Genesis games that had a definitive version on Sega CD

[profholt82]

It was briefly mentioned, but I want to stress Cliffhanger. The Gen version is horrible and 7/8 of the SCD version is horrible, but the snowboarding level is so addictive and epic that I have pumped hours of playing time into it. Just put in the level select code and enjoy.

[Majestic_Lizard]

Spiderman on Sega CD rules, yes including the title song. If I didn't know any better I'd call it the original sandbox game, but it was one of the earlier ones that I really liked back in the day and today.

Yes, but in the Sega CD version they removed the graphic nudity and violence that we come to expect in Spider-Man video games.

[evilevoix]

It was briefly mentioned, but I want to stress Cliffhanger. The Gen version is horrible and 7/8 of the SCD version is horrible, but the snowboarding level is so addictive and epic that I have pumped hours of playing time into it. Just put in the level select code and enjoy.

+1, I never got past that snowboard LVL.

[TheSonicRetard]

[QUOTE=shinobimusashi;413855]

Ecco: The Tides of Time The music in the Sega CD version alone is something you don't want to miss. The same goes for the cutscenes.

A lot of people prefer the cartridge tunes over the more ambient CD soundtrack. I personally prefer the CD version for the cg cutscenes, which are indeed awesome.


Eternal Champions is better on the Sega CD, but I'll keep my cartridge thank you very much. The Genny version of EC has some of my favorite tracks of any video game music. I found the CD soundtrack to the game to be quite poor.

NBA Jam CD is kind of pointless. Virtually identical to the Genesis port, but with loading, and an inferior soundtrack.

NBA Jam on the Sega CD also has much better voices, more sound clips, and an updated roster.

[Cornholio857]

As much as I like Sonic CD, I wish Sega would've ported over Sonic 1 for Sega CD. That was the original plan IIRC.

[oldskool]

01. The Terminator - Although I like the Genny version, the SCD version pisses all over it with a game that is about 4 times as long, nicer to look at, and much more pleasing to the ears.

02. Hook - The game is practically the same as the Genny version with terribly short (and ugly) cinematics at the begining and end of the game, but what makes this the definative version for me is the John Williams score.

03. Batman Returns - I'm actually not a fan of either version of this game, but I would definately prefer to play it with the driving levels rather than without.

I should have known it was from John Williams! The soundtrack to Hook is probably one of the best soundtracks for ANY Genesis or CD game. It's truly beautiful and really changes the games atmosphere. I'm surprised no one
else ever mentions the amazing soundtrack to this game. I actually enjoy Hook.

[sheath]

Why is it that every time I hear John Williams music I think I'm hearing a broken record of some small segment of a classical orchestral composition?

[goldenband]

Why is it that every time I hear John Williams music I think I'm hearing a broken record of some small segment of a classical orchestral composition?

Because every time you hear John Williams's music, you're hearing...

(I actually think he's a decent workman and all, but he'd better hope that Anton Bruckner et al. never come knocking at his door to reclaim what's theirs.)

[Barone]

I agree the Cart versions just seems to play and feel better . After the amazing job their did with Another World on the Mega CD, with stunning audio that added so much to the game and it's atmosphere. Flashback on the Mega CD was a disappointment

Heart of the Alien: Out of this World Parts I and II was specially made for the Sega CD AFAIK.
You can't expect the same from a game like Flashback that was whored out to every platform existent then.

You would probably prefer the FM Towns version since it has the rotoscoped cutscene animations and some great exclusive soundtrack added to them. The in-game part is silent though and this is what I like in the Sega CD version: it has a great in-game soundtrack.
Sadly, they replaced the rotoscoped cutscene animations with those stupid pre-rendered CG crap (similar to what happened with Puggsy).
However, you may see the best of both worlds in the near future provided by some hacker: using the Sega CD mode 1 you could have the game running from the cartridge and play music using the Sega CD.

Shadow of the Beast 2 is significantly better than the Genesis cartridge and comes VERY close to the FM Towns version. The graphics are more detailed and the sound is quite a bit better than the cartridge. The cut scenes are worse than the Amiga and FM Towns, but the in-game graphics are actually better than the Amiga version.

You're 100% correct.
Sorry, I deserve some punishment...
Let me correct myself:

Shadow of the Beast II: CD sountrack and some extras. Bad port anyway.

The Sega CD version of Shadow Of The Beast II is a totally different port and much much better than the Genesis version, thank God!

The cartridge version of Shadow Of The Beast II was handled by WJS Design, the same EA sub-contracted company that ruined the first Shadow Of The Beast port and developed the awful Mighty Max (Thanks EA for fuckin' so many Genesis titles with your nonexistent quality controls and shitty audio drivers!).
At least, the first Shadow Of The Beast was re-worked by Victor Interactive Software for the Japanese release, fixing control issues and improving the graphics to make it way closer to the original and much better colored. The soundtrack remained untouched and awful though...
The cartridge Shadow Of the Beast II was not graced with a improved Japanese released and all we have is the same atrocious version released in US and EU. This version is a mess in many aspects... The graphics are ugly as hell, the sfx are very poor and the soundtrack is bloody awful. Several parts are also inaccurate in terms of gameplay when compared to the original Amiga version.

The Sega CD version of Shadow Of The Beast II was handled by Digital Developments, a small company somehow related to Psygnosis. They were responsible for the amazing Lynx version of Shadow Of the Beast and Lemmings 2 on the Genesis.
This version is a slightly downgraded port of the FM Towns version (developed by Psygnosis and released one year before). The 3D custscenes from the FM Towns are here with less colors, but they still do the job well (I like these scenes, they don't look like other cheap CG ones).
The vastly improved backgrounds (when compared to the original Amiga game) from the FM Towns version have gone and now we back for something very similar to the original Amiga version, which is not so bad either (anyway, I don't think that the FM Towns's backgrounds would look any good with the Genesis's limited palette). The rest is very similar to the FM towns version: the main character, graphical effects and many foreground details are improved when compared to the Amiga. Also, the sfx and soundtrack are identical to the FM Towns (FM Towns Marty and Genesis + Sega CD use almost the same soundchips), which means very good quality, excellent compositions and an abysmal advantage over the lame Genesis cartridge version.
The FM Towns version is much easier than the Sega CD and even more than the Amiga.
There's also the mega-cheesy voice acting but, thank God, you can disable it in the options menu.

Finally, just to give an idea about how the versions can be compared I'll score them:
Amiga: 6/10 (Longplay video here)
Genesis: 2/10 (Longplay video here)
FM Towns: 9/10 (Longplay video here)
Sega CD: 8/10 (Longplay video here)
***The Longplay videos were all done using emulators, so the versions can sound and look a bit worse than in real hardware. The Genesis version is so bad that it's shocking.
Sega CD's Shadow Of The Beast II is a forgotten version but a very good game, go for it if you like Shadow Of The Beast's style!

Spiderman on the Sega CD has greatly improved backgrounds and character sprites, but the FMV is dumb and it the gameplay is confusing. It seems you wander around from level to level with no clear objectives and eventually police shoot you to death.

Spiderman on Sega CD rules, yes including the title song. If I didn't know any better I'd call it the original sandbox game, but it was one of the earlier ones that I really liked back in the day and today.

I'm with sheath in this one. IMO the Sega CD version rocks!
It's a bit repetitive but it doesn't kill the game for me.

As much as I like Sonic CD, I wish Sega would've ported over Sonic 1 for Sega CD. That was the original plan IIRC.

You should check this out. Buggy but really worths a try.
More about this in the previous mode 1 link...



I also want to add some extra information regarding Flink's Sega CD vs CD32 comparison (from illusionware, but already checked by me):

illusionware says:
Shockingly, Flink on CD32 is noticeably inferior to the Mega-CD version! It lacks the Mega-CD exclusive intro and outro sequences, a layer of parallax scrolling in the foreground, the animated clouds in the progress map, it isn't entirely full screen (despite the CD32 exclusive 50/60hz toggle mode) and overall, the graphics look fuzzier (as if they were slightly out of focus) and less colorful than the Mega-CD version! Moreover, it should be noted that the status bar (in the top portion of the screen) isn't integrated with the rest of the graphics, which means it ends up covering part of the viewable field and the effect isn't the greatest to look at…
Also, some levels seem to have been simplified, which means that some platforms and some obstacles have been removed in the CD32 version, so as a result the game is a bit easier. This is maybe the only plus as Flink can be a pretty frustrating game with levels that can be too unforgiving. Compared to the Mega Drive (cartridge) version, Flink on CD32 has at least much better music. In a word, if you are looking for the best Flink version, you should go for the Mega CD version. It is cheaper and easier to find compared to the CD32 version which in turn is slightly easier and definitely rarer.

There's also some extra info regarding Chuck Rock II's Sega CD vs CD32 comparison that emerged in a discussion with TheSonicRetard in other thread (He is talking about the CD32 version):

It's slightly inferior - the levels themselves are all the same, as are the controls (for the most part), and the gameplay, but the graphics are slightly worse. In screenshots they look the same, but several levels have missing effects compared to the Sega Genesis and Sega CD versions. For example, the level where you're on the back of the giant dinosaur that is swimming in water... in the sega versions, it "rotates" (in actuallity, it simply line scrolls and thus tilts the tileset) but this effect is absent in the Amiga version. Perhaps more game-changing is the level that is set in the cave that's supposed to be pitch black. In the Sega versions, an additional layer is applied to the screen in front of the play area that is supposed to be the "darkness." It's missing in the Amiga version, meaning the entire level is completely lit. It turns the level into a very linear, no challege level where in the sega version is was tense because you didn't know what was coming up. The lack of the effect also ruins a joke in the game - there are enemies whose eyes you can see through the darkness, and they're very high up, which gives the illusion that they're huge. Except, when you approach them, you realize they're actually tiny dinosaurs on stilts. Since there is no darkness in the Amiga version, the joke makes no sense.

It's still one of the best Amiga games, though. Chuck Rock 1 was developed primarily for the Amiga and then ported to the Genesis, but Chuck Rock 2 was developed primarily for the genesis and then ported to the Amiga.

Oh, thanks for the info. However, the palette seems to be a lot better than the Genesis/Sega CD version. And looks like the backgrounds were improved also.
I don't like how dark the Genesis/Sega CD version is, so for me the CD32 version looks more appealing.

[bultje112]

1st thing it controls like a dream on the MD, but the Mega CD version features PCM sound effects (with a wicked effect for hitting the post) and real crowd chats and singing recorded from a actual League Football game . Even after all these years, its still the best football game ever made imo

I've always wondered as I loved the swos games and always prefered the 1992/1993 season one. I had it on amiga, does this verison feature real teamsd and players and the star system in which a star player is given a star? I remember how detailed it was. running with matthias samme with inter, he would be so fast as in reallife

[bultje112]

Correction: WolfChild's levels are not extended; they're completly different as of level 2 onwards. The music's different too (besides being CD quality, the soundtrack has been completly replaced; not for the better, mind you). The MD version's better; only get the CD release if you like the game.

that is such a thing of taste. I for one love the woldfchild cd soundtrack

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RAV3gYAhrGs

here is a song from it. and indeed level design is different so if you like wolfchild get both

[bultje112]

Flashback is way better on cartridge. The rotoscoped cutscene animations of the cart look much better than the ugly prerendered CG stuff that replaced most of it on the SCD version.

One of my all time favs.... <3

I can't even believe one person on this world who has played both would say flashback on sega cd is worse than genesis. in fact flashback on sega cd is even better than the 3do and amiga versions

[bultje112]

As much as I like Sonic CD, I wish Sega would've ported over Sonic 1 for Sega CD. That was the original plan IIRC.

thank god. no. sonic cd is the best 2d sonic game I've played. even better than sonic 1

[Barone]

Just reposting a decription of Genesis and Sega CD versions of Shadow Of The Beast II. It was a discussion with The Coop but has much info:

About the Genesis/Mega Drive version
"SotB II was a noticeably better port to the Genesis"
I really don't see it like you said.
Comparing with the previous port (by the same company but different programmers) (and considering the two Amiga games here and there):

The music is better, yes. But it's also far for being great or something. IMO it went from horrid (in the first port) to average in this one. The Amiga version is still far superior in this department.
The sound effects, in terms of quality, are on par with the first port (they just do the job and are not great by any means). However, comparing with the original game this time we have several extra samples over the original Amiga game.

The graphics... Probably is here that we really disagree. In this department the job done is worse compared to the first one.
The original intro is missing as in the first port (however this time the intro was really great, a shame).
The transition screens between the "levels" are missing now, while they were all present in the first port.
The foregrounds and characters sprites aren't as good as in the first game, but it is excusable since the original Amiga game suffered the same downgrade.
The characters sprites, are better on Genesis this time, as you said.
In terms of color, the character sprites and the foregrounds have some very arguable choices in the Genesis version like here compared to here in the Amiga version. The Amiga version is always more washed out and grey-like but the sometimes the color choices are really weird in the Genesis version, like the heart item painted with brown/purple rather than red tones in the Amiga version. The Genesis version also suffers from brown-plague: the main character is brown, the foreground is mainly brown, the flying enemies are brown, the old master is brown, the warriors are brown... Almost everything is brown! The Amiga version has some lame grey-scale parts though. IMO in terms of color there's no relevant gain.
Finally, we have the backgrounds... You said "Yes it took a hit with the backgrounds" but I really think that it almost ruins the game graphically speaking and it hurts deeply the accuracy of the port. Comparing to the first port, where all backgrounds were present (sometimes with less layers than in the original) and all "levels" were accurately reproduced, we have a major step back here.
It's not like using a generic wall to every indoor segment, it is atrocious enough to use the same outdoor background in most of the indoor levels/segments, like the places had no walls at all! It's just fuckin' absurd.
Let's compare: this lame with this neat indoor background . It's just ridiculous. *sigh*

The controls are just like the first port in terms of precision. I don't think that it's fair to judge the first port controls any worse due to a speed problem in the localization process. After all, it's only the US version that was affect and to ignore the existence of the Japanese and the common European versions does not make sense to me.

The gameplay has improved from the first game to the second, as you pointed in your review, due to the addition of the inventory and the use of weapons.

This time we also got a options menu that lets us change the controls and set the difficult (but it's just a life meter "extender" indeed). I have to remember that the Japanese version of the first game already gave a "health boost" option from 12 to 18 points to help.
But I'll give this "plus" to the second port. However, you have just one life and no continues; 1 death == game over.

This port has also some other "differences" like the lack of some text here and there (there's no "help! help!" to give you a hint about what to do in the beginning, going to the left, for an example) and the lack of water in the first bridge (the fishes are coming from...).
There's also an exclusive short ending sequence, which is a good thing.

Game-by-game comparison, the first one is better in terms of graphics and sound; and the second one is better in terms of gameplay.

At the end, what we got? IMO a good game, with average music/sound (some extra sfx compared to thee original), bad graphics (due to the atrocity done to the backgrounds) and not as accurate as the first port.
According to the review manifest, I'd go with a 5 while you chose a 7:
7. Great fun but notably lacking in a few areas (i.e. too short, poor music, etc.)

6. Better than average and a decent game to be had for a cheap price.

5. Strictly average. Nothing spectacular but nothing horrible either.



About the Sega CD version
*The Sega CD version is based on the FM Towns version like you can see in the credits. But it not just a port of the FM Towns, it has some extras.

You gave a 7 to the Genesis version and said, informally, that would have given a 8 to the Sega CD version. Maybe the Sega CD score is correct, but IMO the distance between these two ports is certainly bigger than just a single point in the score.

Let's see:
The Sega CD version has the original intro; Genesis's doesn't.
The Sega CD version options menu lets you set the number of continues that you have until 6 (it actually works like lives since you continue from the same point you died); IMO it works better than the fake difficulty setting of the Genesis version.

The music benefits from the CD quality and a great mixing using the Roland Sound Space technology (like Snatcher; you can check in the credits), but the compositions are a mix of styles and average; however I'd pick them instead of the Genesis version, but this is just a side note. The Amiga version is still the best one IMO.
The SFX are vastly superior, not only in terms of quality but also in numbers. You have everything that the Genesis version has (with different samples and better quality) + the extra samples of the FM Towns version + extra samples exclusive of the Sega CD version. It's a lot of stuff, from monsters moans to door opening sound...
There's also a very cheesy voice acting (made by just one guy according to the credits) that IMO would detract from the game's score if it didn't have the great option to be turned off, hehehe!

The graphics are vastly superior to the Genesis version, overall much better than the Amiga version and than the FM Towns's (what is pretty comprehensible giving the hardware's superiority of the later) but still with some extras over the last one.
The Sega CD has the improved transition screens, actually animated 3D cutscenes, of the FM Towns plus this one (until 28:40). The Genesis version has nothing.
The HUD now uses several colors (again, not as good as in The FM Towns that even has an animated potion sometimes) and its elements have more details. The text boxes are prettier (in the FM Towns it has transparency) and use a clearer font. There are all the texts missing in the Genesis version (like the "help! help!") and much more (more than in the Amiga).
The characters sprites sometimes are smaller but they are much more detailed and colorful than in the Genesis or Amiga (the four versions: Amiga, Genesis/Mega Drive, Sega/Mega CD, FM Towns). The brown-plague has ended (@22:42 - sometimes YouTube just bugs with timed starts).
The foregrounds are also noticeably better (@5:28) than the Genesis version. And, as you could notice, the indoor places actually have walls; the backgrounds are all there and even the outdoor background has a better design, closer to the original.
The Sega CD version has some extra animations (@9:36 - look at the man in the bar, those in the table, the fire...; there's more in other parts of the game) not present in the Amiga (@4:51 - lame), Genesis and FM Towns versions.
It fixed some other details: the lack of water in the first bridge in the Genesis port, the lack of water effect, old man's house (he was supposed to live inside the tree?), the non-sense boss music and the missing ending text in the FM Towns version.
There's also the frog segment that looks much less weird in the Sega CD than it was on Amiga, Genesis or FM Towns.
Finally, there's an extra background layer in the boss castle, not present on Amiga, Genesis or FM Towns.

The controls are great, better than in Amiga or Genesis in terms of hit detection. The game is also less unforgiving in some parts, but not so easy as the FM Towns version.

Backing to the manifest I would be between these two:
9. Excellent on every level, usually only flawed in a single, minor area.

8. Very well polished and a blast to play but with a few minor flaws.
I would give an 8 'cause I don't find the game itself "excellent" in terms of gameplay, it's flawed and it's certainly not a minor area; but the production quality is top.
For everything that I pointed, I can't see how all those things could "fit" inside a single point of difference.

[Soulis]

About Ecco: The Tides of Time... I really liked the chip tunes more than the CD ones. While the CD ones had much better audio quality (obviously) i prefer the original compositions. They are more "catchy". I wish they would remaster the existing chip tunes with CD quality treatment instead of writing new compositions....