Sega 32X

Knuckles’ Chaotix is a very polarizing game that’s a little rough around the edges. As a spinoff of the Sonic the Hedgehog series, expectations were high. Knuckles’ Chaotix certainly looks and sounds like a typical Sonic game, but the gameplay is radically different. Speed still plays a role in the game, and the stages are still full of springboards to leap off of and loops to run around in. The big innovation in Knuckles’ Chaotix is that the player is tethered to another character throughout the entire game. There are five primary characters to choose from, and each has their own unique abilities – like climbing walls, walking on ceilings, and running in air. Since players are tethered to other characters, you are essentially controlling two characters at the same time. During the game, players will be required to throw the second character around like a ball or use their momentum to gain extra speed. Knuckles’ Chaotix has a longer learning curve than Sonic games are known for, but it’s a lot of fun once you get the hang of it. There are many valid complaints about the game, but I still maintain that it’s the best game released exclusively on the 32X.

When fans of retro gaming think of Star Wars Arcade, they usually think of Atari’s groundbreaking 1983 arcade game. The 32X version has a lot in common with that title, but it’s actually a port of Sega’s oft-overlooked Model 1 arcade game that was released a decade later. The game seems rudimentary by today’s standards, but it was pretty cool to see a polygonal representation of classic Star Wars films in 1994. The game’s three space-based missions focus on events from the original trilogy. These levels challenge players to intercept TIE Fighters in an asteroid field, face a Super Star Destroyer head-on, and make an assault run on the Death Star. The game gets pretty repetitive after a while and lacks real depth, but Sega deserves some level of credit for giving players the option of choosing to play either through the original stages or enhanced versions that were designed specifically for the 32X. Unfortunately, the gameplay is still fairly restrictive and players are extremely limited with respect to where they can move on the screen. Despite it’s faults, Star Wars Arcade was one of the most noteworthy titles ever released for the 32X.

Professional wrestling is pretty ridiculous, and WWF Wrestlemania: The Arcade Game is even less realistic than the “sport” it emulates. That being said, the game does an excellent job of capturing what makes wrestling so fun in the first place. The use of digitized characters might suggest that the game is striving for realism, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. The game is fast-paced, completely over-the-top, and puts an emphasis on comedy. Wrestlers will electrocute each other, set their opponents ablaze, and pull weapons out of thin air. Inexplicably, their limbs can also double in size during matches. With only eight characters to choose from, the roster is seriously lacking. Still, the wrestlers were well-chosen and do a pretty good job of representing the era. The game shares much in common with other Midway arcade games like Mortal Kombat and NBA Jam, but at its core it does a great job of capturing the cartoon world of professional wrestling.

In terms of its influence, DOOM was one of the most significant games of the 1990s. The game helped define the “first-person shooter” genre and inspired countless imitators. The gameplay mostly consisted of navigating through mazes, finding keys, and killing bad guys, but people flocked to the game in droves. Incidentally, mowing down demons on Mars with plasma rifles and chainsaws was really appealing to the masses. The game’s 3D graphics were revolutionary when the game hit the PC market in 1993, but a few concessions had to be made for the 32X port. Most notably, the viewing area on the 32X version was reduced significantly and the screen was surrounded by an unsightly border. The game was further hampered by poor use of the Genesis’ sound chip, the inability to circle strafe, and the lack of a multiplayer mode. It’s worth noting, however, that the 32X version was still vastly superior to the Saturn and 3DO ports. It should also be noted that the gameplay in the 32X holds up pretty well. The game runs smoothly, the controls are responsive, and it offers experiences that would never have been possible on the Genesis. It’s not all it could have been, but DOOM still stands as one of the more impressive 32X games.

Without question, Shadow Squadron is one of the best reasons to own a 32X. With relatively complex polygonal graphics, a smooth frame rate, and some pretty cool explosion effects, Shadow Squadron is easily one of the best-looking games on the system. The gameplay is pretty impressive too. Shadow Squadron is a space-based flight sim in the vein of Star Wars Arcade, but it never got the attention it deserved. The game gives players a lot more freedom than Star Wars Arcade does, and allows them to freely maneuver around in all directions as they take out invading armadas. The game doesn’t offer much in the way of replay value, but it’s a fun ride while it lasts and it’s hard not to appreciate a game that actually tries to push the capabilities of the platform it’s on. Shadow Squadron is probably the closest thing to a “hidden gem” that you’re going to find on the 32X.

A Formula One racing game noted for its ambitious use of polygonal graphics, Virtua Racing was first released in arcades in 1992. The game may not seem that impressive by today’s standards, but the framerate is surprisingly smooth and it’s still completely playable. The ability to change your camera angle was novel when the game was first released; and the banked corners, bridges, and overpasses were quite the sight to behold. Admittedly, the 32X version didn’t look quite as good as the arcade version did, but it was a marked improvement over the Genesis cart (which cost a cool $100 when it was first released.) Virtua Racing Deluxe included two new cars and a couple of courses that weren’t in the original arcade game. Whether you’re playing against a friend in split-screen mode or competing against a field of 15 CPU-controlled competitors, the game is easily the best racing game available on the 32X. It’s also the only racing game on the platform, but I digress.

Virtua Fighter was a landmark title when it hit arcades in 1993, and was the first fighting game to feature 3D polygon graphics. The game was highly regarded for its in-depth mechanics, fluid gameplay, and multiple fighting styles based on real-world techniques. Virtua Fighter is one of the most technically impressive games on the 32X and featured visuals and gameplay that simply wouldn’t have been possible on the Genesis. That being said, it’s also a perfect example of why the 32X failed. The game pushed the 32X to its limits and still didn’t look as nice as the Saturn counterpart that hit store shelves several months earlier. Moreover, second generation Saturn games like Virtua Fighter 2 were completely beyond what the 32X was capable of. Virtua Fighter could have been an effective launch game for the 32X, but it seemed a little dated when it finally arrived. Nevertheless, Sega deserves credit for making Virtua Fighter work on the 32X in the first place. To their credit, they even added features that weren’t seen in the arcade and Saturn counterparts – including new camera angles, a tournament mode, and custom ring sizes.

Blackthorne is a cinematic platformer in the vein of Prince of Persia, Out of This World, and Flashback. For reasons I will never fully understand, it was never able to capture the same mindshare that the aforementioned games did. It’s a shame, as it was arguably the best game in the sub-genre. The protagonist looks like a relic of the ’80s and the story is paper thin, but the character animations are outstanding and the detailed environments really help to define the game’s universe. The level designs are infused with puzzle elements, and players will often be required to find keys, activate bridges, or destroy generators before they can progress. They’ll also have to make use of several gadgets – including levitators and remote-controlled wasp-shaped bombs. The primary weapon in the game is a simple shotgun, which serves as the crux for many interesting game mechanics. Players have to be mindful of reloading their weapon, so a certain amount of strategy is required for every enemy encounter. Players can also step into the background to dodge enemy fire. The enemies, for their part, also have to reload their weapons, and they can hide in the shadows to avoid being shot at too. The enemies are full of personality and will even take the opportunity to mock players when they make a mistake. Blackthorne was originally released on the Super NES and some of the changes made to the 32X were questionable. (For instance, the redesigned sprites looked worse that the originals, and the right-side menu was a bit of an eye sore.) Nevertheless, Blackthorne was an extremely welcome addition to the 32X library, especially since a Genesis version never surfaced.

Fighting games were all the rage in the mid 1990s, and Mortal Kombat was one of the most prolific. The digitized graphics, copious amounts of blood, and fatality maneuvers really made the game stand out at the time. The popularity of Mortal Kombat was largely fueled by its controversial themes, but the sequel refined the gameplay and improved upon the original in every conceivable way. The character roster was nearly doubled, the move sets were expanded, the controls were more responsive, and more finishing moves were introduced. Mortal Kombat II was even more hard-hitting and violent than its predecessor, and many consider it to be the best game in the entire series. The 32X version looked and sounded better than its Genesis counterpart, and the larger color pallet and added frames of animation made it feel more like the original arcade game. The 32X version was also vastly superior to the buggy Saturn release, and was arguably the best home version of the game released until emulated versions of the arcade game started showing up in compilation packs nearly a decade later.

It’s not the most conventional choice for the top spot on this list, but the fact that NBA Jam: Tournament Edition was released on basically every other viable console of its era doesn’t mean that it wasn’t the best game on the 32X. The mid ’90s saw the rise of so-called “sport sims” that attempted to mimic the feel of real sports. Games like NBA Jam took a different approach, and felt more like action-based arcade games. The game features official NBA teams and over 100 licensed players, but it also shows a complete disregard for NBA rules and regulations. You seldom have to worry about fouls being called and the game’s two-on-two format makes it extremely accessible. As previously mentioned, many other versions of NBA Jam: Tournament Edition were released. The 32X port stands as one of the best. The 32X version features larger and more colorful players that its Genesis counterpart did, the animation was improved, and the character sprites scaled as they moved further away or closer to the game’s camera. Naturally, the music and sound effects also underwent significant improvements. Regardless of what platform it’s played on, Tournament Edition is a complete blast. Dunking from the free throw line never gets old. The fact that the game allows up to four people to play at once puts the exclamation mark on it and cements NBA Jam: Tournament Edition as the best game ever released on the 32X.