Sega CD
- Manufacturer
- Sega
- Production
- 1992–1996
- Generation
- Gen 4
- Type
- Home
- Launch price
- $299
- Units sold
- 2.2M
About Sega CD
The Sega CD, known as Mega-CD in most regions outside North America and Brazil, is a CD-ROM peripheral and format for the Sega Genesis produced by Sega as part of the fourth generation of video game consoles. Originally released in Japan on December 12, 1991, it came to North America on October 15, 1992, and the rest of the world in 1993. The Sega CD plays CD-based games and adds hardware functionality such as a faster CPU and a custom graphics chip for enhanced sprite scaling and rotation. It can also play audio CDs and CD+G discs.
Source: Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA 4.0).
Library & collector facts
209licensed games
- North America: 158
- Japan: 209
- PAL: 165
Release timeline
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- December 12, 1991
- 🇺🇸 North America
- October 15, 1992
- 🇪🇺 Europe / PAL
- April 2, 1993
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- April 2, 1993
- Lifespan
- 4 years on market
Pricing
Launch price (1992)
- 🇺🇸 USD
- $299
- 🇯🇵 JPY
- ¥49,800
- 🇬🇧 GBP
- £270
Launch titles & exclusives
Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective · Sol-Feace · Cobra Command · Black Hole Assault · Make My Video series · Night Trap · Sewer Shark
Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective + Sol-Feace (NA launch double-pack); later bundles included Sewer Shark and Night Trap
Sonic CD · Lunar: The Silver Star · Lunar: Eternal Blue · Snatcher (NA localization of the Konami classic) · Popful Mail · Vay · Final Fight CD (best home version pre-2010s) · The Ninja Warriors Again · Heart of the Alien (Another World sequel) · Wonder Dog · Keio Flying Squadron
Brain Dead 13 (1995–1996) and JP releases trickling into 1996 were among the last
Snatcher CIB (~$300–$800+); Lunar: Eternal Blue CIB (~$300+); Popful Mail CIB (~$300+); Keio Flying Squadron sealed (~$500+); Working Designs editions across the platform command premiums; Time Gal JP (~$200+)
Hardware specs
- Cpu
- Motorola 68000
- Sound
- Ricoh RF5C164
- Storage Internal
- 6.5 Mbit RAM (programs, pictures, and sounds), 128 kbit RAM (CD-ROM cache), 64 kbit RAM (backup memory)
Hardware revisions
- Sega CD Model 1(1991)
front-loading CD drive that sat under the Genesis Model 1, motorized tray (failure-prone with age), separate power supply
- Sega CD Model 2(1993)
top-loading manual disc tray, attaches to side of Genesis Model 2, more reliable
⚠ single power supply pass-through
- CDX (NA) / Multi-Mega (EU)(1994)
all-in-one portable combining Genesis + Sega CD, $399 — collector item today (~$300+ loose, ~$1000+ CIB)
- LaserActive Mega-LD PAC(1993)
Pioneer high-end LaserDisc/Mega Drive/Sega CD hybrid
Launch colorways & special editions
- None significant; Pioneer LaserActive (1993) included a Mega-LD PAC offering Mega Drive + Sega CD compatibility — collector item ~$1500+
Modding scene
- Difficulty
- hard-mod
- Custom firmware
- N/A; MegaSD plays Sega CD images via SD card
Reception & legacy
Mixed — praised for CD-quality audio and full-motion video novelty; criticized for poor early library and $299 add-on price ($499 with Genesis)
Night Trap and Sewer Shark were direct contributors to the 1993 US Senate hearings on video game violence; the 'kill button' debate around interactive FMV; Sega's poor stewardship of the add-on platform damaged trust before 32X repeated the mistake
First mainstream CD-ROM expansion in NA; defined the early FMV-game era (mostly badly); Lunar series and Snatcher became cult classics; commercial failure that began Sega's late-90s decline
References
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