It's ironic that the Saturn was, in it's day, the worst of the three systems by some distance. Looking back, though, the best games on the Saturn have aged far better than most of the best PS and N64 games. 2D like the Saturn was designed for, it turns out, is timeless. The 3D the PS and N64 were designed for, much less so (though obviously they were rightly considered revolutionary at the time and many gaming milestones were achieved on those systems).
Yeah I was only thinking similar recently with the dreamcast. PS2, GC & Xbox. I think there are a lot more complex PS2 games. Which were great at the time. But I think many of these gameplay mechanics have since been dropped. The simpler titles for the most part on Dreamcast have aged really well and are still enjoyable to this day. And agree with the PS1 & N64. Lot of these games haven't aged well at all. Not all. But most of them.
Excellent. I also owned a PlayStation and N64 at that time, but the Dreamcast suddenly felt like a big leap forward in 3D gaming. I bought my Dreamcast solely on the strength of seeing footage from Sonic Adventure, despite how bitter I later became towards 3D Sonic "efforts". The most overwhelming feeling I had from the Dreamcast era, was of a console with a great deal of new and original games, rather than the competition that often relied heavily on sequels to sell their consoles. I feel lucky that I did own all the major Dreamcast games during its life-span. The Dreamcast also represented my very first experiences of the internet, thanks to that convenient built-in modem, that I couldn't resist connecting to the phone line. Notable for the fantastic array of fighting games on Dreamcast, which I played and still play a great deal to this very day. I'm not sure people are aware of just how powerful and effective Sony were in promoting, the then, forthcoming PlayStation 2, but it still remains the only console I have ever purchased at its UK launch! Regrettably, I did sell my original Dreamcast and games at that time in order to fund my PlayStation 2 purchases - only to re-purchase another Dreamcast and collect those games again some years later. The Dream was over and no console has ever felt so exciting to me since the Sega Dreamcast.
I'm sure Dreamcast was the foundation of PS2's success. Consider, PS2 and Naomi shipped in late 1998 in Japan, which means the hardware went out to developers in 1997 - and the developer community is somewhat leaky, someone walks by, someone sees the screen, third party developers are not console exclusive. If they started setting the PS2's performance targets in 1997 while already having just generic bits of hardware in the works, such as interpolating texture mapper, framebuffer, DMA system bits, that lines up well with necessary engineering and release timeline of the console. The goal would have been to beat the Dreamcast - which they did, by about a factor of maybe less than 2 in performance while throwing about 5 times more transistors and power requirement on it. That's rushed engineering for you, a lot of PS1's and Dreamcast's elegance was gone at that point. The expansive hardware errata list of PS2 that made it through the prototypes and all the way to final hardware, including broken flicker fixer, should be another hint at the rush. Then their marketing could essentially point the finger and say "hey look, see this awesome SEGA system? well when we're done, we're gonna make it look like last gen, because we're gonna have a system that's infinite times more powerful. Here are some meaningless but obviously much higher numbers for you." By focusing on the numbers they could avoid naming the competitor outright, but the press would do it for them. Of course it came with a bit of disappointment, as the system complexity and high errata density didn't exactly allow the first batch of PS2's games to shine, while Dreamcast software development reached a degree of maturity by then. Then again, PS2 did redeem itself during its very long lifespan, as developers wrung ever more performance out of every corner of it.
Yeah, Dreamcast was the peak of gaming for me. Sony's hype machine for the PS2 was just insurmountable though. It was going to be like jacking into the Matrix and deliver Toy Story quality graphics... I honestly think had Sega had the money to stick it out through 2001, the Dreamcast would have started to turn things around a bit as it was the PS2 hype, rather than it's end product, that killed the Dreamcast.
I'm thinking on buying a dreamcast, i know your comment is kinda recent but you can still see people playing Phantasy Star Online online with other people and such?
I've had my dreamcast for about 3 weeks and I think its value is absolutely fantastic. For the cost of a new PS4 game, $60, this little box of dreams is a pleasure to put on my shelf. And your heartfelt and sincere love letter to this under looked and under appreciated console has given me a feeling of pride when I play it as well Top notch video.
I was in Gibraltar in 1999 visiting my parents. I knew nothing about the Dreamcast. But I remember seeing it in the window of an electronics store. I got it with Soul Calibre, Sonic Adventure and Sega Rally. Absolutely blew my mind when I fired that bad boy up 😉
I love the dreamcast. It's full of oddities and gems make it so unique. It also has some amazing homebrew games worth trying. Sure the prices are skyrocketing but my advice is to do the following: 1)Flip your dreamcast over and look for a serial number in a small circle. 2) If there's no number or it ends with a "0" or "1". You have a model 1 dreamcast. 3) Proceed to burn discs. If youre looking for some interesting game picks; I personally am a fan of Powerstone 2, Skies of Arcadia, Grandia 2, Resident Evil Code Veronica, Project Justice, Shenmue, all the Bleemcast games, Gunlord, Sturmwind and most of not all NG Dev team shmups. If you want some cool oddities, play Samba De Amigo, Space Channel 5, Rainbow Cotton, Illbleed, Maken X and the like.
I think the Dreamcast is a bit like the Wii u. A lot of its games were remade to other consoles, but their are still a few hidden gems on it that saves it from being entirely skipped.
Not really. At least Sega Dreamcast got more 3rd party support and Capcom loved them and gave almost each fighting game on that system including SNK games. WII U was even worse... got only the name that kept them but gamewise not nearly Dreamcast top titles including 3rd party. Yeah said it
my Dreamcast memories: ZERO never played it until a couple years ago. And I was VERY impressed and I love it and prefer it to Xbox or PS2 for the most part.
Excellent retrospective video. The Dreamcast was my favourite console back in the day - it was like a breath of fresh air when it came out with loads of creative game ideas. Sega at the time was fostering a real boutique studio system with all it's divisions able to go in their own directions - and it worked. It was also the first 3D centric console whose graphics equalled the fidelity and vibrancy of the old 16-bit sprite based systems.
Also had a neighbor with a dreamcast and remember playing chu chu rocket online back in 2000. Crazy to think about. The thing that blew me away about the dreamcast was when I saw NBA 2k for the first time. It looked more life like than anything id ever seen
preordered it, picked it up at electronics boutique on 9/9/99. sonic adventure was sold out so my first game was blue stinger instead. i mightve been jaded by the eye candy but my enjoyment with that game was off the charts. most of my time spent with my dreamcast around its prime were playing games like dead or alive 2, skies of arcadia, and an imported ikaruga. good times. :)
The best part about owning a Dreamcast in 2018 is the number of online games that are back up and running, with more to follow. Add to that numerous releases for the console post 2002 and you have a retro system that is becoming more relevant today than the PS2 could ever hope to be. Owning a Dreamcast today just gets better and better.
Even in 2019, the DC is still worth playing. It's criminal how the bulk of its library isn't available on other systems barring some first party SEGA games and a couple Capcom fighters.
How did you never experience Phantasy Star Online!? That game was the reason I bought the Dreamcast. Lots of memories with that game. If you did play it - I can't believe you didn't mention it.
Your excellent DC documentary is what drew me to your channel. Afterwards I discovered a retro game reviewer who doesn't shy away to critisise ever green games and consoles. Love it. Keep up the good work!
Its worth owning a Dreamcast just for Shenmue 1 & 2 alone, then you have games like Skies of Arcadia, power stone 1 & 2, Ferrari 355, House of the Dead 2, basically a ton of top games from Sega & Capcom and many others + lots of great import titles too!
I got a Dreamcast early 2003 expecting the games to look dated at that point. The first game that I booted up was Dead or Alive 2 and it was an unforgettable experience. It had the best graphics I had ever seen and played ridiculously well. It still ranks as my favorite console I have ever owned, such a 4 player party powerhouse as well!
Dreamcast was the first console I ever played. I remember playing a lot of Sonic Adventure and Quake III. I still have the console to this day and fire it up every now and then. I always liked the start up screen. I remember doing the music and sound with my mouth as the blue swirl appeared. Loved the sound mine made when games started up it was like a scratching sound. The Dreamcast will always have a special place in my life and heart, so much so my 3ds theme is the Dreamcast theme.
Loved this video, I felt very nostalgic watching it. I still have, and play my Sega Dreamcast, and I remember the day I got it. It was 10/22/99 it was a rainy day, and the reason why it took me so long to get the Dreamcast is because everywhere I went the system was sold out. For a whole month and a half I couldn’t find the DC. I was 15 years old in 1999, we went my parents took me to the local toys r us, to get the DC, and I was hoping and praying they had some. To my luck they had one more left, and the guy in front of me bought 3 of them. My first 2 games were Marvel VS Capcom and Sonic adventure. I was so happy, I still have it, and it plays well. 1999 was such a good year too.
That console was incredible. Shenmue and Quake 3 Arena?? please. Oh Soul Calibar also. You name it..that weird Seaman game with the mic where you talked to the fish...and it worked?? Typing of the dead?? Could go on and on. Total love.
It was Soul Calibur that made me want a DC. I am a Soul veteran who played Soul Blade in arcade and got that once it ported to PS1. Then, I played Soul Calibur in arcade and was blown away by it. Once I read in a gaming magazine that it was ported to Dreamcast, I was sold. Still love it.
I remember buying King of fighters 99 (98 in Japan) before I even got the system! And the excitement of buying the green arcade stick from Toysrus after I got a dreamcast!!! Saturn and dreamcast are still my favorite systems
Short answer, yes. I still have mine and I still fire it up now and then to play. It's the one console I always get back to. It has something that draws me in. Maybe it was the fact that it was made as a last ditch effort to redeem Sega out of the clusterfuck that was the Sega Saturn, or maybe it's because I dig the VMU card. Or maybe it's because it has four joystick ports and I can play Powerstone with my daughter and my wife. Or maybe it's just it's appealing design. I love every inch of that little white box. The Dreamcast was a console that was trully ahead of its time. It was the first console that pioneered MMORPGs (and even after it was discontinued, it took several years for the servers to shut down). It was one of the first consoles that could run emulators and had a booming homebrew market. And people are STILL making games for it to this day. For some reason the Dreamcast refuses to die. Almost as if it has a soul.
I HAVE SEEN YOU BEFORE IN ANOTHER PERSONS VIDEO 👀🤳 It's your chick isn't it, Lady Decade! Hehe you are both great creators I have been watching both of you recently, and I am really impressed with the high quality content. Plus you are both cool people. Subbed and liked, thanks and keep it coming bro 👌
If you are looking for a good Dreamcast grappler that isn't a WWF or WCW game, look for Giant Gram 2000. It is a Wresling game that features Japanese wrestles and a few Virtua Fighter characters. It was co-developed by AM2. Honestly, Giant Gram still has some of the best wrestling game mechanics to this day.
I don't think it can be understated how important it was that PS2 could play DVD movies out of the box. DVDs were taking off right before the PS2 was released, and I know a ton of people who waited on a DVD movie player because they were just planning to get a PS2, which was cheaper than many DVD players at the time. For a lot of people I know the DVD player was what put it over the top. I'm like you, I already had a DVD player, so I saw through the rest. The DC really was the gamers console. They were doing really fun stuff, sometimes way out there. Jet grind radio, Seaman, Shenmue... Still have my DC. Still works great.
My history with the Dreamcast has been a long one, though I would not own the console itself until 2017, its influence on my gaming preferences remain to this day. Rewind to the 90's. My first console was the N64, with a Gameboy later on. My dad on the other hand, purchased a PS1 so we had both the N64 and PS1 under the same roof. I'd also played on the Sega Megadrive at school and a few neighbours houses, though would never actually own one, due to Sega's constant 'new' releases of hardware, which would ultimately make my dad hesitant to allow a Sega console under the roof. Fast forward to the Sega Dreamcast's release. As mentioned earlier, I was not allowed to get a Dreamcast due to my dad's reluctance with Sega hardware. This would not stop me from experiencing the console, as I was lucky enough to have a friend who got almost every console at the time on launch day. We used to play the s*** out of Sonic Adventure and later Sonic Adventure 2. It was simply incredible. With the PS2's release, it was the first console I got on launch day as a early birthday present from my parents. I now know the reason they were not hesitant to purchase the console for me is due to the built-in DVD player (a benefit for the whole family) and the PS1's success. Shortly thereafter, the Dreamcast was discontinued and was slowly forgotten about, with my friend later owning a GC and an Xbox. I too, would get a Gamecube as a early birthday present (due to the N64's success) but the Xbox would come later as my dad was hesitant with Microsoft. Fast forward to Sonic Heroes. Playing the game on the PS2 I could not help but wonder what the Sonic game was that I had played on the Dreamcast. Luckily, my friend still remembered and informed me that SA1 and SA2 had been re-released for the GC. It was then that I managed to re-live the Dreamcast's experience a few years prior. The rest of the time period was spent with the PS2 and Xbox for online gaming with Halo 2 and more, something I'd wished that the GC had more of. To this day, I think online gaming had a big impact on me back then. Yes I'd played PC games such as the Battlefield series (when they were good) and the OG Call of Duty but it was something else playing Halo 2 and being a part of a small community on the PS2 as well. As a result, I came across a website discussing the Dreamcast. Remembering the nostalgia from my short experience with it, I looked into the console further and discovered the console had a fair amount of online games given its short lifespan, as well as some even offering cross platform support. I then discovered a community who are in the middle of reviving as many of the online games as possible. The collector in me got the better of me and I rushed out to do what I was not able to do 20 years prior - purchase a Dreamcast. I now own one and still appreciate the console and wish I'd had more time with it back in its youth. Despite the console's exclusives receiving multiple ports, I did not play alot of them so I bought them for the DC instead and have experienced them the way they were meant to be played. It's still an impressive console, and i love that the community has revived some of the online games. Quake 3 Arena and Phantasy Star Online are two games I like to play on the console still. Regardless, I'm glad I finally own the console and I can appreciate it for what it was. My favourite titles so far in no particular order: - SA1 - SA2 - Shenmue 1+2 - RE: Code Veronica - Spider-man (2000) - Quake 3 Arena (I like experimenting with cross-platform play) - Phantasy Star Online And finally, being a huge Valve and Half-Life fan, I even have a copy of the unreleased Half-Life for Dreamcast. Still got more games to get, with Soul Calibur, Jet Set Radio, Crazy Taxi, DOA 2, POD and Tony Hawks Pro Skater 2 being ones I'm eager to get. Can you still have fun with the DC in 2018? Of course you can!
My DC that I bought a month after launch died in 2005. I was in a bad way financially, so I had to sell all my games. Later I was doing better, and got PS2 and X-Box, then GameCube. I got Shenmue 2 on XB, and Panzer Dragoon Orta as well. I found Skies of Arcadia for GC, and Space Channel 5 1&2 set for PS2. I still miss Crazy Taxi. The games I got at launch for DC were Soul Calibur and Resident Evil Code Veronica, I was sold on the DC immediately. I then got Jet Grind Radio and Crazy Taxi. Such good times, I still CZcams Offspring to this day. "All I want", lol.
Games are still being released on it. Go to conventions and online you'll find ports and original games. It blew my mind when i found out i could play Cavestory minecraft and even FORTNIGHT on the thing
It's worth playing in 2019! I grew up with Sony consoles (PS1-3) and I idolized the PS2. I switched to the 360 in 2010 since I had the 40GB PS3 that wasn't backwards compatible with my beloved PS2 games, and I was seeing that games were better on the 360, being technically superior in terms of games and the online experience. I fell in love with many of the Xbox Classics instantly, and I was given an original Xbox by my cousin after and I got the Xbox One on launch day due to my amazing experience with the 360 (which I still play to this day). Last spring right before my second semester of college was about to end, I had a blank spindle of CDs laying around. I'd always see the Dreamcast on CZcams videos, but I never owned one or knew anyone that did. Due to the ease of burning back-ups to blank CDs, I looked into the system extensively before finally deciding to buy one on eBay. I opened it and was instantly in awe. The controller felt right at home in comparison to the 360, and I played Rayman 2 first since I had it on PS2 growing up. I was instantly impressed by the frame rate, color vibrancy, and the VMU. I burned as many classics as I could think of and binged videos on game reviews. Jet Set Radio was the first game I ever completed on the system, Soul Calibur was and still is the go-to for getting drunk and high with friends and going round-for round, and Pro-Skater 2 is beyond impressive. I began collecting official games when I could find them, I began picking up rare variants and I also began fixing Dreamcasts. My friend and I both bought one each for 10 bucks, we fixed the lasers and got 2 working consoles. I put every one of my friends onto it, and they don't regret it in the slightest. I have colored controllers, as well as a Demo Kiosk Dreamcast and the Sega Sports Black variant. The point is, I missed the Dreamcast due to being born the year it came out, I was never exposed to it, and it's easily become one of (if not) my favorite console of all time, rivaling my PS2 for sure. If you're considering buying one, pull the trigger. You won't regret it in the slightest! Also, be sure to join The Dreamcast Junkyard Facebook Page; there's always great stuff being posted on there everyday related to the Dreamcast!
It totally is and I'm super pumped for two new Dreamcast games coming out this summer in particular; Battle Crust and Xeno Crisis. I just totally realized I have more games released after the "death" of the Dreamcast than when it was being produced! Neo XYX DUX Version 1.5 Redux Dark Matters Ghost Blade Sturmwind Gunlord Last Hope Pink Bullets Fast Striker Flashback Breakers Ganryu All super great games released after "death" and if you haven't check them out, you need to!
Great video Mr THGM. Dreamcast was very underrated and deserved to do better than it did. I never took to the console as much as Sega's earlier systems however it was a console with more potential for great games than the PS2, GC and Xbox.
Ive actually owned my dreamcast since the summer of 2000, i bought it with my first job at age 15, im actually playing shenmue now for the first time! I really wish i would have gave it more if a chance when it was new so it would have wowed me more.
08:40 No, if memory serves me correctly, the first Dreamcast game in Japan to be the #1 seller at the time (of all new games over there) was actually Shutokou Battle 2. 22:24 Chu Chu Rocket wasn't the first. Even the Japanese version of Sega Rally 2 had online gameplay before the Dreamcast was even released in Europe and North America.
Paying for the internet by the hour was definitely a thing back then, we had freeserve in the late 90's and think it was something like 60p/£1 an hour - enough for 3 mp3 downloads!
Never had a Dreamcast...I had an N64, though but by that time in those days I was a staunch PC gamer, now I’m back to consoles again, go figure. Now I really regret not buying a Dreamcast during that time...videos like these are why
Had a lot of fun with the Dreamcast back in the day especially with the web browser at the time. It’s still a fun tinker toy with all of the homebrew and emulator software available. I was even able to make a couple simple games using the DOS emulator and older SDKs. My friends who were early PS2 adaptors were also jealous of the ports we got of Soul Calibur, Dead or Alive 2, and Capcom vs. Marvel 2
Used to play a lot of Phantasy Star Online 1 & 2, Tech Romancer & Skies of Arcadia. My brother bought the japanese version & also had The House of the dead, Shutokou Battle & Godzilla on it
This is a honest and fair look at the dreamcast. Even if most of the games could be played on other systems the dreamcast itself is an experience unlike any other. Also the crazy taxi games on other systems lack the original licensed soundtrack which was a big part of the experience, much like it was with jet set radio. Speaking of jet set radio, the Xbox exclusive jet set radio future is still one of my favorite games ever. Grandia 2 was actually better on the DC than it was on the ps2. Plus it had a line up of sports games that easily rivaled the PlayStation without EA. The dreamcast wasn't just the little console that could. In many cases it did things that no other console could do. It offered a fresh new experience that made everything fun even if we didn't always know why it was fun. It was a magical experience for many of us that nothing else really compares to.
These vids are funny to me because retro is always worth playing no matter what year it is! It could be the year 2054 and I’d still play the Dreamcast or any of the retro consoles I own 👍🏻💯🤙🏻
Fun video about a great system. I didn't have a Dreamcast back in the day, for me it was initially too expensive to justify one and I took the PS2 route instead. A friend passed-down his Dreamcast to my kids and I played a bit on that and now have a pre-owned unit of my own. I'm a little surprised that you didn't cover the controversy around EA's decision to not support the Dreamcast, or the storm in a tea-cup surrounding Bleemcast, or the ongoing Dreamcast scene that still sees the occasional release of games commercially or as homebrew titles such as Volgarrr the Viking or Pier Solar And The Great Architects, even a port of Cave Story. Favourite games included the light gun titles like House of the Dead and Confidential Mission, Head Hunter, Vanishing Point, Power Stone, Virtua Tennis, Star Lancer and of course Crazy Taxi lol. The Dreamcast also had arguably the best versions of Rayman 2 and Spider-Man ... two of my favourite games of the era, in fact probably among my top 100 ever. My recent experiences on my Dreamcast have included playing Fur Fighters, Omikron: The Nomad Soul and the unreleased port of Half Life, that was leaked through the internet some years ago.
Still have my DC but i bought it 8 years ago. What a great console! Grandia 2/JSR/Silver/MSR/Ecco The Dolphin and most my beloved RE Code Veronica! Greetings From Greece!
I used the vmu all the time with nfl2k to choose plays.. the dreamcast is the most underrated system of all time... sonic adventure power stone shenmue crazy taxi nfl2k the games were awesome so far ahead of there time
Summer of 99 I managed to get a Sega Saturn with Daytona USA for £30 and Sega Rally for 20p. Instantly fell in love with Sega Rally (and Daytona). I also enjoyed playing Sega Rally 2 in the Namco Station at Meadowhall. So when Sega Rally 2 was a launch title instantly wanted a Dreamcast. Didn't have a job or anything so had to save pocket money. Also busked in the street to raise money for it and my birthday was also in December, so on December 23rd 1999, I was finally able to procure a Sega Dreamcast. Couldn't decide what launch title I wanted though (Toy Commander blew me away at the local Cinema where they had pods set up) and eventually settled on Sonic Adventure. (Sega Rally 2 would have to wait as you want a big broad first game for a system rather than just a racing game). Realised in the car on the way home that horror! I'd forgotten to get a VMU to actually save with (damn Nintendo getting my so conditioned to battery back up on the carts) so had a quick detour to Currys. Finally got my system home and set up. Put in Sonic Adventure, happily running around station square going through the whole new gen console "this is nice!" experience and then it happened. "Action Stage 1: Emerald Coast". From that moment on, the Dreamcast has been my favourite ever game console. It may have been a lot of shine, but Emerald Coast to this day remains the most awe inspiring gaming experience I have ever had.
Great video! These type of vids are your best and it's great to have your personal experiences and the historical facts, I never owned a dreamcast as I only went from n64 to gamecube around 2004. My favourite sega is the master system and megadrive.
Like your video but seriously dood, check your levels!! I blasted the volume because your intro was almost inaudible only to have my ear drums almost pop after you started speaking!
3:16 Not the old "128-bit" thing again. lol The Dreamcast was essentially 32-bit, but the GPU had some 128-bit instructions and VRAM access. This is similar to most "32-bit" PCs with 3D graphics cards of the time. (some PC graphics cards were of course based on a very similar NEC PowerVR / PowerVR2 chip to the Dreamcast GPU.) The bitness of a system doesn't mean everything, but it's interesting that some of these old marketing phrases still have an impact to this day.
P.S. The Dreamcast was (and still is) awesome. ;) I bought mine just after midnight on launch day in 1999. I loved the N64 as well, but it's fair to say that the Dreamcast was quite a big step-up in technical terms.
Lassi Kinnunen GTA III couldn't run on the GameCube because the GC's discs couldn't hold enough data. The GC's discs could hold more data than the Dreamcast's discs. So GTA III couldn't have run on DC. Even with more RAM.
The same could be said about the Nintendo 64, which may have had a 64 bit processor, but only had a 32 bit bus... the Atari ST for example had a 32 bit processor and a 16 bit bus, and was classed as 16 bit because of that, so why does Ninten-... oh, BECAUSE it's Nintendo!!
Still the only controller I've used that I get hand cramp using for a period of time. Having the cord on the bottom was a pain as well. It was noisy too, but I got used to that. I really enjoyed my time with it, but when the Xbox came out it was very much a direct replacement for it due to all the DC sequels that appeared on it and the same type of action games
Yes it is, it's a lovely old console. I missed out on the 32 bit systems (was busy being a teenager) but came back to Sega with the Dreamcast and had so much fun with the system, was great to see how games had come along but still have 2D greats like SF Alpha 3 and Marvel VS Capcom games. A very arcadey experience overall.. And all the accessories - VMU, arcade sticks, Neo Geo Pocket link cable, fishing rod, light gun, maracas, keyboard and mouse and a mike for your Seaman! I would say you have to play it on a CRT for the best results visually but a decent VGA converter for your HDTV is another option (that only sexes up 3D games though, 2D won't look too great without those scanlines!). And yes it was common to pay by the hour for the internet hour then!
Damn right it is. Dreamcast has probably the best ratio of good/bad games of any console, im actually struggling to think of any truly awful ones tbh. I still have mine, complete with fishing rod and luckily it plays burnt cds fine. I remember downloading homebrew like doom and that awful megadrive emulator over a metered 56k line and booting via the utopia bootdisk. And yes, in answer to your question isps like freeserve charged by the minute for internet access. The internet really took off once you didnt need a credit card or contract to get online. They just charged the owners of the phoneline, iirc it was about £1 an hour with freeserve but there were scores of others.
@ryan: Hmm, just watched a quickplay of Soul Fighter and it looks kinda average, certainly not completely awful although the cutscenes are pretty subpar.
I was the only one to have a dreamcast out of all of my school mates. They stuck with there ps1 and n64's, So i would lug the DC around to several of their houses to show them what they were missing. Get Bass always went down well and Soul Caliber. Good times.
The Dreamcast even has a build of Half Life 1, the most impressive feat for the time. The Dreamcast was basically the Xbox for the time, where developers from the PC were quite keen considering it enabled some PC specific capabilities with chips or parts, and even ARCADE level integration with the hardware. It was a beast for the time and why I wish it lasted longer so that I may have sparked more interest in it rather than being a typical PS2 or Gamecube minion. I still had Sega feels at heart, but I got lazy after the Sega Mega Drive until only recently with the ports, compilations and emulation.
Aaahh the Dreamcast... I played Shenmue in 2002 in preparation for a trip to Japan (back when I was in college) to immerse myself in the Japanese culture.... Today, I'm planning a second trip to Japan with my girlfriend and I'm planning non making her play Shenmue to get an idea of what Japan looks like... Such an immersive game... Oh and the song you played while talking about Shenmue 2... It's so "haunting" and mystical... There's something in this music that Always makes me want to shed a tear... Kinda ... Otherworldly...
I had the Sega Genesis and Saturn, which i enjoyed immensely. I wasn't able to get a Dreamcast when they first came out, but I was able to purchase one recently and I have not been disappointed. I also had the PS 1 and my proverbial skirt was never blown up by the console. Many of the games which were released for both the PS 1 and the Saturn, actually played better on the Saturn. I switched to PC gaming and I didn't buy a console until 2016 when I bought an Xbox 360. I now have a PS4, Xbox One S and Series X to compliment my classic systems. I feel that manybof the games for the Dreamcast were just better written minus the poor voice acting in some titles. I've always believed that had Sega Japan and Sega US worked co-operatively, they may have partnered with MS on the Xbox.
I bought a DC last Aug for £50.00p I got a DC, 2 Controllers, 1 VMU, Giga Wing AND Shenmue 1 Mint :) Just showing this console and some games I have with Mates who grew up with either PS2 or even PS3 is such a joy as we all play and have a laugh with House Of The Dead 2, ChuChu Rocket, Power Stone AND the game Iv played the most Crazy Taxi 1. Towards the end of May I will be having a good 2 weeks off work and will finally have a chance to Play Shenmue 1 blind so I'm really looking forward to that :)
I never had a Dreamcast experience yet, but as far as the NAOMI, its souped-up arcade counterpart, is concerned, I had tons of fun. Yeah, I'd still recommend Initial D Arcade Stage and Club Kart as good games to play in an arcade.
I got one about two years ago, from a craigs-list like website. That one had a busted laser, and the trick where you turn a little knob didn't really do much either... So I got another one, a later version with another laser in it, that did work. (with laser I am referring to the disc reader) Anyways, my experiences with it so far have been quite good! Although I didn't own one in my childhood (I did own a N64), I didn't really even knew it existed up until I got some random information about it at school for history lessons. (Yes, history classes about video games are a thing, especially if your history teacher is a video game collector :P) So years later I started collecting all these older consoles, just because I was very curious how they played and looked in real life. Eventually I got to the dreamcast. I got it, I played it, but I still have to finish shenmue on it, and ecco the dolphin... and sonic adventures 2... But I never took the time to do so. Yet.
What's weird is you can find what still amounts to a Sega Saturn as far as the guts go in most Sega arcade cabinets they run a modified Dreamcast at least any of the super popular ones that came out in the last 20 years do so if you ever looking for replacement parts or things like that a place you might not have considered looking is the old Sega arcadecabinets
Here's the link to my Ultimate Sega Dreamcast documentary! Yeahhhhh! czcams.com/video/4lW-hddqAyc/video.html
Top Hat Gaming Man bloody crackin vid good day sir
You dare say something bad on my favorite Sonic character
But I'm not going to do anything about it.
I received a Dreamcast on Christmas Eve 1999, it was the best Christmas ever!
It's ironic that the Saturn was, in it's day, the worst of the three systems by some distance. Looking back, though, the best games on the Saturn have aged far better than most of the best PS and N64 games. 2D like the Saturn was designed for, it turns out, is timeless. The 3D the PS and N64 were designed for, much less so (though obviously they were rightly considered revolutionary at the time and many gaming milestones were achieved on those systems).
Yeah I was only thinking similar recently with the dreamcast. PS2, GC & Xbox. I think there are a lot more complex PS2 games. Which were great at the time. But I think many of these gameplay mechanics have since been dropped. The simpler titles for the most part on Dreamcast have aged really well and are still enjoyable to this day.
And agree with the PS1 & N64. Lot of these games haven't aged well at all. Not all. But most of them.
Excellent.
I also owned a PlayStation and N64 at that time, but the Dreamcast suddenly felt like a big leap forward in 3D gaming. I bought my Dreamcast solely on the strength of seeing footage from Sonic Adventure, despite how bitter I later became towards 3D Sonic "efforts".
The most overwhelming feeling I had from the Dreamcast era, was of a console with a great deal of new and original games, rather than the competition that often relied heavily on sequels to sell their consoles. I feel lucky that I did own all the major Dreamcast games during its life-span. The Dreamcast also represented my very first experiences of the internet, thanks to that convenient built-in modem, that I couldn't resist connecting to the phone line. Notable for the fantastic array of fighting games on Dreamcast, which I played and still play a great deal to this very day.
I'm not sure people are aware of just how powerful and effective Sony were in promoting, the then, forthcoming PlayStation 2, but it still remains the only console I have ever purchased at its UK launch! Regrettably, I did sell my original Dreamcast and games at that time in order to fund my PlayStation 2 purchases - only to re-purchase another Dreamcast and collect those games again some years later.
The Dream was over and no console has ever felt so exciting to me since the Sega Dreamcast.
I'm sure Dreamcast was the foundation of PS2's success.
Consider, PS2 and Naomi shipped in late 1998 in Japan, which means the hardware went out to developers in 1997 - and the developer community is somewhat leaky, someone walks by, someone sees the screen, third party developers are not console exclusive. If they started setting the PS2's performance targets in 1997 while already having just generic bits of hardware in the works, such as interpolating texture mapper, framebuffer, DMA system bits, that lines up well with necessary engineering and release timeline of the console. The goal would have been to beat the Dreamcast - which they did, by about a factor of maybe less than 2 in performance while throwing about 5 times more transistors and power requirement on it. That's rushed engineering for you, a lot of PS1's and Dreamcast's elegance was gone at that point. The expansive hardware errata list of PS2 that made it through the prototypes and all the way to final hardware, including broken flicker fixer, should be another hint at the rush.
Then their marketing could essentially point the finger and say "hey look, see this awesome SEGA system? well when we're done, we're gonna make it look like last gen, because we're gonna have a system that's infinite times more powerful. Here are some meaningless but obviously much higher numbers for you." By focusing on the numbers they could avoid naming the competitor outright, but the press would do it for them.
Of course it came with a bit of disappointment, as the system complexity and high errata density didn't exactly allow the first batch of PS2's games to shine, while Dreamcast software development reached a degree of maturity by then. Then again, PS2 did redeem itself during its very long lifespan, as developers wrung ever more performance out of every corner of it.
Yeah, Dreamcast was the peak of gaming for me. Sony's hype machine for the PS2 was just insurmountable though. It was going to be like jacking into the Matrix and deliver Toy Story quality graphics... I honestly think had Sega had the money to stick it out through 2001, the Dreamcast would have started to turn things around a bit as it was the PS2 hype, rather than it's end product, that killed the Dreamcast.
I still play Phantasy Star Online... Yes, ONLINE with other people. Dreamcast online gaming isn't dead
I'm thinking on buying a dreamcast, i know your comment is kinda recent but you can still see people playing Phantasy Star Online online with other people and such?
Private servers ?
Yuri YUli Through private servers, yes.
How’s that possible? I thought Sega shut down their online servers after disconnecting the Dreamcast.
Phantasy Star online also can be play ONLINE on nintendo Wii
I've had my dreamcast for about 3 weeks and I think its value is absolutely fantastic. For the cost of a new PS4 game, $60, this little box of dreams is a pleasure to put on my shelf.
And your heartfelt and sincere love letter to this under looked and under appreciated console has given me a feeling of pride when I play it as well
Top notch video.
I was in Gibraltar in 1999 visiting my parents. I knew nothing about the Dreamcast. But I remember seeing it in the window of an electronics store. I got it with Soul Calibre, Sonic Adventure and Sega Rally. Absolutely blew my mind when I fired that bad boy up 😉
Is it bloody worth playing in 2018 of course it bloody is right im bloody off to play power stone good day sir
oi gday mate go bring yerself to the pub
lol brits
The Dreamcast and many of its games, like Power Stone and Sonic Adventure have a cult following.
Excellent video. I love having someone of my age and similar experiences on CZcams.
I'm getting my very own dreamcast sometime this week. The main reason it to play Shemue for the first time :). Great video, just in time.
So?
Try getting the second chapter, it is well worth the trouble.😉
I bought my Dreamcast in woolworths on September 11th 2001...
BordersDude Well they became a sports store in 97 and became Foot Locker in 01 so...
Michael Lewis not in the UK they didn't.Woolworths UK shut down in 2008.
Booooooom!
Wait a minute isn't that when nevermind
@@cathleenpenfield4925 terrible name for a date... reminds me of that tragedy!!
I love the dreamcast. It's full of oddities and gems make it so unique. It also has some amazing homebrew games worth trying.
Sure the prices are skyrocketing but my advice is to do the following:
1)Flip your dreamcast over and look for a serial number in a small circle.
2) If there's no number or it ends with a "0" or "1". You have a model 1 dreamcast.
3) Proceed to burn discs.
If youre looking for some interesting game picks; I personally am a fan of Powerstone 2, Skies of Arcadia, Grandia 2, Resident Evil Code Veronica, Project Justice, Shenmue, all the Bleemcast games, Gunlord, Sturmwind and most of not all NG Dev team shmups.
If you want some cool oddities, play Samba De Amigo, Space Channel 5, Rainbow Cotton, Illbleed, Maken X and the like.
I think the Dreamcast is a bit like the Wii u. A lot of its games were remade to other consoles, but their are still a few hidden gems on it that saves it from being entirely skipped.
I know some of those ports go for absurd prices. Skies of Arcadia will probably cost you more on Game Cube than it would for the original.
Not really. At least Sega Dreamcast got more 3rd party support and Capcom loved them and gave almost each fighting game on that system including SNK games. WII U was even worse... got only the name that kept them but gamewise not nearly Dreamcast top titles including 3rd party. Yeah said it
@@RouteRoad keep an eye out dreamcasts can be found for $20 easily
@@capcom23 yeah i think the Wii U is the Saturn of our generation. The PS Vita would be the Dreamcast I think
my Dreamcast memories: ZERO
never played it until a couple years ago.
And I was VERY impressed and I love it and prefer it to Xbox or PS2 for the most part.
Poser
Excellent retrospective video. The Dreamcast was my favourite console back in the day - it was like a breath of fresh air when it came out with loads of creative game ideas. Sega at the time was fostering a real boutique studio system with all it's divisions able to go in their own directions - and it worked. It was also the first 3D centric console whose graphics equalled the fidelity and vibrancy of the old 16-bit sprite based systems.
Dude, I've been binge-watching your videos while I animate for the past two days.Thank you for making these!
still playing DC with Redream... its an amazing piece of software.
Yess been playing skies of Arcadia rn, what you playing?
@@williamsahalan.m.4520 same... got the premium version... so beautiful for $5
Also had a neighbor with a dreamcast and remember playing chu chu rocket online back in 2000. Crazy to think about. The thing that blew me away about the dreamcast was when I saw NBA 2k for the first time. It looked more life like than anything id ever seen
preordered it, picked it up at electronics boutique on 9/9/99. sonic adventure was sold out so my first game was blue stinger instead. i mightve been jaded by the eye candy but my enjoyment with that game was off the charts. most of my time spent with my dreamcast around its prime were playing games like dead or alive 2, skies of arcadia, and an imported ikaruga. good times. :)
The best part about owning a Dreamcast in 2018 is the number of online games that are back up and running, with more to follow. Add to that numerous releases for the console post 2002 and you have a retro system that is becoming more relevant today than the PS2 could ever hope to be. Owning a Dreamcast today just gets better and better.
thanks top hat gaming man im a teen right now and never got to experience this renocance age of sega but so its great to be buying a dreamcast.
Top 10 fav channels. Hope u never run out of material bro!
And i need to fight you in a game take your pick!
Even in 2019, the DC is still worth playing. It's criminal how the bulk of its library isn't available on other systems barring some first party SEGA games and a couple Capcom fighters.
How did you never experience Phantasy Star Online!? That game was the reason I bought the Dreamcast. Lots of memories with that game. If you did play it - I can't believe you didn't mention it.
Phantasy Star Online. Over 3000 hours clocked on that game online back in 2000. What a great time that was...
Your excellent DC documentary is what drew me to your channel. Afterwards I discovered a retro game reviewer who doesn't shy away to critisise ever green games and consoles. Love it. Keep up the good work!
This guy had the dream childhood. I couldn't even get a mastersystem until it was 10 years out of date lol.
Same with me and the NES, I feel you my brother
First time I saw Astheroth on that video game, I knew I had to start working out LOL
I just bought a Dreamcast this week. I can't believe a console which lived for around just 2 years have so many good games! Thank you THGM!
Carrier pigeon trolling would be an absolute blast!
Its worth owning a Dreamcast just for Shenmue 1 & 2 alone, then you have games like Skies of Arcadia, power stone 1 & 2, Ferrari 355, House of the Dead 2, basically a ton of top games from Sega & Capcom and many others + lots of great import titles too!
SOUL CALIBUR
GeekEnglish
I left Soul Caliber out due to it having so many sequels on other systems, but yes, it was an amazing game at the time!
Rival school was super cool also.
Don't forget virtua fighter! My favorite fighting game franchise, along with snk and Capcom 2d arcade games
Not many people will know, that is the actual shop round the corner from the house you grew up in in Brockley, a nice touch Rich
I did indeed!
Love these videos of past console hardware! Top hat rules!
I got a Dreamcast early 2003 expecting the games to look dated at that point. The first game that I booted up was Dead or Alive 2 and it was an unforgettable experience. It had the best graphics I had ever seen and played ridiculously well. It still ranks as my favorite console I have ever owned, such a 4 player party powerhouse as well!
Playing right now Grandia 2 on Dreamcast. Lovin it !
Dreamcast was the first console I ever played. I remember playing a lot of Sonic Adventure and Quake III. I still have the console to this day and fire it up every now and then. I always liked the start up screen. I remember doing the music and sound with my mouth as the blue swirl appeared. Loved the sound mine made when games started up it was like a scratching sound. The Dreamcast will always have a special place in my life and heart, so much so my 3ds theme is the Dreamcast theme.
Loved this video, I felt very nostalgic watching it. I still have, and play my Sega Dreamcast, and I remember the day I got it. It was 10/22/99 it was a rainy day, and the reason why it took me so long to get the Dreamcast is because everywhere I went the system was sold out. For a whole month and a half I couldn’t find the DC. I was 15 years old in 1999, we went my parents took me to the local toys r us, to get the DC, and I was hoping and praying they had some. To my luck they had one more left, and the guy in front of me bought 3 of them. My first 2 games were Marvel VS Capcom and Sonic adventure. I was so happy, I still have it, and it plays well. 1999 was such a good year too.
Bloody right it is. I. Need no excuses for not playing my DC.
Pixar The Great that is your opinion and you are entitled to it ☺️
Still waiting for Toy Commander to get ported to other systems.
referral madness ECCO is boring tho
That console was incredible. Shenmue and Quake 3 Arena?? please. Oh Soul Calibar also. You name it..that weird Seaman game with the mic where you talked to the fish...and it worked?? Typing of the dead?? Could go on and on. Total love.
It was Soul Calibur that made me want a DC. I am a Soul veteran who played Soul Blade in arcade and got that once it ported to PS1. Then, I played Soul Calibur in arcade and was blown away by it. Once I read in a gaming magazine that it was ported to Dreamcast, I was sold. Still love it.
I remember buying King of fighters 99 (98 in Japan) before I even got the system! And the excitement of buying the green arcade stick from Toysrus after I got a dreamcast!!! Saturn and dreamcast are still my favorite systems
Love the wall of games lingering shot with 2 chu chu rockets next to each other...such splendour is too much for us mere laypeople
Short answer, yes.
I still have mine and I still fire it up now and then to play. It's the one console I always get back to. It has something that draws me in. Maybe it was the fact that it was made as a last ditch effort to redeem Sega out of the clusterfuck that was the Sega Saturn, or maybe it's because I dig the VMU card. Or maybe it's because it has four joystick ports and I can play Powerstone with my daughter and my wife. Or maybe it's just it's appealing design. I love every inch of that little white box.
The Dreamcast was a console that was trully ahead of its time. It was the first console that pioneered MMORPGs (and even after it was discontinued, it took several years for the servers to shut down). It was one of the first consoles that could run emulators and had a booming homebrew market. And people are STILL making games for it to this day. For some reason the Dreamcast refuses to die. Almost as if it has a soul.
Sega Dreamcast makes a comeback; First online game in the Sega Dreamcast Marketplace: MDK3, then two months later the long awaited Sonic Adventure 3!
I HAVE SEEN YOU BEFORE IN ANOTHER PERSONS VIDEO 👀🤳
It's your chick isn't it, Lady Decade! Hehe you are both great creators I have been watching both of you recently, and I am really impressed with the high quality content. Plus you are both cool people.
Subbed and liked, thanks and keep it coming bro 👌
If you are looking for a good Dreamcast grappler that isn't a WWF or WCW game, look for Giant Gram 2000. It is a Wresling game that features Japanese wrestles and a few Virtua Fighter characters. It was co-developed by AM2. Honestly, Giant Gram still has some of the best wrestling game mechanics to this day.
I don't think it can be understated how important it was that PS2 could play DVD movies out of the box. DVDs were taking off right before the PS2 was released, and I know a ton of people who waited on a DVD movie player because they were just planning to get a PS2, which was cheaper than many DVD players at the time. For a lot of people I know the DVD player was what put it over the top. I'm like you, I already had a DVD player, so I saw through the rest. The DC really was the gamers console. They were doing really fun stuff, sometimes way out there. Jet grind radio, Seaman, Shenmue... Still have my DC. Still works great.
Fur fighters was great. On another note, the outro song in this video is from Saturn Bomberman
The dreamcast still has an online multiplayer community 20 years later that is growing now not shrinking, and it still recieves new titles.
My history with the Dreamcast has been a long one, though I would not own the console itself until 2017, its influence on my gaming preferences remain to this day.
Rewind to the 90's. My first console was the N64, with a Gameboy later on. My dad on the other hand, purchased a PS1 so we had both the N64 and PS1 under the same roof. I'd also played on the Sega Megadrive at school and a few neighbours houses, though would never actually own one, due to Sega's constant 'new' releases of hardware, which would ultimately make my dad hesitant to allow a Sega console under the roof.
Fast forward to the Sega Dreamcast's release. As mentioned earlier, I was not allowed to get a Dreamcast due to my dad's reluctance with Sega hardware. This would not stop me from experiencing the console, as I was lucky enough to have a friend who got almost every console at the time on launch day. We used to play the s*** out of Sonic Adventure and later Sonic Adventure 2. It was simply incredible.
With the PS2's release, it was the first console I got on launch day as a early birthday present from my parents. I now know the reason they were not hesitant to purchase the console for me is due to the built-in DVD player (a benefit for the whole family) and the PS1's success. Shortly thereafter, the Dreamcast was discontinued and was slowly forgotten about, with my friend later owning a GC and an Xbox. I too, would get a Gamecube as a early birthday present (due to the N64's success) but the Xbox would come later as my dad was hesitant with Microsoft.
Fast forward to Sonic Heroes. Playing the game on the PS2 I could not help but wonder what the Sonic game was that I had played on the Dreamcast. Luckily, my friend still remembered and informed me that SA1 and SA2 had been re-released for the GC. It was then that I managed to re-live the Dreamcast's experience a few years prior. The rest of the time period was spent with the PS2 and Xbox for online gaming with Halo 2 and more, something I'd wished that the GC had more of.
To this day, I think online gaming had a big impact on me back then. Yes I'd played PC games such as the Battlefield series (when they were good) and the OG Call of Duty but it was something else playing Halo 2 and being a part of a small community on the PS2 as well. As a result, I came across a website discussing the Dreamcast. Remembering the nostalgia from my short experience with it, I looked into the console further and discovered the console had a fair amount of online games given its short lifespan, as well as some even offering cross platform support. I then discovered a community who are in the middle of reviving as many of the online games as possible.
The collector in me got the better of me and I rushed out to do what I was not able to do 20 years prior - purchase a Dreamcast. I now own one and still appreciate the console and wish I'd had more time with it back in its youth. Despite the console's exclusives receiving multiple ports, I did not play alot of them so I bought them for the DC instead and have experienced them the way they were meant to be played. It's still an impressive console, and i love that the community has revived some of the online games. Quake 3 Arena and Phantasy Star Online are two games I like to play on the console still.
Regardless, I'm glad I finally own the console and I can appreciate it for what it was. My favourite titles so far in no particular order:
- SA1
- SA2
- Shenmue 1+2
- RE: Code Veronica
- Spider-man (2000)
- Quake 3 Arena (I like experimenting with cross-platform play)
- Phantasy Star Online
And finally, being a huge Valve and Half-Life fan, I even have a copy of the unreleased Half-Life for Dreamcast. Still got more games to get, with Soul Calibur, Jet Set Radio, Crazy Taxi, DOA 2, POD and Tony Hawks Pro Skater 2 being ones I'm eager to get. Can you still have fun with the DC in 2018? Of course you can!
My DC that I bought a month after launch died in 2005. I was in a bad way financially, so I had to sell all my games. Later I was doing better, and got PS2 and X-Box, then GameCube. I got Shenmue 2 on XB, and Panzer Dragoon Orta as well. I found Skies of Arcadia for GC, and Space Channel 5 1&2 set for PS2. I still miss Crazy Taxi.
The games I got at launch for DC were Soul Calibur and Resident Evil Code Veronica, I was sold on the DC immediately. I then got Jet Grind Radio and Crazy Taxi. Such good times, I still CZcams Offspring to this day. "All I want", lol.
Justin Christopher
Fairly sure Soul Calibur and Code Veronica weren't launch titles.
Hello Goodbye Then I got my DC whenever those came out, they were my first two games. I seem to recall they both helped sell a ton of DC's.
Love your video man. Love your enthusiasm for the Dreamcast. It was truly amazing. It's a pity that a lot of people missed out on the magic.
If I had the hardware and games I used to have I would be all over playing Dreamcast these days.
Games are still being released on it. Go to conventions and online you'll find ports and original games. It blew my mind when i found out i could play Cavestory minecraft and even FORTNIGHT on the thing
It's worth playing in 2019! I grew up with Sony consoles (PS1-3) and I idolized the PS2. I switched to the 360 in 2010 since I had the 40GB PS3 that wasn't backwards compatible with my beloved PS2 games, and I was seeing that games were better on the 360, being technically superior in terms of games and the online experience. I fell in love with many of the Xbox Classics instantly, and I was given an original Xbox by my cousin after and I got the Xbox One on launch day due to my amazing experience with the 360 (which I still play to this day). Last spring right before my second semester of college was about to end, I had a blank spindle of CDs laying around. I'd always see the Dreamcast on CZcams videos, but I never owned one or knew anyone that did. Due to the ease of burning back-ups to blank CDs, I looked into the system extensively before finally deciding to buy one on eBay. I opened it and was instantly in awe. The controller felt right at home in comparison to the 360, and I played Rayman 2 first since I had it on PS2 growing up. I was instantly impressed by the frame rate, color vibrancy, and the VMU. I burned as many classics as I could think of and binged videos on game reviews. Jet Set Radio was the first game I ever completed on the system, Soul Calibur was and still is the go-to for getting drunk and high with friends and going round-for round, and Pro-Skater 2 is beyond impressive. I began collecting official games when I could find them, I began picking up rare variants and I also began fixing Dreamcasts. My friend and I both bought one each for 10 bucks, we fixed the lasers and got 2 working consoles. I put every one of my friends onto it, and they don't regret it in the slightest. I have colored controllers, as well as a Demo Kiosk Dreamcast and the Sega Sports Black variant. The point is, I missed the Dreamcast due to being born the year it came out, I was never exposed to it, and it's easily become one of (if not) my favorite console of all time, rivaling my PS2 for sure. If you're considering buying one, pull the trigger. You won't regret it in the slightest! Also, be sure to join The Dreamcast Junkyard Facebook Page; there's always great stuff being posted on there everyday related to the Dreamcast!
Ready 2 Rumble: Round 3
God the Dreamcast was the biggest leap in graphics ever, turning that thing on for the first time with sonic adventure playing was mind boggling
Thanks you top hat gaming man for all you forw the gaming communitie your a true inspiration and a huge idea of myne .
It totally is and I'm super pumped for two new Dreamcast games coming out this summer in particular; Battle Crust and Xeno Crisis. I just totally realized I have more games released after the "death" of the Dreamcast than when it was being produced!
Neo XYX
DUX Version 1.5
Redux Dark Matters
Ghost Blade
Sturmwind
Gunlord
Last Hope Pink Bullets
Fast Striker
Flashback
Breakers
Ganryu
All super great games released after "death" and if you haven't check them out, you need to!
Great video Mr THGM. Dreamcast was very underrated and deserved to do better than it did. I never took to the console as much as Sega's earlier systems however it was a console with more potential for great games than the PS2, GC and Xbox.
Ive actually owned my dreamcast since the summer of 2000, i bought it with my first job at age 15, im actually playing shenmue now for the first time! I really wish i would have gave it more if a chance when it was new so it would have wowed me more.
08:40 No, if memory serves me correctly, the first Dreamcast game in Japan to be the #1 seller at the time (of all new games over there) was actually Shutokou Battle 2.
22:24 Chu Chu Rocket wasn't the first. Even the Japanese version of Sega Rally 2 had online gameplay before the Dreamcast was even released in Europe and North America.
Paying for the internet by the hour was definitely a thing back then, we had freeserve in the late 90's and think it was something like 60p/£1 an hour - enough for 3 mp3 downloads!
Never had a Dreamcast...I had an N64, though but by that time in those days I was a staunch PC gamer, now I’m back to consoles again, go figure. Now I really regret not buying a Dreamcast during that time...videos like these are why
Had a lot of fun with the Dreamcast back in the day especially with the web browser at the time. It’s still a fun tinker toy with all of the homebrew and emulator software available. I was even able to make a couple simple games using the DOS emulator and older SDKs. My friends who were early PS2 adaptors were also jealous of the ports we got of Soul Calibur, Dead or Alive 2, and Capcom vs. Marvel 2
Used to play a lot of Phantasy Star Online 1 & 2, Tech Romancer & Skies of Arcadia. My brother bought the japanese version & also had The House of the dead, Shutokou Battle & Godzilla on it
I love that shenmue track at the 8:02 mark
This is a honest and fair look at the dreamcast. Even if most of the games could be played on other systems the dreamcast itself is an experience unlike any other.
Also the crazy taxi games on other systems lack the original licensed soundtrack which was a big part of the experience, much like it was with jet set radio. Speaking of jet set radio, the Xbox exclusive jet set radio future is still one of my favorite games ever. Grandia 2 was actually better on the DC than it was on the ps2. Plus it had a line up of sports games that easily rivaled the PlayStation without EA.
The dreamcast wasn't just the little console that could. In many cases it did things that no other console could do. It offered a fresh new experience that made everything fun even if we didn't always know why it was fun. It was a magical experience for many of us that nothing else really compares to.
Another bloody good vid sir Still love the saturn and dreamcast
These vids are funny to me because retro is always worth playing no matter what year it is! It could be the year 2054 and I’d still play the Dreamcast or any of the retro consoles I own 👍🏻💯🤙🏻
Fun video about a great system. I didn't have a Dreamcast back in the day, for me it was initially too expensive to justify one and I took the PS2 route instead. A friend passed-down his Dreamcast to my kids and I played a bit on that and now have a pre-owned unit of my own.
I'm a little surprised that you didn't cover the controversy around EA's decision to not support the Dreamcast, or the storm in a tea-cup surrounding Bleemcast, or the ongoing Dreamcast scene that still sees the occasional release of games commercially or as homebrew titles such as Volgarrr the Viking or Pier Solar And The Great Architects, even a port of Cave Story.
Favourite games included the light gun titles like House of the Dead and Confidential Mission, Head Hunter, Vanishing Point, Power Stone, Virtua Tennis, Star Lancer and of course Crazy Taxi lol. The Dreamcast also had arguably the best versions of Rayman 2 and Spider-Man ... two of my favourite games of the era, in fact probably among my top 100 ever.
My recent experiences on my Dreamcast have included playing Fur Fighters, Omikron: The Nomad Soul and the unreleased port of Half Life, that was leaked through the internet some years ago.
Still have my DC but i bought it 8 years ago. What a great console!
Grandia 2/JSR/Silver/MSR/Ecco The Dolphin and most my beloved RE Code Veronica!
Greetings From Greece!
I used the vmu all the time with nfl2k to choose plays.. the dreamcast is the most underrated system of all time... sonic adventure power stone shenmue crazy taxi nfl2k the games were awesome so far ahead of there time
Summer of 99 I managed to get a Sega Saturn with Daytona USA for £30 and Sega Rally for 20p. Instantly fell in love with Sega Rally (and Daytona). I also enjoyed playing Sega Rally 2 in the Namco Station at Meadowhall. So when Sega Rally 2 was a launch title instantly wanted a Dreamcast.
Didn't have a job or anything so had to save pocket money. Also busked in the street to raise money for it and my birthday was also in December, so on December 23rd 1999, I was finally able to procure a Sega Dreamcast. Couldn't decide what launch title I wanted though (Toy Commander blew me away at the local Cinema where they had pods set up) and eventually settled on Sonic Adventure. (Sega Rally 2 would have to wait as you want a big broad first game for a system rather than just a racing game).
Realised in the car on the way home that horror! I'd forgotten to get a VMU to actually save with (damn Nintendo getting my so conditioned to battery back up on the carts) so had a quick detour to Currys. Finally got my system home and set up. Put in Sonic Adventure, happily running around station square going through the whole new gen console "this is nice!" experience and then it happened. "Action Stage 1: Emerald Coast". From that moment on, the Dreamcast has been my favourite ever game console. It may have been a lot of shine, but Emerald Coast to this day remains the most awe inspiring gaming experience I have ever had.
That's a shop..... looks like one if those in door atms that you see occasionally in the states
I still remember the amazement on my friends faces when I show them my imported dreamcast 1 year before it was launched in europe xD
Great video! These type of vids are your best and it's great to have your personal experiences and the historical facts, I never owned a dreamcast as I only went from n64 to gamecube around 2004.
My favourite sega is the master system and megadrive.
Like your video but seriously dood, check your levels!! I blasted the volume because your intro was almost inaudible only to have my ear drums almost pop after you started speaking!
3:16
Not the old "128-bit" thing again. lol
The Dreamcast was essentially 32-bit, but the GPU had some 128-bit instructions and VRAM access.
This is similar to most "32-bit" PCs with 3D graphics cards of the time.
(some PC graphics cards were of course based on a very similar NEC PowerVR / PowerVR2 chip to the Dreamcast GPU.)
The bitness of a system doesn't mean everything, but it's interesting that some of these old marketing phrases still have an impact to this day.
P.S. The Dreamcast was (and still is) awesome. ;)
I bought mine just after midnight on launch day in 1999. I loved the N64 as well, but it's fair to say that the Dreamcast was quite a big step-up in technical terms.
Lassi Kinnunen
GTA III couldn't run on the GameCube because the GC's discs couldn't hold enough data.
The GC's discs could hold more data than the Dreamcast's discs.
So GTA III couldn't have run on DC. Even with more RAM.
Lassi Kinnunen
Wouldn't having multiple discs help?
mate
the Dreamcast used its own format based on CDs
but not literal CDs
The same could be said about the Nintendo 64, which may have had a 64 bit processor, but only had a 32 bit bus... the Atari ST for example had a 32 bit processor and a 16 bit bus, and was classed as 16 bit because of that, so why does Ninten-... oh, BECAUSE it's Nintendo!!
Still the only controller I've used that I get hand cramp using for a period of time. Having the cord on the bottom was a pain as well. It was noisy too, but I got used to that. I really enjoyed my time with it, but when the Xbox came out it was very much a direct replacement for it due to all the DC sequels that appeared on it and the same type of action games
Yes it is, it's a lovely old console. I missed out on the 32 bit systems (was busy being a teenager) but came back to Sega with the Dreamcast and had so much fun with the system, was great to see how games had come along but still have 2D greats like SF Alpha 3 and Marvel VS Capcom games. A very arcadey experience overall.. And all the accessories - VMU, arcade sticks, Neo Geo Pocket link cable, fishing rod, light gun, maracas, keyboard and mouse and a mike for your Seaman! I would say you have to play it on a CRT for the best results visually but a decent VGA converter for your HDTV is another option (that only sexes up 3D games though, 2D won't look too great without those scanlines!). And yes it was common to pay by the hour for the internet hour then!
It's worth noting that SEGA America didn't want the 32x in the first place as described in Blake J. Harris' book Consolewars
Damn right it is. Dreamcast has probably the best ratio of good/bad games of any console, im actually struggling to think of any truly awful ones tbh. I still have mine, complete with fishing rod and luckily it plays burnt cds fine. I remember downloading homebrew like doom and that awful megadrive emulator over a metered 56k line and booting via the utopia bootdisk. And yes, in answer to your question isps like freeserve charged by the minute for internet access. The internet really took off once you didnt need a credit card or contract to get online. They just charged the owners of the phoneline, iirc it was about £1 an hour with freeserve but there were scores of others.
@ryan: Hmm, just watched a quickplay of Soul Fighter and it looks kinda average, certainly not completely awful although the cutscenes are pretty subpar.
Hi. Extremely cool collection. It's also CIB. Mines' just maybe two shelves. God bless, Proverbs 31
I was the only one to have a dreamcast out of all of my school mates. They stuck with there ps1 and n64's, So i would lug the DC around to several of their houses to show them what they were missing. Get Bass always went down well and Soul Caliber. Good times.
The Dreamcast even has a build of Half Life 1, the most impressive feat for the time. The Dreamcast was basically the Xbox for the time, where developers from the PC were quite keen considering it enabled some PC specific capabilities with chips or parts, and even ARCADE level integration with the hardware. It was a beast for the time and why I wish it lasted longer so that I may have sparked more interest in it rather than being a typical PS2 or Gamecube minion. I still had Sega feels at heart, but I got lazy after the Sega Mega Drive until only recently with the ports, compilations and emulation.
Yes. Still looks good on a modern TV with just the scart connector, if your TV has one.
Aaahh the Dreamcast... I played Shenmue in 2002 in preparation for a trip to Japan (back when I was in college) to immerse myself in the Japanese culture.... Today, I'm planning a second trip to Japan with my girlfriend and I'm planning non making her play Shenmue to get an idea of what Japan looks like... Such an immersive game... Oh and the song you played while talking about Shenmue 2... It's so "haunting" and mystical... There's something in this music that Always makes me want to shed a tear... Kinda ... Otherworldly...
Great video! Very informative and interesting!
I had the Sega Genesis and Saturn, which i enjoyed immensely. I wasn't able to get a Dreamcast when they first came out, but I was able to purchase one recently and I have not been disappointed. I also had the PS 1 and my proverbial skirt was never blown up by the console. Many of the games which were released for both the PS 1 and the Saturn, actually played better on the Saturn. I switched to PC gaming and I didn't buy a console until 2016 when I bought an Xbox 360. I now have a PS4, Xbox One S and Series X to compliment my classic systems.
I feel that manybof the games for the Dreamcast were just better written minus the poor voice acting in some titles. I've always believed that had Sega Japan and Sega US worked co-operatively, they may have partnered with MS on the Xbox.
That comment about WWF games no WWF Raw Had a Royal rubble feature I am sure off the top of my head you could have more than 4 wrestlers on screen.
I bought a DC last Aug for £50.00p I got a DC, 2 Controllers, 1 VMU, Giga Wing AND Shenmue 1 Mint :)
Just showing this console and some games I have with Mates who grew up with either PS2 or even PS3 is such a joy as we all play and have a laugh with House Of The Dead 2, ChuChu Rocket, Power Stone AND the game Iv played the most Crazy Taxi 1. Towards the end of May I will be having a good 2 weeks off work and will finally have a chance to Play Shenmue 1 blind so I'm really looking forward to that :)
I never had a Dreamcast experience yet, but as far as the NAOMI, its souped-up arcade counterpart, is concerned, I had tons of fun. Yeah, I'd still recommend Initial D Arcade Stage and Club Kart as good games to play in an arcade.
I’ve wanted one for so long. My local retro store owns so many!
Dreamcast was the most beautiful console I remember playing it was a magical two years. I was 13 when Dreamcast was out
I got one about two years ago, from a craigs-list like website.
That one had a busted laser, and the trick where you turn a little knob didn't really do much either...
So I got another one, a later version with another laser in it, that did work.
(with laser I am referring to the disc reader)
Anyways, my experiences with it so far have been quite good!
Although I didn't own one in my childhood (I did own a N64), I didn't really even knew it existed up until I got some random information about it at school for history lessons. (Yes, history classes about video games are a thing, especially if your history teacher is a video game collector :P)
So years later I started collecting all these older consoles, just because I was very curious how they played and looked in real life.
Eventually I got to the dreamcast.
I got it, I played it, but I still have to finish shenmue on it, and ecco the dolphin... and sonic adventures 2...
But I never took the time to do so. Yet.
Dreamcast is AMAZING. Still.
SEGA Dreamcast was the first SEGA console I ever had. I traded a SPIDER winter coat for it. lol
What's weird is you can find what still amounts to a Sega Saturn as far as the guts go in most Sega arcade cabinets they run a modified Dreamcast at least any of the super popular ones that came out in the last 20 years do so if you ever looking for replacement parts or things like that a place you might not have considered looking is the old Sega arcadecabinets