Happy 10th Birthday, Dreamcast

September 9, 2009

DreamcastConsole

Dreamcast was a good bowler, and a good man. He was one of us. He was a man who loved the outdoors… and bowling, and as a surfer he explored the beaches of Southern California, from La Jolla to Leo Carrillo and… up to… Pismo. He died, like so many young men of his generation, he died before his time. In your wisdom, Lord, you took him, as you took so many bright flowering young men at Khe Sanh, at Langdok, at Hill 364. These young men gave their lives. And so would Dreamcast. Dreamcast, who loved bowling.

Sega’s Dreamcast still enjoys a pretty strong cult following to this day – surprising, considering the console was discontinued in 2001.  Some of my fondest video gamin’ memories were the result of the fine peoples at Sega, be it Sega Genesis games like Streets of Rage 2 and Comix Zone, or Dreamcast games like Soul Calibur or Crazy Taxi.

The console was released on September 9th, 1999, and boasted a number of features – internet connectivity, native VGA output, high storage capacity (at the time) GD-Rom discs, and exception graphics power on par with the Playstation 2.  I also have to mention the Dreamcast’s unique memory card, the Visual Memory Unit, which functioned as both an in-controller display and a mobile gaming unit (although the bastard would eat through batteries like it was it’s job.)

The Dreamcast also boasted a number of high quality games, notably Sega Bass Fishing, Jet Grind Radio, Sonic Adventure, Virtua Tennis, and the aforementioned Soul Calibur and Crazy Taxi games.  The Dreamcast also helped pioneer online connectivity for consoles with Phantasy Star Online, which took advantage of the console’s all-mighty integrated modem.  You can also find a number of awesome shoot-em-up games on the Dreamcast, as well as a large library of high quality arcade ports, like the Marvel vs Capcom series.  Even today, the Dreamcast enjoys a strong homebrew scene, and is powerful enough to emulate Playstation games like Metal Gear Solid.

If you’ve never owned a Dreamcast, or feel like replacing your aged one, don’t worry – they’re actually pretty cheap, and well worth the addition to any console collection.

And so, Sega Dreamcast, in accordance with what we think your dying wishes might well have been, we commit your final mortal remains to the bosom of the Pacific Ocean, which you loved so well. Good night, sweet prince.

By Karl Vanderslice | Tagged , , , | Comments (8)

Napoleon: Total War Announced

August 22, 2009

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Contrary to what Bill and Ted may have taught us, Napoleon Bonerhard was a dick.  He was a short dick, and an asshole.  On top of all that, he had the fashion sensibility of a douchebag, and often talked on his cell phone while driving.

That’s why it may come as a surprise to some that Sega would chose Napoleon as the focus of the next installment in the Total War series.  Total War is one of the staples of PC gaming – a real time strategy franchise that you simply will not find on consoles – probably because RTS games are much more difficult to pull off correctly on consoles.

The game will start from Bonerfart’s early career and work it’s way up to the Battle of Waterloo, the historic battle where French Fries were first invented.

If you’re not hip to the Total War scene – take my word for it, they’re very good games.  The franchise has visited a number of different time frames – Rome, Medieval ages, and most recently the 18th century, among others.  You can learn more about all the Total War games and check out the new trailer at the official website.

By Karl Vanderslice | Tagged , , , , | Comments (3)

SEGA Plans More Mature Titles

August 20, 2009

MadWorld Screen

Mature titles on the Wii like MadWorld and The Conduit didn’t exactly bust out of the gate in the selling department.  That isn’t stopping SEGA from pushing forward to bring more M-rated games to the casual console.  Platinum Game’s MadWorld was a depressing showing at your local retailer, but a lot of factors could be at play for why MadWorld just didn’t sell all that well.  Too extreme?  Some just weren’t a fan of the art style?  All of these things SEGA is looking into and studying.

MadWorld was actually on my game list of “must-buy” titles before it was released with its extreme over-the-top blood and gore, as well as trying to figure out the best way to kill or pummel an enemy in fun, creative ways.  What zapped it off of my list was its short playing time of less than 8 hours.  The Conduit on the other hand was one of those titles that I originally had pegged for “buy to support”.  In other words, buy the game in order to support the shrinking mature game catalog for gamers on the Wii.  If gamers don’t buy the title, game publishers will lose interest and resort to lighter titles like Kidz: Basketball, or yet another Rig Racer game.  I personally don’t want to see another Rig Racer game after they released Rig Racer 2.  Hell, nobody does.

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By Justin McCullough | Tagged , | Comments (3)

Tri-Ace Goes Steampunk with Resonance of Fate

August 10, 2009

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Resonance of Fate (known as End of Eternity in Japan – a reference to Isaac Asimov’s novel “The End of Eternity“) was first announced earlier this year and I’ve been keeping an eye on it ever since. There isn’t a whole lot of information out there on this title yet, but we do know that it’s the first time tri-Ace and Sega have collaborated. Usually tri-Ace hooks up with Square-Enix, but not this time. For those who don’t follow the RPG genre, they’re known for games such as Radiata Stories and Infinite Undiscovery as well as the Star Ocean and Valkyrie Profile franchises.

This time around they’re building what looks to be a darker RPG with a steampunk feel. Resonance of Fate takes place in a future where the Earth has been polluted to the extreme by some unknown force, and humanity is nearly wiped out. Before that happens, though, they build a device that purifies the air surrounding it, and the humans congregate to that location. The plot of the story apparently begins to unfold as the device malfunctions. Within this city, there’s an “upper class” and a “lower class” – the upper lives up high on this tower-like structure and the lower lives down below, at the base of the city. It will likely be a familiar concept to those who have played Final Fantasy VII, no doubt. If their reference to Asimov’s novel is any indication, we might be dealing with a story that involves social engineering, time travel and perhaps a time paradox of sorts. (Disclaimer: I haven’t read the novel, I’m just going from its Wikipedia entry.) If this is, in fact, the case, it will be a welcome change to standard JRPG plot devices. Although, I have to mention that no game has done time travel justice since Chrono Trigger and I doubt anything could best that classic these days.

I’ve enjoyed past tri-Ace titles quite a bit, so I’m looking forward to their next delicious plate of RPG goodness. Let’s hope they don’t half-ass it like they did with the ridiculously titled Infinite Undiscovery. Resonance of Fate currently has no North American release date, but assuming it hits the Japanese release time-frame of Q4 2009, it may grace our PS3’s and 360’s next year.

By Chad Awkerman | Tagged , , , , | Comment (1)

Review: The Conduit

July 24, 2009

The Conduit

The Wii hasn’t had a solid shooter in its lifespan… until now. The Conduit from Sega and High Voltage Software milks every last drop of goodness out of Nintendo’s little box to give you the shooter experience you’ve been waiting for. Is it the best shooter ever? No. Is it a really fun experience with innovative controls and solid multiplayer? You bet.

Hit the jump for more »

By Matt Banks | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

Iron Man 2 Teaser Melts My Manhood

July 23, 2009

The first Iron Man game based on the film was… well… not good. It fell into the tradition of movie-based games. Could the sequel be any different? I really hope so. My two favorite comic book characters growing up, Iron Man and The Punisher, have not have solid video game implementations. This trailer gives me hope that Iron Man could be done right, but only time and hands on play will tell.

By Matt Banks | Tagged , , , | Comments (0)

Review: MadWorld (Wii)

April 23, 2009

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I AM JACK’S DISEMBOWELED LENGTH OF LARGE INTESTINE. HOT DAMN.

See this right here? This is what the Wii has been needing since it came out. For me, MadWorld’s excessive violence is the secondary issue. The real point of the game for myself is that it’s a statement by Nintendo recognizing the previously unheard voices of the more mature gamers. For so long, the Wii has been a system geared solely towards the family friendly fare. It’s about damn time we get the option to draw a little blood on the damn thing.

And I have to say, Sega picked a good look and a good time for that look. Sin City’s been out long enough to draw comparison, but not in that real corny way. But the question still remains: does this citchy-looking adult-themed piece of software warrant a purchase?

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By BJ Schwinghammer | Tagged , , , | Comments (5)

GDC09: Checking out The Conduit

March 27, 2009

The Conduit

We rocked a full preview on The Conduit back at NY Comic Con, but this week at GDC, I got to check out a bit more of the game with the Creative Director, Matt Corso. Matt was one who really developed the customizable control scheme, so you can thank him for being able to play the game exactly how you want.

The demo I saw started at the beginning of the game and went through the end of the second level. After the first tutorial-like level, the game takes you back in time five days as the story events unfold. Corso indicated it was a “Pulp Fiction like story”, but wouldn’t comment on whether you play through the previous five days or if the story bounces around in time. If it’s a lot like Pulp Fiction, my guess is bouncing around. All in all, Matt said the story would be a “wild ride” with a lot of information being delivered through the player’s headset as well as radio and TV broadcasts.

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By Matt Banks | Tagged , , , , , | Comments (3)

Preview – The Conduit

February 14, 2009

The Conduit Screen

Sega’s The Conduit could easily be the most anticipated title of the year for the Wii, at least from the core gamer perspective. Too long have we been forced to wade through mini-game compilation after mini-game compilation. I’m not saying we need an M-rated game for it to be good, but something that appeals to core gamers instead of the cutesy and gimmicky games that are making up the majority of the Wii’s release schedule is sorely needed.

At Comic Con, I got to spend a good deal of time with The Conduit. Right off the bat, I can say it’s one of, if not the best looking game I’ve seen on the Wii. The amount of textures, destructible environments, normal mapping, and shaders that High Voltage pushed through the platform is intense. I can’t speak too much for the sound, since we were on the show floor.

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By Matt Banks | Tagged , , , , | Comment (1)

Interview: The Conduit

February 12, 2009

One of the most anticipated Wii titles of 2009 is Sega’s The Conduit. The development team over at High Voltage have pulled more out of the Wii than anyone else to date. Check out our interview with the game’s Chief Creative Officer, Eric Nofsinger, and read our full preview coming soon.

By Matt Banks | Tagged , , , , | Comments (2)