Flojomojo Posted August 28, 2017 Share Posted August 28, 2017 Old jokes are still fun. http://www.digitiser2000.com/main-page/sega-master-system-cover-artwork-was-terrible 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+save2600 Posted August 28, 2017 Share Posted August 28, 2017 Looks like these guys actually enjoy getting punched in the face. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dj_convoy Posted August 28, 2017 Share Posted August 28, 2017 Massively biased, but I like the weird clip art SMS compositions. I mean, that My Hero one is actually a fairly good example of what awaits you in the game! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silverfleet Posted August 28, 2017 Share Posted August 28, 2017 I actually bought Pro Wrestling based on the ridiculous cover alone. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spacecadet Posted August 28, 2017 Share Posted August 28, 2017 What the hell - are these all actually real? I never owned a Master System. (In the market for one now, actually!) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flojomojo Posted August 28, 2017 Author Share Posted August 28, 2017 Yes, theyre real! SMS has its charms, but if you werent around when it was new, you might find that it smells of bargain-bin NES or lobotomized Genesis. Either of those are preferable IMHO. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrSidneyZweibel Posted August 28, 2017 Share Posted August 28, 2017 Nah. SMS is not by any stretch of the imagination "bargain bin" compared to the NES. It has quite a few far more faithful Arcade ports than the NES, and a bunch of unique nowhere else available games. It just has a much smaller library, because they didn't have the choke hold on 3rd party developers that Nintendo did. But then, if you remove the hundreds of shovelware dreck titles the NES had... the argument becomes more interesting. It is a lobotomized Genesis though, that is a good description. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dj_convoy Posted August 28, 2017 Share Posted August 28, 2017 What the hell - are these all actually real? I never owned a Master System. (In the market for one now, actually!) Please seek out these must haves: Govellius Spellcaster Rampage (if you don't have access to an arcade perfect port already, that is) Columns (superior to the Genesis version, imo) Castle of Illusion starring Mickey Mouse Phantasy Star Fantasy Zone II Power Strike Double Dragon (again, if you don't have access to the arcade game. This one is better than the NES port, and allows two players) Wonder Boy III Choplifter Zillion Golden Axe Warrior (this is pretty expensive; look into it if you get deeper into collecting) If you have a CRT, Gangster Town and Wanted are both worth having the Light Phaser for Another tip; you can play PAL games, and with one or two exceptions, they all work flawlessly, and are sometimes cheaper than their US counterparts, as are Australian games, but they are often not worth buying due to shipping. There are, of course, plenty of SEGA arcade conversions, but, as good as they were, generally there's not a lot of reason to play Space Barrier or Outrun in this day and age where you can play the real things. The couple of arcade ports I mentioned are both fun with two players. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spacecadet Posted August 28, 2017 Share Posted August 28, 2017 There are, of course, plenty of SEGA arcade conversions, but, as good as they were, generally there's not a lot of reason to play Space Barrier or Outrun in this day and age where you can play the real things. That is one thing I've slowly been realizing lately - arcade ports on older consoles in general are usually kind of a waste of my time except for the novelty of seeing what corners they had to cut. But that fun doesn't last long. There are some exceptions, of course. Anyway thanks for the list - I will check those out once I get a system. I have an SG-1000 and a Mark III, so I figure I may as well get the final form of that system. I realize I could just play SMS games on my Mark III, but I just want an SMS. Keep posting bad cover art; I can't believe these ever made it out in public. They're like kids' drawings that you stick on a refrigerator. The graph paper look even fits, like whoever was drawing them was actually using that to measure their lines. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrSidneyZweibel Posted August 28, 2017 Share Posted August 28, 2017 Also great on the SMS: Paperboy Black Belt Ghost house Spy vs Spy Ghostbusters Transbot R-Type Shinobi 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dj_convoy Posted August 28, 2017 Share Posted August 28, 2017 Jealous of your SG-1000! Dunno if I'll ever justify getting one... I'd be better served just getting a Mark III. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flojomojo Posted August 28, 2017 Author Share Posted August 28, 2017 I always liked Psycho Fox. Also note that with an Everdrive, you can play SMS ROMs on a Genesis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+wongojack Posted August 28, 2017 Share Posted August 28, 2017 Jealous of your SG-1000! Dunno if I'll ever justify getting one... I'd be better served just getting a Mark III. I always liked Psycho Fox. Also note that with an Everdrive, you can play SMS ROMs on a Genesis. You can also play SG-1000 games on a Master System if you have the MS Everdrive 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+atari2600land Posted August 28, 2017 Share Posted August 28, 2017 Why does the guy on the Pro Wrestling cover have no head? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bratwurst Posted August 29, 2017 Share Posted August 29, 2017 Why does the guy on the Pro Wrestling cover have no head? Well, presumably, he's fighting with himself. A rare shine of cleverness against the banality of Sega Master System packaging in North America. The SMS has some true gems, Wonderboy III was amazing for its time and is still fun today, though I'm a bit biased there. But since I grew up with the system as a kid I have a right to say by and large there's not a whole lot else it has going for it. Sega really stretched themselves thin on account of the lack of third party support. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+frankodragon Posted August 29, 2017 Share Posted August 29, 2017 Old jokes are still fun. http://www.digitiser2000.com/main-page/sega-master-system-cover-artwork-was-terrible Could be Plastic Man wrestling this other guy but due to copyright infringement, they couldn't show the head. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flojomojo Posted August 29, 2017 Author Share Posted August 29, 2017 I wonder why no one ever made a Plastic Man game? Bad timing, I guess. I remember a late 70s animated cartoon with him in it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NE146 Posted August 29, 2017 Share Posted August 29, 2017 (edited) Why does the guy on the Pro Wrestling cover have no head? People have been asking that question for about 3 decades now.. The world may never know! Edited August 29, 2017 by NE146 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Osgeld Posted August 29, 2017 Share Posted August 29, 2017 (edited) I will admit the SMS game art was pretty bad, and they corrected it with the black box genesis titles while still tying in the brand (lets face it you can spot a sega game a mile away vs a boxed nes or atari game) other game box art is pretty bad as well, while we may wonder why the pro wrestling guy has not head, we also wonder why joe biden is taking a shit in a space suit on the box of mega man its just one of those things you have to nod and smile at ... then forget that its real http://2.media.dorkly.cvcdn.com/37/98/d3dccf401c36c0f9632c23c719eb80f6.jpg https://scotterb.files.wordpress.com/2012/10/biden72.jpg Edited August 29, 2017 by Osgeld 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanooki Posted August 29, 2017 Share Posted August 29, 2017 Oh I think they corrected it well before that, on the back half of the SMS lifespan in the US (and beyond more so.) You go from that pile of grid based clip turd art and into actual arcade art style assets, well drawn up and painted images etc. I only ever had a SMS twice and both were well after 3D took over so I have no rose tinted love in the game but I found the system to be actually quite solid though with a smaller library (sorta like N64.) And of all things Wonderboy 3 and few others really still stand the test of time as being a fantastic title. I've had probably 40% of the US/PAL system library for it at one time or another and there's plenty of nice things, especially if you throw in some GG conversions too. Hey those arcade titles such as Double Dragon, Rampage, Paperboy, Strider, and a few others look damn nice, better than the NES art. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flojomojo Posted August 29, 2017 Author Share Posted August 29, 2017 I never owned a Master System. (In the market for one now, actually!) This will be you! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L085-Fg3vUE Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BawesomeBurf Posted August 30, 2017 Share Posted August 30, 2017 All the card games have terrible box art. Ooh, it's a hand holding the card! How creative! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CatPix Posted August 30, 2017 Share Posted August 30, 2017 (edited) Well, it can be explained easily as they wanted to show it was a carD and not a carT. But, I like the odd mise en abîme to have the artwork of the box on the cart that is on the box... Edited August 30, 2017 by CatPix Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Loguidice Posted August 30, 2017 Share Posted August 30, 2017 I never bothered to investigate it myself, but I'm wondering now for whatever reason if it was Tonka, the US distributor of the SMS, who had a hand in the bizarre covers for the games. As we know, once Sega took over North American distribution themselves (much like Nintendo taking over from Worlds of Wonder), the cover quality did change. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CatPix Posted August 30, 2017 Share Posted August 30, 2017 I don't know about Japan, but Europe got (most of?) the same box art so I have to guess that it came from Sega themselves. The change in box art probably happened when Sega introduced the Megadrive, which correspond more or less on Europe at the time they took over local distributors. Sega taking over Tonka isn't tied to change in art, IMO, but more tied to Sega wanting to improve their image on the US market. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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