Strength and Weakness of Sega Dreamcast

Before we have a Sega Dreamcast, we must recognize the strengths and weaknesses of this console.
Many strengths of this console as well as some weaknesses that need to be considered

Strengths

• Fun & Quirky Game Library – While some of the games such as Crazy Taxi, Rez, and Space Channel 5 have been ported to other consoles, there are still a number of unique, and most importantly, extremely fun games on the Dreamcast that you can’t find on any other console (Jet Grind Radio, Cosmic Smash, and Typing of the Dead, just to name a few)
• Strong 2D Library for Hardcore Audience: In addition to the quirky Sega-developed games, the Dreamcast is very popular because of its deep library of 2D Fighting and 2D Shooting games (shmups). If you are a fan of either genre, the Dreamcast is essential a most-own console.
• Great Arcade Ports: Many of the original arcade games were originally developed on the NAOMI arcade platform (which is basically Dreamcast hardware with extra RAM), which made it very easy to have arcade-accurate console ports.
• Very Affordable – While there are handful of other cheap consoles with strong libraries like the Gamecube and PS1, the Dreamcast is a great all-around console that is inexpensive to get started with the hardware, games, and accessories.
• Great Import Library – Don’t judge the Dreamcast purely on it’s US or even PAL libraries — there are so many great games that only saw Japanese releases that truly round out a quality selection of games.
• Powerful Hardware Considering It’s Place In Time: The Dreamcast was a very powerful machine in its day (before the release of the PS2, XBox and Gamecube) and still holds up surprisingly well in the modern era. It also had some of Sega’s more creative and innovative games, some of which have not yet been ported to other consoles. A few games even utilized some of the Dreamcast’s slight graphical advantages over the PS2. It would have been interesting to see what could have been done if it had lasted as long as the PS2.
• High-Quality VGA Video Connection: As mentioned above, in addition to many common video connections, the Dreamcast also supports native VGA output that makes it ideal for playing the Dreamcast on computer monitors or HDTVs. The Dreamcast only pushes 480p resolution, but the VGA connection greatly increases the clarity that HDTV owners will desire.
• Homebrew & Piracy: I feel kinda weird listing easy piracy as an strength, but it’s a fact that many gamers factor this aspect in. Due to the discoveries made by piracy groups at the end of the Dreamcast’s retail lifecycle, it is very easy to run both rips of commercial games and homebrew efforts like independent games and emulators of older systems without any modifications to the hardware.

Weaknesses

• No DVD Support: The Dreamcast was developed before DVD drives had reached an affordable level, so it does not support DVD playback or playing homebrew off of DVD media.
• Not as Powerful as Later Consoles: This is quite obvious, but since it was released a year before the Playstation 2 and two years before the Gamecube and XBox, it does not quite have the graphical capabilities of the later consoles from the generation.
• No RF Wireless Controllers Availible – Wireless controllers hadn’t really taken off during the Dreamcast’s life, but the Gamecube, PS2, and Xbox each had quality wireless controllers in the form of Nintendo’s Wavebird and Logitech’s third-party controllers. The Dreamcast wasn’t so lucky.
• Only a Few Strong RPGs: The RPG genre did not have a very big showing in the Dreamcast library. Skies of Arcadia and Grandia 2 were very strong games, but the rest of the library was limited to a small handful of gems.
• Short Retail Lifespan Outside of Japan: The Dreamcast’s retail lifespan out side of Japan was only a few short years, so the game library isn’t especially large. It also got more ports of PS1 games that it did of the multiplatform games of the PS2/Xbox/Gamecube era, which would have made better use of the Dreamcast hardware.
• No Support from EA: Those gamers looking for many of the popular games from Electronic Arts will be disappointed as EA did not support the Dreamcast after its disputes with Sega during the Saturn era. However, Sega did an excellent job of filling the software gaps itself.
• Relatively Noisy: Maybe I’m nit-picking here, but it’s not unusal for new Dreamcast owners to think something is wrong with the disc drive when its ready. While the noise level isn’t as bad as an Xbox 360, but considering the Dreamcast followed the smoothly -silent Sega Saturn, the Dreamcast’s noise level is a bit disappointing.

Dreamcast Game Library

• The Best Dreamcast Games Under $10 – If you need to start a quality Dreamcast library without spending much cash, this is the place to start.
• The Best Dreamcast Games for Today – A lot has changed over the last 10 years, so we try to round up the best Dreamcast games that hold up a decade after their release.
• Games That Defined the Dreamcast – If you want to see the games that gave the Dreamcast its unique personality, check out this little guide.
• The Best Multiplayer Dreamcast Games – When you have four controller ports at your disposal, its natural to want to find games the play with your buddies. Luckily, the Dreamcast has a variety of titles to keep you and your friends busy.
• The Best Undiscovered Dreamcast Games – If you’ve already checked out all the big-name Dreamcast games, make sure to explore these Hidden Gems that are broken down by genre.
• The Best-Looking Games on the Dreamcast – This little guide will give you a good idea of what games will show off the Dreamcast’s graphic capabilities and quirky sense of style.
• Sega Dreamcast Exclusives – We try to keep a list up to date of the games that still are console exclusive to the Dreamcast (arcade, PC, and portable versions not included)
• Dreamcast Games That Appear on other Consoles – If you want to try out some Dreamcast games on some other consoles you own, this list might also be useful to you.
• The Rarest and Most Valuable Dreamcast Games – There are a handful of rarities and a lot of semi-rare cult favorites that have held their value quite well over the last 10 years. See what to keep an eye out for or check if some of your existing games are worth a pretty penny.
• The Best Import Dreamcast Games – As mentioned before, the Japanese library adds a lot to the Dreamcast’s library. There are also a number of good PAL games that never made it to the States.
• The Dreamcast 2D Fighters Library – Personally, I’m a sucker for a good 2D fighter and I am in a wonderland on Dreamcast. Teamed up with the Sega Saturn, I’m set with most of the best 2D fighters out there.
• The Dremacast 2D Shooters Library – The Dreamcast started out just a little slow in the shooter genre, but it finished out strong even after it had already died off outside of Japan. The Dreamcast is right up there with the Saturn and Playstation as one of must-own consoles for shooters.
• The Dreamcast Survival Horror Library – It might not have quite the lineup of the Playstation consoles, but the Dreamcast has a respectable collection to keep fans of the genre busy.
• The Best Unlicenced/Homebrew/Leaked Dreamcast Games – We haven’t developed a polished guide yet, but we are starting the discussion in the forum.

Guide for Sega Dreamcast 101

How long were actually dreamcast at market ?

Can you believe the Dreamcast has already been around for a decade? (and that it was only on the retail scene for three of those years?) To help celebrate the landmark, we’ve revised and expanded the Dreamcast beginner’s guide to help those interested in Sega’s little white box get started on their journey.

The RetroGaming 101 series is aimed at gamers who are just starting out in the classic gaming scene or are curious about an older console that they don’t know much about yet. Those of you that are especially knowledgeable about the featured console, I encourage you to add any information that you think would be beneficial into the comments section. If you are new to the featured console, and still have questions, you can also use the comments section and I will do my best to help you out.

Background Information

• After the Saturn’s poor sales in the USA, Sega’s American branch began pressuring it’s headquarters in Japan for a new console in 1997. Two competing teams are formed, one headed by Tatsuo Yamamoto, the other by Hideki Sato.
• Though Sega first favored Yamamoto’s design, eventually Sato’s choice of using a PowerVR2 graphics processor from VideoLogic won out. This resulted in a lawsuit from 3dfx, who had developed the graphics processor that Yamamoto’s team had been pushing. The lawsuit was settled in 1998.
• Sega broke console sales records in North America on launch (9/9/99), and initially did very well worldwide, though sales eventually slowed to a trickle, and Sega announced in 2001 that they were stopping production. In 2002, the US would see its last release, NHL 2K2. New games continued to be developed in Japan until 2007, while Sega managed to sell off the last of its units in Japan in 2006. There have been additional independent games released for sale as late as 2009.
• Watch G4’s Icons episode on the History of the Dreamcast
• More Dreamcast History at Wikipedia

Historical Impact

• The Dreamcast was Sega’s fifth and final video game console and the successor to the Sega Saturn. Sega cut off the Saturn’s lifespan early to try to get a head start in competing with the Playstation 2.
• Dreamcast was ahead of its time in many ways. It was the first console to include a built-in modem, make Internet support for online gaming commonplace, and natively provide stunning VGA video output. It was also a large leap in graphical and storage capabilities over the existing PS1 and N64 consoles.
• The Dreamcast only lasted a few short years on the retail scene outside of Japan, but still maintained a strong cult following due to its innovative games, homebrew capabilities and the trickle of interesting imports coming from Japan.

The first game console

Did you know what the first game console ever created?

While it wouldn’t actually be the first cartridge-based home game console, the Atari 2600 would prove to be the first big hit, ushering in the first golden age of home gaming while the golden age of the American arcade scene was in full force. And though its popularity would inevitably decline with the onset of the video game crash of 1983, the console would still have appeal years later.

Background Information

• The Atari 2600 first entered the market in America, October 1977. Though sales would fluctuate and inevitably decrease, its true final end of production was in the early 1990s.
• The Atari 2600 was originally known as the Atari Video Computer System, or Atari VCS. It was renamed in 1982 to fit its part number in the Atari catalog(CX2600), which was the same way the Atari 5200 got it’s name.
• “Stella” was the original project name for the Atari 2600. With Fairchild Semiconductor’s release of the Fairchild Channel F in 1976, Atari allowed itself to be purchased by Warner Communications so it could bring in enough money to commercially release Stella. The name Stella was taken from one of the engineer’s bicycles, and was part of a long history of projects with female names.
• Arguments between Warner Communications and Atari, Inc. would lead Atari founder Nolan Bushnell to leave the company in 1978. But by this time, Busnhell had founded Chuck E. Cheese’s Pizza-Time Theater.
• The Atari 2600 remained a major tool of the company until Warner sold Atari’s Consumer Division to Commodore Business Machines in 1984. Consoles were then deemphasized for the next few years as Commodore attempted to push Atari’s computers.

Historical Impact

• Lasting from the late 1970s to the early 1990s, the Atari 2600 had the longest active lifespan of any game console released in the United States. Over 900 games were produced for the console.
• The Atari 2600 proved the viability of console gaming in the American market.
• The Atari 2600 also helped establish the idea of the “killer app” with its port of Space Invaders in 1980. The game would help to quadruple sales of the Atari 2600.
• Space Invaders was also the first officially licensed arcade game, helping to start the trend of porting games from arcade to console as well as licensing from other media. This would also lead to some of the worst games on the Atari 2600, including the likes of it’s Pac-Man port and the game E.T.
• The poor treatment of Atari engineers also lead to several employees leaving the company and forming others, the most successful of which was Activision. This helped bring the rise of third-party developers.
• The Atari 2600 also brought about the first real protests against video games, specifically due to Mystique’s Custer’s Revenge.
• Unfortunately due to controversies like these, the Atari 2600 would help contribute to the video game crash of 1983, which would subsequently lead to the domination of the market by Japanese corporations. American corporations would not again offer a major game console until the release of the Xbox by Microsoft nearly two decades later.