The world of video games today is really huge, lots of titles to play, and it can even be a job.
Personally I have tried a few times to play recent video games, but the dynamics of the game, the gameplay, the 3D, I did not like, I find them extremely boring.
The old games “in the arcade”, where we spent the afternoons as kids, with the joystick and the big buttons, I liked those!
The gameplay was much simpler, you had total control of the character, the game ran on a “track”, you knew what you had to do, and if you got it wrong, you started over!
Luckily when I was a kid in the family we had a Commodore 64 (C=64) that I was hooked on games that looked great at the time: X-Out, Turrican, Ghosts’n Goblins, Altered Beast, just to name a few.
My favorites were the “Shoot’em up”, strictly 2D, with fixed scrolling. That is, I didn’t like games where he had to “go around”, study the moves, strategies, etc. etc. For that type of games, I believe there is a better offer today. But for my taste, there is practically nothing today, if you don’t play full graphics without interesting gameplay.
When I saw Sega’s new console, Sega Mega Drive Mini (or Sega Genesis for the US market), and read some reviews (let’s say, many biased, taste to sell), and given the very low cost, I thought that I could have tried again to see if those games were still fun for me! Not that he has nothing else to do, also because between learning the language, studying new technologies, and working full-time, there is not much free time left. But surely those who have played video games of the past understand what I mean 😊
The packaging is of high quality, after all it is a console produced directly by Sega, so not by an external company that seeks only profit. Be careful not to confuse it with a previous unofficial version, whose result was poor (not very powerful processor and imprecise emulator).
The official site of the console is megadrivemini.sega.com
Content
Inside we find:
- the console with 42 original games included, version MK-16010
- two controllers, very nice, 1.90 m cable
- a 2m HDMI cable
- a 1.5m USB power cable
- a small user manual
The cables
The lengths of the cables are enough for me to play from the sofa, but unfortunately the controllers have the cable so it’s not exactly the best. USB cable extensions for controllers cannot be used, as this would generate lag (delay) on the typings.
I’ve read a lot of complaints that I don’t understand about not including a power supply.
Any USB power supply of at least 1A is enough, that is the common mobile phone charger, or – as in my case – you can connect directly to the television (mine has a USB output, which is usually used for the film/photo stick).
The HDMI and power cables can be replaced with other normal cables, such as longer ones. For controllers, however, this is not possible.
HDMI audio-video cable
The HDMI cable (which carries both the video signal and the audio signal) connects directly to the TV/monitor.
Even though the screen is very large (I have a 55″ for example), if we sit at the right distance the games don’t feel very “pixelled”. After all, these games were designed for much lower resolution screens than current monitors/TV.
Overall, the final yield is acceptable.
Audio
The console does not have an audio output, but uses the audio of the television/monitor, so – as in my case – you can for example connect bluetooth headphones directly to the TV.
The controllers
The controllers are very well made. I’ve never owned the original console, so I can’t compare them. I did not experience any lag (delay) as I have read in other reviews. The included controllers only have 3 buttons (A, B, C, and Input) but there is a 6-button version. Street Fighter can hardly be played with the 3-button version, but that’s not a problem for me, as I don’t like it.
The games
42 games seem like a lot, but they are distributed in different types, and only a few 5-6 are to my liking, and which I think I will play for a while. I do not put the whole list or the photos of the games, which are very easily found on the net.
Some can even be played by 2, bringing some fun to the family or friends.
I read that through special software (Hakchi or Project Lunar) you can modify the console and then install all the ROMs that are on the network, extending the number of games available.
Who may like it
I think the target of this console is retro-gaming, so people who have played these games in the past years.
I don’t think children of this generation will care, accustomed to super detailed graphics and 3D.
I would therefore avoid the “surprise” Christmas gift, better investigate first or try some emulators first (if you find free ones).
In the end I am happy with the first impression, let’s see if I will continue to use it in the future.
I leave you some photos to give you an idea. Feel free to ask in the comments if you have any curiosity or if I forgot to write something useful!
