10 best Sega Saturn games, ranked
The Sega Saturn never stood a chance. From day one it was hobbled by a surprise launch annoying gaming retailers and was soon in a one-sided brawl against Sony’s all-conquering PlayStation. The Saturn was comparatively more difficult to develop for, couldn’t push polygons as efficiently, and was soon cratering in sales.
By the time Nintendo entered the generation with the Nintendo 64 the writing was on the wall for the poor Saturn. Developers jumped ship to greener pastures, releases slowed to a trickle, and as early as Dec. 1998 the very last North American title hit shelves.
Its fortunes were a little rosier in Japan where it soldiered on into the year 2000, meaning many of the system’s most impressive titles never got a Western release. So, if you’re curious about this promising yet doomed system, here are the ten titles you need to play.
10. Virtual On: Cyber Troopers (1996)
Probably best to come out and say it up top, to play this list legitimately you’re going to need deep pockets. Sega’s 3D robot fighting game isn’t necessarily expensive to buy, but to get the full experience you will need the Saturn twin stick controller to mimic the arcade experience. Virtual On is playable on the regular Saturn pad, but comes alive when you try it with the intended twin stick controls (only $80 on eBay!).
Deep gameplay, fun robot designs, and kinetic action? It’s great.
9. Dragon Force (1996)
What the Saturn lacked in polygons it more than made up with in sprites. J-Force and Sega’s tactical RPG Dragon Force is one of the best proofs of that, showing mind-bending battles featuring 200 individual soldiers fighting at once. It’s a beautiful game, nicely balancing its role-playing and battle management sides while delivering eight separate storylines that flesh out its fantasy world. It’s a more obscure title, but well worth checking out.
8. Guardian Heroes (1996)
This side-scrolling beat-em-up is yet more proof of the Saturn’s 2D mastery. Like Dragon Force it can push a
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