Racketboy

Presented by Ack

The RetroGaming 101 series is aimed at gamers who are just starting out in the classic gaming scene or are curious about an older console that they don’t know much about yet.  Those of you that are especially knowledgeable about the featured console, I encourage you to add any information that you think would be beneficial into the comments section. If you are new to the featured console, and still have questions, you can also use the comments section and I will do my best to help you out.

While it wouldn’t actually be the first cartridge-based home game console, the Atari 2600 would prove to be the first big hit, ushering in the first golden age of home gaming while the golden age of the American arcade scene was in full force.  And though its popularity would inevitably decline with the onset of the video game crash of 1983, the console would still have appeal years later.

Background Information

• The Atari 2600 first entered the market in America, October 1977.  Though sales would fluctuate and inevitably decrease, its true final end of production was in the early 1990s.
• The Atari 2600 was originally known as the Atari Video Computer System, or Atari VCS.  It was renamed in 1982 to fit its part number in the Atari catalog(CX2600), which was the same way the Atari 5200 got it’s name.
• “Stella” was the original project name for the Atari 2600.  With Fairchild Semiconductor’s release of the Fairchild Channel F in 1976, Atari allowed itself to be purchased by Warner Communications so it could bring in enough money to commercially release Stella.  The name Stella was taken from one of the engineer’s bicycles, and was part of a long history of projects with female names.
• Arguments between Warner Communications and Atari, Inc. would lead Atari founder Nolan Bushnell to leave the company in 1978.  But by this time, Busnhell had founded Chuck E. Cheese’s Pizza-Time Theater.
• The Atari 2600 remained a major tool of the company until Warner sold Atari’s Consumer Division to Commodore Business Machines in 1984.  Consoles were then deemphasized for the next few years as Commodore attempted to push Atari’s computers.

Historical Impact

• Lasting from the late 1970s to the early 1990s, the Atari 2600 had the longest active lifespan of any game console released in the United States.  Over 900 games were produced for the console.
• The Atari 2600 proved the viability of console gaming in the American market.
• The Atari 2600 also helped establish the idea of the “killer app” with its port of Space Invaders in 1980.  The game would help to quadruple sales of the Atari 2600.
• Space Invaders was also the first officially licensed arcade game, helping to start the trend of porting games from arcade to console as well as licensing from other media.  This would also lead to some of the worst games on the Atari 2600, including the likes of it’s Pac-Man port and the game E.T.
• The poor treatment of Atari engineers also lead to several employees leaving the company and forming others, the most successful of which was Activision.  This helped bring the rise of third-party developers.
• The Atari 2600 also brought about the first real protests against video games, specifically due to Mystique’s Custer’s Revenge.
• Unfortunately due to controversies like these, the Atari 2600 would help contribute to the video game crash of 1983, which would subsequently lead to the domination of the market by Japanese corporations.  American corporations would not again offer a major game console until the release of the Xbox by Microsoft nearly two decades later.

Strengths

• After several years of poor performance for both Atari Inc. and Fairchild Semiconductor, Fairchild gave up and effectively handed Atari the entire home video game market.
• Featured a large selection of games, including many with historical impact for various reasons. The first Easter Egg in a game was found in the Atari 2600 game Adventure, which is also credited as creating the action-adventure genre.
• The original unit came packed with two controllers and the game Combat, proving mutliplayer was a focus right from the beginning.
• The console features an active homebrew community that releases several titles a year, so people who think they’ve played everything always have more to look forward to.
• While it may not necessarily compete with today’s standards, for the time the Atari’s graphical ability was cutting edge and could be manipulated in interesting ways for enhanced performance by manipulating colors of sprites, to the point it could compete with the generations that followed it..  The audio capabilities may not be grand, but considering the quality, there are some quite memorable tracks from the era.
• There are many third party peripherals for the console, and many of them are interchangeable with some Japanese consoles of the era.  They can also be used on the Sega Master System and Genesis with some issue, while Sega’s controllers can be used on the Atari 2600

Weaknesses

• Unfortunately those graphics really haven’t aged well, and the audio can vary from quite good to making you want to claw your ears off..
• Games are generally simplistic, and story exposition and saving weren’t readily available.
• A large portion of the games on the console are garbage, created by companies with no business making games solely to earn them a few bucks.
• The console and games are very old, so some games are pretty rare, and fixing the console can be a difficult task.  Atari 2600s built in 1980 are particularly known to be difficult, and may experience problems if kept on carpeting due to static electricity.
• Controller maintenance can also be a problem, as people have a tendency to unwittingly abuse the joysticks by slamming the sticks about when getting into games.
• The PAL version has a limited color palette: 104 versus the NTSC’s 128.  Folks on the SECAM system got it even worse, only getting an 8-color palette, due to the Television Interface Adapter.
• While games will technically work on any region’s machine, though this will sometimes produce visual errors such as missing colors.

Game Library

• The Best Affordable Atari 2600 Games – Most of the best 2600 games are quite common and dirt cheap.  It’s easy to start a solid collection full of nostolgic goodness without breaking the bank
• The Rarest & Most Valuable Atari 2600 Games – on the other end of the spectrum, there are also a lot of super-expensive 2600 games that are some of the most desired games to collectors.

Hardware Specifications

• The Atari 2600 CPU is a MOS Technology 6507.
• Video is handled by the Television Interface Adapter, or TIA for short.  It lacks video RAM, only generated a single line of video at a time, and used different color palettes depending on the signal format of the television used.
• Audio is also handled by TIA, on two mono channels.
• RAM: 128 bytes, though more might be included in individual cartridges.
• ROM: 4 KB maximum capacity, though this could be bumped up to 32 KB or greater using a technique known as bank switching.
• RCA is the output for the Atari 2600.
• Most versions contain two motherboards connected via ribbon cable, though the CX2600-A only has one motherboard.

Hardware Variations

• The CX2600 Sunnyvale “Heavy Sixer” is the original release, featuring six large switches as well as an increased weight to the console due to an extremely thick plastic casing and aluminum radio frequency shielding. The molded casing is curved on the front edges, and the unit was originally constructed in Sunnyvale, California.  The Sears Video Arcade was the variation of this console for sale in Sears, Roebuck and Company stores.
• The CX2600 “Light Sixer” is similar to the original, though with less plastic molding to reduce weight.  A channel select switch is built into the bottom right of the console.  The casing also drops the curved front edges.  Again, six large switches are featured on the top of this console. These were produced from roughly 1978 to 1980, after production moved to Hong Kong.
• The CX2600-A looks similar to the Light Sixer, except the difficulty switches have been repositioned to the back of the console, so only four switches stick out on top.  1980 is the year these start production, going through 1982.
• The Atari 2600 “Darth Vader” is the first to actually use Atari 2600 as the logo.  It loses the wood paneling of previous consoles in favor of an all-black exterior, which is how it earned its nickname.  1982 is when these start production, though they are deemphasized in 1984, and replaced in 1986.
• The Atari 2600 “Jr.” was a redesign of the original console, released in 1986.  The console looks similar to the Atari 7800, with a smaller, cost-effective frame.
• The Atari CX2000 was a prototype intended originally for children, though it was never released.  It featured built-in controllers, and a black paint job which was later changed to blue.
• The Atari 3200, which featured a variety of codenames such as “Super Stella,” was also never released when it was discovered that the prototype was too difficult to program for.  Originally it was planned to be compatible with Atari 2600 games and feature a 10-bit processor.  The Sears Super Arcade II was a different name for this console.  Once it was canceled, Atari moved on to the next project, which would result in the Atari 5200.
• The Sears Tele-Games series is the official name for the Sears, Roebuck and Company variations of the Atari 2600 line, featuring several rebrands of Atari titles for these consoles as well as three games unique to the Tele-Games brand.
• To attempt to cut themselves in on the profits, Coleco designed an adapter for the Colecovision, as well as the Coleco Gemini, a console that played Atari 2600 games and featured Donkey Kong as a pack-in game.  Few of this console were produced.
• There are quite a few other knock-offs and clones, such as the TV Boy series in Europe, or the Dactar Video Game in Brazil, though while these package in quite a few games(127 on the original TV Boy), they suffer numerous problems and have been edited to remove copyright claims.
• More information on official consoles, variations, and clones can be found at the Atari Age website

Peripherals

	Starpath Supercharger The Starpath Supercharger is an add-on module, boosting the console’s RAM from 128 bytes to 6,272 bytes.  Games for it were all stored on audio cassettes, and featured catchy titles like Escape from the Mindmaster and Communist Mutants from Space. Find Starpath Supercharger on eBay
	Coleco KidVid The Coleco KidVid was an accessory that hooked to the second player controller port to allow audio cassettes to play alongside Atari 2600 games.  It’s also a portable cassette player.  Only two official games were ever made for it, Smurfs Save The Day and Berenstain Bears. Find Coleco KidVid on eBay
	Freedom Stick The Freedom Stick was a wireless copy of the NES Advantage that featured attachments to make it compatible with both the Atari 2600 and Atari 7800. Find Freedom Stick on eBay
	Joy Sensor Suncom released a controller similar to the Intellivisions, called the Joy Sensor.  It used a circular censor that was touch sensitive, and are apparently pretty well built. Find Joy Sensor on eBay
	Trackballs Several trackballs were released, including the official Atari 2600 trackball.  A really nice perk to the official one is that it featured buttons on both sides, so both right and left handed players could use it. Find Atari 2600 Trackball on eBay
	Atari G1 Light Gun The Atari G1 Light Gun was the official Atari Light Gun for the Atari 7800, though it was compatible with the Atari 2600 as well.  It’s still not as cool in design as the Crusader, which looked a bit like a machine gun turret. Find Atari G1 Light Gun on eBay
	Freedom Connection Competition Pro’s Freedom Connection allowed gamers to hook their controllers into it instead of the actual console, sort of a weird precursor to wireless controllers. Find Freedom Connection on eBay
	PointMaster Fire Control The PointMaster Fire Control, released by PointMaster, was a cheat device that hook into the controller port and then had the controller hooked into it.  When the fire button was pressed, the Fire Control would being repeatedly sending that signal, essentially giving the controller rapid fire. Find Fire Control on eBay

And this barely begins to scrape the surface, considering the massive amount of joysticks, keyboards, keypads, and other peripherals available for the console.

Emulation

• MESS -  The Multi Emulator Super System handles the Atari 2600 library, along with just about every other Atari console, with attention paid to accuracy.  It’s ideal for the homebrew community.
• The Stella emulator, originally known as Stella 96, is an open-source multi-platform emulator built in 1996 by Bradford W. Mott.  It can emulate most of the console’s peripherals, and can support NTSC, PAL, or SECAM versions of games.  While it was built using C++, JStella is a modified version to allow it to play in Java applets over the Internet.  It is also well-designed for the homebrew community.
• PC Atari Emulator was created by John Dullea in 1996.  It can be used with MS-DOS or Windows.  It also emulates various controllers, though it is almost entirely incompatible with cassette-based peripherals.
• z26 features versions for Windows and x86 Linux, while an older version is compatible with MS-DOS.  This emulator is specifically capable of handling cassette-based Atari 2600 games, especially the Coleco KidVid games, though since it is a command-line program some may find it daunting.  A variation, x26, includes a GUI for Windows.

Affordability

• Game prices are mostly towards the cheaper end of the spectrum, with some cartridges having values as low as $.75 according to Video Game Price Charts.  A few do get up there into a hundred dollars or more however.
• Consoles fluctuate in price, but $50.00 will get you a console, controllers, all the necessary cables, and usually a few games included.  Some people will ask for a lot more than that though.

Presented by Racketboy & Ack

To complement the comprehensive guides to the impressive Sega Saturn and Playstation Shmups libraries, we’ve updated and expanded this Dreamcast 2D Shooter guide.   We now have more of the newer post-mortum shooters included and hopefully made it a bit more informative.  If you have anything to add, just let us know in the comments!

While it only started out with a few shooters from Psikyo and Capcom (most of which looked like nice 2D Saturn games), the Dreamcast gathered quite a library by the end of its life. In fact, MOST of the 2D shooters for the console were released well after the Dreamcast was “dead” in the United States.  So yes, if you wish to play most of these, you will need to learn how to play Dreamcast imports. But if you are a shooter fan, you will not regret investing in some of these Dreamcast gems.

Ikaruga

A pseudo-sequel to Treasure’s Radiant Silvergun, this mind-bending shmup is incredibly popular and combined high-precision shooter action with the color-matching gameplay element found in Treasure’s adventure game, Silhouette Mirage. Ikaruga still blew away every expectation that the shump community had while the rumors of a Radiant Silvergun sequel were discussed. Ikaruga is brutally difficult, but the gameplay is refined to near perfection. It has developed a strong cult following (much like other Treasure games) and is a common way to show up a shmup expert’s skills.  Treasure understood this challenge and included tutorials and a trial mode.

Ikaruga is a traditional vertical scrolling shooter like Radiant Silvergun, but there are a few twists. Like Silhouette Mirage, your ship and every enemy is assigned one of two polarities: dark or light. While your ship can switch back and forth between light and dark, the enemies are static. White enemies fire white bullets, and black enemies fire black bullets. As the player you have a choice: by choosing the same color as an enemy you can absorb their bullets and charge up your super weapon. By choosing the opposite color as an enemy you can double the damage you inflict, but their bullets will kill you. If you want to score big you need to kill enemies in groups of three according to color, “chaining” these groups together.  Since bosses retreat after a set period of time, it’s also possible to make it through the game without firing a shot, so some attempt to make it through by merely avoiding one color while absorbing the other.

The challenges in Ikaruga are nearly endless, and Treasure did an unbelievable job of presenting the player with all sorts of interesting and unique situations. The game even features a TATE mode where   the game can be rotated into a horizontal shooter and artwork featuring ship designs.  While every gamer will not be up for this gaming wonder, it’s definitely worth looking into if you want a challenge.
Find Ikaruga on eBay

Under Defeat

At the time of its release, Under Defeat was billed as the last Dreamcast game to be officially released.  And while this claim was a bit premature, this title would definitely have been a high point to end on.  Under Defeat is a retelling of WWII, where you play as a German-speaking helicopter pilot in a uniform reminiscent of the Nazis.  The enemy is a group known as the Union, who speak English and use WWII-era equipment and vehicles in an attempt to take you down.  The gameplay is done in vertical SHMUP style with 3D graphics, and follows a traditional system of controls.

That said, it also features different optional weapons with varying levels of firepower and recharge rates.  The weapons not only can deal massive damage but serve to add additional multipliers to score, so figuring out the best way to get points is part of the fun.  Multiple resolution modes can be jumped through on the fly as well, so there’s a large variety of ways to view the game, which is pretty cool for a game generally considered traditional.

And while the bosses can be a challenge, the player doesn’t actually have to kill them.  With each one comes a countdown.  Once it hits ‘0,’ the boss self destructs, for fewer points than would be given for beating them.  There’s also an alternate game mode known as 2-1 which flips the stages and increases the difficulty for those who make it through the game.

Three versions were presented when the game released, though they were functionally all the same.  The Limited Edition included a bonus soundtrack, while the Sega Direct version included the soundtrack, a poster, and a sticker.  The standard version was game-only.
Find Under Defeat on eBay

Bangai-O

Originally released for the Nintendo 64 in 1999, Bangai-O(or Bakuretsu Muteki Bangaioh) is much better known as a Treasure release on the Dreamcast.  The game features 44 levels, where a brother and sister named Riki and Mami pilot an enormous robot named Bangai-O as they fight a group known as the Kosmo Gang, know throughout the universe as an evil band of fruit smugglers.

Ok, so it’s a little odd, but what you end up getting is a non-traditional title with large stages, two characters you can flip between with different attacks, and a massive amount of firepower.  If you like quirky Japanese storylines and getting to destroy a lot of stuff, this is probably the game for you.  The Dreamcast version added new enemies, bosses, different level layouts, and utilizes an ‘Explosion Meter,’ which keeps track of the number of explosions to give better fruit from killed enemies.

Keep in mind that when you start playing, the starting AB control scheme is considered terrible(even the manual acknowledges it isn’t as good).  Changing to the ABXY scheme is recommended for everyone, and is the preferred.
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Border Down

G.Rev’s first post-mortem Dreamcast shmup featured a new twist on the shooter genre. Your performance actually determined the branch of each stage you would play in.  The game is a horizontal shooter with a system of keeping score based on time, number of points accumulated in a stage, the hit-counter from boss fights, and so on.

Border Down features a unique “border system”, each stage has a green, yellow, and red border and these have 3 parts. Consequently, there are three different paths you can follow, each with different challenges. If you die, you go down a border: green to yellow, yellow to red. If a player dies on red, then the game ends.  One border is not necessarily harder than another(though enemies tend to fire faster on yellow and red, these versions also tend to be shorter), its a matter of personal preference and it differs from level to level.

The bosses in Border Down look especially cool and the explosive effects are very satisfying. In some stages you see battles occurring in the background and that makes you feel like part of a group rather than a lone fighter against a vast armada. Overall, the game looks very slick as you would expect from a late Dreamcast shooter.

A limited edition of the game was released, including a soundtrack CD and different cover art.  Both versions received a very limited release.
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Zero Gunner 2

Zero Gunner 2 is actually one of my favorite shooters, but that’s mostly because I’m not very good at most of them. This helicopter shmup is not overly challenging, so I find it to be the game I pop into the Dreamcast when I need to blow some stuff up without having to stress out. I would also recommend Zero Gunner 2 to those looking to get started in the shooter genre.  It offers nine levels of difficulty to play on and includes three different helicopters to play as.  There are 7 levels, which is brief enough for those who aren’t used to the genre to continue to the end.

One of the best parts of this game is the ability to change the direction your ship can fire. Holding down X or B prompts a cross-hair like cursor in the center of the screen, and using the D-pad while the cross-hair is visible rotates your ship around the cross-hair. If you have enemies coming in from the back left and right diagonals, simply rotate your ship around to fire at them instead of waiting for them to come into your line of fire. This also serves to spice up the conventional vertical or horizontal scrolling most shooters must abide by.

Certain parts of the stages, mostly during boss battles, will occur from a diagonal position, and the direction is constantly twisting and turning, adding a very fun but not frustratingly difficult aspect to the gameplay.

While Zero Gunner 2 has 3D styling, it operates on a flat axis with no vertical movement, so it is a pure 2D shooter at heart. While your ship itself is small, everything else is beautifully detailed. Enemies are characteristically tremendous, and litter the screen with weapons fire.

Overall, the gameplay feels comfortable after only a few levels, and definitely serves to breathe new life into what some call a tired genre.
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Mars Matrix

If you are looking for a challenge that depends more on dodging and a never-ending rain of bullets as opposed to the puzzling elements of Ikaruga, Mars Matrix is where you need to look.

Mars Matrix fills the screen with intricate backgrounds, dozens of independently moving objects, and intense arcade action. Your tools in dealing with an onslaught of bullets from all directions are a fairly standard laser gun, a powerful pulse weapon, and a special attack that can allow your spacecraft to inhale incoming fire and return it in a fierce volley.

Mars Matrix also offers a 2-player mode where two pilots can lay waste to the Red Planet in tandem. And then there’s the glorious Shop Mode. Picking up the gold cubes also nets you experience points, which you can then spend in the extensive Shop to buy more levels, ships, continues, options like ship speed and GHB gauge speed, and even ship and background colors. Mars Matrix has an extremely high replay value at it will be quite a while before you unlock everything.
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Triggerheart Exelica

This is one of the more recent releases for Dreamcast, not seeing release until early 2007.  The game focuses on Exelica and Crueltear, two ladies in the Triggerheart team fighting a war against the Ver’Mith.  A portal opens and the two are accidentally sucked in, finding themselves trapped on Earth.  While making themselves comfortable on their new home, a second portal opens, and the Ver’Mith come streaming through.  So now it’s up to the two of them to save our planet.

The game is a vertical shooter with 3D style, though it’s a 2D experience.  While it’s graphically not as impressive as the Xbox Live port, the Dreamcast version did add a Story Mode and Arrange Mode to add more replay value to the game.  Players must choose which of the two leads to run through the game’s 5 stages, with both having different standard weapons.  To add more meat to the game, both characters can fire anchors to catch enemies, and can then use them as shields, clubs, and even projectiles by hurling them into other enemies for better scores.  Just watch out, because the higher the score you acquire, the harder the boss at the end of the level.

When it released, Triggerheart Exelica also had a special edition release, including a guide book and soundtrack.  A phone card and poster were also included if ordered from Sega Direct.
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Castle Shikigami 2

This beautiful shooter is the sequel to the game known as “Mobile Light Force 2″ in the Western territories. Castle Shikigami 2 enables players to control flying humans instead of ships. It isn’t ground-breaking in any respect, but is a good game to pick up for shooter fans.

The scoring device for this game is called a Tension Battle System (TBS). Your score multiplier increases the closer you are to an enemy or bullet. Therefore, to get the highest scores, you must destroy enemies while brushing up near an enemy bullet or enemy (Think of it as Crazy Taxi meets shmups). To compensate for putting your character in harm’s way, your character’s shot power and shot pattern are enhanced while you are close to your enemies and their bullets.

In addition to the TBS system, some basic mechanics of the shmup genre have been altered. For one thing, you have a life bar, as opposed to dying as soon as you are hit, as in most other games of this type. You can be hit twice and still live; get hit a third time, and your character dies. Also, your “bomb” is not what you may think. As opposed to the usual “blow everything on screen up” type bomb, you have a character-specific move that, while powerful, requires a bit of strategy to use effectively.

There are five difficulties to play on, and an unlockable “extreme mode” for those who make it through the game.  Once again, a special edition released in Japan with a soundtrack and trading cards, while the Sega Direct version included a phone card.
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Psyvariar 2

To earn points in Psyvariar 2, you must destroy your enemies and also “buzz” their attacks, meaning get as close as possible to their bullets without actually getting hit.  Large portions of your ship are invincible, save for a couple of pixels in the center.  This means to get the best scores, you have to willingly risk death and pray you take nothing straight up the middle.

While the original Psyvariar was disappointing, Psyvariar 2 brings the real deal to the Dreamcast. While the shmup is flooded with a tremendous amount of “bullet hell”, the game’s controls are tight and responsive enough to give you a chance at staying alive.

Also, between the 2D/3D backgrounds and the wonderfully polished character/mecha designs, Psyvariar 2 also features a great deal of eye candy to keep you entertained.  Unfortunately the Dreamcast version would go without some of the features made available in the PS2 and Xbox ports, but that doesn’t mean the game was unpopular.  In fact, the Dreamcast version’s the most sought after.
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Twinkle Star Sprites

A port from the Neo-Geo original, this game wonderfully combines gameplay elements from both the shooter and puzzle genres to make one charming game.   Twinkle Star Sprites plays like a vertically scrolling shooter, but you actually play head to head against another player in split screen fashion. By destroying lots of enemies in one go (chain combos) you send more bad guys over to your opponents half of the screen. Once this process begins, it is very similar to modern competitive puzzle game like Puyo Pop Fever and Tetris Attack.

There are also bosses to contend with, Death Attacks if the match stretches on too long or if a player is idle for thirty seconds, and different kinds of attacks which can be created by reflecting enemy shots(creating Reverse Attacks or Extra Attacks).  To further instill competition, whenever a player takes damage, their opponent gains back half of that amount in health, helping to extend the match.  If you are a shooter fan that is stuck in a rut, nothing will give you a breath of fresh air like Twinkle Star Sprites.
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Last Hope

This game started as a homebrew project for the Neo Geo AES  by German independent game developer NG:DEV.TEAM.  The DC version was published via redspotgames.  It centers on the impending destruction of Earth, which can only be defeated by a single ship, the Z-42 Warpstar, which can be warped behind enemy lines to destroy the alien leader.

To do this, you have to pilot it through horizontally aligned levels, wielding a shield that can be rotated around you in full circular motion to deflect enemy fire.  The game is similar to R-Type in presentation, but features fully hand-drawn backgrounds across its six stages, and it runs at a smooth 60 frames per second.  Controls are simple, with one button to shoot and two to rotate the shield pod to the left and right.  The game features four difficulty settings.

Unfortunately, it’s difficulty has actually been one of its greatest criticisms, as shrapnel from exploding enemy ships was often the same color as enemy bullets.  To counter this criticism(as well as a few others), the development team has been working on a retooling, known as Last Hope: Pink Bullets, which does include pink bullets, as well as faster ship speed, lower difficulty, and slightly altered colors to make the game brighter.  The original version released alongside a limited edition version, which included the soundtrack.
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Trizeal

Trizeal is a vertical shooter ported from the Naomi board arcade version, combining 3D graphics with classical 2D gameplay. In the game, your spacecraft can be morphed into 3 models supporting different shooting types, including front missiles, homing rockets and wide shot.  Backgrounds are also played with a bit to show distant ships or things coming in from various angles, giving a sense of depth to the screen.

Trizeal delivers a steady stream of enemies to blast through. Bonuses can be “chained” together in combos to build up your weaponry, so you won’t want to share too many of them with your friend in two-player mode.  Also included in the Dreamcast port are several levels not in the arcade release, a score attack mode, and a sound test.  Both Omake Mode, where levels are short but enemy patterns are much faster, and Lifting Mode, where you have to juggle a stone on your ship to gain points, are both unlocked by beating the six stages of the game.  A ship from Triangle Service’s older game, XII Stag, is also hidden in the game.
While a sequel was released in 2007 under the name Exzeal, a Dreamcast port has not been officially announced.  That doesn’t mean it’s not rumored however, so keep your ears open for this one.
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Chaos Field

This vertical-scrolling shooter puts its own interesting spin on some aspects of the traditional shooter formula. Unlike most other shmups, Chaos Field features very few enemies on screen at one time. Large enemies that could be boss characters in other games are the majority of what you will see in Chaos Field — each with many points that must be destroyed before the player can advance.  Generally this style is known as “boss fest.”

In order to defend yourself, you have the traditional unlimited blaster, and a blade for clearing the incoming bullets (kinda like a windshield wiper). You will find this device indispensable, as often the screen becomes entirely filled with gunfire that must be eliminated to survive.

Finally, there is the ability to switch between an “Order” Field, and the namesake “Chaos” Field. Switching to the Chaos Field renders your craft’s fire more powerful, but makes enemy fire more damaging. Luckily, this is not a one-hit-you’re-dead affair. You are allowed to take more than one hit, and the amount is variable via the options screen.
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Gunbird 2

If you are familiar with Psikyo’s Strikers series of shooters, Gunbird 2 won’t offer you many innovations – in fact you will notice many similarities. While it is a typical Psikyo shooter, it  doesn’t have much to excite shmup fans that are addicted to Radiant Silvergun and Ikaruga.

The game definitely looks a little long in the tooth graphically as it could easily pass for a Sega Saturn game like its prequel. In terms of gameplay, there is not much depth or strategy. You simply power your gun up as high as you can and try not to get shot.  Humor seems to be the real focus of the game.

To give you a little variety and replay value, players are offered the selection of four base characters, with two hidden characters, including Morrigan of Darkstalkers fame. Each character has their strengths and weaknesses that include differences in such categories as firepower, homing shots, and close range attacks.

Additional levels and more original gameplay elements would have made this one a must own title. Instead, we are left with a mediocre title that only keeps shooter fans mildly entertained.
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GigaWing & GigaWing 2

Giga Wing casts off the strategic elements that fans of the genre often look for in favor of exaggerating the action. Instead of shooting at you in big bursts, the enemies totally blanket the screen with fire that simply cannot be avoided with slick maneuvering and well-placed shots.

To combat this wave of fire, you have a tool that creates a force field around your aircraft to repel the countless projectiles back at your foes and produce oodles of items to snatch. You can also wipe the screen clean with smart bombs, which produce similar results.

There are several different planes to choose from, each with different standard weapons which can be upgraded via appropriate power-ups, but not a great deal of variety is added to the game because of this, because fighting your way to the end is really just a matter of using your reflect force at every opportunity and dropping bombs whenever the screen gets cluttered.

You are given unlimited continues and when you use one you pick up at the exact same point you left off, so there’s not much incentive to be careful where you fly or to deploy your bombs conservatively. Pretty much anyone can pick up this game and beat it on their first attempt with the proper amount of patience.

You won’t find a huge difference between GigaWing and GigaWing 2 other than the fact that Capcom pushed the graphics a bit further. While the original GigaWing was based off the older CPS2 arcade hardware and looks like a Saturn 2D game, Gigawing originally ran on the Dreamcast-friendly Naomi arcade hardware. With this new hardware, GigaWing 2 took cues from games like Radiant Silvergun with its 2D sprites on top of 3D backgrounds. Unfortunately, the graphics alone weren’t enough to boost Gigawing 2 above its predecessor.
Find GigaWing Series on eBay
Find GigaWing Series on Amazon.com

Radilgy (aka Radirgy, Rajirugi, or Radio Allergy)

This is an odd game.  Much like Chaos Field, you have three different ships to choose from and the gameplay is said to be like a cross of Chaos Field and Mars Matrix. If you’re just playing for survival, it’s not a very tough game for experts. Going for the big score is another story though. It’s a huge challenge to keep the multiplier meter going, especially during a boss battle. It’s tough enough just to destroy the bosses before timing out.  The gameplay also borrows heavily from its brother, Chaos Field such as the ability of the player’s ship to swing a sword to cause damage, and destructible enemy fire.

The graphical style is very unique for a shoot-em-up as it sports an anime-style, cell-shaded look that some have compared to Jet Grind Radio, but I think it looks more like a hand-drawn, Macromedia Flash-like style.

Radilgy breaks the mold from traditional shmup style and will stand out in a crowd. While it’s not one of the better Dreamcast shooters, collectors will probably want to pick it up.  A Sega Direct special release included a phone card, while another included a phone card and a refurbished Sega Dreamcast.
Find Radilgy on eBay

Karous

With this release, the Dreamcast was officially dead to third party titles.  Featuring a visual style and some gameplay elements similar to Radilgy, this vertical shmup included a strange system known as the D.F.S. Bomb.  Wheranever a bomb is used, a shield goes up around the player which can then be used to kill enemies, garnering more experience points for them.  Both the weapons and shield can be upgraded after getting so much experience points, up to level 100.  Weapon levels are also treated as experience multipliers, and the sword generates more so if you’re going for a high score, that’s the way to go.

To further gameplay, there’s an interesting item system which can upgrade weapons, affect speed, recover health and shields, or fill the SP meter, so the Bomb can be used again.  Enemies and their shots aren’t very quick, and there’s a very limited number of enemy types, so after a couple of levels, you’ve seen everything.  Enemy waves also don’t vary much, so don’t expect a sudden change in gameplay.
Find Karous on eBay

DUX

DUX is a horizontal shooter, developed and released by HUCAST.net & KonTechs Ltd.  A mysterious new material, named DUX, has been discovered, and a ship has been built out of it to fight a war against a group known as the Spiritual Spacers.  However, the material isn’t exactly stable, so they have to find a real nut to pilot it.  That’s where you come in.

This region free game includes six levels, an upgradeable weapon system that can be charged up for more power, and an upgradeable shield pod(yes, like R-Type) device that can be launched as a weapon if necessary.  The scoring system features a similar risk/reward system to Psyvariar 2, though this time your ship’s a bit bigger than a single pixel.  The game’s graphics are an interesting point of contention: you either love them or you hate them.  Still, backgrounds can be disabled by choosing the “perfect” video selection in the Options menu, and if you really like the images, the game was designed with the Dreamcast VGA box in mind.

Unfortunately the game apparently had some bugs when initially released, though word is that replacements are free.  A special edition was also released that included the game’s soundtrack.
Find DUX on eBay

Honorable Mentions

Drill
While it is possible to find the demo for this vertical shooter on the Internet, the production team making it apparently fell apart soon after its release when the lead programmer was given offers to work on titles for the Nintendo Wii.  So it appears Drill will never be released.

Rez
Some folks may debate whether this rail shooter should be on the list alongside all the scrolling shmups present on the Dreamcast.  That still doesn’t mean it’s not at least worth a mention, especially considering how many people seem to love this game.  REZ features the player as a hacker in a computer world, attempting to destroy viruses while stopping the central computer, Eden, from shutting down.  But killing enemies also adds beats, causing the player to affect the music.  Throw in the multi-colored wireframes that make up the game, and it makes for one unusual, but incredible, experience.

Note from racketboy: Thanks to Ack for helping me me revise and expand this guide (it really needed it).

Can you believe the Dreamcast has already been around for a decade?  (and that it was only on the retail scene for three of those years?)  To help celebrate the landmark, we’ve revised and expanded the Dreamcast beginner’s guide to help those interested in Sega’s little white box get started on their journey.

The RetroGaming 101 series is aimed at gamers who are just starting out in the classic gaming scene or are curious about an older console that they don’t know much about yet. Those of you that are especially knowledgeable about the featured console, I encourage you to add any information that you think would be beneficial into the comments section. If you are new to the featured console, and still have questions, you can also use the comments section and I will do my best to help you out.

Background Information

• After the Saturn’s poor sales in the USA, Sega’s American branch began pressuring it’s headquarters in Japan for a new console in 1997.  Two competing teams are formed, one headed by Tatsuo Yamamoto, the other by Hideki Sato.
• Though Sega first favored Yamamoto’s design, eventually Sato’s choice of using a PowerVR2 graphics processor from VideoLogic won out.  This resulted in a lawsuit from 3dfx, who had developed the graphics processor that Yamamoto’s team had been pushing.  The lawsuit was settled in 1998.
• Sega broke console sales records in North America on launch (9/9/99), and initially did very well worldwide, though sales eventually slowed to a trickle, and Sega announced in 2001 that they were stopping production.  In 2002, the US would see its last release, NHL 2K2.  New games continued to be developed in Japan until 2007, while Sega managed to sell off the last of its units in Japan in 2006.  There have been additional independent games released for sale as late as 2009.
• Watch G4’s Icons episode on the History of the Dreamcast
• More Dreamcast History at Wikipedia

Historical Impact

• The Dreamcast was Sega’s fifth and final video game console and the successor to the Sega Saturn. Sega cut off the Saturn’s lifespan early to try to get a head start in competing with the Playstation 2.
• Dreamcast was ahead of its time in many ways. It was the first console to include a built-in modem, make Internet support for online gaming commonplace, and natively provide stunning VGA video output. It was also a large leap in graphical and storage capabilities over the existing PS1 and N64 consoles.
• The Dreamcast only lasted a few short years on the retail scene outside of Japan, but still maintained a strong cult following due to its innovative games, homebrew capabilities and the trickle of interesting imports coming from Japan.

Strengths

• Fun & Quirky Game Library – While some of the games such as Crazy Taxi, Rez, and Space Channel 5 have been ported to other consoles, there are still a number of unique, and most importantly, extremely fun games on the Dreamcast that you can’t find on any other console (Jet Grind Radio, Cosmic Smash, and Typing of the Dead, just to name a few)
• Strong 2D Library for Hardcore Audience: In addition to the quirky Sega-developed games, the Dreamcast is very popular because of its deep library of 2D Fighting and 2D Shooting games (shmups).  If you are a fan of either genre, the Dreamcast is essential a most-own console.
• Great Arcade Ports: Many of the original arcade games were originally developed on the NAOMI arcade platform (which is basically Dreamcast hardware with extra RAM), which made it very easy to have arcade-accurate console ports.
• Very Affordable – While there are handful of other cheap consoles with strong libraries like the Gamecube and PS1, the Dreamcast is a great all-around console that is inexpensive to get started with the hardware, games, and accessories.
• Great Import Library – Don’t judge the Dreamcast purely on it’s US or even PAL libraries — there are so many great games that only saw Japanese releases that truly round out a quality selection of games.
• Powerful Hardware Considering It’s Place In Time: The Dreamcast was a very powerful machine in its day (before the release of the PS2, XBox and Gamecube) and still holds up surprisingly well in the modern era. It also had some of Sega’s more creative and innovative games, some of which have not yet been ported to other consoles.   A few games even utilized some of the Dreamcast’s slight graphical advantages over the PS2.  It would have been interesting to see what could have been done if it had lasted as long as the PS2.
• High-Quality VGA Video Connection: As mentioned above, in addition to many common video connections, the Dreamcast also supports native VGA output that makes it ideal for playing the Dreamcast on computer monitors or HDTVs.  The Dreamcast only pushes 480p resolution, but the VGA connection greatly increases the clarity that HDTV owners will desire.
• Homebrew & Piracy: I feel kinda weird listing easy piracy as an strength, but it’s a fact that many gamers factor this aspect in. Due to the discoveries made by piracy groups at the end of the Dreamcast’s retail lifecycle, it is very easy to run both rips of commercial games and homebrew efforts like independent games and emulators of older systems without any modifications to the hardware.

Weaknesses

• No DVD Support: The Dreamcast was developed before DVD drives had reached an affordable level, so it does not support DVD playback or playing homebrew off of DVD media.
• Not as Powerful as Later Consoles: This is quite obvious, but since it was released a year before the Playstation 2 and two years before the Gamecube and XBox, it does not quite have the graphical capabilities of the later consoles from the generation.
• No RF Wireless Controllers Availible – Wireless controllers hadn’t really taken off during the Dreamcast’s life, but the Gamecube, PS2, and Xbox each had quality wireless controllers in the form of Nintendo’s Wavebird and Logitech’s third-party controllers.  The Dreamcast wasn’t so lucky.
• Only a Few Strong RPGs: The RPG genre did not have a very big showing in the Dreamcast library. Skies of Arcadia and Grandia 2 were very strong games, but the rest of the library was limited to a small handful of gems.
• Short Retail Lifespan Outside of Japan: The Dreamcast’s retail lifespan out side of Japan was only a few short years, so the game library isn’t especially large.  It also got more ports of PS1 games that it did of the multiplatform games of the PS2/Xbox/Gamecube era, which would have made better use of the Dreamcast hardware.
• No Support from EA: Those gamers looking for many of the popular games from Electronic Arts will be disappointed as EA did not support the Dreamcast after its disputes with Sega during the Saturn era. However, Sega did an excellent job of filling the software gaps itself.
• Relatively Noisy: Maybe I’m nit-picking here, but it’s not unusal for new Dreamcast owners to think something is wrong with the disc drive when its ready.  While the noise level isn’t as bad as an Xbox 360, but considering the Dreamcast followed the smoothly -silent Sega Saturn, the Dreamcast’s noise level is a bit disappointing.

Dreamcast Game Library

• The Best Dreamcast Games Under $10 – If you need to start a quality Dreamcast library without spending much cash, this is the place to start.
• The Best Dreamcast Games for Today – A lot has changed over the last 10 years, so we try to round up the best Dreamcast games that hold up a decade after their release.
• Games That Defined the Dreamcast – If you want to see the games that gave the Dreamcast its unique personality, check out this little guide.
• The Best Multiplayer Dreamcast Games – When you have four controller ports at your disposal, its natural to want to find games the play with your buddies.  Luckily, the Dreamcast has a variety of titles to keep you and your friends busy.
• The Best Undiscovered Dreamcast Games – If you’ve already checked out all the big-name Dreamcast games, make sure to explore these Hidden Gems that are broken down by genre.
• The Best-Looking Games on the Dreamcast – This little guide will give you a good idea of what games will show off the Dreamcast’s graphic capabilities and quirky sense of style.
• Sega Dreamcast Exclusives – We try to keep a list up to date of the games that still are console exclusive to the Dreamcast (arcade, PC, and portable versions not included)
• Dreamcast Games That Appear on other Consoles – If you want to try out some Dreamcast games on some other consoles you own, this list might also be useful to you.
• The Rarest and Most Valuable Dreamcast Games – There are a handful of rarities and a lot of semi-rare cult favorites that have held their value quite well over the last 10 years.  See what to keep an eye out for or check if some of your existing games are worth a pretty penny.
• The Best Import Dreamcast Games – As mentioned before, the Japanese library adds a lot to the Dreamcast’s library.  There are also a number of good PAL games that never made it to the States.
• The Dreamcast 2D Fighters Library – Personally, I’m a sucker for a good 2D fighter and I am in a wonderland on Dreamcast.  Teamed up with the Sega Saturn, I’m set with most of the best 2D fighters out there.
• The Dremacast 2D Shooters Library – The Dreamcast started out just a little slow in the shooter genre, but it finished out strong even after it had already died off outside of Japan.  The Dreamcast is right up there with the Saturn and Playstation as one of must-own consoles for shooters.
• The Dreamcast Survival Horror Library – It might not have quite the lineup of the Playstation consoles, but the Dreamcast has a respectable collection to keep fans of the genre busy.
• The Best Unlicenced/Homebrew/Leaked Dreamcast Games – We haven’t developed a polished guide yet, but we are starting the discussion in the forum.

Hardware Variations

	Sega Sports Dreamcast The United States and Canada would see a black Sega Sports Dreamcast released, including matching controllers and came bundled with a couple of Sega’s great sports games.   If nothing else, the Sega Sports Dreamcast is nice for those that want a Black Dreamcast without having to paint one (or without paying a ton for a Japanese R7 or “Super Black” Dreamcast). Find Sega Sports Dreamcast on Amazon.com Find Sega Sports Dreamcast on eBay
	Special Editons There were actually quite a few limited edition Dreamcast models, including an official Hello Kitty model, a Sonic anniversary Dreamcast, a Toyota model, and a pink Sakura Taisen model.  To check out a more extensive listing and gallery of limited edition Dreamcasts, check out this guide at SonicRetro
	Fuji Television DIVERS Series 2000 CX-1 This all-in-one TV/Dreamcast device remains as a bit of a novelty.  Taking a bit of inspiration from both the iMac phenomena of the day and retro-futuristic stylings of Space Channel 5, the setup has a bit of a curvy and colorful gumdrop look to it.   It features LEDs on the side that cycle based on the audio,  four controller ports under the screen, a cute little antennas on the top and some TV buttons lining the top of the screen (see this Flickr photo for more detail and annotations). Find DIVERS Series 2000 CX-1 on eBay
	Treamcast An unofficial portable device known as the Treamcast can also be found for sale online, using official components.  It is unknown how many of these units actually exist.  There are actually two revisions of the Treamcast — the newers SE model has a better screen and comes in black. Check our the full review of the Treamcast unit.

Accessories

	VMUs The Visual Memory Unit, or VMU for short, is perhaps the best known accessory for the Dreamcast, because it functions as the console’s memory card.  Certain DC games could also bring up mini games on the VMU, giving it a similar design to Sony’s PocketStation on the PS1. These are a necessity for any Dreamcast.  VMUs plugged into the ports on the top of the Dreamcast controller, in the same place the console’s rumble packs plug in.  They come in a variety of colors and there even some limited edition VMUs for collectors as well. Find Dreamcast VMUs on Amazon.com Find Dreamcast VMUs on eBay
	VGA Box Another important accessory to note is the VGA box, allowing the console to put out signals in VGA mode.  The difference in clarity from your standard AV outputs (even S-Video) with be incredibly surprising.  A few minutes with this, and you will not want to ever play a DC game any other way again.  There are essentially two types of adapters — one that is just a simply VGA adapter, and another that supports VGA, but also switches to Composite or S-Video Buy Dreamcast VGA Box in Racketboy Store Buy Dreamcast VGA Box with Extra Video Outputs in Racketboy Store Find Dreamcast VGA Box on eBay
	Jump Packs These are essentially rumble add-ons in a form factor similar to VMUs that are designed to slip into the second VMU slot on your controller.  In my opinions, the rumble feature never felt quite as useful on the Dreamcast as it does on many other systems, so I usually do without. Find Jump Packs on Amazon.com Find Jump Packs on eBay
	Light Gun It is important to note that while Japan, Europe, and Asia saw an official Sega light gun, other regions were forced to deal with 3rd party equipment.  The “official” light gun in the United States is the Star Blaster by Mad Catz, which is similar in design.  However, since peripherals on the Dreamcast work regardless of region, getting an official Sega gun isn’t too much of a hassle. There were numerous other light guns, such as the SRC Bio Gun(similar in design to the Sega Saturn light gun), Hais DC Lightgun and Hais DC Mini Gun(meaning small, not spinning cylinder of death), StarFire LightBlaster, and DCX Blaster.  There’s even a wireless light gun, the SRC DC Wireless. Also, make sure you look into region compatibility if you’re thinking of importing a gun. List of Dreamcast Light Guns on Wikipedia Find Dreamcast Light Guns on Amazon.com Find Dreamcast Light Guns on eBay
	Keyboard and Mouse The Dreamcast also featured a keyboard and mouse combo, for use with certain games such as the console’s first person shooters can use these controls.  They are also absolutely required for the Typing of the Dead games.  Plus, they work with the console’s web browser.   To check out all the uses for the Dreamcast Keyboard & Mouse, check out the feature we did a could of years ago. Find Dreamcast Keyboard & Mouse on Amazon.com Find Dreamcast Keyboard & Mouse on eBay
	Agetec Arcade Stick If you are serious about 2D fighters or shooters, it is easy to get fed up with the standard Dreamcast controller.  While it may not be as good as a high-end Hori stick or a custom job, the Agetec stick is reasonable affordable, make frequent appearances on eBay, and has solid construction.  Even though it isn’t made by Sega, it is often referred to as the “official” Dreamcast arcade stick. Find Agetec Arcade Stick on eBay
	ASCII Pad If you aren’t much for arcade sticks, but would still like a more traditional gamepad to assist you in 2D fighters or other select games, you might want to consider the ASCII pad.  Just keep in mind, like the arcade stick, it is missing an analog stick and some of the buttons that certain games may require. Find Dreamcast ASCII Pad on eBay
	Broadband Adapter The Dreamcast came standard with a 56K modem, which at the time its release was a reasonable good Internet connection.  However, as just about everyone knows now, a DSL or cable connection will dramtically improve one’s online gaming experience.  Sega offered an optional Broadband Adapter (essentially an Ethernet connection) for those wanting the higher networks speeds.  To this day, the Broadband Adapters have held their value quite well and sometimes sell for more than their original retail price of $100. Find Dreamcast Broadband Adapter on eBay
	Twin Sticks If you plan enjoying Virtual On: Oratorio Tangram, you’ll really want a set of Twin Sticks for the best arcade-like experience.  You could, however, use an adapter (see below) to use a Saturn set of Twin Sticks. Find Dreamcast Twin Sticks on eBay
	Accessory Adapters While adapters are quite common for various platforms, the once-common adapters (mainly the Total Control series) for the Dreamcast was especially useful.  There were adapters that let Dreamcast owners use Sega Saturn controller, Playstation controllers and/or PC keyboards and mice (PS/2 connection).  Not only was this handy for using existing hardware instead of buying Dreamcast specific controllers, but using certain Saturn controllers was especially useful.  The Saturn gamepads are especially more practical for certain types of games (2D fighters, for instance) and the adapters were often used for Virtual On fans that wanted to use their Saturn Twin Stick controlls instead of having to invest in a separate Dreamcast set. Find Dreamcast Controller Adapters on eBay
	Maracas Like Dance Dance Revolution, Samba De Amigo is a fun rhythm game even without the specialty controllers, but to really get the full arcade-like experience, you’ll want to pick up a set of Maracas controllers or maybe the full Samba de Amigo Box Set.  Third-party maracas can be a bit hit or miss, so even through they are a little pricey, you might want to go for a set of offical Sega controllers. Find Dreamcast Maracas on Amazon.com Find Dreamcast Maracas on eBay
	Fishing Controller The Dreamcast offered two Sega Bass Fishing games and Sega Marine Fishing.  To complement these niche titles, Sega developed an interesting Fishing Controller that actually had motion detection (a bit of a predecessor to the Nintendo Wiimote).  It’s even a not-so-hidden secret that you can also use the fishing controller to play games like Soul Calibur if you were so inclined. Find Fishing Controller on Amazon.com Find Fishing Controller on eBay
	Microphone The Dreamcast microphone was another item in the long list of the console’s innovations.  The microphone was first used/included with the game Seaman.  It let you communication and interact vocally with the game’s character/creature.   The late Dreamcast game, Alien Front Online also included a microphone that could be used for voice chat while playing online multiplayer.  A similar feature was to be included in the cancelled game, Propeller Arena.  The microphone’s main body was much like a VMU or Jump Pack and plugged right into the controller. Find Dreamcast Microphone on eBay
	Bleemcast Not your typical “accessory” as it’s a disc as opposed to a piece of hardware, but these Bleemcast retail emulation discs let you play Metal Gear Solid, Tekken 3, or Gran Turismo 2 on your Dreamcast with enhanced graphics.  As we discussed in our Bleemcast write-up, hacked versions of the Bleemcast emulator also allow Dreamcast owners to play other Playstation games as well. Find Bleemcast Discs on eBay
	Dreameye The Dreameye was a webcam released in Japan that could capture still (3 megapixel – quite good for the time) and motion images. The device came with a microphone headset, a stand, batteries, software, a cable to connect the Dreameye to the Dreamcast and a Dreameye microphone plug card. This was yet another solid Sega innovation that paved the way for similar products for the Playstation and Xbox platforms. Find Dreameye on eBay
	Steering Wheels The Dreamcast has a lot of respectible racing games in both the arcade and simulation subgenres, but it can be a challenge to find a Dreamcast steering wheel that will suit you better than a standard controller.  Check out our discussion on the Racketboy Forum about choosing the best Dreamcast raching wheels. Find Dreamcast Steering Wheels on Amazon.com Find Dreamcast Steering Wheels on eBay

Of course, the Sega Dreamcast had a number of other controllers including specialty controllers for games like Densha De Go! and other rather innovative items like a  karaoke microphone and a midi cable to hook various musical tools like a drum machine to the console

Emulation Other Systems on the Dreamcast

• Because of the large homebrew community for the Dreamcast, there are a multitude of emulators for the Dreamcast.  Through programs like NesterDC, Super Famicast, or MameDC, the Dreamcast is capable of emulating everything from the Vectrex to the WonderSwan.
• One of the most popular emulators on the Dreamcast is NesterDC.  It provides and slick way of playing your NES ROMs easily.
• One of the most impressive emulators from a technical standpoint is Neo4All, a Neo-Geo emulator that pulls off emulating large Neo-Geo ROMs — a feat that many developers once thought would be quite difficult.
• Of course, as mentioned above, there was the Bleemcast set of commercial emulators that let you run Playstation releases of Metal Gear Solid, Tekken 3, and Gran Turismo 2.   As we discussed a while back, a Dreamcast enthusisasts hacked around with Bleemcast to let people play a number of other Playstation games.
• For more information on Dreamcast emulation, the folks at DCEmulation.org are probably the best place to look.

Emulating the Dreamcast on Other Machines

• While there are multiple programs to emulate the Dreamcast on the PC, none are perfect, and certain ones are no longer being worked on.  Programs like Chankast or Swirly seem to have gone by the wayside, though certain projects thought dead, like DCemul, have recently been brought back.  NullDC is probably the best bet right now.
• Linux and Mac users, don’t fret, there is at least one emulator for you.  Lxdream was released in 2008 and is still being regularly updated, so there is some community for it.
• However, since the Dreamcast is so affordable and the emulation still has room for improvement, we still recommend you just pick up the real machine.  If nothing else, it will ensure 100% compatibility and save your time and effort.
• For more information on Dreamcast emulation, the folks at DCEmulation.org are probably the best place to look.

Playing Imports

• How to Play Imports on the Dreamcast – there’s a couple of ways you can handle the import situation
• The Best Import Games for the Dreamcast – don’t be afraid to explore the best other regions have to offer!

Affordability

• The Dreamcast is actually one of the most affordable consoles on eBay. It is very easy to find one on eBay or in pawn shops or flea markets for under $20. (Looking locally will shave off a lot of the cost by saving on shipping)
• In the US at least, many of the most popular games for the Dreamcast are also available for just a few dollars each. Add that to the emulation capabilities and you have a very good classic gaming value.
• Accessories for the Dreamcast are also generally inexpensive, and specialty controllers can go for less than $30.