Focused on national teams (with a total of 64, all with fake names and individual team values), it had one of the highest option counts for 16-bit football games: up to 18 different settings can be changed, including ball weight, weather, surface, tightness of ball control, passback rule and perhaps the most remembered of all, the ability to play 6-on-6 indoor football. Several game modes are available, including friendlies, penalty shootout, Ultimate League, Ultimate Cup (group phase and knockout stage) and Knockout. However, the game lacks both passwords and battery save, and all competitions must be completed in one sitting. Up to eight players can play if two 4-player adapters are used.
Ultimate Soccer is played in a field of vision similar to the Madden NFL games in the console, a second-row view behind the players' shoulders that can also be tilted to show more field depth or more detail closer to the bottom of the screen. Player sprites, while small, are well animated and with small details such as dirt or water splashing from the players' feet (which would become one of the trademark effects in Sega's own Worldwide Soccer).
Gameplay
Gameplay depends on how versions are tweaked: lighter balls travel farther and higher and can be given zig-zag aftertouches (perfect from long range shots), but on the other hand, are more prone to be deflected by strong winds. Heavy balls barely lift from the floor which makes them more suitable for short passing, but are affected by wet grass. It's possible to score from any situation, including direct corners and freekicks, head deflections from long passes, bicycle kicks, working around the goalkeeper or pressing the defense and try to tackle the ball in.
The Sega CD, known as Mega-CD in most regions outside North America and Brazil, is a CD-ROM accessory for the Sega Genesis produced by Sega as part of the fourth generation of video game consoles. It was released on December 12, 1991, in Japan, October 15, 1992, in North America, and April 2, 1993, in Europe. The Sega CD plays CD games and adds hardware functionality such as a faster CPU and graphic enhancements such as sprite scaling and rotation. It can also play audio CDs and CD+G discs.
The Genesis Nomad, also known as Sega Nomad, is a handheld game console manufactured by Sega and released in North America in October 1995. The Nomad is a portable variation of the Sega Genesis home video game console. It could also be used with a television set via a video port. It was based on the Mega Jet, a portable version of the home console designed for use on airline flights in Japan.
Columns is a match-three puzzle video game released by Jay Geertsen in 1989. Designed for the Motorola 68000-based HP 9000 running HP-UX, it was ported to Mac and MS-DOS before being released commercially by Sega who ported it to arcades and then to several Sega consoles. The game was subsequently ported to other home computers, including the Atari ST.
Ristar is a 1995 platform game developed and published by Sega for the Sega Genesis. The game stars an anthropomorphic cartoon star who uses his hands and long, stretchable arms to both move and fight enemies. Reception for the game was generally positive, but the game's initial release was overshadowed due to the imminent ending of the Genesis's lifecycle and the succession of the Sega Saturn and other fifth generation video game consoles.
A sports video game is a video game that simulates the practice of sports. Most sports have been recreated with video games, including team sports, track and field, extreme sports, and combat sports. Some games emphasize playing the sport, whilst others emphasize strategy and sport management. Some, such as Need for Speed, Arch Rivals and Punch-Out!!, satirize the sport for comic effect. This genre has been popular throughout the history of video games and is competitive, just like real-world sports. A number of game series feature the names and characteristics of real teams and players, and are updated annually to reflect real-world changes. The sports genre is one of the oldest genres in gaming history.
In the history of video games, the fourth generation of video game consoles, more commonly referred to as the 16-bit era, began on October 30, 1987, with the Japanese release of NEC Home Electronics' PC Engine. Though NEC released the first console of this era, sales were mostly dominated by the rivalry between Sega and Nintendo across most markets: the Sega Mega Drive and the Super Nintendo. Cartridge-based handheld game consoles became prominent during this time, such as the Nintendo Game Boy, Atari Lynx, Sega Game Gear and TurboExpress.
Altered Beast is a 1988 beat 'em up arcade video game developed and published by Sega. The game is set in Ancient Greece and follows a player character chosen by Zeus to rescue his daughter Athena from the demonic ruler of the underworld, Neff. By collecting three power-ups in a level, the player character transforms into one of five magical beasts. It was ported to several home video game consoles and home computers. Altered Beast was the pack-in game when the Genesis launched in North America and the Mega Drive in Europe.
Sonic the Hedgehog Spinball, also known as Sonic Spinball, is a 1993 pinball video game developed by Sega Technical Institute and published by Sega. It is a spinoff of the Sonic the Hedgehog series. Players control Sonic the Hedgehog, who must stop Doctor Robotnik from enslaving the population in a giant pinball-like mechanism. The game is set in a series of pinball machine-like environments with Sonic acting as the pinball.
Streets of Rage is a beat 'em up game developed and published by Sega for the Genesis in 1991. Players control one of three former police officers turned vigilantes who battle a crime syndicate. Streets of Rage establishes many conventions of the Streets of Rage series, such as two-player cooperative play and an acclaimed techno soundtrack from composer Yuzo Koshiro. It was ported for the Game Gear, Sega CD and Master System and has been rereleased as part of various compilations and on download services.
Golden Axe is a side-scrolling hack-and-slash video game released by Sega for arcades in 1989, running on the Sega System 16B arcade hardware. Makoto Uchida was the lead designer of the game, and was also responsible for the creation of the previous year's Altered Beast. The game casts players as one of three warriors who must free the fantastical land of Yuria from the tyrannical rule of Death Adder, who wields the titular Golden Axe.
Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master, released in Japan as The Super Shinobi II, is a 1993 hack-and-slash platform game developed and published by Sega for the Mega Drive/Genesis. It is the direct sequel to the previous The Revenge of Shinobi. The game was intended to be released in 1992 and to be very different from the final version of the game in terms of levels and storyline. Shinobi III received critical acclaim. It's been ranked among the greatest Mega Drive/Genesis games.
Striker is a soccer video game series first released by Rage Software in 1992.
Streets of Rage 2, known as Bare Knuckle II in Japan, is a 1992 side-scrolling beat 'em up video game published by Sega for the Genesis/Mega Drive. A sequel to Streets of Rage (1991), the characters Axel Stone and Blaze Fielding return while the game also introduces two new characters: Max Thunder, and Eddie "Skate" Hunter, the younger brother of Adam Hunter from the first game.
Bonanza Bros. is a 3D-style, 2D side-scrolling stealth action game developed and released by Sega in 1990. It is one of the earliest arcade games powered by the Sega System 24 arcade system board. It was ported to various home systems, including the Mega Drive/Genesis, Master System, PC-Engine/TurboGrafx-CD, and several home computers.
FIFA International Soccer is a 1993 association football video game developed by EA Canada's Extended Play Productions team and published by Electronic Arts. The game was released for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis console in December 1993 and ported to numerous other systems in 1994. It is the first game in the FIFA series.
The Sega Genesis, also known as the Mega Drive outside North America, is a 16-bit fourth generation home video game console developed and sold by Sega. It was Sega's third console and the successor to the Master System. Sega released it in 1988 in Japan as the Mega Drive, and in 1989 in North America as the Genesis. In 1990, it was distributed as the Mega Drive by Virgin Mastertronic in Europe, Ozisoft in Australasia, and Tectoy in Brazil. In South Korea, it was distributed by Samsung Electronics as the Super Gam*Boy and later the Super Aladdin Boy.
Golden Axe II is a side-scrolling beat 'em up video game developed and published by Sega, first released on the Sega Mega Drive in December 1991. It is the home console sequel to the popular game Golden Axe, marking the second game in the series, though the arcade did see a sequel of its own in 1992, titled Golden Axe: The Revenge of Death Adder. Golden Axe II was only released on the Mega Drive, while the original was released on many other platforms. The game later appeared in Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, as an iOS app on iTunes, and on the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack.
Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story is a fighting video game developed and originally published by Virgin Interactive Entertainment in Europe for the Sega Genesis in June 1994. It is based on the 1993 film of the same name, which is a semi-fictionalized account of the life of Hong Kong-American actor and martial artist Bruce Lee. Following the events of the movie, players take control of Bruce Lee across several stages that takes places in different time periods of his life and fight against some of his adversaries.
Sega Genesis Classics is a series of compilations featuring Sega Genesis video games released for Windows, Linux, macOS, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch. The collections are split into "Volumes", with the first four receiving both physical and digital releases and the fifth volume only being digitally released.
Kid Chameleon is a 1992 platform game developed and published by Sega released for the Sega Genesis. In the game, a boss character with artificial intelligence in a virtual reality video game begins abducting players and the main protagonist Casey goes in to beat the game and rescue them. He does this by using masks to shapeshift into different characters in order to use different abilities. It was later released in Japan. After its initial release in 1992 for the Genesis, it was later re-released a number of times in the 2000s, including part of the Sega Smash Pack 2 for the PC in 2000, the Sega Genesis Collection for the PlayStation Portable and PlayStation 2 in 2006, as a digital release on the Wii's Virtual Console in 2007, Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in 2009 and for the Sega Forever service in 2017.
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