Hi everyone! My name is Jonathan, and I would like to share Tyrian MD, a work-in-progress native port of Tyrian for the Sega Genesis / Mega Drive. I hope it may be of interest to fellow fans of the console and shoot-em-ups.
The project uses OpenTyrian as its behavioral reference and targets the stock console: a 7.67 MHz 68000, 64 KB of RAM, the VDP, YM2612 and PSG. No Sega CD or 32X is required. The goal is to preserve the gameplay while adapting the rendering, sound and data layout to the Genesis hardware.
Source, emulator screenshots, build instructions and known limitations:
https://github.com/jonathandasilvasantos/2026-tyrian-md
Current progress:
⢠Four Tyrian 2.1 episode data sets (62 levels) in one 8 MiB / 64 Mbit SSF2 cartridge, with episode selection and campaign progression.
⢠Front and rear weapons, shops, all 30 sidekicks, superbombs, specials, ship combos, and the scripted ENGAGE/GALAGA bonus behavior, including the linked second ship.
⢠Story text and pictures, datacubes, checkpoint passwords, PAL/NTSC support, and the original 41 songs converted for YM2612/PSG.
⢠A portable C simulation shared by the host and 68000 builds, with recorded parity tests.
This is still a work in progress. Dense scenes slow down, full-campaign and real-hardware validation are ongoing, and the third background layer, parts of the presentation and several extra modes remain unfinished. The README documents the current adaptations and limitations.
AI disclosure: extensive Codex assistance has been used for the C implementation, conversion tools, tests and documentation. The screenshots in the repository are actual emulator captures using the original Tyrian graphics. The artwork and music are not generative-AI assets; the music is converted from the original game data.
Credits and thanks to the OpenTyrian Development Team (https://github.com/opentyrian/opentyrian), Jason Emery, Daniel Cook, Alexander Brandon, Andreas Molnar and the original Tyrian team. The port source is GPL-2.0-or-later; the game assets retain their own rights. The repository provides source and build instructions, with dependencies and game data obtained separately.
Thank you for taking a look. Feedback on gameplay differences, performance and hardware compatibility would be greatly appreciated!