The Jackuul Blog

Instead of languishing in software development after the debacle caused by the culmination of mismanagement involving the 32X, Sega CD, and Saturn, why not use this opportune time to re-enter the console wars? The Genesis/Mega Drive was the baddest system to ever come out in my opinion, with its faster technology and ability to face up to the SNES when that came out, I mean, even the SEGA/Mega CD was an awesome idea (however it could have been handled better with a 2x or 4x drive and less moving parts/using existing technology so that it failed less or was easy to fix with a CD-ROM swap) and the 32X was… well let’s be honest - I liked it a little but it was retarded. If the chips had been better, or just made to communicate with less confusion for the programmers along with the ram being significantly larger it could have kept the Genesis alive longer - that being said I do think the CDX would have benefited had the 32X been implemented within it already.

I’m not even touching the Saturn. Good hardware, bad management. Dreamcast was your final saving grace with a never before seen 128 bit system and parts that more than outperformed the PS-2 a full year before the PS-2 even came out, that system still holds up today against the GameCube and others… however this current cluster—- of consoles leaves the door wide open for a new Sega Console. One that has the ingenuity of Sega Dreamcast, but also better PR. In an age where a console system is more like a computer, we need one more like a console. With the PS3 being an ungodly 600 dollars, and the Xbox being at 300-600 or whatever the hell they do, and the Wii in short supply, but being relatively cheap, I am sure a solution could be cooked up by SEGA. You have the games, hell, you make the games (albeit of a quality that is somewhat “eh” right now).

We do not need a Dreamcast 2, we do not need a Saturn 2, or a Genesis… we need something more. Something that says “I am a console, shut the — up”. I’d have Samuel L. Jackson do the marketing campaign - “Buy a sega mother—-er or I’ll f—ing kill you!” with a game based off of Pulp Fiction as the flagship title. In addition to that get the Thunder Force guys all together and make them finish Broken Thunder, and then establish a next series of Orn killing fun. Bring back Altered Beast, make it something graphically pleasing as well as simple to control - but by no means super easy (think of it as easy to learn, hard to master) and use that formula to spur addiction. The console itself needs to be something revolutionary - you came out with 128 first, well, skip 256 and 512. Go for 1024. Costs? Cut them by having manufacturing simplified as much as possible and using whatever means are needed to create a first system that will be STANDARDIZED. No more of the region controlled stuff - that doesn’t work. You want proliferation of consoles to ALL markets, unhampered by region. “But what about compatibility!?” You’re SEGA, screw compatibility, just put in a switch between PAL, NTSC, and NTSC-J with two toggle switches. You flip it on PAL, and it works for PAL. You switch it on NTSC, and then a second switch below it for NTSC or NTSC-J makes up the difference.

Next up: Backward Compatibility. Let it run Saturn and DC games. Then add a Z80 and 68000 chip with a good ol’ Yamaha and put two small ports on the back - what do you know, you can do Genesis and Master system games! And yes, 32X along with Sega CD would be nice. Basically you have an all in wonder 8th Gen Console - that’s right, skip ahead of everyone and advertise. Advertise - meaning, you make sure people get it. Send out test systems in every city, start with some featureless test systems that don’t have the all-in-one, spread rumors, build up a commotion, get on CNN, MSNBC, and FOXNews. Offer online services, RPG games like Warcraft III, and develop your own.

Finally, what about a name? That’s easy.

The Sega Apotheosis. You had Genesis, you had Master, you had Dreamcast, and you had Saturn. Well, you never really stuck with any set kind of genre, and you certainly don’t was the Sega Slave, the Sega Revelations, or the Sega Uranus. Sega Apotheosis. And Sam Jackson in every SEGA commercial saying “SEGA, Get into it Mother F–kers!” Controllers? Screw the competition, use 10. That’s right, 10. And on each controller there should be a small miniscreen LCD (think Game Gear Size) with displays and such that make it possible. Oh you’re damn right controllers would be expensive. Ship it with two basic ones, but also offer these so people would basically be able to play multilayer games without splitting up the main screen. Make sure everything is a choice and open ended.

Lastly, Sega Apotheosis should use Spore (Will Wright’s newest game in development) as a good medium, since it will involve creating a species, and sharing things on line. Memory? Use flash based. The hell with hard drives.

That’s all I have to say about that really… if SEGA needs someone who doesn’t have their head up into a place where the sun doesn’t shine and actually doesn’t care about internal politics of the entire corporation, they should hire me. Degrees in business? How about a degree in shut the f–k up, and, I played more hours on the Sega Genesis than the entire corporate room combined. Yes, if I could be the top dog of SEGA and pull it out of the dump I would, rather than take over the world. (I would take it over anyways after the Sega Robots of Doom).