Play Sega GAME GEAR & MASTER SYSTEMS Games in HD! RetroN 5 Adapter Review

Hey, guys. Metal Jesus, here. Now, since the RetroN 5 was released, game
collectors everywhere have been asking for support for the Sega Game Gear and also the
Master System. Well, now Hyperkin has released that adapter.

In addition to reviewing this, I'm also going
to show you a bunch of games that collectors that are new to those systems might want to
check out. Let's take a look.  [Music]  First off, let's have a little
refresher of what the RetroN 5 actually is. This is a clone emulation system that plays
your physical cartridges, and it supports a bunch of different systems, including the
original Genesis, Mega Drive, also the Super Nintendo, Super Famicom, NES, Famicom, and
also some really cool handhelds, like the original Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game
Boy Advance.

And here is the box for the 3-in-1 adapter. Inside, not a whole lot. Basically, just what you need, and that is
the adapter itself. Now, you'll notice it's fairly large, and
that's because it supports three different sizes of things you can plug into it.

On the top is the Sega Master System, on the
right-hand side is where you plug in the Game Gear cartridges, and then, on the left is
where you plug in those Sega cards. Remember that I mentioned that the RetroN
5 is a clone emulation system, so on the box here, you're going to notice that you're going
to need to upgrade your firmware. Not a big deal, not hard to do, but just be
aware that your entire RetroN 5 is going to get an upgrade. And then to play some games, you simply plug
the adapter into the Genesis slot, and let's start with some Master System games.

Let's start with <i>Phantasy Star.</I> <i>Phantasy
Star</i> is one of the benchmark RPGs released in the 1980s and is still considered a classic
today. There are many things to like about this game. For me, I really dug the sci-fi fantasy story,
also has great graphics for the time. It still looks pretty good, even today.

I like how it has a top-down map, plus it
has first-person interaction, both when you talk to NPCs and also the combat. And then, you can't forget about those amazing
3D dungeons to explore. It's a really awesome game. Check it out.

Next, let's check out some <i>Out Run.</I>
So, what can I say about <i>Out Run</i> that you haven't heard a million times before? This is obviously a racing game. It's based on an arcade game, and it's really
just timeless. People still love playing this game, even
today. And like all the other systems that the RetroN
5 supports, this also has support for filters.

Now, right now, you're looking at <i>Out Run</i>
running with no filters on, so in theory, you see all the pixels that you should, but
not everybody is a fan of that. So, let's go ahead and turn on some of the
filtering. You can compare the two. You'll notice now that the pixels are a bit
softer, maybe a bit rounder, and for some people, this is absolute blasphemy.

This is completely unacceptable, and I totally
get it, but, you know, there are times whenever...Maybe the game is a little more pixelated than you
expect, and at least you have the option. Let's go ahead and turn that filtering off
and see if you can see the difference. <I>Out Run</i> is a great arcade racing game
on the Sega Master System. Definitely check it out.

By the way, if you're curious, I'm actually
playing all of these games in this video using a real Sega Genesis controller. I love how the RetroN 5 supports this. And now, an absolute classic on the Master
System, <i>Wonderboy III.</I> <i>Wonderboy III: Dragon's Trap</i> is a fantastic platform
action game on the Master System. Things that really stand out for me are the
bright colors and graphics, the really nice controls.

I also really dig that the game is mostly
non-linear, which is kind of cool. It's also worth noting that this game is so
well-loved, so fondly looked upon by fans that it's actually going to be getting an
HD remake, coming soon. So, if you love 2D platforming games, and
you're starting to collect for the Master System, this is a must-own. I love my shooters, and <i>Fantasy Zone II</i>
is awesome.

<I>Fantasy Zone II</i> is not your typical
shooter, and I think it's pretty obvious why. I mean, look at these bright colors, and also,
you have some just crazy enemies, and the overall design is just unlike anything I've
ever seen. Now, some people would call this a cute-'em-up. I know not everyone's crazy about that term,
but for me, I actually really like these kind of games.

I think they're fun, something a little bit
different. Also, this game really reminds me of <i>Defender.</I>
[music]  Some other games you might want to check out, if you're starting to collect
for the Master System, of course, you got to talk about <i>R-Type.</I> This is a really
great version of this game if you like shoot-'em-ups. Now, one of the things to note about this
is that it supports the advanced FM sound chip, so this adapter will support that, which
means that the audio will sound even better. Sounds really great.

Also, there is a great version of <i>Shinobi</i>
on it. Now, it may not be necessarily the best, most
accurate version of <i>Shinobi,</i> but I. Think it plays really well. Super fun.

[Music]  Now, let's switch over to
another system. Let's play some Game Gear games, and we'll
start with <i>Shining Force.</I> Oh man, this is such a great game for the Game Gear. This is a tactical roleplaying game that is
considered one of the best on the system. So good.

It was actually remade for the Sega CD, but
we'll cover that at another time. Now, you may be noticing that the text is
really big. Well, that's because, again, the Game Gear
was a handheld, and at the time, the screen only had a resolution of 160 by 144 pixels. So, the RetroN 5 is actually stretching those
out to fill your HD television, but I still think it looks really nice.

Of course, you couldn't have a Sega console
without a Sonic game on it, and <i>Triple Trouble</i> actually is a really good one. Now, this was released originally as <i>Sonic
& Tails 2</i>, but it's basically a sequel to <i>Sonic the Hedgehog Chaos.</I> For me,
the stand-out feature for this game is the graphics. I think they just look amazing. Really colorful, really fun.

Now, some people complained this game might
be a bit easy. I personally don't find it to be super easy,
but then again, I'm not great at the Sonic games, but you should definitely check it
out. This next game I want to show is called <i>GP
Rider.</I> This is an arcade motorcycle racing game, but the reason why I want to show it
is to compare the different filters, because while I showed the filters being applied to
Sega Master System games, I think they actually have more of an impact on the Game Gear because
of the lower resolution. So, here is the game with no filters applied,
and it's pixelated, but I think it looks pretty good.

And here is the game with some filters applied,
rounding out the pixels and smoothing out the graphics. Again, completely optional.  [Music]  Here's a vertical shooter
that I enjoy quite a bit called <i>Halley Wars.</I> Now, I believe this is based on
a stand-up arcade machine called <i>Halley's Comet</i>, and it makes sense because in this
game, you're trying to shoot down the comets that might be hitting earth. What I like about this game is that the difficulty
feels just right.

It's not too easy, it's not too hard. Keep in mind that this game was originally
designed for a very small screen, but when you blow it up to your large HD television,
it almost makes it easier, and certainly it makes it a lot of fun. Another cartridge you're going to want to
buy is <i>Streets of Rage 2.</I> Now, I'm including this in here not only because it's
a really fun, side-scrolling beat-'em-up, but I also want to show you, again, the filters
applied. I'm doing this because, for some people, I
think when they see these old Game Gear games they might get a little but turned off, and
turning on these filters really sometimes can help.

See, check it out. So, this is no filter right here. Let's go ahead and turn it on. Again, it's total personal preference, but
it's there if you want it.

Some other games you might want to check out
on the Game Gear, here is <i>Shinobi II</i>, and dare I say, I might actually like it more
than the first game. Here is <i>Aerial Assault</i>, which is a
decent horizontal shooting game. Now, it's not going to win any awards or anything. It's not going to blow your socks off, but
it can be found cheap.

<I>Lion King</i> is based on the Disney movie,
of course, and is considered a classic on the Game Gear. And then the last format that this adapter
supports is the Sega Card. Now, I don't have a lot of these. There weren't actually a lot of them released,
but if you're going to support the Master System, you do have to support both formats.

Here, I have <i>Trans-Bot.</I> Let's take
a look. As you can see, this is a horizontal shooter,
but what's cool about this one is that it's kind of inspired by <i>The Transformers.</I>
Meaning that half the time you're playing as a starfighter, but then you can sometimes
transform into a robot. What's interesting about this game is that
your powerups don't last for very long. There's actually a limited amount of time
that you have them.

So, some of it's kind of luck, as far as this
game goes, and some of it's kind of skill. I would say, overall, I don't know if I would
highly recommend this game, but it is cool to have it in that little card format. So, you're probably curious how much it costs. Well, it currently sells for $60 through Hyperkin.

I'll put a link to their website down in the
video description below if you want to get some more information. As you can tell, I'm actually pretty excited
about this, primarily because I've been casually collecting for the Game Gear and the Master
System for a couple years now, but this is going to make it so much more convenient for
me to play it on my big screen television here and also capture footage for videos,
really looking forward to that and beefing up my collection a little bit. Love to know what you guys think, please post
a comment below. Also, I'd love to know what adapter you would
like to see Hyperkin make next.

Me, personally, I'd love to see them make
an Atari Jaguar adapter. That would be so cool. Love to see that in the future. All right, guys.

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Thanks for watching, guys.  [Music] .