{"id":4272,"date":"2016-10-02T15:10:08","date_gmt":"2016-10-02T19:10:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/armchairarcade.com\/perspectives\/?p=4272"},"modified":"2016-10-04T09:08:08","modified_gmt":"2016-10-04T13:08:08","slug":"review-sega-genesis-classic-game-console-atgames-2016-version-includes-videos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/armchairarcade.com\/perspectives\/2016\/10\/02\/review-sega-genesis-classic-game-console-atgames-2016-version-includes-videos\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: Sega Genesis Classic Game Console (AtGames, 2016 version) (includes videos)"},"content":{"rendered":"

AtGames<\/strong> has released the 2016 version of their Sega Genesis Classic Game Console<\/a><\/strong>, which is just now starting to be available from major US retailers. While list price is $69.99, typical retail price is often quite a bit less.<\/p>\n

The Classic Game Console<\/strong> is part of the new AtGames Flashback Zone<\/a><\/strong>, which encompasses an increasing number of retro-themed products and a new social media presence on both Twitter<\/a> and Facebook<\/a>. The AtGames Flashback Zone<\/strong> is expected to be the AtGames retro gaming portal going forward and should hopefully see regular expansion. Other products for this year include: Atari Flashback 7<\/a><\/strong> (available now), Atari Flashback Portable<\/a><\/strong> (available November), Sega Genesis Ultimate Portable Game Player<\/a><\/strong> (available now), and Atari Flashback Classics Volume 1 and Volume 2<\/a><\/strong> for Sony’s PlayStation 4 and Microsoft’s Xbox One (both available soon). I should eventually have reviews posted for all of those products.<\/p>\n

This year’s edition of the Classic Game Console<\/strong> sports the 25th Anniversary Sonic the Hedgehog<\/a><\/strong> logo on the box and an addition of one extra Sonic<\/strong>-centric game, Sonic 3D Blast<\/strong>. Of course, that’s not the only change for this year’s edition, which I detail next.<\/p>\n

Differences from the 2015 Version<\/h2>\n

You can see the game list for this version here<\/a>, and the 2015 version here<\/a>. There are 39 original Genesis games, and 41 newer games (and swing of -1 and +1, respectively, over 2015) that are coded to be Genesis-like, but take advantage of the extra capabilities of the AtGames hardware.<\/p>\n

While there are a few fun titles in the list of those 41\u00a0newer games, their quality is highly variable and naming conventions are all over the place, so it’s difficult to judge what’s been added or dropped. To be clear, there are some differences between what’s in the 2015 version versus what’s in this 2016 version, but I’m not going to parse them on the lists. That’s because most important is what original Sega games have been dropped and which have been added.<\/p>\n

Lost from the 2015 version are: Ecco<\/strong>, Ecco Jr<\/strong>, Streets of Rage<\/strong>, Streets of Rage 2<\/strong>, Streets of Rage 3<\/strong>, and\u00a0Virtua Fighter 2<\/strong>. New additions for 2016 are: Eternal Champions<\/strong>, Phantasy Star II<\/strong>, Phantasy Star III<\/strong>, Sonic 3D Blast<\/strong>, and Sword of Vermillion<\/strong>.\u00a0Virtua Fighter 2<\/strong> was replaced with one of the “other” non-Sega games. It’s with the additions of the Phantasy Star II<\/strong>, Phantasy Star III<\/strong>, and Sword of Vermillion<\/strong> role-playing games that the biggest change reveals itself: save game support. Otherwise, the hardware itself is virtually identical.<\/p>\n

Console<\/h2>\n

The console itself is quite small and light, measuring approximately 5.5 x 4 x 5 inches (13.8 x 10 x 12.7 cm). At the top of the console is a cartridge slot and a power indicator LED, which is flanked by ON\/OFF and MENU buttons, the latter of which can be pressed to reset the console without powering it off. On the front of the console is the infrared sensor, which is flanked by two ports for plugging in wired controllers.<\/p>\n

The rear of the console has separate AUDIO (white) and VIDEO (yellow) composite connections, which works with the included, but relatively short, composite cables, or, you can of course use your own. Finally, there\u2019s a 9V DC jack for use with the included power supply.<\/p>\n

Here’s a quick unboxing:<\/p>\n