17 years ago today, Sega’s Dreamcast was released. The mostly forgotten machine was the first 128-bit console that was made by one of the three big console manufacturers and had the first built-in online capabilities of any console.

Within the first two weeks, Sega saw a hardware shortage as 500,000 units were sold and it was in contention to become one of the best products of the year. That was until six months later and Sony released the PlayStation 2.

To celebrate it’s short but underrated life, we’ve put together a list of the best games that were released on the console.

1)   Quake 3 Arena

Released in 2000, Quake 3 focused solely on the multiplayer aspect of a game; even if you wanted to play solo you would be against other bots. The aim of the game is simply to kill everyone in sight and stay alive.

Quake 3 completely changed first-person shooters – crisp graphics, an awesome score and even better guns.  If using a rocket launcher to blow your opponent into tiny pieces wasn’t the best stress reliever after a long day then we don’t know what is!

2)   Crazy taxi

The concept for crazy taxi is simple: pick a passenger up and drop them off at their desired location in a set amount of time. Calmly? Absolutely not. You find yourself constantly weaving through busy streets and quite literally flying down hills with passengers screaming at you from the backseat.

Not only is there all of that mayhem, but there’s also a wicked soundtrack, which you can turn up to full volume while you play. It features the likes of early Offspring and Bad Religion. There’s nothing bad about this game and it certainly entertained us for hours on end.

3)   House of the dead 2

You may remember House of the Dead from the arcade? It’s the one with two guns and zombies running at you from all different directions? Well, you had the chance to enjoy that experience from the comfort of your own home if you had this beauty on Dreamcast.

You even had the chance to buy the gun accessories to get the full arcade experience, you could play with your friends and not have to worry about you running out of time, change or someone else wanting a turn.

4)   Sega Bass Fishing

We imagine that most people will have turned their nose up at Sega Bass Fishing, but don’t underestimate the hours of entertainment it provided! The Dreamcast provided a weirdly wonderful array of all sorts of games but this sporting game wasn’t just for your old uncle who couldn’t be bothered to go fishing in the rain, it was for anyone; even if you couldn’t tell the difference between a Carp and a Bass.

Not only did Sega provide you with an ultimate simulation fishing game, it also gave you the option to play this game with the fishing rod that they had intricately made. It was nearly impossible to work out how to use it and use it effectively at first but once you got into the rhythm, it just became second nature!

5)   Soul Calibur

There were a lot of options when it came to fighting games on the Dreamcast, Dead or Alive 2, Marvel vs Capcom and Ready 2 Rumble Boxing to name a few. However, there was something different about Soul Calibur that stood out. Maybe it was the beautiful 3D graphics, maybe it was the fact that the fighters had weapons to use or maybe it’s just because it’s a really, really great fighting game.

The gameplay itself made it appealing for newcomers to fighting games and to veterans, meaning that anyone can play and enjoy the game without having the excuse of “it’s just too hard.”

6)   Sonic Adventure 2

It’s no secret that a lot of people feel that Sega absolutely destroyed their main mascot when they released the 3D Sonic games. However, they managed to revive themselves with the Sonic Adventure games.

Sonic Adventure was almost like a BETA for Sonic Adventure 2, it was a little bland but when the second one was released and you could play with multiple characters and various game styles, it started to convince people that maybe 3D Sonic isn’t as bad as originally anticipated.

7)   Metropolis Street Racer

Before Blur and Project Gotham Racing, Bizzare Creations released Metropolis Street Racer on Dreamcast. It had gloriously detailed maps of London, San Francisco and Tokyo plastered with intricate details that hadn’t been seen on a driving game of this sort before.

The game worked on a kudos points system, the better you drove, the more kudos points you earned. With those points you could buy better cars and new tracks which gave players the incentive to drive stylishly rather than dangerously.

8)   Jet Set Radio

Jet Set Radio (or Jet Grind Radio for all of you in the States) was a game like no other. There hasn’t been a game released like it since and I don’t think there will ever be a game that can compare to this one. The game saw a group of roller-blading graffiti artists skating around Tokyo-to trying to evade the police. You would have to tag the streets with your graffiti can and essentially not get caught.

For its time, it’s possibly the best looking game on the Dreamcast, even if it is in contention to be the most “out of the box” idea for a game ever. Luckily for us, there’s a new and improved HD version on most new consoles, which includes second stick action but nothing will really compare to the original.

9)   Seaman

Seaman is one of those games that only people with a very acquired taste can play. Narrated by none other than Leonard Nimoy, the aim is to essentially raise this titular fish-human. You use the microphone and you form a bond with this creature, which affects his social and development skills.

The goal is to help Seaman evolve into a land creature and if you treat him right he’ll talk to you and even be your friend but if you don’t then he will dislike you, ignore you and he could even die.

10)                  Resident Evil: Code Veronica

This game was an absolute pivotal moment for the Resident Evil series. Although previous Resident Evil games were available to buy, Capcom made this game solely for Dreamcast. It was the first 3D version of the game; the camera was still fixed but allowed the game to go into the next generation. It even featured a mini first person shooter game.

The rest of the game is pretty standard Resident Evil, a long-story two-character campaign, which allows you to play both characters. This time it featured Claire and Chris Redfield fighting the Umbrella Corporation. The infamous Albert Wesker returns as well as some new characters as well. Definitely not a game to be overlooked by RE fans.

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