Genesis Nomad

The Genesis Nomad, also known as Sega Nomad, is a handheld game console manufactured by Sega exclusively for North America and released in October 1995. The Nomad is a portable variation of the Sega Genesis home video game console (known as the Mega Drive outside North America). It could also be used with a television set via a video port. It was based on the Mega Jet, a portable version of the home console designed for use on airline flights in Japan.

The Nomad was the last handheld console released by Sega. Released late in the Genesis era, it had a short lifespan. It was sold exclusively in North America, and uses regional lockout. Sega's focus on the Sega Saturn left the Nomad under-supported, and it was incompatible with several Genesis peripherals, including the Power Base Converter, the Sega CD, and the 32X. About 1 million units of the Nomad were sold, and it is considered a commercial failure. It was eventually discontinued in 1999.

The Sega Genesis was Sega's entry into the 16-bit era of video game consoles. In Japan, Sega released the Mega Jet, a portable version of the Mega Drive for use on Japan Airlines flights. The Mega Jet requires a connection to a television screen and a power source, and so outside of airline flights can only be used in cars equipped with a television set and cigarette lighter receptacle. On planes, the Mega Jet was connected into armrest monitors. It had a limited consumer release in Japanese department stores in 1994, but did not see success.

Planning to release a new handheld console to succeed the Game Gear, Sega originally intended to produce a system with a touchscreen interface two years before the Game.com handheld by Tiger Electronics. However, touchscreen technology was expensive at the time, so Sega instead released the Genesis Nomad, a handheld version of the Genesis. The development codename was "Project Venus". Sega hoped to capitalize on the Genesis's popularity in North America. At the time, the Genesis Nomad was the only handheld console that could connect to a television.

The Nomad was released in October 1995 in North America only. The release was five years into the market span of the Genesis, with an existing library of more than 500 Genesis games. While Sega Technical Institute's The Ooze was originally planned as a launch game, it was not included. According to former Sega of America research and development head Joe Miller, the Nomad was not intended to replace the Game Gear, and Sega had few plans for the new handheld. Sega was supporting five different consoles: Saturn, Genesis, Game Gear, Pico, and the Master System, as well as the Sega CD and 32X add-ons. In Japan, the Mega Drive had never been successful and the Saturn was more successful than Sony's PlayStation, so Sega Enterprises CEO Hayao Nakayama decided to focus on the Saturn, resulting in the end of support for the Genesis and Genesis-based products. Additionally, the Game Boy, Nintendo's handheld console that had been dominant in the market, became even more dominant with the release of Pokémon Red and Blue. This meant the Nomad was not successful. By 1999, the Nomad was being sold at less than a third of its original price.

Similar to the Genesis and the Mega Jet, the Nomad's main CPU is a Motorola 68000. Possessing similar memory, graphics, and sound capabilities, the Nomad is nearly identical to the full-size console; the only variation is that it is completely self-sufficient. The Nomad has a 3.25 inch diagonal backlit color LCD screen and an A/V output that allows the Nomad to be played on a television screen. Design elements of the handheld were made similar to the Game Gear, but included six buttons for full compatibility with later Genesis releases. Also included were a red power switch, headphone jack, volume dial, and separate controller input for multiplayer games. The controller port functions as player 2, so single-player games cannot be played with a Genesis controller. The Nomad can be powered by an AC adapter, a battery recharger known as the Genesis Nomad PowerBack, or six AA batteries, which provide a battery life of two to three hours.

The Nomad is fully compatible with several Genesis peripherals, including the Sega Activator, Team Play Adaptor, Mega Mouse, and the Sega Channel and XBAND network add-ons. However, the Nomad is not compatible with the Power Base Converter, Sega CD, or 32X. This means the Nomad can only play Genesis games, whereas the standard Genesis can also play Master System, Sega CD, and 32X games with the respective add-ons.

The Nomad does not have its own game library, but instead plays Genesis games. At the time of its launch, the Nomad had over 500 games available for play. However, no pack-in game was included. The Nomad can boot unlicensed, homebrew, and bootleg games made for the Genesis. Some earlier third-party games have compatibility issues when played on the Nomad, but can be successfully played through the use of a Game Genie. Likewise, due to its lack of compatibility with any of the Genesis' add-ons, it is unable to play any games for the Master System, Sega CD, or 32X. The Nomad employs two different regional lockout methods, physical and software, but methods have been found to bypass these.