Rad: A New Handheld Sega Genesis Is On The Way

John Walker
Updated ·2 min read
Image: Hyperkin
Image: Hyperkin

Like measuring temperature on the deranged scale of Fahrenheit, the United States is nearly alone in the world in calling Sega’s classic gaming console the “Genesis.” The 1989 SNES rival was actually called the Mega Drive, and it’s time to get on board with that name, as hardware developer Hyperkin has revealed an upcoming handheld device called the Mega 95 that can play those classic Sega carts.

Hyperkin, known for its solid peripherals and RetroN series of Nintendo cart players, has announced a new device that’ll play all your Mega Drive (get used to it) carts, but in a handheld device with a five-inch screen and a 10-hour battery.

Hyperkin knows what it’s doing with Sega’s tech. It’s been selling the MegaRetroN HD since 2019 (see on Amazon), which looks and runs like a classic Mega Drive, but with an HDMI port alongside old-school AV sockets. And the completely bonkers RetroN 5 (see on Amazon) has a slot for both the Master System and Mega Drive, alongside those for Game Boy, GBC, GBA, NES, and SNES. So there’s good reason to assume the new handheld incarnation should do a decent job of running your 30-year-old games.

The Mega 95 will also come with a USB-C dock as standard, letting you sit the peculiarly shaped boomerang of a device on its stand, which sports a couple of Mega Drive controller ports, and of course HDMI output to your TV.

There’s no price or release date announced yet, and Hyperkin does tend to announce a good six months before release. However, for comparison’s sake, the SNES equivalent—the SupaBoy—is currently selling for $120 (see on Amazon).

At the same time, Hyperkin has also announced that it’s following up its reinvention of the classic Xbox 360 controller, the Xenon, with a new build based on the second incarnation of the original Xbox’s joypad, the Controller S. It’s to be called the DuchesS, a somewhat confusing allusion to the first Xbox controller design, known as the Duke. Again, there’s no word on a price or release date, but it’ll sport all the magnets and witchcraft that make modern controllers so much more pleasurable to use.

Look, seriously, let this foreigner appeal to you, stop using Fahrenheit. Come on. You look ridiculous.