Sega Master System

From Sega Retro

The Sega Master System (SMS for short) (Japanese: マスターシステム), was an 8-bit cartridge-based gaming console manufactured by Sega.

For information on the earlier Japanese version of the console, see SG-1000 Mark III.

History

The SG-1000 Mark III came after the SG-1000 Mark I and SG-1000 Mark II. It was released in Japan on October 20, 1985. The mascot of the system was Alex Kidd.

The system was redesigned and was sold in the United States under the name Sega Master System in June 1986, one year after the Nintendo Entertainment System was released. The console sold for $200. The Master System was then released in other places, including a second release in Japan in 1987 under its new name. It is large, tech-looking system measuring 14 3/8" W - 6 5/8" D - 2 3/4" H, with sharp corners (unlike the Genesis or SMS II) and black plastic casing. In comparison, the NES looks like a Cessna single-engine compared to the SMS' SR-71 design. After a one-inch base, the machine is formed upward and inward to form the cartridge slot plateau.


The SMS has an introduction screen which appears each time you turn on your SMS (with or without a game inserted). The Sega logo slowly "slides" into view mid-screen (with accompanying sound effect), and the text "Master System" appears underneath. A two-tone intro tune is played during this sequence, which is best compared to the opening tune in the 16-bit Genesis version of Sonic the Hedgehog (though, in the SMS' case, the singing choir is replaced by the simple tones).

Unlike the NES, the SMS has an instructional screen that appears if you turn on your system without having a cart or card inserted (the instructional screen appears after the introduction screen). Later on (specific time-period, anyone?), Sega switched to built-in software, which automatically loads if you turn on your machine without a game present.

In what seems to be a tradition with game systems, Sega of America released the Sega Master System II in 1990 in order to increase it's current user base via inexpensive (though downscaled) hardware. This "2nd generation" SMS (comparable to the Atari 2600 Jr. and remodeled NES) measures _ x _ x _. Very much the opposite of the original model, the SMS II looks similar to the remodeled 16-bit Genesis system. Smooth curves, rounded corners, variable degrees of black and gray colored plastic, plus an enlarged, white Pause button for those "dive for the system" type of action games. As an incentive, Sega included Alex Kidd in Miracle World as a built-in freebie.

Unlike the SMS I, however, the SMS II lacks the following features (they were dropped in order to reduce the price of manufacture):


Though the Master System was more technically advanced in some ways than the NES, it did not attain the same level of popularity among consumers in the United States. Its lack of success in the U.S. has been attributed to various causes, among them the difference in game titles available for each platform, and the slightly later release date of the Master System. The licensing agreement that Nintendo had with its third-party game developers may have had an impact as well; the agreement stated, in effect, that developers would produce games for the NES only. The Master System sold 125,000 consoles in the first four months. In the same period, the NES would net 2,000,000.

Nintendo had 90% of the North American Market at the time. Hayou Nakayama, then CEO of Sega, decided not to use too much effort to market the said console in the NES-dominated market. In 1988, the rights to the Master System in North America were sold to Tonka, but its popularity continued to decline. The move was considered a very bad one, since Tonka had never marketed a console and had no idea on earth what to do ab out it.

In 1990, Sega was having success with its Sega Megadrive/Sega Genesis, and they took back the rights from Tonka for the SMS. They designed the Sega Master System II, a newer console which was smaller and sleeker but which, to keep production costs low, lacked the the reset button and card slot of the original. Sega did everything in its power to market the system, but nothing came out of it.

By 1992, the Master System's sales were virtually nonexistent in North America, and production ceased. The SMS didn't do too well in Japan either, since the Famicom, which the Japanese Master System competed with, dominated the Japanese market.

In Europe, the Sega Master System was marketed by Sega in many different countries, including a few which Nintendo wasn't even selling consoles to. The Europeans garnered lots of third party support for the SMS, and it outdid the NES in that market. Nintendo was forced to get licensing for some popular SMS titles in that market. The Master System was supported until 1996 in that market. It was finally discontinued so Sega could concentrate on the Sega Saturn.

The SMS didn't do as well as the NES in Australia, but the defeat wasn't as crushing as it was in North America.

Brazil was one of the SMS' most successful markets. It was marketed in that country by Tec Toy, Sega's Brazilian distributor. A Sega Master System III (and even a semi-portable SMS VI) had been released in that market, and several games had been translated for the Brazilians. The characters in the said games had been modified so that they appealed to Brazilian audiences (for example, Wonder Boy in Monster Land featured Turma da Mônica, the main character from a popular children's comic-book in Brazil). Brazil was where the first several Sonic the Hedgehog Game Gear titles started out in. Tails, one of the characters, made his worldwide debut in '[Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (Master System)|Sonic the Hedgehog 2]] for the Master System. That title would later be ported to the Game Gear in other markets.

Later in its life in Brazil, Game Gear games had been ported to the Master System, and several original Brazilian titles were made for the system. Tectoy also produced a licensed version of the wildly popular fighting game Street Fighter II for the Master System. Despite the limitations of the console, the game turned out to be pretty good. The console production was familiar to the Brazilians, which explains the success in that market. During the Master System's final days in Brazil, games had been marketed for small children.

The Sega Master System is still being produced in Brazil. The latest version is the "Master System III Collection". It uses the same design as the north-american Master System II (Master System III in Brazil), but is white and comes with 74 games built-in on an internal ROM.

Overall, the SMS was mildly successful worldwide, but failed to capture the Japanese and North American markets. Sega learned from its mistakes and made the Sega Megadrive wildly popular in Europe and Latin America, and the North American equivalent, the Sega Genesis, popular in that said market. The failure of the SMS meant the success of the Megadrive and Genesis.

Specifications

  • 3546893Hz for PAL/SECAM, 3579545Hz for NTSC
  • Up to 32 simultaneous colors available from a palette of 64 (can also show 64 simultaneous colors using programming tricks)
  • Screen resolutions 256x192 and 256x224. PAL/SECAM also supports 256x240
  • 8x8 pixel characters, max 488 (due to VRAM space limitation)
  • 8x8 or 8x16 pixel sprites, max 64
  • Horizontal, diagonal, vertical, and partial screen scrolling
  • Sound (PSG): Texas Instruments SN76489
  • 4 channel mono sound
  • 3 sound generators, 4 octaves each, 1 white noise generator
  • 9 channel mono FM sound
  • built into Japane

se Master System

  • available as plug-in module for Mark III
  • supported by certain games only
  • ROM: 64 Kbits (8KB) to 2048 Kbits (256KB), depending on built-in game
  • Main RAM: 64 Kbits (8KB)
  • Video RAM: 128 Kbits (16KB)
  • Game Card slot (Mark III and Master System 1 only)
  • Game Cartridge slot
  • Japanese consoles use 44-pin cartridges, same shape as Mark I and Mark II
  • Non-Japanese consoles use 50-pin cartridges with a different shape
  • The difference in cartridge style is a form of regional lockout
  • Expansion slot

Sonic Games for the Sega Master System

External links

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