New Indies, Hardware and Mods galore! - Dreamcast News Round-up August 2022

It’s August 2022 and the Dreamcast renaissance shows no signs of petering out. All kinds of talented and creative folks from across the world clearly haven’t had their fill of the little white dream machine just yet, and a plethora of projects continue to be announced left, right and centre. But how are you supposed to keep tabs on this whirlwind of activity? Don’t you worry, the Junkyard is here to report on all the latest from the Dreamcast cosmos. Buckle up for a bumper news round-up freshly sourced from our network of highly informed sleuths.

Move aside 'Dream Information' the DCJY News Round-up is the only game in town now.

Four new indie releases, Jeremy? That’s insane

In the recent past DCJY writers have salivated over the possibility that the indie release schedule of 2022 and 2023 would turn out to be ram packed. Of course, those who are a little longer in the tooth may know that announced indie games sadly don’t always make it through to completion or can fall into cycles of delays, but fortunately this has not been an issue in recent months, with four new titles landing so far this summer.

Shadow Gangs, the hotly anticipated Shinobi-esque side-scrolling beat em’ up, dropped in June. The Dreamcast release was finally made possible by a Kickstarter campaign that met its funding goal in March, after which the developers JKM Corp conspired with Wave Game Studios to rapidly turn out the physical release. Those who want to know more should check-out the publisher’s website, the handful of reviews that have quickly surfaced (The Dreamcast Junkyard, RetroFaith, Games Freezer), or have a gander at the various gameplay videos available on the likes of Youtube and Twitch.

Two further releases quickly followed Shadow Gangs in June. Hailing from sunny Spain, Nape Games made their maiden voyage into Dreamcast territory with the release of Ploid and Renkum Souls Adventure. Both are pitched as action-adventure 2D platformers, each with their own distinctive stories that appear to link-up with worlds that have already been built-up over the course of Nape Games prior releases. Relatively little has been reported on the Dreamcast releases of these two titles so far – perhaps because the initial print-runs were quite limited. The publishers have hinted that a re-print could be on the cards in the future though, so be sure to keep those eyes peeled.

The final new indie release of the summer season, Mawthorne, shares a common thread with the Nape Games duo in that it was also primarily developed for the NES. Where it differs though, aside from being an entirely new IP, is in its simultaneous release on the Dreamcast and the NES. No waiting around here - the Dreamcast bound MIL-CDs shipped out alongside the cartridges in July. Details on this ‘metroidvania platform-adventure’ game can be found over on its Kickstarter page. Fingers crossed a re-print of the Dreamcast version will be coming down the line for those who missed out on the Kickstarter. As with the Nape Games duo, I can’t comment on the quality of this release, as I haven’t got my grubby mits on it, but with a bit of luck reviews will start to surface soon.

More indie releases on the horizon

Of course, there are shedloads of indie releases and re-releases on the horizon too. Read on for a rapid-fire rundown of the forthcoming games: 

• 240p Test Suite – $24.99, due Q3 2022. Developed by Artemio, published by VGNYSoft. “A homebrew software suite for video game consoles developed to help in the evaluation of capture cards, upscalers, upscan converters, line doublers and of course TV processing of 240p video and scaled signals.”
• Andros Dunos II - €34.90, due Q3 2022. Developed by Picorinne soft, published by JoshProd. A new side-scrolling shmup that is an officially licensed sequel to Visco’s 1992 Neo Geo game.  
• Big2Small - $39.99, release date unknown. A cutesy puzzle adventure game, developed and published by RetroRoomGames, due for release on the Game Boy, N64 and Dreamcast. Pre-sales have been live since the end of May.
• Driving Strikers - £???, development due to be finished by Q4 2022. Driving Strikers does what it says on the tin. You drive about in a car striking a ball into goals. Good, old-fashioned, no-nonsense football with cars, just like your ancestors played. Of course, the game will also mark a HUGE milestone upon release as it will be the first indie Dreamcast game to feature online play. The developer Kazade has indicated that he hopes to wrap the game’s development up before the end of 2022 and has also confirmed he intends for a physical product to be produced, although a publisher has not yet been confirmed. Get hyped for full lobbies from day one.  
• Flight of the Amazon Queen - $24.99, due TBA 2022. Developed and published by RetroSurge. This Dreamcast port of a classic point-and-click game has been on the cards for quite some time now. Postponements have occurred in the past, so we wouldn’t be shocked if the game doesn’t reach completion this year. Fingers crossed the details begin to be firmed up soon. 
• Hermes (re-release) - $29.99/$59.99, due Q3 2022. Developed by RetroGuru, published by VGNYSoft. Many will already be familiar with this little jump n’ run game, given that it was originally released on the Dreamcast in 2017. Aside from new box art, this re-release is most notable for the Limited Edition package which features a custom green VMU. 
• Metal Canary - £???, release date unknown. A promising vertical shmup developed by Titan Game Studios and Frost Byte Games, first revealed in June 2021. It seems likely that a playable demo will be made available by year-end. Follow the Metal Canary Twitter account for gameplay footage and development updates. 
• Non-Casual Encounter - £???, due Q4 2022. Developed by SEGASaturno Productions, Non-Casual Encounter will be the first graphic novel indie game to be released on the Dreamcast. The prologue (demo) released in December of last year was well received, despite being very short. 
• Xenocider (re-release) - $39.99, due Q3 2022. Developed by Retro Sumus, published by VGNYSoft. The impressive 3D rail shooter gets a re-release targeted at North American audiences with new box artwork. 

Basically then, there are more forthcoming Dreamcast releases than you will know what to do with. Let me tell you something, the Dreamcast hasn’t even begun to peak. And when it does peak, you'll know. Because it’s gonna peak so hard that everybody in Philadelphia's gonna feel it. 

Mods, hardware and other tinkerings

A slew of announcements about newly invented modifications, improved hardware, and all kinds of other productive tinkerings have been coming in thick and fast this summer. While you’ve been touring Skeggie’s penny arcades and ice-cream vans on your summer hols’, others have clearly been hard at work…

Scrivani has been busy ensuring owners of the elusive Broadband Adapter can get a little more value out of their peripheral. If you have one, get it out of that dusty box and get online!

Following on from his 2021 invention of a method that allowed Broadband Adapter users to notify others of the games they are playing via DreamcastNow, Scrivani has recently produced a guide on how to use a DreamPi (I.E. a Raspberry Pi configured to enable online play via a simulated dial-up connection) as a WiFi to ethernet repeater. In lay terms, this configuration facilitates the use of the Broadband Adapter over WiFi. So, no more trip hazards from an ethernet cable snaking down the stairs to your router. Admittedly the use of this functionality is likely to be limited, but if you are one of the privileged few who make active use of a Broadband Adapter, then you should definitely check it out.

Capcom vs. SNK 2 was notable for allowing cross-platform play by Dreamcast and PS2 players on the KDDI service.

Sticking with the online theme but moving onto ground that may have a wider appeal, at the end of May, Dreamcast Talk user ‘dude22072’ revealed that they had undertaken some serious efforts to reverse engineer the online capabilities of the suite of Dreamcast games which were formerly playable online via the KDDI service in Japan. The KDDI service was what enabled a large chunk of Capcom games - including the likes of Heavy Metal Geomatrix, Marvel vs. Capcom 2, and Spawn: In the Demon’s Hand – to be played online. Given the number of games involved, this is significant progress in terms of the ongoing online revival of the Dreamcast. To be clear, the online functions of these games have not actually been restored yet, and there is no guarantee that they ever will be, but a big step forward has nevertheless been made (serious enough for the online restoration of these games to now be considered work in progress on the Dreamcast Live website).

No 'beeeeeep' sound from a dead battery? How can the VM2 miss this essential feature!?

Those who don’t play their Dreamcast online (sacrilege!), don’t fear, as there is some news that may interest you too. Chris Daioglou has released an update on the progression of the creation of the ‘VM2’, a modernised Visual Memory Unit with a whole host of upgrades, including a rechargeable battery, an improved screen and a MicroSD card slot. A funding campaign for the VM2 is due to launch via Indiegogo on the 1st of September, so you won't need to wait too much longer to part with your hard earned cash. Earlier this month, 8BitMods also publicly stated their intention to produce their own VMU but have kept quiet about precisely what this will entail, given that they are only in their initial stages of development. 

Last but not least

During its tragically short official lifespan, countless games were reported to be in development for the Dreamcast which never actually saw the light of day. Some of the titles that were all but complete, such as Half Life and Propellor Arena are well known, and leaked playable versions have been available for years. However, there are others that remain shrouded in mystery. Thankfully, lately pcwzrd13 has put his detective skills into action, tracking down and speaking with the developers who would have worked on these unreleased Dreamcast games, thereby setting the record straight on what was genuinely in the works and what was simply salacious gossip. He posted an extensive list of initial findings on the Dreamcast-Talk forums in May, including some quotes directly from the developers, and has been updating this on occasion since then. 

The mock-up cover design for Mike Phelan's exhaustively comprehensive forthcoming guide.

Early on in August, the Junkyard’s own Mike Phelan announced he had finally reached a cut-off point for his forthcoming tome ‘The A-Z of Dreamcast Games’, confirming that the tally of games which it will cover is a whopping 703. Hopefully this means we can stop lusting over the photos of the mock-up edition and have the real deal in our hands before the year is out. Furthermore, thanks to the selfless efforts of those who continue to reliably pump out translations – such as Cool Cool Toon which a team including Derek Pascarella has recently begun work on – a growing chunk of the Japan exclusive titles covered by the book are playable by English-language audiences. 

So, that’s all for now folks. New indie releases, revived online games on the horizon, beefed-up VMUs, translations, and hefty books with as many pages as an old school Argos catalogue. What more could you want?

OK, OK, one last snippet of news, if you must insist. If you’d like to meet the Junkyard’s very-own Lewis and Tom, in person, then make sure you head to the Nottingham Video Games Expo on the 17th and 18th of December. Autographed headshots will be available but please be sure to form an orderly queue.

Paprium, Tunnels, Intrepid Izzy, Nakoruru, Shadow Gangs, SEGA Powered - Dreamcast news round-up November 2021

Oh hi there. It's been a bit of a busy few weeks hasn't it? The petrol thing seems to be over (for now) but that hasn't stopped all manner of interesting things occuring in the world of Dreamcast...and as you'll no doubt be able to tell from the title of this post, I thought it would be convenient to simply put all of these news snippets together into one post here at the Junkyard, so here it is. A bit like that infoburst you used to get at the end of Bad Influence, but in text form. Bad Influence? No? Never mind. So what's been cracking then? Quite a bit actually...

Oh 'eck, Paprium is coming to Dreamcast!

Yes, everyone's favourite 16-bit Kickstarted ode to Streets of Rage, Paprium, is now coming to Dreamcast thanks to a new stretch goal reached as part of the 'next gen' campaign. Developed by Dreamcast stalwarts Watermelon, Paprium was released for the Mega Drive / Genesis back in 2020 to much critical acclaim and an equal amount of backlash for various reasons I won't delve into here. As a side note, I always thought it a bit odd that there was no Dreamcast version as part of the original campaign, synonymous with the console as Watermelon is after the success of Pier Solar. 

That puzzlement has now been put to bed though, with the Dreamcast being lovingly included as a stretch goal in the latest resurrection of the original Kickstarter campaign to bring the game to...er...modern consoles. The Dreamcast version will apparently be a little unique according to the blurb on the campaign page, which is never a bad thing:

NEW ADD-ON! PAPRIUM is also coming to the SEGA Dreamcast! 6 years after Pier Solar HD, this is to be the second Dreamcast Release by WM! This version of the game is different, in-between the 16-BIT release and the STEAM/PS4/5 release, it boast some exclusive things and take full advantage of the Dreamcast features such as VMU and a 3 player mode without the need for a multitap (of course)! Please note the game is in 4/3 ratio (just like the 16-BIT edition of the game). 

- Paprium Kickstarter

Will Watermelon shit the bed once again with this new release? I really do hope so - we all love a bit of drama. And since I've backed the Dreamcast version, it'll give me something to moan about when it inevitably ships late or gets cancelled. Anyway, check out the Kickstarter campaign here, and get ready to pap. Not even sure what that means. Onwards!

DreamPi creator Luke Benstead is digging Tunnels!

Not actual tunnels, you understand. But I'm sure Luke (aka Kazade) and his development partner David Reichelt are at least as handy with a shovel or a JCB as they are with a Dreamcast. What am I blathering about? You may recall we recently featured news about Simulant, a game engine created with Dreamcast indie development as its raison d'être. As a timely Halloween treat, Luke and David have released a promising Simulant-based demo titled Tunnels which sees players traverse a network of dingy caverns (or, um, tunnels) brandishing what looks like Gordon Freeman's property for protection. Here's a video:

Tunnels is fully playable on stock Dreamcast hardware and it looks like a promising little demo considering how quickly it was put together. From the Simulant development blog: 

Tunnels is a mini-demo of the Simulant engine. It's been written over the past three weeks as a demonstration of what Simulant allows you to do in very little time. Both Luke and David have day jobs, and this has been developed in their spare time - probably an hour a day each at most - and a good majority of that time was spent improving Simulant itself!

Along the way flaws were discovered in Simulant and many were fixed, others will be fixed later. Some planned features were dropped due to limited time, but may reappear at some point. In the future we'll use Tunnels as a test bed for new Simulant features, and as a regression test.

- Simulant Dev Blog

You can grab the demo from the Tunnels itch.io page here and follow the development of Simulant on the blog. Oh, and listen to DreamPod episode 80 if you want to know more about Simulant and the history of the engine.

Intrepid Izzy: Special Edition is now available to order!

We now turn our attention to another Kickstarter-funded title - Intrepid Izzy from Senile Team. If you missed our review of the exquisite platform-cum-beat 'em up, be sure to check it out here. In short, Lewis thought it was a stellar addition to the Dreamcast's stable of indie titles, and easily one of the best to hit the console, even going as far as to label Izzy as "The King (or Queen?) of Dreamcast indie platformers" - they even put that quote on the back of the box for good measure!

The good (better?) news is that a Special Edition of Intrepid Izzy is now available to pre-order from WAVE Game Studios, and comes with a soundtrack CD and a choice of region (PAL, NTSC-U, NTSC-J) packaging styles. 

The initial print run of 750 units [of Intrepid Izzy] sold out almost immediately, prompting a reprint just 28 days after release. The fastest known for an independently released Dreamcast title.

In response to considerable demand for both the game and the music featured therein, WAVE announced that a limited run two-disc Special Edition will be released on November 20, 2021. This version includes an audio CD with the full official soundtrack, and is available in European, North American, and Japanese cover art variants.

- WAVE Game Studios

The fastest selling out indie Dreamcast game, eh? Who knew? Not I. Did you? You do now! Intrepid Izzy: Special Edition launches 20 November 2021. Head over to the WAVE Game Studios website to pre-order it for £34.99. There's also a cool vinyl figure available too, if that's your bag. Actually, buy two and make them fight; with the loser being burned with a magnifying glass.

A new Dreamcast fan translation project - Nakoruru!

Some say he can translate a Japanese Dreamcast game manual without even reading it. Others say he can detect an obscure NTSC-J dating sim hidden at the back of a retro game store from a distance of 40 miles. All we know, is his name is Derek Pascarella. And if you've never seen Top Gear, that reference will go right over your head. If you've been following the Dreamcast fan translation scene for any amount of time, you'll be familiar with the work of Mr Pascarella, who has previously worked on English translations of Dreamcast titles such as Sakura Wars Columns 2 and Neon Genesis Evangelion Typing Project Advanced.

Now he's back with another translation project, Nakoruru: The Gift She Gave Me, which is a visual novel title set in the Samurai Shodown universe. This isn't actually new news per se, with both MegaVisions and SegaXtreme sharing the original Dreamcast Talk thread back in August 2021. What is new news though, is that our very own Lewis Cox has joined the Nakoruru team as an English language editor, and for this reason alone I wanted to refresh some mention of this intriguing translation project. If you'd like to know more about Derek's past translation efforts, check out DreamPod episode 93 here.

Those pesky Shadow Gangs are kicking bountiful handfuls of ass on Dreamcast!

Oh Shadow Gangs, where for art though Shadow Gangs? Shall I compare thee to a 1990s Sega arcade game featuring a ninja that was then ported to home consoles? So wrote Chaucer, rather anachronistically, back in the mid 1970s after a particularly heavy session on the old crack pipe. Which is quite fitting, seeing as Shadow Gangs is a 1980s themed/inspired side scrolling beat 'em up that people have likened to Shinobi. I haven't played Shadow Gangs myself, but I do recall it being mooted to be heading to the Dreamcast at least as far back as 2016 - possibly even earlier (thanks Dreamcast Today - I knew I hadn't imagined that). The game was released on Steam and other consoles in the fairly recent past however - to generally positive reviews - and now a video has surfaced of a port running on the creaking old Dreamcast. Here you go:

Looks like a fairly accurate rendition to me, and it seems pretty much identical to the video on the Steam page. It appears that another Kickstarter to get Shadow Gangs fully up and running on Dreamcast is on the cards, and we'll no doubt share the news once that project is launched.

SEGA Powered brings SEGA Power back from the dead, with the (unofficial) Power of Sega!

Not exclusively Dreamcast related this one, but I just needed an excuse to type that subheading. Back when I was a wee lad, SEGA Power was one of a number of physical mags I would regularly purchase, and so it was a bit of a no brainer that I would back one-time editor Dean Mortlock's love letter to such an iconic tome. Dean is assisted by Niel Randall (DC-UK), Paul Monaghan (Maximum Power Up) and Marc Jowett (SegaMags), so the knowledge and pedigree is assured. 

The teaser issue of SEGA Powered looks like it will hit all the right marks for fans of the magazines of yesteryear, and I for one will be intrigued to see what kind of Dreamcast-related content is included. Check out the Kickstarter campaign and bag a copy of the mag here. Update - the Kickstarter for SEGA Powered has now ended but I am reliably informed that a website for the magazine will be launched so you can buy a copy/subscription even if you missed the campaign.

There's plenty of other Dreamcast related stuff going on around the internet but I thought I would leave it there for the sake of brevity. Oh, and I got a bit sick of typing the word 'Kickstarter,' but I digress. Be sure to check out all of the other wonderful Dreamcast news repositories dotted around the information superhighway for even more interesting little projects bubbling happily away.

We plan to do these round-ups more regularly from now on as it's just a bit more concise than having multiple posts about stuff, so if there's anything you spot that you think we should include in future news posts, let us know in the comments. Cheers!

Retrospective: Stunt GP

Way back in the mists of time, I took a look at the various radio controlled car racing titles on the Dreamcast. It may surprise you that there are no less than three different games featuring such toy vehicles battling for supremacy on miniature circuits in the Dreamcast's library; with Toy Racer and ReVolt complementing Stunt GP in the virtual toy box. This time though, I'm turning my attention squarely on Stunt GP, as it is a game I am very fond of and which doesn't really get a lot of time in the limelight. That's about to change though, as we navigate the plastic highways and byways of Team17's often overlooked foray into the international sport of bashing radio controlled vehicles around a deserted car park.

Released exclusively in PAL territories, Stunt GP joins titles like Giant Killers and Headhunter on the list of games that were never officially released in the rest of the world, and as such I wonder just how many people even know the game had ever seen a Dreamcast release. Stunt GP did receive a PC release and a later PlayStation 2 port, but the Dreamcast game is something of an oddity especially when you consider that Team17 released its other Dreamcast titles worldwide. 

Of course, the Wakefield-based developer is better known for its Worms franchise on Sega's little white box; with Worms World Party still being regularly played online via the magic of DreamPi. It's also worth noting that while Team17 developed Stunt GP, the game was published by Eon Digital Entertainment. Doing a bit of Googling, it appears that Stunt GP was due to be published worldwide by Hasbro but for some reason the deal fell through and Eon stepped in. I'd love to know more about why an NTSC release never happened, and who knows - maybe somebody reading this can shed some light on that particular mystery.

Either way, coupled with the lukewarm reception for the more widely-known PlayStation 2 variant, this PAL exclusivity is potentially the biggest reason for Stunt GP's relative lack of visibility on the Dreamcast. To my eyes, this is a great shame because - in my humble opinion - Stunt GP is actually one of the most enjoyable 'kart' style racers on the system.

The Dreamcast Junkyard's choicest cuts and hottest takes of 2020

OK so I basically nicked this idea from Eurogamer, but I thought it would be good to do a sort of festive wrap up (geddit?) of our most interesting posts, podcast episodes and YouTube videos from the past 12 months. 2020 has been a disgusting year for reasons you really don't need me to spell out here, and for me personally one of great loss, but having this place to spew my creativity out onto has been a huge help when things haven't been so positive.

I'm sure I'm not alone in that sentiment either, as everyone here at the Junkyard has experienced ups and downs throughout 2020, as I'm sure you have dear reader. At this point I must admit to having forgotten about all the minor hits we scored here at the Junkyard throughout the year, and just how much cool stuff happened within the wider Dreamcast community. From new game releases, to unreleased games being discovered, and all the stuff that went in between. Anyway, cast your eyes below to find links and summaries to some of our choicest cuts from the last 12 months...

Articles

• The Dreamcast games of 2020 - we kicked things off with a look at the plentiful bounty of new titles heading to Sega's final console during 2020. Some of them materialised, some of them have slipped to 2021...but that just means we can rehash this in a few weeks time!
• Fun with Dreamcast Flags - Mike goes all Sheldon Cooper, and takes a look at the ways real world flags are treated when transplanted into Dreamcast games. It's an excellently researched article written with real humour and is actually quite educational.
• Using Google Translate to play NTSC-J games - this was more of an exercise in trying to find something to entertain myself with during a period of intense boredom. Using the Google Translate phone app to play Japanese Dreamcast games. Yep, hard hitting stuff!
• The Mystery of Real Racer IX - Lewis went on a fascinating deep dive trying to uncover the origins of the mysterious Real Racer IX, a game that was shown in a solitary photograph taken at the Tokyo Game Show in 2001. Never heard of Real Racer IX? I suggest you read this excellent article.

• Dreamcast: Year One - we finally took delivery of Andrew Dickinson's Dreamcast: Year One, a book successfully funded on Kickstarter. Featuring retrospective reviews, a breakdown of the Dreamcast's history and interviews with such industry titans as Bernie Stolar, it was worth the wait.
• Dreamcast racers that didn't make the podium - the Dreamcast plays host to some stellar racers, but what about the also-rans? James took a look at some of the Dreamcast's best 'tier 2' racing games in this superb article.
• Heroes of Might & Magic III - earlier in 2020 a playable build of Heroes of Might & Magic III for Dreamcast was finally released from it's prison in the hands of a private collector, thanks to a community fundraiser. Follow up article here. 
• This is a Dreamcast Disc - Tom embarked on another wild goose chase trying to discover the identity of the actor who utters the immortal words you hear when you place a PAL game disc into a stereo. This is part one, with part two to (hopefully) come in 2021.

• All the times a Toyota Celica appeared in a Dreamcast game - believe it or not, the Toyota Celica appears in quite a few Dreamcast games. Tom only realised this after getting one in real life. Here is the fruit of his utterly pointless labour.
• Dreamcast Printer discovered - yes, you realised this was an April Fools...but for a brief period, James' prank bamboozled at least a few of you. Here we look at the 'lost' printer prototype that would have theoretically allowed you to print off your Dreamarena emails and documents stored on a Zip disc.
• Dreamcast Collectors Unite! - a multi-post endeavour from Mike looking at the wondrous and magical Dreamcast items held in the collections of community members. There's some really cool stuff here, be sure to check out part 2, part 3 and part 4 too!
• Punk albums featuring Dreamcast music - Another banger from Mike, during which he takes us on a magical mystery tour of his favourite punk albums which also feature music or samples used in various Dreamcast games. 

• 10 times rappers have referenced the Dreamcast - Lewis dons his massive collection of gold chains and goes for a trip to the shops in his low rider, while simultaneously demonstrating 10 times rappers have referenced Sega's little white box in their slapping tunes.
• EMAP's lost Official Dreamcast Magazine - Andrew delves between the hypothetical pages of the pitched but never produced Official Dreamcast Magazine that was shown to Sega by EMAP. Dennis Publishing famously won the battle to provide the UK's Official Dreamcast Magazine, but this interview with Dave Kelsall of the production team is a fascinating look at what could have been.
• A Dreamcast launch retrospectacle - Brian took a look at all of the Dreamcast's US launch titles in this superb listicle, eventually distilling the list down to reveal his favourite of the bunch.
• The musical excellence of Rez - Martin looks into the audio splendour of Rez, one of the Dreamcast's most iconic yet unusual titles. The music and the visuals combine to create a truly out of this world experience, and this article explores this relationship.

• Atomiswave games come to Dreamcast - anyone who spends enough time wrapped up in the online Dreamcast community will have heard that recent developments have allowed the Dreamcast to run Atomiswave arcade games. Here Tom takes a look at the story, with a follow up article on the games themselves here.
• Simpson's Bug Squad discovered - you already know what this is. A lost Simpson's tech demo was discovered on an old Red Lemon Studios dev kit. We take no credit - that all goes to the lovely folks at Dreamcast Talk. It was nice of Eurogamer, VG247, Engadget, Kotaku et al to give us a mention and a link though!
• After the Fall review - a Quake total conversion that had been in development for an inordinate amount of time, After the Fall was finally delivered by Pip Nayler in 2020. Tom grabbed his super shotgun and went in search of alien scum in this review.
• Xenocider preview - originally slated to release in 2020, Retro Sumus' debut Dreamcast title now looks set to release early in 2021. It looks set to become the first heavy hitter of the year, and our review will be coming soon. For now, check out our preview.

• Xeno Crisis review - Bitmap Bureau's excellent top down indie shooter finally hit the Dreamcast in 2020 and Mike was wowed by the quality of the experience, proclaiming it to be one of the best indie games to grace the platform. Read his comprehensive review here!
• Arcade Racing Legends review - Another comprehensive review from Mike, this time looking at the lastest offering from JoshProd - Arcade Racing Legends. Did it live up to the hype or roll into the pits with a flat tire? Check out the review to find out.
• Flea! a new Dreamcast game appears - a bit of a stealth release for the Dreamcast, this. 2020 saw Flea!, a retro-themed platformer come to the Dreamcast. Mike took a look at this charming game.
• An interview with Tom Charnock - yes, an interview with me, about this blog. We're 15 years old this year, so James thought it would be a good idea to ask me about how it all began. Give it a read if you want.

Podcast episodes & YouTube highlights

Did you know we have a podcast? Well, we do! It's called DreamPod and you can find it on all the major podcatchers. Each episode we shoot the breeze on all things Dreamcast related, and quite often veer way off track, and there's always some lighthearted ribbing involved. Unless your name is James Harvey, where the insults are genuine. We've released quite a few episodes in 2020, no doubt thanks to the enthusiasm to the show exhibited by Andrew, coupled with Lewis's undying devotion to editing. Check them out below!

• DreamPod 70 - The return of Tom, the Junkyard Man
• DreamPod 71 - Capcom on the Dreamcast
• DreamPod 72 - A mysterious case of Dreamcast
• Dreampod 73 - Understanding visual novels and wacky collector's editions
• DreamPod 74 - What if the Dreamcast won?
• DreamPod 75 - 5 Years of DreamPod
• DreamPod 76 - Featuring the Saturn Junkyard Titancast crew
• DreamPod 77 - An interview with Headhunter producer Stefan Holmqvist
• DreamPod 78 - Upcoming 2020 hardware and software releases
• DreamPod 79 - Dreamcast Heaven & Hell: Part 1
• DreamPod 80 - Luke Benstead on DreamPi and Simulant
• DreamPod 81 - Dreamcast Heaven & Hell: Part 2
• DreamPod 82 - Another Dreamcast news round-up
• DreamPod Bonus Episode - Dreamcast Mini
• DreamPod 83 - Spooky stories & horrific games Halloween Special
• DreamPod 84 - Left in Japan: Volume 1
• DreamPod 85 - RadioSEGA WinterFest 2020

We also have a YouTube Channel, which was set up in the mists of time by Aaron 'the Gagaman' Foster, but is now curated by James Jarvis. We've posted quite a few videos up there this year, with some selected highlights listed below for your enjoyment!

• YouTube - Retro Fighters Striker DC hands on
• YouTube - What does the mysterious Sega announcement mean?
• YouTube - Typing of the Dead - working from home edition
• YouTube - A look at Nettou Golf
• YouTube - DreamPod 77 premiere and live chat
• YouTube - Arcade Racing Legends livestream
• YouTube - Let's play some Atomiswave games on Dreamcast
• YouTube - Secret Santa Live!

So there we have it. It's not an exhaustive list of content we've put out this year, and if you search the archives you'll find even more content created simply for the love of the game. It's surprising how much we've actually put out in all honesty, and I'd like to thank all of the team here at The Dreamcast Junkyard for their efforts - Mike Phelan, Lewis Cox, Martin Irwin, James Harvey, Andrew Dickinson, Kev Mason, Mark Williams, James Jarvis, Brian Vines; and of course Jon and the rest of the the long-suffering moderation team over in our Facebook group.

Also a huge thanks to all of you who continue to read, listen to and watch what we create here on our little corner of the internet, and engage with us on Twitter. There's more to come in 2021, including some changes to the way we do certain things, so keep an eye out for those. For now though (sorry DreamcastGuy), keep dreaming!

Simulant - a new game engine for Dreamcast

The name Luke Benstead is, by now, synonymous with the world of online Dreamcast gaming. That's because Luke is the man who created the DreamPi and along with DreamPipe and Dreamcast Live, kickstarted the online gaming revolution we now find ourselves in the midst of. Not content with having this impressive credit on his resume, Luke has now launched his next venture - Simulant. Simulant is a general purpose game engine designed to work with Android, Windows, Mac OS, Linux...and Dreamcast.

As Luke explained on a recent episode of our podcast - see DreamPod episode 80 here - Simulant's development actually precedes DreamPi by several years, with work first starting on it back in 2011. As many reading this will no doubt be aware, a game engine is the foundation of a game and is the toolkit developers use to create the interactive experiences we all know and love. In this case, Luke likens Simulant to something like Unity, however unlike Unity, Simulant doesn't have a graphical user interface and instead relies on the developer to use pure code.

Luke explains in his own words:

Simulant is a general-purpose game engine for multiple platforms: Windows, Linux, OSX, and of course Dreamcast. General-purpose means it can be used to build any style of game. It's similar in concept to Unity but it doesn't come with a pretty user interface - games have to be developed purely in code.

I've been developing Simulant for almost 9 years, I started it well before I got involved in the Dreamcast scene and for the majority of that time I've been the only developer. 

It's really very powerful, and is currently being used to build (at least) two Dreamcast games: Swirling Blades (my chopper game) and another 3D game called Dark Space Pioneer.

It's also spawned a whole community and a number of related projects, including a full OpenGL library called GLdc, which is being used by Summoning Signals, and the nuQuake Quake port to accelerate performance. An OpenAL audio library has also been built, as well as a software profiler for the Dreamcast called dcprof.

Even after all this time, Simulant is still in Alpha state. I'm always on the look out for skilled developers who want to help! I particularly could use help with the Android and OSX versions!

If you want to see what Simulant can do, check out Swirling Blades on itch - it's a fairly basic 3D helicopter shooter, but as a proof of concept that can be burnt to a disc and played on a Dreamcast hardware, it is impressive.

So now you know the basics, why not see if Simulant is something you'd like to try out for yourself? The Simulant project is open source, and released under the LGPL license, and the code can be found at the repository on GitLab here: https://gitlab.com/simulant/simulant

There's also a dedicated website with more information, screenshots and documentation at: https://simulant.dev.

It seems there's already a really active scene springing up around Simulant, with some well known Dreamcast indie developers testing the waters; and the Simulant Discord server has become a popular home for all kinds of Dreamcast developers. There are nearly 200 lurkers there, and about 20 or so active people, and everyone shares their work and helps out where they can. If you want to have a go at writing a game with Simulant, or if you just want to dip into Dreamcast development, then the Simulant Discord server should be your first port of call (after downloading the code, of course!).

So there you have it. A very brief introduction to Simulant. It's worth nothing that to use Simulant you'll need some level of C or C++ development skill , or at least some good experience in another language (and enthusiasm to learn), but hopefully this will bring a whole new wave of indie developers to the Dreamcast scene.

Be sure to follow Luke on Twitter for updates on Simulant. What do you think? Will you be taking your first steps into Dreamcast development with Simulant? Let us know in the comments or on Twitter.

Dreamcast Collectors Unite! Exploring your collections - Part 3

We put the call out for collectors willing to show off their collections, and the responses have come thick and fast. After showing off our first 5 contributors earlier in the week, we're back again for part 3 of the Dreamcast Collector's Unite! series, with 4 more fans of the Dreamcast letting us take a peek at their cherished collections.

So take a seat, grab yourself your favourite beverage (in a Dreamcast mug, of course) and come with us as we explore the collections of 4 wise men who go by the names of Adam, Brandon, James and Mike.

Adam

Hello fellow Dreamer! Tell us a little about yourself!

My name is Adam, better known on YouTube under "TechnicalCakeMix". I'm a Brit who has found himself in the United States for... reasons? I think?

You obviously have a love for the Dreamcast; when did that start?

For years I've been a fan of Cammy White, from Street Fighter - and as it turns out, she has a spin-off game of her own, called "Cannon Spike" that was exclusively on Dreamcast. While living in the homeland, I never found it for a reasonable price, and so sadly it never came to fruition - cut forward to 2014, the year I moved to the United States, and my now wife (then fiancee) gave me a huge surprise with a gift of not only my own Dreamcast console, but also a copy of Cannon Spike. From there, the rest as they say, is history.

So your current collection – can you give a brief description of what you have, what you collect (i.e. games only, games and console variants etc.) and what your 'end goal' is, if you have one?

I have around thirty games so far in my collection, which does not sound like a lot - however I've been focusing mainly on the higher $$ titles and the harder to find items before the market inevitably explodes. My eventual goal is to get as close as I can to 100% of the NA library, and also get some region exclusive oddities (some of which like Frame Gride, I already own). I've also been on the hunt for promotional merchandise, as well as oddities from the era.

TR Fight Stick Opens 'Dreamcase' Metal Shell Pre-Orders

Cast your mind back to November 2018 and you may recall an article here at the Junkyard about a custom Dreamcast shell being designed by TR Fight Stick. Fast forward to February 2020 and you can now pre-order said custom shell. Named Dreamcase, the case allows you to take the innards from your favourite console and plonk them inside a metal prison that claims to keep the contents at a perfect operating temperature courtesy of a silent fan.

It's worth bearing in mind that your Dreamcast needs to have been modded with a GDEMU or similar device before stuffing it inside the Dreamcase, as there's no way to play GDs once the shell replacement has been completed. Well, without taking the lid off again...which defeats the object somewhat.

The design will probably divide opinion as it makes the Dreamcast look more like a small form PC than an actual Dreamcast, but for those who want to give their console the ultimate visual makeover, this could be just what you are looking for. Some of the info listed on the TR Fight Stick website includes:

• Blue Backlight (Homogeneous)
• Compatible with GDEMU and DCHDMI
• New Technology DC 12V Mini Power Supply
• Extender PCB for SD-Card 
• Game Swap Button for GDEMU
• Compatible with 56K Modem and DreamPİ
• 40MM Silent Fan ( Noctua Supported ) 
• Not Supporting original GD-ROM nor USB-GDROM 
• Metal Sticker with Serial Number for Each Case

It looks as though TR Fight Stick will need pre-order numbers to reach 100 units before they can go ahead with mass production (each unit costs $149.99 plus shipping and comes without a power supply), so time will tell if there is enough demand for the Dreamcase to become a reality. Check out the Dreamcase at the TR Fight Stick website.

Credit for this news snippet goes to my DCJY colleague Martin, who discovered this while Googling for Fight Stick parts. So what do you think? Will you be taking the plunge and splashing out 150 big ones? Let us know in the comments or on Twitter.

How To : Get online with DreamKey 3.0

The Dreamcast Junkyard's very own, James Jarvis has put together this rather handy video guide, showing step by step how to connect to the Internet using the Dreamkey 3.0 disk. Check it out below!

20 Years Of Dreamcast: The Past, Present & Future

It's hard to believe that the Dreamcast has been with us now for two whole decades. Twenty years since that November day back in 1998 when Sega finally unleashed its successor to the Saturn on the world. I can't recall a console launch prior to the Dreamcast launch where fever pitch was at such a level, and the initial reports - at least the ones I read in magazines, being a young oik at the time - all pointed to a system that heralded the dawn of a new age in gaming.

The Dreamcast reveal at The Sega New Challenge Conference 1998

An age of arcade perfection in home ports, and one which ushered in the widespread adoption of online console functionality. As the Dreamcast reaches this milestone, we thought it would be appropriate to celebrate the coming of age of the system with the a brief look at the past, the present and the future of the Dreamcast scene. Happily, this will not include the coming of three ghosts, and will not include one of those ghosts having two small children under his coat. Also, you're well within your rights to feel like a bonafide old git when it sinks in: yes, the Dreamcast really is twenty.

The Past
I think at this point most people are pretty well versed in the history of the Dreamcast. As alluded to earlier, it was launched on 27th November 1998 in Japan, and the following year in the rest of the world. Initial sales were strong, and the system had an air of technological prowess about it. Graphics were far ahead of the console competition at the time, and in some cases superior to what PC gamers were enjoying too. But it wasn't just about the graphical capabilities; as the hardware too was new, fresh and exciting. The VMU in particular turned the humble memory card into a standalone console in its own right, and the controller, while it still to this day splits opinion was interesting, with its analogue triggers and aperture for a second screen of sorts. And of course, the modem that came packaged with the console as standard (apart from some very early editions) opened the door to a whole new way of playing on consoles - against people over the internet.

Eager gamers spy a delivery of Dreamcasts on the morning of the launch

The modem also offered access to the Dreamcast's Dricas service, which was an online portal designed to allow Dreamcast owners to communicate, earn loyalty points and even see on a primitive map where other gamers were located. All of these services are pretty much the norm in today's climate, but back in 1998 these online options were a huge deal. Of course, we now know how the whole party turned into a bit of a shit show after the initial wave of euphoria, and the Dreamcast wasn't long for this world as a fully-supported hardware platform.

The utterly boring debates still rage to this day about why the console failed, and why Sega decided to ditch the console after a relatively short period in the west at least (the last official game was released for the Dreamcast in 2007 in Japan); but the main reason is that many people were more interested in the PlayStation 2 and waited for Sony's new machine rather than buy a Dreamcast. Yes, there are boring debates about software support from certain publishers, and there are boring debates about the ease with which games could be pirated and the lack of a DVD player...but the main reason is that the PlayStation 2 came along and stole the Dreamcast's thunder. It happened, let's all move on.

A Brief History Of ChuChu Rocket! In Your Pocket

ChuChu Rocket! is a puzzle game that is undoubtedly a product of a struggling Sega. Imaginative, innovative, insane - one of the many one-of-a-kind experiments that was thrown at a wall in the Sega headquarters in the hopes that something would eventually stick and save the Dreamcast once and for all. Maybe this attempt to stand out was what led Sonic Team to create not just one of the most memorable puzzle games on the Sega Dreamcast, but one of the best and most memorable puzzle games ever made.

For the uninitiated, the premise of ChuChu Rocket! is simple. You place directional arrows on a checker board to guide mice (the titular ChuChus) to rocket ships, all whilst making sure they don't get eaten by giant orange cats that look like they are perpetually tripping on acid.

The guiding brainless animals to safety thing had been done eight years prior by DMA Design's Lemmings, but Sonic Team managed to take the concept and push it to the brink of madness whilst also throwing in a bonkers multiplayer mode and online play (that's still available today thanks to DreamPi). It serves as a high quality break for any Dreamcast fan who has sunk hours into deeper experiences like Shenmue or Phantasy Star Online who just wants to play something simple whilst also having an absolutely cracking time.

These days, with smart phones being in everyone's pockets, puzzle games that are easy to pick up and play function as perfect time wasters on a morning commute or even when we just can't be bothered to do anything else. Sadly, as I'm sure many of us can all agree, the vast majority of smartphone puzzlers are trite, micro-transaction ridden nonsense. But what if we could take a stellar puzzler like ChuChu Rocket! and play that in the palm of our hand instead? That would make perfect sense, right? Well it turns out that Sega did see ChuChu's portable potential...