playing PAL games on a U.S. Sega Genesis?

[Edmond Dantes]

So I'm thinking of hunting down a PAL version of Thunder Force IV. That the American version has the wrong title bothers me that much.

What would I need to do to make it playable? Or would I be better off just getting the Japanese cart? And what would I need to do to make that playable?

Thanks in advance.

[Rickstilwell1]

I'm not sure if this will help or not, but first you have to find out if that game is region locked or not. Some PAL Mega Drive games as late as 1994 will play on a US system just fine. Mr. Nutz is one of them. I don't know if the particular title you're seeking is like Mr. Nutz in terms of working, or if you need something special. I'd look for a list of compatibility/Game Genie codes to see if one is needed to bypass lockout.

[djshok]

TFIV is region locked. So you'd need a region modded system to make it work. I'm not sure if there's a region bypass Game Genie code for this one or not.

I'd suggest getting the Japanese one if anything. Even if you bypass the region lock on the PAL game it might run at the wrong speed whereas the Japanese one won't.

[Emuaust]

The PAL copy plays fine on a genesis with a game genie, there is a really good gg code list on the forums here to bypass region protection.

[Edmond Dantes]

So there's not simply an adapter or something I could buy that would bypass this whole issue?

[fahlim003]

So there's not simply an adapter or something I could buy that would bypass this whole issue?

You didn't read the post right above you? Game Genie is an adaptor you can potentially use. There are also bypass adaptors called Mega Keys and they work well enough if you'd rather not do a region and 50/60hz mod.

My advice would be stick to the US version since it's just the title that was "stupidly" changed. The game otherwise is intact and excellent as are it's Europe and Japanese counterparts.