Total Control: Issues 6 to 11

As discussed in the first part of this feature, Total Control was a multi-format games magazine from Rapide Publishing which lasted for only 11 issues. These ran between November 1998 and September 1999 and in that short window the Dreamcast hype train was fully boarded, had left its native Japan and was headed at full speed toward the US and Europe.

Because of this, Total Control - more than any other contemporary UK-based magazine - was very liberal with its Dreamcast coverage. Indeed, sometimes this was to it's detriment, as evidenced by the levels of reader vitriol in the letters relating to over-enthusiastic reporting on Sega's fledgling system. PlayStation 2 fanboys transcend both time and space, it seems. Naturally, I jest.

The first half of this feature explores the Dreamcast content contained within issues 1 to 5 of Total Control and can be found here. Now though, we turn our attention to the final six editions of this short-lived publication with issues 6 to 11. If you'd like to see bigger versions of the scans below, feel free to right click and download them to your device - I know Blogger's image viewing thingy is pretty rubbish for text-based stuff.

Enough procrastinating...let's do this!

Xenocider Update From Retro Sumus

A few weeks ago we brought you an exclusive video preview of Retro Sumus' upcoming Space Harrier homage Xenocider. The video was really only a taster of what we can expect from this ambitious indie title, and since then Carlos and his talented team have been slaving away behind the scenes to add even more to the game engine.

The latest video update throws in enemies, more scenery and shows how Xara's main weapon and targeting system will look. Obviously, this is still very early and there'll undoubtedly be many, many changes over the course of development but the video below provides a more accurate depiction of how Xenocider will play when the disc is actually spinning happily inside your trusty old Dreamcast. Here you go:

The Xenocider Kickstarter launches in May 2016 and Retro Sumus hope to be able to offer a downloadable playable demo in the coming weeks. As ever, we'll keep you posted on any further developments on either Xenocider or AMEBA as they come.

New Homebrew Tooth Cracker Available Now

We took a fairly comprehensive look at Ben Lancaster's homebrew Nintendo Game & Watch parody Tooth Cracker a few months ago here at the 'Yard. If you can't be bothered clicking the link and reading my thoughts though, I'll explain all over again. Because I'm nice like that. Tooth Cracker is the second title in Ben's James & Watch series and tasks the player with cracking human teeth with a (warm) can of bitter twinned with a well-placed fist. I appreciate that sounds very odd, but in practice it's a simple reaction-based skill game with some fairly basic visuals but highly addictive twitch game play - especially so when you progress through to the later stages. Also, whether the can of bitter is actually warm is open to interpretation, but I like to imagine that it spent a good three hours on a sunny window ledge before being incorporated into the game.

Built with the Unity engine.

Anyhow, I'm regurgitating all this because Ben has finally put this interesting little title on sale over at Retrogaming Roundup for the grand total of £15 with free worldwide shipping. For an extra £5 you can also grab the prequel, James & Watch Arm - another title we looked at some time ago.

These games aren't pushing the Dreamcast hardware in any way, but they are a nice throwback to the days when games were more about testing your skill and the hunt for a high score rather than trophies and the like. Ben will also be peddling his game at the upcoming Play Expo in Blackpool, so if you see him there be sure to tell him you read about Tooth Cracker at The Dreamcast Junkyard. Do this, and he'll furnish you with a manly hug and a kiss on the cheek (of your choice) as an exclusive DCJY bonus gift. Please bear in mind that the hug and kiss are mandatory, and non-transferable. This does not affect your statutory rights.

For Whom The Bell Tolls...

Question: What is the greatest piece of video game music ever written?

Answer: The Justice Ray, by Hyakutaro Tsukumo

This is the face of unparalleled musical genius. Truly.

What do you mean you've never heard of it? It's Tsukomo-san's magnum opus, and its legacy is entwined with Sega's own destiny. Before we skip ahead though, lets start at the beginning - the very beginning.

Total Control: Issues 1 to 5

Total Control was a multi-format print magazine that was sold in the UK between November 1998 and September 1999. Published by (the now defunct) Rapide Publishing, Total Control was marketed as a mature magazine aimed squarely at twenty-somethings with disposable income, and as such had a more adult style than some other magazines available at the time. The late 1990s saw a glut of print magazines come and go, and Total Control had stiff competition from publications like Arcade, CVG and Edge; the latter of which is the only one still going at the time of writing. Total Control only lasted for 11 issues due to Rapide Publishing going into administration just before issue 12 could hit the newsstands, but in this brief run it managed to pack in a ton of high quality Dreamcast-related content. This is no doubt down to the fact that it existed in that golden period between the Japanese and US launches, and died right before the PAL release - as illustrated, rather poignantly by the blue swirl adorning the final issue’s cover.

If you want to read an 'interesting' story about my acquisition of these magazines,
scroll down to the 'bonus feature' at the bottom.

There’s not much written about Total Control these days and the magazine seems to have passed into the annals of time with little more than a whimper, but since collecting the entire catalogue (thanks mainly in part to Matt from SegaMags) I thought it would be nice to feature this oft ignored source of Dreamcast nostalgia right here at the 'Yard. Because there’s quite a lot of Dreamcast coverage in these magazines, I’ve split this feature into two parts - the first of which will look at issues 1 to 5 of Total Control, with issues 6 to 11 investigated in the second part (coming soon!).

Are you ready? Here we go…!

Event: Southampton Game Fest 2016

Just a quick events notice, this. Not every post can be an Earth-shattering revelation about some hitherto unknown facet of Dreamcast collecting. Granted, most are...but not this one. Soz. Right then, The Dreamcast Junkyard will be supporting RetroCollect at Southampton Game Fest on 22nd May. The event is being run in aid of Southampton Hospital Charity and is being held at the Grand Harbour Hotel in Southampton, Hampshire, UK. It's only £6 a ticket and there will be plenty of retro and current gen stuff on show for people to have a play on...including all the usual Dreamcast gubbins we have at these events.

I say 'supporting' RetroCollect, but in actuality that just means there'll be banners up for both DCJY and RetroCollect in the same place and myself, Rob and the rest of the dudes helping out will be wearing two t-shirts instead of the usual one. Oh, and there'll be PlayStations, Saturns and N64s etc knocking about and interspersed with the Dreamcasts.

Anyway, if you'd like more information and to find out what other attractions will be at the event, visit the Southampton Game Fest 2016 website here.

Toy Racer Multiplayer Back Online Through Dial-Up

Remember Toy Racer? Of course you do - we only mentioned it a few days ago in this post about the work of two highly talented individuals working to get our trusty old Dreamcasts back online. There's a chance you've just clicked on this because someone's retweeted it or shared it on Facebook though, so I'll explain. Toy Racer was a PAL-only spin-off from Toy Commander that featured toy cars being raced around various tracks that were constructed from bits of Scalextric and broken stickle bricks. It was intended as a budget multiplayer racer to demonstrate the Dreamcast's online capabilities and for the most part it fulfilled its role amicably...until Sega's European servers were smashed to bits and thrown into a landfill. And then pissed on by several tramps.

The good news is that Toy Racer is now back online. And while we've told you this before, this time you don't need any other additional bits and bobs to experience it. All you need is a Dreamcast and a phone line. And Toy Racer, obvs. Plug it in with the standard modem cable and point your DNS at 46.101.91.123. Viola! Toy Racer is back online via dial up...right now!

Get A Free Copy Of The Dreamcast Collectors Guide

Seeing as we're no longer allowed to sell The DCJY Ultimate Collectors Guide, we're now giving it away for free at Sega Europe's request. All we ask is that you pay for the postage/shipping costs via the donate button below. There are limited numbers of these things so as soon as they're all gone, the donate button will be removed.

If you'd like to know more about the outlawing of this totally heinous publication, have a look at the previous articles here and here. Also, massive thanks to Junkyard reader Simon who randomly donated yesterday to help with purchasing of envelopes to send these things out - what a legend. Give him a follow on Twitter if you get a moment (@Stellaking_Si).

Recommended shipping costs depending on your location are as follows:

UK: £3
Europe: £7
USA: £9
Anywhere else: £10

If you'd like to donate more to help us with the DreamPod hosting or Mumble server costs, please feel free - as it is, I pay for it all out of my own pocket (although there's no obligation, naturally). Hit the button below, enter your address details as a message and the book will be shipped. Please allow a few days for me to send it out as I'm in the middle of moving house!

Thanks all, and keep dreaming!

Update
That's it - they're all gone! Done. Finito. Thanks to everyone who donated, your book will be sent out in the next few days. Keep it safe - it's part of a limited run and a piece of history!

If you didn't manage to get a physical version, don't worry as the latest PDF version is also available to download here.

Dreamarena Authentication Cracked, Quake III Arena & Toy Racer To Be Playable Online Via Dial-Up

 

If you're a European Dreamcast owner and had a system back in the day, you'll no doubt be familiar with Dreamarena. For those who don't know, Dreamarena was the online portal that PAL Dreamcasts would connect to when you wanted to go online; and many games used the service to authenticate your details when you wanted to play multiplayer games via the 33k modem attached like a disgusting carbuncle to the European system. I have fond memories of Dreamarena as it was the first thing I saw whenever I wanted to go online and browse the internet looking for cheats and...erm...the latest news from the international stock markets. Yeah, stock markets. Um.

Was it the Bismarck? Couldn't help myself, sorry.

One thing I don't have fond memories of is that horrendous 'disconnected' sound that used to play as soon as the connection dropped out. That, and the ominous noise of my mother booming up the stairs to see if I was online without permission again. Anyway, that's all irrelevant - this post is about the awesome news that many people (including me) never thought they'd hear: Dreamarena authentication has been cracked and will allow you to once again hook your Dreamcast up to your phone line and, using nothing more than the bundled dial-up modem, play both Quake III Arena and Toy Racer with other people. This isn't an April Fools.

The DCJY Ultimate Guide Fiasco Continues...

You may recall in late 2015 we launched the physical version of The Dreamcast Junkyard Ultimate Collectors Guide. It was really well received by members of the Dreamcast community around the world and was seen as a valuable resource for collectors and those who wanted to explore the Japanese library a little further (it has a handy accessibility guide for non-Japanese speakers). Sadly, Sega Europe's legal team requested that we remove the resource from sale because it wasn't an officially licensed product, and naturally we complied.

Since then, we have redesigned the book's cover slightly to include the labels '100% unofficial,' 'fan made' and wording to the effect that it isn't endorsed by Sega in any way. We thought that would be enough to allow us to distribute this book online once again, but apparently not. In the name of transparency, here's the most recent communication from Sega Europe's legal department:

Four SD Reader Indie Gems

Dreamshell and its uses are well documented on various sites around the internet, and for me it represents one of the most interesting facets of the Dreamcast. If you aren't familiar, Dreamshell lets you boot the console into a PC-like Unix GUI and allows for the loading of various applications. Dreamshell can be burnt to a CD-R (or installed into the BIOS of the Dreamcast if you really want to) and then used alongside an SD reader to access all manner of fantastic homebrew and indie software. I did have a look at Dreamshell in the recent past, but with this post I just wanted to give some exposure to games that have been kicking around for a while but that you may have missed.

None of these games are particularly new, but if you're a recent adopter of a Dreamcast or have only recently decided to dip your toe into the world of homebrew games for Sega's final system, this article may be of interest to you. Possibly even more so if you also happen to own an SD card reader, as these games are all readily availible in ISO format and can be played simply by dropping the files onto the SD card and then executed through the Dreamshell loader interface. The internet is a fast-moving place and people join the Dreamcast community all the time, learning of the many uses for the console that Sega never intended. With this post, I really just wanted to give a mention to the games that are out there, but that rarely get a mention when people discuss this awesome machine.

DreamPod - Episode 29

iTunes
Stitcher
Buzzsprout
UK Podcast Directory

The Asahi tweet discussed on the podcast.

Interlude music in DreamPod 29 is from Cosmic Smash. You can find info on the VMU version of Flappy Bird here, the Greedy Goblin Con charity event article is here, and the Stone Age Gamer story here. Also, you can find the [TERMINAL] story here; and the exposé on the brand new Dreamcast shooter (as yet unnamed) is here. As ever - if you like what you hear, please consider leaving us a review on iTunes.

A Quick Look At Railroad Tycoon II

For the past month I've been working in a town some 35 miles from where I live. It's not a massive distance by any means, and I really didn't think that commuting from one major conurbation on the south coast of England to another would be an issue when I took up the offer of employment. A quick car journey every day - easy right? Well no, actually.

Because the road network in this part of England is an absolute joke and roadworks on the Roman routes that make up the main arteries are an almost constant fixture (and last for months/years at a time), I have been forced to use rail travel for the past five weeks. I initially thought it would be quite good to get the train to and from work because it would give me time I would have otherwise spent stuck in a traffic jam to do other stuff - read a book, play on my Vita or listen to/edit podcasts.

The original Reservoir Dogs.

For the most part this has actually been the case, but on many, many occasions the trains have either been late, too crowded to find a seat on, or have been totally cancelled with no explanation. Naturally, this has lead to me grumbling on social media about how pathetic our train services are, but it got me thinking: how hard is it to run a train network and keep everything going smoothly? Thanks to the awesome power of the Dreamcast, I have the very tools at my disposal to find out in a measured and scientific manner. Ladies and gents, the train now approaching platform 3 is Railroad Tycoon II...

Dreamcast 2: Arcade Version - Expanding the Dreamcast Collection: Part 3 - Naomi 2

The Dreamcast Junkyard is finally breaking its silence on the topic of the Dreamcast 2… well, sort of. The Naomi is often described as the arcade version of the Dreamcast, and the true successor to the Naomi was of course the Naomi 2, thereby making the Naomi 2 the arcade version of the Dreamcast 2! Yes? Get it...? Am I right? AM I RIGHT? Well, OK, that was pretty shameless click bait, but you're here now anyway, so why not let us tell you a bit more about the third system in the Dreamcast arcade family.

In part 3, we’ll be covering one of the other systems in the Dreamcast family, the Naomi 2. Much of the information from part 1 (such as how to play Naomi games) applies, so if you haven’t already, then I suggest reading that before making a start here. In part 2 we took a look at the Hikaru system, and while not essential to understanding this article, feel free to take a look back for a complete perspective of the family.

Part 1 – The Naomi Connection
Part 2 – The Hikaru 7

1. Naomi 2 Overview
2. Some Naomi 2 Exclusives
3. Naomi 2 Home Ports
4. The Dreamcast's Virtua Fighter 4 Passport VF.NET and History/VF4 Disks
5. Naomi 2 Games List

OK, back now? Great let’s get started.

Naomi 2 Overview
It’s often incorrectly stated that the Naomi 2 was released in the year 2000, but this seems to be another mistake brought around by poor translations of Japanese. According to Famitsu magazine, the Naomi 2 was first unveiled at the 38th JAMMA trade show towards the end of September 2000 along with Virtua Fighter 4 (then known as VF-X), Wild Riders, Club Karts, Virtua Striker 3 and the new Naomi/ Naomi 2 GD-ROM drive add-on.

First Screens Of New Dreamcast Shooter Released

Hold on to your hats folks - it looks like there's another new Dreamcast game on the horizon. Not only do we have SLaVE, Elysian Shadows, Alice Dreams Tournament, Redux 2 and Hypertension to look forward to - there's an as yet unnamed shooter coming as well...and it looks pretty amazing.

This news comes from the DCEmulation forums (and I was notified of this by long-time supporter of the Dreamcast scene Pcwzrd13), but it appears that a talented two-man team has been working on a spectacular-looking new shooter that employs a game engine built specifically with the Dreamcast in mind. In the forum thread (you can read it here), lead developer PH3NOM explains that he can't give too much away due to an NDA signed with Goat Store but I think you'll agree that these shots (and video below) are very impressive.

Greedy Goblin Con '16 Recap

On Easter Sunday we attended the very first film, TV and gaming con to be held in the town of Dorchester, UK. Dorchester is a small, picturesque town located in the rolling hills of Dorset and is more commonly associated with the writings of famous author Thomas Hardy, but this past weekend it was taken over by storm troopers and cosplayers in aid of Neuroblastoma charity Smile with Siddy.

The Greedy Goblin Con event was held at Dorset County Museum and we, along with the guys from Noah's Arcade brought a touch of retro-gaming awesomeness to proceedings with a line up of Dreamcasts and other systems from yesteryear for members of the public to experience. While the event was nowhere near the scale of things like Play Expo or Revival, it was all in the name of charity and Rob and I really enjoyed chatting to people about the Dreamcast and being beaten by four year olds on Capcom Vs SNK. Ultimately, the convention raised over £3000 for Smile with Siddy and hopefully these proceeds will help in the fight against this horrible disease.

Below you'll find some images from the event - enjoy!