Line #230 Platform/SegaCD


1	[[quoteright:317:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/segacd.png]]
2	[[caption-width-right:317:A Sega CD attached to the underside of a North American Model 1 Genesis.]]
3
4	->"HEY! You ''still'' don't have a Sega CD?"
5	-->-- '''[[ScaryBlackMan Angry Black Guy]]''', 1994 TV spot
6
7	The Sega CD, also known as the Mega-CD in UsefulNotes/{{Europe}} and UsefulNotes/{{Japan}}, was a Platform/CompactDisc-based add-on for the Platform/SegaGenesis. As its name would suggest, it allowed the Genesis to take advantage of the higher-capacity CD-ROM storage medium, enabling features such as pre-rendered video playback (branded "Full-Motion Video") and Red Book CD sound. Unfortunately, the Genesis'[=/=]Mega Drive's own processing power wasn't quite enough to take advantage of these features to the fullest. It was released in 1991 in Japan, with North America getting it in 1992 and Europe in 1993. The launch price was $299 (£270 in Great Britain), twice of that of the Genesis itself after it was given a price cut in 1991.
8
9	The Sega CD came about because {{Creator/Sega}} heard rumors of Creator/{{Nintendo}}'s deal with {{Creator/Sony}} to develop their own CD add-on, and also because NEC had just released a CD attachment for their [[Platform/TurboGrafx16 PC Engine]] console (ironically, the {{Platform/SNESCDROM}} wound up becoming an albatross [[{{Vaporware}} and never saw release]][[note]]By Nintendo anyway, the "SNES-CD" would later be re-purposed by Sony as the Platform/PlayStation[[/note]]; Sega wasted no time in mocking Nintendo for this in their ads for the Sega CD). Sega jumped the gun and pushed out their own attachment as a countermeasure: it allowed the Genesis to perform tricks similar to the [[Platform/SuperNintendoEntertainmentSystem SNES]] that would otherwise be impossible with the original hardware, such as Mode 7 effects and sprite rotation.
10
11	The add-on is probably best known for its association with [[InteractiveMovie Full-Motion Video]] games. While not the first or even last machine to host FMV games, they were prominently featured in Sega's aggressive marketing and a fairly common part of the library thanks to Creator/DigitalPictures, a major proponent of the game genre. One of these [=FMV=] games was ''VideoGame/NightTrap'', which obtained infamy by being featured at a U.S. Senate hearing concerning portrayals of violence in video games and contributing to the creation of the [[MediaNotes/EntertainmentSoftwareRatingBoard ESRB]]. Hosting live action footage on a home console was impressive for the time, but it was heavily degraded by the Genesis's palette limitations and the visuals have aged poorly (the few CD games that also supported the [[Platform/Sega32X 32X]] add-on don't suffer from this issue and fared much better). To quote Digital Pictures co-founder Ken Melville, "[footage was reduced to] the most horrifying, blurry, reduced-color-palette mess imaginable." The FMV games themselves also quickly gained a reputation for being shallow experiences not worth buying, which contributed to turning people away from the CD.
12
13	The Sega CD also received a number of enhanced ports of Genesis games, though many didn't have substantial changes outside of improved soundtracks and a bit of extra content. Despite ending up with a sizable library, the add-on was criticized for being improperly supported between the poorly-received FMV games and ports that didn't justify the high asking price. While completely original, non-FMV, and actually ''good'' games do exist for the Sega CD, they're very few in number and are often overshadowed by the library's poor reputation, with recognition of them being limited to the most hardcore of fans or retro enthusiasts. The only Sega CD game to break into mainstream consciousness as "good" is ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehogCD'', if only because of the sheer weight of the ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'' brand recognition. Even then, it has become a [[BrokenBase rather]] [[HypeBacklash divisive]] entry amongst the fanbase.
14
15	In addition to its tepid audience response, the Sega CD is also seen as a commercial failure, only selling 2.4 million units (compare the 30 million Sega Genesis units sold). While not as disastrous as the later [[Platform/Sega32X 32X]] add-on, the lacking reception and sales were the first signs of Sega's eventual decline during the mid- and late-90s that would lead to them leaving the console hardware market. In retrospect the money poured into the Sega CD (and especially the 32X) would have been better invested in trying to create some more [=IPs=] instead of gimmicky hardware, but hindsight is 20/20 and all that. The combination of this and the PC Engine CD's poor sales outside of Japan (as the [=TurboGrafx-CD=]) are also credited as a likely factor in Nintendo choosing to stick with cartridges for the Platform/Nintendo64 -- right when CD-ROM technology became more readily practical for game developers[[note]]piracy may have also played a factor in Nintendo's decision; the absolutely ''rampant'' piracy of the Famicom Disk System wasn't that distant of a memory and it ended up possibly even ''more'' rampant on the Platform/PlayStation, to the point that by the end of its life there were probably more pirated games in circulation than real ones. It's worth noting that the first wave of CD-ROM based systems (including the Sega CD) had NO copy protection whatsoever, which people figured out pretty much immediately once affordable CD burners became a thing[[/note]]. Oops.
16
17	The Sega CD is also noteworthy for how many hardware permutations it had. While you're probably familiar with either the bottom-mount Model 1 or the side-mount Model 2, there was also the Sega CDX, a much smaller unit that combined a Genesis, Sega CD, and a ''Walkman music player'' into a single unit: the console was actually small enough to double as a portable music player, and was marketed as such! Unfortunately, it had a high $300 price tag, was produced in small quantities, and its disc reading laser quickly developed a reputation for being finicky and breaking down quickly. It was also incompatible with any other Genesis add-on hardware, like the Power Base or 32X.[[note]]The 32X will actually work just fine with the CDX, albeit in a rather awkward package, but Sega's official company line was that the CDX didn't support the 32X due to issues with RF shielding that wasn't worth the trouble to fix. The 32X also works with the X'Eye mentioned in the next paragraph, though it blocks the door of the CD-ROM drive.[[/note]]
18
19	Another interesting version of the Sega CD is the JVC X'Eye, known as the Victor Wondermega in Japan.[[note]]JVC stands for '''J'''apan '''V'''ictor '''C'''ompany[[/note]] This was a fully licensed console produced by JVC under agreement with Sega, and like the CDX combined a Sega Genesis and a Sega CD into a single unit. While the sound hardware produces slightly better sound and music than the Sega produced units and only uses one AC Adapter as opposed to having to use a separate brick for the Genesis and CD, its US$500 price tag (in 1994! That's about $980 in [[TheNewTwenties New Twenties]] money) meant that it was actually significantly cheaper to buy a Genesis and Sega CD separately than to buy an X'Eye, particularly after the buyer's market for the Sega CD dried up and retailers began slashing the price on the unit (a year before the Sega Saturn was released, you could buy a Sega CD for $20 at most toy stores). The Wondermega did a little better in Japan thanks to the ability to use it as a karaoke machine, as such it's much more common than the X'Eye on the second hand market. Nevertheless, the X'Eye's robustness as a unit and the fact it only uses one AC adapter make it highly sought after among collectors and, if you can find one, an excellent "all-in-one" unit for a Genesis collection.
20
21	If $500 wasn't expensive enough there was also the option of spending $900 on a [[https://www.videogameconsolelibrary.com/pg90-pioneer.htm#page=reviews Pioneer LaserActive]] and another $600 on the Sega "PAC" (for a grand total of '''$3,235''' in 2024 money). The [=LaserActive=] could not only play Genesis and Sega CD games but also exclusive LD-ROM games that made use of the [=LaserActive's=] Laserdisc player, most of which were just interactive movies. This sold about as well as could be expected, as with the X'Eye/Wondermega the bulk of those sales came from Japan. A similar "PAC" also existed for the Platform/PCEngine (aka [=TurboGrafix=]-16) and the PCE CD, with its own set of LD-ROM games. [[CrackIsCheaper Don't even ask what it would cost to get a hold of one of these today]].
22
23	Possibly the rarest bird in the Sega CD lineup is the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_-PzmHGbknU Aiwa Mega-CD]], a combination Mega Drive-Sega CD-boombox. Sadly this [[NoExportForYou never left Japan]], and unfortunately like the Genesis/MD itself the Sega CD is region locked through the BIOS. [=eBay=] currently has them listed at around ''$3,500'', plus or minus a couple hundred bucks depending on condition. At least shipping costs will be a lot cheaper than the [=LaserActive=]...
24
25	Another aspect of the Sega CD that went semi-memetic were the cases for its games. Instead of the standard square jewel cases used for music [=CDs=] and computer [=CD-ROMs=], releases of Sega CD games outside of Japan used jewel cases the size of a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Longbox longbox]], an outer cardboard box that music [=CDs=] were packaged in before being phased out in the early '90s. These larger jewel cases were much deeper than normal models, which made them extremely fragile, and because the game discs would not sit in their mounting in the case, it also necessitated a packed-in foam sponge to hold the disc in place, which would be held in place by the case lid. This put even more stress on the case lid, and led to even more breakage. Japanese releases simply used regular jewel cases to greater success. The Sega CD was not the only system to do this -- early Platform/ThreeDOInteractiveMultiplayer and Platform/PlayStation games in the West used these cases as well (probably to prevent shoplifting, it's a lot harder to slip one of these into a coat pocket or purse than a standard CD case),[[note]]And the 3DO and [=PS1=] used cardboard longboxes with a standard CD case inside rather than the hated clear plastic ones Sega used[[/note]] as did most Western releases of Platform/SegaSaturn games -- but the fact that the Sega CD used them so consistently led to the longbox-sized case becoming inextricably associated with the add-on.
26
27	Today, the Sega CD is generally understood as [[WhatCouldHaveBeen having had a lot of potential that was sadly never utilized by most developers]], with its main stumbling blocks being the poor marketing, high launch price, and the fact that it required both a plug into the Genesis and an independent power adapter. Even with all that, though, it's still seen as a decent addition to any retro gaming collection due to the unique software and enhanced Genesis ports, though many of the rarer games have become ''extremely'' valuable and thus expensive to purchase secondhand.
28
29	Thankfully, SEGA (partially) rectified this with the Sega Genesis Mini 2, a follow-up to the Genesis/Mega Drive Mini that, in addition to more Genesis/Mega Drive games, features a number of Sega CD titles[[labelnote:List of CD Titles]]''VideoGame/EccoTheDolphin'', ''VideoGame/EccoTheTidesOfTime'',
30	''VideoGame/FinalFight CD'', ''VideoGame/MansionOfHiddenSouls'', ''VideoGame/NightStriker'', ''VideoGame/NightTrap'', ''VideoGame/PopfulMail'' (Japan only), ''VideoGame/RoboAleste'', ''VideoGame/SewerShark'', ''[[VideoGame/ShiningForceGaidenGames Shining Force CD]]'', ''VideoGame/{{Silpheed}}'', ''VideoGame/SonicCD'', ''VideoGame/TheNinjaWarriors1987''[[/labelnote]]. Its Japanese/U.S. release was October 27, 2022.
31	----
32	!!Specs
33
34	[[AC:Sprites]]
35	* The sprite capabilities are identical to the Genesis/Mega Drive console, but the CD can do sprite scaling and Mode 7 effects.
36	* Like the main console, the CD add-on has limited support for real time 3D, such as the main fighter and enemies in ''Silpheed'' (with the backgrounds being pre-rendered full-motion videos), ''Stellar Fire'' and the port of ''Starblade''.
37
38	[[AC:Processor]]
39	* A Motorola 68000 chip running at 12.5 [=MHz=]. The 68000 chip already in the Genesis becomes the sound chip's CPU.
40
41	[[AC:Memory]]
42	* 512 KB of main RAM and 256 KB of video RAM.
43	* 64 KB of sound RAM.
44	* 16 KB of CD drive cache.
45	* 8 KB of back up RAM, with memory cartridges going at 128 KB.
46
47	[[AC:Display]]
48	* Same as the Genesis/Mega Drive, but has a extra chip that can do scaling and rotation effects like the SNES's Mode-7 chip (the [=SNES=] has 2 [=PPU=]s, 1 for modes 0 to 6, and the other for mode 7) with the [=DPS1=] chip and playing FMV video.
49	* Like later models of the [[Platform/TurboGrafx16 TurboGrafx-CD]], the Sega CD supports CD+G, a variant on the Red Book standard that enables compatible CD players to display low-resolution graphics in time with the audio. This was more useful for Japanese audiences, as CD+G could be used to display song lyrics in real time for at-home karaoke parties (CD+G never really took off anywhere else).
50
51	[[AC:Audio]]
52	* Because of the additional memory of the discs, Sega CD/Mega-CD games can play pre-recorded Red Book audio soundtracks for games. The drive also doubles as a standard CD player. Discs are multi-partitioned, with track 1 carrying game data and track 2 onwards carrying Red Book CD audio. (This also has the effect of making games that use Red Book audio ''playable [=CDs=]'' in any standard CD music player, so long as you skip to track 2!)
53	* Ricoh [=RF5C164=] [[note]]custom labelled as the Sega 315-5476A[[/note]] 16-bit 8 channel PCM chip running at 32 [=KHz=] (44.1 [=KHz=] for CD-DA), also its own CPU running at 12 [=MHz=].
54	* On Model 2s, the console can receive audio from the CD add-on internally and output the audio mixed. However, on Model 1 machines, a passthrough cable must be hooked into the console's headphones jack to connect it with the add-on, and audio from then must henceforth be received from the add-on instead of the console. As a result, while the Model 1 can be installed on the Sega CD/Mega-CD 2 with a base extension, the Model 2 is incompatible with the Sega CD/Mega-CD 1.
55	----
56	!!Games/Series:
57
58	[[foldercontrol]]
59	[[index]]
60	[[folder:#-D]]
61	* ''Film/ThreeNinjas Kick Back''
62	* ''[[VideoGame/EyeOftheBeholder Advanced Dungeons & Dragons: Eye of the Beholder]]''
63	* ''VideoGame/TheAdventuresOfWillyBeamish''
64	* ''VideoGame/AfterArmageddonGaiden''
65	* ''VideoGame/AfterBurner III'' (actually a port of ''Strike Fighter'', itself a sequel to ''G-LOC: Air Battle'')
66	* ''[[VideoGame/SpiderManVsTheKingpin The Amazing Spider-Man vs. The Kingpin]]''
67	* ''Android Assault: The Revenge of Bari-Arm''[[/index]]
68	* ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'':[[index]]
69	** ''VideoGame/TheAdventuresOfBatmanAndRobin''[[/index]]
70	** ''Film/BatmanReturns''[[index]]
71	* ''VideoGame/BattleCorps''
72	* ''Black Hole Assault''
73	* ''Bouncers''
74	* ''Film/BramStokersDracula''
75	* ''VideoGame/BrutalPawsOfFury''
76	* ''[[ComicBook/XenozoicTales Cadillacs and Dinosaurs: The Second Cataclysm]]''
77	* ''VideoGame/ChuckRock'':
78	** ''Chuck Rock''
79	** ''Chuck Rock II: Son of Chuck''
80	** ''BC Racers'' (later ported to the [[Platform/Sega32X 32X]])
81	* ''Cobra Command''
82	* ''VideoGame/CorpseKiller''
83	* ''VideoGame/CosmicFantasy Stories'' ([[NoExportForYou Japan exclusive]])
84	* ''VideoGame/CrimePatrol''
85	* ''Manga/Cyborg009''
86	* ''VideoGame/DarkWizard''[[/index]]
87	* ''Film/DemolitionMan''[[index]]
88	* ''Devastator''
89	* ''VideoGame/DoubleSwitch''
90	* ''VideoGame/DraculaUnleashed''
91	* ''VideoGame/DragonsLair''
92	* ''VideoGame/Dune1992''
93	[[/index]]
94	* ''Dungeon Explorer''
95	* ''VideoGame/DungeonMaster II: The Legend of Skullkeep''
96	[[/folder]]
97
98	[[folder:E-H]]
99	* ''VideoGame/EarnestEvans'':
100	** ''Earnest Evans'' (a Japan exclusive game which would later be ported to the U.S. Genesis, albeit in a [[BadExportForYou stripped-down]] state)
101	** ''Annet Futatabi''
102	[[index]]
103	* ''VideoGame/EarthwormJim: Special Edition''
104	* ''VideoGame/EccoTheDolphin'':
105	** ''Ecco the Dolphin''
106	** ''Ecco: The Tides of Time''
107	* ''VideoGame/EternalChampions: Challenge from the Dark Side''
108	* ''Fahrenheit''
109	* ''VideoGame/FatalFurySpecial''
110	* ''VideoGame/FinalFight CD'' (unlike the SNES port, this version had all three characters without the need of having a re-release with Guy in it. Also includes the 2-Player Mode and Industrial Area stage, with the latter featuring Rolento as the boss)
111	* ''VideoGame/{{Flashback}}''
112	* ''VideoGame/GroundZeroTexas''
113	* ''Heart of the Alien'' (a sequel to ''VideoGame/AnotherWorld'')
114	* ''VideoGame/{{Hook}}''
115	[[/index]]
116	[[/folder]]
117
118	[[folder:I-L]]
119	[[index]]
120	* ''VideoGame/JurassicParkSegaCD''
121	* ''VideoGame/KeioFlyingSquadron''
122	* ''VideoGame/KidsOnSite''[[/index]]
123	* ''Manga/TheLaughingSalesman'' (consists of three episodes of the 1989 anime adaptation in a "Pick your own outcome" style gameplay)[[index]]
124	* ''VideoGame/LethalEnforcers'':
125	** ''VideoGame/LethalEnforcers1''
126	** ''VideoGame/LethalEnforcersIIGunFighters''
127	* ''Lords of Thunder''
128	* ''VideoGame/{{Lunar}}'':
129	** ''VideoGame/LunarTheSilverStar'' (a CultClassic among both JRPG fans and Sega collectors; although it did not sell as well as ''Sonic CD'', its success guaranteed numerous ports to other consoles as well as a sequel)
130	** ''VideoGame/LunarEternalBlue''
131	[[/index]]
132	[[/folder]]
133
134	[[folder:M-P]]
135	[[index]]
136	* ''VideoGame/MadDogMcCree'':
137	** ''Mad Dog [=McCree=]''
138	** ''Mad Dog II: The Lost Gold''
139	* ''VideoGame/MakeMyVideo'':[[/index]]
140	** ''Music/{{INXS}}: Make My Video''
141	** ''Kris Kross: Make My Video''
142	** ''[[Creator/MarkWahlberg Marky Mark]] and the Funky Bunch: Make My Video''
143	** ''Power Factory Featuring C+C Music Factory''[[index]]
144	* ''VideoGame/MansionOfHiddenSouls''
145	* ''Marko's Magic Football''
146	* ''Film/MaryShelleysFrankenstein''
147	* ''The Masked Rider: Film/KamenRiderZO'' (an English-dubbed InteractiveMovie adaptation of the film)
148	* ''VideoGame/MickeyMania: The Timeless Adventures of WesternAnimation/MickeyMouse''
149	* ''VideoGame/{{Microcosm}}''
150	* ''Midnight Raiders''
151	* ''VideoGame/MightAndMagic III: Isles of Terra'' (Japan exclusive)
152	* ''VideoGame/MightyMorphinPowerRangersSega'' [[/index]](consists of the TV episodes "[[Recap/MightyMorphinPowerRangersS1EP1DayOfTheDumpster Day of the Dumpster]]", "[[Recap/MightyMorphinPowerRangersS1EP17GreenWithEvilPart1OutOfControl Green with Evil]]", "[[Recap/MightyMorphinPowerRangersS1EP34TheGreenCandlePart1 The Green Candle]]", "[[Recap/MightyMorphinPowerRangersS1EP45CrystalOfNightmares Crystal of Nightmares]]" and "[[Recap/MightyMorphinPowerRangersS1EP39DoomsdayPart1 Doomsday]]" with PressXToNotDie slapped all over them)[[index]]
153	* ''The Misadventures of Flink'' (known simply as ''Flink'' in North America)
154	* ''[[VideoGame/MortalKombat1992 Mortal Kombat CD]]''
155	* ''VideoGame/NBAJam''
156	* ''VideoGame/NightStriker''
157	* ''VideoGame/NightTrap''
158	* ''VideoGame/NinjaHayate'' (released in North America as ''Revenge of the Ninja'')
159	* ''VideoGame/{{The Ninja Warriors\|1987}}''
160	* ''VideoGame/{{Novastorm}}''
161	* ''VideoGame/{{Panic}}''
162	* ''VideoGame/PennAndTellersSmokeAndMirrors'' (never been released, but had actually been finished and did get in the hands of game reviewers up until the publisher to the game went bankrupt; best known for the [[StylisticSuck intentionally horrendous]] ''Desert Bus'' minigame)
163	* ''VideoGame/PitfallTheMayanAdventure''
164	* ''VideoGame/PopfulMail''
165	* ''VideoGame/PrinceOfPersia1''
166	* ''Prize Fighter''
167	* ''VideoGame/{{Puggsy}}''
168	[[/index]]
169	[[/folder]]
170
171	[[folder:Q-T]]
172	[[index]]
173	* ''VideoGame/RadicalRex''
174	* ''Manga/RanmaOneHalf: Byakuran Aika''
175	* ''Revengers of Vengeance''
176	* ''VideoGame/RiseOfTheDragon''
177	* ''[[VideoGame/RoadBlaster Road Avenger]]''
178	* ''VideoGame/RoadRash''
179	* ''Robo VideoGame/{{Aleste}}''
180	* ''VideoGame/{{Romance of the Three Kingdoms\|Koei}} III: Dragon of Destiny'' (Japan exclusive)
181	* ''VideoGame/SamuraiShodown''
182	* ''VideoGame/TheSecretOfMonkeyIsland''
183	* ''[[VideoGame/SengokuSNK Sengoku Densyo]]''
184	* ''VideoGame/SewerShark''
185	* ''VideoGame/ShadowOfTheBeast II''
186	* ''VideoGame/{{Shadowrun}}'' (Japan exclusive)
187	* ''TabletopGame/SherlockHolmesConsultingDetective''
188	* ''[[VideoGame/ShiningForceGaidenGames Shining Force CD]]'' (a port of the two ''Shining Force'' Platform/GameGear games [[PolishedPort but with better graphics]] and extra quests)
189	* ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiI'' (Japan exclusive)
190	* ''VideoGame/{{Silpheed}}''
191	* ''VideoGame/SimEarth'' (Japan exclusive)
192	* ''Slam City with Scottie Pippen''
193	* ''VisualNovel/{{Snatcher}}'' (the only English version of the game; in fact, the game was RemadeForTheExport specifically for North America and Europe without a Japanese Mega CD release because the PC Engine was eating the Genesis' dust in those territories)
194	* ''Sol-Feace'' (later released as ''Sol-Deace'' for the Genesis, the port itself being an exclusive title in the United States)
195	* ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehogCD'' (the add-on's killer app and the only game which sold quite high and excellently)
196	* ''Soulstar''
197	* ''VideoGame/SpaceAce''
198	* ''VideoGame/TheSpaceAdventure'' (based on the ''Manga/SpaceAdventureCobra'' manga)
199	* ''VideoGame/{{Starblade}}''[[/index]]
200	* ''Franchise/StarWarsLegends'':[[index]]
201	** ''VideoGame/RebelAssault''
202	** ''VideoGame/StarWarsChess''
203	* ''Supreme Warrior''
204	* ''VideoGame/SurgicalStrike''[[/index]]
205	* ''Film/TheTerminator''[[index]]
206	* ''VideoGame/ThemePark'' (Europe exclusive)
207	* ''VideoGame/TimeGal''
208	* ''Tomcat Alley''
209	[[/index]]
210	[[/folder]]
211
212	[[folder:U-Z]]
213	[[index]]
214	* ''VideoGame/UltraversePrime''
215	* ''Manga/UruseiYatsura: Dear My Friends''
216	* ''VideoGame/{{Vay}}''
217	* ''VideoGame/WildWoody''
218	* ''[[VideoGame/WingCommanderTheKilrathiSaga Wing Commander]]''
219	* ''VideoGame/{{Wirehead}}''
220	* ''VideoGame/{{Wolfchild}}''
221	* ''Wonder Dog''
222	* ''[[Wrestling/{{WWE}} WWF]] Rage in the Cage''
223	* ''Yumimi Mix''
224	[[/index]]
225	[[/folder]]
226
227	!!Tropes associated with the Sega CD:
228	* CopyProtection: Averted. If you burn a Sega CD ISO file to a CD-R and pop it into the system, the system will play it like it would any legitimate copy of the same game. Most early CD-based systems were in a similar boat, since [=CDs=] were expensive and difficult to copy at the time, and owning of a CD-R drive at the time meant you were very rich[[note]]they were roughly the price of a small sedan, and that’s not counting the required support software and related hardware- to wit, you also needed a huge hard drive to temporarily cache the disk copy - and hard drives above 500MB at the time were the realm of corporations and very rich people. You also needed a SCSI card since CD-R drives at the time were SCSI devices due to the IDE standard being relatively young and no burners were being made for IDE (IDE only began supporting burners in 1998 when the ATAPI extension was introduced), and SCSI cards are not cheap either. And let’s not get started on the required burning software[[/note]], very nerdy, or both - but one suspects that this would've still massively bitten Sega in the ass if the Sega CD had actually taken off. This also led to the slightly odd situation where a viable method to play out-of-region games on the system is to rip the game, hack the ISO to change the region code, then burn it to a CD-R.
229	* InteractiveMovie: If there is one thing people most associate with this system, it's this genre of games, ''especially'' in retrospect. A major selling point of the system was being the first major one readily capable of playing pre-rendered video footage, and the system otherwise struggled to find use for all the extra space afforded by the CD-ROM format outside of digital soundtracks. As a result, many, many, ''many'' developers jumped aboard this hype train, to often mixed or outright critically panned results.
230	* LoadsAndLoadsOfLoading: Another hallmark of the system was having to wait...a lot. With only a single speed drive, even the modest capacity needs of the time took significantly longer on disc than on cartridge, leaving tons of time spent waiting for the RAM to be filled up. If you want to play a game on this system, be prepared to have your patience put to the test.
231	* PreRenderedGraphics: Even among the games for the system that ''aren't'' in the InteractiveMovie genre, it was very common to see a game cram a pre-rendered cutscene in if it was at all possible, even if it didn't need one. Movie tie-in games were an especially big offender.
232	* TakeThat: The most recognizable ad is the [[ScaryBlackMan Angry Black Man]] ad, quoted at the top of the page. In addition to the first quote, he continues the tradition of Sega taking potshots at their rival with "What are you waiting for, Nintendo to make one?"
233	* UpdatedRerelease: The system's library is a bit noteworthy, for better and worse, for having a fair number of enhanced ports of Genesis games, many of which are considered the definitive versions. These games include the likes of ''VideoGame/EarthwormJim'', ''VideoGame/MickeyMania'', and ''VideoGame/EccoTheDolphin''[[note]]The Sega CD also got what's considered the best port of Capcom's VideoGame/FinalFight, which never got a Genesis port[[/note]]. While in retrospect many enjoy this aspect, the contemporary reaction was a question of why one would bother paying so much for an add-on to play the same games with only a few enhancements (aside from ''Earthworm Jim'', all those aforementioned games only add better audio quality and otherwise are the same game, and even the former's new content is limited to an extra level and weapon), when the Genesis version provided a near identical experience without breaking the bank.

Context Platform / SegaCD