As an old head, or “unc”, whatever you whippersnappers call me these days, I had the pleasure of growing up as a homebody during the console wars. Nintendo and Sega were both vying for consumer attention and wallets, and, in many ways, helped drive a new form of gaming as they tried to outdo each other.
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Both teams wanted their games to have a wow factor that would attract players and keep them playing. I personally don’t think Sega has gotten enough credit for all their games have contributed to the modern world at this point. In particular, there are many Sega Genesis titles that I still see influencing video games and the culture around them to this day.
Gridiron and Guts
When it comes to arcade style arcade games, it’s no different than the Mutant League series. Field bombs, exploding soccer balls, and refs you can bribe to turn a blind eye as you turn your opponent into a pile of blood and guts. Mutant League Football relied heavily on humor and gameplay, but it also had the advantage of being built on top of the engine used to make John Madden’s football game, giving it real sports chops.
While the Mutant League franchise exploded after Mutant League Hockey, some old developers brought it back in 2017 in the form of a spiritual follow-up Mutant Football League. The original game itself opened the door for games like NFL Blitz to rush into the end zone for a touchdown and show that you shouldn’t take your sports games so seriously.
9
Here’s the Dolphin
Under the Sea
While the calm ocean setting and ethereal soundtrack may have given Ecco the Dolphin a sense of calm, the gameplay was quite the opposite. Many levels are made of complex and very difficult natural puzzles. Dolphins need air and most of the time you would find yourself wandering around in deep underwater caves which made everything timed.
You can almost think of it as old souls. Okay, that might be stretching it a bit, but the combination of cute dolphins flipping through the air with tedious gameplay was an early example of a game that shouldn’t be judged by its cover.
8
Disney’s Aladdin
A Whole New World
There’s been a long-running debate among fans about whether the Genesis or SNES version of Disney’s Aladdin is better, but for my money, the Genesis wins hands down. To me, the Sega version emphasizes Disney’s animation style more than Nintendo’s. There’s just a fluidity to it that makes the pitch so smooth and the song so powerful.
On top of all that, it was an early example of a movie tie-in game that was more than just a cash grab. Until then, many games based on films and TV shows had not been given much attention in their development.
7
Sonic & Knuckles
Grandfather of Additional Content
During the 16-Bit era of consoles, there was no such thing as a single day or post-launch DLC roadmap. The game you got was the game you got. Sonic & Knuckles was the precursor to our modern content model in many ways. Although it was a standalone game, if you happen to own Sonic 2 or 3, you can use the game’s unlock technology to unlock Knuckles as a playable character.
When Sonic & Knuckles came out, the idea of being able to expand the game’s content was novel to say the least. But it was an exciting time for fans of the series, and it gave us an excuse to revisit previous Sonic games.
6
Contra: Hard Corps
A New Chapter in Alien Wars
By the time Contra: Hard Corps arrived, the Contra series was already well known to fans of side-scrolling, bullet hell shooters. But Hard Corps was a turning point for the franchise for many reasons. It added selectable characters, gave players four weapon slots, and gave the series an anime-inspired face lift. It was also the first time that a Contra title didn’t have a single level to go up and put more emphasis on epic boss battles.
Hard Corps showed that a franchise can evolve for a modern audience by trimming the fat while adding more quality of life elements. It made an old series feel fresh and breathed new life into it.
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5
Gunstar Heroes
Blazing Bullet Hell
Another side-scrolling schmup from the golden years of the Sega Genesis, Gunstar Heroes, has been one of my favorite games since I first played it. You can think of it as a very busy Mega Man that focuses more on action than challenge. It also featured amazing boss designs and a clever weapon system that allowed you to combine two types of characters of your choice, encouraging replayability to find everything. I almost always ended up using the rapid fire and homing shot combo manually.
Gunstar Heroes has helped inspire a number of run-and-gun series that have gained popularity over the years, including Metal Slug and Cuphead. It’s a truly amazing game that doesn’t get enough credit for how much it did to change the genre.
4
ToeJam & Earl
A Freaky Tale
Besides being one of the most fun games ever published, ToeJam & Earl is also one of the most underrated games. Players were tasked with helping the hip-hop-alien duo find the pieces of their ship and return to the planet Funkotron, which involved navigating various environments while avoiding strange extraterrestrials such as mad scientists and thugs.
It was a very open-ended thing that could be confusing at times, but never dull. The game’s humor and relaxed gameplay style have kept the franchise alive over the years, and you can see the effects it’s had in modern titles like Don’t Starve.
3
Roads of Rage
Bringing Pain
Aside from having some really rocking chiptune bangers on its soundtrack, the Streets of Rage series has solidified itself as the epitome of side-scrolling detectives on the Sega Genesis. While it mirrored titles like Final Fight in many ways, it brought a new visual dimension to the genre.
The series also represents a modern revival of the beat-em-up genre. While the series was on hiatus for several years, in 2020 Dotemu published Fury Roads 4 to many fans and critical acclaim. Since then, games like TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge and Marvel Cosmic Invasion have helped show just how much demand there is for Street of Rage-likes.
2
Sonic the Hedgehog
You Must Go Fast!
When Sega said they were doing what Nintendo could do, it was like Sonic the Hedgehog was talking about it. The blue fade was a frenzied burst of speed on a pitch that had never been seen before. Sonic mixes fast-paced action with levels full of branching paths as you take Dr. Evil Robotnik.
Today, Sonic the Hedgehog is one of the most beloved icons in sports. It has spawned dozens of animated series, a movie franchise, and has had more remakes than I care to count. It is one of the most influential games of all time.
The Beginning of the Dynasty
While there was a John Madden football game released earlier, the Sega Genesis version added many features that helped make it the greatest sports game series ever. The Genesis version of Madden added a giant playbook that gave it real depth as a football simulator and an isometric view that felt like it was putting you in the action. You can even summon an audible if you want and mess with whoever you’re playing with.
John Madden himself was personally involved in making sure the game felt as close to the real deal as possible given the very limited technology of the time. Since the launch of the first Madden game, the series has exploded in popularity and become one of the video game industry’s most successful games while influencing generations of sports sims to follow.
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Polished polygons
