Editing Sega CD (section)

==History==
===Background===
Released in 1988, the [[Sega Genesis|Genesis]] (known as the Mega Drive in most territories outside of North America) was Sega's entry into the [[Fourth generation of video game consoles|fourth generation]] of video game consoles.<ref name="Retroinspection"/> In the early 1990s, Sega of America CEO [[Tom Kalinske]] helped make the Genesis a success by cutting the price, developing games for the American market with a new American team, continuing aggressive advertising campaigns, and selling ''[[Sonic the Hedgehog (1991 video game)|Sonic the Hedgehog]]'' with the Genesis as a [[pack-in game]].<ref name="Kent_pp424_431">{{cite book|last=Kent|first=Steven L.|title=[[The Ultimate History of Video Games: The Story Behind the Craze that Touched our Lives and Changed the World]]|publisher=[[Prima Publishing]]|year=2001|isbn=0-7615-3643-4|location=Roseville, California|pages=421–438|chapter=|author-link=Steven L. Kent}}</ref>

By the early 1990s, [[compact disc]]s (CDs) were making headway as a [[storage medium]] for music and video games. [[NEC]] had been the first to use CD technology in a video game console with their [[TurboGrafx-16#TurboGrafx-CD/CD-ROM²|PC Engine CD-ROM² System]] add-on in October 1988 in Japan (launched in North America as the TurboGrafx-CD the following year), which sold 80,000 units in six months.<ref name="Sentinel">{{cite news|last=Takiff|first=Jonathan|date=April 29, 1989|title=CD+G to be Unveiled in May|newspaper=[[Orlando Sentinel]]|url=http://docs.newsbank.com/openurl?ctx_ver=z39.88-2004&rft_id=info:sid/iw.newsbank.com:AWNB:ORLB&rft_val_format=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:ctx&rft_dat=0EB760D7A3006527&svc_dat=InfoWeb:aggregated5&req_dat=0ECC86DE7A4704AD|url-status=live|url-access=subscription|access-date=December 21, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131110080330/http://docs.newsbank.com/openurl?ctx_ver=z39.88-2004|archive-date=November 10, 2013|via=[[NewsBank]]}}</ref> That year, Nintendo announced a partnership with [[Sony]] to develop a [[Super NES CD-ROM|CD-ROM peripheral]] for the [[Super Nintendo Entertainment System]] (SNES). [[Commodore International]] released their CD-based [[CDTV]] multimedia system in early 1991, while the [[CD-i]] from [[Philips]] arrived later that year.<ref name="segacd"/> According to Nick Thorpe of ''[[Retro Gamer]]'', Sega would have received criticism from investors and observers had it not developed a [[CD-ROM]] game system.<ref name=":0">{{Cite magazine|last=Thorpe|first=Nick|date=April 2016|title=Sega's Big Gamble|magazine=[[Retro Gamer]]|issue=153|pages=20–29}}</ref>

=== Development ===
Shortly after the release of the Genesis, Sega's Consumer Products Research and Development Labs, led by manager Tomio Takami, were tasked with creating a CD-ROM add-on. It was originally intended to equal the capabilities of the TurboGrafx-CD, but with twice as much [[random-access memory]] (RAM).<ref name="Takami">{{cite magazine|title=Behind the Screens at Sega of Japan|magazine=[[Electronic Gaming Monthly]]|issue=29|volume=3|date=December 1991|pages=115, 122}}</ref> In addition to relatively short loading times, Takami's team planned to implement [[2.5D|hardware]] [[scaling (geometry)|scaling]] and [[rotation]] similar to that of [[List of Sega arcade system boards|Sega's arcade games]], which required a dedicated [[digital signal processor]].<ref name="Takami"/><ref name="Siliconera">{{cite web|author=Sato|date=September 18, 2013|title=Sega's Original Hardware Developer Talks About The Company's Past Consoles|url=http://www.siliconera.com/2013/09/18/segas-original-hardware-developer-talks-about-the-companys-past-consoles/|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131202230217/http://www.siliconera.com/2013/09/18/segas-original-hardware-developer-talks-about-the-companys-past-consoles/|archive-date=December 2, 2013|access-date=December 21, 2013|website=[[Siliconera]]}}</ref> A custom graphics chip would implement these features, alongside an additional [[sound chip]] manufactured by [[Ricoh]].<ref name=":0" /> According to Kalinske, Sega was ambitious about what CD-ROM technology would do for video games, with its potential for "movie graphics", "rock and roll concert sound" and 3D animation.<ref name=":0" /> 

However, two major changes were made towards the end of development that dramatically raised the price of the add-on. Because the Genesis' [[Motorola 68000]] CPU was too slow to handle the Sega CD's new graphical capabilities, an additional 68000 CPU was incorporated.<ref name="Takami" /> This second CPU has a [[clock speed]] of 12.5&nbsp;MHz, faster than the 7.67&nbsp;MHz CPU in the Genesis.<ref name=":0" /> Responding to rumors that NEC planned a memory upgrade to bring the TurboGrafx-CD RAM from 0.5&nbsp;[[Mbit]] to between 2 and 4&nbsp;Mbit, Sega increased the Sega CD's available RAM from 1 to 6.5&nbsp;Mbit.<ref name="Takami" /> This proved to be a technical challenge, since the Sega CD's RAM access speed was initially too slow to run programs effectively, and the developers had to focus on increasing the speed.<ref name="Siliconera" /> The estimated cost of the device rose to US$370, but market research convinced Sega executives that consumers would be willing to pay more for a state-of-the-art machine.<ref name="Takami" /> Sega partnered with [[JVC]], which had been working with [[Warner Communications|Warner New Media]] to develop a CD player under the [[CD+G]] standard.<ref name="Sentinel" /><ref name="economist">{{cite news |title=Sega v Nintendo: Sonic Boom |newspaper=[[The Economist]] |date=January 25, 1992 |id={{ProQuest|224134880}} {{subscription required}}}}</ref>

Sega of America was not informed of the project details until mid-1991. Despite being provided with preliminary technical documents earlier in the year, the American division was not given a functioning unit to test.<ref>{{cite web|last=Horowitz |first=Ken |url=http://www.sega-16.com/2012/03/interview-scot-bayless/ |title=Interview:Scot Bayless |work=Sega-16 |date=March 1, 2012 |access-date=November 11, 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120303233609/http://www.sega-16.com/2012/03/interview-scot-bayless/ |archive-date=March 3, 2012}}</ref> According to former executive producer Michael Latham: "When you work at a multinational company, there are things that go well and there are things that don't. They didn't want to send us working Sega CD units. They wanted to send us dummies and not send us the working CD units until the last minute because they were concerned about what we would do with it and if it would leak out. It was very frustrating."<ref name="segacd">{{cite book|last=Kent|first=Steven L.|title=The Ultimate History of Video Games: The Story Behind the Craze that Touched our Lives and Changed the World|publisher=Prima Publishing|year=2001|isbn=0-7615-3643-4|location=Roseville, California|pages=439–460}}</ref> 

Latham and Sega of America vice president of licensing Shinobu Toyoda assembled a functioning Sega CD by acquiring a ROM for the system and installing it in a dummy unit.<ref name="segacd" /> The American staff were frustrated by the Sega CD's construction. Former senior producer Scot Bayless said: "[It] was designed with a cheap, consumer-grade audio CD drive, not a CD-ROM. Quite late in the run-up to launch, the quality assurance teams started running into severe problems with many of the units—and when I say severe, I mean units literally bursting into flames. We worked around the clock, trying to catch the failure in-progress, and after about a week we finally realized what was happening." He said the problems were caused by certain games excessively seeking to different tracks on the disc (as opposed to continuously playing / streaming), leading to overheating of the motors which repositioned the laser head assembly.<ref name="Eurogamer">{{cite web|author=McFerran, Damien|title=The Rise and Fall of Sega Enterprises|year=2012|website=[[Eurogamer]]|url=http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-02-22-the-rise-and-fall-of-sega-enterprises|access-date=July 25, 2013|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140216124431/http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-02-22-the-rise-and-fall-of-sega-enterprises|archive-date=February 16, 2014}}</ref>

===Launch===
As early as 1990, magazines were covering a CD-ROM expansion for the Genesis.<ref>{{Cite magazine|date=November 1990|title=Big in Japan|magazine=[[Raze (magazine)|Raze]]|issue=1|pages=20–21}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine|date=September 1990|title=CD-ROM|magazine=[[Beep! Mega Drive]]|language=Japanese|page=20}}</ref> Sega announced the release of the Mega-CD in Japan for late 1991, and North America (as the Sega CD) in 1992. It was unveiled to the public at the 1991 Tokyo Toy Show,<ref name="RetroGamer"/><ref>{{Cite magazine|date=August 1991|title=Sega of Japan Unveils Mega-CD at Tokyo Toy Show!|magazine=[[Electronic Gaming Monthly]]|issue=25|page=36}}</ref> to positive reception from critics,<ref name="RetroGamer" /> and at the [[Consumer Electronic Show]] in [[Chicago]] in mid-1991.<ref>{{Cite magazine|date=June 22, 1991|title=Does the CD Console War Start Here?|magazine=[[New Computer Express]]|issue=137|page=4}}</ref>  It was released in Japan on December 12, 1991, initially retailing at [[JP¥]]49,800.<ref>{{cite web|title=Mega-CD|publisher=[[Sega Corporation]]|language=ja|access-date=March 29, 2014|url=http://sega.jp/fb/segahard/mcd/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140716110215/http://sega.jp/fb/segahard/mcd/|archive-date=July 16, 2014}}</ref> Though the Mega-CD sold quickly, the small install base of the Mega Drive in Japan meant that sales declined rapidly.<ref name="RetroinspectionCD">{{cite magazine|author=McFerran|first=Damien|date=February 2009|title=Retroinspection: Mega-CD|magazine=[[Retro Gamer]]|issue=61|pages=82–87}}</ref> Within its first three months, the Mega-CD sold 200,000 units, but only sold an additional 200,000 over the next three years.<ref name=":0" /> Third-party game development suffered because Sega took a long time to release [[software development kit]]s.<ref name="RetroGamer" /><ref name="AllgameCD"/> Other factors affecting sales included the high launch price of the Mega-CD in Japan and only two games available at launch,<ref name="RetroGamer" /> with only five published by Sega within the first year.<ref name=":0" />

[[File:Sega-Genesis-CD-Model-1-Bare-wPlate.jpg|thumb|A model 1 Sega CD without a Genesis attached. The steel joining plate was included to act as RF shielding between the CD and console hardware.]]On October 15, 1992, the Mega-CD was released in North America as the Sega CD, with a retail price of [[US$]]299.<ref name="segacd" /> Advertising included one of Sega's slogans, "Welcome to the Next Level". Though only 50,000 units were available at launch due to production problems, the Sega CD sold over 200,000 units by the end of 1992<ref name="RetroinspectionCD" /> and 300,000 by July 1993.<ref>{{cite news|first=Andrew|last=Pollack|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/273694979/| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211019/https://www.newspapers.com/image/273694979/| archive-date=October 19, 2021|title=Sega strives to be a Disney for the new electronic age|date=July 8, 1993|agency=The New York Times|newspaper=Honolulu Star-Bulletin|access-date=December 29, 2020|url-status=live|page=D4|via=Newspapers.com}}{{cbignore}}</ref> As part of Sega's sales, [[Blockbuster (retailer)|Blockbuster]] purchased Sega CD units for rental in their stores.<ref name="SunSentinel">{{cite news|author=McCash, Vicki|title=Sega Channel To Offer Games Via Cable TV|url=http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1993-04-28/business/9302080600_1_sega-channel-sega-cd-sega-genesis|date=April 28, 1993|access-date=December 9, 2013|newspaper=[[Sun-Sentinel|Broward and Palm Beach Sun Sentinel]]|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131213040029/http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1993-04-28/business/9302080600_1_sega-channel-sega-cd-sega-genesis|archive-date=December 13, 2013}}</ref>  Sega of America emphasized that the Sega CD's additional storage space allowed for [[full-motion video]] (FMV),<ref name="AllgameCD" /><ref name="CDFollies">{{cite web|last=Buchanan|first=Levi|title=Sega CD Follies|website=[[IGN]]|date=October 15, 2008|access-date=July 1, 2013|url=http://www.ign.com/articles/2008/10/15/sega-cd-follies|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130828085544/http://www.ign.com/articles/2008/10/15/sega-cd-follies|archive-date=August 28, 2013}}</ref><ref name="1UP">{{cite web|author=Parish, Jeremy |title=20 Years Ago, Sega Gave Us the Sega CD |website=[[1UP.com]] |date=October 16, 2012 |access-date=December 11, 2016 |url=http://www.1up.com/features/sega-cd-anniversary |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130615202428/http://www.1up.com/features/sega-cd-anniversary |archive-date=June 15, 2013 }}</ref> with [[Digital Pictures]] becoming an important partner.<ref name="segacd" /> After the initial competition between Sega and Nintendo to develop a CD-based add-on, [[Nintendo]] canceled development of a CD add-on for the SNES after having partnered with Sony and then Philips to develop one.<ref name="segacd" />

The Mega-CD was launched in Europe in April 1993,<ref name=":0" /><ref name="RetroGamer" /> starting with the United Kingdom on April 2, 1993, at a price of £269.99. The European version was packaged with ''[[Sol-Feace]]'' and ''[[Cobra Command (1984 video game)|Cobra Command]]'' in a two-disc set, along with a [[Sega Classics Arcade Collection|compilation CD]] of five Mega Drive games.<ref name="CVG 138">{{cite magazine|date=May 1993|title=News: Mega CD Launches!|magazine=[[Computer and Video Games]]|location=United Kingdom|issue=138|page=8}}</ref> Only 70,000 units were initially available in the UK, but 60,000 units were sold by August 1993.<ref name="RetroinspectionCD" /> The Mega-CD was released in Australia in March 1993.<ref>{{Cite magazine|date=April 1993|title=Disc is it: Mega-CD|magazine=Megazone|issue=27|pages=20–21}}</ref>  Brazilian toy company [[Tectoy]] released the Sega CD in Brazil in October 1993, retaining the North American name despite the use of the name Mega Drive for the base console there.<ref>{{Cite magazine|date=October 1993|title=Bits: Sega CD|magazine=VideoGame|language=Portuguese|volume=3|issue=31|pages=6–7}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite magazine|last=Szczepaniak|first=John|date=November 2006|title=Company Profile: Tec Toy|magazine=[[Retro Gamer]]|publisher=|issue=30|pages=50–53|issn=}}</ref>

Sega released a second model, the Sega CD 2 (Mega-CD 2), on April 23, 1993, in Japan.<ref name="Megacd2">{{cite web|title=Mega-CD 2|url=http://sega.jp/fb/segahard/mcd/mcd2.html|publisher=Sega Corporation|language=ja|access-date=March 29, 2014|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140530063620/http://sega.jp/fb/segahard/mcd/mcd2.html|archive-date=May 30, 2014}}</ref> It was released in North America several months later at a price of [[US$]]229, bundled with one of the bestselling Sega CD games, ''[[Sewer Shark]]''.<ref name="AllgameCD" /><ref>{{cite magazine|title=Sega Packs Sewer Shark with New Sega CD|magazine=[[GamePro]]|issue=52|date=November 1993|page=261}}</ref> Designed to bring down the manufacturing costs of the Sega CD, the newer model is smaller and does not use a motorized disc tray.<ref name="RetroinspectionCD"/> A limited number of games were developed that used the Sega CD and another Genesis add-on, the [[32X]], released in November 1994.<ref name="AllgameCD32X">{{cite web|last=Marriott|first=Scott Alan|title=Sega Genesis 32X CD&nbsp;– Overview|website=[[Allgame]]|access-date=July 2, 2013|url=http://allgame.com/platform.php?id=43|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141210111102/http://www.allgame.com/platform.php?id=43|archive-date=December 10, 2014}}</ref>

===''Night Trap'' controversy===
{{see also|1993 congressional hearings on video games}}
On December 9, 1993, the [[United States Congress]] began hearings on video game violence and the marketing of violent video games to children.<ref name="night trap">{{cite book|last=Kent|first=Steven L.|title=The Ultimate History of Video Games: The Story Behind the Craze that Touched our Lives and Changed the World|publisher=Prima Publishing|year=2001|isbn=0-7615-3643-4|location=Roseville, California|pages=461–480|chapter=}}</ref> The Sega CD game ''[[Night Trap]]'', an FMV adventure game by Digital Pictures, was at the center of debate.<ref name="1UP" /> ''Night Trap'' had been brought to the attention of United States Senator [[Joe Lieberman]], who said: "It ends with this attack scene on this woman in lingerie, in her bathroom. I know that the creator of the game said it was all meant to be a satire of ''[[Dracula]]''; nonetheless, I thought it sent out the wrong message." Lieberman's research concluded that the average video game player was between seven and twelve years old, and that video game publishers were marketing violence to children.<ref name="night trap" />

In the United Kingdom, ''Night Trap'' was discussed in [[Parliament of the United Kingdom|Parliament]].<ref name="Eurogamer" /> Former Sega Europe development director Mike Brogan noted that ''Night Trap'' brought Sega publicity, and helped reinforce Sega's image as an "edgy company with attitude".<ref name="Eurogamer" /> Despite the increased sales, Sega recalled ''Night Trap'' and rereleased it with revisions in 1994.<ref>{{cite news|last=Burgess|first=John|title=Sega to Withdraw, Revise "Night Trap"|date=January 11, 1994|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]}}</ref> Following the congressional hearings, video game manufacturers came together in 1994 to establish a unified rating system, the [[Entertainment Software Rating Board]].<ref name="night trap" />

===Decline===
By the end of 1993, sales of the Sega CD had stalled in Japan and were slowing in North America.  In Europe, sales of Mega-CD games were outpaced by games for the [[Amiga CD32]].<ref name=":0" /> Newer CD-based consoles such as the [[3DO Interactive Multiplayer]] rendered the Sega CD technically obsolete, reducing public interest.<ref name="RetroinspectionCD"/> In late 1993, less than a year after the Sega CD had launched in North America and Europe, the media reported that Sega was no longer accepting in-house development proposals for the Mega-CD in Japan.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Gaming Gossip|magazine=[[Electronic Gaming Monthly]]|issue=53|date=December 1993|page=64}}</ref> By 1994, {{nowrap|1.5 million}} units had been sold in the United States and 415,000 in Western Europe.<ref name="SD">{{cite magazine | magazine=[[Screen Digest]] | title=Finance & Business | date=March 1995 | archive-url=https://archive.today/20211124142424/https://www.scribd.com/doc/208776076/Screen-Digest?secret_password=2ntzw5zfrtsy8kxequmg | archive-date=November 24, 2021 | url-status=live | url=https://www.scribd.com/doc/208776076/Screen-Digest?secret_password=2ntzw5zfrtsy8kxequmg | page=56 | access-date=May 23, 2021 }}</ref> Kalinske blamed the Sega CD's high price for limiting its potential market; Sega attempted to add value in the US and the UK by bundling more games, with some packages including up to five games.<ref name=":0" /> 

In early 1995, Sega shifted its focus to the [[Sega Saturn]] and discontinued advertising for Genesis hardware, including the Sega CD. Sega discontinued the Sega CD in the first quarter of 1996, saying that it needed to concentrate on fewer platforms and that the Sega CD could not compete due to its high price and outdated single-speed drive.<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Sherman |first=Chris |title=Sega Pulls Plug on Sega CD|magazine=[[Next Generation (magazine)|Next Generation]]|issue=15|date=March 1996|page=19}}</ref> According to Thorpe, the Sega CD only reached a more popular price point in 1995, by which time customers were willing to wait for newer consoles.<ref name=":0" /> The last scheduled Sega CD games, ports of ''[[Myst]]'' and ''[[Brain Dead 13]]'',<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Buyers Beware |magazine=[[GamePro]]|issue=89|date=February 1996|page=14}}</ref> were cancelled. 2.24 million Sega CD units were sold worldwide.<ref name=":0" /><ref name="Sega Stats">{{cite magazine|date=June 21, 1996|title=Weekly ''Famitsu'' Express|magazine=[[Famitsu]]|volume=11|issue=392|lang=ja}}</ref>