20 years ago today, Sega revealed it’s Master Drive system in New York City and Los Angeles. At least, the rest of the world knew the 16-bit console as the Master Drive. Because of some copyright issues, Sega couldn’t use that name in the US. Instead, the chose to invoke imagery of the birth of the universe to embody their newest hardware. And while the Genesis wasn’t quite as epic as the birth of everything ever, it certainly was an amazing piece of hardware. Although Japan basically ignored the console from day one, in the rest of the world thought differently. In the US, it was the only console that challenged the reign of Nintendo. In Europe, it was THE system, outselling any other system until the late ’90s. The Sega Genesis was one hell of a piece of hardware.

I remember the Genesis fondly. I can recall the first time I held the system’s controller in my hands, standing just past the toy section of Service Merchandise, where they console demo section was. The game loaded in the system was Sonic The Hedgehog. The beautiful visuals, the speed of the experience, the feel of the three buttons under my right thumb…certainly, it wouldn’t dislodge the love that I had for the NES, but I knew that this console was special. That feeling was reinforced when I visited my next door neighbor’s house, and he had one. We played all sorts of games on that console – my first experience with Battletech came from that machine. The first time I tried (and failed, repetitively) to summon a hadduken in Street Fighter Turbo was on that machine.
I also remember how it became one of the first geek arguments that I had ever seen. I remember the Console Wars propaganda – “Sega Does What Nintendon’t” was what I read in magazines, as Genesis competed against the NES in its early days. I remember the playground conflicts that would arise from whether you owned a Genesis, or a Super Nintendo. It was one of the first times I remember having a vigorous debate about things geeky in nature. The Genesis was a vital part of my developing geekitude. It amazes me that it’s turning 20 today.
Makes me feel old…and young all at the same time. Those were good times. Times that turned me into the Geekmaster I am nowadays.

So Happy Birthday, Genesis. Enjoy some cake, knowing that you will live forever as one of the greatest consoles of all time, and arguable the finest piece of hardware Sega ever made.