The Greatest Draw of the Dreamcast? Then And Now

IiLuSiv · Post by **IiLuSiv** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 1:36 am

Hi, I'm new here, I stalked the boards a bit after raiding the mainpage for goodies.

I was thinking, how amazing it is that the Dreamcast still harbours such a cult following for after it's untimely demise.

What were the draws that brought to get a Dreamcast in the first place? And what are the draws now that keep you supporting it now?

Tell me what you think.

--
I was drawn to the system through all the 2d fighters available. Marvel vs Capcom 2 was a direct factor in my decision to purchse. Next, the online capability, although I've never utilized it

. Unfortunately however, another leading factor was: many of the online games advertised for the system which were never realized.

What kept me playing after Sega ended popular support, was NesterDC in addition to my ever-growing collection of games for the system. It is a bargain and a pleasure to be able to buy a game for a wad of dollars here and there you can always manage to find something you haven't played before.

nymus · Post by **nymus** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 2:07 am

I bought my dc for the original games and promise of merging/replacing pc gaming (half-life, quake3, unreal tournament, tomb raider... all the pc games I hadn't played). I developed my unbreakable devotion after sony, microsoft, nintendo came in offering empty promises, taking advantage of hype etc, etc. I remain loyal out of principle.

Dreamcast is the best designed of its generation as well as the "newer" consoles (PS3 et al). As an aspiring developer, dreamcast presents an opportunity to learn/hone skills in efficient programming/design.

Most of all, though I like the community, for a lot of reasons, too complex to describe in a paragraph.

Soul Reaver wrote: ... I plunged into the depths of the abyss. Unspeakable pain; relentless agony; time ceased to exist; only this torture and a deepening hatred for the hypocricy that damned me to this hell.

An eternity passed and my torment receded; bringing me back from the precipice of madness.

The descent had destroyed me; and yet, I lived.

cube_b3 · Post by **cube_b3** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 2:42 am

hmm When I found out extremly late that Dreamcast was a product of Sewga long lost Craving to see how the blue hedgehog would have evolved. Resident Evil : Code Veronica and the chance to make up for not buying a Sega Saturn.

Dreamcast helped me break the barier of Deceving marketing which companies like sony used for the ps2. The 2nd thing that I learnt is just because something is cheaper it does not mean it is inferior to it's rival product. Many people buy things according to the price tag just because it is expensive it has to be better the dreamcast showed me this statement was wrong.

Vchat20 · Post by **Vchat20** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 2:51 am

i wanted one first thing it came out due to the online capabilities. but due to the family finances, this was not possible. not until jan. 2004 was i able to get one due to a returned xmas gift and luckily enough there were dreamcasts right there in the same store for $14 a pop. at that point and still now my draw was for the homebrew scene as i kept hearing stuff such as emulators mp3 player's, etc..

Bertrude · Post by **Bertrude** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 7:56 am

My reasons were quite simple. I'd just got a new job and wanted to get a console. My options were to either get a cheap N64 or PSOne or get a DC or wait for PS2. I didn't want to wait for a PS2 and the launch price was high so when I saw the DC for ?150 with 4 games I decided to get it.

I wasn't really aware of any particular games that influenced the purchase as my video gaming before this was on my Mac so I was only really aware of Quake etc (which wasn't yet out on DC at the time). I just intended to get some mags and start getting the best examples of certain genres of games. And it's just grown from their. It's now got to the stage where I keep on picking up games and I've not played the last few.

Lord_Ball · Post by **Lord_Ball** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 9:00 am

My Draw - SEGA.

For the most part I really like the games made by sega - sure they have some duds, but overall Sega makes my favorite games (Shining Force and Phantasy Star for RPGs, Shinobi and Sonic for platformers, Streets of Rage for beat'em ups to name a few). Dreamcast was the only source of Sega made games, unfortunately only Sonic and Phantasy Star had a DC rendition, Though Skies of Arcadia and Hundred Swords(import) are other games I enjoy.

Since Sega went to multi-platform developing I have acquired a GC, Xbox and PS2, each has it's own gems, but I'd much rather play the Sega games on a Sega system - it just doesn't feel right playing on others.... but that's just me.

nymus · Post by **nymus** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 9:04 am

Lord_Ball wrote:... but I'd much rather play the Sega games on a Sega system - it just doesn't feel right playing on others.... but that's just me.

No, it's not just you.

GyroVorbis · Post by **GyroVorbis** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 10:38 am

I actually never got a DC until after its "demise." A friend of my grandpa just randomly gave me one. I had a PS2, and I hadn't been with Sega since the Genesis like 7 years earlier.

I immediately bought Sonic Adventure. That's one thing I'd missed out on. I hadn't played a single Sonic title after Sonic 3 and Knuckles. I was in love that first day. I beat that, bought SA2, and continued buying DC games and stuff by the lot.

The first day I had it, I decided that I liked it better than my PS2. I had never even given the DC a chance before.

Then I remember those lazy summer days when my friends and I would get our chaos on the VMUs and hang out up in the treehouse just chilling and playing Chao Adventure.

I believe that I was looking for cheats for a game or something, and I happened upon Booyaka.com. I was amazed that there were people who made homebrew for a VMU. Not long after that and I found that there was a homebrew scene for the actual console.

I had been learning Perl and a bit of programming before, and I planned to learn C/++ as I wanted to be a programmer. When I found that I could program for a DC, it was like a dream come true. I sat there and learned C/++ solely for the DC. I met devvers along the way that helped me out, and ultimately I finally did end up making stuff for Dreamcast.

cube_b3 · Post by **cube_b3** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 12:50 pm

nymus wrote:
Lord_Ball wrote:... but I'd much rather play the Sega games on a Sega system - it just doesn't feel right playing on others.... but that's just me.
No, it's not just you.

it's me too.

GryoBorbis Wrote:

I actually never got a DC until after its "demise." A friend of my grandpa just randomly gave me one. I had a PS2, and I hadn't been with Sega since the Genesis like 7 years earlier.

I immediately bought Sonic Adventure. That's one thing I'd missed out on. I hadn't played a single Sonic title after Sonic 3 and Knuckles. I was in love that first day. I beat that, bought SA2, and continued buying DC games and stuff by the lot.

The first day I had it, I decided that I liked it better than my PS2. I had never even given the DC a chance before.

Then I remember those lazy summer days when my friends and I would get our chaos on the VMUs and hang out up in the treehouse just chilling and playing Chao Adventure.

I believe that I was looking for cheats for a game or something, and I happened upon Booyaka.com. I was amazed that there were people who made homebrew for a VMU. Not long after that and I found that there was a homebrew scene for the actual console.

I had been learning Perl and a bit of programming before, and I planned to learn C/++ as I wanted to be a programmer. When I found that I could program for a DC, it was like a dream come true. I sat there and learned C/++ solely for the DC. I met devvers along the way that helped me out, and ultimately I finally did end up making stuff for Dreamcast.

A touching story

Gameholic · Post by **Gameholic** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 2:06 pm

For me, Dreamcast was a nice relief after playing many years on my N64. I wanted better graphics and more important; more (better) games, as the N64's lifespan came almost to an end.

Dreamcast was also my number one choice as i really enjoyed my Megadrive (Genesis) and i was dying for a new Sonic. Secondly, i really liked the way Sega was marketing the Dreamcast. For example: the slogan "Playstation: Best before 9/9/99"!!! Really cool. Therefore, I felt i was the target group of Dreamcast

So i imported one from Japan late '98 and bought a PAL one at launch here in Europe.

After all those years Dreamcast is still my fav console (i own 4 of them now) and i still play on it frequently.

Smiley · Post by **Smiley** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 4:02 pm

I had one when they first debuted, sold. And bought another off ebay to mod to play imports and attempt to run snes, nes emulators off of. Plus, the console itself much like the cube, is rather easy to work on and parts are semi easy to come across.

Never was much of a sega fan. Except when sega was taking it to nintendo during the 16-bit wars.

Juan · Post by **Juan** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 4:11 pm

Soul Calibur and Street Fighter III - Double Impact.

As simple as that.

Hilltopper · Post by **Hilltopper** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 4:34 pm

My first experience with the DC was when I saw it in a Software ETC. store three years ago for $40. My roomate told me they were cool and that he would still have his but he broke it and then got an XBOX. I bought it and nba2k1. I loved them both (it was my first current gen console). I went back for Crazy taxi, loved it too. Then I was hooked. now I am up to 50 or so games and 3 DC's. I can't get enough, my much younger brothers are hooked too. It is great to see appreciation for a "dead" console from the youngsters.

Eckostyle · Post by **Eckostyle** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 7:33 pm

Then: It owned. It was new, the games were great, It had a lot of what I wanted, Capcom gave it love(except for their abysmal and misleading port of SFA3), and it had PSO among other online titles which were quite popular.

Now: It has the only good port of MvC2, and it has Maken X.

Wagh · Post by **Wagh** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 8:09 pm

BILAL_XIA wrote:A touching story

God you're weird.

Sultan of Saturn · Post by **Sultan of Saturn** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 9:29 pm

The year was 2000 and I was tired of having to upgrade my computer to play games. Super Mario World turned me off to console gaming...sad but true. However, after getting tired of having to justify upgrading a computer I had for school to play games, I went back to console gaming. I picked up an N64, a PSX with a bunch of the great ones (mgs, c:sotn, ff7,8,9, etc.), a Genesis, a SNES, and a Saturn. The Saturn was the reason for me getting a DC. Although I was enjoying my PSX, the Saturn had me hooked with its awesome fighters like the SF Alpha series, and imports like Vampire Savior, Xmen vs. SF, etc. Hours of SF Alpha 2 with some considerable time playing NiGHTS and the Virtua Cops, Daytona USA, etc. It was time to get one. Before the Sega Smash Pack bundle, I bought House of the Dead 2, a mad catz dream blaster, an extra controller, and Soul Calibur. The next day I bought my Dreamcast and the rest was history. Sure, my PS2 and Xbox are getting more love now, but they haven't even come close to amassing the hours I have put into my Dreamcast. I'm currently playing Shenmue 2, and I am looking forward to getting busy with Head Hunter and Sonic Adventure 2. I've got about 150 domestic and import Dreamcast games and about 250 domestic and import Saturn games. Sega just keeps kicking butt. Dororo was a blast, and I just beat Nightshade about 2 weeks ago (I thought the original Shinobi was better though). I think I will always be playing something on my Dreamcast. Whether it is Dead or Alive 2 in surivival mode or Crazy Taxi, the DC just can't be beat.

Cid Highwind · Post by **Cid Highwind** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 10:04 am

I read something about emulators on DC and specifically NES emulators. I've always been a big NES gamer, and knowing this little baby could play all NES games fullspeed on my tv instead of pc made me buy it in the first place.

I didn't even know about games like JSR, Shenmue, RE:CV, Grandia 2 and Soul Calibur.

At this moment I don't play with it that much anymore, I've got myself a nice collection of games and I might get more later when I have some more money to spend. I recently got a new pc so I'm still catching up on the few, very few golden games I've missed.

I'm a very picky gamer myself, I can't stand generic games like I see so many on PC, Xbox and PS2 these days. I was very happy to see DC could offer something less mainstream

TyBO · Post by **TyBO** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 4:28 pm

The most modern system I owned before buying a Dreamacast was N64, and since Dreamcast was fairly "ahead of it's time," I really wanted to get one. I asked for it for Christmas in 2000 and my aunt got it for me as a Christmas/birthday present.

The first games I had were THPS, Sonic Adventure, and Crazy Taxi... I think I played Crazy Taxi the most... I could hardly put the controller down... must... break... previous... record.

It must have been the summer of 2001 when I discovered what homebrew was, and all the things I could do with my Dreamcast. If it wasn't for the homebrew scene, my DC would probably be boxed up somewhere in my basement right now.

Segata Sanshiro · Post by **Segata Sanshiro** » Sat Aug 27, 2005 3:48 am

INTRO:
Back in 1999 i lived in Havana, Cuba. As you might know Cuba has its fare share of economy problems and money is hard to come by, and even harder to spend $60 on a single game. What you might not know is that back then there was a genesis, snes or ps1 in almost every house with kids or teenagers. Well, we had a small gaming club going on (20~30 people) where we played all day long, discussed all the info available and every time ended up fighting about whats better genesis or snes. When next gen hit, i got my saturn and then paid a person that was travelling to the states a $600 for Tomb Raider, Daytona, VF2, Nights (w analog), Doom and a couple of controllers... believe it or not, it gets pretty expensive when you cant get it the normal way.
PS1 came by and killed the good old saturn and suddenly the fiery discussions were over, we all played the PSX and missed our gens<>snes fights, the N64 was never that popular in Cuba, the cheapest cart was around $130~$140 (thats USD)... then

The news about sega coming back from he grave with project Katana was a reason to get excited and party every day

we were just tired of the generic crap that was on PS1 (not including classics like MGS, castlevania, SH, RE2, etc).

Well, to make the long story short, months in advance i had sold my PS1 and all the games and had around $500~$600 waiting for 9.9.99. Then a once in a lifetime opportunity presented itself to me... a friend of mine had a tour with his band in the US the same week of the DC launch and he too was a sega fan and had his money prepared for the launch...
When he arrived at the states he had to preorder the 2 DCs just 2 days before the launch, just to make sure we get them...

The night of 9.9.99 came (00:00am Thursday morning), the fight was big, we had numbers 446 and 447, but the DC were over like 20 numbers earlier.

The dude at the store said not to worry, a new shipment of DC was scheduled to arrive in 4~5 days, but my friend flies back to Cuba the next day and maybe wont visit the US in the next 2 years... that was a really bad luck. he bought the games and VMUs just in case and sat down in his hotel room waiting... waiting for a miracle to happen, then an idea struck. Just before the flight back he and the band manager went to the store managers and using their VIP powers convinced him to take them to a warehouse where there was a shipment of DCs still being accounted for and not yet announced to the public.

Later this day in Cuba: I was at the club waiting for the call, nervous, sweating, smoking one cigarette after another, playing again and again the show we recorded earlier from ZDTVs Game-Spot TV (Adam Sessler interviewing guys from the industry and showing footage from sonic, incoming, HOTD2...). I still didn't have a clue of what happened in the US and if he got it or not... At exactly 12.00 at night (now, this is not a joke, its exactly how it happened) my buddy called with a tired voice, for a second i was disappointed, then he said: "come pick your DC and you frickin games"... 5 minutes later i was at his house (5 miles away). the rest is history.

For the following 2 months i had people from all around Havana and the surrounding cities (people that i don't know) coming to my house to see the Dreamcast and they were awed, inspired and blown away. In Cuba the DC started retailing at $700 later the same year, but quickly dropped to $400. The games were around $60. Now i live in Europe and have 4 DCs and around 100 games (not counting emus and backups)

THEN: SEGA, i loved my genesis, and every game i had!!! We were tired of the PSX polluting the industry with generic crap. The Dreamcast was exactly what the industry needed, a breath of fresh air... i loved my Sonic Adventure, Soul Calibur, Soul Reaver, Crazy Taxi, Sega Rally, DOA2...

NOW: To be perfectly honest i don't play much homebrew, emulation yes (doom, Flashback, NEO-GEO CD. I still search and buy original Dreamcast games and play almost every day, still trying to get the 180 emblems in SA2, breaking records in Daytona and Crazy Taxi, going for the mil in REZ and for the final bosses in TXR2.
I bought my Xbox for one game: Outrun2!! my PS2 for VF4 and my GC for, well, for Zelda (not sega, but one of the finest).

Gameholic · Post by **Gameholic** » Sat Aug 27, 2005 4:24 am

Segata Sanshiro wrote:INTRO:
Back in 1999 i lived in Havana, Cuba. As you might know Cuba has its fare share of economy problems and money is hard to come by, and even harder to spend $60 on a single game. What you might not know is that back then there was a genesis, snes or ps1 in almost every house with kids or teenagers. Well, we had a small gaming club going on (20~30 people) where we played all day long, discussed all the info available and every time ended up fighting about whats better genesis or snes. When next gen hit, i got my saturn and then paid a person that was travelling to the states a $600 for Tomb Raider, Daytona, VF2, Nights (w analog), Doom and a couple of controllers... believe it or not, it gets pretty expensive when you cant get it the normal way.
PS1 came by and killed the good old saturn and suddenly the fiery discussions were over, we all played the PSX and missed our gens<>snes fights, the N64 was never that popular in Cuba, the cheapest cart was around $130~$140 (thats USD)... then

The news about sega coming back from he grave with project Katana was a reason to get excited and party every day we were just tired of the generic crap that was on PS1 (not including classics like MGS, castlevania, SH, RE2, etc).

Well, to make the long story short, months in advance i had sold my PS1 and all the games and had around $500~$600 waiting for 9.9.99. Then a once in a lifetime opportunity presented itself to me... a friend of mine had a tour with his band in the US the same week of the DC launch and he too was a sega fan and had his money prepared for the launch...
When he arrived at the states he had to preorder the 2 DCs just 2 days before the launch, just to make sure we get them...

The night of 9.9.99 came (00:00am Thursday morning), the fight was big, we had numbers 446 and 447, but the DC were over like 20 numbers earlier.

The dude at the store said not to worry, a new shipment of DC was scheduled to arrive in 4~5 days, but my friend flies back to Cuba the next day and maybe wont visit the US in the next 2 years... that was a really bad luck. he bought the games and VMUs just in case and sat down in his hotel room waiting... waiting for a miracle to happen, then an idea struck. Just before the flight back he and the band manager went to the store managers and using their VIP powers convinced him to take them to a warehouse where there was a shipment of DCs still being accounted for and not yet announced to the public.

Later this day in Cuba: I was at the club waiting for the call, nervous, sweating, smoking one cigarette after another, playing again and again the show we recorded earlier from ZDTVs Game-Spot TV (Adam Sessler interviewing guys from the industry and showing footage from sonic, incoming, HOTD2...). I still didn't have a clue of what happened in the US and if he got it or not... At exactly 12.00 at night (now, this is not a joke, its exactly how it happened) my buddy called with a tired voice, for a second i was disappointed, then he said: "come pick your DC and you frickin games"... 5 minutes later i was at his house (5 miles away). the rest is history.

For the following 2 months i had people from all around Havana and the surrounding cities (people that i don't know) coming to my house to see the Dreamcast and they were awed, inspired and blown away. In Cuba the DC started retailing at $700 later the same year, but quickly dropped to $400. The games were around $60. Now i live in Europe and have 4 DCs and around 100 games (not counting emus and backups)

THEN: SEGA, i loved my genesis, and every game i had!!! We were tired of the PSX polluting the industry with generic crap. The Dreamcast was exactly what the industry needed, a breath of fresh air... i loved my Sonic Adventure, Soul Calibur, Soul Reaver, Crazy Taxi, Sega Rally, DOA2...

NOW: To be perfectly honest i don't play much homebrew, emulation yes (doom, Flashback, NEO-GEO CD. I still search and buy original Dreamcast games and play almost every day, still trying to get the 180 emblems in SA2, breaking records in Daytona and Crazy Taxi, going for the mil in REZ and for the final bosses in TXR2.
I bought my Xbox for one game: Outrun2!! my PS2 for VF4 and my GC for, well, for Zelda (not sega, but one of the finest).

Nice story man! Really cool to read. Nice to read how much impact Dreamcast had/has om certain people