Sega has unveiled its first games console in almost 20 years. The Sega Genesis Mini (or Sega Mega Drive Mini, depending on which country you hail from) is the latest in the classic retro console craze, and will come complete with 40 pre-installed games alongside some modern touch-ups.
Like Sony's Playstation Classic or Nintendo's Classic Mini NES and SNES, the Sega Genesis Mini is essentially an emulator wrapped in a plastic box shaped like a smaller version of the original mid-90s console. Two full-sized, wired controllers are bundled in, modeled after the originals. The Genesis Mini plugs into TVs through a HDMI cable, and it's powered by USB.
While Sega says the new console will come with 40 games pre-loaded, only 10 have been revealed so far. And that's a decent list, starring the likes of Sonic the Hedgehog, Castlevania: Bloodlines, Altered Beast, Toejam & Earl, Ecco the Dolphin, Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine, Space Harrier II, Shining Force, Comix Zone and Gunstar Heroes.
Whatever the other 30 titles turn out to be, that's quite a generous amount compared to Sega's competitors. The NES Classic Mini packs 30 games total, while the SNES Mini had only 21 and the PlayStation Classic just 20.
If a Genesis Mini sounds familiar, that's because manufacturers like AtGames have been making them for a while now. But the difference is that this new system is made by Sega itself, which should make it a bit more authentic. That's clear in the spot-on reproductions of the controllers and console, which were just "close enough" approximations in other versions. The addition of HDMI output is a first, too.
The Sega Genesis Mini is due to launch on September 19, 2019 for US$79.99. The full list of games will no doubt be revealed at some stage before then.
Source: Sega