For the past couple years gaming consoles like Nintendo and Atari have been releasing or announcing mini versions of their old school products from back in the day. It looks like Sega wants to join in on the success with their rumored announcement of their Sega Mega Drive, called the Sega Genesis in the U.S. that will be released later this year.
The retro gaming consoles popularity started back in December 2016 when Nintendo released the Mini NES Classic Edition System. The system sold out immediately making Nintendo to consider producing more due to demand, especially on Black Friday. On September 29, 2017 the Super Nintendo Entertainment System: Super NES Classic Edition was launched. Super Nintendo Entertainment System: Super NES Classic Edition was similiar of the NES Classic console Super Nintendo Entertainment System: Super NES Classic Edition that was a mini version of the console. The Nintendo craze was so large they had to announce before the Super Nintendo Entertainment System: Super NES Classic Edition was released that “Due to large demand for the upcoming Super Nintendo Entertainment System: Super NES Classic Edition system, Nintendo plans to ship the retro-inspired product into 2018.”
Atari decided to join in on the sensationalism of the old school pre-loaded gaming consoles announcing the “Atari VCS” as the official name of its new retro-inspired gaming and entertainment platform. They revealed the exclusive pre-order date for the Atari VCS to be late April 2018.
Now we have Sega wanting in on the retro-inspired gaming action with the rumored miniature version of the Sega Mega Drive called the Sega Genesis. Per Variety,“Sega didn’t reveal details such as what games will come on the small console, its cost, or whether or not it’ll have extra built-in features like Nintendo’s NES and Super NES Classic machines, released in 2016 and 2017, respectively. What we do know is that Sega is partnering with the classic gaming hardware manufacturer AtGames. This isn’t the companies’ first outing together, having worked on the poorly-received Sega Genesis Flashback HD. The latter will be supplying the technology to power the machine, while the former will handle distribution.”
The rumored launch of the console will be in celebration of the Mega Drive’s (released in 1988 in Japan) 30th anniversary. It is said games like “Sonic the Hedgehog,” will be part of the pre-loaded games however there is no official press release from Sega currently.
As we learn more about the new mini Sega Genesis console we will keep you all updated so keep checking back!
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Source: Sega Genesis, Variety, Nintendo, Atari
