We have another player as Sega Genesis hits the shelves once again. Sega Mega Drive, its other name, was very famous in Brazil during the reign of 16-bit consoles. The daily number was a whopping 150 thousand units sold per day, enough fame to compete with today's current gen consoles as retro is getting more and more famous nowadays.
According to Geek, Tectoy, a company from Brazil that manufactured the consoles, will start manufacturing Sega Genesis units once again. This means that the units, fresh from the factory, would hit the shelves just in time for the holidays.
Will it be the same Genesis consoles as before?
As posted on Uproxx, more or less, it will look like the 1989 classic but it now runs games on an SD card slot, which is pre-packed with games by the way. It will also come with the classic 3 button Sega controller to really bring back the old memories from the good old Genesis days. A/V cables and/or adapters are also needed since the HDMI versions are still a work in progress.
Additionally, this is done so because the original systems will tend to be obsolete when you acquire it, the physical condition of the aging circuits alone are a concern, this is why a new line of improved Sega Mega Drive (a.k.a. Genesis) consoles need to be manufactured for the modern times.
Why is Sega Genesis a threat to modern console revenue?
Based on this report, the original Genesis in Brazil still sells 150,00 units a year, it didn't matter if the connectors were old school since the country still has lots of CRT TVs in their homes. With the said numbers, it is more likely that if sold worldwide, retro enthusiasts would rather go for their beloved consoles rather than going for a brand new PS4 Pro, or Xbox One S since most probably they already have the base systems PS4 and Xbox One already. This makes the Genesis and also the Mini-NES as top contenders for modern day consoles that are also targeting high sales over the holidays.
Personally, I would go for the mini-NES and the re-manufactured Genesis since it brings me back to the good old days of Street Fighter II or Sonic the Hedgehog. You can't put a price tag on nostalgia, that's for sure. Another reason why I would get this is that I want my daughter to experience what I have gone through before, she's 9 and plays a lot of Minecraft. Giving her the classic NES and Megadrive controllers would feel like passing on the torch for the next generation gamer.
So, how much is it?
Having an old system and its games (or two) back to your living room will cut you back around $140 each (conservative), which is way cheaper than the modern consoles. For most members of the gaming community, I bet retro tripping is more likely to happen rather than chasing after the latest consoles which will eventually depreciate its price sooner or later.
My personal strategy? Get the retro things, NES and Sega, enjoy it, share it with loved ones, while waiting for the PS4 Pro and the Xbox One S to cut down prices by summer of next year. By that time, games for the latest system would have also gone cheaper. Anyway, if I have something modern that needs playing right away, there's always Steam and my current modern consoles for that, so no upgrades necessary as of this writing.
