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The Sega Master System is so underratedIt's no surprise that retro video games have gotten more and more expensive the last 5–7 years. With scalpers buying all the stock, collectors like myself have slim to none chance of finding stuff at flea markets, thrift shops or mom-and-pop stores. It makes sense given the economic shift in the last few years. Inflation is a b*tch. However, when the market goes right, you have to go left. When everybody is buying Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) games, you need to look for Sega Master System stuff.Sounds a little too simple, right? Yes, but it's true. When I went to a retro gaming convention in 2024, pretty much all NES games were priced a little above average. This makes sense because the seller needs some money, you can see the item before you buy and check out the condition of said item. But when it comes to Sega Master System games, these are dirt cheap (at least in Europe). At the convention, there were tubs filled with SMS games (albeit most without a manual and the condition wasn't ideal). If you don't care about all of the extra stuff like manuals or cases, SMS is the way. There has been a shift in interest from SEGA's 8-bit machine to Nintendo's. I think this has something to do with the fact that Nintendo is still making gaming consoles and SEGA isn't. On top of that, Europeans now tend to follow the Americans when it comes to NES vs. Master System. So if you want to collect 8-bit and live in Europe, definitely go for Sega Master System games. They are cheaper, easier to find complete (CIB) and graphically look better than the NES's. I'm not saying that the NES is a bad system, it does have bangers. But are these 8-bit games really worth that much? Personally I favour the SMS over the NES in terms of hardware. The NES has problems with its mechanism to load games and has awful video output. The SMS has a reliable loading mechanism (Top loading FTW!) and has native beautiful RGB-out on the Model 1. The Model 2 only has RF, but I don't recommend that system anyway/I don't have one. I do like the NES's controller more. The buttons click right and it has a D-pad, compare that to the SMS control pad, I'd pick the NES controller any day. In terms of software, it's a tough one. The SMS is easy to mod at 60Hz so that really improves things overall. The SMS has games like Sonic the Hedgehog 1 and 2, Michael Jackson's Moonwalker and Fantasy Zone. The NES has games like Super Mario Bros, Zelda and Kirby. But are these original NES games worth their price? For me, it depends on the game. I'd only pick a game on the NES if it's not available anywhere else. If a game is on SMS and NES, I'd pick the SMS version if the price is reasonable. The SMS does have exclusives but I don't own any (yet!). When I do have some exclusives, I will make another blog post about it. Anyway I just wanted to shine a bit of light on how awesome the SMS really is. It is really a nice system that is often forgotten in a world of expensive retro video games. It's a system that has it all but you just need to look a little harder. ~ Bill 23 May 2025 |
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