This is the version I played first. I absolutely loved it. In that desert level, I thought I was a genius when you get that 1up by putting your head on the Mickey ears.
I love the Mickey ears secret. My sister and I organically found it growing up because we both thought it'd be hilarious to see him with them on. It takes a little back and forth to get him lined up but we were completely blown away when we got rewarded for getting him to "wear" them!
I like how thrown daggers can actually slice your thrown apples in half and you actually see that happen. Attention to detail there! I'd like to see a review for the Jungle Book too, a great game that one.
I wish i could see the cancelled Blue Sky's version that angered Sega and Disney so much they threatened to pull the license. Only assumption was it would have been similar to their Jurassic Park games.
I bought a copy of Aladdin for the Genesis early this month from the retro game store that's close to where I live. In box with manual at a fair price along with Road Rash II. Aladdin is a well made platform that's well worth the play through now and then. Definitely agree that the platform in later levels can be frustrating if you mistime the jump. Aladdin may not be my favorite Disney movie, but the game on the Genesis is one of my top favorite games for the system along with Shinobi III, The Lion King, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and 3 with Knuckles, Golden Axe and more. PS. That poor Sebastian hanging by the chains in the dark dungeon when finding a way out with Aladdin.
This was indeed a good game. The animation of everything is just outstanding. I wish Sega had made as big of a deal out of that in their advertising as Nintendo did with their pre-rendered DKC graphics. However this never became one of my favorites. There's something about that quick erratic scrolling which is in so many of the Virgin/Dave Perry games that bothers me a lot. Also the sound/music was pretty good for Gems, but I always felt it sounded a bit thin/primitive due to the lack of bass or really any kind of low end. Lastly I felt that carpet ride stage went on for too long and just wasn't that interesting (it would be pretty cool if it were shorter). Still it's good enough for most people and it was a hit for Sega. It also brought a lot of customers to the Genesis so overall it's good that this title exists.
It was great for its time. A lot of even the best games from back in the day are antiquated now though, like this classic. The games that hold up best are from the 5th & 6th gens. 5th gen 2D games shed most of the restrictions which plagued them, and the same can be said for 3D games during the 6th generation. Think Castlevania:SOTN and Metal Gear Solid 2, respectively.
10:23 Personally I love the hectic, chaotic nature of the final boss. Jafar's staff pull, the constant streams of fire wherever you stood, along with his projectiles, all made for a challenging battle. Admittedly the SNES version's final boss did a better job in terms of presentation, but the difficulty was far lower than the Genesis version.
I think the SNES version has more charm tbh, i might be a bit biased because i owned that one. Some of the levels did have decent challenge but yeah the bosses did leave a bit to be desired in overall difficulty. Still a good game (the SNES version) IMO.
I've owned this game since it originally released when I was a little kid and I still to this day often run through it just for fun. It's piss easy yet still fun. The platforming is definitely where most of the difficulty stems from. The initial lava level makes me wanna pull my hair out sometimes when I get hit by those lava splashes as I try to jump across the rocks. It's just overall fun despite the lack luster story content. There is barely an ending if you want to even call it that. The whole game had walls of text and large sprite work to tell the story and then when you beat the game you get none of that. I kinda wish they had remastered and improved the game when they did the collection that was released with the Lion King game.
If they had changed anything about the games in the collection, people would’ve complained non stop because gamers are the most entitled group of people on planet earth.
@@Rountree1985 if they had made any changes I would expect they’d have the option to play the original or remaster from the menu. But, yeah, if something like that wasn’t setup and only the edited version was playable we could expect mostly peaceful riots.
This is currently available on the Switch in a Disney 16bit game collection, with Lion King and Jungle Book. It has the Snes and Sega version of Aladdin which is a nice touch.
That version can be extracted and played on original hardware and it's kind of fun. I'm more of a SNES version fan, but playing the Final Cut version on my original Genesis is great. Just some slight changed and improvements.
I love both of the Aladdin games so much! I'm so happy both are now available on every modern platform, and the director's cut of this one that's included with them is awesome!
I remember if you position Aladdin to where his idle animation lines his head up with the Mickey ears on the clothes line you get an extra life. Good times.
I remember I got this Sega Mega Drive game for Christmas when I was kid. I loved to watch the Disney's Aladdin movie with my mom and after the 2nd watching I tried out the game and I had fun from the first level. I still find this video game quite good and entertaining nowadays.
I was a SNES fan as a kid, but even then I always would admit when the Genesis had the better version. MKI, MKII and Aladdin are my goto examples of this.
I’m from Toronto and back in the days my dad would take me and my brother to the Bay, which was across the street from the Eaton Centre. There were Sega machines spread next to each other, each with a different game and Aladdin was one of them!
My older sister got me this game for Xmas after seeing it at her friend's house. It was the best animated game I'd ever seen and I suppose it might even be one of the best animated games of the 16 bit gen overall. Spot on review SLX.
This game has one of the biggest difficulty spikes I've ever seen. The level "The Escape" right before the rug ride took me forever to beat back in the day.
Aladdin is one of the best games ever! I still play it today on my 75" LG, and it still looks fantastic! You should people's jaws drop, when I tell them the game is almost 30 years-old! Excellent video Sega Lord X!!!
A lot of games was ruined with an insane difficulty.! For the life of me I don’t see why they incorporated one hit kill for contra hard corpse when translating the game
I found The Lion King to be a better put together game. Some of the difficulty is brutal for a children's game, and the Adult Simba levels are tedious if you don't know how to fight enemies properly, but on the whole it feels less sloppy with better hit detection, less camera issues, and better teaching elements.
@@ultrairrelevantnobody1862 Lion king,Aladdin,jungle book Toy story. 16-bit gaming was plagued with a difficulty and repetitiveness that started to find solutions in the 32 but era
@@48hourrecordsteam45 I played through Aladdin and Jungle Book recently and find them both OK difficulty-wise. Toy Story ratchets up the difficulty once you get to the early Buzz boss, and Lion King is just next-level hard IMO
Great review! Would you believe that this entire game was slammed together in a measly three months?! (CORRECTION: It was actually closer to 10) Apparently it uses the same game engine as Global Gladiators (which was made prior). The sprite animation is some of the best I've ever seen in any video game--Nintendo themselves were so scared stiff by it (and the fact that it was a HUGE seller for the Genesis--seriously, its the third best selling game on the console behind Sonic 1 and 2) that the reason they pushed Rareware to adapt to CGI sprites was to give the SNES a game that would look just as good if not better (i.e. Donkey Kong Country, Killer Instinct)! Even Shinji Mikami, the head of the Capcom Aladdin game for SNES, lauded the Genesis version as superior to his own game (though I'll add that the SNES Aladdin is a great game in its own right too). Both this and Sonic the Hedgehog 2 are among my all time favorite side-scrollers to this day.
Yeah Virgin only had the license to develop the game for that narrow window. Whole team was sleeping at the office on permanent crunch, though they volunteered to do it after being asked if they thought it was possible. And they still went and created a whole new art transcription method...
You can think to do a review from Master System version? I remember when I was a Kid play this, and I think this version is more "faithful" to the original movie than SNES and Genesis versions.
That german review at 8:51 was from my absolute favorite VG magazine back in the day ("Video Games") and it's from the very issue (11/93) that started my collection. I have bought every single issue going forward until they sadly had to shut down in 2001. Never would've thought to see an excerpt of it once in an american game review video on youtube XD Thanks for that sweet extra bit of nostalgia :-)
If you would have asked me as a kid, I would have swore that this cart had special chips not just for the gfx but for the MUSIC. I swear these tunes sounded spot on to the movie in my memory, but they were just GEMS?? Amazing SLX!!
The words 'timeless classic' get tossed around pretty fast and loose these days, usually simply to describe a game that was once popular that the person making the declaration also liked. I never 'loved' the Aladdin game when it came out, I was chomping at the bit for SF2 and other more 'mature' games. I've gone back many times over the years and it never fails to impress me. When we look at the resurgence of pixel art graphics, games like Aladdin, Gunstar Heroes and other 16bit power houses can still be said to hold up in the graphics department and often in most aspects of the gameplay too.
Fun game. Great visuals. Good music. Fun levels with the occasional difficulty spike here and there. Primarily with the cave escape levels. SNES and Genesis versions are both great, but I'll always prefer the Genesis version. I will say that people sleep on the Game Gear & Master System versions, though.
I was quite surprised at how closely the Game Gear version follows the movie with its cut scenes. The auto running level were a cool difference, especially with Jasmine keeping up in her street disguise. Plus, you get to play Aladdin in his Prince Ali clothes when in the palace.
I really like this game a ton. I actually didn’t play it first on the Mega Drive (I’m originally from the UK) but on the Amiga 1200. It’s very similar and plays fairly well but the MD version is better (usual suspects, smoother gameplay and better controls) and also love the SNES version. I love that there are two great takes on this game to enjoy who cares fighting over which one is best or better BITD, just go play the games and enjoy it in the present :)
I always say there is no better version. Either you prefer one or the other, there is no wrong answer. Too many people get hung up on trying to say one game is objectively better than another and that’s just dumb. Everyone is different and no two people are going to like the exact same games.
I've been playing Aladdin alot recently. It still surprises me that a good bit of the licensed Disney games on Genesis were actual high quality productions and not just cheap cash grabs like most licensed games were.
My friend had a Genesis, and this was one of the first games he had that really impressed me at that time (this and Streets of Rage 2). Just two extremely well made games that were visually as impressive as just about anything I'd played on my SNES, in some ways more so
This is one of the first games I bought for my Genesis and I still enjoy playing it once in a while. The visuals still hold up and is a great game overall. And to think that this game was indirectly responsible for the creation of Donkey Kong Country after Nintendo saw it at CES and wanted to make something visually stunning too.
Never played this as a kid but I saw it at my cousins house and thought it was the coolest thing ever. Aladdin had a sword. SNES didn’t have that and to me that made this 1000x better
Aladdin is a perfect example of a movie game done justice, proper usage of the material, proper translation into videogame form, fun to play, easy to learn and affordable to all even to this day. Very few games have those many accolades or can boast about them being 100% truth. Superior to the SNES version in every single way no matter what the blind fanbots say. Too bad good and dedicated developers like that team aren't around anymore.
Capcom had much better talent when it comes to level design, and it showed. Notice how the Genesis version has enemies off screen attacking you, bad hit detection, unforgiving platforming, that carpet level, and the Jaffar fight is extremely bland. SNES version is a delight from start to finish!
@@madspunky Both games have their pros and cons. Unfortunately, the SNES version's slowdown, bad animation, low res and actual repetitive and bad level design cemented the reason why it was the Genesis/MD version the one to grace most retro-collections and featured into some re-releases exactly how Dracula X: Rondo of Blood for the PCEngine/TG16 is the one being re-released twice a day and thrice on sunday and the SNES version remains forgotten and shelved. The SNES version is objectively inferior and the money hungry corporations know that, so they won't try to sell what won't sell. There are loads of vastly superior games for the SNES where the Genesis version looks and sounds like a joke, like Zombies Ate My Neighbors, Rock'n Roll Racing, Sunset Riders, TMNT Turtles in Time and Tournament Fighters, etc. Sadly, SNES Aladding ain't one of those.
@@YeOldeGamerGrampsofOlde I honestly don't recall slowdown on the SNES version, nor anybody else complaining about that. But if that's a concern to you, point taken. Same goes for resolution. But to say bad animation is a stretch too far. Granted, the Sega version has amazing animation. So if that's your cup of tea, enjoy! I can't agree with you saying the level design is repetitive and bad. I see plenty of variation, and the use of your jumping/gliding/hanging abilities often means there are multiple ways to tackle obstacles. Generally speaking, level design is considered to be better on the SNES. Not to mention the bosses and gameplay. ua-cam.com/video/Cjf_zmUihLc/v-deo.html ua-cam.com/video/qUfJEp_B77s/v-deo.html ua-cam.com/video/jh_S-HoOxFE/v-deo.html Saying certain versions of a game are being re-released means it is better is not good logic. That would mean the newer versions of Star Wars are also better than the originals. You use statements like 'superior in every way', and 'objectively inferior', but please be aware that many people prefer the Nintendo version.
@@madspunky The wordage I used is accurate. Some game versions are *objecrively* inferior because their graphics, sounds, gameplay and design are *objectively* of lower quatlity than the ones being compared against. SNES's Aladdin's graphical fidelity to source material is *objectively* not as detailed for instance and doesn't run at 60fps unlike SEGA's. Those are *objective* comparisons. Since you are bringing up consumer preference, it is *objectively* obvious which Aladdin version if superior when the one being sold, distributed and purchased is the Genesis/MD version. Same case as with Earthworm Jim games even on Nintendo's own Virtual Console shop which were the SEGA Genesis ones for both content, FPS and Graphics *objectively* . Like the dudes at Console Wars UA-cam channel say: _"The Best Aladdin goes to SEGA Genesis."_
Not only is this game a classic imho, it will always be near and dear to my heart because it was the first ever game my mom bought for me along with the Genesis.
Once again I start my comment saying , Great Video Lord X. I never played Aladdin back when it was released, and really still haven't to my shame, however, my wife , who is pretty much 90% a non gamer, this is her favourite game. She is a massive Disney fan and !over this game. When I started retro collecting 2018 (although I have games since the early 80s) my wife got me a Megadrive, so I picked this up of EBay just for her to play and relive. It's been great fun watching her play it again.
Aladdin was a childhood favorite of mine, both the movie and the Sega Genesis version of the game...it was because of the movie I grew to like Robbin Williams as a actor and the game in my eyes captured the feel of the movie. Still remember as a kid discovering the extra life in the desert level, if you position Aladdin so when he leans forward and is aligned under the mickey mouse ears so it looks like he is wearing them, a extra life will appear...discovered that by pure accident from just jokingly trying to make it look like he was wearing them
This game was (and still is) impressive on all fronts! I rented this as a kid and I was blown away by its quality. It definitely stands as one of the better action platformers on the Genesis. I do miss the days where consoles get their own version of a particular game. The SNES Aladdin game is quite fun as well. I think my only issue with this game is some of the level design. It isn't always easy to tell where you need to jump to next or even what constitutes a solid platform. I recall there being some really tight jumps in some levels. If you missed some of these nearly pixel-perfect leaps, it usually was instant death. I think I burned through multiple lives just on a couple jumps in particular.
Great review SLX! Great Graphics and a fun game! Growing up my family didn't have much. I had two games, sonic 2 and Aladdin. My dad worked so much I hardly saw him. I remember him sleeping on the couch one afternoon and I was stuck at the cave area in this game. I woke him up and asked could he helped me. He was dead tired but said sure but I don't know what I'm doing he died consecutively and we laughed so hard! RIP dad! I love you!
i cant thank my dad enough for getting this game before i was born. this, along with the revenge of shinobi, grew to be some of the most amazing games i ever grew up playing.
The very first videogame I've ever played and still one of my favorites to this day. Imagine starting your gaming journey with this. Disney games in the 16 bit era were epic for the most part. I owned this, The Lion King, The Jungle Book, Mickey and Donald: World of Illusion; and Mickey Mania and they were all awesome.
I put so many hours into this game that I fried the AC adapter of my Genesis. When I finally played the SNES version, it couldn't compare to the Genesis version. Sword vs jumping on heads.
I love this game so much, even 30 years on. I've bought and sold so many Megadrives over the years, but whenever I buy one, this is one of the games I make sure to get. It's just so damn enjoyable! So much fun, beautiful to look at, and the SFX and music are gorgeous.
Great review. Even more better is that it's available as part of the Disney Classic Games that has this game you reviewed, The Lion King and The Jungle Book. It's available for Nintendo Switch, PS4 & Xbox One. And it has a rewind feature so if you make a mistake, rewind and try again without costing you lives.
Wonderful game. Was pack in here in Northern Ireland for the Mega drive 2, and they basically did a Amiga inspired " cartoon classics" pack in my local tandy. Came with full size box versions of World of Illusion, Aladdin, Tiny Toon Adventure, Fantastic Dizzy and Hyperstone Heist. So many of my mates ended up with that bundle, and I'd been lucky to get a md1 in 1992 with sonic 1, and then sonic 2 at Xmas 92 that year, so I'd been long ahead of collecting, so we always did great swaps etc. Great game Aladdin, easily one of the best 15 minutes of drop in drop out games on the platform.
Love both the Genesis and SNES ports but I felt the SNES version was too easy, could beat it under 20 minutes wear as the Genesis version had more variety and challenge to it. Still had just as much fun with both though.
The SNES version is easy indeed, but there's a secret hard mode in the game Try collecting all the red gems in the game, you need to do it with no continues and in one go. To this day I was never able to do it and I played this game to death as a kid
As someone who had the Sega Genesis version of Aladdin, it was practically lightning in a bottle: especially because of the fluidity of the graphics. My only complaint with it is "The Escape" level with the rolling boulders and lava pits. Also, there is a reason why the Genie's "WOW!" voice sample isn't from Robin Williams. He agreed to do the part for the 1992 film, on the condition that Disney wouldn't use Genie for advertising/commercial purposes without Williams' consent. While Disney mostly didn't respect what he wanted, he eventually reprised the role years later.
I absolutely love this game. It’s one of the best licensed games I have ever played! The graphics and sound are fantastic, the level design is pretty solid, and the difficulty, while high ( even on easy mode), is still fair. 9/10 game here. One of the best on the Genesis
I remember I was with 2 of my friends in high school when 1 of them bought this game at the time. Before buying this game, he wasn't sure on what game to buy. It was down to Aladdin or Maxinum Carnage that my other friend suggested. Finally he listened to me & bought Aladdin. Unfortunately he didn't like the game & regreted buying it because he said it looked like something his kid sister at the time who was I would say 5 years younger than us would play. He couldn't beat the 1st level. I love this game. I beat this back in the day. I didn't know they make pass that dodging level when you ride the carpet dodging rocks after 3 deaths. Great game.
I do remember renting genesis aladdin back then it was definitely a fun time! seriously thinking about picking up the aladdin/lion king collection, especially now with the deluxe edition which adds the jungle book games AND Capcom's SNES aladdin. had no idea the music was composed in GEMS, definitely tommy tallarico and co. worked some magic with that it usually doesn't sound that good!!
Thanks for touching on the merits of both versions. Though I appreciate the achievements of the Genesis version, I’ve always preferred the SNES one. I never liked the questionable hit detection in the Genesis one (and probably not coincidentally, I have the same issue with Earthworm Jim). My little story is, I still remember when I walked into a Babbage’s store thinking about getting the Genesis one, when the salesperson said “Get the SNES one, it’s better”. Again, it’s just a matter of preference, I just think it’s interesting that even back then there was a debate :)
First heard about this game from the Happy Video Game Nerd (now known as Stop Skeletons From Fighting) when he briefly mentioned it during his Disney Capcom games review. Then, when I started truly retro game collecting in 2011, Aladdin was part of one of the first video game bundles I found in a thrift store (which also came with Earthworm Jim 2, Killer Instinct and, ahem... Barney's Hide & Seek Game... among others...). Aladdin, to this day, is a top 10 Sega Genesis game for me. So much fun to play and look at. I will agree that the game is on the easy side but, as someone who still enjoys the Kirby series, that's clearly not an issue for me. A little over a year ago, I finally got my hands on the Super Nintendo version of the game and holy crap it's also an incredible game! I will say I ever so slightly prefer the Genesis game and will say it edges out the win in most categories but one thing the SNES version dominates is story presentation. I wasn't too bothered by the boxed portraits for the usual cutscenes in Genesis Aladdin but that ending scene left me wanting SO much more. Capcom delivered with SNES Aladdin not just with the ending but all the cutscenes in the game. Anyway, the point is both games are must plays for anyone with a Sega Genesis, Super Nintendo or whatever current system that has that Disney games collection that came out recently
This is the version I played first. I absolutely loved it. In that desert level, I thought I was a genius when you get that 1up by putting your head on the Mickey ears.
Wow. I played through this game couple of Times but never knew that.
Wait...what????
I love the Mickey ears secret. My sister and I organically found it growing up because we both thought it'd be hilarious to see him with them on. It takes a little back and forth to get him lined up but we were completely blown away when we got rewarded for getting him to "wear" them!
@@Trinigoth same. I remember I was messing around and was like whooooa
I never knew that! I'll be definitely trying this out.
Absolute classic.
Yo sup Geekdom101
i GoT iNsIdEr InFo
I like how thrown daggers can actually slice your thrown apples in half and you actually see that happen. Attention to detail there!
I'd like to see a review for the Jungle Book too, a great game that one.
That's amazing.
Fun fact: Doug Tenapel of Earthworm Jim fame worked on Jungle Book.
In The kingdom of 16bits superior versions, there is a king : Megadrive Aladdin.
I played this at McDonald's at my friends birthday party. They had segas and TVs in the play place but I've never seen another like that
Nickelodeon Studios used to have the same kiosks in the wait line outside of the building in the 90s. I was there in '97
I wish i could see the cancelled Blue Sky's version that angered Sega and Disney so much they threatened to pull the license.
Only assumption was it would have been similar to their Jurassic Park games.
I'd love to see Aladdin wasting dinosaurs with a machine gun.
@@GameSack Someone should make a hack that adds Aladdin as the player in Jurassic Park Rampage Edition :)
Cancelled games are infinitely fascinating to me, I wish we could see that.
This is a thing? I never heard about that.
Ohhh a man of cultura n the comments
I bought a copy of Aladdin for the Genesis early this month from the retro game store that's close to where I live. In box with manual at a fair price along with Road Rash II.
Aladdin is a well made platform that's well worth the play through now and then. Definitely agree that the platform in later levels can be frustrating if you mistime the jump.
Aladdin may not be my favorite Disney movie, but the game on the Genesis is one of my top favorite games for the system along with Shinobi III, The Lion King, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and 3 with Knuckles, Golden Axe and more.
PS. That poor Sebastian hanging by the chains in the dark dungeon when finding a way out with Aladdin.
This was indeed a good game. The animation of everything is just outstanding. I wish Sega had made as big of a deal out of that in their advertising as Nintendo did with their pre-rendered DKC graphics. However this never became one of my favorites. There's something about that quick erratic scrolling which is in so many of the Virgin/Dave Perry games that bothers me a lot. Also the sound/music was pretty good for Gems, but I always felt it sounded a bit thin/primitive due to the lack of bass or really any kind of low end. Lastly I felt that carpet ride stage went on for too long and just wasn't that interesting (it would be pretty cool if it were shorter). Still it's good enough for most people and it was a hit for Sega. It also brought a lot of customers to the Genesis so overall it's good that this title exists.
It was great for its time. A lot of even the best games from back in the day are antiquated now though, like this classic.
The games that hold up best are from the 5th & 6th gens. 5th gen 2D games shed most of the restrictions which plagued them, and the same can be said for 3D games during the 6th generation. Think Castlevania:SOTN and Metal Gear Solid 2, respectively.
patiently waiting for that GS x SLX sega collab video
@@thecunninlynguist Entirely in stop motion
Oh Hi Joe
Jungle Book is a better game for Genesis
10:23
Personally I love the hectic, chaotic nature of the final boss. Jafar's staff pull, the constant streams of fire wherever you stood, along with his projectiles, all made for a challenging battle. Admittedly the SNES version's final boss did a better job in terms of presentation, but the difficulty was far lower than the Genesis version.
I think the SNES version has more charm tbh, i might be a bit biased because i owned that one. Some of the levels did have decent challenge but yeah the bosses did leave a bit to be desired in overall difficulty. Still a good game (the SNES version) IMO.
I've owned this game since it originally released when I was a little kid and I still to this day often run through it just for fun. It's piss easy yet still fun. The platforming is definitely where most of the difficulty stems from. The initial lava level makes me wanna pull my hair out sometimes when I get hit by those lava splashes as I try to jump across the rocks. It's just overall fun despite the lack luster story content. There is barely an ending if you want to even call it that. The whole game had walls of text and large sprite work to tell the story and then when you beat the game you get none of that. I kinda wish they had remastered and improved the game when they did the collection that was released with the Lion King game.
If they had changed anything about the games in the collection, people would’ve complained non stop because gamers are the most entitled group of people on planet earth.
@@Rountree1985 if they had made any changes I would expect they’d have the option to play the original or remaster from the menu. But, yeah, if something like that wasn’t setup and only the edited version was playable we could expect mostly peaceful riots.
This is currently available on the Switch in a Disney 16bit game collection, with Lion King and Jungle Book. It has the Snes and Sega version of Aladdin which is a nice touch.
That version can be extracted and played on original hardware and it's kind of fun. I'm more of a SNES version fan, but playing the Final Cut version on my original Genesis is great. Just some slight changed and improvements.
It's on all consoles.
And it also has rewind feature so if you make a mistake, you rewind and try again without costing you lives.
If it's on sale for under £10 I'll buy it
@@Windavinci Did you buy it?
I love both of the Aladdin games so much! I'm so happy both are now available on every modern platform, and the director's cut of this one that's included with them is awesome!
This is one of my favorite Sega Genesis games and too this day i go back and play it every so often that's how much i love this game
Aladdin and The Lion King were some of my favourite games for the Mega Drive when I was a kid. Great memories!
Sega definitely delivered a knock out with Aladdin and I still have original case
Even as a teen, this game was hard to deny its beauty and fun factor. When we really wanted blood and guts this game was amazing and I had to have it.
I agree it was fun to play back then
I had no idea the music was jems. This blows my mind I never knew
I remember if you position Aladdin to where his idle animation lines his head up with the Mickey ears on the clothes line you get an extra life. Good times.
I remember I got this Sega Mega Drive game for Christmas when I was kid.
I loved to watch the Disney's Aladdin movie with my mom and after the 2nd watching I tried out the game and I had fun from the first level.
I still find this video game quite good and entertaining nowadays.
I love going to bed and then SLX releases a video for me to watch just before sleeping.
I was a SNES fan as a kid, but even then I always would admit when the Genesis had the better version. MKI, MKII and Aladdin are my goto examples of this.
MK2 is a toss up for me. SNES version was killer.
Prefer mk2 snes version over the downgraded genesis port. Even with the choppy frame animation and background detail on the armory stage.
No comparaison. Snin Aladdin IS a nice plateformee. Megadrive Aladdin... IS Aladdin.
MK2 was way better on snes. MK1, I agree, but 2? Nop.
Doom is better on 32x
I’m from Toronto and back in the days my dad would take me and my brother to the Bay, which was across the street from the Eaton Centre. There were Sega machines spread next to each other, each with a different game and Aladdin was one of them!
My older sister got me this game for Xmas after seeing it at her friend's house. It was the best animated game I'd ever seen and I suppose it might even be one of the best animated games of the 16 bit gen overall. Spot on review SLX.
This game has one of the biggest difficulty spikes I've ever seen. The level "The Escape" right before the rug ride took me forever to beat back in the day.
Aladdin is one of the best games ever!
I still play it today on my 75" LG, and it still looks fantastic!
You should people's jaws drop, when I tell them the game is almost 30 years-old!
Excellent video Sega Lord X!!!
I love this game. It absolutely holds up. IMO, Lion King doesn't hold up as well due to its difficulty.
A lot of games was ruined with an insane difficulty.!
For the life of me I don’t see why they incorporated one hit kill for contra hard corpse when translating the game
I found The Lion King to be a better put together game. Some of the difficulty is brutal for a children's game, and the Adult Simba levels are tedious if you don't know how to fight enemies properly, but on the whole it feels less sloppy with better hit detection, less camera issues, and better teaching elements.
@@ultrairrelevantnobody1862
Lion king,Aladdin,jungle book
Toy story.
16-bit gaming was plagued with a difficulty and repetitiveness that started to find solutions in the 32 but era
@@48hourrecordsteam45
Toy Story (PAL version) has a password system. Greatly glad for that; one sitting games are a hard sell for me nowadays.
@@48hourrecordsteam45 I played through Aladdin and Jungle Book recently and find them both OK difficulty-wise. Toy Story ratchets up the difficulty once you get to the early Buzz boss, and Lion King is just next-level hard IMO
Great review! Would you believe that this entire game was slammed together in a measly three months?! (CORRECTION: It was actually closer to 10) Apparently it uses the same game engine as Global Gladiators (which was made prior). The sprite animation is some of the best I've ever seen in any video game--Nintendo themselves were so scared stiff by it (and the fact that it was a HUGE seller for the Genesis--seriously, its the third best selling game on the console behind Sonic 1 and 2) that the reason they pushed Rareware to adapt to CGI sprites was to give the SNES a game that would look just as good if not better (i.e. Donkey Kong Country, Killer Instinct)! Even Shinji Mikami, the head of the Capcom Aladdin game for SNES, lauded the Genesis version as superior to his own game (though I'll add that the SNES Aladdin is a great game in its own right too). Both this and Sonic the Hedgehog 2 are among my all time favorite side-scrollers to this day.
Yeah Virgin only had the license to develop the game for that narrow window.
Whole team was sleeping at the office on permanent crunch, though they volunteered to do it after being asked if they thought it was possible. And they still went and created a whole new art transcription method...
Oh hey Nick! How's it goin? ;P
@@stelomation Hi Steven! Small world! Im surprised to see you here too! Im doing swell! :)
That is a lot if detail about a great old-school game. Where is this information coming from?
@@SparkyMK3 Yeah you too! If I happen to like old Sega Games, of course I would check out this video. lol
Missed the Master System version mention… it was a great 8 bits port
This game was awesome back in the day. Still is
Agreed
You can think to do a review from Master System version? I remember when I was a Kid play this, and I think this version is more "faithful" to the original movie than SNES and Genesis versions.
That german review at 8:51 was from my absolute favorite VG magazine back in the day ("Video Games") and it's from the very issue (11/93) that started my collection. I have bought every single issue going forward until they sadly had to shut down in 2001. Never would've thought to see an excerpt of it once in an american game review video on youtube XD
Thanks for that sweet extra bit of nostalgia :-)
If you would have asked me as a kid, I would have swore that this cart had special chips not just for the gfx but for the MUSIC. I swear these tunes sounded spot on to the movie in my memory, but they were just GEMS?? Amazing SLX!!
Your videos always brings back great memories
Glad you like them!
This game is really smooth. The animators did a top notch job. Also the input is responsive. It's really unique in it's class. A gem.
Love the content and the hard work you put into these…thank you lord x
I appreciate that!
The words 'timeless classic' get tossed around pretty fast and loose these days, usually simply to describe a game that was once popular that the person making the declaration also liked. I never 'loved' the Aladdin game when it came out, I was chomping at the bit for SF2 and other more 'mature' games. I've gone back many times over the years and it never fails to impress me. When we look at the resurgence of pixel art graphics, games like Aladdin, Gunstar Heroes and other 16bit power houses can still be said to hold up in the graphics department and often in most aspects of the gameplay too.
The best way to pass the rug ride stage is to keep on pausing it...
Fun game. Great visuals. Good music. Fun levels with the occasional difficulty spike here and there. Primarily with the cave escape levels. SNES and Genesis versions are both great, but I'll always prefer the Genesis version.
I will say that people sleep on the Game Gear & Master System versions, though.
I love Aladdin on Master System and Game Gear 👍🕹
Oh absolutely, SIMS did an outstanding job on the GG/SMS game, to the point where it looks better than some 16-bit titles.
I would like to see them covered.
I was quite surprised at how closely the Game Gear version follows the movie with its cut scenes. The auto running level were a cool difference, especially with Jasmine keeping up in her street disguise. Plus, you get to play Aladdin in his Prince Ali clothes when in the palace.
this one's a terrific game.
Dos is the best port of alladin.
How ever I love you videos, I tend to not always finish them because there's too many damn Commercial Ads!!
Great review, I played this from start to finish two weeks ago and it immediately threw me back to when I played it back in the nineties.
I remember renting this from my local video store I love this game it’s so good
6:41 Anyone else notice the Genesis and CRT monitor in the background?
This was one of the most memorable games of my childhood. Not only was the gameplay so much fun, the atmosphere and graphics are timeless.
I really like this game a ton. I actually didn’t play it first on the Mega Drive (I’m originally from the UK) but on the Amiga 1200. It’s very similar and plays fairly well but the MD version is better (usual suspects, smoother gameplay and better controls) and also love the SNES version. I love that there are two great takes on this game to enjoy who cares fighting over which one is best or better BITD, just go play the games and enjoy it in the present :)
I always say there is no better version. Either you prefer one or the other, there is no wrong answer. Too many people get hung up on trying to say one game is objectively better than another and that’s just dumb. Everyone is different and no two people are going to like the exact same games.
I've been playing Aladdin alot recently. It still surprises me that a good bit of the licensed Disney games on Genesis were actual high quality productions and not just cheap cash grabs like most licensed games were.
My friend had a Genesis, and this was one of the first games he had that really impressed me at that time (this and Streets of Rage 2). Just two extremely well made games that were visually as impressive as just about anything I'd played on my SNES, in some ways more so
This is one of the first games I bought for my Genesis and I still enjoy playing it once in a while. The visuals still hold up and is a great game overall.
And to think that this game was indirectly responsible for the creation of Donkey Kong Country after Nintendo saw it at CES and wanted to make something visually stunning too.
Never played this as a kid but I saw it at my cousins house and thought it was the coolest thing ever. Aladdin had a sword. SNES didn’t have that and to me that made this 1000x better
Aladdin is a perfect example of a movie game done justice, proper usage of the material, proper translation into videogame form, fun to play, easy to learn and affordable to all even to this day.
Very few games have those many accolades or can boast about them being 100% truth.
Superior to the SNES version in every single way no matter what the blind fanbots say. Too bad good and dedicated developers like that team aren't around anymore.
Capcom had much better talent when it comes to level design, and it showed. Notice how the Genesis version has enemies off screen attacking you, bad hit detection, unforgiving platforming, that carpet level, and the Jaffar fight is extremely bland.
SNES version is a delight from start to finish!
@@madspunky Both games have their pros and cons. Unfortunately, the SNES version's slowdown, bad animation, low res and actual repetitive and bad level design cemented the reason why it was the Genesis/MD version the one to grace most retro-collections and featured into some re-releases exactly how Dracula X: Rondo of Blood for the PCEngine/TG16 is the one being re-released twice a day and thrice on sunday and the SNES version remains forgotten and shelved.
The SNES version is objectively inferior and the money hungry corporations know that, so they won't try to sell what won't sell.
There are loads of vastly superior games for the SNES where the Genesis version looks and sounds like a joke, like Zombies Ate My Neighbors, Rock'n Roll Racing, Sunset Riders, TMNT Turtles in Time and Tournament Fighters, etc.
Sadly, SNES Aladding ain't one of those.
@@YeOldeGamerGrampsofOlde
I honestly don't recall slowdown on the SNES version, nor anybody else complaining about that. But if that's a concern to you, point taken.
Same goes for resolution.
But to say bad animation is a stretch too far. Granted, the Sega version has amazing animation. So if that's your cup of tea, enjoy!
I can't agree with you saying the level design is repetitive and bad. I see plenty of variation, and the use of your jumping/gliding/hanging abilities often means there are multiple ways to tackle obstacles.
Generally speaking, level design is considered to be better on the SNES. Not to mention the bosses and gameplay.
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Saying certain versions of a game are being re-released means it is better is not good logic. That would mean the newer versions of Star Wars are also better than the originals.
You use statements like 'superior in every way', and 'objectively inferior', but please be aware that many people prefer the Nintendo version.
@@madspunky The wordage I used is accurate. Some game versions are *objecrively* inferior because their graphics, sounds, gameplay and design are *objectively* of lower quatlity than the ones being compared against.
SNES's Aladdin's graphical fidelity to source material is *objectively* not as detailed for instance and doesn't run at 60fps unlike SEGA's. Those are *objective* comparisons.
Since you are bringing up consumer preference, it is *objectively* obvious which Aladdin version if superior when the one being sold, distributed and purchased is the Genesis/MD version. Same case as with Earthworm Jim games even on Nintendo's own Virtual Console shop which were the SEGA Genesis ones for both content, FPS and Graphics *objectively* .
Like the dudes at Console Wars UA-cam channel say: _"The Best Aladdin goes to SEGA Genesis."_
This is one I need to play. Looks fun
Not only is this game a classic imho, it will always be near and dear to my heart because it was the first ever game my mom bought for me along with the Genesis.
Once again I start my comment saying , Great Video Lord X.
I never played Aladdin back when it was released, and really still haven't to my shame, however, my wife , who is pretty much 90% a non gamer, this is her favourite game. She is a massive Disney fan and !over this game. When I started retro collecting 2018 (although I have games since the early 80s) my wife got me a Megadrive, so I picked this up of EBay just for her to play and relive. It's been great fun watching her play it again.
You should try Blades of Vengeance. Pretty fun genesis side scroller.
I rented this game in 3rd grade - one of the most amazing weekends of my life.
Aladdin was a childhood favorite of mine, both the movie and the Sega Genesis version of the game...it was because of the movie I grew to like Robbin Williams as a actor and the game in my eyes captured the feel of the movie. Still remember as a kid discovering the extra life in the desert level, if you position Aladdin so when he leans forward and is aligned under the mickey mouse ears so it looks like he is wearing them, a extra life will appear...discovered that by pure accident from just jokingly trying to make it look like he was wearing them
This game was (and still is) impressive on all fronts! I rented this as a kid and I was blown away by its quality. It definitely stands as one of the better action platformers on the Genesis. I do miss the days where consoles get their own version of a particular game. The SNES Aladdin game is quite fun as well.
I think my only issue with this game is some of the level design. It isn't always easy to tell where you need to jump to next or even what constitutes a solid platform. I recall there being some really tight jumps in some levels. If you missed some of these nearly pixel-perfect leaps, it usually was instant death. I think I burned through multiple lives just on a couple jumps in particular.
Great review SLX! Great Graphics and a fun game! Growing up my family didn't have much. I had two games, sonic 2 and Aladdin. My dad worked so much I hardly saw him. I remember him sleeping on the couch one afternoon and I was stuck at the cave area in this game. I woke him up and asked could he helped me. He was dead tired but said sure but I don't know what I'm doing he died consecutively and we laughed so hard! RIP dad! I love you!
I really enjoyed the Jungle Book on Genesis as a kid.
This game is absolutely amazing. 1 of the 1st & very few games i beat on the Sega
i cant thank my dad enough for getting this game before i was born. this, along with the revenge of shinobi, grew to be some of the most amazing games i ever grew up playing.
Would love to see you cover more of Virgin's Mega Drive/Genesis stuff going forward. Global Gladiators by itself is a bizarre bit of history.
I enjoy both the SNES and Genesis versions back in the day. One of the few games from a movie franchise that's really good. 🍻
Absolutely love ur videos man ur break down of the material is top notch
You always have great content!!
Thank you.
The very first videogame I've ever played and still one of my favorites to this day. Imagine starting your gaming journey with this. Disney games in the 16 bit era were epic for the most part. I owned this, The Lion King, The Jungle Book, Mickey and Donald: World of Illusion; and Mickey Mania and they were all awesome.
I put so many hours into this game that I fried the AC adapter of my Genesis.
When I finally played the SNES version, it couldn't compare to the Genesis version.
Sword vs jumping on heads.
As a child of the late 80's-early 90's gaming, this wasn't just fun to play it was fun to look at. Dare I say, animated?
I love this game so much, even 30 years on. I've bought and sold so many Megadrives over the years, but whenever I buy one, this is one of the games I make sure to get. It's just so damn enjoyable! So much fun, beautiful to look at, and the SFX and music are gorgeous.
The Genesis version of Aladdin is the best Sega game of all time!
Great review. Even more better is that it's available as part of the Disney Classic Games that has this game you reviewed, The Lion King and The Jungle Book. It's available for Nintendo Switch, PS4 & Xbox One. And it has a rewind feature so if you make a mistake, rewind and try again without costing you lives.
Aladdin was the second game i beat as a kid sonic 2 being the first! I loved this game and its one of my favorites! Awesome episode SLX!
Man this game brings me so many awesome memories. This was one of my favorite games on the Sega Genesis
love the content your videos make me jump into a time machine loved sega growing up keep up the good work
The carpet level, oh my god! 😂 incredible game though. This was my favorite Disney movie as a kid. Great game too!
This game whooped my ass but it looked so damn good while doing so!
OK nice initials. Also I had problems with the difficulty of this game. Never did beat it. Save states kick ass
Wonderful game. Was pack in here in Northern Ireland for the Mega drive 2, and they basically did a Amiga inspired " cartoon classics" pack in my local tandy.
Came with full size box versions of World of Illusion, Aladdin, Tiny Toon Adventure, Fantastic Dizzy and Hyperstone Heist.
So many of my mates ended up with that bundle, and I'd been lucky to get a md1 in 1992 with sonic 1, and then sonic 2 at Xmas 92 that year, so I'd been long ahead of collecting, so we always did great swaps etc.
Great game Aladdin, easily one of the best 15 minutes of drop in drop out games on the platform.
Been waiting for this one. Great game.
I like to see Sega's Lion king review.
Don’t put Sega Lord X thru such trama lol
Love both the Genesis and SNES ports but I felt the SNES version was too easy, could beat it under 20 minutes wear as the Genesis version had more variety and challenge to it. Still had just as much fun with both though.
The SNES version is easy indeed, but there's a secret hard mode in the game
Try collecting all the red gems in the game, you need to do it with no continues and in one go. To this day I was never able to do it and I played this game to death as a kid
As someone who had the Sega Genesis version of Aladdin, it was practically lightning in a bottle: especially because of the fluidity of the graphics. My only complaint with it is "The Escape" level with the rolling boulders and lava pits.
Also, there is a reason why the Genie's "WOW!" voice sample isn't from Robin Williams. He agreed to do the part for the 1992 film, on the condition that Disney wouldn't use Genie for advertising/commercial purposes without Williams' consent. While Disney mostly didn't respect what he wanted, he eventually reprised the role years later.
Mega fond memories of this one. Your review does the game justice.
Carpet level was the bane of my childhood. Finally made it through, felt like I could do anything
A remake combining the Genesis and SNES versions could be quite awesome.
Love Aladdin for Sega genesis ❤️👍🕹 and great video review
Thanks for watching!
Awesome review man! This was the first version I played and I was blown away by it. I did later own the SNES version and enjoy that one as well.
I absolutely love this game. It’s one of the best licensed games I have ever played! The graphics and sound are fantastic, the level design is pretty solid, and the difficulty, while high ( even on easy mode), is still fair.
9/10 game here. One of the best on the Genesis
Each frame in this game is a joy to behold.
One of the best Disney games in the 16-bit era.
I remember I was with 2 of my friends in high school when 1 of them bought this game at the time. Before buying this game, he wasn't sure on what game to buy. It was down to Aladdin or Maxinum Carnage that my other friend suggested. Finally he listened to me & bought Aladdin. Unfortunately he didn't like the game & regreted buying it because he said it looked like something his kid sister at the time who was I would say 5 years younger than us would play. He couldn't beat the 1st level.
I love this game. I beat this back in the day. I didn't know they make pass that dodging level when you ride the carpet dodging rocks after 3 deaths. Great game.
You last comment on this video is sooo great……. How I loved the way gaming use to be” is soooooo correct!
I do remember renting genesis aladdin back then it was definitely a fun time! seriously thinking about picking up the aladdin/lion king collection, especially now with the deluxe edition which adds the jungle book games AND Capcom's SNES aladdin. had no idea the music was composed in GEMS, definitely tommy tallarico and co. worked some magic with that it usually doesn't sound that good!!
Top ten best and Worst Gems sountracks next please.
Thanks for touching on the merits of both versions. Though I appreciate the achievements of the Genesis version, I’ve always preferred the SNES one. I never liked the questionable hit detection in the Genesis one (and probably not coincidentally, I have the same issue with Earthworm Jim).
My little story is, I still remember when I walked into a Babbage’s store thinking about getting the Genesis one, when the salesperson said “Get the SNES one, it’s better”. Again, it’s just a matter of preference, I just think it’s interesting that even back then there was a debate :)
Nice balanced review!
I think some people might have a problem with a song called 'Turban Jazz' nowadays though!
First heard about this game from the Happy Video Game Nerd (now known as Stop Skeletons From Fighting) when he briefly mentioned it during his Disney Capcom games review. Then, when I started truly retro game collecting in 2011, Aladdin was part of one of the first video game bundles I found in a thrift store (which also came with Earthworm Jim 2, Killer Instinct and, ahem... Barney's Hide & Seek Game... among others...). Aladdin, to this day, is a top 10 Sega Genesis game for me. So much fun to play and look at. I will agree that the game is on the easy side but, as someone who still enjoys the Kirby series, that's clearly not an issue for me.
A little over a year ago, I finally got my hands on the Super Nintendo version of the game and holy crap it's also an incredible game! I will say I ever so slightly prefer the Genesis game and will say it edges out the win in most categories but one thing the SNES version dominates is story presentation. I wasn't too bothered by the boxed portraits for the usual cutscenes in Genesis Aladdin but that ending scene left me wanting SO much more. Capcom delivered with SNES Aladdin not just with the ending but all the cutscenes in the game. Anyway, the point is both games are must plays for anyone with a Sega Genesis, Super Nintendo or whatever current system that has that Disney games collection that came out recently
This was the first game I owned for my Genesis. I got it for Christmas and beat it in a week. But what a week!
This was my first retail Mega Drive game. While it definitely has its jank, it's well and truly a classic.
I would be interested in how you record and process your voice audio, it sounds very good and clean.
I use a HyperX mic shielded with a echo absorber in an open room. Nothing special. I use Audacity to record.
This is one of the best 16bit games and one of the MD games that you don't feel like you are missing colors