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Remember the days when Sega made the best games? Some would say they're still here, so why aren't they successful?
I think that Sega have shot themselves in the foot, and their own success has lead to their downfall. How? I'll tell you.
Back in the days of the Sega Master System and the Megadrive the most anticipated titles where those converted from Segas successful arcade games. How we looked forward to Golden Axe and the like.
Sega's games continued to improve. People were saying some of these games were almost arcade perfect. And that's where the problem started.
When people went into arcades they were no longer playing Golden Axe and the like, they had a decent version at home to play.
So arcades began to go into decline. Where there was previously row after row of arcade cabinets, there now stood fruit machines.
But this didn't seem to be too important. Sega had their consoles, and could launch their quality titles there anyway.
Some years passed with arcades decreasing in popularity. When the Dreamcast was launched Sega promised some great titles. They delivered them, but there just wasn't the same audience their to receive them. Why not?
I think it's down to the fact that many great Dreamcast games are arcade conversions. In the past people would go into arcades, see these great Sega games, and wait for a great version of the game to appear on the Megadrive. Now people aren't going into the arcades. So when they see a bunch of Sega games, they just don't recognise them as those wonderful games that they are.
The price of Segas success in the early days has cost them dear. They saught perfection with their arcade conversions back in the days of the Megadrive, and came so close to achieving it, people didn't seem to need arcades any more. With this I guess Sega had lost a huge games showcase for future consoles.
Your average gamer just won't recognise Sega as the expert game makers they are in years to come, but as that company that made that Dreamcast. Oh well, at least those of us that know something about gaming will go on buying Sega games, safe in the knowledge that we'll be getting quality.
I think that Sega have shot themselves in the foot, and their own success has lead to their downfall. How? I'll tell you.
Back in the days of the Sega Master System and the Megadrive the most anticipated titles where those converted from Segas successful arcade games. How we looked forward to Golden Axe and the like.
Sega's games continued to improve. People were saying some of these games were almost arcade perfect. And that's where the problem started.
When people went into arcades they were no longer playing Golden Axe and the like, they had a decent version at home to play.
So arcades began to go into decline. Where there was previously row after row of arcade cabinets, there now stood fruit machines.
But this didn't seem to be too important. Sega had their consoles, and could launch their quality titles there anyway.
Some years passed with arcades decreasing in popularity. When the Dreamcast was launched Sega promised some great titles. They delivered them, but there just wasn't the same audience their to receive them. Why not?
I think it's down to the fact that many great Dreamcast games are arcade conversions. In the past people would go into arcades, see these great Sega games, and wait for a great version of the game to appear on the Megadrive. Now people aren't going into the arcades. So when they see a bunch of Sega games, they just don't recognise them as those wonderful games that they are.
The price of Segas success in the early days has cost them dear. They saught perfection with their arcade conversions back in the days of the Megadrive, and came so close to achieving it, people didn't seem to need arcades any more. With this I guess Sega had lost a huge games showcase for future consoles.
Your average gamer just won't recognise Sega as the expert game makers they are in years to come, but as that company that made that Dreamcast. Oh well, at least those of us that know something about gaming will go on buying Sega games, safe in the knowledge that we'll be getting quality.
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Yeah, I got a call from the MOD as well. They asked me what I was doing asking to bring Surface to Air Missiles into gaming arcades....
FM, you might want to check out the copyright to the word Sam. Remember a little item from the late 80's entitled the Sam Coupe? (with an accent)
No, it wasn't a car, just a 16-bit version of the spectrum, sent to rival Atari and Amiga but destined to failure.
No, it wasn't a car, just a 16-bit version of the spectrum, sent to rival Atari and Amiga but destined to failure.
No, Sega didn't shoot themselves in the foot, I shot them in the head :-D
Seriously though, I think it's better for them to be making games rather than consoles. They can and have produced some really great games over the last decade and without the pressure of trying to maintain a console the games can onlu get better!
Seriously though, I think it's better for them to be making games rather than consoles. They can and have produced some really great games over the last decade and without the pressure of trying to maintain a console the games can onlu get better!
They are best with Game making.
How about if Sega brought out an arcade machine that you could plug a memory card into the next time you played it so you could carry on from where you left off?
This might be a boon to some people who only play arcade games and don't have a console. And it might attract more of us back to the arcades as we attempt to finish off that arcade exclusive game that we've been trying to beat for ages.
*FM rushes off to patent the 8 Mb Sega Arcade Memorycard, the S.A.M.*
This might be a boon to some people who only play arcade games and don't have a console. And it might attract more of us back to the arcades as we attempt to finish off that arcade exclusive game that we've been trying to beat for ages.
*FM rushes off to patent the 8 Mb Sega Arcade Memorycard, the S.A.M.*
But when it comes to films, they are released first in the cinema, so you can't just watch them at home.
I never used to go to the arcade often, simply because there wasn't one local, on the times I did go, I didn't play games I already had, but I seem to remember playing games to see if they would be worth buying.
Of course another question could be whether arcade games actually suit todays consoles?
when it comes to an arcade game you have a limited amount of play time, (until you die, finish a race, miss a checkpoint etc) More and more often console games are becoming ongoing quests in which you can simply pick up from where you last left off.
Even racers progress. In the arcades you get a track or two to compete on, but this wouldn't be enough for a home game. You want a large selection of tracks, and hidden ones too. Little touched that can be saved onto memory cards.
I guess we can almost personalise our console games now, where as an arcade cabinet cannot be manipulated in quite the same way.
Anyway, I think I've lost the plot a little here, so I'll stop now ;-)
I never used to go to the arcade often, simply because there wasn't one local, on the times I did go, I didn't play games I already had, but I seem to remember playing games to see if they would be worth buying.
Of course another question could be whether arcade games actually suit todays consoles?
when it comes to an arcade game you have a limited amount of play time, (until you die, finish a race, miss a checkpoint etc) More and more often console games are becoming ongoing quests in which you can simply pick up from where you last left off.
Even racers progress. In the arcades you get a track or two to compete on, but this wouldn't be enough for a home game. You want a large selection of tracks, and hidden ones too. Little touched that can be saved onto memory cards.
I guess we can almost personalise our console games now, where as an arcade cabinet cannot be manipulated in quite the same way.
Anyway, I think I've lost the plot a little here, so I'll stop now ;-)
Sega are just going back to their roots. Yes, they made games for the early Mastersystem, and then for the Megadrive, but they also made conversions of their arcade machines for the 8-bit and 16-bit computers as well. They were spread out over quite a few formats and became a well recognised brand name because of it.
Saying that near arcade perfect conversions stopped people going to the arcades, is like saying home cinema stopped people going out to the cinema. Yes, there has been a decline in the arcade market, due to trends in teenage activities and also the whole electronics scene. But Sega have gone though this and the arcades are picking up again. They will get their brand name recognised all over again by placing games on different platforms (I think they shouldn't sign an exclusive agreement with anyone, but create games for all the major consoles) and people will notice how good their games are again.
Sega are the kings of conversions and rightly so, they are also the perveyors of original gaming as well, as many people will see when they bring that Sega magic to the next generation consoles.
Saying that near arcade perfect conversions stopped people going to the arcades, is like saying home cinema stopped people going out to the cinema. Yes, there has been a decline in the arcade market, due to trends in teenage activities and also the whole electronics scene. But Sega have gone though this and the arcades are picking up again. They will get their brand name recognised all over again by placing games on different platforms (I think they shouldn't sign an exclusive agreement with anyone, but create games for all the major consoles) and people will notice how good their games are again.
Sega are the kings of conversions and rightly so, they are also the perveyors of original gaming as well, as many people will see when they bring that Sega magic to the next generation consoles.
Good point. Just how did Nintendo and Sega start the console ball rolling again after the market was almost dead?
Nintendo built up a huge user base by having lots of exclusive titles, but how did they get their foot in the door in the first place? What made people buy a NES at launch?
I think, that too could have been started because Nintendo started in the arcades, with games like Donkey Kong, but they moved out of it when Sega stayed in.
When I was younger the SMS was always more appealing because it had games like Hang On and Space Harrier. Arcade classics. I later got a SNES on the strength of reviews that Mario 3 recieved!
I think Sony were able to break into the market because they saw an opportunity to offer developers a better deal in order to get plenty of 3rd party support.
They had plenty of games, they'd surely attract plenty of gamers?
Nintendo built up a huge user base by having lots of exclusive titles, but how did they get their foot in the door in the first place? What made people buy a NES at launch?
I think, that too could have been started because Nintendo started in the arcades, with games like Donkey Kong, but they moved out of it when Sega stayed in.
When I was younger the SMS was always more appealing because it had games like Hang On and Space Harrier. Arcade classics. I later got a SNES on the strength of reviews that Mario 3 recieved!
I think Sony were able to break into the market because they saw an opportunity to offer developers a better deal in order to get plenty of 3rd party support.
They had plenty of games, they'd surely attract plenty of gamers?
Plus there is the counter argument that says if Sega took off because of the arcades, and then declined because of the collapse of the arcade market, how then did Nintendo and Sony take off and why are they still going?
I suppose this could be true to some extent, but Sega have so many fantastic non-arcade games.
I suppose Sega having such a large presence in the arcades when they were most popular DID help Sega sell a few consoles, but surely theres more to Segas demise on the hardware front than the decline in arcades?
I suppose Sega having such a large presence in the arcades when they were most popular DID help Sega sell a few consoles, but surely theres more to Segas demise on the hardware front than the decline in arcades?
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