dkreskai's Full Review: Sega Dreamcast Grey Console
I purchased a Sega Dreamcast for my son this Christmas. He had a Sega Saturn and had enjoyed that, but wanted to upgrade to a better system. All his friends had Playstation one and I thought about getting him one. The Playstation two had just come out and was very pricey at $300, so that was out of the question. He wanted a Dreamcast because he knew is was more in my price range as a Christmas present. So off to the net to do my research on the Dreamcast.
I was lucky enough to have a couple nephews who had Playstation one, Nintendo 64 and Dreamcast. They both said that hands down Dreamcast was the best. They were not too thrilled about the PS2 because of the expensive system and games. Checking on epinions the consensus was that it was a pretty good system. Checking prices for system and games I was able to find a good deal on both hardware and software. So off I was to find some deals and make my sons Christmas.
I purchased a Dreamcast system, an extra controller, a memory card, and 8 games for less than the price of one Playstation 2 system alone (if you can find it for $300). I was pretty happy with the quality of games I managed to get for him. Needless to say he was quite happy with his Christmas presents this year.
Now the real test! Is this system worth choosing over the state of the art PS2? As far as playing on the Dreamcast, the games are awesome! I have a fairly fast computer and love to play games on my PC, but the Dreamcast does just as good a job as my PIII 650. He has some of the best made Sega games for his Dreamcast and it shows. We were able to do some comparison with the PS2 because three of his friends have the PS2. I would say the PS2 might have a slight edge graphically, but the difference is not noticeable. You will see that it all depends on the quality of the game.
Now here the specs on the Dreamcast:
128 Bit GD ROM System
Dreamcast Controller
Power Cable
Stereo AV Cable
Instruction Manual
Demo Disk with Web Browser
56K Modem/Telephone Cable
Four games ports
Two expansion ports per Controller
Will play Audio CD's
Now for some reason's why I like the Sega Dreamcast over the Sony Playstation 2.
1. Price - Sega is $149, PS2 is $299.
2. Availability - Sega is on store shelves, PS2 good luck finding.
3. Software price - Sega has been out for over 1 year and software can be found from $10 to $50, all PS2 games have been retailing for $50.
4. Fighting Games - Sega has always been the best at fighting games, 2d or 3d, Dead or Alive was the best game on the Saturn and both Dead or Alive 2 and Soul Calibur are awesome on Dreamcast. PS2 has Techen Tag which is good, but not the best.
5. Racing Games - Sega has always been known to have good Racing games.
6. Football - NFL2K1 is just about as good as Madden 2k1, this one could be a draw.
7. Internet Access - Now you can play your console games on the net or just do some browsing, but get a newer version of the web browser.
8. VMU - you either love it or hate it, but the Virtual memory unit lets you save games or play hand held games.
Now to be fair here are some drawbacks to the Dreamcast.
1. Software selection - PS2 will have more selection in total games available, but Dreamcast has many quality games.
2. Graphics - I would say PS2 is slightly better quality, but not noticeable in most games.
3. DVD - If you don't already have a DVD, this is a nice option. I already own one, so it doesn't matter to me.
4. PS1 Compatibility - PS2 will play PS1 games, but Bleem is coming out with a program that will let you play PS1 games on Dreamcast and they will look better then playing them on the PS2.
5. Noise - The Dreamcast has a noisy CD player, you will hear it spin as it loads, the PS2 is very quiet.
After weighing the plus and minuses of the Dreamcast, and seeing both in action, I'm glad I purchased our Dreamcast. Find a friend with a Dreamcast and try his Dead or Alive 2 Demo or Soul Calibur and you'll see why the Dreamcast can be addicting.
If you are planing to make a purchase here are some pointers.
Get a memory card and an extra controller. It's more fun to beat up on your best friend then the computer. Check out reviews on the VMU to see if you would rather have a regular memory card or a VMU. The VMU's are more expensive, with less memory blocks and some people don't like all the extras. You will want a memory card from the start so get one when you get your system.
Check reviews of games before making a purchase don't waste your money on a poor quality game. You will enjoy your system more with the best games. Watch for deals on new and used games at Blockbuster, Half.com, Funcoland, Etoys.com, Walmart, Kmart and your local video store. Don't over pay for a good game when you could get it cheaper used. Most used game stores offer a guarantee. Get some quality games and enjoy your system.
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"THE online RETRO GAME SHOP"Our store, Collection Games, is committed to providing excellent customer satisfaction and strives to provide the highest ...More at eBay
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