New Dreamcast in the works?

[Veho]

Sega has reapplied for the "Dreamcast" trademark.

Does this mean they are planning a Dreamcast 2? Maybe.

Let's speculate.

Do you think they could be after the home console market? I think it's too crowded at the moment to allow for another console, at least one along the lines of the X360/PS3. Maybe they could expand the media player capabilities (get rid of all the DRM nonsense and have support for more media formats).

And definitely make game distribution online-only. Get rid of media altogether. Wii VC (and soon WiiWare), Xbox Live Arcade, PS Network, Steam, prove it can be done. Getting rid of optical media (and physical game distribution) would drastically lower the production costs, the console's size, and game cost for end users. Just have a few gigs of built-in flash, and add USB HDD support, and let people download games.

Another thing is an episodic/modular approach to games. They could jump in front of the trend and make all games entirely modular. People could buy (only) the levels, maps, chapters they want to play, or get the entire game (at a bulk discount

).

A console like that would have a good chance on the market.

All current consoles pretty much take for granted that we all have broadband Internet access at home, be it game downloads or online multiplayer. And judging by the success of Steam, it seems enough people don't mind downloading their games. An HDD would be an additional cost, but many people have them at home already, and overall people don't like unnecessary hardware forced on them, or being forced to buy official hardware when they could resort to cheaper alternatives (read: third party crap, but still

). Of course there could be an official HDD option, but only an option, and not forcing it on people.

Allowing people to download games if they want, instead of buying DVDs, is also a part of it. Current consoles pretty much force you to buy DVDs, which are (for several reasons) more expensive than downloading. You could offer an optional external DVD drive (like X360 HD DVD drive), and offer a hard copy of the game for those who can't/don't want to download, but the majority would have nothing against it, and if you have modular/episodic games, it's easier to download them instead of getting them on CDs, and is definitely better than waiting half a year or more for the whole collection/season to be complete and published as a single game on DVD.

An average gamer wouldn't buy that much games in the first place. One "big, serious" game a month? Several short ones? And if the Dreamcast 2 focused on MMORPGs, that would mean buying one game and then never buying another game again

Since the games would be modular, with micro-expansions available every now and then, and games being sold map by map and mission by mission, there could be some sort of DreamcastWare Live Arcade Marketplace where people could sell their own custom maps, levels and missions. Or entire games.


Back to real life. Dreamcast 2? Not in any near future, at least. This would be a disastrous time to release yet another console. The market is already too crowded. On the other hand, if they're renewing the trademark now, and start working on a new console, it will come out in several years, when the console war settles down, and the time comes for something new.

But for some reason a "Dreamcast Portable" idea is nagging at me...

 

[.TakaM]

maybe they're just gonna port games to xbla or something?

 

[Veho]

maybe they're just gonna port games to xbla or something?
Maybe, but they applied for a Dreamcast trademark for the entire "home console" package:

QUOTEHome video game machines; player-operated electronic controllers for electronic video game machines; video game interactive controller, namely, hand held pads, and floor pads or mats; joysticks for video games; computer cursor control devices, namely, computer mouse; flash memory cards; video game software, computer game programs.

Maybe they are entering the 3rd party accessories market.

 

[Hadrian]

Well I am a big Dreamcast fan, and lately its the only home console I play (mostly as my Wii is screwed) but a DC 2? No thanks, SEGA really suck ass right now, sure they make the odd one or two games a year but they also do a ton of crap. Also their franchises are nowhere near as big as they once was. If they do ever go back into the console business perhaps it'll be another attempt at a single console format idea that Panasonic had with the 3DO.

I can see them bringing some of their classic DC games to PS3/360/PC via a download service. Or perhaps they just didn't want anyone using the name for something.

 

[adgloride]

Someone showed me this article a few days ago. I thought the same thing as Hadrian, games wise sega sucks arse these days. If you play the original dreamcast most of the games were made by sega and a lot of them were fantastic. House of the dead 2, Zombies Revenge, Jet Set Radio, Sonic Adventures 1&2, Crazy Taxi 1&2 just to name a few. Sonic sucks these days and all Sega seem to be doing is relying on poor sequels from the old games. Nothing original being released like the good old sega games.

The Dreamcast 2 has been a rumour for a long time, and will never happen. Sega lost too much money on the Saturn and Dreamcast and will not be able to compete with the wii, xbox 360 or PS3. The last great sega games were the sonic ones on the DS.

 

[webjedi]

Great analysis of the product and a nitch in the market they could exploit. I agree having a online model with smaller modules could be successful. Look at something like Webkinz - yeah, kiddo stuff - but small games with some focus on online community. Kids like the stuffed animal but then spend hours playing online. If someone upped the online community ascepts of a console and put up more adult mini-games this type of console might survive. Have the mini-games a buck or two each, people can play a few levels but encourage they pay for multiple levels by tying the mini-game to a part of the online community (i.e. win the game get special feature in online world - like badges or what'not).

 

[haohmaru6]

I think a great many industry analysts are looking too much at people with broadband internet access and so on, in doing so are missing the the most basic premise of having a console, which is to have something to plug in and play needing no technical knowledge whatsoever. That is why consoles sell.

If Sega was to come out with a new Dreamcast, they would definitely have to make it simple, backwards compatible, and CHEAP. It's the old business concept of giving away razors to sell the blades. Sega has a huge library of games and characters they can draw from and pick up a niche market of the basic player that doesn't want to get into all the technical gobblededook of internet this and console wars that and so on. All they need to do is make something that people can plug in and play, and perhaps expand here and there if they wish.

Remember that, as much money as the games business is making these days, it still represents only a FRACTION of the POTENTIAL market that could be tapped if the companies would just put some research and thought into it. They really need to look at building communities and brand name recognition rather than all this ridiculous hype hype hype to sell a 70 dollar game that will be forgotten in a week.

 

[Law]

Maybe if they did make a new home console they could call it the "Nightmarecast".

Just a thought.

Although I doubt many people would buy it, what with the Xbawks Geometry Kit and the PS Trizzle attracting most of the gaming market (well, fanboys).

 

[TGBoy]

I think it was confirmed "New Dreamcast" rumours were bogus

 

[BoneMonkey]

maybe it going to be rereleased ?

remember a few years ago they rereleased the sega gamegear ?

 

[TGBoy]

Source: GameDaily

Sega of America PR Director Charlie Scibetta is currently looking into the trademark issue and why it was updated. In the meantime he told us that Sega "has no plans to get back into the console business," adding, "We're very happy being a platform agnostic company and have moved up the ranks the past three years from #11, to #9, and now stand at #6 in terms of our market share by units among third-party publishers. We like our current strategy and have no plans to change in the middle of this outstanding growth."

 

[shaunj66]

If they released a 2D/3D hybrid widescreen side scrolling Sonic game I'd purchase a Dreamcast 2 in an instant.

But at Sega's current state who in their right mind would buy a Sega console? No one.

It would be cool if they were planning to port Dreamcast titles to the XboxLA or Wii (doubt it).

 

[Hadrian]

It would be cool if they were planning to port Dreamcast titles to the XboxLA or Wii (doubt it).

Well they did port a load of Saturn titles to the PS2 in Japan, which featured the original title and a horrid remake. Hoping the Nights one for next year won't be fucked up too much.

I can see them maybe doing download titles for 360/PS3/PC.

 

[Lumstar]

They could make a plug and play unit with built-in games that just "happens" to use Dreamcast controller ports and reads the discs. Then it wouldn't be competing in the console market.

I think the Atari Flashback 2 or something was moddable to add a cartridge slot?

 

[adgloride]

If they released a 2D/3D hybrid widescreen side scrolling Sonic game I'd purchase a Dreamcast 2 in an instant.

But at Sega's current state who in their right mind would buy a Sega console? No one.

It would be cool if they were planning to port Dreamcast titles to the XboxLA or Wii (doubt it).

I don't think we will ever see dreamcast titles on XBLA. It limited to something like 120mb a game, so a dreamcast game would be too big. I wouldn't mind some kind of complication disk though that emulates the dreamcast games. With the Wii you have no chance as its not got the storage and I don't think it has the power to emulate a dreamcast. I know you need a good PC to emulate the dreamcast fully.

 

[xJonny]

Probably just to protect the name.

 

[nephdj]

already ported dreamcast games to PSP also

 

[SavageWaffle]

I dont think there going to make GC2

 

[jesterscourt]

Old news from Digg (like at least November) and no, they just renewed their copyright/trademark for IP. Standard stuff, it was a flagship console for them. Most likely so they could release stuff on VC etc.

 

[Sick Wario]

i've been saying for a LONG time sega/sammy should release a home console based on the atomiswave hardware.

were the first sammy arcade games not based on dreamcast (naomi) hardware?