This compilation includes the games Alex Kidd In The Enchanted Castle, Altered Beast, Bonanza Bros, Columns, Comix Zone, Decap Attack starring Chuck D. Head, Ecco The Dolphin, Ecco: The Tides of Time, Ecco Jr, Flicky, Gain Ground, Golden Axe, Golden Axe II, Golden Axe III, Kid Chameleon, Phantasy Star II, Phantasy Star III: Generations of Doom, Phantasy Star IV: The End of the Millennium, Ristar, Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master, Sonic The Hedgehog, Sonic The Hedgehog 2, Super Thunder Blade, Sword Of Vermilion, Vectorman, Vectorman 2, Virtua Fighter 2. Unlockable: Altered Beast Arcade, Future SPY, Tac/Scan, Zaxxon, Zektor.
When I was a little boy, I used to think a critic’s job was to insult whatever it was they were reviewing. I guess that’s what I thought a ‘review’ was; a tirade of rather harsh criticisms on someone else’s hard work. Film reviewers spent so much time berating the latest releases that you wondered if they even liked movies in the first place – maybe they were just disgruntled journalists who really wanted to cover the Gulf War but had been shunted into Entertainment because they had a beard. As I grew up, I realised that this isn’t what reviewing is about, but it’s still a massive part of it – criticising something is the easiest thing to do and, to be fair, often the most satisfying. With Sega Mega Drive Collection for the PS2 and PSP, it’s very tempting to attack it. There are flaws with the ideas behind and you want to make a stand and protest that gamers won’t take this nonsense anymore! You won’t though, because it won’t be too long before you realise just how good this package is.
Let’s get those problems out of the way, although they’re not so much problems with the collection itself, rather the ideology behind it. First of all, we are entering the Virtual Console revolution, so all of these games will soon be available for download with a ‘pick and choose’ approach rather than in a bulk buy deal. This is a bad note for all future retro compilations, especially this one as it is being released in the twilight years of the second PlayStation. Secondly, Sega are kind of taking the Michael here. To my knowledge, at least 13 of the 27 games bundled on this disc have been released in different formats recently*. You could accuse them of flogging the dead horse, were it not for the depth and effort they’ve put into the collection if you care to take a longer look.
All the Mega Drive classics are here in perfectly emulated versions, and there’s a wide mix in both genres and rarity. You’ll not only be pleased to see the likes of Shinobi and Alex Kidd come back for seconds, but there are ultra-rare titles dug out of the archives to spice it up. The Phantasy Star games command high prices in their original formats, and so this is the first opportunity for new gen gamers to play them without selling their legs. In addition, Golden Axe 3 and Ecco Jr were previously kept as strictly American privilege. A true gift for enthusiasts.
The games are attractively presented and there are plenty of extras and surprises hidden away for the unlocking. Taking the baton from the expertly designed Capcom Classics Collection and running, we’re offered game summaries, trivia, hints and original artwork from the bat, and videos, interviews and hidden (if sub-standard) arcade games to enjoy if you hit the right goals. It’s so exciting it’s enough to make me blur three sports metaphors into one sentence. Bullseye!
Er, yeah, so… the games. Quality-wise, we’re looking at some dips and highs, but Sega of today can’t be knocked for their predecessors’ efforts. Overall, it’s a solid blend of titles that brightened up our younger years and hopefully we’ll remember with joy. Some of them have always been of questionable worth – Altered Beast and Kid Chameleon come to mind – and wiping the dust off of them and holding them up to 2007’s sun doesn’t do anyone any favours. However, this overlooks the fact that it’s loaded with some absolute doozies that wipe the floor with many modern gaming experiences. The Phantasy Star series, for example, will have you playing for weeks and remembering for years.
The flexible saving system (save anywhere, anytime) for every game makes the often severe difficulty levels of the past easier to swallow and allow you to play in different ways to your methods of the past. It’s aggravating to see that the unlockable games are arcade titles as there are so many more Mega Drive games out there that deserve a second lease of life, but 30 games for £20 really can’t be complained about too much.
We spoke earlier of flaws. I still have one that I am disappointed to announce. There is no Streets of Rage. While Golden Axe and Ecco all appear in their complete trilogies, we don’t even have a hint of Axel and Blaze’s three brawling adventures. It’s hard to believe Sega have simply overlooked one of their biggest franchises, so we have to believe something a little sneaky is afoot. I wouldn’t be surprised to see a Sega Mega Drive Collection 2 in the future, with the SoR trilogy headlining, backed with cheeky re-re-re-releases of the games like Sonic Spinball and Sonic 3. Yes, it all reeks of crass commercialism and an opportunity for an easy buck for Sega, but who can complain if the quality is this good? I can’t. I can’t wait for it.
*. Sonic, Sonic 2, Golden Axe, Altered Beast, Flicky, Kid Chameleon, Ecco The Dolphin, Alex Kidd, Gain Ground and Columns have all been released in Plug & Play consoles. The Sonic games also had a repeat performance in Sonic Mega Collection, which also presented us with an unlockable Ristar. The two Vectorman games were popped onto Sonic Gems as unlockables. Ecco and Golden Axe have appeared on a Gameboy Advance compilation, and Sonic’s first game had a US-exclusive Gameboy release.