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Sega Genesis/MegaDrive Appreciation Thread: Alien Storm > Golden Axe
- Thread starter IrishNinja
- Start date
D.Lo
Member
It only physically fits in the first model. But it works on all if plastic is cut away or is used naked.
The converter is simply a pin converter, it contains no Mark III hardware anyway. The entire Mark III chipset is included in the MD, except the FM chip of the Japanese Master System.
The converter is simply a pin converter, it contains no Mark III hardware anyway. The entire Mark III chipset is included in the MD, except the FM chip of the Japanese Master System.
IrishNinja
Member
its fantastic - so many slept/missed out on the SMS library, and right when too many stores were liquidating titles, bam, you had access to that soon after the genesis' launch...so great
the day i found that adapter to play SMS games on my game gear too...phew
the day i found that adapter to play SMS games on my game gear too...phew
IrishNinja
Member
that's okay, you got stuff like Master of Darkness & Dragon Crystal as SMS releases that we didn't, and man i love those two
D.Lo
Member
The best option now is the FM Power Base Converter from the awesome DB Electronics. Mark III/Master System sound is pretty crappy, but 50-ish games support FM and sound like Mega Drive games! It's day and night on the games that support it.
I've found it still isn't quite as clear and punchy as a real Mark III with FM, even on the best MD model, but it works great.
I've found it still isn't quite as clear and punchy as a real Mark III with FM, even on the best MD model, but it works great.
I've been getting the sense that maybe we could update the OPs on all the retro threads with respective recent mod/product/hack developments. I could help in my spare time here and there.
Sixfortyfive
He who pursues two rabbits gets two rabbits.
Even though I don't think the stock SMS is amazing in the audio department or anything, the FM upgrade typically sounded too "sterile" to me to justify buying extra hardware.
D.Lo
Member
What games? Some ain't amazing, but some are killer. Especially though a good amp, it has amazing bass just like good Mega Drive games. R-Type is a sound to behold.
Sixfortyfive
He who pursues two rabbits gets two rabbits.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZTPUkUfiwo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSfR5fNVQLk
The FM percussion sounds cleaner, but weaker.
Sustained notes, especially those at 0:12 onward... "tremble" a little in the original version, for lack of a better description, and I think this track is better off for it. No such effect on FM.
Like I said, the system isn't my first pick for 8-bit chiptunes in the first place, but there just seems to be a bunch of nuance that's lost in the FM style here and there from what I've listened to, and the instruments sound pretty bland to me overall to begin with. Not a fan.
Granted, I haven't played an SMS game on actual hardware in an eternity to begin with and this could all just be emulator nonsense without me realizing it, but w/e.
D.Lo
Member
The difference is just like what makes good MD games sound good, the bass and fullness and punch, which you need decent speakers for. Basically if you like Mega Drive sound, it's like that, and super cool to have coming from an older system, similar to hearing some of the Famicom expansion audio.
MIII PSG even on my big stereo sounds pretty much the same as through a TV speaker.
Here's R-type, and listen to those bass notes - they're true low end on good speakers.
It feels weird when I put a PSG-only game on, feels like jumping back a generation.
MIII PSG even on my big stereo sounds pretty much the same as through a TV speaker.
Here's R-type, and listen to those bass notes - they're true low end on good speakers.
It feels weird when I put a PSG-only game on, feels like jumping back a generation.
IrishNinja
Member
what about FM mods on actual master systems, any better?
D.Lo
Member
I don't have the 'in between' option to compare, just the real deal original and the converter.
sixteen-bit
Member
How does video output look on SMS games through a powerbase converter? SMS and Genesis have different output resolutions, right? Do SMS games play in a little window or something? Is the aspect ratio the same as it would look on a standalone SMS?
D.Lo
Member
It's exactly the same. It's like playing a GameCube game on a Wii, it grounds a line (conveniently named the M3 line) which shuts out the MD chips and just runs as if it were a Mark III, resolution and all (but without the FM chip of the Master System).
It's capable of VDP mode 4, but not 0-3, so SG1000 games don't work.
ResidentDante
Member
They look identical to running them on an SMS for me.
D.Lo
Member
It's actually all versions, even Genesis 3 has all the parts and can play MS games with a tiny one wire mod!
Really the Mega Drive design is an upgraded Mark III/Master System, in the same way the Mark III/Master System is an upgraded SG1000.
The VDP is different (upgraded) but has a mode that matches M3 mode 4, so it cannot play SG1000 games like real Mark III/Master System hardware. The MD uses the MS CPU for sound processing.
Well this guy got my attention.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Communist-P...220684?hash=item46440a0f4c:g:-7QAAOSwbqpTxvmj
Bundled Items: SENSE OF GUILT FOR BETRAYING YOUR COUNTRY, COMMUNIST PROPAGANDA, SHRINKING AMERICAN INFLUENCE, THE MANUFACTURING JOBS WE LOST TO CHINA
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Communist-P...220684?hash=item46440a0f4c:g:-7QAAOSwbqpTxvmj
Bundled Items: SENSE OF GUILT FOR BETRAYING YOUR COUNTRY, COMMUNIST PROPAGANDA, SHRINKING AMERICAN INFLUENCE, THE MANUFACTURING JOBS WE LOST TO CHINA
sixteen-bit
Member
Aaahahahahha. I guess it's working out for him!
sixteen-bit
Member
Not sure if it's really relevant to this thread but HG101 uploaded this Yuzo Koshiro interview from 2013
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEGvc_6O1kU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEGvc_6O1kU
Oh that's right! Th FM mini works on model 2.
foobarry81
Member
Consider me jelly. Still need that one. Well, the PAL version that is.
Amazing game. One of the hardest on the system. It's better with a 6 button controller but I was able to beat it without issue with a 3 button one.
entremet
Member
Dat dust.
j/k.
Nice pick up. Loved that game. I remember the Genesis version running better.
IrishNinja
Member
ZAMN is one of the all-time greats! i went with the SNES version but you can't go wrong, man...congrats!
I remember IrateGamer hating on this game...I haven't played it and even I know it's not as bad as he makes it out to be.
Why would anybody ever listen to him anyways? Its a great game, although slightly flawed.
blast processed
Member
Nice! I always wanted to pick this up. Someday.
That k/b is ancient, but I love it....after a while dust just refuses to come out lol
Now that I've played both, I think the genny one is a bit easier and yeah seems to run a bit better and even the genny sound shines through on this one.
Happy with my small but growing library.
A Black Falcon
Member
It's a decent game, if you have the 6-button controller, but I do dislike the cruel rescue system -- once people are dead they are very hard to bring back, and the passwords save how many people are alive (and you only get passwords every four levels), so the game kind of requires replaying the game quite a bit and trying to get through levels without losing as many people, instead of just being able to progress through the game -- once you're down to just one person you need to protect it's kind of over. And with a 3-button controller the controls would not be good, though it's fine with six. And aren't the graphics downgraded versus the SNES version? Still, it is a fun game, sure. I have the Genesis version, not SNES.
blast processed
Member
I love when the mailman shows up late Saturday with stuff like this.
I think Shinobi 3 is one of the best Shinobi games ever made. I never played Revenge, even though a lot of people claim it's better. This weekend I'll finally find out.
I think Shinobi 3 is one of the best Shinobi games ever made. I never played Revenge, even though a lot of people claim it's better. This weekend I'll finally find out.
blast processed
Member
Weird...I was just watching a review of this on CGR. Here's Marks review if you want to watch it.
A Black Falcon
Member
Arrow Flash is extremely average. Don't expect too much.
Gunstarheroes
Member
Yep. There is a reason, with it being one of the easier to get and cheaper Renovation titles, that its still missing out of my collection of Renovation titles, its very mediocre.
A Black Falcon
Member
While the game was (shadow-)developed by a team called ITL, Sega actually published Arrow Flash in Japan and Europe. After playing the game, it was easy to see why SoA passed on the game and let Renovation publish it here. Some of the games Sega published in Japan but they sold off to other developers in the US are good games, so that probably isn't the only reason, but it has to have been a factor.
I do kind of like the soundtrack, though. It's one of the better things about Arrow Flash.
What is your setup and how are you trying to connect everything?
A Black Falcon
Member
Is it actually a Saturn cable? They look a LOT like Genesis 2 cables, just with different pinout. Or Genesis 1, if it's the larger cable type that system uses?
I'm just trying to track what you are doing. You had one cable that didn't work and so you selected and bought a different cable latter but that didn't work either? I mean I assumed you wanted help figuring something out... If the cable you bought didn't physically fit the Gen 2 then you probably bought one for a Gen 1. There are different cables for Model 1 and 2. Model 1 is standard din and model 2 is mini din.