[ Retro Scan of the Week ] Blaster Master 2
July 7th, 2008 by Benj Edwards
“Mutant scum never learn!”
Being a huge fan of the original Blaster Master for the NES, I went gaga when I first discovered that Sunsoft had developed (yes, I missed it at the time, along with everyone else) a Blaster Master 2 for the Sega Genesis. And so it was that BM2 became one of the first Genesis games I emulated on a PC in the mid-late 1990s. And I was disappointed.
If you get past Blaster Master 2’s horribly tinny FM-synthesis music, you’ll find a cartoonish technicolor imitation of the original. BM2 somehow lacks the epic feel of the original Blaster Master (maybe it’s the color palette), and instead resembles a straight-up Turrican-esque 16-bit platform shooter. Still, if I could get past the first stage (and turn down the volume), I feel like BM2 might be fun.
Discussion topic of the week: What’s your favorite Sega Genesis / Mega Drive game of all time?
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July 7th, 2008 at 2:24 pm
Yeah, this is a hidden gem I discovered through emulation. Dead on about feeling more like Turrican.
July 7th, 2008 at 2:57 pm
My favorite was “Hertzog Zwei” on the Genisis. If you play it now, you can see the genisis (pun intended) of the real time strategy game. Loved the game and they were almost impossible to find when the Genisis was big. Think it was a European title (the title means “The King Two” in German) that did not have much of a following in the states. But it was one of the best console games I ever played.
July 7th, 2008 at 3:01 pm
Sorry, added an extra T, it was Herzog Zwei.
July 7th, 2008 at 7:28 pm
I played Heroes of Might and Magic for a year on the Genisis… never did beat it. Huge game for the time…
July 7th, 2008 at 7:37 pm
my one friend as a kid was a Sega household. (I had everything Nintendo) and we would play around. I remember loving Sonic 2 to death and being incredibly envious that I didn’t have it for a Nintendo system.
July 7th, 2008 at 8:47 pm
Revenge of Shinobi would have to be right up there for me. Actually all of the Shinobi games on the Genesis were very well made, but Revenge of Shinobi was one of those precocious early-in-the-console’s-life-cycle games that was just a fully-realized offering.
I’ve heard a lot about Herzog Zwei, although I never played it. But I believe it was developed by Sega of Japan in spite of its German title.
July 7th, 2008 at 8:48 pm
My mistake, it was developed by Technosoft… whose Thunder Force series was also a tour de force on the Genesis.
July 8th, 2008 at 1:08 am
Tie between Gunstar Heroes/Phantasy Star 2/Ristar/Sonic 2/Gain Ground/Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine/Rocket Knight Adventures.
July 8th, 2008 at 9:49 am
BM2 was an abomination compared to the original.
July 8th, 2008 at 4:38 pm
Master of Momsters was a pretty good strategy game back in the day.
July 9th, 2008 at 8:47 am
Oh, I just LOVE the Genesis. It’s hard to pick a favorite.
I think I’ve got a tie between Sonic 3+Knuckles (combined) and Streets of Rage 2.
July 9th, 2008 at 11:14 am
I think Castlevania Bloodlines is a summit for the genesis.
Also Contra Hard corps.
And all Konami games.
July 9th, 2008 at 11:18 am
To ba complete you can add to the list:
-Gynoug
-Steel empires
-Mush/Aleste
And a couple other that I forget
July 9th, 2008 at 9:43 pm
World Series Baseball ’95 was awesome. Played it nonstop back in the day. Also NHL ’94 and Street Fighter II Champion Edition.
July 9th, 2008 at 10:08 pm
Madden 93, I played that game for years. Desert Strike for some reason never got old, Streets of Rage 2, just great, D&D Warriors of the Eternal Sun, played through twice and loved it, sadly it didn’t age well. The original NHL Hockey is still my favorite, 94 was a close second. For me, there wasn’t much else that left a lasting impression on me. The genesis is responsible for my loss of interest in gaming. A interest only the PSX a few years later could gain back.
July 10th, 2008 at 11:26 am
Streets of Rage 2 hands-down-no-contest. Drove my wife nuts for years playing it every day with the music (she hates it – I love it to this day). I still play it now – I doubt there will ever be a game this good and I’ve played so many games on so many different standalones/consoles/PC (from PONG to the PS2) that I can’t begin to list them. Sonic1/2/3 are also favs.
July 10th, 2008 at 11:27 am
Man, you guys are giving me a great list of games to try out. Feel free to keep ’em coming.
July 15th, 2008 at 10:48 am
Speaking of Technosoft, Thunder Force VI was recently announced for the PS2… I’d expect to see it show up on XBLA eventually.
January 17th, 2009 at 3:39 am
Well it is really hard for me to pick ONE fav for the Genesis. This was en epic system for its time. Way ahead of the nintendo technology at the time. I remember the first time seeing Sonic 1… I almost sh*t my pants at the graphics…the colors, and how fast the game moved. Since I had always played games on the NES I had never seen anything like it..
Anyways as far as other favs…any of thr Phantasy Stars were epic. Shining in the darkness. Shining forcr. Shinobi, comix zone….the list goes on and on really….
February 3rd, 2011 at 11:25 pm
I also loved the original.