Sega Genesis Mini review: $80 delivers a ton of blast-processing fun

Enlarge / Tiny system next to giant pack-in controller. (It comes with two 3-button pads.) (credit: Sam Machkovech)

Shortly after NES Classic fever swept the United States in 2016, a series of underwhelming nostalgia systems followed, all designed to emulate classic games through modern TVs' HDMI ports. None of them, other than Nintendo's own SNES Classic, reached the same success or quality level. The C64 Mini was a half-baked bummer. The Neo-Geo Mini underwhelmed with a weird form factor and lacking controller. After a remarkably quiet launch, the PlayStation Classic eventually became a solid value... at roughly one-third of its original MSRP.

The ATGames Sega Genesis was arguably the most embarrassing of them all, as it did an utter disservice to its source 16-bit system. The audio, the video, the game selection-they were all trash. Every time we heard whispers that Sega might release another tiny Genesis, I involuntarily twitched, assuming the company's handlers meant a reskin of the ATGames disaster.

But, lo, the Sega Genesis Mini arrives this month and nails the basics we've wanted from so many other nostalgia boxes in the past few years. Eighty dollars gets you a diverse selection of 42 built-in games from the '90s, with a mix of obvious hits, cult classics, and weird outliers. That's all rounded out by two nicely molded controllers and an HDMI-connected system that delivers wholly competent emulation on both the sound and visual fronts. I can nitpick this thing plenty (keep scrolling), but as a straightforward holiday or gift list item, this is a pretty easy recommendation. It's exactly the value-packed '90s package that Sega needed to stand toe to toe with Nintendo's SNES Classic.

Read 23 remaining paragraphs | Comments