Is it worth owning a Dreamcast?

[Rickstilwell1]

I'm taking a wild guess but it might also be possible to get a lot of the games cheaper on Dreamcast, especially if you go disc only just to play them. If you go digital download or compilation its not much different than disc only anyway.

[Orion Pimpdaddy]

Toy Commander has not been ported to anything. It's reason enough to own a Dreamcast in my opinion.

[wiggyx]

Also, awesome new indie games are still coming out for the damned thing. Nothing seems to be able to keep the DC down. It was too far beyond its time at launch, and it seems that time should have been now.

[Greg2600]

As others have said, DC games have mostly been ported to PS2, Gamecube, Xbox, and newer stuff. Is it worth it?

PRO: Systems and most accessories are still very affordable. Lots of great light gun games, if you have an old CRT. Have been several near complete games that have been released, which had been canceled back in the day. Sure there are many more still out there, due to SEGA's abrupt pulling of the plug.

CON: If you want 480P graphics, you have to buy a VGA Box or cable (costs $40+), and if you don't have VGA on your TV, a converter to HDMI or Component (another 30-40 bucks). Most white systems fall victim to the chemical yellowing SNES's and old computers have. If you don't replace the VMU batteries (I don't) you get that damn high pitch beep when you power on! You have to be wary of how CD-R's are burned to use, will cause laser damage.

If you got a DC, here are some recent projects to keep an eye on....

1. AtariAge modder Yurkie now offers a cheap alternative to the DC system battery. He replaces it with a holder for a rechargeable battery!

2. Been out for a few years, but you can buy an SD Adapter (usually on ebay for about $25) that plugs into the back serial port. Load SDHC with games, and play! It works fine for most games, but has some stuttering on FMV. Alternatively you could mod the system with SD directly. The SD adapter requires a burned disc with software called Dreamshell.

3. Multiple people are currently working on GD-ROM replacement. These would be IDE-based solutions that you could plug into the system board instead of the disc drive. Hook up a hard drive, and there you go. Follow progress here. AssemblerGames Forum. Facebook Group.

[IHatedSega]

If you love importing games, then the Dreamcast is an awesome console for current Doujin shooters and other projects around the world.

[Ryudo]

Actually you can get a VGA cable for 10$

[o.pwuaioc]

Dreamcasts are worth it for being able to play burns alone. They're also super cheap. I have one for sale if you're interested.

[Greg2600]

Actually you can get a VGA cable for 10$

Where?

[Koa Zo]

As others have said, DC games have mostly been ported to PS2, Gamecube, Xbox, and newer stuff.

That's a bit misleading. There are dozens of excellent titles that remain exclusive to Dreamcast.

some of the best:
Bangai-O
Bomberman Online
Canon Spike
Giga Wing 1 & 2
Gunbird 2
Mars Matrix
Outrigger
Record of Lodoss War
Red Dog
Seaman
Virtual On Oratorio Tangram

imports:
Bomber Hehe
Border Down
Cosmic Smash
Dynamite Deka 2
Eldorado Gate series
Fire Prowrestling D
L.O.L. Lack of Love
The Lost Golem
Musapey's Choco Marker
Samba de Amigo 2000
Zero Gunner 2

[Greg2600]

That's a bit misleading. There are dozens of excellent titles that remain exclusive to Dreamcast.

I said most, not all, of course there are exceptions! But all the well known original exclusive and most Sega published titles (Sonic, Crazy Taxi, MSR-Project Gotham, House of the Dead, Shenmue II, Resident Evil Code Veronica) not to mention many titles back then appeared on the N64 or PS1 as well (Shadowman, SFRush 2049, Rayman 2, Resident Evil 3, Dino Crisis) albeit in worse graphics.

PS: Gunbird 2 is found on a PS2 game called Gunbird Special Edition, although that was not released in the USA. Also many of the games you list are not cheap. That's why I mentioned the SD Card Adapter, to be able to play all games. Although that still doesn't solve the region lock problem. If you have a NA-DC you cannot play imported games without a boot disc, or a region mod.

[Koa Zo]

I said most, not all, of course there are exceptions!

Right. And where did I say you said all?
Saying most is still misleading and inaccurate - at the very least you are implying a majority, which is misleading and fails to inform the original poster of the many great games which are still exclusive to Dreamcast.

[theclaw]

I said most, not all, of course there are exceptions! But all the well known original exclusive and most Sega published titles (Sonic, Crazy Taxi, MSR-Project Gotham, House of the Dead, Shenmue II, Resident Evil Code Veronica) not to mention many titles back then appeared on the N64 or PS1 as well (Shadowman, SFRush 2049, Rayman 2, Resident Evil 3, Dino Crisis) albeit in worse graphics.

PS: Gunbird 2 is found on a PS2 game called Gunbird Special Edition, although that was not released in the USA. Also many of the games you list are not cheap. That's why I mentioned the SD Card Adapter, to be able to play all games. Although that still doesn't solve the region lock problem. If you have a NA-DC you cannot play imported games without a boot disc, or a region mod.

Like he says. DC *must* be modified to directly play GD-ROM imports from its disc tray.

Boot discs, CD-R, and SD loaders have their uses, but it's not quite the satisfaction of playing imports swap-free in the same manner as an imported console.

[BlastProcessing402]

That's a bit misleading. There are dozens of excellent titles that remain exclusive to Dreamcast.

some of the best:
Bangai-O
Bomberman Online
Canon Spike
Giga Wing 1 & 2
Gunbird 2
Mars Matrix
Outrigger
Record of Lodoss War
Red Dog
Seaman
Virtual On Oratorio Tangram

imports:
Bomber Hehe
Border Down
Cosmic Smash
Dynamite Deka 2
Eldorado Gate series
Fire Prowrestling D
L.O.L. Lack of Love
The Lost Golem
Musapey's Choco Marker
Samba de Amigo 2000
Zero Gunner 2

Firepro D might technically be DC exclusive, but I don't know that I'd bother listing it as such, since there are two Firepros after that on the PS2 (not to mention two more on GBA). Not the same exact installment of the series, but honestly it's not like the series changes that much, so if you, say, play R with a good edit pack to put in the guys that are in D but not R, it might as well be the same game. Plus it would save the trouble of tracking down all the downloadable moves and such (and finding room for them on multiple VMU's). And R even got localized so you don't need to know Japanese or look at a guide to learn the menus.

[Aussie2B]

Bangai-O isn't exclusive to the Dreamcast either. In fact, it didn't even debut on the Dreamcast. It was designed for N64 and was then ported to Dreamcast. There are some gameplay differences between the two, though. Some people prefer the N64 original; some prefer the changes made for the Dreamcast version.

Only the Dreamcast version made it to the US, though.

[scaleworm]

Toy Commander has not been ported to anything. It's reason enough to own a Dreamcast in my opinion.

100% in agreement here. (Yep, I'm a DC fanboy) and as to homebrews, don't get me started... YEAH!

[otaku]

100% in agreement here. (Yep, I'm a DC fanboy) and as to homebrews, don't get me started... YEAH!

No reason not to have one! I was/am a huge DC fanboy. At one point I had all the games and some homebrew stuff thanks to burns. Bought the system new and had all accessories. I may get into it again for some of the new games and shenmue again this time I wanna buy an old one maybe do some mods including custom paintjob etc.

Anyway yes you must get one!

[kedawa]

A Dreamcast and a spindle of high quality CD-Rs will give you pretty good bang for buck.

[Greg2600]

A Dreamcast and a spindle of high quality CD-Rs will give you pretty good bang for buck.

No concerns over laser damage?

Still need a bios mod to play imports.

[Nionel]

What a nice read, I got my Dreamcast out recently and have been wanting to pick up some more games for it. It's been kinda tough to find much in my area, aside from sports games, though accessories are still fairly cheap around here, so I guess I can count myself lucky in that regard. I've got a handful of titles at the moment (TechRomancer, Capcom vs. SNK, Crazy Taxi, Phantasy Star Online, Jet Grind Radio, and Godzilla Generations), with plans to pick up some more both domestic and import. So, thanks for all the suggestions in here.

[Lerxstnj]

No concerns over laser damage?

Still need a bios mod to play imports.

Lasers read GDRs and CDRs the same way.
If you burn imports to CDR with Alcohol 120%, they play fine without any mod.