Saturn region converter cartridges
From Sega Retro
The Sega Saturn is region locked, meaning discs can only be played on hardware from the same region. Various factors led to the Saturn being under-supported in the west, so in order to play the plethora of Japanese releases, one requires a Saturn Region Converter.
Saturn region converters come in all shapes and sizes, most notably that of an Action Replay Plus, which bypasses region locking as well as offering storage space and cheat facilities. But before the Action Replay Plus became the de facto accessory for Saturn collectors, consumers would have to make do with a basic region converter. Saturn region converters are cartridges which plug into the Saturn's cartridge slot. The majority of converters start working as soon as the console is swiched on, i.e. there is no need to swap cartridges and discs to play games (unlike later consoles such as the Sega Dreamcast).
Unlike Mega Drive region converters, it is usually easier for Saturn region converters to open the door to every region at once, rather than unlocking one specific region. They are, however, similar in the sense that they cannot solve all regional issues - a game designed for 60Hz NTSC televisions will run roughly 17% slower on a 50Hz PAL television due to the difference in refresh rate (and likewise a European game running on an NTSC TV will likely run too fast), and games will not be translated for obvious reasons.
Physical Scans
Saturn, (Pro Universal Adapter; Datel) |
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