Worst Sega Master System games you've played

[Coptur]

I just got done playing ALF for Sega Master System. I was excited because I didn't even know that existed. But it was really bad. I also remember playing "MY Hero" and thinking it wasn't very good. What are some of the best and worst Master System games you've played?

[megasdkirby]

I know many will be in shock, but for me, I despise:

-After Burner
-Black Belt
-Mostly all "Great" sports games

[GarrettCRW]

"Great" is the Master System synonym for "Heaping Pile Of Diarrhea Dogshit".

[Tupin]

"Great" is the Master System synonym for "Heaping Pile Of Diarrhea Dogshit".
I was just about to say something similar to this.

Most games on cards aren't that great, either.

[megasdkirby]

Most games on cards aren't that great, either.

I never thought of them as horrid, though. The worst was "fair", which was "My Hero". The best card game, for me, is "Ghost House", followed my Teddy Boy. "Transbot" was also pretty decent.

I always thought of the card games as "simple" games, nothing spectacular...something similar to value games released on current gen consoles. Though for me, "Ghost House" was really, really good, though repetitive and hard, specially on level 6.

[Xexyz]

I don't think anyone will scoff at you for hating the Afterburner conversion megasdkirby. The frame rate was so choppy which hindered the gameplay.

[kirbykirb]

Sonic.

:lol:

[drmay]

I was just about to say something similar to this.

Most games on cards aren't that great, either.

Spy vs Spy was great!

[TurboGenesis]

I quite like After Burner on the SMS… I find it a solid and fun game - I do not play it expecting the arcade game and rate and enjoy it on its own merits.
however, one popular title I cannot get into, Space Harrier… It seems to have issue with framerate, choppy movement and controls, and it just end up being too difficult to play and overcome these shortcomings… I am able to play well beyond the issues of other games such as Out Run, Thunder Blade, After Burner, Galaxy Force… and then Space Harrier 3-D plays infinitely better in every way so it is impossible for me to step down to playing the original Space Harrier on the SMS… for playing the original, I will enjoy playing on the Turbo Grafx-16 or Sega Saturn (with the Mission Stick!)

I like most anything on the Sega Master System, but there are a few I do find sub-par…

Great sports games
F-16 Fighting Falcon
Alex Kidd in High Tech World
Alf
Altered Beast (terrible, choppy controls)
Vigilante (horrid controls, poor collision detection) - but I have a twisted enjoyment playing this game to overcome its shortcomings, and have been able to 1cc it!

[sheath]

Afterburner doesn't even have throttle control, but I don't hate it.

I kind of hate Action Fighter and Wonderboy, but I really just hate the music.

I do hate Transbot. That is the only Master System game I ever returned. Are there any levels after you go underground? Nobody knows, it just seems to keep going!

[megasdkirby]

I kind of hate Action Fighter and Wonderboy, but I really just hate the music.

My main gripe with Wonderboy is the lack of a save feature, or anything that can be used to continue at a later time. The game is tediously long, and because of it's repetitive nature, it's a turn off to many.

Also, collecting all the dolls...what is the point? I collected ALL dolls, got the "extra", hidden stage, got all dolls there too...for NOTHING. Same ending, just slightly different headed boss. No actual reason to go through the entire game "perfectly".

Pretty good game, though.

[TurboGenesis]

Afterburner doesn't even have throttle control, but I don't hate it.

I kind of hate Action Fighter and Wonderboy, but I really just hate the music.

I do hate Transbot. That is the only Master System game I ever returned. Are there any levels after you go underground? Nobody knows, it just seems to keep going!

is just the music that you don't like? or the gameplay, controls, et cetera…

I love Action Fighter but its a tough game, which I love to play to overcome the challenge… I do find that there are some issues with collision detection - sometimes I will die when I know full well that a bullet did not hit my sprite!
Wonder Boy is one I also like as it is solid all round and I prefer it to Adventure Island…

Transbot is a decent game, but I play it for score so the game being infinite is ok when perusing a high score…

[TurboGenesis]

My main gripe with Wonderboy is the lack of a save feature, or anything that can be used to continue at a later time. The game is tediously long, and because of it's repetitive nature, it's a turn off to many.

Also, collecting all the dolls...what is the point? I collected ALL dolls, got the "extra", hidden stage, got all dolls there too...for NOTHING. Same ending, just slightly different headed boss. No actual reason to go through the entire game "perfectly".

Pretty good game, though.

The only true point to collect the dolls is if you are aiming for high score.

[sheath]

TurboGenesis,

I actually enjoy both Action Fighter and Wonderboy gameplay wise, but the music kills it for me. Actually Wonderboy's somewhat slippery gameplay mechanic also kind of deters me at times. I played the hell out of both of these games though.

megaskirby,

I agree, Wonderboy is a great game. It is very unique and challenging.

[Steve W]

I bought a used SMS in the late '90s with maybe 14 games, and have over time built up a decent amount of games for it. I still can't get interested in any game on the system for some reason. I don't know why, but nothing fires me up on that console. Some element is missing that just leaves me flat. So I'd have to say "all of them". It's just a personal opinion.

[Scissors]

Games I really dislike are F-16 Fighting Falcon, Vigilante, and Black Belt. I can't really say I dislike the Great sports games since I never gave most of them a chance. The only one I ever spent time with was Great Golf, which I actually liked.




Vigilante (horrid controls, poor collision detection) - but I have a twisted enjoyment playing this game to overcome its shortcomings, and have been able to 1cc it!

I get that same twisted enjoyment from playing ALF. I was never able to beat it though.

[sheath]

Great Golf is still one of my favorite Golf games.

[megasdkirby]

Vigilante (horrid controls, poor collision detection) - but I have a twisted enjoyment playing this game to overcome its shortcomings, and have been able to 1cc it!

I liked the game, but it's terribly easy, specially when in most cases, you can just jump over the enemies.

Basically, the strategy is: jump over enemies, grab nun chuck, meet boss, defeat boss by squatting and using nun chucks when it gets close. Some bosses can be defeated by standing and using nun chucks, though.

SUPER simple. :)

Strider is a game I dislike, mostly because of how tediously slow and sluggish the controls are. This makes the game incredibly hard, but a pattern is easily distinguishable, so it can be beaten fairly easily with practice.

[TurboGenesis]

TurboGenesis,

I actually enjoy both Action Fighter and Wonderboy gameplay wise, but the music kills it for me. Actually Wonderboy's somewhat slippery gameplay mechanic also kind of deters me at times. I played the hell out of both of these games though.

megaskirby,

I agree, Wonderboy is a great game. It is very unique and challenging.

ah, fair enough
I don't think SMS music is great or memorable (compared to something like NES) but I'm not to bothered by it… Could be worse, like Atari 7800 LOL





I get that same twisted enjoyment from playing ALF. I was never able to beat it though.

I disliked ALF when I was young… was upset the whole weekend I had rented it! but now I'd like to get it again and play it to get that twisted enjoyment! I recently watched a youtube vid of a run through the whole game so now I want to attempt my hand at completing it!



I liked the game, but it's terribly easy, specially when in most cases, you can just jump over the enemies.

Basically, the strategy is: jump over enemies, grab nun chuck, meet boss, defeat boss by squatting and using nun chucks when it gets close. Some bosses can be defeated by standing and using nun chucks, though.

SUPER simple. :)


I like the game enough, but I always try to get a good score so I'm always trying to defeat more enemies instead of jumping over them… using that tactic was how I progressed through the game to better learn it and develop strategies to try and score more points…
also I think sometimes there is a delay from when you press the button and when you actually perform an action! but still I personally like the game for what its worth…

[Gameguy]

Vigilante (horrid controls, poor collision detection) - but I have a twisted enjoyment playing this game to overcome its shortcomings, and have been able to 1cc it!
Wasn't this on the Turbografx too? If it's the same game I've played the Turbografx version and it wasn't Action 52(NES) bad but it was pretty terrible.

For Master System games, I'm going with most of them. I've played dozens of different games over the years as I've bought different bundles, but I can't even remember the names of most of them as they weren't anything special. I just found the controls in Rampage and Double Dragon to be bad so I didn't keep them, those are a couple I can still remember the specific names.

[Atarileaf]

I will say there is one that I really like that may come as a surprise but Carmen Sandiego is a favorite of mine on the SMS. Actually I like that game on a lot of classic systems but in the case of the SMS, its a solid and fun "edutainment" title.

One I really don't like but maybe its because I just can't get used to the strange control scheme is Global Defense.

[Atarileaf]

I just found the controls in Rampage and Double Dragon to be bad so I didn't keep them,

I love Rampage. Its my favorite port. I don't know if you did this or not but in general when I play SMS games I use a genesis controller. MUCH better and I found it to be a huge difference in Rampage.

[Gameguy]

I love Rampage. Its my favorite port. I don't know if you did this or not but in general when I play SMS games I use a genesis controller. MUCH better and I found it to be a huge difference in Rampage.
That's probably it, I just used the original controllers. I press up to climb a building and I walk left or right instead. I don't have the game for the SMS anymore, I just have the NES version.

[TurboGenesis]

Wasn't this on the Turbografx too? If it's the same game I've played the Turbografx version and it wasn't Action 52(NES) bad but it was pretty terrible.


Yes, Vigilante was also on the Turbo Grafx-16… though that port is infinitely better! Much better playing, controlling, and better looking… over all, Vigilante is average game at best in my feelings, but the Turbo Grafx port, I would recommend and tell people to avoid the Sega Master System port…



One I really don't like but maybe its because I just can't get used to the strange control scheme is Global Defense.

the learning curve is steep, but once getting the hang of it, Global Defense is a fun and rewarding game… It is similar to Missile Command in concept but takes it to a whole new level!

Of note, there is a option to use two controllers in Global Defense… one to move the satellite and one to move the crosshair, but then a method to have both controllers secure and stable become an issue…

[Atarileaf]

the learning curve is steep, but once getting the hang of it, Global Defense is a fun and rewarding game… It is similar to Missile Command in concept but takes it to a whole new level!

Of note, there is a option to use two controllers in Global Defense… one to move the satellite and one to move the crosshair, but then a method to have both controllers secure and stable become an issue…

A robotron style scheme would be interesting for that game but the sms used control pads instead of joysticks, making that, as you mentioned, an improbable option. Too bad because it does look like a fun game.

[fishsandwich]

The SMS (and Game Gear) versions of SMASH TV are just truly and seriously awful. I suppose it's impossible to do a good version of Smash TV without some way to get 8-directional control.

The SNES version is awesome.

[BydoEmpire]

Hm, not too many for me. The "Great" Sports are pretty much all bad, except Great Soccer -that's playable.

I also didn't like Thunder Blade. Too hard, super choppy.

I never liked Alien Syndrome, because I wanted to like it because of the theme, but it was just brutally hard.

[Midaha]

From my memory as a kid I was never fond of Transbot or Super Tennis. Also I remember when I completed Back to the Future (which I didn't enjoy) I was so unimpressed with the ending (I won't spoil it here) that it made me dislike it even more...!!

Re Wonderboy dolls - I'm almost certain that collecting all the dolls opened up secret levels. I remember playing with my brother and sister and we used to play for hours and do a level each and we would always make sure we collected the dolls. Good times.

[kedawa]

I really wanted to like Golden Axe, but it's such a flickering mess that it's hardly playable.

[retroman]

anything real sports sucked

[PentiumMMX]

By long and far, Miracle Warriors.

I don't mind dated RPGS, but I just couldn't get into this one at all; it feels dated even compared to Dragon Warrior. There where many decisions they made in the game's design that are wallbangers to me; like why overworld is shown in a tiny box off to the side so you can have a pointless picture of your characters standing against the background that amounts to nothing in terms of navigation. All in all, it's a poor man's Phantasy Star; the only reason I have it is because I needed something to test my Master System with.

[PresidentLeever]

I really don't like Sonic 2. Level design is frustrating (especially the tube maze later on), scrolling is choppy and the physics seem way off. It had some lame gimmicks as well like the hangglider, which also controlled poorly. One of the worst Sonic games.

It's weird how Alien Syndrome was 2-player on NES but not on SMS. Not a terrible game though, just too slow.

[sheath]

By long and far, Miracle Warriors.

I don't mind dated RPGS, but I just couldn't get into this one at all; it feels dated even compared to Dragon Warrior. There where many decisions they made in the game's design that are wallbangers to me; like why overworld is shown in a tiny box off to the side so you can have a pointless picture of your characters standing against the background that amounts to nothing in terms of navigation. All in all, it's a poor man's Phantasy Star; the only reason I have it is because I needed something to test my Master System with.

Miracle Warriors ends up having serious depth that rivals Phantasy Star in every area but dialog. I don't know why they did the graphics the way they did though. I suppose it was due to the fact that "RPG" didn't mean anything at the time and had no constraints like it does today.

[megasdkirby]

Miracle Warriors was pretty good, but pretty damn cryptic. I had to manually create a map to make sure I would not get lost, because otherwise, it would be too much of a pain in the ass. My first copy was purchased loose, so you can just imagine how hard it was to actually play and finish the game. I do recall it being hard, but a tad monotonous.

But I had no actual problem with the game. Sure, I liked Golvellius and Phantasy Star more, but that did not mean that it was bad. I always found "Lord of the Sword" un bearable, always due to it's control scheme.

I hated Golden Axe. Looking at static screens, it looked very promising. But once it played...my GOD had bad it looked. Controls were horrid, thanks to how unresponsive and sluggish it felt. Altered Beast wasn't that bad, MUCH more playable than Golden Axe was.

One game people diss alot and I actually enjoyed was Alex Kidd in The Lost Stars. Playing the game what seemed to be twice to actually beat it was silly, and it was quite repetitive, but it had charm, specially one one knew what to do.

Space Harrier 3D was a mess. Why did it feel so choppy, I will never know. The original was much, MUCH better.

[TurboGenesis]

One game people diss alot and I actually enjoyed was Alex Kidd in The Lost Stars. Playing the game what seemed to be twice to actually beat it was silly, and it was quite repetitive, but it had charm, specially one one knew what to do.

Space Harrier 3D was a mess. Why did it feel so choppy, I will never know. The original was much, MUCH better.

I really like Alex Kidd: The Lost Stars… not bad at all, and I was not aware that people dissed it… sure, it is not Miracle World, but its a good game for what it is… its High Tech World that I believe people bash, and I admit I am one of those, I cannot get into that game…

and in regards to Space Harrier, my feelings and impressions are opposite of yours! I find the original a mess and almost unplayable, and Space Harrier 3-D a much better game in every regard…

[megasdkirby]

I really like Alex Kidd: The Lost Stars… not bad at all, and I was not aware that people dissed it… sure, it is not Miracle World, but its a good game for what it is… its High Tech World that I believe people bash, and I admit I am one of those, I cannot get into that game…

I remember reading about people that hated it because it wasn't really a sequel to "Miracle World". Because of this, people started panning it, stating how repetitive it was, unresponsive it was at times (specially jumping over enemies), and how easy it was. However, I never actually mind as I found the game to be quite interesting. True, it wasn't like Miracle World, but it was good nevertheless. I imagine that Sega got some flack out of it and was the reason they released "Enhanced Castle" (since it resembles the gameplay of Miracle World), but even that game was no where as good as "Miracle World"...seemed a bit too silly, IMO.

I never cared for High Tech World since I hated the fact that I had to waste my time gathering map pieces. That, and there really wasn't a purpose for the game. To this day, I've yet to finish it.

Speaking of which, I remember how people used to diss "Zillion II The Triformation", all because it was totally different from the first "Zillion". I loved it! Sure, it was now strictly a platformer/shooter, but it was still pretty good, though VERY hard nearing the end. I think I finished it once, but I don't recall.


and in regards to Space Harrier, my feelings and impressions are opposite of yours! I find the original a mess and almost unplayable, and Space Harrier 3-D a much better game in every regard…

:p

What did you like about Space Harrier 3D? While I don't think it's bad (it's pretty good considering), I actually enjoyed the first one more because of reasons listed previously. Here is a video of Space Harrier and Space Harrier 3D:

Space Harrier: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGNvs1O5_qI
Space Harrier 3D: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DhH3wu6KIiU&feature=related

I love how much fluid the first Space Harrier is. And because of this fluidity, how responsive (considering) it was. When I played Space Harrier 3D, I loved how the screen scrolled...but that was about it. It was choppy, meaning that the character and game movement was not fluid, and because of this, the controls felt sluggish. I would sometimes fire and/or move, and the game would not "register" the control pad actions. And the game was shorter...and the music wasn't as lively as in the first game. It's still a great game, just lacking gameplay feel, IMO.

Just realized the FM chip was being used on the 3D gameplay...could not find a non FM chip version, unfortunately.

[sheath]

There is something wrong with that Space Harrier 3D video. The actual game floor is much more smooth than that and comes all the way to the bottom of the screen. Also, I can't be sure but I think the sprite transition scaling is smoother in 3D than in the original. I love both games, but Space Harrier 3D always struck me as more refined graphically.

[megasdkirby]

I love both games, but Space Harrier 3D always struck me as more refined graphically.

Oh, there is no denying that. Graphically, it's much better. It's just the scrolling, responsiveness, and overall gameplay I have an issue with.

[TurboGenesis]

it may be just me? I struggle playing SMS Space Harrier… on my bests runs I'm at about 5 million points and only on stage 6-7… I much farther on the Saturn and Turbo Grafx versions… in Space Harrier 3-D, I am able to get far in it as well… my only issues seem to be control and possibly collision detection in SMS Space Harrier? Space Harrier 3-D just feels more responsive for me from my experience - I think I'll play both back to back this evening and see if I can put my finger on what it is that makes me enjoy 3-D much more…

[BydoEmpire]

I remember liking Miracle Warriors back in the day. I did actually finish it, too, although I had to call a help line to find the hidden location of the final area. It was not shown on screen, you just had to do something like 10 squares up, 4 squares left of some town and then search. Just a random square in the middle of the desert, totally cryptic. That said, I remember enjoying the game.

Then again, I also enjoyed both Golden Axe and Altered Beast on the SMS. My friend had a Genny, so of course I was totally awed by those versions, but I thought the SMS did a pretty good job considering. Haven't played them since, so my glasses may be rose colored. =)

[jammajup]

Strider
It looks okay untill everything starts moving.

[sheath]

Yeah, the final puzzle is pretty cryptic in Miracle Warriors, I had to check an FAQ to see what to do next and once I got how to interpret the riddle I figured out the rest. I haven't beaten it yet because I either goof and get teleported across the world or I just can't defeat the last boss when I do find it. Yeah, that was it, I needed to grind some more to defeat her.

[Scissors]

I disliked ALF when I was young… was upset the whole weekend I had rented it! but now I'd like to get it again and play it to get that twisted enjoyment! I recently watched a youtube vid of a run through the whole game so now I want to attempt my hand at completing it!


This thread got me to try ALF again. It took me a few tries, but I finally beat it. I felt like playing something very challenging, so I was actually a bit disappointed that I got through it so quickly. Still enjoyed it though.

[c2000]

Back to Future 2 was just horrible. Aces of Aces dull as dishwater.