Way back in mid-September 1989, Sega would launch the Genesis video game console in North America. Known as the Mega-Drive to the rest of the world, Sega began to take the kingdom of Nintendo down brick by brick with a fantastic marketing campaign (can you say "Sega Scream"), great hardware and most importantly phenomenal games. The Sega Genesis was the first console to deliver arcade perfect ports with it's much touted "16-bit Power". Sure Nintendo would swing back with the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) but Sega would hit a home run with the release of a game starring a certain speedy little blue hedgehog. Those glory days of the early 1990's can now be enjoyed once again with Radica Games release of the Arcade Legends: Sega Genesis.

Check that out! Ain't that a dream come true? I heard about the Japanese Mega-Drive version about 9 months ago and thought it was cool. It isn't until you "own" one of these sweet babies that you discover how really cool it is. The hardware represents an exact replica of a Genesis controller and base. The controller is now Sonic blue and that's cool. What's damned awesome is that there is a tiny Genesis Base that connects to the TV just like back in the day. Sweet! The games play fantastic with 8 direction play and 3 action buttons. It's great to see that the developers Sega Toys in Japan, didn't cheap out on replicating the original Genesis controller. It looks great, feels great and plays great.

So what's inside that cool little hardware? Six full 16-bit Sega Genesis games. Not 8-bit my friends, these are 16-bit powerhouses!

Altered Beast - "Rise From Your Grave!" The arcade legend and ultra-sweet Genesis pack-in title. You play as a Centurion brought back to life by Zeus to rescue his hottie daughter Athena from the bad ass Neff, the Underworld God. You run around in your loincloth smashing the undead and collecting "Power Ups", growing into a huge Schwarzenegger type a dude while smashing the undead. Your final transformation will be in the form of a bad ass beast such as a Werewolf or Were bear as you venture on your quest smashing the undead. This game is fantastic stuff! A great launch title for the Genesis, showing off the system's power and proving that the arcade experience could translate into homes with out a hiccup as you... SMASH THE UNDEAD!

Dr. Robotnick's Mean Bean Machine - One of two "Sonic Universe" games that Sega of America developed with Yuji Naka's blessing (the other was the very cool Sonic Spinball). Mean Bean is actually a heavily edited version (in a visual way) of Sega of Japan's classic Puyo Pop Genesis game. The game play stays the same as players are introduced to Robotnick's evil world and battle against other robots in Mean Bean (Puyo Pop). Great classic puzzle fun and a nice nostalgic experience while you're taking a break from Puyo Pop Fever on your Dreamcast, GameCube or DS. ;)

Flicky - This addictive game of bird and cat finds the gamer controlling Flicky, a mother bird rounding up her baby Chirps to safety from the bad kitties known as Tigers. The nonstop action is frantic as you race against the clock gathering up your chicks and guiding them to the exit. The more chicks you guide out in one moment, the more points you rack up. Cute stuff and a hell of allot of fun to play! Neat Info: Within the Sonic games you save blue bird "Flickys". They even had a starring role in Sonic 3-D Blast alongside our blue hero. Within that game, you controlled Sonic who went around a 3-D environment saving Flicky's much like the original Flicky game itself, except it's all Sonicized. So Sega and Sonic fans have included this cute little game within Sonic's arsenal of games.

Golden Axe - One of the earliest and most beloved titles for the Genesis. The Conan-esque adventure has you in control of a barbarian warrior, amazon babe or tough ass dwarf battling side scrollin' style to defeat Death Adder (not Black Adder, I repeat you won't be able to bury your sword into Rowan Atkinson's ass) and avenge your murdered family. Yeah, It's just like Conan baby! Swinging your weapon you hack up monsters and ghouls while collecting magic which helps you on your quest. Sadly you are not accompanied by a Mako like wizard character on your journey, the game is still bitchin' though. Golden Axe continues to rock the world.

Kid Chameleon - I ain't ever played this game before in my life. So it's very nice to be able to play something new on the Genesis. Kid Chameleon is a fast paced platformer as you venture through over a 100 levels of nonlinear fun. As the Kid (who appears to be dressed like A New Kids On The Block reject), you journey onward within a virtual "arcade game" world collecting treasure, kicking ass and transforming into a samurai or other cool dudes. This game is a pleasant surprise.

Sonic The Hedgehog - Were do I start? He was the start of my hardcore Sega Lovin'. He turned slow-paced platformers upside down into a roller coaster ride of high speed adrenaline. The game that screamed "SEGA!" on boot up. THE GAME my friends... THE GAME. Yuji Naka's 1991 instant classic slapped Mario around like a little baby and made him cry like... a little baby. This game is DA-BOMB, it explodes you with warm feelings and high adventure. It's so cool to visit the classics and Sonic 1 is a trip down that wonderful memory lane. You collect rings and emeralds as you loop-de-loop across levels of no stop action saving the forrest critters from Robotnick's evil scheme. The series from the start sold millions and continues to be Sega's moneymaker. Today, Sonic's latest 3-D epic Sonic Heroes has easily passed the 2-million selling mark and it's been out for 10 months. Wow.

So how do these classics look in the new package? Fantastic. They are exactly like the Sega Genesis played them way back in the day. There are no cut backs or sacrifices made to try to squeeze all of these games in the controller like many other TV game compilations. They look and play just like your Genesis. The audio is near perfect, the only complaint is that Sonic's audio for his jump sound a bit low. Overall it's pretty bang on. The quality is impressive. The Genesis's blast-processing comes to life in tear ridden, fan-boy mania. Sega Toys must have developed the controller from the ground up as an emulator much like Sega's own excellent Smash Pack line.

Well there ya go! This baby is a "must have" for any gamer. It's an excellent retro-collection of some of the most beloved titles. It's awsome to have a package that includes some killer arcade classics and 3 Sonic Universe games. Of course we are missing multiplayer with this being a one controller gadget which I admit sucks. However, Altered Beast, Golden Axe and Mean Bean Machine are still fantastic games to be enjoyed on their own even without a buddy to tag along. The price is right. The collection is impressive and the quality is just awesome. If your going to pick up only one TV Plug-In Games unit this holiday season, this is it baby! Run to your local toy store now!

Codes Give Me Codes!!!!

With these games being 16-bit epics, you could be playing for hours and hours just to get back to were you last died. So the programmers snuck in a number of codes to make your experience much more enjoyable. These codes worked with the original Genesis carts and still work with your brand new Sega Genesis toy but don't cheat yourself out on hard workin' your way up the levels! Test your might baby. Enjoy!

ALTERED BEAST

LEVEL SELECT - At the START SCREEN press the B button then START.

GOLDEN AXE

LEVEL SELECT - In ARCADE MODE hold DOWN/LEFT plus B on the controller and press START.

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG

LEVEL SELECT - At the title screen press UP, DOWN, LEFT, RIGHT you'll then hear a ring sound. Then hold the A button and press START.

- Kelley