> It really amazes me how so many people are still clinging to the belief/hope
that the Sega Saturn is not capable
of running great 3D games. I get at least a few email messages a month
with regards to this subject, and it's high time the masses were properly
informed on the matter. I really don't know if they'll ever be convinced
otherwise, but here are the hard, cold, accurate, true facts of the matter.
> It is true that the Sega Saturn does not have as many
built in hardware features
for 3D as, for instance, the Nintendo 64 (N64). It
is also true that the Saturn has two main processors.
> The Sega Saturn can do many of the same 3D effects
regardless of that. How? Simple... It's known as good old fashioned programming
code (or software). Thanks
to Sega's dedicated development teams, there's no shortage
of fine software available for the Saturn.
> However, the Sega Saturn does have two processors
to handle whatever graphics features the programmers wish to create. That
includes light source shading and transparencies, which are two of the
effects most often referred to as being "impossible" on the Saturn
(even though they are used consistently on the Saturn).
>
Both the Sony Playstation (PSX) and Sega Saturn
suffer from texture warping. But since the Saturn uses quadrilaterals
(bilinear approximation) instead of the PSX's use of triangles
(linear approximation) to correct it, the Saturn's problem
with texture warping is less noticeable.
> A problem unique to the PSX is the visible seams
between polygons. It is caused by errors in rounding numbers due to minimal
accuracy in the PSX's hardware polygon generator . It can
be hidden, to varying degrees, but is essentially unavoidable. Both
the Sega Saturn and N64 do not suffer from
this "built in" problem that the PSX has.
> Contrary to popular thought, the Sega Saturn does
have hardware support for Gouraud lighting effects. The Saturn
uses additive lighting whereas the PSX uses multiplicative
lighting. Multiplicative lighting is generally easier to work with, but
very dramatic lighting effects (as in Quake for Saturn)
are easier to create with the Saturn's use of additive lighting.
Quake
> Since the Sega Saturn has two processors, it can
use one for backgrounds and one for main graphics. The VPD2
is normally used for backgrounds (which can even be drawn transparent)
while other polygons are rendered by the VPD1. In fact, the
Saturn
draws perspective correct floors for fighting games (or whatever), while
the PSX suffers noticeably from texture warping.
Fighters MEGAMiX
> There seems to be quite a misconception that there are hardly any 3D
games on Sega Saturn. Well, here's a list of Saturn
games which make great use of 3D graphics:
Alien
Trilogy
Black
Dawn
Bug!
Bug Too!
Bulk Slash
Burning
Rangers
Christmas
Nights
Clockwork
Knight
Clockwork
Knight 2
Contra:
Legacy of War
Croc
Dark Savior
Darklight
Conflict
Daytona
USA
Daytona
USA CCE
Dead or
Alive
Deep Fear
Decathlete
Die Hard
Arcade
Die Hard
Trilogy
Duke Nukem
3D
F1 Challenge
Fighters
Megamix
Fighting
Vipers
Ghen War
Grandia
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GT 24
GunGriffon
GunGriffon
II
Hang-On
GP
High Velocity
King the
Spirits 2
Last Bronx
Layer
Section II
Lost World:
Jurassic Park
Machine
Head
Manx TT
Mass Destruction
Mobile
Suit Gundam SS II
Mobile
Suit Gundam SS III
NBA Action
98
Nights
Pandemonium
Panzer
Dragoon
Panzer
Dragoon Zwei
Panzer
Dragoon Saga
Powerslave
Psychic
Killer Tomaru
Quake
Radiant
Silvergun
Resident
Evil
Scorcher
|
Sega Rally
Sega Touring
Car
Shining
Force III ~Part 1~
Shining
Force III ~Part 2~
Sky Target
Sonic
R
Soukyugurentai
Steep
Slope Sliders
Stellar
Assault
Street
Racer Extra
Thunder
Force V
Thunder
Strike 2
Tomb Raider
Virtua
Cop
Virtua
Cop 2
Virtua
Fighter
Virtua
Fighter Remix
Virtua
Fighter 2
Virtua
Fighter Kids
Virtual
On
Wing Arms
Winter
Heat
Wipeout
XL
World
Series BB
World
Series BB II
World
Series BB 98
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> Add to the above list a whole series of great 2D titles, and you have
yourself one great library of games to choose from. As of August 1998,
the Sega Saturn still has over 100 games in development for
it, so I'm sure the list of great 3D titles will grow within the next year.
As a matter of fact, I've added some more games to the list that weren't
in the original article:
All Japan
Featuring Virtua
Alone
in the Dark
AMOK
Andretti
Racing
Battle
Stations
Black
Fire
Choro
Q Park
Courier
Crisis
Cyber
Speedway
D
Destruction
Derby
|
Elan Doree
Enemy
Zero
Final
Fight Revenge
Hexen
House
of the Dead
Independence
Day
Mechwarrior
2
Mystaria
Need For
Speed
NHL All
Star Hockey 98
Off-World
Interceptor Extreme
|
PGA Tour
97
Road Rash
Shellshock
Shining
Force III ~Part 3~
Shining
Force III ~Premium~
Shining
the Holy Ark
Syutokoh
Battle 97
Terra
Cresta 3D
Valhollian
Virtua
Racing
World
Cup Golf
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> If after reading this article you still cling to the ignorant notion/belief/hope
that the Sega Saturn "can't do 3D", then that's your choice.
All I'm doing here is providing you with the opportunity to inform
yourself. Over the last three plus years it's been excessively easy
to learn what the Saturn can't do (both factually
and fictionally). However, Sega/Shin Force endeavors to provide
its readers with the option to learn what it can do as well. Take
it for what it's worth.
~Shinobi~
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