Sega Genesis Imports on a North American System

[King_Salamon]

I see that there are MegaDrive carts out there (European releases) that never made it out in North America - namely Cannon Fodder. As I loved that game on the Jaguar but no longer have a Jaguar, how do I go about playing Cannon Fodder on a Genesis in North America? I have the square model 2 version. Is it easy to play imports or a hassle?

 

Really wanna play some more Cannon Fodder, but this time on a Sega Genesis. I'm sure there are a ton of import Genesis carts I'd love to play too. Thanks for any help.

[The_Laird]

I am pretty sure you can use an Action Replay cart (or similar) to play all import games

[Bruce Tomlin]

I'm really only familiar with Japanese imports. Mostly the cartridge shape is the difference there, but a few games do detect the region input and actually switch their menus to English. The only game I know that is truly region locked between E and J is Gauntlet IV, which will not run on a Japanese console.

 

European carts are a different problem because they probably expect PAL sync frequencies and screen height. The PAL mode status is available to the game, but I guess it's just as likely to be used to get frame timing right as to be used for a region lock.

[in the dark]

The cart shape for the Mega Drive (Japan) is the same as the US Genesis carts, unless there some that have it different. Many of the Japan MD games will play on the US system. I know that there are some that have a lock-out. I am thankful that my copy of Zero Wings works on the US system, cart shape is the same. If I could get my hands on any of the other Japan shooters, I would sure try them out to see if they worked too. If you have a Nomad there is no worry because the cart shape makes no difference to that system.

[+thegoldenband]

There are two issues: physical obstruction, and region lockout. As to the first, Japanese carts don't really fit properly in an unmodified Genesis or Nomad, in my experience. You can force them in, but it's not good for the cart or console.

 

The best option is either to widen the cart slot by cutting away a little bit of the plastic, or use a Game Genie to extend the connector. I use a Game Genie to play my Japanese imports, but am planning to get a second Genny for various mods, one of which will be a wider cart slot. I'm more reluctant to mod my Nomad.

 

None of my Japanese carts have region lockout, but there are quite a few that do -- and ALL of my European games have it. A Game Genie is also a good solution to this, or you can perform a region mod on your console, which appears to be a relatively simple job but still involves some soldering and switch-installing.

 

Tony H. over at Sega-16.com has made a ton of Game Genie codes to get around region lockout. I'd definitely suggest having a look over there -- he's been extremely helpful in writing codes for games which don't yet have them. BTW, some PAL games are glitchy, but most run fine; in fact, I think many are just straight ports of the NTSC code, and so they actually run slower on PAL systems (but at the correct speed on NTSC systems).

Edited August 14, 2010 by thegoldenband

[the.golden.ax]

Most European games work fine on the first model Genesis without any modifications. (Look for a unit with the "High Definition Graphics" wording and the EXT port on the back.)

 

AX

[Austin]

A 32X also works well for the cartridge port-widening mod, the reason being the 32X slot is larger than the standard Genny slot to begin with. I don't remember if the Game Genie works on the 32X though, so you would still have to deal with locked-out games.. Regardless, it's not a bad option if you only have a handful of older imports.

[stalepie]

A number of earlier Jap MD games work on US MD model 1 without modification or converter (not sure about model 2), however many later ones, such as Dynamite Headdy (which is easier in Japanese version) and Bare Knuckle III do not work without converter / Game Genie. I used a code to play BKIII on Game Genie which I found on the web, however I could not find one for Dynamite Headdy and did not know how to generate one.

 

Although I cannot state for certain, I am almost positive that at least these few Jap MD games work on Genesis model 1 because I have them in my collection: Valis, Valis 3, Devil Hunter Yohko, Granada, Dahna, Star Cruiser, Sorcerian, Ghostbusters, Marvel Land, Jewel Master, Mickey Mouse: Castle of Illusion, Wonderboy III, Thunder Force III, OutRun, Beast Warriors.

 

Also European release of Castlevania ("The New Generation") works on Genesis without modification.

 

Also Monster World IV (Jap) requires a Game Genie or some kind of modification to the console.

[Ace_1]

Most European games with no region lock on them will work just fine on any North American Genesis, no mods required. Some games, however(very few), are PAL-optimized, so the games will run too fast or part of the screen will be cut off. Then, there are some PAL games that will work just fine, but the music and sound effects will be WAY too fast. So on your Genesis 2, you don't need to mod anything to play European MegaDrive games that are not PAL-optimized or region-locked.

 

Japanese MegaDrive carts, on the other hand, are a different story. They've got a different shape, and in order to fit them in a Genesis, you need to widen the cartridge slot or use something as a cartridge slot extension. As with some European games, there are some games that are region-locked, which means you need to either install a region switch or use a Game Genie with region lock bypass codes(region switch is recommended). For Japanese MegaDrive games, you need to mod your system regardless of whether or not the games are region-locked.

[in the dark]

I've been looking around the net and reading up on this. I have come to the conclusion, even though I imported it from Japan, that what I have is the EU version of Zero Wings and plays perfect. I have yet to read that there are any physical difference in the carts except for here in this thread. There was an option to the game publishers to put the lockout in the software in which the unit looks for when booting. Not all game publishers took advantage of this. I own the Model 1 US Genesis and a Nomad. You are saying that there is a physical difference in the Japan cart. Could someone post a photo comparing the two. I am very curious as to the difference. I'm thinking that the cart would have to be bigger in some way because there are no tabs in my units which would discount any shape simular to the SNES lockout. Unless some of the newer models had that.

[Bruce Tomlin]

http://www.mmmonkey.co.uk/console/sega/mdcartslot.htm

 

http://www.sega-16.com/forum/showthread.php?t=10948 (this link probably answers the original question)

 

Japanese cartridges have 180-degrees rounded ends. US (and presumably EU) carts have 90-degrees rounded ends. The rounding radius of the US version is wider, causing JP carts to barely not fit.

 

I have some JP carts that were butchered (presumably by some crappy rental place) to fit into a US console, one to the point that the screw posts broke.

Edited August 15, 2010 by Bruce Tomlin

[stalepie]

I've been looking around the net and reading up on this. I have come to the conclusion, even though I imported it from Japan, that what I have is the EU version of Zero Wings and plays perfect. I have yet to read that there are any physical difference in the carts except for here in this thread. There was an option to the game publishers to put the lockout in the software in which the unit looks for when booting. Not all game publishers took advantage of this. I own the Model 1 US Genesis and a Nomad. You are saying that there is a physical difference in the Japan cart. Could someone post a photo comparing the two. I am very curious as to the difference. I'm thinking that the cart would have to be bigger in some way because there are no tabs in my units which would discount any shape simular to the SNES lockout. Unless some of the newer models had that.

Here is what Splatterhouse 2 looked like in Japan:

http://splatterhouse.kontek.net/SH2cart.jpg

 

Notice that is has rounded and ridged sides which stick out a bit.

 

A few carts may not have been this way, though. For instance, my Japanese copy of Marvel Land is like America's.

[the.golden.ax]

I've been looking around the net and reading up on this. I have come to the conclusion, even though I imported it from Japan, that what I have is the EU version of Zero Wings and plays perfect. I have yet to read that there are any physical difference in the carts except for here in this thread. There was an option to the game publishers to put the lockout in the software in which the unit looks for when booting. Not all game publishers took advantage of this. I own the Model 1 US Genesis and a Nomad. You are saying that there is a physical difference in the Japan cart. Could someone post a photo comparing the two. I am very curious as to the difference. I'm thinking that the cart would have to be bigger in some way because there are no tabs in my units which would discount any shape simular to the SNES lockout. Unless some of the newer models had that.

Here is what Splatterhouse 2 looked like in Japan:

http://splatterhouse.kontek.net/SH2cart.jpg

 

Notice that is has rounded and ridged sides which stick out a bit.

 

A few carts may not have been this way, though. For instance, my Japanese copy of Marvel Land is like America's.

 

 

I only have one asian MD game that has the shape difference (Golden Axe 3, imagine that) it's packed away right now so I can't answer my own question. Even though I have an import adapter and console that has the hole cut, I wonder if it would be possible to simply place the board in an US shell.

 

AX

[in the dark]

http://www.mmmonkey..../mdcartslot.htm

 

http://www.sega-16.c...ead.php?t=10948 (this link probably answers the original question)

 

Japanese cartridges have 180-degrees rounded ends. US (and presumably EU) carts have 90-degrees rounded ends. The rounding radius of the US version is wider, causing JP carts to barely not fit.

 

I have some JP carts that were butchered (presumably by some crappy rental place) to fit into a US console, one to the point that the screw posts broke.

 

You know, after reading the sega-16 link, I kept looking in my Model 1 trying to figure out about the tab thing. I kept expecting to see these tabs in the bottom next to the pins for the cart. LOL It never occured to me that they were up by the doors. The Nomad doesn't have these tabs at all. I'm thinking that the Japan carts would probably fit about like they would in the 32X slot, according to what is said in that sega-16 link. I think all my questions have been answered, thanks.

 

edit: For some reason, I really like the look and styling of the Japan carts.

 

What about the 32X carts? Will Darxide play on a US Genesis?

Edited August 15, 2010 by in the dark

[+thegoldenband]

The Nomad doesn't have these tabs at all. I'm thinking that the Japan carts would probably fit about like they would in the 32X slot, according to what is said in that sega-16 link. I think all my questions have been answered, thanks.

I personally don't feel comfortable with the way Japanese carts fit into my Nomad -- like I said earlier, it's possible to rock them into position, but to me it feels like you're forcing them in. A couple millimeters off the plastic would probably be enough to do the trick. The Model 2 is definitely worse; can't remember if I've tried the 32X.

Edited August 15, 2010 by thegoldenband

[Bruce Tomlin]

I only have one asian MD game that has the shape difference (Golden Axe 3, imagine that) it's packed away right now so I can't answer my own question. Even though I have an import adapter and console that has the hole cut, I wonder if it would be possible to simply place the board in an US shell.

Probably, but good luck getting the label off in one piece.

[tz101]

Game Genie solves it all. They can be had for cheap, and allow play of foreign carts on US Genesis consoles. I play a Japanese MD wrestling cart by using the Game Genie with no problems whatsoever.

[Jimmy Yakapucci]

That is why I region modded the cart portion of my JVC X'Eye. The slot is larger so there is no issue with plugging the Asian carts into my system. (The reason that I say Asian is that I have a few Korean games as well as Japanese.)

 

JY

[BrianC]

The cart shape for the Mega Drive (Japan) is the same as the US Genesis carts, unless there some that have it different. Many of the Japan MD games will play on the US system. I know that there are some that have a lock-out. I am thankful that my copy of Zero Wings works on the US system, cart shape is the same. If I could get my hands on any of the other Japan shooters, I would sure try them out to see if they worked too. If you have a Nomad there is no worry because the cart shape makes no difference to that system.

 

I'm guessing that's the EU Zero Wing with "All your base are belong to us!" rather than the JP one. As said in other posts, EU carts have the same shape as US carts, but JP carts have a different shape. I have a couple JP imports, and one EU import, Super Fantasy Zone. Super Fantasy Zone wasn't optimized for PAL, so it plays fine with no modification on US systems.

[ApolloBoy]

A few carts may not have been this way, though. For instance, my Japanese copy of Marvel Land is like America's.

Pretty much all Japanese carts had a different shape than US/EU carts, not counting the EA carts which are the same for all regions. The Japanese version of Marvel Land had the same cart shell as most other Japanese MD games. In fact, American and European games won't fit in an original Japanese Mega Drive unless you remove the cartridge lock.

[BrianC]

This is what Marvel Land JP looks like. If it's in the US style, but with the JP art, it's probably a bootleg.

[Galeforcerm]

I have mega key for sale or trade if anyone wants it. It allows you to play japanese and brazillian games without any mods. Its the one with the dip switches on it. Looking for genesis, sega cd or n64 stuff if trading.

[stalepie]

This is what Marvel Land JP looks like. If it's in the US style, but with the JP art, it's probably a bootleg.

 

Possibly. It does have the cut out part on the left side that JP carts have but US carts don't. Otherwise the shape seems American. The art, box and instruction manual are Japanese, I think (I can't remember because I have boxes stored in the closet, or may have thrown it away).

[Zeptari1]

I'd like to know if Xenon 2 play's on US genesis II unit's with a game genie?

 

-rick

[+thegoldenband]

I'd like to know if Xenon 2 play's on US genesis II unit's with a game genie?

There's a Game Genie region code for the game, so I think the answer is "yes, but you need to put a code in." I used a GG > hex converter to hardcode the region hack into the ROM, and the resulting file works on my US Model 2 Genesis with an Everdrive cart. I don't 100% remember whether I tested the ROM without the region hack, but I think I did and it didn't work.

Edited September 26, 2010 by thegoldenband