Color Portable Video Game System
Codename:Project Mercury
Generation: 4th
Released:JP October 6, 1990
NA:] April 26, 1991
EU: June 24, 1991
Launch Price: NA $149.99
JP¥ 19,800
EU £99.99
Units Sold 10.62 Million
Total Games Released By Region:
JP: 196
NA: 233
Eu: 196
Games Produced:Over 350
Technical Specifications:
Proccessor: 8-bit 3.5 mhz Zlog Z80 Chip
Screen Size: 3.2 Square inches
Display Resolution: 160X144
Colors Available:4096
Colors Diplayed on Screen: 32
Sprite Size: 8X8
Maximum Sprites:64
Ram: 8KB
Video Ram:16KB
Audio:Texas Instruments SN76489 (Mono Audio Output) Same Chip as the Sega Master System (Stereo Output) through Headphone Jack
AC Adapter: Input 120V 60HZ 6W
Output 9V DC 300 mA
Batteries Required: 6 AA, Alkaline Recomended
Battery Life: 3-5 hours
Media: ROM Cartridge 1M-Bit to 8M-Bit
Discontinued: 1997
Successor: Sega Nomad
Action Accessories Available for the Total Game Gear Experence
Deluxe Carrying Case holding 12 Games
TV Tuner
Master Gear Converter
Car Adapter
Gear-to-Gear Cable
Rechargeable Battery Pack
AC Adapter
Wider Gear Screen Magnifier
Launch Titles:
Game Prices Ranged from $24.99-$29.99
North America:
Castle of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse
Coloums G-Loc: Air Battle
Psychic World
Revenge of Drancon
Super Monico GP
Japan:
Columns
Super Monaco GP
Pengo
Europe:
Castle of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse
Coloums G-Loc: Air Battle
Psychic World
Revenge of Drancon
Super Monico GP
Dragon Crystal
Wonder Boy
Much like the Genesis, Sega had created and advertised the Game Gear as a mature handheld, to compete with the Nintendo Gameboy. Sega had some memorable advertising with their “Genesis Does what Nintendon’t” advertisment. A lot of people seem to forget that Sega had backlash from a paticular ad, “If you were color blind and had an IQ of less than 12, then you wouldn’t mind which portable you had."
Nintendo had organized protests against Sega for insulting Disabled people. Sega of America president Tom Kalinske responded by saying “Nintendo should spend more time improving their products and marketing rather than working on behind-the-scenes coercive activities."
Sega of Japan did not take this approach and decided to advertise the Game gear as a cooler option and feature Japaneses women in their ads.
Game Gear Prototype
Games of Note:
Shining Force: Sword of Hayja
Shinobi II: The Silent Fury
Dragon Crystal
Ax Battler: A Legend of Golden Axe
Defenders Of Oasis
Fantasy Zone GG
Micro Machines 2: Turbo Tournament
Wonder Boy III: The Dragon’s Trap
Game Gear Games Available on Virtual Console
Dragon Crystal
Shinobi
Sonic the Hedgehog: Triple Trouble
Columns
Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine
Shining Force: The Sword of Hajya
Sonic The Hedgehog
Defenders of Oasis
Sonic Blast
Tails Adventure
Crystal Warriors
Sonic Labyrinth
Sonic The Hedgehog 2
G-LOC: Air Battle
Sonic Drift 2
Vampire: Master of Darkness
The symptoms of faulty capacitors include
Distorted Audio from the main speaker and or Headphone jack.
Bright parts of the picture create ‘ghost lines’ in the dark parts.
Screen looks washed out, dim, and lacking in contrast.
System shuts off completely.
https://nobitleftbehind.wordpress.com/2013/05/18/sega-game-gear-restoration/ Sega Game Gear Repair & Restoration
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6B9P0ZXZ6CY Modern LCD Screen Replacement Video
http://members.optusnet.com.au/eviltim/ggrgb/ggrgb.html How to Connect a Sega Game Gear to a TV via RGB SCART
http://etim.net.au/ggtv/ggtv.htm Connecting a Sega Game Gear to any TV
https://nobitleftbehind.wordpress.com/2013/10/18/sega-game-gear-rgb-composite-s-video-out-mod-with-lcd-upgrade/"]Sega Game Gear RGB, Composite, S-Video Out Mod with LCD Upgrade