the 3DO M2 prototype console...the one Sega almost bought!

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Vgesoterica
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the 3DO M2 prototype console...the one Sega almost bought!

Post#1 » Fri Dec 03, 2021 9:17 am



I will have WAY MORE about the potential Sega deal next friday but this is the console that ALMOST became the "Dreamcast" (successor system to Saturn) before Sega walked away from the deal at the last minute

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dark
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Re: the 3DO M2 prototype console...the one Sega almost bought!

Post#2 » Sat Dec 04, 2021 3:39 pm

Cool, I've hard passing references to this before. I'd like to know more of the actual story beyond just the simple message "Sega considered using the M2 but then decided to make their own hardware for the dreamcast after all". Was this Sega of America doing some hardware consideration and SOJ was uninterested? Or was SOJ seriously checking it out? Why did they decide not to go with it, it seemed light years ahead of competition at the time? Are there any interviews with Sega workers who mention this episode in Sega's past?

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Bob Dobbs
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Re: the 3DO M2 prototype console...the one Sega almost bought!

Post#3 » Sun Dec 05, 2021 9:41 am

What he said.
Regards,
Bob Dobbs

cloofoofoo
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Posts: 534

Re: the 3DO M2 prototype console...the one Sega almost bought!

Post#4 » Mon Dec 06, 2021 9:45 am

Good thing they didn't go for it. It was extremely underpowered for that generation

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dark
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Re: the 3DO M2 prototype console...the one Sega almost bought!

Post#5 » Mon Dec 06, 2021 3:46 pm

Going against stuff like PS2/xbox/gamecube, yeah it was. But M2 was already out in these specs circa 1996, so Sega could have maybe done an M2 dreamcast 1-3 years earlier than the US launch in 1999.

Also, the PS2/xbox/gamecube that we all know and love were modified/enhanced/copied aspects of the dreamcast. If our real world dreamcast didn't come out, who is to say that these consoles would have existed with the specs that they did ;) Maybe we would have seen vastly weaker PS2s and gamecubes, and the xbox wouldn't even exist.

Its a bit of a moot point though, because even if sega went all in on M2 in 1996 and got it to market that early, every sega fan would have been like "what the hell, I just bought a saturn and now you're giving up on it?" It would have exacerbated the consumer lack of confidence in sega to support its platforms since Saturn would have been abandoned after a comically short lifespan.

cloofoofoo
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Re: the 3DO M2 prototype console...the one Sega almost bought!

Post#6 » Mon Dec 06, 2021 4:42 pm

dark wrote:Going against stuff like PS2/xbox/gamecube, yeah it was. But M2 was already out in these specs circa 1996, so Sega could have maybe done an M2 dreamcast 1-3 years earlier than the US launch in 1999.

Also, the PS2/xbox/gamecube that we all know and love were modified/enhanced/copied aspects of the dreamcast. If our real world dreamcast didn't come out, who is to say that these consoles would have existed with the specs that they did ;) Maybe we would have seen vastly weaker PS2s and gamecubes, and the xbox wouldn't even exist.

Its a bit of a moot point though, because even if sega went all in on M2 in 1996 and got it to market that early, every sega fan would have been like "what the hell, I just bought a saturn and now you're giving up on it?" It would have exacerbated the consumer lack of confidence in sega to support its platforms since Saturn would have been abandoned after a comically short lifespan.


Youre making the assumption they havent even started developing those consoles when dreamcast was in development. They were already in the pipeline especially the ps2, metal gear solid 2 was already in development on hardware 1998. The only console that had any kind effect on was xbox and thats due to the history between ms and sega.

Wishful thinking, they would have gone with m2 they would have sunk, badly , eveb worse than dc.

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dark
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Re: the 3DO M2 prototype console...the one Sega almost bought!

Post#7 » Mon Dec 06, 2021 5:27 pm

dark wrote:Youre making the assumption they havent even started developing those consoles when dreamcast was in development. They were already in the pipeline especially the ps2, metal gear solid 2 was already in development on hardware 1998.


Yes they were in the pipeline, but were the final specs for each system totally settled circa 1998? It's well known MS copied some design elements of the dreamcast and even recruited Peter Moore, but I imagine Sony and Nintendo did a tear down on the dreamcast as soon as it was released in 1998 to make sure their plans for their new systems were competitive, comparable or better.

It's no big deal though, we're just talking about hypotheticals and I think we reach the same conclusion that M2 would not have been a success for Sega. :)

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Caspian
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Re: the 3DO M2 prototype console...the one Sega almost bought!

Post#8 » Tue Dec 07, 2021 7:52 am

Obviously a "SEGA M2" would not do much to help SEGA's hardware prospects but the concept of a joint venture for a Saturn successor with another company (such as Panasonic) had indeed the potential to turn the story around in my opinion. SEGAs financial weakness made it too easy for Sony to exploit any mistakes made by the Dreamcast's management and steamroll the market. Joining forces with another player, especially a hardware-savvy one such as Panasonic, could have made a difference in that respect.

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