I was poor as a child and I didn't have many toys and things like that, but my family got me a Saturn on clearance for my birthday with a bunch of games so the Saturn is my #1 console. I thank god everyday for such a great family.
Your story sounds similar to mine except it was Xmas 92 and my parents got my brother and I sega cd. I was so happy I cried. We didn't have a lot of money either when I was was a child. I often think of all the times my parents went without so they could afford the things my brother and I had. I'm so greatful for such a wonderful family.
At the time the Saturn was almost a laughing stock from Playstation owner kids point of view, just following the current trend. Time prove that European marketing of the console was half of the whole thing and today owning a Saturn and exploring the japanese library is something to behold. And pricey too. In my collection, its kind of the missing link between the Neo Geo AES and the CD Rom PC Engine. I could secure a Neo Geo but still look after a PC Engine unit with RGB boost... Got my Saturn pretty cheap 10 years ago. Games were never cheap though but i could secure a few. Your story is nice my friend because if you still have your original Saturn given by your family and can play stuff like Dodonpachi, Soukyu.., SNK & Capcom versions of their games, youre in for a treat and the PSX kids are long gone with their growing along Crash & Bandicoot nothingness.
I bought one off of a guy who was wanting to really buy some other system or something at the time. I had several of the games that I bought myself. Drakkhen, Virtua Fighter 2, Nights into Days, Mass Destruction, Hexen and a few others. A house Fire claimed mine. Never got another.😥
The Saturn was such a underrated and overlooked console. I got mine at launch and when some friends would come over it would surprise them how much they ended up loving it and many bought one because of it.
When I was younger I really wanted one but my mom was poor. She ended up buying a PlayStation 1 from her coworker for dirt cheap. Till this day I’d still rather have the Saturn back then instead of the PS1.
I'm always a console behind because I'm always broke, I just got a PS3 a while after the ps4 came out. The strange thing is PS1 games are now really expensive (well more than they were a couple of years ago anyway from what I've seen) at least if they're in good condition. I wish I'd looked after my PS2 games better so i can sell them in a few years.
Every time I think of the Saturn and this era of sega in particular, I imagine there's a parallel dimension out there somewhere in which Sega's consoles didn't suffer the cruel fate they didn't deserve.
If Sega didn't rush the Saturn and stick to the planned September release, it could have been different. Sega made a lot of weird choices during that era.
Sega deserved everything they got, it was entirely the moronic assholes higher ups fault more focused in fucking up the NA division and vice versa, that fucked up their consoles
american gamers were not focused on “anime” games because america at the time was into badass edgy looking games.... of course when pokemon, gundium, dragonballz, sailormoon came out that changed everything. because america wanted wanted america looking games. then realized oh shit, theres a huge fanbase on anime
@@carelessjayremy From Mexico all the way to Argentina, anime has been popular since the 70s, so America actually was into these kind of games, it was Sega's fault if they didn't bring them
My favourite boutique Japanese game makers. They really were in a class of their own where innovation and gameplay were concerned. I’ll never forget the first time I played radiant silver gun. One of my gaming wow moments !!
I like how the developers of the 3d games made smart use of 2D planes/trickery and focused what power the Saturn had on characters. Worked great in tandem with crt.
One showpiece title for Saturn’s 3D polygon graphics is Zero Divide: The Final Conflict, a fighting game that somehow manages to pull off polygon shading while in high-res 480/60 mode. This was considered impossible and even Sega couldn’t pull it off. The game also features extremely solid walled stages with no glitches or drop-outs. Very impressive work from Zoom, who really managed to use the system’s full hardware to great effect.
I pulled out my old Saturn last month and started playing Guardian Heroes again! That game is timeless, still as enjoyable as when I first played it in the 90's!
I know I’ve praised your Saturn representation on this channel before, but wow, what an incredible episode, SLX! My goal is to own every game you mention in this episode. I have about half already. Luckily, I have every shooter mentioned except for Cotton 2. Unfortunately, the RPGs are gonna hurt, as I only have Panzer Dragoon Saga. This is now my Sega Saturn Buying Guide. I’m gonna watch this over and over. Thanks so much for the content, brother.
Good luck man. Some of these games are super expensive. I loved my Saturn but decided to trade it in since most of the good games are way over priced!!
Games were so creative back in the Saturn/PS1/N64 generation. There were no archetypes to copy so there were no rules, and the graphics capabilities were so far from photorealistic so developers had to try to be creative as opposed to being slaves to an ever converging facsimile of reality
I’ve been wanting to gradually build my Saturn collection, and I have your recommendations to thank and refer to as I go (I collect to play). Your channel rips & tears. Keep up the great work.
Fantastic video. Now we need a part two with sports games, puzzle, flight sim, real time strategy, adventure/visual novel, action-adventure (2D and 3D) and probably rhythm/music games (Digital Dance Mix, DJ Wars, Jung Rhythm, Techno Motor and Saturn Music School 1 and 2).
This is only the personal project of emulator Yaba Sanshiro's author, devMiyax (not an official Sega project), but thought you'd be interested: twitter.com/miyaxdev/status/1140134735634583553 I know SLX is not a fan of emulation. And yes, we could also discuss PolyMega. Check out ModernVintageGamer's recent hands-on from E3.
Great video. I unfortunately sold my Saturn years ago along with some great games like Shining Wisdom and DragonForce. I want to buy one again but collecting all the great games for the Saturn nowadays is just too expensive. Sega needs to make a Saturn mini console next!!
Appreciated this video and glad you have some hidden gems. But the most notable 2 you missed imo are: 3d graphics in a side scrolling action game: Psychic Killer Taromaru 2d graphics in a side scrolling adventure: Nanatsu Kaze - No Shima Monogatari I'm also partial to how Mr. Bones unique visual flair, though a lot of it was FMV integrated into the background reliance.
I'm glad you talked about Astel. This was one of ny first Saturn games I found at a pawn shop, none of my friends had heard about, but was a great looking game.
Shienryu is so damn impressive in my book. The graphics in that game are just damn perfect. But cotton is amazing too lol. Damn good video. I loved it!
SNK are almost always great with not only the technical side of visuals, but the artistic side as well. Dead or Alive games are usually the most visually impressive fighters on whatever system their on. Also, Groove On Fight (and the Power Instinct series as a whole) is insanely underrated.
I'm actually kind of glad that you're able to show respect for "Sonic R", since I honestly don't find it to be one of the worst Sonic games ever made, and it was also one of the first video games that I ever heard actual lyrics in its music (not counting the arcade versions of "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" and "Revolution X", of course).
Not to mention it was graphically very impressive (especially for a fast paced racing game) and pulled off some 3D effects other titles struggled with. But Jon Burton is a coding magician so not a massive surprise. He's got a great channel too called GameHut.
It was the last Saturn game i bought during it's official run and it cost less than $20 after tax. Definitely one of the best gaming purchases I've made.
Excellent vid. This shows that you could still make loads more vids showing: - Side by side comparisons of Arcade / Mega Drive / Saturn / Master System / Game Gear games - 60fps Saturn, Dreamcast and Mega Drive videos Your presentation is really nice, and these would look great coming from you. Loved that Sega Rally Arcade / Saturn comparison.
I give the award to Grandia for best looking Sega Saturn game. Back when everyone was saying the Saturn was a 2D juggernaut but couldn't push polygons for shit, along comes little old GameArts to put other developers to shame. Heck, it looked better than many fully 3D Playstation RPG's. Such a shame Sega of America passed on it for a localization... it wouldn't have saved the Saturn but it would've made it's library just a little bit brighter here in the US.
My apologies Sega X Lord! I admit, I've watched MJR Metal J&sus Rocks and the Immortal John Hancock, I ignorantly thought you were just knocking off John, but your dedication and mere content, you surely are THE Sega X Lord! Props to you and all your videos brother
One thing I never see people talk about is the awesome Saturn audio CD player. The people who worked on that put real effort into something that likely very few people would ever use and even had a cool spaceship screen saver.
I been thinking of getting a Japanese Saturn lately. After watching this video f**k it, I'm getting one because I want to play marvel vs street fighter and xmen vs street fighter. Great video bro.
Great List. I love my Sega Saturn. It may be my favorite system. If you want to see a spiritual successor to Burning rangers or what it could have become. Take a look at Gunvalkyrie on the original Xbox. the gameplay style is eerily similar.
The graphics of Dead or Alive were crazy detailed. from each character having actual fingers to the girls batting their eyelashes, the whole experience is smooth as hell.
Great selection, of course you can't talk about every Saturn game in existence, but you did a great job at showing a lot of contenders, and your selection deserves respect. Well done !
I never owned a Saturn and I have always been more of a Nintendo guy (although I do have a Dreamcast) but I really enjoyed your video. Great job compiling this list. The Saturn truly was a 2D powerhouse.
As someone who was a big Nintendo fan back in the day, and has owned a Saturn for over a decade now, the machine is truly worth owning, but collecting games for it is a nightmare as prices have gone up considerably on the software from when I started collecting games for it all those years ago. I consider myself lucky to have 53 games for mine, there's still games I'd love to have for the Saturn, but prices skyrocketing puts a damper on getting much further. However, with prices rising, it tells me one thing. That the Saturn has an everlasting appeal, and a machine that is getting more and more popular now, than it was when it was released. People have seen the Japanese side of the library, and that side is most truly impressive. Of the 53 games I own, only 9 of them are US games, the rest, imports.
@@Bloodreign1 I'm very glad to own a modchipped/region modded Saturn. Most games are just way too expensive, and I sadly suspect many of them just end up as shelf decor instead of being played.
I used to have D&D on Saturn, which was STUNNING!. My Saturn drive was dying at that point (you had to spin CD by hand and then quickly close the lid and turn in on), but damn it was great
I had Scorcher! I forgot all about that game! Which is strange because I do remember liking it! But for some strange reason it skipped my mind! Virtua Fighter 2 was technical master piece moving at a smooth 60 fps! Sega Rally and Panzer Dragon 2 were graphically impressive! Nights was phenomenal! X-Men vs StreetFighter, Marvel vs Streetfighter and DarkStalkers 3 were arcade perfect thanks to the 4 MegaByte RAM Cart! I remember I had to get the converter cartridge to play these incredible games! Guardian Heros and Dragon Force were insane games that immensely enjoyed!
I love your channel! RUclips finally recommended me a solid channel. I don’t know what it is about Sega games from the 90s but the graphics always put me in a good mood. I miss them being in the hardware game.
I don't think even PS2 with it's dark and interpolated video output could compete with these colorful, smooth and near-HD-looking visuals like in Marvel vs Street Fighter on Saturn. Amazing shit.
Although using a component cable the number of supported 480p games on PS2 is somewhat varied. Anything else would either be 240p but usually 480i with a few rare exceptions. The 480i might explain your observation of fuzzyness, though colors are indeed vibrant in the Saturn. I'm pretty sure there are some hacks/patches you can do to get some games to run at 480p these days. en.everybodywiki.com/List_of_PlayStation_2_games_with_alternative_display_modes
Part of it boils down to poor art direction and programming (most developers weren't used to progressive scan back then), because the sixth generation of consoles was a significantly bigger leap overall in hardware from the fifth than seventh to eighth, or what we're likely to get with PS5, Xbox Anaconda and the Switch's successor. But yeah, the Saturn was exceptionally well-designed for sprites and 2d backgrounds.
@@AlfaRomeoQ All it needs is a modification of a HDMI port and the Dreamcast will put out it's highest internal signal, they use to sell VGA cables for Dreamcast back in the day, it was basically a console PC.
Holy crap, I never noticed just what a massive leap Panzer II was over the first game. It looks like it was made on different hardware. Damn, I need to go back and play that one.
You have to beat Guardian heroes so many times to really enjoy it. The story was cool and had some really memorable characters. There were a bunch of unlockables too and never got boring tbh. One of the best beat em ups of all times.
@@natelawrence Yeah... self claimed huge Sega fan, yet I'm ashamed to admit that I didn't have a single Cotton game, including the visually stunning Genesis/Mega Drive version..
Sonic R should definetely be on the list of some of the best visuals on the Saturn. Back in the day it looked pretty close to an N64 game, and It was impressive. As for the 3D fighters, there's also Anarchy in Nippon, a japanese exclusive made with VF2's engine, but with charcters even more detailed.
21:58 The (player's) weapons in Quake are just bitmaps in the Saturn port, just to be clear. It is absolutely a great port, though, and a fantastic Saturn showcase.
I like your positivity. And as a Saturn fan, I really loved the video. Disagree with Wipeout XL and Loaded. Because those were games where, when in direct comparison, the PS won, hands down.
Hell of a lot of work went into this video. Honestly, I had a hard time disagreeing with any of it. I'd have put Astal as best of it's category (and 2nd best overall), I'd have specifically mentioned Christmas Nights, but those are minor nits. I'd have found a way to include Digital Pinball: Necronomicon, but in what category? Again, a minor nit. Fantastic job!
Savaki is a game that always impressed me with it's graphics, especially for a Saturn game. It was released at the end of the Saturn's life in Japan in 1998 and while it may look primitive now, it was pretty good for the time. It animates well and the fighting system is pretty complex.
Yup! SO many great-looking Mega Drive games and the Mega Drive is actually the sole main system of its generation that can deliver on all fronts at once: resolution + graphics + sprites + scrollings + performance + special effects... Games like Streets of Rage 2, Super Fantasy Zone, Panorama Cotton, Ristar, Flink, Red Zone, Thunder Force IV, Alien Soldier, Mickey Mania, Batman & Robin or the whole Sonic series demonstrate this. And some homebrews look fantastic as well as do Pier Solar or the forthcoming Xeno Crisis. And a Master System video about this topic would be nice, too!
Play it. It's a great game. I just played it for the first time recently with Psuedo Saturn Kai and a burned CD-R. Hint: Save up for the best gun and only buy that. The other one is trick and is a waste of time and money because it will constantly miss.
As always, excellent work my friend. I love/loved most of the games on this list. You brought back so many great memories for me. My early years of high school and buying both the Saturn and PlayStation the day the PlayStation dropped. I scrimped and saved for a year...and Sega drops the Saturn early, man I was annoyed. One of the many memories you brought back was something I had long forgotten...the belt fed machinegun in Power Slave. I remember first getting it and it drove me crazy that the weapon never actually cycles. You have excellent feedback but yet the belt never feeds through.
Part of it was the pressure from Nintendo to stay console exclusive which only started to change towards the end of the generation. Part of it was Capcom's inexperience working with the Genesis hardware. Most of the capcom games on the Genesis were ported by sega, including Strider, Ghouls and Ghosts, Megaman Wily Wars and Final Fight on the Sega CD. Had Capcom worked with Sega to do better ports the Genesis games Capcom did port would have been much better. But at the end of the Generation Capcom did have a better relationship with Sega and this carried through into the Saturn.
A 3D fighter I remember from Saturn was Fighting Vipers. I remember it being really cool that you could get armor damage during the fights, and we loved using power moves to bust people though the cages as finishers. I suspect that Megamix game had both Virtua Fighter and Fighting Vipers characters
Just got around to watching this. Outstanding video my friend. You keep churning out the best vids and this is my current favorite channel on YT. Keep up the great work brother. Long live Sega!
The video was all about graphics, but I found myself getting lost in the sound when gameplay was highlighted. Man I loved hearing my Saturn sing, always thought it "sounded" better than my PS1 games.
@@Clay3613 That's nonsense. Saturn chip= 32 channels PCM sampling and FM synth. PS1 chip= 24 channels PCM sampling with on board commpression chip. Stop acting like a fanboy, this information isn't hard to find. They have very similar sound quality but the Saturn does sound a bit punchier due to those extra channels being available. As you can see the Saturn has the more advanced and flexible chip but the PS1 is very efficient with its onboard compression to narrow the sound gap.
That view is incorrect. Saturn chip= 32 channels PCM sampling and FM synth. PS1 chip= 24 channels PCM sampling with on board commpression chip.They have very similar sound quality but the Saturn does sound a bit punchier due to those extra channels being available. As you can see the Saturn has the more advanced and flexible chip but the PS1 is very efficient with its onboard compression to narrow the sound gap.
I i traded my Mega Drive & Snes with 40 games in exchange for a brand new Sega Saturn in march 96 along with a copy of Sega Rally and it blew me away, in my opinion its the best racer of the generation, Virtua Fighter 2 had a similar effect when i first played that, no 32bit 3D games in there respective genres looked as good as those 2 games at the time and when i play them today, i find it easy to forget i'm playing technology for the home thats close to 25 years old.
ForTheStyle Even though i had owned a Mega Drive prior to owning a Saturn, it was their 32bit machine & games that made me a what some might call "a Sega Fan boy".
Nice picks! A really good selection. I would have added two more categories: sports (decathlete, winter heat, soccer games and others) and adventure (Tomb Raider etc...)
I'm so glad someone else appreciates Keio Yugekitai, it kills most of the platformers of that era and the previous and no one really talks about it because it wasn't on the SFC. Thanks, Mel.
I would personally say that Last Bronx and DOA looked better than VF2 , although the fact that VF2 can even be compared to them despite coming out 2 years earlier is impressive in itself, and really shows AM2's skill with the machine (they probably felt they had egg on their face, and needed to prove themselves after VF1 and Daytona). Worth mentioning that Shining Force III improved between scenarios, its obvious that by scenario 3 , Camelot had mastered the engine as towns were more diverse , and the texture/transparency work did improve, generally speaking though Grandia was a strong effort too (as were most of Game Arts' other games at the time). One game that should be mentioned is Sega Worldwide Soccer 98 , which is also a strong effort. While it does look a little blockier than Fifa98 on the PS , it animates better , is more colourful and runs extremely smoothly (worlds ahead of EA's own efforts on the system) My overall pick for best 3D on the system would probably go to Burning Rangers, it does have its graphical glitches (I think its an engine issue, as Nights also had its share of polygon clipping), but it pushed the Saturn's VDP1 and VDP2 chips to do some pretty crazy stuff. For 2D fighters, I would probably say Vampire Savior and SFZ3 are the winners, though special mention should go to Astra Superstars too.
I agree, DoA and Last Bronx are much more impressive visually than VF2, especially their backgrounds. Your comment reminds me that SegaLordX didn't touch on sports game graphics in this video! I think it's the only genre he skipped.
You've shown us great gems on the system in this video. Thanks a lot for your effort. Your channel is so massive with great content and I'm proud of your talent as an RUclipsr. Have an awesome week, Sega Lord X!
Great video and good picks. Just a note - and maybe it is just the way it was worded- but a full fledged Dramatic Battle mode was also featured on the PSP in Street Fighter Alpha 3 Max.
@@marakarthegreat The Saturn version uses the 4mb RAM cart and has frames of animation even the arcade verison doesn't have for some reason. I believe Thawks walking backward animation is a good example. It just looks and plays best of any of the home ports.
The Dreamcast port was based on the PlayStation port with its animation flaws and 3D hit boxes which changed the way combos were done. It's still a decent version but the Saturn version was done from scratch and fixed T.Hawk's back walking animation. Like Vampire Savior, Zero 3 even restored animation frames cut from the arcade version! The unique resolution may be offputting at first in that the characters look slightly chunky, but they animate beautifully! It's the best port hands down.
zero 3, not alpha 3. i thought the same. alpha indicates it came out in the american market. this game was never released for the US, only JPN. and yes it was a MASTERPIECE. forget no slowdown but the sprites were larger than the arcade! it looked so incredible especially if you played the game on an RGB monitor like one of those sony pvm's
Saturn console of my heart. Never will i feel the same emotion launching and watching the introduction and the first level of panzer dragoon, i think not.
Your videos seem to be improving in quality and your footage is top notch. Thanks for bringing the quality, Sega Lord X. Not even a Sega fan really but I can appreciate the work you do here.
Indeed! it's one of the few saturn games that I played back then and it was just a demo disc (that only included the forest stage) but man did it blow my mind!
This is why I got a Saturn instead of a PS1 back in the day, especially because of the gorgeous 2D animated games it had, compared to the PS1's (mostly) 3D games.
That Bernie Stolar guy just really fucked sega up, huh? I want to go back in time and kick him in the nuts right be he accepts the offer to be sega's main man.
Great vid :) Totally agree with powerslave (exhumed) on the saturn. I was not a fan of FPS but this game...Still one of my all time favorite with these great music....
![Blox Fruits Dragon Rework Update [Full Stream]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/EqDAp8udhm0/mqdefault.jpg)
I was poor as a child and I didn't have many toys and things like that, but my family got me a Saturn on clearance for my birthday with a bunch of games so the Saturn is my #1 console. I thank god everyday for such a great family.
Your story sounds similar to mine except it was Xmas 92 and my parents got my brother and I sega cd. I was so happy I cried. We didn't have a lot of money either when I was was a child. I often think of all the times my parents went without so they could afford the things my brother and I had. I'm so greatful for such a wonderful family.
@@lukethedrifter3363 Sega Cd was expensive as hell in 1992 and you also needed the mega drive/ genesis
At the time the Saturn was almost a laughing stock from Playstation owner kids point of view, just following the current trend. Time prove that European marketing of the console was half of the whole thing and today owning a Saturn and exploring the japanese library is something to behold. And pricey too. In my collection, its kind of the missing link between the Neo Geo AES and the CD Rom PC Engine. I could secure a Neo Geo but still look after a PC Engine unit with RGB boost... Got my Saturn pretty cheap 10 years ago. Games were never cheap though but i could secure a few. Your story is nice my friend because if you still have your original Saturn given by your family and can play stuff like Dodonpachi, Soukyu.., SNK & Capcom versions of their games, youre in for a treat and the PSX kids are long gone with their growing along Crash & Bandicoot nothingness.
Sounds like you had an amazing family :) Keep that positive vibe going man.
I bought one off of a guy who was wanting to really buy some other system or something at the time. I had several of the games that I bought myself. Drakkhen, Virtua Fighter 2, Nights into Days, Mass Destruction, Hexen and a few others. A house Fire claimed mine. Never got another.😥
The Saturn was such a underrated and overlooked console. I got mine at launch and when some friends would come over it would surprise them how much they ended up loving it and many bought one because of it.
Mine is still hooked up.. so many of my favorite games on the sega Saturn.
When I was younger I really wanted one but my mom was poor. She ended up buying a PlayStation 1 from her coworker for dirt cheap. Till this day I’d still rather have the Saturn back then instead of the PS1.
I can't wait to get a Saturn and/or Dreamcast
I only got around to buying a Saturn last year - and I've been really impressed. The shoot em ups are fantastic.
I'm always a console behind because I'm always broke, I just got a PS3 a while after the ps4 came out. The strange thing is PS1 games are now really expensive (well more than they were a couple of years ago anyway from what I've seen) at least if they're in good condition. I wish I'd looked after my PS2 games better so i can sell them in a few years.
Every time I think of the Saturn and this era of sega in particular, I imagine there's a parallel dimension out there somewhere in which Sega's consoles didn't suffer the cruel fate they didn't deserve.
I hope the man from taured agrees
If Sega didn't rush the Saturn and stick to the planned September release, it could have been different. Sega made a lot of weird choices during that era.
Sega deserved everything they got, it was entirely the moronic assholes higher ups fault more focused in fucking up the NA division and vice versa, that fucked up their consoles
american gamers were not focused on “anime” games because america at the time was into badass edgy looking games.... of course when pokemon, gundium, dragonballz, sailormoon came out that changed everything. because america wanted wanted america looking games. then realized oh shit, theres a huge fanbase on anime
@@carelessjayremy From Mexico all the way to Argentina, anime has been popular since the 70s, so America actually was into these kind of games, it was Sega's fault if they didn't bring them
Treasure was on fire during the Sega era. Miss those guys they did good work
@@dedecoVGMDJ - Silver gun is on Switch.... Last I heard.
My favourite boutique Japanese game makers. They really were in a class of their own where innovation and gameplay were concerned. I’ll never forget the first time I played radiant silver gun. One of my gaming wow moments !!
@@linkmaster6486 Wrong. Ikaruga is on Switch.
@@linkmaster6486 It was Ikaruga not Radiant Silvergun
I think Tecmo got permission from Sega to use the VF2 engine for their fighting game.
I like how the developers of the 3d games made smart use of 2D planes/trickery and focused what power the Saturn had on characters. Worked great in tandem with crt.
One showpiece title for Saturn’s 3D polygon graphics is Zero Divide: The Final Conflict, a fighting game that somehow manages to pull off polygon shading while in high-res 480/60 mode. This was considered impossible and even Sega couldn’t pull it off. The game also features extremely solid walled stages with no glitches or drop-outs. Very impressive work from Zoom, who really managed to use the system’s full hardware to great effect.
It may have been impressive from a technical standpoint, but it certainly wasn't one of the best looking games.
I think Panzer Dragoon 1&2 have incredible visual presentation. That first level with the flooded ruins looks amazing.
I pulled out my old Saturn last month and started playing Guardian Heroes again! That game is timeless, still as enjoyable as when I first played it in the 90's!
I loved the Saturn original, but would buy on Day One a re-release of the 360 version if it was on PC
I know I’ve praised your Saturn representation on this channel before, but wow, what an incredible episode, SLX! My goal is to own every game you mention in this episode. I have about half already. Luckily, I have every shooter mentioned except for Cotton 2. Unfortunately, the RPGs are gonna hurt, as I only have Panzer Dragoon Saga.
This is now my Sega Saturn Buying Guide. I’m gonna watch this over and over. Thanks so much for the content, brother.
Im grateful for Sega Lord. I never knew the Saturn had such a delicious library of games. I need to hunt for one now
Good luck man. Some of these games are super expensive. I loved my Saturn but decided to trade it in since most of the good games are way over priced!!
Goin to cost a pretty bomb for some of the games they get more expensive all the time but good luck bro it is an underrated console
@@fireheartis1 action replay cart + pseudo Saturn= all the games
@@fireheartis1 Saturn didn't sell well=low game print runs=expensive games.
Dude, thank you so much for showing off Rabbit. I had no idea that game existed and now I'm freaking loving it. It's so fun and charming.
Great video to show anyone who says all Saturn games were ugly! I still love this old machine, warts & all. Love the 5th generation!
Nobody says they are ugly, however many games run worse and have missing graphics.
Games were so creative back in the Saturn/PS1/N64 generation. There were no archetypes to copy so there were no rules, and the graphics capabilities were so far from photorealistic so developers had to try to be creative as opposed to being slaves to an ever converging facsimile of reality
I’ve been wanting to gradually build my Saturn collection, and I have your recommendations to thank and refer to as I go (I collect to play). Your channel rips & tears. Keep up the great work.
Lowkey Sega Saturn is powerful asf in its own way. The amount of colors, textures, layer setting, objects etc, is beyond ridiculous for its time
God bless you brotherman; you're my favorite gaming channel. You tie gaming to life, family, and memories like nobody else
Fantastic video. Now we need a part two with sports games, puzzle, flight sim, real time strategy, adventure/visual novel, action-adventure (2D and 3D) and probably rhythm/music games (Digital Dance Mix, DJ Wars, Jung Rhythm, Techno Motor and Saturn Music School 1 and 2).
Best. Video. Ever. Got me right in the feels. We need a Saturn mini with all these games.
This is only the personal project of emulator Yaba Sanshiro's author, devMiyax (not an official Sega project), but thought you'd be interested:
twitter.com/miyaxdev/status/1140134735634583553
I know SLX is not a fan of emulation.
And yes, we could also discuss PolyMega. Check out ModernVintageGamer's recent hands-on from E3.
I think Ssf is better, but very hard to emulate, You need patience!
I would buy a Saturn Mini in a heart beat!
Great video. I unfortunately sold my Saturn years ago along with some great games like Shining Wisdom and DragonForce. I want to buy one again but collecting all the great games for the Saturn nowadays is just too expensive. Sega needs to make a Saturn mini console next!!
Douglas Baum just get a chipped saturn and burn baby burn
@@filipmartinez1162 These days you don't even have to do that Fenrir ODE, baby!
Appreciated this video and glad you have some hidden gems. But the most notable 2 you missed imo are:
3d graphics in a side scrolling action game:
Psychic Killer Taromaru
2d graphics in a side scrolling adventure:
Nanatsu Kaze - No Shima Monogatari
I'm also partial to how Mr. Bones unique visual flair, though a lot of it was FMV integrated into the background reliance.
Do a 2nd video about this. An honorable mentions video.
Would love to see more about Saturn. Most of us don't really know much about it.
Awesome video as always, but no Darius Gaiden 😢. One of my favorite shumps on the Saturn.
I'm glad you talked about Astel. This was one of ny first Saturn games I found at a pawn shop, none of my friends had heard about, but was a great looking game.
Like and comment before I even start watching the video. I just love your shows man. Thanks! Edit: I feel a multi part episode coming on here.
Shienryu is so damn impressive in my book. The graphics in that game are just damn perfect.
But cotton is amazing too lol. Damn good video. I loved it!
SNK are almost always great with not only the technical side of visuals, but the artistic side as well.
Dead or Alive games are usually the most visually impressive fighters on whatever system their on.
Also, Groove On Fight (and the Power Instinct series as a whole) is insanely underrated.
Got to get them tiddies in high fidelity (DOA).
I'm actually kind of glad that you're able to show respect for "Sonic R", since I honestly don't find it to be one of the worst Sonic games ever made, and it was also one of the first video games that I ever heard actual lyrics in its music (not counting the arcade versions of "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" and "Revolution X", of course).
Not to mention it was graphically very impressive (especially for a fast paced racing game) and pulled off some 3D effects other titles struggled with. But Jon Burton is a coding magician so not a massive surprise. He's got a great channel too called GameHut.
Sonic R slippy controls hurt it the most in my opinion. It looks great though. And that's the only thing that keeps me from playing it more often
GUARDIAN HEROES IS DEFINITELY ONE OF THE BEST SATURN GAMES EVER
Great game. They released it on the Xbox 360 for Xbox live. It was great to relive it.
@@sugarklay9159 Sucks this game won't come to PlayStation...
It was the last Saturn game i bought during it's official run and it cost less than $20 after tax. Definitely one of the best gaming purchases I've made.
Excellent vid.
This shows that you could still make loads more vids showing:
- Side by side comparisons of Arcade / Mega Drive / Saturn / Master System / Game Gear games
- 60fps Saturn, Dreamcast and Mega Drive videos
Your presentation is really nice, and these would look great coming from you. Loved that Sega Rally Arcade / Saturn comparison.
I give the award to Grandia for best looking Sega Saturn game. Back when everyone was saying the Saturn was a 2D juggernaut but couldn't push polygons for shit, along comes little old GameArts to put other developers to shame. Heck, it looked better than many fully 3D Playstation RPG's. Such a shame Sega of America passed on it for a localization... it wouldn't have saved the Saturn but it would've made it's library just a little bit brighter here in the US.
My apologies Sega X Lord! I admit, I've watched MJR Metal J&sus Rocks and the Immortal John Hancock, I ignorantly thought you were just knocking off John, but your dedication and mere content, you surely are THE Sega X Lord! Props to you and all your videos brother
Mad props for mentioning "Indy 500" and wishing for it to be transferred to Saturn!👍
One thing I never see people talk about is the awesome Saturn audio CD player. The people who worked on that put real effort into something that likely very few people would ever use and even had a cool spaceship screen saver.
and many games had awesome CD Audio arrangements
I been thinking of getting a Japanese Saturn lately. After watching this video f**k it, I'm getting one because I want to play marvel vs street fighter and xmen vs street fighter. Great video bro.
Good games. Saturn did them justice.
Just finished Panzer 2 and it was absolutely amazing all around. More time to pop in Saga!!
Great List. I love my Sega Saturn. It may be my favorite system. If you want to see a spiritual successor to Burning rangers or what it could have become. Take a look at Gunvalkyrie on the original Xbox. the gameplay style is eerily similar.
The graphics of Dead or Alive were crazy detailed. from each character having actual fingers to the girls batting their eyelashes, the whole experience is smooth as hell.
Great selection, of course you can't talk about every Saturn game in existence, but you did a great job at showing a lot of contenders, and your selection deserves respect. Well done !
I never owned a Saturn and I have always been more of a Nintendo guy (although I do have a Dreamcast) but I really enjoyed your video. Great job compiling this list. The Saturn truly was a 2D powerhouse.
As someone who was a big Nintendo fan back in the day, and has owned a Saturn for over a decade now, the machine is truly worth owning, but collecting games for it is a nightmare as prices have gone up considerably on the software from when I started collecting games for it all those years ago. I consider myself lucky to have 53 games for mine, there's still games I'd love to have for the Saturn, but prices skyrocketing puts a damper on getting much further.
However, with prices rising, it tells me one thing. That the Saturn has an everlasting appeal, and a machine that is getting more and more popular now, than it was when it was released. People have seen the Japanese side of the library, and that side is most truly impressive. Of the 53 games I own, only 9 of them are US games, the rest, imports.
@@Bloodreign1 I'm very glad to own a modchipped/region modded Saturn. Most games are just way too expensive, and I sadly suspect many of them just end up as shelf decor instead of being played.
I used to have D&D on Saturn, which was STUNNING!. My Saturn drive was dying at that point (you had to spin CD by hand and then quickly close the lid and turn in on), but damn it was great
I had Scorcher! I forgot all about that game! Which is strange because I do remember liking it! But for some strange reason it skipped my mind! Virtua Fighter 2 was technical master piece moving at a smooth 60 fps! Sega Rally and Panzer Dragon 2 were graphically impressive! Nights was phenomenal! X-Men vs StreetFighter, Marvel vs Streetfighter and DarkStalkers 3 were arcade perfect thanks to the 4 MegaByte RAM Cart! I remember I had to get the converter cartridge to play these incredible games! Guardian Heros and Dragon Force were insane games that immensely enjoyed!
To this day, SCORCHER is the best racing I have ever played both on PC and the Saturn. I still play it.
I love your channel! RUclips finally recommended me a solid channel. I don’t know what it is about Sega games from the 90s but the graphics always put me in a good mood. I miss them being in the hardware game.
New intro with the same awesome Astal intro music =)
oh i always figured the voice was supposed to be NiGHTS
Thank you for bringing me back into this era
I don't think even PS2 with it's dark and interpolated video output could compete with these colorful, smooth and near-HD-looking visuals like in Marvel vs Street Fighter on Saturn. Amazing shit.
Although using a component cable the number of supported 480p games on PS2 is somewhat varied. Anything else would either be 240p but usually 480i with a few rare exceptions. The 480i might explain your observation of fuzzyness, though colors are indeed vibrant in the Saturn. I'm pretty sure there are some hacks/patches you can do to get some games to run at 480p these days.
en.everybodywiki.com/List_of_PlayStation_2_games_with_alternative_display_modes
Part of it boils down to poor art direction and programming (most developers weren't used to progressive scan back then), because the sixth generation of consoles was a significantly bigger leap overall in hardware from the fifth than seventh to eighth, or what we're likely to get with PS5, Xbox Anaconda and the Switch's successor. But yeah, the Saturn was exceptionally well-designed for sprites and 2d backgrounds.
@@AlfaRomeoQ Some 3D games looked pretty sharp an detailed, the Dreamcast had PC tech from the 90s it was capable of internal scaling to near 720p.
@@AlfaRomeoQ All it needs is a modification of a HDMI port and the Dreamcast will put out it's highest internal signal, they use to sell VGA cables for Dreamcast back in the day, it was basically a console PC.
ofcourse it couldnt this was the best ,2d
Nights into dreams was absolutely beautiful. I still play it today.
Virtua fighter 2 and dead or Alive are thé most beautiful 3Dfighters. Great vidéo as usual
These all look great. Astal is one that really looks fantastic with all the colors.
What a time to watch this - I just hooked up my Saturn for the first time in months today! And...Sonic R was mainly what I played today. ._ .
Holy crap, I never noticed just what a massive leap Panzer II was over the first game. It looks like it was made on different hardware. Damn, I need to go back and play that one.
You have to beat Guardian heroes so many times to really enjoy it. The story was cool and had some really memorable characters. There were a bunch of unlockables too and never got boring tbh. One of the best beat em ups of all times.
man.. can't believe i missed out on the Cotton series for Saturn. Thanks for another awesome video, Sega Lord X
Check out their Dreamcast entry too, if you're into that series' style.
@@natelawrence Yeah... self claimed huge Sega fan, yet I'm ashamed to admit that I didn't have a single Cotton game, including the visually stunning Genesis/Mega Drive version..
@@gtrzdaddy Panorama Cotton is indeed a pleasant surprise for Genesis/Mega Drive owners.
Sonic R should definetely be on the list of some of the best visuals on the Saturn. Back in the day it looked pretty close to an N64 game, and It was impressive. As for the 3D fighters, there's also Anarchy in Nippon, a japanese exclusive made with VF2's engine, but with charcters even more detailed.
This video is superb, you really deserve the tile as Lord X.
Panzer dragoon orta is such a criminally overlooked game.
21:58 The (player's) weapons in Quake are just bitmaps in the Saturn port, just to be clear.
It is absolutely a great port, though, and a fantastic Saturn showcase.
I like your positivity. And as a Saturn fan, I really loved the video. Disagree with Wipeout XL and Loaded. Because those were games where, when in direct comparison, the PS won, hands down.
I used to have the Guardian Heroes soundtrack playing in the store when I worked at Electronics Boutique.
Hell of a lot of work went into this video. Honestly, I had a hard time disagreeing with any of it. I'd have put Astal as best of it's category (and 2nd best overall), I'd have specifically mentioned Christmas Nights, but those are minor nits. I'd have found a way to include Digital Pinball: Necronomicon, but in what category? Again, a minor nit. Fantastic job!
Savaki is a game that always impressed me with it's graphics, especially for a Saturn game. It was released at the end of the Saturn's life in Japan in 1998 and while it may look primitive now, it was pretty good for the time. It animates well and the fighting system is pretty complex.
Fighters Megamix!! It was Virtua Fighter 2 plus Fighting Vipers. Loved that game.
Would like to see an episode for the Genesis/Mega Drive aswell regarding this topic.
Yup! SO many great-looking Mega Drive games and the Mega Drive is actually the sole main system of its generation that can deliver on all fronts at once: resolution + graphics + sprites + scrollings + performance + special effects... Games like Streets of Rage 2, Super Fantasy Zone, Panorama Cotton, Ristar, Flink, Red Zone, Thunder Force IV, Alien Soldier, Mickey Mania, Batman & Robin or the whole Sonic series demonstrate this. And some homebrews look fantastic as well as do Pier Solar or the forthcoming Xeno Crisis.
And a Master System video about this topic would be nice, too!
Gorgeous games, man! A third of them I wasn’t aware of... thank you! Beautiful video.
Great stuff. I regret not getting a chance to play PD Saga, Radiant Silvergun or the last Shining Force. Sega needs to release Saturn Classics
Well the original Panzer Dragoon is being remade on the Switch so that's something.
@@vaudou_ looks good but not sure how well it will play. But fans need to support these in order to get more
@@vaudou_ although it should have been multiplatform
Play it. It's a great game. I just played it for the first time recently with Psuedo Saturn Kai and a burned CD-R. Hint: Save up for the best gun and only buy that. The other one is trick and is a waste of time and money because it will constantly miss.
I didn't know I wanted a Sega Saturn mini until I watched your video. Good job!
During the car chase level in VC2, I would always shoot the wheels as a kid, just to see the bad guys topple over.
So satisfying...😸
Brandon Cutler me too.
As always, excellent work my friend. I love/loved most of the games on this list. You brought back so many great memories for me. My early years of high school and buying both the Saturn and PlayStation the day the PlayStation dropped. I scrimped and saved for a year...and Sega drops the Saturn early, man I was annoyed.
One of the many memories you brought back was something I had long forgotten...the belt fed machinegun in Power Slave. I remember first getting it and it drove me crazy that the weapon never actually cycles. You have excellent feedback but yet the belt never feeds through.
It’s funny to see how much love went into Saturn Capcom games when their genesis ports got so lazy at times
japan saturn sales were huge so capcom bothered, genesis/megadrive didnt do well in japan so they probably didnt care
Also Capcom probably wanted a better home for their 2D fighting games, as the Saturn was just the better home platform compared to the N64 and PS1
Part of it was the pressure from Nintendo to stay console exclusive which only started to change towards the end of the generation. Part of it was Capcom's inexperience working with the Genesis hardware. Most of the capcom games on the Genesis were ported by sega, including Strider, Ghouls and Ghosts, Megaman Wily Wars and Final Fight on the Sega CD. Had Capcom worked with Sega to do better ports the Genesis games Capcom did port would have been much better. But at the end of the Generation Capcom did have a better relationship with Sega and this carried through into the Saturn.
capcom gave saturn and dreamcast lots of love. good for them haha
Never had a Saturn but always admired a lot of the games I saw for it. Awesome video as always sega lord x
A 3D fighter I remember from Saturn was Fighting Vipers. I remember it being really cool that you could get armor damage during the fights, and we loved using power moves to bust people though the cages as finishers. I suspect that Megamix game had both Virtua Fighter and Fighting Vipers characters
and Sonic the Fighters characters. Yes this was a thing.
Just got around to watching this. Outstanding video my friend. You keep churning out the best vids and this is my current favorite channel on YT. Keep up the great work brother. Long live Sega!
The video was all about graphics, but I found myself getting lost in the sound when gameplay was highlighted. Man I loved hearing my Saturn sing, always thought it "sounded" better than my PS1 games.
PS1 had the better soundchip and audio output.
@@Clay3613Technologically yes I acknowledge that.
@@Clay3613 That's nonsense. Saturn chip= 32 channels PCM sampling and FM synth. PS1 chip= 24 channels PCM sampling with on board commpression chip. Stop acting like a fanboy, this information isn't hard to find. They have very similar sound quality but the Saturn does sound a bit punchier due to those extra channels being available. As you can see the Saturn has the more advanced and flexible chip but the PS1 is very efficient with its onboard compression to narrow the sound gap.
That view is incorrect. Saturn chip= 32 channels PCM sampling and FM synth. PS1 chip= 24 channels PCM sampling with on board commpression chip.They have very similar sound quality but the Saturn does sound a bit punchier due to those extra channels being available. As you can see the Saturn has the more advanced and flexible chip but the PS1 is very efficient with its onboard compression to narrow the sound gap.
@@DavidSmith-bv8mv Thanks, I knew there was a reason I liked the sound of it on my stereo speakers better than the PS1.
for me Wing Arms and Gungriffon along with all the close to arcade perfect fighters blew my mind back then.
Sega for Life baby : D
I i traded my Mega Drive & Snes with 40 games in exchange for a brand new Sega Saturn in march 96 along with a copy of Sega Rally and it blew me away, in my opinion its the best racer of the generation, Virtua Fighter 2 had a similar effect when i first played that, no 32bit 3D games in there respective genres looked as good as those 2 games at the time and when i play them today, i find it easy to forget i'm playing technology for the home thats close to 25 years old.
Seaga Rally really made me love the Saturn
ForTheStyle
Even though i had owned a Mega Drive prior to owning a Saturn, it was their 32bit machine & games that made me a what some might call "a Sega Fan boy".
The Saturn version of Virtua Fighter 2 was far superior to the slow clunky crap Mega Drive/Genisis port I owned
Nice picks! A really good selection.
I would have added two more categories: sports (decathlete, winter heat, soccer games and others) and adventure (Tomb Raider etc...)
Great video but curious why you skipped the puzzle genre? Baku Baku was really nice looking
One of your best vids, super appreciate this kind of content, really helps Saturn newcomers
I always look forward to your videos!
I'm so glad someone else appreciates Keio Yugekitai, it kills most of the platformers of that era and the previous and no one really talks about it because it wasn't on the SFC. Thanks, Mel.
I would personally say that Last Bronx and DOA looked better than VF2 , although the fact that VF2 can even be compared to them despite coming out 2 years earlier is impressive in itself, and really shows AM2's skill with the machine (they probably felt they had egg on their face, and needed to prove themselves after VF1 and Daytona).
Worth mentioning that Shining Force III improved between scenarios, its obvious that by scenario 3 , Camelot had mastered the engine as towns were more diverse , and the texture/transparency work did improve, generally speaking though Grandia was a strong effort too (as were most of Game Arts' other games at the time).
One game that should be mentioned is Sega Worldwide Soccer 98 , which is also a strong effort. While it does look a little blockier than Fifa98 on the PS , it animates better , is more colourful and runs extremely smoothly (worlds ahead of EA's own efforts on the system)
My overall pick for best 3D on the system would probably go to Burning Rangers, it does have its graphical glitches (I think its an engine issue, as Nights also had its share of polygon clipping), but it pushed the Saturn's VDP1 and VDP2 chips to do some pretty crazy stuff.
For 2D fighters, I would probably say Vampire Savior and SFZ3 are the winners, though special mention should go to Astra Superstars too.
I agree, DoA and Last Bronx are much more impressive visually than VF2, especially their backgrounds.
Your comment reminds me that SegaLordX didn't touch on sports game graphics in this video! I think it's the only genre he skipped.
You've shown us great gems on the system in this video. Thanks a lot for your effort. Your channel is so massive with great content and I'm proud of your talent as an RUclipsr. Have an awesome week, Sega Lord X!
Last bronx all the way for 3D fighting love that game
Great video and good picks.
Just a note - and maybe it is just the way it was worded- but a full fledged Dramatic Battle mode was also featured on the PSP in Street Fighter Alpha 3 Max.
Street Fighter Alpha 3 looked really nice on Saturn. The game was better than the Dreamcast port in some ways.
how so?
@@marakarthegreat The Saturn version uses the 4mb RAM cart and has frames of animation even the arcade verison doesn't have for some reason. I believe Thawks walking backward animation is a good example. It just looks and plays best of any of the home ports.
The Dreamcast port was based on the PlayStation port with its animation flaws and 3D hit boxes which changed the way combos were done. It's still a decent version but the Saturn version was done from scratch and fixed T.Hawk's back walking animation. Like Vampire Savior, Zero 3 even restored animation frames cut from the arcade version! The unique resolution may be offputting at first in that the characters look slightly chunky, but they animate beautifully! It's the best port hands down.
zero 3, not alpha 3. i thought the same. alpha indicates it came out in the american market. this game was never released for the US, only JPN. and yes it was a MASTERPIECE. forget no slowdown but the sprites were larger than the arcade! it looked so incredible especially if you played the game on an RGB monitor like one of those sony pvm's
@@Video-Games-Are-Fun Now you're just nerdy nitpicking. I have this game and most of the other good RAM cart imports that never got a US release.
Saturn console of my heart. Never will i feel the same emotion launching and watching the introduction and the first level of panzer dragoon, i think not.
Does anyone remember the game Astal?
Side scrolling beat em up that was just beautiful.
Ramchast yessss!!!!!
Wonderful game.
Great video Mr SLX, this video has prompted me to keep holding my head up high collecting for the Saturn :)
Great video Sega Lord X thanks!
Your videos seem to be improving in quality and your footage is top notch. Thanks for bringing the quality, Sega Lord X.
Not even a Sega fan really but I can appreciate the work you do here.
Panzer Dragoon 2 had some awesome graphics
Indeed! it's one of the few saturn games that I played back then and it was just a demo disc (that only included the forest stage) but man did it blow my mind!
that water was amazing
really loved this episode. would love a continuation of this and see more good looking saturn games
Street fighter Zero(alpha) 3 is best 2D fighting game for me.
in 1997 the PlayStation had good 3D i wowed people with my Sega Saturn 3d and 2d games. ❤️
Three Dirty Dwarves was my favorite Saturn game.
thanks for including Powerslave/Exhumed, its probably my fave Saturn game :)
AM2 IS MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITE DEVELOPMENT HOUSE EVER!!! VIRTUA FIGHTER 2 CHANGED MY LIFE IN 1994
Awesome selection! I missed out back in the day and still have to rediscover these old gems.
This is why I got a Saturn instead of a PS1 back in the day, especially because of the gorgeous 2D animated games it had, compared to the PS1's (mostly) 3D games.
OOF.
Didn't even finish watching, and I am already liked the video.
Wow, even with the racist rant at the end promoting bestiality? That's brave of you.
@@n0isyturtle wait what
Decades later and I still want to know why the ram carts didn't come to the US.
That Bernie Stolar guy just really fucked sega up, huh?
I want to go back in time and kick him in the nuts right be he accepts the offer to be sega's main man.
Great vid :) Totally agree with powerslave (exhumed) on the saturn. I was not a fan of FPS but this game...Still one of my all time favorite with these great music....