Website Temporary Closed

Hello everyone. We are moving to a new, bigger premises so website ordering will be closed for the next month while we move everything to our new building, reorganise and do a full stock take. We will not be taking any orders or able to reply to any messages during this time. We will be open again at the start of December. Many thanks. Console Passion

Sega Game Gear

The Game Gear was Sega's response to the Nintendo Gameboy, the Monochrome handheld designed by Nintendo's Gunpei Yokoi, and released in 1989. Sega had taken note of the general publics criticisms of the Gameboy, and wanted to make a handheld console "everything that the Game Gear wasn't".

The Game Gear was released late 1989 in Japan, 1990 in North America and as usual, us Europeans had to wait even longer, until 1991!

The most obvious different between the two consoles was the 4096 colour palette of the Game Gear, with a maximum of 32 different colours on screen at any time. The screen size was larger than the Gameboy, and was back-lit which meant that you could play it pretty much anywhere, unlike the Gameboy which needed good light.

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The console itself was held lengthways, with buttons on either side. This ergonomic design change made the Game Gear much easier on the hands - one criticism of the Gameboy was that it had a very cramped feel it, and many people complained of sore wrists & hands after extended game play.

The Game Gear was, in essence, a portable Sega Master System. This meant that many Master System Games could be easily ported onto the handheld console. Indeed, a Master System Converter add-on was released, which allowed any Master System Game to be plugged into the Game Gear.

Another add-on which proved to be a popular selling point was the TV Tuner. A small device which clipped to the back of the Game Gear turned the handheld console into a small portable TV, not unlike the Sony Watchman. Other add-ons included a rechargeable battery pack, screen magnifier & multilink cable, to allow two Game Gears to be connected in versus play.

With all these add-ons and advantages over the Gameboy, you would expect the Game Gear to have been the more popular of the two consoles. Unfortunately for Sega, it was not - they had overlooked one very important detail. Battery Life. In the end the deciding factor in the latest chapter of the Sega vs Nintendo war was how long the batteries lasted.

While the Game Gear did indeed have everything the Gameboy lacked, it had to pay a price for these luxuries; the average lifespan on the batteries was between 3 and 5 hours, whereas the Gameboy could easily exceed 10 hours. This was a problem suffered by many other handhelds such as the Neo-Geo pocket and the Atari Lynx - while they may have been superior in every other way, it was the simplest of factors that made the Gameboy the overall winner, and eventually the best selling console of all time.

As with all good things, the Sega Game gears came to and end in 1997. In the end, there were over 200 games released for the console, although many of them never made it out of Japan, such as the excellent Sonic Drift & Sonic Drift 2, and take-on of Super Mario Kart which included a multi-link option. Thankfully these can all be played on any Game Gear as there is no region lockout, due to there being no TV compatibility problems.

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Madden NFL 95

Box: 
yes
£10.00
Manual: 
yes
£10.00

Real eleven on eleven NFL football. Lightning fast gameplay. Full NFL season. Smooth vertical scrolling view. 28 NFL teams. 1994 NFLPA rosters. Madden audio commentary.

Ecco the Dolphin

Box: 
yes
£14.00
Manual: 
yes
£14.00

Ecco’s world has been devastated by a mysterious and powerful wind. Help him to restore peace to his deep sea home!

Double Dragon - The Revenge of Billy Lee

Box: 
yes
£26.00
Manual: 
yes
£26.00

Billy Lee is as mad as hell. His brother has been captured by the evil Shadow Boss who has filled the streets with his men. Will Billy break the inner Circle and avenge his brother – or join? He must make the most of special moves and weapons as he tackles dozens of intelligent opponents in this magnificent martial arts action.

Desert Strike

Box: 
yes
£12.00
Manual: 
yes
£12.00

The number one hit helicopter sim, has now arrived on Game Gear! Pilot your AH-64 Apache helicopter through 27 in depth missions. Destroy scuds, tanks nuclear reactors and rescue vital personnel in this all action test of speed and skill.

Aerial Assault

Box: 
yes
£12.00
Manual: 
yes
£12.00

Your enemy is the deadly NAC terrorist organisation! Fly past their defences, destroy their craft and face their ultimate weapon!

Woody Pop

Box: 
yes
£12.00
Manual: 
yes
£12.00

Join woody Pop as he battles the forces of the jealous Mad Machine.  Get ready for rebounds, ricochets, and bounding action as Woody Pop transforms into a brick smashing hero!

Wonderboy Dragons Trap

Box: 
yes
£16.00
Manual: 
yes
£16.00

Wonder Boy has been cursed! He critically wounds the ugly beast, but its final breath turns Wonder Boy into Lizard-Man! The young fighter must now seek out the Salamander Cross, the only force that can restore him to his normal self.

Winter Olympics

Box: 
yes
£9.00
Manual: 
yes
£9.00

Winter Olympics offers you the ultimate experience in sports simulations. You'll race against the best in the world, and the clock, fighting for gold in a game where you'll face 10 spectacular events testing your speed, strength, skill and endurance to the limit. Its your chance to go for gold in the worlds greatest winter sports spectacle.

Wonderboy

Box: 
yes
£16.00
Manual: 
yes
£16.00

Brave deep dark forests. Cross endless oceans. Endure arid deserts. All the while, fending off nasty creatures and natural disasters. Until you find her. Until you recue your girlfriend, Tanya, from the clutches of a brutish king.

Tazmania

Box: 
yes
£12.00
Manual: 
yes
£12.00

Taz, the Tasmanian Devil, is hungry, and on the prowl!  Join him in his fast blast snack attack in search of the world's biggest omelette!

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