Top 10 Obscure Sega Genesis Gems

[@WatsonatorTV]

It was incredibly hard to narrow this list down to just 10 games, I know there are dozens more that I could have included and I am certainly not saying that the ones I chose are the only ones worthy of mentioning. Let me know some of your Sega Genesis/Mega Drive recommendations that you think are underrated or obscure. One day I might do a part 2 to this, or possibly one for a different console.

[@adamkane7513]

You did a good job. I've been a Sega MegaDrive devotee for over 3 decades and hadn't seen Devilish, Wings of Wor or the Buck Rogers game before. I recommend *Blades of Vengeance* if you do a part 2. You probably know it already but it is a personal favourite of mine. Oddly enough the arcade version of *Growl* is a 2 player co-op game. They definitely missed an opportunity with the conversion.

[@sweeshaman]

i would have to say chiki chiki boys and allysia dragoon

[@chriswheatley3146]

@@adamkane7513 I had seen Buck Rodgers in the stores. I always wanted it, but never bought it or could find it in the rental stores. It was essentially a sci-fi version of the D&D gold box series of games. Devilish I never knew about until emulation for the Game Gear, but couldn't get enough of it once I tried it.

[@braillynn]

Needs a list for the Master System 😎

[@chriswheatley3146]

Great list of lesser known titles. 👍 Some more to add: Phelios Warsong (more popular now, but back then no one knew about Langrisser) Master of Monsters Arcus Odyssey Shadow Blasters Starflight Speedball 2 (popular in UK, not so much in the US) Star Control Valis 3 Crackdown Gain Ground General Chaos Dinosaurs for Hire Ex-Mutants Herzog Zwei (classic now, severely underrated at the time) Marvel Land (one of the better platformers until Sonic came along) King's Bounty (was the predecessor to The Heroes of Might & Magic series) Outlander (Mad Max without the licensing) Shadowrun (was obscure at the time, now considered one of the best rpgs overall in the 16-bit era) I'm so glad Genesis games were rentable at the time since so many classics would be missed otherwise :)

[@WatsonatorTV]

Absolutely excellent list my guy! I definitely played a good bit of these and a lot of them were highly considered for my list. I may end up doing a part two some day and include some. I like how you specified which ones might not be so unheard of now but were very underrated back in the day, there were so many titles I missed as a kid. Cheers and thanks for the sub!

[@R0YB0T]

Warsong! Loved that game. No nonsense too, if one of your guys die that's it!

[@Debbie-qs2xo]

I'll add 2 games to that list. Battle Mania and Battle Mania 2

[@24magiccarrot]

I'd add Pirates Gold since most probably won't realize there's a mega drive version of the game.

[@pengen_gantinama]

Love Master of Monsters and King's Bounty. Populous II is also deserve to be in that list. I love Starflight too but the game is too punishing, I spend hours of mining and capturing aliens only to eventually run out of fuel or encountering hostile ships and losing everything. lmao

[@DefMettle]

dude! make more videos like this.. these are some awesome finds!

[@jothain]

Interesting list. Though in my circles everyone knew Humans and Chaos Engine. That Devilish looks really interesting "arkanoid" game 👍 Buck Rogers looks interesting too.

[@Agumon5]

The Sega Genesis is my favorite 16-bit console, and I would go as far as to say my favorite console up until the PS2 released. Absolutely love this system. Spent so many hours playing the 6 pak collection and Sonic 2. Also Aladdin and Earthworm Jim. I was even lucky enough to have a copy of mortal Kombat as a kid. I picked up my Genesis model 2 used and quite late, around 1997, but that made it easier to buy games for cheap. I remember being able to go to flea markets, and walking out with a new game for like $10-$15. I spent so much time playing that system. It was plugged into my TV until like 2003. Great memories. 😊

[@kbkimoseley]

I have watched many similar videos but I have to say you have some great pics and two I need to play Humans and Growl. Will definitely check out your other videos.

[@WatsonatorTV]

Thank you for the kind words! I think I am going to start working on some other hidden gems videos so keep an eye out.

[@kbkimoseley]

@WatsonatorTV Sega Genesis is my #1 console but there are some Gems that don't get mentioned enough on the NES like Faxanadu, Battle of Olympus, and Conflict as well as the TG16 and PS1.

[@nomorenames5568]

I just watched basically every hidden gem for genesis video on youtube and this was by far the most hidden and gem game list. Great stuff, thank you.

[@Zobbster]

Excellent to see that you went deeper than just the normal surface level when selecting games. Great job!

[@visionop8]

There were some really good obscure picks in this video. I didn't even know about the Buck Rogers one! My Genesis collection is made of mostly unpopular games like this which were always my favorites, some of them being Whip Rush, Target Earth and Mazin Saga. I really like the idea of some videos based on obscure games for the Sega Saturn but beware! You could possibly dedicate an entire channel to that.

[@SilasKade]

Good work! I'm glad I got to learn about these. Hope there's a part 2!

[@HighFalutinTootin]

Ex-Mutants is a hidden gem imo it's got a unique personality and charm to it

[@matteobaffa8533]

Nice list! It's not easy to find games as Final Zone, Gynoug, Growl or Fatal Labyrinth in lists like this. They're often underrated, but they're great and unique. I didn't know Humans, I'll surely try it. Can I suggest some more underrated or lesser known title? - Asterix and the power of gods. Non linear platform with beautiful music and very nice and colorful visuals. - Universal Soldier. Basically Turrican II masked for some stupid production reason. But forgetting this, very enjoyable experience. - Pocahontas. Puzzle-platform with fantastic graphics and original and relaxing formula for its time. - Technoclash. Visually similar to Soldiers of Fortune but with magic and RPG elements. - The Lost World Jurassic Park. One of the last games for sega genesis/mega drive. Top down action/adventure that experimented a lot and have huge levels to explore, with specific missions to complete, and other short levels in a primitive 3d that has a lot of charm. - Mario Andretti Racing. Nothing of unconventional 😬 but cool! Sorry for my "engrish". Thanks for your video! Cheers from Italy!

[@WatsonatorTV]

Great suggestions! I am familiar with a few of these but a couple I have only looked at, I really need to try Technoclash. Also Jurassic Park Rampage Edition was one of my all time favorites as a kid so I owe it to myself to try out The Lost World (I think I remember seeing it come out since I had my Genesis pretty late in the cycle and saw the movie in theaters).

[@animalinho1983]

honestly, I was very skeptical but these is a really good list of proper obscure games, well done! Not easy to do this at this stage.

[@opa-age]

Great list! This is the first video I've seen that acknowledged what an amazing port Buck Rogers was! It's one of my all time favorite Genesis games.

[@georged7627]

Emulation is the way to go for those games that are hard to get

[@crintondux]

Either that or credit cards

[@24magiccarrot]

emulation is the way to go even for the games that aren't hard to get if your motivation is just to play them.

[@braillynn]

Or flash carts.

[@AndDeathForAll82]

Flash carts are even better. These games will ALWAYS look better on a CRT. Emulation still hasn’t fully replicated that. Plus, you don’t have to worry about any latency.

[@24magiccarrot]

@@AndDeathForAll82 If you have a good emulator then they are every bit as good as CRT, and you can get CRT emulators

[@TimBitten]

Starflight, A Haunting: Starring Polterguy, Super Baseball 2020, the Road Rash games, and Shining in the Darkness are definitely my picks!

[@micahemerson388]

Alien Soldier was great. Most of my friends had SNES, which had great titles (of course) but I LOVED the “evil, fantasy, adult-themed” games that were unique to the Sega. I grew up very religious, so Golden Axe 2, Shinobi 3, and Strider were so bad ass to me lol

[@WatsonatorTV]

Great comment! I know exactly what you mean with the vibe that Sega had at the time. I have REALLY come to love the system in recent years even more too, which is crazy because I certainly enjoyed it a lot when I was younger.

[@thereviewsbrothers3854]

Nice list. Good to see that it was different to most of the lists like this that tend to show the same games.

[@BlondeMcGuinn]

Fatal Labyrinth is awesome! I dig Alien Soldier but it’s tough as hell. I haven’t figured it out yet. Edit: I got my Mini 2 yesterday and can’t wait to try out Crusader of Centy. Fatal Labyrinth, Alien Soldier and Vectorman are all on the Sega Genesis Classics compilation for PS4.

[@CodeNameArizona]

The algo blessed you. I subbed. Surprised I actually haven't seen some of these!

[@Jugdjay]

I've spent so many hours into Fatal Labyrinth! It's a great rogue-like game! Pretty challenging too, if you're into difficult games :)

[@__Tazzzo]

Vectorman was my favorite as a kid. I bought Vectorman at a pawnshop in 1997 for 25 dollars. 😂 Also I ended up buying Vectorman 2 at the same pawnshop for 25 dollars a few months later.

[@WatsonatorTV]

It was probably my favorite as well, my dad loved it too and I remember us finally beating it.

[@bmadayag]

We had a sega growing up but I didn't get exposed to many games...I have an embarrassing amount of play time on ecco the dolphin. Would love to see your list for NES!

[@Androsynth75]

You get major props for picking Buck Rogers. It’s a rare crpg port of the TSR tabletop game that was out for a hot minute back in the day. It’s an excellent game made with the gold box engine that’s surprisingly open and deep. Starflight and Rings of Power are equally good. Their my holy trio of genesis EA rpgs

[@adriensebbane]

At last some games that I never heard of, like Fatal Labyrinth, Buck Rogers... This video is well done, you did a good job !

[@LG-ro5le]

I was born during this era in 1995, my family weren’t really into gaming but they had a sega master system with a few games, sonic 1 & alex the kid, the next console i had was ps1 so i missed out on the sega genesis, so its great to see how many great games the system had! Bought one recently with a everdrive and having a blast

[@franciscovega2042]

This was a great list buck rogers looks great.

[@ronsilk6212]

Crusader of Centy and Buck Rogers are both amazing games.

[@kevinmorgan2821]

Vectorman, my favorite

[@tedadamgreen]

Mine too!!

[@Ratchetcomand]

I feel like most casual people don't know about Arrow Flash. It's so good!

[@charlesfrey8675]

I want to check out soldiers of fortune and humans!

[@danieltkach2330]

Power Athlete, Stormlord, Mig29. Weird favorite ones growing up.

[@todaysgrailtomorrowsbeater]

I used to olay alien soldier as a kid and casually blast through all the levels, now I can’t even get past level 1….😂

[@WatsonatorTV]

It's crazy right? I used to think I just messed around on these games when I was younger but we used to be damn good!

[@PainandSorrow]

Good list. Never heard of Growl or Devilish. I would have put Battle Master on my Sega Genesis obscure games list. That game spooked me out when I played it, it had this eerie music and instadeath pits that could wipe out your entire party. It was a punishingly difficult game and the manual that came with it was like the length of a novel.

[@WatsonatorTV]

That is a great choice! I might have to set aside some time and dive into Battle Master one day.

[@Kunstk]

I thought it was a generic list, until the last one of the list. Then all i have to say its, RESPECT.

[@johnsimcoe2081]

My favorites on the platform (and I think were underrated among my peers) were: Speedball 2 Brutal Deluxe, Gunstar Heroes, Buck Rogers (!), Mickey Mouse Castle of Illusion, Road Rash II and Marko.

[@cavauro]

most of these types of videos have at least a few fairly popular games in them but i never heard of several of the games in this one at all even though they look interesting. really well done. subscribed

[@stevenrosscarpenter]

I stumbled on Skeleton Krew and Ranger X and they both blew me away

[@GamingPlus10]

Nobody ever talks about Chiki Chiki Boys

[@WatsonatorTV]

Ohhhh great game. I have actually never tried the Genesis/Mega Drive version, only the arcade one, but it is indeed a hidden gem, excellent choice.

[@hybridcombatuk]

Nice list, one game I would put in this category is Mystic Defender. Another one is Atomic Runner

[@LEEMAN-X]

Fun video, I watched this to see if you would mention my favorite unknown sega gem Ranger-X lol I still enjoyed this a lot, I like videos like this and I'm definitely going to play a few of the games you mentioned, especially Alien Soldier! 👍

[@WatsonatorTV]

Thanks for the kind words! Ranger-X is a great game and was definitely considered, I haven't played it enough for sure.

[@pixxellie]

Great video. So refreshing to see some original opinions on the genesis! Subscribed!

[@WatsonatorTV]

Cheers!~

[@phychmasher]

Sega definitely didn't do anybody any favors by having Sega Channel exclusives. I was one of the lucky few who had access to it, and even at the time I remember thinking "I guess nobody else gets to play this, ever?" It's nice that they've all been re-released, but there are still a few that haven't been, like Nightmare Circus (AFAIK).

[@jerrymalonejr.6097]

Buck Rogers was my favorite game growing up❤

[@JuxtaCrucem]

Loved Airbuster/ Aeroblasters on Genesis.

[@thedrunkmonkshow]

That's the thing about the Genesis, because it was around for a good 7 years there's a lot of games out there and just when you thought you have played them all you'll stumble across something new. What I've started going, especially if you've been at emulation since the late 90's and early 2000s like me in the days of MSDOS Kega and Genecyst, is to refresh and update your rom archives. Another tip is if you're from the US like me, the next time you're surfin through load up ones from other regions like Japan, Europe or Brazil. I'm going to start doing the same thing to with the Turbo Grafx 16 except focus more on the PC Engine CD games. I've touched just about every Hu Card but far behind with the CD ones. 😄

[@WatsonatorTV]

Great words! TG16/PCE is an amazing system and I too have played a lot on it but have missed some of the CD games or foreign games. It really is like Christmas when you can play a lot of these titles translated and you realize how much variety you have available to you and that you have missed a lot of great games.

[@andrewvalentine6977]

I forget the name but I seem to remember a side scroller shoot em up where you shoot giant insects. I'm from the UK so theses game I mention may have different names. There was Ranger X, which I loved, Speedball 1 and 2 which was a popular game back then but I've rarely seen mentioned. I did have 2 games mentioned on your list, Gynog and Chaos Engine.

[@soulstalka1]

Nice, I haven't heard of many of these. Imma have to check out soldiers of fortune . I don't know if its a hidden gem but blades of vengeance is really fun.

[@justnature1900]

That was an awesome list I've never heard of 9 of those games lol

[@j.du6]

You did such a good job with this

[@Fritz131415]

I think Chaos Engine is my favorite coop game not only on Genesis but overall. I don't know about them being obscure but my favourite RPGs of Genesis are not any entry of Phantasy Star or Shining Force (though I love them all with all my heart) but Rings of Power and Uncharted Waters 2: New Horizons.

[@zombiehampster1397]

I had Gaiares and that game is very difficult. Its one of those games that if you die late into the game and you lose all your powerups...you may as well restart.

[@MirabilisProbeebei]

11:07 Alien Soldier boxart It was released in Japanese MEGADRIVE (Blue & Black Belt Box)／EU MEGADRIVE (Blue Belt Box) only. This GENESIS (Red Belt Box art) design is just a fake one.

[@WatsonatorTV]

Correct, it was only released on the Sega Channel in NA which is where I was trying to get most of my box art. I don't know if "fake" is really the word to use though. It's just a representation of the game and since I was not showing any Japanese releases, I just used this. I could have put anything there, game screenshot, title screen, fan art, whatever.

[@jonathanaustin6807]

I loved Buck Rogers, it deserves its place here. Proto Mass Effect!

[@tokenblack7983]

Wow that’s a great way of describing it! I only had it for a few rentals back in the early 90s…you ain’t beating that game in a weekend…it’s on my emulation backlog

[@SianaGearz]

If you like The Humans, you should definitely play The Lost Vikings. And maybe Gods. But yeah good list, interesting.

[@zombieowen]

Nice list, so many games uve never heard of. I just want to know what other games are there that we don't know are good. We always focus on the best or worst, but what those sweet mids?

[@WatsonatorTV]

I have some RetroArch tutorials on my channel if you end up wanting to try it out again. Cheers and thanks for the kind words!

[@ronch550]

Jewel Master, Master of Weapon, Jim Power, The Immortal...

[@ClayAdams]

Herzog Zwei, Powerrball and kings Bounty would be on my list

[@Ekkobelli]

Very good list. Much better then most others out there due to not repeating the games. Does anyone know what that racing/shooting game in the honorable mentions (at 14:20) is? Looks really cool!

[@WatsonatorTV]

Thank you for the kind words! The game is called Roadblasters. It's a port of an Atari arcade game of the same name. Super fun little game, I love to see the backgrounds change as you get further and further.

[@Dan82W]

I’ve been surprised to see the price of Growl go up. It’s been coming back down lately but I was surprised when it went up over $200. It’s a fun game but it’s pretty short.

[@WatsonatorTV]

Wow, I did not realize the price was up so high!

[@Dan82W]

@@WatsonatorTV, currently price charting has it at $182 CIB. Earlier in the year I saw it as high as $250. Crazy lol

[@TobeyStarburst]

Nice list

[@annemorgan141]

Great memories !

[@PaladinLarec]

No Traysia? Go check it out. I always liked it. Wish I hadn't sold it a decade ago...

[@chriswheatley3146]

The game play starts up choppy and rough, but smooths out once you've leveled up a bit. It went from a hated to enjoyed rental for me.

[@gmoney695]

What's playing at 14:15? Great video btw.

[@WatsonatorTV]

Thank you for the kind words! I definitely regret not labeling those, especially when this video is about discovering new games haha, in order at 14:15: El.Viento RoadBlasters Zero Tolerance Elemental Master General Chaos Cheers!

[@phantasystar2k]

Fatal Labyrinth a gem?? Now thats quite a statement, everyone thought it sucked in the 90s.

[@WatsonatorTV]

Not just any gem, a beautiful shining diamond at that!

[@swilco266]

Buck Rogers is so good :) a shame most wouldnt give it a chance these days, the graphics n sound are awful but the gameplay is so good :)

[@johnsimcoe2081]

What's the best option for a clone console that works with modern tVs and also takes cartridges?

[@MrStrangermoon]

starcuiser early release and duke nukem 3d unfoocal port. starcruiser is 3d space before starfox 3d planets like doom before doom and universe. and run on md. japan only of course.

[@teknomax7883]

Why no one talks about Yu Yu Hakusho From Treasure, beats me. That game is fantastic. Also, Sailor Moon (yes) its a fantastic beat em up with 5 totally different characters, tons of enemies and stages, challenging difficulty, special moves and hidden specials. Like wtf... My go to games are Chakan and Nightmare Circus.

[@WatsonatorTV]

Thanks for the recs, I will have to try out Hakusho and Sailor Moon (I used to read the Yu Yu Hakusho manga). Chakan and Nightmare Circus are both GREAT, and I recall them both being pretty tough which I like.

[@teknomax7883]

@@WatsonatorTV tough just to put it mildly. With NC you don't even have a guide or the commands or anything. YYH follows all the part from the evil "detective" Sensui to the tourney and the Toguros. It's a FOUR player fighting game, full of combos, specials, collisions that can cancel each other or "eat" the lesser projectile, and supers. Me and my friends invested hundreds of HOURS on it

[@WatsonatorTV]

@@teknomax7883 I will definitely look into it, one of my complaints about older fighting games is that they can sometimes lack complexity but this sounds perfect.

[@Rockysbeats]

the love the idea of that develish game but after trying it its a bit janky with a lot of hit box issues on the paddles and ball which in my opinion ruins the gameplay such a shame but any pinball/break out type game needs to be tight and precise with its mechanics to work

[@WatsonatorTV]

Interesting, I never had this issue with it. I am usually very, very picky about controls too. One of the reasons I picked this game is because I found the controls fairly fluid and precise.

[@braillynn]

Woah, #8 total seizure warning!!!!!

[@MattisCarlgren]

Wiz n liz, try it

[@BlastMaster]

Maybe I'm in too deep but this didn't feel that obscure to me. I knew of every one of these games. I notice you mention the Genesis Mini as a reference for what's obscure or not, perhaps you are a younger retrogamer whereas I grew up with the console. (though I grew up w/NES and later SNES. Sonic made me jealous, never had the chance to dive til years later or at friends houses!)

[@WatsonatorTV]

I am 34, grew up with the NES first and got the Genesis around 1995ish I believe (which i say in the video by the way), a bit later but not that much, so ya I definitely did grow up with it. I didn't know about any of these growing up but I guess I was too young to be into collecting at the time and I took what I could get, probably had 20 or 30 games and none of these were on my radar whatsoever. As I got older I got heavy into retro gaming and learned about a couple of these like Fatal Labyrinth and Alien Soldier, but I still was not aware of a lot of these despite knowing about a lot of others. Notice I say that they aren't all necessarily obscure but "not talked about much." I guess good job knowing about every single one of my selections? Not really sure how to respond to this. Sorry I failed ya and wasted your time with repeats? I did not mention the mini "as a reference for what is obscure or not". I mentioned them because apparently lots of people are buying them so I made sure NOT to post games that were also included in those. Also the second mini came out RIGHT when I posed this. I was just letting people know that if they had either one, I wouldn't be repeating games they already knew about in those. It was not an "obscurity reference."