Remembering Golden Axe

One of the most memorable games I would get early in the life of the Sega Genesis. Co-op arcade fun was just the beginning.
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[@atolm1]

Omg those Genesis ads, they still stir up so many emotions when I see them. At the timed I wanted nothing more.

[@zajicapp]

I saw those ads in some old Game Pro magazines. I would stare at them for a long time!

[@zeebotheclown4325]

It really made me think the future was going to be awesome!

[@liquidgeorge]

Golden Axe in the arcade was the first video game I ever played in 1992, along with Street Fighter II. Classic memories.

[@rexraxxor2753]

The Golden Axe soundtrack is part of my childhood.

[@dougr.8653]

At summer '90 I had a Master System. One day my father went to a video rental and he saw some kids playing Golden Axe there. He bought the used store console and took it home. The funny thing is that he paid for it and the manager asked the kids to stop playing because he sold the console. It was a complete Japanese Mega Drive. Of course, Golden Axe was included as well.

[@GenMaster]

He could have let the kids finish their game, at least.

[@pferreira1983]

He could have bought Golden Axe for the Master System. Interesting...

[@HayTatsuko]

Thunder Force 2 was one of the great unsung heroes of the Genny. I am SO HAPPY that you mentioned it, I can't even.

[@gtrzdaddy]

Wish Sega would do a remake of Golden Axe with real sprites, and also include the arcade Golden Axe Revenge of Deathaddee

[@UncleDeadly1031]

Grant H Lee Real sprites?

[@Salty_dog132]

@@UncleDeadly1031 Yup. Those ones you see here are not sprites but tiles of background. Pretty clever on making the hardware stomach a bit more.

[@Rayofficial13565]

@@Salty_dog132 This is true of the SMS version but I can't find any verification this is the case for the Genesis. I'm not sure why it would be necessary with a VDP that can handle 20 sprites per scan line without flicker.

[@NemXX2]

With the success of Sonic Mania and Streets of Rage 4, it is becoming likely that Golden Axe might have it's chance as well.

[@gurgamous]

i wish revenge of death adder would get a console release. such a good arcade game

[@knucklesechidna2124]

It's great but really obscure, even among Golden Axe fans. We need to let Sega know we want a port!

[@makaveli4205]

Very underrated

[@jerrymcnulty4668]

It’s cool that a channel I like is dropping a late night vid for me to enjoy thanks sega lord

[@rorytaylor626]

I loved playing Golden Axe in the arcades back in the day. I can still hear all the music and sound effects. Great memories of playing this and Forgotten Worlds when my buddy got his Genesis.

[@arturkarpinski164]

Beautiful and smart gameplay. I clearly remember playing this at the arcade. Anybody else miss the good ol days??

[@gallowaygaming75]

Gone are the good old arcades it's all gambling machines these days

[@CAPCOM784]

Yep I'd take the old days over digital downloads and patching anyday of the week!

[@andrewmaasch1724]

Golden Axe was the first ever arcade game I played. I was 8 years old and my mind was blown! Still fire-up the megadrive version every few months. It's an excellent port! Especially considering how early it was released in the Genesis/megadrive era 🖒

[@CAPCOM784]

Golden Axe and Altered Beast blew my mind in the arcade many years ago.Sega had so many great arcade releases back in the day it was a good time to be a gamer back then.

[@knucklesechidna2124]

Add that to Sega making their own arcade hits and porting them to their own machines, which shared a lot of similarities. They did this again with Dreamcast. :)

[@TheIMMORTALKAHNHD]

These are always fun. I like how he gives advice too.

[@oldmanretro949]

I’m so glad I had a SEGA Genesis as a part of my childhood! 😘

[@joeboo8626]

One of the best Genesis games. First played it in 1991, it wasn't until 2018 before I realized you could kill Death Bringer's skeletons.

[@DreamcastQ]

I was in elementary school when this came out and it was such a fantastic multiplayer game for us kids, many hours of fun huddled around the tv with the fancy new Genesis!

[@vidlink]

Always loved the way enemies screamed when you defeated them in the Golden Axe series. Use to watch my freinds fight over who played as the dwarf.

[@brendanroberts7949]

Interesting fact the screams were sampled from the first Rambo film.

[@matiasd.7755]

@@brendanroberts7949 ripped also from Conan...

[@midnightkitty8172]

This really brought back the memories for me~! A real trip down memory lane. Thank you very much for posting this, Sega Lord X.

[@animalmother8037]

Honestly missed out on this game and didn't get a chance to try it until years later. I appreciate it a lot more now that I understand it better. Thanks for these adventures down memory lane. Keep these great videos coming!

[@franciscor390]

Gorgeous video, the soundtrack for Golden Axe is one that has burned into my mind, it's as epic as it can get. Growing up with movies as "Jason and the Argonauts", the children of hydra was something that i always found fascinating, the closest thing to this in the video game world was the skeleton warriors from Golden Axe. I could almost feel like they had a unique personality (even though they were video game characters) they were ruthless and mercilessly ganged up on you. You could feel their evil smirk. Thank you so much for these amazing works of art Sega Lord X.

[@Prizrak-hv6qk]

Getting this close to 16-bit arcade gaming at home was just magical. Getting that super slick black box in your house and popping in games like this was just amazing in 1990. Compared to years of NES ownership, this was like replacing your good ole gray Civic with a black Porsche.

[@StandingUpForBetter]

Great video and I can totally relate. When I was able to play this game on my Genesis so close to the arcade release it really felt like magical times. Thanks for bringing me back!

[@thatryeguy6145]

At this point I click like as soon as I load the video. Love this Sega goodness!

[@Michael.Hunt.14-52]

I think you've found a great format in what you've done with this video. I'd love to see more retrospectives on the earlier genesis library. Something like streets of Rage 1 would be a great watch as it lives in the shadow of its sequel.

[@andrewmaasch1724]

He made that video 2 weeks ago. It's called "Remembering Streets of Rage". Search through SLX' video's and you will find it 😊

[@Michael.Hunt.14-52]

Lol maybe that's why that idea came from the recesses of my memory. 😅

[@philwalkercuriousmind]

My most excited ever Christmas was when I got my Japanese megadrive with Golden Axe. Blew me away. Will never forget it.

[@bagsikdangal]

Title should be *"Remembering the awesomeness of Golden Axe"*

[@eddiebrock118]

Love scrollin beat em ups. Golden axe and streets of rage series all got rinsed. I found that in golden axe the enemies would actually team up but in rage they didnt they would take turns if you will to attack.

[@knucklesechidna2124]

Alien Storm you're chargin' like a maniac. lol

[@JCdragon81]

So many memories of playing this game. Still one of my go to beat em up games to play.

[@jopiaspieder1184]

Arcade games coming home to home console is the reason I loved the Sega Genesis. Sega delivered big time in that area and that's the reason I'm a die hard Sega fan and Genesis to me was their best console. Besides bring the arcade home their marketing at the time was top notch and untouchable.

[@iankempster7007]

Still play this classic from time to time. Great video

[@chattingesque372]

Golden Axe The Duel kicked butt!

[@infinityeight8705]

I remember 1st coming across golden axe in a cafe in my local town, they had previously had bad dudes dragoninja and double dragon and this was another excellent 2p beat em up that me and my friends used to go and play. At the time I had the commodore 64 and I got golden axe for Christmas - I really enjoyed it and the music in the c64 version was/still is really good! While I did get a megadrive with sonic the following Christmas , It was only when I got the Mega cd that I got to play this version of golden axe - it's such a great game to play through and ohh... that music, it transports me back in time every time I hear it!

[@Wip3ou7]

Great video as always. I love Golden Axe. SEGA made the best brawlers.

[@TboneTenEighties]

If it came to arcade Sega made the best everything imo. Genesis brang that home. Remember seeing the Genesis displayed on a tv in a pc richards showing off Altered Beast. Blew me away considering i new the game all to well in the arcade (one of my favs at the time). I needed it in my life lol i couldn't believe how much like the arcade version it was. The rest is history. SEGA!!!

[@Wip3ou7]

@@TboneTenEighties I used to sneak away from my mom in the mall to play sonic on the display at sears

[@S4vman]

Such a great game. I actually first played it on PC, I didn't have a Mega Drive (Australia) until a few years later. Top video SLX!

[@mazonemayu]

Konami's Thunder Cross did that for me (and it still does), specially the 4th stage with the huge battleship, and that music...man, I still get goosebumps every time I play that part of the game, it is simple, yep perfect...good memories

[@Deflecto3]

One of the best SEGA related channels on YT! Great work, my dude.

[@thehumbleone1983]

Golden Axe one of the games I grew up with as a kid and I love it

[@gallowaygaming75]

Golden axe is still a brilliant game today I still play it now but golden axe 2 is the best version for megadrive

[@backinthedaygamer]

That was a great review! I didn't grow up w this one but recently beat it. After listening to you it'll b a lot easier to do again.

[@Industen]

I remember carefully opening the box a few times before Christmas just to stare at the Genesis box. I did this with Ghouls & Ghosts too. It was so hard to get it back into the wrapping paper. Ah, memories.

[@RelativeStrengthFit]

This video made my day better

[@jaykelley103]

I'm glad your channel is getting up there in subs, your vids are dope. Filled with passion, knowledge, and charisma. And you made death adder look like a fucking chump. Good shit, dude.

[@MarquisDeSang]

I would like a VR version of Golden Axe with miniature figurines.

[@ShinobiShowdown]

I had this game along with Altered Beast, and Thunderblade on Christmas day in1989 when the Genesis debuted. The soundtrack is great on Data Discs.

[@martinevans1206]

I live in the UK and I bought an imported Japanese model (in 1990) that was modified to play any region. Golden Axe was my first game. Loved it.

[@Yakov_EPH-6.12]

the ending of this was right in the feelings.

[@cadencero5313]

This was awesome! I still play it!

[@EvandroACruz]

Golden Axe and Revenge Of Shinobi were my first Mega Drive games and I have fond memories both them.Golden Axe show us that a faithful Arcade port was possible in the 16 bits system.I love the GA franchise and is so sad that the series is dead in nowadays.Golden Axe deserves a revival.

[@PSYK0MANT1S]

Last Tuesday, I streamed the System 32 classic Revenge of Death Adder. What a game.

[@SegaLordX]

A game Sega needs to release on the Switch.

[@knucklesechidna2124]

ASAP

[@memphisallen8021]

My favorite Sega franchise for sure!

[@AdamMann3D]

I'm a Nintendo guy for the most part, but a friend had a Genesis and Golden Axe. It's a classic.

[@luisreyes1963]

Of all the memories Golden Axe invokes was the first time I laid eyes on the sexy Amazon. Good times.

[@tovopro]

Hahaa. I came for this comment! I had the cover art poster just for her. My favorite character was the Dwarf, BUT I would choose her so I could pause the game to get a better view. LoL.

[@WhatsHisName26]

One of my favorite arcade games of all time.

[@Juice2Fifty]

I got this game in Christmas of ‘89 and had tons of fun with it. Co-op was super fun and I can’t remember just how many times I ran through the dual-spamming the charge attack 😉

[@DissociatedWomenIncorporated]

I remember being seven when the original Sonic the Hedgehog came out, and it was my first exposure to any 16 bit gaming system, both me and my big sister (who was 19 or 20) were really impressed just by the fact the rings spun around. My mother was overly concerned about the possibility of violent games affecting me so I wasn't allowed to own Golden Axe (or Streets of Rage) sadly, but I did frequently play them when I visited my cousins. That also reminds me of swapping Alex Kidd with a friend's Mortal Kombat II to circumvent such parental censorship when I was 13 or 14 😂

[@knucklesechidna2124]

There's some decent kids games on Genesis. Disney has a ton.

[@knucklesechidna2124]

Lemme tell you what I had in 1995 back when I was 6 years old. 1. Sonic The Hedgehog (older cousin passed it down) 2. Columns (packed with it) 3. Taz in: Escape From Mars 4. Toy Story That's it.

[@DissociatedWomenIncorporated]

@Nostalgia Addict1978, nah, I'd have missed out on Ecco, Ristar and Puggsy, that would've been unforgivable! 😁 I was given a choice of Mega Drive or SNES actually... Don't regret choosing the former at all!

[@DissociatedWomenIncorporated]

@Nostalgia Addict1978, I got into emulation when I was 16. I was pleased to discover the wonderful RPGs on that system, as a little girl I'd bought Final Fantasy Legends 2 on the Game Boy (because it looked like Zelda in screenshots, but the totally different gameplay style was a delight rather than a letdown) and not really had any exposure to anything else like it since. There were also of course many other great games to discover in the SNES library 😊 Super Metroid being a particular favourite, again a series I was introduced to through my Game Boy ownership (though that's one I picked up cheap and second hand when I was 16).

[@gimmedaloot754]

Thank you for these memories. I used to call 1-800-USA-SEGA. Just to listen to the hype about upcoming games and the genesis. Funny thing, that’s how I learned about the genesis. I literally called the 800 number daily just to hear the hyped recordings of upcoming games and one day, BOOM! There it was! The recording of this awesome 16-bit console announcement! Here’s a line I remember till this very day from those recordings about the Genesis - “look, sound and play exactly like the arcade!” Those claims weren’t exactly true but, good God, they were close enough. I still own a 1st generation Genesis console!

[@RyonTeachesMugen]

For myself, I first played Golden Axe on the Dreamcast's Sega Smash Pack Volume 1. I loved the game at first sight. I was pulled into the story I wanted to see what happened next, I wanted revenge on Death Adder. It was so amazing!

[@expendable6373]

Great video, great game, great memories!

[@taecentro6169]

Love so much this game. Thanks!!!

[@b-thatch6340]

That was a badass intro

[@icefire5855]

Fantastic vid and commentary as always SLX. 💯👊🏽

[@yfz350twin]

I got my Genesis on Christmas of 1991 I was 16 years old. Golden Axe was one of my main games along with Streets of Rage.

[@andyappleton3353]

Great review! This was one of the Genesis classics. No disappointment with this home version.

[@ZanzibarBreeze]

I had this on the Mega Drive in the UK and it didn't have that final level.

[@bassage13]

I played sooo much Golden Axe back then. It's the only game I ever beat in the arcade.

[@1202raher]

Anyone with a name like Segalord deserves a sub

[@actionhanz3420]

"... when my mother scored it for Christmas" ah yes, it was sometimes a challenge to get your parents to buy that one game you wanted. today my mother spends more time in front of her i-pad than i ever did playing those supposedly evil video games.

[@JonnyD79]

The irony for me was that I played Golden Axe 2 before I played the first. XD

[@spidos1000]

Jonny D irony?

[@brentgranger7856]

"Golden Axe 2" was one of the very few non-sports or non-Sonic Genesis games I ever played and enjoyed before I got "Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection" and realized I missed so many gems.

[@goldpieceleo]

When I was a kid we have Super Nintendo and Sega Mega Drive 2 at the same time. During that time I like SNES more because it has more RPGs and of course Super Metroid and Megaman X series but Sega still has a place in my heart because it has the arcade games and co op mode that I enjoy more with my friends. I often play the SNES alone.

[@TRJ2241987]

I have very strong emotions for Golden Axe, born in early '87, it is basically the first arcade game I ever remember playing along with Nintendo Popeye, Root Beer Tapper, and Timber, I remember playing all of those as a very small child. But I was always very drawn to Golden Axe, something about the aura of the machine just captivated me. Some people think the game is nothing special, but seeing that machine in person as a kid gave me big chills. I hope some day Arcade1up can do a release....I know it will never happen, but could you imagine this, Altered Beast, Michael Jacksons Moonwalker & Shinobi on the same cabinet on an official release....that would be special

[@Elkott]

Flashback was the Mega Drive game that blew my young mind.

[@MistaMaddog247]

I had lots of fond memories playing the arcade version of Golden Axe. One was trying to help my friend beat Death Adder, unsuccessfully sad to say... The other arcade where I hung out at had a Japanese version where during the attract mode you see an bad guy get his head cut off... and it flew right at the screen! The Genesis version is good but my heart remains with the arcade original.

[@ferndogg310]

Megaman 2 in the NES did it for me but glad you and many enjoyed gems like this on the Genisis

[@mr-fu1xz]

the skull guys in level 4 look the skull guy in killer instict very similiar.

[@jbmaru]

I played it a lot with a friend on his PC in the early 90's. The VGA graphics and Adlib music were pretty close to the Genesis version.

[@KTJohnsonkidThunder]

I didn't get to play Golden Axe until back in '03 when my cousin had a Genesis and the 6-Pak cart.

[@amdcolon1]

1:56 a.m. about to go to sleep... Oh never mind😀

[@kingbeef5076]

They really should have called the final boss ‘Death Multiplier’. Far more powerful than addition. I love how they gave all the enemies names and stats at the end, as well.

[@agentchris1482]

Interesting fact: The skeletons that are with Death Bringer can be killed they have more health than even the final boss himself lol.

[@knucklesechidna2124]

Used to waste a ton of lives on that first jump after beating him. You know the one.

[@wolfpacak47]

my all time fav arcade game with altered beast behind it wish they would come to Nintendo switch!!!

[@leogameslocadora]

I Love golden axe. Arcades,mega drive,master system ali versions

[@thejoeycage]

I rented Golden Axe 1 and 2 back in the early 90's like 10 times each , still fun as shit , badass music

[@retrosoul8770]

But why didn't you just buy it? You might have well of at that pt

[@thejoeycage]

@@retrosoul8770 I was like 8 lol

[@bizcuitz3556]

The axe at the end always glitched out for me too lol almost every damn time.

[@Resvrgam]

BIZCUITZ 35 I’ve only ever seen it glitch out on emulators. A friend told me it’s also possible on model 2 Genesis/Mega-Drives but, when we tested it, we couldn’t get that specific glitch to play.

[@SegaLordX]

The glitch is in the original revision of the game. It was fixed later. It does this on emulators because you are likely using the original ROM.

[@Resvrgam]

Sega Lord X That explains a lot! We were trying to replicate the glitch (and a fewer flickering ones on the map screens) using the consoles and various emulators....when we should have been testing different versions of the game cartridge. Thanks for the clarification.

[@bizcuitz3556]

Yea I had the original day 2 release of both the game and system sometimes it was normal but most of the time the axe was all fucked up lol.

[@samfrito]

I love Golden Axe, both home and arcade. The home version felt proper with intro and the charcoal sketches of the playable characters. We got really lucky this conversion came out so early in the genesis life and was so close to what we loved in the arcade. We could have gotten NES Double Dragon'd or SNES Final Fight. That would have sucked. Golden Axe remains one of my favorites to this day. How come the powers at SEGA have not been back to the village where Alex died? Also, Death Bringers throne is awesome looking. They did an outstanding job.

[@soulreaver1983]

Amazing game! Me and my dad loved this game! ☺

[@Sholities]

The only Golden Axe I played was Golden Axe: The Duel on the Sega CD (I think). Loved that game.

[@nicolasolivieri3241]

Wow, you know what Golden Axe is ? Unbelievable !

[@RobsMemoryLane]

Love this game. Great video

[@l30S3UX]

Nice walktrough :D

[@robertdaone]

Given the limitations of the Genesis they did a pretty good job I always thought. Anyone else hook their Genesis headphone output port to their stereo like I did and blast the music from the games as I did? Revenge of Shinobi had a kick ass soundtrack that was bumping when played through a stereo system.

[@joeshmo3360]

I actually played the Sega Genesis version first before playing the arcade version. I remember beating the arcade version and telling myself, what happened to the last stage. Until I was told that death adder was the last boss and that death bringer was a Genesis exclusive. Which is why I prefer the Genesis version because that death bringer music was so good. Still hum that song from time to time. Awesome playthrough BTW 👍. Also I wish they would port Golden axe: the revenge of death adder. And while we're on the subject, bring outrunners, rad mobile, Spider-Man arcade and Sega Sonic the hedgehog to some kind of console.

[@iankempster7007]

Love this channel

[@opa-age]

It also had probably the best and funniest end credits of any Genesis game.

[@jstephenswork]

I have this dream of re-converting the arcade game, and making it near arcade perfect.

[@JoolsGuitar]

beautiful review man, thx

[@marcusgreene8434]

One of the best of the best!

[@arcticridge]

To sum up Golden Axe: 1. Save that magic 2. Don't fall off the screen

[@mr_wah_wah]

Another great video. I played the golden axe arcade tons of times back in 1989-1990 in coop mode. When I bought a megadrive in 1992, I didn't want to buy the console version. I knew it like the palm of my hand and needed new games. I played the console version in 2001 with an emulator. What a great conversion! What do you think about golden axe 2? I played it in 1992. It's a awesome game too.

[@SegaLordX]

Enjoyed part 2 quite a bit as well.

[@TyroneMScott]

Good video love this game. Thanks

[@azmodanpc]

As an Amiga user, I was kinda envious of the MegaDrive conversion. The arcade was imho much better in every regard (the animations, scrolling, frames per second and effects were really gorgeous).