Nintendo is set to launch a miniature replica of its popular Nintendo Entertainment System later this week. That’s great news for longtime Nintendo fans, but what if your allegiance lies with rival Sega and its popular Genesis console (known as the Mega Drive outside of North America)?

Production of the original Sega Genesis was discontinued in 1997 but as it turns out, the console is still wildly popular in Brazil with roughly 150,000 units being sold in the region each year. Demand is so high, in fact, that one of Sega’s officially licensed manufacturing partners is putting the system back into production.

As Geek points out, Brazilian video game and electronics company Tectoy is now accepting pre-orders for brand new Sega Mega Drive units that’ll launch next year.

The new system is a near replica of the original save for a few changes. For example, it features an SD card for loading ROMs and ships with the following 22 games pre-loaded into memory:

Alex Kidd

Alien Storm

Altered Beast

Arrow Flash

Bonanza Brothers

Columns

Decap Attack

E-Swat

Fatal Labyrinth

Flicky

Gain Ground

Golden Axe

Golden Axe 3

Jewel Master

Kid Chameleon

Last Battle

Out Runners

Sega Soccer

Shadow Dancer

Shinobi 3

Sonic 3

Turbo Outrun

Longtime Genesis / Mega Drive fans will appreciate the fact that the console also accepts original cartridge games and includes a faithfully-reproduced three-button gamepad.

The bad news? Production is limited to Brazil, it’s rather expensive at 379.05 Brazilian Real ($118.44 USD) and it doesn’t have modern connections (RCA only, no HDMI). It's also unclear if the replica is compatible with hardware add-ons like the 32X or Sega CD but if I had to guess, it probably isn't.

Some may also consider it to be bad news for retro console collectors as it would devalue their original hardware but I don’t think that’s really much of a concern.

Those outside of Brazil may be able to get the system imported into their home country although you’d probably be best served to simply hit eBay or even local yard / garage sales where you can find original hardware and games at a cheaper price.

A company by the name of AtGames also sells a Genesis clone with around 80 or so pre-loaded games but according to reviews on Amazon, it's not all that great. With any luck, perhaps a company like Analogue Interactive will turn out a quality Genesis console as it it did with the all-aluminum NES remake, the Analogue Nt.

If all else fails, you can always turn to mobile games or emulators for your retro fix.