The Saturn debuted with few titles, among them the 2.5D platformer Clockwork Knight. While it had some impressive effects, it didn’t really do much to bring the genre into the “next generation” of hardware. It’s not a bad game, but it’s not exceptional either.
Author: Hasen Hull
Tomb Raider
Tomb Raider was conceived on the Saturn but found its niche on Sony’s PlayStation. Lara Croft went on to practically become the machine’s go-to character. Even so, the Saturn version is still highly playable and worth owning. It might not be as visually impressive, but its gameplay still holds up despite its flaws.
Global Defense
Sega wowed arcade gamers with SDI, a trackball-based shooter that had them defending the planet from enemy attack. The game was soon ported to the Master System, and while several compromises had to be made for it to work on the less-powerful hardware (and with a controller), the conversion turned out surprisingly well. It’s one that’s worth checking out.
Space Harrier (Master System)
Sega’s classic shooter Space Harrier has graced virtually every hardware platform the company made, starting with a port on the Master System. While it isn’t as good as some of the later versions because of hardware limitations, it’s still worth spending some time with. Welcome to the Fantasy Zone!
OutRun (Master System)
Sega’s classic racer zoomed onto the Master System in 1987 in a port that managed to capture the magic of the arcade original, despite the downgrade in hardware. Though outclassed by its Genesis and Saturn siblings, the 8-bit version of the game is still well worth playing, and it shows how well Sega’s arcade titles could transfer to the Master System.