Sega Genesis Collection

"Good but could have been better"

Think about this for a second: if you had bought all of these games new it you have cost you over $1,000 dollars, with Phantasy Star IV alone originally retailing for about $100, so you are getting a good value here if nothing else.

So what we have here is a collection of 28 Genesis and arcade games. It sounds good but you might remember that Sega has a spotty record for emulating its own stuff, with the Sega Smash Pak for the Dreamcast and Sonic 1 for the Game Boy Advance being very subpar. It seems like Sega has learned from its past and decided to farm out the emulation to Digital Eclipse, who has worked on other classic collections like Atari Anthology and the results are very good. Everything seems to be perfect or near perfect with no major bugs or problems unlike certain other collections (looking your way Midway) and the play control overall is very solid.

Since the emulation seems to be fine the next order of business is the selection of games and this is where I have some problems. While the collection has some of the best of what the Genesis had to offer like Sonic 1 and 2, Phantasy Star 2-4, Ecco the Dolphin 1 and 2, and Golden Axe 1-3 along with Genesis standards like Columns, Shinobi, Altered Beast, Comix Zone, and Kid Chameleon, I find it's lacking some of the best first party Genesis games like Streets of Rage 1-3, Eternal Champions, and the Shining Force games. Meanwhile this collection is giving us some stinkers like Flicky, a so-so 2-D version of Virtual Fighter II, Alex Kidd, and Decap Attack.

In summary:

Value: 10/10- Like I said earlier these games would have originally retailed for over $1,000 and the amount of games you get is comparable to other collections out there.

Emulation and play control: 9/10- No real problems that I have noticed and everything seems to be about as good as they originally were.

Game selection: 7/10- Some of the best Genesis games Sega has made and some you'd like to forget.

Overall: 8/10- I find this to be a very solid collection and a good value for your money. However I can't shake the feeling that I am missing some of the best Genesis games Sega has made, otherwise I would have giving it a 9/10 or even a 10/10. Hopefully Eternal Champions, the Streets of Rage, and Shining Force games will be available in a future collection.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 06/18/07