SEGA Mega Drive: Ultimate Collection

Being a kid of the 90's I've occasionally had the urge to grab the old Sega or SNES out from the loft and have an hour down memory lane, controlling a little sprite as they were called, usually from left to right for a repetitive bit of gaming. I've also painstakingly had to bid on eBay for some old games because mine were lost or broken, then I discovered the old machines don't work on LCD screens so when I saw this game was a selection box of 40 games I was clicking `proceed to checkout' before I knew what I was doing.

I couldn't wait to get button mashing and despite almost two decades since I'd played some of these classics, it all came flooding back, I was pulling off old level select cheats and special moves almost automatically, it was like I was possessed.

To go into all the games is pointless, if you are contemplating buying this you'll already know why you are - will it be to try and complete level 1 of Sonic in under 30 seconds? Or to finally slay that boss in Golden Axe? Well, for me it was Streets of Rage 2 that got whacked on first, upper cuts and swinging pipes aplenty. Oh joy.

I did have to take stock and remove my rose coloured glasses however before I got carried away. It's amazing how things have changed as the games that would once have kept me and a few mates up the whole night on a sleepover had lost their appeal somewhat, and as much as I wanted to rekindle my childhood enthusiasm, it just waned after a few hours. This isn't a big surprise, it's just that the depth of games are so much, well, deeper these days. But for a quick time killer without being concerned with organising a war or escaping a labyrinth within a tomb in Outer Mongolia, these oldies do just that.

What did strike me as I started getting back into it though is how horrendous the sound is! I've got a surround sound set up and OK this game doesn't do 5.1, but I found myself flicking it off anyway because it was literally doing my head in. I play the games in silence now.

You have to bear in mind that games used to retail at around the forty quid mark back then and not taking inflation into account you're getting 800 quids worth of games here for just over a tenner - now that's a bargain in anyone's book so even if they don't blow you away anymore, its still worth it for reminiscence sake.

...For those younger kids who have never played these old games, well, to put it bluntly, don't even bother with this because you've been spoilt in your short lives with next gen stuff - you will not like this.

It always winds me up when people review games without having actually played them, and there are plenty of negative reviewers for this game saying things such as 'I won't be buying this game as it looks awful', 'let the past stay the past', etc, etc, blah, blah.

Now, let me be quite clear: if you weren't a 90s kid or if you never played on a Megadrive back in the day then don't even bother buying this game - you will hate it. OF COURSE the games are dated (most are about 20 years old for crying out loud!), and of course the graphics and gameplay are woeful by today's standards. Indeed, anyone who looks objectively at these games will invariably reach the conclusion that they are simply rubbish.

But this game was never intended for the objective gamer; its beauty lies purely in the nostalgia factor. If, like me, you used to waste days at a time as a kid playing Sonic or Streets of Rage, then this collection will be a nice trip down memory lane, and is definitely worth spending a few quid on (though don't get me wrong - the novelty does wear off after a short while). If, however, you are not a Megadrive veteran, or if you are too young to remember the Megadrive and were raised on HD 1080p, then this game just isn't for you so don't even think about buying it. And to you people I say this: don't judge these games if you have never played them; don't leave negative and unneccessary reviews; quite simply don't spoil this for those (admittedly niche group) of us to whom this collection gives a chance to momentarily become a 10-year old kid again - we thought these games were the mutt's nuts at the time - please don't shatter the illusion!

In 1990, Sega released the MegaDrive - and we were all in awe of it's 16-bit technology, the great carts you could get, and most of all, people fell in love with a blue hedgehog called Sonic... what nostalgia? Now in 2009, Sega have decided to collect the 100 games they thought really made the MegaDrive what it is.

Here's a collection of 100 games, everything from Shinobi 3 to Sonic And Knuckles, and my favourite - Streets Of Rage. It's funny though how we can see the past in tinted rose glasses, as the gameplay of Streets Of Rage is primitive now, and the rave soundtrack of 1992 just seems so primitive, but you can tell they were motivated by music, and that's what really advanced game music as it is today.

Other favourites include Sonic - though I am finding the music has been speeded up on this conversion, which is a bit strange. Funny how you forget those hidden monitor boxes all around the levels, and how you forget where the rings are!

Classics like Golden Axe are here too, and Alex Kidd, who was a big hit on the MegaDrive's predecessor, the Master System. One thing I did notice about this series is there's a lack of racing games, but at least I get to waste hours playing Columns and Dr Robonik's Mean Bean Machine, which is still addictive 18 years on.

The games are well presented and can be set out in alphabetical order, or in the order they came out on the system. You can also gain trophies by completing games. I am really hoping once I've completed SOR I will get extras or even hidden games.

This isn't a bad compilation, it has all the Sonics you could want, but the sound quality is poor, even in Columns you can hear pops and digital artefacts. The claim that these games are in HD is a bit of a let down too, as they're boxed in 4:3 windows with a silly surround - and they don't obviously look any better. The sprites are just as I remember them on the MD though, so you can't complain.

Shame EA didn't get in on this project, as Road Rash, Desert Storm and other classics would have made this a must have. I'm a bit disappointed Sega didn't add VR Racing or other MegaDrive classics, as the BD disk is pretty much empty and this could have been better on DVD rather than the expensive BD disk.

Not bad, good fun, but could have been miles better content wise.