======================================================================
= Sega_Saturn =
======================================================================
Introduction
======================================================================
The is a home video game console developed by Sega and released on
November 22, 1994, in Japan, May 11, 1995, in North America, and July
8, 1995, in Europe. Part of the fifth generation of video game
consoles, it is the successor to the successful Genesis. The Saturn
has a dual-CPU architecture and eight processors. Its games are in
CD-ROM format, including several ports of arcade games and original
games.
Development of the Saturn began in 1992, the same year Sega's
groundbreaking 3D Model 1 arcade hardware debuted. The Saturn was
designed around a new CPU from the Japanese electronics company
Hitachi. Another video display processor was added in early 1994 to
better compete with the 3D graphics of Sony's forthcoming PlayStation.
The Saturn was initially successful in Japan but not in the United
States, where it was hindered by a surprise May 1995 launch, four
months before its scheduled release date. After the debut of the
Nintendo 64 in late 1996, the Saturn rapidly lost market share in the
US, where it was discontinued in 1998. The Saturn is considered a
commercial failure; this was affected by the cancellation of 'Sonic
X-treme', planned as the first 3D entry in Sega's popular 'Sonic the
Hedgehog' series. The Saturn was succeeded in 1998 by the Dreamcast,
having sold 9.26 million units sold worldwide, most in Japan.
The Saturn has several well-regarded games, including 'Nights into
Dreams', the 'Panzer Dragoon' series, and the 'Virtua Fighter' series,
although much of its library was confined to the Japanese market where
the system fared better than the West. The Saturn's reception is mixed
due to its complex hardware design and limited third-party support;
Sega's management has been criticized for its decisions during the
Saturn's development and discontinuation.
Background
============
In the early 1990s, Sega had success with the Genesis (known as the
Mega Drive in most countries outside of North America), backed by
aggressive advertising campaigns and the popularity of its 'Sonic the
Hedgehog' series. Sega also had success with arcade games; in 1992 and
1993, the new Sega Model 1 arcade system board showcased Sega AM2's
'Virtua Racing' and 'Virtua Fighter' (the first 3D fighting game),
crucial to popularizing 3D polygonal graphics. The Model 1 was
expensive, so several alternatives helped bring Sega's newest arcade
games to Genesis, such as the Virtua Processor chip used for 'Virtua
Racing', and the 32X add-on.
Development
=============
Development of the Saturn was supervised by Hideki Sato, Sega's
director and deputy general manager of research and development.
According to project manager Hideki Okamura, the project codenamed
Saturn started over two years before its announcement at the Tokyo Toy
Show in June 1994. It was developed by the same team that developed
the System 32 arcade board. Sato regrets that he did not go with the
Model 1 arcade hardware as a base, as he was too concerned of leaving
all the developers behind that were focused on sprites rather than 3D,
which were the majority of developers.
In 1993, Sega and the Japanese electronics company Hitachi formed a
joint venture to develop a new CPU for the Saturn, which resulted in
the creation of the "SuperH RISC Engine" (or SH-2) later that year.
The Saturn was designed around a dual-SH2 configuration. According to
Kazuhiro Hamada, Sega's section chief for Saturn development during
the system's conception, "the SH-2 was chosen for reasons of cost and
efficiency. The chip has a calculation system similar to a DSP
[digital signal processor], but we realized that a single CPU would
not be enough to calculate a 3D world." Although the Saturn's design
was largely finished before the end of 1993, reports in early 1994 of
the technical capabilities of Sony's upcoming PlayStation console
prompted Sega to include another video display processor (VDP) to
improve 2D performance and 3D texture mapping. Sega considered making
CD-ROM-based and cartridge-only versions of the Saturn, but discarded
the idea due to concerns over the lower quality and higher price of
cartridge games.
According to president Tom Kalinske, Sega of America "fought against
the architecture of Saturn for quite some time". Seeking an
alternative graphics chip for the Saturn, Kalinske attempted to broker
a deal with Silicon Graphics, but Sega of Japan rejected the proposal.
Silicon Graphics subsequently collaborated with Nintendo on the
Nintendo 64. Kalinske, Sony Electronic Publishing's Olaf Olafsson, and
Sony America's Micky Schulhof had discussed development of a joint
"Sega/Sony hardware system", which never materialized due to Sega's
desire to create hardware for both 2D and 3D visuals and Sony's
competing notion of focusing on 3D technology. Publicly, Kalinske
defended the Saturn's design: "Our people feel that they need the
multiprocessing to be able to bring to the home what we're doing next
year in the arcades."
In 1993, Sega restructured its internal studios in preparation for the
Saturn's launch. To ensure high-quality 3D games would be available
early in the Saturn's life, and to create a more energetic working
environment, developers from Sega's arcade division were asked to
create console games. New teams, such as the 'Panzer Dragoon'
developer Team Andromeda, were formed during this time. In early 1994,
the Sega Titan Video arcade system was announced as an arcade
counterpart to the Saturn. In April 1994, Acclaim Entertainment
announced it would be the first American publisher to produce software
for the Titan.
In January 1994, Sega began to develop the 32X add-on for the Genesis,
as a less expensive entry into the 32-bit era. The 32X was approved by
Sega CEO Hayao Nakayama and widely supported by Sega of America
employees. According to the former Sega of America producer Scot
Bayless, Nakayama was worried that the Saturn would not be available
until after 1994 and that the recently released Atari Jaguar would
reduce Sega's hardware sales. As a result, Nakayama ordered his
engineers to have the system ready for launch by the end of the year.
The 32X would not be compatible with the Saturn, but Sega executive
Richard Brudvik-Lindner pointed out that the 32X would play Genesis
games, and had the same system architecture as the Saturn. This was
justified by Sega's statement that both platforms would run at the
same time, and that the 32X would be aimed at players who could not
afford the more expensive Saturn. According to Sega of America
research and development head Joe Miller, the 32X familiarized
development teams with the dual SH-2 architecture also used in the
Saturn. Because the machines share many parts and were prepared to
launch around the same time, tensions emerged between Sega of America
and Sega of Japan when the Saturn was given priority.
Launch
========
Sega released the Saturn in Japan on November 22, 1994, at a price of
¥44,800 (equivalent to at the time). 'Virtua Fighter', a faithful
port of the popular arcade game, sold at a nearly one-to-one ratio
with the Saturn console at launch and was crucial to the system's
early success in Japan. Though Sega had wanted to launch with
'Clockwork Knight' and 'Panzer Dragoon', the only other first-party
game available at launch was 'Wan Chai Connection'. Boosted by the
popularity of 'Virtua Fighter', Sega's initial shipment of 200,000
Saturn units sold out on the first day. Sega waited until the December
3 launch of the PlayStation to ship more units; when both were sold
side by side, the Saturn proved more popular.
Meanwhile, Sega released the 32X on November 21, 1994, in North
America, December 3, 1994, in Japan, and January 1995 in PAL
territories, at less than half of the Saturn's launch price. After the
holiday season, however, interest in the 32X rapidly declined. Half a
million Saturn units were sold in Japan by the end of 1994 (compared
to 300,000 PlayStation units), and sales exceeded 1 million within the
following six months. There were conflicting reports that the
PlayStation had a higher sell-through rate, and the system gradually
began to overtake the Saturn in sales during 1995. Sony attracted many
third-party developers to the PlayStation with a liberal $10 licensing
fee, excellent development tools, and the introduction of a 7- to
10-day order system that allowed publishers to meet demand more
efficiently than the 10- to 12-week lead times for cartridges that had
previously been standard in the Japanese video game industry.
In March 1995, Sega of America CEO Tom Kalinske announced the Saturn's
launch in the U.S. on "Saturnday" (Saturday), September 2, 1995.
However, Sega of Japan mandated an early launch to give the Saturn an
advantage over the PlayStation. At the first Electronic Entertainment
Expo (E3) in Los Angeles on May 11, 1995, Kalinske gave a keynote
presentation in which he revealed the release price of (including a
copy of 'Virtua Fighter'), and described the features of the console.
Kalinske also revealed that, due to "high consumer demand", Sega had
already shipped 30,000 Saturns to Toys "R" Us, Babbage's, Electronics
Boutique, and Software Etc. for immediate release. The announcement
upset retailers who were not informed of the surprise release,
including Best Buy and Walmart; KB Toys, which was not part of the
early launch, responded by refusing to carry the Saturn and its games.
Sony subsequently unveiled the retail price for the PlayStation; Olaf
Olafsson, the head of Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA),
summoned Steve Race to the stage, who uttered "$299", and then walked
away to applause. The Saturn's release in Europe also came before the
previously announced North American date, on July 8, 1995, at £399.99.
European retailers and press did not have time to promote the system
or its games, harming sales. The PlayStation launched in Europe on
September 29, 1995; by November, it had already outsold the Saturn by
a factor of three in the United Kingdom, where Sony had allocated £20
million of marketing during the holiday season compared to Sega's £4
million.
The Saturn's U.S. launch was accompanied by a reported $50 million
advertising campaign including coverage in publications such as
'Wired' and 'Playboy'. Early advertising for the system was targeted
at a more mature, adult audience than the Genesis ads. The early
rescheduling yielded only six launch games (all published by Sega)
because most third-party games were scheduled around the original
launch date. 'Virtua Fighter's' relative lack of popularity in the
West, combined with a release schedule of only two games between the
surprise launch and September 1995, prevented Sega from capitalizing
on the Saturn's early timing. Within two days of its September 9,
1995, launch in North America, the PlayStation (backed by a large
marketing campaign) had more units sold than the Saturn had in the
five months following its surprise launch, with almost all of the
initial shipment of 100,000 units being sold in advance, and the rest
selling out across the U.S.
A high-quality port of the Namco arcade game 'Ridge Racer' contributed
to the PlayStation's early success, and garnered favorable media in
comparison to the Saturn version of Sega's 'Daytona USA', which was
considered inferior to its arcade counterpart. Namco, a longtime
arcade competitor with Sega, also unveiled the Namco System 11 arcade
board, based on raw PlayStation hardware. Although the System 11 is
technically inferior to Sega's Model 2 arcade board, its lower price
made it attractive to smaller arcades. Following a 1994 acquisition of
Sega developers, Namco released 'Tekken' for the System 11 and
PlayStation. Directed by former 'Virtua Fighter' designer Seiichi
Ishii, 'Tekken' was intended to be fundamentally similar, with the
addition of detailed textures and twice the frame rate. 'Tekken'
surpassed 'Virtua Fighter' in popularity due to its superior graphics
and nearly arcade-perfect console port, becoming the first
million-selling PlayStation game.
On October 2, Sega announced a Saturn price reduction to $299.
High-quality Saturn ports of the Sega Model 2 arcade hits 'Sega Rally
Championship', 'Virtua Cop', and 'Virtua Fighter 2' (running at 60
frames per second at a high resolution) were available by the end of
the year and were generally regarded as superior to competitors on the
PlayStation. Notwithstanding a subsequent increase in Saturn sales
during the 1995 holiday season, the games were not enough to reverse
the PlayStation's decisive lead. By 1996, the PlayStation had a
considerably larger library than the Saturn, although Sega hoped to
generate interest with upcoming exclusives such as 'Nights into
Dreams'. An informal survey of retailers showed that the Saturn and
PlayStation sold in roughly equal numbers during the first quarter of
1996. Within its first year, the PlayStation secured over 20% of the
entire U.S. video game market. On the first day of the May 1996 E3
show, Sony announced a PlayStation price reduction to $199, a reaction
to the release of the Model 2 Saturn in Japan at a price roughly
equivalent to $199. On the second day, Sega announced it would match
this price, though Saturn hardware was more expensive to manufacture.
Changes at Sega
=================
After the launch of the PlayStation and Saturn, sales of 16-bit games
and consoles continued to account for 64% of the video game market in
1995. Sega underestimated the continued popularity of the Genesis, and
did not have the inventory to meet demand. Sega was able to capture
43% of the dollar share of the U.S. video game market and sell more
than 2 million Genesis units in 1995, but Kalinske estimated that "we
could have sold another 300,000 Genesis systems in the
November/December timeframe." Nakayama's decision to focus on the
Saturn over the Genesis, based on the systems' relative performance in
Japan, has been cited as the major contributing factor in this
miscalculation.
Due to long-standing disagreements with Sega of Japan, Kalinske lost
interest in his work as CEO of Sega of America. By early 1996, rumors
were circulating that Kalinske planned to leave Sega, and a July 13
article in the press reported speculation that Sega of Japan was
planning significant changes to Sega of America's management. On July
16, 1996, Sega announced that Kalinske would leave Sega after
September 30, and that Shoichiro Irimajiri had been appointed chairman
and CEO of Sega of America. A former Honda executive, Irimajiri had
been involved with Sega of America since joining Sega in 1993. Sega
also announced that David Rosen and Nakayama had resigned from their
positions as chairman and co-chairman of Sega of America, though both
remained with the company. Bernie Stolar, a former executive at Sony
Computer Entertainment of America, was named Sega of America's
executive vice president in charge of product development and
third-party relations. Stolar, who had arranged a six-month
PlayStation exclusivity deal for 'Mortal Kombat 3' and helped build
close relations with Electronic Arts while at Sony, was perceived as a
major asset by Sega officials. Finally, Sega of America made plans to
expand its PC software business.
Stolar was not supportive of the Saturn, deciding it was poorly
designed, and publicly announced at E3 1997 that "the Saturn is not
our future". Though Stolar had "no interest in lying to people" about
the Saturn's prospects, he continued to emphasize quality games for
the system, and later said that "we tried to wind it down as cleanly
as we could for the consumer". At Sony, Stolar had opposed the
localization of Japanese games that he decided would not represent
PlayStation well in North America, and advocated a similar policy for
the Saturn, although he later sought to distance himself from his
actions. These changes were accompanied by a softer image that Sega
was beginning to portray in its advertising, including removing the
"Sega!" scream and holding press events for the education industry.
Marketing for the Saturn in Japan also changed with the introduction
of Segata Sanshiro (played by Hiroshi Fujioka), a character in a
series of TV advertisements starting in 1997; the character eventually
starred in a Saturn game.
Temporarily abandoning arcade development, Sega AM2 head Yu Suzuki
began developing several Saturn-exclusive games, including a
role-playing game in the 'Virtua Fighter' series. Initially conceived
as an obscure prototype, "The Old Man and the Peach Tree", and
intended to address the flaws of contemporary Japanese RPGs (such as
poor non-player character artificial intelligence routines), 'Virtua
Fighter RPG' evolved into a planned 11-part, 45-hour "revenge epic in
the tradition of Chinese cinema", which Suzuki hoped would become the
Saturn's killer app. The game was eventually released as 'Shenmue' for
the Saturn's successor, the Dreamcast.
Cancellation of ''Sonic X-treme''
===================================
As Sonic Team was working on 'Nights into Dreams', Sega tasked the
U.S.-based Sega Technical Institute (STI) with developing the first
fully 3D entry in its popular 'Sonic the Hedgehog' series. The game,
'Sonic X-treme', was moved to the Saturn after several prototypes for
other hardware (including the 32X) were discarded. It featured a
fisheye lens camera system that rotated levels with Sonic's movement.
After Nakayama ordered the game be reworked around the engine created
for its boss battles, the developers were forced to work between 16
and 20 hours a day to meet their December 1996 deadline. Weeks of
development were wasted after Stolar rescinded STI's access to Sonic
Team's 'Nights into Dreams' engine following an ultimatum by 'Nights'
programmer Yuji Naka. After programmer Ofer Alon quit and designers
Chris Senn and Chris Coffin became ill, 'Sonic X-Treme' was cancelled
in early 1997. Sonic Team started work on an original 3D 'Sonic' game
for the Saturn, but development shifted to the Dreamcast as 'Sonic
Adventure'. STI was disbanded in 1996 as a result of changes in
management at Sega of America.
Journalists and fans have speculated about the impact a completed
'X-treme' might have had on the market. David Houghton of 'GamesRadar'
described the prospect of "a good 3D 'Sonic' game" on the Saturn as "a
'What if...' situation on a par with the dinosaurs not becoming
extinct". 'IGN's' Travis Fahs called 'X-treme' "the turning point not
only for Sega's mascot and their 32-bit console, but for the entire
company [and] an empty vessel for Sega's ambitions and the hopes of
their fans". Dave Zdyrko, who operated a prominent Saturn fan website
during the system's lifespan, said: "I don't know if ['X-treme']
could've saved the Saturn, but [...] 'Sonic' helped make the Genesis
and it made absolutely no sense why there wasn't a great new 'Sonic'
title ready at or near the launch of the [Saturn]." In a 2007
retrospective, producer Mike Wallis maintained that 'X-treme'
"definitely would have been competitive" with Nintendo's 'Super Mario
64'. 'Next Generation' reported in late 1996 that 'X-treme' would have
harmed Sega's reputation if it did not compare well to contemporary
competition. Naka said he had been relieved by the cancellation,
because the game was not promising.
Decline
=========
From 1993 to early 1996, although Sega's revenue declined as part of
an industry-wide slowdown, the company retained control of 38% of the
U.S. video game market (compared to Nintendo's 30% and Sony's 24%).
Eight hundred thousand PlayStation units were sold in the U.S. by the
end of 1995, compared to 400,000 Saturn units. In part due to an
aggressive price war, the PlayStation outsold the Saturn by two to one
in 1996, and Sega's 16-bit sales declined markedly. By the end of
1996, the PlayStation had 2.9 million units sold in the U.S., more
than twice the 1.2 million Saturn units sold. The Christmas 1996
"Three Free" pack, which bundled the Saturn with 'Daytona USA',
'Virtua Fighter 2', and 'Virtua Cop', drove sales dramatically and
ensured the Saturn remained a competitor into 1997.
However, the Saturn failed to take the lead. After the launch of the
Nintendo 64 in 1996, sales of the Saturn and its games were sharply
reduced, and the PlayStation outsold the Saturn by three-to-one in the
U.S. in 1997. The 1997 release of 'Final Fantasy VII' significantly
increased the PlayStation's popularity in Japan. The game helped push
PlayStation sales ahead of the Saturn in Japan, after the PlayStation
and Saturn had been very close in Japan prior to the game's release.
As of August 1997, Sony controlled 47% of the console market, Nintendo
40%, and Sega only 12%. Neither price cuts nor high-profile game
releases proved helpful. Reflecting decreased demand for the system,
worldwide Saturn shipments during March to September 1997 declined
from 2.35 million to 600,000 versus the same period in 1996; shipments
in North America declined from 800,000 to 50,000. Due to the Saturn's
poor performance in North America, 60 of Sega of America's 200
employees were laid off in late 1997.
As a result of Sega's deteriorating financial situation, Nakayama
resigned as president in January 1998 in favor of Irimajiri. Stolar
subsequently acceded to president of Sega of America. Following five
years of generally declining profits, in the fiscal year ending March
31, 1998, Sega suffered its first parent and consolidated financial
losses since its 1988 listing on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. Due to a
54.8% decline in consumer product sales (including a 75.4% decline
overseas), the company reported a net loss of ¥43.3 billion () and a
consolidated net loss of ¥35.6 billion ().
Shortly before announcing its financial losses, Sega announced that it
was discontinuing the Saturn in North America to prepare for the
launch of its successor. Only 7 Saturn games were released in North
America in 1998 ('Magic Knight Rayearth' is the final official
release), compared to 119 in 1996. The Saturn lasted longer in Japan,
with Irimajiri announcing in early 1998 that Sega would continue
supporting the Saturn in Japan after its successor was released.
Between June 1996 and August 1998, a further 1,103,468 consoles and
29,685,781 games were sold in Japan, giving the Saturn a Japanese
attach rate of 16.71 games per console, the highest of that
generation. As of February 1997, the attach rate was four games per
console worldwide.
Rumors about the upcoming Dreamcast, spread mainly by Sega, were
leaked to the public before the last Saturn games were released. The
Dreamcast was released on November 27, 1998, in Japan and on September
9, 1999, in North America. The decision to abandon the Saturn
effectively left the Western market without Sega games for over one
year. Sega suffered an additional ¥42.881 billion consolidated net
loss in the fiscal year ending March 1999 and announced plans to
eliminate 1,000 jobs, nearly a quarter of its workforce.
Worldwide Saturn sales include at least the following amounts in each
territory: 5.75 million in Japan (surpassing Genesis sales of 3.58
million there), 1.8 million in the United States, 1 million in Europe,
and 530,000 elsewhere. With lifetime sales of 9.26 million units, the
Saturn is considered a commercial failure, although its install base
in Japan, where it did better than the West, surpassed the Nintendo
64's 5.54 million, where it became Sega's highest-selling home
console. The Saturn ultimately shipped more than 6 million units in
Japan. Lack of distribution has been cited as a significant factor of
the Saturn's failure, because the system's surprise launch had damaged
Sega's reputation with key retailers. Conversely, Nintendo's long
delay in releasing a 3D console and damage to Sega's reputation caused
by poorly supported Genesis add-ons are considered major factors
allowing Sony's establishment in the video game market.
Technical specifications
======================================================================
Hitachi SH-2 Saturn sound processor Motorola 68EC000
Hitachi SH-2 Saturn Custom Sound Processor (SCSP) Motorola 68EC000
Video display processor 1 Video display processor 2 Saturn
motherboard
Video Display Processor 1 (VDP1) Video Display Processor 2 (VDP2)
Saturn motherboard
Featuring eight processors, the Saturn's central processing units are
two Hitachi SH-2 microprocessors clocked at 28.6 MHz and capable of 56
MIPS. It uses a Motorola 68EC000 running at 11.3 MHz as a sound
controller; a custom sound processor with an integrated Yamaha FH1 DSP
running at 22.6 MHz capable of up to 32 sound channels with both FM
synthesis and 16-bit 44.1 kHz pulse-code modulation; and two video
display processors: the VDP1 (which handles sprites and polygons) and
the VDP2 (which handles backgrounds). Its double-speed CD-ROM drive is
controlled by a dedicated Hitachi SH-1 processor to reduce load time.
The System Control Unit (SCU), which controls all buses and functions
as a co-processor of the main SH-2 CPU, has an internal DSP running at
14.3 MHz. It features a cartridge slot that allows memory expansion,
16 Mbit of work random-access memory (RAM), 12 Mbit of video RAM, 4
Mbit of RAM for sound functions, 4 Mbit of CD buffer RAM and 256 Kbit
(32 KB) of battery backup RAM. Its RCA video output displays at
resolutions from 320×224 to 704×224 pixels, with up to 16.78 million
colors. The Saturn measures . It was packaged with an instruction
manual, control pad, stereo AV cable, and 100 V AC power supply
consuming approximately 15 W.
The Saturn had technically impressive hardware at the time of its
release, but its complexity made harnessing this power difficult for
developers accustomed to conventional programming. The greatest
disadvantage was that both CPUs shared the same bus and were unable to
access system memory at the same time. Making full use of the 4 KB of
cache memory in each CPU was critical to maintaining performance. For
example, 'Virtua Fighter' used one CPU for each character, while
'Nights' used one CPU for 3D environments and the other for 2D
objects. The Visual Display Processor 2 (VDP2), which can generate and
manipulate backgrounds, has also been cited as one of the system's
most important features.
The Saturn's design elicited mixed commentary among game developers
and journalists. Developers quoted by 'Next Generation' in December
1995 described the Saturn as "a real coder's machine [for] those who
love to get their teeth into assembly and really hack the hardware
[with] more flexibility [and] more calculating power than the
PlayStation". The sound board was widely praised. Lobotomy Software
programmer Ezra Dreisbach described the Saturn as significantly slower
than the PlayStation, whereas Kenji Eno of WARP observed little
difference. In particular, Dreisbach criticized the Saturn's use of
quadrilaterals as its basic geometric primitive, in contrast to the
triangles rendered by the PlayStation and the Nintendo 64. Ken
Humphries of Time Warner Interactive remarked that compared to the
PlayStation, the Saturn was worse at generating polygons but better at
sprites. Third-party development was initially hindered by the lack of
useful software libraries and development tools, requiring developers
to use assembly language. During early Saturn development, programming
in assembly had a speed increase of two to five times above
higher-level languages such as C.
Sega responded to complaints about the difficulty of programming for
the Saturn by writing new graphics libraries which were claimed to
make development easier. Sega of America purchased a United
Kingdom-based development firm, Cross Products, to produce the
Saturn's development system. Treasure CEO Masato Maegawa stated that
the Nintendo 64 was more difficult to develop for than the Saturn.
Traveller's Tales founder Jon Burton said that though the PlayStation
was easier "to get started on [...] you quickly reach [its] limits",
whereas the Saturn's "complicated [hardware could] improve the speed
and look of a game when all used together correctly". A major
criticism was the Saturn's use of 2D sprites to generate polygons and
simulate 3D space. The PlayStation has a different design, based
entirely on 3D triangle-based polygonal rendering, with no direct 2D
support. As a result, several analysts described the Saturn as an
"essentially" 2D system. For example, Steven L. Kent stated: "Although
Nintendo and Sony had true 3D game machines, Sega had a 2D console
that did a good job with 3D objects but wasn't optimized for 3D
environments." The Saturn hardware is extremely difficult to emulate.
1st North American controller 3D Pad NetLink Modem
Model 1 North American/European controller 3D Pad NetLink Modem
2nd North American controller Saturn multitap RAM backup cartridge
Model 2 North American/European controller Saturn multitap RAM backup
cartridge
Several Saturn models were produced in Japan. An updated model in a
recolored light gray (officially white) was released at ¥20,000 to
reduce the system's cost and raise its appeal among women and younger
children. Two models were released by third parties: Hitachi released
the Hi-Saturn (a smaller model equipped with a car navigation
function), and JVC released the V-Saturn. Saturn controllers have
various complementary color schemes. The system also supports several
accessories. A wireless controller powered by AA batteries uses
infrared signal to connect. Designed to work with 'Nights', the Saturn
3D Pad includes both a control pad and an analog stick for directional
input. Sega also released several versions of arcade sticks as
peripherals, including the Virtua Stick, the Virtua Stick Pro, the
Mission Analog Stick, and the Twin Stick. Sega created a light gun
peripheral, the Virtua Gun, for shooting games such as 'Virtua Cop',
and the Arcade Racer, a wheel for racing games. The Play Cable
connects two Saturn consoles for multiplayer gaming across two
screens, and a multitap connects up to six players to the same
console. One console with two multitaps can support up to 12 players.
Other accessories include RAM expansion cartridges, keyboard, mouse,
floppy disk drive, and movie card.
Like the Genesis, the Saturn had an Internet-based gaming service. The
Sega NetLink is a 28.8k modem for the cartridge slot for direct dial
multiplayer games 'Daytona USA', 'Duke Nukem 3D', 'Saturn Bomberman',
'Sega Rally', and 'Virtual On: Cyber Troopers'. In Japan, a
pay-to-play service was used. It can be used for web browsing, email,
and online chat. Because the NetLink was released before the keyboard,
Sega produced a series of CDs containing hundreds of website addresses
so that Saturn owners could browse with the joypad. In 1995, Sega
announced a variant of the Saturn featuring a built-in NetLink modem
codenamed Pluto, but it was never released.
Sega developed a Saturn-based arcade board, the Sega ST-V (or Titan),
intended as an affordable alternative to Sega's Model 2 arcade board
and as a testing ground for upcoming Saturn software. The Titan was
criticized for its comparatively weak performance compared to the Sega
Model 2 arcade system by Yu Suzuki, and it was overproduced by Sega's
arcade division. Because Sega already had the 'Die Hard' license,
members of Sega AM1 working at the Sega Technical Institute developed
'Die Hard Arcade' for the Titan to clear excess inventory. 'Die Hard'
became the most successful Sega arcade game produced in the United
States at that point. Other games released for the Titan include
'Golden Axe: The Duel' and 'Virtua Fighter Kids'.
Game library
======================================================================
Much of the Saturn's library is Sega's arcade ports, including
'Daytona USA', 'The House of the Dead', 'Last Bronx', 'Sega Rally
Championship', the 'Virtua Cop' series, the 'Virtua Fighter' series,
and 'Virtual-On'. Saturn ports of 2D Capcom fighting games including
'Darkstalkers 3', 'Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter', and
'Street Fighter Alpha 3' were noted for their faithfulness to their
arcade counterparts. 'Fighters Megamix', developed by Sega AM2 for the
Saturn rather than arcades, combined characters from 'Fighting Vipers'
and 'Virtua Fighter' to positive reviews. Highly rated Saturn
exclusives include 'Panzer Dragoon Saga', 'Dragon Force', 'Guardian
Heroes', 'Nights', 'Panzer Dragoon II Zwei', and 'Shining Force III'.
PlayStation games such as 'Castlevania: Symphony of the Night',
'Resident Evil', and 'Wipeout 2097' received Saturn ports with mixed
results. The first-person shooter 'PowerSlave' featured some of the
most impressive 3D graphics on the system, leading Sega to contract
its developers, Lobotomy Software, to produce Saturn ports of 'Duke
Nukem 3D' and 'Quake'. While Electronic Arts's limited support for the
Saturn and Sega's failure to develop a football game for late 1995
gave Sony the lead in the sports genre, "Sega Sports" published Saturn
sports games including the well-regarded 'World Series Baseball' and
'Sega Worldwide Soccer' series.
Due to the cancellation of 'Sonic X-treme', the Saturn lacks an
exclusive 'Sonic the Hedgehog' platformer; instead it received a
graphically enhanced port of the Genesis game 'Sonic 3D Blast', the
compilation 'Sonic Jam', and a racing game, 'Sonic R'. The platformer
'Bug!' received attention for its eponymous main character being a
potential mascot for the Saturn, but it failed to catch on as the
'Sonic' series had. Considered one of the most important Saturn
releases, Sonic Team developed 'Nights into Dreams', a score attack
game that attempted to simulate both the joy of flying and the
fleeting sensation of dreams. The gameplay of 'Nights' involves
steering the imp-like androgynous protagonist, Nights, as it flies on
a mostly 2D plane across surreal stages broken into four segments
each. The levels repeat for as long as an in-game time limit allows,
while flying over or looping around various objects in rapid
succession earns additional points. Although it lacked the fully 3D
environments of Nintendo's 'Super Mario 64', the emphasis by 'Nights'
on unfettered movement and graceful acrobatic techniques showcased the
intuitive potential of analog control. Sonic Team's 'Burning Rangers',
a fully 3D action-adventure game involving a team of outer-space
firefighters, garnered praise for its transparency effects and
distinctive art direction, but was released in limited quantities late
in the Saturn's lifespan and criticized for its short length.
Many of the system's well-regarded titles were exclusive to Japan.
Some of the biggest killer apps for the Saturn in Japan were the
'Sakura Wars' series. Co-developed by Sega and Red Entertainment,
'Sakura Wars' mixes elements of tactical RPGs, anime cutscenes, and
visual novels. That and 'Grandia' helped popularize the Saturn in its
homeland, but never had a Western release due to Sega of America's
policy of not localizing RPGs and other Japanese games that might have
damaged the system's reputation in North America. Some games that
launched on Saturn, such as 'Dead or Alive', 'Grandia', and 'Lunar:
Silver Star Story Complete' only had a Western release on the
PlayStation. Working Designs localized several Japanese Saturn games
before a public feud between Sega of America's Bernie Stolar and
Working Designs president Victor Ireland resulted in the company
switching their support to the PlayStation. According to the review
aggregator GameRankings, 'Panzer Dragoon Saga' is the most acclaimed
Saturn game; it was praised for its cinematic presentation, evocative
plot, and unique battle system. However, Sega released fewer than
20,000 retail copies in North America in what 'IGN''s Levi Buchanan
characterized as an example of the Saturn's "ignominious send-off" in
the region. Similarly, only the first of three installments of
'Shining Force III' was released outside Japan. The Saturn's library
also garnered criticism for its lack of sequels to high-profile
Genesis-era Sega franchises, with Sega of Japan's cancellation of a
planned third installment in Sega of America's popular 'Eternal
Champions' series cited as a significant source of controversy.
Later ports of Saturn games including 'Guardian Heroes', 'Nights', and
'Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers' continued to garner
positive reviews. Partly due to rarity, Saturn games such as 'Panzer
Dragoon Saga' and 'Radiant Silvergun' are noted for their cult
following. Due to the system's commercial failure and hardware
limitations, Saturn projects such as 'Resident Evil 2', 'Shenmue',
'Sonic Adventure', and 'Virtua Fighter 3' were cancelled and moved to
the Dreamcast.
Reception and legacy
======================================================================
At the time of the Saturn's release, 'Famicom Tsūshin' awarded it 24
out of 40, higher than the PlayStation's 19 out of 40. In June 1995,
Dennis Lynch of the 'Chicago Tribune' and Albert Kim of 'Entertainment
Weekly' praised the Saturn as the most advanced console available;
Lynch praised the double-speed CD-ROM drive and "intense
surround-sound capabilities" and Kim cited 'Panzer Dragoon' as a
"lyrical and exhilarating epic" demonstrating the ability of new
technology to "transform" the industry. In December 1995, 'Next
Generation' gave the Saturn three and a half stars out of five,
highlighting Sega's marketing and arcade background as strengths but
the system's complexity as a weakness. Four critics in 'Electronic
Gaming Monthly's' December 1996 'Buyer's Guide' rated the Saturn 8, 6,
7, and 8 out of 10 and the PlayStation 9, 10, 9, and 9. By December
1998, 'EGM's' reviews were more mixed, with reviewers citing the lack
of games as a major problem. According to 'EGM' reviewer Crispin
Boyer, "the Saturn is the only system that can thrill me one month and
totally disappoint me the next".
Retrospective feedback of the Saturn is mixed, but generally praises
its game library. According to Greg Sewart of 1UP.com, "the Saturn
will go down in history as one of the most troubled, and greatest,
systems of all time". In 2009, IGN named the Saturn the 18th-best
console of all time, praising its unique game library. According to
the reviewers, "While the Saturn ended up losing the popularity
contest to both Sony and Nintendo [...] 'Nights into Dreams', the
'Virtua Fighter' and 'Panzer Dragoon' series are all examples of
exclusive titles that made the console a fan favorite." 'Edge' noted
that "hardened loyalists continue to reminisce about the console that
brought forth games like 'Burning Rangers', 'Guardian Heroes', 'Dragon
Force' and 'Panzer Dragoon Saga'". In 2015, 'The Guardian's' Keith
Stuart wrote that "the Saturn has perhaps the strongest line-up of 2D
shooters and fighting games in console history".
'Retro Gamer's' Damien McFerran wrote: "Even today, despite the
widespread availability of sequels and re-releases on other formats,
the Sega Saturn is still a worthwhile investment for those who
appreciate the unique gameplay styles of the companies that supported
it." IGN's Adam Redsell wrote "[Sega's] devil-may-care attitude
towards game development in the Saturn and Dreamcast eras is something
that we simply do not see outside of the indie scene today." Necrosoft
Games director Brandon Sheffield said that "the Saturn was a landing
point for games that were too 'adult' in content for other systems, as
it was the only one that allowed an 18+ rating for content in Japan
[...] some games, like 'Enemy Zero' used it to take body horror to new
levels, an important step toward the expansion of games and who they
served." Sewart praised the Saturn's first-party games as "Sega's
shining moment as a game developer", with Sonic Team demonstrating its
creative range and AM2 producing numerous technically impressive
arcade ports. He also commented on the many Japan-exclusive Saturn
releases, which he connected with a subsequent boom in the game import
market. IGN's Travis Fahs was critical of the Saturn library's lack of
"fresh ideas" and "precious few high-profile franchises", in contrast
to what he described as Sega's more creative Dreamcast output.
Sega has been criticized for its management of the Saturn. McFerran
said its management staff had "fallen out of touch with both the
demands of the market and the industry". Stolar has also been
criticized; according to Fahs, "Stolar's decision to abandon the
Saturn made him a villain to many Sega fans, but [...] it was better
to regroup than to enter the next fight battered and bruised.
Dreamcast would be Stolar's redemption." Stolar defended his decision,
saying, "I felt Saturn was hurting the company more than helping it.
That was a battle that we weren't going to win." Sheffield said that
the Saturn's quadrilaterals undermined third-party support, but
because "nVidia invested in quads" at the same time, there had been "a
remote possibility" they could have "become the standard instead of
triangles [...] if somehow, magically, the Saturn were the most
popular console of that era." Speaking more positively, former Working
Designs president Victor Ireland described the Saturn as "the start of
the future of console gaming" because it "got the better developers
thinking and designing with parallel-processing architecture in mind
for the first time". In GamesRadar, Justin Towell wrote that the
Saturn's 3D Pad "set the template for every successful controller that
followed, with analog shoulder triggers and left thumbstick [...] I
don't see any three-pronged controllers around the office these days."
Douglass C. Perry of Gamasutra noted that, from its surprise launch to
its ultimate failure, the Saturn "soured many gamers on Sega
products". Sewart and IGN's Levi Buchanan cited the failure of the
Saturn as the major reason for Sega's downfall as a hardware
manufacturer, but USgamer's Jeremy Parish described it as "more a
symptom [...] than a cause" of the decline, which began with add-ons
for the Genesis that fragmented the market and continued with Sega of
America's and Sega of Japan's competing designs for the Dreamcast.
Sheffield portrayed Sega's mistakes with the Saturn as emblematic of
the broader then-decline of the Japanese gaming industry: "They
thought they were invincible, and that structure and hierarchy were
necessary for their survival, but more flexibility, and a greater
participation with the West could have saved them." According to
Stuart, Sega "didn't see [...] the roots of a prevailing trend, away
from arcade conversions and traditional role-playing adventures and
toward a much wider console development community with fresh ideas
about gameplay and structure". Pulp365 reviews editor Matt Paprocki
concluded that "the Saturn is a relic, but an important one, which
represents the harshness of progress and what it can leave in its
wake".
License
=========
All content on Gopherpedia comes from Wikipedia, and is licensed under CC-BY-SA
License URL:
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
Original Article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sega_Saturn
