From the other side I have only two words for you all:
@LeFish My post from this other, older SegaSaturn thread would remain my go-to answer for this kind of question:
To understand the SegaSaturn, you need to understand it was the true heir to the generation of video games that preceded its release. For instance, the previous generation was still very dependent on arcade ports.
The console with the most arcade ports (back then)?
• It‘s the Saturn.
The closest successor to the Super Famicom school of game design?
• Clearly the Saturn with its old school RPGs and 2D action games. Even the PlayStation is ahead of the N64, somehow.
The true successor to the PC Engine?
• Well, everyone from that camp bailed out on the PC-FX and moved to the Saturn. Shmups, RPGs, dating sims, you name it.
The closest successor to the Mega Drive?
• It’s the Saturn, but only by default really, because even the Saturn was not that good of a successor to the MD library, especially outside Japan.
How about those PC-98 hits?
• They found a mainstream home on the Saturn.
The most faithful Neo Geo ports of the era?
• They were on the Saturn, obviously.
Etc.
The Saturn is the ultimate console of the 16-BIT era. It lost the commercial war it got into because it picked the wrong fight, against two companies who understood how to make that previous generation uncool. But in retrospect, pound for pound during its existence (so roughly 1994-1998), the Saturn's software catalogue is just as strong as its contemporary PS1 (which got "#p70690many of its best games from 1998 onwards) and N64 (which barely existed side by side with the Saturn and arguably spent more time facing the Dreamcast). And if you did prefer the kind of games designed in the previous generation, especially arcade games and the PC Engine, there is no sweat seeing the Saturn as the best machine of its era.
There you go! That's my best defense for the Saturn, conveniently hiding all its cadavers and stupid decisions under the carpet while you're looking away.
With this cheerful perspective in mind, here are the types of games I recommend to understand and encapsulate the Saturn without spending too much cash. That list of recommendations was addressed to a person who was planning to buy Japanese software and had novice notions of Japanese so I added some notes (•) about which games could present potential language barrier issues.
Sega AM, King of the Arcades
- Sega Rally Championship Plus
- Decathlete
- Dynamite Deka
Sega CS, the Eternal Challenger
- Dragon Force (•)
- Dark Savior (•)
- Azel: Panzer Dragoon RPG (•)
Children of the Mega Drive
- Radiant Silvergun
- Grandia (••)
- Langrisser V (••)
The Super Famicom legacy
- Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers (••)
- Chaos Seed (••)
- Arthur to Astaroth no Nazomakaimura (•••)
The PC Engine Diaspora
- Saturn Bomberman
- Sakura Taisen 2 (••)
- Tengai Makyō : Dai-Yon no Mukoshiroku (•••)
The PC-98 gets mainstream
- Policenauts (••)
- YU-NO (••)
- Steam Hearts
The true Neo Geo CD
- Metal Slug
- Fighters History Dynamite
- Twinkle Star Sprites
The Best of '90s Arcades
- Elevator Action Returns
- Vampire Savior
- Layer Section
And I will add (for free!) two categories dedicated to the two arcade games that could be described as "social phenomenons" in Japan at the time, and the inevitable rivals / clones / cousins that followed.
Virtua Fighter-xploitation
- Fighters Megamix
- Dead or Alive
- Anarchy in the Nippon Goiken Muyō
It's Puyo Puyo Fever!
- Puyo Puyo Sun
- Shingata Kururin Pa!
- Waku Waku Puyo Puyo Dungeon (•••)
Voilà! Pick between 1 and 3 games from each category (maybe depending on your personal tastes and interests) and you will end up with a catalogue of 10 to 30 games that properly encapsulate the SegaSaturn. I could have picked many more candidates; I know from experience that I could make three alternative lists of games (so 90 games total) with the same categories in mind, which is why I am confident they are good categories in the first place.
Notes:
(•) Speaking japanese is advised, but an official English version of the game exists
(••) Speaking japanese is advised, but an unofficial English patch, an official English translation on a different platform and/or a well-detailed walkthrough can be found on the Internet.
(•••) Get cracking on these Japanese lessons, it will be worth it.
I brushed up the post a little but I did not change the recommendations. Keep in mind there have been a lot of new translations (esp. RPG translations) released in the past couple of years. Also, if budget and access to the games are not an issue in your case _for some reason_, you can obviously go for Cleopatra Fortune, Mizubaku Daibōken, Taromaru etc.
Enjoy your new console! Find your own treasures!
1 Like
Virtual Hydlide
@LeFish As a personal reference point I’ve WanChai Connection, Dracula Detective, and Sentimental Graffiti on the way sooooo, yeah. I’m essentially open to games of questionable quality.
Well in that case, @treefroggy’s push for Virtual Hydlide is clearly justified. It’s genuinely a pretty interesting game, especially considering where video games have pivoted in recent years, and suffers from thoughtless memetic jokes and a lack of a serious critical consideration due to its outdated æsthetics. Some other acquired taste recommendations:
- Anarchy in the Nippon Goiken Muyō
- Arthur to Astaroth no Nazomakaimura
- Astra Superstars
- Asuka 120% Limited
- Baroque
- Black Matrix
- Burning Rangers
- Cotton Boomerang
- Cross Tantei Monogatari
- Culdcept
- CyberDoll
- Dark Savior
- Deep Fear
- Device Reign
- Dragon Force II
- Enemy Zero
- EVE Burst Error
- Feda Remake!
- Final Fight Revenge
- Gal Panic SS
- Game Tengoku
- Gran Chaser
- Gundam Gaiden The Blue Destiny
- Himitsu Sentai Metamor V
- Hissatsu!
- Kyūtenkai
- Last Bronx
- Linda
^3 - Lunacy / Gekkamugentan Torico
- Marica
- Machi
- Nanatsu Kaze no Shima Monogatari
- NöEL 3
- Quo Vadis 2
- Rabbit
- Savaki
- Shadows of the Tusk
- Shingata Kururin Pa!
- Shinobi Legions
- Steep Slope Sliders
- Suchiepai Adventure Doki Doki Nightmare
- Suikōenbu Fūunsaiki
- Super Robot Wars F
- Super Robot Wars F-Final
- The Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Do You Remember Love?
- Wachenröder
- Wangan Dead Heat
- YU-NO
- YumimiMix Remix
That makes for a good start.
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@chazumaru Steep Slope Sliders is a perfect hour of a game. Acquired taste for sure, but one of my faves.
@robinhoodie this one’s right up your alley
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@chazumaru This is a fantastic list to get me going. I have a few already, either on Saturn itself (Dark Savior, Enemy Zero, EVE Burst Error) or other ports / rereleases (Black Matrix, Game Tengoku, Linda Cubed, Machi) but there‘s a lot here that I’m interested in after a cursory glance at them.
Arcade racer Delisoba Deluxe by Cave is good for a quick laugh, or only interesting for how it was distributed (as a game show giveaway).
Terra Phanstastica is a very pretty, partially-voiced SRPG by Chime that I've always wanted to explore but there is very much a language barrier.
@treefroggy holy cow, where has this been all my life??
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World Series Baseball II
This is always a go-to for me. Not sure why, just always thought it felt really nice, and definitely most fun against a friend. There‘s also a home run derby mode which is pretty fun. My absolute favorite part of this game is the commentator’s voice acting. It's so good.
I mostly played fighting games on Saturn growing up, my favorite can be played elsewhere more easily now, but Darkstalkers, Virtua Fighter 2, Street Fighter Alpha 2, X-Men Children of the Atom, Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3, and Fighters Megamix are all real good and fun.
Shining Wisdom is not great, but I think is worth a try.
Galactic Attack is a quite enjoyable arcade shooter.
The Treasure games, Guardian Heroes, Radiant Silver gun, and whichever else they've got on there.
I'd have to look at what I've got to remember any more right now.
I have a Sega Saturn that uses fenrir. A few of my Japanese downloaded games require an additional 4mb (example: X-Men vs. Street Fighter). Do I need to buy the 4md carts specific to each game, a generic 4mb japanese import cart, the Action Replay 4-in-1 cart, or the Sega Saturn All-in-One Cartridge with Pseudo Saturn Kai 4 in 1 (V6.483)?
@bwood any 4M cart works with any game. There’s only like two games that contain ROM data on the cart.
The third party ones can be sketch, but they work, sometimes, and sometimes you have to put a little work into them, or return it and hope you get a better working one, in the case of action replay carts nowadays being shoddy
Thank you so much. I'll save up some money and get the original carts on ebay.
@bwood or just get an action replay dude! I don’t own any OEM ram carts, just action replay. I think my Saturn just has damaged cartridge pins so it doesn’t always work even though I reflowed the solder in the cart and added shielding by way of adhesive foil tape on the inside of the shell!
@treefroggy Mr. Bones is my favorite game on the console. It rules. I think time has been kind to it, as it very much looks like a modern shitpost.
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Oh boy! Oh boy! Konami's X-Men Coin-Op Has Been Ported To Sega Saturn
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lAcjeK7ceA
>
It is noted to work with ODEs like Fenrir and Satiator
since someone bumped my thread from when I ordered a satiator three years ago:
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/684677416870084619/1196967197663297566/image.png
check it out, I just put in the order for a satiator again. I can now relegate my MODE to just sega dreamcast use 
funny how it's almost three years to the day
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This got an English patch just last year!
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