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SNES vs Genesis/Megadrive, which had the best version of multi-platform titles?

Benedict

Member
I am wondering if there is some kind of website or list comparing game-titles that were both available on the SNES and Genesis/Megadrive and which had the best version?
Even better are your personal opinions.

What differences were there between the Snes/Gen versions of the same game?

For example, was Mortal Kombat games better on Genesis than SNES, and why (blood)?
edit: or was that only for the first game in the series?

Are the EA Sports titles all better on the Genesis because SEGA was more supported by EA than Nintendo?

Is it the same with titles like the Strike series?

What opinions do you have of these kind of games?
And I mean all games that were released on both platforms, for example EA sports games, license games, Disney games, sports and racing games, platformers, action, puzzlers etc.

Hope to see some input.
 
Benedict said:
I am wondering if there is some kind of website or list comparing game-titles that were both available on the SNES and Genesis/Megadrive and which had the best version?
Even better are your personal opinions.

What differences were there between the Snes/Gen versions of the same game?

For example, was Mortal Kombat games better on Genesis than SNES, and why (blood)?
edit: or was that only for the first game in the series?

Are the EA Sports titles all better on the Genesis because SEGA was more supported by EA than Nintendo?

Is it the same with titles like the Strike series?

What opinions do you have of these kind of games?
And I mean all games that were released on both platforms, for example EA sports games, license games, Disney games, sports and racing games, platformers, action, puzzlers etc.

Hope to see some input.

For reference, here's a list of games available for both systems.

I will put an (*) next to the titles that are actually 2 separate games for each system.


3 Ninjas Kick Back
Aaahh!!! Real Monsters
Addams Family, The
Adventures of Batman & Robin, The *
Adventures of Mighty Max, The
Adventures of Rocky & Bullwinkle and Friends, The
Aero the Acro-Bat
Aero the Acro-Bat 2
Aerobiz
Aerobiz: Supersonic
Aladdin (Disney's) *
Alien 3
American Gladiators
Andre Agassi Tennis
Animaniacs *
Art of Fighting
B.O.B.
Ballz 3-D
Barkley: Shut Up and Jam!
Bass Masters Classic
Bass Masters Classic: Pro Edition
Batman Forever
Batman Returns *
Battletoads/Double Dragon
Beavis & Butthead, MTV's *
Best of the Best Championship Karate
Bill Walsh College Football
Bonkers *
Boogerman: A Pick and Flick Adventure
Boxing: Legends of the Ring
Bram Stoker's Dracula
Brett Hull Hockey '95
Brutal: Paws of Fury
Bubsy II
Bubsy: Claws Encounters of the Furred Kind
Bulls vs. Blazers and the NBA Playoffs
Cal Ripken Jr. Baseball
Captain America and the Avengers
Champions World Class Soccer
Championship Pool
Chavez II
Chester Cheetah: Too Cool to Fool
Chester Cheetah: Wild Wild Quest
Chuck Rock
Clay Fighter
Cliffhanger
Clue
College Football USA '97: The Road to New Orleans
College Slam
Cool Spot
Cutthroat Island
David Crane's Amazing Tennis
Death and Return of Superman, The
Demolition Man
Desert Strike: Return to the Gulf
Doom Troopers: The Mutant Chronicles
Double Dragon V: The Shadow Falls
Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story
Earthworm Jim
Earthworm Jim 2
ESPN Baseball Tonight
ESPN National Hockey Night
ESPN Speedworld
ESPN Sunday Night NFL
Family Feud
Fatal Fury
Fatal Fury 2
FIFA International Soccer
FIFA Soccer '96
Flashback: The Quest for Identity
Flintstones, The
Foreman For Real Boxing
Frank Thomas Big Hurt Baseball
Frogger
Fun 'n Games
Gemfire
Genghis Khan 2: Clan of the Gray Wolf
George Foreman's KO Boxing
Gods
Great Circus Mystery starring Mickey & Minnie, The
Great Waldo Search, The
Hardball III *
Head-On Soccer
Hit The Ice
Home Alone *
Home Alone 2: Lost in New York
Hook
Incredible Crash Dummies, The
Incredible Hulk, The
Izzy's Quest for the Olympic Rings
Jammit
Jeopardy!
Jeopardy! Deluxe Edition
Jeopardy! Sports Edition
Joe & Mac
John Madden Football
John Madden Football '93
Judge Dredd
Jungle Book, The (Disney's) *
Jungle Strike: The Sequel to Desert Strike
Jurassic Park
Justice League Task Force
Kawasaki Superbike Challenge
King of the Monsters
King of the Monsters 2
Last Action Hero
Lawnmower Man, The
Lemmings
Lemmings 2: The Tribes
Lethal Enforcers
Liberty or Death
Lion King, The (Disney's)
Lost Vikings, The
Madden NFL '94
Madden NFL '95
Madden NFL '96
Madden NFL '97
Madden NFL '98
Mary Shelley's Frankenstein
Math Blaster Episode 1
Mickey Mania: Timeless Adventures of Mickey Mouse
Mickey's Ultimate Challenge
Micro Machines
Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers *
Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers: The Movie *
Miracle Piano Teaching System, The
MLBPA Baseball
Monopoly
Mortal Kombat
Mortal Kombat 3
Mortal Kombat II
Ms. Pac-Man
NBA All-Star Challenge
NBA Hang Time
NBA Jam
NBA Jam Tournament Edition
NBA Live '95
NBA Live '96
NBA Live '97
NBA Live '98
NCAA Final Four Basketball
NCAA Football
Newman Haas IndyCar featuring Nigel Mansell
NFL Quarterback Club
NFL Quarterback Club '96
NHL '94
NHL '95
NHL '96
NHL '97
NHL '98
NHLPA Hockey '93
Nigel Mansell's World Championship Racing
No Escape
Nobunaga's Ambition
Operation Europe: Path to Victory 1939-45
Out of this World
Outlander
Pac-Attack
Pac-Man 2: The New Adventures
Pagemaster, The
Paperboy 2
PGA Tour '96
PGA Tour Golf
Phantom 2040
Pink Goes to Hollywood
Pinocchio
Pirates of Dark Water
Pitfall: The Mayan Adventure
Pit-Fighter
Populous
Primal Rage
Prince of Persia
Pro Quarterback
PTO: Pacific Theater of Operations
Race Drivin'
Radical Rex
Raiden Trad
Rampart
Revolution X featuring Aerosmith
RoboCop 3
Robocop vs. Terminator
Rock 'n Roll Racing
Roger Clemens' MVP Baseball
Romance of the Three Kingdoms II
Romance of the Three Kingdoms III
Samurai Shodown
Saturday Night Slam Masters
Scooby-Doo Mystery *
SeaQuest DSV
Shadowrun *
Shanghai II: Dragon's Eye
Shaq-Fu
Side Pocket
Simpsons, The: Bart's Nightmare
Simpsons, The: Krusty's Super Funhouse
Simpsons, The: Virtual Bart
Soldiers of Fortune
Sparkster *
Spider-Man(Fox Kids tie-in)
Spider-Man/Venom: Maximum Carnage
Spider-Man/Venom: Separation Anxiety
Spider-Man/X-Men: Arcade's Revenge
Star Trek Deep Space Nine: Crossroads of Time
Stargate
Steel Talons
Sunset Riders
Super Baseball 2020
Super Battleship
Super Battletank: War in the Gulf
Super High Impact
Super Off-Road
Super Smash TV
Syndicate
T2: The Arcade Game
Taz-Mania *
Tecmo Super Baseball
Tecmo Super Bowl
Tecmo Super Bowl II: Special Edition
Tecmo Super Bowl III: Final Edition
Tecmo Super NBA Basketball
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Tournament Fighters *
Terminator, The
Test Drive II: The Duel
Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends
Tick, The
TNN Bass Tournament of Champions
Top Gear 2
Toy Story (Disney's)
Toys
Troy Aikman NFL Football
True Lies
Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3
Uncharted Waters
Uncharted Waters: New Horizons
Urban Strike: The Sequel to Jungle Strike
Warlock
WarpSpeed
Wayne Gretzky and the NHLPA All-Stars
Wayne's World
WeaponLord
We're Back! A Dinosaur's Tale
Wheel of Fortune
Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego?
Where in Time Is Carmen Sandiego?
Williams Arcade's Greatest Hits
Wolfchild
Wolverine: Adamantium Rage
World Cup USA '94
World Heroes
WWF Raw
WWF Royal Rumble
WWF Super Wrestlemania
WWF WrestleMania: The Arcade Game
Y's III: Wanderers From Y's
Zero: The Kamikaze Squirrel
Zombies Ate My Neighbors
Zool: Ninja of the Nth Dimension
Zoop

Other notables:
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Hyperstone Heist/Turtles in Time(similar gameplay, but different games)
Thunder Spirits/Thunder Force III(similar games, but different in many ways)
 
even with the blood code, the genesis version of mortal kombat was an inferior port to the snes version. i can only remember the earthworm jim and disney games being better on the genesis.
 
Mortal Kombat was always better on the SNES, any version. It's been a long time, but I still remember the Genesis versions being inferior over all.
 

DogWelder

Member
SimpleDesign said:
Mortal Kombat was always better on the SNES, any version. It's been a long time, but I still remember the Genesis versions being inferior over all.
OnPoint said:
Mortal Kombat - Genesis was better.

ABACABB for life
:lol Great start. You're not helping the OP at all!
 

Dice

Pokémon Parentage Conspiracy Theorist
In most cases the SNES was better. The strength of Genesis was in exclusives.
 

OnPoint

Member
1cesc said:
:lol Great start. You're not helping the OP at all!

Well I enjoyed it on the Genesis anyway haha

Probably listen to the others... unless you care about MK1 with blood!
 
I seem to recall a lot of the EA sports games were preferred on the Mega Drive, though I'm not sure if that means they are technically better than their SNES counterpart.

But with 3rd party games it was a case of some were better on the SNES (e.g. Street Fighter 2) and some were better on the Mega Drive (e.g. Strike series, Micro Machines).
 

Enk

makes good threads.
SNES usually got the better ports. The one exception I can think of was when I played both versions of Ys III fairly recently and actually felt the Genesis one both played better and looked better despite using less colors than the SNES one.

EDIT: I also remember the Genesis version of Samurai Shodown ended up looking better on the Genesis too.
 

ntropy

Member
Street Fighter was better on the SNES because of the sound and controls. I unfortunately didn't have a 6-button Genesis controller, so I had to press Start to switch between kicks and punches.
 

DCharlie

And even i am moderately surprised
depends on the game.

Madden was pretty horrific on the SNES
SF2 is apparently better on the MD (or at least so i'm told!) , but i was already too into the SNES version to care
Raiden Densetsu is better on the genesis etc etc.
 

Timedog

good credit (by proxy)
I preferred Genny MK1. Genny MK2 was abysmal.

Also, nobody really played it but Street Fighter 2 Turbo was way better on genesis, other than having shit sound, and slightly inferior graphics. The gameplay was much better.
 

acm2000

Member
how can snes MK be better without the bloody and proper fatalitys? they were the only 2 good things about MK in the first place
 
WhiteAce said:
depends on the game.

Madden was pretty horrific on the SNES
SF2 is apparently better on the MD (or at least so i'm told!) , but i was already too into the SNES version to care
Raiden Densetsu is better on the genesis etc etc.

Only because of the controller and the more-faithful-to-the-arcade music.

It was a GREAT port, though. The only little gripe one might have about it is the grainy voice samples.

It's much preferred to regular SF2 on the SNES, but I'd still go with SF2 Turbo as my overall choice.
 

Catalix

And on the sixth day the LORD David Bowie created man and woman in His image. And he saw that it was good. On the seventh day the LORD created videogames so that He might take the bloody day off for once.
For the most part, I remember the SNES counterparts being the technically superior versions, to varying degrees.

However, one notable exception I personally remember was Toy Story being tons better on Genesis. Better animation, better sound, better difficulty, better level design in certain sections. I played the SNES version first, so I was pleasantly shocked by the differences.

It's practically a different game. Kinda bizarre, really. SNES version must've been a rush job.
 

Brofist

Member
EA sports games were always better on the Genesis。

MK looked nicer on the SNES, but the Genesis had better control, speed, and blood.
 

GhostSeed

Member
Adventures of Batman & Robin, The
Aladdin (Disney's)
Alien 3
Batman Returns
Pirates of Darkwater
Sparkster
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Tournament Fighters

All of the games above were totally different on each platform despite sharing the same name and sometimes even the same publisher.

---

All of the games below were better on SNES because they had better graphics and/or control.

Mortal Kombat 3
Mortal Kombat II
Sunset Riders
Super Smash TV
Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3
Wolfchild
Zombies Ate My Neighbors
 
There are exceptions, but multiplatform titles were usually better on the SNES due to better sound and more colors. Rock 'n Roll Racing was one of my favorite games of the 16-bit era and I can barely stand to play it on the Genesis because it sounds like garbage. The voice samples all sounded like they were coming out of a tin can. Multiplatform games usually ended up looking washed out and dithered on the Genesis. The SNES (and the TurboGrafx, for that matter) had much better color. The fact that the SNES came with a six-button controller made a huge difference for a lot of games.

Most Genesis ran at higher resolutions than SNES games (320x224 vs. 256x224), however, so some games looked sharper on the platform. The advantages to the extra real estate is pretty obvious in certain games. You can see further ahead in the Genesis version Earthworm Jim due to the extra pixels and don't have to make as many blind jumps. However, the extra pixels weren't always put to good use. Dragon's Revenge and Zombies Ate My Neighbors, for example, had large menus tacked on to the side of the screen that adversely affected the overall aesthetics of the games. Also, certain games like Mega Bomberman and Street Figther II: SCE simply ran at the same resolution (256x224) as their TurboGrafx and SNES counterparts.

It's really hard to compare certain games because they often had different developers for each platform. (And I'm not just talking about obvious examples like Aladdin either). Mortal Kombat, for example, was developed by Probe on the Genesis and by Sculptured Software on the Super NES.

I guess it varied from one developer to the next. EA always seemed to design their games with the Genesis in mind while other companies like Blizzard clearly favored the SNES.
 
GhostSeed said:
All of the games above were totally different on each platform despite sharing the same name and sometimes even the same publisher.

You can add Shadowrun as well.

Yeah, many of those games are completely different on each system, however they're still used as fuel when debating console wars ;)
 
Also, technically, TMNT Turtles in Time and TMNT Hyperstone Heist are the same game. Which one is better, I do not know.

Terminator is also completely different on both consoles.
 

Hitokage

Setec Astronomer
SonicMegaDrive said:
It's much preferred to regular SF2 on the SNES, but I'd still go with SF2 Turbo as my overall choice.
Meh, I'd go Super SF2 on the SNES with the speed turned up.
 
If you're really interested in seeing for yourself, I'll make you a side-by-side video of Mortal Kombat I and II. The SNES version of both is superior, even though MKI had no blood on the SNES. Actually, MKI had a bigger disparity in some ways; the difference in frames of animation was worse on MKI than II, for example, if I recall correctly.

Sports games were almost always better on the Genesis. Why is debatable; a better relationship with EA is believable, but it was often said it was due to the Genesis processor's higher clock speed.

Earthworm Jim was only "better" on the Genesis because that version got extra content: a whole extra level. That was most definitely due to a better relationship with the creator: Dave Perry of Shiny was an outspoken Genesis supporter, and the "Animotion" technology that powered EWJ was a product of his collaboration with Sega and Disney on the Aladdin game.

Outside of that, when in doubt, assume the SNES version of any game is better. On the technical side, there was simply no contest. The SNES was better, newer technology. It could display 4x the color count on-screen and had an excellent sound chip. Some developers pulled off great things with the Genesis, but cross-platform games had too big a technical disadvantage to turn out equivalent unless they were given special attention.
 
I had some bad impressions of Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 for the Genesis, by that time the Genesis was really showing it's age. I don't think I had it for the SNES though, but I did have the Saturn version which was ok.
 
Leondexter said:
Earthworm Jim was only "better" on the Genesis because that version got extra content: a whole extra level. That was most definitely due to a better relationship with the creator: Dave Perry of Shiny was an outspoken Genesis supporter, and the "Animotion" technology that powered EWJ was a product of his collaboration with Sega and Disney on the Aladdin game.

Nope. The Genesis version also had more sound samples, no loading time(which the SNES version oddly has in some places), and a LOT more animation frames(also resulting in tighter gameplay).

The only 2 things the SNES version have over the Genesis version are more colors and that...lens flare effect in level 1(which people always seem to bring up...)
 

Hitokage

Setec Astronomer
Coolio McAwesome said:
There are exceptions, but multiplatform titles were usually better on the SNES due to better sound and more colors.
Number of colors wasn't the SNES's strength there, it was color add/sub and transparency. The number that people bring up for "onscreen" is actually wrong because of it. Instead, it's really "per object".

In short, Genesis had the CPU, SNES had the coprocessing.
 
SonicMegaDrive said:
Nope. The Genesis version also had more sound samples, no loading time(which the SNES version oddly has in some places), and a LOT more animation frames(also resulting in tighter gameplay).

The only 2 things the SNES version have over the Genesis version are more colors and that...lens flare effect in level 1(which people always seem to bring up...)

You'll have to prove that about "a LOT" more animation. I never saw any difference, certainly not in Jim's animation. And most Genesis games, this one included, would be improved by removing sound, not adding it (ha ha). The SNES version had far superior sound, missing samples or no.

And you can't overstate the importance of that color count. Take a peek. The lens flare is the least impressive part of the graphical difference here.

EWJ.jpg
 

D.Lo

Member
SNES by far.

The Mega Drive sound chip was usually ear-rape. Some Mega Drive games still had good sound (Sonics, Streets of Rage, Konami games etc), but they were exclusives. Multi plats usually sounded like turds on MD, or if they were designed for the MD they sounded exactly the same on SNES (eg Flashback which was largely identical on both systems).

SNES had better colours, far, far better sound, more effects, everything really.

Of course there will still be 100 posts about Mortal Kombat. A worse version of a bad game was great just because it had blood?

And then Street Fighter II, which sounded horrible (if closer to the arcade apart from the awful voices - but the SNES game sounded better then the arcade, it was almost a re-mix), had crappier graphics, and not as many options as the SNES Turbo. There'll be apologists for the MD version based on the 6 button controller, but that was a peripheral, most people had to pay for a whole new controller (or two), and if that's allowed in the comparison then you could easily buy a stick for the SNES or MD.

Both systems were best in their exclusives IMO, but for multi-plats in most cases I wouldn't touch the MD version, better sound + more colours = win.

EDIT: There are of course exceptions, A big one is that USA based sports games were generally considered better on MD/Genesis, but in PAL territories this was moot because we don't care about Gridiron or Ice Hockey etc. Soccer was best on SNES with ISS Deluxe.
 
SonicMegaDrive said:
For reference, here's a list of games available for both systems.

Adventures of Batman & Robin, The - Entirely different games - I'm siding with the Genesis version because the soundtrack is badass. Some of the levels run way too long though
Aladdin (Disney's) - Ditto. Though I prefer the Capcom/SNES version cause while it's practically the same as the Capcom SNES Mickey Mouse games it's better than the
Animaniacs - Ditto again. I've played neither though
Batman Returns - Ditto AGAIN. Batman Returns SNES is a somewhat decent beatemup by Konami while the Genesis version is a terribly mediocre action game.
Beavis & Butthead, MTV's - Yep two different games. Both suffer from terrible platforming but at least the Genesis game also plays out like an Adventure game where you have to solve puzzles.
Bonkers - Two different games I think. Why anyone would want to play either is beyond me.
Jurassic Park - Once again two different games. One is an overhead shooter with really bad FPS segments while the other is a platformer with lots of insta-death. Good times.
Pirates of Darkwater - Two different games again. One's a cruddy beatemup and the other's a cruddy side-scroller. Crud.
Shadowrun - Both are RPGs but while the SNES game has a more involving storyling and plays closer to an adventure game the Genesis version is more about number-crunching and working.
Sparkster - Two different games again. Neither holds up to the original but I'd give the SNES rev. the edge.

The rest. Who cares? Why would anyone want to play the superior arcade port when they have access to the actual arcade game?(okay maybe not the THE actual arcade game but nevermind).

People get hung up on ridiculous crap like this but when it comes time to discuss the actual good exclusives both systems have I'm always hearing about the same garbage. Super Metroid this or Sonic that and wow that Super Mario World but what about Phantasy Star man that Final Fantasy is good but Shining Force is no slouch either and give it a break already.
 

Benedict

Member
Thanks for all the input!
Very interesting to read.

The only game I remember that I played on both systems were Addams Family, and there I remember that I thought the SNES version were superior, because of the graphics and sound.

I also found that thevideogamecritic.com mentions differences between games in some of their short reviews.

SNES
Genesis

In the system reviews of each system they also mention differences between the releases.

For example about games on Genesis:

The system excelled in platformers, shooters, and most of all, sports titles. Compared to their Super Nintendo counterparts, Genesis sports titles didn't look as sharp or sound as clear, but they played far better. Especially in Madden, NHL Hockey, and NBA Live, the animation was more fluid and the controls more responsive.

And on Super Nintendo:
The system excelled in role playing games (Final Fantasy III, Secret of Mana, Legend of Zelda) and fighters (Street Fighter 2, Mortal Kombat II, Clayfighter, Killer Instinct). Although its early shooters were plagued by excessive slowdown (Gradius III, Super R-Type), eventually the developers would harness the technology and produce spectacular shooters such as Axelay and Contra III. Early SNES sports games were also plagued with slow-down, allowing the Genesis to gain a reputation for being a superior sports console. In time, games were released for the SNES which took advantage of the system's unique strengths...



Now about "all" those Amiga/Atari ST ports on the systems, superior or inferior to the original games?
 
Hitokage said:
Number of colors wasn't the SNES's strength there, it was color add/sub and transparency. The number that people bring up for "onscreen" is actually wrong because of it. Instead, it's really "per object".

In short, Genesis had the CPU, SNES had the coprocessing.

You're right about the color effects. Didn't RARE 'trick' the SNES into displaying 512 colors on-screen (double its spec of 256) for Killer Instinct, using those effects? I remember them saying so before it came out, but I never knew if it actually arrived that way (not a fan of KI).
 
Leondexter said:
You'll have to prove that about "a LOT" more animation. I never saw any difference, certainly not in Jim's animation. And most Genesis games, this one included, would be improved by removing sound, not adding it (ha ha). The SNES version had far superior sound, missing samples or no.

And you can't overstate the importance of that color count. Take a peek. The lens flare is the least impressive part of the graphical difference here.

EWJ.jpg

I don't know how I could prove it, other than providing YouTube links.

I'll tell you this, though. I've played the first EWJ extensively since it was released and it's one of my all-time favorite games. However, I was first introduced to the game through the Genesis version. It wasn't until years later that I played the SNES version. While the first thing I noticed was that the game appeared 'brighter' than the Genny version, it was worse in a lot of other areas(as I mentioned previously). It didn't even feel like the same game to me, though this was due to the fact that I was very familiar with the Genesis version. The missing voice samples and lack of Animation made it feel like a down-graded port of the Genesis version.
 

Hitokage

Setec Astronomer
Leondexter said:
You're right about the color effects. Didn't RARE 'trick' the SNES into displaying 512 colors on-screen (double its spec of 256) for Killer Instinct, using those effects? I remember them saying so before it came out, but I never knew if it actually arrived that way (not a fan of KI).
There's a demo rom that puts out every color in the palette onscreen at once, all 32k. Generally though, you just got transparency effects that would put out colors different than what was in game assets.
 

PacoDG

Member
OnPoint said:
Mortal Kombat - Genesis was better.

ABACABB for life

EDIT: It appears I'm in the minority ahaha

I will join this minority.

I though Genesis had the better multiplatform games because the controller was better :\

(except Bubsy, I remember playing both games on both systems at the time, and the SNES was better)
 
SonicMegaDrive said:
I don't know how I could prove it, other than providing YouTube links.

I'll tell you this, though. I've played the first EWJ extensively since it was released and it's one of my all-time favorite games. However, I was first introduced to the game through the Genesis version. It wasn't until years later that I played the SNES version. While the first thing I noticed was that the game appeared 'brighter' than the Genny version, it was worse in a lot of other areas(as I mentioned previously). It didn't even feel like the same game to me, though this was due to the fact that I was very familiar with the Genesis version. The missing voice samples and lack of Animation made it feel like a down-graded port of the Genesis version.

Fair enough. It's funny, though; I felt the same way in reverse, seeing/hearing the Genesis version after I'd bought, played and moved on from the SNES version. I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree.
 

Parallax

best seen in the classic "Shadow of the Beast"
GhostSeed said:
All of the games above were totally different on each platform despite sharing the same name and sometimes even the same publisher.

---

All of the games below were better on SNES because they had better graphics and/or control.
you might want to put tournament fighters in the first category. All 3 versions are so ridiculously different that they should have different titles. The snes version is the best by a huge margin and the genny version was an incomplete game in every sense of the word
 
shagg_187 said:
Which one's genesis?

Oh and I was a genesis lover even though I owned both (got most games for Genesis and only got exclusive titles for SNES).

The bottom one.

And based on that, almost anyone would think the SNES version is better(just like MK1). That is, unless you play it for yourself.
 

D.Lo

Member
SonicMegaDrive said:
I don't know how I could prove it, other than providing YouTube links.

I'll tell you this, though. I've played the first EWJ extensively since it was released and it's one of my all-time favorite games. However, I was first introduced to the game through the Genesis version. It wasn't until years later that I played the SNES version. While the first thing I noticed was that the game appeared 'brighter' than the Genny version, it was worse in a lot of other areas(as I mentioned previously). It didn't even feel like the same game to me, though this was due to the fact that I was very familiar with the Genesis version. The missing voice samples and lack of Animation made it feel like a down-graded port of the Genesis version.
Yet for someone who's played the SNES version a lot, the Genesis version would seem like it was a compressed jpeg in image quality and have beeping honking sounds rather then the orchestral synth they were used to - particularly the start of level 2 which actually sounds like an orchestra playing the Mussorgsky piece on the SNES, and the banjo on the Psycrow levels is another example - it actually sounds like a banjo on the SNES. On the Genesis it sounds like a bunch of honks.
 
Leondexter said:
Fair enough. It's funny, though; I felt the same way in reverse, seeing/hearing the Genesis version after I'd bought, played and moved on from the SNES version. I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree.
Really? I have both, and the SNES version looks slightly stretched and blurry compared to the Genesis version, not to mention the difference in animation. Hypothetically the color resolution should have given SNES at least a slight edge in that department, but truthfully I find even this aspect of the Genesis version preferable, dithering and all. I think Shiny was just better with the system.

edit: It's worth noting that the pics posted are obviously grabbed from emulators, and not completely representative of how the actual versions looked.

D.Lo said:
Yet for someone who's played the SNES version a lot, the Genesis version would seem like it was a compressed jpeg in image quality and have beeping honking sounds rather then the orchestral synth they were used to - particularly the start of level 2 which actually sounds like an orchestra playing the Mussorgsky piece on the SNES, and the banjo on the Psycrow levels is another example - it actually sounds like a banjo on the SNES. On the Genesis it sounds like a bunch of honks.
I actually thought the Genesis sounded better specifically in "What the Heck?", although I agree the instrument samples were generally superior on the SNES.
 
Got to hit the sack, but Benedict, let me say this before I go: if this thread was prompted by the desire to do some retro gaming, then look to the exclusives on these two console for the high points. With some notable exceptions, the best games on both consoles were done in-house or by devoted studios (Treasure, for example) who were in it for the love of games rather than by big business publishers who wanted cash-in ports on all viable platforms.
 
SimpleDesign said:
It had blood, that was the only thing it had over the SNES version.

Well, that and you weren't treated like a baby who had to have their eyes covered so they couldn't see the bad stuff on TV. Real men played Genesis, we didn't need our games censored!! We even got the full Monkey pissing fatality in Primal Urge where it was censored in the SNES version. In my neighborhood the older kids had Genesis and the younger kids had SNES.
 

GhostSeed

Member
Parallax said:
you might want to put tournament fighters in the first category. All 3 versions are so ridiculously different that they should have different titles. The snes version is the best by a huge margin and the genny version was an incomplete game in every sense of the word

Interesting, I did not know that.
 
GrotesqueBeauty said:
I think Shiny was just better with the system.

That's most definitely true. As I noted, the animation technology came from the Genesis Aladdin game.

GrotesqueBeauty said:
edit: It's worth noting that the pics posted are obviously grabbed from emulators, and not completely representative of how the actual versions looked.

Also true, these are from emulators, and the Genesis version is cropped to fit in the same horizontal space. It actually drew out further left/right and the SNES version is indeed stretched on a TV.
 
OldJadedGamer said:
Real men insecure teens played Genesis, we didn't need our games censored!!

Fixed that for ya. Real men didn't decide which version of a game to play based on the presence of blood or piss. ;-p
 
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