PTE62: Saturn Twenty

[dataDave]

My favourite 32-bit console. I swapped my PS1 with a few games for a Saturn with a load of quality games and walked all the way home with a huge troll face on; yes, even in 1996.

I ended up with about 25 games on it before I needed the funds for an N64. Despite managing to import one a year later and rebuild that collection (plus more) I've never regretted selling something as much since.

[Neon Ignition]

I was never really enamoured by the Saturn when it was first released. VF caught my attention when 3D first reared its head but then Sega squeezed Virtua Racing onto Mega Drive and deflated my hopes a bit. It was a little too dependent on arcade ports at first too with no true Sonic meaning I held off as soon as Nintendo showed that first staggering footage of Mario 64.

After some time though the N64 was slow and the first few years PS1 content left me cold so I started to pay more attention, Nights being a key game as well as several others. Loved playing Alpha 2 and Guardian Heroes on it and Sega Rally, Easy way at the time to play the KoF's as well and enjoyed RAM supported Alpha 3 too.

My clearest memory though is of the verge of it's death. Sega was well into getting the DC ready and had pretty much decided the Saturn needed killing so pushed it's last games quickly out the door. I traded some Snes games and came home with House of the Dead, I knew it wasn't perfect but it was good fun. Soon after I managed a straight swap for Burning Rangers which was just brilliant, played it to death before trading it in.

I'd enjoyed but never been too fussed with the Panzer Dragoon series but I traded Rangers in for Saga. What followed was a game that would become my favourite game of all time for several years. It's aged somewhat now but it was a wonderful and touching game that resonated with me more than a dozen Final Fantasy VII's could. Brilliant swansong for the system.

[BaronSqwelch]

I love how one of the moans in this thread is how hard it was to programme for. How troubling that must have been for you in 1994

My second favourite console.
Can't be arsed to explain why because Guinness.

[CMcK]

The Saturn is a fantastic system with loads of great games to cater for all tastes. It was also the gamers refuge from all the marketing led nonsense the PlayStation era introduced. I feel that the jump to 3d happened too soon in the console market there really should have been another generation of dedicated 2d systems. Sega having a thriving arcade business to protect arguably didn't want to push the 3d angle too hard and maybe the Saturn suffered because of this.

But look at all the great software on the system.
Sega arcade ports like Virtua Cop and Sega Rally.
Loads of great shooters such as Souky, Batsugun, Dodonpachi etc
Platformers like Tryrush Deppy, Bubble Symphony and Super Tempo.
2d fighting games from Capcom and SNK.
Original titles like Panzer Dragoon, NiGHTS and Burning Rangers.
RPG's that aren't FF7.
FPS Games like Duke Nukem, Powerslave and Quake.

It's a shame we never got to the see the Saturn pushed further as it was somewhat prematurely killed off.

Hardware wise it's a good looking system especially in white. And the standard pad is probably the best ever.

[sj33]

Part of the issue on the 3D side was that the Saturn was originally designed to handle System 32 arcade ports. It was a chronic misreading of the market by Sega - they expected there to be another predominantly 2D generation, and they expected arcade ports to continue to be important. When Sony first unveiled the PlayStation, heads rolled, Sega threw in another processor and GPU, and that's how the console ended up so complicated.

It turned out to be a godsend for the 'core' gamer. The Saturn was the only machine worth bothering with for arcade ports that weren't Namco, and was untouchable for 2D games until the Dreamcast came along. The machine was substantially weaker at 3D, but there are still shining examples - Virtua Fighter 2 was running at 720x480 60fps back when Tekken 3 only managed 320x240 30fps, games like Panzer Dragoon Saga pushing the machine to the limit, and the Saturn also bizarrely was THE console for FPS games, having the best console versions of Duke Nukem 3D, Quake, Exhumed etc.

They also pioneered analogue triggers with the Saturn analogue pad, something Sony didn't embrace until 2006!

[Guts]

Never was interested in Sega consoles back in the day as Nintendo 64 was enough for me at the time, but I would like a Saturn now, although some of the titles I'd most want (like Guardian Heroes) have luckily seen re-release on modern platforms. I would like to play that one strategy-RPG game with hundreds of sprites on the screen though. Dragon Force?

[Asura]

Part of the issue on the 3D side was that the Saturn was originally designed to handle System 32 arcade ports. It was a chronic misreading of the market by Sega - they expected there to be another predominantly 2D generation, and they expected arcade ports to continue to be important. When Sony first unveiled the PlayStation, heads rolled, Sega threw in another processor and GPU, and that's how the console ended up so complicated.

It turned out to be a godsend for the 'core' gamer. The Saturn was the only machine worth bothering with for arcade ports that weren't Namco, and was untouchable for 2D games until the Dreamcast came along. The machine was substantially weaker at 3D, but there are still shining examples - Virtua Fighter 2 was running at 720x480 60fps back when Tekken 3 only managed 320x240 30fps, games like Panzer Dragoon Saga pushing the machine to the limit, and the Saturn also bizarrely was THE console for FPS games, having the best console versions of Duke Nukem 3D, Quake, Exhumed etc.

Yeah, pretty comprehensive.

It's also worth saying that the Saturn did much better in Japan than in western territories because Sega was closer to the mark about being able to make another console grounded in 2D and arcade ports, as those proved very popular in that market. The problem, in this case, was that Sony bought out exclusivity from a lot of teams who wanted to make direct-to-console games (who were happier to sign with Sony due to them being such a big firm, their machine being easier to work with and Sega always being a bit volatile).

When I went to Japan, I was literallystunned by the sheer number of Saturn games on the shelf at my local 2nd hand video game stores - not just the ones that never had a UK release (which were many) but the vast swathes of titles that as a UK Saturn owner, massive childhood fan and subscriber to Sega Saturn Magazine, I'd never even heard of. It really was a totally different generation over there for Saturn owners.

I think in the UK it was always the underdog. Sony finally managed to put video games consoles into the homes of people who might've thought them childish only a few years before, with games like Wipeout. They made consoles into something that every household just tends to have, like a VHS/DVD player. The Saturn never did shake that Sega Megadrive identity to compete.

Hence the branding, adverts, and pretty much everything for the Dreamcast being radically different, apart from the sensibilities behind the games.

And the standard pad is probably the best ever.

Not enough gets made of this; the Saturn's official pads were all wonderful.

[Dogg Thang]

One other great thing about the Saturn: the Saturn magazine. It was probably my favourite gaming magazine of all time.

[Yakumo]

Man, I'll be honest I thought the Saturn looked cool, I even kind of liked the controller, but lets be realistic it was ****; barely any good games, a complete pain in the ass to programme for, it didn't really know what it wanted to focus on - 2D or 3D so ****ed up both.

I'm sure Panza and Nights were alright games but system sellers? not in my eyes at all.

Are you smoking crack or something ? "barely any good games" WHAT?!? The Saturn has more great games than the PlayStation and that's no ****. Forget the ****ty Euro Saturn efforts and that of the US. Japan is where it was at and there the Saturn had the best arcade post of fighting games at the time, the best 2D shooters and some of the most Amazing RPGs outside of Final Fantasy. In no way can any serious gamer say the Saturn was ****. No way at all.

As for Panzer Dragoon and NiGHTS. Yeah, sounds like something nobody with real experience of the system would say. NiGHTS and Panzer Dragoon are good but neither would be counted as the best Saturn game.

[Team Andromeda]

Part of the issue on the 3D side was that the Saturn was originally designed to handle System 32 arcade ports. It was a chronic misreading of the market by Sega - they expected there to be another predominantly 2D generation, and they expected arcade ports to continue to be important. When Sony first unveiled the PlayStation, heads rolled, Sega threw in another processor and GPU, and that's how the console ended up so complicated.

That isn't quite right . Saturn was always going to do and handle 3D - which is why SEGA dropped the old NEC CPU and went with the SH-2 . Also SEGA in both the consumer and Arcade side of things always went with multiple CPU's (Mega CD, X/Y Boards and so on) to give more grunt and power and that's the route they went with the Saturn go get decent power at cheap price and easy to manufacture, mind you adding in a 2nd SH-2 CPU was a reaction to SONY . What really let the Saturn down when compared to the PS wasn't the polygons but the lack of lighting and 3D transparent effects - which tented to make most PS games look nicer straight away

The Saturn was the only machine worth bothering with for arcade ports that weren't Namco, and was untouchable for 2D games until the Dreamcast came along

Well that's more do with SEGA being a Powerhouse in the Arcades,than the Saturn being a core gamer machine , there were plenty of 2D games on the PS . Saturn did have a nice balance of decent 3D and great 2D- Thanks to the playfield hardware ect

What really cost SEGA and the Saturn wasn't the PS or its hype and marketing making cool to play videogames - As SONY just built on what SEGA did so well with the Mega Drive in the west . It was the boneheads at SEGA America and Europe that thought the 32X would be the next best thing as that split SEGA PR/Development budget and focus and cost the Saturn dear imo, well that and no main SONIC game coming from SOJ early in

I doubt SEGA would have beaten SONY, in the West . But a united SEGA focused only on one console with its PR and Development bugets could at had a real short of a strong Number 2 in the West and number 1 in Japan

[nakamura]

Tekken 3 was 60fps and not 30. It also had far advanced lighting than VF2 and very detailed character models. Absolutely stunning arcade port.

[Team Andromeda]

Tekken 3 was 60fps and not 30. It also had far advanced lighting than VF2 and very detailed character models. Absolutely stunning arcade port.

Tekken 3 was running on a Board with nothing like the Power of Model 2 and even then the PS version could only handle 1 scaling backdrop . PS Tekken 3 also came out 2 years after VF 2 on the Saturn giving the Team even more time to learn and push the Hardware . That said I always thought Last Bronx was more of a looker than either Tekken 3, or VF 2 on the home systems

[CMcK]

Tekken 3 was released 3 years after the Saturn port of VF2. A better comparison would be the ports of Dead Or Alive.

[Neon Ignition]

The Mega CD and 32X were just staggering in their damage to the Sega brand, I remember them well. Despite how young I was I remember the hype then disappointment of the CD which was followed by wise cynicism for the 32X. By the time Saturn had come along Nintendo was still taking their sweet time and Sega was a bit of a laughing stock, they made it so easy for Sony. But then that rrp hit and they handed customers over to the PS1.

[speedlolita]

Tekken 3 for the PS1 was pretty incredible tbh. I can't think of any 3D fighter on Saturn giving it a run for its money.