Saturday, August 20, 2022

Unlocking the mysteries of the Sega Tote


As I ramp up for the release of Sega CD Summer, I'll be writing about the Sega Genesis and the Sega CD in a series of blog posts.

The Sega Genesis played an outsized role in my childhood. I cut my video game teeth on the Mattel Intellivision. For much of my childhood, other kids didn't believe that system actually existed because almost everyone else had an Atari.

In the days before "playing Nintendo" was a thing, people "played Atari."

We sold the Intellivison during a garage sale one year, earning enough money to buy a Nintendo Entertainment System. So, yes, we eventually "played Nintendo." The NES was truly a great system, but when I was ready to upgrade in the early '90s, I chose the Sega Genesis instead of the Super Nintendo.

I sold the NES through a classified ad in the Palladiun-Item and used the money to buy a Genesis. 

When it came time to upgrade to the Sony PlayStation, I kept the Genesis. I simply couldn't part with it. Heck, I even had the Sega CD and the Game Gear.

For years, the Sega Genesis Model 1 and Sega CD Model 2 and their various games have been stored away. They still work, according to intermittent tests from over the years!

I loved that system. I even liked the Sega CD a lot, even though I realize no one consistently tapped its great potential. I discovered the Sega CD was pretty unpopular when the games started getting big discounts just a year or so after I bought it (Future Matt wishes Past Matt would've grabbed that copy of Snatcher he saw in the bargain bin at Sears).

Today, the Sega Genesis and Sega CD sit in a blue tote with their various games. I have about thirty games between the two systems. In the weeks leading up to the release of the book, I'm going to reflect on the different games with mini-reviews.

Please join me as I unlock the mysteries of the Sega Tote:

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