• Tag Archives Sega CD

  • Chips & Bits

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    electronic_gaming_monthly2_issue_005_319

    Source: EGM 2 – Issue Number 5 – November 1994

    Chips & Bits was one of many mail order companies that sold video game hardware and software in the early 1990s. This was before the days of ordering through the Internet. This particular ad is from the November 1994 issue of EGM 2. There were simply a huge number of systems available in those days. In this ad there is stuff related to the Super Nintendo, Sega Genesis, 32X, Sega CD, Atari Jaguar, 3D0, Neo Geo, CD-i and probably something I’m forgetting. The magazine this ad is in had more than 320 pages and it was EGMs second publication of the month.

    It’s also easy to forget how expensive games could be. Many of the new game prices in this ad are in the $50 to $60 range which might not sound terrible by today’s standards but when you adjust for inflation that’s the equivalent of $80 to $95 today. Part of the problem had to do with how expensive cartridges were to produce, particularly those with a lot of memory. Going to disc based media helped to reduce prices and no doubt also increased the profit margins for game makers.


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  • Review: Popful Mail (Sega CD)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Review of Popful Mail by Working Designs for the Sega CD from the May 1995 issue of Sega Visions.

    sega_visions_1995_may_084

    Source: Sega Visions – May 1995

    Popful Mail is another action RPG by Working Designs, the same company that released the Lunar and Vay games, among others. The Sega CD didn’t have a huge number of games and many of them are FMV crap but if you were a fan of the Working Designs’ action RPGs then it was a must have system, at least until Working Designs started developing these games for the PlayStation a few years later. Working Designs did a great job of exploiting the strengths of the Sega CD (massive storage for the time) to create lengthy RPGs with a good amount of nicely done animated sequences and voice acting.

    I never got the impression that the oddly named Popful Mail was as good as the Lunar series but it is still a great game and it is a hard (expensive) game to come by today for the Sega CD. Above is a short review of the game from the May 1995 issue of Sega Visions and as you can see, it is all positive.

    Popful Mail was also released on the Super Famicom, PC Engine CD and Windows platform but these were Japan only releases with no English translation. If you wanted the English version, the Sega CD was and remains the only way to get it.





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  • Sega Visions – February/March 1995

    Posted on by Azrael 1 Comment

    Sega Visions, Issue Number 23, February/March 1995

    sega-visions-issue-23-february-march-1995-page-000a

    Source: Sega Visions – Issue Number 23

    Sega Visions was Sega’s somewhat less popular response to Nintendo Power. It was an official Sega magazine that covered everything Sega though unlike Nintendo Power, it was typically not available on store shelves. The February/March 1995 issue includes:

    Game Features

    • Eternal Champions – Rip! Splat! The CD version of this classic Fighting title is serving up violence on a grand scale. Check out the new characters, new animation, and new ultragruesome background-related kills. You’ll be eternally addicted.
    • Third-Party Awards – Sega honors the outstanding games of the year.
    • Sega Arcade Games – Virtua Fighter 2 and Daytona USA take the arcades by storm.
    • Penn and Teller – A seriously warped sense of humor is infiltrating your Genesis, thanks to the bad boys of magic.
    • Phantasy Star IV – Spellbinding RPG adventure storms the Algo star system with more weapons, vehicles, cinematics, and everything else that a Motavian monster hunter could want.
    • The Adventures of Batman and Robin – The Dynamic Duo takes on such inveterate underworlders as the Joker, the Mad Hatter, and their ringleader, Mr. Freeze.
    • Comix Zone – Welcome to the hippest comic book you’ve ever seen.

    Review This!

      • 32X
        • 36 Great holes Starring Fred Couples
        • Cosmic Carnage
        • Metal Head
        • Afterburner
        • Motocross Championship
        • Tempo
        • Corpse Killer
        • Night Trap

     

      • Sega CD
        • Surgical Strike
        • Dungeon Explorer
        • Lords of Thunder
        • Ecco: The Tides of Time
        • Fahrenheit
        • Shining Force II
        • Midnight Raiders
        • Earthworm Jim
        • Supreme Warrior

     

      • Genesis
        • Road Rash 3
        • X-Men 2
        • Wolverine
        • Mega Bomberman

     

    • Game Gear
      • Power Rangers

    Departments

    • Fast Takes – Short and snappy reviews of 18 of the wildest and weirdest games out there.
    • Cool Controller Contest
    • Sports Playbook
    • Power Shopping

    …and more!





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