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Classic Games (Games)

The Dreamcast is Still Dead 131

Posted by Zonk from the please-let-chu-chu-rocket-come-to-xbla dept.
00_NOP writes "Dreamcast lovers' hopes were raised earlier this month when it came to light that Sega had extended trade mark protection on the console's name. But hopes have now been dashed that we'll ever see another Dreamcast console, as even GameDaily's optimistic take on Sega's motivation makes clear. 'SEGA has no plans to get back into the hardware business, but we also want to protect our past and current brands. The trademark application was filed to protect our current and potential future use of the word DREAMCAST and to prevent other parties from using it in a way that could be confused or linked with SEGA.'"
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The Dreamcast is Still Dead More

The Dreamcast is Still Dead

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  • Comment removed (Score:5, Funny)

    by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) * on Tuesday December 18, 2007 @02:32PM (#21741466)
    Comment removed based on user account deletion
    • Oops, that should have been +1 Funny and not -1 Overrated, undoing

    • Re:That's just what they *want* you to think... (Score:4, Funny)

      by ByOhTek ( 1181381 ) on Tuesday December 18, 2007 @02:42PM (#21741612) Journal
      More likely they are just saving the IP for a download-and-play on the Nintendo Yoo (successor to the Wii) out in 2012...
    • I don't know, will the hardware be reliable? Can I use it as a space heater?

    • Not quite. That might be what they're claiming but the truth is more amazing.

      I have a spy in Sega, and they are planning to release the all new "Dreamcast 360x3". It features:

      1. "EHDVD+", Sega's new high definition DVD format. Not compatible with Blu-ray or HD-DVD because it's better.
      2. A 64 bit PowerPC that's multicore. IBM is specially designing this for Sega.
      3. Some kind of ATI graphics, including a 1080i mode.
      4. The ability to connect to the Internet. A new service, "Dreamcast Connected", will allow you to subscribe to multiplayer games and stuff.
      5. Wireless controllers, with tilt detection for that "Not quite a Wii-mote" functionality
      6. Large size and with big glowing lights on the front ensuring you'll never miss it when it's sitting in front of your TV

      Sega hasn't come up with a final price yet, but they're expected to release different models of it for somewhere between $400 and $900. The $400 version will have the smaller hard drive and only an S-Video hookup, whereas the $900 will include a bundled copy of "Sonic XII: The SecondLife edition" plus an exclusive Hi-def copy of Employee of the Month on EHDVD+.

      This is amazing stuff, a truly innovative console that will turn the market on its head.

      To add to that Sega teamed up with Infinium Labs!

      They're going to incorperate the awesome power of The Phantom Gaming Console [wikipedia.org] into their new product!

      In even further news, the Dreamcast 360x3 will ship with a copy of Duke Nukem Forever [wikipedia.org]!!

    • Don't forget the water-cooled CPU that didn't prevent the console from overheating. On the other hand, a modern system could also be used as a space heater during the winter.
      • Only the Japanese version was water cooled. The NA (and assuming PAL) version was fan cooled.
        • I'm quite certain the NA version was water cooled since you had to keep the Dreamcast on a level surface to keep them from overheating. I was working at Accolade/Infogrames/Atari when we did Unreal Tournament for the Dreamcast. Cooling was a major issue for us since we were using them for up to 12 hours a day. They weren't like the original Playstation where you could set it up on the side to have a fan blow air on it.
          • Poor Dreamcast, even when it comes to cooling the PS2 has the DC beat. 12 hours is nothing, Try 12 days, or a month of 24/7 operation.

  • Dead people are still dead. While a shock, scientists revealed today that previously dead people are still dead. More at 6.
  • I like having Sega on third-party software, I'm happy to buy games from SEGA, but I'd never put down $400 for a console just to play those games as first-party titles. Besides, I enjoy Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games.
    • I largely agree, back when sega was having its heyday, it was good to have sega consoles, but now that we have 3 major systems without either Atari or Sega, I see no reason to bring back a dead console.

      I'm much happier with them developing games than developing yet another console that won't be compatible with the others. Although I have to say that it does seem wrong being able to play Sonic on Nintendo hardware.

      Until there ceases to be a lot of competition, I'll be satisfied having only 3 brands and 5 pla

      • Re: (Score:1)

        by tepples ( 727027 )

        Until there ceases to be a lot of competition, I'll be satisfied having only 3 brands and 5 platforms to choose from.

        And all three brands have lockout mechanisms to keep the little guy off the platform. Imagine an independent game developer who has a PC-based prototype of a game that allows four players holding gamepads to play at once. It works great with TV output, but I am not convinced that most potential customers know how to connect a PC's video card to a TV. So on which platform should this game be published?

        • Re: (Score:3, Informative)

          by twistedsymphony ( 956982 )

          And all three brands have lockout mechanisms to keep the little guy off the platform. Imagine an independent game developer who has a PC-based prototype of a game that allows four players holding gamepads to play at once. It works great with TV output, but I am not convinced that most potential customers know how to connect a PC's video card to a TV. So on which platform should this game be published?

          Download XNA Express for free, tweak the game to run on Xbox 360 hardware, and either hock it to a publish

  • Please don't forget this (Score:5, Interesting)

    by 00_NOP ( 559413 ) on Tuesday December 18, 2007 @02:38PM (#21741562) Homepage
    The mods chopped it from the posted article, but you are a Dreamcast owner I'd really like your help [dyndns.info]
    • Good job slashdotting your own site. Don't try to pull that kind of traffic through dyndns.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Hatta ( 162192 )
      I'm a big dreamcast, and linux, enthusiast myself. Was just playing with it last night actually, but I can't really think of any reason to put linux on the dreamcast. I mean why bother with frozen bubble when you have bust-a-move 4? I suppose if you could get something like GeeXbox running on it, that might be worthwhile. M.U.G.E.N. might be fun on the DC too. Maybe Star Control II: UQM?
    • Poor Dreamcast, even when it comes to Linux the PS2 has the DC beat.

      Good luck on the project though.

  • Make this a daily update (Score:5, Funny)

    by Sciros ( 986030 ) on Tuesday December 18, 2007 @02:41PM (#21741606) Journal
    Just so we're "in the know" on the livelihood of Dreamcast. Also please have daily updates on how dead the Sega Saturn is, how dead Asheron's Call servers are, how dead Betamax is, how dead the musket is, and finally how dead Van Damme's career is.

    • Re: (Score:3, Funny)

      by wcbarksdale ( 621327 )
      But what about Generalissimo Francisco Franco?

      • But what about Generalissimo Francisco Franco?
        He, also, is still dead. Somehow the Dreamcast being still dead is no more surprising than the Franco still being dead. It's like, "Hey, everybody! The Atari VCS is dead!" Whoa, thanks for the news flash, Slashdot...

        (It is good that the Gen. Franco angle was not lost in this discussion. I would have brought it up if you hadn't already done so. Good work!)
    • [And] finally how dead Van Damme's career is.

      Really, can something be dead which never lived?

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by Sciros ( 986030 )
        Heheh... was he before your time maybe? Van Damme used to be one of the "big 3 superstars" in the early nineties. It was Schwarzenegegger, Stallone, and Van Damme.

        The guy did reasonably well at the box office, particularly with Timecop, and his career was taking off until... (can you guess?)... Rumble in the Bronx hit US shores.

        Jackie Chan basically put a stop to Van Damme and Seagal's success because he set the bar so high right away. They never recovered.

        • The guy did reasonably well at the box office, particularly with Timecop, and his career was taking off until... (can you guess?)... Rumble in the Bronx hit US shores.

          I certainly can't disagree with your timeline; Timecop was in 1994, and Rumble in the Bronx was in 1995. But do you really think that is why he went away? Jackie Chan's movies are so very different than Van Damme's that I have trouble believing Chan killed off Van Damme's career. I would be more inclined to think that a series of box office bombs, starting with Street Fighter, are what killed his career.

          I admit its been a very long time since I thought about this guy at all, but as I seem to remember hi

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by Sciros ( 986030 )
            Well, Van Damme and Seagal continue to this day to make movies, but with nothing going for them other than their martial arts skills, they just stopped being marketable once Jackie Chan came around. Wesley Snipes stayed slightly afloat with the Blade movies but then disappeared just the same.

            Likewise, when Van Damme came along people basically forgot Chuck Norris (well things weren't quite that simple but once again the timelines fit).

            I think it's in large part a question of something better coming along, a
          • Actually, I was very thankful when his career ended, because I stopped having to hear all the girls (and one gay guy) at college make the obvious pun on his name, "van dayumn" - referring to his arse.

            I think he just got too old for the early-20s-year-old squeal factor to carry him anymore.

        • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

          by vux984 ( 928602 )
          Van Damme used to be one of the "big 3 superstars" in the early nineties. It was Schwarzenegegger, Stallone, and Van Damme.

          I don't think he was ever on quite the same action hero level as Schwarzenegger's [Terminator/Predator/...] or Stallone's Rambo/Rocky. He was always one step down, same level as Steven Seagal, Chuck Norris, Kurt Russel, and maybe Dolph Lundgren... a star, but not a superstar.

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by Sciros ( 986030 )
            No, he was above those other guys, really. (BTW Russel was different from Seagal and Lundgren, in that he starred in big-budget films like Stargate and such, so I wouldn't group him with them.) Norris was off the radar entirely by the time Van Damme's career took off, and it was well past anything the other guys you mention achieved. He starred in John Woo's first US film (Hard Target), Timecop made good money at the box office for those days, etc. Certainly Van Damme never achieved the status that Arnold d

            • Re: (Score:2)

              by vux984 ( 928602 )
              Well, it appears we agree he was a step below Stallone and Schwarzenegger, and I readily concede your point about Norris. Dolph is the lame duck in the Pantheon, because he was in a lot of "A" level blockbuster action movies...he rarely starred in anything memorable so his star status is more like "...and Dolph was in it too".

              But I'd definitely put Van Damme on the same level as Seagal. Seagal had a solid resume of action movies from around the same time that probably peaked with Under Siege. Which was defi
          • Kurt Russell doesn't deserve to be included there. There's a difference between B movie action heroes like Seagal and Russell's general "scruffy, reluctant hero with a troubled past". They're both in a lot of terrible movies the difference is that one has been in some great ones too.

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by LKM ( 227954 )
            When I was a kid, I certainly knew Stallone and Seagal. They were the A-List stars of the B-List action movies :-)

            Lundgren, not so much. Norris, yeah, but a bit down. Russel is more of a "real" actor, though.

      • Re: (Score:3, Funny)

        by Mike Buddha ( 10734 )

        Really, can something be dead which never lived?
        How do you kill that which has no life?

    • Re: (Score:3, Funny)

      by Chris Burke ( 6130 )
      how dead the musket is, and finally how dead Van Damme's career is.

      I hear both are doing quite well thanks to historical reenactments. Though the version of The Battle of Bunker Hill featuring Van Damme features more kicking than I think the historical record shows, but most people can accept the embellishment for the sake of improved drama.
    • Believe it or not, Asheron's Call is still alive. Asheron's Call 2 is the one that got shut down.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by Sciros ( 986030 )
        Yeah AC2 is actually the one I meant but oh well. I even got a proper response from an AC about AC (haha) for my original post about it.

        I actually tried out AC2 the month it came out... it was like playing Shadow of the Collossus but without the horse and without the collossi and without the cool music.

        • Yeah AC2 is actually the one I meant but oh well. I even got a proper response from an AC about AC (haha) for my original post about it.
          But what does this have to do with Animal Crossing, other than that it manages to reduce the MMORPG grindfest to a single-player mode?

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by hurfy ( 735314 )
      So there's the guy with the other AC1 account.....

      C'mon was anyone really expecting new sega hardware

  • What do you mean, still dead? (Score:5, Informative)

    by BenoitRen ( 998927 ) on Tuesday December 18, 2007 @02:45PM (#21741652)
    The Dreamcast never really died. It kept getting new games, mostly in Japan. Then there's the whole homebrew game scene, of which some games get a commercial release once in a while.
    • It's either Mostly Dead, or Dead-Like-BSD. I'm not sure which.

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by Chris Mattern ( 191822 )

      The Dreamcast never really died.


      Really? Can I get a new one from Sega? Can I get a new one from *anybody*?

      Sorry, but when they stop making them, that's dead.

      Chris Mattern

      • So if Sony stops PlayStation 2 production tomorrow, the PS2 is dead, even if developers continue to make games for it until one year later, with people buying them?

        Seems like bogus logic to me. There's this popular phrase: "It's about the GAMES, stupid!". No game console is anything without its games.

        • So if Sony stops PlayStation 2 production tomorrow, the PS2 is dead, even if developers continue to make games for it until one year later, with people buying them?

          Yes, of course if they stopped making any PS2s, it'd be dead. The reason your example sounds so ludicrous is because that they're *not* stopping production of the PS2, and in fact continue to sell it in large quantities, so trying to imagine such a unlikely fact creates an unreal picture.

          Chris Mattern

          • The reason your example sounds so ludicrous is because that they're *not* stopping production of the PS2, and in fact continue to sell it in large quantities, so trying to imagine such a unlikely fact creates an unreal picture.

            No shit, Sherlock. That's why I use if in my sentence. The essence of the analogy stands.

            • The essence of the analogy stands.


              Here's a better analogy for you: they finally stopped making PS1s (true). The PS1 is therefore, at this point, dead (of old age). I have no problem with that statement.

              Chris Mattern

              • It is an analogy of your argument, not mine. So it's not better, it's irrelevant (to my analogy).

                Explain to me why a game console is considered dead when it stops being produced. I'm sure most people consider one dead when there's no production and no more games are being made for it. Like how magazines were saying the Dreamcast would go out with a bang through the release of the (then-latest) quality games, even though the Dreamcast wasn't being produced anymore.

                So if everyone that wanted a Wii had a Wii

                • Let's pare this down a bit. I say that when they stop making a console, it's dead. You ask, what if they stopped making a console that is thriving? To which I can only reply, nobody stops making a console that's thriving.

                  Chris Mattern

                • Re: (Score:1)

                  by tepples ( 727027 )

                  Explain to me why a game console is considered dead when it stops being produced.

                  Because for one thing, I can't buy a new replacement for a broken console.

                  I'm sure most people consider one dead when there's no production and no more games are being made for it.

                  In order to help both of us formulate a strong definition of dead, I need to establish outer bounds on the concept. Specifically, is the Nintendo Entertainment System dead? The occasional homebrew game still comes out for it. In fact, I'm working on making one.

                  So if everyone that wanted a Wii had a Wii, and production stopped (because of no demand), it's dead?

                  You mentioned Wii, a Nintendo product. Nintendo is different: its consoles tend to have a longer service life than those of Sony or Microsoft. I seem to recall fewer "dirty d

                  • Because for one thing, I can't buy a new replacement for a broken console.

                    Just because production stops doesn't mean that all the units that weren't bought instantly disappear. And I remember reading that Sega would still repair broken Dreamcasts until a bit more than one year after the production stopped.

                    Specifically, is the Nintendo Entertainment System dead? The occasional homebrew game still comes out for it. In fact, I'm working on making one.

                    I'd say it's dead. No more commercial releases. I'm n

                    • I'd say [the Famicom/NES is] dead. No more commercial releases.

                      Games for Famicom and Famiclones are still being produced for sale in developing countries. Look at Street Fighter for NES [youtube.com], Mortal Kombat for NES [youtube.com], and all these Chinese games [shedevr.org.ru]. And if someone sells a copy of a homebrew on a ReproPak cart [retrousb.com], is that commercial?

                      Meanwhile the Dreamcast still gets games released commercially.

                      In which territory? Most Dreamcast software released during production of consoles was region coded. Is the Dreamcast (U) still alive, or is only the Dreamcast (J) alive?

                    • And if someone sells a copy of a homebrew on a ReproPak cart, is that commercial?

                      Not really. It doesn't have a publisher.

                      In which territory? Most Dreamcast software released during production of consoles was region coded. Is the Dreamcast (U) still alive, or is only the Dreamcast (J) alive?

                      The Dreamcast gets commercial releases in Japan. In the US there are commercial releases of homebrew games, but I don't think those are region-coded.

                • Explain to me why a game console is considered dead when it stops being produced.

                  Because the user base stops growing. When it stops growing, all it can do is shrink.
                  • That's the best argument I've heard so far. It's a good point. However, that's not how I view the life of a game console. To me, it lives off games, not sales.

          • Yes, of course if they stopped making any PS2s, it'd be dead. The reason your example sounds so ludicrous is because that they're *not* stopping production of the PS2, and in fact continue to sell it in large quantities, so trying to imagine such a unlikely fact creates an unreal picture.

            I get your point, but I think you should consider that there are 120 million PS2s in the world right now. Even if PS2 production came to a loud screeching halt, that's still quite a market to sell games into. If you look at it that way, one could see it as being alive so long as there are new things on the horizon to keep interest up in it.

            That said, I don't think that in the context of this discussion that you are wrong. Sega only has 10 million machines out, most of them are likely hiding in dark plac

        • No game console is anything without its games.


          Very true. However, I would submit that it is at least equally true that no game console is anything without the console, either.

          Chris Mattern

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by slapout ( 93640 )
        Can I get a new one from *anybody*?
         

        Of Course! [ebay.com]

      • Yes, but only if you can crack my wallsafe. Not only is the Dreamcast dead, all of it's immediate successors are too. It pleases me that people still remember and care a bit. Well, at least here in bizarroworld.org

        Really? Can I get a new one from Sega? Can I get a new one from *anybody*?
  • Maybe this is a good time for them to get back into the console game. I don't know how much money they are making on games, but Sony has been showing us for a while that there is huge money in consoles. Plus the market for video games is bigger than ever and will probably continue to grow faster than other forms of entertainment. We can expect video games to take in more revenue than box office sales this year in the US. Plus, there is a greater variety of gamers now, so Sega can probably make a "casual

    • Re: (Score:2, Informative)

      by flitty ( 981864 )
      No.

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by solar_blitz ( 1088029 )
      We need a fourth console in this race as much as we need a hole in the head. Seriously, the best idea is to not release a new console. They would do themselves a favor by a formal press release, too: "Ladies and gentlemen, we are going to not produce a new console this year." I'll bet that statement alone would improve investors' confidence in the company and they'll have a few yen increase or something.
      • Since the DS is stillcrushing the three "official" consoles, I think we should consider it as the fourth.

    • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

      by realmolo ( 574068 )
      Nah, it's a terrible idea. Sega just isn't good at hardware. They got lucky with the Genesis.

      Their real strength is software. Sega makes really cool, really weird games. Or at least they used to. Now all they do is churn out crappy 3D versions of Sonic (and really GOOD 2D versions of Sonic if you have a GBA or DS).

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by LWATCDR ( 28044 )
        The Dreamcast was a very good system. Just as good as the PS/2 if the truth be told.
        The Dreamcast failed because a lot of developers got burned on the Saturn so they didn't write for the Dreamcast.
        That and people believed the hype that the PS/2 would bring Toystory quality graphics.
        • The initial price of the Dreamcast, coupled with the very bad taste everyone had in their mouths from Saturn's
          debacle in the console market is precisely why it went belly up. I played the titles I bought when they were in the process of axing the thing in the tail end of Sega's production of them. Some of the titles were as good as anything on PS/2- some of them were arguably better in gameplay or quality of graphics. If they'd not shot themselves in the foot with the 32x, SegaCD, and Saturn so badly, th

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by LWATCDR ( 28044 )
            I still have mine and got some games for it cheap. I find the graphics to be as good as the PS2s for the most part. The controllers... Well they where not so good. But yes it was a good system all the way around.

    • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

      by Nitroadict ( 1005509 )

      Sega is sitting this round, and most likely, the next round out for console making. This is obvious via Sega & Nintendo's recent chummy friendship, which has developed since Sega primarily makes games nowadays (although they still do arcade hardware in Japan & USA methinks).

      However, the aqquisition of Sammy made me think that they do indeed have some type of long term plans, possibly with a new console at some point, but they are probably really worried about experiencing another Saturn or Dreamc

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by FSWKU ( 551325 )

        However, the aqquisition of Sammy made me think that they do indeed have some type of long term plans, possibly with a new console at some point, but they are probably really worried about experiencing another Saturn or Dreamcast, which wouldn't bode well financially, albeit Dreamcast was just an incomplete victory in a battle that was ahead of it's time.

        I'm sure you meant the acquisition BY Sammy [wikipedia.org], which prompted a lot of Sega employees to leave the company. Make no mistake. Other than arcare hardware, Se

        • Indeed, thanks for clearing that up; I haven't read up on video gaming history as of late. The fact that most Sega employees actually greatly tilts the possibility that another "Sega" console just ain't in the cards for the near future.

          Now if only they could make more than one good sonic game every once in a while (haven't played Secret Rings, but my peers have said it was the best sonic game since SA2 on DC, camera issues aside).

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by cgenman ( 325138 )
        Sammy's primary market is pachinko and gambling machines. My guess is Sega really wanted some of that lucre, and Sammy wanted to leverage Sega's characters, and both of their arcade manufacturing operations are small enough to benefit from some consolidation.

        If you even stop off in the Los Vegas airport, you'll find gambling machines created by Konami, Namco, and Sega, amongst others. My guess is that Sega just merged it's way into this obvious ancillary revenue stream.
    • I'd like to see a completely open console that is has good gaming hardware and a spec that is guaranteed to be static for at least 5 years. Something similar to the but for hooking up to a TV or monitor. It would be a great system for the home-brew crowd and could be cheap enough to make it a worthwhile purchase. Also, since it's completely open, it would be easy and legal to write emulators for it.

      It seems unlikely to happen, but I can dream.

    • Maybe this is a good time for them to get back into the console game. I don't know how much money they are making on games, but Sony has been showing us for a while that there is huge money in consoles. Plus the market for video games is bigger than ever and will probably continue to grow faster than other forms of entertainment.

      True. Furthermore, all current-gen consoles suck. [tumblr.com]

      I think there's room for a somewhat high-end console. Make it DVD based, put in a moderately good graphics card, HDMI, an ergonomic controller with a motion sensor, and make it not break once ever other week, and not sound louder than the PS3. Include a small-ish HD and price it 200-300 US$. It doesn't need Bluray, or a Cell. It doesn't even need to look quite as good as the Xbox. It doesn't need Ethernet, but put in wifi. Use an off-the-shelf dual-core P

  • Apple project dashed (Score:3, Funny)

    by techpawn ( 969834 ) on Tuesday December 18, 2007 @02:51PM (#21741736) Journal
    Well, they already do PodCasts... Why not beam them to you directly while you sleep? But, now they can't call them DREAMcasts...
    • Podcasts have nothing to do with Apple, other than the obvious similarity in the names.

      That is all.
      • But you KNOW there would have to be a new hardware component to this, and that's Apple's bread and butter. I guess it would be the iSleep.
        • Or the iLazy. ;-)

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by Runefox ( 905204 )
          Now that you mention it, I have to say it: I really freaking hate the term "Podcast". What happened to webcast? Even that was a trendy term for it back in the day, but now we just have the popularity of the iPod leading to a ludicrous misuse of the word "cast".

          "But yeah, you download it to your iPod, right, so it's a podcast!" And I can download it to my computer, too. I don't call my computer a pod. It really annoys the hell out of me. Maybe I just hate Steve Jobs.
          • At first glance I thought I had written this, perhaps in a drunken state.

            Good comment. I don't think I could have said it any better.
  • Then they would not need any plans for new HW.

    • Then they would not need any plans for new HW.
      Wii's "hard drive" is 512 MB, with roughly half that free for downloaded channels and game saves. Dreamcast games were up to twice that, hence the "G" in GD-ROM [wikipedia.org]. Besides, Wii's CPU is only about three times as fast as that of the Dreamcast, all but ruling out the emulation that powers other Virtual Console platforms.

  • IMHO - The Xbox is the Dreamcast II (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday December 18, 2007 @04:07PM (#21742972)
    I noticed when I got an Xbox... that the Dreamcast I had ran on Windows CE, that the controllers for the Dreamcast and the Xbox had notable similarities in terms of button layout and gameplay, and have been of the opinion that Microsoft borrowed (or bought) heavily from Dreamcast in much the same way Windows NT borrowed from the OS/2 project. I just hope that Sega fared better in the deal than IBM had in theirs.

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by MobileTatsu-NJG ( 946591 )
      "I noticed when I got an Xbox... that the Dreamcast I had ran on Windows CE..."

      Well, some of the games used WinCE as an OS for them. It's not like the DC booted up and gave you a Window manager and all that other stuff.

      "that the controllers for the Dreamcast and the Xbox had notable similarities in terms of button layout and gameplay..."

      There are notable similarities between the XBOX and PS/PS2 controllers, too.

      "...and have been of the opinion that Microsoft borrowed (or bought) heavily from Dreamcast in m
      • He has a point. When I first heard that Sega was working with Microsoft, I thought:

        Don't do it, they're just using you to learn as much about the console gaming business as they can. Once they've milked you for all the info, market research and money they can, they'll do their own console. Which they did.

        And lets put it this way, there's a lot of former Dreamcasters that are now Xboxers. Some of that's just anti-Sony sentiment, but some of that is because the original Xbox was probably designed from ma
    • Reminds me of an article way back in the day I read from a gamer mag's rumor section. When the first talk of the xbox started, the mag dismissed the rumors of MS making a game console on the idea that the DC already used windows, and that the rumors were probabaly related to a future DC 2 or other Sega/MS colaberation.
    • I seem to recall that one of the key XBox guys was one of the key Dreamcast guys. Not sure if it was design or marketing though...........

      • Re: (Score:1)

        by Osty ( 16825 )

        You're referring to Peter Moore. However, he came to the Xbox project relatively late (in time for the 360), so I wouldn't exactly call him one of the "key" guys. Also, he's gone to EA now.

    • Ok it was a marketing guy, but this was interesting anyways

      http://www.1up.com/do/feature?cId=3145154&did=1 [1up.com]

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Svartalf ( 2997 )
      Not quite. Sega had a relationship with Microsoft and they had a WinCE target image for people to use. Not many of the titles actually USED it as it was constraining in several ways that the studios tended to not like. Now, spiritually, the XBox is the sequal/love-child of the Sega/Microsoft liason. Microsoft learned what NOT to do with the Sega relationship, I suspect. Unfortunately for Sega, they shot themselves in the foot repeatedly with the Dreamcast in the manner of prior console FLOPS coupled wi

  • But what about... (Score:2, Flamebait)

    by Toonol ( 1057698 )
    "The Dreamcast is Still Dead"

    But what about the PS3???

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Svartalf ( 2997 )
      The jury's still out on that one. If they've still enough 40Gb units to sell for Christmas, they might
      buy enough traction to get the studios to take them more seriously. Sony kind of pulled a Dreamcast
      with the PS3, if the truth was admitted here. The biggest drags have been that cost and the overall
      sign-off from the studios. There's beginning to be a decent enough line-up coming out of the studios
      that I'm considering one of the 40Gb machines if budget permits and there's still any left here- but
      in the e

  • python (Score:3, Funny)

    by tute666 ( 688551 ) on Tuesday December 18, 2007 @06:27PM (#21745122)
    It is an ex-console

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