The Sega Dreamcast was the last console
Sega would ever produce, marking the end of a decade-long campaign of console war
violence against their arch-rival Nintendo. Many a playground scrap was had
over whether Sonic could take Mario in a fight, with 90’s kids
oh-so complicit in the hostilities. One of those kids was Cultaholic’s own
Sam Driver who very kindly supplied the Dreamcast paraphernalia you see around
me. And he’s just one example of many sega fans who were saddened to see their brand
withdraw from the console market in 2001. It was rising competition from rivals at Sony,
Nintendo, and Microsoft that forced their hand, with sales of the dreamcast not up to par, but
it was widely appreciated by fans and critics to be ahead of its time – a home to the likes
of Crazy Taxi, Jet Set Radio, and Shenmue. So let’s put a positive spin on all this,
shall we? The year is 1999, the country, United States, and a brand new console from
Sega is launching this week, with 19 next gen games for you to choose from. Let’s play
them all, are you ready? Then let’s go. God this opening video’s a bit 90’s isn’t it?
Let’s just skip that and get into the- oh, no, it’s ANOTHER 90’S CUTSCENE. Aerowings is a
flight simulator that, for the time, actually looks surprisingly good. There are missions where
you’re tasked with flying through floating rings, and a free fly mode where you can fly freely. Mad,
I know. The controls are very sensitive which made it tricky when navigating at street level –
like all good pilots do – but it did allow me and the boys flying in formation to give this
hospital a show... aaand I think one of them just crashed into the building there. It also features
a wide range of locations, including city, island, valley, night city, base, mince pies, mini mince
pies. and if you quit immediately after starting a flight, the replay has absolutely no idea what
to do. AeroWings received an average score of 74% from reviewers at Famitsu, IGN, and Gamespot,
with the latter calling it “a quality game”. Oh boy is this a boring opening crawl.
Set in the far flung future of 2007, airforce delta – or deadly skies if you wanna get
European about this – is an aerial combat sim, essentially aerowings but you can fire
missiles and bullets and KILL PEOPLE YEAH BLOOD. The game’s story has an absurdly in
depth narrative concerning ethnic tensions, religious debate, and the splitting apart of
the federated republic of dzavailar. Which all sounds very serious until you successfully
kill all your enemies and this music plays... Hooray? There’s a greater sense of speed in
airforce delta than in aerowings and it controls well enough, but as with all flight combat sims
i often found myself fruitlessly chasing fighter jets that were chasing me, never really being
able to see them for long enough to lock on with missiles – a necessity, as regular gunfire
is completely ineffective. 66% on Gamerankings. In 65 million bc a big pebble wrecked everything,
and now in the wake of an earthquake, it’s up to you in the year 2000 to visit... DINOASAUR
ISLAND. Sounds pretty good, doesn’t it? I mean, that doesn’t. Suddenly a big explosion
occurs and it does weird things to your friend’s face – I promise I haven’t edited this at all.
Then a fairy angel thing spawns and Christ it’s all just so out there that I can’t keep up with
it. Blue Stinger is an action survival horror game where you run around excruciatingly slowly and
pick up key cards. There are lots of dead bodies, strange mutant things, and a fair bit of blood,
but jesus god please the voice acting is something else. It looks, really weird. While I can
appreciate Resident evil wasn’t much of a looker, its colour palette and filters made it feel
really spooky, blue stinger on the other hand, looks like modders have removed it all. It’s
safe to say the game has not aged well at all, but it did receive decent reviews at the
time, landing a 70% average on Metacritic, with NextGen saying “Even the lowest-budgeted kung
fu cheapie you can think of had better dubbing, but if you like an adventure with
big explosions, this ain't too bad.” Expendable is a top-down run and gun title
which really feels like it should be a twin stick shooter. Instead you can either
awkwardly spin around with your gun firing, awkwardly face individual enemies while firing, or
awkwardly face the rough direction of enemies and hold a trigger to strafe from side to side while
firing. It all starts out quite promising too, with an opening cinematic that
feels a lot like Abes Odyssey. The general premise is that in order to
combat an invading race of unnamed aliens, two super soldiers have been cloned to create
an army, but none of that matters because you shoot aliens and explosive barrels to get more
powerful guns to more effectively shoot aliens and explosive barrels. It’s mindless fun
and you can play with a friend in co-op, allowing both of you to be deafened by
the highscore tally at the end of stages, but it didn’t review overly well,
achieving 62% on gamerankings. Based on the Championship Auto Racing Teams (or
CART) racing league, flag to flag is essentially a formula one racing game that makes you wish
you were playing a formula one racing game. It doesn’t look incredible either, and with
practically no turning ability once you hit decent speeds, I was extremely grateful
for the basic curvature of most of the US courses. Weirdly however, the vehicles were hyper
sensitive to turning at low speeds, meaning I was able to pull off many outrageous overtakes
while travelling with a fraction of my power. There’s a championship mode where you can adjust
the car’s various parts to your specifications if you fancy yourself an expert – like I do with
my 2 gallon fuel tank – but you’ll still be racing the same basic courses with little gameplay
variation. Described as “A competent CART title, but nothing beyond what you'd expect”
flag to flag received 62% on gamerankings. House of the dead 2 has the worst voice
acting I’ve ever heard in a video game and I’m absolutely here for it. A first person light gun
shooter originally gracing arcades the world over, the game received a dreamcast port a year after
release, and it translates surprisingly well. For a start, instead of aiming with a plastic firearm,
you move the aiming reticule with your thumbstick, and I can honestly say I had more joy with
accuracy via this control scheme than I ever did in the arcades, although that probably says more
about my shooting ability. Another thing that’s nice is that you can continue playing without
having to slide another pound coin into a machine, meaning you can actually make decent progress
without bankrupting yourself! Sadly though, there are definitely still sections where it feels
like you must take damage as with the various boss battles. It’s campy and ridiculous, HOW DO
YOU KNOW THAT, but the path does diverge based on NPCs you’re able to save, allowing for some
replayability too. House of the dead 2 earned 77% on gamerankings, and also gave us this
clip, which is worth all of the awards. Ported to dreamcast from arcades, err, what was
it called again? JESUS CHRIST. Hyrdro thunder is a boat racing game where all the boats look
like they copied wipeout’s homework when it wasn’t looking. I was initially really
unimpressed by it because those menus are not good at all, but it turns out that
hydro thunder is actually really good fun. Collect boost, race around diverse courses with
plenty of dynamic set dressing, and then use your boost to smash into fellow racers and yeet big
stationary boats out of the way. Oh no this one’s trying to race me now. YOU’RE NOT IN THE RACE
BACK OFF THIS ISN’T FAIR. It’s colourful, fun, and has plenty of variety. It definitely feels
like an arcade game, but hey, that’s not always a bad thing. Hydro Thunder earned an average of
82% based on the reviews listed on Wikipedia. Goodness me this flashback is a bit haunting,
do you want me to call someone? YEAH, WHO’S YER EMERGENCY CONTACT, LUV? I think he might
murder someone. Monaco grandprix is an unlicensed formula one game with far more interesting and
recognisable tracks from across the world than were featured in flag to flag – even though,
again, no license. Menus are annoying though, expecially as there’s one constantly repeated
sound effect... can you hear it? Am I going insane? Wierdly, there’s no map in this game,
making it very difficult to prep for corners, but I adapted anyway. THIS IS LEGAL, YEAH? Needless
to say, I was a very welcome addition to the field [pileup], but I’ll be damned if I understand
what they were thinking with the music on the Monaco course. It sounded like bloody sephiroth
was about to attack. All in all, a very competent racer, and far more enjoyable than its launch
line up starting grid rival. 71% on Gamerankings. JESUS OH GOD PLEASE STOP. IN WHAT UNIVERSE IS THIS
CONSIDERED NOVICE DIFFICULTY? An updated version of MK4, Mortal Kombat Gold included additional
characters, stages, and a weapon selection mechanic. None of these features were enough
to save it from what can kindly be considered something of a critical mauling. Criticism was
levelled at the graphical fidelity, dullness of available weapons, bugs, and game breaking
glitches. I didn’t experience any in my time with it, but that might be because a revised version
of mortal kombat gold was released about a month later, and aimed to fix a lot of these issues. It
all went a bit wrong then, including a misprint in the official strategy guide regarding the
additional characters that only served to confuse fans. I can’t even show you a cool fatality
because I’m really rubbish at mortal kombat, but I did win a... skull trophy with eyes,
so that’s lovely. 54.97% on gamerankings, with gamespot saying “sitting down and playing MK
Gold almost feels like a retrogaming experience”. Oh yeah, here we go, sports time! I’ve
played an American football game before, but I’ve never watched American football,
so I’m going to give this everything I’ve got. Goodness me it takes itself a bit
seriously doesn’t it? Here come the 69ers, baybeeee. Get a load of these big action figure
players! Absolute units, the lot of them, especially when stood next to the cardboard
cutout coaches and photographers. Oh god no, no thank you. Flattered though. The sports charts
are at the top of the screen now, and while I’m still hopeless at defence, I’m getting pretty
good at offence. I mean, I don’t know a lot about American football, but I’d consider this a good
play – right guys? It’s a shame the opposition can magnetically stick to you when tackling as I WAS
DEFINITELY PAST THAT GUY, but never mind. Critics went absolutely bonkers for NFL 2K, awarding it an
eye-watering 92% on gamerankings. Well done guys. Oh yeah, here we go, sports time! I’ve
played an American football game before, but I’ve never watched American football, so I’m going to give this everything I’ve
got. REALLY? ANOTHER ONE? ONE WASN’T ENOUGH? Christ, am I going to get a gun? I was not good
at NFL Blitz 2000. I was constantly tackled as soon as I got the ball, preventing me from
making meaningful progression across the field, and I rarely had time to pass to teammates who,
themselves, were never in uncontested space. Defending then, in a strange twist, was
much more fun. As there are NO RULES, you could tackle pretty much at will,
diving all over the place and leaping through players like you’re playing
dynasty warriors with shoulder pads. It was also one of the less enjoyable sports
charts systems I’ve experienced so far, but what do I know because it got 82% on
gamerankings and I’m clearly an idiot. What is going on... Well it’s all in Japanese
so god knows what I’m selecting here but... I’m sorry? One more time for me? Ahh, I see thank you very much. I TAKE IT ALL BACK,
THIS IS THE BEST VIDEO GAME I’VE EVER PLAYED. Essentially 1998’s answer to fall guys, penpen
Tri-Ice-lon is a triathlon across various icy stages where your chosen penpen must slide, run,
and swim their way to victory. Obviously I was playing as our very own billy ray walrus, and say
what you want about his music, but he’s very good at athletics and I’m extremely proud of him. If
you can imagine the penpen as humans in mascot costumes it’s a Japanese gameshow then, allowing
you to attack your competitors to further your lead. It received 64% on gamerankings, but penpen
triicelon has definitely won a place in my heart. Well that voice over doesn’t make me
hugely excited. A 3d arena fighting game, power stone is fast, frantic, and largely quite
good fun. It’s set in the 19th century, and follows the globetrotting – but mostly fighting
– adventures of various individuals who all seek the power stone – a stone that will supposedly
make any dream come true. It’s all quite stylish, with fighters automatically rolling over
obstacles and plenty of crates and objects to destroy that’ll provide you with various
weapons including rocket launchers and GUNS. See, I’m the best fighter. If you collect enough gems,
or maybe stones? I’m not sure what they are in any case, but if you collect enough, you’ll transform
into a more powerful version of yourself, and be able to deal much more damage for a short
time. 83% according to gamerankings, and it performed so well in arcades that it even had a
brief run as an anime in 1999, so there you are. Oh yeah, here we go, sports time!
I’ve played a boxing game before, but I’ve never watched boxing, so I’m
going to give this everything I’ve got. That’s it, we’ve hit peak 90’s. Ready 2 Rumble
boxing is, unsurprisingly, a boxing game and they’ve got the guy, you know,
the guy who says that thing! I obviously had to choose the 108 year old big
willy Johnson, and I got absolutely destroyed. Poor guy. I was particularly impressed
by the way they’ve animated the stomach, chest, and arms, independently. It does make
them look a bit like action figures, but it’s more realistic than having the bodies be one
single amorphous blob. You can Dodge, Duck, Dip, Dive and Dodge to avoid strikes, and if you build
up your rumble meter enough, can even be a super powerful boy for a brief period. It’s especially
fun when you both do this at the same time. There’s also a championship mode where
you can train your fighters, earn money, and compete for titles. A decent enough,
larger than life boxing sim then, with the dreamcast version earning 84% on gamerankings.
The first main sonic game to feature full 3D gameplay, Sonic Adventure was a smash with fans
and critics alike. It even had hub areas where you could run around and chat to passersby. It may
look a little basic now, but remember, this was before the likes of GTA3 revolutionised sandbox
gaming, and it blew people’s tiny 1998 brains. Ignoring the fact that Robotnik just warned him
about the god of destruction and now he’s having a nap by the pool, sonic transitioned to 3D quite
impressively. You’ll zoom along, collect rings and powerups, jump off bouncepads and enemies’
heads, and hit special set pieces that really take advantage of the Dreamcast’s hardware.
These factors all culminate in an impressive collage of speed and colour, and even though the
cutscenes feel very stilted and there were a few times I got caught on pieces of scenery losing
all my speed, it’s still really good fun. It may well be an affront to god that sonic lives in
a human world and get on a train like a person, but Sonic Adventures was a new high for
the series, clocking 87% on Gamerankings. Cited as “reason enough to own a dreamcast”,
the home console version of the arcade classic is by a sizable margin, the most critically
renowned launch game for Sega’s console, achieving a staggering 97% according
to gamerankings. Now me? I’m terrible at fighting games. I’m in awe of people who
can play them with any degree of precision, which I believe makes me a... bootton
mass-hur? Whatever that means. Either way, I really enjoyed playing soulcalibur. It
felt balanced to my level of playing ability, and yet was still intuitive enough for me to
pull off cool-looking moves whenever i wanted. Not that one. See? This might be because the
team worked closely with Namco’s Tekken devs on the home console port, but they went one step
further, as a big point in the dreamcast version of soulcalibur’s favour was its visuals which
were – in a rare reversal of the norm – superior to the arcade build. I like that you can
keep hitting people after you win though. I won me a soul edge sword by
making nightmare look a right chump and apparently then set sail
to terrorise pirates. Beautiful. Well I’ve got to race in the girth 2000, haven’t
I? TNN Motorsports Hardcore Heat is a racing game that attempts to complete the dreamcast’s
launch line up of racing titles by specialising in off-road racing... with mixed success.
My main issues were that while it controls alright, it’s really hard to turn at any great
speed, as if you’re constantly stuck in the mud with no hope of a tow. This is especially
troubling as, according to Wikipedia, the known control issues were mostly fixed for
the American release, begging the question: what on earth were they like before. It’s
quite by the books, sadly, with nothing really standing out and Next Generation suggesting
players rent it if they can’t wait for Sega Rally 2. 49% according to an average
of the reviews I could find online. Blimey, they just love to band the radical word
XTREME around (with the letter x and no e), don’t they? If there’s one thing Tokyo Xtreme
Racer is not, however, it’s Xtreme. Yes, it’s a competent enough racer where you
become intimately familiar with a stretch of Tokyo highway, yes it was apparently one of
the first mission-based driving games, but no, it is not Xtreme, OKAY? You pick a car, drive
around Tokyo’s shuto expressway, and start races with fellow naughty crime boysandgirls. There’s
a bar at the top of the screen that will drain as long as you’re in second place, so you must lead
the race, overtaking and weaving through traffic, until your opponent’s bar is empty, at which
point you win. Winnings can be spent on new cars and tuning your existing vehicles to ensure
street racing success, but this was clearly the early days of racing with a mission, so don’t
expect a story presence here. 72% on gamerankings. TrickStyle is in essence, tony hawks
pro skater but with hoverboards and you’re racing one another. So downhill
jam then. Developed by criterion – you know, the burnout people – you start by entering your
name, and if you can’t tell by the craaaazy way those letters move, this game is Xtreme. You can
pick from one of several different characters, and then in you hop to begin racing. It is...
quite hard to control. Corners are tight, and the steering isn’t nearly responsive enough
for you to react in time. I’d be laying down to get more speed, but then be locked into
that animation while bumping into what I was desperately attempting to jump over. It
does have impressive levels of rubberbanding, with AI all too happy to speed off initially, but
they’ll let you overtake them all when nearing the end of a race. How sweet. Is it going to let
me jump through Big Ben’s big stupid face?! Oh okay. 71% on Gamerankings, with NextGen
calling it “an impressive game to watch, and an infuriating game to
play. Track design is sadistic, and AI players are inhumanly adept. Good
mostly for increasing your stress level.” That 71% takes the average score for
the Dreamcast’s launch line up to 74%. And so there we are, all of the Dreamcast’s
US launch line up sort of reviewed in 2020, were there any among them that were your
favourite? Let me know in the comments below. Be sure to follow me on twitter for updates on
future launch game videos, and why not like this video and subscribe to the channel. Thanks so much
for watching, and I’ll see you next time, bye!
Great memories of the Dreamcast, some outrageous games