SEGA have been responsible for several generations of console and arcade gaming and, in doing so, have made games that have defined a specific genre. While they may not have been the first of such games in existence, they instead have been able to set expectations of these genres.
By making experiences that are so impactful that they become the game that others are held to, SEGA cornered the market for some time. While they are significantly less of a gaming powerhouse than they used to be, SEGA still holds an impressive roster of incredible games that often hold up even today.
10 Streets of Rage 2 - Side Scrolling Beat-Em-Up
There have been multiple attempts to create successful games within the side-scrolling beat-em-up genre. The Simpsons, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Aliens Vs. Predator have all been successful arcade side scrollers, and while they and many others have been popular, there is one game that remains the epitome of what such a game should be.
Though the original Streets Of Rage was popular, it was the sequel that solidified its success with its incredibly bright, colorful graphics and smooth gameplay. It has remained a fan favorite, and the latest iteration of the series was released recently, Streets Of Rage 4.
9 Afterburner - Vehicular Combat
What started in the arcades in the late 1980s took the gaming world by storm as the fast-paced fighter plane combat allowed for simple, addictive entertainment. Afterburner has been ported to multiple gaming systems, and even now, the arcade cabinets can raise a substantial price if they're in full working order.
While the vehicular combat genre may never have reached the mainstream popularity of others, such as the first-person shooter, it continues to be popular with its core audience. Ace Combat, World Of Tanks, and Star Wars: Squadrons all exist due to the steps that SEGA took. Even today, the game is included on most SEGA compilations due to its fun gameplay that still holds up.
8 OutRun - Racing
Classic gaming systems attempted racing games in usually top-down views where players had differently colored blocks racing each other. The leap to first and third-person racing games came from the arcades, and while other racing games may have been released before it, OutRun made a big enough splash on release and in subsequent years to give it a position of defining a genre.
There has been a lot of technical development after this time, and racing games have continued to evolve; however, this SEGA classic ran so that they could drive. With deep immersion, simple gameplay, and fast timer-based rounds, it helped develop the genre into what it is today.
7 Phantasy Star - Japanese RPG
Some gamers may argue that Dragon Quest is a more iconic Japanese RPG, and while it did indeed help to build the genre, the SEGA game Phantasy Star released only a year later, built the RPG genre in a way that would allow growth away from the stereotypical fantasy world.
Set in a futuristic, science fiction world, the SEGA RPG created the first female lead characters, Alis Landsdale, animated monster encounters, and set the scope of the world to multiple planets. Though somewhat overshadowed by multiple releases in the same genre, the SEGA classic is still considered to be groundbreaking in many respects and remains one of the key components in the genre.
6 Panzer Dragoon - Rail Shooter
The rail shooter genre relies on specific routes through each game's levels, usually from a third-person perspective behind the player character. Though modern-day audiences are less likely to find games that use this mechanic, some classics are still popular, and for good reason.
Rail shooters like Star Fox, Star Wars: Rebel Assault, and Rez still have their audience, and the games are still fun to play. Panzer Dragoon helped to define the genre, as with the development of technology, it was capable of doing so much more. Environments are huge, enemies are detailed, and gameplay is slick. The game spawned multiple sequels and is still popular today.
5 House Of The Dead - Light Gun
A light gun game differs from rail shooters in that the player character is immersed in the environment and takes an active role as it relies on the gamer's own judgment, aim, and skills. Early games like Duck Hunt are certainly popular in their own right and deserve their place in history for carving out a place for the genre; however, it does not define them.
House Of The Dead developed out of similar games, but its popularity in the arcades forced other light gun games to develop around it rather than branch away from it. Though multiple attempts to create the success of the game have been made, it remains one of the most popular in the series because of how well it succeeds at what it does.
4 SEGA Bass Fishing - Fishing Simulator
There are games in the world for everyone, and while fishing often plays a smaller mini-game role in many genres, only SEGA Bass Fishing managed to build a whole genre around itself. Few games rival the dedication to the sport of fishing the way this does, and it is still ported across to different platforms today.
As with many of the successes from SEGA, this game was a hit in the arcades before it made its way to the domestic market. Even now, there are limited games that center on fishing, and none have reached the popularity of this SEGA classic.
3 Shenmue - Open City Action/Adventure
Open-world games have been around since the days of text adventure games, and different innovations in technology have advanced the genre with games like The Legend of Zelda. Shenmue was released on the SEGA Dreamcast and came with a level of detail that had not existed in open-world games until that time.
The protagonist, Ryo Hazuki, exists in a fixed world that very closely replicates the real world and setting of 1980's Japan and in doing so, the player can more deeply feel the impacts of street fighting and the assassination of Ryo's father.
2 Phantasy Star Online - 3D MMORPG
Although MMORPG games were available before the release of Phantasy Star Online, none were available on consoles. SEGA's release allowed any console gamer with a Dreamcast to be able to play and connect with others through their servers.
This iteration of the RPG series was unrelated to previous game releases, but its development helped to define the genre and future dungeon crawler-type games. While the last release of the series was in 2010, the game is so popular that it is still played on private servers.
1 Sonic The Hedgehog - Platformer
Prior to SEGA's release of their mascot's first game, the platformer genre was limited to relatively slow-paced games that focused on careful timing and cautious jumps. Super Mario Bros. is the classic example of what was expected of a platformer and is an enjoyable game in its own right; however, while it inspired Sonic The Hedgehog, SEGA took a huge leap in its gameplay development.
Instead of relying on patience and timing, the SEGA platformer put speed at the forefront. Dangers were still there, but the assumption that a player needed to move slowly was tossed out the window, and from that point, platform games became less stiff and more fast-paced.