Press release: 2000-03-21: Sega Dreamcast Scores with Virtua Striker 2

This is an unaltered copy of a press release, for use as a primary source on Sega Retro. Please do not edit the contents below. Language: English Original source: The Free Library

Sega Dreamcast Scores with Virtua Striker 2; Virtua Striker 2 Tears up Field with Cheering Crowds and Detailed Arenas

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 21, 2000

Sega(R) of America announced today that "Virtua Striker 2(TM)," the first soccer title to hit the 128-bit, Internet-ready Sega Dreamcast(TM) videogame console, is now available at retailers nationwide for $49.95. With thirty-two international teams, six world class arenas, and full stadium sound effects, "Virtua Striker 2" sets the standard by delivering the most true-to-life gameplay ever to grace the digital soccer field.

"Before the arrival of the Sega Dreamcast, moving from arcade to console meant losing key aspects of a game," said Martha Hill, director of sports marketing for Sega of America. "Sega Dreamcast has removed the element of compromise. Short of the scent of cut grass and the taste to sliced oranges," `Virtua Striker' has it all."

"Virtua Striker 2" recreates pro soccer's on-field action through motion-captured moves, team specific attributes, individual team jerseys and ultra-realistic 3D graphics. Like the pros, players can perform slide tackles, headers and bicycle kicks, and watch dramatic goals again and again from different camera angles with the instant replay feature.

The six stadiums in "Virtua Striker 2" represent various styles of arenas, from enormous championship-sized stadiums to intimate soccer venues. Each is packed with chanting fans and colorful backdrops, recreating the frenzy of pro soccer. As time passes in the real world, so it does in the "Virtua Striker 2" world, changing the Sega Dreamcast sky from day to night as the game progresses. With the virtual time feature, time can be altered to allow 24 hours of lighting to elapse in two hours.

Gamers can choose from arcade, international cup, tournament, league, ranking and match play mode. Up to thirty-two players can participate in the tournament mode, each gamer playing with one team.

"Virtua Striker 2" is now available at retailers nationwide and at www.sega.com.

About Sega Dreamcast

Sega Dreamcast is available in the US with a built in 56K modem, allowing for full Internet functionality through the Sega Dreamcast Network, including chat, e-mail, web browsing and online gaming. Content for the Sega Dreamcast Network is provided by Sega, Excite@Home and IGN. The system's preferred Internet service provider is AT&T WorldNet Services, the quickest and easiest way to take the system online. Sega Dreamcast currently has more than 40 titles available. Third-Party titles currently in the works will bring the total Sega Dreamcast game library count to more than 200 in the year 2000.

Sega Dreamcast's advanced 128-bit architecture makes it the first console with evolutionary capabilities, allowing it to grow and change to match advances in technology and the needs and desires of the consumer. Sega Dreamcast is also the most powerful video game console ever created. It is 15 times more powerful than a Sony PlayStation(TM), ten times more powerful than a Nintendo(R) 64 and has four times the graphics processing power of the fastest Pentium II processor.

In the first 24 hours of availability, Sega Dreamcast netted over $97 million at retail, more than tripling the past entertainment industry record set by Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace at $28 million on its first day. In its initial four days, Sega sold a total of 372,000 Sega Dreamcast systems, easily surpassing the previous industry record holder, Nintendo 64, which took six days to hit 350,000 when it launched in 1996. In the first 13 days at retail, Sega Dreamcast sold more than 514,000 units. Since it launched, Sega Dreamcast has sold more than 1.5 million units, beating sales milestones set by other high-profile consumer and electronics products such as Tickle Me Elmo(TM) and Apple's iMac. Sega estimates that the company will sell 2 million units by the end of March 2000.

About Sega

Sega of America is the arm of Tokyo, Japan-based Sega Enterprises, Ltd. responsible for the development, marketing and distribution of Sega videogame systems and video games in the Americas. Sega Enterprises, Ltd. is a nearly $2.5 billion company recognized as the industry leader in interactive digital entertainment media, offering interactive entertainment experiences both inside and outside the home. Sega of America's World Wide Web site is located at www.sega.com.
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