Questions about Master System
Short answers, pulled from the story.
Why did the Sega Master System fail in North America?
The Master System failed in North America primarily due to Nintendo's licensing practices, which prevented third-party NES developers from releasing games on rival platforms. Sega had only two American third-party publishers, Activision and Parker Brothers, and its marketing department consisted of just two people. Nintendo held 83 percent of the North American video game market by 1988, and the Master System sold between 1.5 million and 2 million units in the region before production ceased by early 1992.
How successful was the Sega Master System in Europe?
The Master System became the best-selling console in Europe by 1990. In that year alone, Sega sold 918,000 consoles across Europe, compared to Nintendo's 655,000. Its estimated active installed user base in Europe reached 6.25 million units in 1993, larger than the Mega Drive's 5.73 million that year. The European library included over 300 licensed titles, compared to just over 100 in North America.
How many units did the Sega Master System sell worldwide?
The Master System is estimated to have sold between 10 million and 13 million units worldwide, not including Brazil-specific sales. Tectoy, the Brazilian distributor, separately reported selling 8 million Master System branded units in Brazil by 2016, bringing the combined total substantially higher.
Why was the Sega Master System so popular in Brazil?
Tectoy, a Brazilian toy company, distributed and aggressively localized the Master System starting in September 1989, at a time when Nintendo did not officially operate in Brazil until 1993. Tectoy claimed 80 percent of the Brazilian video game market and created original titles tied to Brazilian entertainment franchises, including Ferias Frustradas do Pica-Pau and Monica's Gang games adapted from popular Wonder Boy titles. Tectoy has continued selling Master System variants in Brazil, including the Master System 3 Collection released in 2006, which contains 120 built-in games.
How did the Sega Master System get its name?
The name was chosen by Sega of America employees throwing darts at a whiteboard of suggested names. Sega chairman Isao Okawa approved the name after being told it referenced the competitive nature of the video game industry and martial arts, where only one competitor can be the master.
What is the connection between the Sega Master System and the Mega Drive?
The Master System's engineering team, led by Masami Ishikawa and supervised by Hideki Sato, began work on the Mega Drive almost immediately after the Master System launched. Retrospective critics, including Retro Gamer writer Damien McFerran, argued that the Master System's period of arcade conversions and original game development gave Sega the experience and resources it needed to compete more effectively in the 16-bit generation.