Sega Mega Drive and Genesis Classics

Sega Mega Drive and Genesis Classics

Developers
	Sega
Sega Mega Drive Classics Hub	D3T
Engines
Sega Mega Drive Classics Hub	Unity 2017
Release dates
Windows	June 2, 2010
macOS (OS X)	May 29, 2018
Linux	May 29, 2018
Taxonomy
Modes	Multiplayer

Key points

100% Steam Achievement completion in this collection is impossible without Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, and Sonic 3 & Knuckles which were delisted on May 20th 2022 to be included in Sonic Origins.

Emulated versions of classic Sega Mega Drive/Genesis games.

Retail version is known as Sega Genesis Classic Collection: Gold Edition and was released in 2011

As of April 28, 2016 the collection now features Steam Workshop support.

The Steam Workshop however has became flooded with illegally pirated ROMs (including games being sold through Steam or other platforms) and pornographic content disguised as mods with no substance due to lack of moderation of submitted content.

General information

Steam Community Discussions

Availability

Source	DRM	Notes	Keys	OS
Retail		Original individual volume releases. Europe only. Missing Eternal Champions, Shadow Dancer and Pack 5.
Retail		2011 Gold Edition release. StarForce 5.70.021.004 DRM for at least the European versions, missing Eternal Champions, Shadow Dancer and Pack 5.
Steam		Complete pack. Hub launcher requires Steam DRM. Simple launcher is DRM-free when launched directly from the executable (<path-to-game>\SEGAGenesisClassics.exe).

Games are sold on Steam individually or in smaller bundles.

Some games are not available in Germany: see the DLC list.

Since the update of May 29, 2018, some regional roms can be played through the emulator: see the DLC list below.

The Steam version includes both the "Hub" launcher with the "Simple" launcher as a fallback. All non-Steam versions only includes the "Simple" launcher.

Essential improvements

Run in other emulators

For the Steam version, uncompressed ROMs of the purchased games can be found under <path-to-game>\uncompressed ROMs.

Most regional ROMs are unavailable in the uncompressed ROMs folder; instead, they need to be extract from the data folder.

Copy Steam ROMs to an external folder for use with other emulators[citation needed]

Copy the contents of <path-to-game>\uncompressed ROMs and paste to another emulator's ROM folder of your choice. Rename *.68K and *.SGD file extensions to *.bin so that other emulators will correctly recognize and run them. Workshop mods are *.bin files inside folders found in steamapps\workshop\content\34270. External emulators can load these Workshop mods, copy the contents of 32470 to your chosen ROM folder, and rename the *.bin filenames as you see fit to prevent future confusion, then load them with your emulator.

Extract *.pak files with QuickBMS (non-Steam versions)

Download QuickBMS. Download the Sega Classics script (further down the page). Run QuickBMS and choose the Sega Classics script. Choose the installation folder containing the *.pak files. Choose the folder to save extracted ROMs to. QuickBMS will now extract the ROMs. Press ↵ Enter when done to exit QuickBMS. The ROMs are now extracted and named appropriately, ready for use with a different emulator (see Emulation:Sega Genesis)

Run mods in simple launcher

This program allows you to extract ROMs from SEGA Genesis Classics .pak files and to make your own for use with the emulator.

Use SEGA Genesis Classics ROM Packer

Game data

Configuration file(s) location

System	Location
Windows	%USERPROFILE%\Documents\SEGA Mega Drive Classics\setup.dat %USERPROFILE%\Documents\SEGA Genesis Classics\setup.dat %USERPROFILE%\Documents\SEGA Genesis Classics Collection\setup.dat HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Sega\SEGA Genesis & Mega Drive Classics
Linux	$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/unity3d/Sega/SEGA Mega Drive Classics/prefs

This game follows the XDG Base Directory Specification on Linux.

Folder name varies by region

Windows locations are for the "simple" interface; Steam location is for the "hub" interface.

Save game data location

System	Location
Windows	%USERPROFILE%\Documents\SEGA Mega Drive Classics\ %USERPROFILE%\Documents\SEGA Genesis Classics\
Linux	$HOME/SEGA Mega Drive Classics/user_<user-id>/

This game does not follow the XDG Base Directory Specification on Linux.

The "Simple" launcher uses either folder depending on region; the "hub" launcher only uses the "Mega Drive" path.

Each game is saved in a separate folder based on the filename of the game's pak; refer to this list:

Click [Expand] to view.

g0000.pak - Altered Beast
g0001.pak - Comix Zone
g0002.pak - Crack Down
g0003.pak - Ecco the Dolphin
g0004.pak - Gain Ground
g0005.pak - Golden Axe
g0006.pak - Shadow Dancer
g0007.pak - Shinobi III
g0008.pak - Sonic 3D Blast
g0009.pak - Space Harrier II
g0010.pak - Vectorman
g0011.pak - Alex Kidd in the Enchanted Castle
g0012.pak - Bonanza Bros
g0013.pak - Columns
g0014.pak - Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine
g0015.pak - Ecco Jr.
g0016.pak - Eternal Champions
g0017.pak - Fatal Labyrinth
g0018.pak - Galaxy Force II
g0019.pak - Kid Chameleon
g0020.pak - Ristar
g0021.pak - Sonic Spinball
g0022.pak - Super Thunder Blade
g0023.pak - Alien Storm  
g0024.pak - Bio-Hazard Battle  
g0025.pak - Columns III
g0026.pak - Decap Attack
g0027.pak - Ecco: The Tides of Time
g0028.pak - ESWAT: City Under Siege  
g0029.pak - Flicky
g0030.pak - Golden Axe II  
g0031.pak - Sonic the Hedgehog
g0032.pak - Sword of Vermilion  
g0033.pak - Virtua Fighter II
g0034.pak - Alien Soldier  
g0035.pak - Gunstar Heroes  
g0036.pak - Landstalker: The Treasures of King Nole  
g0037.pak - Light Crusader  
g0038.pak - Shining Force  
g0039.pak - Shining Force II  
g0040.pak - Shining in the Darkness
g0041.pak - Sonic the Hedgehog 2
g0042.pak - Sonic 3 and Knuckles
g0043.pak - Streets of Rage
g0044.pak - Streets of Rage II
g0045.pak - Wonder Boy III: Monster Lair
g0046.pak - Toejam & Earl
g0047.pak - ToeJam & Earl in Panic on Funkotron
g0048.pak - Beyond Oasis  
g0049.pak - Dynamite Headdy  
g0050.pak - Golden Axe III  
g0051.pak - Phantasy Star II
g0052.pak - Phantasy Star III  
g0053.pak - Phantasy Star IV:
g0054.pak - Streets of Rage III  
g0055.pak - Revenge of the Shinobi 
g0056.pak - Vectorman II
g0057.pak - Wonder Boy in Monster World
g9001.pak - Alien Soldier (JP)
g9002.pak - The Story of Thor (Beyond Oasis) (FR)
g9003.pak - The Story of Thor (Beyond Oasis) (GE)
g9004.pak - The Story of Thor (Beyond Oasis) (SP)
g9005.pak - The Story of Thor (Beyond Oasis) (JP)
g9006.pak - Dynamite Headdy (JP)
g9007.pak - Landstalker (EN)
g9008.pak - Landstalker (FR)
g9009.pak - Landstalker (GE)
g9010.pak - Ristar (JP)
g9011.pak - Bare Knuckle II (Streets of Rage 2) (JP)
g9012.pak - Streets of Rage 3 (EN)
g9013.pak - Bare Knuckle III (Streets of Rage 3) (JP)

Games identification

Below is the result of running MAME ROM identification command ("-romident") on ROMs. The following list is partial.

Click [Expand] to view.

ALTEREDB_UE.68K         = mpr-12538f.ic1                                    megadriv:altbeast Altered Beast (Euro, USA)
BONANZAB_JE.68K         = mpr-13905a.bin                                    megadriv:bnzabros1 Bonanza Bros. (Euro, Jpn, Rev. A)
COLUMNS_W.68K           = mpr-13286-t.u1                                    megadriv:columns Columns (World, v1.1?)
COMIXZON_U.68K          = mpr-18005-mx.ic1                                  megadriv:comixu Comix Zone (USA)
Columns3_USA.SGD        = columns iii - revenge of columns (usa).bin        megadriv:columns3 Columns III - Revenge of Columns (USA)
CrackDown_USA.SGD       = crack down (usa).bin                              megadriv:crkdownu Crack Down (USA)
Crying_USA.SGD          = mpr-15204 w97.u1                                  megadriv:biohazrb Bio-Hazard Battle (Euro, USA)
DYNAHEAD_J.68K          = dynamite headdy (jpn).bin                         megadriv:dheadj Dynamite Headdy (Jpn)
DYNAHEAD_UE.68K         = mpr-16990-u.ic1                                   megadriv:dhead Dynamite Headdy (Euro, USA)
ECCO2_U.68K             = ecco - the tides of time (usa).bin                megadriv:ecco2u Ecco - The Tides of Time (USA)
ECCO_UE.68K             = mpr-15265-sm.u1                                   megadriv:ecco Ecco the Dolphin (Euro, USA, Kor)
FATALLAB_JU.68K         = mpr-13705-t.u1                                    megadriv:fatallab Fatal Labyrinth (Euro, USA)
GAING_UE.68K            = gainground.a760.bin                               megadriv:gground1p Gain Ground (USA, Prototype)
GAXE2_W.68K             = mpr-14272 w39.ic1                                 megadriv:goldnax2 Golden Axe II (World)
GAXE3_J.68K             = golden axe iii (jpn).bin                          megadriv:goldnax3 Golden Axe III (Jpn)
GAXE_W.68K              = mpr-12806a s33.ic1                                megadriv:goldnaxe Golden Axe (World, Rev. A)
Gunstar Heroes U.bin    = mpr-15813 t59.u1                                  megadriv:gunstaru Gunstar Heroes (USA)
LandStalker_USA.SGD     = landstalker (usa).bin                             megadriv:landstlku Landstalker - The Treasures of King Nole (USA)
LightCrusader_USA.SGD   = light crusader (usa).bin                          megadriv:lightcrsu Light Crusader (USA)
MonsterLair_JUE.SGD     = mpr-13619 s86.ic1                                 megadriv:wboy3 Wonder Boy III - Monster Lair (Euro) ~ Monster Lair (Jpn)
MonsterWorld3.SGD       = wonder boy v - monster world iii (jpn, kor).bin   megadriv:wboy5 Wonder Boy V - Monster World III (Jpn, Kor)
RISTAR_UE.68K           = mpr-17288-f.ic1                                   megadriv:ristar Ristar (Euro, USA, 199409)
SHINOBI3_U.68K          = mpr-15674-f.u1                                    megadriv:shinobi3u Shinobi III - Return of the Ninja Master (USA)
SONIC2_W.68K            = mpr-15000a w99.u1                                 megadriv:sonic2 Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (World, Rev. A)
SONICSPI_U.68K          = mpr-15753 t71.u1                                  megadriv:sspinu Sonic Spinball (USA)
SONIC_W.68K             = mpr-13933 w33.ic1                                 megadriv:sonicj Sonic the Hedgehog (Jpn, Kor)
STREETS2_U.68K          = streets of rage 2 (usa).bin                       megadriv:sor2u Streets of Rage 2 (USA)
STREETS3_E.68K          = streets of rage 3 (kor).bin                       megadriv:sor3k Streets of Rage 3 (Kor)
STREETS3_J.68K          = bare knuckle iii (jpn).bin                        megadriv:bk3 Bare Knuckle III (Jpn)
STREETS3_U.68K          = streets of rage 3 (usa).bin                       megadriv:sor3u Streets of Rage 3 (USA)
STREETS_W.68K           = mpr-14125a-sm.ic1                                 megadriv:sor Streets of Rage (Euro, USA, Rev. A) ~ Bare Knuckle - Ikari no Tetsuken (Jpn, Rev. A)
ToeJamEarl.SGD          = mpr-14236a-h.u1                                   megadriv:toejam Toe Jam & Earl (World, Rev. A)
ToeJamEarl2_USA.SGD     = mpr-16112-h.ic1                                   megadriv:toejam2u Toe Jam & Earl in Panic on Funkotron (USA)
VECTMAN_UE.68K          = mpr-18330-u.ic1                                   megadriv:vecman Vectorman (Euro, USA)

Sonic_Knuckles_wSonic3.bin                                                  NO MATCH
TheSuperShinobi_JUE.SGD                                                     NO MATCH
eccojr.smd                                                                  NO MATCH
MonsterWorld3_USA.SGD                                                       NO MATCH
SONIC3D_UE.68K                                                              NO MATCH

Most are known good dumps.
A few most likely are bad dumps.

Save game cloud syncing

System	Native	Notes
OneDrive		Requires enabling backup of the Documents folder in OneDrive on all computers.
Steam Cloud

Video

Launcher general settings (for the "Hub" launcher).

Launcher general settings (for the "Simple" launcher).

Launcher emulator settings.

Graphics feature	State	WSGF	Notes
Widescreen resolution			Hub room supports widescreen but games are 4:3. Use 3D Vision Fix for more scaling and resolution features.
Multi-monitor
Ultra-widescreen
4K Ultra HD			Hub room supports 4K in widescreen but games are upscaled from 320x224/256x224 and letterboxed from 4:3. The Simple launcher has problems and does not saving settings when selecting a 4K resolution for Fullscreen mode.
Field of view (FOV)		2D games.
Windowed
Borderless fullscreen windowed		Use the -popupwindow command line argument for the "Hub" version.
Anisotropic filtering (AF)
Anti-aliasing (AA)		MSAA, controlled by frontend "Quality" setting; only in "hub" interface. Games themselves use bitmap sprites.
Vertical sync (Vsync)
60 FPS
120+ FPS		Only in "hub" interface. Games themselves are capped at 60fps
High dynamic range display (HDR)		See the glossary page for potential alternatives.

The game engine may allow for manual configuration of the game via its variables. See the Unity page for more details.

Input

Launcher control settings (for the "hub" launcher).

Launcher control settings (for the "Simple" launcher).

Keyboard and mouse	State	Notes
Remapping
Mouse acceleration
Mouse sensitivity
Mouse input in menus		No mouse support outside of main interface.
Mouse Y-axis inversion
Controller
Controller support		XInput and DirectInput.
Full controller support		Only for "hub" launcher. Mouse needed to use "simple" launcher.
Controller remapping
Controller sensitivity
Controller Y-axis inversion		Left to individual games. Both relevant games implement it.

Controller types

XInput-compatible controllers
Xbox button prompts
Impulse Trigger vibration

DualShock 4 controllers
DualShock button prompts
Light bar support		Static cyan.
Connection modes	unknown

Generic/other controllers
Button prompts

Additional information
Button prompts		Xbox button prompts in launcher. Controller specific buttons are shown in rebinding menu, but are bound to Xbox prompts. Any button prompts available in game are for the Mega Drive/Genesis gamepad.
Controller hotplugging
Haptic feedback
Simultaneous controller+KB/M

Audio

Launcher audio settings.

Audio feature	State	Notes
Separate volume controls
Surround sound
Subtitles
Closed captions
Mute on focus lost		Only with auto-pause.
Royalty free audio

Localizations

Language	UI	Audio	Sub	Notes
English				Varies between games.

Network

Multiplayer types

Type	Native	Notes
Local play		Varies by game.
LAN play
Online play		Requires game to support local play.

Ports

Protocol	Port(s) and/or port range(s)
TCP	unknown
UDP	unknown

Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) support status is unknown.

VR support

3D modes	Native	Notes
Native 3D		See Unity engine. Might have some problems.
Nvidia 3D Vision		See Helix Mod: SEGA Mega Drive & Genesis Classics.

Issues unresolved

Unable to disable controller

The input settings should contain a checkbox to disable a controller, but the checkbox is sometimes missing:

• 

The inability to disable the controller affects Alien Storm. The second controller must be disabled to access one of the game modes.

Issues fixed

Run the game at screen refresh rate

2011 Gold Edition forces 60 Hz refresh rate even if your monitor supports higher than that.

Override refresh rate set by game
Download Chiri's resolution forcing tool. Extract d3d9.dll and d3dx.ini to the installation folder. Open d3dx.ini. Change refresh_rate=60 to desired hertz; e.g. refresh_rate=120.

Blank full-screen mode (Linux)

Playing games in full-screen mode in the Linux version of the SEGA Game Room does not work with AMD Mesa drivers.

Run the Windows version with Proton
In the Compatibility tab of the game's Properties window in Steam, enable the "Force the use of a specific Steam Play compatibility tool" option and select Proton 6.3-8 or newer from the drop-down list.

Green faces with Sword of Vermilion

The game was designed for older TV CRT monitors. On computer monitors, faces of certain characters look green.

Workaround: RetroArch CRT Render filter
Follow Run in other emulators instructions listed above, retrieving sov.smd for use with RetroArch. Load shader preset crt-royale-ntsc-320px-svideo.glsp Notes: This doesn't remove the green face, but rather blurs it to make it more like skin tone. You can also experiment with the graphics filter parameters to get a less distracting look.

Game crashes on start

The game crashes on start. The game writes an error.log file showing the message "UnityPlayer.dll caused an Access Violation". This can be caused by a bug in the Unity framework conflicting with Citrix Workspace App. A workaround is available via uninstalling Citrix Workspace App and re-installing with some installation parameters that avoid this conflict.

Instructions
Uninstall Citrix Workspace App. If you still require the use of Citrix Workspace App then reinstall Citrix Workspace App but install from a command prompt, using the below command line: CitrixWorkspaceApp.exe ADDLOCAL=ReceiverInside,ICA_Client,AM,SELFSERVICE,DesktopViewer,Flash,Vd3d,WebHelper,BrowserEngine"

Other information

API

Technical specs	Supported	Notes
Direct3D	9.0c, 11	DirectX 11 used in game room mode.

Executable	32-bit	64-bit	Notes
Windows
macOS (OS X)
Linux			The Linux version only comes with the SEGA Game Room executable, not the simple launcher.

System requirements

Windows

macOS (OS X)

Linux

Windows
	Minimum
Operating system (OS)	XP
Processor (CPU)	Intel Pentium 2.0 GHz
System memory (RAM)	2 GB
Hard disk drive (HDD)	50 MB
Video card (GPU)	32 MB of VRAM

macOS (OS X)
	Minimum	Recommended
Operating system (OS)		10.12
Processor (CPU)		2.6GHz Intel Core i5
System memory (RAM)		8 GB
Hard disk drive (HDD)	1.4 GB
Video card (GPU)		Intel Iris 1536