Mixtape: Best Sega Mega Drive/Genesis Music

Hi everyone, and welcome to another one of my Mixtapes. In case you're not sure what a Mixtape is, here's an explanation...

A Mixtape is a playlist of a certain genre, band or era. The list is generally 80 minutes long, the same length of a blank CD, with further recommendations if some of the songs aren't to your taste. Remember kids, downloading is wrong! 

The Sega Mega Drive (or Genesis if you're from the US) is one of my favourite consoles. It was the first console I ever had as my own, and it holds a very strong sentimental value. Some of the music from this 32-bit era was truly tremendous. It's amazing how much power the console had at the time, in terms of producing great tunes. The 64-bit era and beyond changed music in video games forever because they could play actual genuine music, but back when the Mega Drive was around that wasn't the case.

So I wanted to showcase my favourite songs from my favourite games from this era of video gaming. If you want to see an actual list of my 50 Favourite Mega Drive Games, simply click this link here. But as for the music, here's the playlist below, with links to each individual song!

1. Title Theme - Street Fighter II Championship Edition
2. The Desert - Aladdin
3. Title Theme - Micro Machines 2
4. Duckberg - Quackshot
5. Opening Theme - Mortal Kombat
6. Mars 1 and 2 - Taz: Escape from Mars
7. Main Theme - Micro Machines
8. Area 1: Jammin' Jungle - Mega Bomberman
9. Forest and Mountain - Alex Kidd in the Enchanted Castle
10. Lava Reef Zone Act 2 - Sonic and Knuckles
11. Never Return Alive - Streets of Rage 2
12. Concentration - Super Monaco GP
13. Smooth Criminal - Michael Jackson's Moonwalker
14. Act 1 Boss - Sonic the Hedgehog 3
15. Dub Slash - Streets of Rage 3
16. Diamond Dust Zone Act 1 - Sonic 3D
17. BGM 3 - World Cup Italia '90
18. Star Light Zone - Sonic the Hedgehog
19. Ninja Step - Revenge of Shinobi
20. Theme of Seven-Force - Gunstar Heroes
21. Death Adder - Golden Axe
22. Stages 9-12 - Dr Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine
23. Attack of the Barbarian - Streets of Rage
24. Atropos - Columns
25. Visitor's Center - Jurassic Park
26. Metropolis Zone - Sonic the Hedgehog 2
27. Hard Road - Super Hang-On

Some of these not to your taste? Here's five alternatives...

1. Fighting in the Street - Streets of Rage
2. Hydrocity Zone Act 2 - Sonic the Hedgehog 3
3. Make Me Dance - Revenge of Shinobi
4. Goro's Lair - Mortal Kombat
5. Mystic Cave Zone - Sonic the Hedgehog 2

To listen to the playlist on YouTube click here!

Well I hope you enjoyed this list. It made me feel very nostalgic, I don't know about you. Anyway, until next time, take care!

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My Top 50 Favourite Playstation 1 Games: #50

Hey there and welcome to my newest website listing. It's been a while 11 months since I did a daily listing. This also isn't the first time I've counted down my favourite games on a console. Six years ago I revealed my Top 50 Favourite Mega Drive Games. That was a fun listing, if you're interested in checking it out click here.

I've considered doing a Top 50 Favourite Playstation 1 Games list for many years now. Not long after finishing my Mega Drive one six years ago was probably the first time I thought about this listing. Last year I even set out to write this piece, but never got round to it. It's been on the backburner for a while. So why now? I don't really have a straight answer for that, but it just felt right to write it now.

So why Playstation 1? Well, six years ago I explained that the Mega Drive was my first proper console. But the Playstation 1 console is my all time favourite console. This console really changed my life, the games on it, the stories, the characters, the graphics, everything. I loved this era. It helped me grow from a boy to a teenager. I don't care if it sounds cliche or cheesy, but it did change my life.

So, for the next fifty days I'll be revealing one by one, my favourite games on this console. I emphasise, MY favourites. Not the best. There are going to be games that are considered to be amazing that are not on this list. Such as Metal Gear Solid? Tony Hawk? Tomb Raider? They won't be anywhere near this list. It's not because they're bad games, I just have either never played them or when I did, I just didn't enjoy them. They're just not for me. So remember that, when I countdown this list - these are my 50 favourites.

Anyway, let's start with #50!

#50 - Spider-man

Released: 2000

Genre: Action

Rating: ***1/2 stars

Best Moment: Simply using your webs to climb from building to building - it was never properly done before in a Spiderman game up until this game.

Some people may think this game deserves a higher placing on this list and if you're one of those people I do understand. This game is very nostalgic. As I said before it was the first proper Spiderman game where you can go from building to building using your webs, and that alone was just an incredible moment for all Spiderman fans. They were dreaming for a Spiderman game that allowed them to do that. Thing is though, this game was tough. The first few levels aren't that bad but the difficulty amps up very quickly. The reason I suppose it isn't higher on the list is because I didn't play it very much and I did get stuck playing it a few times.

One other thing - this game is probably one of the best on the PS1 for all the costumes you can wear. There were SO many, and they all had different abilities. In that respect this game was great. Can you imagine it coming out now though? All that would have been DLC you'd have to pay for!

For #49 in my list, click here!
Or go straight to #1 in the list by clicking here!

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My Top 50 Favourite Sega Mega Drive Games: #1 + More

Hey there. Welcome to the final part in my Top 50 Favourite Mega Drive games list. Every day for the past 50 days I’ve been revealing one game per day, in my biased opinion, my favourite games on this absolutely amazing console. I’ve had a blast, reminiscing over these 49 amazing games. I hope you’ve enjoyed it too, and maybe remembered some games you may have forgotten before, or even, found new games in this list you never heard of, and enjoy. We’re at the end now.

Here’s quick recap of my list from #50 to #2…

• #50 - Columns III – 1993 - ***1/2 
• #49 - World Cup Italia '90 – 1990 - ***1/2 
• #48 - Virtua Fighter 2 – 1996 - ***1/2 
• #47 - Jurassic Park – 1993 - ***3/4 
• #46 - Road Rash III: Tour de Force – 1995 - ***3/4 
• #45 - FIFA International Soccer – 1993 - ***3/4 
• #44 - Mega Bomberman – 1994 - ***3/4 
• #43 - Golden Axe III – 1993 - ***3/4 
• #42 - Micro Machines – 1993 - ***3/4 
• #41 – Columns – 1990 - ***3/4 
• #40 - Zombies Ate My Neighbours – 1993 - ***3/4 
• #39 - Sylvester and Tweety in Cagey Capers – 1993 - ***3/4 
• #38 – Flicky – 1991 - ***3/4 
• #37 - Taz in Escape From Mars – 1994 - ***3/4 
• #36 – Aladdin – 1993 - ***3/4 
• #35 - Alex Kidd in the Enchanted Castle – 1989 - ***3/4 
• #34 - Sonic 3D Blast – 1996 - **** 
• #33 - Streets of Rage 3 – 1994 - **** 
• #32 - Ayrton Senna's Super Monaco GP II – 1992 - **** 
• #31 – Lemmings – 1992 - **** 
• #30 - Golden Axe – 1989 - **** 
• #29 - Mortal Kombat – 1992 - **** 
• #28 - Splatterhouse 3 – 1993 - **** 
• #27 - Sonic the Hedgehog – 1991 - **** 
• #26 - Theme Park – 1994 - **** 
• #25 – Ghostbusters – 1990 - **** 
• #24 - Micro Machines: Turbo Tournament 96 – 1995 - ****1/4 
• #23 - Blood Shot – 1994 - ****1/4 
• #22 - Super Hang-On – 1988 - ****1/4 
• #21 - Sonic the Hedgehog 3 – 1994 - ****1/4 
• #20 - Gain Ground – 1992 - ****1/4 
• #19 - Street Fighter II: Championship Edition – 1992 - ****1/4 
• #18 – Worms – 1995 - ****1/4 
• #17 - Speedball 2 – 1990 - ****1/4 
• #16 - Super Monaco GP – 1990 - ****1/4 
• #15 - Shining Force II – 1993 - ****1/2 
• #14 - Streets of Rage – 1991 - ****1/2 
• #13 - Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine – 1993 - ****1/2 
• #12 - Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master – 1993 - ****1/2 
• #11 - Ultimate Mortal Kombat III – 1996 - ****1/2 
• #10 - World of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck – 1992 - ****1/2 
• #9 - Micro Machines 2: Turbo Tournament – 1994 - ****1/2 
• #8 - Michael Jackson's Moonwalker – 1990 - ****3/4 
• #7 - Sonic the Hedgehog 2 – 1992 - ****3/4 
• #6 - Shining Force – 1992 - ****3/4 
• #5 - The Revenge of Shinobi – 1989 - ****3/4 
• #4 - Quackshot starring Donald Duck – 1991 - ****3/4 
• #3 - Streets of Rage 2 – 1992 - ****3/4 
• #2 - Sonic and Knuckles – 1994 - ****3/4

Okay then, this is it. My favourite game on the Mega Drive is…

#1 – Gunstar Heroes

Released: 1993

Genre: Action

Rating: ****3/4 stars

Best Moment: Black’s Dice Maze. It’s just lots and lots of fun.

Yes, my favourite Mega Drive game is Gunstar Heroes. I don’t think any game since Gunstar Heroes has been able to compactly put so much chaos on screen while maintaining a decent flow of entertainment. I really mean that. This game has so much stuff going on, you shoot through hundreds and hundreds of bad guys, but it just doesn’t get old, doesn’t get boring, and doesn’t get stale. It’s so entertaining, and the game has a brilliant sense of humour, awesome music and the sound quality is absolutely sublime. This game is so exhilarating it’s incredible. It’s simply one of the most action pumped games ever made and is a thrill to play, even 19 years later. Gunstar Heroes is a game you simply have to experience before you die. It’s such a shame the game isn’t acknowledged more, in comparison to other games in this list. Nothing against those games. But Gunstar Heroes is simply one of the best games ever made, and is my favourite game ever to be released on the Mega Drive.

Well that’s it! We’ve finished! I hope you’ve enjoyed this list, and reminiscing over these brilliant games, games released between 1988 and 1996, the epitome of 2D gaming. I love all 50 of these games and I’m sure there’s something in this list for everyone. If there’s any games here that have given you some great memories, please, comment below. Is there any games on here you’ve never played before and it being on this list made you try it? Let me know, comment below.

If you know me personally, you know I’m a stats guy, and here are two interesting graphs you may like.

This graph really interested me. I didn’t take into consideration the year of each game’s release until the list was fully complete. The year 1993 having 13 entries out of 50, that’s over a quarter of the list, was an intriguing statistic. It makes sense though. Sonic 1 was released in 1991, and that really set the Mega Drive off to not only compete but to equal Nintendo at one point in the video game wars. Two years later and game after game after game was released that were outstanding. I’m not really surprised that most of my favourite games were released in 1993, but it’s very interesting. If you were wondering, the earliest released game in this list is Super Hang-On, the only game released in the year 1988, and the latest game was Sonic 3D Blast, which was released on November 30^th 1996. Nine years of video games. Amazing.

This graph isn’t surprising at all, but it’s still cool to see what genres were included the most. No surprise really that its action and platformers that dominate my list. There were some awesome action games out on the Mega Drive, and five of the 10 platformers are Sonic games. Beat ‘em ups were high in tally inclusion as well, which isn’t surprising either as there were some solid beat ‘em ups on the Mega Drive.  I wasn’t expecting so many racing games mind, but it goes to show that racing games were pretty good on the Mega Drive too. My favourite genre of game is the RPG, but, as mentioned a few times, the Mega Drive really didn’t do RPGs, hence the lack of tally in the list.

To conclude, the Mega Drive is one of the best consoles ever made, and it’ll always have a strong place in my heart. It was my first ever console, and it really opened my eyes to the beauty of video games. It changed my life, quite simply. I love the Mega Drive. One day, I’d love to own all 50 of these games, preferably in Mega Drive format (bar Columns III, Golden Axe III, Splatterhouse 3 and Gain Ground, which weren’t released on the Mega Drive in the UK). It’s a long-term ambition, one I’ll hopefully be able to achieve when I can afford to! Thank you so much for joining me in this countdown. I’ve had a blast doing this list; it’s always a pleasure doing these listings. I hope you got something out of it too. Until next time!

If you liked this article you might want to read:

• Streets of Rage (Old School Game Review)
• Sega Mega Drive Ultimate Collection (Game Review)
• My Top 10 Favourite Levels on Platformer Games (Listing)

Continue reading the listing!

#50 - #41 |  #40 - #31 | #30 - #21 | #20 - #11 | #10 - #2 | #1 + More

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My Top 50 Favourite Sega Mega Drive Games: #10 - #2

Here we are. The Top 10. My ten favourite Mega Drive games. What will make the list? What classic games make the list? Are there any surprises? Let’s find out...

#10 – World of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck

Released: 1992 
Genre: Platform 
Rating: ****1/2 stars 
Best Moment: Just playing two-player mode, it’s one of the best if not THE best two-player games ever made.

As I say above, this game is just absolutely amazing in two-player mode. It’s so much fun, you and a mate, going through this World of Illusion. It’s a very short game, but the imagination, the jubilations, the music, everything about this game is just so much fun. Disney is world renowned for its amazing ability to make children’s films so great, and if there was one game that translates the feeling of watching a Disney film into game form, this is it. It’s that simple. This is simply one of the best kids games ever made. I dare any one to suggest otherwise.

#9 – Micro Machines 2: Turbo Tournament

Released: 1994
Genre: Racing
Rating: ****1/2 stars
Best Moment: Climbing through the League pyramid to the top. It can be very frustrating but the payoff at the end is great when you finally get there.

My favourite racing game on the Sega Mega Drive is Micro Machines 2. It’s possibly my favourite racing game of all time to be honest. I absolutely adore this game. For me, a racing game doesn’t always have to be about it technically being great, or the graphics being smooth and realistic, a racing game has to be fun. And I don’t find that many other racing games as fun as this. The different vehicles are great, the races are crazy, the characters all have their own little quirky personalities and the music is really smooth. Micro Machines 2 is the ultimate Micro Machines game and is simply one of the best racing games ever made. I truly mean that.

#8 – Michael Jackson's Moonwalker

Released: 1990 (1991 in the UK) 
Genre: Beat ‘em Up 
Rating: ****3/4 stars 
Best Moment: Indisputably, making your opponents dance to death. The different dance sequences on each level are all just beautifully animated and are quite funny at times.

What? Michael Jackson’s Moonwalker at #8 in my favourite Mega Drive games list? Damn right it is. Have you played this game before? If you haven’t, you have no right to question why I rate this game so high. If you have played the game, I reckon you’d understand why. It’s an absolutely fantastic game, and yes, I do rate it at ****3/4 stars out of five. Sure, Michael Jackson ‘rescuing little children’ is questionable in 2012, but back in 1990 none of the sexual abuse allegations were in existence really. Forget that though, what you have is an absolutely brilliant Michael Jackson video game experience. Everything that was great about Michael Jackson is beautifully represented in this game. The dance moves, the ‘magic persona’, the suits, the enemies (based on the movie Moonwalker), and most importantly, the music, it's all here, and it’s so so good. You really have to play this game if you haven’t before. Check out this video below. Trust me, you won’t be disappointed.

#7 – Sonic the Hedgehog 2

Released: 1992
Genre: Platformer
Rating: ****3/4 stars
Best Moment: The special stages, Sonic 2 has the best special stages in Sonic history.

Another Sonic game bites the dust in my list. In the main series only Sonic and Knuckles remains. Is it in my list at all? If so, how high? We’ll see. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is simply one of the most exhilarating platformer experiences of all time. Sega did very little wrong with Sonic 2, the 20 levels (in comparison to Sonic 3’s 12 levels) make this the most of any Sonic title on the Mega Drive, and for the most part, the levels are pretty damn sweet. The addition of Tails was quite nice, just so you had the choice of being someone else, although playing with both Sonic and Tails one-player can be very annoying. I really don’t know what to say about Sonic 2 because chances are you have played it and know about how good it is anyway. Sonic 2 is simply one of the best platformers of all time. I love it.

#6 – Shining Force

Released: 1992 (1993 in the UK)

Genre: RPG

Rating: ****3/4 stars

Best Moment: Like Shining Force II’s entry, nothing really stands out. It’s just simply one of the best RPGs ever made.

I’ve placed the original Shining Force towards the top of the mountain for many reasons. Firstly, it’s better than the second game in the series, which was a brilliant game in its own right. Why? I just love the characters more, the story is better, and, honestly, the second entry didn’t really experiment much from the original. The original Shining Force is simply one of those games you have to play. Really. It’s a shame the Shining Force series never really developed much after the third game, which wasn’t fully released in the West, a terrible terrible shame, because while the formula has been done by other game series, Shining Force I feel did it best. The balance and variety of the characters, the different tactical approaches you can do in the game, a lot of it was pretty damn amazing for 1992. Final Fantasy was lagging by this point in the RPG games, in my opinion tactically, and that’s where Shining Force’s strongest point lies. Shining Force is a game you simply have to play, I can’t recommend it highly enough.

#5 – The Revenge of Shinobi

Released: 1989 (1990 in the UK)

Genre: Action

Rating: ****3/4 stars

Best Moment: Going against Batman and Spiderman on Stage 6. It’s really cool, and a set of totally unexpected cameos in the game.

This entry once again is another example where nostalgia places a game higher in my list rather than a game’s technicality. The third game in the series (at #12 in this list) is a far superior game technically; it improves on the amazing blueprint in this game in nearly every way. But I just can’t place this game any lower, it feels perfectly right at #5 in my list of favourite games. Why? I can’t tell you how many hours, how many times, I have completed this game. It’s embedded as one of my favourite games of my childhood. Besides, it’s so so cool, and I can promise you, not many games were as cool back in 1989. Golden Axe was released in this same calendar year, and it’s my very strong opinion that the action available in this game is far superior to that in GA, no disrespect. So yeah, The Revenge of Shinobi, simply, is one of the best games of all time, and my fifth favourite on the Mega Drive.

#4 – Quackshot starring Donald Duck

Released: 1991 
Genre: Platformer 
Rating: ****3/4 stars 
Best Moment: Getting the red plunger. Seriously. I love firing that weapon and climbing walls. Also the Egypt level is awesome too, and was featured in my list of favourite platformer levels ever, a list you can read here.

I have zero shame placing a Disney game at #4 in my list of favourite Mega Drive games. If you’ve ever played Quackshot, chances are you understand fully its placement this high on this list. Quackshot is just one of the best adventure platformer games ever. This game is just jam-packed full of amazing levels, great cameos by other characters associated with Donald Duck, and it can be a tough game to crack at times too. It’s one of my favourite ever platformers, and in my opinion, the best game Disney have ever released. If you’ve never played this game before, you’re missing out big time.

#3 – Streets of Rage 2

Released: 1992 (1993 in the UK)

Genre: Beat ‘em Up

Rating: ****3/4 stars

Best Moment: Taking out Abadede in the Baseball Stadium. He’s probably the toughest boss in the game and really kicks your ass.

What do I need to say about Streets of Rage 2 that hasn’t already been said before? Seriously, I’m finding it hard to describe anything about this game that you probably don’t already know. It’s just the best beat ‘em up ever made. I don’t think many people would dispute that. SoR1’s formula was absolutely fantastic, but this put all the great things about the original game and set it all to overdrive. SoR3 took many risks and tampered with the difficulty, so therefore opinions on the game are mixed, but SoR2 is by far the most balanced game in the series. And it’s the best beat ‘em up ever as I said, playing on your own or with a friend, it doesn’t matter, this game survives the test of time ridiculously well. I play this game frequently, and it’s 2012. Not many games released 20 years ago or earlier are as replayable now as Streets of Rage 2. What a game.

#2 – Sonic and Knuckles

Released: 1994

Genre: Platformer

Rating: ****3/4 stars

Best Moment: I love gliding with Knuckles. Lots of fun. I also really love Flying Battery Zone. One of the best Sonic levels ever made.

Yes it’s true. Sonic and Knuckles is my favourite Sonic game. If I were to include Sonic 3 and Knuckles together as one whole game however, that game would completely wipe the floor out of this list. But the games were released separately, so I’ve covered them separately. But even separate, Sonic and Knuckles is still my favourite Sonic game, and it’s just so much fun. There’s so much action, the level design is top notch, the game is decent in length, using Knuckles is really cool and the music as always is just awesome. Sonic 3 and Knuckles to be honest would be one of the few games I’d ever give five full stars. But as for Sonic and Knuckles on its own, it’s absolutely brilliant, an incredible experience, and is, on its own, my second favourite Mega Drive game.

We’re almost there. Want to know what my favourite Mega Drive game is? I’ll reveal tomorrow!

Continue reading the listing!

#50 - #41 |  #40 - #31 | #30 - #21 | #20 - #11 | #10 - #2 | #1 + More

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My Top 50 Favourite Sega Mega Drive Games: #20 - #11

We’ve reached an important stage of my listing now. It’s Top 20 time. What are my Top 20 favourite Mega Drive games? Keep following to find out! 

#20 – Gain Ground

Released: 1992 (2007 in the UK)

Genre: Action

Rating: ****1/4 stars

Best Moment: Getting to the end of the level with all characters intact. The game crumbles very quickly if you lose your best characters.

I only discovered this game recently, on the Sega Mega Drive Ultimate Collection actually. I’d never heard of it before then. To be fair, it was never released in the UK on the console itself, but has been ported here on compilation games celebrating the Genesis/Mega Drive. It’s a really good game. It’s hard to describe what the game is about. It’s actually a little like a video game version of British Bulldog if you’ve played it, if so you may have an idea where I’m going with this description; you start off with three characters and you have to get to the end of the level. There are two ways to do this; first, you can dodge enemies and walk to the exit, which is usually the hardest way to do it, mainly because you’d have to do this with every single character. The quickest way to beat a level is to just kill all enemies on screen. As I said you start off with three characters but you can recruit more characters by saving them, to do this you have to find them on the screen and take them to an exit, and in the next level onwards they’ll be added to your roster. If anyone dies then they have to be saved, otherwise you permanently lose that character. It’s a really good game Gain Ground, really worth playing and it’s a tough strategy game in the end but very fun to play. I don’t know how many people have actually played it, I doubt many, but it’s really worth your time trust me.

#19 - Street Fighter II: Championship Edition

Released: 1992

Genre: Fighting

Rating: ****1/4 stars

Best Moment: Beating the Bonus stages flawlessly. Always a good feeling.

How many versions of Street Fighter II was there? Well the Mega Drive had a few, with this version probably being the best. I’m not putting more than one version in this list; they’re far too similar too each other! Street Fighter II’s legacy speaks for itself, it’s simply the most influential fighting game ever released. I don’t think individually one single other fighting game can claim it’s made a bigger impact. I’m not saying it’s the best, but no game in the genre has added to the genre on the whole more than this game. Street Fighter II is a game you have to experience, to fully understand its place in video game history. It’s not coincidence that Street Fighter IV took a lot of inspiration from SF2 to take the game series back to the top of the mountain. Is Street Fighter II my favourite fighting game on the Mega Drive? No, you’ll find that out later in this list. But Street Fighter II is more legendary than it is one of my favourite games, that’s for sure, but regardless of its placement in this list, I respect the hell out of this game and Capcom for making it.

#18 – Worms

Released: 1995

Genre: Strategy

Rating: ****1/4 stars

Best Moment: Having to take a very risky and tough shot with a bazooka, and nailing it spot on.

Ah, the Worms series. It’s amazing to think that the original Worms game was released on the Mega Drive but it was. I never played it on the Mega Drive personally but I do know that the Mega Drive version has zero changes to it to the Playstation copy I had. And what a game Worms was, back in 1995. Sure, nowadays the Worms formula has improved drastically, as have the graphics and comedy voices, but let’s not take anything away from the original game. At the time Worms was unlike any other game out there. A strategy game with an incredible sense humour, this game could destroy friendships as the competitive gameplay was so good. Worms on the Mega Drive surely makes it one of the best games ever released on the console, even if it was released when the console was dying out.

#17 – Speedball 2

Released: 1990

Genre: Sports

Rating: ****1/4 stars

Best Moment: Scoring after a succession of great passes, either that or heating the ball up and throwing it at the goalie, with the ball ending in the back of the net. Fun times.

I’ve already reviewed this game on this site as part of my Old School Game Reviews, you can read that here. Speedball 2 was a truly terrific game. Sure, it may not be a real sport, but it’s still a sports game, and I rate it as one of the best sports games ever made. A mixture of rugby, handball and hockey, Speedball wasn’t that popular unfortunately, but it’s definitely playable, even today I play this game. It’s quite difficult but a heck of a lot of fun, frenetic fun that is. I love this game, and can’t recommend you play it enough.

#16 – Super Monaco GP

Released: 1990 (1991 in the UK)
Genre: Racing
Rating: ****1/4 stars
Best Moment: Just sticking to your gameplan, racing hard and fast yet accurate, and finishing in first place, naturally.

Technically I suppose the second game was superior and I may have rated it quite low at #32 but I just prefer the first game in nearly every way. I love World Championship Mode. I love starting in the Minrae (which is based on the Minardi F1 car), changing constructors and ending up in the Madonna car (based on the McLaren). I love racing on my favourite tracks (some being Great Britain, France and Italy). I also love and hate the second season of World Championship Mode, when you’re the defending champion and G. Ceara (based on the great Ayrton Senna) joins the season having taken the first season out and getting your arse whooped by him and struggling to reclaim your title. I just have so many personal memories of this game, all great, and it’ll forever be my favourite F1 game ever. There may be many technically better games, graphics or controls, but I’ll doubt I’ll ever find a game I’ll enjoy more based on Formula 1 racing.

#15 – Shining Force II

Released: 1993 (1994 in the UK)
Genre: RPG
Rating: ****1/2 stars
Best Moment: Just assembling your party and kicking arse in general. It’s just a brilliant RPG.

I feel bad that Shining Force II is so low on this list as it’s truly an epic RPG. There weren’t many RPGs on the Mega Drive (only the Shining Force and Phantasy Star games are really worthy of any mention in honesty) but Shining Force is not only the best RPG series on the console, but one of my favourite RPG series of all time. I truly love Shining Force, the stories are decent enough but it’s the strategy and turned based RPG system that truly sets it apart from other RPGs. It gets the formula totally spot on and I just love playing the games. If you’ve never experienced Shining Force, seriously, get an emulator or get the Sega Mega Drive Ultimate Collection and play the two Shining Force games. You won’t regret it.

#14 – Streets of Rage

Released: 1991
Genre: Beat ‘em Up
Rating: ****1/2 stars
Best Moment: Honestly? The first level. The whole of it. The music is just so fricking awesome, topped off by the just as good boss theme. The level, while naturally the easiest, has excellent flow to it and it’s probably one of my favourite ‘first levels’ of all time.

I’ve already reviewed this game on this site as part of my Old School Game Reviews, you can read that here. The original Streets of Rage was just so good, ridiculously good even, for back in 1991. Sure, there were Beat ‘em Ups before it that made an impact, but I think Streets of Rage truly lifted the genre to new levels never seen before, and in honesty, not seen since. And this game started it all off. And the formula was improved further for the sequel, but this game, the first in the series, was and still is, one of the best Mega Drive games of all time.

#13 – Dr Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine

Released: 1993 (1994 in the UK)

Genre: Puzzle

Rating: ****1/2 stars

Best Moment: Quite simply, getting an absolutely humongous combo and piling a load of clear beans on your opponent’s grid, rendering them almost incapable of making a comeback.

Man, I love this game. I’d possibly rate it as my favourite puzzle game ever, although that’s another list for another day. Is it the most original puzzle game ever made? Of course not. In fact, it’s a version of a video game series popular in Japan called Puyo Puyo, marketed for Western audiences. It has some of the same music, the same style of game in nearly every way, the only difference is the addition of Dr Robotnik and some other characters associated with Sonic. So it’s actually a ripoff. But do I care? No, not at all, I love this game, I’ve spent hours and hours playing this game; I’ve probably put more time into this puzzle game than all other puzzle games combined. It’s just a really fun game, and I’ll never play a better puzzle game ever, in my opinion.



#12 - Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master

Released: 1993

Genre: Action

Rating: ****1/2 stars

Best Moment: I just love running at ninjas and taking out my sword and slicing them silly. It’s a simple technique but it’s a hella fun.

You know, I played The Revenge of Shinobi as part of my Mega 6 collection, that I mentioned earlier. I always said to myself, why didn’t they ever make a sequel to that Shinobi game? I never knew this game existed for years later, not to mention that they actually made a sequel for the Mega Drive itself. The second Shinobi game was released on the Sega Game Gear, but this third entry was put back on the Mega Drive as the Game Gear was a flop. Shinobi III was brilliant. It took everything that made the original Revenge of Shinobi a success and added so much more. The action in this game, is just awesome. It blows most games out of the water for the amount of moves and techniques available in an action game. And you really do feel like a badass ninja playing this game. Shinobi III is just simply, one of the best Mega Drive games of all time. You really should experience it if you haven’t before.

#11 – Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3

Released: 1996
Genre: Fighting
Rating: ****1/2 stars
Best Moment: The moment when you finally kick Shao Kahn’s ass; Mortal Kombat is a very hard game at times and Shao Kahn is a worthy final battle, and when you finally defeat him it’s a huge sigh of relief and joy.

In honesty, I never played the original Mortal Kombat III. Nor did I play Mortal Kombat II until many years later. UMK3 is THE fighting game for the Mega Drive in my opinion. 24 characters in one fighting game... I’m pretty sure that was unprecedented in 1996. Naturally now we have bigger rosters, but for a Mega Drive game, to have so many characters all with different movesets and personalities... it was just epic. I honestly rate UMK3 as one of my favourite fighting games ever, it’s definitely my favourite Mortal Kombat game, and for me, it’s definitely the best fighting game on the Mega Drive. Even more so than Street Fighter 2.

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