Editing Master System (section)

=== Europe, Brazil, and other markets ===
The Master System was launched in Europe in August 1987.<ref name="EuroRelease" /> It was distributed by [[Mastertronic]] in the United Kingdom, Master Games in France, and [[Ariolasoft]] in West Germany,<ref name="Virgin Games">{{cite journal|last=Hewison|first=Richard|title=From the Archives: Virgin Games, Part 1|journal=Retro Gamer|publisher=Imagine Publishing|pages=50–55|issue=84|issn=1742-3155|location=London, UK}}</ref> though Ariolasoft initially purchased the distribution rights for the United Kingdom.<ref>{{cite magazine|date=September 11, 1986|title=Ariola Sega link|magazine=[[Popular Computing Weekly]]|volume=5|issue=37|page=6}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|date=December 1986|title=News|magazine=[[Computer and Video Games]]|issue=62|page=9}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine|date=December 1986|title=The master|magazine=[[Your Computer (British magazine)|Your Computer]]|volume=6|issue=12|page=19}}</ref> Because Ariolasoft could not agree to a pricing agreement with Sega, Mastertronic signed a deal in 1987 to take control of UK distribution, and announced the deal at the 1987 Summer CES. The company announced the release of 12 titles by autumn.<ref>{{cite magazine|date=June 5, 1987|title=Mastertronic Ends Sega Saga|magazine=[[Popular Computing Weekly]]|volume=6|issue=22|page=10}}</ref> Mastertronic advertised the Master System as "an arcade in the home" and launched it at [[Pound sterling|£]]99 ({{inflation|UK|99|1987|fmt=eq|cursign=£|r=-1}}). Advance orders from retailers were high, but Sega proved unable to deliver inventory until [[Boxing Day]] on December 26, causing many retailers to cancel their orders; Mastertronic and Master Games entered financial crises and Ariolasoft vowed never to work with Sega again. Mastertronic had already sold a minority interest to the [[Virgin Group]] to enter the console business, and sold the remainder to avoid bankruptcy. The newly rebranded [[Virgin Mastertronic]] took over all European distribution in 1988.<ref name="Virgin Games" />

Virgin Mastertronic focused marketing the Master System on [[Porting|ports]] of Sega's arcade games and positioning it as a superior video game alternative to the [[Commodore 64]] and the [[ZX Spectrum]] computers. As a result of this marketing and of Nintendo's less effective early approaches in Europe, the Master System began to attract European developers.<ref name="classics">{{cite web|last=McFerran|first=Damien|url=http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2014/07/hardware_classics_sega_master_system|title=Hardware Classics: Sega Master System|website=Nintendo Life|date=July 22, 2014|access-date=September 13, 2014|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140914044405/http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2014/07/hardware_classics_sega_master_system|archive-date=September 14, 2014}}</ref> The Master System held a significant part of the video game console market in Europe through the release of Sega's succeeding console, the Mega Drive.{{Efn|[[Sega Genesis]] and Mega Drive are the same console. It was known as Genesis in North America and Mega Drive worldwide.|name=sgnote|group=lower-alpha}}<ref name="Retroinspection" /><ref name="classics" /> In 1989, Virgin Mastertronic began offering rentals of the Master System console and 20 games. The United Kingdom also hosted a Sega video games national championship, with the winner competing against Japanese and American champions on the British television show ''[[Motormouth]]''. Players competed in a variety of games, including ''[[Astro Warrior]]'', platform games, and sports games.<ref>{{cite magazine|date=December 2, 1989|title=Rent a Sega|magazine=[[New Computer Express]]|issue=56|page=2}}</ref> During the late 1980s, the Master System was outselling the NES in the United Kingdom.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=The rise and rise of Nintendo |magazine=[[New Computer Express]] |date=3 August 1989 |issue=39 (5 August 1989) |page=2 |url=https://archive.org/details/NewComputerExpress039/page/n1/mode/1up}}</ref>

The Master System was successful in Europe. By 1990, the Master System was the best-selling console in Europe, though the NES was beginning to have a fast-growing user base in the UK.<ref name="CVG4">{{cite magazine |title=The Complete Machine Guide |magazine=[[Computer and Video Games|Computer + Video Games: Complete Guide to Consoles]] |date=November 1990 |volume=4 |pages=7–23 |url=https://archive.org/details/Complete_Guide_to_Consoles_Volume_IV_1990_EMAP_Publishing_GB/page/n7/mode/2up}}</ref> For the year 1990, Virgin Mastertronic sold 150,000 Master Systems in the United Kingdom, greater than the 60,000 Mega Drives and Nintendo's 80,000 consoles sold in the same period. In the whole of Europe that year, Sega sold a combined 918,000 consoles, greater than Nintendo's 655,000.<ref name="SP18">{{Cite magazine|date=May 1991|title=Segas sell better than Nintendos - official!|magazine=[[Sega Power]]|issue=18|page=6}}</ref>

The Master System was also successful in Brazil, where it was distributed by [[Tectoy]]<ref name="Retroinspection" /><ref name="classics" /> and launched in September 1989.<ref name="brasil_lancamento">{{Cite web|url=http://jogos.uol.com.br/playstation3/ultnot/2009/09/04/ult530u7180.jhtm|title=Master System completa 20 anos de vida no Brasil|date=September 4, 2009|website=[[Universo Online]]|publisher=[[Grupo Folha]]|language=pt|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140227035251/http://jogos.uol.com.br/playstation3/ultnot/2009/09/04/ult530u7180.jhtm|archive-date=February 27, 2014|url-status=dead|access-date=February 21, 2014}}</ref> Tectoy, a Brazilian toy company startup focused on electronic toys, reached out to Sega about distributing their products. Despite hesitation given the situation with Tonka in the US, Tectoy was eventually given liberty to manage Sega products in Brazil. Their success distributing Sega's laser tag gun based on the [[anime]] [[Zillion (TV series)|''Zillion'']] gave Sega the confidence to allow Tectoy to distribute the Master System.<ref name=":0" /> By the end of 1990, the installed base in Brazil was about 280,000 units.<ref name="brasil_megadrive">{{cite news|url=https://acervo.estadao.com.br/publicados/1990/11/22/g/19901122-35513-nac-0081-eco-9-not-aaweass.jpg|title=Tec Toy lança no País o videogame Mega Drive|date=November 22, 1990|newspaper=O Estado de S.Paulo|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304063644/http://acervo.estadao.com.br/publicados/1990/11/22/g/19901122-35513-nac-0081-eco-9-not-aaweass.jpg|archive-date=March 4, 2016|url-status=live|publisher=Grupo Estado|issue=35513|location=São Paulo|volume=111|page=81|language=pt|issn=1516-2931}}</ref> Tectoy introduced a telephone service with game tips, created a Master System club, and presented the program ''Master Tips'' during commercial breaks of the television show ''Sessão Aventura'' of [[Rede Globo]].<ref name="brasil_lancamento" /> Nintendo did not arrive in Brazil until 1993,<ref name="playtronic">{{cite news|url=http://acervo2.folha.com.br/7/61/8/78/4780861/1024/4780861.png|title=Estrela e Gradiente trazem jogos Nintendo|date=March 18, 1993|newspaper=[[Folha de S.Paulo]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303230509/http://acervo2.folha.com.br/7/61/8/78/4780861/1024/4780861.png|archive-date=March 3, 2016|url-status=dead|publisher=Grupo Folha|issue=23360|location=São Paulo|volume=73|pages=2–13|language=pt|issn=1414-5723}}</ref> and were unable to officially compete, given that [[Video game clone|clones]] of the NES dominated the Brazilian market.<ref name=":1">{{Cite magazine|last=Szczepaniak|first=John|date=November 2006|title=Company Profile: Tec Toy|magazine=[[Retro Gamer]]|publisher=[[Imagine Publishing]]|issue=30|pages=50–53|issn=1742-3155}}</ref> Tectoy claimed 80% of the Brazilian video game market.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=http://www.sega-16.com/2015/11/interview-stefano-arnhold-tectoy/|title=Interview: Stefano Arnhold (Tectoy)|last=Sponsel|first=Sebastian|date=November 16, 2015|website=Sega-16|publisher=Ken Horowitz|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151122012118/http://www.sega-16.com/2015/11/interview-stefano-arnhold-tectoy/|archive-date=November 22, 2015|url-status=live|access-date=November 30, 2015}}</ref>

In South Korea, the Sega Mark III was released by [[Samsung]] under the name "Gam*Boy" in April 1989 and then the Master System II was released under the name "Aladdin Boy" in 1992.<ref name="Korea1">{{cite web |last1=Derboo |first1=Sam |title=A History of Korean Gaming: Part 1 |url=http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/korea/part1/korea1.htm |website=Hardcore Gaming 101 |date=July 13, 2010 |access-date=4 December 2021}}</ref> It sold 720,000 units in South Korea up until 1993, outselling the NES (released by [[Hyundai Group]] as the "Comboy") and becoming the best-selling console in South Korea up until 1993.<ref name="Korea">{{cite book |title=게임월드 |trans-title=Game World |date=1994 |lang=ko}}</ref> The Master System was also popular in Australia, where 250,000 units were sold in 1990 alone,<ref>{{cite news|first=Gavin|last=Cantlon|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/120296512/|archive-url=https://archive.today/20210930214214/https://www.newspapers.com/image/120296512/|archive-date=September 30, 2021|title=Cut-throat selling in video games|date=November 17, 1991|newspaper=The Sydney Morning Herald|access-date=December 29, 2020|via=Newspapers.com|quote="Ozi Soft, [''sic''] has been distributing Sega video games since 1988 and also offers computer games. Christina Caddy, the company's public relations manager, said that last year it sold 250,000 units of the Sega Master system [''sic''], which carried an eight-bit console, at a recommended retail price of $99."|url-status=live}}</ref> and where it was more successful than the NES.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Biggs |first1=Tim |title=Nintendo's NES launched 30 years ago this month in Australia, or did it? |url=https://www.smh.com.au/technology/nintendos-nes-launched-30-years-ago-in-australia-this-month-or-did-it-20170707-gx6ex0.html |access-date=5 October 2021 |work=[[The Sydney Morning Herald]] |date=11 July 2017}}</ref> 650,000 Master System consoles had been sold in Australia by November 1994.<ref name="Sega MegaZone">{{cite magazine|author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.-->|title=Sega's Secrets|magazine=Sega MegaZone|location=Australia|publisher=Mason Stewart Publishing Pty Ltd|date=November 1994|page=23}}</ref>