Sega's re-releasing the Dreamcast in Japan?

Sega's not flapping their yapper so far as we can tell, but German gaming site Gamefront.de is claiming they're going to be re-releasing the frickin' Dreamcast bundled with Radilgy and some limited edition telephone card or something. But our wish come true from the Ghost of Hackable Consoles Past will probably be Japan-only though, distributed through Sega Direct for ¥10,000 (about $83 US) — still, could this be the triumphant return of Sega hardware, even if only just nostalgia-gear? Apparently we'll find out February 16th (or sooner).

[Mr. Pointy @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

#65

I'm just imagining Nintendo using the SH3707 in the next Game Boy. Would the old Dreamcast/NAOMI dev kits still work with this chip?

[Mike @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

I had a dreamcast and ps2 both back then. Loved em both, and was really pissed when the DC was prematurely killed off. It was and is still an awesome system. One thing I never did was play it online though. I still have mine and think itd be amazing to boot it up and hop online. Basically what I was wondering is how hard is it to find the broadband adapter, and is there anyway to still play online (im thinking something similar to kai or xlink)? I love my ps2 still and my xbox is cool (though basically only for halo), but I wish Micorsoft would have just sunk some funding into Sega to make it a joint venture and keep DC alive. Dreamcast will always be one of my fave systems because it had way more of a WOW effect the first time I saw it running than any other system.

[Mr. Pointy @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

O wate, I heard the chip will be used in the Atomiswave arcade board replacement, codenamed Aurora.

[dik @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

OH YES!! Bring it on! My beloved mint orig. DC can use the company. Could use more games too-I only have 29-oink!

[Zakk @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

This is not a rerelease. This is a bundle with a Naomi port (Radirgy) only available via Sega Direct. This was done for Puyo Puyo Fever a while back. Nothing out of the ordinary or an indication of anything. Move along.

[DreamcastGamerForLife @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

This is the greatest news I have ever heard. I cant believe that I am actually going to see the DC released AGAIN! Its a dream come true. I am a HUGE SEGA fan and DC is my favorite system of all time. It has sooo many great and unique games as well as one of my favorite controllers and memory cards of all time. I support SEGA as much as possible as they are my favorite gaming company of all time.

For those of you who are unwaware, the DC STILL has games released in Japan. Infact, Trizeal was reciently released in Japan for the DC in April. 04-07-05. I will remember that date for a looong time. I had that game pre-ordered for months. Also, there is a new DC game releasing in Japan in Feburary called Rajirugi. Its a new Shmup! Once you can, Pre-Order it and show SEGA your support!!

Now I have a small gripe that I have to mention. Bootlegging. I HATE how people actually post about how they are DC fans or SEGA fans but BOOTLEG the Dreamcast games. Bootlegging of games is one of the factors that hurt SEGA. HOW can you call yourselves SEGA supporters when you do one of the many things that HURT the company. I am all for homebrew games but bootlegging DC games is wrong. I personally own over 140 OFFICIAL DC games and my collection can only go up! But people that bootleg the DC games are only part of the problem. I HOPE the new edition of the DC allows for NO bootleg games to be played. BUY the damn games.

I also wanted to add that the DC can STILL be played online. YES thats right, you can still go online and surf the internet on the DC console. ALSO, some DC games are STILL able to be played online. I personally still play PSO online on my DC. It is played on a private server but its still great fun. I also know that Quake 3 Arena is also able to be played online. There are others also but I dont feel the need to mention them at this point.

I am personally going to get one of these units. Not because I need a DC console,(I already have 3 of them) but to show my support for my favorite company. I dont care if the BBA will be included or not. I really do hope that this brings some much needed light to SEGA and helps them out. Maybe this will cause more NEW DC games to be released? Who knows? Only time will tell.

[death to sony and the xbox 360 Nintendo Rules Sega Rules @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Hey guys The Dreamcast is my favourite system behind my Super Nintendo and NES or it was until the controller stopped working. Do any off you guys know what the hell is wrong cuz it boots up and all and the games will load but it won't let me control. So can you people help me? Also death to SONY AND MICROSOFT> The next video game crash is coming and SEGA will become #1 again with Nintendo #2 and SONY out of the wars for ever!!!!

[DC ROX @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

gr8 from a gr8 company
i really wish to play Shenmue 3,,,1 & 2 ROCKED
even if it was for another console i want to play that game badly.
some of my fav. games were MSR,NBA 2k2,Skies Of Aracdia,Grandia 2,Gauntlet Legends,Unreal,Airforce Delta"cant remember exact name,18 Wheelers,n others

The only thing i missed to buy was the mouse,i bought the keyboard for web browising,.
I would be happy if Sega releases Braodband adapter n LAN adapter

[Gaijin Biker @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

I still have my Dreamcast...

Soul Calibur, baby, Soul Calibur.

[Vision77 @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

I play my dreamcast weekly. My favorite game is Jedi Power Battles. I also use it as an emulator for NES, SNES, and Genisis. I am looking for an DC emulator for TG16. If anyone knows where I can find one let me know.

[Google Nazi @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

I can really see the dreamcast becoming the "cool" thing to play because truthfully it is cool. i haven't played with mine in a few months but i lack the games (only have 20 of them or so). In japan they haven't sopped making games but it is just third party publishers and if it becomes a "cool" thing then we might possibly see something like new super monkey ball ports which i believe has already happend this or last year.

Plus ethernet adapter could mean an online community and if that happends it would be sweet playing online games again. However this is just a dream and a pointless one at that. The revolution is coming and it can do everything the dreamcast can but better with sega's support so it is all good :)

DC was cool until it failed ;_;

[OddManOut @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

It's interesting that people are saying there is now way for sega to get back "in the game" so to speak and compete with Sony M-soft and Ninty. That's probably true...this gen anyway. But consider what would happen if 1 or two gens down the line, with sega being known for it's great software on all systems (as they are developing for all the other consoles right now), and for that quirky little box of fun the Dreamcast (reborn). And then Sega withdraws all their titles from the other console makers, launches a new console as great as the Dreamcast was at the time of IT's launch. With it having all those titles people know and love, and the other consoles sudennly NOT having them, they could get back in the game...

I doubt THIS particular scenerio will play out, but Sega has produced a lot of quality stuff in both hardware and software. They have never really lacked for creativity or innovation...though they have SEVERLY lacked in business sense on a number of occasions. Don't count'em out...

[DG @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Wow...I'm pissed. Where was all of this Sega love when it came to the Saturn? Oh wait, they make a system with games that are easy to rip off, and everyone loves it, right? Please.

[carlo @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

I seem to remember some kind of voice-response game for the Dreamcast...and not to sound too crazy, but it had something to do with a fish/man combo... anyone wanna confirm this???

[James @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

#110

Seaman used voice recognition technolog.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seaman_%28video_game%29

[Sense @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Actually, completely by coincidence, I sold all my DC games on 9/9/2005, six years to the day that the DC was released.

I feel kind of ashamed about it now. It was a great system. It was really hard to delete all my VMUs. Killing my Phantasy Online Character was like killing a friend :)

Except you know, it was a game and I wasn't actually killing anybody.

I kept the DC itself though and gave it to my brother. He had a few games for it.

I still play my Saturn on occasion too. Saturn Bomberman kicks ass.

[Kevin @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

I will be in Japan all next year. Looks like i'll be getting my hands on one these babies if it drops.

[Jico @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

108, the DC didn't fail. The stupid mainstream consumers failed it.

[Aaron Fisher @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Still got my Dreamcast, play it EVERY DAY. MY Xbox 360 is lonly! I want them to release a new one, even if I have to inport it from Japan! GO SEGA! LONG LIVE DREAMCAST!

[DreamcastGamerForLife @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Jico-

Thats right. The people that bootlegged Dreamcast games, and the people who go rid of it at the drop of a hat for $ony's PS2 console killed are what killed the DC.

[Mazinkaiser @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Honestly now,
If DC had as much support as it seems to have here, it would have never failed. It seems like people appreciate it a lot more now that its dead then they did when it was alive. I also agree that all the people who gave up on DC just from hearing the term "PS2" helped destroy it as well. I love my SNES and Nintendo kinda brought it back with the GBA. Maybe people are so dis-satisfied with current and new games/systems that we could see more "atari flashback" sytle releses for other consoles. Nintendo's cashing in with the Revo and MS is doing something similar with Live Arcade; lets see if Sony does more then just PS1&2 backwards compatability.

[John @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

I still got my dreamcast too, that system was the shit. I'll never forget popping in that demo disk for the very first time and seeing the graphics for Sonic. I was like...OMG!! It was definitely a turning point in terms of graphics. It delivered what the N64 couldn't. That awe factor. Anyways, unbelievable, and it was also the begining of the excellent 2k sports franchises. To this day, I still like NBA2k1 the best. Great control and game play. Hope Sega gets back into the hardware scene and hope Nintendo doesn't stop!

Thanks,
John

[Casey R Williams @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

No one can name a single redeeming feature of Dreamcast except for the games? Here are my favorite non game features.

1) Minimal time from power on to gameplay
2) No obtrusive powerbrick to hide
3) I've never seen one crash or overheat
4) Perfect size for a console
5) Rock solid graphics output
6) very well designed controller (my opinion)
7) top loading drive more reliable than tray
8) VMU is super cool (if they were to improve the Dreamcast, I'd start with the VMU)
9) broadband connectivity (if you can afford it, that is)

And the best thing about the Dreamcast is:

10) that when you turn it on it beeps that it loves you

[. @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

"WAIT, SO IF EVERYONE LIKES THE DREAMCAST SO MUCH WHY DID IT FAIL?"

Sony hype and widespread piracy.

[Gadget @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

[quote]
Oh, and "Hmmmm", not to rain on your little fanboy parade, but the 360 *did* sell out in japan within a few hours. Sure, it won't touch the ps3 over there, but it might have moderate success.
[/quote]
Yeah, probably because M$ delivered 5 per store like they did everywhere else =D

[Bride of the son of stag @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Word up 103, I have close to 50 originals but virtually everyone I know bootlegged the system to death. Shame, it would have been nice to have an open system without the rampant piracy but the two go hand in hand. With my original release day DC still in perfect working order we shake our marracas still to this day and I love it.

[Mercenary Insulin 2 @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

No way! Hey, time to go down in the basement to fetch my old games. oooh, my wife won't be happy to see them again... Oh well, I really don't care. :P

[Mazinkaiser @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Good point on the piracy guys, I had a DC with around 20 games, then you could burn a game and play it with a swap disc? Then you didn't need the swap disc and even games that were more than a cd capacity had hacked versions that fit. That obviously helped kill the game sales and sine it happened so quickly, it realy hurt SEGA.

Casey R Williams,
"6) very well designed controller (my opinion)"
That's a first for me! I've never heard of anyone liking the DC controller!

In my opinion, its up there for worst control ever! Just the placement of the cord was enough for me to be upset, never mind how flimsy it was, the cheep feel of the buttons, the analog stick was uncomfortable and it was the only control ever that made my hand cramp. I did like the concept of the VMU but its functionality wasn't fully exploted. I didn't like that rumble wasn't built in, thats so N64ish. The whole module swapping in the control was a turn off for me; that's the one thing about Revo that has me feeling wierd. I don't like needing plug-in modules for different games unless its a light gun. Now if they would make a light gun for X360 with some gun games!

[Equiz @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Well, if anyone still cares, I've taken a look at the origianl article at Gamefront.

Quick traslation of what I've read:

12/02/05 - Milestone anounces it will release a port of the arcade shooter Radilgy on the Dreamcast.

12/08/05 - Sega anounces that Radilgy from Milestone will also be offerd in a bundle with a Dreamcast. The set is exclusive to Sega's Onlineshop in Japan.


I don't want to be a pessimist, but couldn't it just be some stock leftovers? I mean, the DC didn't sell as well as expected in Japan.

BTW, looks like some readers could use a bit of Sega history, check here: http://www.eidolons-inn.net/segabase/

[Joe Strout @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Woot! By pure coincidence, I was playing my Dreamcast just the other day. I have a PS2 as well, but haven't yet bothered to hook it up again since we moved last July.

The DC is an awesome machine, made all the better by being made by a company that's not more evil than Satan -- quite unlike the PlayStation and Xbox lines...

[DCP @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

a cant think of anything better than Sega bringing the DC back. it never died and still is better than any of the other consoles on the market i hope they put the servers back online so more games can be played or at least charge like Microsoft do it would be worth it
games like quake3 pso buggy heat f355 and many many more ppl still want to play online. LONG LIVE THE DREAMCAST

[Josh Witkowski @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Yes! I love my Dreamcast. I just hooked it up to play a little Sega Rally 2 the other day.

Now, if someone would just re-release the TurboGrafx 16.

[RagePrblm @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Sweet! Maybe theyll even start to sell some sealed games they have in storage - I know they're there! I just bought skies of arcadia for 35 bucks off ebay, Ive seen sealed ones for over 100$, I missed the dreamcast when I sold it, so I bought one off ebay...Goddamn its sweet... it had so much potential, I would have loved to see a final fantasy game on that system - Hey Josh, TG16 ruled, I bought one when it first came out, remember Keith Courage in Alpha zones, Bonk, and Dragons Quest? Courage was a badass mother###ker when he went underground

[john @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

they are still making those "treamcast" consoles in hong kong, you know.

[Google Nazi @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

the dreamcast controller was later upgraded to the xbox controller. then was later upgraded to the xbox360 controller. That is how the dc controller should of looked like (360) in the first place. The DC controller feels really fake especially the buttons but so does the xbox controller (the buttons of it).

I did like the DC controller alot but xbox is more practical and easyer to use and fits perfectly. Hopefully they will have modified controllers but if you truely dont like their controller you can mod your own xbox controller to work on the DC or if possible get an adapter.

Would you still play PSO ver 2 on the DC if it was re-born?

[Harald @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

The DC didn't fail in Japan. In fact it was the best selling Sega console ever in Japan. It did worse than miserably in the US and in Europe though. That's mainly what killed it.

Sega never seemed able to fully understand the western markets. It might've been easier for Sony with a long lasting presence world-wide.

[GyroVorbis @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

#131, I'm playing PSO v2 on my DC right now. I'm on the schthack homebrew servers and I have another guy on a Dreamcast, a guy on a Gamecube, and a guy on PC in my team.

Quake III and PSO v2 are two of the best online experiences Dreamcast had to offer. THEY'RE STILL ONLINE BIOTCHES!

So come join the DCers, Qbers, and PCers on PSO.

[Dan Potter @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

@Casey: "3) I've never seen one crash or overheat"

You haven't spent much time soldering in a new flash ROM or reset switch then ;)

Great to see all the love for this great console out there but I have serious pessimism for any really new hardware developments.

Anyone who still has one and wants new games, feel free to join the semi-pro homebrew/indie community. Most of it is coming from these guys now:

http://www.goatstore.com/

Four new DC titles so far (ours -- Feet of Fury, Inhabitants, Maqiupai, and now Cool Herders) and more to come, all based on the homebrew KOS.

I don't mean that as some kind of spam, just figured the people who'd be posting and reading on this would enjoy it. :)

Happy Holidays, and go to sleep dreaming of dancing Dreamcasts in your fireplace stockings on Dec 24th ;)

[Justin` @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

I own two Dreamcasts.
I'm surprisingly not fanboi-wai-wai~~! over them, but I didn't really see many valid reasons to buy any of the current consoles after I got my two DCs.

I can honestly say that I enjoy the homebrew scene for the Dreamcast - there's no gigantic curve to enter it, nor is there a need to pay for hardware modification components (hello, Mod Chips!) just to play a homebrew game.

I'm not the most tech-minded individual, but knowing how easy it is for me to play, say... Super Mario Bros. on a Dreamcast, I can say it's quite satisfying.

Sega, in my opinion, has had great hardware, but terrible marketing strategies. It seems that something that Sega has dropped on the market would always be preceeded, paralleled, or closely followed by something that is a marketing killer, and this would outshine anything that Sega wanted to sell here in the States.

Surprise, shock, and horror, but I hadn't even heard of the Sega Master System until well after Sonic 3's release on the Sega Genesis (Mega Drive to some of you).
The power of bad marketing? Probably.

I'd be happy to see a new console by Sega, but:
I know it wouldn't work. It'd be expensive, not sell very well, and tank what's left of the company.

I'm satisfied now, at least, while Sega is releasing the games I like onto a current console that I do own - a Gamecube (remember that valid reasons comment from above? PSO Epi.1&2 is one of them).

As an afterthought, though...
Is it me, or do classic games have a stronger draw over the new stuff fed to the masses these days?
Ikaruga is nearly impossible to find, and I haven't seen Radiant Silvergun *yet*. Where's the love, right? :)

[Rocck Lobster @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Still got mine and over 50 games. Sweet system.

[blu @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

the first company to release a handheld version of the DC (preserving the VGA out though ; ) with 1GB flash storage and pay-per-download versions of the original dc titles is getting a very healthy lump of money from me.

[DreamcastGamerForLife @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

GyroVorbis-hey, I see you also play PSO on the schthack server. Whats your PSO characters name? Maybe we could meet on there sometime.

<3 DC

[tekdemon @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Heh, the dreamcast is still the most up-to-date console I own. I've owned (in order) the NES, SNES, Game Boy, Playstation, Sega Genesis Nomad (Yes-the HANDHELD GENESIS!), Dreamcast, and Game Boy Advance.

After my heart was broken with the Death of the Dreamcast I just couldn't bring myself to buy a PS2-I would have been buying the murderer of my love!

I considered the Xbox (although largely because it was a really good hardware value at the time) but the games didn't really appeal to me (also, Halo needs a mouse to be played dammit!) and my PCs were faster by then anyways.

Of course I'm really considering the XBOX 360 now...it's sort of the spiritual successor to the Dreamcast.

[tekdemon @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

Oh and according to DCemulation, the pricing info from Gamefront is wrong and it'll be 15800 Yen (about $133).

Heh Sega should release like a 20 game super-hits GD-ROM pack for like $79.99 just to see what kinda interest there is out there...won't really cost em anything eh?

[GeoffS @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

If they rerelease it can they quieten the fans and drive whirring noise, the only bad thing about the whole box

[tomflanagan @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

the dreamcast is the best games consol ever. i have dreamcast linux on it and it has a C++ compiler and im thinking about making some dreamcast games. anyone wanna make a team to make stuff for the DC.

[zalas @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

I just checked the Japanese website:
http://segadirect.jp/Catalog/ProductDetail.aspx?SKU=0101002-00988&ST=PT&PT=DC&O=S&A=N
It says it comes with a _refurbished_ Dreamcast and says that while it will operate normally, it may have some scratches on the case, etc.

[former Sega employee @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

You folks seem to forget why the Dreamcast failed.

Because you all jumped on Sony's PS2 hype!!

"Toy Story like grafx" How soon you all forget.
Plus no Madden on DC. Nor any EA support. Big deal / No loss.

But at the end of the day, Sony won and Sega went 3rd party developer.

Things you forgot that Sega DC brought to the table:
Online via Modem (later BBA support)
Advanced 128 bit Grafx (PS2 still can't match)

DC is dead, let's leave it at that.

[ace420 @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

I had a Sega Master System Before I ever had a Nes. I had a Gensis, Sega CD, 32X, Nomad, Saturn, and Dreamcast. Each system was bought instead of or before I bought from the competition. If sega said they were coming out with a NEW system tomarow I would buy it, but this rerelease sounds iffy to me. Remember, they have failed us before.

[GyroVorbis @ Dec 19th 2005 12:56AM]

How about no.

Developers keep it alive, and people like you really piss me off with your arrogant "it's dead. Leave it alone." I don't spend hours a day devving for the white box just so you can convince people of that kinda crap.

IT ISN'T. When a HOMEBREWER can make a game for a console and RELEASE it for money, and the console still has the biggest homebrew dev scene EVER, the damn thing isn't dead. Just this week PSO got downloadable quests for DC, a decent N64 emu was announced, Riji--whatever was announced, and Scherzo's NesterDC SE was released.

DC is dead when the good people, fans, and developers say it's dead--not when you do, 'cuz that's how the Dreamcast rolls.