The Best of the Best on the Sega Dreamcast

[Music] you read the title right my friends you are about to see the very best of the sega dream cast at least according to old segalord x here we are breaking down the library into categories and then naming one runner up and one winner for each one i'm skipping all the honorable mentions and sticking directly with what i consider to be the cream of the crop we have over a dozen categories to go over so let's get started [Music] we begin with the puzzle genre which like most consoles was fairly well represented on the dreamcast the runner-up in this category is poyopop fever this was a japanese only release handled entirely by sega and sonic team the core game is similar to the other entries but it now has the new fever mode which allows you new attack chains that really make the versus gameplay interesting it looks great for a title like this and it supports two players the original game was a naomi arcade release so the dreamcast version is spot on with that source material it did make its way west for numerous other consoles including handhelds like the nintendo ds but this category just wouldn't be properly represented on a sega console without columns in the top spot hana gumi tizen columns 2 is a sequel to the original stv titan powered release that was brought home to the sega saturn as before it uses a soccer awards theme to drive the story and interactions while keeping the familiar columns gameplay mechanics it looks great sounds good and has a fan translation so you know what the heck is going on aside from the story mode you can also play a competitive two player option and a more traditional arcade style endless mode i highly recommend you give it a look if you enjoy this game world there are multiple characters to choose from and the replay value is quite a bit improved over the standard columns experience [Music] first and third person shooters were still in their early days when the dreamcast was on the market that didn't mean there weren't any good ones however our runner-up in this category is the port of quake 3 an immensely fun competitive first-person shooter that had groups of combatants murdering one another in small arenas there's a bunch of weapons to choose to get the job done and there are multiple game types like capture the flag and team death match best part is this supported 4 player couch co-op so you can play together with your friends there was even a few stages that were exclusive to this release break out the keyboard and mouse if you really want to kick some butt there are of course better ways to play this one today but i must confess that it's still one of the better games for the dreamcast in this genre the absolute best in this category is am2's out trigger however this one allows both first and third person modes the single player has missions you must complete while the competitive options support as many as four players via split screen it also uses the mouse and keyboard for a more accurate experience it was originally a naomi based arcade game so the conversion here is top tier stuff if you played it there first it's a bit different from quake 3 and it's ilk because you have different characters with unique abilities this adds quite a bit of variety to the typical repetition these games usually suffered from the dreamcast also remains the only way to play this on a home console [Music] [Music] in this category we are looking for the very best racing game on the dreamcast the platform was not weak in this genre so this was a tough one based on its raw fun factor i have to go with hydro thunder as my runner-up released on the launch day 9999 this was a port of the classic midway arcade title you'll find no realism here it's full of nitros massive jumps and completely fantastical courses you won't care at all because the gameplay is a pure joy to behold it's even better with two players at its original release this was the best way to play this game it looked and ran so much better than the other console options and it still looks great today when i think of the best dreamcast racer though i have to go with metropolis street racer by bizarre creations lots of real world cars and locations here on top of graphics and sound that were just incredible in its day its gameplay is built on the kudos system which is basically a reward for driving well and completing challenges tracks can be raced at different times of the day and the replay system is absolutely beautiful there's a lot of great racers on the dreamcast but this is the total package and a game that everyone needs to play [Music] [Music] the sports category is a broad and well-stocked area on the dreamcast so much so that our runner-up is a wrestling game of all things released in june of 1999 giant gram 2000 all japan pro wrestling 2 is easily the best wrestling game on the dreamcast it looks great has a killer roster of legendary grapplers and the gameplay is deep and varied it was a port of the naomi-powered arcade version and then ported by wow entertainment to the dreamcast even if you don't follow classic japanese wrestling you'll still recognize the likes of big van vader and stan hansen not to mention there are some virtual fighter guys in there as well part 3 to this series is also fantastic but our winner in this category is the juggernaut that was nfl 2k2 this series was sega's big sports redemption story after its abysmal treatment of the saturn visual concepts developed a fantastic follow-up to its previous 2k games nailing the presentation commentary visuals and gameplay this series took nfl football on a sega platform from a joke to a franchise that gave the mat and games all they could handle 2k sports also did decent basketball titles but when it came to the top of the line this one sits all alone on a mountain of greatness 28. you can't get back no way baby [Applause] the 49ers the adventure genre spans a lot of different games the variety really is something to consider because most of us have very different tastes here for my runner-up i chose shinmu for its vast world great story and interesting characters this is a tale of revenge in your journey to find the man who killed your father it's not easy to get into and the gameplay can present some frustration but overall it's still a one-of-a-kind adventure on the dreamcast it's one of those titles where you can get lost in just playing games and doing side missions for different characters and just exploring every nook and cranny the second one is a better game but this one is fully in english and is a mandatory starting point to this fantastic journey when it comes to the best of the adventure genre though code veronica is in a league of its own this was released by capcom in 2000 a continuation of the resident evil series you start off on a creepy island filled with all sorts of crazy characters and creatures but you'll end up in antarctica before it's all over with the outstanding visuals are only matched by its excellent gameplay and story one of the best that series has ever offered this was really the first time resident evil ventured into the realm of 3d environments and that alone created an atmosphere in a setting you really appreciated gone are those flat lifeless two-dimensional backgrounds now replaced by sweeping camera angles that allow you to see things around you in an all-new light there's been port since but it started right here and it's still as awesome as ever there's no way he could get here even if he is your brother yes he can i'm sure of it no way he won't come you'll just end up disappointed if you rely on others believe me i know what was that all about the dreamcast is often considered weak in the rpg department but i'm actually quite fond of a number of titles for it my runner-up is an action rpg called record of lotus war a neverland developed diablo clone released in 2000 i had no idea what this series was and i knew nothing of its story you start out as a resurrected warrior who knows nothing of his past skills all you know is is that you must stop an evil god from destroying the world as you play you find items and weapons learn to use powerful spells and before you know it a story unfolds that has you hooked to see the ending the graphics are quite tame for a dreamcast game but this is a grossly underappreciated gem that deserves a ton more attention as for our winner for best rpg you already know what it was going to be there's simply no better game in the genre on the dreamcast skies of arcadia was a beautifully designed adventure start to finish the fantastical world of floating islands and flying aquatic life really made an impression and as great as those things are the real power of this story are its memorable and endearing cast of misfits you were drawn to their story right from the beginning and by the end you are invested in seeing it to its conclusion bad guys you really hated and allies you really loved rounded out a cast of unforgettable personalities this could have looked and sounded like absolute garbage and i still would have played it but thankfully it looks runs and sounds fantastic add in the unique ship-to-ship battles and this is an rpg for the ages [Music] moons give me strength [Applause] that's fun [Music] this one is a big one the fighting game genre if there's one thing the dreamcast had a lot of it was fighting games a runner-up has to be nearly as good as the winner and my pick goes to dead or alive too this was a tecmo release in 2000 and man did it blow me away visually it is absolutely gorgeous with multi-level stages and incredibly detailed fighters the in-game story is absolute nonsense but you won't care you'll be too busy mastering its 12 fighters and beating down your buddies and four-player tag team battles on a vga monitor it's still one of the prettiest games i've ever seen not to be outdone in the winner of this category is the namco beast known as soul calibur this dropped in 1999 a port of an arcade game that originated on enhanced playstation architecture that means that it has been upgraded noticeably in the graphics department namco also saw fit to add a ton of extras there's weapon exercises a team battle option a survival mode a mission mode where you must complete specific tasks i mean there is so much content here that it dwarfs any competing fighter by orders of magnitude there's a whole library of this genre on the dreamcast yet this one easily tops my list not even an xbox 360 remaster could do it justice [Music] [Music] the shoot-'em-up genre is a difficult one on the dreamcast there are a bunch both before and after the death of the platform i was also slowing down on these types of games because of work and family but i still played all that i could and my second favorite of the bunch was 2005's under defeat this is a great looking shooter with gameplay that takes some getting used to but it's solid once you do the gameplay works where you can rotate your weapon fire to concentrate on specific areas of the screen it also has some of the biggest and best explosions of any game on the platform if you enjoyed the likes of zero gunner 2 give this one a shot that leaves the best shoot em up on the dreamcast as 2003's border down what made this game for me was the specialized death mechanic essentially there are three different versions of each stage your performance determines which one you play die and you border down to the next route die again and you go down one more die again and that's your ass it makes for a unique run because some of the routes are easier than others it's also a really nice looking game with polygon backgrounds and cinematic transitions there's a lot here to enjoy and there's nothing else quite like it [Music] the 3d platformer had not been around long when the dreamcast showed up i was always fond of the genre especially after my admiration for mario 64. i was so excited to see sonic show up in 3d especially after the debacle that played out on the saturn but as much fun as i had with sonic adventure my runner-up has to be the sequel sonic adventure 2. it showed up shortly after sega exited the hardware market a bittersweet release and the very last time we'd see the little blue blur on a sega made console but it was a blast beginning to end the graphics were better the gameplay was tighter and there was more to see and do it had some issues but like the first i still enjoyed it thoroughly and with that said rayman 2 was still the better game as far as early 3d platformers go this was a master class in how to do it from the control to the game world itself rayman 2 was an exquisite adventure that looked phenomenal on sega's final platform the setup is as you'd expect you start out collecting things gaining abilities and then opening more of the game world but the core gameplay just feels so well done that even now in 2022 it's every bit as playable you could get this on multiple platforms back in the day but i always felt the dreamcast was the better looking release there's even four player mini games for those of you with little ones it still amazes me that this was rayman's first three-dimensional outing after only one two-dimensional effort a few years prior it radiates quality of a much more mature series [Music] so [Music] the beat-em-up genre was dying back in the 32-bit days so by the time the dreamcast showed up it wasn't swimming in options our runner-up is sword of the berserk guts and rage it's based on a popular japanese comic series and features a massive narrative and some pretty intense action it looks good has multiple ways to attack and has power ups for more damage and carnage not being a fan of the source material meant i grew tired of the cinematics but the action is so well done i still enjoyed this one from time to time the only thing holding it back from the winning position here is the lack of a two-player mode a cardinal sin for this genre of game that leaves our best pick as sega's dynamite cop a sequel to die hard arcade and very similar in structure this time it's a cruise ship you are battling terrorist on and saving the president's daughter the original was actually a model 2 based arcade game so the dreamcast didn't have much trouble doing the same level of graphics and sound again you will do battle in small arenas with crazy over the top weapons and enemies back are the two player mode and the quicktime events though i feel sega could have added more content to this release for the home market still it was a fun time and a great throwback to the saturn entry if you haven't had the pleasure look up asian dynamite and give it a go to complete the trilogy [Music] [Music] the dreamcast was loaded with arcade ports so i just had to put in a category for them choosing just two was tough but our runner-up is the house of the dead 2. you really need to consider the timing of this one to understand its impact in 1998 sega released a port of the first game on the saturn a technically compromised edition that looked nowhere near as good then literally just a year later this landed at home on the dreamcast a pixel perfect conversion of the naomi original that looked like a million bucks it was unbelievable that in such a short time we went from severe compromise to the arcade version sitting in your home it's all here two players in gun support the branching pads even a few extra gameplay modes to keep you coming back it was a dream come true and a must-stone at the time capcom fighters that were really close to the arcade started all the way back on the saturn but on the dreamcast marvel vs capcom 2 was brand new and absolutely perfect it's another naomi port so of course the home release was something special yet again the dreamcast gives us pretty much exactly what we saw in the arcade back then and it was something to brag about to your friends 3d backdrops to battle against loads of unlockable fighters and versus gameplay that was bigger louder and more chaotic than ever it was the kind of showpiece that made the short life of the platform so very much worth it the arcade was in its final days as a competitive entertainment option but the appeal of a good conversion was still as powerful as ever there's been port since but none had the impact of the original [Music] [Music] for better or worse the dreamcast was loaded with ports from other consoles many were dreadful in a complete waste of time but our runner-up was a true upgrade spider-man was a port of the playstation original which itself was a damn good action game on the dreamcast we get a better resolution cleaner textures and just an overall more appealing graphical presentation you have a 3d new york to explore familiar bad guys to defeat and tons of missions to do the variety in those missions is incredibly impressive for a 3d game of that time this was an overall excellent addition to the dreamcast library and the best home console version of this product it was done by treyarch who also did the tony hawk port another one that's worth checking out but as great as spider-man was it placed second fiddle to the legacy of kane soul reaver i absolutely love this game the story set up the game world the way you got additional abilities i mean this was an incredible adventure from the moment you hit the start button unforgettable boss encounters and numerous ways to dispatch your enemies round out a nearly perfect narrative in this dark and sinister world again the dreamcast takes the playstation visuals and improves them incredibly better resolution better performance better textures it's a massive upgrade and the best way to play this on a home console so strong was this experience i'd rated top 10 material for this platform the best sound category is an interesting one for this era the advent of cd-based soundtracks typically stifled creativity but the dreamcast still had some real bangers in this area our runner-up is jet grind radio perhaps one of the most unique titles on the dreamcast it's basically a mission-based action title that has you doing tricks spraying graffiti and battling other gangs in a turf war the cel-shaded graphics are awesome on the dreamcast and the entire package is wrapped up in an urban inspired soundtrack by hideki naganuma it really sets the tone for everything you see and do in this one and really fits this world like a glove and then there was rez this was developed by many of the members that helped create the panzer dragoon titles so the on rails gameplay should be quite familiar but what made this one so special was its sound and music they are intricately tied to the gameplay where you are essentially evolving the composition by your on-screen actions the trance-style electronic soundtrack grows more prominent with the action as well this is all cleverly designed behind the lock on shooting mechanic so the two go hand in hand and play out on screen perfectly it's such a unique game once you get a handle on what it wants you to do and i highly recommend you play it on a good stereo system or a high-end set of headphones there's many versions of this today but it started right here on the old dreamcast [Music] one here we are the big one best graphics this is not a cut and dry category as there are many games on this platform that could be here a number of them in this very episode the runner-up test drive le mans really stands out as a technical marvel not only do you get some really nice looking car models but up to 24 of them can be on the track at once the draw distance is superb the tracks themselves look great and the performance is pretty solid the entire time there's even four player split screen here the gameplay itself is a bit of an acquired taste but i always love sitting back to a replay and really seeing this beautiful engine in all its glory the developers at infogram melbourne house claim this pushes the dreamcast to its limit at 5 million polygons a second i don't know how accurate that statement is but it sure does look good picking the winner here broke me down to almost doing co-winners i mean there are some awesome looking games on the dreamcast and picking a single title is extremely difficult and with that i give you shinmu too this is such an improvement over the first in nearly every way and yet it still looks great for a machine released all the way back in 1998. the world is huge and alive there's so much happening and so many things to see the background details are really well done also you see the larger city in the distance as you explore the buildings around you have such distinct architecture the dreamcast really did an excellent job with this world and you rarely feel closed in or locked to small areas it does chug a bit at times but it's a small price to pay for this level of detail story wise rio has followed his nemesis land d to hong kong and is now looking for help from one of his father's old friends you find out your father had more secrets than you knew and the motivations behind his murder it's a shame this one never was released in the united states on sega hardware because on the dreamcast it's one great looking game [Music] our last category is one that is tough for any console that has some age to it true exclusives aren't a common thing especially great ones and our runner-up is sega's very own confidential mission this was a light gun shooter that first appeared on the naomi and then poured it to the dreamcast it has received no other version since and remains a very fun game to play to this day it's essentially virtua cop with terrorists and government agencies out to stop them the bad guys have stolen a spy satellite and it's your job to get it back it's filled with over-the-top characters chase scenes and enemies that pop out like cockroaches there's branching paths two-player co-op and different weapons and items you can use it's not quite virtual cop level stuff but you can only play it at home on the dreamcast and it's a solid effort if you have the means to play it properly but when it comes to our winner it's entirely in a league of its own capcom released project justice in late 2000 on the dreamcast a port of the naomi arcade original this is a sequel to rival schools united by fate and builds upon that game's tag team system by adding three on three matchups that allowed for some pretty crazy moves and combos not to mention a visual presentation that went well beyond what the playstation original was capable of this was only ported to the dreamcast so it remains playable only there in its console form it boggles my mind that capcom has never revisited this incredible fighter it's a standout for the platform and one of its top console exclusives [Music] [Music] and that about ends our best of the best picks for sega's final game system despite how you feel about my choices the one thing you cannot argue is that the library of this great console was absolutely loaded with top-notch offerings in just a few years time the dreamcast accumulated hundreds of titles many of which did it proud and kept the early adopters glued to their tvs until sega and its third parties stopped releasing software i'd love to hear what you guys would have chosen for these categories and if i get enough responses i might even do a viewer edition of this very topic if you enjoyed this format sound off in the comments and we'll do this again for sega's other hardware i'm sure many of you would get a kick out of seeing my picks for the likes of the master system in genesis if you are in the group that hasn't played any of these titles be sure to check them out not only were they great 20 years ago but they hold up extremely well today i'm sigalord x thank you guys for watching and i will catch you next time [Music] you

Channel: Sega Lord X

Views: 67,422

Keywords: dreamcast, sega dreamcast, best dreamcast games, segalordx, sega lord x, sega saturn, sega genesis, mega drive, megadrive, game gear, 32x, mega cd, genesis, saturn, master system, sega, sega cd, gameplay, review, movies, retro games, retro gaming, video games, ps4, xbox, wii, nintendo, gamecube, n64, ps1, ps2, ps3, psp, vita, switch, atari, dreamcast games

Id: 92oysjhioBg

Length: 31min 24sec (1884 seconds)

Published: Mon Sep 12 2022