Vladlust TV I don't understand people who are obsessed with black borders on the screen and stretch the picture and I always stop watching retro game reviews when they do that or fill borders with nonsense animated blurry stuff. It's either original aspect ratio with borders or pixel perfect.
I stretched games and I'm more normal than most people. 2D animation stretches well so most games look fine and I would rather have that than black borders on the sides. What's the point of a big TV if you only use barely half the space? Moral of the story, either way is fine. If you prefer perfect aspect ratio then I won't hate but pretending that's the only sensible option is the sign of a complete fucking idiot.
The only time that it is acceptable to stretch an old console game is if its an arcade port of a Capcom fighting game, mainly CPS2 and CPS3 games, which had a wider aspect!
@@grimmdanny Are you stupid by birth or by nature? The Sega Genesis Mini is using AMD Athlon ll that may sound an old processing power, but believe me, it is more than enough to run primitive games. There you go before you start talking nonsense be sure to know what is that you are talking about. 😠
Happy 30th Anniversary, Sega Genesis. I'm 44 years old and have been fortunate enough to experience the golden age of gaming and the wonderful release of my all time favorite console. I will stop playing my Genesis when my hands cease to function.
@Drybones64 Waaaaaaaay better. Metroid, Zelda, Mario Bros, Final Fantasy, Castlevania, Chrono Trigger, Fire Emblem, Street Fighter, Killer Instinct, Mario Kart...
I think they were both good. The SNES having better controllers and games in the first place is probably why the Nintendo fans are the way they are. When someone says Mega Drive, you can tell they are coming from outside the North American market. They had easier access to Genesis than they did SNES so that might explain the confusion brought about by the nostalgia goggles. It’s not true at all saying the SNES was not good when it outperformed Genesis almost every time.
I enjoy both now very much, and I recognize that the Super Nintendo is technically Superior, but the Genesis is what I chose back then and it's much more nostalgic for me.
Eh, it’s technically superior in some ways. Sure, more colors and more at once, and scaling/rotation, but slower processor. Programmers that knew how to use the Genesis did stuff that was not possible on the SNES. Sound is subjective, but SNES samples were almost always better. I’m a Sega guy. Both were great.
Just bad luck. Happened with the SNES Classic mini too. Unlike some guys on this reply thread I think this machine will do really well. I want it to do well too. It's getting really good previews all round and I'm excired to get one :)
That is a great line-up of games. If Sega hadn't sold me a best of collection for the Dreamcast, for the 360, for the XB1 and for the Switch, and I didn't already own a '89 Genesis/CD/32x combo and a Nomad and have an RGB -> HDMI connector, I'd totally buy this. Who am I kidding, I'll buy it anyways.
Mine is on preorder. I like the mini clones, because they are affordable and offer a variety right out of the box. When you did those sound comparisons, I did not hear a difference, except the sound effect for Mickey’s jump. I think the system looks fantastic.
@@GoKenIchiGo listen on a headphone or a good audio system, because there is a LOT of difference between the 2 audio clip... EQ, volume, fuzzyness, gain, reverb... etc
And perhaps best of all- they're legal. It feels good to know the right-holders are getting paid this way. The more retro minis they come out with, the more of them I'll be picking up.
@@mr.vidjagamez9896 The original played badly on original hardware. It's known to be a poorly optimized game. Spawnwave is much more familiar with Wily Wars and says while it still has some lag apparently it's been reduced quite a bit. That's actually good to hear.
@@mr.vidjagamez9896 - Wasn't the "lag" just because it was PAL instead of NTSC? The dump of the PAL cart runs fine on any emulator where you can force the display mode to NTSC or ~60hz...
@@orchNEStra Other previewers say it plays fine now though. So we'll just have to see. I think it will play better than before. Edit: Just read your other comment now that say a similar thing :)
Yes. EC had some weird controls but once you mastered them, finding out the secrets was awesome. I don't think any game after that had special moves as creative.
"Blast processing" at it's finest, and covered by the best Sega fan there is. For real! It was fun watching and as always informative, and made me feel like a 13 year old all over again. Thanks Joe for keeping it going even without Dave. The ending was as expected, and did not disappoint.
Not knocking on RGT85 or HappyConsoleGamer, but this review was the best outta those 3: Had the most in-depth look at the hardware, games, and menu/options. This really gave me a better idea if this was a retro mini worth my money or not. Great work!
Jeremy Sumrak you realize those are shills, right? Happy might be the worst “reviewer” of all. In his RE2 Remake video he finds it “strange” that the original music and sound effects are behind a paywall. That’s the closest he gets to an opinion. If you watch trash TH-camrs who aren’t willing to be honest because they don’t want to get removed from a mailing list, you’re just encouraging more of the same.
@@VaughnJogVlog who knows what could be going on behind the scenes but i don't typically think of HappyConsoleGamer as a shill, i just think he's a fanboy who's very VERY easy to please haha. he just loves basically everything which is fine but makes his voice pretty unhelpful as a reviewer
By now we (anyone with sense) should all know that most of these are merely paid advertisements. They know if they reviewed this negatively Sega would cease giving them exclusive prerelease access and information to these products which helps their views, subscribers, and subsequently their pockets. Basically just a paid Sega advertisement. Thanks joe for sparing us the bull shit
I was impressed that he included that. A lot of reviewers would not have even mentioned the broken controller right out the box and the 6 button controller not working with the unit
I’m thinking about unsubscribing from all of my other retro game channels, and exclusively watching this guy’s channel... when I do watch TH-cam these commercials have gotten out of hand. But I digress. Literally everyone reviewing this shit and that shit is a sellout. Just paid advertising for the company. Not this guy. Incorruptible, honest, no bullshit.. and enjoyable and humorous to watch to boot. Just entertaining and informative to watch without any soul selling horse shit. Thanks dude
I understand why people want the six button controller, but for me who never got to own a genesis in the 80s or 90s, I really want the original 3 button one that I played at friends houses.
It’s too bad your friends didn’t have 6-button controllers. I mean, I love the 3-button for a certain nostalgia, but the day those Sega 6-buttons came out, I bought two of them and Street Fighter II and never looked back.
Well M2 has 1 month to fix that audio delay issue or they can delay it untill they fix it,because if they will release it in september, many peoples wiil turn off it, including sega fans. This is a shame.
Joe, this is probably the most comprehensive Genesis Mini "impressions" I've seen and I've watched a lot of other TH-camrs with 20+min videos that weren't half this insightful. Secondly... I compared Thunderforce III's audio as you did against the MisterFPGA (Release 20190712) and Retropie 4.4 and the results were quite similar to the Mini's. Though the Retropie "pop" was more muted than the Mini but was still there. Tests were conducted using the same speakers used to play the video, Mister & Retropie.
This is how you do a proper video, most videos I’ve watched on this have not mentioned any real details (cough RGT 85). This is a proper in depth look at it. Kudos as always Joe.
@@volo870 Supreme Leader Trump and Kim Jong Un have exchanged blows, but fear not our brave leader has kept the northeast (areas immediately surrounding Trump Tower and Bedminster) safe. The rest of the country has become a nuclear wasteland, but on the plus side I have since grown a sixth and seventh finger on my right hand (which helps with Fortnite) and am currently growing a third eye...I think.
The Genesis was a huge part of my childhood. I'm glad it's getting a decent re-release. There's some cool surprises in the game selection, but I'm sad that it doesn't have some stuff from previous collections, like the complete Phantasy Star or Streets of Rage series'. Hopefully someone will crack it soon, like they did with the SNES mini.
@@SicklySeraph I hear this so much as the reason why it never makes it to the re-re-releases but they definitely had Sonic 3 and Sonic 3+K on the Gamecube, Xbox and PS2 Sonic Mega Collection in the early 00s. The Music was intact and not the PC replacement tunes. So I am not understanding how they dont have the rights. By the early 00s it was way past the time of the initial release. Side note, you can get Sonic 3+K on steam right now, was released in 2011. So whats the excuse for that?
Why did the Sega Genesis and Sony PlayStation minis include the games that support the revised controllers... if they don’t include the better controller?! Street fighter without 6 button, Metal Gear Solid without DualShock. Nope.
That's why I don't have a PSX Classic. I played my PSX back in the day with only the updated controller. I might still end up getting one for emulation.
Actually, MGS can be played just with the digital controller, as the dual shock was released 1 year before MGS itself (meaning that in development they didn't know that controller yet), prove of this is that you can play MGS fine on a PSP, that does not have dual analog support phisically!
@Timothy Vreeland and i was talking about that MGS is not an "excuse" per se, as the game was designed with the digital PS controller in mind, so, he made a bad example there!
Alisia Dragoon was the very first Genesis game that I bought brand new. Granted, I'd bought, borrowed, and rented from friends and stores. But, AD was the first game I bought retail. The $9.99 price was the biggest factor. I had tons of fun though. Totally worth it!
@@SmaMan yep, going from my snes & nes to the classic edition really highlights how bad the audio lag with these mini consoles is. between that, the huge oversight in not boosting gamma when scanlines are enabled (and scanlines are a must for the look of these games to me), and apparently shoddy QC if even review copies are being shipped with defective controllers, i'm cancelling my preorder :P back to my model 2 genesis & everdrive i go
@@wrightguyz yeah i've got the Mega Sg too and it's awesome but honestly the fake scanlines on the Analogue consoles look pretty terrible too imo. Idk why, Retroarch has some really nice looking CRT shaders, maybe something about using filters in emulators vs FPGA implementation? I really don't know
It's looking like a huge improvement over the AtGames knockoffs. I was ready to pass on it instantly after it was announced because of Sega's history with dedicated consoles and that I have the Mega Drive Ultimate Collection on the PS3, but looking at the game list for the Mega Drive Mini: Castlevania: Bloodlines, Gunstar Heroes, Wonder Boy and World of Illusion to name a few, I might consider it if they fix the controller issues.
And I am one of those who owned one back in the day...In my community we were all Sega fans and we refused Super Nes like the plague. I still think I made the right choice to this day. The Sega mini is a obviously buy for me!
I don’t think it’s about honesty. I think he’s just more knowledgeable, attentive to detail, and analytical than the other reviewers who’re just churning out reviews like a sweatshop.
For 42 games and doubling up the predecessors' library, the game choices are a bit puzzling to disappointing. I realize that there are licensing deals that come into play, but the Genesis version seems to be missing so much of what made it special at the time: .Best version of Aladdin .No sports games - where is Madden, NBA Jam, or Mutant League Football .How do you not include Mortal Kombat when the blood code sold systems .Michael Jackson Moonwalker .TMNT Hyperstone Heist
I'm a "normal" person, but I find the "full screen stretched" option to be a FANTASTIC addition, one that I wish was on the NES and Super NES Classics. Why? Simple. Playing these games as they were meant to be played, on a CRT! I have a really useful HDMI to RCA adapter, but when you try the play the aforementioned Classics on them, your gameplay is squished into a tiny box in the middle and the aspect is all wrong. With the stretch option, I can hook the Genesis up to my CRT TV and play like I'm a teen in the 90s again!
i would say you're looking for reasons not to buy the thing, as if it had to be perfect (id like that too). i think most people wouldnt even notice the lag if joe did not mention it
Yep. Fail after fail after fail. I have 2 Genesis consoles and a few games. I have never felt a need to even see if they work. I have so many systems and games. There's zero nostalgia for Genesis and near zero interest for it. I played one a few times and the games didn't resonate with me at all. Edit...back in the day I play the Genesis. Not the ones I own.
@@gc8972b I would and did from the comparison. It's annoying and being the audio freak I am, would be a deal breaker if I even considered buying it. Just mini consoles in general don't really interest me, but I can see how someone who loves collecting these things being very disappointed in the sound delay.
@@gc8972b that's untrue, I'm very much excited for an accurate representation of a mega drive. That audio delay would bug the hell out of me! I have a few of these games on the original system anyway so I'll just carry on playing them there. It wouldn't bother me on an rpg but with many of the fast paced games it would be awful. Maybe it's because I'm an audio programmer my standards are higher, if it doesn't bother you then it doesn't bother you!
Some people are waaaaay to nit pickie about these. When I had my Mega Drive, I had to tune it in via an RF cable, and our TV had a slight pink hue on the top left corner. I still put in a bunch of laps in Virtua racing and sped through Sonic levels. The SNES and NES mini played great, didn’t notice any of the sound delay, and I’m sure this equipment will be great too! Only concern is that they shipped him a broken pad? That’s poor form. But the game count is good. I miss some of my faves in the list though, Mickey Mania, Sonic 3, Krusty’s super fun house (best Simpsons game after the arcade IMO) and Virtua Racing.
i have to keep hitting the rewind 10 seconds button all the time without them. i have auditory processing problems and captions really help me a lot. i appreciate how sometimes the captions can add a few extra jokes too during silent parts with brackets. i appreciate the extra detail put into all aspects of the show.
What would get everyone REALLY stoked is a Genesis/32X Mini hybrid. Even if that had the sound lag, and two 3-button controllers of which one didn't work, I would get that 1000%. Great vid, as usual :)
I just finished watching RGT85s review. And while I love his channel and his review, I love you have your own style of review! Its Game Sack quality at it's best! Do more reviews plz!
1:24 They already showed it during the Japanese reveal show for the mini, the (non-functional) Mega CD mini is going on sale in Japan. You also get a non-functioning mini 32X, Sonic & Knuckles and Sonic 1 cart in the pack.
Thanks for this in-depth review. It may be 1 of 500 videos on the subject but yours has been the most comprehensive and detailed review so far. Def feel safe about picking this up after seeing your impressions on the system thus far!
9:20 - Is this a compliment for Light Crusader I'm hearing? Light Crusader's one of my favorite Genesis games, and it's a bummer that so many people seem to not like the game. It's nice to hear someone saying something good about it for a change. Its combat isn't the best, but the puzzles make up for that, and the magic system is pretty cool (even if it's kind of limited).
Happened with SNES classic mini too. He was just really unlucky. No other previewers had this issue and the machine is getting really positive early previews/reviews. I'm sure Sega will get on QA after this.
Tim Walden nope. There’s two Asian versions believe it or not. Asian genesis mini and Asian mega drive mini. They both contain the same games I believe, the latter of course coming with 6 button controllers
Something to be note is that there are some testers that have tested this Mini console and states that the CPU is not running at the advertise 1.2Ghz and instead is running at a slower 1.0Ghz. Still this is a fantastic effort of a console for anyone to get, i like it even better than mine NES and SNES classic consoles.
I got one and love it! I had a Sega and played it more than I did the SNES since I got it it after the Sega! Very fond memories and great choice with the games it has built in!
Joe, I'd like to officially apologize, on behalf of humanity, for the fact that you don't have more views than anyone else for this particular review. I would apologize for more, but... that's on them.
Apparently the processor is a ZUIKI Z7213 from a company called Allwinner... I was expecting some kind of ARM-related thing as per usual with many of these. I know the SNES mini's was from Allwinner as well, but that was an ARM processor. Can't find out much about the Z7213, seems like it's something new... but I suspect it's some variation of ARM.
The controller doesn't work, that sounds very worrying. However the game list is as good as I expected it to be. I just hope they fix the controller issues.
I had watched HCG's review of this and I didn't know about the Japanese boxes and versions of the games...I really thought you were joking about the Japanese versions at first.That is just awesome !!! That might of just push me over the fence on getting one. I agree with you ,It is a crying shame that Revenge of Shinobi isn't on it. It's my favorite game on the Genesis.
I hope we can have some gradations for scanline brightness and some more wallpapers. I hope they fix that audio lag also. Great vid, Joe. Loads of info.
Wasn't the "volume slider" just for the headphone jack? I don't have a working model 1 anymore, but I'm pretty sure it only adjusted the volume for the headphones.
Had to pause the video to express my appreciation for the GAME SACK HYPER REAL DARE-TO-COMPARE COMPARISON SCREEN. I specifically wanted to know how the audio compares to the real Genesis. It's the little things.
@SuperNESfreak91 Did you pre-order from an online retailer or a brick-and-mortar (like GameStop, Target, Walmart, etc.)? If you pre-ordered from an online retailer, can you still purchase a warranty on it? I know for the SNES Classic, the warranty was around $20 for in-store purchases.
Loved the video, the ending was funny. I canceled my pre-order a month ago, the 3 button controller is a joke, especially when the 6 button is included everywhere else
"Or you can have them in the correct 4:3 aspect ratio if you're a normal person"
Never change Joe
Vladlust TV I don't understand people who are obsessed with black borders on the screen and stretch the picture and I always stop watching retro game reviews when they do that or fill borders with nonsense animated blurry stuff. It's either original aspect ratio with borders or pixel perfect.
I stretched games and I'm more normal than most people. 2D animation stretches well so most games look fine and I would rather have that than black borders on the sides. What's the point of a big TV if you only use barely half the space? Moral of the story, either way is fine. If you prefer perfect aspect ratio then I won't hate but pretending that's the only sensible option is the sign of a complete fucking idiot.
@@markula_4040 Whats stupid is stretching games on a TV that the games were never intended for, but hey - the internet is full of stupid people.
@Outsider Far less stupid than you
The only time that it is acceptable to stretch an old console game is if its an arcade port of a Capcom fighting game, mainly CPS2 and CPS3 games, which had a wider aspect!
The Mini runs faster than the original Genesis?
Whoa, even more BLAST PROCESSING!
It's Blastser Processing.
@@grimmdanny
Are you stupid by birth or by nature? The Sega Genesis Mini is using AMD Athlon ll that may sound an old processing power, but believe me, it is more than enough to run primitive games. There you go before you start talking nonsense be sure to know what is that you are talking about. 😠
@@nd-rt7dl what the hell, lol. Who hurt you?
Woosh
@@nd-rt7dlYou're a real special boy.
Happy 30th Anniversary, Sega Genesis. I'm 44 years old and have been fortunate enough to experience the golden age of gaming and the wonderful release of my all time favorite console. I will stop playing my Genesis when my hands cease to function.
@Dean Satan Nintendards they are called.
@Drybones64 Waaaaaaaay better. Metroid, Zelda, Mario Bros, Final Fantasy, Castlevania, Chrono Trigger, Fire Emblem, Street Fighter, Killer Instinct, Mario Kart...
I think they were both good. The SNES having better controllers and games in the first place is probably why the Nintendo fans are the way they are. When someone says Mega Drive, you can tell they are coming from outside the North American market. They had easier access to Genesis than they did SNES so that might explain the confusion brought about by the nostalgia goggles. It’s not true at all saying the SNES was not good when it outperformed Genesis almost every time.
I enjoy both now very much, and I recognize that the Super Nintendo is technically Superior, but the Genesis is what I chose back then and it's much more nostalgic for me.
Eh, it’s technically superior in some ways. Sure, more colors and more at once, and scaling/rotation, but slower processor. Programmers that knew how to use the Genesis did stuff that was not possible on the SNES. Sound is subjective, but SNES samples were almost always better. I’m a Sega guy. Both were great.
That ending was great. We now know the maximum amount of blast processing that can safely be daisy chained.
Me and my Sega Genesis been together since 1991
I love Sonic The Hedgehog
Why would sega give the most in-depth and critical reviewer on TH-cam a faulty genesis ha ha
You would think for the limited release to youtubers that they would take the time to test these. I'm guessing they didn't give out that many units.
bmwolgas I agree
jgfjgfify the first controller joe plugged in didn’t work at all
Just bad luck. Happened with the SNES Classic mini too. Unlike some guys on this reply thread I think this machine will do really well. I want it to do well too. It's getting really good previews all round and I'm excired to get one :)
@@benjaminbarker6226 Its going to succeed.
I was disappointed there was no explosion when Joe flicked the power switch at the end. Then I kept watching and I was no longer disappointed.
I thought the lights were going to go out and the only thing you see is the Genesis burning.
They should've hooked in an AtGames Genesis for the Hell of it...
@@JohnnyProctor9 that would've split earth in half.
"toe jam and earl is walking simulator" LOL
my brain just exploded...
It’s also my favorite game on the system. Kinda true tho
9AM?
But I like my 2AM Sack!
David A. McHugh perfect for me as it’s 2pm and I’m having a beer.
On a Tuesday too ...
Whoops it's Wednesday
He's in Colorado so it's what, 7am his time? Joe did you stay up all night editing?
yeah, this is too out of my schedule
That is a great line-up of games. If Sega hadn't sold me a best of collection for the Dreamcast, for the 360, for the XB1 and for the Switch, and I didn't already own a '89 Genesis/CD/32x combo and a Nomad and have an RGB -> HDMI connector, I'd totally buy this.
Who am I kidding, I'll buy it anyways.
You are whats wrong.
LOL!
But no Genesis/Megadrive Flashback consoles?!
@@johndd9140 Yeah I have tow AT flashback consoles, forgot to mention those pieces of garbage on my list.
@@rodmunch69 LOL!
Hey Man, I bought a Mega SG around the time that it was released, and I'd still buy this mini. :P
What the ef? Midweek sack? Damn right!
I love a nice, warm sack.
Threw off my whole week! But I can still dig it!
......said my wife
Just kidding, she didn’t say that
Ever
I don't understand why Game Sack has less than a million subs
Yeah it doesn't make sense. Plenty of shitty game channels out there that have way more subscribers . Nowhere near as good as this channel though
Small sack?
MetalJesus has a lot more.... wtf is wrong with the world? He sucks.
Good question. Maybe they don't yell loud enough! TH-camrs like to yell. And cut out silences. That's probably why :)
they are one of the og game channels and yet they have less subs than some of the more recent ones
Mine is on preorder. I like the mini clones, because they are affordable and offer a variety right out of the box.
When you did those sound comparisons, I did not hear a difference, except the sound effect for Mickey’s jump.
I think the system looks fantastic.
Same here I wonder if he accidentally used the same clips in those two instances
I have mine pre-ordered too! I got my original in 1989 and is the machine that turned me into a diehard gamer for life.
@@GoKenIchiGo listen on a headphone or a good audio system, because there is a LOT of difference between the 2 audio clip... EQ, volume, fuzzyness, gain, reverb... etc
@@JoPeTuYaTroJoueY Fair enough--thanks. I am indeed using cheap headphones.
And perhaps best of all- they're legal. It feels good to know the right-holders are getting paid this way. The more retro minis they come out with, the more of them I'll be picking up.
Still got my Genesis. Still gonna buy this for sure
Hmm... Kind of dissappointed about the sound delay. Menus look great though.
And Wily Wars apparently STILL being slow and laggy. I thought they'd fixed that problem. Really disappointed about that.
@@orchNEStra Is that how the original was or just an emulation issue?
@@mr.vidjagamez9896 The original played badly on original hardware. It's known to be a poorly optimized game. Spawnwave is much more familiar with Wily Wars and says while it still has some lag apparently it's been reduced quite a bit. That's actually good to hear.
@@mr.vidjagamez9896 - Wasn't the "lag" just because it was PAL instead of NTSC? The dump of the PAL cart runs fine on any emulator where you can force the display mode to NTSC or ~60hz...
@@orchNEStra Other previewers say it plays fine now though. So we'll just have to see. I think it will play better than before.
Edit: Just read your other comment now that say a similar thing :)
I have one, I also ordered the mini tower, Sega cd and 32x attachments, comes with little genesis cartridges. It's cool.
Eternal Champions and Sonic Spinball are so underrated.
spinball was literally crack growing up lol
Fer Nando ik right! People definitely need to try eternal champions, I loved the fatalities😂
Yes. EC had some weird controls but once you mastered them, finding out the secrets was awesome. I don't think any game after that had special moves as creative.
"Blast processing" at it's finest, and covered by the best Sega fan there is. For real! It was fun watching and as always informative, and made me feel like a 13 year old all over again. Thanks Joe for keeping it going even without Dave. The ending was as expected, and did not disappoint.
Not knocking on RGT85 or HappyConsoleGamer, but this review was the best outta those 3:
Had the most in-depth look at the hardware, games, and menu/options.
This really gave me a better idea if this was a retro mini worth my money or not. Great work!
Jeremy Sumrak you realize those are shills, right? Happy might be the worst “reviewer” of all. In his RE2 Remake video he finds it “strange” that the original music and sound effects are behind a paywall. That’s the closest he gets to an opinion. If you watch trash TH-camrs who aren’t willing to be honest because they don’t want to get removed from a mailing list, you’re just encouraging more of the same.
@@VaughnJogVlog who knows what could be going on behind the scenes but i don't typically think of HappyConsoleGamer as a shill, i just think he's a fanboy who's very VERY easy to please haha. he just loves basically everything which is fine but makes his voice pretty unhelpful as a reviewer
By now we (anyone with sense) should all know that most of these are merely paid advertisements. They know if they reviewed this negatively Sega would cease giving them exclusive prerelease access and information to these products which helps their views, subscribers, and subsequently their pockets. Basically just a paid Sega advertisement. Thanks joe for sparing us the bull shit
Dont worry about knocking on RGT85, he sucks...."OMG its Stevie Richards."
mgloco88 the dude needs to write down a script before vomiting them on camera.
You look like Chuck Norris...I could use you
I am at your disposal.
I am planning on picking one up, but your controller not working? That's a downer...
nintendoboy17 the video is clearly telling you not to waste your money. Does Joe ever sound pleased with the unit?
@@VaughnJogVlog I'm disappointed that there's no virtua racing as that was really awesome to see on Sega genesis
I was impressed that he included that. A lot of reviewers would not have even mentioned the broken controller right out the box and the 6 button controller not working with the unit
Does it play carts🤔
@@ced214 sadly no
I’m thinking about unsubscribing from all of my other retro game channels, and exclusively watching this guy’s channel... when I do watch TH-cam these commercials have gotten out of hand. But I digress. Literally everyone reviewing this shit and that shit is a sellout. Just paid advertising for the company. Not this guy. Incorruptible, honest, no bullshit.. and enjoyable and humorous to watch to boot. Just entertaining and informative to watch without any soul selling horse shit. Thanks dude
I understand why people want the six button controller, but for me who never got to own a genesis in the 80s or 90s, I really want the original 3 button one that I played at friends houses.
Did SEGA pay you to make this comment because it's beyond stupid?
It’s too bad your friends didn’t have 6-button controllers. I mean, I love the 3-button for a certain nostalgia, but the day those Sega 6-buttons came out, I bought two of them and Street Fighter II and never looked back.
Oh man, that Sword of Vermillion music to open up. You know the way to my heart Joe.
I’m so disappointed about the sound delay. I expect better from M2.
Agreed %100.
it's Emmulation of course the sound will be slightly off,impossible to get exactly like the original
Well M2 has 1 month to fix that audio delay issue or they can delay it untill they fix it,because if they will release it in september, many peoples wiil turn off it, including sega fans.
This is a shame.
@@stevepitman2991 they can get the timing better than that, don't make excuses for them
That sound delay is horrendous, i dont think is worth $80
Joe, this is probably the most comprehensive Genesis Mini "impressions" I've seen and I've watched a lot of other TH-camrs with 20+min videos that weren't half this insightful. Secondly... I compared Thunderforce III's audio as you did against the MisterFPGA (Release 20190712) and Retropie 4.4 and the results were quite similar to the Mini's. Though the Retropie "pop" was more muted than the Mini but was still there. Tests were conducted using the same speakers used to play the video, Mister & Retropie.
Awesome!!! I do wish it had Snatcher on it though, so Dave could steal it....lol good stuff.
He'll get his revenge when the Turbografx-16 mini comes out.
Sega CD my bro
@@snowowl4506 yeah but that's going to be in Japanese only.
...Snatcher wasn’t a Genesis game.
DCT google translate it is
This is how you do a proper video, most videos I’ve watched on this have not mentioned any real details (cough RGT 85). This is a proper in depth look at it. Kudos as always Joe.
It's because they are not supposed to do a full reviews until the machine actually launches in September, so they have done previews instead.
What else would you expect from a person with an IQ of 85?
@@benjaminbarker6226 no, that's not right
I watched this on Sept 19 after a couple of hours with the new Genesis mini, and I say it's awesome!!!
Has Mr. Trump started a nuclear war by September?
Or did he allow Mr. Putin to have white chess pieces?
@@volo870 Supreme Leader Trump and Kim Jong Un have exchanged blows, but fear not our brave leader has kept the northeast (areas immediately surrounding Trump Tower and Bedminster) safe.
The rest of the country has become a nuclear wasteland, but on the plus side I have since grown a sixth and seventh finger on my right hand (which helps with Fortnite) and am currently growing a third eye...I think.
The Genesis was a huge part of my childhood. I'm glad it's getting a decent re-release. There's some cool surprises in the game selection, but I'm sad that it doesn't have some stuff from previous collections, like the complete Phantasy Star or Streets of Rage series'. Hopefully someone will crack it soon, like they did with the SNES mini.
Seems good. Might get this, even though I'm not Mega Drive nostalgic. But the emulator times, oh boy I had fun playing Mega Drive games!
Needed Quackshot, Sonic 3 & Knuckles and Ristar
They most likely don't have the rights to sonic 3 and it's music
It's also missing aladdin.
@@SicklySeraph I hear this so much as the reason why it never makes it to the re-re-releases but they definitely had Sonic 3 and Sonic 3+K on the Gamecube, Xbox and PS2 Sonic Mega Collection in the early 00s. The Music was intact and not the PC replacement tunes. So I am not understanding how they dont have the rights. By the early 00s it was way past the time of the initial release. Side note, you can get Sonic 3+K on steam right now, was released in 2011. So whats the excuse for that?
Would have loved these +Splatterhouse 2 and Rolling Thunder 2.
@@atomicpuppet The rumored lawsuit didn't happen until 2013, after Jackson's death. Plus you have Brad Buxer and other people credited.
Why did the Sega Genesis and Sony PlayStation minis include the games that support the revised controllers... if they don’t include the better controller?! Street fighter without 6 button, Metal Gear Solid without DualShock. Nope.
That's why I don't have a PSX Classic. I played my PSX back in the day with only the updated controller. I might still end up getting one for emulation.
Actually, MGS can be played just with the digital controller, as the dual shock was released 1 year before MGS itself (meaning that in development they didn't know that controller yet), prove of this is that you can play MGS fine on a PSP, that does not have dual analog support phisically!
@Timothy Vreeland and i was talking about that MGS is not an "excuse" per se, as the game was designed with the digital PS controller in mind, so, he made a bad example there!
@Timothy Vreeland not only that but imo the d-pad on the 6 button pad is way nicer.
The japanese version comes with the six buttons controllers, why I don't know.
Alisia Dragoon was the very first Genesis game that I bought brand new.
Granted, I'd bought, borrowed, and rented from friends and stores. But, AD was the first game I bought retail. The $9.99 price was the biggest factor. I had tons of fun though. Totally worth it!
Ouch! That audio lag is disappointing 😣
I almost can't play emulators anymore since that's a very common issue among them.
@@SmaMan yep, going from my snes & nes to the classic edition really highlights how bad the audio lag with these mini consoles is. between that, the huge oversight in not boosting gamma when scanlines are enabled (and scanlines are a must for the look of these games to me), and apparently shoddy QC if even review copies are being shipped with defective controllers, i'm cancelling my preorder :P back to my model 2 genesis & everdrive i go
Or a MegaSG...I really dislike those borders..hmmms
@@SmaMan bad emulators or on a chip then yes. I've never had this problem personally but I only use emulators on pc.
@@wrightguyz yeah i've got the Mega Sg too and it's awesome but honestly the fake scanlines on the Analogue consoles look pretty terrible too imo. Idk why, Retroarch has some really nice looking CRT shaders, maybe something about using filters in emulators vs FPGA implementation? I really don't know
I’m a Sega fan from day one I’m ok with all the nitpicking problems you are concerned with I’m in.
Controller not working out of the box isn't knit picking
Damn fine upload from Gamesack. Huge thumbs up! Quality content.
It's looking like a huge improvement over the AtGames knockoffs. I was ready to pass on it instantly after it was announced because of Sega's history with dedicated consoles and that I have the Mega Drive Ultimate Collection on the PS3, but looking at the game list for the Mega Drive Mini: Castlevania: Bloodlines, Gunstar Heroes, Wonder Boy and World of Illusion to name a few, I might consider it if they fix the controller issues.
My god. You are detail oriented. Thanks a lot!
And I am one of those who owned one back in the day...In my community we were all Sega fans and we refused Super Nes like the plague. I still think I made the right choice to this day. The Sega mini is a obviously buy for me!
Smell your own farts huh
Thanks for the review Joe, you're the best !
Your impression on this mini console has been the most honest to date. No one is talking about the sound delay.
I don’t think it’s about honesty. I think he’s just more knowledgeable, attentive to detail, and analytical than the other reviewers who’re just churning out reviews like a sweatshop.
Thank god!! , a genesis mini video worth watching. Thanks Joe, your sack never disappoints.
For 42 games and doubling up the predecessors' library, the game choices are a bit puzzling to disappointing. I realize that there are licensing deals that come into play, but the Genesis version seems to be missing so much of what made it special at the time:
.Best version of Aladdin
.No sports games - where is Madden, NBA Jam, or Mutant League Football
.How do you not include Mortal Kombat when the blood code sold systems
.Michael Jackson Moonwalker
.TMNT Hyperstone Heist
where tf is pulseman
Haunting Starring Polterguy would've been an excellent choice.. one of the most creative games I've played on Genesis
Thats what i was thinking, Haunting, General Chaos, Road Rash 1 and 3, maybe all the Streets of Rages and Shadowrun would have made this a must buy.
Thanks for going through all the games. This is the first Genesis/Mega Drive Mini Impression video I've seen that has done that!
The best channel for Games and consoles reviews.
Keep up with the good work.
I'm a "normal" person, but I find the "full screen stretched" option to be a FANTASTIC addition, one that I wish was on the NES and Super NES Classics.
Why? Simple.
Playing these games as they were meant to be played, on a CRT! I have a really useful HDMI to RCA adapter, but when you try the play the aforementioned Classics on them, your gameplay is squished into a tiny box in the middle and the aspect is all wrong.
With the stretch option, I can hook the Genesis up to my CRT TV and play like I'm a teen in the 90s again!
I think the audio lag might be a deal breaker tbh.. Thanks for the honest review
i would say you're looking for reasons not to buy the thing, as if it had to be perfect (id like that too). i think most people wouldnt even notice the lag if joe did not mention it
Yep. Fail after fail after fail. I have 2 Genesis consoles and a few games. I have never felt a need to even see if they work. I have so many systems and games. There's zero nostalgia for Genesis and near zero interest for it. I played one a few times and the games didn't resonate with me at all. Edit...back in the day I play the Genesis. Not the ones I own.
@@gc8972b I would and did from the comparison. It's annoying and being the audio freak I am, would be a deal breaker if I even considered buying it. Just mini consoles in general don't really interest me, but I can see how someone who loves collecting these things being very disappointed in the sound delay.
@@gc8972b that's untrue, I'm very much excited for an accurate representation of a mega drive. That audio delay would bug the hell out of me! I have a few of these games on the original system anyway so I'll just carry on playing them there. It wouldn't bother me on an rpg but with many of the fast paced games it would be awful. Maybe it's because I'm an audio programmer my standards are higher, if it doesn't bother you then it doesn't bother you!
There's no audio lag. Joe isn't even testing a preview Unit. He's testing a Beta unit. The One from E3.
Game Sack making this hump day of an exhausting week alot better. A total hidden gem!!
I will say, the ability to stretch the video output is useful for some of my 4:3 hdmi monitors/TVs. This way the games don't end up being squished.
Some people are waaaaay to nit pickie about these. When I had my Mega Drive, I had to tune it in via an RF cable, and our TV had a slight pink hue on the top left corner. I still put in a bunch of laps in Virtua racing and sped through Sonic levels. The SNES and NES mini played great, didn’t notice any of the sound delay, and I’m sure this equipment will be great too! Only concern is that they shipped him a broken pad? That’s poor form. But the game count is good. I miss some of my faves in the list though, Mickey Mania, Sonic 3, Krusty’s super fun house (best Simpsons game after the arcade IMO) and Virtua Racing.
Man I'm so glad you reviewed this.
thank you for always having captions! i really appreciate it
I love captions too despite not technically requiring them. Extra high quality content? Yes please!
i have to keep hitting the rewind 10 seconds button all the time without them. i have auditory processing problems and captions really help me a lot. i appreciate how sometimes the captions can add a few extra jokes too during silent parts with brackets. i appreciate the extra detail put into all aspects of the show.
Damn Joe. Thanks for the mid-week video gift. You, sir, are a gentleman and a scholar.
What would get everyone REALLY stoked is a Genesis/32X Mini hybrid. Even if that had the sound lag, and two 3-button controllers of which one didn't work, I would get that 1000%.
Great vid, as usual :)
I just finished watching RGT85s review. And while I love his channel and his review, I love you have your own style of review! Its Game Sack quality at it's best! Do more reviews plz!
Gamesack and my life in gaming always do the best reviews in my opinion
TransKingFormers that's not an opinion. Although I will throw DF Retro in there too.
@@merlingt1 I ditto that!
1:24 They already showed it during the Japanese reveal show for the mini, the (non-functional) Mega CD mini is going on sale in Japan. You also get a non-functioning mini 32X, Sonic & Knuckles and Sonic 1 cart in the pack.
Early morning Sack?
Nice.
Thanks for this in-depth review. It may be 1 of 500 videos on the subject but yours has been the most comprehensive and detailed review so far. Def feel safe about picking this up after seeing your impressions on the system thus far!
Great video! I know you're excited about anything Sega.
Geez Joe, you re-enacted the Manhattan Project with all that Sega power!! Blast processing indeed.
Yikes. One of the controllers didn’t work out of the box on a review unit.
Yikes.
Yikes indeed and this is from Sega of all company. We can't blame AtGames for this anymore.
9:20 - Is this a compliment for Light Crusader I'm hearing? Light Crusader's one of my favorite Genesis games, and it's a bummer that so many people seem to not like the game. It's nice to hear someone saying something good about it for a change. Its combat isn't the best, but the puzzles make up for that, and the magic system is pretty cool (even if it's kind of limited).
(comic book nerd voice)
"Best Mini......... EVEEEER!"
Best Integer Scale Eveeeerr!
So glad you're continuing this show, Joe...also, you're intro theme song is epic.
I’m so glad Mega Man Wily Wars made it on! It’s such an unheard of game.
Ehh it has...wonky controls, the music doesn't sound as good and you can play the first 3 in lots of different ways anyway.
@@bezoticallyyours83 Not with 16-bit graphics.
@@Clay3613 Doesn't need 16 bit graphics. It feels tighter on its native 8 bit. Music sounds better too.
The reason it comes with 3 button is because that's how it was ORIGINALLY!
“Street fighter 2 CE is good aslong you have a 6 button controller but i don’t have it” ahahaha best command in the entire video.
C:\TH-cam\Thumb Up Video
This is my favorite retro gaming channel. Balanced opinions, and they have fun. You know they have the LOVE OF GAMES.
Unfortunately it's only Joe now the other guy quit
Not a good sign when they can't even make sure their promotion copies have working controllers...
Maybe they did it on purpose because it's a promo copy so he can't play two players without ponying up some dough.
Happened with SNES classic mini too. He was just really unlucky. No other previewers had this issue and the machine is getting really positive early previews/reviews. I'm sure Sega will get on QA after this.
@@benjaminbarker6226 I appreciate your confidence!
@@philberto78 always nice to be appreciated :)
It's awesome that you got this so early. As for not recognizing the chips I'd send it to Ben Heck for a tear down analysis.
Asia version is better for Revenge of Shinobi, Shining Force 2, and 6-button controllers IMO...
The Asia version has 3-button controllers. Only the Japanese version has the 6-button.
Tim Walden nope. There’s two Asian versions believe it or not. Asian genesis mini and Asian mega drive mini. They both contain the same games I believe, the latter of course coming with 6 button controllers
Something to be note is that there are some testers that have tested this Mini console and states that the CPU is not running at the advertise 1.2Ghz and instead is running at a slower 1.0Ghz. Still this is a fantastic effort of a console for anyone to get, i like it even better than mine NES and SNES classic consoles.
Nice review and ending skit with Phoenix Wright music.
I got one and love it! I had a Sega and played it more than I did the SNES since I got it it after the Sega! Very fond memories and great choice with the games it has built in!
The genesis is still my favorite game console and from my favorite time for games.
SNES ; )
@@tinleo333 not my favorite but I do say that super Mario world is the greatest game of all time.
I hope nobody questions why Altered Beast is on there ---- and I am glad you mentioned the Ecco CD music and how amazing it is
Joe, I'd like to officially apologize, on behalf of humanity, for the fact that you don't have more views than anyone else for this particular review. I would apologize for more, but... that's on them.
Apparently the processor is a ZUIKI Z7213 from a company called Allwinner... I was expecting some kind of ARM-related thing as per usual with many of these. I know the SNES mini's was from Allwinner as well, but that was an ARM processor. Can't find out much about the Z7213, seems like it's something new... but I suspect it's some variation of ARM.
The controller doesn't work, that sounds very worrying. However the game list is as good as I expected it to be. I just hope they fix the controller issues.
I'm sure the controller issue was just a fluke.
@@msbae
Yeah, that hasn't happened with the other reviewers.
Joe you're going to have to do this again when all of the games for the Genesis 2 have been confirmed it's looking good so far!
Sega must've just been upset about Dave leaving and broke your player 2
First Scream: AHHHHHH
Second Scream: AHHHHH
LOL 😂 BARELY NOTICE A DIFFERENCE
September 19th?! It got pushed back to beginning of October in the uk.... thought it was to be inline with other countries?!
I had watched HCG's review of this and I didn't know about the Japanese boxes and versions of the games...I really thought you were joking about the Japanese versions at first.That is just awesome !!! That might of just push me over the fence on getting one. I agree with you ,It is a crying shame that Revenge of Shinobi isn't on it. It's my favorite game on the Genesis.
Blast processing x blast processing = Sonic Boom!
I hope we can have some gradations for scanline brightness and some more wallpapers. I hope they fix that audio lag also. Great vid, Joe. Loads of info.
Joe, your captions are top notch
Wasn't the "volume slider" just for the headphone jack? I don't have a working model 1 anymore, but I'm pretty sure it only adjusted the volume for the headphones.
It was
A quality review, unlike that "Oh my god" guy.
Who? RGT 85?
even modern vintage gamer got one (although he still didn't review it)
Had to pause the video to express my appreciation for the GAME SACK HYPER REAL DARE-TO-COMPARE COMPARISON SCREEN. I specifically wanted to know how the audio compares to the real Genesis. It's the little things.
Thanks for the video! I liked the ending, as well! :)
It's actually the first Genesis Mini video I've seen all day... and I've been looking!
Not getting one on September 19th...
Mainly as it's not released until October 4th in the UK.
*grumble grumble bloody Sega taking Ages grumble*
I really hope that both of my Genesis mini controllers work now that you have said that because I literally
Pre-ordered mine today! 😰
@SuperNESfreak91 Did you pre-order from an online retailer or a brick-and-mortar (like GameStop, Target, Walmart, etc.)? If you pre-ordered from an online retailer, can you still purchase a warranty on it? I know for the SNES Classic, the warranty was around $20 for in-store purchases.
Will the Pal version be also 60Hz?
That's actually a very good question.
Nice! I saw this console reviewed on another channel and you are really covering it in-depth. Good that you got all technical!
How long did you spend in the makeup chair for that last shot? It was awesome!
Loved the video, the ending was funny. I canceled my pre-order a month ago, the 3 button controller is a joke, especially when the 6 button is included everywhere else