Back on the 14th of March, VGNYsoft (aka Videogamesnewyork) launched their Kickstarter for replacement Dreamcast VMU (Visual Memory Unit) shells. These new VMU shells are formed of five parts, will be injection moulded, and available in a variety of colours. For more information, including a talk with Dan of VGNYsoft, check out our previous article about the campaign. The campaign has already reached its funding goal, and at time of writing has five days left to go.
Let's Take a Look at Replacement Dreamcast VMU Shells - Kickstarter from VGNYsoft
Kickstarter launches for Ambitious Multi-Platform RPG “Breath of Thunder” - includes Dreamcast stretch goal!
Update (11/03/2024): Due to online feedback, the creator of this Kickstarter has pulled all the stretch goals for retro systems, including Dreamcast.
It must be Dreamcast Kickstarter launch fever recently, as another new Kickstarter campaign was brought to my attention today in the Junkyard Discord by user Techno Hammer. For a goal of 30,510 AUD, developer Jerrel Dulay wants to develop an old school-style JRPG called "Breath of Thunder" for multiple modern systems, including the Switch, PC, the Atari VCS (the newer one that no one ever talks about, not the 2600), the PlayDate and the PS Vita (as free homebrew). But the project's ambitions for being a multi-platform release don't stop there, however...
I hadn't heard of Jerrel before, but from reading up on him, it seems he has a lot of development experience with a whole range of systems, with his survival horror series Silver Falls seeing releases across multiple platforms, such as the Game Boy, Nintendo DS, Game Boy Advance, PSP, PS Vita, 3DS, Wii U, and Switch. He has even just delivered a Kickstarter-funded Silver Falls entry on the gosh darn Pokémon Mini, of all things!
This actually looks really nice. |
The game itself looks to pay homage to the kind of turn-based RPGs that were beloved on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, like Final Fantasy, Breath of Fire (it’s in the name!), Dragon Quest, and Secret of Mana; though that is probably the least interesting part of this campaign. Remember how I said Jerrel had development experience with lots of different systems? Well, if multiple stretch goals are reached, this game could come to eleven more potential systems, both modern and retro, including our beloved Dreamcast. Get a load of this list:
- Sony PSP for 48k AUD
- Nintendo DS for 61k AUD
- Game Boy Color for 91k AUD
- Dreamcast for 152k AUD
- PlayStation 4 and 5 for 168k AUD
- Xbox Series S and X for 168k AUD
- PlayStation 1 for 229k AUD
- Atari Jaguar for 305k AUD (Tom will appreciate this, I'm sure.)
- Sega Saturn for 543k AUD
- Game Boy Advance for 611k AUD
- Nintendo Virtual Boy for 760k AUD
- Other consoles that haven't even thought of yet for 916k AUD
HarleQuest! - A new 3D Dreamcast Game launches on Kickstarter!
Dungeon Ross being demoed |
"HarleQuest! is a tough-as-nails roguelike with technical combat, randomised dungeon layouts and tons of weapons and loot! Combat encounters require precise control and care, enemies lurk around every corner and bosses guard your only exit. Death is permanent. This is not a game for the faint of heart.
"The unlikely hero of our story is Estienne, a jester who has been thrown into the dungeon by a cruel and capricious king. He must run, spring, tumble and sneak his way through the twisted depths below the castle. Can you help Estienne regain his freedom and put an end to the King's tyrrany?
"Go it alone, or invite a friend to play couch co-op!"
Shadow Gangs Kickstarter re-kicked with lower goal
We recently reported on the promising Shadow Gangs Dreamcast port and its Kickstarter campaign. Though the game is a top quality side scrolling punching simulator, one of the most common concerns we saw raised was how high the Kickstarter funding goal had been set. It appears that the team behind Shadow Gangs saw similar cause for concern and as a result, the original campaign for this excellent addition to the Dreamcast indie library has been cancelled with a new one launched in its place. The new campaign has a much more realistic goal of £25,000 (the previous target had been set at a fairly optimistic £140,000) and it can be found here.
Naturally several of us here at the Junkyard backed the previous Kickstarter, and have also now pledged towards the new campaign. If you're wondering what all the fuss is about though, below is a preview of the game running on a GDEMU equipped DCHDMI system:
Honestly, this is a really high quality, hard as nails scrapper and I'm very much looking forward to playing the final game on a Dreamcast. Not sure I'll be seeing much more than the first level judging from my shockingly bad playthrough of the demo, but cest la vie and all that.
Anyone who wants to try the demo on actual Dreamcast hardware (or an emulator) themselves can do so by heading over to the new Shadow Gangs Kickstarter here, and grabbing the file via the handy download link. Oh, and maybe support the campaign too. New Dreamcast games, especially ones with Shadow Gangs' level of quality, are never a bad thing to back. Unlike that coffee maker I backed two years ago and still haven't recieved. Yes Oomph, I'm looking at you. Harrumph.
Shadow Gangs (Dreamcast Edition) hits Kickstarter!
Mortadelo y Filemón: Spanish Point & Click Kickstarter for Dreamcast
Shenmue World magazine from Shenmue Dojo smashes Kickstarter goal in less than 24 hours!
I initially planned to publish this article a day ago as a way to help spread the news that Shenmue Dojo had launched a Kickstarter for a fan magazine called Shenmue World. Looks like I needn't have bothered though, as the community has come together in less than 24 hours to fund the project!
Full disclosure here - several members of the Junkyard team have also backed Shenmue World - so allow us the benefit of the doubt when we describe this project as 'thoroughly deserving.'
Let's step back in time first, though. You may be wondering what all this is about. Basically, Shenmue Dojo is one of - if not the - best known Shenmue fan sites / forums when it comes to...well, Shenmue. Obviously. The clue is in the name. How many people come here for PlayStation 2 news? I digress.
Personally I have been visiting Shenmue Dojo for well over a decade, and the site actually started in 2000 - five whole years before the Junkyard was but a twinkle in my eye. Quite simply, these guys know their Wude from their Master Chen...if you catch my drift.
Anyway, Shenmue World is a new fan magazine created by Shenmue Dojo and headed up by Jim Brown (aka SkillJim), one of the head honchos over at Shenmue Dojo. A year in the making, Shenmue World is a completely independent fan-created ode to all that is good in the world of Shenmue.
According to the video over on the Shenmue Dojo YouTube channel, the magazine has already been finalised in principle, and the Kickstarter was simply put in place to allow Jim and his team to start a mass print run. The magazine (or at least the initial prototype) looks like a Shenmue fan's dream - lots of original content, features and articles focussing on literally every aspect of Shenmue.
The good news - as intimated in the headline of this article - is that Shenmue World has been fully funded to the tune of £6500 in less than 24 hours, and so the magazine will be produced and everyone who has backed it to the correct tier will receive a physical copy at some point in the not-too-distant future.
We here at the Junkyard realise that not everyone uses Twitter, so allow us to use our own platform - this blog - to point you in the direction of the Shenmue World Kickstarter if you wish to get your mitts on a copy of the magazine.
As ever, be sure to let us know what you think in the comments, and please do visit Shenmue Dojo's website and follow them on Twitter.
Dreamcast: Year Two hits Kickstarter!
After the success of Dreamcast: Year One, it was pretty much written in the stars that Year Two would follow on its coattails...and now the Kickstarter for this very tome is live!
It's probably worth mentioning before I go any further, that author and campaign manager Andrew Dickinson has since joined the podcast and editorial team of The Dreamcast Junkyard, and many of the other contributors to this blog are involved in writing content for Dreamcast: Year Two...and that includes yours truly. With that out of the way, what can you expect from Dreamcast: Year Two?
Well, more of the same to be honest...which is no bad thing! A bigger, more content-rich book full of interviews and retrospectives on the games from the Dreamcast's second year on the market; and the Kickstarter campaign features a range a tiers that offer some pretty special backer perks. But what of the main book? I'm glad you asked:
- Main book has over 50% more pages than Year One
- Double the number of retrospectives than Year One
- Brand new artwork from graphic designer Dan Tiller
- Interviews with the likes of Corey Marshall, John Linneman and Steven Kent (and more)
- Retrospectives written by members of Dreamcast Years and The Dreamcast Junkyard
Will you be backing Dreamcast: Year Two? Let us know in the comments or on Twitter. You can also follow Andrew Dickinson on Twitter here. Oh, and here's the Kickstarter link again, just in case you missed it!
Exploring EMAP's Lost Official Dreamcast Magazine: An Interview With Dave Kelsall
They were the only way that regular people could absorb all the news from the industry and get opinions on games before they spent their hard-earned cash on them. Like much physical media though, they have become increasingly niche as the internet and digital technologies saturate the market. News can be fed right to your phone as it happens, while user and influencer reviews are taken on board just as much, if not more, than the professionally written ones of established journalists.
For many of us who revere retro (and especially Dreamcast, of course), physical media and good-old-fashioned games journalism feels sorely missed. Personally, I can find a place for the old and the new in my life, but when flicking through old magazines I never fail to stumble upon that one thing that made them special - magic.
Okay, I don’t mean magic in the make-believe sense (and most definitely not in the Dynamo sense either), but rather that feeling of holding in your hands the key to a world that is beyond the norm. They were a guide to all of those computers, consoles and games that you had no idea were coming. They held updates on things you were eagerly awaiting, and reviews of games you’d seen in the shop but had no idea if it was worth paying £39.99 for.
- Related article: Book Review: Dreamcast Year One
I had always intended to share a longer version of the interview with the images I didn’t use, and as we approach the launch of my campaign to fund Dreamcast: Year Two I figured this was the best time to do that. So here it is!
Andrew Dickinson: David, could you please tell us a little bit about how you got into games journalism?
Dave Kelsall: It’s quite a long story! I’ve always been obsessed with games magazines (and games of course). I used to buy everything available, even books with type-in BASIC listings. I wouldn’t necessarily type them, but I liked to read the code and look at the artwork.
I was on an art trip to London with my Sixth form college and I spotted Julian Rignal (renowned games journalist and editor) sitting in the buffet clutching a camera. He was off to do one of his seaside reports on the latest arcade machines, so I went over to say hi. I didn’t live that far from Ludlow (where Newsfield, the publishers of Crash and Zzap! 64, were based) and so he invited me down to take a look around the offices whenever we were both free.
A few weeks later I went down for a visit and he very kindly showed me around, took me to the pub, and we of course played games. Fast forward a few years and I had just finished my HND in Graphic Design and I was on the train accompanying my girlfriend who was going for an interview in London for a job in the fashion industry. I happened to be reading a copy of Mean Machines and there was an advert in the News section looking for a designer. As I remember it, I turned up to the EMAP offices and enquired about the job. I think I spoke to Julian beforehand and mentioned who I was, and I was promptly shown upstairs and told to design something. They must have liked what I did as I was offered the job the next day and that was the start of a career in magazines, and initially games journalism. I absolutely loved my time there and I only left the games division when EMAP sold it to Dennis. I moved on to other titles within EMAP.