Why the Genesis is Mega Drive in Brazil
Sega sold the same 16-bit console under two names. North America got the Genesis, while Japan, Europe and Brazil kept Mega Drive.
Sega released the Mega Drive in Japan on October 29, 1988. When it reached North America in 1989, the box said Genesis. Most of the world, Brazil included, kept the original name.
Image: Wikipedia
Why North America got a new name
Sega of America renamed the console for its market. Accounts differ on the reason. Some say Sega could not secure the rights to the Mega Drive name in North America. David Rosen, a Sega co-founder, said he chose Genesis because he disliked “Mega Drive” and wanted a name that meant a new beginning for Sega.
Brazil and Tectoy
In Brazil, the console came from Tectoy, Sega’s local partner, which released it in 1990. Tectoy kept making and selling Mega Drive models long after other markets moved on, and in 2016 it announced a new production run of the console.
Tectoy also published games. In 1998 it released a Mega Drive version of Duke Nukem 3D, at first only in South America.
Image: Wikipedia
Same games, different names
The name is not the only difference. Some games changed titles between regions: Streets of Rage is Bare Knuckle in Japan. The hardware plays the same games. That is why RetroKit shows the console as Genesis in English and Mega Drive in Portuguese.
Image: Wikipedia
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Sources
- Sega Genesis, Wikipedia
- Tectoy, Wikipedia
- Streets of Rage, Wikipedia
- Duke Nukem 3D, Wikipedia
- Sega Mega Drive, Centre for Computing History
Play on your Apple devices
RetroKit runs Genesis and Mega Drive games on iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple TV. Add your own game files to play.
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