Blast Processing the Past

When the Sega 3D Classics Collection was first announced, I was kind of confused with the package’s lineup. Sure I’d heard of Altered Beast, Sonic the Hedgehog, and Fantasy Zone, but games like Power Drift, Maze Walker, or Puyo Puyo II never garnered my interest. I have an excuse for not playing Maze Walker, considering I didn’t own a Master System as a kid, but as for Power Drift and Thunder Blade, I just didn’t really seek these games out when I was at the arcade. Thankfully, because of the Sega 3D Classics Collection, I’ve not just enjoyed these new-to-me gems, but a handful of other classics that I would have never played if it weren’t for this package. It’s like a history lesson in cart form, but actually fun!

The list of games presented here are as follows:

Sonic the Hedgehog (Sega Genesis)
Altered Beast (Sega Genesis)
Galaxy Force II (Arcade)
Thunder Blade (Arcade)
3D Fantasy Zone II (Arcade)
Power Drift (Arcade)
Puyo Puyo 2 (Aracde)
Maze Walker (Master System)
Fantasy Zone II (Master System)

In my time with Sega 3D Classics Collection, I found myself playing the games I’ve never played before the majority of the time. This was a bit surprising to me, because when I first downloaded the game I was extremely excited to play through Altered Beast, and the next plan was to jump right into Sonic the Hedgehog, but the game Power Drift was front and center, so I decided to try my hand at that first. Hours and laps went by, and next thing I realized it was four in the morning and I had to be at work in two hours! I couldn’t believe that this racing game that I’d never even heard of sucked me in and had me playing for hours on end – and this is coming from a gamer that dislikes most racing games. The same crazy thing happened the next night when I fired up Puyo Puyo II! Here was another game that I’d never played yet somehow it buried its hooks into me even deeper than Tetris did on the day I was gifted my Gameboy. Thunder Blade and Galaxy Force II soaked up my attention the next two nights, and at this point I wasn’t confused at the game’s lineup anymore; I was pleased.

Sega 3D Classics Collection’s game selection screen is pretty simple to navigate overall, but I quickly noticed that I only saw 7 of the 9 games that were supposed to be available to play. I figured maybe I had to unlock the other two games that were missing, but then I saw an “Extras” option on the bottom of the touch screen. For some reason the Master System games aren’t displayed with the other 7 titles in the package, and I’m a bit confused as to why. It’s a small complaint, but having everything accessible from the main screen would be a lot simpler. Upon choosing the game you’d like to play you will be greeted by Professor Asobin, who was Sega’s first official mascot from way back in 1983. He’s a rabbit that will provide you with tips and tricks depending on what game you’re about to play. It’s a nice touch that will surely put a smile on a retro Sega fan’s face. It’s in the game selection screen that retro meets 3D, and you get a feel that you’re about to experience these classics in a way that you’ve probably never thought possible back in the 80’s and 90’s.

If the 3D slider on your 3DS console is full of dust and cobwebs, I strongly suggest a good blast from an air can, because developer M2 has taken great strides toward making sure the 3D is perfect. Each and every game looks simply stunning in 3D, and I could immediately tell a great amount of planning went into what was to be in the foreground and background of each game. Additional visual features added are the ability to change the 3D to “fall-in” or “pop-out” mode, or view the screen in classic mode, which gives the player the illusion of playing on an old tube TV. These additions weren’t available in every game though, which seemed a bit odd, but the classic TV mode seemed like more of a gimmick that will only be used once and then turned off for good. The only instance the 3D gave me a bit of a headache is when I switched from fall-in to pop-out mode while playing Altered Beast. My eyes had some trouble adjusting, especially to the pop-out mode, but a quick change back to fall-in mode corrected my vision and made my headache subside.

M2 has taken each game and rebuilt them from the ground up, so along with the 3D graphics comes a wealth of new features that are a welcome addition to these classics. Players are now given the ability to do things like change difficulty, increase or decrease the amount of lives to start a game, change the game version from International to Japan, and a handful of other modifications that you can tweak to your heart’s content. A small misstep is that there is no explanation on what the difference between game modes are, as most gamers will not notice the changes between the Japanese Altered Beast compared to International. PSG emulation is another option that is available to change from Genesis 1 to Genesis 2, and again it doesn’t go into any explanation of what the difference is. Maybe once the physical game is released the game’s manual will explain this, but in-game you’re going to have to guess what the differences are. One other design flaw is certain games will alert the player to press “start” to begin the game, but the start button will bring up the menu screen. The “X” button will act as your start button in all titles but due to the on screen prompt informing you to press the start button; you’re guaranteed to bring up the menu screen more often than you’d like.

Putting hours into the classics that I never played as a kid was a welcome surprise, but jumping into the games I grew up with was simply awesome. Sonic and Altered Beast both consumed hours of my childhood, and having them on my handheld today they are devouring hours of my adulthood too. They both look beautiful on the 3DS, and it still shocks me, even after hours of gameplay, to see these in crisp and vibrant 3D. Being an adult and not having time to game sucks, but since each game offers a save state slot I’m able to just save my game at any time and continue right where I left off once I’ve changed a diaper or got out of a meeting. Out of all the features we retro gamers have today, I believe save states to be the most welcoming.

Even though Nintendo and Sega have been friends for years now, it still surprises me that I can play a Sonic game on a Nintendo console. This is the future and it’s confusing as hell! Yes, you may be depressed that you still don’t have that flying car, but come on people; you have Sega 3D Classics playable on a Nintendo handheld that fits in your back pocket! What more could you ask for?

Final Verdict: 4.5/5

Available on: 3DS (Reviewed) ; Publisher:  SEGA ; Developer: SEGA M2 ; Players: 1-2 ; Released: April 26, 2016 ; ESRB: E for Everyone ; MSRP: $29.99

Full disclosure: This review is based on a review code provided by the publisher.