Difference between revisions of "Sega Channel"

From Sega Retro
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*''[[Kid Chameleon]]''

Revision as of 12:21, 22 January 2011

File:Segchannel.jpg
Sega Channel logo
Sega Genesis with the Sega Channel Adaptor
Initial Sega Channel adaptor made by Scientific Atlanta
Later model Sega Channel adaptor made by General Instrument
File:SegaChannelBarker-Front.jpg
Front of "barker" ad sent to subscribers
File:SegaChannelBarker-Back.jpg
Back of "barker" ad sent to subscribers, listing upcoming games

Sega Channel was a project developed by Sega for the Sega Mega Drive video game console. The idea was that for a monthly subscription, gamers would get a special adapter for the console, which, once connected to their cable television connection would provide them with unlimited access to over fifty downloadable Mega Drive games, with new games appearing every two weeks. The games would be downloaded in about a minute and play just like the normal versions. Though available in other regions of the world, the Sega Channel saw the most success in North America, mostly due to a lack of competition from Nintendo and heavy advertising of the service.

As well as games, Sega also ran several promotions through the service. Special previews for up-and-coming titles were provided; some import games not found in the United States were exclusive to the service and cheats and tips were handed out. Within the first two years, the Sega Channel was distributed to over 20 million homes in North America.

The Sega Channel service began in 1994, but by 1996, Sega rolled out a new "wireless" version of the Sega Channel too, which lasted about a year. The entire Sega Channel service was shut down on July 31, 1998 because by this point the Mega Drive was seen as obsolete and its successor, the Sega Saturn did not take advantage of the service.

International

The service was also available in some parts of the United Kingdom, Canada, South America, and Japan on certain cable services. For one reason or another it failed to pick up as much steam as in North America, and was abandoned much sooner.

In Japan, the Sega Channel had a unique BIOS screen featuring Sonic the Hedgehog, and some exclusive content made for that region, including Dyna Brothers 2 Special. This game was eventually released on the Wii's Virtual Console. Another game that is seemingly connected to the Sega Chanel, Game no Kanzume Otokuyou, was discovered in the Sega Dreamcast online disc, Dream Passport 3.

Demo Cartridges

In 2009, demo cartridges of the Sega Channel started to appear for sale on eBay. The first seen of such carts was "Sega Channel Demo Cartridge #6".

Later on, another cartridge was up, "Sega Channel Demo Cartridge #4". This cartridge was purchased by a resident of Lost Levels, who generously lent the cartridge to LocalH to ROM dump. The ROM can now be obtained here.

The demo cartridge appears to be a prototype with in-progress Sega Channel work, featuring an intro sequence, graphics that would be used in the early days of it's broadcasting, a simulated downloading sequence, and a background/sound test. Looking into the ROM in a hex editor also shows various "SEGATV" error messages, as well as strange code snippets.

In the menus of the Sega Channel Demo's "Test Drive" section, you can see a listing for "The Magical Quest Starring Mickey Mouse, Capcom". The original Magical Quest game was not released on the Sega Genesis.

List of Games

(Note: List is preliminary. As little has survived from the days of Sega Channel and no official list has been released, games may be missing.)

External links

  • Archive.org - Archive of the Sega Channel official homepage
  • Business Wire - Sega Channel Cited by "Popular Science" as Among 1994's Outstanding Products and Technological Achievements
  • Sega Channel - Technical details on Sega Channel and its game delivery method.
  • [1] - Gamesniped lists Sega Channel Demo 6.
  • [2] - "Dyna Brothers 2 Special" on Wii Virtual Console.
  • [3] - Japanese Blog entry which shows the boxart, cartridge and AC Adapter for Japanese Sega Channel
  • [4] - Japanese blog entry which shows some screenshots for the Japanese Sega Channel.


Sega Mega Drive
Topics Technical specifications (Hardware comparison) | History | List of games | Magazine articles | Promotional material | Merchandise | Cartridges | TradeMark Security System
Hardware Japan | North America | Western Europe | Eastern Europe | South America | Asia | South Korea | Australasia | Africa
EZ Games | LaserActive | Mega Jet | Mega PC | Mega Play | Mega-Tech System | Nomad | Teradrive | Mega Drive Mini | Mega Drive Mini 2
New Mega Drive | Tianli VCD/DVD Players | "Consoles on a chip" | Licensed clones (Magic 2 | Mega Game II | Power Pegasus | Super Bitman)
Unlicensed clones
Add-ons Game Box | Power Base Converter | Mega-CD | 32X (Mega-CD 32X) | Mega Modem | Demo System DS-16
Cases Sega Genesis Nomad Carrying Case | System Carry Case
Controllers Control Pad | Six Button Control Pad | 6 Button Arcade Pad | Arcade Power Stick 6B | Konami Justifier | MK-1470
Action Chair | Activator | Arcade Power Stick | Keyboard | MegaFire | Mouse | Mega Stick | Menacer | Remote Arcade System | Ten Key Pad | Third Party Controllers
Accessories 4 Way Play | Cleaning System | Control Pad Extension Cord | Genesis Speakers | Headset | HeartBeat Catalyst | Microphone | Region converter cartridges | Mega Terminal | Nomad PowerBack | RF Unit (Mega Drive 2) | SCART Cable (Mega Drive 2) | Stereo Audio Video Cable | Team Player | Video Monitor Cable | Third Party Accessories
Network services Sega Channel | Sega Game Toshokan | Mega Anser | Mega Net | TeleBradesco Residência | XB∀ND
Development tools ERX 308P | ERX 318P | Sprobe | SNASM68K | SNASM2 (Mega Drive) | SNASM2 (32X) | PSY-Q Development System (Mega Drive) | PSY-Q Development System (32X) | 32X CartDev | Sega Mars Development Aid System | Sega 32X Development Target
Unreleased Edge 16 | Floppy Disk Drive | Mega Play 1010 | Sega VR | Teleplay System | Video Jukebox
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