Segaiden #019: Doki Doki Penguin Land & Drol

This week brings us two SG-1000 releases that feel miles removed from the console's earliest days of serious-looking war game: Doki Doki Penguin Land and Drol. Rather than involving the relentless destruction of military vehicles (and, by extension, the squishy humans inside them), these two titles see you doing your best to protect children. While some retributive violence is involved here, those polar bears definitely had it coming.

Of the two, Penguin Land feels like the more meaningful work. It really elevates the production values of SG-1000 games and speaks to a Sega that's getting serious about its home development efforts: A wholly original creation for console that contains ample depth and subtle, precise controls and interactions. It's a real stand-out. Drol admittedly doesn't fare quite as well, but it has its merits, too.

With this episode, I think it's safe to say SG-1000 has turned a corner, and you can expect to see more games on Penguin Land's level of quality in the coming episodes as the console sunsets into Mark III/Master System.

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• SG-1000 footage in this episode was captured from a combination of Sega SG-1000 II with (with Card Catcher; RGB amp mod by  @iFixRetro ) and  @Analogue  Mega Sg with card adapter module and DAC.
• Video upscaled to 720 with  @Retro Tink  5X.