Topic: Sega Channel (The Virtual Console of the Past)

[Slayer]

So, I was looking through youtube when it hit me to try searching for something I had not witnessed before: The Sega Channel.  Back in the day, certain cable companies offered this service where for $15 a month, you would get a Genesis/MegaDrive cartridge that would plug into your cable connection.  This would allow you to recieve sega news, cheat codes, and most importantly, all the sega games you could ever want, all for $15 a month.  Games ranged from classics from Sonic and Vectorman, to even Japanese/European only games like Pulseman, Megaman: The Wily Wars, Golden Axe III, and Alien Storm.  This service lasted for four years, from 1994 to 1998.
Well, lest to say, I found videos of the service in action (luckily, some guy recorded the service through VHS tapes while it was still available)

Part 1
http://youtube.com/watch?v=sMRLZcBiN-k

Part 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3bvC6RwA88Y&NR=1

Commercials
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WsRhBWLgCE8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GB5lne8RCdg (The first announcer in this infomercial reminds me of Reggie Fils-Aime)

[Oralox]

In Reply To #1

That thing alone gave me a chance to play earthworm jim when I was like 5 or something.

[Jorge D. Fuentes]

The SNES had something like that in Japan.  It was called the Satellaview.

It was the only way to play Fire Emblem: Thracia 776, as well as the Remake of Legend of Zelda.  Also, the only way to play Radical Dreamers (the half-sequel to Chrono Trigger before Chrono Cross came out).

Also, anyone remember the X-Band?

[elbryan42]

Never had X-Band, but I played Sega Channel in a mall where they had a free trial. They would actually give you a free Genesis if you signed up. I didn't get it because I'm pretty sure they stripped down the larger games (like less fighters in Street Fighter II).

I wanted it for Megaman: Wily Wars though. I regret not getting it now.

[crisis]

Sega Channel was amazing. Too bad it never really caught on, it was far ahead of it's time 

[elbryan42]

I wish I was into the Genesis back then. It was a few years after it came out that I truly came to appreciate the great games on there.

I agree. The Sega Channel was truly ahead of it's time.

[Clara E. Leet]

I remember seeing billboard ads for it around town, and some people had it. Pretty neat thing. I never had it though.

[Zer0Tact]

In Reply To #3
Have we ever had a SNES one here in the states?  I could swear I played donkey kong as a kid at a hotel through something like that.

[DoctaMario]

Sega was really ahead of its time back in the day. Too bad they didn't keep going, they'd probably be giving Nintendo and Sony a run for their money in the console wars right now.

[elbryan42]

Yeah, if only the president of Sega hadn't died and the other members didn't downsize the company. We haven't seen a decent Sega game in years. :|

[The Last Belmont]

In Reply To #1

Oh yeah I remember that, I used to see commercials for it all the time back in the day when genesis ruled the day. Never got it though and if memory serves I think it only lasted for like 2 years, man sega had a lot of failed experiments back then, I remember sega cd, that was supposed to have been amazing, but it only ended up having 2 good games. I also remember the nes power glove that thing never worked like it was supposed too. Oh does anybody else remember nintendo's first jump into wireless controllers? My dad bought me some ages ago with my nes, it had a little black box deal with an infrared sensor in the front that you'd plug into your nes controller ports and would pick up infrared signals from the controller which operated via double AA batteries wirelessly. Man those things never worked right and you had to position the infrared sensor on the controller exactly in front of the black box on the console or it wouldn't pick up the signal. And who can forget the old virtual boy, the worlds first fully 3d and portable vector graphics console, I still remember playing a wario game on it back in the early 90's. There was also a spaceship game that was pretty fun.

[Slayer]

In Reply To #11

Nintendo bothered with Infra-Red?  Even the Atari 2600 had a wireless controller with radio signals...

[The Last Belmont]

In Reply To #11

Nintendo bothered with Infra-Red?  Even the Atari 2600 had a wireless controller with radio signals...

Yup, stupid I know, I'll try to post some pictures up of them if I can find any. 

Found one thanks to ebay the black deal in the middle is the box that would sit on top of the nes and recieve the infrared signal from the front of the 2 controllers.