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Dreamcast (Sega) Dreamcast is out, and as HGI's official Videogame Geek, I have been chosen to be the Early Adopter and bring you the word. And the word is good. The system itself is compact, a little narrower, deeper, and thicker than a Playstation. It comes with one OK controller (a bit awkward for folks used to the Playstation, but people who've used the Saturn analog stick will feel right at home), power cord, A/V cord, and one hella long phone cord. Which you'll need. It also comes with four controller ports and a modem. The system's biggest design flaw is a simple one. No phone passthrough on the modem. So you'll need a splitter somewhere to hook it up to the phone line. For most, a pain in the ass. For me, a simple problem solved by digging through the Geek Graveyard, where bits of random electronic jetsam go to die. The launch games are a mixed bag, but with 18 to choose from, odds are you're gonna find something good. I picked up Soul Calibur, which is as gorgeous, smooth, and responsive a 3D fighter as you're gonna see for a while, and Hydro Thunder, which overcomes its quick and hasty port and its slow and sad two-player split screen mode through the graces of silky smooth one player graphics, godly track design, and a sense of speed and motion that gives it a serious BOOYA factor. I've since tried the full versions of Sonic Adventure, which is decent if you like Sonic; Trickstyle, which is competently done but has no heart, and Expendable, which is a free-range turd on wheels, did Dreamcast really need a version of Loaded? I don't think so. |