List of best-selling Sega Genesis games

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Sega Genesis, along with its controller Sega-Genesis-Mk2-6button.jpg
Sega Genesis, along with its controller

This is a list of Sega Genesis/Mega Drive video games that have sold or shipped at least one million copies, sorted in order of copies sold. The best-selling title is Sonic the Hedgehog , first released in North America on June 23, 1991. Due to being bundled with the console, it sold 15 million copies. The second best-selling game is its sequel, 1992's Sonic the Hedgehog 2 , with 6 million copies sold.

Contents

List

Sega Genesis/Mega Drive games that have sold or shipped at least one million copies
TitleCopies soldRegional breakdownRelease date
Sonic the Hedgehog 15 million (bundled with Genesis/Mega Drive hardware) [1] [2] [3] June 23, 1991
Sonic the Hedgehog 2 More than 7.55 million North America – 5 millionas of 1996 [4]
United Kingdom – 1.4 million+ (1 million in 1992, [5] 400,000+ in 1993) [6]
France, Germany, Spain, Austria – 750,000 as of 1992 [7]
Japan – 400,000 as of March 1993 [8] 		November 24, 1992
Mortal Kombat More than 4.33 million [9] September 13, 1993
Disney's Aladdin 4 million [10] October 19, 1993
Sonic the Hedgehog 3
Sonic & Knuckles 		4 million [11] [2] Sonic & Knuckles: At least 1.24 million in the US [12]
Sonic 3: At least 1.02 million in the US [12] 		February 2, 1994/October 18, 1994
Jurassic Park At least 2.2 million in the US [13] August 10, 1993
NBA Jam At least 1.93 million in the US [12] March 4, 1994
Mortal Kombat II At least 1.78 million in the US [12] September 9, 1994
Street Fighter II': Special Champion Edition 1.665 million [14] September 27, 1993
Eternal Champions More than 1.6 million [15] December 11, 1993
Altered Beast At least 1.4 million in the US (bundled with hardware) [16] August 14, 1989
Mortal Kombat 3 1.02 million in the US [12] October 13, 1995
Ms. Pac-Man More than 1 million in the US [17] July 1991
NFL '98 More than 1 million in the US [18] May 14, 1997
NFL Football '94 More than 1 million [19] November 1993
Sonic Spinball More than 1 million [19] November 23, 1993
X-Men More than 1 million [19] [20] March 8, 1993
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers 1 million in the US [21] [22] November 1994
Sonic 3D Blast More than 1 million [23] November 1996

See also

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<i>Sonic 3D Blast</i> 1996 video game

Sonic 3D Blast, known in PAL regions as Sonic 3D: Flickies' Island, is a 1996 platform game in the Sonic the Hedgehog series for the Sega Genesis and Sega Saturn. As Sonic the Hedgehog, the player embarks on a journey to save the Flickies, birds enslaved by Doctor Robotnik. The player must guide Sonic through a series of themed levels to collect Flickies and defeat Robotnik. Though it retains game mechanics from prior Sonic games, Sonic 3D Blast is differentiated by its 2D isometric perspective, with pre-rendered 3D models converted into sprites.

<i>Sonic & Knuckles</i> 1994 video game

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<i>Sonic the Hedgehog 2</i> 1992 video game

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is a 1992 platform game developed by Sega Technical Institute (STI) for the Sega Genesis. Players control Sonic as he attempts to stop Doctor Robotnik from stealing the Chaos Emeralds to power his space station. Like the first Sonic the Hedgehog (1991), players traverse side-scrolling levels at high speeds while collecting rings, defeating enemies, and fighting bosses. Sonic 2 introduces Sonic's sidekick Miles "Tails" Prower and features faster gameplay, larger levels, a multiplayer mode, and special stages featuring pre-rendered 3D graphics.

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<i>Disneys Aladdin</i> (Sega Genesis video game) 1993 video game

Disney's Aladdin is a platform game based on the 1992 film of the same name developed by Virgin Games. The game was released by Sega for the Sega Genesis on October 19, 1993 as one of several games based on the film, including another game that was released in the same month by Capcom for the Super NES.

As the Sonic the Hedgehog series of platform games has grown in popularity, its publisher Sega has expanded the franchise into multiple different genres. Among these are several educational video games designed to appeal to young children. The first attempt to create an educational Sonic game was Tiertex Design Studios' Sonic's Edusoft for the Master System in late 1991, which was canceled despite having been nearly finished. When Sega launched the Sega Pico in 1994, it released Sonic the Hedgehog's Gameworld and Tails and the Music Maker for it. Orion Interactive also developed the 1996 Sega PC game Sonic's Schoolhouse, which used a 3D game engine and had an exceptionally large marketing budget. In the mid-2000s, LeapFrog Enterprises released educational Sonic games for its Leapster and LeapFrog Didj.

References

  1. ↑ Sonic the Hedgehog GameTap Retrospective Pt. 3/4. Event occurs at 1:21. Archived from the original on July 21, 2016.
  2. 1 2 Sonic the Hedgehog GameTap Retrospective (Alternative Compilation Upload). Event occurs at 12:40 (Sonic 1), 14:39 (Sonic 2), 18:40 (Sonic 3/Sonic & Knuckles). Archived from the original on 2020-12-23. Retrieved 2019-07-28.
  3. ↑ "Review: Sonic Jam". Sega Saturn Magazine. No. 22. August 1997. p. 68. ISSN 1360-9424.
  4. ↑ "Saturday Night". Saturday Night . Vol. 111, no. 1–5. Consolidated Press Limited. 1996. p. 92. Archived from the original on 2023-02-07. Retrieved 2023-02-07. Sonic 2 has sold 5-million copies in North America alone.
  5. ↑ "Sonic: A brief history". MegaTech . No. 26 (February 1994). United Kingdom: Maverick Magazines. 20 January 1994. p. 24.
  6. ↑ "Top-Selling Video Game Titles In UK — 1993 (All Formats)". Screen Digest . Screen Digest Limited: 110. 1994. Archived from the original on 2023-02-07. Retrieved 2023-02-07. 2  Sonic 2  Sega
    nb sales level at number 5 = 400,000 units
  7. ↑ "Video game sales scale greater heights". Screen Digest . Screen Digest Limited: 271. 1992. Archived from the original on 2023-02-07. Retrieved 2023-02-07. Initial orders for Sonic The Hedgehog 2 game from Sega suggest it will become best-selling European title to date. First orders from UK, France, Germany, Spain and Austria totalled 1.5m units—0.75m in UK alone, worth £25m at retail.
  8. ↑ "Sonic CD Slips Up" (PDF). Sega Force . No. 16 (April 1993). 4 March 1993. p. 12. Archived (PDF) from the original on 29 March 2016. Retrieved 7 February 2023. In other news, Sonic 2's enormous overseas success has surprisingly not been matched in Japan. (...) Sega officially claims to have sold 400,000 units.
  9. ↑ Kent, Steven L. (2000). The First Quarter: A 25-year History of Video Games. BWD Press. p. 372. ISBN   978-0-9704755-0-3. Archived from the original on 2023-01-17. Retrieved 2023-02-07. Acclaim sold approximately 6.5 millionMortal Kombat cartridges. The Genesis version, which included the original arcade fatality moves, outsold the edited-down Super NES version by nearly three-to-one
  10. ↑ Horowitz, Ken (2006-03-28). "Interview: Dr. Stephen Clarke-Willson". Sega-16. Archived from the original on 2014-02-23. Retrieved 2018-05-13.
  11. ↑ Sonic the Hedgehog GameTap Retrospective Pt. 4/4. Event occurs at 1:39. Archived from the original on 2015-07-25. Retrieved 2017-09-03.
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 "US Platinum Videogame Chart". The Magic Box. December 27, 2007. Archived from the original on October 9, 2021. Retrieved August 3, 2008.
  13. ↑ "American Jurassic Boxes Clever". Computer and Video Games . No. 143. October 1993. p. 11.
  14. ↑ "Million titles" (PDF). Company Profile. Capcom. May 2001. p. 7. Archived (PDF) from the original on 5 November 2021. Retrieved 5 November 2021.
  15. ↑ Horowitz, Ken (2016). "Omega Group". Playing at the Next Level: A History of American Sega Games. McFarland & Company. p. 279. ISBN   9780786499946.
  16. ↑ Shapiro, Eben (1991-06-01). "Nintendo Goal: Bigger-Game Hunters" . The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2022-01-19. Retrieved 2011-01-16.
  17. ↑ Cifaldi, Frank. "Retronauts Episode 91: A Tengen Family Reunion". Frank Cifaldi talks to rebellious NES game developers Franz Lanzinger (Toobin', Ms. Pac-Man), Steve Woita (Super Sprint, Police Academy) and Mark Morris (Hard Drivin', 007: License to Kill) about the old days. 1Up.com. Archived from the original on 2012-10-16. Retrieved 2010-09-27.
  18. ↑ "FarSight Studio Games: NFL 98". Archived from the original on 2005-02-10. Retrieved 2011-03-30.
  19. 1 2 3 "Sega of America in the early 1990s - Sales Year for Sega's Genesis, Game Gear and Sega CD". SEGA Forum. Business Wire. factiva. Archived from the original on 2011-10-08. Retrieved 2010-11-06.
  20. ↑ Iwasaki, Eric. "Part-time Artist / Western Technologies, Inc. / jun. 1990 - may. 1994". LinkedIn . Retrieved July 24, 2024. Company's first dedicated video game artist. Despite working summers-only before Fall 1993, made immediate and significant contributions including pixel-pushed 2D animated sprites appearing within SEGA's million-plus selling X-Men for Genesis. Team's first 3D artist - learned 3D Studio Release 3 on personal time, volunteering rendered elements for Trivial Pursuit titles on SEGA CD and Windows.
  21. ↑ "Masterpiece Album". Development staff interview with Ryouichi Hasegawa. Sega Corporation. Archived from the original on 2008-03-06. Retrieved 2010-08-31.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  22. ↑ "Masterpiece Album (English translation)". English translation of the development staff interview with Ryouichi Hasegawa as published by Sega.jp. romhacking.net. Archived from the original on 2016-07-29. Retrieved 2010-08-31.
  23. ↑ Horowitz, Ken (2016). "Changing of the Guard". Playing at the Next Level: A History of American Sega Games. McFarland & Company. p. 145. ISBN   9780786499946.
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