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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Prince of Persia

Box: 
yes
£12.00
Manual: 
yes
£12.00

A Multitude of secret passages, fantastic rooms, violent opponents and magic potions awit you in your bid to foil the evil Grand Vizier Jaffar.

Psychic World

Box: 
yes
£12.00
Manual: 
yes
£12.00

Cecile's been kidnapped by some nasty creatures - her sister Lucia needs your help to save her!

PGA Tour Golf

Box: 
yes
£9.00
Manual: 
yes
£9.00

You are about to enter the world of big-time golf. A huge crowd surrounds the 18th hole of The Players Championship. In PGA Tour Golf you get it all. The excitement, the fun, the challenge and the rewards of the real PGA Tour!

Popils

Box: 
yes
£16.00
Manual: 
yes
£16.00

Kidnapped by the evil sorcerer Popils, the beautiful princess needs your help to escape. Trapped in a series of mindbending puzzles, it's up to you to destroy the blocks in the correct order and lead her to safety.

Pete Sampras Tennis US

Box: 
yes
£10.00
Manual: 
yes
£10.00

Play against 30 computer players with different skills, looks and powers.  3 different court types - grass, hard and clay, 18 world Tour locations, over 450 frames of player animation.  Interactive crowd noises, shots include volley, lob, drop and power.  high precision after touch ball control to add power and direction.

Outrun

Box: 
yes
£14.00
Manual: 
yes
£14.00

One of the greatest Sega arcade games of all time hits your Sega Mega Drive! Drive across every landscape imaginable in Outrun, the ultimate race against time. Use your driving skills to show the world that you are champion on the highways! 

Pengo

Box: 
yes
£20.00
Manual: 
yes
£20.00

You're the only one who can save the Pengos from the Sno-bees, a gang of ruthless aliens!

NBA Jam

Notes: 
The outer box has some marks where tape has been peeled off.
Box: 
yes
£10.00
Manual: 
yes
£10.00

Boomshakalaka! The ultimate arcade Jam comes home!  You control fifty-four of the NBA's hottest stars!

Ninja Gaiden

Box: 
yes
£14.00
Manual: 
yes
£14.00

As Ryu, a present day ninja, you must find and destroy the mysterious organization that is after the powerful Dragonsword.

Mortal Kombat

Facebook
Box: 
yes
£18.00
Manual: 
yes
£18.00

Prepare yourself the number 1 arcade hit is here! Let the tournament begin!

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