The Sega Saturn NetLink League

Hi all,

Yep here I go again my third attempt at starting this thread and having it going for over 2 weeks...that would be a great result

So here we go....

Who here owns a Dreamcast and do you play online....discuss

DC online games are as follows:

PAL EU - Phantasy Star Online V1&2 (US versions can be used online using cheats/hacks and private servers)
Quake 3 Arena - US NTSC version only
Maximum Pool - Only released in the USA (requires altered game save)
Starlancer
4x4 Evolution - Only released in the USA (The demo also works online)
Sega swirl - Turn based game over POP3 Email

See the problem is most people don't know that DreamCast can still play online, and then on top of that, they wouldn't see the reason to with Xbox Live and broadband making the experience so much smoother.

EDIT-Aside from what i typed above, I really do encourage anybody who can get online with their dreamcasts to get the experience, because, DreamCast is an amazing system, and some of the games are still great online.

Well I guess I don't personally see any if that as an issue, maximum pool, starlancer and 4x4 evo are pretty good when it comes to lag even using dial-up and of course I use the broadband adapter for quake 3 arena and PSO...so I guess Im in a fortunate position in that respect.

Most people will obviously never start/re-start playing DC online again now but obviously there are some who will, just like netlink....however I think people should definatelly give it a shot, especially if they are still using dial-up and havent moved to broadband yet anyway...if thats ur situation its well worth it.

The games still available online are first rate in my opinion and include 2 of the most highly reguarded online games ever made..PSO and Quake..what more could you want from a console that is meant to be dead and totally offline since 2003

Cheers, Craig

yeah ive got a dreamcast but have never ever been online with it.
you see ive never had the internet until january of this year so ive never played over dream arena.
now i have broadband i am unsure if i can get the dreamcast working over the broadband.
last thing i heard the euro dreamcast was only 33kbps and that aint sound so good but if i can get it working over my broadband i would.

Hey,

Well you can use the Dreamcast via broadband in two different ways. the first option is to buy a Dreamcast broadband adapter but that is pretty expensive and it also only works with PSO and Quake 3...not to mention it was only available in the USA and Japan.

Your second option would be to use the PC-DC server method..take a look at these links:

http://consolevision.com/members/mterlouw/

http://dreamcast.onlineconsoles.com/php ... cwin98.php

If you were to attempt this you may need to buy a 56K modem to replace the one you have, otherwise you "might" have trouble...as I have not heard of a successful connection with a 33k modem as of yet

Cheers, Craig

Wow... Didn't know it was that expensive to own a broadband adapter. Lik Sang has it for $129, and the other places seem to carry it starting at $70-80. I remember hearing about the PC-DC method a few years ago, and it being somewhat tricky as lots of people were having trouble getting it to work with their configuration.

As for the 33.6 modem, why did Sega opt for this in the Euro version? Did they assume less people would be playing online in Europe?

Yeah BBA's are expensive, usually more than you have quoted I expect if you look on any of the online stores such as lik-sang they will be out of stock...the general price last I looked seemed to be $150 upwards...they are pretty rare Luckily I already have one....phew!

Not too sure why europe got stitched on the modem to be honest..think it was probably just a cost cutting measure...so cruel

segadreamcaster wrote:Hey,

Well you can use the Dreamcast via broadband in two different ways. the first option is to buy a Dreamcast broadband adapter but that is pretty expensive and it also only works with PSO and Quake 3...not to mention it was only available in the USA and Japan.

Your second option would be to use the PC-DC server method..take a look at these links:

http://consolevision.com/members/mterlouw/

http://dreamcast.onlineconsoles.com/php ... cwin98.php

If you were to attempt this you may need to buy a 56K modem to replace the one you have, otherwise you "might" have trouble...as I have not heard of a successful connection with a 33k modem as of yet

Cheers, Craig

"Your second option would be to use the PC-DC server method..take a look at these links:"
when you said this does this mean i can use my dc online for free and not pay for a dial up conection.
or will i get an extra bill added to my broadband subscription????

another problem is ive got one of the earlier version of dreamkey, will this be a problem

I'm not sure about the dreamkey, but I know people have been using ICS (Internet Connection Sharing) with their dreamcasts for a while. I don't think you need to have a particular browser to use it. As far as the bill, no, you won't get another one, lol, since you are simply using the connection that's already on your computer.

EDIT- Sounds like it might be a good thing if I try out some ICS and make a guide about it here.

thanks for telling me dude.
but you are 100% sure about the dreamcast price thing right.

Yes, if you're sharing a network connection, and let's say you have Broadband, there's no way possible this could lead to greater charges. Unless something weird happens and the planets line up to charge you extra cash. It's almost like using a router. You're splitting up the internet connection among many different computers, but you don't have to pay any extra for it.

As far as the dreamkey, I'm still not sure. If you search for "ICS" or "internet connection sharing dreamcast" on google you should be able to find guides that specifiy what you need.

Xranger60 wrote:Yes, if you're sharing a network connection, and let's say you have Broadband, there's no way possible this could lead to greater charges. Unless something weird happens and the planets line up to charge you extra cash. It's almost like using a router. You're splitting up the internet connection among many different computers, but you don't have to pay any extra for it.

As for as the dreamkey, I'm still not very sure. If you search for "ICS" or "internet connection sharing dreamcast" on google you should be able to find guides that specifiy what you need.

sweet, do you use your dc online

Since I use broadband at home, and I don't have any dial-up access, and haven't tried out Internet Connection Sharing with the Dreamcast, I have not played DC online in a long time. Just one thing- If you do decide to buy this stuff, and something goes wrong, don't go on my info 100% .

yeh ok.