Sega Saturn

[Mr. Sexy Hat]

Yes 15 short years ago Sega released the console the makes every fan boy grimace when mentioned. Its the basterd child of the 32 bit era. Of course, it's the Sega Saturn.

 

Now why would I being a proud Sega fan mention this black spot in the history of one of the most iconic video gaming brands ever.

Well to me it was the turing point in Sega's hardware domination. Over night the went from console giant to the laughing stock of the video game industry.

 

The first mistake was when Sega found out that Sony was going to release the Playstation around the same time Sega pushed forward the release date 4 months resulting in arngry 3rd party developers and retailers, some of with refused to support the Saturn by either not devloping for it or not stocking any Sega products.

 

The second mistake is that Sega in fear of the Playstation's graphical power added a second GPU (Graphics Proccessor Unit) to the Saturn making it more expensive and more compicated to build and gave developers a massive headache when programming for the Saturn. However some games like Enemy Zero and Panzar Dragoon Saga use both GPU's perfectly and are very visually impressive. Also due to the large amount of memory in the Saturn 2D games could also run very well that is why there are so many arcade ports of 2D fighters and rpgs on the Saturn.

 

The third mistake is the massive loss of 3rd party developers mainly EA. EA helped the Mega Drive/Genesis gain its massive market share in the US and Europe though its sports games. Who hasn't Played John Madden Football or NHL or Road Rash or one of the Strike series. EA decided to ditch Sega for Sony and so did alot of other 3rd party developers at the time.

 

There are alot of other things that made the Saturn fail but I think these are the 3 main ones. The Saturn could of been a great console but due to Sega's fear of Sony's Playstation they made to many rash decisions. But who can blame them the Playstation was a true powerhouse, if my console was up against that I would panic too.

 

Only after 2 and a bit years Sega ditched the Saturn to start thier final console, the Dreamcast. But thats another story altogether.

 

The 11th of May 1995.

 

Happy 15th Birthday Saturn!

[Lycaon]

Ouch. I was gonna say something, but... ouch.

[The NZA]

oh, Saturn. we hardly knew ye (id still not, really, if it werent for bishop).

 

its just...well, i got the Sega-CD for the holidays, and i loved Sonic CD, Lunar 1 & 2, my Spider-Man game, the great pack-in ones...didnt finish Rise of the Dragon or even find the awesomeness that was Snatcher, but uh, i guess i had Wonder Dog instead? anyway.

then you went 32x, and past Doom, i dont know who's truth-or-dare challenge that system was but yeah, Knuckles Chaotix wasnt enough to push me on board. you knew it wouldn't be.

 

so when the "real" one that gen showed up, but it was $400 and didn't speak to me (i dont really care about Virtua Fighter...), i sat the round out, and yes, Sony got me on board in a big way by the time RE1 showed up and Tobal no 1 brought that FF VII demo. it would be like a freakin decade later before id learn i missed out on Panzer Dragoon Saga, Guardian Heroes and a few others, which is just as well cause we both know with gaming press mostly sleeping on you, god knows idve just sat around with Sonic 3D Blast and that Scud game and wonder what id done wrong. (step 1 would've clearly been importing, by the way).

 

you were a good sport, even if just a placeholder before Sega's final and bestest system evar. thanks for uh...showing up. R.I.P little Saturn, you did your thing.

[Visitant]

Most of my games were import games which I guess is humorous since I don't speak or read any Japanese. But the Saturn was GREAT for fighters, and I own most of them. I love my Saturn and would rather throw my firstborn off a train when that dark day should happen, than lose my Saturn. I mean did you EVER play Dragon Force? On my top 10 games of all time.

[Genroh]

Dragon Force was the BOMB! Guardian heroes? One of the best beat'em ups ever made. (6 players!) Panzer Dragoon Saga arguably the best RPG of the 32-bit era.

 

Other greats:

NiGHTS into Dreams

Saturn Bomberman (the BEST Bomberman game to-date!)

Clockwork Knight

Astal

Earthworm Jim 2 (the definitive version better graphics with kick ass music/SFX)

Loaded (Gauntlet. In the future. With guns. Gore! FWANK!)

Cyber Troopers Virtual-On

Panzer Dragoon

Panzer Dragoon Zwei

Battle Arena Toushinden Remix

Battle Arena Toushinden URA

Virtua Fighter 2

Fighting Vipers

Virtua Cop 1 & 2

 

and yes even though it sucked. The only console video game of Scud the Disposable Assassin (see avatar and sig)

 

Fighters Megamix. Sega did it before Nintendo (more or less) with the cross franchise fighter. (Virtua Fighter 2, Fighting Vipers, Rent-A-Hero, Janet from Virtua Cop 2, Kid Arkira and Sarah from Virtua Fighter Kids, Bean and Bark from Sonic Fighters, the Daytona Car from Daytona USA, etc.)

several great 2D fighters:

Night Warriors: Darkstalkers' Revenge

Street Fighter Alpha 1 & 2

 

Import wise:

The arcade perfect ports of X-men vs. Street Fighter and Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter

Vampire Savior (Darkstalkers 3)

Fatal Fury Collection

King of Fighters Collection

 

They even remade Snatcher! (yes they made one for the Saturn)

Edited May 8, 2010 by Genroh

[The NZA]

lotta good calls, from what ive been told. always wanted to see Megamix & a few others, the demo i played of Nights was great. i recall Saturn being praised for playing X-Men Vs SF with like 4 characters or something? i forget, but i know fighting fans put it (and later the DC) up highly, i imagine higher than the Neo-Geo at least.

 

god, i wish the system wasnt such a nightmare to emulate for/so much coding that got lost, ive yet to see one emu run it worth a crap, or id go find most of the titles Genroh listed right now.

[Mr. Sexy Hat]

Megamix is a terriable game one of the worst fighters ever. The only decent thing about the Saturn well about any Sega console is that they do damn fine arcade ports. 2D games on the Saturn look fucking awesome epcially the 2D fighters. SNK and Capcom released basically all thier fighters on the Saturn. Its too bad Castlevania: SotN never got a US/EU release on the Saturn.

 

Treasure who released Gunstar Heros (FUCK YEAH!) on the Mega Drive/Genesis also released some pretty awesome Saturn games most of witch only got an Japan release.

Radiant Silvergun is a great 2D shooter but you'll need to import it.

Silhouette Mirage never played it but its an Treasure game for fuck sake. also needs importing.

Guardian Heroes is also a great 2D beat em up.

 

Working Designs (remember Lunar on the Sega CD anyone?) also localised alot of RPG's onto the Saturn too, Dragon Force is probably the best one.

 

Nights is good if you like Sonic Team doing alot of acid and then vomiting a game onto a compact disk.

 

Sonic Jam if only for the bonus songs and movies you could watch on it.

 

Panzer Dragoon 2 great on-rails shooter.

 

Panzer Dragoon Saga, Now I have never played this but it's ultra rare and apparently one of the best RPG's ever made.

 

It’s a shame that Panzer Dragoon Saga came out at the end of the Saturn’s short life. Too many people missed out on playing this gem of an RPG. Only a handful of copies of this game were ever manufactured, so that very few people have ever played it. It wasn’t until the Playstation, N64, and the Dreamcast made it onto the scene that the Saturn and its crown RPG got the recognition it deserved from hardcore, classic gamers.

 

Like the very best examples of the RPG genre such as Final Fantasy VII and Ocarina of Time, Panzer Dragoon Saga has so many subtle secrets hidden within its wonderfully detailed environments that you can’t help but return in order to retrieve every last treasure.

 

Spanning four CDs, SEGA gave us a completely realized post-apocalyptic alternate world, complete with its own language and a surreal experience that few games have rivaled. The story and art direction were phenomenal, but it was the combat system that had us hooked. With the ability to morph your dragon to fit your attack style and the need to constantly shift positions while doing battle, Panzer Dragoon Saga kept you on the edge of your seat.

 

Admittedly, Panzer Dragoon Saga does show its age a bit in terms of graphics when compared to more modern systems. However, many hardcore gamers are picking up a Sega Saturn just to experience titles like this that have not been re-published. For years Sega fans have been saying that Panzer Dragoon Saga should be ported or remade on a newer console so that mainstream gamers can join in on the fun. Until that day comes, Saga will remain as one of the best reasons to own a Sega Saturn.

 

Bomberman and Loaded, yes yes yes!

 

Astal, another Saturn game I havent played that is apparently really good too.

 

While Rayman is a top-notch platformer that is available on multiple consoles, Astal is another great 2D experience that is actually a Saturn exclusive from Sega that was released near the launch of the system.

 

After seeing previews of the game during the Saturn launch, I was expecting Astal to be a dull, generic side-scroller. But once I started playing, I was captivated. This game is full of vibrant colors and some levels look like a water painting. The animation is slick enough to pass for a more modern 2D game. Calming atmospheric background music compliments the visuals perfectly.

 

The characters in Astal are large and stunning and the bosses are amazing 3D monstrosities. Of course, the polished presentation doesn’t do you much good if the gameplay doesn’t keep up its end of the deal. The side scrolling action is slow and deliberate, but there are some innovative attacks that give the game variety. You can smash the ground, toss enemies, throw things down from the air, and use a devastating breath attack. Best of all, you have a bird companion that can perform special attacks, gather items, and occasionally save your life. It’s possible for a second player to take control of the bird, which is a nice touch.

 

Overall, Astal combines some of the best two-dimensional graphics of the 32-bit era, excellent character and level design, great music, tight control, and classic gameplay to make a game you’ll want to play years from now

 

The Virtua series of games probably Virtua Fighter 2 and Virtua On are the best.

 

Resident Evil 1, In my opinion the Saturn version looks just a bit more refined than its Sony companion.

[IceManML]

Dragon Force was the BOMB! Guardian heroes? One of the best beat'em ups ever made. (6 players!) Panzer Dragoon Saga arguably the best RPG of the 32-bit era.

 

Other greats:

NiGHTS into Dreams

Saturn Bomberman (the BEST Bomberman game to-date!)

Clockwork Knight

Astal

Earthworm Jim 2 (the definitive version better graphics with kick ass music/SFX)

Loaded (Gauntlet. In the future. With guns. Gore! FWANK!)

Cyber Troopers Virtual-On

Panzer Dragoon

Panzer Dragoon Zwei

Battle Arena Toushinden Remix

Battle Arena Toushinden URA

Virtua Fighter 2

Fighting Vipers

Virtua Cop 1 & 2

 

and yes even though it sucked. The only console video game of Scud the Disposable Assassin (see avatar and sig)

 

Fighters Megamix. Sega did it before Nintendo (more or less) with the cross franchise fighter. (Virtua Fighter 2, Fighting Vipers, Rent-A-Hero, Janet from Virtua Cop 2, Kid Arkira and Sarah from Virtua Fighter Kids, Bean and Bark from Sonic Fighters, the Daytona Car from Daytona USA, etc.)

several great 2D fighters:

Night Warriors: Darkstalkers' Revenge

Street Fighter Alpha 1 & 2

 

Import wise:

The arcade perfect ports of X-men vs. Street Fighter and Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter

Vampire Savior (Darkstalkers 3)

Fatal Fury Collection

King of Fighters Collection

 

They even remade Snatcher! (yes they made one for the Saturn)

 

I own every single one of thos games (save for astal). I wish I could play it rite now :'/

[The NZA]

 

so bought when it drops in HD, i really need to put some PSN cards together.

[IceManML]

I even bought the Christmas nights bundle import.. I still play when I go home for christmas.. System clock gave you some goodies when it hit Christmas day...

 

Sigh... I'm gonna marry my Saturn.. Only sure thing in life.

 

Damnit man.. Sega bought out treasure didn't they?! How bout some mischief makers or radiant silvergun? (which is one of the top 3 most expensive Saturn games)

Edited August 24, 2012 by IceManML

[The NZA]

Sega Saturn prototype 'Pluto' found, includes built-in NetLink

 

A little more background info -- as most of you know, Sega is a company with a history of turmoil. Employee turnover is a sad theme, and the Sonic Reaper (as we call him) strikes all too frequently. As such, the past gets forgotten quickly -- treasures from the previous generation are quickly cast aside, as a new regime tries to make a name for themselves (or justify their existence). As such, some of said treasures get left on laid-off-peoples' desks. And in a beautiful twist of fate, this beauty ended up finding its way to my desk, and then in a box with the rest of my stuff when I left Sega.

 

I was told that only two of these prototypes were made -- and this is #2.

 

This thing is a beast, and definitely the heaviest console I've ever held in my hands. The front features two controller ports, and on top you have a flip-top drive bay, a cart slot, a Power button, and the venerable Reset button. Note that the logo still says Saturn, so I'm guessing the Pluto codename was simply that, and they were thinking of branding it with the Saturn name. (The logo is printed on production-style though, so I'm guessing they were fairly serious about this one.) The left and right sides feature beautiful-and-exotic vents, while the back is standard Saturn, save for the Netlink ports. The bottom has nothing of note except for the "PLUTO-02" sticker (which is, of course, of note).

 

 

 

[Visitant]

That's actually a pretty clean design. I love my Saturn and all my Japanese games i have for it but she's not the prettiest girl at the dance, if you know what I mean.

[The NZA]

years from now when we stream shit from the cloud, you're gonna wish you had a black sqaure brick with a cord coming from it bindy

[IceManML]

I'm fukin HATING those assholes that came across those saturns.. N now they're sellinem. Fukin a.

 

By far my fav system... Woulda been nothin shorter than awesome if I coulda got Sega.net on that shit.

 

Just waitin for my portable Saturn... Juuuust a waitinz..

[Visitant]

Currently reading:

 

 

Do recommend.

[The NZA]

^you gotta post impressions man...ive been wanting to read that one for a while now, but there was a Kickstarter for an updated/revised edition, and the guy there told me they should ship that ed to amazon about august or so, ive been waiting since.

[Visitant]

I talked about it on the show we are about to put up, and ill go more into it once i finish

[The NZA]

I'm fukin HATING those assholes that came across those saturns.. N now they're sellinem. Fukin a.

 

well, you got another chance to nab it after the gamegavel auction ended at $7,600, still not meeting it's reserve. my guess is he's looking for around 10k, we'll see what it ends at though!

[Jables]

It makes me tingly in my nethers to tell you guys I traded my Saturn for a Halo-themed 360 and all the terrible games I made the mistake of amassing for this possibly misunderstood but largely average system. Sexy Hats brought his Saturn to my house just once. I'm sure he still has it, it just never comes up in discussion around Adam & I anymore.

[The NZA]

(3rd world ignorance follows)

 

[IceManML]

Yea I saw the game gavel thing... I rather put a down payment on a car than buy that thing for that much.

Although... It'll be priceless in about a decade.

[IceManML]

Auction ended at $15500 btw

[The NZA]

yeah, Segabits was all over that, saying dude was greedy for not selling (his reserve wasn't met, presumably closer to 20k?) but then this:

 

[uPDATE - 12th May, 2013:] The saga continues! Vega has responded via Twitter to the utter disbelief of the price being rejected.According to him, the highest bidder got cold feet and backed out of the deal after it ended. A user on Reddit by the name of lordloss hasuploaded a photo of a second chance offer from Vega to purchase the machine for $11,000. We’ll update as the Pluto’s saga continues to unfold. What a roller coaster!

 

i had no idea people bid even on that tier when they're not serious...i guess it has to do with people going insane in the closing minute and a half of auctions these days, still lame if true though.