Good things come to those who distract themselves with other good things. Sega 3D Classics Collection inspired this adage that I just made up. When I fire up either Thunder Blade or Galaxy Force II, I think about my 12 year-old self who fantasized about arcade perfect versions of these classics to play at home. Since then, I’ve settled for decent console ports and it’s been easy to stay busy playing 28 years worth of other games. That’s how long it’s taken to get (legal) versions of these Sega arcade games on a platform as convenient as the Nintendo 3DS. The wait is all the more worthwhile since these are the 3D enhanced ports by the talented M2 studio.
There is no obvious theme that unifies this cornucopia (aside from being an illustration of Sega’s multiplatform, multi-genre development prowess). Having three Fantasy Zone games (one from the arcade, two from the Sega Master System), provides a fix for your Defender-inspired cute-em-up needs. Speaking of cuteness, it’s equally pleasing that Puyo Puyo Tsu is included if you ever wondered what a sequel to Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine would’ve been like. Maze Hunter 3D, in particular, serves as a reminder of the Sega Master System’s advanced capabilities as a 3D-enabled console. It’s a challenging top-down adventure that makes a strong case for porting the seven other SegaScope 3D games to Nintendo’s handheld.
Its only blemishes are minor. The classic animophic beat em-up Altered Beast is the slightly inferior Genesis version. Yes, the home version has the advantage in parallax scrolling but it lacks the hilarious behind-the-scenes end credits of its coin-op cousin. Its inclusion bets on the nostalgia of those Genesis early adopters who bought the console before Altered Beast was replaced by Sonic The Hedgehog as the bundled game. After you look past the novelty of the animal transformations, what you have left is a functional beat em-up that was surpassed by the superior Golden Axe and the imaginative Alien Storm.
Of the dozens of games that line my personal Sega Arcade Home Version Power Rankings, Power Drift would be somewhere in the teens, below Wild Riders, the previously available (but since pulled from digital stores) After Burner Climax, and a few 90s racers. In the context of this compilation however, Power Drift rightfully shares as much real estate as Sonic on the box cover. I can’t think of any other game with wilder, more unrestrained scaling pixels. And that’s in a setting of chaotic kart races that is equal parts vertical and horizontal, with no guardrails. It demands near perfection if you expect to rank first, which is worth the time and effort across its myriad tracks.
Galaxy Force was released the same year as Power Drift and was somehow easier on the eyes. Perhaps it was because it was a semi-on-rails third person shooter similar to After Burner, another Sega arcade classic that is also available as a standalone 3DS game. Galaxy Force is a positively curious exercise in movement and action efficiency. The fuel you use and the damage incurred are both tied to your ship’s energy consumption. The game is over when you reach zero. This was also one of the few non-arcade racers of its time that allowed you to pick your starting stage, so you can just jump straight into the fan-favorite fire planet and fly under the emerging fire lava arches. And its soundtrack showcases Sega’s sound team in peak form and helped solidify this specific style of earth-saving bass-slapping, jazz-pop as the music of space shooters for many years to come.
Unfortunately there are no plans to offer a discount for fans who previously bought any of the collection’s games individually. Conversely, you could hope that the four games exclusive to this collection will be available a la carte someday. Personally, I don’t mind having two copies of Thunder Blade on my 3DS, especially since this is one of the games I waited 28 years for. As a vehicle-based shooter in the tradition of After Burner (with a slower pace), it makes for an apt pairing with Galaxy Force.
I appreciate this compilation not shoehorning Sonic’s questionable name brand in the title, a sad marketing tactic in a prior collections, although you do get the original Sonic The Hedgehog in this package. I appreciate its inclusion, especially since it’s often overshadowed by its sequel. Sometimes I prefer to play the game that broke ground rather than the critically acclaimed follow-up. Having the spin dash retroactively included is a welcome touch.
Half of this compilation’s appeal is in how this is yet another showcase of the porting expertise of M2 and the many options they offer with each game. From audio tweaks to visual presentations specific to different release regions, the settings menus for each game are almost overwhelming. It isn’t enough for the studio to convert these previously 2D games into 3D, but it also gives you the option to have the 3D imagery pop-up or fall in. While I prefer the HD crispness of the default presentation of these games, you can also play many of them with an intentionally low-rez pretend CRT look. This feature has been all the rage in the last decade, particularly with Capcom releases. Yet M2’s work is still the gold standard in both customization and consistent UI in its many menus.
By definition, every Sega compilation should exude a respect for its history. It’s not always the case (eg. Sonic Classics Collection) but it easily applies to Sega 3D Classics Collection. You see it in the loading screen tips by Professor Asobin, the company’s first unofficial mascot. Its richness in M2-curated options ensures that there is a video/audio setting for every fan who wants to achieve that 1-to-1 replication of how they remember these games growing up. Even if three Fantasy Zone games might be excessive to the point of filler, Power Drift, Thunder Blade and Galaxy Force combined make this a meaningful and vivid nostalgia trip.
Verdict: Yes
