The Sega Genesis in 1990 | Classic Gaming Quarterly

Episode 59 - The Sega Genesis in 1990. We pick up where “The Sega Genesis in 1989” and launch episodes left off. 46 games came out for the Genesis in 1990; some great, many good, and a few stinkers. Standout titles include Truxton, Golden Axe, Phantasy Star II, Thunder Force III, and Castle of Illusion. Obviously with this many games to cover they can’t all get equal screen time, so I tried to give more attention to the games that deserved it.

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Show notes:

- Obviously everyone is going to have their own preferences as far as the 1990 lineup goes. I tried to focus on games that are exceptionally good or that have a compelling story in order to keep the flow of the video going. That means that some people will be displeased when a personal favorite game of theirs got limited screen time. Unfortunately, it is not possible to please everyone, so I focussed on the storytelling.

- As was shown in an on-screen credit, the footage of both the Phantasy Star II pocket guide and the Sega Arcade Power Stick were provided by Coury over at My Life in Gaming, as I do not own either of those items. As always, his collaborative spirit is much-appreciated.

- The Die Hard Arcade footage was recorded using Mednafen, and is actually the Sega Saturn port of the game.

- The Mega SG console was released while I was producing this video. Some of the footage was recorded using a model 1 Genesis, while other footage was recorded using the Mega SG. I can’t tell which is which, which is a good thing.

- At about 25:44, during the “Genesis Does” commercial, I’m about 95% sure that’s “Malibu” from American Gladiators as the warrior with the broad sword.

- My wife served as player #2 for the Golden Axe vs. footage and the Forgotten Worlds footage. Thanks, Mrs. CGQ!

- The script for this episode was 8,834 words long. I don't know if that's long, but it seems like it. That's a lot of writing!

- I got not one, but TWO Die Hard references in this video.

Also be sure to check out my other channel, where I do live streams, nostalgic musings about childhood in the 80's, and even the occasional collection video.

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Classic Gaming Quarterly
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All video game footage featured on Classic Gaming Quarterly is recorded from actual game hardware, unless otherwise noted. As of episode 35, it is recorded in RGB using an XRGB Mini Framemeister and an Elgato Game Capture HD, or an OSSC and a Startech USB 3.0 capture device. Prior to that, it was recorded in s-video using am RGB to s-video encoder and a DVD recorder. All videos are edited on a Mac using Final Cut Pro X.

#CGQuarterly #SegaGenesis

[CGQuarterly]

This video was available early to CGQ Patrons and channel members. Please consider supporting the show by following one of the links below. Thank you!!!

[Dannyb]

There’s a fascinating feeling about the Genesis in 89 and 90, before Sonic was on the map.

[chrisr]

These always put me in the mood to play some Genesis .

[mylifeingaming]

[Coury] this came out awesome. So many great games from this year that define the system more than any other.

Thanks for letting me be a part of it!

[davebladegun]

I was so glad that you mentioned CGR when you covered Truxton. You did Mark proud.

[JesseH]

You always do such a wonderful job of capturing what it was like back then in your narrative and the use of video game magazines and their advertisements and reviews. Very well written, informative and descriptive. And FUN. Great job, as usual, CGQ!

[collateraldabbage]

"ALL YOUR BASE ARE BELONG TO US."


Love it. Thanks for the awesome videos. The nostalgia is hitting hard.

[aybabtudani]

Great job dude! You speak so well I use your videos to learn english!

[tritegent]

So happy to see another one of these videos out. You can tell the time and effort you put into these, and it doesn't go unnoticed. Your videos are a big reason why I got back into playing old video games. Needless to say you're easily one of the best classic video game youtubers out there. Keep up the great work dude!

[boscopit]

My brother and I used to love playing Hard Drivin' at the arcade just to crash and watch the replays!

[matthewsan]

Man, I rented and played SO many of these games, that I had completely forgotten about until seeing this video! Technocop, for example. Wow. Thanks for the memories.

[jeremybarnett]

I was a SNES kid, so I enjoy finding out more about the Sega Genesis and its games that I missed out on. Good job and love the channel.

[mitchelvalentino]

I’m typically immune to nostalgia, but this video really struck a chord. So many memories. Thank you.

[TheStrstudios]

a fantastic and professional documentary. solid production values and always great to see gameplay rather than still images. highly recommend any retro game fan to watch this.

[Derpmander]

As a child of the late 80’s-early 90’s, this video is a nostalgia bomb! And it’s really well-made too! I’m going to sign up to support this channel on Patreon, thanks for the quality work!

[trav]

1990 was a hell of year for games that year not just from the Genesis ike SMB 3 from the NES, Bonk's Adventure for the TG16 to just name a few. Theres was a charm about those early Genesis games I loved that I cant really explain, just gotta play it to know what I mean. One of my favorites that year was Castle of Illusion. Such a great game that I felt it was slept on because it was a Disney game & its Mickey Mouse. Love that game as a kid & still do to this very day. Also I loved how Sega use the black grid template for all the box art which they end up changing in '93 or '94 I think when the new model of the Genesis was releasing

[lacquerware]

These year-by-year overviews are fantastic. I'd love to see you cover subsequent Genesis years.

[sessaodelirio]

I am mesmerized every time I watch an episode of CGQ, one of the greatest game channels here on Youtube. Tons of interesting information regarding old consoles and games and their respective histories made this channel not only fun, but cultural important as well. Long Live, CGQ! Best wishes from Brazil!

[BenderBendingRodriguezOFFICIAL]

I know you don't upload much, but much like the Gaming Historian.. I can appreciate the effort you put into your videos.
They are very insightful. I grew up in the early 90's so I'm in my late 20's. I always considered myself a pretty hardcore kind of gamer but thanks to people like you guys, there are tons of things I didn't even know back then. I just think gaming history is really cool.

[uwr]

Herzog Zwei is in my top 5 all time.

I bought it from one of the guys that I used to sit with at lunch when I was a sophomore in HS, all of us had Master Systems and we all got the Genesis the Christmas when it was released. (Kinda interesting that all of us had Sega consoles instead of Nintendo and we didn't realize that when we started sitting together at lunch.)

In any case one of the guys said he got this new game over the weekend and was going on about how he hated it. I happen to have $20 in my pocket and told him I'd buy it from him for the twenty I had if he hated it that much. Next day I had Herzog Zewi in my hands...

Similar to how the original Phantasy Star changed my idea of what video games could be, this game made me realize how awesome strategy games could be and even more so when playing against another player. I played this game like mad and over the summer our friend from down the street would come over regularly and play this game for hours. (Best $20 I ever spent.)

Even all these years later you can still pick this up and it is just as fun to dive into or play against someone. The game play, music and visuals are all excellent.

P.S. Awesome video as well.