Found Dreamcast - Thoughts

[Dylaan]

Okay so I was going through a pile of junk I saw on the way to school. Nothing much noteworthy, loads of computer shells and useless motherboards... It was raining so I didn't want to hang around, but my eyes caught a box labeled 'Dreamcast'. Took it home, sadly no cables or anything, but it looks as if it should work, I got a CRT screen from the same place that works perfectly...

Anyway... Should I flog it on eBay, try get cables or just throw it out?

 

[iq_132]

Get cables. The Dreamcast has quite a good catalog of games,and plays backups/homebrew out of the box (no mod-chip needed).

 

[Dylaan]

Nice, I was hoping it would be worth keeping. Do you have to soft-mod it or does it just play burnt discs?

Any idea how much controller/s and an AV cable would cost and or where I can get them? What would you recommend? eBay, a games shop, pawnbroker or where?

Oh, and just wondering, do they have online play?

 

[iq_132]

You can buy all of those things on Amazon for dirt cheap. If you have a local gaming shop, they may have some of them laying around.

As for the backups & homebrew, there's nothing necessary. Burn and play.

 

[Elfeckin]

You can get a bootloader disc image. Some games wont load so that will be needed unless prepatched. Most games do play unless you have one of the older but newer models where they fixed the issue.. Planet Dreamcast , A few good links , Even more info few things to get you started...enjoy

 

[iq_132]

A few good links

Nice to see other people know about OFG.

 

[DarkMatt]

Most games will work fine just from being burnt with Alcohol 120 or Imgburn. Some however will need a bootdisc, so you might end up needing to burn one of them too.

You might want to check out dcforums.co.uk - there's a bunch of stuff there you might find useful as well. (I'm a member there and it's a good little community). There's a surprising amount of stuff floating around on the net for it though, so give it a look

 

[Ace Gunman]

You found a Dreamcast? Oh you lucky devil. That takes me back, ah, nostalgia. There was just something about that baby that made it special, I could never quite put my finger on it. Anyway... you should definitely try finding some cables and games. When you have a Dreamcast, you should never ever let it go *nod*.

R.I.P. Dreamcast.

 

[robi]

Dreamcast was the first console that got me addicted to homebrew.

 

[Hitto]

But... why? The dreamcast's almost perfectly emulated on PC, only you can squeeze better resolutions. AND you don't need to burn CDs, as chankast can use isos.

I think the only game I miss that I can't get working thru emulation is ecco... And even then, My old DC still collects dust.

 

[jalaneme]

But... why? The dreamcast's almost perfectly emulated on PC, only you can squeeze better resolutions. AND you don't need to burn CDs, as chankast can use isos.

not everyone has a top of the range powerhouse PC to run dreamcast games on their PC.

as for the OP finding a dreamcast, lucky you, it's a great console and i've had mine for years now, but why would you consider selling it?

 

[Dylaan]

But... why? The dreamcast's almost perfectly emulated on PC, only you can squeeze better resolutions. AND you don't need to burn CDs, as chankast can use isos.

So, are you saying I should sell it and just use emulator or what?

I was kinda excited... I might try get cables just so I can see if it works, no?

And on a side note, it's an ex-demo console, there are blueprints that were in the box that say how to assemble the display unit... Shame I can't get the unit itself!

I'm gonna go back tomorrow and see if I can grab anything else.

 

[DarkMatt]

But... why? The dreamcast's almost perfectly emulated on PC, only you can squeeze better resolutions. AND you don't need to burn CDs, as chankast can use isos.

I think the only game I miss that I can't get working thru emulation is ecco... And even then, My old DC still collects dust.

The same reason people still play real SNES consoles, or Amiga's. You can't beat the real hardware. He's gotten it for free, so all he's paying for is a video cable, controller and VMU

Plus, DC's deserve to live

 

[jalaneme]

The same reason people still play real SNES consoles, or Amiga's. You can't beat the real hardware. He's gotten it for free, so all he's paying for is a video cable, controller and VMU

Plus, DC's deserve to live

well said.

 

[shaunj66]

Shenmue I and II are one of those fantastic games that everyone should just play (to see whether or not they like it at least) - they're absolutely amazing games, especially for their time.

 

[Dylaan]

Not sure if I should create a separate topic for this, but I have two Sega Genesis (think only one works, but needs RF cable) and a perfectly good Sega Master System II. Again, they're sitting in the roof collecting dust, any ideas?

Oh, and I already asked this but can I play online still or has the service been discontinued? It has a modem.

 

[Hadrian]

Get cables. The Dreamcast has quite a good catalog of games,and plays backups/homebrew out of the box (no mod-chip needed).

I agree the DC has some amazing games that still stand up to todays standards, some actually piss on what we get today.

 

[DarkMatt]

Oh, and I already asked this but can I play online still or has the service been discontinued? It has a modem.

Some games still work online, others don't. Check out Online Consoles to see which ones are online and which ones aren't.

Also, there's a web browser for the DC - DreamKey for PAL ones. If you send an email to Sega Europe, they'll ship you out a copy of DreamKey 3.0 for nothing. They sent one out to me a couple of years ago, from what I hear they're still doing it. Sega Europe have been incredibly helpful actually - they've sent me PSO keys for copies I bought on eBay, DreamKey, etc, all at no cost to me. Good stuff for a console that's long dead (at least in everywhere but Japan).

 

[OSW]

hmm, i really want to find a dreamcast myself, considering i'm a homebrew nut!

Also, there's a web browser for the DC - DreamKey for PAL ones. If you send an email to Sega Europe, they'll ship you out a copy of DreamKey 3.0 for nothing. They sent one out to me a couple of years ago, from what I hear they're still doing it. Sega Europe have been incredibly helpful actually - they've sent me PSO keys for copies I bought on eBay, DreamKey, etc, all at no cost to me. Good stuff for a console that's long dead (at least in everywhere but Japan).

wow, that is pretty impressive.

 

[kreatosoupa]

Definitely keep it. Damn fine console - still my favorite! Oh the memories...