32X games
From Sega Retro
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The Sega 32X was not a very successful add-on but it did see many video games added to its library. Despite heavily marketing the 32X's 3D capabilities, most games were 2D, and many were simply updated Mega Drive or Mega-CD games. Several games, such as Space Harrier, were also taken straight from the arcades, so the system did not receive many exclusives.
Being the brainchildren of hardware staff at Sega of America, North America got the most games, with Europe in a close second and Japan receiving only 18 games (five of which were third party; one of those being the only Japan-exclusive 32X release). All Sega-developed 32X titles were released internationally.
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Packaging
32X games were often distributed in cardboard boxes in an effort to keep costs down. Some releases, such as those distributed by Tec Toy in Brazil and titles published by Acclaim, used sturdier plastic boxes similar to the Mega Drive/Master System. Mega-CD 32X games were also distributed in cardboard boxes in North America with the exception of Fahrenheit which was released in a Mega-CD-style plastic jewel case. In Europe, all Mega-CD 32X games were packaged in jewel case quad packaging, just like their Mega-CD counterparts.
In North America Sega used a yellow packaging design in the same style of their Sega CD, Genesis and Game Gear boxes, and though the logo was changed, this colour was adopted in both Japan and Brazil. In Europe, the box art was completely different, being purple/black.
Though the cartridge design is identical across all regions of the world, many 32X games are region locked and so cannot be played on all 32X consoles.
Unreleased games
- Main article: List of unreleased 32X games.
Save for the Mega-CD 32X, the cartridge-based 32X is unique in that more games were announced for the platform and subsequently cancelled, than those which actually made it to market. When the 32X was announced, there was seemingly a great deal of excitement across software publishers and developers, something which subsided following the launch of the platform, and Sega's decision to quickly drop it in favour of the Sega Saturn within less than a year.
Of the many unreleased 32X games, several were just enhanced versions of Sega Mega Drive titles, while higher profile games such as Rayman would move to the Sega Saturn. It is likely several projects that were announced for the 32X did not enter active development, i.e. "32-bit" games which were being designed around more advanced hardware, but had not yet settled on precise platforms.