Recently bought myself an old Sega Saturn to relive my childhood. I never had an opportunity to get any of the memory card upgrades when I was younger, so I thought I'd take the plunge and get this.
This particular product has been around for a long time (the copyright on the software is 1996). It has cheat codes for most games up to about 1997, but it lets you enter your own if you want (and you can even delete the built-in codes if you need more space). It bypasses the region locking on the console so you can play import games. It has 4M of backup ROM to complement the system's built-in stoarge, though the console can't read from it directly; you have to move your game saves to/from system memory in the card's menu which the console automatically boots to if you have it inserted. It also provides either 1M or 4M of additional RAM for those games that require it; the cartridge software is smart enough to automatically detect the needed amount when the game starts up (unlike other RAM carts that had a physical switch you had to set before starting).
The stock cartridge won't let you play backup copies of games (that is, games burned to CD-R). However, there is a firmware called "Psuedo Saturn Kai" that you can flash to this cart, which adds that ability. There are some ready-made (and more expensive) variants of this cart that come with that pre-flashed, but you also have the option of doing it yourself with this "official" version, assuming you can get the Saturn to load the flashing software CD the first time.
A word of caution about the hardware in general; the Sega Saturn cartridge slot and after-market cartridges like this can be very finicky. The hardware is 20+ years old, and the cartridge slot itself was known for being delicate even back in its hey-day. When I first plugged mine in, the console got stuck in a boot loop. After trying various techniques to seating the cartridge, I was able to get it to load once and launch a game, but it then failed while the game was going through the intro/title screen. This told me that the cartridge itself was fine, and it was probably an issue of a bad connection when the cartridge was inserted.
What eventually fixed it for me (at least for now) was a suggestion of disassembling the cartridge and plugging the naked board into the system. I did this, and to my surprise it completely fixed the issue; the cartridge loaded correctly every time I started the console, and I was able to launch games successfully without any hiccups. Apparently the plastic casing can cause the cartridge contacts to not line up properly with the pins in the slot. There are some suggestions about putting a piece of paper behind the cartridge when inserting it, or putting a piece of paper in the cartridge (on the back) to make sure it sits properly when inserted. For kicks, I just reassembled the cartridge since I double-confirmed the cartridge was fine, and so far it's continued to work properly. I'm guessing that by fully inserting the cartridge board into the cartridge slot without the casing in the way, the cartridge slot pins that weren't contacting correctly were re-bent in a way that it correctly makes contact now even with the cartridge casing on.
So if you have problems, as a first step try disassembling the cartridge and plugging the cartridge board into the system. Remove the two screws on the cartridge, split apart the plastic shell, and pull out the circuit board (reverse to reassemble). If you still have trouble, there are other guides available with instructions on how to clean the cartridge slot and re-bend the pins. Make sure you are careful though!
Overall the best upgrade you can get, and it's amazing it's still widely available for relatively cheap. There are some newer software options available to get even more out of it if you want, but you just need to be cognizant that old electronics like this might have problems. Thankfully, in most cases, there are solutions.
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Customer Review: finally got one of these!
Marcus Tuggles
Play Japanese games on US Saturn & Vice versa; also plays Vampire Savior
Reviewed in the United States on February 6, 2019
As most Saturn owners know, the Action Replay allows Saturn games from Japan to be played on a US Sega Saturn. What is not often talked about is that it also allows US Games to be played on a Japanese console. Though I can't guarantee it will work on all versions of the Saturn; the Action Replay 4M Plus that I received did work on both my consoles.Japanese and US ConsolesI tested the Action Replay 4M Plus that I recently bought on my two Saturn consoles: a Japanese Saturn Model 1 (HST 3200); and a US Saturn Model 2 (MK-80000A). The version of the Action Replay I received was 2.02. Games from Japan and the US worked flawlessly on both consoles when I had this new Action Replay 4M Plus connected. Even if the game required a 1mb or a 4mb RAM Cartridge - all the games I tried worked (King of Fighters 96, King of Fighters 97, Samurai Spirits IV, X-Men vs Street Fighter, -even Vampire Savior.)Vampire SaviorI actually have an older Action Replay which is version 2.0 That cartridge had problems when trying to play one particular game in my collection - Vampire Savior (JPN). Fortunately, this new Action Replay works just fine with the game, and I can play Vampire Savior without having to resort to the official 4mb Cartridge it came with. (I hate swapping out cartridges because overtime, it wears out the Saturn's cartidge slot.)I would imagine that there are some games that the Action Replay 4M Plus may not work with, but so far all the games that I have tried work without issues. If you're thinking of buying an Action Replay 4M Plus, I would recommend doing a little research - as some models of the Saturn may or may not work with it.
Reviewed in the United States on February 6, 2019
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