We've featured every episode of Pcwzrd13's The Games That Never Were here at the Junkyard, and this weekend saw the release of the long-awaited fifth instalment. The series (as you'd expect from the name) takes a look at Dreamcast games that were teased but never found their way onto the system with a full release.
Episode 5 continues the trend, and investigates some pretty intriguing cancelled games. This time the series casts an eye over such gems as Promethian Designs' Picassio, PC favourite Outcast, Quark from Quantic Dreams, Dee Dee Planet from Dori Dock and Spiral Nightmare from Sega.
Thanks again to Pcwzrd13 for putting this awesome series together and offering us yet another glimpse of some titles that could have made the Dreamcast's library even more impressive than it already is. You can read more about the series (and watch the other episodes) here and here.
Are you looking for a regular Dreamcast YouTube show full of news, interviews and guest appearances? Well you're in luck, because Good Dreamcastic Morning has debuted. Check out the pilot episode from pcwzrd13 below and look out for a special guest appearance from yours truly!
Hopefully I didn't make too much of an idiot of myself in that little section - the rest of the show is full of interesting information (I didn't know you could eat the food in Dynamite Cop, for instance!), and we look forward to seeing where this series goes. The Dreamcast community is apparently expanding in 2015 (see our previous post) and all these new Dreamcast owners will undoubtedly be subscribing in their millions. Or billions. 6 billion in fact.
YouTube channel Did You Know Gaming? offers a wealth of information on topics from across the gaming board, and I for one regularly check their uploads for interesting and often little-known facts about various software and hardware releases. We recently shared the Dreamcast video they published, but Did You Know Gaming? have since delved back into the world of Sega's magic white box by investigating one of the system's most infamous titles - Sonic Adventure.
Many of you reading this will no doubt be all too familiar with Sonic Adventure (it was one of the first games many early adopters experienced - including me), but as this video shows there are still things to learn. Prior to watching it, I had never heard of the Sonic Adventure AutoDemo mentioned in reference to the Casino 'cow girl' billboard, and a quick Google search later opened up a whole new world of wonder to me.
The AutoDemo was an early rolling demo of Sonic Adventure (dating from October 1998) that was used to show off the game's engine - it basically shows a load of cut scenes using in-game assets. Turns out a group of Sonic Retro forum members (headed by a user named 'Orengefox') managed to hack the game though, and released a whole load of previously unseen development assets and pre-alpha levels. It's a fascinating story and you can read all about it here and here. While I was aware of the recent Windy Valley discovery, I was previously ignorant to how deep this particular rabbit (echidna?) hole went...
YouTuber and friend of the Junkyard pcwzrd13 has come up with the goods yet again by posting episode 4 of the popular series The Games That Never Were - a look at some of the titles that were tantalisingly promised for our favourite beige, whirring and wheezing box...but for whatever reason were drop-kicked into the nearest bin. And then spat on by a tramp. Probably.
This latest instalment features such agonisingly-canned games as Castlevania Resurrection, D-Jump, Galleon and, Redline Arena. Before you ask - yes, that is an Oxford comma. Whether it's usage is warranted or correct here bothers me not one iota, however. I digress.
This video is particularly interesting as we plan to discuss some of the more promising cancelled Dreamcast games in episode two of DreamPod. Stay tuned for more information on that...but first, enjoy pcwzrd13's awesome (and thought-provoking) video:
As ever, please be sure to check out Dreamcastic Channel for the previous entries in the Games That Never Were series and expand your burgeoning knowledge of the alternative universe that is hinted at every time you are on the cusp of falling asleep. Lastly, it is (with gratitude) down to the video's auteur that I'm able to experience one of the games featured. Bet you can't guess what it is...
We're big fans of the search for unreleased and leaked beta software here at the Junkyard, and in the past we've featured plenty of material focusing on the games that were rumoured yet never saw the light of day. There are a few games that we doubt we'll ever get to see running, let alone get the chance to play - Colin McRae Rally 2.0 is one - but as the recent discovery and release of Toejam & Earl 3 shows, sometimes miracles do happen.
It seems we're not the only ones with a fascination of the subject of unreleased games though, as YouTuber and friend of the DCJY pcwzrd13 has created a series of interesting videos detailing some of the lesser (and more well-known) games that were promised, but for whatever reason never made it to shop shelves. Here are episodes 1-3 for your enjoyment...
Pen Pen TriIcelon is a divisive game if ever there was one. The blend of colourful graphics, quirky controls and sickly sweet character designs is something of an acquired taste...but if you're anything like me, it's this weirdness that actually makes it all the more endearing. Pen Pen was actually one of the first games I played on the Dreamcast back in 1999; I have vivid memories of renting it from Blockbuster, and also of my brother loudly enquiring "what's this shit?" as he swaggered into the room with ridiculous bleach-blond Nick Carter hair, while I sat there frantically bashing (heh) the A button to make my penguin-esque mutant swim faster through the acid-trip water of a post-apocalyptic candy-land nightmare. Sorry, slipped into a Galadriel-type daydream/monologue there.
Just an average Saturday night in the Pen Pen house
In case you can't tell, I quite like Pen Pen (although the shockingly offensive design of Unga Pogo, the Jungle boss does sour the experience mildly) and going back to it with 2015-flavoured eyes hasn't really taken the polish off the visuals or the highly surreal content; indeed, I'm happy to admit that I own both PAL and NTSC versions of the game. It seems that popular YouTube conduit Sega Channel agree with me, as they've followed their brilliant Dreamcast Kiosk reveal with another DC-centric video...and here it is for your delectation:
There are some really interesting points in the video (I didn't know that Pen Pen developer General Entertainment was also responsible for the Sonic animated movie, for example), and it's an interesting and humorous look at a game that is largely overlooked whenever anyone mentions the Dreamcast's launch lineup. Sure, there was Ready 2 Rumble, Sega Rally and Sonic Adventure...but did any of those games let you put a top hat on a mutated shark-penguin? The answer my friends, is no.
The worst type of videos on YouTube are those 'featurettes' where talking heads spout crap about stuff they have no real interest or knowledge of. Gaming look-backs are a particular type of video I personally cannot stand - you get these 'trendy' journos talking crap about consoles they'd previously never heard of before the camera started rolling and a script was shoved into their greasy little hands - Worst Consoles of All Time is a favourite subject for these types of 'production.' Ugh.
I'm not going to implicate any particular channels with negative bile here, but the flip side of this dark underbelly (the overback?) is stuff like The Game Theorists and Did You Know Gaming? - great channels that regularly upload well-made and fascinating content; and the latter has just released a new video looking back at our favourite system. A lot of the stuff mentioned is information we've already covered here at the 'Yard over the last decade, but it's a well put together vid and has some interesting revelations about the Dreamcast's name and the connection between Sega's machine and the Microsoft Xbox. Enough from me - here's the vid:
Once you've viewed the video, be sure to head over to DYKG's channel for more interesting productions about your favourite games and systems, and also check out their website. Thanks to Twitter user @MellorsAlex for linking the video to me.
No - keep your hair on - you read that right, M'lud. A renovated Dreamcast retail kiosk in the hands of private games collector and games store owner Jason Brassard has been featured in a great YouTube video by Sega Channel. The video is posted below, and in it Brassard explains how he managed to convince the previous owner to sell the retail kiosk to him, and describes the subsequent processes required to get the unit looking as amazing as it does now. The hulking cabinet features spring-loaded game storage shelving (complete with every US game ever released crammed in), a playable system complete with CRT monitor and pads, and a curved plexiglass display window. The kiosk aside, the rest of the collection on show here is phenomenal and boasts over 10,000 games, consoles and items of memorabilia. But enough banal waffling from me - just hit play and prepare to weep hot, sticky, salty tears of pure jealousy joy:
The store featured in the video, Trade-N-Games also has a website from which they sell some fairly reasonably priced games and consoles. Be sure to check them out (although it doesn't say if they ship worldwide).
