The Sega Dreamcast Thread

[Ben]

Well, I actually bought an import DC before launch, and pre-ordered one from Eletronics Boutique for the US launch, but I think I can comment a little on what was going on in the U.S. at that time.

Most of my friends went with the PS2, even a couple who had been diehard Sega fans through the Saturn.  Basically, it was a combination of several factors.  The main two were lack of a DVD player (as they were still pricey circa 1999, making the PS2 a bargain) and hatred/distrust for Bernie Stolar, who had become something of a joke in the US game mags, and subsequent loss of faith in the company.   To put it in perspective:  The last game released in the U.S. for the Saturn was Magic Knight Rayearth, in November 1998.  The Dreamcast didn't hit the U.S. until September of 1999, almost a full year later.  Sega loyalists were left with no games for a huge amount of time, or (as with some of my friends) bought the heavily marked down PSX and started building up a library for it, laying the seeds for a switch to Sony with the PS2 (which would be backwards compatible with their newly purchased games). Moreover, the man who killed the Saturn in the U.S., Stolar (who famously called it "The Abortion") was still in charge.

There is another, less mentioned factor, too.  The U.S. gaming mags at the time were using Sega as a whipping boy, and constantly discussing the fights between Sega of America and Sega of Japan, not to mention painting Stolar as something of a buffoon.  Beyond that, though, the US gaming mags were turned against Sega from the launch of the Saturn onwards, mostly decrying 2D dead, Sega stuck in the arcade, and the Saturn underpowered.  Sega also got a lot of bad press for dumping 3dfx at the last minute for the Dreamcast's graphics, while the Saturn, 32X and Mega CD were labeled as failed projects in hindsight (I'm not saying they were or weren't, this is just how they were portrayed).  None of these are topics you want out there in the ether before a new console launch.

So to sum it up, what do I think killed the Dreamcast in the U.S.?
1. Lack of trust in Bernie Stolar and the U.S. vs. Japan management fight, as well as fear the console would die early (as happened with the Saturn, 32X and Mega CD).
2. Bad press, especially over 3dfx, who ended up going bankrupt, and Sega got a lot of blame for it.
3. Lack of a DVD player, as this was a major selling point to cash strapped teens and twenty somethings.

I'm curious to know if the situation was different in the UK, as I suspect it was.

[WiggyDiggyPoo]

Oooh 3dfx I'd completely forgotten their mistaken leaking of the DC, that must have really pissed off Sega and influenced their dumping of the tech.

I cant and wont speak 'for the uk' (my egomanical plans for takeover of the country havent come to fruition yet) but the DVD argument is to me almost mute, I think it was 2005 before I bought my first DVD player for instance although that was mostly influenced by the rise of DIVX but thats not what this is about.

I do know despite myself and about 4/5 friends who'd bought various consoles through the ages all ignoring the DC despite (in hindsight) it being well a great console.

This might fling off into another thread again (hey I'm like Doctor Who you dont know where I'm gonna be) but gaming in the late 90's/early 2000's was a lot different to now. Thats not and let it be not be mistaken for some sort of misty eyed reflection but your talk (valid as well) of Sega loyalists doesnt apply today and that trend started around DC time.

I think it speaks volumes for the DC that of all the historical consoles I belive the DC is the one that garners the biggest regret from gamers at not buying one at the time.

[dot.fyre]

So to sum it up, what do I think killed the Dreamcast in the U.S.?
1. Lack of trust in Bernie Stolar and the U.S. vs. Japan management fight, as well as fear the console would die early (as happened with the Saturn, 32X and Mega CD).
2. Bad press, especially over 3dfx, who ended up going bankrupt, and Sega got a lot of blame for it.
3. Lack of a DVD player, as this was a major selling point to cash strapped teens and twenty somethings.

I'm curious to know if the situation was different in the UK, as I suspect it was.

For me, in the UK, none of those reasons applied.
1.Bernie Who??
2. 3dfx, never read anything about this.
3. Never needed a DVD player. I wanted a games console. This reason really gets on my goat more than any other.

It failed, I think, purely down piracy and zombified gamers who couldn't see past anything that had the word PlayStation in it.

[Ben]

You know, the thing about the DVD player, I agree it is a really stupid reason to buy a "game console".  Yet, I knew several people who had been gaming since the 8-Bit era who bought a PS2 for that exact reason.  I'm not saying it's representative of the population at large, but it sure didn't help the Dreamcast, either.  Also, Bernie Stolar is an interesting guy, I *think* he was also responsible for the Atari Lynx before he ended up at Sony.  He's famous for his time at Sony, as he opposed bringing over Final Fantasy VII and thought Americans would never buy RPGs.  This is also why it was left to Working Designs to bring over sparse few RPGs for the Saturn when he went to SoA.

[WiggyDiggyPoo]

I'm too drunk to type straight, I'll be back tomorrow. 

Short version - DVD was overated and DC was underaprciated.

There are 179 charachters in that sentance, I pressed delete 2764 time because of errors.

[Shadowrunner]

[dougtitchmarsh]

At the time the Dreamcast arrived I had 3 kids and a mortgage to spend money on. I waited until they were available second hand to get one.

[onthinice]

Reason I did not buy the Saturn was from getting burnt from buying the Genesis, 32X and Sega CD. Lack of support by Sega.

Reason for not buying a DreamCast, not sure. Electronic Arts was not supporting it. I was still gaming on the Genesis and Sega CD. Computers were finally make progress with better graphics and games. Colonization and Panzer General were taking a lot of time on my PC.

[TrekMD]

[align=center:12g7nf26]Zombie Revenge (Sega Dreamcast )[/align:12g7nf26]

[llayboy]

I got my Dreamcast for Christmas after launch and I think it was so ahead of its time. Xbox Live and PSN have the Dreamcast to thank as the Dreamcast was the first console to dabble in the world of online gaming.

Would love to get a full Dreamcast collection but a lot of the games go for very high prices (ie Shenmue games)

[TrekMD]

How expensive are those games, llayboy?

[llayboy]

How expensive are those games, llayboy?

I've seen them go for anywhere between £20 to like £70 you've just gotta get lucky.

[TrekMD]

How expensive are those games, llayboy?

I've seen them go for anywhere between £20 to like £70 you've just gotta get lucky.

That's quite the price range! 

[llayboy]

How expensive are those games, llayboy?

I've seen them go for anywhere between £20 to like £70 you've just gotta get lucky.

That's quite the price range!

Like I said it really depends on how lucky you are and obviously the condition of the games

[Ben]

I wanted to respond to one thing, which is the popular idea that the Dreamcast is the first online console (or even Sega's).  Actually, Sega briefly experimented with dial up on the Mega Drive/Genesis before fully pushing it on the Saturn with the NetLink modem (which I had and used at the time).  The Mega Drive modem was only released in Japan and only worked with Mark I consoles, but the Saturn NetLink was supported in the US and UK for 4 games.  Here are two good videos on that:
SEGA Mega Drive Modem - Unboxing + Review - Game Toshokan Bundle セガゲーム図書館
Sega Saturn Netlink: What is it, how it works and some online matches
Also worth remembering Sega had Heat.net for the PC as far back as the mid-90's (long, long before Steam existed): SegaSoft HEAT.NET (Sampler CD Promo Trailer)