Sega Saturn Buyer's Guide

[NavesRegge]

Today, I realized that I owned a Sega Saturn. I had almost totally forgot about it. This must never happen again. I need to get some games for the thing. I know most of them are expensive, require a 4 in 1 action replay cartridge (I think that's what it is), or both. So, I want some good, common, NTSC Saturn games. I'm open to any genre, but I already own Virtua Fighter 2, so that's off the list.

Preferably, the games should be under about $10-$20 each. Unless the 4 in 1 action replay thing is a necessity, I don't want to have to get it unless I can get it very cheap.

I have a feeling that this sort of thread has already been made, so if one already exists, please post a link to it.

I've already got some games in mind:
-Daytona USA
-NiGHTS into Dreams (need controller for it)
-Virtua Cop and House of the Dead (need to get light guns)
-Panzer Dragoon
-Radiant Silvergun
-Tempest 2000

I don't know how available they are, but I'm interested. I know Daytona USA is common as hell.

[sketch]

I haven't priced Saturn games in some time, but Radiant Silvergun will set you back a few hundred dollars and doesn't really fit your criteria. I sadly don't own a Saturn any more, but here are some common games I think are fun on the system:

Three Dirty Dwarves
Bug!
Bust-a-Move
Galactic Attack
Fighters Megamix
Darius Gaiden
Street Fighter Alpha 1 & 2

Again, I haven't priced Saturn games in some time, but I don't think any of these is particularly expensive. My favorite Saturn game is Saturn Bomberman, but I have a feeling that one goes for a bit these days.

[TrekkiesUnite118]

No games actually require the Action Replay cart specifically. There are some that require RAM expansion Carts, some that require ROM carts, and obviously there's region encoding. The AR cart just solves 2 of these 3 problems by not only getting around region lock out but also having the RAM carts built in. However if you have a region modded system the AR cart is not required at all.

Here are the games I'd recommend by region:

US:
Panzer Dragoon
Panzer Dragoon 2
Fighters Megamix
Virtua Fighter 2
Virtual On
Sega Rally Championship
Virtua Cop
Virtua Cop 2
Street Fighter Alpha
Street Fighter Alpha 2
Street Fighter Collection (If you can find it cheap)
NiGHTS into Dreams
Sonic R
Sonic 3D Blast
Marvel Super Heroes
Resident Evil (if you can find it cheap)
Galactic Attack
Sega Ages Volume 1
Quake
Duke Nukem 3D

The following US titles are good but their asking prices are not for the faint of heart:
Panzer Dragoon Saga
Burning Rangers
Megaman 8
Megaman X4
Shining Force 3
Guardian Heroes
Sonic Jam
Albert Odyssey
Magic Knight Rayearth
Dragon Force
House of the Dead (to be honest it's not that pretty to look at, it was released only 60% complete)
Saturn Bomberman
PowerSlave

If your system can play Japanese imports I recommend the following:
X-men vs Street Fighter
Vampire Savior
Street Fighter Zero 3 (This one is a bit pricey)
Grandia (if you don't mind playing it in Japanese)
Lunar Silver Star Story (Again if you don't mind playing it in Japanese)
Lunar 2 Eternal Blue (Again, Japanese)
Daytona USA Circuit Edition (The best Saturn version of the game probably)
Saturn Bomberman FIGHT!

[jerbar120]

cool

[Crackdown]

Here are some more games I that I really enjoy that havn't already been mentioned:

Need For Speed
Hexen
Highway 2000
Teris Plus
Actua Golf
Worldwide Soccer
Digital Pinball
Die Hard Arcade
Black Dawn
Loaded
Mass Destruction
Manx TT
Sega Touring Car
Athlete Kings
Winter Heat
X-Men
Rampage World Tour
Atari's Greatest Hits
Sim City 2000
Wing Arms
Parodius
Darius 1 & 2
Bubble Bobble & Rainbow Islands
Worms
Bust A Move 3
Gun Griffon
Destruction Derby
Command & Conquer

I really do think there are A LOT of really good Saturn games out there and many that can be had very cheap. I think its totally untrue when people say the Saturn's best games only came out in Japan. I own quite a few imports now and still think its best games are widely available.

[fatboy]

Seeing as how I just got a replacment Saturn this weekend, and have playing the Hell out of it, this thread's timing is perfect. Not seein' enough hot mech action here, which means it's time for Me to butt in!:

Robotica:
Mech FPS from the same folks that did Brahma force and Kileak: the dna imperative on the PS1. Randomly generated levels, and a somewhat creepy atmosphere.

Ghen War:
Another FPS, sadly, but this time in power armor! Run around Mars, The Moon, and Earth blowing the pissola out of a bunch of aliens.

Mechwarrior 2: Arcade combat adition:
Also available on Playstation, This game takes The awesomeness of Mechwarrior, and streamlines it to be more suitable for console controls. (Sort of like what Microsoft did with the Mech Assault series, minus the whole sucking balls while pissing in Your eyes aspect)

[sheath]

Hey that's cool, I hadn't noticed that Robotica and Kileak were by the same people, I just thought they looked the same.

Ghen War is okay but definitely an acquired taste, Mechwarrior 2 is awesome, Gun Griffon is really hard to beat in this style though. Gun Griffon 2 ought to be fully playable as a Jpn import as well. We shouldn't leave A.M.O.K ought of the list either, it's voxel engine puts early polygonal graphics to shame.

[TrekkiesUnite118]

Isn't Amok actually a mix of voxels and Polygons?

[sheath]

I'm sure the enemies and main mech are polygons, but the mountains and whatnot are all voxels. I'm not sure if the fortress walls are polys or voxels though. I would love to see the 32X game running.

[QuickSciFi]

Off the top of my head:

Affordable:
Astal
Scud: The Dispossable Assassin
Bug!
Iron Man X-O ManOWar in Heavy Metal
Three Dirty Dwarves
Jurassic Park: The Lost World
Bust A Move 2
Bust A Move 3
Warcraft II
The Incredible Hulk
Quake
PowerSlave
Clockwork Knight
Clockwork Knight 2
Panzer Dragoon
Panzer Dragoon Zwei


Expensive:
Shinobi Legions
Panzer Dragoon Saga
Shining Force III
Shining The Holy Ark
Shining Wisdom
Guardian Heroes
Albert Odyssey
Magic Knight Rayearth

[evilevoix]

I need a JAP 21 RGB thingy for mine, anyone?

[gamevet]

Off the top of my head:

Expensive:
Shinobi Legions
Panzer Dragoon Saga
Shining Force III
Shining The Holy Ark
Shining Wisdom
Guardian Heroes
Albert Odyssey
Magic Knight Rayearth

I'd skip Albert Odyssey. It has beautiful music and the towns look nice, but the battle system is beyond broken. I've had this game freeze up so many times, that I'd lost count.

Shining: The Holy Ark, isn't ultra expensive. But if you can find it for under $40, it's well worth the cash. It's defineatly better than any RPG you could find for today's systems.

[retrospiel]

Astal
Baku Baku Animal
Sega Rally
Daytona CCE
Saturn Bomberman
Darius II
Darius Gaiden
Shinobi Legends
Legend of Oasis
Guardian Heroes
Golden Axe: The Duel
Keio Flying Squadron 2
Clockwork Knight / 2
Layer Section (aka Galactic Attack aka Ray Force)
Sonic Jam
Panzer Dragoon Zwei
High Velocity
Hang-On GP '95
Three Dirty Dwarves
X-Men: Children of the Atom
Virtua Fighter II / Remix

[QuickSciFi]

So, about that Saturn:

Favorite games I currently own:

Scud: The Disposable Assassin
Bug!
Clockwork Knight
Three Dirty Dwarves
Jurassic Park - Lost World
Iron Man X-O ManOWar in Heavy Metal
The Incredible Hulk
Spot Goes to Hollywood
Quake
Powerslave
Warcraft II
Bust-A-Move 3
Virtua Cop
Virtua Cop 2
Virtua Figther 2

Games I'd like to own soon:
Panzer Dragoon
Panzer Dragoon Zwei
Panzer Dragoon Saga
Magic Knight Rayearth
Guardian Heroes
Shining Force III
Shining Wisdom
Shining The Holy Ark
Albert Adyssey
Shinobi Legions

and from JP:
Radiant Silvergun
DoDonPachi
Soukyugurentai
...

[synbiosfan]

So, about that Saturn:

Games I'd like to own soon:
Panzer Dragoon
Panzer Dragoon Zwei
Panzer Dragoon Saga
Magic Knight Rayearth
Guardian Heroes
Shining Force III
Shining Wisdom
Shining The Holy Ark
Albert Adyssey
Shinobi Legions

and from JP:
Radiant Silvergun
DoDonPachi
Soukyugurentai
...

Great list!

If you like shooters, the Parodius & Cotton games are worth a look.