SNES and Genesis outside nostalgia

"SNES audio was far superior to Genesis" - Really? Like you could tell which had better sound with both running off of an RF adaptor in mono. SNES was more graphically capable, but audio was never an argument.

That said, I owned both and both had some great games. Genesis with Sonic, Comix Zone, Jurassic Park and SNES with Mario World, Donkey Kong Country and Killer Instinct. I simply preferred my Genesis.

Genesis all the way! Vectorman, Earthworm Jim, Mortal Kombat, Bevis and Butthead, Sonic Series, Shinobi, Gunstar Heros, Altered Beast, Golden Axe, Toe Jam and Earl....so many awesome games!

The audio on the snes was much superior.

The audio on the SNES was simply far more superior. The SNES had a far better soundchip, which allowed for more channels producing richer sound. You may have personally preferred the sound that Genesis used to make, but that is irrelevant to the facts as they stood.

Anyway, SNES was probably one of the best, if not the best, systems of all time, so I will go with that. The Genesis, great as it was, simply couldn't keep up with that.

You guys saying SNES sounded better, I don't get you. Mono sound from a 16 bit system was never anything great. They both sounded fine but isn't like audio today. Better music is one thing but sound quality back then was sparse.

Not at all, in the 8 bit and older days, sure, in the 16 bit days, there actually was a difference, a perceptible difference. The SNES used a Sony designed audio chip designed by Ken Kutaragi (it was the first Sony/Nintendo collaboration, and Sony's first foray into the gaming market), and Sony's audio technology simply was far ahead of anything that Sega had managed to muster. Even the N64 audio chip was inferior to SNES.

They mean the tunes and sound effects from the games , Snes did't have the guitar riff sound like the Genesis , and "thump" sounds where more clear.

Genesis....no question. Sonic games, Phantasy Star series, Shining Force 2, Shinobi, Comix Zone, Altered Beast, Toejam and Earl, Golden Axe, Double Dragon, Castlevania Bloodlines, Streets of Rage, Battletoads, Vectorman, Earthworm Jim, Mortal Kombat 2, Shadowrun, Zombies Ate My Neighbor......

You get the picture....

The capabilities were different and although I like the Genesis music style better the SNES could do more.

@Telekill:

Agree on audio. Both had pros and cons. I'd say the best of the best in both areas goes to the snes, but generally the genesis had superior sound. The bad visuals on the snes are atrocious.

I never liked genesis but you can't say they weren't massively competing like a storm back in the day vs super nintendo.

Game Gear came out an dominated the gameboy with colors and great games.

Sega was all over nintendo. This generation microsoft is not competing at all vs ps4 they aren't even making games i actually want.

Microsoft needs to leave the industry if this is all they planning on bringing to compete with the ps4 they need to leave basically they are not offering competition so why exist?

Sega launched with 3 sonics vs nintendo blood wtih mortal kombat and tons of other crap

The ****?

Sega does what Nintendon't....

I think he means on a technical level, that of which it did.

Sony 1980s master race

He said great games too- which is patently false.

As is Genesis launching with three sonic games, when it launched with none.

Genesis was a more aggressive and faster system. Sonic 2, Comix Zone, and Streets of Rage 3 epitomize the nature of the Genesis. Not to mention that Nintendo disallowed blood and fatalities on SNES for MK. On Genesis it was as simple as A,B,A,C,A,B,B and off to wonderland. I found NBA Jam's performance to be smoother on Genesis as well.

SNES had some distinct advantages, though. Audio was better and it supported more colors, as well as scaling and rotating sprites. It wasn't just a matter of the quality and transmission of the sound, the actual default midi bank producing the music was richer and higher quality. Games like Mario Kart and Star Fox were all but impossible on Genesis. Also, the controller by default had six buttons and Genesis came with 3. I'm aware of the six button gen pad, I had a Gen and a Nomad which was insane tech for back then, but not all games supported and most Gen players were on 3. Not so convenient for fighters like SF and MK.

As good as LttP and DKC were, I preferred the Genesis.

@charizard1605:

Yet more often than not the actual output quality suffered.

Listen to the difference in audio quality.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=pLwiusoA7t0

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=L6f-tSK6RTw

...sorry on mobile cannot link.

game gear had color and defeated the original gameboy with graphics and gameplay and just better games i could play halley wars for days and be fine it beats tetris an crap on gameboy

To be honest, I noticed both were far better on SNES (sound & music). I don't know how to articulate this, but the music instruments on SNES sounded real. Genesis sounded very computerized, like playing a midi file on an old windows machine.

However, overall (aside from technical specs), the Genesis experience felt more responsive and smooth. So I ended up finding myself enjoying it more.

@ProtossX said:

game gear had color and defeated the original gameboy with graphics and gameplay and just better games i could play halley wars for days and be fine it beats tetris an crap on gameboy

And the game gear killed all the batteries in a hour

Sunset Riders for SNES

Road Rage for Genesis.

End of story.

That's subjective and therefore cannot be patently false.

@MonsieurX:

Not only that but the screen was incredibly poor. I owned one, it stunk.

I think the fact that the Sega Nomad existed though gave it a huge edge over the SNES, maybe not in sales figures but a portable Genesis? How awesome is that!

@MonsieurX: yes but i had white rechargeable batteries that i could fully recharge up in a couple of hours.

Genesis.

As for games, take your pick:

(obviously including mutiplats, but I always go for the Genesis version due to the superior controller, frame rate, and music):

• Streets of Rage 1-3
• Sonic 1-3 & Knuckles
• Gunstar Heroes
• Alien Soldier
• Castlevania: Bloodlines
• Contra: Hard Corps
• MUSHA
• Thunder Force II-IV
• The Revenge of Shinobi
• Shinobi III: The Return of the Ninja Master
• Shinobi: Shadow Dancer
• Ranger X
• Ristar
• Herzog Zwei
• Comix Zone
• Eternal Champions
• Mega Turrican
• X-Men 1-2
• Batman: The Video Game
• Earthworm Jim 1-2
• Two Crude Dudes
• Rocket Knight Adventures I-II
• Golden Axe I-III
• Street Fighter II: Special Champion Edition
• MK I-III
• Steel Empire
• Wings of Wor
• Ecco: The Dolphin
• Whip Rush
• Twinkle Tale
• Alex Kidd
• Bonoanza Bros.
• Columns
• After Burner II
• Outrun
• Super Hang On
• Crusader of Centy
• Mutant League Hockey
• Mutant League Football
• Joe Montana Football
• Bill Walsh College Football ‘95
• NHL '94
• Vectorman 1-2
• Gargoyles
• Toe Jam and Earl 1-2
• Gaiares
• Rolling Thunder 1-2
• Arrow Flash
• Phantasy Star II-IV
• Shining Force I-II
• Gley Lancer
• Verytex
• Zero Wing
• Monster World IV
• Dune
• Battle Mania Daiginjou
• Land Stalker
• Mazin Saga Mutant Fighter
• RoboCop vs. Terminator
• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Hyperstone Heist
• Mighty Morphin Power Rangers
• Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie
• Elemental Master
• Fire Shark
• Cyborg Justice
• Cool Spot
• Dragon’s Fury
• Blades of Vengeance
• Decap Attack
• Pulseman
• Altered Beast
• Shadowrun
• Road Rash 1-3
• Wonder Boy in Monster World
• Dynamite Heady
• Panorama Cotton
• Truxton
• Sagaia
• Kid Chameleon
• Jurassic Park: Rampage Edition
• Tiny Toons I-II
• Mystical Fighter
• Sub-Terrania
• Langrisser II
• Quack Shot
• Castle of Illusion
• Aladdin
• Syndicate
• Toy Story
• Super Fantasy Zone
• Strider
• Splatter House II-III
• Eliminate Down
• Alisia Dragoon
• Beyond Oasis
• Grind Stormer
• Samurai Shodown
• The Punisher
• Mega Man: The Wily Wars
• Mickey Mania
• Taz
• Yu Yu Hakussho
• Spider-Man: Maximum Carnage
• Spider-Man & Venom: Separation Anxiety
• Virtua Racing
• Star Cruiser

SNES has Mega Man 7, X1-X3, Super Metroid, F-Zero, and SCIV, but yeah, it isn't close to me that the Genesis is far superior.

K, I'm out.

Probably took longer to charge that the time you had to play with them

No idea. I was too young to care, nor did I go back to them.

That's actually a good example of what I was trying to articulate. The music instruments on SNES sound like real instruments (like an AMIGA mod). Genesis music sounds very computerized and primitive (like playing a midi file on an old windows machine).

Snes and it's not even close.

Super Mario World
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
Super Metroid
Super Mario Kart
Yoshi's Island
Super Castlevania IV
Chrono Trigger
Mega Man X
Super Mario RPG
Donkey Kong Country 1 - 3
Star Fox
Final Fantasy 6 (3 in US)
Killer Instinct
Contra 3 / Super Probotector
Secret of Mana
F-Zero

And for those who really think that the Genesis/ Megadrive can hold a candle to the Snes when it comes to sound, watch this video from 9 minutes in, it's another level form anything on Genesis/MD https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dxmm49aVRE

Sega Genesis.

@LJS9502_basic: Yes it is. Game Gear did not have better games than Gameboy by any standard, objective or subjective.

LOL well said. I just hooked up my Genesis and was laughing at the old RF. Our passion has really grown. I never had an SNES. Genesis for me. It will always hold a space in my heart because it was the first console I bought myself with my own money I worked for.

One doesn't have to keep up when one is in its own league. LOL

@Mystery_Writer:

That's essentially what Genesis does--it's a Yamaha synth(in tandem with something else). This is why the audio output tends to be higher quality as it doesn't eat up as much space. Lots of the samples used on the snes are so muffled because of limited cart space. It was still very capable. Always thought konami did a great job with it.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Plo3YL1CATM

SNES beat up the Genesis because it had great 3rd party support. FF4 and FF6, Chrono Trigger, Secret of Mana, Turtles in Time, Super Castlevania, Contra 3, Megaman X, Every Mortal Kombat after the first one was superior on SNES, and SF2 were the best for the 16 bit brands. Add in the excellent Nintendo first party stuff and SNES is still a tough system to beat to this day. I still think it might be the finest system created in the history of gaming.

@Renegade_Fury said:

Genesis.

As for games, take your pick:

(obviously including mutiplats, but I always go for the Genesis version due to the superior controller, frame rate, and music):

• Streets of Rage 1-3
• Sonic 1-3 & Knuckles
• Gunstar Heroes
• Alien Soldier
• Castlevania: Bloodlines
• Contra: Hard Corps
• MUSHA
• Thunder Force II-IV
• The Revenge of Shinobi
• Shinobi III: The Return of the Ninja Master
• Shinobi: Shadow Dancer
• Ranger X
• Ristar
• Herzog Zwei
• Comix Zone
• Eternal Champions
• Mega Turrican
• X-Men 1-2
• Batman: The Video Game
• Earthworm Jim 1-2
• Two Crude Dudes
• Rocket Knight Adventures I-II
• Golden Axe I-III
• Street Fighter II: Special Champion Edition
• MK I-III
• Steel Empire
• Wings of Wor
• Ecco: The Dolphin
• Whip Rush
• Twinkle Tale
• Alex Kidd
• Bonoanza Bros.
• Columns
• After Burner II
• Outrun
• Super Hang On
• Crusader of Centy
• Mutant League Hockey
• Mutant League Football
• Joe Montana Football
• Bill Walsh College Football ‘95
• NHL '94
• Vectorman 1-2
• Gargoyles
• Toe Jam and Earl 1-2
• Gaiares
• Rolling Thunder 1-2
• Arrow Flash
• Phantasy Star II-IV
• Shining Force I-II
• Gley Lancer
• Verytex
• Zero Wing
• Monster World IV
• Dune
• Battle Mania Daiginjou
• Land Stalker
• Mazin Saga Mutant Fighter
• RoboCop vs. Terminator
• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Hyperstone Heist
• Mighty Morphin Power Rangers
• Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie
• Elemental Master
• Fire Shark
• Cyborg Justice
• Cool Spot
• Dragon’s Fury
• Blades of Vengeance
• Decap Attack
• Pulseman
• Altered Beast
• Shadowrun
• Road Rash 1-3
• Wonder Boy in Monster World
• Dynamite Heady
• Panorama Cotton
• Truxton
• Sagaia
• Kid Chameleon
• Jurassic Park: Rampage Edition
• Tiny Toons I-II
• Mystical Fighter
• Sub-Terrania
• Langrisser II
• Quack Shot
• Castle of Illusion
• Aladdin
• Syndicate
• Toy Story
• Super Fantasy Zone
• Strider
• Splatter House II-III
• Eliminate Down
• Alisia Dragoon
• Beyond Oasis
• Grind Stormer
• Samurai Shodown
• The Punisher
• Mega Man: The Wily Wars
• Mickey Mania
• Taz
• Yu Yu Hakussho
• Spider-Man: Maximum Carnage
• Spider-Man & Venom: Separation Anxiety
• Virtua Racing
• Star Cruiser

SNES has Mega Man 7, X1-X3, Super Metroid, F-Zero, and SCIV, but yeah, it isn't close to me that the Genesis is far superior.

K, I'm out.

some of these games you listed are very good, but some of them are either mediocre(gargoyles?? really?? that game was total trash) or were done better on the snes.

You can't list street fighter on the genesis for example, when the snes version was far superior and did not require an extra controller purchase., tmnt hyperstone heist was good but noone can honesty say it was as good as turtles in time, bloodlines was good, but super castlevania 4 was far superior, you also dramatically dumb down the list of great snes titles, I don't feel like typing up a huge list but you can't honestly believe the list of great snes games can be narrowed down to the 6 that you listed.

you do get a cookie for listing blades of vengeance on your genesis list, that game was amazing and most people probably never played it.

The only thing the Genesis had over the SNES was CPU speed (or so I believe), and that didn't really seem to hold the SNES back in any important area. The SNES did every genre well, it had so many good games in every genre. It even had proper 3D towards the end. It was just unstoppable.

@pook99: It's a general "best of" list that I made a few years ago. I could weed out what I deem to be not that great or has aged badly, but rather than get into an argument about how I think Golden Axe sucks for example, I'll let the reader decide. I also wrote that I prefer the Genesis versions of all multiplats.

I have a "best of" SNES list too, but there's no reason for me to post that because like PS2 fanboys, there's no shortage of SNES fanboys on the internet.

its funny you mention golden axe, I was talking about genesis games last night with a friend and how it always annoys me that people put streets of rage and golden axe in the same sentence. I do like golden axe, but streets of rage is one of the best brawlers of all time and axe should not be muttered in the same sentence as it.

and you should edit your genesis post to include ghouls n ghosts, I actually just played that game for the first time the other night and it was bad ass.

Well not just people, but SEGA as well, because, for example, Golden Axe still receives exposure in the various All-Stars games while SoR has yet to get any. SoR 2 & 3 are also in my top 5 games of all time, with SoR2 being number #1, so it too does annoy me to a degree.

Yeah, I am missing some in there, and that's definitely one of them.

Genesis is to Super Nintendo as Pippin is to Jordan. Both great, but let's not pretend we don't know who the king is.

SNES

Then, today, forever. Super Metroid, Megaman X, Super Mario World 1 and 2 (especially 2), Chrono Trigger, Terranigma, Secrets of Mana, Street Fighter 2 are all time classics for me.

Word.

@TheEroica:

It's very close. Genesis excelled in areas the snes lacked.

My answer has bias towards SNES, as that was my first console and played it hundreds of more hours. Picked up a Genesis for $10 at a flea market when I was in middle school cause why not.

I will say Gunstar Heroes is just the bees knees.

But Super Mario World 1 and 2, Donkey Kong Countries, and MegaManX are all just way too good imo

SNES wins but Genesis was awesome too.

Easily the best console war.

SNES had Chrono Trigger. I don't need to say more.

Didn't they both have RCA adapters or was it only the SNES?

I have a faint memory of feeling really stupid for using my SNES for like a year on Mono when I could have been using Stereo.

SNES is definitely my favorite, though both systems were fucking great.

If I had to recommend only 3 titles for the SNES they would be Super Mario World, Super Metroid and A Link to the Past. There are so many excellent games on the system, but those three are a safe bet. They haven't "aged" a day and they're games that anybody should be able to get into. I personally prefer Yoshis Island over SMW, but SMW seems to resonate will with a broader audience.