Dreamcast drops in the States

Sega has just over 200,000 Dreamcast units left to ship in the US, and in the interests of clearing out their backlog, the company has reduced the console's pricetag to a paltry $50. With such an awesome catalogue of software to back it up, we can see no reason for our non-Dreamcast-owning American readers not to rush out and pick one up. The story was heralded with the usual retailer quotes and other opinions, but for us the question is, when are we going to see that reflected in Dreamcast street prices on this side of the Atlantic? Poking around e-tailers in this country reveals few bargains on this front. A Dreamcast shipping with UEFA Dream Soccer and Sega GT is still going for £99.99 at Gameplay, whereas a trip to Amazon.co.uk reveals a slightly more aggressive bargain; the console plus M-SR, Jet Set Radio, Virtua Fighter 3 and a VMU, but with a long waiting period for the console suggesting a complete lack of stock. The truth is, your best bet for Dreamcast these days is a second hand retailer or an auction website like eBay. There are unlikely to be large enough numbers of Dreamcasts left in this country to justify another price drop, and with bundles fairly reasonable priced at the time of writing, there won't be much left to hear about before long. Suffice it to say, if you haven't got one by now, get yourself out there and do it! With Shenmue 2, Headhunters and Floigan Brothers just released, and a stupid number of titles in the range it's something you should definitely own.