I'm Ryan, otherwise known as FistoftheWind on the internets. This is my personal space for retro video gaming, movie and television reviews as well as a lot of other junk from the 80's and 90's. Thanks for stopping by! When you're done reading be sure to check the forum link above and meet our other friends from the Mega Base.
Ultimately the consoles life was cut short due to damages in consumer confidence caused by the Sega Saturn and the fact that (in my opinion) the upcoming Playstation 2 included DVD player capabilities. There were arguably other factors at play that caused the console's demise, but it's a real shame as they seemed to do everything right this time around.
Despite the ceased production of the console, did you know that the Dreamcast still has a game or two come out every once in a while? That's right, it's still thinking!
My own Dreamcast, still hooked up and ready to play!
So for the 15th anniversary of the Dreamcast, in my typical manner of celebrating I'd like to list some of my favorite memories that make it a special console to me. Once again these are in no particular order because I like to think I enjoyed every second with this machine.
-Seeing the tornado segment of the Windy Valley stage of Sonic Adventure for the first time. Software Etc. had a demo kiosk on display showing different footage for Dreamcast games and this particular segment blew me away. I hadn't felt that way about the graphics of a game since seeing the Sega Genesis for the first time.
-Trying to choose a launch game. At the time of launch I had enough cash for my first choice, Sonic Adventure, and another title. The Dreamcast launch lineup was so good it took me over an hour to finally decide on my second game, which ended up being Marvel vs. Capcom.
-Playing Sonic Adventure for the first time. Sonic had finally made the jump to a proper 3D entry to the series and it looked and played like a dream. Some may argue that the controls and camera feel dated by today's standards but for the time it was revolutionary for the series.
-Seeing Soul Calibur for the first time. I had played Soul Calibur at the arcades previously but the Dreamcast version kicked the polygon count to a ridiculous level. This was the first time I'd ever experienced the console version of a game trumping the arcade.
-Animal deliveries on request. I remember when Sonic Adventure 2 released, my wife and sister in law got addicted to raising Chao. They weren't particularly fond of the speed stages made for Sonic and Shadow, so when the need for speed type animals and capsules arose I was called in for some runs. Good times!
-Fighting games come home. The Dreamcast was the first console to sport arcade perfect transitions of Capcom's 2D fighting games such as Marvel vs. Capcom, Capcom vs. SNK 1 & 2, and the Street Fighter 3 series. If you were into fighting games, the Dreamcast was your go to system.
-My first online gaming experience. Phantasy Star Online was the first game to introduce me to online gaming, and online console gaming for many others. This title had me absolutely hooked and would steal away thousands of hours of playtime from me for years and years to come. I'm still firing up this game from time to time even today!
Those are just a few of my favorite memories from the years of good times given to me by the Dreamcast. It's a shame that they had to pull the plug on it early for whatever reason, but as I said earlier, there are still new games, official and homebrew, being worked on for the system all the time making it worth it to own one even today.
I'd love to hear some of your favorite memories. Be sure to visit our forum thread via the link below to share your thoughts on the Dreamcast:
http://midnightspookhouse.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=145
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