Retro|Spective 193: The Final Tour of Dreamcast

[Neon Ignition]

The Sega Dreamcast - Turning 23 Years Old This November

I've been doing some mulling and I think that rather than retire Retro|Spective I'll instead reduce its output significantly. Once we get to the 200th iteration things will severely slow down as I think, compared to the franchise by franchise weekly output we've had for so long, the recent Xbox thread has worked fairly well and suggests a better direction. However, with the intention originally being to stop soon it would leave a fair amount of ground uncovered so for now we'll continue as is but then switch things up at a later date.

With the Xbox exclusive line up now complete we can turn our eyes to the next in the 128-bot generation focus which is Sega's beloved hardware swansong. From the initial promise to bring us six billion players, to the reality of 56K Chu Chu Rocket matches - the Sega Dreamcast was effectively a two to three year example of how the candle that burns twice as bright burns half as long. Remembered for ideas such as VMU's and experiences such as a steady chain of arcade hits, Sega's final push was a strong one and to an extent even a successful one had it not been for the dire state the company itself was in.

Each day we'll look at some of the games that to this day remain locked in to the Dreamcast experience as ask if the titles were worth leaving behind and if they still give the Dreamcast a unique place amongst modern play set ups.

Time to cast the dream...



Today though, an opening question, in general have Dreamcast games tended to age beyond playability or do the arcade sensibilities of most titles keep it a timeless joy?

[Hirst]

I think visually Dreamcast games have aged better than most of the other 3D lot as they have a smooth and sharp look and the majority of games ran at 60fps. In terms of how they play, I think they hold up really well as the majority of the best games are arcade ports with good pick-up-and-play appeal (and mostly with a lot of depth too). The library isn't enormous, but I think it has a much better good to bad games ratio than most systems.

Certainly if somebody was looking at getting into (subjectively) older games and picking up an older system, I think it would be one of my first recommendations as I can't think of many barriers. Something like Crazy Taxi or Jet Set Radio still looks really fresh to me.

[wakka]

I reckon Dreamcast games are some of the most playable retro games going, for anyone of any age or even level of gaming experience. Their arcade roots means they're usually pretty straightforward to pick up and they've got those big, bold colour schemes and brash soundtracks that are designed to grab your attention in attract mode.

Their preponderance in the library also means that for me, Dreamcast has got one of the most defined identities of any console going. When you think Dreamcast, you do think of a very particular type of game. And that's lovely. Its library is a time capsule of Sega's arcade development at its zenith, just as that type of game was, sadly, starting to become less popular with players.

[ZipZap]

I think good arcade games have a certain timelessness to them. Some of the things that age 90s games such as a bad camera, unskipable cutscenes, badly spaced save points, poor frame-rates etc are much less of an issue when you're playing games designed for high score. A lot of the releases are from the last great era of arcade games as well.

Some of the original games which seemed great at the time haven't aged as well, Sonic Adventure comes to mind. I always thought JSR was a bit style over substance, but is still very stylish to this day! I do also think in many cases there have been better versions of many of the best games, but judged on its own the line-up is still solid.

It's also worth mentioning that there are still newer games worth playing such as NeoXYX, all of the recent Atomiswave releases and Andro Dunos 2 coming soon! (the trailer only mentions current gen, but there is a DC port as well)

[MartyG]

Soul Calibur, that legend will never die. Also, Samba de Amigo is still a joy to play, you can't get that anywhere else (and no, the Wii version doesn't count, it was awful).

Actually, with current VR controllers, that game would definitely work well - I'm going to write to my MP.

[QualityChimp]

It would probably be more playable if it had a 2nd analogue stick, but find games really suffer without it.

More arcadey titles like the various excellent shmups fare better.

[Hirst]

Got to be said that basing it directly on the Naomi arcade hardware was an excellent decision. It allowed very quick ports of not just Sega titles but also quite a few third-party games on the same system (mostly Capcom but a few others too). It was great to know that you weren't just playing a decent port of an arcade game but effectively the same thing. There must be at least 20 or 30 games that came straight from the arcade, really helping to boost the game library.

Thinking about it, the Dreamcast was basically like the NeoGeo AES of its time. I know there were arcade games based on the Saturn hardware (ST-V) and PS1 (Namco System 11), but the Naomi had an enormous game library and Sega were putting out major arcade hits relentlessly around then.

It made a lot of sense for them to properly consolidate their arcade stuff into the consoles, rather than their old system where they most of their best staff developing arcade games and then had less experienced staff trying to port them to different hardware.

[Neon Ignition]

Here's todays launching line up of games that remain exclusive to the Dreamcast:


4 Wheel Thunder
Released as part of Midways arcade style Thunder racers series, this racer contianed 12 tracks of boosted action and even recieved decent reviews but despite this was never ported to other formats.







AeroWings
Flight sim fans might be lining up their Xbox's for MS's upcoming sim but Dreamcast fans can still revisit their own exclusive which saw players also pull off tricks and training with flight squads.




Blue Stinger
An early example of a survival horror title with entirely 3D engine environments, with the character Elliot exploring the unimaginatively titled Dinosaur Island to uncover its emergence and the ethereal being that has also emerged.




Carrier
Another survival horror title for the system, this one used the traditional pre-rendered backgrounds method and had players take several roles in a team as they investigate a contagion. The game had a mixed response mostly due to not having any features ton make it stand out and a planned PS2 sequel ended being shelved.




Did you enjoy any of these games or were they the dregs to avoid in an arcade bliss system?

[ZipZap]

The only one I've played is 4 Wheel Thunder (and it's been a long time!). I remember it looked nice, but thinking it was a bit lacking in fun.

[samanosuke]

Without meaning to be pedantic, I am pretty certain Carrier featured full 3D backgrounds, not pre-rendered. I remember this as I quite enjoyed it upon release due to it playing and looking like a true next-gen title in contrast to the myriad of PlayStation ports that appeared early on in the Dreamcast’s life. Those PlayStation ports may have hurt console sales as I recall casual gaming friends mistakenly thinking the Dreamcast was a competitor to the original PlayStation as opposed to the forthcoming PlayStation 2 which they considered the next generation.

Whilst ultimately Carrier wasn’t a patch on the later RE: CV, as an early release it had a decent amount of depth which, given the high number of arcade ports on the Dreamcast, was a welcome addition to anyone’s library.

[Yakumo]

Did you enjoy any of these games or were they the dregs to avoid in an arcade bliss system?

Carrie's backgrounds are not pre-rendered. They're all done in real time. It's just that the camera lost never moves. One of the beta leaks proves this as you can move the camera.

[Neon Ignition]

That would explain how clean they look in emulated shots, I remember seeing the game covered when it was coming out but never got round to trying it



Cool Cool Toon
Made by SNK and for once not a fighter, this was rhythm action title released only in Japan where controller icons pop up on a circle on screen and players have to lean the analogue in the icons direction and press the corresponding button in time with the music. Despite getting a warm response SNK has always kept the game tied to this one limited release.




Crazy Taxi 2
We're dialling the clock back from the Xbox thread to the other system tied entry. The second Crazy Taxi moved the action to New York over two courses and added in a jump button to the action. The received solid reviews but isn't as well received in general compared to the original.




D2
Despite the name this game isn't a direct sequel to the original, bringing back solely the lead character in an unconnected tale. Players are exposed to the Canadian wilderness and face enemies in confrontations. Reviews weren't the kindest with the gameplay and reliance on cutscenes seeing response being muted on the title.





Daytona USA 2001
With visuals brought more in line with the second arcade game, this version had all the tracks from the original and CE as well as three new courses. Reviews were pretty good for this addition to the series but fan response has always been colder.




Did you ever make an enjoyable Rooolliing Staaart on any of these?

[Asura]

Crazy Taxi 2
We're dialling the clock back from the Xbox thread to the other system tied entry. The second Crazy Taxi moved the action to New York over two courses and added in a jump button to the action. The received solid reviews but isn't as well received in general compared to the original

Never got along with this, despite trying. Ditto for 3.

I kinda feel that Crazy Taxi is about as close to a "perfect videogame" as you can get, design-wise. What I mean by that isn't that it's some kind of gaming nirvana; I just mean that it has a kind-of purity of vision, and I don't think you can add anything to it, or subtract anything from it that would tangibly improve the game without fundamentally changing what it is.

The additional cities and the jump move of the sequels didn't really add much for me. It just felt like trying to tack something on.

See also: Super Monkey Ball. You can add stuff to it or recontextualise it, but you can't make it better whilst not fundamentally changing what it is.

[CMcK]

I thoroughly enjoyed Cool Cool Toon. Great sense of style and catchy tunes.

[QualityChimp]

Another great thread, Neon, thanks!