AtGames and SEGA announce the retro inspired plug and play Sega Mega Drive Classic Game Console / Ultimate Portable Game Player that comes pre-loaded with 80 classic games.
Retro appears to be the hot new trend this year for the games industry. The trend kicked off earlier this year with Activision revealing that its massively popular shooter,Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfareis getting a remastered versionlater this year. Then, just a couple weeks ago, Nintendo revealed plans to sell a miniature version of itsclassic Nintendo Entertainment System, complete with 30 preloaded games. Hot on the heels of that reveal, SEGA appears to be more than willing to reinvigorate the old school rivalry between the two companies as it announces its own plug and play classic console bundle as well.
WithSonic the Hedgehogcelebrating his 25th anniversary this year, AtGames and SEGA have partnered to release an updated version of the Sega Mega Drive Classic Game Console / Ultimate Portable Game Player. While the portable game player contains a USB charging cable and an SD slot, the console version contains the original and working cartridge slot, 2 wireless controllers and 80 built-in games, including some of SEGA’s greatest hits likeSonic the Hedgehog,Vectorman, andGolden Axe.
Full SEGA Mega Drive Games List:
Bonus SEGA Arcade / Puzzle games:
While the product is officially licensed bySEGA, the device itself is actually developed by AtGames, a manufacturer who has previous released devices like the Atari Flashback and an older version of this Sega Genesis / Mega Drive Classic Game Console. Interestingly enough, the updated version has decided to swap out 20 games for different ones. Unfortunately, some of the games that have been removed are fan favorites such as all threeStreets of Ragegames,Ecco the Dolphin, andVirtual Fighter II.
Surprisingly, the Mega Drive console does not support HDMI, instead relying on a single composite AV cable, something which was common with these older consoles back in the late 80s and 90s. This also means that the console will force high definition televisions to handle all upscaling and image processing, adding a higher chance that input latency will plague many of the games contained within the package.
With Nintendo releasing aretro-inspired trailerfor its upcoming mini NES, it’ll be interesting to see how fans take to both classic consoles. While the Mega Drive may lack some of the modern features that Nintendo has added into its console, being able to use old SEGA cartridges and controllers is a nice touch. After the rivalry ended when SEGA left the console market, who would have thought that these titans would once again be facing off in 2016.
Are you excited that SEGA is releasing its own version of the classic Mega Drive console? Are you disappointed by the lack of modern touches such as HDMI? Sound off in the comments below.
The Sega Mega Drive Classic Game Console / Ultimate Portable Game Player is scheduled for release in October 2016.
