The only thing that is really disappointing to me about losing Sega as a hardware developer is that they were always willing to go out on a limb to develop weird and wacky stuff that no one had any idea if it would work or not. They don't seem to do that when it isn't their hardware they are trying to push. Just looking at the Dreamcast releases by Sega:

Jet Grind Radio - This seemed to come out of nowhere and have a gameplay style unlike anything seen before.

Phantasy Star Online - No one knew if it would work or not. Sega decided that they had to try it somewhere.

Rez - If you haven't seen it or played it, you really should. It didn't come out in the US, but it is amazing. And the skyrocketing price of the US PS2 version (and even importing the PAL or Asian versions) proves it.

Samba de Amigo - Where else can you shake maracca controllers in a game?

Seaman - Weird. Quirky. Really fun, and released with a TON of fanfare. Would that happen on one of today's consoles? This is perhaps the perfect example, as I don't think any other company would be crazy enough to use this as a system seller, or even try promoting it.

Shenmue - Shenmue should've started on the Saturn, but it ended up on the Dreamcast. That doesn't deny the fact that there hasn't been a game made like this before or since.

Space Channel 5 - Another game which was like Seaman -- completely wacky, and not something most companies would've really pushed... but Sega made Ulala a star for the Dreamcast.

Typing of the Dead - Need I say more?

The thing is that a lot of these games that Sega released that seemed to be so wacky worked at some level. Hell, of the eight listed, five have seen sequels or ports of the games on current gen systems.

Since the death of the Dreamcast, Sega has still made some awesome games, but a lot of the quirkyness is gone. Super Monkey Ball has it, but nothing else has been as off the wall as the games above. Sega was an innovater, and now as a company that doesn't have to push hardware, is walking the more safe route. That isn't to say their games aren't good -- hell, I've picked up almost every game they have released for the GameCube and Xbox, and I even have two of their PS2 titles for when I get a PS2 -- but they just aren't as innovative any more.