Editor’s note: This is it, 10 years ago on the button. If you’re planning to dust off the old Dreamcast, Matthew’s got some advice on what games to play. After you sing and serve the cake, of course. -Demian
The Dreamcast was the one system I felt never got a fair chance. It came out in an awkward time, trying to get the jump on Sony by providing the next generation of technology to gamers, but most of us were still logging our hours on the PS1. Dreamcast was too much, too soon — it offered an online service, SegaNet, way before Xbox Live, and innovated in numerous genres with new IPs and tech.
We just weren’t ready for what Sega wanted to do.
In honor of the Dreamcast and its upcoming birthday, I am listing some of the best games that are still playable and an insane amount of fun today. This is not a top 10 list, just the games that you should consider playing on 9-9-09 if you, like me, are going to show the system some love.
Skies of Arcadia
This turn-based role-playing game is widely considered as one of the all-time great RPGs, and the best RPG on the Dreamcast bar none. Developed by Overworks, an internal Sega team, you took the role air pirate Vyse and his Blue Rogues, as you stole from the rich and gave to the poor.
The game was standard RPG fair in the vein of Dragon Quest and the older Final Fantasies, but what made it stand out from the pack was its game world and air-to-airship battles.
The world of Arcadia was vast, beautiful, and comprised of air-bound cities and towns. It was truly a spectacle, with numerous secrets for budding sky pirates to discover.
After you acquired your battleship, you could engage in strategic battles with opposing airships. You would input your actions via a color-coded grid that determined turn order and evasive maneuvers. And you could also recruit crew members in the game world that would add special buffs or attacks to your vessel, providing even more layers to these intense and engaging battles.
The game also featured treasure hunting via the VMU and rumble pack, and a VMU minigame for on the go.
Soul Calibur
The tale of souls and swords eternally told through booming, silly voice-over. Though the Dreamcast tale was the most popular. The game sold 1 million units in 1999 alone, and was the killer app for Sega’s final system. Soul Calibur even won EGM’s prestigious platinum award, and received 10s from many other gaming outlets. And you’re wondering if it’s still fun to play?
The answer is a resounding YES! Even after the later sequels, the Dreamcast version of Soul Calibur stands as (arguably) the best and most fun version. Not only was it better than arcade perfect, but it also brought home a treasure trove of modes and extras. Basic modes aside, it also featured the deep and addicting Mission mode; here you would travel from area to area, fulfilling special missions such as fighting so many opponents in a row, or fighting in quicksand. Completing these missions awarded you points to unlock artwork, costumes, and arenas. Cervantes was also a playable character in the home version.
Boot this game up with your friends and watch the hours wittle away.
Jet Grind Radio
Take a dash of The Warriors, a pinch of 1984, and a kick ass soundtrack and you had the game Marc Ecko’s Getting Up wanted to be: Jet Grind Radio. The game had you assume the role of one of the members of the GG’s, a gang that skated around futuristic Tokyo-to, listening to awesome beats and spray painting tags around the city.
In each level, you’d skate around, execute tricks, and throw up your tag in hard-to-reach spots. The game’s basics were incredibly simple. Tricks were automatic as long as you had enough speed and jumped at the right time, and you applied tags by moving the left stick in specific motions in time with the beat of the music, in proto-rhythm game style.
You could also collect new pieces of art in the stages, or make your own custome tags using the in-game editor. The game even allowed players to upload and download other tags from the website, straight from the Dreamcast.
The game’s visual style was a revelation at the time, and ushered in a trend toward cel-shaded graphics. It still looks amazing today. Give the game a go and then try the superb Xbox sequel.
NFL 2K1
The Sega Sports 2K series were some of the best sports games ever, and 2K1 spearheaded the franchise and the sports genre in general into the next generation. NFL 2K1 provided all the modes you’d expect from a football game, including a superb franchise mode, where you controlled all aspects of your team. But the real highlight? The game’s online play. You could head onto SegaNet to battle other armchair quarterbacks across the country. It wasn’t perfect (the opposing team could pause the game for everyone and even switch to your team), but it was revolutionary for its time.
You can’t play online now, unless you know of a tunneling solution, but the game still retains its fun factor. It presents a highly-tuned game of football, with great A.I. and play mechanics. You could also call plays with via the VMU to avoid prying eyes.
Marvel vs. Capcom 2
Sure, you can pick up the newly re-released XBLA and PSN versions, but why would you want to sit through weird scaling and graphic filters when you can fight your way through the Dreamcast arcade-perfect original?
MvC2 on the Dreamcast was another arcade port that is still super fun to play. Pick your team from the cast of 56 characters and go toe-to-toe with your friends in the crossover of your dreams. MvC2 caters to both button mashers and expert players — while things can get crazy what with all the insane combos and laser blasts, its all in good fun and will guarantee to bring a smile to your face.
Yeah, the characters must be unlocked, but you know you can leave it in training mode overnight to get points, right?
ChuChu Rocket
Again, simplicity breeds fun, and Chu Chu Rocket is proof. In this sort of action/puzzler, you guided the ChuChus (mice) to a rocket ship to escape the KapuKapus (cats) by placing arrows on the board. When a ChuChu hit an arrow he’d turn in that direction, and so would any KapuKapus. It was a simple gameplay premise that, like all great puzzle games, become harder to master as you reached later levels. Throw in special mice that caused different effects and you had a puzzler that was insanely fun and challenging.
Multiplayer had four people fighting over ChuChus as they tried to direct the critters into their own rockets. Only three arrows could be placed at a time, so careful planning and use of your opponents’ arrows was required. The game also sported a level editor.
There you have it. While this this is no means a top “number” list, I feel these are the games that you can boot up right now and have a blast playing, and defined what the Dreamcast offered. What games would you add or take away? Let me know what games make you list and will be spinning inside your Dreamcast.