What are the best Master System titles?

[csgx1]

What games are Pal specific then, that do not run, or run well in NTSC, like run to fast or have glitches? I planned to pick up Renegade for sure, but did want to make sure that game would play well.

I have Renegade.  I beat it years ago and from what I remember it worked fine in NTSC.

Also Master of Darkness is a decent Castlevania clone.  A Euro release only but works fine in NTSC.

[VenomMacbeth]

The only PAL games I can think of that don't work with NTSC consoles are:

New Zealand Story (doesn't work at all, except in a Power Base Converter)

Desert Strike (works, but garbled graphics during gameplay)

Chase HQ (timer counts down too fast, road graphics may possibly be glitchy, can't remember)

[ProfessorProfessorson]

If all goes well I will have these on the way:

Scramble Spirits
Rampage
Kung Fu Kid
World Grand Prix
Cyborg Hunter
Golvellius
Action Fighter

[Black Tiger]

someone should point this out.

Ultima 4 is f*cking expensive and was only released in Europe, and it also ditches the first person dungeons, so that sucks.

I enjoy all versions of Ultima IV except NES, but SMS will always be my favorite. Not only was it released in Canada, but many say that it was also released in the U.S.

I don't know what passes as expensive anymore, but you can BIN for $11 on eBay and with case and manual for less than Atlantean.

I couldn't find any CIB auctions of it on Master System that cheap. Cheapest one I saw was a loose cart from France.

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2050601.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.H0.XUltima+IV+sega.TRS0&_nkw=Ultima+IV+sega&_sacat=0

Here's the copy for $11:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ULTIMA-IV-JEU-SEGA-MASTER-STSTEM-RPG-RARE-/331642731738?hash=item4d37727cda

When looking for the best deals on SMS games, make sure to search for "SEGA MASTER" separately from "SMS" and the game title.

[ProfessorProfessorson]

someone should point this out.

Ultima 4 is f*cking expensive and was only released in Europe, and it also ditches the first person dungeons, so that sucks.

I enjoy all versions of Ultima IV except NES, but SMS will always be my favorite. Not only was it released in Canada, but many say that it was also released in the U.S.

I don't know what passes as expensive anymore, but you can BIN for $11 on eBay and with case and manual for less than Atlantean.

I couldn't find any CIB auctions of it on Master System that cheap. Cheapest one I saw was a loose cart from France.

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2050601.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.H0.XUltima+IV+sega.TRS0&_nkw=Ultima+IV+sega&_sacat=0

Here's the copy for $11:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ULTIMA-IV-JEU-SEGA-MASTER-STSTEM-RPG-RARE-/331642731738?hash=item4d37727cda

When looking for the best deals on SMS games, make sure to search for "SEGA MASTER" separately from "SMS" and the game title.

Thats the one I saw that was in France, it isn't CIB. Thats what I went looking for, one that was CIB for $11. There isn't any copies that are CIB for 11 bucks currently. Really the one from France will run a bit over $20 after shipping and paypal currency conversion fees or whatever. I think most of the ones that are CIB exceed the $50 range, so it's not really a "cheap" game per say.

[Medic_wheat]

How are people leaving out dick tracy?  Game is terrific.

The Genesis port is better all around to me

[Black Tiger]

someone should point this out.

Ultima 4 is f*cking expensive and was only released in Europe, and it also ditches the first person dungeons, so that sucks.

I enjoy all versions of Ultima IV except NES, but SMS will always be my favorite. Not only was it released in Canada, but many say that it was also released in the U.S.

I don't know what passes as expensive anymore, but you can BIN for $11 on eBay and with case and manual for less than Atlantean.

I couldn't find any CIB auctions of it on Master System that cheap. Cheapest one I saw was a loose cart from France.

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2050601.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.H0.XUltima+IV+sega.TRS0&_nkw=Ultima+IV+sega&_sacat=0

Here's the copy for $11:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ULTIMA-IV-JEU-SEGA-MASTER-STSTEM-RPG-RARE-/331642731738?hash=item4d37727cda

When looking for the best deals on SMS games, make sure to search for "SEGA MASTER" separately from "SMS" and the game title.

Thats the one I saw that was in France, it isn't CIB. Thats what I went looking for, one that was CIB for $11. There isn't any copies that are CIB for 11 bucks currently. Really the one from France will run a bit over $20 after shipping and paypal currency conversion fees or whatever. I think most of the ones that are CIB exceed the $50 range, so it's not really a "cheap" game per say.

Like I said, it's not an expensive game to buy to play, not a dirt cheap game to collect CIB (unless you are a legit CIB collector), but still cheaper with case and manual than Atlantean, which I wouldn't call "f*cking expensive".

$35 in case with manual (as complete as most SMS games) is considered a good price for a good game by PCE game player standards.

If you happen to live in a place that is expensive to ship to, that's independant of the game's value, but that game + case + manual copy is OBO.

[esteban]

If all goes well I will have these on the way:

Scramble Spirits
Rampage
Kung Fu Kid
World Grand Prix
Cyborg Hunter
Golvellius
Action Fighter

I like hybrid, quirky games with ambition.

Golvellius falls into that category.

Knowing your interests, this is the sort of game you will absolutely be able to appreciate (unlike folks who aren't interested/skilled in many genres).

Now, whether or not you think it is more than an average game is for you to decide.

For me, it is one of the reasons to have SMS. 

Also, you didn't ask about Sega Card games (and they aren't anything special), but there are a couple you might want—TransBot, because it is hori shootemup; Spy vs. Spy, because...I don't know—just to see what the medium could offer.

Sega Card did not really get fully exploited...never had a chance to mature and come into its own. I think it could have been pretty kool, but I totally understand why it wasn't meant to compete with "deluxe, full mega power games" in cart form. Nintendo's FDS was a better experiment (in terms of game library)...a "budget-friendly" library if games...

[VenomMacbeth]

Nobody's mentioned Sagaia yet, but I think it's a pretty good port considering the hardware.  It was the first Darius game I ever beat.

Also, be sure to find a way to play GG Aleste II for it, as it's been hacked to run on SMS.  I think GG Shinobi might have gotten a similar treatment, if I'm not mistaken.

Also, I'm probably the only one that feels this way, but I really enjoy Shadow Dancer in short bursts.  Its harder than a Viagra-abusing teenager, but the graphics are really appealing & I don't find it too much more unfair than many other 8-bit games.

Road Rash also has a decent port on the system, better looking than any other racing game on the system IMO.

[BigusSchmuck]

Oh yeah, speaking of Sega Cards I forgot about Ghost House. That sucker is hard, maybe a bit repetitive, but I definitely enjoyed it quite a bit. Reminded me of Sega's version of Goonies but with vampires and such.

[Black Tiger]

Nobody's mentioned Sagaia yet, but I think it's a pretty good port considering the hardware.  It was the first Darius game I ever beat.

Also, be sure to find a way to play GG Aleste II for it, as it's been hacked to run on SMS.  I think GG Shinobi might have gotten a similar treatment, if I'm not mistaken.

Also, I'm probably the only one that feels this way, but I really enjoy Shadow Dancer in short bursts.  Its harder than a Viagra-abusing teenager, but the graphics are really appealing & I don't find it too much more unfair than many other 8-bit games.

Road Rash also has a decent port on the system, better looking than any other racing game on the system IMO.

Sagaia is in the second response.

It's known more for being a tech demo, but it's still a solid fun game.

[VenomMacbeth]

Yeah, it definitely has its moments, like the slowdown, and how the whole game pauses to load the first boss...and the last level is near-friggin-impossible thanks to that super techy background making it difficult to dodge bullets...But still, I think you'll be hard pressed to find a better sidescrolling space shooter in the 8-bit generation.  The only others I can think to compare are Gradius II and Over Horizon on the NES/fami.

Sorry I missed the post, though!

[Black Tiger]

Yeah, it definitely has its moments, like the slowdown, and how the whole game pauses to load the first boss...and the last level is near-friggin-impossible thanks to that super techy background making it difficult to dodge bullets...But still, I think you'll be hard pressed to find a better sidescrolling space shooter in the 8-bit generation.  The only others I can think to compare are Gradius II and Over Horizon on the NES/fami.

Sorry I missed the post, though!

That's the thing, you still have to be able to appreciate 8-bit shooters. Although the slowdown is no worse than many celebrated NES games, Sagaia was rebalanced nicely for SMS and the ship and bullet size work out well. Kind of like how Super Darius II was rebalanced for single screen console play.

[esteban]

Yeah, it definitely has its moments, like the slowdown, and how the whole game pauses to load the first boss...and the last level is near-friggin-impossible thanks to that super techy background making it difficult to dodge bullets...But still, I think you'll be hard pressed to find a better sidescrolling space shooter in the 8-bit generation.  The only others I can think to compare are Gradius II and Over Horizon on the NES/fami.

Sorry I missed the post, though!

That's the thing, you still have to be able to appreciate 8-bit shooters. Although the slowdown is no worse than many celebrated NES games, Sagaia was rebalanced nicely for SMS and the ship and bullet size work out well. Kind of like how Super Darius II was rebalanced for single screen console play.

http://tg-16.com/screenshot_comparisons_shmups.htm#Darius_2

If *anyone* at pcefx (not just the folks I am quoting) want to grab some screenshots of SMS Sagaia in action to match the PCE vs. MD shots, please do so and I will gladly add them to the page.

[Black Tiger]

I posted comparison pics in the screenshot thread. But it's somehere between maybe page 50 and 80.