Dreamcast Online Update: New Games Join the Online Line-Up, including Sega Rally 2 & Sega Marine Fishing!

It’s been a busy few months for the world of online gaming on the Dreamcast so I thought a summary of the major news was in order...

It seems fitting to kick things off with the news that Sega Rally 2 is now back online! Yes, that’s right, it’s possible once again to race against three other people in Sega’s smash hit arcade racer.

Time to dial into the Sega Rally Network! (Say it in the Sega Rally guy's voice).

UK and USA readers may be surprised to hear that Sega Rally 2 was ever an online multiplayer title on the Dreamcast; and that’s because the mode was only ever present in the Japanese version of the game. In fact, Sega Rally 2 was the first ever game on the Dreamcast to support simultaneous players playing online on the console. So it’s pretty cool to have it back online.

I’ve played Sega Rally 2 a lot since the online multiplayer has been resurrected (70+ races at the time of writing) and I intend to play a lot more! It’s fantastic. You can use all of the cars you’ve unlocked in the single-player mode and there are loads of tracks. 

Menus are in Japanese but it doesn't take long to figure it all out.

One really nice touch with Sega Rally 2’s online mode is the “boost” mechanic. Similar to how the CPU controlled characters act in games like Mario Kart 64, with this enabled (which it is by default), it means whoever isn’t currently in first place will get a rubber-band-like boost to keep them in the race. Whilst purists who pour hundreds of hours into perfecting their drifting technique may scoff, it’s a great addition to allow players of all levels to have a good fun time racing without someone 20+ seconds in the lead.

You can check out some footage I recorded of my first few races online here:

Next up, a lesser known title -and another Japanese game- Culdcept II has been fully restored for online multiplayer - and it’s been translated to English as a bonus!

It's just like Monopoly... but without the hat, or dog, or race car, or...

Culdcept II is essentially a board game which plays a lot like Monopoly. The objective is for you to control enough land so that your opponents (of which there can be up to three) have to pay you magic tax for landing on the squares of land that you own. The wrinkle is that rather than just coughing up the tax if you stumble onto a rival’s territory, you have the option to fight them for control instead. To do this, you use the monster cards you have in your deck and a short back and forth contest plays out based on health and hit points. If you have support cards in your deck -such as swords or magic scrolls- you can boost your health or hit points to swing the fight in your favour.

Waiting to start an online match against PC Wizard.

The game is super addictive and really has that “one more go” feel about it. It’s great to see it back online and fully playable. The fact that it has been translated as well makes it so much easier to get your head around in your first few matches. I played against (and got battered by) Dreamcast Live’s very own PC Wizard in an online match which you can enjoy here:

Moving on, the online functionality in Sega Marine Fishing has also been fully restored! Whilst there is no real-time fishing alongside your friends, Sega Marine Fishing has a few interesting online features which can be enjoyed.

Download an entry for the tournament and fish until you can't fish any more!

The first of these is the online competition. Running for a set period (the current tournament runs until December 31st), you must first download a valid tournament ticket from the game homepage and then you can play offline to achieve your highest score.

The competition which is currently live (the Sega Cup), sees you make your way to the Coral Reef location for you to catch the biggest Great Barracuda that you can fit onto your boat. The really nice thing here is that there is no time limit, so you’re left to take your time and try out all the different lures available in your attempt to snag the big one. Once you’re happy with your catch, you simply upload your fish via the homepage to register yourself on the leaderboard. If you think you can do better, you can keep on coming back to try to find a heavier fish.

Oh, a big one! But you'll need to get a bigger one to get to the top of the online leaderboard!

The other unique online feature of Sega Marine Fishing is the cutely named “Fish Mail” mode. Here you can upload a Fish Mail to any location of your choosing by selecting which type of fish you want to include and you can write a message for the user to read when they catch your fish. When you go to play the Fish Mail mode, you get a time limit at your desired location to catch as many fish as you can, and once you’ve caught them you can read the message that the person uploaded when they sent the Fish Mail. You can even reply to them to their registered Dreamcast email address! All silly fun, but a very unique way to add online functionality to a game like this.

Email! With fish! 10/10, must-play game.

I have found that a fishing session in between grinding out racing game leaderboard times has been a lovely change of pace, and you can see some footage of the Sega Cup competition mode here:

To round things off, there have also been a number of other games which have seen online modes restored in the last few months, as well as some general upgrades. Reverse engineering extraordinaire Shu has upgraded the Mobile Suit Gundam: Earth Federation Force vs. Zeon server to make online gameplay a little smoother. This fantastic game did suffer from lag quite a bit, but that has now been improved significantly with this update.

Racing game Vanishing Point’s online leaderboards and weekly challenges have also been brought back to life and are proving very popular with the online community. Each week, two new challenges are generated which gives you a car, track and mode combo to grind for that particular period. Points are awarded for your finishing positions and determines where you sit on the overall leaderboard. Along with some other regulars over on the Sega Online Discord, we’ve been grinding these out each week, exchanging tips and friendly insults with each other as we get closer to crunch time!

Vanishing Point online challenges are getting very sweaty!

There have been so many updates to the online Dreamcast community this year, it’s hard to keep up with it all. I’d recommend that anyone wanted to get online to check out the Dreamcast Live website which not only has every online guide you could ever want, but is also a great place to find out what the latest news is within the online Dreamcasting world.

Hope to see you online soon!

RuneScape 2 is Coming to Sega Dreamcast

Ah... RuneScape. I have a lot of nostalgia for the countless hours I spent roaming the blocky world of Jagex's famous JAVA-powered MMORPG. Being called a "noob" by random passers-by for the crime of being a lower level... getting my rune armour stolen by a guy who claimed he could trim it with gold... Formative experiences were had, and life lessons were learned.

Interestingly, the friend who owned the Dreamcast that I'd play when I was younger also sort of got me into RuneScape. Of course, the browser-based game I played back then called "RuneScape" wasn't the same game that is retroactively referred to as RuneScape Classic, which was the original version of RuneScape. The game I spent my entire life playing back in 2005 was actually "RuneScape 2"... which was also reissued in some capacity later as Old School RuneScape? You lost yet? Anyway. The reason I'm bringing all this up is because for the past year or so, a developer who goes by "Lobotomy" has been working on getting RuneScape Classic running on the Sega Dreamcast with a project known as "RuneCast". With some kind of wizardry, Lobotomy has somehow managed to get RSC playing online on Dreamcast at close to 30 FPS, as well as implementing mouse and keyboard support.

Runescape Classic running on Dreamcast.
Photo credit: enfilade.

RuneScape Classic was something I didn't really play much back in the day, but was a fun little novelty for the limited hours I spent on it, probably when my RuneScape 2 friends were offline. The nostalgia for Classic was never really there for me, so I am yet to play this Dreamcast version. Regardless, the fact that Lobotomy managed to pull it all off is as impressive as a blue party hat, or actually seeing Zezima in-game (impressive, basically).

Ever since the news reached online spaces about Lobotomy's triumph, I was as desperate as a dude standing in Varrock bank spamming "buying GF" to know if my beloved (to be honest, it was actually kind of shit, but nostalgia blinds) RuneScape 2 would ever make it to Dreamcast. Lo and behold, on the 27th anniversary of the Dreamcast's North American launch, Lobotomy would post to the Dreamcast-Talk forums to announce it was in the works. "DreamScape", as this version will be known, has been confirmed running on a stock Dreamcast, although the large town of Falador is currently not available to be visited (maybe for the best, as it is still a location that brings back traumatic memories for some), but that will get sorted at some point. Lobotomy is also working on getting a server up and running for the online play.

The hours I spent here farming goblins for experience...
Screenshot credit: Lobotomy

Do you have nostalgia for RuneScape? Would you be interested in playing either RuneScape Classic or RuneScape 2 online on your Dreamcast? Did you know that Junkyarder Harvey (Pizza Hotline) actually produced an officially licensed RuneScape drum and bass remix album? Let us known in the comments below or on our socials!

NTSC-J baseball title Pro Yakyuu Team de Asobou Net! is back online

Another day, another dollar. And by 'dollar,' I of course mean 'obscure Dreamcast baseball game has been brought back online.' This time, the game in question is Smilebit's Pro Yakyuu Team de Asobou Net!, which for those who may be unfamiliar, is a baseball game that was released only in Japan back in 2000, and was part of the popular 'Let's Make a Pro Baseball Team!' lineage.

Pro Yakyuu Team de Asobou Net! differed from other entries in the popular super-deformed series by offering Dreamcast players the opportunity to enter into online games of rounders-on-steroids via the Dreamcast's Dricas service, essentially meaning you could attempt to hit a ball thrown by another human from the comfort of your own couch. Who needs to even bother going outside when such a concept is proffered? Not me, that's who. And neither do you.

I bet leg warmers are cheap in this reality.
And gloves with fingers. Mittens though? Gold mine.

Interestingly, Pro Yakyuu Team de Asobou Net! is actually quite highly regarded as a decent baseball experience; which is surprising when you consider how much of a dog's dinner Smilebit's 90 Minutes was. They also made some other game about breakdancing rollerbladers or something, but I'm not sure what that was called or if anybody ever played it.

Anyway, this magic has been conjured by none other than Dreamcast online gaming royalty Shuouma, and if you point your weary eyeballs downwards, you'll find an excellent gameplay video from our good friend Pcwzrd, who also explains how to get involved via the DreamPi contraption in the video's description. Of course, you can also find a bit more information on this new Pro Yakyuu Team de Asobou Net! release over at Dreamcast Live, along with a handy DreamPi connection guide. To be fair, the online scene on the Dreamcast has been on fire lately, with multiple games being brought out of the archive and placed back onto lane one of the information superhighway. Which is what us old people call the internet. Ask your dad/grandad. Cough.

Thoughts? You played this obscure gem? If so, what did/do you think? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to check out our look at similar (but not really) Dreamcast baseball-flavoured cartoon-characters-with-no-arms-which-aren't-Rayman-a-thon Jikkyou Powerful Pro Yakyuu here.

You can play Virtua Tennis online?!

We are not even at the end of January 2026, and we have already seen two online Dreamcast games resurrected for enjoyment via DreamPi. First we had Hundred Swords on New Year’s Day, and then as of the other day, Sega’s Power Smash Tennis is back online.

Those of us in the West will be more familiar with Virtua Tennis than the Japan-released Power Smash, but rest assured they are the same game, just released under two different titles. Chances are though, you probably didn’t realise there was actually an online multiplayer mode in Virtua Tennis; but you won’t be alone as it was exclusively available in the Japanese version.

Incidentally, Virtua Tennis is a rare example of a game in that era coming out in the West before Japan, with the Japanese release arriving a full four months later. Presumably this was because an online mode was being added to the game.

Having updated my DreamPi to the latest version 2.0, I couldn’t wait to try out Power Smash online. As luck would have it, the DreamcasticChannel was planning a livestream for the community that very same day, so I knew there would be a few players online. 

Navigating the Japanese menus can be daunting at first, but once you remember it is 2026 and we have Google Translate in our pocket, getting connected, setting up your username and waiting in the lobby for other players to arrive is an absolute breeze.

Around eight of us were online and we spent the evening chatting in the lobby, playing each other over and over again, and it certainly seemed like nobody could get enough of the tennis action. 

Amazingly, there is hardly any lag to speak of and the game runs as smooth as silk. Most of us will be familiar with Virtua Tennis' gameplay and I’m delighted to say that it feels identical when you play Power Smash online. 

Once you’re in the lobby, challenging other players can be done with a few clicks of the A button, and once they accept, you’re almost immediately into a match. You select your preferred player, court type and match options beforehand (which are stored server side), so there’s no messing about when you get into a game. 

Matches tend to last between four and eight minutes each which makes it perfect for an online gaming night on Dreamcast, especially if there are a few players online. 

Each player has their win/loss statistics saved on the server, and the team at Dreamcast Live have set up a leaderboard page on the website so you can see who’s in the running to become the next Wimbledon champion. 

It was one of the most enjoyable evenings I’ve had playing Dreamcast online and I have no doubt that Power Smash will quickly become a community favourite, with regular online matches being scheduled. It’s certainly become one of my favourite games to play online because of how much action there is, how smooth the game plays, and how little waiting around there is. 

If you’d like you find out more about how to get your Dreamcast setup for online gaming, be sure to check out the excellent connection guides over at Dreamcast Live.

See you on the court soon!

Sovietborgs on IndieGoGo, El Dorado Gate Translation, Outtrigger Back Online - Summer DC News Round-Up

 Credit to Dreamcast Enjoyer for the Virtua Fighter 3TB background.

The scorching summer heatwave has finally dissipated, providing me with the opportunity to sit here and type up a Dreamcast news round-up without melting into my creaky computer chair. Fortunately though, while I've been lounging around outside, Mr Freeze in hand and with the neighbours clingy cat at my feet (Trevor, generally chill, occasionally bitey), others in the scene have been busy cooking up all sorts of goodness. And, really, given the variety on display, there should be something here to suit everyone's tastes...

One of the few consumer goods to have avoided the savage inflation of recent years. I'm still waiting for a response to my enquiry about a DCJY edition though - call me back Mr Freeze!

News from the Indie Front

The stream of commercial indie releases on Sega's swansong console has definitely slowed over the last year or two. During the frenetic period that roughly coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic, dozens of titles were being published each year, and the pipeline of forthcoming games was packed. In hindsight, maybe that was never sustainable in the long-run, and it is feasible that the market became a little oversaturated. Who knows, maybe I'll scribble a deeper dive into the phenomenon soon, but regardless, the indie market is certainly far from finished and there is still plenty to look forward to.

Undoubtedly deserving of top billing here is the launch of the Sovietborgs crowdfunder by Dreamcast scene heavyweights Retro Sumus. After blessing us with the sublime Xenocider in 2021, this European development outfit took a well deserved break, but thankfully, last year we began to hear them stirring again. This time around they are pitching a top-down run 'n' gun game set in a parody world where the Soviet Union won the Cold War (and Gorbachev didn't end up starring in Pizza Hut adverts). Ample detail is available on the IndieGoGo page, so I won't regurgitate it all here. The campaign has around three weeks left to run, and the crew are 57% of the way towards their £41k funding goal. Here at the Junkyard we're hoping Retro Sumus are successful - if anyone is deserving of backing, then it is scene-stalwarts like them!

In other recent news, Gladmort, the 2D action-platformer that pays homage to titles like Ghouls 'n Ghosts, Metal Slug and Magician Lord, has been landing on the doormats of nerds all around the globe. Lewis was enamoured with the game's visual panache when he covered its KickStarter launch last year, and now we'll get to see if it lives up to his (and others) expectations. Those who missed the pre-orders but are now interested can pick up a copy from Pixelheart should they wish. I didn't take the plunge on this one, but a couple of our other writers-at-large did - hopefully one will turn out a review (yeah, Mike, that means you, buddy).

The PAL edition of Gladmort. Photo courtesy of MikeRox.

Elsewhere, occasional updates continue to arrive about the handful of other indie titles that are in the oven. A few days ago, the good folks at JKMCorp let us know that Shadow Gangs Zero is making steady progress and that the Dreamcast version is expected to be ready in early 2026. Orc Face Games, who published The Storied Sword earlier this year, are juggling several projects. In late April they announced that Chew Chew Mimic was available to pre-order (for a mere £15 a piece), but their latest news is that the Dream Disc '24 build is tested and "good to go", which hopefully means that discs will be printed soon. Ross of Orc Face has admitted that development of their key title HarleQuest! has slowed as a result of these other initiatives, but nevertheless, transparent KickStarter updates continue to arrive on a steady basis, and the latest post (May 2025) notes that the aim is to get the game to a content-complete state by the end of Q3 2025. Personally, as long as the game gets there in the end, I wouldn't begrudge a few delays - Orc Face are doing a lot of good for the scene and are worthy of some patience...

A work-in-progress version of the Dream Disc '24 demo disc cover.

Patience? Patience?! But Lozz, I here you cry, where is the news on Izzy's Arcade and Terminator 2D No Fate? Well, since Senile Team playfully hinted that Izzy could make a return to the Dreamcast, Roel and his posse have been tight lipped. We really must see that semi-sequel on our beloved console, though. Ditto for Terminator 2D NO FATE, which Bitmap Bureau have declared will be coming to retro consoles (without specifying which).

Whopping Big Translations

Anyone with even a passing interest in the Dreamcast will know that the Japanese market received swathes of titles that never saw the light of day over here in Europe or across the pond in the States. However, thanks to some plucky and selfless people who dedicate hours to producing translations, this disparity has been gradually chipped away at over the years.

Most recently, bigbanana23 (look, that it a perfectly good username alright?) announced that they have begun translating Capcom's multi-volume RPG El Dorado Gate. Spanning seven(!) entries on the Dreamcast, which, if you are lucky enough, you can pull together in a neat slipcase, this title has undoubtedly been high on the wishlists of many for a long time now. Clearly it is still early doors on this project, but the initial signs are looking positive. 

A complete set of El Dorado Gate, including the snazzy green slipcase.

It also fills my heart with joy to see that Exxistance is inching ever closer to being able to release their translation of the iconclastic Segagaga. This month they released a new video which demonstrates how far the project is progressing. Word has it that the aim is to drop this muther as a 25th anniversary patch, which would suggest that 29 March 2026 should be booked off work (and maybe a few days after that actually). Of course, we don't want to apply any undue pressure - when it's ready, it's ready. For now, if you've got Segagaga on the mind, be sure to check out our interview with its creator Tez Okano.

Oh, and how could I make a blog post without mentioning the Italian Stallion himself, Derek Pascarella?! Those with an interest in the technical side of translations should check out his recent social media posts exploring some problem-solving in action on the Love Hina: Suprise Engagement translation (W.I.P).

Revisiting the “Jet Set Radio Future Multiplayer” Fan Game — an Interview with the Developer

In the spring of 2021, in my sun-soaked Seattle, WA apartment, I stumbled upon Jet Set Radio HD on Steam. It had been 20 years since the game’s creation during the dot-com boom, and so I found myself reflecting back on that era — on what we thought the future of the internet could look like compared to where our online worlds were now headed. JSR, in combination with the online-enabled super computer that was the Sega Dreamcast, represented an idea of where technology and games might go next. I was captivated. Maybe I still am.

I played through the game. I liked it — its energy, its vibe, and realized that the game now had a far deeper meaning that the younger me could ever piece together. The original hip-hop, funk and electronic synths —characters in their own right— played supporting role to my avatar, Cube, who cut through a Toyko-to basketball court tagging walls, a police state closing in on her.

Thoughts of data privacy, encryption technology, and artificial intelligence policing came to mind as I watched that deadly force unleashed on my protesting, spray-painting avatar ass. Developed in 1999, I also felt an influence of the pirate music sharing application Napster in my play through; in the JSR logo; in its ethos. I thought about intellectual property laws and how they are designed to re-appropriate property and wealth mostly for corporate entities. Entities like [Rokkaku Group].

I think Jet Set Radio can mean many things to anyone. I think that is one driver of its captivating nature.

Screenshot from Jet Set Radio Multiplayer

Others had taken an interest in Jet Set Radio, too. This led me to Jet Set Radio Future Multiplayer. JSRFMP is a fan-made game that takes Jet Set Radio Future, an original Xbox title and sequel to Jet Set Radio, and turns it into an online multiplayer, free-to-play extreme sport. The game’s character art is respectfully —how should I put this— pirated appropriately in the Jet Set Radio way from the Xbox title.

Before Bomb Rush Cyberfunk, there was 2018's Jet Set Radio Future Multiplayer. And while the game's server is no longer online, the game is still playable today single-player. JSRFMP has a custom soundtrack, and it features music artist 2Mello’s unmistakable sounds. There is fan-made graffiti art, and the game has more to offer than one might expect from a solo venture. There are a number of original characters to play, and expressive anti-fascist dance moves to unleash.

I ended up exchanging a few Discord messages with the solo developer, who goes by the name of screenracer. This is that interview, conducted over Discord messages in the Summer of ‘21.

Screenshot from Jet Set Radio Multiplayer

DCJY: When did you first dive into Jet Set Radio and why? Did you play the original back in the Dreamcast era?

screenracer: I played Future way back when the original Xbox came out. I was really young, and all I really remember was really liking 99th Street and I would always get my dad to complete the game up until 99th Street so I could just roam around since I wasn’t very good at games back then. I remember the game wouldn’t save for me as well, so I’d leave the Xbox on basically all the time haha. I forgot about Jet Set Radio for a while after that, since I was very young around seven or eight.

What got me back into Jet Set Radio was when Jet Set Radio HD came out. I was like, man I remember this game! But when I played it, it was different. I then found out that Future was the sequel. I wasn’t even aware of the Dreamcast version up until that point. So then I got an original Xbox and played Future, and started getting back into the Jet Set Radio series.

The Dreamcast Games We Want Back Online the Most

In the late 1990s, with the bitter taste of the Saturn's commercial flop lingering in their mouth, and the looming presence of a gargantuan new competitor on the scene, the folks at Sega rallied round the idea that they could revive their financial fortunes by getting a new home console onto the market. In that moment, high-stakes decisions needed to be made about the characteristics that would define what came to be known as the Dreamcast. What would the technical architecture of the hardware be? How would developers be brought on board? What direction would the branding take? How comically loud could the operation of the disc drive possibly be?

One concept that Sega firmly hung their hat on was online gameplay. The Dreamcast was to be the first home console to be online out of the box, a distinction which Sega hoped would have punters flooding forth with a much-needed cash injection into the company's coffers. Online gameplay was a central pillar of the Dreamcast brand, featuring front and centre in the console's marketing campaigns. In the States, Sega called on nu-metal titan Fred Durst to push SegaNet. Here in Europe, a range of tongue-in-cheek adverts were published that played to nationalistic jockeying (think harmless English-French banter, rather than the disintegration of Yugoslavia). Japan didn't miss the memo either, although a big chunk of their marketing eschewed the macho competitive aspect in favour of pushing the Dreamcast's internet capabilities to a female demographic. 

A selection of advertising materials focusing on the Dreamcast's online functionalities,
from left to right: USA, France, Japan.

Of course, during it's official lifetime, the Dreamcast never got close to fulfilling the upper limit of its "up to 6 billion players" tagline. However, Sega did erect a superb online architecture that allowed hundreds of thousands to experience online competitive and cooperative gameplay for the first time. Compared to the lifespan of the official servers of some contemporary games, many titles in the Dreamcast's online library had a damn good innings too. The official PAL and Japanese servers for the OG grandaddy of online RPGs, Phantasy Star Online, were maintained well into 2007, with hundreds of players logging on to say emotional goodbyes in the final couple of days (I'm not crying, you're crying). Others lasted even longer. The official servers for Starlancer, hosted by GameSpy, held on all the way to 2014, although we cannot be sure whether that was a deliberate stay of execution or some admins simply forgetting that the things still existed.

Source for dates: Online Consoles (dreamcast.onlineconsoles.com); DreamCast Online Gaming (dcog.netfirms.com, available via Wayback Machine); dreamcastlive.net; Sega press releases; sleuthing around old forums; and a smidge of informed guesswork.

However, regardless of the staying power of some, eventually every single online Dreamcast game had its official servers switched off. Luckily for us though, the scene has persistently had a cohort of skilled and generous technicians working in the shadows to revive these online functions through unofficial measures (shout out to the likes of bluecrab, Flyinghead, ioncannon, petter3k, and Shuouma). More recently, they have even been bolstered by developers bringing brand new titles online, such as the indie smash-hit Driving Strikers, or freely distributed homebrew projects like ClassiCube, NuQuake and even Counter Strike. 

'There's an interesting story behind this Dreamcast game. In 1999 I remember it was. I got up in the morning and made myself a piece of toast. I set the toaster to three - medium brown...'

Alas, despite all this wizardry, there are still 64 games with online functions which have not been used since the day their official servers closed, 55 of which had fully fledged online multiplayer modes. Some of these titles, such as Unreal Tournament, are highly recognised and the status of their online multiplayer modes are asked after time and time again. Yet, I would contend that there are others which are actually worthy of more attention, and that is exactly what I hope to achieve with this article. So, with the customary rambling introduction over, let's get into it. Here are the Dreamcast games whose online revival I am anticipating the most...

Farnation: Gameplay Footage Surfaces of Unreleased SEGA Dreamcast MMORPG!

Credit: fuperslizzle

"Farnation" is a name that is probably more familiar to the most diehard of SEGA Dreamcast fans. The game's existence was first revealed in August 2000 by GameSpot. The site's staff would then go on to be shown the game in private at the end of the same year, and were impressed by the amount of gameplay mechanics that were shown off, along with the visuals. Confirmed to be an online-based massively multiplayer role-playing game (MMORPG) that was to serve as SEGA’s answer to EverQuest, the game's development was eventually confirmed to have been shifted from the Dreamcast to another console in 2001 (with sources within the industry believing the new console in question to be the Xbox). For a great summary of all information known about the game, I highly recommend checking out this Reddit thread by Useitorloseit2.

A whole 23 years later, footage has finally surfaced of this long-lost MMO, courtesy of a Reddit user called "fuperslizzle". About four months ago, they posted a photo of the title screen, which you can see above. When asked for more, they replied with "I'll be blowing your collective minds shortly with actual video." Today fuperslizzle has released not one, but two videos of Farnation; one showing off the gameplay, and the other showing off an in-game menu that displays all the different textures available for use in the game.

Credit: OG_JoeCain (YouTube)

In a Reddit post that was posted early this morning (UK time), fuperslizzle explains that the footage "is from a legit disc belonging to a friend of [theirs] who worked at Sega during the time Farnation was in development." They finally sign off their post with the words "rest assured, more is coming!" You can see both of the gameplay videos below.

Update: a third video has been uploaded, this time showcasing some character movement and exploration.

Well there you have it. We've finally got to see a taste of what those GameSpot employees got to see all those years ago. Maybe one day we can get our mitts on the game’s disc image to play for ourselves. What do you think of the footage shown off? Let us know in the comments below, or via one of our many social media pages.

(April Fool) Online Multiplayer discovered in Spirit of Speed 1937!

Incredibly, the most infamous racing title on the Dreamcast, Spirit of Speed 1937 - the Dark Souls of racing games itself - had online multiplayer all along, and we had no idea.

As many of you know, I have previously spoken to the original Broadsword development team on numerous occasions, including a lengthy interview featured in the excellent Dreamcast: Year Two book released last year. Recent discussions have revealed that online multiplayer not only existed in the Japanese version of the game, but it’s now back online thanks to recent efforts.

The online mode was added after the official European and American releases and is only available in the Japanese version of the game, according to the original Broadsword development team:

“We wanted to add online multiplayer into the original release, but the deadline dates for launch prevented us from ironing out a few network bugs. With the Japanese version releasing 9 months later, it gave us the opportunity to do more testing. Ultimately we still decided against officially releasing it just before the Japanese disc went gold, but left the netcode there hidden away. If servers had existed, it would’ve worked online, but they never did.”

That is, until now!

Since this revelation, we connected the original developers to Dreamcast network development expert Luke "Kazade" Benstead, who has helped them re-create the server to restore the online functionality.

The hidden network mode can be accessed on any Japanese copy of the game. On the “Press Start” screen, simply press and hold Y, X, A before hitting the start button and you’ll be taken to the hidden menu allowing network play to be started.

We’ve only tried a few online matches so far, but they’ve all worked great. The online Dreamcast community is constantly growing with new titles being resurrected every year - this is certainly one we were not expecting. Are you excited to hit the Spirit of Speed 1937 courses online? Let us know in the comments below…

April fools!!!

Minecraft-Clone "ClassiCube" now available for Dreamcast - supports Online Play

Do you know Minecraft? No? Have you been living under a block? Joking aside, if you seriously don't know what Minecraft is, then it is a game where you jump around swinging a pickaxe at all different types of blocks to build or destroy whatever your heart desires. It's like Lego with minerals... or something.

The reason I'm referencing a game that is hugely popular with people too young to know that the creators of Sonic once made video game consoles, is because today I was made aware that ClassiCube, a free, open-source clone of Minecraft, has hit the Dreamcast, and it supports online play! 

Screenshot from the PC version of ClassiCube.

This Dreamcast port of ClassiCube is currently only in the early alpha stages, which means it is likely to crash/freeze or have issues with performance, but as a proof of concept, it really is an exciting project. Click here to download the .cdi file for it, and if you want to try getting it online, I recommend checking out the video below.

Also check out The Sega Guru's video, which includes an interview with the developers. 

Believe it or not, we actually saw another homebrew Minecraft project for the Dreamcast back in 2017 called "Crafti". Tom wrote about that here.

Are you going to give ClassiCube a go? Do you think this is an exciting project? Let us know in the comments below, or via our social media channels?

Driving Strikers Review - The First New Online Dreamcast Game in 20 Years

With Driving Strikers, LD-2K and Reality Jump have taken Sega’s iconic “why don’t we play together?” slogan to heart, producing the first online multiplayer Dreamcast game since 2002. Whatever your assessment of the gameplay itself may be, this is a monumental achievement - probably about as significant a leap as we are likely to see within our niche community. Commercial indie releases have been hitting the shelves for two decades now, and although there have been some phenomenal entries made to the Dreamcast’s library during that time, no one had mustered the courage to tackle what is probably the keystone of the console’s identity; online play. That is, until recently.

Luke Benstead and David Reichelt, the former of which invented the popular DreamPi method for connecting your Dreamcast to the internet, have been plugging away at the development of Driving Strikers, a fast-paced ‘car football’ game, for several years now (Rocket League? Never heard of it, mate). The duo, assisted by a handful of others, and with WAVE Game Studios on board as publisher, finalised the game back in June and physical copies have recently begun landing on doormats. Regular scene-watchers may already be familiar with the fundamental concept and overall design given that several demos have been dropped during the game’s developmental lifespan. For those that are still uninitiated though, it’s really quite simple: you take control of a car in a football match, and are tasked with scoring more goals than your opponents within rounds of a few minutes at time. You drive. You strike. It’s all in the name! Well actually, you can boost and jump too, but Boosted-Jumping-Driving Strikers would’ve been a bit of a mouthful.

All screenshots provided by Luke Benstead.

Those who have played the demos will immediately notice that the final commercial release of Driving Strikers is significantly expanded and improved upon when compared to those earlier builds. The most important change is undoubtedly in the handling of the cars, which are directed via your analog stick or D-pad. To be honest, in the demos I found controlling my vehicle to be virtually impossible, resulting in a chaotic experience replete with own goals that would make Frank Sinclair blush. In the final product though, the cars are much more manoeuvrable, allowing for more clearly defined defensive and attacking plays which are greatly rewarding when they pay off - especially so when you can rub it in the face of a human opponent. Matches are still quite hectic in nature, but now to a degree that suits, and while the gameplay is intuitive enough for total beginners it also has space for the development of skill from practice.

The arenas available to players, four regular and two unlockable, are diverse in their design, ranging from a serene beach (which looks more Seychelles than Skegness) to a dingy cobblestone castle. The distinct earworm-laden music that accompanies each stage is a particular highlight, with the Christmas stage track acting like a homage to the classic Dubstep Santa. If the stadia had differed a little more in their shape and terrain, and if the teams you choose from had material differences in their operation (speed, boost, strength etc.), then that may have helped spice things up a little more, but understandably for a game like this, boundaries need to be kept manageable.

The ‘league’ mode featured in the commercial release definitely adds a little longevity to the game (and must be traversed if you want to unlock one of the arenas) but fundamentally Driving Strikers is all about multiplayer - whether that be in person or online. What can at times be a bit of a dull experience when played solo becomes infinitely more fun when the competitive human connection is thrown in. If you are blessed enough to be able to call on four friends to cram round a screen, then Driving Strikers will easily give you the same vibes as local multiplayer classics of old. 

Best game ever. No bias, or anything.

Of course, if your Dreamcast is connected to the internet, then playing online is a must. However, as much of a watershed achievement as this feature is, it does come with some caveats. When it runs smoothly, the online multiplayer experience is fantastic, and you’ll find yourself happily burning through half a dozen rounds before you need to take a breather. Unfortunately though, the lag experienced by DreamPi users can disrupt things, and it seems to be a bit of a lottery as to whether you have no lag, a noticeable yet serviceable level, or a big fat dose. LD-2K and WAVE do acknowledge this, recommending in the manual that hosts should be using a Broadband Adapter wherever possible. The times I have played with a BBA have certainly been noticeably better, but the reality is that this peripheral remains expensive and far less widely used than the DreamPi. Aside from the lag, the game’s online mode does have other occasional hiccups too, whether that be freezing (requiring a console reset) or potential difficulties with the login screen.

No doubt some folks may feel a little aggrieved by these issues, which is understandable. After all, everyone is entitled to an opinion, especially so when the exchange of hard-earned money is involved. However, I personally feel that a more rounded perspective is warranted, and can be arrived at if we account for a couple of contextual factors. Firstly, lag and other snafus aren’t unknowns in the realm of playing your Dreamcast online. Those of us who play regularly will all have had jittery slideshow-like rounds of Mobile Suit Gundam, sessions of DeeDee Planet that desync, or pulled our hair out as a match of Worms World Party fails to start for the third time in a row. Secondly, Luke and David are the first to attempt the feat of getting an indie release online, without being able to follow pre-existing guidelines or rely on the support of a large well-resourced team.

What has been delivered is a meticulously thought out online architecture, compatible with all current Dreamcast internet connection methods and featuring cross-platform functionality with the PC. Granted, there are flaws, but in my view at least, they are forgivable. And, as the online code will be publicly shared, the door for other future online indie titles has finally been smashed open. Given that the battering-ram used for this progress is a vibrant, well-designed, and fun little game leaves me feeling that the £20 I forked over was well spent. The finishing touches such as multiple language options, in-game VMU icons, and a plentiful options menu (that aren’t always present on DC indie releases) only reinforce this perspective.

The three styles of physical copy available from WAVE on release - from Mike's A to Z account!

Here’s hoping that LD-2K return in the future with another online outing for our beloved little white box - after a well earned break of course. In the meantime, check the Dreamcast Live and Sega Online schedules to join us for some rounds of Driving Strikers.

Driving Strikers is available now in physical or digital format from WAVE Game Studios.

Have you played Driving Strikers yet? If so, have you had the chance to enjoy playing it online? Let us know in the comments below or via our various social media channels!

Driving Strikers: The First Online Dreamcast Game in 20 Years Is Up for Pre-order!

The Sega Dreamcast is alive and well, my friends, and today's announcement not only solidifies that fact, but also marries together two of the most unstoppable forces of the Dreamcast's modern day indie scene: new software and online play. Upon its release next month on July 24th, Driving Strikers will be the first Dreamcast game release to support online multiplayer in 20 years.

Developed by Reality Jump (a team made up of Luke Benstead and Dave Reichelt), Driving Strikers is a 3D action-sports game where up to four players zoom around an arena in cars playing a giant game of football. The gameplay has obviously drawn comparisons to Rocket league, although the perspective is top-down rather than following your car from behind. Also Rocket League can't go online on the Dreamcast, so sucks to be that game. 

Anyhow, considering Luke developed DreamPi, a popular means to get your Dreamcast online, it was only natural that one of the games he'd eventually go onto develop would include online play. You will be able to enjoy Driving Strikers' gameplay in person or over the internet with full modem and broadband adapter compatibility. It also supports cross-play between Dreamcast, Windows, and even Linux!

Blue skies... definitely Dreamcast.

Wave Game Studios are in charge of Driving Strikers’ physical release, and as we've always said here at the Junkyard, their quality is consistent and can be trusted. Now up for pre-order, the release is available in three styles, all indicative of official Dreamcast box styles: European blue, American white and Japanese orange. A cool addition from Wave on the game’s artwork is the "online gaming" banner and "online multiplayer" oval as seen on original European and American Dreamcast releases, respectively. 

For a limited time, the game is being sold for an early-bird price of £19.99 (full price £29.99), so go grab it at this cut price while you still can from the Wave Game Studios store! There is also a digital version available for those who are rocking an ODE like GDEMU in their Dreamcast.

If you're interested in learning more about Driving Strikers' development, give our interview with Luke Benstead a read. Also, if you've stumbled upon this article and are asking "What? You can play the Dreamcast online in 2023?", check out Dreamcast Live's connection guide to get started!

Are you excited for Driving Strikers? Will you be playing it online when it's released? Let us know in the comments below or via one of our many social media channels.