While most video game consoles tend to slowly fade away following the release of their successors, some stick around for quite a bit longer. The PS2 was notorious for this, with production of the console continuing for more than six years following the release of the PS3 before the system was finally discontinued in early 2013. The popularity of older consoles varies quite a bit from country to country, though.
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Brazil was one of the many regions in which the PS2 remained popular, withBrazilian PS2 owners even getting access to Netflixthanks to the system’s incredible longevity. That’s nothing when compared to the Sega Master System, however, which, thanks to a licensing agreement between Sega and Tec Toy, is still being sold in Brazil today almost 35 years on from its original release.
Such was the popularity of the Master System in the country back in the nineties that Tec Toy even released a selection of Brazil-exclusiveMaster System games. There are22 of them in totalas well as8 rom hacks, many of which have become highly collectible due to the limited quantities in which they were produced. The quality of the games themselves is a little hit and miss, although some are incredibly impressive given the limitations of the hardware.
22Castelo Rá-Tim-Bum (1997)
Based on a Braziliankids TV showof the same name,Castelo Rá-Tim-Bumactually doesn’t look too bad at first glance. Unfortunately, however, the gameplay is pretty much non-existent. Players move from left to right over and over again with no real purpose and the multicolored flashes that trigger each time the player transitions between screens can quickly cause headaches.
2120 Em 1 (1995)
Released in 1995,20 Em 1was a bundle game sold with the Master System and so is one of very few games for the system that doesn’t have an official game box. It doesn’t really have a lot going for it either, with its ugly driving games offering very little in the way of fun. Some of the other games on the cart aren’t quite as bad, but they’re nothing special either and many of them use the same horrible looping melody.
20Virtua Fighter Animation (1997)
TheVirtua Fighterseriessent shock-waves through the fighting game communitywhen it first hit Japanese arcades in the early nineties. Sadly, though,Virtua Fighter Animationfor the Game Gear didn’t have quite the same impact and the lazy Master System port that was released in Brazil was even worse. Around a third of the screen is black, with players barely able to make outAkira and codue to how small they are on screen.
19Mickey’s Ultimate Challenge (1998)
Mickey’s Ultimate Challengewas one of manyDisney gamesto release for the Master System and the last new title to be released for the console in Brazil. It looks terrible when compared to the Mega Drive version, however, which released in the States more than four years earlier. As with most of the Master System games exclusive to Brazil, it’s based on the game’s Game Gear port and offers no notable improvements despite releasing some three years later.
18Earthworm Jim (1996)
Sadly, the Master System release ofEarthworm Jimseems to have been based on the Game Gear port of the game rather thanthe Genesis or Super Nintendo versions. As a result, it looks pretty bad and, though definitely playable, is nowhere near as enjoyable. There are far better looking platformers for the Master System, so there’s very little reason for anybody to ever play this one.
17Legend of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse (1998)
Legend of Illusiondoesn’t look too bad at first glance, but it’s actually a poor port of the game’s Game Gear version. The developers didn’t even bother to stretch the game’s output to fill the entire screen vertically, instead opting to leave a large black box at the bottom of the screen. It’s still a lot better thanMickey’s Ultimate Challenge,though that by no means makes it a good game.
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16Disney’s Ariel The Little Mermaid (1992)
Considering it was released in 1992,Disney’s Ariel The Little Mermaidisn’t half bad, but the gameplay does get repetitive fairly quickly. It plays a little likeEcho the Dolphin, although the dark colors detract a little from the fantastic under the sea setting that players will have likely expected from aLittle Mermaidgame. Worse still, it somehow manages to look worse than the Game Gear version.
15FIFA International Soccer (1996)
The Master System port ofFIFA International Socceroffers very few improvements over the Game Gear version that released in North America in 1994. That said, for those who couldn’t get their hands on a Genesis or SNES and wanted to play soccer on a home console, there weren’t really too many other options. It’s not a bad game, but is inferior toFIFA 96in almost every conceivable way.
14Mortal Kombat 3 (1996)
Though the idea of playingMortal Kombat 3on the Master System may seem cool at first, it’s worth noting that the Game Gear version on which the port is based had already been available in Brazil for a full year at the time of the port’s release. It’s still better than the Game Boy version, though, and, unlike the Nintendo port, did not havethe blood and gore which defines the seriesremoved.
13Taz In Escape From Mars (1997)
There was already a Taz game available for the Sega Master System, so why exactly Tec Toy opted to port the Game Gear version of its sequel over to the console remains to be seen. Perhaps ifTaz In Escape From Marswere a better game it would make sense, but it’s inferior to its predecessor in just about every way. That’s not to say that it’s a terrible game or anything, butTaz-Mania definitelyprovides much better value for money.
