Every Nintendo Switch Online Sega Genesis / Mega Drive Game Ranked

The following list is compiled using the User Ratings (out of 10) given to each Mega Drive game available via the Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack. It should be noted that this ranking is not set in stone and will automatically fluctuate over time depending on assigned User Ratings (and new additions to the NSO game roster).

Think a game below deserves to be higher up on the list? Simply click on the ‘star’ button and score it yourself — your personal rating could boost its placement in the overall ranking.

So, sit back and enjoy the best Sega Genesis / Mega Drive games coming to Nintendo Switch Online…

36. Virtua Fighter 2 (MD)

Publisher:

SEGA /

Developer:

SEGA

Release Date:

16th Apr 2007 (USA) / 4th May 2007 (UK/EU)

Available On:

NSO + Expansion Pack

Virtua Fighter 2 remains one of the best one-on-one fighters in the history of video games. When it was originally released it destroyed the competition, and even today many hardcore fans feel that Sega has never really bettered the classic brawler.

But before you all get too excited, this rather less impressive Genesis/Mega Drive port is no longer 3D but 2D — a move that causes all kinds of problems. The gameplay of VF2 is supposed to exist in three dimensions, and taking one away renders much of the previously available tactical brilliance impossible. It looks admirably similar to the 32-bit Saturn version, but VF2 on the Genesis is something of a mistake.

35. Sword of Vermilion (MD)

Publisher:

SEGA /

Developer:

SEGA

Release Date:

5th Mar 2007 (USA) / 2nd Mar 2007 (UK/EU)

Sword of Vermilion was famously developed by Virtua Fighter creator Yu Suzuki and was one of the first RPGs for Sega’s 16-bit system… and it shows. It combines several gameplay styles including top-down in towns, a first-person-style viewpoint as you explore the terrain and caves between villages and cities, a three-quarter view for random real-time enemy encounters (which are frequent), and a side-on view for boss battles. It’s pretty basic and repetitive in terms of audio, visuals, and gameplay, but it hangs together well enough to be worth investigating, at least — especially if you’ve got save states to make the random encounters more bearable. And while the sound effects are underwhelming, the music itself is atmospheric and catchy.

34. Altered Beast (MD)

Publisher:

SEGA /

Developer:

SEGA

Release Date:

19th Nov 2006 (USA) / 8th Dec 2006 (UK/EU)

As one of the original pack-in games that came with the system, many people will have played Altered Beast — arguably far more than the game itself warrants. Simply put, it’s an early effort and the most average of arcade experiences which simply doesn’t live up to the promise of its body-altering premise. Nostalgia is the only reason to bother with it nowadays, which in a way makes it a perfect addition to a subscription service. Fire it up once, remind yourself that it’s a bit pants, and move on.

33. Target Earth (MD)

Publisher:

Masaya /

Developer:

Masaya

Release Date:

1990 (USA)

Known as Target Earth in North America (this game never saw release in Europe), Masaya’s 1990 run-and-gun shooter Assault Suit Leynos kicked off the Assault Suit series which would continue with Cybernator on SNES a few years later. Previously available on the Wii Virtual Console in Japan, it’s also playable on the Japanese Mega Drive Mini but the Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack is by far the easiest way to officially access this gruelling gunner these days.

32. Space Harrier II (MD)

Publisher:

SEGA /

Developer:

SEGA

Release Date:

18th Dec 2006 (USA) / 22nd Dec 2006 (UK/EU)

This rail shooter was one of the very first Genesis / Mega Drive titles and when compared to other similar games which came later, it should come as no surprise that Space Harrier II is as shallow as a puddle. As a technical showpiece for the Mega Drive and its ability to bring Sega’s Super Scaler games into the home, it was decent fare. The feeling of immersion in the environment feels very limited, though, and things quickly get boring. It’s definitely worth checking out via Nintendo Switch Online, for example, and hardcore Sega fans might find they can forgive its lightweight nature, but it’s far from an essential classic.

31. Sonic Spinball (MD)

Publisher:

SEGA /

Developer:

SEGA Technical Institute

Release Date:

12th Mar 2007 (USA) / 5th Apr 2007 (UK/EU)

Sonic Spinball was an attempt to expand on the pinball shenanigans of Spring Yard Zone and Casino Night Zone from the first two Sonic games and spin an entire game out of it. The premise had promise, and there are some neat ideas within, but unfortunately the result feels like a fusion of underwhelming pinball and bad platforming. We often wonder how this might have turned out had it used the silky smooth engine from the mainline games.

Available on various complications over the years, including on Switch with SEGA Mega Drive Classics and the Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack (and even Game Boy Advance via the Sega Smash Pack), Spinball’s excellent music is reason enough to check it out if you’re curious, and the bonus stages featuring Sonic standing at a pinball table with his reflection in the glass is still pretty rad.

30. Ecco The Dolphin (MD)

Publisher:

SEGA /

Developer:

Novotrade International

Release Date:

28th Nov 2006 (USA) / 8th Dec 2006 (UK/EU)

Ecco the Dolphin as something of an anomaly when it was released; a contemplative game about a dolphin saving his marine world from ecological ruin on a console otherwise overflowing with ‘tude-filled, console war fodder. Ecco was a breath of fresh ocean air in that context, and while its visuals and the overall idea were perhaps better than the execution here, we still look back fondly on Ecco’s escapades and the atmosphere of this game — calming and unnerving in equal measure.

29. Thunder Force II (MD)

Publisher:

SEGA /

Developer:

Technosoft

Release Date:

14th Aug 1989 (USA) / 1990 (UK/EU)

Another early release for the Mega Drive, Technosoft’s Thunder Force II was a launch game in the US and a sequel to 1983’s original. This shmup features two viewpoints across its various stages: a top-down free-moving view, and side-scrolling stages. While the follow-ups are undeniably the better games, Thunder Force II is still worth checking out, especially for shooter fans or anyone interested in the Thunder Force lineage.

28. ToeJam & Earl (MD)

Publisher:

SEGA /

Developer:

Johnson Voorsanger Productions

Release Date:

15th Oct 1991 (USA) / Nov 1991 (UK/EU)

With nostalgia glasses on it would be easy to remember this as one of the best 16-bit games going, but newcomers will find that it has dated in a way the best games of the era simply haven’t. It’s fun — no arguments there — but it’s very slow-moving with various elements that feel unfair in a modern context (presents which impact you negatively, aliens who you have little chance of escaping from that knock you off the planet’s surface and make you fall several levels). It’s still worth firing up, but where other Mega Drive games have aged like fine wine, ToeJam & Earl is a bit funky these days — in ways both good and bad.

27. Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine (MD)

Publisher:

SEGA /

Developer:

Compile

Release Date:

11th Dec 2006 (USA) / 15th Dec 2006 (UK/EU)

Better known as Puyo Puyo, the gooey block falling puzzler was given a Sonic-based lick of paint to attract players in the West — specifically the awesomely ugly-looking Robotnik and his badnik pals from the animated series Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog. Regardless of the Sonic window dressing, this is a fine puzzler and if you’re a fan of Puyo Puyo Tetris and want to see where the beany Puyos got started (on Mega Drive, at least), you’ll find plenty to enjoy here.

26. Columns (MD)

Publisher:

SEGA /

Developer:

SEGA

Release Date:

4th Dec 2006 (USA) / 15th Dec 2006 (UK/EU)

Available On:

NSO + Expansion Pack

Much fuss was made over Columns back when it was first released. Nintendo had just launched its version of Tetris alongside the portable Game Boy, and Sega quickly pushed Columns into the marketplace in the hope that it would match Tetris in terms of appeal.

The core gameplay is as basic as they come — you line up three jewels of the same colour, they disappear and new jewels fall in stacks of three that you can reorder before they hit the bottom. It often verges on the hypnotic, and if you really let yourself get sucked in it can prove to be quite compelling. Sadly, you can’t escape the fact that the genre has evolved over the years and Columns lacks the evergreen addictiveness of Tetris.

25. Golden Axe II (MD)

Publisher:

SEGA /

Developer:

SEGA

Release Date:

26th Dec 1991 (USA) / 1992 (UK/EU)

Available On:

NSO + Expansion Pack

Golden Axe II is still worth a swing if you’ve got any affection whatsoever for solid 16-bit beat ’em ups, although this sequel does lose some of the original’s charm due to being so similar to its predecessor. Newcomers to the series are recommended to start with the first entry, which is a better game all-round. But if you finish that and want more of the same with some minor tweaks, Sega’s got you covered.