The Sega Dreamcast was one of the most innovative consoles of all time. While I could spend hours talking about everything it did differently today I’m just going to focus on one thing; online play. This is something we take for granted now but back then it was the future. No other console at the time offered online play out of the box. What’s more is the fact that this feature was free. Because of the way Seganet was established gamers with this console can still play online today (with some tweaking of course). I thought it would be interesting to highlight the titles you can still play over the internet even now. So let’s take a look at the best Sega Dreamcast online games you can play now.
#10. – Starlancer
This is your stereotypical 3D space shooter wherein you view the action from inside the cockpit. Your goal in multiplayer is to gather various beacons before the other players. You can do battle with them and should you win you get whatever they’ve collected. It’s a decent game, not great, and the online multiplayer is better than going solo. The real highlight here is in how smooth the game runs. Starlancer takes great advantage of the hardware allowing for a very playable framerate no matter how many players you’re up against. That’s part of what makes it one of the best online Sega Dreamcast games. It’s not earth shattering by any means, but should you find some players to deathmatch with you’re in for a treat to say the least.
#9. – NBA2k2
Sega had some big shoes to fill when it came to sports titles on the Dreamcast console. EA completed passed on the system and so their own releases had to fill the gaps. While I’m not the biggest fan of the genre I can say with confidence that NBA2k2 was better than anything similar anyone else was pushing out on any console at the time. The controls are astounding and the developers really nailed the gameplay. While you could play other basketball titles at the time this is the only one offering online play back then. The rosters haven’t been updated in two decades, but NBA2k2 is still one of the best genre offerings even to this day. The online play still works quite well and playing with friends is just as fun as it ever was.
#8. – NFL2k2
I’m just not that big a fan of sports games. I’m not ashamed to admit it. If I had to play one sports title though I’d go for football, and NFL2k2 was clearly better than the same year’s release of Madden. This is largely because the Sega release was more geared toward arcade gameplay. I could jump in knowing just the basics of football and still have a great time. With Madden I had to gain a basic concept of plays and when to use them. Even as someone who wouldn’t immediately reach for a sports game when wanting to play multiplayer this is still one I enjoyed immensely. As you may have surmised this is still playable online for those of you wanting to challenge friends across the globe. Of course there’s no updated rosters, but like most things football was better back in the day anyway.
#7. – POD Speedzone
Now we’re talking. Futuristic racers? Now that’s a genre I can get behind. POD Speedzone has you racing on a variety of courses on Saturn’s moon Titan (a reference to Sega’s history? Maybe). Each course has generally small environments in which you can maneuver, but each has their fair share of shortcuts. POD Speedzone isn’t the greatest game of it’s kind but the gameplay is smooth and it’s very playable even today. The highlight is in the weapons you can use against foes. There’s nothing innovative here but I can say that POD Speedzone is still fun to play. The multiplayer mode still works and it’s better when you can find some friends to engage with.
#6. – Worms World Party
This is one of the few multi platform titles on this list. At the time the Sega Dreamcast was one of the best ports of this game (aside from PC). Why was this? Aside from graphics you also had the online mode, and this was nothing to shake a stick at. Worms is a franchise that is primarily based on multiplayer. Local is fun, but online is better, and besides the PC port the Sega Dreamcast version was the only one in which you could play with friends across the country. Worms World Party has a huge arsenal, and the classic turn based gameplay the franchise is known for. As far as I know this is the only version that can still be played online, so you may as well plug in Sega’s white console and have at it!
#5. – Toy Racer
Toy Racer is one of those titles that you wished for as a kid but it wasn’t served until you were almost an adult. It’s a psuedo follow up to Toy Commander, but with a clear focus on online multiplayer. Unfortunately this one was released only in PAL territories which makes it a bit more difficult to track down. Here you play as, you guessed it, toys. Also, you’re racing. That’s Toy Racer in a nutshell but where this one excels is in it’s fun theme and also it’s track designs. It’s a lot of fun to pick up and play, and online play makes the title that much more enjoyable. At it’s heart it’s a scaled down version of Toy Commander with just the racing portions, but that’s hardly something to complain about. This holds especially true with how fun it still is.
#4. – ChuChu Rocket!
Simply put ChuChu Rocket is one of the best puzzle games of all time. It’s also one of the very first online titles released for the Sega Dreamcast. That’s a killer combination if you ask me. Your goal is to guide a variety of mice safely to their spaceship. Thing is they move about mindlessly so you need to place arrows which change their direction. You can only place a specific number of them, and must keep in mind that cats also wander aimlessly in each stage trying to devour them. You can play this one online with up to four players and the action is fast and frantic. Basically you’re all placing arrows on a screen with a veritable army of incoming mice. The player who gets the most to their space ship wins. ChuChu Rocket is truly addictive and playing this one online is crazy fun.
#3. – Quake III Arena
Before I get a plethora of hate mail for this one let me explain something. Yes, I know there are better ways to play Quake III in 2022. This list is specific to the Sega Dreamcast though. This version of the fast paced and frantic first person shooter is still worth playing today. What makes Quake III Arena so amazing on the Dreamcast is the fact that you can use the mouse and keyboard peripherals for true PC controls. Yes, that means you can enjoy all the mayhem as it was originally intended, but from the comfort of your couch. I absolutely love the stage layouts here, and the over the top weaponry is oh so good. Quake III Arena might have been better elsewhere, but it’s clearly one of the best online Sega Dreamcast games.
#2. – Alien Front Online
Alien Front Online comes with the pleasure of being packed in with one of the most downright whacky looking peripherals of all time. The developers knew that, with the fast paced arcade action of this title, that you won’t have time to interact with people via the keyboard. This is why they included a crazy looking microphone which plugs into the memory card slot of your controller. It’s far from being ideal, but the sheer novelty of it is amazing. In this game you play as either aliens or humans and wage all out war against the enemy team. It’s a third person vehicular shooter, and a darn good one at that. Some of the major techniques such as strafing would become major in games that followed it. Alien Front Online is definitely one of the best online Dreamcast games even without voice chat.
#1. – Phantasy Star Online
Few video games have ever grabbed me quite like Phantasy Star Online did. It was the first online RPG I ever played. Though it’s very simplistic compared to something like World of Warcraft or Everquest it’s more simple design is something I missed. Thankfully you can still play this one online if you don’t want anything too technical. You create a character and then team up with three others across the web to tackle one of four levels. The gameplay is pretty basic ‘destroy all enemies’ and then the door opens, but the different weapon types and spells add in a lot of depth. That, paired with a wonderful graphical style and fantastic soundtrack still make Phantasy Star Online one of the best online Dreamcast games. I still go to Ragol to slay some Boomas and knock back a few monomates.
