a question for dreamcast fans

[slothingXPIG]

Okay,i was always more of a nintendo fan soo i don't know a hole lot about the dreamcast... like how good is the system? is there fun games on it? How often do the controllers/system break... i know there not that expensive but im cheap and want some opinoins on it, if i were to buy one. I been wanting one but don't have allota room and would rather have more games then systems but i have been thinking about getting one.

[sin2beta]

It is a highly regarded system. Even though it doesn't mean much PCMag listed it as the best console ever at one point. http://www.pcmag.com/slideshow_viewer/0,3253,l=251235&a=251237&po=10,00.asp?p=n

The retro popularity of the system is a double edged sword as the dreamcast can be tough to shop for because a lot of people don't get rid of their dreamcast games. It also appeals to a certain demographic. The system was basically a home version of the naomi arcade board. Thus, you get a lot of late 90s arcade games. A lot of fighters and shmups are on the system. But it also had a lot of just weird games you won't find made very often (seaman, space channel 5, crazy taxi, shenmue). The best thing to do is probably watch some videos and such and see if it appeals to you. Most systems have its own personality and this is probably more true with the dreamcast more than any other system (except maybe neo geo).

Controllers are very durable. VMUs are awesome! The D-pad hurts your thumb on street fighter.

Here are some suggestions on where to start:
http://www.racketboy.com/retro/sega/dreamcast/games-that-defined-dreamcast

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xBweijbvR_4

http://www.youtube.com/channel/SWfPzLT90pCJs

If you have more questions, just post away.

[sin2beta]

Oh, I wanted to add that it is very easy to find games for the dreamcast online. However, I have had a really tough time finding good quality games in the wild. There are way too many NFL 2k games out there. It's a good sports game, but my god, they are everywhere...

However, ebay and estarland have several games if you don't mind going that route.

[slothingXPIG]

Thanks! Honestly the controllers look awesome lol soo creative. But anyway that does look pretty good and thanks for the answer. Ill have my game dealer send me up one hopefully he has some games for it. I think another problem i had was that it was a disk consule and i personally don't find collecting interest in disks for some reason.. but i'll give it a try and hopefully it'll change my mind on disk game collecting.

[ffxik]

I would recommend getting one.  They can be quite fun.  A lot of good games for it. 

[turf]

I bought one a year or so ago.  It has some really fun games that you can play for 15 min and move one.  It's very Arcade-y.  I play tons of Soul Calibur (Thank  you, Matt), Hydro Thunder, Tony Hawk Pro Skater, Street Fighter Alpha 3, and Sega Bass Fishing. 

It has tons of great games.  I just tend to lean towards the quick play stuff. It's the trouble of having a 3 year old that wants to play all the time.

[disgaeniac]

Thanks! Honestly the controllers look awesome lol soo creative. But anyway that does look pretty good and thanks for the answer. Ill have my game dealer send me up one hopefully he has some games for it. I think another problem i had was that it was a disk consule and i personally don't find collecting interest in disks for some reason.. but i'll give it a try and hopefully it'll change my mind on disk game collecting.

Good topic!

I've never had/played a Dreamcast yet, either -and- had wondered about some of the same questions myself.

While we're at it...Does it have any *Exclusive* "Must-Have" RPG's / SRPG's?

"Exclusive", meaning that if it has a GC release (like Skies of Arcadia); don't list/include it

Thanks 

Also, from what I've seen of the controller, it looks very 'Un-friendly' for 1-handed gameplay...are there "better" configured/3rd-party controllers that are compatible w/ it that might be any better/more comfortable?

[kimimi]

I do like the DC, but I find it hard to get enthusiastic about these days. It's a combination of playing the heck out of it at the time and a lot of the really good stuff now being available elsewhere. It's a good console but if you were after a Sega experience I'd recommend a Mega Drive or Saturn first.

disgaeniac - There's EGG and Record of Lodoss War if you're looking at English DC RPGs. There are some more Japanese ones, but not a fat lot.

[disgaeniac]

I do like the DC, but I find it hard to get enthusiastic about these days. It's a combination of playing the heck out of it at the time and a lot of the really good stuff now being available elsewhere. It's a good console but if you were after a Sega experience I'd recommend a Mega Drive or Saturn first.

disgaeniac - There's EGG and Record of Lodoss War if you're looking at English DC RPGs. There are some more Japanese ones, but not a fat lot.

That's what I thought - that it was kind of weak on the RPG-front...

How were your Holidays?!

[kimimi]

Oh I should have said there are other English DC RPGs but as you asked for honest-to-goodness exclusives that's about as good as it gets from what I can remember.

Had a good holiday thank you

[burningdoom]

Great system that's fairly easy to collect for with a great library of games. If you're in the U.S., the games are usually fairly cheap to get a hold of, too. And for multiplatform games in the N64/Dreamcast/PS1 era, Dreamcast usually has the best version.

Some great Dreamcast recommendations for you:

Exclusives:
-Crazy Taxi 1 & 2
-Daytona USA (Dreamcast version has enhanced graphics and more tracks than the Saturn version)
-Dead or Alive 2
-Draconus: Cult of the Wyrm
-Elemental Gimmick Gear
-House of the Dead 2
-Maken X
-Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of the Super Heroes
-Metropolis Street Racer
-The Record of Lodoss War
-Sega Smash Pack (includes Phantasy Star games)
-Shenmue
-Soul Calibur
-Street Fighter III
-Sword of Berzerk: Guts' Rage

Multiplats:
-Dino Crisis
-Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver
-Mortal Kombat 4
-San Francisco: Rush
-Skies of Arcadia
-Sonic Adventure
-Spider-Man
-Resident Evil 2 & 3
-Resident Evil: Code Veronica
-Tony Hawk's Pro Skater

[kimimi]

Some great Dreamcast recommendations for you:

Exclusives:
-Crazy Taxi 1 & 2 Crazy Taxi: Fare Wars (PSP)
-Daytona USA (Dreamcast version has enhanced graphics and more tracks than the Saturn version) PSN/XBLA version has enhanced enhanced graphics+extras
-Dead or Alive 2 Also on PS2
-Draconus: Cult of the Wyrm
-Elemental Gimmick Gear
-House of the Dead 2 Wii/PC
-Maken X
-Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of the Super Heroes PS1
-Metropolis Street Racer
-The Record of Lodoss War
-Sega Smash Pack (includes Phantasy Star games) the whole point of this compilation is that it's a collection of other Sega titles
-Shenmue
-Soul Calibur XBLA
-Street Fighter III You should probably specify that you're talking about Double Impact, rather than Third Strike (AKA the SF3 everyone wants to play)
-Sword of Berzerk: Guts' Rage

Don't mean to be picky, but it's misleading to claim exclusive when you can play them elsewhere.

[disgaeniac]

Some great Dreamcast recommendations for you:

Exclusives:
-Crazy Taxi 1 & 2 Crazy Taxi: Fare Wars (PSP)
-Daytona USA (Dreamcast version has enhanced graphics and more tracks than the Saturn version) PSN/XBLA version has enhanced enhanced graphics+extras
-Dead or Alive 2 Also on PS2
-Draconus: Cult of the Wyrm
-Elemental Gimmick Gear
-House of the Dead 2 Wii/PC
-Maken X
-Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of the Super Heroes PS1
-Metropolis Street Racer
-The Record of Lodoss War
-Sega Smash Pack (includes Phantasy Star games) the whole point of this compilation is that it's a collection of other Sega titles
-Shenmue
-Soul Calibur XBLA
-Street Fighter III You should probably specify that you're talking about Double Impact, rather than Third Strike (AKA the SF3 everyone wants to play)
-Sword of Berzerk: Guts' Rage

Don't mean to be picky, but it's misleading to claim exclusive when you can play them elsewhere.

I'm pretty sure that there's PS2 & GC versions of Crazy Taxi, too...

[soera]

Im going to be the voice on the other end. The Dreamcast ties with the N64 for the worst normal game console system in my opinion (by normal, I mean from the NES til now. Of course its better than crap like pong and stuff like the Commodore 64). The library is full of mediocre games (RPG options are a joke) and the controllers are absolutely horrendous. I hear that it has bonuses like it can read CD-Rs and totally modifyable ... but you cant really polish a turd!

[redblaze57]

Some great Dreamcast recommendations for you:

Exclusives:
-Crazy Taxi 1 & 2 Crazy Taxi: Fare Wars (PSP)
-Daytona USA (Dreamcast version has enhanced graphics and more tracks than the Saturn version) PSN/XBLA version has enhanced enhanced graphics+extras
-Dead or Alive 2 Also on PS2
-Draconus: Cult of the Wyrm
-Elemental Gimmick Gear
-House of the Dead 2 Wii/PC
-Maken X
-Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of the Super Heroes PS1
-Metropolis Street Racer
-The Record of Lodoss War
-Sega Smash Pack (includes Phantasy Star games) the whole point of this compilation is that it's a collection of other Sega titles
-Shenmue
-Soul Calibur XBLA
-Street Fighter III You should probably specify that you're talking about Double Impact, rather than Third Strike (AKA the SF3 everyone wants to play)
-Sword of Berzerk: Guts' Rage

Don't mean to be picky, but it's misleading to claim exclusive when you can play them elsewhere.

I'm pretty sure that there's PS2 & GC versions of Crazy Taxi, too...

there are but I'm pretty sure only the Dreamcast version has The Offspring on it's soundtrack, which makes it the version to get.