Sega Saturn worth it?

[OldSchoolGamer]

OK, all you guy's we're awesome in my post "Neo CD...worth it?". Thanks to all your input I have decided to just emulate Neo CD on PC/Xbox. However, having exhausted my Dreamcast collection I am still looking for a system worth collecting. I have not been happy with Sega Saturn emulation. I have tried everything from Satourne to GiriGiri hacked but find it not to great (I mean geez Chankast emulates Dreamcast better!) the last straw was I wanted to play Deep Fear as I love Resident Evil type games, it booted but the cut scenes don't play and textures (like legs!) are missing from my main character! I want to play Sega Saturn games as I never owned it originally (too exspensive) and yes I went the playstation route (not that I regretted it. Regarding Sega Saturn, I am thinking to seek out a system on Ebay, am looking to be able to play CDr's AND imports. To my understanding that requires Action Replay 4in1 and a modchip.
Please as someone looking to invest in Sega Saturn I would really appreciate all of your great opinions/experiences/stories/recommendations and tips regarding Sega Saturn Hardware and Software, as always thanks in advance!!!! :D

[Lemmy Kilmister]

I would say go for it. Sure most of the "better" games cost an arm and a leg. Though alot of solid games can be found cheap aswell.

I would get astal,panzer dragoon series,Prikura Daisakusen,The shining games,dragon force and the capcom 2d fighters.

Oh by the way, if your into trading games. I happien to have a spare saturn (model 2).

[Cmosfm]

YES YES OH GOD YES!

The Sega Saturn is the BEST 32 bit system in my opinion. It had some of the best games ever.

NiGHTS (and Christas NiGHTS especially)
Panzer Dragoon (all of em)
Daytona USA (The racing game for non racing game fans)
Bug!
Shining Force 3
Sonic R
Sonic Jam

and many many more that I can't count. The system was top of the line, I suggest buy it and cherish it, and play it everday. :)

[Bratwurst]

I will be getting a Saturn bundle soon and though I never thought much of it in previous years I'm fairly excited about it. I've been hanking for the chance to try out Astal and Nights so I'll be paying attention to this thread a little closely as well.

Outside of the relatively well known titles what are some great obscure domestic releases?

How many games can you save on the internal battery alone? Just curious.

[Lemmy Kilmister]

I will be getting a Saturn bundle soon and though I never thought much of it in previous years I'm fairly excited about it. I've been hanking for the chance to try out Astal and Nights so I'll be paying attention to this thread a little closely as well.

Outside of the relatively well known titles what are some great obscure domestic releases?

How many games can you save on the internal battery alone? Just curious.

3 dirty dwarves is a pretty good beat'um'up. Galactic Attack and of course guardian heros are also solid u.s releases. I can't beleive i didn't say nights in my first post. :embarrassed:

[ManekiNeko]

Nightwarriors: Darkstalkers' Revenge is a required first purchase if you're a fan of fighting games. In fact, I bought my copy weeks BEFORE I purchased my Saturn!

JR

[sisko]

YES YES OH GOD YES!

I couldn't have said it better myself :) Though, to unlock the full fun factor, you need to get into importing.

[omnedon]

If you want to chip it, you MUST have a round buttoned Saturn. The chips for the oval buttoned ones are long ago discontinued and nigh impossible to get.

I have a spare round buttoned Saturn actually. I could chip it, and region switch it too. The region switch would eliminate the need for the Action Replay for import play, freeing the cart slot for saving, and RAM expansion function. I have to find a controller for it though.

PM me if interested.

Otherwise get a round buttoned one. They are worth it. Shooters, Fighters, and a very different 'feel' than the Playstation.

[evilmess]

If your TV supports s-video then I would suggest you get an s-video cable for your saturn asap. Your games will look fantastic!

Of course you'll need the AR 4-in-1 and get a Nights with the 3D Analog controller bundle (they're all over ebay cheap) and if you get a Model 1 Saturn then you'll want to upgrade your controllers to the model 2 versions, they just feel better IMO.

[allsport11]

I suggest getting it for Deep Fear alone like you want. Much better than Resident Evil, then again I never like the Resident Evil series but I actually finished Deep Fear. Grab a Saturn and you will be happy. :)

[SoulBlazer]

You know, I'd LOVE to get a Saturn and what are considered the best games for it, but it's just too much of a expense and hassle.

The fact is that you can get most of these older systems for pretty cheap, and that's true. However, in order to really spend any time with them, you have to buy a whole mess of other stuff. The cables and hookups, a second and normaly better controller, a memory card or expansion pack -- and THEN you have to get into the games. :o

When I got both my Sega CD and 3DO systems, all of the above stuff, with shipping, pushed me over $200 for each one. And none of the games were really THAT expensive -- I'd say around five to six games for each system, nothing more then $20 each.

Add to the fact that a lot of good games I'd like to play for the Saturn are either VERY expensive (Panzer Dragoon Saga) or are Japan only, and you're looking at twice that price by the time I have a 'basic' system and games. @_@

Is it any wonder, with my money tight, that I prefer emulation over actually having the system? :D

Hopefully some day a good Saturn emulator will come out so I can save SOME money and just buy the games. ;)

[-hellvin-]

Get a saturn.
Get it now.
Go to Jandaman (http://www.jandaman.com/) get a modchip, a 4in1 cart then go grab a saturn with round power buttons. Unscrew it, solder the two simple wires and you're done. And it's not expensive at all to buy the chip and cart through jan. Works beautifully and you can play and backup or import game you want. The us saturn collecting may not be exillerating, but it does have quite a few enjoyable games if you search em out. Then when it comes to import games, there is tons of kick ass stuff to delve into. Plethoras of very good looking 2d shooters, so if you're into shooter or fighters there's tons of gamin goodness to be had there.

[Nomeaz1]

Saturn will always be king (http://dynamic5.gamespy.com/~saturn/ibforum/index.php?showtopic=511) :D .

[thegreatescape]

I have not been happy with Sega Saturn emulation. I have tried everything from Satourne to GiriGiri hacked but find it not to great (I mean geez Chankast emulates Dreamcast better!)

Just remember that the saturn has 2 cpu's and is a heck of a lot more complicated than a DC, which is fairly similar to a pc (in some respects) ;)

I also recommend getting a saturn for both the good common games and the good imports. Theres enough of both to make owning the system worth while, which is more than i can say for a lot of other systems.

Personally im happy with my purchase of a saturn, even though ive only got 11 games and no 4-in-1 (despite having a US darius gaiden for 6-months). It doesnt get as much play as the other sega consoles, but its worth having :)

[vincewy]

Between Dreamcast and Saturn, I pick Dreamcast, but when you're done collecting DC and want to get a few more, go for Saturn, if you'r einto imports, Saturn (DC for newer ports) has so many Neo-Geo ports that would cost you arms and legs if you try to get them on Neo-Geo. On thing that Saturn misses, is the perfect Sega 3D arcade ports DC has.

Anyone remember back in 98 when Best Buy was clearing out Saturn games for $10 each, I drove around Southern MN and Wisc Best Buy stores and stocked up quite a few, plus TRU held on to many games toward 2000, including Super Puzzle Fighters.

[Nez]

Good GOD! you must own a Saturn. There not all that costly(The systems) and have a good library of unique games.

My ss list of must haves:

Panzer Dragoon
Panzer Dragoon Zwei
Panzer Dragoon Saga(expensive BUT worth it! :-P )
Gaurdian Heros
Sega Rally championship (CHEAP!)
Nights
ANY Capcom fighting game ex. X-men vs Street Fighter


Should Haves:
Shining the Holy Arc
Viruta Fighters
Die Hard Arcade
Earth Worm Jim 2 (Best version IMO)
Raident Silvergun (Too damn expensive though :eek 2: )

Well that should be a god start!

[optic_85]

Yes, get a saturn. I love mine, and you do not need a 4 in 1 cart. Just do a import switch mod. I did one on mine where you press the reset button and it changes reigion codes. It's wonderful for playing my imports. When i did the improt mod i also painted it, click on the link in my sig to see pics. Also you may want to get the type 2 controllers, they are a little samller, and much more comfortable. And with any SEGA made saturn controller you can enjoy the BEST D-PAD ever!!! As for games get Nights, Sonic R, Bust-A-Move 3, Virtual Cop 2, Astal, The Panzer Dragoon Games, Detana Twin Bee Delux(import), Fighting Vipers, BURNING RANGERS, MegaMan X4, and Christmas Nights(for basically having just one level this game has loads of replay value, and a thing that you can unlock where you can play nights as sonic!)........So, YES. Get a Saturn.

Here are some links:

Import Mod Instructions - http://www.gamesx.com/importmod/saturncon.htm

Switchless import mod(what i did) - http://www.gamesx.com/importmod/sat_switchless.htm

A nice, but outdated saturn page(check out the movies of the jap TV adds for saturn) - www.sega-saturn.com

Brief Saturn info - http://www.segaoa.com/saturn.html

[icbrkr]

Definetly get a Saturn! It's one of my most played systems.

While it's true you don't *need* a Action Replay 4 in 1, you should get one anyway. There are some games that require the extra RAM (Metal Slug, D&D, some other Capcom games) and the built in Region defeat saves you from doing any other modifications to your Saturn besides a MOD chip. I recommend NCSX as a source for the cart: http://www.ncsxshop.com/cgi-bin/shop/EMS-ARP.html

To MOD chip it is ridiculously simple. Ensure you buy a 21 pin model (Model 2, round buttons as other people have said). Solder one wire to your powersupply, or even just tape it electrical tape. You'll see why when you open it. Solder the other wire to 1 leg of 1 chip. Plug in chip to the Saturn's MB, hook ribbon cable to MOD chip... done!

Great, underrated system.

[EnemyZero]

Yes you need a saturn, best 32bit sysytem out there, saturn is my main import machine, i bought a few of the hard to find US tittles but everything else i been buying has been imports, and there making me go broke lol.....

AS to the internal battery question....lol not many...maybe like 4.. or 3 depending on the game.

[pookninja]

yes,its worth it.do your self a favor and get a saturn,right away!! i have a action replay 4in1 cart to play imports,and its great.i think everyone listed almost all of the "must have" us released games except for a few,1.dark savior,thats a greatgame. 2.the legend of oasis. 3.sega ages(almost arcade perfect ports of outrun,afterburner,and space harrier,all on one disk)and if you are into wrestling games then you will need to get the import games:1.fire pro wrestling s 6 man scramble2.blazing tornado.in my opinion,those are the best wrestling games ever made.also,i heard the import version of castlevania had some extra areas and stuff then the psx release of synphony of the night,but i never got to play that one yet.so yeah,the saturn is definally worth it!!

[vincewy]

Just a quick note, some of the US Saturn games are ridiculously expensive at this point:

ie:

SF Collection
Panzer Dragoon Saga
Shining Force 3
Sonic Jam
Mega Man 8
Dragon Force
Guardian Heroes

Other than Panzer Dragoon Saga, most games are also published on other platforms, new/sealed games are virtually impossible to find for the aforementioned titles, not surprisingly, highest valued titles are those not available on other consoles.

[SoulBlazer]

And THAT, my friend, is WHY I said eariler in this thread I'd like a Saturn but by the time you add up the system, the parts, and the 'must have' games it's TOO DAMN EXPENSIVE! :eek 2:

I'll just wait for it to be emulated. There is progress being made, so it should'nt be much longer now. :)

[atomicthumbs]

I'm suprised that no one has mentioned this one...

Magic Knight Rayearth!!!

OH! Don't forget about...

CHRISTMAS NIGHTS!!!


If someone did mention these already, I have a good excuse... It's 3am and I can't find my glasses.

[Sosage]

Like everyone else has mentioned: YES. Get one. The easiest game to find, Virtual Fighter 2, while not arcade perfect is a great game. If you mod it you have the closest thing to CPS2 hardware out there (the Capcom imports, starting with X-Men vs. Street Fighter, really raised the bar for arcade ports imo...although it was a lot cooler when the arcade boards weren't as easy to get a hold of :D ).

The stuff might be a bit pricey now, but that is when you're Ebay-ing/talking to people who know what the stuff is worth...which is the same problem you'd run into with every other console anyways. :o

[Kamino]

DEFINITELY get saturn. IMO, it's the best system Sega put out. Classics like Virtua cop 1 & 2, the Panzer Dragoon series, Norse by norsewest: the return of the lost vikings, and sonic 3d blast are well worth the cash.

[Spartacus]

I've just started buying Saturn stuff. I believe it won the "What games look best lined up on a shelf" poll. LOL! To see if the Saturn consoles I'm buying are working, I pop in my copy of Panzer Dragoon. Since I also own a copy of the Xbox version Panzer Dragoon Orta, I can give you my opinion - for what it's worth. The Xbox will NEVER be looking over it's shoulder, worring about the Saturn, if you get my drift. Now, I'm not slamming the Saturn. I just thought you might consider this point.
I think I'm personally up to 27 US titles that I own and I'm actively looking for 12 more. The ones you've already been recommended are all fine games, but I can give you a few more US titles that you might want to do a search on, to see if they would interest you. They made my list anyway. That's my first list. The second list is for Japanese imports you might want to consider. They're pretty much all shmups. If you like shmups, the Saturn is your system.

US Titles:
Albert Odyssey
Blazing Heroes
Bubble Bobble & Rainbow Island
Bug Too!
Clockwork Knight
D
Deep Fear
Enemy Zero
Mr. Bones
Shinobi Legions
Skeleton Warriors
Virtual On: Cyber Troopers

Jap Imports:
Batsugun
Battle Garegga - fantastic WWII shootie
Blast wind
Baroque - horror
Bokan To Ippatsu Doronboo Kanpekiban Banpresto
Detana! Twinbee - Yahoo Deluxe Pack pack of the twinbees
Donpachi
Dodonpachi
Fantasy Zone
Game Paradise - clever shooter set in an arcade
Gekirindan - timetravel based shooter decent
Gokujyou Parodius Da!
Gradius Deluxe - twin pack of Gradius & Gradius II
Guardian Force
Gunbird
Image Fight/X-Multiply
Jikkyo Oshaberi Parodius - much improved 3rd version from SNES
Kaitei Daisensou (aka In The Hunt)
Konami Antiques MSX Collection Ultra Pack -hugh pack MSX shooties
Kyukyoku Tiger 2 Plus - Excellant helicopter shootie
Layer Section, aka Galactic Attack / aka Rayforce on PS1
Layer Section II, aka Raystorm on PS1
Radiant Silvergun
Salamander Deluxe Pack Plus A Sal 1,2, and Lifeforce!
Shienryu
Soukyugerentai
Strikers 1945 II
Thunderforce Gold Pack 1
Thunderforce Gold Pack 2
Thunderforce V
Twinkle Star Sprites- puzzle style shootie, waste chains of badguys