• Tag Archives Sega Saturn

  • Official Sega Saturn Magazine (January 1998)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Unfortunately, the Saturn had a relatively short commercial life as did the few magazines dedicated to it. This was the official Sega Saturn magazine in the U.K. The January 1998 issue includes:

    Features

    • House of the Dead – An early look at this classic horror themed gun game from Sega.
    • Astra Superstars – An early look at this 2D fighting game from Sunsoft.
    • Steep Slope Sliders – A detailed look at this snowboarding game from Sega.
    • X-Men vs Street Fighter – A detailed look at this classic 2D fighter from Capcom. Outside of the original Street Fighter II, this might be my favorite Capcom 2D fighter.
    • The Lost World: AM3! – An interview with the AM3 team about the making of Jurassic Park: The Lost World.

    Previews

    • Rampage World Tour – An early look at this arcade conversion which is a sequel/remake of the classic Rampage.
    • Pro Wrestling Featuring Virtua – A preview of this wrestling game available only in Japan.
    • Layer Section 2 – A preview of this shooter that goes under the name of Raystorm in the U.S. However, the Saturn version never ended up being released in the U.S. though it was on other platforms.
    • Zero Divide – An early look at this robot fighting game.
    • NHL ’98 – This was the sequel to NHL All-Star Hockey and was actually a rebranded version of NHL Powerplay 98 which Virgin had decided not to release so Sega did instead.
    • NBA Action ’98 – Sega’s basketball game.

    Reviews

    • Steep Slope Slider – A snowboarding game from Sega.
    • Maximum Force – A light gun game from Midway that gets compared to Virtua Cop here.
    • NASCAR ’98 – You wouldn’t think racing around in circles would be much fun but I actually had a lot of fun with the original NASCAR Racing on my PC with some marathon racing sessions with my college roommate.

    Regulars

    • News – Sega to release 4MB RAM expansion for the Saturn to be bundled with X-Men vs. Street Fighter; Winter Wonderland (sequel to Decathlete) nearing completion; D2 being developed exclusively for the Saturn; and more.
    • Virtua Writer – Letters from readers regarding the Sony Playstation, NTSC/PAL switches, Sega of Europe; and more.
    • Q+A – Questions answered about Sega’s new console, the cost of an NTSC/PAL switch, ThunderForce V, and more.
    • On the CD – Demos on the cover CD this month include Steep Slope Sliders, Sega Worldwide Soccer ’98, Enemy Zero, Panzer Dragoon Saga, Sonic R, NBA Action ’98, The Lost World, and Sega Touring Car Championship.
    • Coin-Operated – Part one of the complete Lost World guide.
    • Out Now – A brief look at recently released games including Sonic R, Sega Touring Car Championship, Quake, The Lost World, Mortal Kombat Trilogy, Croc, Formula Karts, Trash It, and more.
    • And Finally… – Capcom’s Sakura.

    Playing Tips

    • Small Tips – Tips for Mortal Kombat Trilogy, Quake, Duke Nukem 3D, Dragon Force, and The Lost World.
    • Quake: Secrets Out, Part 1 – Part one of a guide to Quake’s secrets.
    • Sonic R: Mega Guide! – A detailed players guide for Sonic R.
    • Marvel Super Heroes, Part 2 – The second part of a detailed players guide for Capcom’s Marvel Super Heroes.
    • Duke Nukem 3D, Part 2 – The second part of a detailed guide to Duke Nukem 3D. I don’t know that I’ve ever played the Saturn version but the PC version is a classic.

    …and more!


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  • NBA Jam Extreme (1996)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Source: GamePro – January 1997

    NBA Jam Extreme was first an arcade game that was released in December 1996 with home versions for the PlayStation, Saturn and Windows 95 coming about a year later. As you can probably tell from the name, this is a basketball game and it is based on the 1996-97 NBA season. This was not the first game in the NBA Jam series but it was the first created by Acclaim. Previous NBA Jam games had been developed by Midway and then ported to home systems by Acclaim. I guess this was because of legal wrangling with the name because Midway also continued releasing basketball games with NBA Hangtime. Graphically, NBA Hangtime resembled previous NBA Jam games than NBA Jam Extreme did.

    The last basketball game I spent significant time playing was One-on-One on the Commodore 64. That game featured Larry Bird and Dr. J. playing half court basketball. While the graphics were simplistic and game play a bit slow, it still managed a lot of depth and subtlety and was a blast to play. As far as the NBA Jam series, to me it seemed to peak with NBA Jam: Tournament Edition which was also an arcade game and was ported to a whole bunch of home systems.

    However, NBA Jam Extreme did add a variety of new things. The most obvious was that it was the first game in the series to feature 3D graphics. Meanwhile, NBA hangtime maintained the 2D graphics of its NBA Jam predecessor. Other changes included an expanded roster featuring a total of more than 160 NBA players, an “extreme” button which was essentially an enhanced turbo button that was found in previous iterations of the game, and other game play changes.

    NBA Jam Extreme received mixed reviews. The graphics were solid and there were a lot of new features but as an early 3D game, it had early 3D game problems. Most notably with the camera angle being something less than desirable. The game also had a slower pace and the home versions suffered from long load times. NBA Hangtime was generally considered to have better game play. However, if you are an NBA fan and someone who like video game basketball, this wasn’t a game you would want to miss. The game is of similar quality on whichever platform you choose, however the PlayStation version probably edges out the other versions as the best home conversion.

    This isn’t a game you will find a re-release for and because of licensing concerns it’s extremely unlikely you ever would. That leaves tracking down an original or using emulation if you want to give this game a try. There have been a number of sequels including NBA Jam 99 (Nintendo 64, Game Boy Color), NBA Jam 2000 (Nintendo 64), NBA Jam 2001 (Game Boy Color), NBA Jam (2003 for the PS2 and Xbox), NBA Jam (2010 for Wii, PS3 and Xbox 360) and finally NBA Jam: On Fire Edition (PS3, Xbox 360) in 2011. After that, the series seems to have died out.


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  • Official Sega Saturn Magazine (March 1998)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Source: Official Sega Saturn Magazine – Issue Number 29 – March 1998 

    The Official Sega Saturn Magazine in the U.K. was relatively short lived but then so was the system. It was however, a beautiful magazine. It’s definitely something that I think every Saturn owner would have wanted. The March 1998 issue includes:

    Features

    • Grandia – A detailed look at the massive RPG Grandia. This article takes you through the authors experience with this game so far.
    • Saturn Bomberman: Fight! – A look at this pretty good update of the classic Bomberman. Unfortunately, U.K. residents were forced to import this one if they wanted it.
    • Panzer Dragoon Saga – Presented here as “one of the greatest Saturn game ever”. But it is a quest emphasizing flying on dragons after all.
    • Sega Rally 2 – An in-depth preview of this upcoming Sega racing game.
    • House of the Dead – Sega produced most of the best light gun games of this era. House of the Dead is one of those.
    • Burning Rangers – Definitely a game with one of the more unique concepts. Though games involving fire fighting were not entirely unprecedented. I remember playing Rescue Squad on the Commodore 64 which wasn’t precisely about firefighting but it was about rescuing people from fires…

    Previews

    • DJ Wars – Basically a DJ simulator in which you compete with other DJs.
    • Shining Force 3 – While the Final Fantasy series may have been taking most of the spotlight, the Shining Force series was excellent and even better depending on your personal preferences.
    • Real Bout Fatal Fury Special – SNK made some of the best 2D fighters around and this is a great one for the Saturn.
    • Chill – A snowboarding game. Not sure how good it was as it seems rather obscure and the screenshots don’t make the graphics look all that great.

    Reviews

    • Winter Heat – This game features several winter sporting events including cross country skiing, bobsledding, ski jump and more. If you liked the old Winter Games series then you might like this one.
    • NHL Hockey ’98 – Unfortunately, this conversion for the Saturn is probably the worst. The PC and PlayStation versions were significantly better. Probably more a reflection of a rushed conversion than the Saturn’s capabilities.

    Regulars

    • News – Rumors of new Sega hardware in 1999 (this would become the Dreamcast); new game releases coming for the Saturn include Gun Griffon 2, Ninpen Manmaru, World League Soccer ’98, NBA ’98, NHL All-Star Hockey ’98, Vampire Savior, D&D Collection, King of Fighters ’97, and more.
    • Virtua Writer – Letters from readers about Street Fighter vs. Teletubbies, the demise of Saturn Power magazine, Sega advertising, Marvel Super Heroes, FIFA ’98, Tomb Raider, and more.
    • Q+A – Questions answered about buying import games, definitions of various computer terms, Grandia release, Resident Evil 2, X-Men vs. Street Fighter, and more.
    • Coin-Operated – A look at some of the latest and upcoming arcade games including Marvel vs. Capcom, Fighting Vipers 2, Virtual-On Oratorio Tangram, Harley-Davidson & LA Riders, Astra Superstars, and Fallen Angels.
    • And Finally… – A look at the first lesbian video game character?

    Playing Tips

    • Small Tips – Tips and codes for Steep Slope Sliders, Duke Nukem, Command & Conquer, and Mech Warrior 2. Plus a Q&A regarding NTSC/PAL (50/60Hz) switches for the Saturn.
    • Croc: Legends of Gobbos – Part 1 of a strategy guide for Croc that covers levels 1-1 through 1-6 plus boss level 2 and secret levels.
    • Mortal Kombat Trilogy – A Fatality Guide for Mortal Kombat Trilogy.
    • Quake Guide, part 3 – Part 3 of a detailed Quake strategy guide. This part covers the second and third episodes.

    …and more!


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