Sega Dreamcast
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| Sega Dreamcast | |
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| Manufacturer | Sega |
| Type | Console |
| Release Date | November 27, 1998 JP |
| Media | GD-ROM |
| Save Format | Memory Card, VMU |
| Input Options | Controller |
| Special Features | SegaNet, Dreamarena |
| Units Sold | 10.6 million worldwide |
| Top Selling Game | Sonic Adventure |
| Variants | |
| Competitor(s) | PlayStation 2 GameCube |
| Predecessor | Sega Saturn |
| Successor | |
The last home console to be released by Sega.
Widely considered to have the best launch lineup of any console made before or since. Launch titles included Sonic Adventure, Virtua Fighter 3 TB, House of the Dead 2, and Soul Calibur.
Launch dates:
- November 27, 1998 (Japan)
- September 9, 1999 (North America)
- October 14, 1999 (Europe)
The Sega Dreamcast is/was a powerful console system designed primarily for arcade games. It was the first machine released in a new generation of game consoles. One of the features of the Dreamcast is a built-in modem and a broadband adapter. In early to mid 1997, it became known that Sega was working on its successor to the Saturn, code-named Black Belt. 3Dfx was approached in order to design the graphics processor for the console, however, in June of that year Sega dropped them in favor of their long-time rival NEC.
The decision to favor the NEC over the 3Dfx was because Sega had two design concepts drawn up by its teams in America and Japan. The American team chose the IBM/Motorolla PowerPC 603e as the processor and a custom version of 3Dfx's Voodoo 3 as the graphics processor. The Japanese team chose the Hitachi SH4 along with the NEC PowerVR2 graphics processor. The new project was named Katana and announced to the public by that name on September 7, 1997.
On May 21, 1998 Sega unveiled its next-generation console called Dreamcast to the world. It was the first console to be 128-bit and have a 56kbps modem. This allowed users access to the internet for web browsing, chat, email and online gaming, Phantasy Star Online and other games. The Dreamcast was made available to the public that Autumn at the Tokyo Game Show along with a range of upcoming titles for the first 128-bit console to hit the market. Capcom showcased their Resident Evil: Code Veronica and Sega showed off its Sonic Adventure and Virtua Fighter 3tb games. Over a month later, on November 27, 1998, the Dreamcast was finally released to the Japanese public. The European release came on October 14, 1999.
In March 2001, production of the Dreamcast was ceased and Sega announces that they are leaving the hardware business all together to focus on writing games for various other consoles.
[edit] Technical Specs
- CPU: 128-bit Hitachi SH-4 RISC processor (200MHz 360 MIPS)
- Graphics: NEC CLX2 processor
- RAM: 16MB, 8MB Video RAM, 2MB Sound RAM
- Colors: 16.7 million
- Polygons: 3 million per second
- Game Media: 1.2GB GD-ROM, 12x access speed
- Resolution: 640x480 pixels
- Sound: Yamaha 64 channel
- Operating System: Custom Windows CE with DirectX support
- Modem: 56Kbps (US/JP NTSC), 33.3Kbps (PAL)
The Dreamcast has enjoyed a 'second life' due to the extremely active homebrew and emulation community.
[edit] See Also
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