Hello, retro maniacs! If you look for something mega old and specific, you came to the right address! In this GamesMojo.com guest article, I’m going to tell you about 5 rare-&-worthy games for the Sega Master System. This console was released in 1985 and is still manufactured in Brazil 34 years after! Retro games continue to influence developers of games like Geometry Dash today.
Masters of Combat (1993)
Megalo City. Year 20XX. UFO landed nearby and the year after the city’s mayor decides to hold a fighting competition to find the strongest fighter on Earth, but there’s a secret behind this bloody event. Now, it’s time to choose one of four characters who look like they have no eyes for no reason. Hayate – fast cyberpunk samurai, Gonzales – a fatty guy with the piece-of-dough face and wrestling moves, Highvoltman in a tight steel electrified helmet and Wingberger – brutal welder with durable legs. There are not many combos, so to win you have to stick to timings and detect computer’s mistakes.
There’s not much of a plot going between fights, so the struggle to reach the final is strong. The mayor’s secret is an athletic alien copied from Ridley Scott’s movie. Boss versus is a bit frustrating, but you can learn alien’s moves and defeat him in a few tries to bring peace to Megalo City at last.
Out Run (Sega Ages) (1986)
This Yu Suzuki creation is one of the first games with non-linear progression and advanced graphics technologies. 33 years ago it was a very engrossing title because it had 5 different endings and various ways to beat the clock. When you learn all the twists of each track, it would take about 6 minutes to complete one.
Despite the fact that it’s 2D, developers managed to achieve the illusion of volumetric terrain. Distance is really tangible in this animated comic world. You can even feel a bit of car physics, especially when they crash and bandy. To give additional freedom, the game offers you to choose one of the multiple tunes to diversify your lap.
The easiest way to play it today is purchasing Sega Ages version for Switch as it usually comes cheaper than Master System cartridges from eBay, but it’s up to you. Go to GamesMojo.com for more details about this port.
Sonic Spinball (1993)
You won’t see much of original Sonic the Hedgehog here, because he is just a popular mascot covered in a pinball arcade. Anyway, the pinball itself is what really matters. It’s not only about hitting the highest score, but also about solving puzzles to reach hidden jams.
Newbies are usually frustrated by hardcore-ness of half-baked controls of this spin-off, but patient fans are likely to enjoy it. The game repeatedly annoys by showing some of the secrets like they are easy to reach. After some wanderings you find yourself hitting buttons in one side of the map to open a door on the other. The good point is that you can play with 3 of your friends at the same time to compete in score-breaking. With all drawbacks and difficulty, it is still one of the best pinball mascot-spinoffs.
Home Alone (1991)
This one came to me as a Christmas gift from one of my colleagues from GamesMojo.com. I was glad to own such a rarity, but I didn’t expect it to be so cool.
The story is settled in different houses where you have to help Cavin defeat the robbers. Inventory includes some of the traps from the movie, such as glass balls and customizable air rifle. It can shoot with pepper, snow, and glue. To use all the benefits of multiple items, it’s quite necessary to get acquainted with the manual to avoid distraction.
Animations and music in Home Alone are very catchy and various to keep a player engaged.
Power Strike 2 (1993)
In the first part you faced plants, but here you are to defeat pirates who pour hundreds of missiles per minute towards your jet. Let’s be fair, there are tons of vertical scrolling shooters for various platforms, but this one’s a hardcore dad of the genre.
Shoot ‘em up fans would definitely enjoy it for the high level of tension, loads of powerful weapon. Hone your skills and feel the real might. Power Strike is highly replayable due to the death-power ratio. The more times you get killed, the less powerful weapons you get. Try to complete it if you dare!
Bottom line
Such an SMS games pack would fulfill your retro needs for a couple of months for sure. Race, fight, shoot, and solve puzzles at your own or with friends. These titles would brilliantly complement any party in 80’s aesthetics.
Video game enthusiast, wannabe books and meme expert. Aesthetics and content admirer at GamesMojo.com.
