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Remembering the Sega Dreamcast

I was all about the Genesis back in the early 90s. Then I went PC exclusive until 2007. I wish I had a Dreamcast though. Gotta love MVC2.
 
I still have my dreamcast with VGA adapter and broadband / ethernet adapter. That was an awesome system, way ahead of it's time. Playing games through the VGA output actually looked better than other game systems like the PS2.
 
Originally posted by: Juddog
I still have my dreamcast with VGA adapter and broadband / ethernet adapter. That was an awesome system, way ahead of it's time. Playing games through the VGA output actually looked better than other game systems like the PS2.
Click to expand...
I'm actually not so hot on the VGA adapter:
1. Didn't work with some games (I want to say SC2?)
2. Very few receivers (possibly none) have VGA inputs

I would have preferred the option of component, although I admit VGA would probably be more preferable to the college crowd (although, given how LCDs are these days, maybe not so much anymore).
 
IMHO the best system ever released. At the time the only competion was the PS1.
 
Originally posted by: erwos
Originally posted by: Juddog
I still have my dreamcast with VGA adapter and broadband / ethernet adapter. That was an awesome system, way ahead of it's time. Playing games through the VGA output actually looked better than other game systems like the PS2.
Click to expand...
I'm actually not so hot on the VGA adapter:
1. Didn't work with some games (I want to say SC2?)
2. Very few receivers (possibly none) have VGA inputs

I would have preferred the option of component, although I admit VGA would probably be more preferable to the college crowd (although, given how LCDs are these days, maybe not so much anymore).
Click to expand...

Tons of TV's nowadays have VGA inputs, and the main draw back then was to plug into your computer monitor. I also played soul calibur on it, and no game I played wasn't able to be played through the VGA adapter, so I'm not sure why some wouldn't work.
 
Yeah, I have my Dreamcast hooked up to my FW900 right now. Maybe I'll pop some shots of Powerstone and Soul Calibur, just to show off the magnificence of it.

Great system. One of my favorites.
 
Originally posted by: Juddog
Tons of TV's nowadays have VGA inputs, and the main draw back then was to plug into your computer monitor. I also played soul calibur on it, and no game I played wasn't able to be played through the VGA adapter, so I'm not sure why some wouldn't work.
Click to expand...
I agree... but if you're running your home theater setup through a receiver, separating sound and video like that is annoying. Hence why component support would have been a nice option. Notice that all three of its competitors offered such support...

As for VGA compatibility:
http://www.epforums.org/showthread.php?t=42182
 
Originally posted by: erwos
Originally posted by: Juddog
Tons of TV's nowadays have VGA inputs, and the main draw back then was to plug into your computer monitor. I also played soul calibur on it, and no game I played wasn't able to be played through the VGA adapter, so I'm not sure why some wouldn't work.
Click to expand...
I agree... but if you're running your home theater setup through a receiver, separating sound and video like that is annoying. Hence why component support would have been a nice option. Notice that all three of its competitors offered such support...

As for VGA compatibility:
http://www.epforums.org/showthread.php?t=42182
Click to expand...

The Dreamcast's VGA out is better than the component output of PS2/GC/Xbox if I remember correctly. It was very well done and was aimed specifically at computer monitors. I don't know that the competition at the time (PS1/N64) had component output, and I'm not sure the PS2 did initially (or if it did it didn't really matter much since it wasn't 480p capable) so its not like Sega really screwed up there (and remember they were looking into doing a significant add-on). Since it didn't have digital audio out either, splitting the audio/video wasn't a big deal (S-Video ruled at the time so receivers at the time focused on that and composite video input).

The funny thing is, it seems like everyone likes the Dreamcast, and the people who bought one at launch are especially fond of it. Makes you wonder how it managed to fail (granted we're talking enthusiasts and not mainstream, and it probably didn't help that most enthusiasts had a ridiculously easy time pirating the software for it).

There was a pretty good sized thread not even a month ago for the 10 year anniversary of the system. I expect Queasy might integrate this thread into that one.
 
Originally posted by: darkswordsman17
Originally posted by: erwos
Originally posted by: Juddog
Tons of TV's nowadays have VGA inputs, and the main draw back then was to plug into your computer monitor. I also played soul calibur on it, and no game I played wasn't able to be played through the VGA adapter, so I'm not sure why some wouldn't work.
Click to expand...
I agree... but if you're running your home theater setup through a receiver, separating sound and video like that is annoying. Hence why component support would have been a nice option. Notice that all three of its competitors offered such support...

As for VGA compatibility:
http://www.epforums.org/showthread.php?t=42182
Click to expand...

The Dreamcast's VGA out is better than the component output of PS2/GC/Xbox if I remember correctly. It was very well done and was aimed specifically at computer monitors. I don't know that the competition at the time (PS1/N64) had component output, and I'm not sure the PS2 did initially (or if it did it didn't really matter much since it wasn't 480p capable) so its not like Sega really screwed up there (and remember they were looking into doing a significant add-on). Since it didn't have digital audio out either, splitting the audio/video wasn't a big deal (S-Video ruled at the time so receivers at the time focused on that and composite video input).

The funny thing is, it seems like everyone likes the Dreamcast, and the people who bought one at launch are especially fond of it. Makes you wonder how it managed to fail (granted we're talking enthusiasts and not mainstream, and it probably didn't help that most enthusiasts had a ridiculously easy time pirating the software for it).

There was a pretty good sized thread not even a month ago for the 10 year anniversary of the system. I expect Queasy might integrate this thread into that one.
Click to expand...

The Dreamcast failed, IIRC, due to cost of making the system and add-ons. The VMU was amazing, but expensive. The controllers were very nice and the game library was good. Sega had announced it would be their last console if it failed, so it was almsot doomed from the start. This console was ahead of its time, just as the Saturn was. Poor Sega.
 
i wonder where my dreamcast went .. probably sitting in a box somewhere in storage along with the CD book of copied games. those were fun days.
 
Originally posted by: smackababy
Originally posted by: darkswordsman17
Originally posted by: erwos
Originally posted by: Juddog
Tons of TV's nowadays have VGA inputs, and the main draw back then was to plug into your computer monitor. I also played soul calibur on it, and no game I played wasn't able to be played through the VGA adapter, so I'm not sure why some wouldn't work.
Click to expand...
I agree... but if you're running your home theater setup through a receiver, separating sound and video like that is annoying. Hence why component support would have been a nice option. Notice that all three of its competitors offered such support...

As for VGA compatibility:
http://www.epforums.org/showthread.php?t=42182
Click to expand...

The Dreamcast's VGA out is better than the component output of PS2/GC/Xbox if I remember correctly. It was very well done and was aimed specifically at computer monitors. I don't know that the competition at the time (PS1/N64) had component output, and I'm not sure the PS2 did initially (or if it did it didn't really matter much since it wasn't 480p capable) so its not like Sega really screwed up there (and remember they were looking into doing a significant add-on). Since it didn't have digital audio out either, splitting the audio/video wasn't a big deal (S-Video ruled at the time so receivers at the time focused on that and composite video input).

The funny thing is, it seems like everyone likes the Dreamcast, and the people who bought one at launch are especially fond of it. Makes you wonder how it managed to fail (granted we're talking enthusiasts and not mainstream, and it probably didn't help that most enthusiasts had a ridiculously easy time pirating the software for it).

There was a pretty good sized thread not even a month ago for the 10 year anniversary of the system. I expect Queasy might integrate this thread into that one.
Click to expand...

The Dreamcast failed, IIRC, due to cost of making the system and add-ons. The VMU was amazing, but expensive. The controllers were very nice and the game library was good. Sega had announced it would be their last console if it failed, so it was almsot doomed from the start. This console was ahead of its time, just as the Saturn was. Poor Sega.
Click to expand...

No it failed right around the time PS2 was coming out. 3rd party support was not large cus of how the Saturn was. Lack of huge 3rd party support and PS2 is was killed it.
 
Originally posted by: erwos
Originally posted by: Juddog
I still have my dreamcast with VGA adapter and broadband / ethernet adapter. That was an awesome system, way ahead of it's time. Playing games through the VGA output actually looked better than other game systems like the PS2.
Click to expand...
I'm actually not so hot on the VGA adapter:
1. Didn't work with some games (I want to say SC2?)
2. Very few receivers (possibly none) have VGA inputs

I would have preferred the option of component, although I admit VGA would probably be more preferable to the college crowd (although, given how LCDs are these days, maybe not so much anymore).
Click to expand...

SC2? If you mean soul calibur, the 2nd one never came out.

Many HDTVs do have VGA ports now.

You could force it to work with any game with either a boot disk, or by plugging in the VGA cable after the game booted.

I wish I still had my broadband adapter for my dreamcast. I'd love to use it to rip my dreamcast games and play them in an emulator now.


The dreamcast had, and still has, some of the most original games around. It had very few AAA titles, but you could get one of the most unique gaming experiences around from it.
 
Originally posted by: erwos
Originally posted by: Juddog
I still have my dreamcast with VGA adapter and broadband / ethernet adapter. That was an awesome system, way ahead of it's time. Playing games through the VGA output actually looked better than other game systems like the PS2.
Click to expand...
I'm actually not so hot on the VGA adapter:
1. Didn't work with some games (I want to say SC2?)
2. Very few receivers (possibly none) have VGA inputs[

I would have preferred the option of component, although I admit VGA would probably be more preferable to the college crowd (although, given how LCDs are these days, maybe not so much anymore).
Click to expand...

1. There is a VGA/S-Video and RCA switch box for the Sega Dreamcast.
http://www.racketboy.com/store...vga-box-svideo-av.html

2. Every LCD TV I've ever owned had a VGA input. If' your TV doesn't have a VGA input, you can pick up a cable to hook a VGA cable into component.

Also, didn't the PS2, Xbox, and GameCube (which is hard to get and expensive) get component towards the end of their lifespans?
 
Originally posted by: GundamSonicZeroX
Originally posted by: erwos
Originally posted by: Juddog
I still have my dreamcast with VGA adapter and broadband / ethernet adapter. That was an awesome system, way ahead of it's time. Playing games through the VGA output actually looked better than other game systems like the PS2.
Click to expand...
I'm actually not so hot on the VGA adapter:
1. Didn't work with some games (I want to say SC2?)
2. Very few receivers (possibly none) have VGA inputs[

I would have preferred the option of component, although I admit VGA would probably be more preferable to the college crowd (although, given how LCDs are these days, maybe not so much anymore).
Click to expand...

1. There is a VGA/S-Video and RCA switch box for the Sega Dreamcast.
http://www.racketboy.com/store...vga-box-svideo-av.html

2. Every LCD TV I've ever owned had a VGA input. If' your TV doesn't have a VGA input, you can pick up a cable to hook a VGA cable into component.

Also, didn't the PS2, Xbox, and GameCube (which is hard to get and expensive) get component towards the end of their lifespans?
Click to expand...

PS2, Xbox, and GameCube all had component although Nintendo got rid of the component input on the late model GameCube. I have all 3 still and component cables for all.

I didn't know that you could plug in the VGA adapter after the game had loaded to make it work with any game. I'm pretty sure Gunbird 2 didn't work with the VGA adapter so I have to try this out.

All this Dreamcast talk is making me want to dust mine off and plug in my twin sticks for some Virtual On.
 
A local game store where I live has a Dreamcast for sale. I've always been tempted to buy it.
 
Why is it that people here cannot distinguish between TVs and receivers? I know what the hell I wrote, and I wrote it that way for a reason. 🙂

The other thing people haven't mentioned is piracy... you could burn discs and the DC would play them. That's a killer on the licensing revenue.
 
Originally posted by: erwos
Why is it that people here cannot distinguish between TVs and receivers? I know what the hell I wrote, and I wrote it that way for a reason. 🙂

The other thing people haven't mentioned is piracy... you could burn discs and the DC would play them. That's a killer on the licensing revenue.
Click to expand...

Why would you want to plug VGA into a receiver though? That makes absolutely no sense.
 
Originally posted by: Juddog
Originally posted by: erwos
Why is it that people here cannot distinguish between TVs and receivers? I know what the hell I wrote, and I wrote it that way for a reason. 🙂

The other thing people haven't mentioned is piracy... you could burn discs and the DC would play them. That's a killer on the licensing revenue.
Click to expand...

Why would you want to plug VGA into a receiver though? That makes absolutely no sense.
Click to expand...
Same reason I would want to plug my Xbox 360 or Wii into it, of course. It's one less device that needs to have the input switched when I want to use it. My TV stays on HDMI-1 all the time these days...
 
Originally posted by: erwos
Originally posted by: Juddog
Originally posted by: erwos
Why is it that people here cannot distinguish between TVs and receivers? I know what the hell I wrote, and I wrote it that way for a reason. 🙂

The other thing people haven't mentioned is piracy... you could burn discs and the DC would play them. That's a killer on the licensing revenue.
Click to expand...

Why would you want to plug VGA into a receiver though? That makes absolutely no sense.
Click to expand...
Same reason I would want to plug my Xbox 360 or Wii into it, of course. It's one less device that needs to have the input switched when I want to use it. My TV stays on HDMI-1 all the time these days...
Click to expand...

I didn't realize receivers actually converted from other formats into component. I thought they were strictly pass through.

BTW, there are vga to component transcoders. A little pricey, but they work.
Anyhow, the Dreamcast was around before component really hit the scene. If you were interested in component at that time, you probably had the money to buy the $300 converter (which could now probably be had for $50).
 
Originally posted by: zerocool84
Originally posted by: smackababy
Originally posted by: darkswordsman17
Originally posted by: erwos
Originally posted by: Juddog
Tons of TV's nowadays have VGA inputs, and the main draw back then was to plug into your computer monitor. I also played soul calibur on it, and no game I played wasn't able to be played through the VGA adapter, so I'm not sure why some wouldn't work.
Click to expand...
I agree... but if you're running your home theater setup through a receiver, separating sound and video like that is annoying. Hence why component support would have been a nice option. Notice that all three of its competitors offered such support...

As for VGA compatibility:
http://www.epforums.org/showthread.php?t=42182
Click to expand...

The Dreamcast's VGA out is better than the component output of PS2/GC/Xbox if I remember correctly. It was very well done and was aimed specifically at computer monitors. I don't know that the competition at the time (PS1/N64) had component output, and I'm not sure the PS2 did initially (or if it did it didn't really matter much since it wasn't 480p capable) so its not like Sega really screwed up there (and remember they were looking into doing a significant add-on). Since it didn't have digital audio out either, splitting the audio/video wasn't a big deal (S-Video ruled at the time so receivers at the time focused on that and composite video input).

The funny thing is, it seems like everyone likes the Dreamcast, and the people who bought one at launch are especially fond of it. Makes you wonder how it managed to fail (granted we're talking enthusiasts and not mainstream, and it probably didn't help that most enthusiasts had a ridiculously easy time pirating the software for it).

There was a pretty good sized thread not even a month ago for the 10 year anniversary of the system. I expect Queasy might integrate this thread into that one.
Click to expand...

The Dreamcast failed, IIRC, due to cost of making the system and add-ons. The VMU was amazing, but expensive. The controllers were very nice and the game library was good. Sega had announced it would be their last console if it failed, so it was almsot doomed from the start. This console was ahead of its time, just as the Saturn was. Poor Sega.
Click to expand...

No it failed right around the time PS2 was coming out. 3rd party support was not large cus of how the Saturn was. Lack of huge 3rd party support and PS2 is was killed it.
Click to expand...

It was released almost a year before the PS2. By the time the PS2 was released Sega was releasing black Dreamcasts with a sports bundle. They had already acknowledged the DC was a "failure" despite only having positive press from what I was getting at the time. While 3rd party support was low, it existed. Capcom and Sega games were, at the time, far better than most other games out anyway. Sega once was that Nintendo is now, as far as games; at least in my eyes. Now, they are just living off of Sonic Team, which is really sad.
 
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