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While the video game industry is usually about looking to the future, it never hurts to reconsider the previous gaming milestones that helped the industry reach where it is today— like the release of Sega’s swan song console, the Dreamcast. Sega was a major first-party developer through the earlier gaming generations, yet their current role in the industry is as a reliable third-party developer for other companies.
The release of new gaming consoles still causes extreme excitement, but with Sega’s Dreamcast recently celebrating its 22nd birthday, it’s an appropriate time to look back on the console’s strongest titles that could still go head-to-head with any modern video game.
10 Power Stone 2 Is Frantic, Fulfilling Fighting Experience
There is no shortage of fighting game franchises, but it’s a true tragedy that Capcom’s Power Stone series has fallen off the map and that the latest release was a PSP compilation back in 2006. The Power Stone series is full of endless entertainment as it makes use of destructible environments, a wealth of creative weapons, items, and power-ups, and some truly unique characters.
Power Stone 2 translates the experience into a four-player fighter that can easily compete with something like Smash Bros. The game’s evolving environments and comprehensive crafting system have been difficult for other fighters to replicate.
9 Jet Grind Radio Redefines Platforming Through Its Style & Aesthetic
Many of the most memorable games on the Dreamcast are continuations or extensions of previously existing properties, but the Sega console also kicks off some exciting new franchises, like Jet Set Radio (titled Jet Grind Radio for its original North American Dreamcast release).
The ambitious title involves rollerbladers tagging the city with graffiti while they assert their dominance over their rival gangs, as well as avoiding capture from the police. Jet Set Radio’s gameplay is an absolute dream, but the game truly excels with its breathtaking cel-shaded art design and its infinitely catchy original soundtrack by Hideki Naganuma plus some licensed tunes by other artists.
8 Rez Is A Rhythmic Rail Shooter That Defies Convention
Some games are incredibly simple in premise, but they nail the execution so perfectly that they become instant classics. Rez is a defining title for Sega’s Dreamcast that operates like a rail shooter, yet is driven by the impulses of a rhythm game. The destruction that the player causes syncs up in time with Rez’s music and it’s an incredibly satisfying experience.
North American audiences best know Rez as a PlayStation 2 title as the Dreamcast original was only released in Japan and Europe. A remake with VR functionality, Rez Infinite, came out in 2016, which only proves that there’s still heavy demand for this unusual hybrid of rail shooters, rhythm games, and trippy visuals.
7 Illbleed Is An Ambitious Survival Horror Experience That Embraces B-Movies
The survival horror genre has only become more mainstream over the past decade and some of the most popular titles from the gaming generation are horror games. Audiences are well-acquainted with Resident Evil and Silent Hill, but Illbleed is an original survival horror title that’s set at a deadly amusement park.
Illbleed is shockingly innovative with its “fear system” and a cast of expendable characters that embraces the tropes of slasher movies. Illbleed features rewarding ideas and genre satires that have yet to happen again in other games. It’s truly unfortunate that Illbleed remains locked away as a Dreamcast exclusive.
6 Skies Of Arcadia Is A Superlative RPG That Still Hits Hard
Groundbreaking and original RPGs are still a major way for consoles to get an advantage over the competition. The Dreamcast was the home for some inspiring RPG series, but the highlight of the pack is Skies of Arcadia.
Skies of Arcadia focuses on Vyse and a resilient crew of sky pirates, which makes for a thrilling backdrop for an intense and comprehensive adventure. Skies of Arcadia did receive an updated version on the GameCube called Skies of Arcadia Legends with added content that is generally considered the definitive version, but the original is still a masterpiece, even more than 20 years later.
5 Space Channel 5 Mixes Playfulness & Personality With Rhythm Magic
The rhythm game genre has been able to grow in some major ways and it’s allowed for some highly unconventional games to grow out of the area as a result. Space Channel 5 helped the Dreamcast establish its outlier energy with this atypical rhythm game that revolves around alien extermination and optimized viewer ratings. A sequel was released for the Dreamcast and the PlayStation 2, that latter of which was smartly bundled with the original game.
Despite the odd nature of the series, Space Channel 5 continues to live on and it’s satisfying that Ulala has been able to return, whether it’s in a VR context or as a playable character in other Sega titles.
4 Crazy Taxi 2 Improves Upon The Formula Of The Fast-Paced Driving Sim
The Dreamcast made serious waves for its ability to deliver arcade-perfect (or better) ports of some of the most popular games that filled arcades at the time. Crazy Taxi is a Dreamcast classic that doesn’t overextend itself and as a result it delivers a polished, yet concise, experience.
2001’s Crazy Taxi 2 adds to the original with larger maps, deeper gameplay, but the same crazy energy. The solo player mode is lacking, but this doesn’t detract from the polished gameplay and how viscerally fun Crazy Taxi 2 is, even if only in small doses. And while the original was ported to other platforms and received an HD remaster, the sequel’s sole appearance away from the Dreamcast remains as part of a PSP collection called Crazy Taxi: Fare Wars.
3 Samba De Amigo Version 2000 Perfectly Matches Music With Mayhem
Rhythm games were plentiful on the Dreamcast, but few have as much personality as Sega’s Samba de Amigo, a musical title that uses intuitive maraca controllers for its rhythm madness.
Samba de Amigo offers a ton of content that never gets old and is only improved with the needlessly chaotic characters and hypnotic color palette that the game embraces during periods of celebration. The title’s follow-up, Samba de Amigo Ver. 2000 provides even more content and copious free DLC. The Wii successor can’t match the original’s magic, especially as the Wii remotes lack the precision of the original game’s maracas.
2 Marvel Vs Capcom 2: New Ages Of Heroes Is Still A Fighting Game Legend
The Dreamcast was able to cater towards many different genres of games, but the console made an early name for itself with its many exceptional 2D fighting games. Marvel vs Capcom has transformed into a seismic property due to the current popularity of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Before these became such hot commodities, the Dreamcast’s Marvel vs Capcom 2: New Ages of Heroes was viewed as the ultimate 2D fighter. The game is absolutely crowded with characters and unlockable content, but the prospect of fast-paced online combat is as revolutionary now as it was back in the year 2000.
1 Soulcalibur Is A Pristine Launch Title That Kicked Off A Worthy Franchise
The Dreamcast delivered impressive games throughout the entirety of its lifespan, but it’s still incredible how so many of the console’s launch titles are still considered to be some of the Dreamcast’s most redeeming properties. Soul Calibur has become a popular fighting series that’s even roped in characters like Link and Darth Vader.
The sequels have refined some of the game’s concepts, but the original Soulcalibur is still satisfying and doesn’t feel like a step backwards. The one-on-one fighting is infinitely smooth, but the game is also filled with extra content to keep the player satisfied.
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