o_O
We all know that the forthcoming Shining Force IV will reign supreme. Just wait and see.
Nights was too short to call itself a classic in my opinion. The graphics could’ve been better too. However, the Saturn really wasn’t the polygon pusher we all wanted it to be – blame Sega for making a powerful 2D console and then adding 3D graphics chips at the last minute (if the Saturn had been completely redesigned when Sega saw how powerful the Playstation was, Sega would still be making consoles now).
It wasn’t because the graphics that the Saturn failed.And it wasn’t because of the Saturn that Sega failed in the console market.
The thing with Nights is that, while it was short, it had a huge amount of replay value. As with any Megadrive Sonic platform game, completing the game wasn’t really the end, because blasting through the stages was almost just as much fun the second time round.
It’s much the same with the Panzer shooters as well I guess. They’re designed to be replayed and perfected…
It’s as much an artistic game as it is a score fiend’s game. It feels like you’re in a tidy little cartoon for children, full of warmth and song. But part of the fun is just to let go and enjoy the feeling of swooping and dancing and just listening to the music.
And harrassing the locals. 
You’re wrong on both counts.
The Saturn failed because Sega focused too much on Japan where the console enjoyed years of popularity. The Mega Drive wasn’t very popular in Japan, so when the Saturn captured the hearts and minds of so many people in Japan, Sega suddenly couldn’t care less about the rest of the world. Why Sega insists on holding onto this notion that Japan always comes first is beyond me.
The amount of quality Saturn RPGs that weren’t translated is almost unbelievable. The Saturn was underpowered and overpriced. Sega alienated many third party developers by releasing it ahead of schedule outside Japan and Sega didn’t secure enough third party support afterwards. The console was launched with no decent games and Daytona was rushed by the talented developers of AM2. A good conversion of Daytona alone would’ve sold the Saturn outside of Japan (the arcade game was incredibly popular). I really have no idea what Sega was thinking at the time.
Despite the Saturn’s shortcomings, I would’ve been more than happy with the Shining Force III trilogy. But no, Sega decided to screw us. All of my fond memores of the Saturn are forever tainted by that single act of betrayal.
A few more levels couldn’t have hurt though. The graphics left a lot to be desired too. The very fact that Nights 2 wasn’t developed for the Dreamcast when Nights sold so many copies in Japan is baffling.
Geoff : Sega had a great chance to redeem itself with the DC.
And you dind’t prove my first point wrong.
PS:There is nothing wrong in centerinf attentions on Japan.They can, they want,they are worshipped…
The Saturn couldn’t push around the same number of polygons on-screen at once as the Playstation, and the Saturn lacked any in-built support to render proper 3D transparency effects. Combine those problems with the fact that the Saturn was a nightmare to programme for and you have a recipe for disaster.
The Saturn’s best games were the ones that blended 2D and 3D graphics to the point where they were almost indistinguishable. Games like Dark Savior, Dragon Force 1 and 2, Grandia, Guardian Heroes; Shining The Holy Ark and the Shining Force III trilogy demonstrated the Saturn’s true potential. Of course, some of those games never reached our shores.
Yes I know that but I fail to see how that influenced Saturn game’s quality and the interest of people in them.You made it sound like most people undoubtly (sp?) prefered the PSX and witha good reason.
Because 3D was so new, people were bound to prefer that as long as it was done well… Some people would refuse to play a system that couldn’t do the 3D graphics as well.
Look at Castlevania: SoTN’s sales for example… It was an excellent game, but had the misfortune of coming out at a bad time for 2D gaming.
People (like me) who didn’t buy a Saturn didn’t really have a good reason not to buy one, and I can remember when Panzer Dragoon Saga came out >>. I should’ve gotten one then ><.
I remember that my parents got me a Saturn for my 11th birthday as a surprise.My brother and sisters were at the mall when they bough it.They(my parents) said “We were going to buy you that white/gray console…what was its name agehn…”
I just sighed in that precise moment.Even at that point I knew better than to buy a non-Sega console 