“Sega Dreamcast at 20: the futuristic games console that came too soon”
November 28, 2018 5:35 AM Subscribe
The Guardian: “The Dreamcast, in its first two years, saw a burst of creativity and gameplay innovation that has perhaps never been surpassed. Sega’s talented internal development teams were utterly inspired. Games such as the urban skating adventure Jet Set Radio, the fast-paced puzzler Chu-Chu Rocket, the massively multiplayer role-playing adventure Phantasy Star Online and the open-world masterpiece Shenmue introduced whole new forms and conventions of interactive entertainment. There were astonishing arcade conversions in the shape of Crazy Taxi and Soul Calibur; there were oddities including the subaquatic life sim, Seaman, and the zombie-infested keyboard tutorial, Typing of the Dead.”
My sister got me a Saturn when they first came out. It was a powerful little unit, with a giant robot fighting game, and the bonkers multidimensional platformer, Nights Into Dreams. It was hella fun. I think there reason why it and the Dreamcast failed is that Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony titles were about story, plot and character. Sonic was the only character embraced by Sega, and it's ironic that Sonic characters and stories are defined mostly from non-game media. Nintendo especially uses the games to establish the characters they then expand upon in comics and animation.
posted by Slap*Happy at 6:06 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by Slap*Happy at 6:06 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
A friend of mine had a Dreamcast, about the only thing I remember about it (aside from the weird controller) was how unbelievably loud the disk drive was.
We had to turn the TV volume up because the thing was so damned loud. My favorite description I ever heard of it was "Wake up the neighbors loud."
posted by FleetMind at 6:07 AM on November 28, 2018
We had to turn the TV volume up because the thing was so damned loud. My favorite description I ever heard of it was "Wake up the neighbors loud."
posted by FleetMind at 6:07 AM on November 28, 2018
It's thinking.
posted by Servo5678 at 6:15 AM on November 28, 2018 [8 favorites]
posted by Servo5678 at 6:15 AM on November 28, 2018 [8 favorites]
A friend of mine, moving from NYC to LA, taught herself to drive almost entirely by playing Crazy Taxi on the Dreamcast. It worked!
posted by phooky at 6:15 AM on November 28, 2018 [7 favorites]
posted by phooky at 6:15 AM on November 28, 2018 [7 favorites]
I picked one of these up at the point they were more or less discontinued, and - graduating late from ps1 - was just blown away by how good everything looked. Not just in terms of raw power but the art direction of JSR, the sonic title, everything.
Power Stone 1 and 2 and Chu Chu Rocket were lifetime multiplayer standouts. Where are my Switch versions?
posted by ominous_paws at 6:19 AM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
Power Stone 1 and 2 and Chu Chu Rocket were lifetime multiplayer standouts. Where are my Switch versions?
posted by ominous_paws at 6:19 AM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
SOMEONE STOLE MY DREAMCAST AND I'M NOT OVER IT
posted by overeducated_alligator at 6:26 AM on November 28, 2018 [13 favorites]
posted by overeducated_alligator at 6:26 AM on November 28, 2018 [13 favorites]
I spent a day driving all over northern Indiana in search of the PC version of Typing of the Dead back in the day and it was fuckin' worth it.
posted by Pope Guilty at 6:34 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by Pope Guilty at 6:34 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
The Chu Chu Rocket jingle is the best.
posted by He Is Only The Imposter at 6:36 AM on November 28, 2018 [10 favorites]
posted by He Is Only The Imposter at 6:36 AM on November 28, 2018 [10 favorites]
Pulled mine out and fired it up again for the first time in forever a few months ago.
Made some craaaaaaaaaazay money like I hadn't stopped playing Crazy Taxi for over a decade..
The biggest issue was that, apart from the eight games listed above (and maybe Resident Evil: Code Veronica) that was it... The games it had were AMAZING but they didn't scratch a lot of mainstream itches.
Oh and the controllers were fantastically non-ergonomic. Despite having analog trigger buttons which are much missed.
Also of note, the copy protection for Dreamcast games was basically that they used a specially formatted 1 GB CD-ROM. So, if you could get a disk image for a game that'd fit on a normally formatted CD (which was not impossible) then you could just burn the image and play it.
And god, yeah, Sega re-release Chu Chu Rocket already. Great little puzzle party game. So much fun.
posted by davros42 at 6:38 AM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
Made some craaaaaaaaaazay money like I hadn't stopped playing Crazy Taxi for over a decade..
The biggest issue was that, apart from the eight games listed above (and maybe Resident Evil: Code Veronica) that was it... The games it had were AMAZING but they didn't scratch a lot of mainstream itches.
Oh and the controllers were fantastically non-ergonomic. Despite having analog trigger buttons which are much missed.
Also of note, the copy protection for Dreamcast games was basically that they used a specially formatted 1 GB CD-ROM. So, if you could get a disk image for a game that'd fit on a normally formatted CD (which was not impossible) then you could just burn the image and play it.
And god, yeah, Sega re-release Chu Chu Rocket already. Great little puzzle party game. So much fun.
posted by davros42 at 6:38 AM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
I still regret buying a Dreamcast around 2010 or 2011. Thanks, Sonic Adventure. Parts of it, however, is that I already owned sequels for the best titles on the PS2, for instance Phantasy Star Universe makes better use of the larger controls in the PS2 than PSO, I've found Yakuza 2 more engaging than Shenmue, Metropolis Street Racing was improved in Project Gotham, Virtua Tennis 2 is better than Virtua Tennis 1, etc.
I do believe that it was just a matter of not being "there", because these games still pack a punch even knowing what's in front of them.
I think there reason why it and the Dreamcast failed is that Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony titles were about story, plot and character.
I think a better way of putting it is "arcade games in 1999 are not as big of a draw as they used to be". In 1995, everyone was losing their shit over the ability of playing a decent Sega Rally or a poor Daytona USA at home. Four years later, with Gran Turismo 2 and Ridge Racer Type 4 on the near horizon or on the shelves, playing Sega Rally 2 and Daytona USA 2 didn't seem that appealing. Sure, they were great games, but GT2 and RRT4 are two of the best racing games ever, and were on a cheaper console almost everyone had. Slick visuals can't make up for the content packed with those two games, and the later also began as straight arcade racer, only it adapted itself to the new realities and expectations of console gaming.
Ultimately, EA not backing it was the true killer. Sure, they compensated with good returns with 2K Sports games (except for soccer, which they had no answer to FIFA or PES) and had success with games like Metropolis Street Racing, but if there's one thing EA can do is pack a system with a lot of choice, even if average with the occasional great title.
posted by lmfsilva at 6:41 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
I do believe that it was just a matter of not being "there", because these games still pack a punch even knowing what's in front of them.
I think there reason why it and the Dreamcast failed is that Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony titles were about story, plot and character.
I think a better way of putting it is "arcade games in 1999 are not as big of a draw as they used to be". In 1995, everyone was losing their shit over the ability of playing a decent Sega Rally or a poor Daytona USA at home. Four years later, with Gran Turismo 2 and Ridge Racer Type 4 on the near horizon or on the shelves, playing Sega Rally 2 and Daytona USA 2 didn't seem that appealing. Sure, they were great games, but GT2 and RRT4 are two of the best racing games ever, and were on a cheaper console almost everyone had. Slick visuals can't make up for the content packed with those two games, and the later also began as straight arcade racer, only it adapted itself to the new realities and expectations of console gaming.
Ultimately, EA not backing it was the true killer. Sure, they compensated with good returns with 2K Sports games (except for soccer, which they had no answer to FIFA or PES) and had success with games like Metropolis Street Racing, but if there's one thing EA can do is pack a system with a lot of choice, even if average with the occasional great title.
posted by lmfsilva at 6:41 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
I have a friend who owned a Dreamcast. I should ask him if he still has it, and if he does I'd be curious to see what condition his Seaman is in these days.
posted by The Card Cheat at 6:48 AM on November 28, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by The Card Cheat at 6:48 AM on November 28, 2018 [3 favorites]
I bought a Dreamcast a month before it was announced that it was being shuttered.
I think of it as my most bitter console generation.
posted by One Hand Slowclapping at 6:54 AM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
I think of it as my most bitter console generation.
posted by One Hand Slowclapping at 6:54 AM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
Dreamcast: the GenX of consoles.
posted by grumpybear69 at 6:58 AM on November 28, 2018 [16 favorites]
posted by grumpybear69 at 6:58 AM on November 28, 2018 [16 favorites]
I was at a gathering of friends and one has brought his Dreamcast and some games and then one other controller.
And he said, "Did you know you could play Soul Calibur with the fishing controller?"
We didn't believe him. Would you? So he plugged in the fishing controller, fired up SC, and proceeded to play it. Now everyone wanted to try. Until one guy, in this manic waving around, managed to get the cord wrapped round his neck and we were all so crazed watching the screeen we didn't realize he was choking himself.
So for me, the Dreamcast will always be "The most dangerous video game console!!!"
posted by mephron at 7:03 AM on November 28, 2018 [32 favorites]
And he said, "Did you know you could play Soul Calibur with the fishing controller?"
We didn't believe him. Would you? So he plugged in the fishing controller, fired up SC, and proceeded to play it. Now everyone wanted to try. Until one guy, in this manic waving around, managed to get the cord wrapped round his neck and we were all so crazed watching the screeen we didn't realize he was choking himself.
So for me, the Dreamcast will always be "The most dangerous video game console!!!"
posted by mephron at 7:03 AM on November 28, 2018 [32 favorites]
I think there reason why it and the Dreamcast failed is that Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony titles were about story, plot and character.
And this is why I loved the Dreamcast so, so much -- when it comes to videogames, I could give a shit about story, plot and character. I have books for that. With videogames, I want an interactive experience that, ideally, puts me inside an artist's head. My favorite Dreamcast games were the really odd, idiosyncratic games like Seaman and the indelible Space Channel 5. But there were more mainstream innovations that never caught on, like the tiny little LCD screen that let you call football plays without the opponent sitting next to you on the couch seeing you select them on the TV. And then firing up the modem to go online with Chu Chu Rocket and get completely pwned by strangers? Amazing stuff. Even the tedium of Shenmue was fascinating in its way for being a relatively new kind of tedium. Never before or since have I paid such close attention to all of the new releases on a given platform, because such a high percentage of Dreamcast games were winners. There was dross too, sure. But so much goodness.
posted by Mothlight at 7:05 AM on November 28, 2018 [9 favorites]
And this is why I loved the Dreamcast so, so much -- when it comes to videogames, I could give a shit about story, plot and character. I have books for that. With videogames, I want an interactive experience that, ideally, puts me inside an artist's head. My favorite Dreamcast games were the really odd, idiosyncratic games like Seaman and the indelible Space Channel 5. But there were more mainstream innovations that never caught on, like the tiny little LCD screen that let you call football plays without the opponent sitting next to you on the couch seeing you select them on the TV. And then firing up the modem to go online with Chu Chu Rocket and get completely pwned by strangers? Amazing stuff. Even the tedium of Shenmue was fascinating in its way for being a relatively new kind of tedium. Never before or since have I paid such close attention to all of the new releases on a given platform, because such a high percentage of Dreamcast games were winners. There was dross too, sure. But so much goodness.
posted by Mothlight at 7:05 AM on November 28, 2018 [9 favorites]
Still haven't forgiven Sony for their BS publicity for the PS2 they put out just to kneecap the Dreamcast.
posted by Space Coyote at 7:10 AM on November 28, 2018 [4 favorites]
posted by Space Coyote at 7:10 AM on November 28, 2018 [4 favorites]
And god, yeah, Sega re-release Chu Chu Rocket already. Great little puzzle party game. So much fun.
There WAS a version of Chu Chu Rocket for iOS and Android, but it wasn't great. The ChuChus and KapuKapus were sprites rather than polygonal, and as I recall it didn't have any multiplayer support or level sharing functionality. Sega pulled it along with a lot of their other early mobile ports in 2015.
posted by Mr.Encyclopedia at 7:11 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
There WAS a version of Chu Chu Rocket for iOS and Android, but it wasn't great. The ChuChus and KapuKapus were sprites rather than polygonal, and as I recall it didn't have any multiplayer support or level sharing functionality. Sega pulled it along with a lot of their other early mobile ports in 2015.
posted by Mr.Encyclopedia at 7:11 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
Have bought three over the years/decades. Well, technically, four as my girlfriend was playing Space Channel Five and Ecco the Dolphin so much on my console, I didn't get a look-in. So that was her present one Christmas.
For me, it was mainly Jet Set Radio which - despite being an old-school text adventure fanatic - is still the favourite game of my life so far, and my favourite soundtrack.
Though there were other fine games; Skies of Arcadia for RPG strategy was damned good, and Samba De Amigo for ridiculously funny party time. The maracas!!
posted by Wordshore at 7:19 AM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
For me, it was mainly Jet Set Radio which - despite being an old-school text adventure fanatic - is still the favourite game of my life so far, and my favourite soundtrack.
Though there were other fine games; Skies of Arcadia for RPG strategy was damned good, and Samba De Amigo for ridiculously funny party time. The maracas!!
posted by Wordshore at 7:19 AM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
I still miss Test Drive LeMans. Second favorite racing game ever.
posted by davejay at 7:34 AM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by davejay at 7:34 AM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
For anyone else who never stopped thinking that roller blades and turn-of-the-millennium electro-funk make you cool, there is an increasingly full-featured Jet Set Radio... Radio station. There are stations corresponding to each gang's musical tastes, and there even appears to be an emulated Seaman now!
posted by cmoj at 7:40 AM on November 28, 2018 [5 favorites]
posted by cmoj at 7:40 AM on November 28, 2018 [5 favorites]
Soul Calibur was the prettiest game I owned for many years, including well after I got a PS2. Skies of Arcadia, Jet Set/Grind Radio and Grandia II were also favorites.
Hot take, though: I'll always prefer the Saturn.
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 7:41 AM on November 28, 2018 [3 favorites]
Hot take, though: I'll always prefer the Saturn.
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 7:41 AM on November 28, 2018 [3 favorites]
the indelible Space Channel 5
One of my most favorite games of all time. Plus it got a PS2 port, so I got to buy it twice.
Seriously, if you have not played Space Channel 5, stop whatever you're doing and go play it.
posted by uncleozzy at 7:41 AM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
One of my most favorite games of all time. Plus it got a PS2 port, so I got to buy it twice.
Seriously, if you have not played Space Channel 5, stop whatever you're doing and go play it.
posted by uncleozzy at 7:41 AM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
Great post Wordshore. :)
I sometimes think about the video-game console market we'd have today had Dreamcast really taken off and made a mark, had it been given a bit more of a chance and consumer support to push back against the juggernauts that are Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony.
posted by Fizz at 7:42 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
I sometimes think about the video-game console market we'd have today had Dreamcast really taken off and made a mark, had it been given a bit more of a chance and consumer support to push back against the juggernauts that are Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony.
posted by Fizz at 7:42 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
davros42: Made some craaaaaaaaaazay money like I hadn't stopped playing Crazy Taxi for over a decade..
To date, I don’t think I’ve ever had anyone know what I was talking about when I’d mutter “A class D license?! Good but not good enough. Game over” under my breath.
posted by dr_dank at 7:42 AM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
To date, I don’t think I’ve ever had anyone know what I was talking about when I’d mutter “A class D license?! Good but not good enough. Game over” under my breath.
posted by dr_dank at 7:42 AM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
Oh God, Crazy Taxi. How did I forget that I first picked that up on Dreamcast? It was both the only video game I could ever get my mother to play, and the game that caused her to swear off video games forever because it got into her head to the point where she worried she was going to cause a real-life car crash.
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 7:44 AM on November 28, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 7:44 AM on November 28, 2018 [3 favorites]
That's a shame about Chu Chu Rocket mobile. The Crazy Taxi port for iOS is really good.
posted by JoeZydeco at 7:47 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by JoeZydeco at 7:47 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
I never even owned Chu-Chu Rocket but to this day every time I see the name I can hear the Japanese TV ad in my head. TSUBABABABA!
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 7:58 AM on November 28, 2018 [8 favorites]
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 7:58 AM on November 28, 2018 [8 favorites]
Sega probably won't make a Dreamcast Classic, but they definitely should. Even though they abandoned hardware production some time ago, and the original console has a technical oversight that allows you to play burnt games.
But if they got the netcode right and went through the trouble of maintaining online servers, I would buy an overpriced version in a heartbeat. Between PSO, party games like Chu-Chu Rocket, some of the most classic fighting games, and some of the best off-the-wall fighting games, those things would probably sell like craaazy if they added online functionality to the amazing lineup that still holds up to this day.
posted by Arson Lupine at 8:51 AM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
But if they got the netcode right and went through the trouble of maintaining online servers, I would buy an overpriced version in a heartbeat. Between PSO, party games like Chu-Chu Rocket, some of the most classic fighting games, and some of the best off-the-wall fighting games, those things would probably sell like craaazy if they added online functionality to the amazing lineup that still holds up to this day.
posted by Arson Lupine at 8:51 AM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
The Dreamcasts color aesthetic was so wonderful... Everything was bright and sharp, unlike the sort of swimmy weirdness that characterized many PS2 games.
Also notable for being one of the first consoles to be powerful enough to run nearly perfect versions of arcade titles like Street Fighter Alpha 3 or many Neo Geo titles.
Also, man I'd love to play Skies of Arcadia on the Switch or PC. Probably my favorite Dreamcast game.
posted by selfnoise at 8:52 AM on November 28, 2018 [3 favorites]
Also notable for being one of the first consoles to be powerful enough to run nearly perfect versions of arcade titles like Street Fighter Alpha 3 or many Neo Geo titles.
Also, man I'd love to play Skies of Arcadia on the Switch or PC. Probably my favorite Dreamcast game.
posted by selfnoise at 8:52 AM on November 28, 2018 [3 favorites]
Skies of Arcadia is definitely due for an HD remaster of some kind. Or at least a spiritual sequel; flying around looking for Discoveries was a definite high point and I'd like more games to embrace that freedom of going out, chasing rumors, and just finding weird things.
Maaaaybe turn down the encounter rate, though.
posted by wanderingmind at 9:00 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
Maaaaybe turn down the encounter rate, though.
posted by wanderingmind at 9:00 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
> I think there reason why it and the Dreamcast failed is that Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony titles were about story, plot and character.
Ryu would like a word with you.
(ok most of those words are likely to be about where he can find some sailors but still)
posted by parm at 9:02 AM on November 28, 2018 [3 favorites]
Ryu would like a word with you.
(ok most of those words are likely to be about where he can find some sailors but still)
posted by parm at 9:02 AM on November 28, 2018 [3 favorites]
the original console has a technical oversight that allows you to play burnt games
Not to mention emulator capability. Oh the hours I spent playing Genesis games on my Dreamcast...
posted by overeducated_alligator at 9:19 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
Not to mention emulator capability. Oh the hours I spent playing Genesis games on my Dreamcast...
posted by overeducated_alligator at 9:19 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
.
posted by riruro at 9:19 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by riruro at 9:19 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
For those of you still missing Jet Set Radio have a look at “Hover: Revolt of Gamers”. It is far from perfect but when it work, it does a great job of being the same kind of fun that Jet Set Radio and JSRF were.
posted by egypturnash at 9:20 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by egypturnash at 9:20 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
I miss my Seaman. I hope he's doing OK out there... :(
posted by Saxon Kane at 10:08 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by Saxon Kane at 10:08 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
I remember a site in the early 2000s by two UK people (I want to say they were women) called something like Dreamcast Resistance, about trying to get Sega to keep supporting it. Does anyone remember this?
posted by Chrysostom at 11:10 AM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by Chrysostom at 11:10 AM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
Fizz: Great post Wordshore. :)
You realize that you now have to make a post about twee cheeses to balance the scales?
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 11:24 AM on November 28, 2018 [5 favorites]
You realize that you now have to make a post about twee cheeses to balance the scales?
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 11:24 AM on November 28, 2018 [5 favorites]
The Dreamcast is probably my favorite console.
Some people kept making games long after they shut it down.
posted by bongo_x at 11:26 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
Some people kept making games long after they shut it down.
posted by bongo_x at 11:26 AM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
The Dreamcast was too beautiful for this ugly world.
posted by Sangermaine at 11:40 AM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by Sangermaine at 11:40 AM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
Power Stone 1 and 2
Yes! My friends and I played so much Power Stone 2 on the Dreamcast. It seemed to be just the right mix of difficulty where people who were bad and good at fighting games enjoyed it and had a fair chance of winning.
And I just wanted to give a shout out to Sega's Virtual On, which I think is the only game the Dreamcast twin sticks peripheral was compatible with.
posted by FJT at 11:45 AM on November 28, 2018 [3 favorites]
Yes! My friends and I played so much Power Stone 2 on the Dreamcast. It seemed to be just the right mix of difficulty where people who were bad and good at fighting games enjoyed it and had a fair chance of winning.
And I just wanted to give a shout out to Sega's Virtual On, which I think is the only game the Dreamcast twin sticks peripheral was compatible with.
posted by FJT at 11:45 AM on November 28, 2018 [3 favorites]
If we're giving shout-outs, I'd like to mention some of my favorite unfashionable and/or weird Dreamcast games: Bangai-O, Samba de Amigo, Pen Pen Tri-Icelon, Ooga Booga, and Rez (had that one been released in the US, a lot of my pals might have never gotten into Dreamcast CD-roms).
Also the Razor scooter game, which was not good, and Ready to Rumble: Round 2, an arcade boxing game where you could play as Bill or Hillary Clinton, which kinda was.
posted by box at 12:19 PM on November 28, 2018 [4 favorites]
Also the Razor scooter game, which was not good, and Ready to Rumble: Round 2, an arcade boxing game where you could play as Bill or Hillary Clinton, which kinda was.
posted by box at 12:19 PM on November 28, 2018 [4 favorites]
For those who still have a Dreamcast, or want to get one, there's been some impressive things done in the retro community.
There is now the GDEmu which allows you to rather easily - and reversibly - replace the GD-ROM drive in a DreamCast with a flash drive. Then you can play all of your games right off of flash cards. This also helps reduce the noise mentioned by FleetMind, and if you replace the fan too, you can make it as silent as any cartridge-based system.
Given that eventually every drive will die, this is likely the future for any Dreamcast that is going to be kept around. It's also probably the only way to play a number of the really expensive Dreamcast games on the secondary market.
(There's also one for the Sega Saturn, too.)
posted by evilangela at 12:41 PM on November 28, 2018 [4 favorites]
There is now the GDEmu which allows you to rather easily - and reversibly - replace the GD-ROM drive in a DreamCast with a flash drive. Then you can play all of your games right off of flash cards. This also helps reduce the noise mentioned by FleetMind, and if you replace the fan too, you can make it as silent as any cartridge-based system.
Given that eventually every drive will die, this is likely the future for any Dreamcast that is going to be kept around. It's also probably the only way to play a number of the really expensive Dreamcast games on the secondary market.
(There's also one for the Sega Saturn, too.)
posted by evilangela at 12:41 PM on November 28, 2018 [4 favorites]
Sega was never on my radar outside of the arcade, because no one I knew ever owned a Sega console. I didn't get my own console until i was 19 and it was the PS1. They seamed to live and breathe via Sonic and I just didn't think it was that special a title.
posted by Brocktoon at 12:46 PM on November 28, 2018
posted by Brocktoon at 12:46 PM on November 28, 2018
I made the mistake of trying to replicate my Sega Saturn and the collection of games I sold by browsing the offerings at a recent retro game expo. So expensive! (You do not want to know what a copy of Saturn Bomberman went for!) I saw a couple of GDEs for sale but little else in the way of Dreamcast hardware.
On the other hand, just boxes and boxes of SNES and Genesis carts.
posted by fifteen schnitzengruben is my limit at 1:07 PM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
On the other hand, just boxes and boxes of SNES and Genesis carts.
posted by fifteen schnitzengruben is my limit at 1:07 PM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
Space Channel Five was the best!
I also spent a summer playing Soul Caliber in college against a friend. We were both newb gamers playing on my boyfriend's dreamcast, and it just happened that we had an hour to kill three times a week, due to collegiate life. I committed to button mashing, while over three months, she actually learned how to play. It turns out button mashing has it's limits.
posted by politikitty at 1:11 PM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
I also spent a summer playing Soul Caliber in college against a friend. We were both newb gamers playing on my boyfriend's dreamcast, and it just happened that we had an hour to kill three times a week, due to collegiate life. I committed to button mashing, while over three months, she actually learned how to play. It turns out button mashing has it's limits.
posted by politikitty at 1:11 PM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
For those of you still missing Jet Set Radio have a look at “Hover: Revolt of Gamers”.
I feel obliged to point out that there's totally a PC version of JSR as of about five years ago.
posted by neckro23 at 1:17 PM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
I feel obliged to point out that there's totally a PC version of JSR as of about five years ago.
posted by neckro23 at 1:17 PM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
(You do not want to know what a copy of Saturn Bomberman went for!)
It's probably the best non-networked Bomberman game ever--you can have a ten-player game by using Saturn multitaps.
posted by box at 1:43 PM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
It's probably the best non-networked Bomberman game ever--you can have a ten-player game by using Saturn multitaps.
posted by box at 1:43 PM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
(You do not want to know what a copy of Saturn Bomberman went for!)
Allow me to introduce you to my retirement account, alternately known as "a copy of Panzer Dragoon Saga."
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 1:45 PM on November 28, 2018 [4 favorites]
Allow me to introduce you to my retirement account, alternately known as "a copy of Panzer Dragoon Saga."
posted by Holy Zarquon's Singing Fish at 1:45 PM on November 28, 2018 [4 favorites]
I thought I was wasting my money when I bought the VGA adapter for my Dreamcast; it was clunky to hook it up to my CRT monitor and some tinny speakers in 2000.
Little did I know that only 5 or 6 years later I would have a TV in my living room with VGA-in, and graphics that would blow away the PS2.
The Dreamcast is still hooked up to that TV to this day.
Nothing beats Crazy Taxi with the original Offspring soundtrack and real product placement.
Now I want to dust off the ol' Maracas for some Samba De Amigo.
posted by jozxyqk at 2:18 PM on November 28, 2018 [3 favorites]
Little did I know that only 5 or 6 years later I would have a TV in my living room with VGA-in, and graphics that would blow away the PS2.
The Dreamcast is still hooked up to that TV to this day.
Nothing beats Crazy Taxi with the original Offspring soundtrack and real product placement.
Now I want to dust off the ol' Maracas for some Samba De Amigo.
posted by jozxyqk at 2:18 PM on November 28, 2018 [3 favorites]
50 comments and not yet a single mention of SEGAGAGA? For shame!
Speaking of all-caps titles, ILLBLEED is... quite something, for sure.
> real product placement
Which SEGA paid for, of course. That's how that sort of deal is supposed to work, right?
posted by Bangaioh at 2:28 PM on November 28, 2018
Speaking of all-caps titles, ILLBLEED is... quite something, for sure.
> real product placement
Which SEGA paid for, of course. That's how that sort of deal is supposed to work, right?
posted by Bangaioh at 2:28 PM on November 28, 2018
Sega Saturn and the collection of games I sold by browsing the offerings at a recent retro game expo. So expensive!
On the other hand, just boxes and boxes of SNES and Genesis carts.
Well, carts in general don't go bad, exception for RAM batteries. I salvaged a Mega Drive game that had a thick layer of... something and all it took was disassembling the cartridge and give the contacts a good rubbing until the game booted as normal. Sega Saturn discs are so terrible most of them are rotting away on their shelves. Saw collectors completely heartbroken when their games got so many holes they couldn't even play with the sound on because the redbook soundtrack is g*LOUDSCREECH*one. This included games that were worth well north of €100.
posted by lmfsilva at 2:50 PM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
On the other hand, just boxes and boxes of SNES and Genesis carts.
Well, carts in general don't go bad, exception for RAM batteries. I salvaged a Mega Drive game that had a thick layer of... something and all it took was disassembling the cartridge and give the contacts a good rubbing until the game booted as normal. Sega Saturn discs are so terrible most of them are rotting away on their shelves. Saw collectors completely heartbroken when their games got so many holes they couldn't even play with the sound on because the redbook soundtrack is g*LOUDSCREECH*one. This included games that were worth well north of €100.
posted by lmfsilva at 2:50 PM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
Metafilter: fascinating in its way for being a relatively new kind of tedium
posted by dephlogisticated at 3:40 PM on November 28, 2018 [5 favorites]
posted by dephlogisticated at 3:40 PM on November 28, 2018 [5 favorites]
I'd forgotten about Virtua Tennis, which is the only tennis game I've enjoyed playing (all the more stranger as I don't like playing or watching the sport in real life). There was something ... satisfying ... about striking the ball well in the Dreamcast version.
...and Rez...
Rez I enjoyed - the synchronisation of the sound and action was interesting - though found it quite hard to make significant progress.
Anyway, back to reminiscing about forklift racing...
posted by Wordshore at 4:00 PM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
...and Rez...
Rez I enjoyed - the synchronisation of the sound and action was interesting - though found it quite hard to make significant progress.
Anyway, back to reminiscing about forklift racing...
posted by Wordshore at 4:00 PM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
It is a very strange Dreamcast thread where I am the first person to mention Legacy of Cain: Soul Reaver. What an awesome adventure game that looked amazing on the DreamCast. Our house was also partial to the car racing game Speed Devils. We still have our DreamCast. It still works, as long as you put something on top to hold the drive closed.
posted by hydropsyche at 4:18 PM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by hydropsyche at 4:18 PM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
Best. Console. Ever. It had a ridiculous number of amazing party games. Virtua Tennis is probably in my all-time top 10 games, no joke.
There were also super weird things like "Bleemcast!" the... PS1 Emulator. That was how I played Metal Gear Solid. It worked great.
posted by Sibrax at 5:04 PM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
There were also super weird things like "Bleemcast!" the... PS1 Emulator. That was how I played Metal Gear Solid. It worked great.
posted by Sibrax at 5:04 PM on November 28, 2018 [2 favorites]
I had the modem, keyboard, and mouse for it. Worked fairly well in a era where the cheapest laptops were $1500 plus.
posted by aerotive at 5:34 PM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by aerotive at 5:34 PM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
The virtual on twin-sticks were solid. I just googled it and there's a special PS4 version... Tempting. :D
posted by temancl at 10:08 PM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by temancl at 10:08 PM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
I got mine given, not long after the launch. I still have it. It's not going anywhere.
Rez. And I still remember the whole Trance Vibrator thing.
posted by holgate at 11:04 PM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
Rez. And I still remember the whole Trance Vibrator thing.
posted by holgate at 11:04 PM on November 28, 2018 [1 favorite]
Also of note, the copy protection for Dreamcast games was basically that they used a specially formatted 1 GB CD-ROM. So, if you could get a disk image for a game that'd fit on a normally formatted CD (which was not impossible) then you could just burn the image and play it.
IIRC, dedicated pirates/homebrewers had CD-ROM drives that they flashed with special firmware to read the Dreamcast format. (Not sure whether they could still work with normal CD-ROMs or whether they were by then dedicated to Dreamcast discs, or whether the format difference was such that one could write it to a stock CD-R).
posted by acb at 6:02 AM on November 29, 2018 [2 favorites]
IIRC, dedicated pirates/homebrewers had CD-ROM drives that they flashed with special firmware to read the Dreamcast format. (Not sure whether they could still work with normal CD-ROMs or whether they were by then dedicated to Dreamcast discs, or whether the format difference was such that one could write it to a stock CD-R).
posted by acb at 6:02 AM on November 29, 2018 [2 favorites]
Rez previously. I came out of lurking for that.
posted by Molesome at 9:29 AM on November 29, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by Molesome at 9:29 AM on November 29, 2018 [2 favorites]
IIRC, dedicated pirates/homebrewers had CD-ROM drives that they flashed with special firmware to read the Dreamcast format.
If memory serves, at least some of them were finding ways to read them from the Dreamcast when it's connected to a LAN (the Wikipedia entry for Dreamcast Broadband Adapter hints at this, but doesn't provide a specific citation).
I remember thinking at the time that cheaper and more readily available BBAs might've helped make the Dreamcast more enduringly popular. It's weird to learn that they might've sped up the piracy that (was one factor which) hastened its demise.
(There's a really deep dive into the death-of-the-Dreamcast story that I don't think has yet been written, and it includes at least a chapter about the file-sharing piece--in a few short years, people who were interested in, uh, backup copies went from using multipart .rar files shared via Usenet to sharing whole .iso files with Gnutella and Bittorrent.)
posted by box at 4:22 PM on November 29, 2018
If memory serves, at least some of them were finding ways to read them from the Dreamcast when it's connected to a LAN (the Wikipedia entry for Dreamcast Broadband Adapter hints at this, but doesn't provide a specific citation).
I remember thinking at the time that cheaper and more readily available BBAs might've helped make the Dreamcast more enduringly popular. It's weird to learn that they might've sped up the piracy that (was one factor which) hastened its demise.
(There's a really deep dive into the death-of-the-Dreamcast story that I don't think has yet been written, and it includes at least a chapter about the file-sharing piece--in a few short years, people who were interested in, uh, backup copies went from using multipart .rar files shared via Usenet to sharing whole .iso files with Gnutella and Bittorrent.)
posted by box at 4:22 PM on November 29, 2018
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Ikaruga (linked video is from the Gamecube port, sorry, please don't hurt me) will also always maintain a place in my heart.
posted by ragtag at 6:06 AM on November 28, 2018 [8 favorites]