Written by Christopher Groux Saturday, 23 February :29 - Last Updated Saturday, 23 February :29

Transcription

1 With the announcement of the PlayStation 4 and the upcoming release of next generation consoles now seems like a good time to take a look back at some of the classic gaming machines. Category 1: Hardware DashHacks is a very hardware focused site, so you know we had to begin by looking at the raw numbers in terms of which system was more powerful from a spec perspective. In a lot of senses, this is a battle you can almost figure out on your own as long as you have spent a little time with both of these systems, but for the skeptics out there, I can give you the raw data you want. Obviously with the Genesis being released about two full years before the SNES in North America, you can bet how this is going to turn out. 1 / 10

2 For it's day, Sega's console had a really fast processor that hit 7.67MHz compared to the SNES' 3.58 MHz at its maximum configuration. This edge did make Genesis games perform a little bit faster than their Nintendo counterparts and allowed for plenty of specialized effects. However that was about the only edge the system had. When it came to both graphics and sound, Nintendo's offering almost doubled what the older system could do and you can see that just by taking a look at the games. With double the amount of RAM, and the ability to produce two times more colors on screen, SNES games were the superior feat from a technical standpoint. Both were certainly popular options, but by the hardware sheet SNES is a clear winner. Winner: SNES Still got classic gaming tunes stuck in your head? Click on for a discussion about music! Category 2: Music 2 / 10

3 The last time I talked about classic games, I used music as a category, so for the sake of fairness I think one should be done here as well. Again talking of specs, there's no denying that the SNES had the superior hardware to produce better quality sound, but does that necessarily make it the best? In my opinion definitely not. When talking about the Sega Genesis, there was a sense that the console produced music that sounded completely unlike anything else on the market. The lower-grade hardware in a lot of ways allowed the melodies to embody the charm of the NES era, while at the same time giving us something that sounded amped up and totally epic. 3 / 10

4 Sure, Super Mario World had more full arrangements in terms of it's music, but are you going to tell me that the songs in that game are any more epic than something like Sonic 2? I sincerely would hope not. Genesis music had a really digitized sound to it that worked well both for the era it was created and for being a part of video games in general. It provided that match in experience that I personally think makes the sound more memorable. SNES was headed more towards modern orchestral sounds in a lot of ways, but in a digital universe it was more appropriate to have some techno playing instead. Certainly there are standouts for both machines, but Genesis music captures my interest a little more. Winner: Genesis Hardware and music are certainly important, but what about the games? The next page will break it down for you. Category 3: Games 4 / 10

5 When trying to decide which is the better system though, there's no real denying that it's all about the games each console had. If we were talking in raw numbers, the Genesis would actually win the contest for the highest number of released games by a longshot with 915 compared to the SNES' 784 confirmed official titles. However, I'm more of a quality over quantity type of guy, so for me the battle may not be so cut and dry. 5 / 10

6 There's no real denying that both 16-bit options had their super standout games. For the SNES in particular, Donkey Kong Country was one of the highest grossing titles that the company has ever seen, just as Sonic 2 completely redefined a classic franchise and finally put a real recognizable face behind the Sega brand. Just like in the current generation, they both had exclusives too, with Square and Enix sticking to the SNES while RPGs like Phantasy Star were true hallmarks for the Genesis. If I am to summarize this in any possible way, I think what you got out of Genesis games in general was a more close emulation of arcades. This helped for quite a few action games like Streets of Rage or Conta: Hardcorps, but it may not have been the best move overall. In terms of experiences, the SNES in my opinion was the first to give us something that was more unique to a console, and that makes a lot of the games more important. The superior hardware paved the way for legendary franchises that are still strong today (shoutout to Mario) because they gave us something we hadn't seen before. This is honestly a nearly impossible choice I'm forced to make, but if I had to pick, as much as I love Sonic, I think we got more variety and uniqueness from the likes of Mario and friends. Winner: SNES So we've looked at sound, hardware, and games, but let's take a quick look down gaming memory lane to see how each system performed in their time from a sales perspective. 6 / 10

7 Category 4: Overall Sales Back in their time, both of these options certainly had their strong fanbase to consider. When you recall that in the early nineties the concept of the internet and forums were still in their infancy, you would be surprised how passionate things actually got. Because Sega had a full two years to downplay the inferior NES, they had quite a bit of early success with both sales and production stats soaring high above anything that the industry had seen before. Especially in North America, the so called "What Nintendon't" ad campaign proved that Genesis was the next big thing, and that "next big thing was already here." 7 / 10

8 However, that surge period could only last so long as Nintendo continued to plug away at their own competitive beast while Sega raked in the dollars. Then came Super Mario World. The game not only showed us colors and visuals that lay far beyond what Sega was doing, but the game itself was also a stunner and came with every single unit. Can't beat a deal like that right? That was only the beginning as Donkey Kong Country would go on to sell eight million copies worldwide which pales in comparison to Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and Aladdin's four million moved. Clearly change was in the air, and it was all going Nintendo's way. When all was said and done, the SNES was the clear winner in overall console sales by a mile. With 49.1 million compared to 29 million it would be hard to argue anything else. Still, considering how great the SNES was doing, these figures are not something to be scoffed at. Especially considering games were still very much a "hardcore only" activity at the time. No matter how you break it down though, the SNES killed in the public eye. Winner: SNES So the SNES is clearly continuing to dominate the categories, but will it win in the Final Word. Click to find out! 8 / 10

9 The Final Word Alright, so it's no secret that just like in their own time it seems that this battle is clearly going to be won by the SNES. Still, I don't want all of my readers out their to think that all of these choices made were completely obvious or easy to make. Both consoles had pretty strong hardware, memorable music, and even better games. If we were living back in those times, I would probably encourage all of you to get both machines, but obviously emulation can suit that purpose well enough now. 9 / 10

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