Editing 32X (section)

===Promotion and release===
[[Image:Sega-Saturn-JP-Mk1-Console-Set.jpg|thumb|right|Japanese Sega Saturn, released in November 1994. The 32X was incompatible with Saturn software.]]
The unveiling of the 32X to the public came at the Summer Consumer Electronics Show in June 1994 in Chicago. Promoted as the "poor man's entry into 'next generation' games", 32X was marketed for its [[United States dollar|US$]]159 price point as a less-expensive alternative to the Saturn. However, Sega would not answer as to whether or not a Genesis console equipped with a Sega CD and a 32X would be able to run Saturn software. [[Trip Hawkins]], founder of [[The 3DO Company]], was willing to point out that it would not, stating, "Everyone knows that 32X is a [[Band-Aid]]. It's not a 'next generation system.' It's fairly expensive. It's not particularly high-performance. It's hard to program for, and it's not compatible with the Saturn."<ref name="Kent_493_496" /> In response to these comments, Sega executive Richard Brudvik-Lindner pointed out that the 32X would play Genesis games, and had the same system architecture as the Saturn.{{Sfn|Kent|2001|p=494}}  

In August of that year, ''[[GamePro]]'' highlighted the advantages of the upcoming add-on in its 32-bit processors and significantly lower price, noting that "[n]o doubt gotta-get-it-now gamers will spend the big bucks to grab Saturn or [[PlayStation (console)|PlayStation]] systems and games from Japan. For the rest of us, however, 32X may well be the system of choice in '94."<ref name="GP32X">{{cite magazine|author=The Whizz|date=August 1994|title=32X: On the Upgrade Path|url=https://archive.org/details/GamePro_Issue_061_August_1994/page/n31/mode/2up|magazine=[[GamePro]]|publisher=[[International Data Group|IDG]]|issue=61|page=30}}</ref> ''[[Edge (magazine)|Edge]]'' was more critical, questioning if the 32X was only there to fill in as a stopgap for the Christmas season in the US and Europe, and referred to the Japanese release as a "PR exercise and quick money maker [rather] than a serious bid to get the machine into every home". Responding to concerns over the 32X being a stopgap, Kalinske said, "Saturn will be at a price point that will not make it a massmarket item. In terms of volume and keeping the category exciting, it's Genesis and 32X."<ref name=":2" />

The 32X was released on November 21, 1994, in North America,<ref name=":0">{{Cite press release |title=Sega 32X upgrade sees a sold-out Yule |date=January 2, 1995 |publisher=[[Sega|Sega of America]] |url=https://www.thefreelibrary.com/Sega+32X+upgrade+sees+a+sold-out+Yule.-a016020605 |access-date=April 18, 2024 |via=[[Free Online Library]]}}</ref> in time for the [[Christmas holiday season|holiday season]] that year. As announced, it retailed for $159.99 without a [[pack-in game]].<ref name="Retroinspection" /><ref name=":2" /> Demand among retailers was high, and Sega could not keep up with orders for the new system.{{Sfn|Kent|2001|p=496}} Over 1,000,000 orders had been placed for 32X units, but Sega had only managed to ship 600,000 units by January 1995.<ref name="Allgame32X" /> In the United States, nearly 500,000 units were sold by Christmas 1994,<ref>{{Cite press release|url=https://www.thefreelibrary.com/Sega+threepeat+as+video+game+leader+for+Christmas+sales;+second...-a015997617|title=Sega threepeat as video game leader for Christmas sales; second annual victory; Sega takes No. 1 position for entire digital interactive entertainment industry.|publisher=[[Sega of America]]|date=January 6, 1995|via=[[Free Online Library]]|access-date=February 17, 2019|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131014174045/http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Sega+threepeat+as+video+game+leader+for+Christmas+sales;+second...-a015997617|archive-date=October 14, 2013}}</ref> exceeding Sega's initial sales projection.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Hot Off The Press: Sega Notes |magazine=RePlay |date=February 1995 |volume=20 |issue=5 |page=3 |url=https://archive.org/details/re-play-volume-20-issue-no.-5-february-1995/RePlay%20-%20Volume%2020%2C%20Issue%20No.%205%20-%20February%201995/page/n2}}</ref> Launching at about the same price as a Genesis console, the price of the 32X was less than half of what the Saturn's price would be at launch.<ref name="32XIGN" /> The European release came in November 1994, at a price of £169.99, and also experienced initial high demand.<ref>{{Cite web |title=25 October 1994, 18 - The Daily Telegraph at |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/751803147 |access-date=April 15, 2024 |website=Newspapers.com |language=en}}</ref>

Sega promised 12 games available at launch and 50 games due for release in 1995 from third-party developers.<ref name="GP32X" /> Despite Sega's initial promises, only six games were available at its North American launch, including ''[[Doom (1993 video game)|Doom]]'', ''[[Star Wars Arcade]]'', ''[[Virtua Racing|Virtua Racing Deluxe]]'', and ''[[Cosmic Carnage]]''. Although ''Virtua Racing'' was considered strong, ''Cosmic Carnage'' "looked and played so poorly that reporters made jokes about it".{{Sfn|Kent|2001|p=496}}<ref name="wire">{{cite web |author=McConville, James A. |date=January 2, 1995 |title=Sega 32X upgrade sees a sold-out Yule |url=http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Sega+32X+upgrade+sees+a+sold-out+Yule.-a016020605 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151117021257/http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Sega+32X+upgrade+sees+a+sold-out+Yule.-a016020605 |archive-date=November 17, 2015 |access-date=February 11, 2014 |website=[[Business Wire]] |publisher=}}</ref> Games were available at a retail price of $69.95.<ref name="GP32X" /> Advertising for the system included images of the 32X being connected to a Genesis console to create an "[[Arcade game|arcade]] system".<ref name="Retroinspection" />  Japan received the 32X on December 3, 1994,<ref name="jp">{{cite web|title=Super 32X|url=https://sega.jp/fb/segahard/32x/|publisher=[[Sega|Sega Corporation]]|access-date=February 23, 2014|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140716105656/http://sega.jp/fb/segahard/32x/|archive-date=July 16, 2014|df=mdy-all}}</ref> two weeks after the launch of the Saturn in the region.<ref name=":2">{{Cite magazine |date=January 1995 |title=Sega fills next-gen hiatus with 32X |magazine=[[Edge (magazine)|Edge]] |pages=10–11 |issue=16}}</ref> The 32X launched in Brazil in March 1995.<ref>{{Cite magazine |date=December 1995 |title=Circuito Aberto |magazine=Super GamePower |pages=10–11 |language=pt |issue=21}}</ref>