CrossBow

There has been quite a bit of discussion both on and off the AA forums it seems lately, regarding the CX-52 controllers that were standard with the Atari 5200 Super System. Years ago I made up a pretty detailed PDF of the process I use to clean and refurbish them. I was one of the originators of the foil tape method, using it several years before I even discovered other Atari fans on the internet back in the mid 90s. So..here is a very detailed video of the process I go through on each 5200 controller that passes by me that has buttons that don't respond. And yes, I use the 3M brand foil tape method and have for years. Each controller I've done lasts typically about 3 to 4 years before it needs to be done again. Not a bad track record...
 

There has been quite a bit of discussion both on and off the AA forums it seems lately, regarding the CX-52 controllers that were standard with the Atari 5200 Super System. Years ago I made up a pretty detailed PDF of the process I use to clean and refurbish them. I was one of the originators of the foil tape method, using it several years before I even discovered other Atari fans on the internet back in the mid 90s. So..here is a very detailed video of the process I go through on each 5200 controller that passes by me that has buttons that don't respond. And yes, I use the 3M brand foil tape method and have for years. Each controller I've done lasts typically about 3 to 4 years before it needs to be done again. Not a bad track record...
 

There has been quite a bit of discussion both on and off the AA forums it seems lately, regarding the CX-52 controllers that were standard with the Atari 5200 Super System. Years ago I made up a pretty detailed PDF of the process I use to clean and refurbish them. I was one of the originators of the foil tape method, using it several years before I even discovered other Atari fans on the internet back in the mid 90s. So..here is a very detailed video of the process I go through on each 5200 controller that passes by me that has buttons that don't respond. And yes, I use the 3M brand foil tape method and have for years. Each controller I've done lasts typically about 3 to 4 years before it needs to be done again. Not a bad track record...
 

Right..so for those that might not know, I've recapped quite a bit over the years. Started off with arcade monitors, and then eventually to consoles like the Genesis, TurboDUO..etc. And this weekend I decided I would give my model 1 Sega CD a recap job.
 
The basic kit includes all you need from Console5.com. And nothing is terribly difficult to get to to actually do the work.
 
I do advised that in the case of the model 1 Sega CD that it be done, if for no other reason, than the main CD logic interface to genesis board has many SMD caps on it and in the case of my Sega CD these were all starting to leak and I was able to remove most of them with my bare hands and hardly any force required! Again, they were apparently starting to leak, so it was a good thing I decided to do this.
 
That being said, while the task of recapping the audio and main logic board were easy enough. The CD mech and laser assembly...is the one item I advise you to NOT TOUCH! The kits included caps for either the JVC or Sony CD mechs as well. But I was warned about doing this and didn't heed that apparently.
 
So here is the problem with recapping the laser mech. First the caps themselves depending on the CD model are kinda up in the mech so you have to be careful about that. Also the caps only solder from the bottom side of the board so that shouldn't be a problem. The problem is that recapping the thing will change things electrically on the CD mech. As a result the CD laser has to be re-tuned to compensate and this is where problems arise. In my case I couldn't even get to a point to try and tune the laser because it appears the new caps were allowing more current to flow to the laser head. As a result the laser actually burned out pretty much as soon as I powered everything on. And yes I checked the polarity of the caps and values. The only difference in the caps of the new vs the old was voltage as the larger caps being 330uf were only 16v and 6.3v originally and the replacements are 330uf 25v caps. But I can't imagine that being a problem. Anyway, only but luck did I have a spare Sega CD model 1 assembly that has a broken tray mech. But the laser assembly was good so I was able to swap them out and it was good to go again.
 
So you should recap the rest of the stuff..but for the love of everything you hold sacred! Do NOT touch the caps on the main CD drive and Laser mech. In fact the originals on the Sony were Nichicons and likely didn't need to be replaced anyway.
 

Game Gear recaps aren't that tough. I've done a few. The audio board is the one that suffers the most from the SMD caps it has on it. the power board has through hole caps on it already so that isn't that tough and the main logic board uses what look like surface mount caps, but are actually normal radial through hole caps that have been surface soldered and then folded over into these small plastic housings. Hard to explain, but...it isn't too bad. I do something a little different than most when I recap. When using radial in place of surface mount, most will bend the leads to little L shapes and solder those down. That is fine, but the cap still sticks up doing this. What I do, if space allows, is to fold the leads along one side so it looks like this along the side of the cap " || " and then from those I bend them back down to make the little L shapes. Doing this, allows me to solder them onto the surface pads, and then fold the cap over on its side back over the leads so little space is used. Might be hard to explain but I haven't any pictures on hand currently to show what I'm talking about.
 
Capping a GG is perhaps more time consuming than a Lynx, but not too bad. Oh..wait..here is my video I did of the process to get an idea:
 
https://youtu.be/WUq3Vtpj_nk?list=PLypzYHeVZt9mmepsDRL-2oBIemEfp0XdC
 
 
What I haven't attempted yet, but I do have the parts on hand for...is the McWill LCD for a Game Gear. I already did my lynx and that wasn't too bad. But the GG requires removal and replacement of some of the SMD components, plus the wires to get the video signals to the LCD mod have to be soldered to really tiny traces. At least...to my 40+ year old eyes they are really tiny. So I've been hedging on doing that one. One day... (Soon I hope as getting older won't make it easier...), I will get it done.
 
But recapping the GG and Lynx is about an hour to do if you do it properly. I take a little longer that most I'm sure, but then I make sure the pads are cleaned..and double check my work. I have a much better success rate of first time working than not because I take my time when doing mods and repairs.

Right..so for those that might not know, I've recapped quite a bit over the years. Started off with arcade monitors, and then eventually to consoles like the Genesis, TurboDUO..etc. And this weekend I decided I would give my model 1 Sega CD a recap job.
 
The basic kit includes all you need from Console5.com. And nothing is terribly difficult to get to to actually do the work.
 
I do advised that in the case of the model 1 Sega CD that it be done, if for no other reason, than the main CD logic interface to genesis board has many SMD caps on it and in the case of my Sega CD these were all starting to leak and I was able to remove most of them with my bare hands and hardly any force required! Again, they were apparently starting to leak, so it was a good thing I decided to do this.
 
That being said, while the task of recapping the audio and main logic board were easy enough. The CD mech and laser assembly...is the one item I advise you to NOT TOUCH! The kits included caps for either the JVC or Sony CD mechs as well. But I was warned about doing this and didn't heed that apparently.
 
So here is the problem with recapping the laser mech. First the caps themselves depending on the CD model are kinda up in the mech so you have to be careful about that. Also the caps only solder from the bottom side of the board so that shouldn't be a problem. The problem is that recapping the thing will change things electrically on the CD mech. As a result the CD laser has to be re-tuned to compensate and this is where problems arise. In my case I couldn't even get to a point to try and tune the laser because it appears the new caps were allowing more current to flow to the laser head. As a result the laser actually burned out pretty much as soon as I powered everything on. And yes I checked the polarity of the caps and values. The only difference in the caps of the new vs the old was voltage as the larger caps being 330uf were only 16v and 6.3v originally and the replacements are 330uf 25v caps. But I can't imagine that being a problem. Anyway, only but luck did I have a spare Sega CD model 1 assembly that has a broken tray mech. But the laser assembly was good so I was able to swap them out and it was good to go again.
 
So you should recap the rest of the stuff..but for the love of everything you hold sacred! Do NOT touch the caps on the main CD drive and Laser mech. In fact the originals on the Sony were Nichicons and likely didn't need to be replaced anyway.
 

Right..so for those that might not know, I've recapped quite a bit over the years. Started off with arcade monitors, and then eventually to consoles like the Genesis, TurboDUO..etc. And this weekend I decided I would give my model 1 Sega CD a recap job.
 
The basic kit includes all you need from Console5.com. And nothing is terribly difficult to get to to actually do the work.
 
I do advised that in the case of the model 1 Sega CD that it be done, if for no other reason, than the main CD logic interface to genesis board has many SMD caps on it and in the case of my Sega CD these were all starting to leak and I was able to remove most of them with my bare hands and hardly any force required! Again, they were apparently starting to leak, so it was a good thing I decided to do this.
 
That being said, while the task of recapping the audio and main logic board were easy enough. The CD mech and laser assembly...is the one item I advise you to NOT TOUCH! The kits included caps for either the JVC or Sony CD mechs as well. But I was warned about doing this and didn't heed that apparently.
 
So here is the problem with recapping the laser mech. First the caps themselves depending on the CD model are kinda up in the mech so you have to be careful about that. Also the caps only solder from the bottom side of the board so that shouldn't be a problem. The problem is that recapping the thing will change things electrically on the CD mech. As a result the CD laser has to be re-tuned to compensate and this is where problems arise. In my case I couldn't even get to a point to try and tune the laser because it appears the new caps were allowing more current to flow to the laser head. As a result the laser actually burned out pretty much as soon as I powered everything on. And yes I checked the polarity of the caps and values. The only difference in the caps of the new vs the old was voltage as the larger caps being 330uf were only 16v and 6.3v originally and the replacements are 330uf 25v caps. But I can't imagine that being a problem. Anyway, only but luck did I have a spare Sega CD model 1 assembly that has a broken tray mech. But the laser assembly was good so I was able to swap them out and it was good to go again.
 
So you should recap the rest of the stuff..but for the love of everything you hold sacred! Do NOT touch the caps on the main CD drive and Laser mech. In fact the originals on the Sony were Nichicons and likely didn't need to be replaced anyway.
 

Right..so for those that might not know, I've recapped quite a bit over the years. Started off with arcade monitors, and then eventually to consoles like the Genesis, TurboDUO..etc. And this weekend I decided I would give my model 1 Sega CD a recap job.
 
The basic kit includes all you need from Console5.com. And nothing is terribly difficult to get to to actually do the work.
 
I do advised that in the case of the model 1 Sega CD that it be done, if for no other reason, than the main CD logic interface to genesis board has many SMD caps on it and in the case of my Sega CD these were all starting to leak and I was able to remove most of them with my bare hands and hardly any force required! Again, they were apparently starting to leak, so it was a good thing I decided to do this.
 
That being said, while the task of recapping the audio and main logic board were easy enough. The CD mech and laser assembly...is the one item I advise you to NOT TOUCH! The kits included caps for either the JVC or Sony CD mechs as well. But I was warned about doing this and didn't heed that apparently.
 
So here is the problem with recapping the laser mech. First the caps themselves depending on the CD model are kinda up in the mech so you have to be careful about that. Also the caps only solder from the bottom side of the board so that shouldn't be a problem. The problem is that recapping the thing will change things electrically on the CD mech. As a result the CD laser has to be re-tuned to compensate and this is where problems arise. In my case I couldn't even get to a point to try and tune the laser because it appears the new caps were allowing more current to flow to the laser head. As a result the laser actually burned out pretty much as soon as I powered everything on. And yes I checked the polarity of the caps and values. The only difference in the caps of the new vs the old was voltage as the larger caps being 330uf were only 16v and 6.3v originally and the replacements are 330uf 25v caps. But I can't imagine that being a problem. Anyway, only but luck did I have a spare Sega CD model 1 assembly that has a broken tray mech. But the laser assembly was good so I was able to swap them out and it was good to go again.
 
So you should recap the rest of the stuff..but for the love of everything you hold sacred! Do NOT touch the caps on the main CD drive and Laser mech. In fact the originals on the Sony were Nichicons and likely didn't need to be replaced anyway.
 

I would agree that Ms. Pac-man would have made a better pack in...but only if the 7800 had been released originally in '84 as it was initially intended and he is why:
 
The 2600 eventually used pac-man as the pack in game, and pac-man eventually became a pack in for the 5200 as well. So it would have made complete since to have Ms. Pac-Man as the pack-in for the 7800 back in '84. 
 
However, I'm not as sure if Ms. Pac-man would have been a good pack-in when the 7800 was finally released in '86 and more mainstream by '88. Perhaps by then a different game to showcase the 7800 better should have been used. I've always thought that Food Fight or Xenophobe would have been good for this. Food Fight would have been fairly exclusive to the 7800 at that time, and if they used Xenophobe it would have been an excellent game to showcase the graphical power of the 7800 plus the fact it allowed two player simultaneous play. Part of the reason Combat was damn popular with everyone when the 2600 first came out was due to the fact that it was a two player game not just because it was the pack-in.
 
Just my opinion of course...

My point in mentioning Xenophobe was that it would have been better to include it to compare and compete against the NES version since I think most people would agree that the 7800 version is superior to the NES version?
 
But now that I really think about it... Xevious might have been another good one to include as a pack-in. Again it would compete well against the NES version and was definitely around at the time of the 7800s earlier releases right? 

I would agree that Ms. Pac-man would have made a better pack in...but only if the 7800 had been released originally in '84 as it was initially intended and he is why:
 
The 2600 eventually used pac-man as the pack in game, and pac-man eventually became a pack in for the 5200 as well. So it would have made complete since to have Ms. Pac-Man as the pack-in for the 7800 back in '84. 
 
However, I'm not as sure if Ms. Pac-man would have been a good pack-in when the 7800 was finally released in '86 and more mainstream by '88. Perhaps by then a different game to showcase the 7800 better should have been used. I've always thought that Food Fight or Xenophobe would have been good for this. Food Fight would have been fairly exclusive to the 7800 at that time, and if they used Xenophobe it would have been an excellent game to showcase the graphical power of the 7800 plus the fact it allowed two player simultaneous play. Part of the reason Combat was damn popular with everyone when the 2600 first came out was due to the fact that it was a two player game not just because it was the pack-in.
 
Just my opinion of course...

I would agree that Ms. Pac-man would have made a better pack in...but only if the 7800 had been released originally in '84 as it was initially intended and he is why:
 
The 2600 eventually used pac-man as the pack in game, and pac-man eventually became a pack in for the 5200 as well. So it would have made complete since to have Ms. Pac-Man as the pack-in for the 7800 back in '84. 
 
However, I'm not as sure if Ms. Pac-man would have been a good pack-in when the 7800 was finally released in '86 and more mainstream by '88. Perhaps by then a different game to showcase the 7800 better should have been used. I've always thought that Food Fight or Xenophobe would have been good for this. Food Fight would have been fairly exclusive to the 7800 at that time, and if they used Xenophobe it would have been an excellent game to showcase the graphical power of the 7800 plus the fact it allowed two player simultaneous play. Part of the reason Combat was damn popular with everyone when the 2600 first came out was due to the fact that it was a two player game not just because it was the pack-in.
 
Just my opinion of course...

I have a bit more to add to this as I still need to do a quick video play and review of this game. But it is a NOTE (I hate to use the word warning...but...).
 
Turns out that at least on my setup at home, that the CD Audio that you can download and burn to use for enhanced music during game play, doesn't seem to work if you have a model 1 sega CD unit. I tested the game on my CDX and that worked just fine. But I consider the CDX a much more rare beast as opposed to the Model 1 sega CD, so I keep it as a display piece rather than an actual daily player. 
 
Not sure about the Sega CD model 2, or other various systems such as the Wondermega/X'eye... but yeah...
 
Just a warning about it. I brought it to Orion's attention and he stated that he wasn't able to test the game on a model 1 megacd or sega cd because those are rare as all get out in Europe apparently. I can tell you that compared to the CDX and Pier Solar when I fire them up, Escape 2042 never even seems to initial an actual connection to the model 1 sega cd. On the CDX I actually see a Ready condition come up when you start the game and select to use the CD Audio playback. 
 
Pier Solar also will initiate the ready light condition on my my model 1 and CDX. So again, seems to be something specific to the model 1 and with that...most likely the model 1 bios.

It will sound crazy..but try loading in your game, and then turn the DC over on its side to see if it loads up. If it does, then it does mean there is an issue with the laser having problems reading the GD-rom discs. You might be able to find a replacement laser assembly on the bay. But after I went through 3 DC early models doing this, including the one that came with my DC kiosk...I ultimately put a newer model into my kiosk unit and use a black sports edition as my primary in my game room. So far so good, but I also still have yet a third as a spare in the box ready...just in case.

It will sound crazy..but try loading in your game, and then turn the DC over on its side to see if it loads up. If it does, then it does mean there is an issue with the laser having problems reading the GD-rom discs. You might be able to find a replacement laser assembly on the bay. But after I went through 3 DC early models doing this, including the one that came with my DC kiosk...I ultimately put a newer model into my kiosk unit and use a black sports edition as my primary in my game room. So far so good, but I also still have yet a third as a spare in the box ready...just in case.

Received my copy from Orion in the mail yesterday. I will see about doing one of my video reviews of it, but a few things I want people to be aware of and my initial impressions:
 
First the cart itself is using one of the generic genesis like snap together shells similar to what Piko uses. Additionally it uses the new flash boards that Krikzz designed so the PCB connector edge is a bit on the thick side since they aren't tapered. Be careful inserting them into your console as I've heard reports of these PCBs putting too much pressure on some pins and bending them down into the console. Game came in a universal game case with insert and small typed out manual that explains the basics of the story and game play in several languages. Unfortunately due to the snap together design of these carts, mine arrived mostly intact but soon came separated when I pulled it out of my genesis after my first play session. Found out later one of the snap tabs apparently had broken off internally but I didn't find any loose plastic anywhere so not sure when it happened. I took care of this by finding some small slightly larger diameter machine screws and tapping the posts on the inside to match. Then drilled out new holes through the back case through the centers of the molded mock up security screw heads on the case.
 
That is the bad out of the way... thankfully the game itself...is honestly? Excellent, and I was very pleasantly surprised by that!
 
The videos shown of the game pretty much display the game play in full. But the game plays out similar to the game Flashback in that you control a character and have inventory of items collected and move platform style from screen to screen. However, the actual mechanics of the game play out more like N+ released a few years back on several platforms. No wall jumping, but the character control is very tight and impressive for such a little sprite! Also, all the music is PCM recorded! It does suffer from some static in music that I notice especially on the title screen and during the in game music, but it could be my modded va2 model 1 Genesis to blame for some of that. But the music itself is really well done and I found to be very catchy! I don't know exactly how many different tracks there are, but so far I've heard two different in game tracks between levels 1 - 6 that I've managed to get through so far. Title screen and Credits. And I'm going to guess that the in-game music changes after each third level? At least that is what happened on my playing of the game last night.
 
The graphics are exactly as you've seen in the videos. That is, it is very much pixel art that I would call refined 8-bit style with 16-bit accents. It is hard to explain, but again if you seen the videos you've seen the graphics. I personally really like this art style and find that is suits this game excellently. It is also cool to see how much animation was actually applied to the main character sprite when he is pretty much the least detailed thing on the screen. And I honestly don't mean that in a bad way at all. It is impressive I think.
 
The game provides a very fair challenge in that it is tough in places, but if you're patient, you can eventually figure out the pattern needed to get past a certain enemy. Because of this and the other game play mechanic of hacking the terminals, the game is also similar to that wonderful classic game...Impossible Mission. So yeah...game play style similar to Flashback and Impossible Mission with enemy patterns, with the game character movements similar to N+. I've found the game to be quite addicting so far with that "Just one more time and I know I can get a bit further..." hook to it.
 
I have seen at least one graphic glitch and another small bug when I picked up the 3rd pass key on the first area of the game. But nothing game breaking. Additionally, only the 3rd pass key bit has been reproducible each time.
 
But yeah! I'm really digging this game and very glad I decided to pull the trigger on it. I do think that for the asking price of basically $60 USD including the shipping, that the cart should be in an actual Genesis/Megadrive shell and I wish these new PCBs has tapered edges on them. Luckily my 32x doesn't seem to have any issues with this cart edge, but yeah..just keep it in mind. I also hope that future versions of the game come with a more detailed manual with screen shots and illustrated cover. And while I'm not a huge fan of the universal game cases, I do think it would be cool to have the insert include additional graphics and art on the backside so it can be seen through the case since the uni cases are semi transparent.
 
So that is my initial thoughts on the game and again I'm glad to have picked it up!
 
If you haven't read up or heard about the game...here is Orion's video here advertising the game. The music you hear in the video is the same you hear on the Genesis but again at lower quality, mono, and at least on mine a bit staticcy.
 

 
For more information or to purchase a copy for yourself, visit Orion's website below:
 
 
http://orionsoft.free.fr/

Received my copy from Orion in the mail yesterday. I will see about doing one of my video reviews of it, but a few things I want people to be aware of and my initial impressions:
 
First the cart itself is using one of the generic genesis like snap together shells similar to what Piko uses. Additionally it uses the new flash boards that Krikzz designed so the PCB connector edge is a bit on the thick side since they aren't tapered. Be careful inserting them into your console as I've heard reports of these PCBs putting too much pressure on some pins and bending them down into the console. Game came in a universal game case with insert and small typed out manual that explains the basics of the story and game play in several languages. Unfortunately due to the snap together design of these carts, mine arrived mostly intact but soon came separated when I pulled it out of my genesis after my first play session. Found out later one of the snap tabs apparently had broken off internally but I didn't find any loose plastic anywhere so not sure when it happened. I took care of this by finding some small slightly larger diameter machine screws and tapping the posts on the inside to match. Then drilled out new holes through the back case through the centers of the molded mock up security screw heads on the case.
 
That is the bad out of the way... thankfully the game itself...is honestly? Excellent, and I was very pleasantly surprised by that!
 
The videos shown of the game pretty much display the game play in full. But the game plays out similar to the game Flashback in that you control a character and have inventory of items collected and move platform style from screen to screen. However, the actual mechanics of the game play out more like N+ released a few years back on several platforms. No wall jumping, but the character control is very tight and impressive for such a little sprite! Also, all the music is PCM recorded! It does suffer from some static in music that I notice especially on the title screen and during the in game music, but it could be my modded va2 model 1 Genesis to blame for some of that. But the music itself is really well done and I found to be very catchy! I don't know exactly how many different tracks there are, but so far I've heard two different in game tracks between levels 1 - 6 that I've managed to get through so far. Title screen and Credits. And I'm going to guess that the in-game music changes after each third level? At least that is what happened on my playing of the game last night.
 
The graphics are exactly as you've seen in the videos. That is, it is very much pixel art that I would call refined 8-bit style with 16-bit accents. It is hard to explain, but again if you seen the videos you've seen the graphics. I personally really like this art style and find that is suits this game excellently. It is also cool to see how much animation was actually applied to the main character sprite when he is pretty much the least detailed thing on the screen. And I honestly don't mean that in a bad way at all. It is impressive I think.
 
The game provides a very fair challenge in that it is tough in places, but if you're patient, you can eventually figure out the pattern needed to get past a certain enemy. Because of this and the other game play mechanic of hacking the terminals, the game is also similar to that wonderful classic game...Impossible Mission. So yeah...game play style similar to Flashback and Impossible Mission with enemy patterns, with the game character movements similar to N+. I've found the game to be quite addicting so far with that "Just one more time and I know I can get a bit further..." hook to it.
 
I have seen at least one graphic glitch and another small bug when I picked up the 3rd pass key on the first area of the game. But nothing game breaking. Additionally, only the 3rd pass key bit has been reproducible each time.
 
But yeah! I'm really digging this game and very glad I decided to pull the trigger on it. I do think that for the asking price of basically $60 USD including the shipping, that the cart should be in an actual Genesis/Megadrive shell and I wish these new PCBs has tapered edges on them. Luckily my 32x doesn't seem to have any issues with this cart edge, but yeah..just keep it in mind. I also hope that future versions of the game come with a more detailed manual with screen shots and illustrated cover. And while I'm not a huge fan of the universal game cases, I do think it would be cool to have the insert include additional graphics and art on the backside so it can be seen through the case since the uni cases are semi transparent.
 
So that is my initial thoughts on the game and again I'm glad to have picked it up!
 
If you haven't read up or heard about the game...here is Orion's video here advertising the game. The music you hear in the video is the same you hear on the Genesis but again at lower quality, mono, and at least on mine a bit staticcy.
 

 
For more information or to purchase a copy for yourself, visit Orion's website below:
 
 
http://orionsoft.free.fr/

Received my copy from Orion in the mail yesterday. I will see about doing one of my video reviews of it, but a few things I want people to be aware of and my initial impressions:
 
First the cart itself is using one of the generic genesis like snap together shells similar to what Piko uses. Additionally it uses the new flash boards that Krikzz designed so the PCB connector edge is a bit on the thick side since they aren't tapered. Be careful inserting them into your console as I've heard reports of these PCBs putting too much pressure on some pins and bending them down into the console. Game came in a universal game case with insert and small typed out manual that explains the basics of the story and game play in several languages. Unfortunately due to the snap together design of these carts, mine arrived mostly intact but soon came separated when I pulled it out of my genesis after my first play session. Found out later one of the snap tabs apparently had broken off internally but I didn't find any loose plastic anywhere so not sure when it happened. I took care of this by finding some small slightly larger diameter machine screws and tapping the posts on the inside to match. Then drilled out new holes through the back case through the centers of the molded mock up security screw heads on the case.
 
That is the bad out of the way... thankfully the game itself...is honestly? Excellent, and I was very pleasantly surprised by that!
 
The videos shown of the game pretty much display the game play in full. But the game plays out similar to the game Flashback in that you control a character and have inventory of items collected and move platform style from screen to screen. However, the actual mechanics of the game play out more like N+ released a few years back on several platforms. No wall jumping, but the character control is very tight and impressive for such a little sprite! Also, all the music is PCM recorded! It does suffer from some static in music that I notice especially on the title screen and during the in game music, but it could be my modded va2 model 1 Genesis to blame for some of that. But the music itself is really well done and I found to be very catchy! I don't know exactly how many different tracks there are, but so far I've heard two different in game tracks between levels 1 - 6 that I've managed to get through so far. Title screen and Credits. And I'm going to guess that the in-game music changes after each third level? At least that is what happened on my playing of the game last night.
 
The graphics are exactly as you've seen in the videos. That is, it is very much pixel art that I would call refined 8-bit style with 16-bit accents. It is hard to explain, but again if you seen the videos you've seen the graphics. I personally really like this art style and find that is suits this game excellently. It is also cool to see how much animation was actually applied to the main character sprite when he is pretty much the least detailed thing on the screen. And I honestly don't mean that in a bad way at all. It is impressive I think.
 
The game provides a very fair challenge in that it is tough in places, but if you're patient, you can eventually figure out the pattern needed to get past a certain enemy. Because of this and the other game play mechanic of hacking the terminals, the game is also similar to that wonderful classic game...Impossible Mission. So yeah...game play style similar to Flashback and Impossible Mission with enemy patterns, with the game character movements similar to N+. I've found the game to be quite addicting so far with that "Just one more time and I know I can get a bit further..." hook to it.
 
I have seen at least one graphic glitch and another small bug when I picked up the 3rd pass key on the first area of the game. But nothing game breaking. Additionally, only the 3rd pass key bit has been reproducible each time.
 
But yeah! I'm really digging this game and very glad I decided to pull the trigger on it. I do think that for the asking price of basically $60 USD including the shipping, that the cart should be in an actual Genesis/Megadrive shell and I wish these new PCBs has tapered edges on them. Luckily my 32x doesn't seem to have any issues with this cart edge, but yeah..just keep it in mind. I also hope that future versions of the game come with a more detailed manual with screen shots and illustrated cover. And while I'm not a huge fan of the universal game cases, I do think it would be cool to have the insert include additional graphics and art on the backside so it can be seen through the case since the uni cases are semi transparent.
 
So that is my initial thoughts on the game and again I'm glad to have picked it up!
 
If you haven't read up or heard about the game...here is Orion's video here advertising the game. The music you hear in the video is the same you hear on the Genesis but again at lower quality, mono, and at least on mine a bit staticcy.
 

 
For more information or to purchase a copy for yourself, visit Orion's website below:
 
 
http://orionsoft.free.fr/

didn't know there was any rarity with them. But I really like the fact that music on these are standard redbook audio and easily to rip. I'm still such a sucker for that Sonic Boom theme during the intro.

For me this is a tough question. I guess my vote for my preferred VCS would go to the Sears Heavy as well. I like the walnut finish that was used as it was still very 70s but also very different from most other wood grain designs used back then.
 
However, my very first actual VCS was the 4 switch woody I got in Christmas of '81 or '82. Can't quite remember which year now.

Everything I would have picked is already been mentioned. But yeah I sought out the 5200 for two games alone! Interesting, both games were available on the atari 8-bit computers, but still I wanted the 5200 for these two games:
 
Star Raiders and Rescue on Fractalus
 
I would also argue that while the controls aren't the best, that Pitfall II is a must have for the extra second map alone
And I have to agree with the user Ballblazer in that Blaster on the 5200 SHOULD HAVE BEEN RELEASED!! I always play a round of Blaster on my 5200. (I too have a cart that Al from AA made for me sometime back).
Though impossible to get for any kind of reasonable price, but Bounty Bob is excellent as well.

Another unfortunate possibility is the owner now has wind of there being possible treasures in there and is getting everything out to start researching value. As an example, in that pic you posted at the top of the page, there is what appears to be a boxed Gun-nac for the NES. Those...are worth some dough. Additionally the games appear to be shrink wrapped? I doubt they would have them sitting out like that if they were for sale as new games. So I'm betting those are empty boxes that were shrinked and set out on the shelf so the customers could bring them to the front to get the actual game for renting. 
 
Small rental stores in my area did that all the time when I was younger. In fact, they liked to cut the fronts off the boxes and have those sitting out to mark that they had the game available for rental. Makes me cry now thinking about that...

Unfortunately the only experience I had with PMP's port of this game was on the PMP collection cart that CPUWIZ put together. As a result, SI is bugged up and will lock up when you play any levels that have the shields. But I do remember it looked quite the part and sounded pretty good. I still think one of my favorite home ports of SI is the one that comes with Y.A.S.I. for the Vectrex though.

Received my physical cart from Sigflup (Thea), today containing her compo demo for the Sega Genesis titled Day Trip! It is a really neat demo that of course showcases several impressive effects graphically with music. Here is my YT link showing the cart and the demo running on my actual Genesis. Information for contacting Sigflup to get your own physical cart copy are in the video description.
 

Cool! Glad you found it fun and entertaining. Thanks for the sub as well. You will note that I don't normally request them in my videos. This is because I'm not making them to make any money, I'm making them primarily as learning tools in the case of my tech based videos, or simply to show my enthusiasm in the hobby.