Is a Sega CD or 32X worth picking up?

[dj_convoy]

Yeah, you get the FM tracks in quite a few Master System games, which some people swear by. If you grew up with the PSG tunes, like I did, this may be of less interest (I like 75% of the "normal" versions better than the FM ones), but the best is being able to switch back and forth if you want.

[+-^CrossBow^-]

Yeah, you get the FM tracks in quite a few Master System games, which some people swear by. If you grew up with the PSG tunes, like I did, this may be of less interest (I like 75% of the "normal" versions better than the FM ones), but the best is being able to switch back and forth if you want.

 

You can switch back and forth yes, but not on the fly. At least with the Tim Worthington FM add-on board, the FM is turned on when the game first loads and detects the FM in place. If you switch it off in the middle of the game playing, it will either lock up the game on the spot, suddenly go silent, or nothing changes and the FM continues to play.

 

So you have to turn the game on and off between flipping the switch on the FM.

[derFunkenstein]

Would have been nice if the YM2612 in the Genesis could have reproduced FM sound in Master System games. It appears that the YM2413 in the FM add-on had 16 discrete channels and up to 14 notes of polyphony (if using 5 rhythm tones), though, which is more than the YM2612 chip could do. That's pretty wild.

[+-^CrossBow^-]

Would have been nice if the YM2612 in the Genesis could have reproduced FM sound in Master System games. It appears that the YM2413 in the FM add-on had 16 discrete channels and up to 14 notes of polyphony (if using 5 rhythm tones), though, which is more than the YM2612 chip could do. That's pretty wild.

 

Yes and no... as I understand it the 2413 had 9 channels of melody or you could have 6 and 5 separate rhythm channels. But the 2413 could only do 2 operator synthesis from a preset instruments on the chip. The Genesis 2612 has 6 channels with up to 4 operators running on each without a preset instrument set. So the 2612 could make quite a bit more custom sounds than would have been possible with the 2413. Also the 2612 did have the DAC channel as well for the PCM sounds as well as true stereo on it that the 2413 lacks. Best you can do with the 2413 if I'm looking at the pinouts right, is that melody comes out of one pin and the rhythm if used, comes out of another. So if you used that for a left/right setup you would get all melody from one channel and percussion from the other but no actual mixing of the two through the chip itself.

[homerhomer]

I got a Model 1 Sega CD several months ago and with the Genesis model 1 sitting on top it just looks frickin awesome to me! There are enough good CD games imo to justify having the Sega CD. Being able to burn games on CD-r to try before you buy is plus.

 

I haven't been able to burn cd-r discs and on my Sega CD Model 1, I hear the Model 2 is more forgiving.

[Gamemoose]

I haven't been able to burn cd-r discs and on my Sega CD Model 1, I hear the Model 2 is more forgiving.

Hmm...what brand of disc are you using? I had to do extensive research for work back in the late 90's when burners became available. They wanted to know what media was most reliable and I found the brand name (Memorex, Verbatim, etc.) with an ink on it (disc has a tint on the record side that changed color when data was burned on it) worked best. I still have a music disc I burned from that test that still works after about 18 or so years.

 

Also it helps, at least in my experience, to burn discs at the slowest speed possible. That will help ensure better compatibility for those old drives.

[Flojomojo]

Also it helps, at least in my experience, to burn discs at the slowest speed possible. That will help ensure better compatibility for those old drives.

 

^^^ this

it's somewhat annoying, but once you've made a few high-speed coasters, it's well worth the wait

[Barone]

Sega CD is really worth owning IMO (I also own a 32X).

 

In short, I'd say that the following games are worth playing on it (even when available on cartridge):
- Advanced Dungeons & Dragons: Eye of the Beholder

- Bari-Arm

- Batman Returns (using the racing-only mode to avoid the awful platformer levels of the cart version)

- Dark Wizard
- Dune
- Ecco the Dolphin (far superior audio)
- Ecco: The Tides of Time (far superior audio)

- Final Fight CD (Japanese version)

- Flashback (bs FMV cutscenes but fully voiced and with exclusive great soundtrack)

- Flink (cart release is PAL-only and has inferior audio)

- Heart of the Alien: Out of This World Part I & II

- Keio Flying Squadron (Japanese version)

- Lethal Enforcers II (far better audio quality)

- Lords of Thunder (if you don't have access to the PCE SCD version)
- Lunar: Eternal Blue
- Lunar: The Silver Star

- Mickey Mania (extended game with improved audio)

- Pitfall: The Mayan Adventure (extended game with improved audio)
- Popful Mail

- Prince of Persia (cartridge version gameplay is completely off)
- Rise of the Dragon
- Road Avenger

- Road Rash (basically RR3 with better frame rate and audio)

- Robo Aleste
- Shining Force CD
- Silpheed

- Snatcher

- Soccer '94 (Sensible Soccer) (far superior audio)

- Sonic CD (not as good as the cartridge games though)

- SoulStar
- The Ninja Warriors

- The Terminator (much better game than the cart rendition)
- Third World War

- Time Gal
- Vay

- Wing Commander

- Wolfchild (extended game)

Edited July 18, 2018 by Barone

[00010000]

 

Sega CD is really worth owning IMO (I also own a 32X).

 

In short, I'd say that the following games are worth playing on it (even when available on cartridge):

- Advanced Dungeons & Dragons: Eye of the Beholder

- Bari-Arm

- Batman Returns (using the racing-only mode to avoid the awful platformer levels of the cart version)

- Dark Wizard

- Dune

- Ecco the Dolphin (far superior audio)

- Ecco: The Tides of Time (far superior audio)

- Final Fight CD (Japanese version)

- Flashback (bs FMV cutscenes but fully voiced and with exclusive great soundtrack)

- Flink (cart release is PAL-only and has inferior audio)

- Heart of the Alien: Out of This World Part I & II

- Keio Flying Squadron (Japanese version)

- Lethal Enforcers II (far better audio quality)

- Lords of Thunder (if you don't have access to the PCE SCD version)

- Lunar: Eternal Blue

- Lunar: The Silver Star

- Mickey Mania (extended game with improved audio)

- Pitfall: The Mayan Adventure (extended game with improved audio)

- Popful Mail

- Prince of Persia (cartridge version gameplay is completely off)

- Rise of the Dragon

- Road Avenger

- Road Rash (basically RR3 with better frame rate and audio)

- Robo Aleste

- Shining Force CD

- Silpheed

- Snatcher

- Soccer '94 (Sensible Soccer) (far superior audio)

- Sonic CD (not as good as the cartridge games though)

- SoulStar

- The Ninja Warriors

- The Terminator (much better game than the cart rendition)

- Third World War

- Time Gal

- Vay

- Wing Commander

- Wolfchild (extended game)

 

 

Lot of really good games in that list; there's also some game called Devastator on it that seems pretty cool.

 

I have a lot of catching up to do on SCD honestly (Saturn, too).

[Gamer888]

I would get the 32x mostly because I love NBA JAM and Virtua Fighter.

 

As for the sega CD, I used to have japanese wondermega and US CDX. One must go pass the whole FMV thing with very bad quality movies and keep on focusing on "traditional" gaming. You have then great games, some being exclusive but with an awsome sound. Final Fight, Sonic CD, Ecco, Android Assault to name of few make you think you leaped in the futur of gaming when you are so used to analogic sound. I am considering getting a new sega cd 2 actually.

[derFunkenstein]

The Saturn version of NBA Jam TE is nearly arcade-perfect, but the 32X version is my favorite version of the game. The Sega 16-bit home ports play more precisely than the floaty arcade versions (and the SNES version of the original game is very similar) but the Genesis version's save EEPROM doesn't work reliably.

[coleco82]

Hello Atari Pac Man Fan,

 

I thought I would add to this conversation concerning Sega CD and the 32X.

 

As many have said, both are worth having.

 

Certain Sega cd games are way to expensive to own real copies of (Snatcher, Keios Flying Squadron, Lunar 1 and 2).

 

When I had a sega cd many years ago I just burned every game I wanted to blank cds and had a blast.

 

I enjoyed the following games:

 

Final Fight CD

Mortal Kombat

NBA Jam

Adventures of Willy Beamish

Flink

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers

Wirehead

Night Trap

WWF Rage in the Cage

Vay

Star Wars Rebel Assault

Snatcher

The Lunar Games

Fatal Fury Special

 

It really depends on what games you like.

 

For the Sega 32X I liked these games:

 

WWF Raw

WWF WrestleMania The Arcade Game

Virtua Fighter

Doom

Star Wars Arcade

Tempo

NBA JAM TE

Afterburner

Space Harrier

Shadow Squadron

Mortal Kombat 2

RBI Baseball 95

 

I would just get a mega everdrive X7 and just throw everything you want on there.

 

I think between the Sega CD and 32x you could have lots of fun with at least 20 games if not more.

 

 

 

[Flojomojo]

I read somewhere that you will get old waiting for someone to top it.