![]() ![]() After the 1996 launch of the Nintendo 64, sales of the Saturn and its software fell sharply. Sega announced that Shoichiro Irimajiri would replace Tom Kalinske as chairman and CEO of Sega of America, while Bernie Stolar, a former executive at Sony Computer Entertainment of America, became Sega of America's executive vice president in charge of product development and third-party relations. Losses on the Saturn contributed to financial problems for Sega, whose revenue had declined between 19 as part of an industry-wide slowdown. Although the Saturn debuted before the PlayStation in Japan and the United States, its surprise US launch, four months earlier than scheduled, was marred by a lack of distribution, which remained a problem. The Saturn is CD-ROM-based and has 2D and 3D graphics, but its complex dual- CPU architecture was more difficult to program than its chief competitor, the Sony PlayStation. Its successor, the Saturn, was released in Japan in 1994. It became the most successful Sega console ever, at 30.75 million units sold. ![]() In 1988, Sega released the Genesis (known as the Mega Drive in most countries outside North America), in the fourth generation of video game consoles. The console remains popular in the video game homebrew community, which has developed private servers to preserve its online functions and unofficial Dreamcast software. Many Dreamcast games are regarded as innovative, including Sonic Adventure, Crazy Taxi (1999), Shenmue (1999), Jet Set Radio (2000), and Phantasy Star Online (2000). It is considered ahead of its time for pioneering concepts such as online play and downloadable content. In retrospect, reviewers have celebrated the Dreamcast as one of the greatest consoles. The Dreamcast's commercial failure has been attributed to a variety of factors, including competition from the PlayStation 2, limited third-party support, and the earlier failures of the 32X and Saturn having tarnished Sega's reputation. ![]() Its bestselling game, Sonic Adventure (1998)-the first 3D game in Sega's Sonic the Hedgehog series-sold 2.5 million copies. 9.13 million Dreamcast units were sold worldwide and over 600 games were produced. After a change in leadership, Sega discontinued the Dreamcast on March 31, 2001, withdrew from the console business, and restructured itself as a third-party developer. Dreamcast sales did not meet Sega's expectations, and attempts to renew interest through price cuts caused significant financial losses. However, sales steadily declined as Sony built anticipation for the PlayStation 2. Though its Japanese release was beset by supply problems, the Dreamcast had a successful US launch backed by a large marketing campaign. The Dreamcast was the first console to include a built-in modular modem for internet access and online play. ![]() Developers were able to include a custom version of the Windows CE operating system on game discs to make porting PC games easy, and Sega's NAOMI arcade system board allowed nearly identical conversions of arcade games. Sega used the GD-ROM media format to avoid the expenses of DVD-ROM technology. In contrast to the expensive hardware of the unsuccessful Saturn, the Dreamcast was designed to reduce costs with off-the-shelf components, including a Hitachi SH-4 CPU and an NEC PowerVR2 GPU. The Dreamcast was Sega's final console its 2001 discontinuation ended the company's eighteen years in the console market.Īn internal Sega team led by Hideki Sato began developing the Dreamcast in 1997. It was the first sixth-generation video game console, preceding Sony's PlayStation 2, Nintendo's GameCube, and Microsoft's Xbox. The Dreamcast is a home video game console released by Sega on November 27, 1998, in Japan September 9, 1999, in North America and October 14, 1999, in Europe. ![]()
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