Ain't no party like a Dreamcast party...

I was gonna terminate my relationship with the Dreamcast Junkyard when my last post was removed... I really was! I was hurt people... I thought that my last video post was funny! Other contributors however, thought otherwise... Still, each to his own, I guess... If you want to check out what that was look here... Be warned though, if you're easily offended by strong language, poor video blogging, or sad mofos expressing their love for the Dreamcast, you might not want to click on the link...

Still! Its time for me to re-establish myself on the DCJY, if necessary for one last time... The subject? Great DC games to play with friends if you're throwing a Dreamcast Party... OK! After my last (uncensored) post, I came up with a few great games to play when you've got friends round... Thanks to the comments of my colleagues, I've come up with a few more

Virtua Athlete 2K: This is a great 4 player game! Button mashing is the order of the day, as your chosen player competes in a number of Olympic events! Whether it's hammer throwing, long jump, hurdles or the javelin, make sure your timing is right and your hitting those butons at precisely the right moment... Otherwise you're doomed to have your opponent laughing as they trump you for that points bonus at the end of the round... Highly playable, whatever your video game experience, and a great multi-player title... Let's move on shall we?

Powerstone 1 &2: OK! One of Capcom's finest! This anime inspired title, actually generated its own cartoon over the Pacific, in the land of the Rising Sun... OK we're looking at a hectic weapon based fighter, that matches frantic gameplay with crazy power ups and allows you to take your opponents to the cleaners with a wicked combo whilst you're strengthened by Power Rangers style machismo... Top Banana!

Sega World Wide Soccer (Euro Edition): The pinnacle of Dreamcast football games... Yes this was perhaps the BEST football game on the Dreamcast. Sort your friends and yourselves into some kind of Euro or International League and you'll be playing all night! It's at its best when you go to extra time and penalties. A truly wonderous title, perhaps one for the boys, but who knows? Maybe there are some ladies out there that could prove me very wrong, and give my Sheffield Wednesday squad a good spanking...

Dead Or Alive 2: There's nothing like a good ol' beat 'em up to level the playing field, and perhaps, after Soul Calibur, this is the Dreamcast's finest! Luscious graphics and a sublime arena destroying title, Dead Or Alive is a wondrous fighter! Pick your pugilist and stand back as this the mayhem unfolds! Happy days!

Ready 2 Rumble Boxing: Afro Thunder? Michael Jackson? Take your pick and slug it out till the final round till your protagonist is ready to stay sniffing canvas! This game lets you battle it out until you're ready to whap you're opponent out of the ring! And what a satisfying moment that is!! A great game that's as solidly Dreamcast as any other title you could think of!

Crazy Taxi 1 & 2: "OK! It's time to make some crazy money!" The Offspring will serenade you, as you're pitted against the clock, to squeeze as much cash as you can from the queuing punters that are lined up to make your fair! Crash and smash your way to the assigned destination in the minimum time... Sublime!

House Of The Dead 2: Light Guns at the ready as you battle your way against a horde of zombies to let the "Dogs Of The AMS" defeat the ever omnipotent Goldman. Two player

action never felt this good! And you can always access two player Zombie Revenge if you're struggling with HOTD2....

Typing Of The Dead: Light Guns letting you down? Then crack out your DC keyboards for a cleverer and funnier version of the affore mentioned title! This'll see you using your keyboard skills and typing dexterity to defeat the zombie hoarde!

Shenmue 2 (Duck Race) : A hidden gem within the best title ever for the Dreamcast, this mini-game sees you pitting your adopted fowl against other birds of Hong Kongs gambling community... Pick your duck, pledge some money and watch as the action unfolds...

I hope this post gets the response I'd hoped for... If it doesn't then this is my swan song from the DCJY!

And once again... "Goodnight children, wherever you are..."

Dreamcast Magazine Issue 14

Issue 14 of Paragon Publishing's Dreamcast Magazine hit store shelves on 5th October 2000 and featured a menacing Ryo Hazuki staring out from the cover. Other big games name checked include Jet Set Radio, Le Mans 24hrs and Ultimate Fighting Championship. Unlike many previous editions, Issue 14 doesn't really showcase many unreleased gems although both Gun Valkyrie and Heroes of Might & Magic III are previewed.

One of the most interesting tidbits of news involves a referenced interview in which Yuki Naka reveals an early name for the Dreamcast that was considered by Sega was the 'Sega G-Cube,' while another mentions a patent lawsuit involving Sega and a company called Optix Media. A quick Google search reveals nothing about this patent dispute, and neither does the article.

Shmup Up the Volume!

First of all I would like to apologise to all of you folks out there, that like me, check regularly to see if there’s anything new posted on the Dreamcast Junkyard. As you may know, the ‘Yard is a three man operation, founded by Tomleecee and supported by myself (Father Krishna) and The Gagaman(n).



At this present time, Tom is currently saving the world from the Axis Of Evil. The Gagaman(n) is currently honing his computer and film making skills and preparing to take the world of multi-media by storm. (Check out his two red hot posts below…)

So what about me? What’s my excuse for not stocking the ‘Yard with new posts?
Well there are a couple of things! Firstly I’ve been collaborating with my good buddy Caleb, on a Trans-Atlantic project celebrating another one of Sega’s classic consoles- The Saturn- over at the un-originally titled Saturn Junkyard. I’ve also been contributing to a blog about the world of handheld gaming with the wonderful Gnome, originally titled Gnome’s Gaming On The Go.




Combine those two things with the mundane pursuits of work and family life and the end result is... not enough time to sustain my posting duties here at the ‘Yard. But hopefully that will change now.
I’ve been adding to my collection (which I posted on this very site last month) and substantially boosted my games repertoire. The games haul includes: Virtua Athlete 2K, Silent Scope, Plasma Sword, Unreal Tournament, Skies Of Arcadia, Deep Fighter, Championship Surfer, Fur Fighters and Wild Metal.



I’ve also very nearly completed Resident Evil: Code Veronica, so I’ve plenty to review and talk about (a situation which has not been the case for some time!)
I’ve also played bought and played brand new Dreamcast release Last Hope and a new set of Cha Cha Amigo maracas from the wonderful Play Asia, so my love for the Dreamcast is still alive and kicking!!!

Talking of games developed for the Dreamcast after its official “retirement”, the excellent Games TM Magazine has just run a full page review of said titles, and because I love you I’ve decided to transcribe the entire thing for your reading pleasure!

So, here’s to a new era of Father Krishna’s Dreamcast ramblings! OK Here goes…

No.1 “Ikaruga” Estimated Price: £50, Publisher: ESP, Year Of Production: 2002

“When Treasure’s Ikaruga was announced for Dreamcast in 2002, everyone naturally assumed it would be the last Dreamcast game. It wasn’t of course, but that didn’t stop the game from selling out almost instantly, becoming one of the most valuable titles on the system. Literally meaning “spotted dove” Ikaruga re-defined the shoot ‘em up with a puzzle mechanic that rewarded players for intelligent mastery of the black-and-white colour-coded enemies and weapons.


No.2 “Shikigami No Shiro 2” Estimated Price: £40, Publisher: MediaQuest, Year Of Production: 2004

Although it was produced on Gamecube, PS2 and Xbox, the Dreamcast version of Shikigami 2, remains highly collectible thanks to it’s low production run and limited editions. As a shooter, its fairly generic but notable for using humanoid characters, rather than the more traditional spaceships or aeroplanes. Despite being generic it is pretty enjoyable and well worth adding to any Dreamcast collection.

“Border Down” Estimated Price: £70, Publisher: G.Rev Year Of Production: 2003

So, for a game exclusive to the Dreamcast format, the unusual Border Down manages to fetch a very pretty penny- and that is something that is looking very unlikely to change any time soon. Noted for its adaptive difficulty Border Down stands out as one of only a handful of horizontal shooters to be produced in the last five years. Fast, colourful and very playable, Border Down is one of the best shooters on the Dreamcast, and essential even at the steep price.

“Radirgy” Estimated Price: £40, Publisher: Milestone, Year Of Production: 2006

Its visuals may have made it look like it was designed for mobile phones, but Radirgy (supposedly pronounced ‘Rajirugi’) is a vertical scrolling shooter that stands proud among its peers. Curiously, for only around £30 more than it’s current price, its possible to pick up Radirgy with a fully refurbished Dreamcast. Gamecube owners may also like to look out for the upcoming Radio Allergy, a port of the game, that’s due to be released in the US some time this year. (See IGN Review here! )


“Under Defeat” Estimated Price: £35, Publisher: Sega, Year Of Production: 2006

Of all the games released after Dreamcast’s demise, Under Defeat is surely the prettiest. Using full polygonal 3D environments and objects, this vertical scrolling helicopter shoot ‘em up looks incredible. Interestingly, the back of the Under Defeat case claims that the game would be the last ever for the Dreamcast., but the shooter proved profitable enough, to ensure that the developer, Milestone, and several others continued to support the console.

“Chaos Field” Estimated Price: £5, Publisher: Sega, Year Of Production: 2004

Chaos Field is an odd little shooter. Completely comprised of boss fights, you would expect to pack in all the best bits of the genre without all of the rubbish. Not so, sadly.
Although technically well made, there is something about the structure of Chaos Field that makes it feel exhausting to play. Other issues like slowdown and a general lack of originality in the mechanics make this the least attractive of Dreamcast’s more recent shooters.



“ Trizeal” Estimated Price: £35, Publisher: Triangle Service, Year Of Production: 2005

Although a strictly traditional shoot ‘em up in terms of the gameplay, Trizeal is worth checking out for other reasons. Triangle Service, a developer comprised of just three people, created the game, and its amazing to see what they have achieved with their comparatively limited resources. This is exactly what makes the current Dreamcast scene seem so appealing – it allows small developers to create games that they wouldn’t be able to on any other console.


“Puyo Puyo Fever” Estimated Price: £20, Publisher: Sega, Year Of Development: 2004

Puyo Puyo Fever was the last title that Sega ever developed for the Dreamcast system. Developed by Sonic Team, the Fever game could almost be described as a vanity project to see how many different platforms could be supported with one game. The final result was ten different versions, making for one of the wildest multiformat releases in the history of videogames. As a collectors piece, Puyo Puyo Fever is as interesting to own as it is fun to play."

Hope that was of interest! Peace Y'all! FK

The Dreamcast Junkyard's choicest cuts and hottest takes of 2021

We close our eyes, and the world has turned around again. We close eyes and dream, another year has come and gone. So wrote the talented 16th century poet Allister in his priceless first folio. Ancient as these words may seem, they ring true even today, and here we are. It's approximatley 365 days since our last review of the year 2020 and we are back once again for the renegade master with another review of the past twelve months here at The Dreamcast Junkyard. 

Twelve whole months of reviews, news, podcasts and features; and we thought it only right to round them all up for your ease and enjoyment, just in case you missed some of them. We know you have busy lives, San Diego. Personally I'd like to say a huge thanks to the entire team here at the 'Yard, to the developers and community that still endeavours to create really awesome Dreamcast software/news content; and also to you - our readers - for continuing to visit and make what we do here worthwhile. Anyway, here's some curated highlights from 2021...

Reviews

• Intrepid Izzy - Lewis took a look at Senile Team's awesome action-platformer, declaring it a rather special experience that all Dreamcast owners should own.
• Xenocider - Tom cast a critical eye over Retro Sumus' years-in-the-making 3D into-the-screen shooter, decreeing it to be the Sin and Punishment homage we all deserve.
• Drascula: The Vampire Strikes Back - Mike took a look at this less than spectacular release that seemed to slip under many a radar.

Retrospectives

• Surf Rocket Racers - James dipped his toe into the waters of Crave Entertainment and CRI Middleware's jet-ski racer, and found it to be quite a pleasant experience if not a Wave Race beater.
• Stunt GP - RC vehicles tearing around locales strangely devoid of any human life? That's Stunt GP and Tom rather liked it.
• Bang! Gunship Elite - Some see it as Starlancer's poor relation, but Bang! Gunship Elite is a decent space shooter in its own right. Find out why here.
• Q*Bert - One of gaming's most well-known and foul-mouthed characters made an appearance on the Dreamcast, but was it really worth the effort?
• Taxi 2 - Derek Pascarella released an English language translation of the French exclusive Taxi 2 earlier in 2021, and James decided it was time to take a fare in this elusive movie tie-in.

• Wetrix+ - Earthquakes and torrential rain are the name of the game (poetry?) in this Dreamcast remaster of the Nintendo 64 puzzler...but is it worth a punt?
• European Super League - One of the Dreamcast's numerous PAL-exclusive soccer titles, we thought it was a good time to take a look at Virgin's poor effort in the wake of the collapse of the real-life Super League.
• F1 World Grand Prix II for Dreamcast - Tom did a few laps with Video System's Dreamcast F1 sequel, and included a potted history of the series too.
• Sega Extreme Sports - James decided it was high time to catch some radical air with Innerloop's extreme sports title, and found the time to chat with the studio's CEO Henning Rokling, too.
• UEFA Dream Soccer - At the other end of the footballing spectrum to European Super League, UEFA Dream Soccer is perhaps the finest recreation of the beautiful game on Dreamcast...for now at least.

Features and News

• New Year's Resolutions 2021 - The Junkyard team set out their resolutions for 2021. How many did we stick to before chinning them off mere weeks into the new year?!
• In White 1999: The Time D2's Laura Appeared as a Model in a Japanese Fashion Magazine - Lewis wrote a fantastic deep dive article on the strange tale of Laura from Warp's D2 appearing as a model in a Japanese fashion magazine.
• Shenmusings of Ryobots, Niaowu, and Shenmue III's Uncertain Legacy - Brian pondered the eternal question - is Ryo Hazuki an android; or does he prefer the term 'artificial human'? 
• Lost Atomiswave fighter KenJu ported to Dreamcast - Tom got to grips with KenJu, one of the long lost Atomiswave titles that was ported to Dreamcast by megavolt85 in 2021.
• Bounty Hunter Sarah: The Capcom Dreamcast Game You Never Knew About - Capcom are well known for their Dreamcast fighting games, but what of Bounty Hunter Sarah? Lewis investigated, and also spoke with the actress who stars in the game.

• The Great MSR Missing Persons Poster Hunt - Part 2: We Found Them! - Last year we investigated the mysterious 'Missing' poster found in MSR. This year, we finally found the other two posters hidden in the game.
• Trailer for unreleased horror game 'If It Happen' found - Aaron looked into the unannounced and subsequently cancelled If It happen - a game none of us even knew existed!
• Typing Jet: The lost Jet Set Radio game? - Tom goes on a trip down the rabbit hole looking for the enigmatic and presumed lost mobile version of Jet Set Radio - Typing Jet.
• Upcoming Dreamcast Indie releases - 2021 and beyond! - Mike looks forward to the indie games heading to the Dreamcast in 2021 and beyond. Some made it, others are still to come...
• Channelling Dreamcast: 3 games doing what Sega won't - A cursory glance at some contemporary game releases that try (and in some cases fail) to capture the essence of the Sega of the Dreamcast era.

• A homebrew Dreamcast MIDI Interface Cable appears! - A talented chap called Ben Ryves took matters into his own hands and created a homebrew version of the elusive HKT-9200 Dreamcast MIDI Interface Cable. He then made some music on a Dreamcast with it. What a legend.
• Dee Dee Planet: Beta of Cancelled Dreamcast game Released Online - Lewis reported on the discovery of yet another lost Dreamcast title - Dee Dee Planet courtesy of Pcwzrd.
• The original Rez website has been fully restored - A look at the fully restored Rez website, and a few words with the man who did all the leg work.
• I mode! You mode! We all mode for i-mode! - Scott went on a trip back through time to investigate the i-mode functionality Japanese mobile gamers enjoyed back in the day, and also checked out some of the Dreamcast-derived software that appeared on the platform.
• Dreamcast console shells in 2021 - Kev pondered the viability (and cost) of new Dreamcast console shells for a modern audience.

• Petrol Panic! 6 of the best gas stations in Dreamcast games - Plenty of Dreamcast games feature gas stations, and during the height of the UK's fuel shortage, Tom reviewed some of the best (and worst) filling stations to be found in the Dreamcast's library.
• Watch the Sega shareholder meeting that ended the Dreamcast - A livestream of the Sega shareholder meeting that heralded the end of Dreamcast production was captured by one savvy gamer and preserved online for posterity.
• Preview - Non Casual Encounter - SEGASaturno Productions returned with a proof of concept demo for their next title, Non Casual Encounter. You can now order one of only 100 copies of this intiguing visual novel, but be quick!
• 5 Dreamcast Fan Translations You May Have Missed - Fan translations of Dreamcast games have exploded in popularity in 2021, and Lewis took a look at some you may have missed.
• Let's take a look at Shenmue World from Shenmue Dojo - Shenmue super site Shenmue Dojo released Shenmue World earlier in 2021. Tom took delivery of a copy of this weighty tome and put his thoughts on the blog.

• New Dreamcast Prototype Found: Panic World - Veteran developer Mike Mika revealed some details about a lost Dreamcast title he had previously worked on - Panic World.
• Bokomu No Tatsujin Translation Project Released! - Aaron reported on yet another fan translation that came to the Dreamcast in 2021 - this time Bokomu No Tatsujin.
• Previously unseen prototype Dreamcast logo discovered - An eagle-eyed Redditor discovered a previously unseen prototype Dreamcast logo on the Japanese patent office website. Hidden in plain sight for all these years...chimpanzee that!

Interviews

• Out of Print Archive - Andy and Neil, curators of the Out of Print Archive dropped by the Junkyard to discuss all things gaming magazines of yesteryear. In this revealing interview we covered the origins of the Out of Print Archive, the ingestion process and how the team decides which magazines should be preserved digitally.
• WAVE Game Studios - Daniel from WAVE Game Studios stopped by to tell us about the origins of the newest publisher of indie Dreamcast games, and how they hope to kickstart a renaissance of Dreamcast physical game releases on store shelves.

DreamPod episodes

All of our podcast episodes can be found on your favourite 'podcatcher,' or simply by going to our Buzzsprout site here. Alongside our usual chaos, we did have some great guest epsiodes in 2021 and those are detailed below.

• DreamPod Episode 87: Caspar Field - Former editor of Dreamcast print magazine DC-UK Caspar Field joined the DreamPod team in January to speak about his memories of the magazine and how it all began; the short lived Mr Dreamcast magazine project; and Caspar also recounted his experiences working in game development.
• DreamPod Episode 88: Video Game Esoterica - Game preservationist extraordinaire Anthony Bacon, of YouTube Channel Video Game Esoterica, joined the DreamPod to speak about Dreamcast oddities, Kenji Eno's D2, and his own quest to educate the world on the fate of the 3DO M2.
• DreamPod Episode 90: Dreamcast in 1999 - The Dreamcast Years podcast crew joined the DreamPod for the first of 2021's crossover episodes, this time to talk about the Dreamcast scene in 1999.

• DreamPod Episode 91: Dreamcast in 2000 - Once again co-hosted by the Dreamcast Years crew, the second crossover episode of the year focussed on Dreamcast and wider pop culture in the year 2000.
• DreamPod Episode 93: Dreamcast translations - The DreamPod welcomed stalwarts of the Dreamcast fan translation scene Derek Pascarella and Burntends to talk all things Sakura Wars Colmuns 2 and the wider efforts by the translation community.
• DreamPod Episode 100: Peter Moore & Listener Questions - For the momentous occasion marking 100 episodes of DreamPod, the crew answered listener questions; but also welcomed former SEGA of America president Peter Moore onto the show to talk about his history with the Dreamcast.

Videos

You may already know that we have a YouTube channel, but we also have a Twitch channel too so be sure to check that out. On our YouTube we regularly hold livestreamed discussions (lovingly titled 'bookclubs'), and below you'll find links to some of these Kev-hosted video chats.

• Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 & 2
• Virtua Tennis 1 & 2
• Zombie Revenge
• Power Stone 1 & 2
• ESPN Track & Field, Virtua Athlete 2K and Sydney 2000

Things we were asked not to feature because we're 'content thieves, and everybody in the Dreamcast community knows it'

• Castlevania Resurrection

Once again, thanks to you for reading, listening to and watching our Dreamcast related nonsense over the past year (well, past 16 years!). If you'd like to support what we do, you can do so at Buy Me a Coffee. Please also feel free to join our Discord and get involved in the chat.

Remember to stay safe, stay cool, keep Dreaming and stay tuned in 2022 for even more of the same.

A Rough Guide To Dreamcast Express

For a console that was only really supported for three years (more or less), the Dreamcast has left an impressive mark on the landscape of the gaming world. Looking at the system retrospectively, it's true that the Dreamcast was something of a commercial disaster for Sega even considering the record-breaking launches and relatively impressive sales figures. That said, it still amazes me the sheer volume of paraphernalia that was generated around the brand - from alarm clocks and pocket TVs to pens, jackets, mugs, bags and even tissue box holders...the amount of merchandise and superfluous branded tat that was spawned to celebrate the arrival of Sega's final console is bewildering. Some systems died on their asses simply because the public weren't aware of the thing's existence; but Sega were clearly on a mission to make sure that didn't happen to the Dreamcast, and while the platform didn't quite reach the commercial targets they had in mind, nobody can say that the firm was stingy with the marketing budget.

Marketing the Dreamcast brand was not strictly limited to stamping swirls on tea towels and mouse mats though - in Japan at least, Sega took things a little further by allowing gamers to sign up for a 'partner' service which furnished them with exclusive demo and preview discs. These could be played in their Dreamcasts and offered a sneak peek at future releases and featured exclusive bonus content that wasn't available anywhere else. This series of discs was called Dreamcast Express and seven volumes were released between 1999 and 2000, and they each comprise either a single or double GD set packed full of imaginatively-presented content.