25 years of the Sega Saturn: Part 1-The Doomed Singularity

ut of all the rituals that you’d expect a seven-year-old to have in the early nineties, feverishly running to the supermarket newsstand for the latest video game magazine isn’t one that I’d imagine topping a Family Feud chart anytime soon. Yet there I was, a twinkle-eyed sap who cared for nothing more than to drool over the latest news and gossip of the one brand that ruled my kid life: SEGA.

The year 1994 was a particularly lucid period, because of the gaming hype for releases like Super Metroid, Donkey Kong Country, and Sonic & Knuckles, nothing was more exciting to me than Sega’s 32-bit project, the Sega Saturn. I couldn’t tell you how many times I read the August issue that year of Electronic Gaming Monthly, and the preview coverage they gave to the specifications of the system, and games that were going to be able to run on it like Daytona USA, Virtua Fighter, and Virtua Cop.

May 11th, 2020 marked the 25th anniversary of the polarizing console—even to this day, the same fevered school ground arguments over the Saturn have transcended into keyboard wars across online forums and social networks because unlike anything else like in the medium. The Sega Saturn is a complex story that peels back like an onion; so I figured what better way to way to reminisce on my favorite game machine than with an editorial series on it.

In this chapter, we’re going back to where it all began, as the system’s origin is one that’s born through a gradual divorce between the East and West divisions of SEGA, with the Saturn being the child that was caught in the middle of it all.

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Bullet Heaven #248 - Captain Tomaday (DC)

They say Vasara and Vasara 2 are the best games Visco has ever made. We don't know about that, but we can put it to the test, with the Dreamcast release for Captain Tomaday from Joshprod and Pixelheart EU. As yet another Dreamcast port of a Neo-Geo game we've wanted to play for quite some time, how does it stack up?

Get the Dreamcast RGB SCART "God Cable" here!

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QCF: Windjammers

hile Nintendo is a brand that will forever be synonymous with video games, there are a few other Japanese names that have attracted a dedicated following, particularly one best known for delivering intense arcade action—SNK and their platform, Neo Geo.

Most may only know them as the house that built King of Fighters these days, but the passionate affection that the brand can still command even after all these years is still palpable, especially for one particular title that has managed to obtain a cult-classic status with those in the competitive gaming scene.

Spinning a casual beach sport into high-powered contest, Flying Disc Game-Windjammers was a gem that managed to spawn its own culture of versus action. The eccentric Frisbee-tosser was not only novel, but addictive, and frenetic, allowing it to endure on in an environment that was dominated by the fighting game genre for years on end, only to slowly drift into obscurity as the day of the arcade slowly came to an end.

That is until now; Dot-Emu has managed to secure the rights to publishing a remastered version of it for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita on PSN, and thankfully, the experience is just as incredible, if not more so than it was twenty years ago in that dingy pizza parlor that your family used to drag you to during the weekend.

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PPR 106

h wow, it has been awhile since I've been the person responsible for putting up new content. I will try to make sure that this does not all come crashing down but I cannot make any promises, Internet. Speaking of garbage fires this is Toast welcoming you to another episode of Press Pause Radio where we discuss the Juggalo March, banana peeling tactics, Mario not being a plumber, and wedding advice. That last one had it's ups and downs but we all learned a little more about each other. Sharing is caring.

The normal crew of GeorgieboysAXE, Ser Flash and I also experiment with web cameras and discuss current hot topics including Sean Vanaman and MCA takedowns involving PewDewPie and Firewatch. Our show also reminds everyone that there are a ridiculous amount of games coming out this year such as Sonic Mania, Project Octopath Traveller, Hellblade Setsuna, Yakuza Kiwami, Uncharted Lost Legacy, Destiny 2, Neo Geo Archives; Aero Fighters 2, Neo Geo Archives; Spin Masters, and a newer indie title on the market called Minecraft.

So sit back and enjoy this audio experience, possibly while holding a protest sign depicting a Hatchetman in one hand and in the other some refreshing Faygo Moon Mist. It's the American way. 

Mail us at our new email Mailbag@presspauseradio.com, leave a voicemail at 469-PPR-TALK, and be sure to stop by at our Forums if you haven’t already registered and post your thoughts about the show. Finally, make sure to rate and subscribe to us on iTunes and YouTube, follow us on Twitch page and Twitter, and finally take part in our Facebook and Steam group!

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Bullet Heaven, Episode #174 - ACA Neo-Geo: Blazing Star (Switch)

amster's Arcade Archives - or ACA - NeoGeo titles make up a huge part of the Nintendo Switch's eShop. Though these games exist on other platforms as well, the Switch has bragging rights when it comes to Blazing Star, Yumekobo's (formerly Aicom) sidescrolling followup/departure from Pulstar. How does it fare? Let's take a closer look!

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