Is It Region Locked? - Now It's Easy To Find Out!

I have some info on Sega Genesis/Mega Drive games. It has been gathered from various sources and my own tests with both truly region-locked and semi-region locked games. Some of it may be wrong but I have talked to some experts on the subject and I believe it is correct. If I am wrong, please let me know and I'll edit this post accordingly.

Genesis/Mega Drive games are region-locked but it doesn't appear like it is because of the way it works. Many games on the MD have 4 versions for each of the 4 regions built into the cart: Japanese 60Hz (Japan), English 60Hz (North America), English 50Hz (PAL Europe), and Japanese 50Hz (PAL Asia). The game checks the region of the console and plays the version for that region. This is why when you play a PAL copy of Streets of Rage in a Japanese Mega Drive, it will play the Japanese version in Japanese and 60Hz instead of English and 50Hz. If the game is truly region-locked, you will get a red screen with a region error message and you can't play the game without switching the console to the correct region (via mods) or using a correct region Mega Drive.

Also, there is a physical lockout too as mentioned before. The carts are shaped different but cutting the tabs in a Genesis, PAL Europe MD, or 32X will make them fit. The original Japanese Mega Drive model 1 has a locking mechanism that locks into the carts to prevent them from being ejected while the system is on. This prevents American/European games from being inserted into the system. You can take out this mechanism easily though or use a 32X.

The 32X is similar. The language is controlled by the MD but the 50/60Hz is controlled by both the console and the 32X. If you put an NTSC 32X into a PAL unit, PAL MD games will work fine but PAL 32X games will give a black screen, even if you set the MD to 60Hz mode. You will have to use a PAL 32X or modify the 32X to use PAL games. As for Japanese games, the NTSC 32X systems are identical except for the top shell and stickers on the bottom shell. Using a Super 32X in an unmodified Genesis will play American 32X games but not Japanese games and vice versa for Genesis 32X in an unmodified Japanese MD. There is a jumper in the 32X that controls 50/60Hz. Changing it with a switch will allow you to play PAL games on an NTSC 32X and NTSC games on a PAL 32X.

In my tests, I have found games that are the same for every region language-wise. The only difference I can see between the Japanese copy of Sonic 2 and the English copy is in the options menu. Tails is called Tails in the English release but he is called Miles in the Japanese release. I tried Mortal Kombat and it played in English in both Japanese MD mode and American Genesis mode. I saw no difference in Sonic 1 and Sonic & Knuckles either. Out of my two 32X games, Virtua Racing Deluxe gave a black screen with a region error message when in Japanese mode. Mortal Kombat 2 played fine.


Now a question... is my beloved 7800 really region locked?? I thought it was only a video output issue

 

It's a combination of things - the NTSC 7800 has a digital signature on the games, and if it's not there then the cart will be booted in 2600 mode. Since at the time the US was trying to restrict the export of cryptography this was not included in the PAL release, and hence the PAL games didn't have the signatures in them. As a result, a PAL game plugged into a NTSC 7800 will be misidentified as a 2600 cart and won't work.

Since the PAL console doesn't have these checks, they will boot NTSC games - but a lot of titles still don't work because of video timing issues.

Also note that if you put the PAL boot ROM into a NTSC machine, it will work, and will boot both PAL and NTSC games - but the PAL games may or may not work anyway because of the video compatibility issues. On top of this, I'm not aware of any "PAL only" 7800 releases, so it all seems a bit pointless.

 

On your website, it says " Microsoft Xbox | KINDA | Game-specific locking "

I think it's not the correct way to describe this console's region protection...
Yes, there are for sure a couple of region free games for this console...

From the top of my head: American Army NTSC-U works without chip on a PAL console (can't think of any others right now, as I just woke up).
But what I'm trying to say is, this is the same case for the Sega Saturn... as for instance Virtua Racing NTSC-U works also without a chip on a PAL console (and maybe NTSC-J console too?). I honestly don't know of any other games without protection...

Just thought this would counter your description. Interesting site for the uninitiated. Kudos.

 

Wikipedia has all the region free games listed for the Xbox.

 

Exactly, but it isn't console related, it's because of the games, so the statement 'game-specific locking' is void...
That's why I brought the example of the Saturn game to notion.

 

I would argue that - at least from a technical point of view - the Saturn and the Xbox had the same kind of territory lockout. In both cases, the console had a defined territory and the discs were coded to indicate which console territories they would boot on.

In fact, this is exactly the same way the current generation consoles work - the difference is that now the console vendors are suggesting that in principle every disc should be multiple region - but this is a political change, not a technical one.

 

Uh, as it was stated, it seemed to me this implies the region coding was only applied to SOME games (as it clearly says 'game-specific').
Guess I think on a different level. Hence me saying it's exactly the same as the Saturn. Which you agree upon.

 

But the console isn't region locked... It will play games from other regions fine, if the game allows it. So it's not a locked console, but a locked game.

Suppose I can agree it blurs the line a little, but I agree with how it's described on the site currently

 

I use the term game-specific locking to just to broadly imply that some games will run without a mod and that the system doesn't have a clear "YES ALL GAMES WILL NOT WORK" or "NO ALL GAMES WILL" distinction. For the average user, I think it makes sense to use a term that is more easily understandable and concise than correct. However, I don't like being wrong, so I think that adding some kind of clarification about how the system actually works can't hurt. This is probably something we should talk about over PM so I can ask my dum-dum questions about how to explain something.

 

Gameboy player on gamecube kinda is region locked in a way, more to do with video out put when you run a ntsc GBP on a PAL GC

 

That's not region locking

 

...again, in my opinion, this concludes that the game AND the console are locked to match a specific region. If a game from another region isn't locked, of course that console will play the game without problems, but it doesn't mean that the console ISN'T locked too, otherwise ALL games would work. I understand that therefore the notion 'game-specific' is stated, but to be more precise, I think it would be best to just say that SOME games will work on any console and the consoles are still region-locked (depending on the console's XBE, and only a modchip or softmod will fully circumvent this).

I will stop ranting about this now, because it's getting a bit silly, glad I managed to get my point across, lol.


About the GBP topic: exactly, it has to do with the region of the boot disc. The GB/GBA games don't have region coding.
Pretty sure you could boot up any region boot disc on any region GBP (if you have a modchip or bios selector switch installed, or even by use of a Freeloader)
(for instance the Q model: had a Viper in the Pana Q, which I'm pretty sure would've enabled me to boot a PAL boot disc for that specific model GBP).

 

I can see what you are saying, but dumbing it down to "game specific" covers both angles really - be that the definition that the console is locked and some games work, or its not locked and some games dont work - still come down to a game by game basis, rather than a blanket statement of locked or not locked.

For the basis of the website, it tells people they will need to check if that game will work - which is pretty much the point of the site from how I see it.

 

Are you mentioning playing movies on consoles such as PS2/PS3/PS4/360/Xbox One (probably others as well) as well since they're still region-locked? I mean, you did mention UMD movies being region locked.

Either way, cool little site to do a quick check. I like how it's nice and simple for those that aren't as tech-savvy.

 

Well movies are a different ball game.

 

For movies most DVD consoles are region locked to whichever region the system was sold in (e.g. a US/Canadian PS2 will only play Region 1 games, but a Mexican one will play Region 4, and both play NTSC-U games). I don't know of any that are off the shelf region free, but I don't want to be wrong.
Blu-Rays are the same way (except there's less regions, so a US and Mexican one are the same region), but it's more common for commercially available movies to be region free, so, for instance, a British copy of Sherlock will play on my US PS3, because the disc is region free.

 

Well there are multiple DVD regions for PAL alone...

 

If it's like NTSC-U, different consoles from different countries will have different DVD region codes, while they'll all play PAL games.

 

thats what I said

 

I'm probably going to make a note on it. I feel like DVD region encoding is common knowledge, but I may be wrong.