Current Events > Remember the Sega Saturn?

(+) Yeah! (+)

People talk a lot about the PS1 and the N64

People still try to claim Mario 64 holds up beyond nostalgia.

Games like Resident Evil, FF7 and Metal Gear Solid popularized entire new genres of gaming to the mainstream as opposed to just side scrollers, puzzles, sports and shooters.

I can't remember the last time anyone mentioned a Sega Saturn game or it was referenced/parodied in a TV Show or movie.

Can you?

It's not currently hooked up, but I've still got mine.

The N64 and PS1 didn't have Sonic R's soundtrack though
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgJWZiBt6_w

CRON posted...

The N64 and PS1 didn't have Sonic R's soundtrack though
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgJWZiBt6_w

Even Sonic 06 had great music

It's almost like it's illegal to release a Sonic game with a bad soundtrack or something

CRON posted...

The N64 and PS1 didn't have Sonic R's soundtrack though
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgJWZiBt6_w

Tails Doll.

UnfairRepresent posted...

People talk a lot about the PS1 and the N64

People still try to claim Mario 64 holds up beyond nostalgia.

Games like Resident Evil, FF7 and Metal Gear Solid popularized entire new genres of gaming to the mainstream as opposed to just side scrollers, puzzles, sports and shooters.

I can't remember the last time anyone mentioned a Sega Saturn game or it was referenced/parodied in a TV Show or movie.

Can you?

Radiant Silvergun is mentioned all the time, as is Panzer Dragoon Saga in the high priced game lists. They both are also the games that have been higher priced for some considerably time, unlike the new contenders on the newer consoles.

Never heard of 'em

And being expensive and collectible doesn't mean popular or talked about

usually quite the opposite, niche and never re-released = collectors value

Ehrgeiz is worth way more than FF7 for example

I loved Sega Saturn. It was one of my favorite things to play when I was growing up. Virtua fighter, tomb raider, croc, myst, bomberman, x-men children of the atom, and primal rage were some of my favorites. Still have a few of those too

Still have one as well. Arc the Lad, Panzer Dragoon and Zwei, NiGHTS, Virtua Cop with the big orange gun, Command and Conquer, Fighting Vipers. Had some fun with that thing back in the day.

OG Tomb Raider is slept on due the shitty graphics

They had gameplay for days

I had one. Sold it to buy a ps1 eventually though.

UnfairRepresent posted...

Never heard of 'em

That's on you. They're kind of a big deal.

Sega Saturn had Radiant Silvergun, and that's enough for me.

Virtua Cop, Nights, Virtua Fighter 2, Daytona USA and SEGA Rally were my shit as a kid!

I loved and adored my Saturn.

It had better graphics and sound compared to the PS1.

The very console I first played Tomb Raider on which had far superior graphics compared to the PS1 version (which I have also played).

Brilliant console. Too bad SEGA didn't do anything with it.

there's one game that i only found out about it years later and wish to play:

https://youtu.be/LnGUhhoNhdQ

i need to fight as the Daytona car dammit! lol

I had a sega saturn.......only for like 2 hours though. I originally asked for a sega saturn for christmas 97', and despite daytona usa, virtua cop, virtua fighter 2 and playing the home run derby on that demo disc over and over being cool my dad asked me "are ya' sure? Sure you don't want a playstation?"

I also really liked me some mega man and since the saturn had 8 and X4 I just sort of assumed it would get the rest of them too (really dodged a bullet since the saturn missed out on those later mega man games, and no resident evil 2. Oof). I figured since the playstation also had those games and I really, really wanted to play final fantasy 7 also I was like you know what, yeah dad, I'll go with the playstation. (With FF7, tekken 2, and rayman. Also had that one platformer pandemonium I think it was called . My dad was going above and beyond that year, lol).

In retrospect, god am I glad I made that decision. I had so many PS1 games (one of those bigass cd binders just full of ps1 games) by the time that 2001 rolled around. Missed out on some of those sega saturn games I would have liked to have played like magic knight rayearth, dragon force, burning rangers, guardian heros (got that nice xbox 360 port for this at least), die hard arcade and some more of those rpgs that was only on the saturn but its all good.

Sega is the best console bar none

It bombed hard in the US but was very successful in Japan. Only 1/3rd of the Saturn's library was even released in the US.

I had no interest in a Saturn back in the day. These days the Saturn has a big cult following in the retro community. I bought a Japanese Saturn a few years back to play all the great exclusives they had that we didn't receive. Most of the Japanese only games are English friendly as well.

CassandraCroft posted...

It had better graphics and sound compared to the PS1.

Ehh it depends on the game. In terms of 2D, Saturn was a powerhouse and looked and ran better than 2D PS1 games. Because of the gaming landscape at the time though, no one wanted 2d. It was all about 3d gaming.

The Saturn was often worse when it came to 3D compared to PS1. While it was technically more powerful, it was hard to program so most developers couldn't use the Saturn to it's full 3D potential. 90% of 3D cross platform games looked better on the PS1. The Saturn also couldn't do transparencies so explosions, smoke, mist, etc had this weird mesh texture to them.

Arcade perfect 2D sprite based fighters and shoot 'em ups were the Saturn's bread and butter though. PS1 could not compete.

Sega Saturn was notoriously difficult to develop for and I hear their games are incredibly difficult to port so any gems on that system didn't get rereleases like the PS1 and N64 ones leading them to being forgotten.

@BlazinBlue88

LOL!

Could the PS1 do this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBr1olq_1lQ&t=165s

Look at the transparent polygons the lot in that. It looks far better than Rainbow Road on Mario Kart 64.

So want to try that again?

I remember sega rally I think and the frame rate was so smooth, it was mind-blowing. And virtua cop et al in my mind is a gem of a game

Sega rally just makes me think of
https://youtu.be/IsS_VMzY10I

CassandraCroft posted...

So want to try that again?

Sure. It's actually a very impressive trick using sprites. The track you posted is made up of sprites that are warped and color shaded to make it look like a transparent polygon. Here's a 5 min video explaining it.

https://youtu.be/FdD0GvVRSMc

And here's a quick article with screenshot comparisons showing the transparency issue with the Saturn.
https://mattgreer.dev/articles/sega-saturn-and-transparency/

Only time I really played one was at my younger cousin's house. This was back in like the Wii era I think. His parents randomly found one for him at a garage sale. Remember playing Nights into dreams. Not sure what else.

Ivynn posted...

Sega Saturn was notoriously difficult to develop for and I hear their games are incredibly difficult to port so any gems on that system didn't get rereleases like the PS1 and N64 ones leading them to being forgotten.

I'm not that difficult tbh

UnfairRepresent posted...

People still try to claim Mario 64 holds up beyond nostalgia

Ah, another one.

It was my first console, I really liked it. We had one game that I can't remember the name of that had thfirst person or maybe third person RE style tank controls where you walked around and solved puzzles at military bases and the other half of the game was flying some experimental military fighter jet. I was really bad at it but I was like 6.

The other game I really liked was Earthworm Jim 2. No idea if it was on anything else, but that was the weirdest game I had ever played up to that point and I couldn't understand what was going on every time they changed up the gameplay.

Also Virtua Fighter and Cop were sick and Daytona was a fun racer.

Edit: Mansion of Souls was a fun, short game. I think it was the first adventure game I ever beat.

We did have an isometric 3D sonic game. I hated it and was bad (the camera didn't let you see much and I got lost a lot) but my mom was pretty good at it.

Genesis/Megadrive was legit tho

I remember Dragon Force

In the NiGHTS dream delights

...still waiting for Princess Crown to get translated.

VeggetaX posted...

I remember Dragon Force

One of my favorite games. I'm sure I can acquire the sequel with an English patch somewhere if I look hard enough. I should do that

Mad-Dogg posted...

I had a sega saturn.......only for like 2 hours though.

I kept expecting you to clarify what you meant by for only two hours but you never did

This post is like one of those movies with a scene in the trailer that isn't in the final movie.

Segata Sanshiro was badass.

I tried to play nights into dreams as an adult thinking I just didn't understand the game as a kid, but no, it's still just nonsense to me lol. I boot it up and fly around collecting shit until I have to walk and then I'm just like "welp that was fun while it lasted." To this day I have no idea what the game is even trying to get me to do.

GreenMario posted...

I kept expecting you to clarify what you meant by for only two hours but you never did

I originally asked for a sega saturn for Christmas that year. After playing it for 2 hours on Christmas day my dad asked me if I was absolutely sure I wanted to keep the saturn instead of a playstation. I changed my mind and asked for PS1 instead. Final fantasy 7 was the main game that got me to change my mind.

Foppe posted...

Segata Sanshiro was badass.

You'd not think it would be possible to step up from Kamen Rider, but there you go.

codey posted...

I tried to play nights into dreams as an adult thinking I just didn't understand the game as a kid, but no, it's still just nonsense to me lol. I boot it up and fly around collecting shit until I have to walk and then I'm just like "welp that was fun while it lasted." To this day I have no idea what the game is even trying to get me to do.

You collect the orbs and return them to the checkpoint.
But you have to do it within a time period.
The music is top-notch.
The ending is heartwarming.

Saturn was a good idea just done poorly. I remember playing nights on a display in best buy. Thought it was pretty legit. Nowadays I'd probably only get one if I hated my wallet since I'd only play the sotn port and call it good.

Yeah I remember it

DarthDemented posted...

Saturn was a good idea just done poorly. I remember playing nights on a display in best buy. Thought it was pretty legit. Nowadays I'd probably only get one if I hated my wallet since I'd only play the sotn port and call it good.

NiGHTS is on Steam.

SiO4 posted...

NiGHTS is on Steam.

Holy shit, what? It's Saturn nights and not the Wii one right?

It had an amazing Magic Knight Rayearth game

DarthDemented posted...

Holy shit, what? It's Saturn nights and not the Wii one right?

Yup

My biggest waste of money on a console. And I've had a Wii U, Virtual Boy, and an Ouya.

I remember seeing it in GamePro.

DarthDemented posted...

Holy shit, what? It's Saturn nights and not the Wii one right?

Yes, The Orignal NiGHTS.
Check it out.

I had one, but I only actually owned three games for it. NiGHTS Into Dreams and Bug & Bug Too.