SEGA
REVEALS BLUEPRINT FOR U.S. DREAMCAST
LAUNCH IN 1999
Billed as the ultimate
video game machine with the power to outperform all
in-home gaming platforms and most arcade systems,
Dreamcast
launches November 20, 1998, in Japan and in the fall of
1999 in
North America.
Dreamcast combines the
best features from console, PC and
Internet gaming. The console's optimized architecture
delivers a
total system performance that goes beyond the bit-count
battle
that has defined the video game industry in the past.
Sega chose
global leaders in business and technology -- Microsoft,
Hitachi,
NEC, VideoLogic, and Yamaha -- as partners and worked
closely
with each of them to enhance their technologies for
Dreamcast.
The result is the most realistic and authentic 3D gaming
experience ever conceived, supported by break-through
gaming
components that will change the face of the video game
industry.
"In designing each
element of Dreamcast we were driven by two
goals," said Bernard Stolar, president and COO, Sega
of
America. "To make the best system for playing the
best games,
and to capture more than 50 percent of the next
generation
console market."
Sega of America's
blueprint for launching Dreamcast includes a
comprehensive plan to aligning the right games -- both
first and
third party -- and marketing muscle to support the
biggest launch
the industry has ever seen.
Software
Building on its heritage
in software, Sega is committing its
biggest and best game development teams globally to
Dreamcast. Sega of America development teams are hard at
work creating innovative sports, character and
multiplayer online
gaming experiences for Dreamcast. In addition, Sega has
secured support from leading third party publishers who
are
already designing Dreamcast games for the launch next
year.
Sega will launch
Dreamcast in North America with 10-12 games
and will ship between 20 and 30 titles by holiday 1999.
Because
of Dreamcast's architecture, the system is the first to
deliver what
gamers expect from advanced interactive entertainment -
games
that look and sound totally authentic with natural
cause-and-effect
physics. For example, in a football game, a player will
"feel" the
difference between a touch and a tackle.
More Ways to Play
Dreamcast will take the
gaming experience far beyond the living
room. Sega is working with sister company SegaSoft
Networks,
Inc.` to create a customized, massively multiplayer
online gaming
service for the new console. SegaSoft has made tremendous
headway in online gaming with HEAT.NET`, giving PC gamers
the
broadest compatibility with multiplayer online games and
the best
competitive arena on the Internet. The Sega-branded
online
gaming service will include the best community and
competitive
features including e-mail, chat and
point-to-point/multiplayer
games. SegaSoft engineers will also work directly with
game
developers to assist in technical support. To show Sega
means
business in online gaming, the company is developing the
world's
first massive multiplayer console game, which is
scheduled to
ship when Dreamcast launches in North America.
VMS
Dreamcast will feature a
Visual Memory System or VMS. VMS is
a memory card with a built-in LCD screen. It plugs into
the control
pad to add a whole new level of strategy to game play.
Gamers
can use the LCD to set up plays in sports games or plan
secret
attacks in RPGs without their opponent's knowledge. VMS
is a
great community builder for Dreamcast gamers. Players can
save
special characters, moves or teams to the VMS, and trade
game
information by connecting two VMS cards. VMS is also a
portable
game device the size of a business card, complete with a
directional pad, control buttons and an LCD game screen.
This
feature not only adds a new level of realism to game play
but it
gives Sega customers new ways to interact with each
other.
The Architecture Key design considerations of Dreamcast's
architecture were to seamlessly integrate dedicated
components
that have been customized for gaming, and eliminate the
limitations
inherent in previous consoles by providing developers
with optimized
high-performance graphics, audio, CPU memory, disk drive
speed/storage.
CPU
For the CPU, Sega
selected Hitachi's latest generation of its
SuperH RISC architecture, a 200MHz SH-4 CPU, which
delivers
128-bit performance in 3D calculations, resulting in
highest
resolution and faster graphics. In fact, the SH-4
processor is
optimized to perform floating-point operations - the key
to
super-fast 3D calculations - four times faster than the
Pentium#226# II.
For graphics, the
customized PowerVR Second-Generation
technology, developed jointly by NEC and VideoLogic, is
key in
providing the power behind Dreamcast's high-end graphics.
The
result is a peak performance of over 3 million polygons
per
second, outperforming today's most-advanced arcade
systems.
By off-loading audio
processing to a dedicated, real-time 3D
audio chip set developed by Yamaha, Dreamcast is able to
provide players with 64 channels of music, voices, and
game play
sound effects for audio performance that matches home
theater
equipment. In fact, Dreamcast's audio chip is as powerful
as
some entire next generation consoles.
Sega also worked with
Yamaha to develop a high-speed
CD-ROM drive which speeds up access time and allows for
much
bigger games and larger playing fields.
Microsoft will provide an
optimized version of its Windows CE
operating system with DirectX services that has been
enhanced
for console-style gaming. Windows CE provides Dreamcast
developers a flexible, versatile development environment
supported by the Microsoft Visual Studio Development
System
Version 5.0 and refined Visual C++ development
system-based
tools that makes title development more efficient while
also
allowing compatibility with Windows-based PCs. Windows CE
with DirectX has been hand-tuned to be small and fast to
provide
superior performance specifically targeted at Sega's
Dreamcast
hardware architecture, giving developers the confidence
that
software developed for Dreamcast will take full advantage
of
every hardware feature in the system.
SEGA READIES MARKETING
ALLIES FOR LARGEST
VIDEO GAME LAUNCH IN HISTORY
Dreamcast Marketing
Plan Already Underway; Sega Commits
$100 Million To U.S. Launch Alone
The recently announced Dreamcast super video game console
from Sega®
may still be more than a year away from launch in North
America, but
forces are already at work developing a marketing blitz
the likes of which
the video game industry has never seen. Sega of America
has enlisted some
of the most prestigious industry heavy weights to build
marketing muscle for
Dreamcast. And Sega is putting its marketing money where
its mouth is,
dedicating $100 million solely for Dreamcast's launch in
North America.
The Dreamcast
introduction will touch all parts of the target
consumer's life
with unforgettable advertising, sales promotions, event
marketing and retail
merchandising. The campaign will explore new ways of
reaching consumers
and enhance their means of interacting with Sega and its
products.
Sega's elite battalion of
marketing, advertising and promotions companies
include Foote, Cone & Belding - San Francisco; Alcone
Marketing Group;
the Howard Marlboro Group (HMG) and The Catalyst Group.
Their
collective experience is evident through successful
campaigns for companies
such as Levi's, Burger King, MTV and Mazda.
"Sega's business
plan mandates `kick-ass marketing' to launch our new
console," said Bernard Stolar, president and COO,
Sega of America. "We
can't wait to surprise the consumer with our definition
of what that means."
The marketing companies behind the Dreamcast launch
campaign include
the best in the industry:
Foote, Cone &
Belding - San Francisco
Widely known for its
award-winning Levi's and DockersTM ad campaigns,
Foote, Cone & Belding - San Francisco (FCB) is the
clear leader in
youth-targeted advertising. FCB, the 1996 Ad Agency of
the Year, was
one of the first ad agencies ever to be nominated for an
Emmy, television's
highest honor. FCB will give consumers a wake up call
with campaigns
showcasing Dreamcast and Sega. Some of FCB's current
clients include
Levi Strauss & Co., Coors, MTV, Keds, Fox Sports and
Amazon.com.
Alcone Marketing Group
If you have eaten at
Burger King and ordered a Kid's Club Meal, you have
seen Alcone Marketing Group at work. The Irvine-based
company is the
leader in product promotions, creating promotional
opportunities for
consumer products by tying them to mass market vehicles.
Alcone is
already at work with Sega lining up large-scale consumer
promotions by
partnering Dreamcast with a host of products specifically
targeted towards
people in the mid-teen to mid-20s market. Alcone
Marketing clients include
Mazda and the California Lottery.
Howard Marlboro Group
HMG is one of the most
respected consumer research and in-store
marketing companies in the United States. HMG is already
working on a
revolutionary consumer retail program for Sega that will
turn the industry on
its ear with innovative in-store support programs, custom
fixtures,
interactive merchandising and ground-breaking POP
materials. The
company is conducting massive consumer research and will
be tasked with
developing an entirely new in-store presence for Sega.
HMG currently
works with industry giants such as Coca-Cola, Wal*Mart,
Procter &
Gamble, Motorola, Nestle, K-Mart, and others.
The Catalyst Group
The Catalyst Group (TCG)
is one of Hollywood's most prolific
entertainment marketing and product placement companies.
Burbank-based TCG will be responsible for the placement
of Dreamcast
and the Sega name on the hottest shows, movies and music
events. TCG
currently works with such industry heavy weights at
Tropicana, Yamaha,
PowerBar, Spalding and Schwinn.
Sega of America is the
arm of Tokyo, Japan-based Sega
Enterprises, Ltd. responsible for the development,
marketing and
distribution of Sega videogame systems and videogames in
the
Americas. Sega Enterprises, Ltd. is a nearly $3.0 billion
company
recognized as the industry leader in interactive digital
entertainment media, and is the only company that offers
interactive entertainment experiences both inside and
outside the
home. Sega of America's World Wide Web site is located at
http://www.sega.com.
|
