Building Sega Master System Hidden Gems list

[nightrnr]

I will uphold the choice for Miracle Warriors. A bit hard to get used too with the small map screen and single attack turns. But I did have fun with that one.

I might recommend Spellcaster and Bomber Raid.
Maybe Gangster Town for a light gun game. It's fun, 2-player with 2 guns, and what other game let's you shoot the bad guy, then shoot his ghost?.

Also, was Cloud Master on any list? That is a fun and quirky shmup in my book.

[Dikdikvandik]

Bank Panic I think it's Europe only and it's one of my favorite games that nobody talks about.

was also on the SG 1000 and was a fantastic arcade game.

[Nemoide]

I feel like Bubble Bobble is worth putting on the list of ports. It's mentioned in the other article but barely. It's a really great port of the game that's different from the NES version!

[racketboy]

Nice! Thanks for the recommendations!

I'm going through some old blog comments and saw a few people recommending Spellcaster (and I saw PresidentLeever recommended this as well). One person mentioned: "This Anime style rpg was also a side scrolling action game. It was a unique mix of puzzle solving rpg and action. This is one of the first games I remember where the plot was key to what made it so great. The graffix are almost genesis quality at times."

Also, PresidentLeever also mentioned in the blog comments:
"You’re forgetting the zapper games. No safari hunt doesn’t count. I’m talking about Gangster Town, Rescue Mission, Laser Ghost. "

These are old comments from the Defining post

[ElkinFencer10]

I'll throw my hat in for Double Dragon. I actually prefer it over the NES game.

[racketboy]

OK here's an updated list.

If anyone wants to vouch for a certain game to be bumped up in priority on the list, let me know.
I included some of the notes for honorable mentions from this thread just for reference


Primary list:
Master of Darkness
Power Strike (Aleste)
Power Strike II
Kensiden
Miracle Warriors
Spellcaster
Penguin Land
Cyborg Hunter
Bomber Raid
Cloud Master
Gangster Town
Bank Panic
Enduro Racer
The Ninja (Sega Ninja)
Ninja Gaiden
Road Rash
Quartet

Defined Honorable Mentions
Zillon
Govellius: Valley of Doom
Astro Warrior

Popular in UK, But Unappreciated in NA
Asterix

Quality Ports of Games That May Not Get Proper Attention
Sagaia (Darius II)
Kings Quest
Rastan
Rampage
R-Type
Bubble Bobble
Ultima IV: Quest of the Avatar

Defined Movie Licenses
Rocky
Ghostbusters

Honorable Mentions
Rescue Mission - Light Gun
Laser Ghost - Light Gun
Psycho Fox - Precursor to Sonic basically
Aladdin - Very impressive visuals and PoP-like gameplay
Outrun 3D and Space Harrier 3D
Solomon's Key - Great game but controls a bit worse
Lemmings - Technically impressive port
Dragon Crystal - Early rogue-like with some innovations
Lord of the Sword - An ok game but one of the worst of its kind on SMS imo; Pretty frustrating level design here with some tedious backtracking, and no continues
Kung Fu Kid - Very short and easy platformer with nothing particularly original about it
Black Belt - It's a good early game but kinda like putting Donkey Kong or Kung Fu on a NES list
My Hero - Almost literally like putting Kung Fu on a NES list, there are a bunch of better games
Alien 3 - Better on MD besides the music

[alienjesus]

OK here's an updated list.

If anyone wants to vouch for a certain game to be bumped up in priority on the list, let me know.
I included some of the notes for honorable mentions from this thread just for reference


Primary list:
Master of Darkness
Power Strike (Aleste)
Power Strike II
Kensiden
Miracle Warriors
Spellcaster
Penguin Land
Cyborg Hunter
Bomber Raid
Cloud Master
Gangster Town
Bank Panic
Enduro Racer
The Ninja (Sega Ninja)
Ninja Gaiden
Road Rash
Quartet

Defined Honorable Mentions
Zillon
Govellius: Valley of Doom
Astro Warrior

Popular in UK, But Unappreciated in NA
Asterix

Quality Ports of Games That May Not Get Proper Attention
Sagaia (Darius II)
Kings Quest
Rastan
Rampage
R-Type
Bubble Bobble
Ultima IV: Quest of the Avatar

Defined Movie Licenses
Rocky
Ghostbusters

Honorable Mentions
Rescue Mission - Light Gun
Laser Ghost - Light Gun
Psycho Fox - Precursor to Sonic basically
Aladdin - Very impressive visuals and PoP-like gameplay
Outrun 3D and Space Harrier 3D
Solomon's Key - Great game but controls a bit worse
Lemmings - Technically impressive port
Dragon Crystal - Early rogue-like with some innovations
Lord of the Sword - An ok game but one of the worst of its kind on SMS imo; Pretty frustrating level design here with some tedious backtracking, and no continues
Kung Fu Kid - Very short and easy platformer with nothing particularly original about it
Black Belt - It's a good early game but kinda like putting Donkey Kong or Kung Fu on a NES list
My Hero - Almost literally like putting Kung Fu on a NES list, there are a bunch of better games
Alien 3 - Better on MD besides the music

Rainbow Islands is another candidate for the 'good ports' list.

Aztec Adventure is a decent honourable mention I think - it was popular enough to get referenced in Segagaga's final boss fight, and it's a decent little adventure game, although a bit slow and awkward at times

I've heard good stuff about the Batman game on the system too, but I've never played it so I can't comment.

[Gunstar Green]

Psycho Fox - Precursor to Sonic basically

Precursor to DecapAttack.

[alienjesus]

My problem with Golvellius and Zillion being on the main list is they're not hidden gems. Basically every retro gamer who likes the Master System knows about them nowadays.

Don't get me wrong, they're great, but are they really hidden? That probably applies to a few others on the list too if you ask me (Bubble Bobble? Double Dragon? Those are quite well known amongst SMS players for being 'better' than the NES versions.)

[racketboy]

My problem with Golvellius and Zillion being on the main list is they're not hidden gems. Basically every retro gamer who likes the Master System knows about them nowadays.

Don't get me wrong, they're great, but are they really hidden? That probably applies to a few others on the list too if you ask me (Bubble Bobble? Double Dragon? Those are quite well known amongst SMS players for being 'better' than the NES versions.)

I totally understand that, but my goal with these guides is to also be useful to those that aren't familiar with the system.
Now to help your point a bit, I did include them as honorable mentions on the Defined Guide and I plan on segmenting them out as such on the Hidden Gems -- a section near the bottom with the disclaimer. Because of the relative obscurity of the system itself, games like these are kinda in a middle group limbo. Not especially mainstream, but not truly hidden.

And for most systems, I would totally be in the same boat on games like Bubble Bobble. But I would like to highlight a few excellent ports, but again have them restricted to a "demoted" bottom section.