The Sega Master System is an 8-bit console which was released in Japan in 1985, North America in 1986 and Europe in 1987. It didn’t sell too well in Japan or North America however it had a large following in Europe and other regions such as South America.

Segas first console, the Sega SG-1000 was released in 1983, the same year the Nintendo Entertainment System was released in Japan. This console was also known as the Mark I.

The Mark II was released a year later in 1984. It was essentially a redesigned Mark I with additional features such as an additional port to accommodate a second controller.

Sega then released the Mark III in Japan on October 1985. This console had a much improved technical specification over the Mark II, different controllers and a port for Sega Cards. Games from the Mark I and Mark II could be played on the system.

The Mark III was later re-branded and sold around the world as the Sega Master System (it’s name didn’t change in Japan until 1987). The changes were mostly cosmetic. The case was changed from white with black to black with red but internally everything was the same.

The controllers didn’t change from the Mark III (other than the colour). Like the NES controllers, they had a D-Pad on the left and two buttons, which were labelled 1 and 2. The 1 button also doubled as a start button. It was also possible to screw in a joystick to the D-Pad in some versions of the controller and since it used the standard 9 pin connector, the controllers could be used on the Atari, Commodore and Amstrad computer systems.

The console had two main peripherals: the Light Phaser and the SegaScope 3-D Glasses.

The light gun got good reviews and was much more responsive than the NES Zapper It was included in many Master System bundles.

The SegaScope 3-D Glasses were an interesting accessory which connected to the Master System card slot. The game screen, in conjunction with images flashed in the left and right lenses of the 3-D glasses, helped produced a 3 dimensional environment for the gamer.

In total eight 3-D games were released: Blade Eagle 3-D, Line of Fire, Maze Hunter 3-D, Missile Defense 3-D, Out Run 3-D, Poseidon Wars 3-D, Space Harrier 3-D and Zaxxon 3-D. Some of these games could be played without the 3-D glasses.

Most Master System consoles came with a built in game, which would come on if the system was turned on without a cartridge inserted. Astro Warrior was integrated into one version of the console whilst Hang On and Safari were included in other bundles. In Europe most people got the excellent Alex Kidd in Miracle World built in though later models included Sonic the Hedgehog.

The system wasn’t very popular in Japan or North America. Though it’s understandable when you remember that Nintendo controlled a whopping 95% of the market in Japan in the late 80s and over 80% in North America too. The last official game released for the system in Japan was in 1989 whilst in North America it was 1991 (ironically, Sonic the Hedgehog was the last game released for Sega’s dying system).

The Master System was distributed in North America by the toy company Tonka. Encouraged by sales of the Sega Genesis, Sega purchased the rights to the Master System back in 1990 and released the Master System II.

The Master System II was a low budget version of the system. The console was much smaller though the reset button, card slot and expansion port were removed.

The console was much more popular in Europe though. It was released in some countries which the NES wasn’t whereas in others it held a very respectable market share. Sega actually opened Sega Europe because of the success they had in Europe.

The last official game to be sold for the Master System in Europe was in 1996, nearly 10 years after the console had been released there (quite impressive when you consider the Sega Saturn had already been out for a year at this point).

Another region where the Master System did exceptionally well was South America, specifically Brazil. It was distributed by a company called Tec Toy. Many games were released in this region which were never released elsewhere.

Tec Toy also produced a few portable versions of the Master System including the Master System Compact, Master System Girl and the Master System III Compact, which is still sold today. The Master System III Compact doesn’t have any cartridge slot, though it has 131 games built in.

The Master System was also repackaged and brought out in handheld form in 1990. This system was of course marketed as the Sega Game Gear.

Worldwide, the Master System wasn’t a huge financial success. However, it did do well in certain territories, and no doubt the Sega Mega Drive would not have been developed had the Master System not done well in some parts of the world.

The system did have some good games though. Alex Kidd wasn’t as good as Mario but it was a great little platformer in it’s own right. Phantasy Star was the only notable Role Playing Game on the system but it was fantastic and arguably the best game on the system. The console also boasted some good arcade ports like Golden Axe, Space Harrier and Smash TV.

Check out your local toy or games store if you want to play the Master System. There are some cheap clones and handheld devices with 30+ games included in each for as little as $40.

The original system and games can be picked up on auction sites like eBay for very little as well.

Specifications

The Master System used the popular Zilog Z80A 8-bit processor. It was clocked at around 3.58 Mhz in NTSC regions and 3.55 Mhz for PAL and SECAM zones.

The Texas Instruments TMS9918 Video Display Controller inside the machine allowed a screen resolution of 256×192 or 256×224 pixels. Developers could choose from a palette of 64 colours. It used a Texas Instruments and a Yamaha sound chip, which enabled up to 6 channels of mono sound.

For games the Master System had 8b of RAM, 16kb of VRAM and 8KB of ROM. Though both ROM and RAM could be upgraded using memory from the game cartridge.

As well as the two controller ports, the system also had an expansion port though this was never utilised. Additionally, the console had a data card slot, which allowed budget games to be played.

Complete Game List

In total, over 300 games were released for the Master System in Japan, North America, Europe and Brazil.

20 em 1 – Tec Toy

Ace of Aces – Artech Digital Entertainment

Action Fighter – Sega

Addams Family, The – Ocean

Aerial Assault – Sega

After Burner – Sega

Air Rescue – Sega

Aladdin – SIMS

Alex Kidd: The Lost Stars – Sega

Alex Kidd BMX Trial – Sega

Alex Kidd in High-Tech World – Sega

Anmitsu – HimeJP

Alex Kidd in Miracle World – Sega

Alex Kidd in Shinobi World – Sega

ALF – Nexa Corporation

Alien³ – Probe Entertainment

Alien Storm – Sega

Alien Syndrome – Sega

Altered Beast – Sega

Andre Agassi Tennis – Lance Investments

Arcade Smash Hits – Sega

Argos no Juujiken – Tecmo

Ariel the Little Mermaid – Sega

Assault City – Sanritsu

Asterix – Sega

Asterix and the Great Rescue – Core Design

Asterix and the Secret Mission – Sega

Astro Warrior – Sega

Astro Warrior (Pit Pot) – Sega

Ayrton Senna’s Super Monaco GP II – Sega

Aztec Adventure: The Golden Road to Paradise – Sega

Back to the Future II – Mirrorsoft

Back to the Future III – Probe Entertainment

Baku Baku Animal – Sega

Bank Panic – Sanritsu

Basketball Nightmare – Sega

Batman Returns – Aspect

Battle Out Run – Sega

Battletoads in Battlemaniacs – Virgin Interactive

Black Belt – Sega

Blade Eagle 3-D – Sega

Bomber Raid – Sanritsu

Bonanza Bros. – Sega

Bonkers Wax Up! – Al Baker & Associates

Bram Stoker’s Dracula – Probe Entertainment

Bubble Bobble – Taito Corporation

Buggy Run – Sega

California Games – Epyx

California Games 2 – Epyx

Captain Silver – Data East

Casino Games – Sega

Castelo Rá-Tim-Bum – Tec Toy

Castle of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse – Sega

Champions of Europe – Tecmagik

Championship Hockey – Electronic Arts

Chase HQ – Taito Corporation

Cheese Cat-astrophe starring Speedy Gonzalez – Time Warner Interactive

Choplifter – Brøderbund Software

Chuck Rock – Core Design

Chuck Rock II: Son of Chuck – Core Design

Cloud Master – Hot-B

Chuka TaisenArcade Title – Taito Corporation

Columns – Sega

Comical Machine Gun Joe – Sega

Cool Spot – Virgin Interactive

Cosmic Spacehead – Codemasters

Cyber Shinobi, The – Sega

Cyborg Hunter – Sega

Daffy Duck in Hollywood – Probe Entertainment

Danan: The Jungle Fighter – Sega

Dead Angle – Seibu Kaihatsu

Deep Duck Trouble Starring Donald Duck – Sega

Desert Speedtrap – Probe Entertainment

Desert Strike – Electronic Arts

Dick Tracy – Sega

Double Dragon – Technos Japan

Double Hawk – OperaHouse

Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine – Compile

Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story – Virgin Interactive

Dragon Crystal – Sega

Dynamite Duke – Seibu Kaihatsu

Dynamite Dux – Sega

Earthworm Jim – EuroCom

Ecco the Dolphin – Novotrade

Ecco: The Tides of Time – Novotrade

Enduro Racer – Sega

ESWAT: City Under Siege – Sega

F-16 Fighting Falcon – Nexa Corporation

F1 – Lankhor

Formula OneBR – Teque Interactive

Fantastic Dizzy – Codemasters

Fantasy Zone – Sega

Fantasy Zone II: The Tears of Opa-Opa – Sega

Fantasy Zone: The Maze – Sega

Férias Frustradas do Pica-Pau – Tec Toy

FIFA International Soccer – EA Sports

Fire & Forget 2 – Titus Software

Fire and Ice – Graftgold

Flash, The – Probe Entertainment

Flintstones, The – Grandslam

Forgotten Worlds – Capcom

G-LOC: Air Battle – Sega

Gain Ground – Sega

Galactic Protector – Sega

Galaxy Force – Sega

Gangster Town – Sega

Gauntlet – Atari Games

George Foreman’s KO Boxing – SIMS

Ghost House – Sega

Ghostbusters – Activision

Ghouls ‘n Ghosts – Capcom

Global Defense – Sega

Global Gladiators – Virgin Interactive

Golden Axe – Sega

Golden Axe Warrior – Sega

Golfmania – Sega

Golvellius: Valley of Doom – Compile

GP Rider – Sega

Great Baseball – Sega

Great Basketball – Sega

Great Football – Sega

Great Golf – Sega

Great Ice Hockey – Sega

Great Soccer – Sega

Great Volleyball – Sega

Hang-On – Sega

Heroes of the Lance – U.S. Gold

High School! Kimengumi – Sega

Home Alone – Probe Entertainment

Hoshi wo Sagashite… – Sega

Impossible Mission – Epyx

Incredible Crash Dummies, The – Software Creations

Incredible Hulk, The – Probe Entertainment

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade – Tiertex Design Studio

James Bond: The Duel – The Kremlin

James “Buster” Douglas Knockout Boxing – SIMS

James Pond 2: Codename RoboCod – Vectordean

Joe Montana Football – Electronic Arts

Jungle Book, The – Virgin Interactive

Jurassic Park – Sega

Kenseiden – Sega

King’s Quest I: Quest for the Crown – Sierra On-Line

Klax – Atari Games

Krusty’s Fun House – Audiogenic Software

Kung Fu Kid – Sega

Land of Illusion starring Mickey Mouse – Sega

Laser Ghost – Sega

Legend of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse – Aspect

Lemmings – DMA Design

Line of Fire – Sega

Lion King, The – Virgin Interactive

Lord of the Sword – Sega

Loretta no Shouzou – Sega

Lucky Dime Caper Starring Donald Duck – Sega

Machinegun Joe – Sega

Mahjong Sengoku Jidai – Sega

Marble Madness – Atari Games

Marksman Shooting & Trap Shooting – Sega

Master of Darkness – Sega

Masters of Combat – Sega

Maze Hunter 3-D – Sega

Megumi Rescue – Aicom

Mercs – Capcom

Michael Jackson’s Moonwalker – Sega

Mickey’s Ultimate Challenge – Designer Software

Micro Machines – Codemasters

Miracle Warriors: Seal of the Dark Lord – ASCII Corporation

Missile Defense 3-D – Sega

Monopoly – Sega

Montezuma’s Revenge – Parker Brothers

Mortal Kombat – Midway Games

Mortal Kombat II – Probe Entertainment

Mortal Kombat 3 – Midway Games

Ms. Pac-Man – General Computer Corporation

My Hero – Coreland

Nekyuu Kousien – Sega

New Zealand Story, The – Taito Corporation

Ninja Gaiden – Tecmo

Ninja, The – Sega

Olympic Gold: Barcelona ’92 – U.S. Gold

Operation Wolf – Taito Corporation

Ottifants, The – Sega

Out Run – Sega

Out Run 3-D – Sega

Out Run Europa – Probe Entertainment

Pac-Mania – Namco

Paperboy – Atari Games

Parlour Games – Sega

Penguin Land – Sega

PGA Tour Golf – Polygames

Phantasy Star – Sega

Pit-Fighter – Atari Games

Pit Pot – Sega

Populous – Bullfrog Software

Poseidon Wars 3-D – Sega

Power Strike – Compile

AlesteJP – Sega

Power Strike II – Compile

Predator 2 – Teeny Weeny Games

Prince of Persia – Brøderbund Software

Pro Wrestling – Sega

Psychic World – Hertz Co. Ltd.

Psycho Fox – Sega

Putt & Putter – SIMS

Quartet – Sega

R-Type – Irem

R.C. Grand Prix – Absolute Entertainment

Rainbow Islands – Taito Corporation

Rambo: First Blood Part II – Sega

Rambo III – Sega

Rampage – Bally Midway

Rampart – Atari Games

Rastan – Taito Corporation

Reggie Jackson Baseball – Sega

Renegade – Technos Japan

Ren Hoek and Stimpy: Quest for the Shaven Yak – Realtime Associates

Rescue Mission – Sega

Road Rash – Electronic Arts

RoboCop 3 – Eden Entertainment

RoboCop vs. The Terminator – Virgin Interactive

Rocky – Sega

Running Battle – Sega

Safari Hunt – Sega

Sagaia – Taito Corporation

Sangokushi – Panda Entertainment

Satellite 7 – Sega

Scramble Spirits – Sega

Sega Chess – Sega

Sensible Soccer – Sensible Software

Shadow Dancer – Sega

Shadow of the Beast – Reflections Interactive

Shanghai – Activision

Shinobi – Sega

Shooting Gallery – Sega

Simpsons, The: Bart vs. the Space Mutants – Imagineering

Simpsons, The: Bart vs. the World – Arc Developments

Sítio do Picapau Amarelo – Tec Toy

Slap Shot – Sanritsu

Smash TV – Probe Entertainment

Smurfs, The – Infogrames

Smurfs 2, The: Travel the World – Infogrames

Snail Maze (Free Game built into Early Master System 1 Hardware) – Sega

Solomon no Kagi – Tecmo

Sonic Blast – Aspect

Sonic Chaos – Aspect

Sonic the Hedgehog Spinball – Sega Technical Institute

Sonic the Hedgehog – Sega

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 – Aspect

Space Harrier – Sega

Space Harrier 3-D – Sega

Space Gun – Taito Corporation

Special Criminal Investigation – Taito Corporation

Speedball – Bitmap Brothers

Speedball 2 – Bitmap Brothers

SpellCaster – Sega

Spider-Man: Return of the Sinister Six – B.I.T.S.

Spider-Man vs. The Kingpin – Sega

Sports Pad Football – Sega

Sports Pad Soccer – Sega

Spy vs. Spy – First Star Software

Star Wars – Lucasfilm Games

Street Fighter II – Capcom

Streets of Rage – Sega

Streets of Rage 2 – Sega

Strider – Capcom

Strider II – Tiertex Design Studio

Submarine Attack – Sega

Sukeban Deka II – Sega

Summer Games – Epyx

Super Kick-Off – Anco Software

Super Boy 4 – Zemina

Super Monaco GP – Sega

Super Off Road – Graftgold

Super Racing – Sega

Super Space Invaders – Taito Corporation

Super Tennis – Sega

Super Tetris – Sega

Superman: The Man of Steel – Graftgold

Taz in Escape from Mars – Head Games Publishing

Taz-Mania – Sega

Tecmo World Cup ’92 – Tecmo

Tecmo World Cup ’93 – Tecmo

Teddy Boy – Sega

Tennis Ace – Sanritsu

Tensai Bakabon – Sega

Terminator, The – Probe Entertainment

Terminator 2: Judgment Day – Arc Developments

T2: The Arcade Game – Midway Games

Thunder Blade – Sega

Time Soldiers – Alpha Denshi

Tom and Jerry: The Movie – Sega

TransBot – Sega

Trivial Pursuit: Genus Edition – Domark

Ultima IV: Quest of the Avatar – Origin Systems

Ultimate Soccer – Rage Software

Vigilante – Irem

Virtua Fighter Animation – Sega

Walter Payton Football – Sega

Wanted! – Sanritsu

Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? – Brøderbund Software

Wimbledon – Sega

Wimbledon 2 – Sega

Winter Olympics: Lillehammer 94 – Tiertex Design Studio

Wolfchild – Core Design

Wonder Boy – Westone

Wonder Boy in Monster Land – Westone

Wonder Boy III: The Dragon’s Trap – Westone

Wonder Boy in Monster World – Westone

Woody Pop – Sega

World Class Leader Board – Access Software

World Cup USA ’94 – Tiertex Design Studio

World Cup Italia ’90 – Virgin Mastertronic

World Games – Epyx

World Grand Prix – Sega

World Tournament Golf – Sega

WWF WrestleMania: Steel Cage Challenge – Flying Edge

X-Men 3: Mojo World – Sega

Xenon 2: Megablast – Bitmap Brothers

Y’s: The Vanished Omens – Nihon Falcom

Zaxxon 3-D – Sega

Zillion – Sega

Zillion II: The Tri Formation – Sega

Zool – Gremlin Graphics Design

Videos

1980s Sega Master System Commercial

Toys ‘R Us Sega Master System Ad

SEGA Master System – 1987 Commercial

SegaScope 3-D Commercial

100 Master System Games

Top 10 Sega Master System games

Links