Arts ©Entertainment
Thursday, January 19, 1995
Page 9
This year’s
big showdown:
Sega, SNES
By Gerry Beltz
Senior Reporter
History is full of dramatic rival
ries: Coke vs. Pepsi, Kirk vs. Picard,
less filling vs. tastes great and now
... Super Nintendo vs. Sega Gen
esis.
Players and retailers agree that
each video game system has its
strong points, but everyone has his
or her favorite.
John Trumble, assistant man
ager at the Game Player, 1637 P
St., said the Super Nintendo Enter
tainment System was superior to
the Sega Genesis hands down.
“Technically speaking,”
Trumble said, “the SNES is bet
ter.”
Trumble said Super Nintendo
had more colors available — 256
compared to Sega ,Genesis’ 64,
custom graphics processors and 16
bit sound, compared to Sega’s 8
bit sound. A bit measures how much
information a system can process
at once, he said.
“I could go on and on about
this,” Trumble said.
Jason Larson, a rresnman engi
neering major and Super Nintendo
man, agreed with Trumble.
“I like the graphics better on
SNES,” Larson said, “(Genesis)
graphics look too cartoony.”
Randy Abel, manager of Audio
Visual South, 3219 S. 13th St.,
said each system had its own audi
ence.
“The SNES is more restrictive
as far as blood-and-guts go,” Abel
said, “They aim for the younger
generation.
“Sega does it all; they don’t
hold back. They still make games
both for the young crowd and ma
ture audiences.”
Trumble cited another differ
ence in the games available for
each system.
“The Genesis leans more to
wards sports and fighting games,”
Trumble said, “while the SNES
does well with role-playing and
strategy games.”
Freshman Scott Monroe said he
focused on game variety when he
purchased his Genesis system.
“I got a Sega because they’ve
got better sports games, and SNES
doesn’t have as many options,”
Trent Stier, game adviser for
the Game Player, said the quality
of available games also affected
the competition.
“The SNES has better color,
more processing power and better
graphics,” Stier said, “but the Gen
esis in general has better titles avai 1
able.”
Todd Spellman, a sophomore
pre-physical therapy major, rides
the game-playing fence. Spellman
owns both the SNES and Genesis,
and is pleased with both systems.
“The SNES has better graphics
and games,” Spellman said, “but
the games for the Genesis are
cheaper.”
Tag Herbek, a freshman elemen
tary education major, started out
with a Super Nintendo but changed
sides.
“I sold it to get a Genesis,” said
Herbek, “I was unimpressed with
the selection ofgames for the SNES.
“I’ve always been fascinated
with aviation, and I have two dif
ferent flight simulators for my
Genesis.”
The Nintendo-Sega competition
heated up when Sega recently in
Bret Gottshall/DN
troduced Sega 32X, which allows
Sega Genesis owners to play 32-bit
games.
, But Trumble said there had been
problems with this new technol
ogy.
“The additional hardware has
been proving uncooperative,”
Trumble said. He said he had heard
complaints about systems break
ing and taking too long to load.
“A lot of people are having a
hard time even making it work
right,” Trumble said.
Although Sega and Nintendo
currently have the lion’s share of
the home video game market,
Trumble said the two companies
would be pushed to second and
“The SNES is more
restrictive as far as
hlood-and-guts go.
They aim for the
younger generation.
Sega does it all; they
don’t hold back. They
still make games both
for the young crowd
and mature
audiences. ”
RANDY ABEL
manager of Audio-Visual South
third place, with 3 DO (32-bit) tech
nology moving into first.
“Panasonic 3 DO is going to take
the lead in the next year,” Trumble
said. “The 3DO is, in my opinion
andthatofeveryoneelsewhoworks *
here at this store, the most ad
vanced machine available now.”
Stier said both Sega and
Nintendo had 64-bit systems com
ing within the next year. Sega will
release the Saturn, and Nintendo
will release Ultimate-64. But Stier
said the additional time that 3 DO
software and hardware have been
in the market would lead to that
system’s success.
Stier said Sega and Nintendo
would play catch-up for a year when
their new systems come out.
“It always takes at least one year
to come out with quality games,
and Panasonic has already gone
through this time,” he said. “They
will be on second-generation games
that start pushing the hardware to
the limit.”
Trumble said Panasonic’s good
planning would help 3DO stay
competitive. Panasonic has im
proved its technology, brought its
prices down and has more third
party licenses (game development
companies) than either Sega or
Nintendo.
“I have a hunch that they are
going to be around for a while,”
Trumble said.
Academics, leadership basis for ‘spooky’ society
Each spring, the University of Ne
braska-Lincoln senior honor societies
induct new members. As a member of
Mortar Board, I get to help with this year’s
applications and selections.
To publicize this event, Mortar Board
“spooks.” I don’t know why we call it that,
but it involves donning black robes (a la
graduation) and black masks and walking
around campus.
Perhaps it’s called spooking because
people wearing masks and robes look
spooky. Nonetheless, I enjoyed my one
spooking experience because my mask
made me feel like Cat woman.
Spooking is supposed to be a publicity
stunt of sorts. Students are supposed to be
curious about Mortar Board and want to
know more. “I want to look like
by Rainbow Rowell II
Catwoman, too,” they’re supposed to
think. “How can I join?”
I joined four other Mortar Board
members to spook some residence halls
Tuesday night. We walked into a few
crowded cafeterias and announced that
applications were available.
Some people listened. Some people kept
eating. And a highly vocal minority
showed they had no idea what we were
doing.
“It’s the Klan,” someone commented.
Still others whispered about secret societ
ies, cults and bizarre rituals. One person
threw food.
I admit, I was surprised. I’d never
thought of Mortar Board in such exciting
terms before. But I still feel obligated to
clear up some misconceptions.
I admit the robes are kind of weird, but
the Ku Klux Klan wear white robes.
Mortar Board members wear black robes.
The Innocents (another UNL honor
society) wear red robes. People getting out
of the shower wear bathrobes, and Jesus
wore a purple robe.
To my knowledge, Mortar Board is not
a secret society. (If it is, no one has told
me.) We have no secret handshake. No
passwords.
Perhaps in decades past there was more
secrecy and mystery attached to Mortar
Board and similar organizations. I guess
the robes and masks are leftovers from that
era.
That doesn’t mean other societies aren’t
weird and bizarre. The Innocents, for
example. Why the red robes and hoods?
And what’s with the devil in their logo?
I’ve even heard they tackle their new
members.
Sounds pretty fishy to me ...
Rowell is a senior news-editorial, advertising and
English major and the Dally Nebraskan Arts &
Entertainment editor.