The is a 16-bit video game console released by Sega in Japan in 1988, North America in 1989, and the PAL region in 1990. It was sold under the name Sega Genesis in North America as Sega was unable to secure legal rights to the Mega Drive name in that region. The Mega Drive was Sega's fifth home console and the successor to the Sega Master System.

The Mega Drive is part of the fourth generation era of consoles, and the first of its generation to achieve notable market share in Europe and North America. It was a direct competitor of the TurboGrafx-16 (which was released one year earlier) and the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (which was released two years later). The Sega Mega Drive began production in Japan in 1988 and ended with the last new game being released in 2002 in Brazil.

With a lifespan of fourteen years and 29 million units sold, it became Sega's most successful console. The console has a legacy with certain games available on the console being offered as downloads to be played on newer consoles, fan translations and indie game development.

History

Although the Sega Master System was a success in Europe, and later also Brazil, it failed to ignite much interest in the North American or Japanese markets, which, by the mid-to-late 1980s, were both dominated by Nintendo's large market shares. Meanwhile in the arcades, the Sega System 16 had become a success. Hayao Nakayama, Sega's CEO at the time, decided to make its new home system utilize a similar 16-bit architecture. The final design was eventually also used in the Mega-Tech, Mega-Play and System-C arcade machines. Any game made for the Mega Drive hardware could easily be ported to these systems.

The first name Sega considered for its console was the MK-1601, but it ultimately decided to call it the "Sega Mega Drive". The name was said to represent superiority and speed, with the powerful Motorola 68000 processor in mind. Sega used the name Mega Drive for the Japanese, European, Asian, Australian and Brazilian versions of the console. The North American version went by the name "Genesis" due to a trademark dispute.

Launch

The Mega Drive was released in Japan on October 29, 1988, almost exactly a year after the NEC PC Engine.

In 1987, Sega announced a North American release date for the system (under the name of Sega Genesis) of January 9, 1989. Sega initially attempted to partner with Atari Corporation for distribution of the console in the US, but the two could not agree to terms and Sega decided to do it themselves. Sega was not able to meet the initial release date and U.S. sales began on August 14, 1989 in New York City and Los Angeles. The Genesis was released in the rest of North America later that year.