New to the Nomad

[2Dskillz]

A friend just game me a Sega Nomad this past weekend. It is missing the battery pack and in need of a bit of cleaning. Other than that it is functioning (powered by my GameGear adapter).

The nomad is a piece of gaming that I have had no prior experience with and I really just wanted to hear experiences from the DP community as to how you have enjoyed it and what games best suit it, etc... Personally I have only given Splatterhouse 3 a real go on it, but the gameplay was rather pleasing on my newwest addition to the family.

[Jimid2]

Well, I've recently finished Revenge of Shinobi and Castlevania Bloodlines on my Nomad - I don't own a Genesis any more, but these are games that I have to be able to play at least every 18 months or so, and the Nomad gives me that option without demanding I find a way to hook up another console. Other games I particularly enjoy on it are The Immortal, Alien 3 and Terminator, all games which hold strong nostalgic sway over me... I find the screen is pretty blurry, so shooters like Thunderforce III and fast games like Sonic 2 can be a little difficult to play on it - the blur gets to me after a while and it can mess up my judgment - but other than that, it's a great little system. I usually play mine plugged into the wall while lying on the couch - I have the battery pack, but the battery life is so appallingly bad that I usually have to plug in before I'm ready to quit playing anyway, so I just stopped using it (no, I don't want to get rid of it ;) ).

[bangtango]

I got my first Nomad only two months ago and it didn't have the battery pack either, so I'm also a Nomad newbie. I wouldn't mind hearing some opinions myself and I'll be watching this thread with interest. In fact, I nearly started this very same thread when I brought my Nomad home from the game store I picked it up at.

What I've seen so far on the Nomad, when sampling a few of my favorites:

-The Accolade port of Double Dragon for the Genesis didn't play nearly as well as I thought it would. You really need to stick to playing it on the Genesis, which it actually plays good on.

-World Series Baseball played better than I thought.

-Mortal Kombat seems to play ok on the Nomad but Eternal Champions didn't seem to play that well.

Just my assorted opinions, since other people may have had different experiences with the above games.

[Blitzwing256]

i've been wanting to get a nomad but I remeber how blurry and unplayble the game gear was add to that the fact that the screen had to be held just right or you coudln't see it,

is the blur on the nomad as bad as the game gear, and does it have the same screen issues the gg did?

[KeyserSoze61]

The Nomad is great. The battery pack isn't that necessary, as it's fun just to play it curled up in a chair. The screen is okay, and the blurriness is overstated in most games; I've never had any major problems with it.

Just beware that some games don't work well on it. I can't find the bookmark right now, but Decap Attack is one that doesn't work on it (controls are all screwed up). Likewise, X-Men cannot be beaten due to the need to to reset the system (no reset button).

[Melf]

We've been compiling a guide (http://sega-16.com/feature_page.php?id=74&title=Nomad%20Buyer's%20Guide) over at Sega-16 about how games look and play on the Nomad for a while now, but it needs some serious updating. I need to get one myself, but I always lose the auctions at the last minute or have the seller back out. :(

[retroman]

i got my Nomad back in the day when it first came out. Its been 10years or more and it still works great. The screen is a real treat with only some blur on fast action games.

[Push Upstairs]

I wouldn't play any Sonic games on it, the screen doesn't handle fast action well.

It's not as blurry as the GG, but things could have been a lot better.

[TheDomesticInstitution]

Yeah... I have a Nomad too, and it's nowhere near as blurry or crappy as the Gamegear. I also have an AC adapter, but I bought a battery pack for 10 bucks shipped here. It's pretty necessary when you go on a trip- just don't make the mistake of buying a rechargable unit, because it probably still doesn't work.

[Frankie_Says_Relax]

Don't sweat missing the battery pack.

It's one of the all time worst AA battery power input/output situations in portable gaming history. You'll get 60 minutes solid light and sound on a Nomad on a good day with the battery pack.

Go with the AC adapter whenever possible.

That being said, the Nomad is a great bit of portable gaming. Nice screen, solid construction, video output built in...great stuff.

[j_factor]

The screen is a little blurry but it's really not that bad. Way better than the GG, and at least on par with the Turbo Express. I've only had a problem with a few games. Basically only really fast-paced games are a problem. And games with a lot of minute detail can be hard to make out sometimes. I've never had difficulties reading any text, though.

Some games with poor graphics or just undetailed visuals actually look better on the Nomad. Games with framerate issues and/or choppy scrolling become more tolerable.

I don't know why some people say that the Nomad is incompatible with some games. It's compatible with every Genesis game except for the final boss of X-Men. Even Virtua Racing works. Games that supposedly have "control issues" with the Nomad are just incompatible with the 6-button controller; it has nothing to do with the Nomad specifically. And for games that have that problem, well, that's what the mode button is for.

Most imports work on the Nomad, too. The slot is wide enough to fit Mega Drive games from any region. Only the later games (1994ish and on) which have territory lockouts won't work.

[Jimid2]

The screen is a little blurry but it's really not that bad. Way better than the GG, and at least on par with the Turbo Express.
I gotta say, I own both systems and I just A/B'd them to be sure, and I've got to disagree here: there is no way the Nomad screen can be considered "on par" with the Turbo Express screen. The Turbo's screen is brighter, clearer, sharper - better on all counts, except for the fact that it's smaller, of course... That's not to say that the Nomad's screen is not good - I think it's very playable, but it's not as nice as the TE.

my 2¢ :)

[spoon]

I don't know why some people say that the Nomad is incompatible with some games. It's compatible with every Genesis game except for the final boss of X-Men.....And for games that have that problem, well, that's what the mode button is for.

Can you or someone elaborate on this ? I always thought Decap attack was unplayable. I guess I never noticed the mode button?

Oddly, it was the first game I tried in my nomad as I bought them at the same time. I was scared after I tested it that the Nomad or the game was f'ed.

[j_factor]

Can you or someone elaborate on this ? I always thought Decap attack was unplayable. I guess I never noticed the mode button?

I don't remember for sure about Decap Attack specifically, but there are a handful of Genesis games that don't work properly with the 6-button controller. They have the same issue whether it's a Nomad or a regular 6-button controller hooked up to a console. The Nomad has the mode button just like a normal 6-button controller; it's just next to the start button instead of on the shoulder.

[Push Upstairs]

The same rules apply to the Nomad that do to other Genesis systems and those early Electronic Arts games.

"Budokan" comes up on the system if you plug it into a Game Genie and press start without entering any codes.

[Gamingking]

I was at a Pawn Shop a few days ago, and they we're selling a Nomad for $50. Not even sure if it worked.

[Ze_ro]

Can you or someone elaborate on this ? I always thought Decap attack was unplayable. I guess I never noticed the mode button?

Oddly, it was the first game I tried in my nomad as I bought them at the same time. I was scared after I tested it that the Nomad or the game was f'ed.
No, you're right, Decap Attack is unplayable on a Nomad. It's not due to the 6-button pad either, because I can play the game fine on my LaserActive with a 6-button controller (Don't even have to hold the Mode button). Somehow, the way the game reads the controllers just doesn't work on the Nomad, so you end up pausing the game every time you jump, and opening the sub-screen every time you attack.

Aside from that, I quite like the Nomad. I only ever use it with an AC adapter, so batteries are never a problem. The screen really hasn't aged that well, but it was top of the line for the time, and still plays well except in the fastest of games.

Though nowadays with Genesis emulation on the GP2X and PSP, there are even better options available for portable Genesis fun!

--Zero

[2Dskillz]

Thanks so much for the advice and information. I tried Sonic 2 (my fav) and I see what you mean with the blur. But I can fully agree that the screen is much clearer than any GameGear. Wonder Boy in Monsterland will probably be my next attempt with the system.

Mentioning issues with the 6 button incompatiblity I know that some titles would work if you held the mode button on the 6 while starting the game. Would the same technique help with the Nomad?

[Ze_ro]

I know that some titles would work if you held the mode button on the 6 while starting the game. Would the same technique help with the Nomad?
Yes. But the main game that was being mentioned was Decap Attack... the reason this game doesn't work on a Nomad is a completely separate issue.

--Zero

[j_factor]

Okay, I just busted out my Nomad from storage just to try Decap Attack. It seems that pressing C is registered as pressing both C and start, and pressing B is registered as A + B; the actual A and start buttons don't work. Sega's old website specifically claimed that Decap Attack works on the Nomad: "You can play the game by changing the button configuration, but you will not be able to pause during game play". But I think I tried all the button configurations and none of them made it playable.

[c0ldb33r]

Sorry to bring up such an old thread. I just won a Nomad and was wondering - does the 32x work on this sucker? Obviously the Sega CD does not.

[bangtango]

I doubt it.

Too bad it didn't. That'd be one fierce beast to take on a school bus or subway. Just turning the sucker on would probably kill a fully charged battery pack.

[Frankie_Says_Relax]

Sorry to bring up such an old thread. I just won a Nomad and was wondering - does the 32x work on this sucker? Obviously the Sega CD does not.

No, the 32X would block everything on the top of the Nomad (video out, AC, power swtich) and if memory serves, the 32X needs to run through the video output of a Genesis to function properly.

[jb143]

I seem to recall reading somewhere about someone getting a 32X to work with a Nomad by running it through a game genie first. I believe it would have to be hooked to a TV to work though and the whole thing would be ridiculously unstable trying to balance it all.

[c0ldb33r]

No, the 32X would block everything on the top of the Nomad (video out, AC, power swtich) and if memory serves, the 32X needs to run through the video output of a Genesis to function properly.
As jb143 said.

The Nomad has a video out just like the genny 2 - plug that into the back of the 32x, then video out from the 32x to a TV's input and it should work.

I wonder though, what would appear on the nomad screen?

[jb143]

Here's the site I was talking about...it's a little old but contains pretty much everything you'd ever want to know about the Nomad

http://www.cs.colostate.edu/~dzubera/FAQs/nomad.faq

and as far as the 32X the site offers this info...


Q: Can you use a 32X with a Nomad?
Nope, it won't fit down far enough. Other than that, I don't see why it
wouldn't work. Got a saw? I don't have a console system so I can't
comment on the actual hook-up. Also, the 32X interferes with the AC jack
and the power switch and the AV/RF output jack.
More importantly, the way the 32X works would prevent you from seeing
anything on the internal screen. This just helps an already complicated
problem get even more complicated.

...

32X : There is away around the clearance problem for the 32X
(without using a hacksaw). We wanted to make sure it worked at all, so
we tried it with a Genesis. First we tried the 32X plugged on top of a
Game Genie (switched off) and the GG into the Genesis. The game we
tried was 36 Holes Golf for 32X. The GG screen came up even though it
was off, and after we exited it the title screen for Golf came up, then
it went blank. Next we tried the convertor cart (set to USA).
Although shorter than a Game Genie, it is still long enough to give
clearance. So we plugged a 32X on top of the convertor, then the
convertor cart into the Genesis, again using 36 Holes Golf. Success!
The game played fine. Then the real test--the Nomad. While the words
'Licensed by Sega' come up, that is all you get, even though we had it
hooked to a full size TV. It would probably work if the Nomad screen
switched off when the TV cable was plugged in, but that's just a guess.
Even if it did work, the 32X cart/32X/adaptor/Nomad all plugged in is
very wobbly and the game would probably crash if you tried to play it
using the built-in controller in the same way Genesis games crash in
the Nomad if the cart gets bumped. Let me know if you find a way to do
it, though, okay?

So it looks like maybe the internal screen is what would keep it from working properly? Though I'm not too sure how that would affect the 32X. Looks like no Neptune Portable mods after all :( :p