No arguments here: The Sega Genesis’s Best Shmups
It’s the holiday season, so it’s a good time to reflect on one of the most important Christmas gifts ever. We’re not talking about consoles that are still available a year later. Instead, we’re talking about the Sega Genesis (or Mega Drive) outside North America.
Although we won’t be going into history, which is why Sonic the Hedgehog is still the most well-known console, there were many great games on Genesis. Many people have written books about them.
Today, however, we will be discussing my favorite video game niche, which I was once so proficient at, but now my reflexes are so strained that I can only envy the children 1c who play the same games I loved as a child.
It all sounds very poetic, doesn’t it? But let’s get down to the point. We discuss the best shoot them ups (or Shmups!) on the Sega Genesis.
The Genesis has become a great platform for shoot-them-ups. We didn’t understand the quality of the games released at the time, mainly from Japan. But with the help of emulators and real hardware, it is now super easy to get back into them and have a blast.
How to play Sega Genesis today
Before we dive into any type of list (and there are no arguments about it, it is definitive, and I don’t care if it isn’t), we need to understand that you will still need a way of actually playing these games. That can be as simple or difficult as you like, so let’s take a look at some of our options.
Original Sega Genesis hardware
Although it might seem absurd to some, this is the only way to enjoy the original Sega Genesis consoles truly. The barrier to entry is lower than you might think. Despite the insane price rise of original retro hardware, and people trying to make a stupid profit, it is still possible to buy original Sega Genesis consoles at remarkably low prices on sites like eBay. This is mainly because there were so many of them back then because of their popularity.
You could also buy a used one and attempt to fix it if you want to make it a project. This is what I do. It is very fun to learn electronics and fix things up.
This isn’t the end of it. Because the console predates flat-screen TVs, you will need to figure out how to display the games. An older TV may have a SCART input if you live in Europe. This is possible even for flat-screen TVs made within the past ten years. You will need a Mega Drive SCART cable (of high quality) to get started.
North America has a similar system, but you shouldn’t expect to connect an old Genesis to your Smart TV.
It is worth noting that Genesis was built with CRT technology in mind. This means that games will look great with no input lag, even if there are still some of these in your basement or attic. Input lag is a problem with modern TVs, making it difficult to perform super-fast tasks like shooting their ups.
You should also remember that original hardware can be expensive. This is because you will need to purchase the games you wish to play.
Flash Carts are a way to get around this. They allow you to play legal ROMs on your original hardware using a Micro SD Card. Flash Carts can be a great way for you to save your precious original cartridges. The best is the Mega SD by Terraonion. It’s not expensive, but you can play Mega-CD games with it.
Emulators
This is the easiest way to play legal-owned games. You can also get emulators for almost everything, from your PC to your phone or gaming console.
Although emulators are wonderful, I find that people who play old games on an emulator often feel disappointed. While some of this can be attributed to nostalgia or a game not being as great as they remembered it, a more serious issue is that an emulator doesn’t allow the game to play the same way as it does on the original hardware. Perhaps you’re using an Xbox controller instead of an original Genesis-style pad. Or maybe the input lag discussed above. Something may be off. Many people don’t notice it. An awful lot do.
This is the best way to have fun with the games listed below.
Emulated hardware
This is the best way to play beyond real hardware.
There are many options. The MiSTer FPGA system is my weapon of choice. It is simply amazing and is one of the best multi-system retro devices I have ever seen. It is not true to call it emulated hardware. The FPGA chip faithfully reproduces the hardware from the original Genesis. (It gets very complex, but you can read more ). You get a 1-1 replica of the Genesis running on the MiSTer FPGA environment. Due to the recent shortage of the chip and the increased demand for this little marvel, the actual DE-10 Nano board is very limited. I urge you to sign up for a waiting list for the next batch.
Sega’s Genesis Mini is the next level. This smaller version of Sega’s original hardware comes with additional USB connectivity or HDMI video output. It comes with a limited number of games, but you can sideload to get around this restriction.
