Sms Vs Nes [Archive] - Retrogaming Roundtable

RugalSizzler

05-26-2007, 03:49 AM

The SMS was way better then the NES. i just fon't get how the NES over took the SMS besides looking like a VHS.

the VHS Nintendo is part of turning games into a type of media. I miss that kinda attitude.

How else did Nintendo beat Sega?

You also have to consider the SMS was not meant for the NES but another system before that.

You could compare the Genisis to the NES. Since the NES beat out the Genisis all together. Even with Sonic and all the rest nobody ever thought about doing what Sonic Team did before ( Unless I am mistaking ).

goemon

05-26-2007, 04:35 AM

I picked NES because I've never played a SMS/MkIII. On a related note, does anyone know if the Master System can play Mark III games out of the box, or does it have to be modded, or do the games require a MkIII?

ccovell

05-26-2007, 08:30 AM

As far as the question goes, the SMS system itself is a bit better than the NES, hardware wise -- but it is much less expandable through the cartridge port, so the NES wins.

But I'm assuming your question is about which system's games are better, and of course it's the NES.

jajaja

05-26-2007, 08:45 AM

I like NES the most. Alot because of the nostalgic feeling i have with it, but it also have more games that i'm interesting in playing, i think the music is much better in general and i like the controller better than the SMS one. I like the d-pad better on NES and why doesnt the SMS controller have a pause button? :\

RugalSizzler

05-26-2007, 08:50 AM

why no start button?

It was never meant for the NES at all and the SMS was built to battle Atari or Commendore and so on.

I don't know in the world if there was any other systems to feature a start button but that button was really just a extra pause button.

The SMS was still just a Atari mimic. For crying out loud I can use my Atari controller with my genesis...No really try it out. I forget if theMaster system could play Atari games also.

chrisbid

05-26-2007, 08:55 AM

chrisbid

05-26-2007, 09:06 AM

It was never meant for the NES at all and the SMS was built to battle Atari or Commendore and so on.

I don't know in the world if there was any other systems to feature a start button but that button was really just a extra pause button.

The SMS was still just a Atari mimic. For crying out loud I can use my Atari controller with my genesis...No really try it out. I forget if theMaster system could play Atari games also.

what?

no, the SMS was released just after the NES in the US and was supposed to go head to head with Nintendo.

the Atari 5200 had a start button on the controller, as well as a pause button and a reset button

the SMS, 2600 and lots of classic systems use a standard db9 connector for controller ports. it was an inexpensive off-the-shelf part in the day and worked just fine

carslayer

05-26-2007, 10:34 AM

Being born in 1990 I only got into video games recently, and never played any retro consoles when they were new. I have no nostalgia for older consoles cause i wasnt even born yet.

So now that i have both I have to say I personally prefer the SMS.

To start with, It has better hardware, I have never seen one of these things break and where I live its impossible to find a working NES. The Grapics were better the Sound is better the gun, especially, I think its better. The controllers, however, are a step down without Start and select buttons, but you get used to that.

I love the packaging for the games, and it was innovative to set up two different methods of gameplay (card and Cartrige) and the 3D glasses sound great, though i have yet to try them.

And the games. Yeah, super mario was a classic, and doesnt compare to Hang-On (wich was built-in by the way), but i now own and play a lot more games on the SMS than i do the nes. not only is better hardware-wise, but i just prefer the games.

I play Space Harrier, Choplifter, Hang-On, Safari Hunt, Golvellius, and all the Wonder Boy/Alex Kidd games, and they are all classics that are pretty much ignored.

Lady Jaye

05-26-2007, 10:45 AM

It was never meant for the NES at all and the SMS was built to battle Atari or Commendore and so on.

I don't know in the world if there was any other systems to feature a start button but that button was really just a extra pause button.

The SMS was still just a Atari mimic. For crying out loud I can use my Atari controller with my genesis...No really try it out. I forget if theMaster system could play Atari games also.

Hmm, no. The SMS CANNOT play Atari games of any generation. It's not because it uses the same controller port technology as the Atari 2600 and 7800 that it makes it an Atari clone.

the Atari 5200 had a start button on the controller, as well as a pause button and a reset button

What Chris said. Let's not forget that the NES is actually contemporary to the Atari 5200 and the Colecovision, as the Famicom was released in 1983. The 5200 and the Coleco didn't have a long enough commercial lifespan for us to see what the consoles could have done. Same goes for the 7800. Comparing early Famicom/NES titles to the late releases is like comparing early and late Atari 2600 games...

Hwj_Chim

05-26-2007, 10:54 AM

Well I prefer the SMS. I like the games more and I liked the controller over the NES one.

ccovell

05-26-2007, 11:55 AM

I personally prefer the SMS...the Sound is better...

!?!?!!?? :eek 2:

This can certainly be debated. A new poll, perhaps?

tom

05-26-2007, 12:34 PM

the NES had the more games, the SMS had the better games.

Anyway, no contest in Europe, the SMS outsold the NES by 5 - 1

diskoboy

05-26-2007, 01:24 PM

I've owned them both. The Master System is my system of choice.

Like the Dreamcast - the game library is small, but very satisfying.

Aswald

05-26-2007, 01:38 PM

In a practical sense, the NES- especially in 2007.

It had more games, and was more widespread. It had more third-party support.

And the increase in ability was only surpassed by what Atari and Activision did (relatively speaking) with the 2600.

Also, even around here, it is not hard to find old NES games. But as for SMS games? Once or twice in the 13 1/2 years I've been up here.

Kevincal

05-26-2007, 02:09 PM

Sorry, but NES blows away MS...lol :)

Push Upstairs

05-26-2007, 02:29 PM

Graphical power - SMS
Games - NES

So I'd have to say the overall winner would be the NES.

BydoEmpire

05-26-2007, 02:34 PM

This is kind of tough. If I were stuck on a desert island, I'd have to go with the NES due to the quantity and variety of titles. But back in the day I think I spent more time with the SMS, and probably had more games for it. These days I think I still play the SMS a *little* bit more, so that's what I voted for. It's hard to argue against the NES due to Metroid, Mario 1,2,3, Zelda, a billion RPGs, etc. but I personally like the quirky appeal of the SMS games.

[Edit] Oh, also, the SMS had the best light gun games of the era. Perhaps the best lineup of light gun games of any system.

tom

05-26-2007, 02:53 PM

good thing about the SMS is that it actually has a bigger software selection in Europe than in the USA (for once). the sms was hugly suppported from the UK software houses. also, sms games were half the price of NES titles, GBP 29.00 for a sms cartridge like New Zealand Story, GBP 50.00 for a NES game like Godzilla, yeah sure...

cyberfluxor

05-26-2007, 03:16 PM

I really, really love my SMS. It was what I grew up on (although with a very limited amount of games) and always felt better than the NES. However, due to the popularity of the NES over here in America and the flooded market of games (compared to the SMS), it's just more readily available to find games for. I only voted NES over SMS due to this simple fact and I own so many more Nintendo than Master System games. Because of this my NES gets far more gameplay and satisfaction from the amount of good games I can choose from. If it weren't for the fact of so few released and lack of SMS games in my area, the NES wouldn't stand a chance.

Jumpman Jr.

05-26-2007, 03:36 PM

NES for me. But thats only because I grew up playing it and never even touched a SMS until I started collecting for it.
SMS is good, but not NES-good to me.

Mark III

05-26-2007, 05:01 PM

Always prefered the Master System myself. After getting used to the bright colorful graphics I always found most NES games to look washed out by comparison. Also I found the Master system to have a much more favourable good game to bad game ratio. I own about 160 SMS games and around 20 or so NES games so my preferance is obvious. It's a difficult comparison though, it's like comparing the Saturn to the Playstation. No matter how much you love the saturn and its games it's hard to compete with another system with that much 3rd party support. Even though there's a lot of bad games on the NES or PS1 there's going to be a lot of great games just by sheer volume of titles released. They both dominated the market in their time for a reason I guess.

Emuaust

05-26-2007, 05:24 PM

Well as a PAL gamer I have no choice but to go with the SMS, I mean honestly
check out things like Asterix and Prince of Persia, Miles ahead of what the Nes
could produce :)

7th lutz

05-26-2007, 05:37 PM

This is a tough one! Being in the United States the Nes had a huge advantage over the sms. The sms had better graphics, better arcade ports, but not better games overall in the United States. I own alot of classics on the nes, and are still great games today. The nes was at graphics disadvantage: Phantasy Star was proof of that. I got the impression that the nes can't handle phantasy Star. I own Ultima: Exodus, and Ultima: Quest of the Avator for the nes, and there was problems with Ultima: Exodus when you were towns like slowdown. The Sms version of Ultima Quest of the Avator is better then the sms. I got a nes when I was a teen and I bought myself a sms as an adult.

If you combine the sms games in the states to the ones in Europe, it would be close to the nes. An owner of foreign sms games and United States games: the foreign games seem to be more impressive then the sms games in the states for the most part. The sms has a very good game to bad game ratio. The nes has a lot of class, but it does not the greatest good to bad game ratio.

Nebagram

05-26-2007, 05:54 PM

SMS for me- first system I owned that was actually mine and not my brother's/'the family's'. I loved that little machine. :)

j_factor

05-26-2007, 11:21 PM

SMS by a hair. They each have about the same number of worthwhile games IMO. Sure NES had a larger library, but so much of it is crap, or better on other systems, or annoying games that I've never understood why anyone liked (Dragon Warrior 1, I'm looking at you).

Right at this moment, I have exactly the same number of games for SMS and NES (35); my SMS want list is longer at the moment, but I'm sure I'll find a few more NES games to add.

shopkins

05-26-2007, 11:46 PM

I preferred the NES. It just has more of the games that I feel are indispensable, like Legend of Zelda, Super Mario Bros., Megaman games, its Maniac Mansion port and Dragon Warrior games. The SMS had better graphics and great games like Phantasy Star and the Wonderboy games, but if I had to choose just one I'd take an NES. And I did, back in the day, I guess. I didn't get a SMS to about three years ago.

Another reason is tend to prefer the adapted home ports you saw on the NES to the straight up arcade ports the SMS was good at. I'd take the NES Bionic Commando, Ninja Gaiden and (this may be blasphemy) Strider over the arcade versions any day.

MegaDrive20XX

05-27-2007, 12:08 AM

SMS- Graphics
NES- Games

But how could the SMS be defeated? Maybe it's roughly because Nintendo had a stronghold on the market back in the late 80's that effected the publishing rights for SMS games in the USA?

Also, this thread needs to be taken into consideration of how well the SMS did in Europe and South America.

I mean since a majority of the post saying NES was superior, is coming mostly from our North American-based posters here at DP.

In other words, this isn't a fair fight. NES is gonna win no matter what, because there is too much truth to what NES has offered for us in this nation.

Personally, the SMS was my very first game system that wasn't a hand-me-down from my brother (Commodore 64 and Atari 2600 comes to mind). So when the NES came to me around Summer of 88'...I completely neglected the SMS as a kid and it wasn't until 18 years later (05') that I found the time to gain and learn more respect for the Sega Master System and appericate it what it was really worth.

As for the issues of Sound and such...I always liked SMS sound chip as much as the NES, especially when I heard Alex the Kidd The Lost Star.."FIND THE MIRACLE BALL!" which voice clips were just not heard of much in the NES library until much later.

However, since I am not suppose to compare older to newer releases in this thread. I will not get into that, since it's just beating a dead horse.

I love both systems, but you can't make me pick one..

TurboGenesis

05-27-2007, 12:12 AM

graphics - SMS
sound - NES
reliability - SMS
controllers - push
library - NES
library (arcade ports) - SMS

sega still had the "bringing the arcade home" mentality with the SMS and the Genesis. Nintendo all but abandoned their arcade roots with half assed home ports (donkey kong, defender II, millipede) and bastardizations of arcade games (qbert, gyruss, double dragon, ninja gaiden, etc)

I like this quote for the most part. I am feel that the NES had better sound, library and I like the NES controllers more than SMS.

I feel the SMS had better graphics, and arcade style game play. It is also more reliable and more durable than NES. SMS is run good today no blink screen LOL

Both systems are display their strength well and I grow up with both. (actually I get NES in 1987 and SMS in 1990 - I was playing Genesis and Turbo Grafx 16 when I get my own Sega Master System) It was great days and times to be game playing child!

In the end NES has more +'s due to sheer volume and SMS is have higher threshold of quality. Tops for both but NES edge it with quantitive size.

minefield

05-27-2007, 02:05 AM

I grew up with the Master System so that's what got my vote. I spent many hours with games like Sonic, Phantasy Star and Gain Ground. Good times...

idrougge

05-27-2007, 08:32 AM

It's indisputable that the NES has more and better games. We all know that. There are game types on the NES that can't be found on the MS, and otherwise the NES has a wider selection of said type.

But if you forget about the NES for a while, and start playing the MS in earnest, the reencounter with the NES becomes problematic. Suddenly all the Nintendo graphics look really murky, compared to the clear, colourful output of the Sega. And the D-pad suddenly feels stiff and edgy and gives you blisters on the thumb.

That's what I went through. I forgot about the NES, and when I went back, what was once my first console seemed like a stranger to me, and what I once took for granted seemed alien.

If you get into Master System gaming, you also have a fair chance to play through it all. The catalogue is small enough to learn by heart, and when someone mentions an MS game, you instantaneously know what game he is referring to. That is not the case with the large catalogue of the NES.

And you get spoiled by the graphics of the Master System. When you've played Phantasy Star and Wonderboy, NES classics like Final Fantasy and Zelda look so dark and grainy. It's as though the NES is from another era. This isn't as notable on emulators as on the real thing, mind you.

50s Brawler

05-27-2007, 02:26 PM

I'm a SEGA man through & through, with the 16-Bit Mega Drive being my all time favorite system... but in this poll, no matter the fact that I know the Mark III/SMS was superior in every way, there just wasn't enough games back in my youth to keep me interested. For every Rastan Saga and Shinobi I was dying to play NES had the Ninja Gaiden trilogy, and so on and so on. Thus for this poll I have to vote Nintendo.

bangtango

05-27-2007, 02:35 PM

Based on what I have actually played for each system, I voted for NES because I enjoy the library a little more. In this day and age, though, I'm more interested in playing the Master System because it has been much longer since I've played one. That and I've played a lot fewer SMS games than NES ones. So I'd be interested in exploring Sega's 8-bit library a little bit more.

goldenaxeboy

05-27-2007, 04:14 PM

From what I am reading people like the NES better but alot of you also like the master system but not better than the NES.

veronica_marsfan

05-27-2007, 04:31 PM

Which system do you think was better I say sega master system.

You mean in terms of best graphics and sound?

Yeah SMS.
It was almost 16-
bit in quality.

The Nintendo was built in 1983 which in terms of hardware is ANCIENT. Not much better than Coleco or Atari 5200/supersystem.

The Sega uses newer hardware with more capability.

goldenaxeboy

05-27-2007, 07:55 PM

Yes exactly what you mean the sms was a better graphical system but the nes had a butload of games.

starfox316

05-27-2007, 08:18 PM

Quick question, can the genesis play sega master system carts??? This might be a dumb question, but yeah...

minefield

05-27-2007, 08:23 PM

Quick question, can the genesis play sega master system carts??? This might be a dumb question, but yeah...

Only with an add-on device called the Sega Power Base Converter.

j_factor

05-27-2007, 08:38 PM

There are a couple other converters too. The original PBC only fits on the model 1 Genesis (and the CDX, awkwardly). A second version was made to fit on the model 2, but it removes the card slot (needed for a few card games and the 3D glasses), and is super rare. There was also a third party version by Datel back in the day, and I've heard it's pretty unreliable. And now, there's a new one by Tototek; I don't know how it is, but Tototek usually puts out good stuff.

Push Upstairs

05-27-2007, 11:35 PM

The Nintendo was built in 1983 which in terms of hardware is ANCIENT. Not much better than Coleco or Atari 5200/supersystem.

The processor in the NES was ancient even by 1983 standards.

Shrooin

05-28-2007, 11:55 AM

I personally prefer the SMS...the Sound is better...

!?!?!!?? :eek 2:

This can certainly be debated. A new poll, perhaps?

Actually somewhere I read that the SMS was technically superior to the NES in graphics and sound. Can anyone confirm? In my opinion I think this is true, NES has more beepy type sounds.

Everyone knows of course that the NES has better games. The majority of the games I played on the NES seem much more complex and sophiscated then what I've played on SMS. I haven't played a great deal of games for either system though, so thats my amateur opinion

mdk

05-28-2007, 12:13 PM

I was one of the few in my area to actually choose the SMS over the NES. All of my friends had the NES so I thought I'd pick up the SMS because I could always play their systems.

That being said; the SMS holds a special place in my heart. Nothing will ever replace Phantasy Star or Wonderboy in my eyes. But even though the SMS was holds a special place in my heart I will be the first to admit that the NES absolutely destroys the SMS in the US. There is no competition for the number of quality games on the NES.

How did the NES dominate in the states? Nintendo used to make publishers sign exclusive deals. So it you produced titles for the NES...you didn't produce them for anything else. That is how Nintendo got a lock down on hundreds of titles while SMS had to rely on their amazing, albeit limited supply of first party titles.

boatofcar

05-28-2007, 12:17 PM

Just like the 7800 vs NES debate, it all comes down to games in the end. The NES had a longer lifespan, so programmers had more of a chance to squeeze ever last bit of power out of the systems, build custom chipsets into carts, etc. We will never know exactly how much the SMS was capable of because it died in the marketplace so much quicker than the NES did.

ccovell

05-28-2007, 01:13 PM

Actually somewhere I read that the SMS was technically superior to the NES in graphics and sound. Can anyone confirm? In my opinion I think this is true, NES has more beepy type sounds.

About the sound -- I don't think this is true. Of course, one can point to a single game and say it's proof, but here's a little info:

The SMS' Texas Instruments SN76489 sound chip (used in many other systems) has 3 basic square wave tone generators, and 1 white noise generator. Samples can be "played" in a noisy fashion (through the white noise channel, I've read somewhere.) The square waves have a fixed duty cycle, and have a range of 10 octaves.

The NES' CPU produces the sound output, with 5 channels in total: 2 square wave, 1 triangle wave, 1 noise generator, and 1 sample channel that can run 6-bit samples through DMA, or 7-bit raw samples. The duty cycle of the square waves can be set to 4 different settings. I don't have the numbers in front of me, but I'd say (can anyone confirm?) that the square and triangle channels have a range of frequencies (from 54Hz to 28Khz) that is lower in tone than the SMS can go down to.

When you compare the two sound chips each system comes with, it's pretty clear that the NES' is more sophisticated -- and much less "beepy" when in good hands. Hell, the SMS' sound chip is more beepy technically, since it can't reach the low tones that the NES can do.

Graphically, there have been other in-depth discussions elsewhere, like here: http://www.smspower.org/forums/viewtopic.php?t=6955

j_factor

05-28-2007, 01:27 PM

The NES had a longer lifespan

Did it? The last SMS game was Smurfs 2 in 1996... wasn't the last NES game Wario's Woods? In '94?

goldenaxeboy

05-28-2007, 02:30 PM

The master system kept on going if I am not mistaken the last game realesed on it was in 1997.

idrougge

05-28-2007, 03:00 PM

The processor in the NES was ancient even by 1983 standards.

No, it wasn't, and it was just as modern as the one in the Master System.

Gentlegamer

05-28-2007, 03:07 PM

Did it? The last SMS game was Smurfs 2 in 1996... wasn't the last NES game Wario's Woods? In '94?The Famicom premiered in 1983.

CRV

05-28-2007, 08:22 PM

The Famicom premiered in 1983.

Famicom/NES - 1983-1994 (11 years)
Mark III/Master System - 1985-1997 (12 years; Street Fighter II was the last official full game released)

And of course, official SMS consoles and other devices with games built-in games continued to get released in Brazil.

Push Upstairs

05-29-2007, 04:34 AM

No, it wasn't, and it was just as modern as the one in the Master System.

I'd argue that a processor created in 1975 (the 6502) and 1976 (the Z80) would neither one qualify as "cutting edge" in 1983.

Video processors are another matter entirely.

idrougge

05-29-2007, 08:17 PM

I'd argue that a processor created in 1975 (the 6502) and 1976 (the Z80) would neither one qualify as "cutting edge" in 1983.

I never said they were cutting-edge, but they were standard processors during the first half of the eighties. The Megadrive used a processor that was almost ten years old when it debuted. That processor, the 68000, was cutting edge in 1983, but for that reason it was also too expensive to use in a cheap console. It was even too cutting edge for home computers back then.

Besides, saying that the NES's processor was stone-age while not mentioning the Master System's equally old processor is dishonest.

diskoboy

05-29-2007, 09:06 PM

The processor is actually a moot arguement.

Pretty much all the consoles up until the Genesis/Mega Drive used the same, anicent (by 1983 standards) 8-bit processors. They just added more RAM to the system hardware, and called it next gen.

Push Upstairs

05-30-2007, 12:19 AM

Besides, saying that the NES's processor was stone-age while not mentioning the Master System's equally old processor is dishonest.

Considering I wasn't aware of the age of the Z80 until I was forced to compare the two....:embarrassed:

Ruudos

05-30-2007, 04:11 PM

Did it? The last SMS game was Smurfs 2 in 1996... wasn't the last NES game Wario's Woods? In '94?

Where was Smurfs 2 released? In very small quantities somewhere in Europe. The last NES game released in Europe was The Lion King in 1995.

SMS wins in terms of graphics, but sound? I think the NES' sound is far superior.

I'm also interested in total sales figures of the SMS in entire Europe (not just the UK). In my area I didn't know anybody who owned one and first heard of Sega when the Mega Drive was released. People in my area owned a NES, Atari 2600, Videopac, Commodore 64 or a Commodore Amiga.