View Full Version : Saturn: Is it worth getting?
I only recently started to fall in love with my dreamcast. Mainly because I didn't own it until about a year ago. I love the fighting games library along with the short load times. I didn't realize how long street fighter load times are on my playstation until I started playing them on my dreamcast. BIG DIFFERENCE!
Anyway....I'm wondering is it worth picking up a Saturn? How do most of the fighting games compare to the playstation versions and the arcade versions? There are some other games intresting me such as Nights, and the Panzer Dragon games.
I guess my main concern at this point is I know a lot of these old fighting games play great in mame so would the Saturn be worth a purchase at this point? What are some other good games? How much should a system cost me?
ZForce
11-08-2005, 11:22 AM
Saturn is a great system, but be prepared to invest big bucks on most of the very best games for it (Dragon Force, Guardian Heroes, etc. etc. etc.) You should be able to find a system for under $40 though.
Dingleberry
11-08-2005, 11:24 AM
I found the system at a thrift store i beleive for $5. I'm not willing to pay the money to get the few good games that people mention though.
cps2's-appleidog
11-08-2005, 11:35 AM
Hi im new here. and i just wanted to say the saturn is imo the best machine ever on par with the nes. the saturn has some amazing arcade ports like street fighter zero 3 which is arguable the best version there is better then the Dreamcast. it also has alot of good 3d games like nights, Burning rangers, house of the dead. virtua cop.
but the main thing about the saturn is the arcade games so if your into beatemups. like street fighter samurai shodown fatal fury etc. platform games like sonic, run deppy run, nights. shootemups like virtua cop, and house of the dead and 2d shootemups like radiant silvergun., battle garegga, thunderforce v, also saturns are really cheap and easy to pick up. The saturn is a hardcore arcade fan console because it has these great companies in it snk, treasure, capcom,atlus, namco, taito,sega.
for Rpg's there are some good titles out there but if you are generally into rpgs get a playstation.
Ps the saturn is a 2d beast street fighter runs so well. the psone cant cope with nothing the saturn can. play xmen vs street fighter on saturn and then play the psone you will see why the saturn is the best ever on par with the neo geo aes. for beatemups
pimpinc333
11-08-2005, 11:47 AM
Shining Force 3 is very fun but expensive. Probably the best RPG on the system IMO.
vherub
11-08-2005, 11:48 AM
I agree the 2d fighters age well, but the 3d games might be a turnoff. Nights or Burning Rangers can be quite offputting when not used to those levels of graphics even though they were great when they came out. The 3d fighters, like doa or vf have aged even less gracefully.
I say be on the lookout for good deals and test the water with a system and some games (one or two of which you want) for $30-$50 off ebay.
GuilewasNK
11-08-2005, 12:00 PM
Saturn is a great system, but be prepared to invest big bucks on most of the very best games for it (Dragon Force, Guardian Heroes, etc. etc. etc.) You should be able to find a system for under $40 though.
Agreed.
I have Street Fighter Alpha 2 and Marvel Super Heroes for the Saturn and IMO they are better than the PS One versions. The controls seem a tad tighter and the animation seems a little better as well. I think they compare to the arcade counterparts quite well. You can find some games at a decent price, but sought after games like Guardian Heroes, Dragon Force, Panzer Dragoon Saga will be impossible to find cheap deals on.
This is a place that still sells used Saturn games...
http://www.videogamedepot.com/shop/games.asp?Page=ALL&PT=&PS=Saturn&PO=Domestic&LS=
I have ordered from them before and was pleased. They don't have much now but they do get things in from time to time. This is where I got my copy of Shining Force III ($70+ dollars) and they did have Panzer Dragoon Saga and Christmas Nights in stock last year.
kakomu
11-08-2005, 12:04 PM
I was incredibly bored with my saturn, which is why I traded it for a GBA with someone. Chances are, I've put more hours into my GBA than I did my Saturn.
While the 2D fighters are really enticing me to want the system....if I can play them in mame is there really a reason to buy the system and all the games? The dreamcast offers some games that mame can't handle such as Marvel VS. Capcom 2, Street Fighter III's, and Capcom VS. SNK 2 (import). If the other really great games are that expensive I'm not sure I want one. Yeah now having played the old arcade versions via MAME and the dreamcast I realize how bad the playstation handles 2D fighters.
evilomar
11-08-2005, 12:27 PM
Guardian Heroes, Saturn Bomerman, and Astal, just to name a few are extremely cheap. Defintely pick up Groove on Fight, no emulator does that game any justice.
ryosnk
11-08-2005, 12:30 PM
I have one us saturn and two import saturn(skeleton and grey edition). Its a great system with great Sega arcade games and originals like the panzer dragoon series, nights, guardian heroes, and imports like the vs series from Capcom, and snk fighters. Overall a system I have enjoyed more then my psone system.
GuilewasNK
11-08-2005, 02:30 PM
One of the better 3D fighters is Fighters Megamix. Your can't find that anywhere other than the Saturn.
doodle777_98
11-08-2005, 02:33 PM
nights into dreams is worth it. So are some of the shmups.
brendan424
11-08-2005, 02:38 PM
Pretty Fighter X, if you want some hentai'ish girl on girl fighting. Yea guardian heroes is definately my favorite game of all time. Don't forget radiant silvergun! Those two games alone (setting aside Dragon Force, Fighter's Megamix, Legend of Oasis) are more than enough reason to pick up a saturn over an xbox360. Also that 6 player bomberman is rediculous.
In guardian heroes you can also have 6 player fighting battles, which are totally rediculously sweet. Basically picture a fighting game mixed with an RPG. Nothing has come close to it.
Kapwanil
11-08-2005, 02:38 PM
It really depends upon what you are looking for. Personally, I love a lot of the exclusives from Japan that the Saturn saw that nothing else has had the opportunity to see until now. If it wasn't for the Capcom Classics Collection I would still be scouting out a lot of the Capcom Generations releases. Same goes with the Taito collections that hit the PS2 in Japan as well.
The Saturn really depends. Picking up a handful of the better titles in the US usually involves little effort and money if you look around in the right places. My US Saturn library is probably comprised of around 15, 16 games and cost me about $30 in all. As for imports...well, that gets costly, but you can usually find some amazing titles there for a whole lot less. I'm still quite happy with Dragon Force in Japanese for $5, not to mention Guardian Heroes, mint condition, for $20. It all depends on what you're looking for, really.
Personally, I'm a huge fan of shooters and the Saturn just delivers on most fronts. Between all of the Twinbee, Parodius, and Gradius releases you have Donpatchi, Dondonpatchi, Layer Section, Cotton 2, Twinkle Star Sprites, and a lot of other ones as well. However, those usually cost a pretty penny...oh well. Until I visit Japan or my friends do so I'm pretty much out of the loop with inexpensive Saturn classics, sadly.
Epic Wolf
11-08-2005, 02:38 PM
Street Fighter Alpha 3 on Saturn usually breaks the $80 range , as for the rest of the games if your not willing to spend at least 30+ per game then don't waste your time, only a few of the Saturn fighters can be found under $20 usually the older Capcom games Alpha 1 & 2, Nightwarriors stuff like that, I have been pondering dumping my Saturn fighter's with 2 arcade sticks, anyone who's interested can check my list :) for the post above mine Sengoku Blaede was another a nice shooter...
RedvsBlue
11-08-2005, 02:40 PM
Unfortunately, the system itself isn't very expensive but most of the good games for it are usually pretty expensive.
secretvampire
11-08-2005, 02:42 PM
I LOVE my Saturn, I have over fifty games for it. One of my favorite systems.
GuilewasNK
11-08-2005, 03:47 PM
I recommend Galactic Attack as well. Fun shmump.
GuilewasNK
11-08-2005, 03:53 PM
Pretty Fighter X, if you want some hentai'ish girl on girl fighting.
Sounds good! :)
photopants
11-08-2005, 04:01 PM
All I have to say about the Saturn is that I think it represents the pinnacle of 2D gaming. Sega made the system to attract the 2D stuff which it truely excells at. There are alot of japanese import shooters for the system and the saturn itself can quite easily play imports with the addition of a simple switch and 4 wires.
For historical and awsome sprite games alone the Saturn is actually my favorite system of all time. And any one truely into gaming should have one ..........or two!
coltyhuxx
11-08-2005, 04:07 PM
I never owned one but I played a friends and he had this round shaped controller (maybe the nIghts one???) with an analog and that thing was so comfortable and sweet!
pretty sure you can get those side scrolling dungeons and dragons arcade games as an import. those are pretty darn fun.
anyone who played shining force ]I[, i truly envy you. i just cant pay the $100 on eBay for it! i might have to look into the emulation scene...
Consummate Canuck
11-08-2005, 04:17 PM
The Saturn is definitely worth getting. There are a lot of good games for it. A lot of great 2D games for the system. Then there are also games like Nights which you should check out. It is one of my favourite systems.
Sure some Games will require spending quite a bit of money to aquire but they are excellent games and may very well be worth it. It's just too bad they never completely released Shining Force III in the US. That would have been great.
racketboy
11-10-2005, 09:38 PM
The Saturn's 2D capabilities are MUCH better than the PSX's. Espeically when it comes to 2D fighters and shooters.
Many of the PSX fighter ports have missing sprites and other things taken out of them (like tag-team action in the VS fighters) because it just doesn't have the RAM and such that the Saturn has.
I don't mean to push my site too much, but I really recommend you take a look at my Saturn Hacks and Guides (http://www.racketboy.com/guides/saturn.htm) page for much of the info you are looking for. you can find links to the best games lists, info on the modchip, playing imports, and much more.
If you have more questions, feel free to ask me on here or email.
burningelf
11-11-2005, 12:00 PM
Saturn was hands down the best multiplayer system ever made. When you have 8 people playing Saturn bomberman in a single room it doesn't get much crazier than that(Unless you play with 10 people but I am not a big fan of the smaller screen). 6 player Guardian Heroes and a lot of their sports games are 4 or more players. Once again Saturn is a great system but you have to be willing to put some money out to get the games worth getting for the system. So if you have a little money saved up or something it is worth it.
racketboy
11-11-2005, 07:30 PM
yeah the multitap is something that no other console has matched since -- unless you could online
8-player bomberman is incredible!
The Saturn's 2D capabilities are MUCH better than the PSX's. Espeically when it comes to 2D fighters and shooters.
Many of the PSX fighter ports have missing sprites and other things taken out of them (like tag-team action in the VS fighters) because it just doesn't have the RAM and such that the Saturn has.
I don't mean to push my site too much, but I really recommend you take a look at my Saturn Hacks and Guides (http://www.racketboy.com/guides/saturn.htm) page for much of the info you are looking for. you can find links to the best games lists, info on the modchip, playing imports, and much more.
If you have more questions, feel free to ask me on here or email.
Sending you a PM.
GTmaster39
11-14-2005, 04:01 PM
Right now I'm this close to buying an imported Saturn, so I can snag some of those awesome shooters I've been missing out on. My Dreamcast collection is only based on fighters and other wierd games. I would like to have a nice shooter collection to go with the Saturn too.
RAMSTORIA
11-14-2005, 04:03 PM
the problem with the saturn is that many of the good games are highly saught after and considered rare. so you wont have any trouble getting the system, you will have a lot of trouble getting the best games
U2K Tha Greate$t
11-14-2005, 05:39 PM
Saturn: Is it worth getting?
Hell yes, i'm still trying to find one. I had one, but gave it up in the pass :(
U2K Tha Greate$t
11-14-2005, 05:42 PM
the problem with the saturn is that many of the good games are highly saught after and considered rare. so you wont have any trouble getting the system, you will have a lot of trouble getting the best games
Not on my end, my local import store has a gang of them for 2.99 and up. I think the highest one is die hard which is 14.99 and for that game i am willing to pay more, but 15 bucks is cool.
racketboy
11-14-2005, 07:58 PM
the problem with the saturn is that many of the good games are highly saught after and considered rare. so you wont have any trouble getting the system, you will have a lot of trouble getting the best games
got your answer right here (http://www.racketboy.com/saturn-modchip/index.htm)
KeyserSoze81
11-15-2005, 02:01 AM
Considering Ive ordered two modchips from racketboy, Ill put a plug in for him. Great product/service at a cheap price. Granted, I killed my first modchip by overhandling it and trying to get it to work with a virtually unmoddable system (before purchasing the easiest one to mod), but I had no hesitation to order from him again.
Get a Saturn, a modchip, and a RAM cart (either AR or the one from RacketBoy). Its pure bliss to play some of those impossible to find 2D shooters.
Danro
11-15-2005, 02:11 AM
The Saturn is definitely worth getting. I picked on up from Gamecrazy for 20 bucks with 2 games. Now I cant stop playing Winning Post.
racketboy
11-15-2005, 10:56 PM
The Saturn is definitely worth getting. I picked on up from Gamecrazy for 20 bucks with 2 games. Now I cant stop playing Winning Post.
was this just recently?
I never see Saturns in stores areound here!
Spoon_si
11-15-2005, 11:17 PM
Panzer dragoon Saga...
1 of the BEST RPG of all time...
it has 1 of the battle system... that can't be match til this day...
racketboy
11-15-2005, 11:50 PM
Is amazing that Sega hasn't tried to port many of it's cult classic games from the Saturn to the PS2 or something. PD Saga is a perfect example of that. Radiant Silvergun, Nights into Dreams, and many others come to mind as well.
depascal22
11-16-2005, 02:33 AM
God yes, the Saturn is worth getting. Like everyone else said, play a PSone version of a game and then the Saturn version. You'll start looking for some schmuck to buy off those PSone versions the next day. And that's not even the best thing. The controller takes the 6 button Genesis controller and makes it more comfortable with a couple triggers on the top. I've played many an all night session of Virtua Fighter 2 with nary a hand cramp to show for in the morning. I haven't been able to play some of the rarer games but it makes the system that much cooler that there's games out there that I haven't played and might not ever play. Just get one and hit up the garage sale thread for tips on fleshing out your collection.
It's a great time to be a cheap ass gamer
kakomu
11-16-2005, 02:39 AM
was this just recently?
I never see Saturns in stores areound here!
A store near me has about 8 of them lined up. Of course, they're like $40-$50 each.
Is amazing that Sega hasn't tried to port many of it's cult classic games from the Saturn to the PS2 or something. PD Saga is a perfect example of that. Radiant Silvergun, Nights into Dreams, and many others come to mind as well.
actually they did with the sega ages: fight viper, dragon force, die hard arcade, Panzer Dragoon, all 4 sakura war games, Last Bronx, etc.
Otherguy676
11-16-2005, 03:06 AM
The saturn is gr8 for 2d fighters as long as u have cash. X-Men vs Street Fighter, Marvel Super Heroes vs Street Fighter, and Vampire Savior are some of the best fighting games ever. These are all Japanese only games and require a 4-Meg cartridge (just get the 4 in 1 and disc only versions of games, ull save money). Other import games include the King of the ighters series,Samurai Shodown series, and Fatal Fury Series. Its definitely a good system and worth owning.
racketboy
11-16-2005, 07:18 AM
actually they did with the sega ages: fight viper, dragon force, die hard arcade, Panzer Dragoon, all 4 sakura war games, Last Bronx, etc.
well, those aren't the top on my list.
They only did the first Panzer Dragoon (so far)
Strider Turbulence
11-17-2005, 03:24 PM
I found a site that has Radiant Silvergun and Panzer Dragoon Saga in stock....for a total combined price of $350+.
I might bite on Radiant Silvergun, at least PDS has a slimmer of a chance being ported to a newer system and I really didn't enjoy it much when I first played it years ago.
erehwon
11-17-2005, 06:02 PM
I found a store in my town today that had a copy of Panzer Dragoon Saga. Unfortunately, they priced it at $150. Well, atleast I got to hold it. :drool: I doubt I'll ever spend that much on a single game, but that doesn't mean I wasn't tempted.
So pretty much are all the really good games for the saturn expensive?
racketboy
11-17-2005, 06:53 PM
There are some that are very cheap: Nights into Dreams, Virtua Fighter 2, Daytona and many more
Strider Turbulence
11-17-2005, 08:08 PM
Fire Pro Wrestling and that wrestling game with some of the Virtua fighter characters is pretty good and fairly cheap.
racketboy
11-19-2005, 11:07 AM
Its Japan only though, right?
praystation
11-19-2005, 03:23 PM
Marvel Super heroes on Saturn (with the RAM cart) definetely beats the ps1 version. Compare the arcade version, saturn version and ps1's version of the ironman doing the "proton cannon" special move. Ps1's version lasts the longest!. Why? It's covered with slowdowns even though you set the turbo meter to max 8 (by default is 4, 8 can be obtained using a code).
Strider Turbulence
11-19-2005, 04:48 PM
Its Japan only though, right?
Yeah. The only US wrestle games I know of on Saturn are the two WWF arcade games.
Marvel Super heroes on Saturn (with the RAM cart) definetely beats the ps1 version. Compare the arcade version, saturn version and ps1's version of the ironman doing the "proton cannon" special move. Ps1's version lasts the longest!. Why? It's covered with slowdowns even though you set the turbo meter to max 8 (by default is 4, 8 can be obtained using a code).
It's been a while since I played the psx version (back in 2002 when I sold it) but I have the import Saturn Marvel Superheroes and it's actually worse than what I remember from the ps1 version. The game had lots of slowdown and the RAM cart option actually added more to it.
Strider Turbulence
11-19-2005, 04:53 PM
Going a little off topic: Has anyone ever played Princess Crown? All I remember was being absolutley floored by it's gorgeous 2D graphics in a Gamefan review.
Mono`
11-19-2005, 05:17 PM
Saturn is insane, it's really an unsung system.
Check out Virtual Hydlide (Sp?)
racketboy
11-20-2005, 09:36 AM
Yeah. The only US wrestle games I know of on Saturn are the two WWF arcade games.
It's been a while since I played the psx version (back in 2002 when I sold it) but I have the import Saturn Marvel Superheroes and it's actually worse than what I remember from the ps1 version. The game had lots of slowdown and the RAM cart option actually added more to it.
Marvel Super Heroes is possibly one of the slowest-loading games on the system. It's really a bad example.
But yeah, the Saturn (especially with the 4MB RAM Cart (http://www.racketboy.com/store/ramcart.htm)) blows away the PSX in this respect.
Puffa469
11-28-2005, 03:09 PM
The saturn is my favorite system of all time behind the snes. I play my saturn to this day. It is sooo worth picking up.
But like others have said, be prepared to pay for many of the better games.
Another tip I wil give you is make sure your Saturn can play import games, cos many of the best Saturn games are jap imports. Lots of fighters and schmups and stuff like the D&D collection, Elevator Action returns, and Assault Suits Leynos 2 (Cybernator 2).
battleroyal33
11-28-2005, 03:18 PM
By far the best thing about the saturn is the Japanese only releases you can play on your saturn with the reply cart or a modded system but while the D&D collection is pretty hard to come by and does fetch a high $$, In my opion it is a terrible game, the controls just blow.
jax_the_ax15
11-28-2005, 04:49 PM
awww i remember the saturn my friends cousin (sp?) had one with battle ship and nascar the nascar game looked amazing! (it was the arcade one) for the time but now.... i dont know i would lean twords (damn my spelling!) a no
burningelf
11-29-2005, 03:21 PM
When did they release a sequel to Dragon Force? I was always hoping they would release the good games that Sega had not 100 Sonic games which in my opinion were not really that good. I also know they released another guardian heroes but I saw it was only like one or two players and it looked really bad. I wanted to vomit.
asianxcore
11-30-2005, 07:30 PM
Nights.
Puzzle Fighter.
X-Men Vs. Street Fighter
yes. it's worth getting :)
I never had a Saturn and was pretty jealous when X-Men Vs. Street Fighter came out because the Saturn version allowed you to switch in characters just like in the arcade. The PS1 version was pretty lame and didn't let you do any of them, you could only pick one character, and the other would jump in do some special move. It also ran really slow too.
Go Saturn.