The Video Game Critic

ThePixelatedGenocide wrote:4th Generation: Sega CD. Plays every Genesis game, and it's own library of exclusives, at least 20% of which aren't horrible GIFs of bad actors blown up to pixels the size of bricks. But I'll miss Super Metroid.

Wasn't the Sega CD more of an attachment than an actual console? You needed to purchase the Genesis separately to use the thing if I remember correctly. I purchased the side loading model for my Genesis 2 long after Sega had moved on to the Saturn. I put some serious time into NBA Jam T.E. and Lunar: the silver star before trading everything off...boy I wish I hadn't done that.

AtariToday wrote:

ThePixelatedGenocide wrote:4th Generation: Sega CD. Plays every Genesis game, and it's own library of exclusives, at least 20% of which aren't horrible GIFs of bad actors blown up to pixels the size of bricks. But I'll miss Super Metroid.

Wasn't the Sega CD more of an attachment than an actual console? You needed to purchase the Genesis separately to use the thing if I remember correctly. I purchased the side loading model for my Genesis 2 long after Sega had moved on to the Saturn. I put some serious time into NBA Jam T.E. and Lunar: the silver star before trading everything off...boy I wish I hadn't done that.

The community at large considers it on its own, possibly because of the change in media - but you are right, its not a stand alone unit. Notice the Critic has its library separate from the Genesis. However, now that mid-generation upgrades are normal, maybe that will be reconsidered - that the Sega CD was a mid generation Genesis upgrade, and the optical disc games should be included with the cartridge games.

I can always swap my answer out for a Sega CDX, which is a single console in the exact same way a Saturn was.

But yeah, if we count the Sega CD as a completely different platform, than I'd love to know why Turbo CD games don't get their own listing on this site?

Stalvern wrote:I don't think anyone's as angry about your flouting the extremely nebulous categories of console generations as you seem to enjoy imagining them to be. It's all just convenient shorthand for grouping the biggest names.

I doubt any of the regulars are. They generally seem pretty cool about things. But you'd be amazed at what's offended people on Reddit and Youtube. After a few ugly scenes, it's just become reflexive to try to handle giving an opinion like making my case in court.

Really though, imagining a critic breathing fire down my neck helped me sort out of my own nerdy doubts about how to group them all.

Easy rule of thumb: if an add-on contributes a new CPU (used for something other than pure I/O control), it's a separate platform. If it doesn't, it's just a peripheral for the base system.

That makes the Sega CD and 32X systems that should be considered separately from their host platforms, whereas the Intellivision ECS, Jaguar CD, Turbo CD, Supercharger, etc. aren't. That feels about right to me.

goldenband wrote:Easy rule of thumb: if an add-on contributes a new CPU (used for something other than pure I/O control), it's a separate platform. If it doesn't, it's just a peripheral for the base system.

That makes the Sega CD and 32X systems that should be considered separately from their host platforms, whereas the Intellivision ECS, Jaguar CD, Turbo CD, Supercharger, etc. aren't. That feels about right to me.

well said! I'd never thought of it that way. I completely agree with you. Never too late to change your mind, right?

First gen- Atari Pong
2nd- Bally Astrocade (beast of its gen)
3rd- NES
4TH- NEO GEO
5TH- PS1
6TG- XBOX
7TH- PS3
8TH- Xbox One X

Happy New Years!

There were a few units which combined the Genesis and Sega CD. The Wondermega comes to mind.

For those of you that picked the Neo Geo over an SNES or Genesis, what types of games do you favor?

My guess would be that you would play close to 0 RPGs if that was your top pick, I'm curious if that is correct.