Joe Montana Football
Joe Montana Football — frequently asked questions
- What platforms is Joe Montana Football on?
- Joe Montana Football was released on Sega Mega Drive/Genesis, DOS, Sega CD, Sega Master System/Mark III, Sega Game Gear.
- When did Joe Montana Football release?
- Joe Montana Football was first released on January 1, 1990.
About Joe Montana Football
It's a snap! This is your chance to rub shoulder pads with Joe Montana, the man who led the "Team of the Eighties" to four Super Bowl Championships. You provide all the fourth quarter heroics, play-calling brilliance, and pinpoint passing as you hit the field against any of 28 pro teams. Call all your own plays! Each team has a playbook with 17 offensive and six defensive options. Pick the play that you think will work best, or take the advice of Joe Montana himself, as he recommends the play he would call in each situation. You control the action on the field by switching to the key players as the play unfolds. Your strength and speed will vary by position, just like the real sport. Knock helmets with the computer or punch holes in a friend's defense. Can you keep your head cool and your passing arm hot? Pick your team. Choose the plays. Think you have what it takes to be the next Joe Montana?
Summary via IGDB.
Game details
- Platforms
- Sega Mega Drive/Genesis, DOS, Sega CD, Sega Master System/Mark III, Sega Game Gear
- Developer
- Electronic Arts
- Publisher
- Sega
- Game modes
- Single player, Multiplayer
Details via IGDB.
Reception
Every version compared
Prices, contemporary reception and the studio credited for each release
| Platform | Year | Loose | Complete | Sealed | Period reviews | Fake risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sega Master SystemDetails ↓ | 1990 | $9 | $20 | — | 3 reviews | Low (look-alike) |
| Sega GenesisDetails ↓ | 1991 | $7 | $12 | — | 3 reviews | Low |
The cheapest way to own it loose is the Sega Genesis version ($7).
Also released on: Sega Mega Drive/Genesis · DOS · Sega CD · Sega Master System/Mark III · Sega Game Gear. We haven’t priced or authenticated those versions yet.
Prices are per version and are not interchangeable, and neither are the reviews: conversions in this era were often built by a different studio than the original, so a score earned on one machine says nothing about how another plays.
Collector value & authenticity
Sega Master System · PriceCharting sold data · Verified 2026-10-28
Other releases and variants
| Release | Loose | Complete | Sealed |
|---|---|---|---|
| European (PAL) release | $9 | $20 | — |
How often it sells
- Loose: about 5 times a year
- Complete: about once a month
- Sealed: about 2 times a year
Sales frequency from PriceCharting's completed-sale records, as of 2026-10-28.
Price over time
- Loose
- Complete
A loose copy sold for about $4.40 in Jul 2009, $7.99 five years ago, and $9.07 as of Oct 2026.
Show as table
| Month | Loose | Complete |
|---|---|---|
| Jan 2010 | $4.00 | — |
| Jan 2011 | $3.94 | — |
| Jan 2012 | $3.00 | — |
| Jan 2013 | $3.25 | — |
| Jan 2014 | $6.39 | $13.90 |
| Jan 2015 | $3.30 | $11.90 |
| Jan 2016 | $3.24 | $6.50 |
| Jan 2017 | $9.00 | $17.49 |
| Jan 2018 | $6.79 | $12.35 |
| Jan 2019 | $7.04 | $14.74 |
| Jan 2020 | $9.94 | $19.18 |
| Jan 2021 | $8.35 | $18.46 |
| Jan 2022 | $7.50 | $22 |
| Jan 2023 | $9.29 | $19.49 |
| Jan 2024 | $8.99 | $14.73 |
| Jan 2025 | $9.53 | $17.96 |
| Jan 2026 | $10.00 | $15.86 |
| Oct 2026 | $9.07 | $20 |
Monthly price estimates from PriceCharting's completed-sale records, sampled quarterly, through Oct 2026.
Release record
| Territory | Date |
|---|---|
| North America | December 1990 |
| Europe / PAL | 1990 |
- Region
- NA+EU
- Released
- 1990
- Authenticity
- Low
The Sega Master System version
An easy, lightly licensed football game that magazines judged less deep than Sega's earlier American Pro Football.
Joe Montana Football was developed by BlueSky Software and published by Sega, released in North America in December 1990 and in Europe in 1990. Sega had no license from the NFL or the NFLPA, so apart from Joe Montana there are no real players and no official team names.
Sega's earlier Master System football games were Great Football in 1987 and American Pro Football (Walter Payton Football) in 1989, the latter well received. Mean Machines, reviewing the Game Gear version that it called virtually identical, found the gameplay far too easy and lacking depth, and told readers to buy American Pro Football instead.
What the press said at the time
| Mean Machines Games Guide | May 1992 | OVERALL 65% |
| Mean Machines Sega Issue 3 | December 1992 | OVERALL 65% |
| Sega Pro Issue 34 | July 1994 | 78% |
“warrant an investment. Joe Montana Football for the Master System is the first of what will be many Sega games sport ing Joe's monnicker. Hopefully, they'll improve with practice.”
“graphics are dull, responsiveness is poor and the slightly ropey collision detection spoils things further. Not too hot”
“The first John Madden's clone makes it over to the Master System, boasting plenty of action, loads of teams and billions of strategies. Unfortunately, it just doesn't work. The graphics are dull, responsive¬ ness is poor and the slightly ropey collision detec¬ tion spoils things further. Not too hot.”
“so blinking easy, it would keep you playing for ages. There are tons of moves”
Also on other platforms
Game Gear · Genesis · MS-DOS
- Game Gear. Mean Machines called the Game Gear version virtually identical to the Master System version it was developed from.
Before you buy
There are two releases, the US cart and the European cart, and they cost about the same, loose and complete. Loose, it is one of the cheaper carts among the North American releases, and the look-alike risk is low. Check the manual if you want a complete copy.
Collector value & authenticity
Sega Genesis · PriceCharting sold data · Verified 2026-10-29
Other releases and variants
| Release | Loose | Complete | Sealed |
|---|---|---|---|
| European (PAL) release | $5 | $15 | — |
| Japanese release | $4 | $12 | — |
How often it sells
- Loose: about once a month
- Complete: about once a week
- Sealed: about once a year
Sales frequency from PriceCharting's completed-sale records, as of 2026-10-29.
Price over time
- Loose
- Complete
A loose copy sold for about $1.48 in Oct 2011, $3.70 five years ago, and $6.75 as of Oct 2026.
Show as table
| Month | Loose | Complete |
|---|---|---|
| Jan 2012 | $1.30 | — |
| Jan 2013 | $2.12 | — |
| Jan 2014 | $2.99 | $5.74 |
| Jan 2015 | $3.15 | $2.99 |
| Jan 2016 | $3.15 | $6.99 |
| Jan 2017 | $4.99 | $6.99 |
| Jan 2018 | $4.63 | $7.00 |
| Jan 2019 | $3.71 | $9.47 |
| Jan 2020 | $1.99 | $9.49 |
| Jan 2021 | $2.25 | $9.33 |
| Jan 2022 | $7.04 | $12.71 |
| Jan 2023 | $5.63 | $9.99 |
| Jan 2024 | $5.81 | $9.99 |
| Jan 2025 | $5.05 | $10.45 |
| Jan 2026 | $5.88 | $9.68 |
| Oct 2026 | $6.75 | $11.88 |
Monthly price estimates from PriceCharting's completed-sale records, sampled quarterly, through Oct 2026.
Release record
| Territory | Date | Barcode |
|---|---|---|
| North America | January 1991 | 010086012057 |
| Europe / PAL | May 1991 | — |
| Japan | 1 March 1991 | — |
- Region
- NA+EU+JP
- Released
- 1991
- Authenticity
- Low
The Sega Genesis version
A lightly licensed early Genesis football game, a curiosity more than a favorite.
This is the Genesis version of Joe Montana Football, made by Park Place Productions and published by Sega. It came out in North America in January 1991, in Japan on 1 March 1991 and in Europe in May 1991. Sega held no license from the NFL or the NFLPA, so Montana is the only real player in it and the teams carry no official names.
The Genesis game was built from the code of EA's Madden, with the 3D field removed and the number of plays cut from 113 to 13. Video Games & Computer Entertainment noted in March 1991 that Montana's own digitized voice greets you at the title screen and calls out big plays, and that the music was above average, though it wondered why the sound was not in stereo. It also said you had to pick a weak team to get a real challenge in one-player games.
What the press said at the time
| Computer + Video Games Issue 114 | May 1991 | 77% |
| Mean Machines Games Guide | May 1992 | OVERALL 73% |
| Mean Machines Sega Issue 3 | December 1992 | 73% |
“Let's call Joe Montana Football for the Genesis a definite playoff contender, but with limited Superbowl possibilities.”
“bul I know enough to realise thai Joe Montana is nowhere neat as thrilling or entertaining as the superlative John Madden. So, if gridiron is your bag, go for thai instead.”
“A pretty good football game, but has neither the depth, the options nor the challenge of John Madtfen's Football.”
“A pretty good football game, but has neither the depth, the options nor the challenge of John Madden's Football. Go for Madden's - or if you're after something different, Joe Montana II.”
How the Sega Genesis version differs
Electronic Arts' Trip Hawkins deliberately made the game a worse one than Madden, removing the 3D field and cutting the plays from 113 to 13.
It missed the Christmas 1990 deadline and was released in January 1991, shortly after the Genesis version of John Madden Football.
Also on other platforms
Master System · Game Gear · MS-DOS
- Game Gear. Mean Machines found the Game Gear version virtually identical to the Master System version it was developed from, and far too easy, lacking depth and excitement.
Before you buy
Among US carts it sits below the middle, and the risk of a fake is low. The European cart usually costs less loose but more when complete, while the Japanese cart usually costs less loose and about the same complete. A complete US copy means the case, cartridge and manual.
Joe Montana Football screenshots
Watch on YouTube
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