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[Geometric-Crusher]

On November 22, 1994 Sega Saturn was launched in Japan, despite the price the console had good initial sales in the land of the rising sun, the rest of the story everyone knows, the Playstation dominated everything.

But I didn't create this thread to talk about history but to talk about games

Post your top 10 Sega Saturn games, and if you don't know this console, pay attention to the games recommended by the community as there are many hidden gems.


1- PowerSlave/Exhumed
2- kof 97
3- Mortal Kombat Trilogy
4- Resident Evil
5- Tomb Raider
6- Real Bout Fatal Fury
7- Radiant Silvergun
8- Grandia
9- street fighter zero 3
10- MegaMan x4


Remembering the Sega Saturn is the first step towards the future.

 

[TintoConCasera]

Just got a Saturn myself so I'll be paying attention to this thread.

 

[SEGAvangelist]

1. NiGHTS into dreams...
2. Panzer Dragoon Saga
3. SEGA Rally Championship
4. Virtua Fighter 2
5. Virtua Cop
6. Shining Force III
7. Radiant Silvergun
8. Panzer Dragoon Zwei
9. Guardian Heroes
10. Burning Rangers

Dayona USA missed this list because the ports just weren't that great. Obvious Panzer Dragoon is just off the list. You can throw a few others there that were ported to PlayStation as well like Grandia and the Lunar remakes. It's my favorite console. The GoAT.

 

[Little Chicken]

01 - Panzer Dragoon Saga
02 - Dragon Force
03 - Parodius Collection
04 - Shining the Holy Ark
05 - Guardian Heroes
06 - Dark Savior
07 - Panzer Dragoon Zwei
08 - Panzer Dragoon
09 - Burning Rangers
10 - Christmas NiGHTS

 

[Darsxx82]

I've had mine for 30 years and it works perfectly. It's a shame I didn't keep the packaging and the box.

I don't know if those are the best, but the ones I enjoyed and remember the most are:

1- SegaRally
2- Resident Evil
3- Deepfear
4- PanzerDragon Zwei2
5- GoldenAxe the Duel
6- VirtuaFigther2/FigtherMegamix
7- LastBronx
8- Tomb Raider
9- Pandemonium
10- HyperDuel

Special mentions WorldWideSoccer97/98, Dead or Alive, VirtuaCop2, SegaTocaTouringCar, ManxTT, Panzer Dragoon Saga, Grandia....where a lot of games.

 

[Walter Matthau]

Nice lists, but why is no one mentioning Bomberman?

 

[diffusionx]

Im trying to think of games that are somehow still exclusive or really great on Saturn (so no Guardian Heroes or Radiant Silvergun or Grandia which I dont care what Sega dorks say is fine on PlayStation)

Dragon Force
Fighters Megamix
Shining Force 3
Panzer Dragoon 2/Saga
Saturn Bomberman
Burning Rangers
Legend of Oasis
Magic Knight Rayearth
Shinobi Legions (the Mortal Kombat style graphiocs are pretty cringe but it plays well)
Psychic Killer Taromaru
Astal
Prikura Daisakusen
Silhouette Mirage (WD kind of butchered the PSX port)
Battle Garegga
Decathlete
Sega Rally (somehow might still be the best home port)

 

[Phobos Base]

F1 Challenge never gets mentioned when it comes to Saturn racing games, but it should

 

[Little Chicken]

Im trying to think of games that are somehow still exclusive or really great on Saturn (so no Guardian Heroes or Radiant Silvergun or Grandia which I dont care what Sega dorks say is fine on PlayStation)

Dragon Force
Fighters Megamix
Shining Force 3
Panzer Dragoon 2/Saga
Saturn Bomberman
Burning Rangers
Legend of Oasis
Magic Knight Rayearth
Shinobi Legions (the Mortal Kombat style graphiocs are pretty cringe but it plays well)
Psychic Killer Taromaru
Astal
Prikura Daisakusen
Silhouette Mirage (WD kind of butchered the PSX port)
Battle Garegga
Sega Rally (somehow might still be the best home port)

Albert Odyssey

 

[Radical_3d]

Spoiler

It brings me memories but it was a frustrating experience see all games look and run better on the PlayStation (those damned checkerboard patterns for transparencies…). Still my first 32 bit console and where I first played many classics of that era. Including Wipeout, that plays so much better with the Saturn D pad than with the one from PlayStation. Six facing buttons was a bad idea.

 

[Geometric-Crusher]

F1 Challenge never gets mentioned when it comes to Saturn racing games, but it should

High Velocity Mountain Racing Challenge and The Need for speed too

 

[Nankatsu]

Sega Worldwide soccer 98.

Man, the memories.



Also Die Hard Arcade. Probably my most played demo of all time.

Never managed to play the full game back in the day.

 

[Sanepar]

My biggest regret on my game life was to buy this crap console instead of playstation 1.

 

[Crayon]

F1 Challenge never gets mentioned when it comes to Saturn racing games, but it should

It's in my Saturn right now!

Actually I always liked it so much I picked up F1 Live Information recently (that's what's actually in there) and it's a trip playing with the commentary track.

 

[SEGAvangelist]

watching dog
My biggest regret on my game life was to buy this crap console instead of playstation 1.

 

[Darsxx82]

Sega Worldwide soccer 98.

Man, the memories.

It was by far the best football game of its time. Graphics and animations were better than Fifa, which had already overshadowed it at a time when PSX was getting all the social attention.

 

[Vyse]

I've had mine for 30 years and it works perfectly. It's a shame I didn't keep the packaging and the box.

I don't know if those are the best, but the ones I enjoyed and remember the most are:

1- SegaRally
2- Resident Evil
3- Coldfear
4- PanzerDragon Zwei2
5- GoldenAxe the Duel
6- VirtuaFigther2/FigtherMegamix
7- LastBronx
8- Tomb Raider
9- Pandemonium
10- HyperDuel

Special mentions WorldWideSoccer97/98, Dead or Alive, VirtuaCop2, SegaTocaTouringCar, ManxTT, Panzer Dragoon Saga, Grandia....where a lot of games.

Same. OG still kicking!

 

[xpresstuning]

Im trying to think of games that are somehow still exclusive or really great on Saturn (so no Guardian Heroes or Radiant Silvergun or Grandia which I dont care what Sega dorks say is fine on PlayStation)

Dragon Force
Fighters Megamix
Shining Force 3
Panzer Dragoon 2/Saga
Saturn Bomberman
Burning Rangers
Legend of Oasis
Magic Knight Rayearth
Shinobi Legions (the Mortal Kombat style graphiocs are pretty cringe but it plays well)
Psychic Killer Taromaru
Astal
Prikura Daisakusen
Silhouette Mirage (WD kind of butchered the PSX port)
Battle Garegga
Sega Rally (somehow might still be the best home port)

Silhouette Mirage is also english patched, i love that.

Princess Crown also is english patched, though it's still a work in progress. Heard that is a fantastic game as well. Can't play it anywhere else in english, so that automatically makes it the definitive version.

I'll just copy-paste an old post of mine:

here's my quick 'n dirty top 10 (beginner) recommendations for anyone getting into the Sega Saturn. It has an eternal appeal because of its unique library of games that form a distinctive bubble of 90s Japan unlike any other 5th generation console.

Panzer Dragoon Zwei (i'd play the first one as well. It's a good game, and because it's better than the shitty remake. Also provides a frame of reference concerning the massive improvements in Zwei over the original)
Panzer Dragoon Saga
Dragon Force
Guardian Heroes
Cotton 2: Magical Night Dreams
Nights into Dreams (and the controller for it)
Keiō Yūgekitai: Katsugeki-hen
Radiant Silvergun
Shinning Force III (Scenario 1 - Japanese version with translation patch)
Street Fighter Zero 3

Fuck it, here's another 20. All of 'em essential. All of 'em are definitive versions on Saturn if you're wondering about some of the games that were also on Playstation and/or have other (shitty) versions elsewhere.

Shining Force III Scenario 2 & Shining Force III Scenario 3
Vandal Hearts: Ushinawareta Kodai Bunmei
Dragon Force II: Kamisarishi Daichi ni
Shining The Holy Ark
The Legend of Oasis
Dark Savior
Saturn Bomberman
Astra SuperStars
Astal
Twinkle Star Sprites
Bulk Slash
Sexy Parodius
Layer Section (Galactic Attack)
Hyper Duel
Silhouette Mirage
Purikura Daisakusen
Sakura Wars I
Sega Rally Championship Plus Netlink Edition
Batsugun
Elevator Action 2: Returns
Soukyugurentai

 

[Soltype]

Awesome system, such a unique library. One thing I do find crazy though is that this sold better than the Genesis in Japan.

 

[Omnipunctual Godot]

Also worth noting that there was a Castlevania: Nocturne in the Moonlight hack this year that fixed several issues and brought improvements, including:

• Full English translation (text + speech) - PSP ver;
• Translucency restoration
• Direct access to the global map;
• Finalization of the global map;
• Restoration of the original proportions of some sprites;
• Removing horizontal black bars of the screen;
• Skipping videos and dialogues;
• Access to Richter's alternate costume;
• Reduced loading time;
• Support for 4MB expansion card;
• Bug fixes;
• Hard Mode

 

[Werewolf Jones]

Saw this today at CEX. Still seeing new games I've never seen before.

 

[Reaseru]

Burning Rangers, what a game. Even made me want to be a firefighter.

And that OST...wow. I used to listen to it practically every day, alongside with the Dragon Ball Z: Legends OST.

EDIT: If you listen carefully, in Stellar Blade, the sound used to collect items is practically the same as the one that is used for catching those little diamonds in Nights into Dreams.

 

[Darsxx82]

Saw this today at CEX. Still seeing new games I've never seen before.

Wow, that's not an outrageous price for such a strange Saturn game.

I too continue to be surprised by Saturn games I didn't know about. There are a lot of, Japanese ones especially.

 

[NeverYouMind]

I don't have 10 but here is a top 5:

#5 Sonic R - A kart racer with characters that run on foot!


#4 Dynamite Deka - A cool co-op 3D beat 'em up.


#3 Anarchy in the Nippon - A 3D fighter akin to Virtua Fighter but with a style closer to Rival Schools


#2 Groove On Fight - An exclusive sequel of Power Instinct series that has the best mechanics in the series and a presentation close to Darkstalkers 3.


#1 Fighters Megamix - It is Virtua Fighter 3 mechanically with some optional Fighting Vipers II mechanics on hardware that greatly predates it. It has walls, evades, and an amusingly absurd roster.

 

[cireza]

One that certainly qualifies as "hidden" gem, as it is not a well known title : Digital Pinball Necronomicon.
To this day, the best pinball game I have played. The first Digital Pinball, also on Saturn, is a must play as well.

God-like soundtrack. Superbly well-designed tables. Excellent visuals with a really good taste for colors (not the usual rainbows and stuff that shines everywhere). A masterpiece of pinball games. Same qualities apply to the first game.

 

[Little Chicken]

Saw this today at CEX. Still seeing new games I've never seen before.

I played a bit of this one, was like a horror-lite, mystery game that was pre-rendered FMV like D or Myst, and it ran on Saturn, so you can bet that the image quality was disgusting

 

[cireza]

I played a bit of this one, was like a horror-lite, mystery game that was pre-rendered FMV like D or Myst, and it ran on Saturn, so you can bet that the image quality was disgusting

Early FMV wasn't great, however later in the life of the console (97-98), video quality was much much better and many games had excellent quality videos. For example Deep Fear. It would have seen further improvements most certainly if the console had been supported a couple more years.

 

[TerribleAtThisGame]

Many years ago I sold my Saturn and several great games for $30.

 

[Little Chicken]

I would like to add that Shining Force 3 would've been #1 if I'd had the opportunity to play it. I'm going to play all three parts soon thanks to... modern software technology

Early FMV wasn't great, however later in the life of the console (97-98), video quality was much much better and many games had excellent quality videos. For example Deep Fear. It would have seen further improvements most certainly if the console had been supported a couple more years.

I always wanted to play Deep Fear, I remember seeing ads for it in magazines all the time.

 

[Aldric]

One of my favorite systems of all time. Not going to be very original with my list but anyway:

1-Guardian Heroes
2-Dragon Force
3-Panzer Dragoon Zwei
4-Shadow over Mystara
5-Radiant Silvergun
6-Sega Rally
7-Burning Rangers
8-Nights Into Dreams
9-Magic Knight Rayearth
10-Virtua Fighter 2

Guardian Heroes is in my top 3 favorite games of all time, I even bought Code of Princess because I was nostalgic (it was shit). Good memories.

 

[Little Chicken]

Many years ago I sold my Saturn and several great games for $30.

I know how you feel. I threw my copy of Panzer Dragoon Saga in the bin by accident when I was moving. Coming to terms with that has helped me let go of a lot of old games and hardware I'm never going to touch again

 

[TerribleAtThisGame]

I know how you feel. I threw my copy of Panzer Dragoon Saga in the bin by accident when I was moving. Coming to terms with that has helped me let go of a lot of old games and hardware I'm never going to touch again

So the one smart thing I did...

I kept my complete copy of the US version of The House Of The Dead. Rare as fuck. Still have it.

 

[Little Chicken]

So the one smart thing I did...

I kept my complete copy of the US version of The House Of The Dead. Rare as fuck. Still have it.

Some of the most iconic voice acting in the industry!

 

[ReyBrujo]

Same. OG still kicking!

That's quite odd, down here most of friends got busted lasers. Most of Saturn' best games stayed in Japan, the American library was maybe just 30% of all the releases and the ones that were released can get pretty expensive, unfortunately without a Saroo a Saturn isn't worthwhile.

 

[Walter Matthau]

Many years ago I sold my Saturn and several great games for $30.

I didn't sell mine for pennies on the dollar, but I had a very nice collection of imports and rare titles that I sold on eBay long before the flood of collectors. I even had the Virtua Stick and lightgun. On top of that I gave a decent cut to a relative that helped me list and ship them.

These days I play on MiSTer so hard to be too upset, but would love to have the original hardware and a few select games.

 

[Gusy]

-Bulk Slash
-Assault Suit Leynos

both japanese , but both must play

Also dont sleep on Galactic Attack

 

[DeVeAn]

Three Dirty Dwarves
Darius Gaiden

Damn near all Capcom and SEGA titles are good on the Saturn.

 

[DragoonKain]

Dragon Force is the GOAT strategy RPG. Saturn is super nostalgic for me. Still own mine and a lot of games for it.

 

[Puscifer]

Does anyone know of the Western side scroller for Saturn? I've been trying to figure it out for ages

 

[ReBurn]

My Saturn was, and largely still is, primarily a Radiant Silvergun machine. I played that game so much and I never got good at it. I played a lot of Sega Rally, Guardian Heroes, Virtua Fighter 2 and Burning Rangers, too.

 

[darth.shrimp]

1. Guardian Heroes
2. Guardian Heroes
3. Guardian Heroes
4. Guardian Heroes
5. Guardian Heroes
6. Guardian Heroes
7. Guardian Heroes
8. Guardian Heroes
9. Guardian Heroes
10. Panzer Dragon Saga

 

[TerribleAtThisGame]

I didn't sell mine for pennies on the dollar, but I had a very nice collection of imports and rare titles that I sold on eBay long before the flood of collectors. I even had the Virtua Stick and lightgun. On top of that I gave a decent cut to a relative that helped me list and ship them.

These days I play on MiSTer so hard to be too upset, but would love to have the original hardware and a few select games.

I had the light gun and Virtua Cop as well...

My asshole suddenly hurts!

 

[Diseased Yak]

Love the Saturn so much. I still own mine but haven't plugged it in for years.

What's a good way to connect a Saturn to a modern 4k display anyway?

 

[Walter Matthau]

Does anyone know of the Western side scroller for Saturn? I've been trying to figure it out for ages

Western as in Wild West or do you mean developed in the west?

 

[Puscifer]

Western as in Wild West or do you mean developed in the west?

Wild West

 

[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

Here's the 30 best selling games on the system in Japan (via Game Data Library):

 

[RAIDEN1]

If only there was someone at Sega to tell that at the time, everyone let's take a leaf out of what made the Genesis our greatest console and see if we can apply the same traits here, but instead they were caught in a civil war of sorts, they took their eye of the ball and Sony only too gladly lapped it up..

 

[RetroGamingUK]

Love the Saturn so much. I still own mine but haven't plugged it in for years.

What's a good way to connect a Saturn to a modern 4k display anyway?

Kaico HDMI adaptor, they’re fairly cheap

 

[Crayon]

Heeeyyyyy looks like my Crimewave disc is out for delivery!!!

I am like "nope thatbps5 pro is too much" and then i blow shitloads tearing up ebay for old games I could emulate.

 

[TintoConCasera]

Can't believe there isn't a translation yet for SMT: Devil Summoner. I wonder how hard could it be to implement, given that all the text has already been translated and the "only" thing left is to put it inside the game.

Might look into it later.