Saturn or Dreamcast - if you could choose one

[Scream And Fly]

Alright, I'm not very well versed in the newer Sega stuff, but I want to set up either a Saturn or Dreamcast to run imports on. Overall, which system would you choose?

[Steven]

With plenty of bias, Saturn. Easily. (SS is my 2nd favorite system of all time)

Own both currently, but I've invested so much more time into Saturn than I have the Dreamcast. I have about 40 games for DC, 180-ish for Saturn.

[Blanka789]

Overall the Saturn is probably the better bet...but the only way to play Shenmue is on the Dreamcast!

[The 1 2 P]

Alright, I'm not very well versed in the newer Sega stuff, but I want to set up either a Saturn or Dreamcast to run imports on. Overall, which system would you choose?

Good question. I have both but neither have ever been hooked up. But based on all the available games I know of--I might have to go with the Saturn as far as imports go. But they both have vast amounts of good import games.

[108Stars]

Being a long-time Saturn-hater I say the Dreamcast should always be prefered.

[parallaxscroll]

Dreamcast. It was a better console for me than Saturn was.

[otaku]

Saturn. So many games-far more than dreamcast. Lots of good quality titles you've never heard of and then some you have. Can be expensive though. The hardware however is cheap and reliable. I'd get both though :) cheap enough

[TonyTheTiger]

Alright, I'm not very well versed in the newer Sega stuff, but I want to set up either a Saturn or Dreamcast to run imports on. Overall, which system would you choose?

If you're talking about imports Saturn is easily the better bet. While most of the AAA Dreamcast games came over to the U.S. that's sadly not the case with the Saturn.

BUT (and it's a big but) the Dreamcast is far more cost efficient. You can get a Dreamcast, a free method to run imports, and most of the great games for very little money.

If you're going to get a Saturn and plan to import anything you may as well invest in an Action Replay 4M Plus. It just does everything you'd need it to do. Memory backup, cheat codes, import enabler, and RAM expander (for those SNK and Capcom games that use it). It works perfectly and though I haven't checked in a while I don't think they're that expensive.

Either way, the AR4MP is the best bang for your buck since you get everything in one neat package and if you play a lot you'll certainly need more storage than what the console provides. I personally swear by it.

[Hwj_Chim]

Buy a Japanese Saturn Tons of cheap kick ass games. Then download and burn a boot disk for the Dreamcast and import for that also.

[SegaAges]

I love my DC, but I would havr to say Saturn.

So many great games.

Burning Rangers, Steep Slope Sliders, uh yeah, I am only naming 2, there are hundreds more.

[eskobar]

Its easy to pick up the Saturn, the quality and quantity of the software is far beyond the dreamcast's.

There are many cheap games for the Saturn, but the ones you do not want to miss are very expensive ... it's better to get a few really important saturn games and get the best dreamcast's titles.

:D

[CosmicMonkey]

Assuming we're talking fully multi-region systems...

It's still probably one of the hardest choices to make. How about both, and nothing else?

Both have excellent arcade conversions. Both have excellent system-specific games. I suppose it all comes down to whether you love Burning Rangers and Panzer Dragoon Saga more than Jet Set Radio and Skies or Arcadia (for example). Or maybe Ikaruga vs. Radiant Silvergun (vs. swearing and breaking things).

I'm going to go for Dreamcast, simply because of all the near-perfect Naomi fighting/shooting conversions and the wonders of JSR and SoA.

[Bojay1997]

I would probably go with the Saturn. Almost all of the DC exclusives have been ported at this point or have current generation sequels. Even a lot of the shmups are slated to come out on the Wii. I can't say that about most of the first-party or import Saturn titles.

[fpbrush]

If you're talking about imports Saturn is easily the better bet. While most of the AAA Dreamcast games came over to the U.S. that's sadly not the case with the Saturn.

Completely agree with this. While I'm a huge Dreamcast fan, if you wanted a console for primarily imports, I would pick the Saturn. A large reason why I love the Dreamcast so much is what TonyTheTiger mentioned, most of the best titles are available in english--and fairly cheap for the most part. Compare that with the Saturn, which many great titles did not see english conversions, and the ones that did commonly fetch a high price. So I say,

Saturn --> imports
Dreamcast --> domestic

Get a switch put on your Saturn and a boot disc for your Dreamcast, then you can catch any english Saturn titles or Dreamcast imports that you might want. Though honestly -- if you don't know japanese, the Dreamcast just didn't have that many imports worth getting imo.

So if you care about imports go with a Saturn, you won't be disappointed. If you want to fool around with some imports but primarily play domestic, go Dreamcast.

Hope this helps.

[Pantechnicon]

I'd choose Dreamcast. In fact I did choose Dreamcast. I wound up getting both systems more or less at the same time and so it was hard for me to not see the Saturn as anything more than primitive early effort at the console perfection I believe the DC nearly achieved. I eventually sold my Saturn collection but kept the DC.

Now in fairness I should point out that I'm completely ignorant about the Saturn import library. And if imports are going to be your primary focus then don't throw out the baby with the bathwater until you do some more research. Dreamcast still has some great imports of its own though *koff*Ikaruga*koff*Shenmue 2*koff*.

[mailman187666]

the saturn seems to be the import system to play. Lets put it this way, the only import system I own is a Saturn (although I have regional bypasses on other systems). Symphony of the Night with a Saturn controller and extra characters is a nice touch also.

[coreys429]

Easy choice. The Dreamcast. Why? Well good factor when playing games....I can save my bloody games on a dreamcast. Every Saturn I've gotten even with replacing the battery the bloody thing won't save.

[Bojay1997]

Easy choice. The Dreamcast. Why? Well good factor when playing games....I can save my bloody games on a dreamcast. Every Saturn I've gotten even with replacing the battery the bloody thing won't save.

Have you tried using one of those plug in save carts? I can honestly say I have never had a problem saving on a Saturn.

[Iron Draggon]

definitely start with the Saturn... just a few years ago, I only owned a small handful of imports for Genesis, SNES, Saturn, & Dreamcast... now I still own the same small handful for Genesis, SNES, & Dreamcast, but I own a ton of imports for Saturn... and overall, it's been easy and inexpensive to boost my Saturn import collection... yeah, I've had to pay triple digits for alot of those games, but that's only because I've insisted on buying them all sealed... so if you just wanna get into importing for a single system, and you wanna do it as cheaply as possible, you can't beat the Saturn for that, if you want a large library to choose from... it's true that you can import for the Dreamcast as cheaply and easily as you can for the Saturn, but it'll take several years of continued aftermarket development for the Dreamcast to catch up to the Saturn in terms of number of games available for it... it's still no contest

now with that said, I'd agree that you definitely wanna consider importing for both systems, especially if you wanna get into certain series that appeared on both systems... so you'll need the Dreamcast to continue where you left off with the Saturn... for example, if you're into SHMUPS, you'd need the Saturn to be able to play Gunbird, and you'd need the Dreamcast to be able to play Gunbird 2... and for RPG'S, you'd definitely need to own both systems!

[Joe West]

both systems are good.....why not buy both, you should be-able to get both for around $50.00........then you will have the best of both worlds.....................try it you mite like it....

[nate1749]

both systems are good.....why not buy both, you should be-able to get both for around $50.00........then you will have the best of both worlds.....................try it you mite like it....

I agree, not a huge investment for either one of these systems themselves. If you only have space for one or something like that, then I'd go with dreamcast, games have aged better imo (since they're not that old) and lots of hidden gems.

Lots of easy emulation to do with it (if you want like nes games).

Nate

[Scream And Fly]

I appreciate the feedback, thanks. I have both systems here (both new in the box too), so I suppose I could set up both, but I would need to have a region switch put in the Saturn, right?

[coreys429]

Have you tried using one of those plug in save carts? I can honestly say I have never had a problem saving on a Saturn.

No, I haven't I game on a budget and trying to find a memory card for that under $30 or so bucks isn't worth it. I can find VMU's for cheap and the batteries as well on the low side.

[TheRealist50]

I appreciate the feedback, thanks. I have both systems here (both new in the box too), so I suppose I could set up both, but I would need to have a region switch put in the Saturn, right?

you could do this. But you can also buy an action replay 4M cart it allows you to play imports on your Saturn.

[TonyTheTiger]

I say screw the region switch. Just get one of these:

http://www.play-asia.com/paOS-13-71-k8-49-en-70-1b2.html

Like I said before, I swear by it. It does everything a region switch does and more. Just know that with this cart you might have trouble playing certain imports that have ROM carts as part of the game. The slot the Action Replay 4M Plus takes up would otherwise be needed for the ROM cart. It's not impossible to do a cart swap but it's a hassle and probably not that good for the Saturn. The good news is that there are only like two games that use a ROM cart, King of Fighters '95 and some random Ultraman game.

The data back-up feature also has a minor limitation, as well. It doesn't support direct save. You have to save to the Saturn's internal storage and then use the cart's data management system to transfer files back and forth. It's a minor inconvenience.

Unless those two ROM cart games are must buys for you I would think that the additional benefits that come with the AR4MP outweigh the pretty minor limitations. Plus, you don't have to chop up your Saturn which is nice.

[ANONPLOX]

I say screw the region switch. Just get one of these:

http://www.play-asia.com/paOS-13-71-k8-49-en-70-1b2.html

Like I said before, I swear by it. It does everything a region switch does and more. Just know that with this cart you might have trouble playing certain imports that have ROM carts as part of the game. The slot the Action Replay 4M Plus takes up would otherwise be needed for the ROM cart. It's not impossible to do a cart swap but it's a hassle and probably not that good for the Saturn. The good news is that there are only like two games that use a ROM cart, King of Fighters '95 and some random Ultraman game.

The data back-up feature also has a minor limitation, as well. It doesn't support direct save. You have to save to the Saturn's internal storage and then use the cart's data management system to transfer files back and forth. It's a minor inconvenience.

Unless those two ROM cart games are must buys for you I would think that the additional benefits that come with the AR4MP outweigh the pretty minor limitations. Plus, you don't have to chop up your Saturn which is nice.

actually there's more games for RAM carts not ROM carts including 2 iv owned one of which was x-men vs street fighter and the action replay carts works well as a 4 meg ram cart

[TheRealist50]

actually there's more games for RAM carts not ROM carts including 2 if owned one of which was x-men vs street fighter

yeah thats true. X-Men vs. Street Fighter is the only reason I want a Saturn...RAM carts aren't good for that game, I don't want to import a Japanese Saturn nor do I want to mod it because I don't like modding. So...I'm in quite a pickle.

[ANONPLOX]

yeah thats true. X-Men vs. Street Fighter is the only reason I want a Saturn...RAM carts aren't good for that game, I don't want to import a Japanese Saturn nor do I want to mod it because I don't like modding. So...I'm in quite a pickle.works just fine for me

[Chriz730]

Definately Saturn.. Virtua Fighter & House of The Dead are Classics

[ANONPLOX]

Definately Saturn.. Virtua Fighter & House of The Dead are Classics
yea but the DC had Garou: Mark of the Wolves

[coreys429]

yea but the DC had Garou: Mark of the Wolves

DC also had a great game called Typing of the Dead lol

[ANONPLOX]

DC also had a great game called Typing of the Dead lol

oddly theres an arcade cab for that

[refan]

Id pick the Sega Saturn because there's a lot of games with live action movie clips and they are so bad they're good.
Off-World Interceptor Extreme and Minnesota Fats are great examples.

[ANONPLOX]

Id pick the Sega Saturn because there's a lot of games with live action movie clips and they are so bad they're good.
Off-World Interceptor Extreme and Minnesota Fats are great examples.

yea they where so good that live action video games left arcades in record time same with lav on Saturn and other consoles, sold off in less then a week

[BHvrd]

I've had much more luck with Saturn, not to mention I prefer the games as it has some of the best imports and arcade ports ever!!

Luck has to do with hardware though. I've burned out 3 Dreamcasts and never one Saturn. I've had my original Saturn since day 1! and it still performs like nobodies business. Imo, the Saturn was a much better designed consle and made for the long haul from my experience. Dreamcast unfortunately has turned into one of the most unreliable machines i've ever owned, it's almost like it is biodegradeble or something, i've had terrible luck with them.

Dragon Force should be the final nail in the coffin, it's just a must have game and only Saturn has it.

[cyberfluxor]

So much love for the Saturn. :D

The Dreamcast is cool, but the Saturn is just insane with what it can offer. Even domestically I enjoy the library of games, but importing is a good bonus. Still my top console today.

[TonyTheTiger]

actually there's more games for RAM carts not ROM carts including 2 iv owned one of which was x-men vs street fighter and the action replay carts works well as a 4 meg ram cart

I'm talking ROM carts, not RAM expansion. There's a difference.

[Scream And Fly]

How's this? :)

http://i12.tinypic.com/5zpq1p0.jpg

[Arcade_Ness]

I preferred the DC controller and addons, not to mention importing is easier and cheaper.

[ANONPLOX]

Id pick the Sega Saturn because there's a lot of games with live action movie clips and they are so bad they're good.
Off-World Interceptor Extreme and Minnesota Fats are great examples.

I'm talking ROM carts, not RAM expansion. There's a difference.didnt know there was such things as rom carts

[Sniderman]

didnt know there was such things as rom carts

http://www.vidgame.net/SEGA/Sega/Sega_CD/cd_backup.jpg

RAM cart or ROM cart?

[DKTheArcadeRat]

Correct me if I'm wrong. Aren't there certain games that came bundled with a ROM cart(in Japan of course), that added things to the gameplay? Such as enhancing or adding backgrounds?

[Hwj_Chim]

yes the king of fighters was one of them.
http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q197/hwj_chim/T-3101GSega-Saturn-Photo-The-King-o.jpg

[TonyTheTiger]

Yeah, that's what I was talking about.


Correct me if I'm wrong. Aren't there certain games that came bundled with a ROM cart(in Japan of course), that added things to the gameplay? Such as enhancing or adding backgrounds?

I'm pretty sure the carts (at least for King of Fighters '95 and Ultraman) don't actually "enhance" the game. They are the game. Meaning that some of the game's data is on the cart instead of the disc. It helps reduce loading times and stuff. The downside is that you can't play the game without the cart in the slot. That means that if you're using the Action Replay 4M Plus the cart slot won't be available and so you can't conveniently play those games. But they were the only two games that had this extra feature if I remember right so it's no big loss.

The AR4MP cart works perfectly for everything else. Games that require or simply can use 1 Meg RAM Expansion or 4 Meg RAM Expansion work as well as any other import (sans Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete MPEG Edition which requires an MPEG card).

[zektor]

It's a tough match as I really love both of these systems, but if I had to choose only one...

It would have to be the Dreamcast.

This is due to many factors. The Dreamcast has a great line of games yes (so does Saturn...maybe Saturn has even more great games), but the Dreamcast still has the homebrew aspect. With the slew of emulators, owning this one system means I can not only use it with it's own great titles, but run homebrew emulators on it and play games from a plethora of video game systems that came before it.

[gameofyou]

Both are great, but I prefer the Saturn, which has the best controller of all time. Although, you could probably pick up Dreamcast games more cheaply nowdays.

[Sudo]

Definitely the Dreamcast. It has many more games that I personally enjoy, though the Saturn was a great system as well.

[ANONPLOX]

http://www.vidgame.net/SEGA/Sega/Sega_CD/cd_backup.jpg

RAM cart or ROM cart?

i never ownwed a Saturn up until a few months ago so give me a break

[Push Upstairs]

I like the Saturn more.

Why? Because it offers more games that appeal to me over the Dreamcast.

[Damaramu]

Another vote for the Saturn here. So much good stuff on that machine, import and domestic.

[Rob2600]

Definately Saturn.. Virtua Fighter & House of The Dead are Classics

Virtua Fighter 3tb and The House of the Dead 2 were released on the Dreamcast, so there. :)

[Zebbe]

Skip both and go with the first two PlayStations instead. :)

[ANONPLOX]

Skip both and go with the first two PlayStations instead. :)
LOL YOU FIALED!!!!!

[Daft Punk]

If I had the systems intire library I would pick a JP saturn .

[ClassicGameTrader]

I am a die hard Saturn fan. I don't think there is any system in existence which could make me give up my mint condition boxed clear import Saturn. DC has some great games, but Saturn has so many MORE good games. The system has an almost endless supply of flawless arcade ports, SNK, Capcom, Treasure, Sega, etc.

I'll always love Saturn because it was the pinnacle of 2D gaming in my humble opinion.

[Tony Lama]

This is a pretty tough question as both systems have it's merits. I love the Saturn for games like Nights, Albert Odyssey: Legend of Eldean, the Panzer Dragoon series, Sega Ages, Die-Hard Arcade, and one of my ALL-time favorites, Baku Baku!

But I'll have to go with the Dreamcast. I've always felt it was Sega's BEST console ... even better than the Genesis. I've always been partial to tournament fighters. And although Saturn has a nice library filled with fighters, the Dreamcast has the power to make those games SHINE!

Dreamcast has a great library of fighters like Marvel VS Capcom 2, Project Justice, King of the Fighters Dream Match, Fatal Fury: Mark of the Wolves, Tech Romancer, Plasma Sword, Soul Calibur, Dead or Alive 2, Powerstone, 1 & 2, and my personal favorite Capcom Vs SNK: Millenium Fight 2000!

Add to that other great titles like: Zombie Revenge, Dynamite Cop, Illbleed, Resident Evil: Code Veronica, Typing of the Dead, Record of Lodoss War, Skies of Arcadia, Sword of the Berzerk, Jet Grind Radio, Gunbird 2, Mars Matrix, Sega Rally, and many more awesome titles that just "shine" on Sega's 128-bit console.

In the Saturn's defense, I would like to mention one title that I believe is the unsung hero of the Sega Saturn library. And that game is ... DARK LEGEND! Incredible 2D fighter with an awesome "ancient China" atmosphere! Love the music, love the backgrounds, love the characters, love the fighting styles, I LOVE everything about this game! Now that DATA EAST is dead will SOMEONE please pick up the license and make a sequel!! (sorry for the rant!)

[Zebbe]

LOL YOU FIALED!!!!!

No, your spelling did ;)

[erik]

That's really a tough one to decide. Each system has their share of 'unique classics.' The Saturn has VF2, Guardian Heroes, Dragon Force, PD II, PD Saga and imports like Radiant Silvergun. It also has the best versions of Salamander and Life Force in a compilation CD. The Dreamcast has PSO, Soul Calibur, JGR, SFIII:3rd strike, RE:CV and much more. However, one reason I really love the Dreamcast is not because of the exclusives. The DC has the best ports of PS1 and N64 games like Tony Hawk 2, Rayman 2 and Soul Reaver. Rayman 2 for the DC is absolutely fantastic in 480p widescreen and is a work of art. Tony Hawk 2 looks incredible on the DC as well. So, I will have to rule in favor of the Dreamcast, but only by a very slim margin.
Long live Sega and its great fan-base!!

[retro junkie]

For me, this is like asking which eye do I want poked out. I really could not make a choice between the two. I like both systems equally that much. Both have their own great, must have, must play, games. :)

[Scream And Fly]

This is an awesome thread, very helpful. I really appreciate it. Based on this thread, I'm going with the Saturn. I may end up setting up my Dreamcast too, though the last time I used a Dreamcast was when I worked for Acclaim in 2000. :)

This will be cool since I never really got into either system, so I'm starting fresh, so to say.

[ANONPLOX]

No, your spelling did ;)

internets lingo! do you speak it?

[Mr Mort]

Huge Saturn fan here.

As a fan of Capcom 2D fighters, the Saturn is still king.
Despite also being on the DC, the Saturn's 2D fighters still look better, and the Saturn's controller is unmatched for fighting games. Couple that with the Panzer Dragoon games, Guardian Heroes, VF2, Fighter's Megamix, Thunder Force V, Radian Silvergun, Soukyugurentai, Nights, Steep Slope Sliders, etc, and the Saturn has an amazing title selection.

However, in order to truly get take advantage of the Saturn's full library, you really need to import, but the Action Replay 4M Plus cartridge makes it a breeze, and I believe there are only 2 or 3 SNK fighting games that won't work with it. Otherwise, it's the perfect solution for literally every single other game in the Saturn library.

Oh, and on the issue of the Saturn's internal memory, the battery lasts me on average a year and a half to 2 years, and I periodically back up all my saves with a backup ram cart. There are only a few games (mostly rpg's) that will recognize if you have the backup cart plugged in and allow you to save/load directly from it. Otherwise, you need to save to the internal memory, then copy the file to the backup ram cart, which is not too much of a hassle.

[Kid Fenris]

In terms of imports, I'd have to take the Saturn. The Dreamcast's Japanese library has some interesting exclusives (Napple Tale, El Dorado Gate, and Zero Gunner 2, to name three), but its best titles were either translated for the domestic DC or later ported to other U.S. systems. For example, Ikaruga and Shenmue 2 are available here on the GameCube and Xbox, respectively.

[VACRMH]

Saturn.

Never saw what the big deal with the Dreamcast was.

[demen999]

I'd pick the DC, just because of the amount of fun I had with it. I got into the saturn real late and after ps1, so I was abit biased because of that. I don't do that many imports, so I definetly dont know what the saturn import big thing is.

[Dreamc@sting]

This is a hard one, I love both systems, Saturn being my 2nd favorite next to the Genesis. If you plan on doing importing I'd go with the Saturn hands down. While the DC has a fair share of worth while imports, the Saturn has alot more, and more worthwhile titles to import. I'm working on my collection right now, and I'm very pleased with my choice, I will be hitting DC once its finished.

[Scream And Fly]

I definitely want to play imports. I never got in on the import stuff and I figure now is a good time to do it.

[Icarus Moonsight]

This is like asking someone which of your two children would you save from a burning building if you could only save one. It's absolutely brutal and impossible to answer until it actually comes down to it. I want them both dangnabbit!

[Joe West]

Dreamcast for the Sports

[gum_drops]

Luck has to do with hardware though. I've burned out 3 Dreamcasts and never one Saturn. I've had my original Saturn since day 1! and it still performs like nobodies business. Imo, the Saturn was a much better designed consle and made for the long haul from my experience. Dreamcast unfortunately has turned into one of the most unreliable machines i've ever owned, it's almost like it is biodegradeble or something, i've had terrible luck with them.


Yea, I noticed that also. The dreamcast systems tend to be much more finicky than the saturns. Then there are the model 2 Sega Cd consoles, which are even more likely to break down from my experience.

[CDiablo]

If imports are allowed.....Saturn Hands down. Otherwise its a hard choice

[Nebagram]

Ehh... tough one. I love both consoles with a passion but I'd have to go with the Dreamcast, it just has a more rounded catalogue of games.

[hellfire]

saturn all the way

[rolligame]

Dreamcast is still one of my favorite consoles. My biggest reason would have to be how easy it was to burn games.

[Icarus Moonsight]

http://www.emezeta.com/weblog/jack-sparrow.jpg