Joseph Cameron (Joevellius) Sega’s just announced that they’ll be releasing the Game Gear Micro in Japan. While we don’t know if or when it’ll come to America, it’s still amazing to see this underappreciated system get some love.
I actually still own my Game Gear, although my screen doesn’t work ? The system never had mainstream success outside of Japan due to its extremely short battery life and smaller game library when compared to the Nintendo Gameboy.
The 8-bit Sega Game Gear was released in 1991 in the United States in Europe. The system hardware was the same as the Sega Master System and featured many of the same games. It competed against the Nintendo Gameboy, NEC TurboExpress, and Atari Lynx. Even though most of the games weren’t original, you were able to play them anywhere which was amazing at the time.
You could never play them for very long though because this beast ate batteries for breakfast, lunch, and dinner! You literally could not buy batteries fast enough. It even gave my rechargeables a run for their money. (Remember those? lol)
For all of these reasons, the system is often overlooked and underappreciated… but no more! The impending release of the Sega Game Gear Micro has finally put the spotlight on this amazing little system.
There will be 4 Game Gear Micros, each with four games:
- The Black Model comes with Sonic The Hedgehog, Puyo Puyo 2, OutRun, and Royal Stone
- The Blue Model comes with Sonic Chaos, Gunstar Heroes, Sylvan Tale, and Baku Baku Animal
- The Yellow Model comes with Shining Force Gaiden: Ensei – Jashin no Kuni he, Shining Force: The Sword of Hajya, Shining Force Gaiden: Final Conflict, and Nazopuyo Aruru no Ru
- The Red Model comes with Revelations: The Demon Slayer, Megami Tensei Gaiden: Last Bible Special, The GG Shinobi, and Columns
While these are all awesome games, there are so many more amazing games.
Here is a list of the games you should definitely check out on the Game Gear: (in no particular order)
1. Land of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse
Land of Illusion is a typical platform game, with the player sidescrolling his way through 14 stages, trying to retrieve the crystal to the villagers. Mickey can attack his enemies by picking up an item (such as a stone block) and throwing it at his enemies, or he can jump at them in a sitting pose.
Throughout the game, the player can pick up items that imbue Mickey with new abilities, such as a rope for climbing up walls or a potion that can make Mickey shrink in size. Furthermore, the player can then return to previous levels and utilize these items to gain access to previously inaccessible areas.
2. Sonic The Hedgehog 2
Like the previous games, players control Sonic the Hedgehog as he makes his way through each of the game’s seven zones, fighting against various badniks and overcoming deadly obstacles. By collecting rings, Sonic can protect himself from damage against enemies and obstacles (with the exception of pitfalls and drowning), with extra lives earned for collecting 100 rings. Unlike the previous 8-bit title, Sonic is now able to recollect some of his rings for a limited time after being hit. Other technical improvements allow Sonic to smash through certain walls and run through loops. Also added to this iteration are gameplay mechanics unique to certain zones, such as riding a mine cart, using a hang glider to glide across the air, skimming across the surface of water and floating inside giant bubbles to reach higher areas. Unlike the previous game, the game no longer features the Shield and Restart Marker items, so if Sonic loses a life, he must restart at the very beginning of the act.
3. Gunstar Heroes
Gunstar Heroes is a run and gun game played from a side-scrolling perspective similar to Contra. The game can be played in single-player, or cooperatively with a partner. The players take on the role of Gunstar Red and Gunstar Blue as they battle with an evil empire for control over a set of powerful gems. The game features seven stages, of which the first four can be tackled in any order. The stage formats vary; while some feature a typical left-to-right format, others have the player riding in a minecart along walls, fighting enemies on a helicopter, or playing a board game. Completing a level grants the player an extension to their maximum health.
4. Shinobi
The play mechanics of The G.G. Shinobi are roughly based on the Genesis game The Revenge of Shinobi, but with the addition of a character-switching system. The player starts the game as Joe Musashi (the red ninja), whose goal is to rescue four kidnapped allies who are being held captive in different stages. There are four stages. These can be played in any order. Each ninja character has a unique weapon, ninjutsu (typically consuming one ninjutsu spell) and ability.
5. Wonder Boy III: The Dragon’s Trap
Wonder Boy III: The Dragon’s Trap takes place immediately after the events of Wonder Boy in Monster Land, Wonder Boy travels into the Mecha Dragon’s lair in order to slay him. (Some sources refer to this creature as the “MEKA dragon”.) However, upon doing so, he is inflicted by a curse that transforms him into “Lizard-Man”. In the game, the player controls Wonder Boy as he tries to undo this curse by journeying across the land, defeating other dragons, and finally defeating the Vampire Dragon to obtain the Salamander Cross – the only object that can remove his curse.
6. Master of Darkness
Master of Darkness is a platform game, very similar to Castlevania. The plot has the player entering the role of an Ouija Board-playing psychologistnamed Dr. Ferdinand Social, who is looking to defeat Dracula, who is behind a series of killings in London that have been attributed to Jack the Ripper. However, Jack the Ripper is indeed responsible, for he is using the victim’s bodies and fresh blood for sacrificial offerings – as part of a darkritual being performed by Count Massen to resurrect Dracula. Also taking some part in the murders and the dark ritual is a mysterious Psychic Girl, who is possessed by an evil Skull Spirit.
7. Mortal Kombat II
The gameplay system of Mortal Kombat II is an improved version of that from the original Mortal Kombat. There are several changes in standard moves: a crouching punch was added, low and high kicks have greater differentiation (be they crouching or standing up), roundhouse kicks are made more powerful (knocking an opponent across the screen, like the game’s uppercut), and it is easier to perform combos due to reduced recovery times for attacks. Returning characters also gained new special moves, including some to be used in mid-air, and the game plays almost twice as fast as the original.
8. The Lucky Dime Caper Starring Donald Duck
The game is a side-scrolling platformer. The gameplay follows the same pattern of Castle of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse which was released for Sega consoles a year before, but unlike Mickey, Donald can attack enemies by hitting them with a hammer or throwing discs. He can also attack faster by collecting star items.
9. Ax Battler: The Legend of Golden Axe
The protagonist is Ax Battler, the male barbarian character from the original Golden Axe game. The series’ primary villain, Death Adder, is laying siege to the entire world. He steals the Golden Axe, a magical weapon that grants its wielder unimaginable power, from its hiding place in Firewood Castle. To prevent Death Adder using its powers to destroy the world, the king of Firewood Castle calls upon the help of his strongest warrior: Ax Battler. During his journey, Ax Battler must battle through the following ‘special landmarks’: The Spooky Cave, Peninsula Tower, Turtle’s Back, Death Pyramid, Evil Cave, Maze Wood, Gayn Mountain, Eagle’s Back, Ice Cliffs and Death Adder’s Castle.
10. Shining Force II: The Sword of Hajya
The Sword of Hajya uses gameplay mechanics identical to its predecessor, Shining Force Gaiden. The player progresses through a series of turn-based tactical battles interspersed with short cutscenes. Between the cutscenes, the player is allowed to save the game, promote characters, resurrect fallen characters, and sometimes buy and sell weapons and healing items.
As with most strategy RPGs, each battlefield is divided up into a grid where player characters and enemies take turns moving, attacking, casting magic and using items. Player characters gain experience by battling enemies, and may choose, once they reach level 10, to upgrade their class into a more powerful one.
11. Space Harrier
Space Harrier is a fast-paced rail shooter game played in a third-person perspective behind the protagonist, set in a surreal world composed of brightly colored landscapes adorned with checkerboard-style grounds and stationary objects such as trees or stone pillars. At the start of gameplay, players are greeted with a voice sample speaking “Welcome to the Fantasy Zone. Get ready!”, in addition to “You’re doing great!” with the successful completion of a stage. The title player character, simply named Harrier, navigates a continuous series of eighteen distinct stages while utilizing an underarm jet-propelled laser cannon that enables Harrier to simultaneously fly and shoot. The objective is simply to destroy all enemies—who range from prehistoric animals and Chinese dragons to flying robots, airborne geometric objects and alien pods—all while remaining in constant motion in order to dodge projectiles and immovable ground obstacles.
12. Defenders of Oasis
Defenders of Oasis is a role-playing game in which the player controls the Prince of Shadam, who must defeat the empire that has attacked his kingdom. The Prince is initially solitary, but forms a party including three other characters over the course of the game. The game is played from an overhead perspective, and the setting includes several villages and castles, in which the Prince is capable of conversing with pedestrians and collecting objects. Each village includes at least one shop where the player can purchase and sell items that can aid the Prince and his party, such as weapons, armor, and accessories. Villages also include a certain place where the party can rest and recover their hit points and spell points.
13. Dynamite Headdy
Dynamite Headdy is a platform game in which the player controls Headdy, a puppet with a detachable head. The story follows Headdy in his adventures to save his world from the evil puppet King Dark Demon, who is transforming all the puppets of the world into his evil minions. To succeed, Headdy must overcome the King’s army, which features the likes of Trouble Bruin and the key masters which serve as stage bosses. Headdy can jump and throw his head in any direction to attack enemies. His head can also be used to grab hooks and pull himself up to other platforms. Headdy’s health is represented by a spotlight in the corner of the screen which changes colors. If the player does not pick up restorative items to heal themselves after suffering damage from enemies, they will lose a life.
14. Streets of Rage 2
Like the previous game, Streets of Rage 2 is a side-scrolling beat-em-up in which one or two players fight against waves of enemies while picking up weapons and items along the way. Along with returning characters Axel Stone and Blaze Fielding, the game introduces two new characters; Max Thunder, a slow-moving but powerful wrestler, and Eddie “Skate” Hunter, the brother of previous game’s Adam Hunter who can move around quickly with his rollerblades. In addition to standard attacks, which have been expanded from the previous game, each character can perform a unique Blitz Attack by double-tapping a direction before attacking. Replacing the police car attack from the previous game, each character can perform Special Attacks which can deal extra damage or attack enemies from all directions at the cost of the player’s health. Along with the main campaign, two players can also fight against each other in the game’s Duel mode.
15. Mega Man
Mega Man is an action–platform game that is very similar to the original series. The protagonist, Mega Man, is able to run, jump, shoot, and climb his way past obstacles and enemies. It is based on elements from the Nintendo Entertainment System versions of Mega Man 4 and Mega Man 5. Differences include a lack of continues (if the game is over, it restarts to the title), the addition of vertical scrolling, powerups bouncing when they hit the ground, and a hard difficulty mode (though the player has to get at least a password from this mode, since both difficulties don’t share the same passwords).
16. Puyo Puyo 2 (Puyo Puyo Tsuu)
Just like the first game, Puyo fall from the top of the screen in pairs, can be moved left and right, and can be rotated clockwise and counter-clockwise by 90°; if the third column from the left fills up to the top, the game is over. The game has multiple new rules. The first extended rule added to this game was called “Offsetting”. This will allow a player to counter and negate Garbage Puyos being sent by the opponent with chains of their own. Offsetting can also be used to send the Puyos back to the opponent, known as “Garbage overflow”. The standard ojamas were kept with the release of Puyo Puyo 2, however, two new garbage types also appeared, known as Point Puyos and Hard Puyos. Point Puyos, when erased adjacently with neighboring groups of Puyos, add points to your overall score, and can also make your chains more powerful in the short-term. Hard Puyos, when they land on the field, are harder to erase than Standard Garbage or Point Puyos, and are often referred to as Steelies.
17. Royal Stone
Royal Stone is another game that was sadly never released in the U.S. Can you guess what game this is related to? If you said “Crystal Warriors”, give yourself a pat on the back! Royal Stone is the sequel to Crystal Warriors, a little known strategy game for Game Gear that while appreciated, was hidden behind bigger Sega published titles like the Shining Force games. I like this game more than Shining Force because I feel it has more of an emphasis on strategy and the story telling is more elaborate in my opinion (the story scenes are rather dramatic). The tale of Crystal Warriors dealt with a young princess named Iris who was blessed with the element of Earth. She had to fight many battles and she found warriors of other elements (fire, water, and wind) to help her fight in a war to protect the four crystals of Arliel to stop evil from using the power of the crystals to wreak havoc on the world.
18. Sonic The Hedgehog
The 8-bit Sonic the Hedgehog is a side-scrolling platform game similar in gameplay and style to the original 16-bit Sega Genesis game of the same name, save for several new and altered game mechanics. As in the original, the anthropomorphic hedgehog Sonic ventures to rescue the animal population of South Island from the diabolical Doctor Robotnik, who plots to turn them into robots. The player jumps between platforms, avoids enemy and inanimate obstacles, and breaks televisions to collect shields, speed shoes, and invincibility, and mark checkpoints. Like the original, Sonic collects rings, which protect him from being hit by an enemy or obstacle. The player starts the game with three lives and will lose one if they are hit without carrying any rings, drown, or fall into a bottomless pit. Losing all lives results in a “game over” message; if so, they must restart. The gameplay is slightly slower and more focused on exploration than the original.
19. Sylvan Tale
Sylvan Tale follows the typical action-adventure game formula: The player controls a character called Zetts who must solve puzzles, fight enemies, and talk to non-player characters in order to acquire special powers and items that will allow him to unlock new areas of the game world and solve the puzzles within. While the player may revisit areas, the game progresses in an essentially linear fashion, as each area can only be accessed if Zetts has acquired a specific item or ability from the previous area.
20. Road Rash
Road Rash puts the player in control of a motorcycle racer who must finish in either third or fourth-place (depending on the version) or higher among fourteen other racers in a series of five road races to advance throughout the game’s five levels. The game’s races take place in a number of Californian locales, including San Francisco, the Sierra Nevada, Napa Valley and the Pacific Coast Highway. During a race, the player can brake, accelerate, and attack neighboring racers. The player character will punch at the nearest racer with a default input while holding a directional button during the input will result in either a backhand or a kick. Some opponents wield weapons such as clubs and chains, which can be taken and used by the player if the enemy racer is attacked as they are holding the weapon out to strike. The player racer can be ejected from their bike if they crash into an obstacle (such as cows, deer, cars, and trees) or if they run out of stamina (shown in the bottom-left corner of the screen) due to fights with other racers. In this event, the racer will automatically run back toward their bike, though the player can alter their course and avoid incoming traffic with the directional buttons, or standstill by holding the brake input button. Opponents will likewise be ejected from their bike if their own stamina is depleted; the stamina of the nearest racer is visible within the bottom-right corner of the screen. In most versions, the color of the opponent’s stamina meter changes as it decreases, while in the Sega CD version, it indicates the racer’s level of aggressiveness toward the player.
21. Tails Adventure
Contrary to the classic speedy gameplay in the Sonic the Hedgehog series, Tails Adventure is a slow-paced platformer with an emphasis on exploration. The player controls Tails in a story set before he befriended Sonic, as he adventures to save Tails Island from an invasion of the Kukku Army. He cannot run but only walk at a steady pace. The player explores twelve non-linear stages, collecting new items and abilities to open up new pathways in previous stages. A total of 26 items can be collected, including some to defeat enemies and others to aid in exploration. Along with using items, Tails can fly for a short period of time. His fly duration can be extended by locating Chaos Emeralds. Rings are collected as a form of health, and unlike other Sonic games, only a few rings are lost when touching a hazard. This gameplay has been compared to Metroidvania games.
22. Sonic The Hedgehog: Triple Trouble
Triple Trouble features classic Sonic series platforming gameplay. The story follows Sonic the Hedgehog and Tails in their efforts to stop others from obtaining the powerful Chaos Emeralds. Dr. Robotnik has tricked Knuckles the Echidnainto helping his search; meanwhile, treasure hunter Nack the Weasel is also searching for the emeralds.
Players can control either Sonic or Tails through six different themed areas. Both characters play similarly, including the use of a spin dash move, but Sonic can perform a peel out while Tails can fly briefly. The player can use various items placed in the stages, such as spring shoes, underwater fins, and rocket shoes. Some can only be used by one character. The differences between Sonic and Tails results in their paths for traversing stages differing between one another.
23. GG Shinobi II: The Silent Fury
The player begins the game as Joe Musashi (the Red Ninja), whose mission is to retrieve five elemental crystals that were stolen by the enemy and spread across different locations. Similarly to the original G.G. Shinobi, the first four stages can be played in any order, and after defeating the boss of each stage, Musashi will be joined by one of his allies, allowing the player to control them as well. Some of the ninjas’ abilities are different from those in the previous game. Depending on the stage, the player must use a specific ninja’s ability in order to reach the location of the crystal. As a result, some of the stages must be played more than once if the player does not have the necessary character yet. When the first four crystals are all gathered, the player gains access to the enemy’s main base, where the fifth crystal is being held by the final boss.
Each ninja has a particular skill set that includes a unique weapon, special ability, and ninja magic. Each of these skills can be used to destroy enemies, access secret areas, and obtain hidden health power-ups.
24. Bubble Bobble
In the game’s plot, “Baron Von Blubba” has kidnapped the brothers Bubby and Bobby’s girlfriends and turned the brothers into Bubble Dragons, Bub and Bob. Bub and Bob have to finish 100 levels in the Cave of Monsters in order to rescue them.
In the game, each player controls one of the two dragons. Players can move along platforms, fall to lower ones, and jump to higher ones and over gaps. Each level is limited to a single screen, with no scrolling; however, if a screen has gaps in its bottom edge, players can fall through these and reappear at the top. Each level has a certain number of enemies that must be defeated in order to advance. The players must blow bubbles to trap the enemies, then burst these bubbles by colliding with them. Each enemy defeated in this manner turns into a food item that can be picked up for extra points. Defeating multiple enemies at once awards higher scores and causes more valuable food items to appear. All bubbles will float for a certain length of time before bursting on their own; players can jump on these and ride them to otherwise inaccessible areas. Magic items appear from time to time and grant special abilities and advantages when picked up. Special bubbles occasionally appear that can be burst to attack enemies with fire, water, or lightning. Furthermore, if a player collects letter bubbles to form extend, a bonus life is earned and both players immediately advance to the next level.
25. Ristar
Ristar plays as a 2D sidescrolling platformer, similar to games in the Super Mario or Sonic the Hedgehog series of video games, but focusing less on jumping and speed, and more on the use of Ristar’s stretchable arms, which can reach in 8 different main directions. The player must maneuver Ristar through the level to its end while avoiding damage from obstacles and enemies. Ristar’s extendable arms are used as the main means of attacking enemies; through extending his arms, grabbing the enemy, and pulling himself towards them into a “headbutt” motion to defeat them. The same motion also allows for opening treasure chests containing various items or striking different parts of the environment, such as knocking trees over. Additionally, his elastic arms can merely be used for grabbing and/or throwing objects as well.
26. Super Off-Road
In the game, up to three players (four in the NES version through the use of either the NES Satellite or NES Four Score) compete against each other or the computer in racing around several top-view indoor off-road truck tracks of increasing difficulty. There are eight different tracks (twelve in the SMS version and sixteen in the SNES version) and 99 races altogether on most versions (the SNES version loops through 64 races without ending). All races are raced more than once. First place results earn the player points to continue in the championship and money with which to upgrade their truck or buy more nitro. The goal is to reach the end of the season with the most money earned. Continues are available but whereas players can get extra money in the arcade version, in the home versions, the player’s money is reset to zero. This is one of the first games where the player could upgrade his or her vehicle by earning points or money (although in Atari Games‘ Sprint series, one could upgrade their racer using wrenches), a system that is used in many racing games today.
27. Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine
The game is set on the planet Mobius, which is inhabited by bean-like creatures. Doctor Robotnik conceives of a plan to bring terror to the world by kidnapping the citizens of Beanville and turning them into robot slaves and eventually creating an army that will help him rid the planet of fun and joy. To achieve this, he creates the “Mean Bean-Steaming Machine” in order to transform the bean-like creatures into robots. Putting his plan into motion, Robotnik sends out his Henchbots to gather all the bean-like creatures and group them together in dark dungeons so they can be sent to the Mean Bean-Steaming Machine. The rest of the game’s story revolves around the player character, “Has Bean”, and their journey to stop Robotnik’s henchmen by breaking into the dungeons and freeing the bean-like creatures.
28. Dragon Crystal
As the player rides a bicycle one late afternoon, he turns down an alley never before noticed and enters an antique shop. There, a mysterious glowing crystal is sitting on a shelf. Upon approaching the crystal and gazing into it, a powerful force pulls the player in, causing a blackout.
The player awakens in a forest with a large egg following behind. This forest is a huge maze, crawling with dangerous creatures. The player finds weapons and other items scattered around with which to fight the monsters. The only way out is to continue onward, defeating monsters and growing in power along the way.
29. Spider-Man vs The Kingpin
The 8-bit Sega Master System version is noted as one of the last Master System games officially sold in North America. Like other Master System games released in the United States in 1991, it is European imports that were published by Sega of America, as no boxes or manuals were produced for the American market. The game had the same basic format and storyline as the 16-bit version, with redesigned levels, cutscenes (that included a cameo from Doctor Strange) and even on the easiest setting was seen as being difficult to complete. In this version, Mary Jane wouldn’t be kidnapped but still appear at the end of the game if players attain the best ending.
A nearly identical port was also released for the Sega Game Gear portable system.
30. Sonic Chaos
In Sonic Chaos, players control one of two characters — Sonic the Hedgehog or his sidekick Miles “Tails” Prower — and must complete each of the game’s eight worlds in a quest to retrieve the Chaos Emeralds from the evil scientist Dr. Robotnik, who plots to use them to rule the world.[2] Each world, referred to as “zones” ingame, consists of two stages and a boss fight with Robotnik. Levels are designed to allow the player to move as quickly as possible and are largely based on those in its precursor Sonic the Hedgehog 2. The gameplay itself involves running through each level while collecting rings and defeating Robotnik’s robotic minions; rings protect Sonic and Tails from being hit by an enemy or obstacle. Levels also contain small television monitors that can be smashed to reveal a power-up icon, which grants Sonic and Tails with unique abilities, such as speed shoes, a one-hit shield, and extra lives.
31. Power Strike 2
Originally released in Japan in 1988 under the name Aleste, Power Strike is a slightly stripped-down version of the game released for international audiences in the same year. Power Strike contains one less level than Aleste and the anime-styled storyline was removed. In the United States, Power Strike is notable because it was the first mail-order only Sega Master System title.[1] It was also the only title in the Power Strike series to be released in the United States. The US release was initially a mail-only limited edition, however, it did see some retail distribution at Toys R’ Us. The European release was a normal retail package.
32. Prince of Persia
The game is set in ancient Persia. While the sultan is fighting a war in a foreign land, his vizier Jaffar, a wizard, seizes power. His only obstacle to the throne is the Sultan’s daughter (although the game never specifically mentions how). Jaffar locks her in a tower and orders her to become his wife, or she would die within 60 minutes (extended to 120 minutes in the Super NES version, which has longer and harder levels). The game’s unnamed protagonist, whom the Princess loves, is thrown prisoner into the palace dungeons. In order to free her, he must escape the dungeons, get to the palace tower and defeat Jaffar before time runs out. In addition to guards, various traps and dungeons, the protagonist is further hindered by his own doppelgänger, conjured out of a magic mirror.
33. Jungle Strike
Jungle Strike features two antagonists: Ibn Kilbaba, the son of Desert Strike’s antagonist, and Carlos Ortega, a notorious South American drug lord. The opening sequence depicts the two men observing a nuclear explosion on a deserted island while discussing the delivery of “nuclear resources” and an attack on Washington D.C.; Kilbaba seeks revenge for his father’s death at the hands of the US, while Ortega wishes to “teach the Yankees to stay out of my drug trade”.
The player takes control of a “lone special forces” pilot. The game’s first level depicts the protagonist repelling terrorist attacks on Washington, D.C., including the President’s limousine. Subsequent levels depict counter-attacks on the drug lord’s forces, progressing towards his “jungle fortress”. In the game’s penultimate level, the player pursues Kilbaba and Ortega to their respective hideouts before capturing them.
34. Columns
Columns was one of the many SameGame/Tetris-like tile-matching puzzle games to appear after its great success in the late 1980s. The area of play is enclosed within a tall, rectangular playing area. Columns of three different symbols (such as differently-colored jewels) appear, one at a time, at the top of the well and fall to the bottom, landing either on the floor or on top of previously-fallen “columns”. While a column is falling, the player can move it left and right, and can also cycle the positions of the symbols within it. After a column lands, if three or more of the same symbols are connected in a horizontal, vertical, or diagonal line, those symbols disappear. The pile of columns then settles under gravity. If this resettlement causes three or more other symbols to align, they too disappear and the cycle repeats. Occasionally, a special column with a multicolor Magic Jewel appears. It destroys all the jewels with the same color as the one underneath it. The columns fall at a faster rate as the player progresses. The goal of the game is to play for as long as possible before the well fills up with jewels, which ends the game. Players can score up to 99,999,999 points.
35. OutRun
OutRun is a 3D driving video game in which the player controls a Ferrari Testarossa Spider from a third-person rear perspective. The camera is placed near the ground, simulating a Ferrari driver’s position and limiting the player’s view into the distance. The road curves, crests, and dips, which increases the challenge by obscuring upcoming obstacles such as the traffic that the player must avoid. The object of the game is to reach the finish line against a timer. The game world is divided into multiple stages that each end in a checkpoint, and reaching the end of a stage provides more time. Near the end of each stage, the track forks to give the player a choice of routes leading to five final destinations. The destinations represent different difficulty levels and each concludes with their own ending scene, among them the Ferrari breaking down or being presented a trophy.
36. Castle of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse
Castle of Illusion is a side-scrolling platformer in which the player takes control of Mickey Mouse as he goes inside the Castle of Illusion in order to rescue Minnie Mouse from an evil witch named Mizrabel, who wants to steal Minnie’s youth. Upon meeting and conversing with the castle’s true owner and king, Mickey is told that in order to defeat Mizrabel he must find the Seven Gems of the Rainbow. The majority of the seven gems are kept within various illusion-filled worlds (known in the game as levels), and are being guarded by Mizrabel’s henchmen – which are known as the Masters of Illusion. Alongside the Masters of Illusion are bizarre creatures – such as enchanted mushrooms, toy soldiers, ball-juggling unicycle-riding clowns, and armored knights that Mickey must face. After thanking the castellan and hurrying into the castle hallway, Mickey begins to search through five doors that each leads to a different level. The levels are The Enchanted Forest, Toyland, The Storm, Dessert Factory, The Library, and finally, The Castle.
While these are definitely some of the best Sega Game Gear games, it’s by no means all of them!
What Sega Game Gear games did you love? Are there any you would add to our list? Let us know in the comments.
