party support, sure it was nothing like what the PS1 got , it but it did have quite a few 3rd party games, both from western and Japanese developers.
it was really later in its lifespan , when Sega was already hinting about the abandoning the Saturn , that 3rd parties started leaving in large numbers.
Though as we all know, 3rd party support is not the only way to judge a system , the N64 also lacked the kind of 3rd party support the PS1 got, and yet its still a great system.
Yeah, but PS1 lasted a whole six years untill PS2 came along and had massive support, while the Saturn was basically a "dead" console by 1998. The PS1 was still strong in 1998. And the N64 had great 1st party games which almost did it for the mediocre 3rd party support.
Saturn also had great 1st party titles, , I mean, Sega's AM divisions were nothing to laugh at, really great 1st party titles was the one thing sony struggled with (mainly through 2nd parties)[QUOTE="nameless12345"][QUOTE="Darkman2007"]
I would say the Saturn had decent 3rd party support, sure it was nothing like what the PS1 got , it but it did have quite a few 3rd party games, both from western and Japanese developers.
it was really later in its lifespan , when Sega was already hinting about the abandoning the Saturn , that 3rd parties started leaving in large numbers.
Though as we all know, 3rd party support is not the only way to judge a system , the N64 also lacked the kind of 3rd party support the PS1 got, and yet its still a great system.
Darkman2007
Yeah, but PS1 lasted a whole six years untill PS2 came along and had massive support, while the Saturn was basically a "dead" console by 1998. The PS1 was still strong in 1998. And the N64 had great 1st party games which almost did it for the mediocre 3rd party support.
Saturn also had great 1st party titles, , I mean, Sega's AM divisions were nothing to laugh at, really great 1st party titles was the one thing sony struggled with (mainly through 2nd parties)Yeah but Sega devs themselves said it was hard to develop for the Saturn. Even Yu Suzuki sait that it would be better to have a fast single CPU instead of two CPUs. Most devs struggled to get a good performance out of the Saturn and almost no games showed the real potential of the console. The beta demo Shenmue footage looks better than anything else on the Saturn. And Saturn had no real Sonic game (Sonic X-treme was cancelled).
Saturn also had great 1st party titles, , I mean, Sega's AM divisions were nothing to laugh at, really great 1st party titles was the one thing sony struggled with (mainly through 2nd parties)[QUOTE="Darkman2007"][QUOTE="nameless12345"]
Yeah, but PS1 lasted a whole six years untill PS2 came along and had massive support, while the Saturn was basically a "dead" console by 1998. The PS1 was still strong in 1998. And the N64 had great 1st party games which almost did it for the mediocre 3rd party support.
nameless12345
Yeah but Sega devs themselves said it was hard to develop for the Saturn. Even Yu Suzuki sait that it would be better to have a fast single CPU instead of two CPUs. Most devs struggled to get a good performance out of the Saturn and almost no games showed the real potential of the console. The beta demo Shenmue footage looks better than anything else on the Saturn. And Saturn had no real Sonic game (Sonic X-treme was cancelled).
of course it would have been better with a single faster CPU , but thats besides the point, Sega still released alot of great games, and in fact some of their best ever games were on the Saturn. The idea that most devs struggled to get "good" performance out of the system , is quite silly , I would say that early on , yes , many games looked rough , but the games released in late 96-98 look very good indeed, for their time. were they utilizing the hardlware? probably not to its fullest, Shenmue (which is in my opinion , one of the best looking games of the generation , had it been released) probably did, but saying that few games ran or looked good , is wrong. besides , even if a developer was using only one CPU, thats 28 MHz , compared to the PS1's one 33MHz CPU, not a big difference, and not even counting the other CPU and of course the VDP1 and VDP2 chips which did most of the graphics work. the main issue with the saturn was developer's lack of experience with quad based polygons.Seeing that the SS had above 800 games released for it (far below the PS yes, but far above anything else including the N64). It would seem developers didn't struggled that much with the system.
especially by late 96, the Saturn was complex , but just like with every system, develpers get better as time goes onSeeing that the SS had above 800 games released for it (far below the PS yes, but far above anything else including the N64). It would seem developers didn't struggled that much with the system.
Panzer_Zwei
[QUOTE="Panzer_Zwei"]especially by late 96, the Saturn was complex , but just like with every system, develpers get better as time goes onRegardless, the SS had the biggest gaming library and widest third party support of any SEGA console period. Even some companies who never before (and never again) supported a SEGA console like ENIX, developed at least one game for the SS.Seeing that the SS had above 800 games released for it (far below the PS yes, but far above anything else including the N64). It would seem developers didn't struggled that much with the system.
Darkman2007
We can argue all day which had the better, most legendary games, but at least the numbers are on the Saturn. Complaining about it's third party support, then complain about all of the other SEGA systems, because it's not like they had it better.
Here are some example of games for the Saturn which in my opinion look good for their time
Dead Or Alive (its debatable if the PS1 or Saturn versions are better)
Winter Heat
Quake
Burning Rangers
Croc
Bulk Slash
Savaki
Last Bronx
Tomb Raider
Panzer Dragoon Saga
Daytona USA Circuit Edition (cheesy music included)
and all of these are 3D games, there are of course more , but I think these games speak for themselves.
especially by late 96, the Saturn was complex , but just like with every system, develpers get better as time goes onRegardless, the SS had the biggest gaming library and widest third party support of any SEGA console period. Even some companies who never before (and never again) supported a SEGA console like ENIX, developed at least one game for the SS.[QUOTE="Darkman2007"][QUOTE="Panzer_Zwei"]
Seeing that the SS had above 800 games released for it (far below the PS yes, but far above anything else including the N64). It would seem developers didn't struggled that much with the system.
Panzer_Zwei
We can argue all day which had the better, most legendary games, but at least the numbers are on the Saturn. Complaining about it's third party support, then complain about all of the other SEGA systems, because it's not like they had it better.
I never complained about the Saturn 3rd party support, Im the one who said the machine had decent 3rd party support.
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