From Kotaku:
“Generally we won’t be doing anything that’s official,” [Sega West head Mike Hayes] said. The main reason is that Sega has reinvented itself as a software company. And it’s important for us to focus on the other platforms that are alive and current.”
“Informally, because there are people in the company who were involved in the Dreamcast launch, there will be celebrations,” he said, “But as a company, publicly, that’s going to be something we’re going to be pretty low key about for obvious reasons. We’re effectively a different company.”
We agree Sega is a different company, but is it a better company or, more importantly, a better brand than it was back in the early part of the decade.
Make no doubt about it, many gamers still have fond memories of the Dreamcast, with many considering it the apex of Sega’s influence on gaming (not on sales — that would be the Sega Genesis). In fact, a lot of the Dreamcast’s work conceivably laid the foundation for the Xbox, from the SegaNet online system to certain games whose sequels were exclusive to Microsoft s machine.
Since the falling of the Dreamcast, Sega has seen a precipitous decline in its brand identity, often relying on the still-popular Sonic the Hedgehog for the plurality of its sales. So why undersell the Dreamcast s anniversary instead of holding it as an example of Sega s legacy, and the possibility of returning to those days (if not of sales, then of quality).
If you were attached to one of the most likable brands in video game history, would you undersell it I’d probably be the first one with my trumpet, even if it ended up succumbing to much bigger companies in the end. Why? Because for a lot of gamers who grew up with Sega, they should look forward to new memories from that company, and reminding them of the past gives hope to the future.
Let’s see if that Dreamcast IP eventually makes it to the current generation of consoles in time for Sega to still take advantage of their marketing successes of the past.
