News/Final ROM Archive Release Part 2
May 13, 2016
Back again for another continuation of the Final ROM Archive releases, part 2! This time we have a ton of goodies (more than last week!). Maybe there’s something for everyone.
Check out the Sega ROM Archive article to view some general information about these releases and remember to check out the articles themselves by clicking on the hotlink on each game heading in this article.
Enjoy!
The unique builds for this week are as follows:
Thunder Force III Prototype (Aug 1, 1990)
A late prototype of Thunder Force III for the Sega Mega Drive! One of my favorite Mega Drive games. Game over screen is missing a question mark. Demonstration mode lasts significantly longer. Seiren level has a different demo, as well as slightly different object placement.
Star Odyssey Localization Prototype (Jan 16, 1992)
The original unreleased localization of Blue Almanac titled “Star Odyssey” for the Sega Mega Drive. Please note, we are only releasing this for historical significance. We highly recommend you play the complete, bugfixed, professionally translated, licensed version by the Super Fighter Team here.
Sorcer Kingdom Prototype (Nov 8, 1991)
A prototype of Sorcer Kingdom for the Sega Mega Drive! A few months early, all copyrights are 1991 instead of 1992 and header date is Mar 1991 instead of Jan 1992. Lots of text, cutscene, and NPC placement differences all over the place when played side by side. The sound test cheat menu seems to have a difficulty selection of some kind, whereas the final just has a straight sound test.
Street Smart Prototype (Jun 29, 1990)
A somewhat early prototype of Street Smart for the Sega Mega Drive. Contains many differences (especially in the menus).
Final Blow Revision Prototype (Jan 16, 1990)
Might be a localized version of Final Blow before it was rebranded as James 'Buster' Douglas Knockout Boxing.
Gain Ground Prototype (Jul 27, 1990)
A prototype of Gain Ground for the Sega Mega Drive. Different title screen, no options screen present.
Master of Monsters Prototype (Apr 26, 1991)
A prototype of Master of Monsters! About one month before Japan release. Lacks some music, music different here and there. Copyright info after Sega logo is different, and the intro is unskippable. The sound test is nowhere in the game (the subroutine that jumps to it simply returns).
Twin Hawk Prototype (Apr 6, 1990)
A somewhat late prototype of Twin Hawk for the Sega Mega Drive. Has some small art and code differences. There are definitely noticeable differences of some kind toward the end of the game before it loops.
Arnold Palmer Tournament Golf Revision Prototype (Mar 22, 1990)
Appears to be an unreleased second revision of Arnold Palmer Tournament Golf for the Sega Mega Drive.
Beast Wrestler Localization Prototype (Sep 13, 1991)
Appears to be a localization prototype of Beast Wrestler. The header still says Beast Warriors even though it's Beast Wrestlers.
Budokan - The Martial Spirit Revision Prototype (Sep 25, 1990)
Unreleased release candidate or second revision with grammar and code fixes. Used as the basis for the European release which came later.
David Robinson's Supreme Court Localization Prototype (Apr 15, 1992)
Localization Prototype for Japan. Doesn’t appear to have any noticeable differences.
John Madden Football Revision Prototype (Nov 7, 1990)
Almost the same as the final, but the product code is different and there is a one byte change.
Jurassic Park PAL Revision Prototype (Jun 14, 1993)
Only a few byte differences in comparison to the PAL final. Differences are unknown.
Mystic Defender Localization Prototype (Sep 14, 1989)
A localization prototype of Mystic Defender. Some code differences and a few text differences are present.
Pebble Beach Golf Links Revision Prototype (Feb 14, 1994)
Almost identical to the final, except it has a tiny code difference.
Sol-Deace Revision Prototype (Feb 3, 1992)
This might be an unreleased minor second revision for Sol-Deace.
Target Earth Localization Prototype (Feb 16, 1990)
A localization prototype of Target Earth for the Sega Mega Drive. It seems to have a mixture of similarities from both the Japanese and final US releases.
Valis Localization Prototype (Oct 25, 1991)
A localization of Valis for the Sega Mega Drive. Contains some grammar changes.
Vapor Trail Localization Prototype (May 26, 1991)
A localization prototype of Vapor Trail for the Sega Mega Drive. Contains mostly code differences.
Ys III: Wanderers from Ys Localization Prototype (Aug 28, 1991)
A localization prototype of Ys III: Wanderers from Ys for the Sega Mega Drive. The title screen seems to be missing some copyright information.
Miscellaneous ROMs
Just like last week, there are a few ROMs that can be considered “Altered Finals”, where the build itself is based off a final ROM but altered slightly for whatever reason. These ROMs have nothing that changes the game in any way, but are included here as an interesting curiosity.
The games are as follows:
- Ariel the Little Mermaid (Oct 10, 1992 build)
- Barney's Hide & Seek Game (Sep 18, 1993 build)
- Chakan - The Forever Man (Oct 6, 1992 build)
- Exile (Dec 13, 1991 build)
- F-22 Interceptor (Sep 17, 1991 build)
- Jurassic Park (May 26, 1993 build)
- Landstalker (Jul 13, 1993 build)
- NFL Football '94 (Nov 4, 1993 build)
- Slaughter Sport (Sep 27, 1991 build)
- Steel Empire (Mar 13, 1992 build)
Afterword
As always, remember to keep tuning in sometime every week (preferably Friday) for more releases from the Sega Final ROM Archive. And expect to see something different every month! Remember to follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Youtube for the latest as soon as it all happens.
Until next time!
