1990s in video games
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The 1990s was the
.Consoles of the 1990s
Fourth generation consoles (1987–1996)
Starting in 1987 and ending in 1996, the fourth generation of
.Fifth generation consoles (1993–2001)
Starting in 1993 and ending in 2001, the fifth generation of video games are most widely known to be the 32/64 bit era and for being the transition period for video games to evolve into the third dimension.[citation needed] The Nintendo 64 (1996), PlayStation (console) (1994), and Sega Saturn (1994) are considered to be the big three gaming systems of this generation.[citation needed] With the introduction of the PlayStation and Saturn, compact discs (CDs) began to replace cartridges however Nintendo continued using them with the Nintendo 64 due to the load times on CDs at the time and became one of the last cartridge based systems in mass production.[citation needed]
Early sixth generation console (1998-2006)
The sixth generation was initiated by the release of the Dreamcast in 1998.[4] It introduced several innovations including Internet gaming as a standard feature through its built-in modem, and a web browser. It was also the first home console to always display full SD resolution. Despite its early success, the Dreamcast was discontinued prematurely as sales slowed following the release of the PlayStation 2 on March 4, 2000.
Technological innovation
Introduction of 3D polygons and environments
There was a "3D Revolution" in the 1990s, where video games made the transition from
On
On
Optical disc storage
Nearly every system released in the mid-late 1990s began to move to the new
Memory cards
Due to
Game controllers
- Ergonomics
The Super NES controller introduced a more rounded dog-bone like design and added two more face buttons, "X" and "Y", arranging the four in a diamond formation. Another addition was the "L" and "R" shoulder buttons, which have been imitated by most controllers since.
The PlayStation controller was the first standard operating device for a home console to use two handle-bars at the bottom of the controller whereas previously this feature had been relegated to niche specialist controllers. This has been standard in most game controllers since, until the Wii appeared.
The
- Analog stick
An analog stick sometimes called a control stick or thumbstick, is an input device for a game controller that is used for two-dimensional input. An analog stick is a variation of a
- Force feedback
The optional Rumble Pak for the Nintendo 64 controller introduced the use of haptic force feedback technology in gaming. It was later followed by the DualShock controller for the PlayStation which had built-in haptic feedback. Since then, built-in force feedback has become standard for most game controllers.
- Pressure-sensitive button
The use of pressure-sensitive buttons was introduced by the Dreamcast in 1999. It has trigger-like shoulder buttons, similar to the earlier Nintendo 64 controller, but the main difference being that DreamCast controller's shoulder buttons are pressure-sensitive. Since then, most game controllers have included pressure-sensitive buttons.
Online gaming
The rapid availability of the Internet in the 1990s led to an expansion of
Genre innovation
Many technically innovative and
Fighting games
The release of
The fighting game genre continued to evolve as several strong 3D fighting games emerged in the late 1990s.
First-person shooters
The
With the introduction of the fifth generation of games, 3-D graphics become the standard by end of decade. Although FPSs had been some of the first games to become 3-D.
In 1992
Interactive movies
In the early-to-mid-1990s, several video game developers experimented with
Platform games
The platform game genre evolved through several distinct phases throughout the 1990s. The first was an evolutionary step during the fifth generation in the early 1990s, followed by a complete transformation of the genre during the sixth generation in the late 1990s.
- Second-generation side-scrollers
The advent of 16-bit home consoles in the early 1990s marked an evolutionary step for the genre. By the time the
1990 marked the release of the Super NES, along with the much awaited Super Mario World. In order to fend off the new competition, Sega released Sonic the Hedgehog.[30][31] Whereas Nintendo's offering featured a conservative design, true to the Mario tradition, Sonic showcased a new style of design made possible by a new generation of hardware. Sonic featured large fields that scrolled effortlessly in all directions, as well as all manner of uneven terrain, curved hills, and a complex physics system that allowed players to rush through its levels with well-placed jumps and rolls. It proved to be a massive hit, was a successful pack-in with new systems, and cemented the view that platform games would make or break a console.
The
, have mostly faded from relevance.- 3D platformers
In 1996, Nintendo released Super Mario 64. Until this time there had been no established archetype for bringing platform games into 3D. Mario 64 set a new standard and would be imitated by many 3D platformers to follow. Its gameplay allowed players to explore open 3D environments with greater freedom than any previous attempt at a 3D platform game. To aid this, Nintendo incorporated an analog control stick to their standard Nintendo 64 controller, something which had not been included in a standard console controller since the Vectrex (and since incorporated into the DualShock among other controllers). This allowed for the finer precision needed for a free perspective. Players no longer followed a linear path to the ends of levels, either, with most levels providing objective-based goals. There were, however, a handful of "boss" levels that offered more traditional platforming, and showed what a more direct conversion to 3D might have been like.
Some argue that many modern 3D platformers, especially those influenced heavily by Super Mario 64, are not platformers at all, or at least are not really an extension of 2D platformers.[33] Super Mario 64 brought a change in the goals of some platformers. In most 2D platformers, the player only had to reach a single goal to complete a level, but in many 3D platformers, each level had to be combed for collectible items such as puzzle pieces (Banjo-Kazooie) or stars (Super Mario 64). This allowed for more efficient use of large 3D areas and rewarded the player for thorough exploration, but they also often involved more elements of action-adventure games, and less jumping on platforms.
Racing games
In 1992, Sega produced Virtua Racing, one of the first games with full 3D graphics. It was able to combine the best features of games at the time, along with multiplayer machine linking and clean 3D graphics to produce a game that was above and beyond the arcade market standard of its time. Also, Nintendo broke new ground by introducing the Mario Kart series on the SNES with Super Mario Kart. Using the familiar characters from the Mario franchise, the game not only departed from the realism paradigm by using small karts for the players to drive, but also featured bright, colorful environments and allowed the players to pick up power-ups to improve performance or hamper other racers. This franchise also spawned multiple sequels such as Mario Kart 64 which would release on the
In 1993, Namco struck back with
In 1997,
1999 marked a change of games into more "free form" worlds. Midtown Madness allows the player to explore a simplified version of the city of Chicago using a variety of vehicles and any path that they desire. In the arcade world, Sega introduced Crazy Taxi, where players assume the role of a taxi driver that needs to get clients to their destination in the shortest amount of time. A similar game also from Sega is Emergency Call Ambulance, with almost the same gameplay (pick up patient, drop off at hospital, as fast as possible).
Role-playing games
The 1990s saw the emergence of several distinct subgenres of the role-playing video game genre.
- Action role-playing games
Unique among video games are
In Japan on
On personal computers, the long-standing Ultima series of action RPGs continued to see releases, while the 3D action RPG franchise The Elder Scrolls, which would provide several major entries to the genre in the 2000's, saw its first releases.
The
Japanese video game company
- Role-playing video games
It was in the early 1990s that the console
The next major revolution came in the late 1990s, which saw the rise of
In 1997, a new Internet
In the final years of the 90's, US companies
- MUDs and MMORPGs
1989 and the early 1990s saw the release and spread of the
- Tactical role-playing games
In 1990,
Among the first imitators was
The first game in the long-running Super Robot Wars series is another early example of the genre, released for the Game Boy in 1991. Another influential early tactical RPG was Sega's Shining Force for the Genesis, which was released in 1992. Shining Force used even more console RPG elements than earlier games, allowing the player to walk around towns and talk to people and buy weapons. One game released solely in Japan for the Super Famicom (SFC), Bahamut Lagoon, began Square's (now Square Enix) famous line of tactical RPGs.
Stealth games
While stealth elements have been present in video games as far back as 005, a 1981 video game by Sega,[48][49][50] it was in the 1990s that the stealth game genre was established. Hideo Kojima's Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake was released in 1990 for the MSX2 and was a major improvement over its predecessor, Metal Gear (1987). Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake improved on the first game in many ways, including improved graphics, more player abilities (such as crouching, crawling into hiding spots, disguising in enemy uniforms and cardboard boxes, and distracting guards by knocking on surfaces), improved enemy AI (such as a greater field of vision, the ability to detect various noises, and a three-level security alert), and additions such as a radar, as well as a complex storyline.[51][52] The game was only released for the MSX2 in Japan, however, which limited its accessibility to consumers in the US.[53] An alternative Metal Gear sequel named Snake's Revenge was released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in North America and Europe instead, also in 1990. Kojima was not involved in the game's development, which was instead conducted by another Konami team.[53]
1998 is seen as a turning point in gaming history because of the release of Metal Gear Solid, as well as Tenchu: Stealth Assassins and Thief: The Dark Project.[54][55] The ninja-themed game Tenchu: Stealth Assassins was released several months before Metal Gear Solid, making it the first 3D stealth based-game.[56] The highly anticipated Metal Gear Solid transformed its modestly successful franchise into a large mainstream success. The increased power of the PlayStation console over previous platforms allowed for greater immersion in terms of both story and game environment.[53] Metal Gear Solid has been credited with popularizing the stealth genre.[57][58] The core elements of these games, such as avoiding confrontation, minimizing noise, and attacking antagonists from "the shadows", influenced many future stealth game series.[59]
Survival horror
While elements of the survival horror genre can be traced back to the 1989
The term "survival horror" was first used by Capcom to market their 1996 release, Resident Evil, thus establishing it as a genre.[63][64] The game was influenced by Capcom's Sweet Home, released seven years earlier.[60] Resident Evil also adopted several features seen in Alone in the Dark, including puzzle-solving challenges and fixed cinematic camera angles.[62] The control scheme in Resident Evil also became a staple of the genre, and future titles would imitate its challenge of rationing highly limited resources and items.[65] The game's commercial success is credited with helping the PlayStation become the dominant game console,[62] and also led to a series of Resident Evil films.[66] Many games have tried to replicate the successful formula seen in Resident Evil, and every subsequent survival horror game has arguably taken a stance in relation to it.[66]
Notable video-game franchises established in the 1990s
- 1080° Snowboarding (N64; 1998)
- Ace Combat (PS1; 1995)
- Aero the Acro-Bat (MD; 1993)
- Age of Empires (PC; 1997)
- Alone in the Dark (PC; 1992)
- Ape Escape (PS1; 1999)
- Army Men (PC; 1998)
- Art of Fighting (ARC; 1992)
- Baldur's Gate(PC; 1998)
- Banjo-Kazooie (N64; 1998)
- Battletoads (ARC; 1991)
- Beatmania (ARC; 1997)
- Chrono (SNES; 1995)
- Civilization (PC; 1991)
- Command & Conquer (PC; 1995)
- Conker (GBC; 1999) 2
- Cool Spot (MD; 1993)
- Crash Bandicoot (PS1; 1996)
- Crazy Taxi (ARC; 1999)
- Croc (PS1; 1997)
- Cruis'n (ARC; 1994)
- Dance Dance Revolution (ARC; 1998)
- Daytona USA(ARC; 1993)
- Dead or Alive (ARC; 1996)
- Diablo (PC; 1997)
- Digimon (SAT; 1998) 1 2
- Donkey Kong Country (SNES; 1994)2
- Doom (PC; 1993)
- Dr. Mario (NES; 1990) 2
- Dynasty Warriors (PS1; 1997)2
- Drum Mania (ARC; 1999)
- Duke Nukem (PC; 1991)
- Dungeon Keeper (PC; 1997)
- Earthworm Jim (MD; 1994)
- The Elder Scrolls (PC; 1994)
- EverQuest (PC; 1999)
- Everybody's Golf (PS1; 1997)
- F-Zero (SNES; 1990)
- Fatal Fury (ARC; 1991)
- Fallout (PC; 1997)
- FIFA (MD; 1993)
- Fire Emblem (Famicom; 1990)
- Gabriel Knight (PC; 1993)
- Game Tengoku (ARC; 1995)
- Gex (3DO; 1995)
- Gran Turismo (PS1; 1997)
- Grand Theft Auto (PC; 1997)
- Guitar Freaks (ARC; 1999)
- Half-Life (PC; 1998)
- Harvest Moon(SNES; 1996)
- Heroes of Might and Magic (PC; 1995)
- Homeworld (PC; 1999)
- Jazz Jackrabbit (PC; 1994) 2
- Jurassic Park (NES; 1993) 1
- Kirby (GB; 1992)
- Klonoa (PS1; 1997)
- Lemmings (AMI; 1991) 2
- Lego (SP; 1995) 1 2
- Lunar (SCD; 1992)
- Mana (GB; 1991)
- Mario Kart (SNES; 1992)2
- Mario Party (N64; 1998)2
- Marvel vs. Capcom (ARC; 1996)2
- Medal of Honor (PS1; 1999)
- MediEvil (PS1; 1998)
- Micro Machines (NES; 1991)
- Monkey Island (PC; 1990)
- Mortal Kombat (ARC; 1992)
- Myst (PC; 1993)
- NBA 2K (DC; 1999)
- NBA Jam (ARC; 1993)
- NBA Live (MD; 1994)
- NBA ShootOut (PS1; 1996)
- Need for Speed (3DO; 1994)
- Neverwinter Nights(PC; 1991)
- NFL 2K (DC; 1999)
- NFL Blitz (ARC; 1997) 2
- NFL GameDay (PS1; 1995)
- NHL (MD; 1991)
- NHL FaceOff (PS1; 1995)
- Nights into Dreams (SAT; 1996)
- Oddworld (PS1; 1997)
- Pajama Sam (PC; 1996)
- PaRappa the Rapper (PS1; 1996)
- Parasite Eve (PS1; 1998)
- Persona (PS1; 1996) 2
- PGA Tour (PC; 1990)
- Pilotwings (SNES; 1990)
- Pokémon (GB; 1996)
- Pop'n Music (ARC; 1998) 2
- Postal (PC; 1997)
- Power Stone (ARC; 1999)
- Putt-Putt (PC; 1992)
- Quake (PC; 1996)
- Rayman (JAG; 1995)
- Resident Evil (PS1; 1996)
- Ridge Racer (ARC; 1993)
- Road Rash (MD; 1991)
- Rollercoaster Tycoon(PC; 1999)
- Samba de Amigo (ARC; 1999)
- Shenmue (DC; 1999)
- Shining (MD; 1991)
- Silent Hill (PS1; 1999)
- The Simpsons (ARC; 1991) 1
- Sonic the Hedgehog (MD; 1991)
- Soulcalibur (ARC; 1995)
- South Park (N64; 1998) 1
- Space Channel 5 (DC; 1999)
- Spec Ops (PC; 1998)
- Spyro (PS1; 1998)
- StarCraft (PC; 1998)
- Star Control (PC; 1990)
- Star Fox (SNES; 1993)
- Star Ocean (SFC; 1996)
- Star Wars: Rogue Squadron (N64; 1998)1
- Streets of Rage (MD; 1991)
- Super Smash Bros. (N64; 1999)
- Syphon Filter (PS1; 1999)
- System Shock (PC; 1994)
- Tales (SFC; 1995)
- Tekken (ARC; 1994)
- Thief (PC; 1998)
- Time Crisis (ARC; 1995)
- Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six (PC; 1998)
- Tomb Raider (PC; 1996)
- Tony Hawk's(PS1; 1999)
- Triple Play (MD; 1995)
- Turok (N64; 1997)
- Twisted Metal (PS1; 1995)
- Ultima Online (PC; 1997)2
- Unreal (PC; 1998)
- Virtua Fighter (ARC; 1993)
- Warcraft (PC; 1994)
- Wario (GB; 1994)2
- Wave Race (GB; 1992)
- Wing Commander (PC; 1990)
- Winning Eleven(PS1; 1995)
- Wipeout (PS1; 1995)
- Worms (PC; 1995)
- XCOM (PC; 1994)
- Yoshi (NES; 1991)2
Notes:
- 1Game franchises that also accompany major film or television franchises.
- 2Game franchises that are considered spin-offs of previously established franchises.
Financial performance
Highest-grossing arcade games of the decade
The following titles were the highest-grossing
Year | Market | Title | Developer | Manufacturer | Genre | Revenue | Inflation | Ref |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1990 | Japan | Final Fight | Capcom | Capcom | Beat 'em up | Unknown | Unknown | [70] |
United States | Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles | Konami | Konami | Beat 'em up | Unknown | Unknown | [71] | |
1991 | Worldwide | Street Fighter II: The World Warrior
|
Capcom | Capcom | Fighting | Unknown | Unknown | [72] |
1992 | ||||||||
1993 | Worldwide | Street Fighter II | Capcom | Capcom | Fighting | $1,500,000,000 | $3,300,000,000 | [73] |
1994 | Japan | Super Street Fighter II X: Grand Master Challenge
|
Capcom | Capcom | Fighting | Unknown | Unknown | [74] |
Virtua Fighter | Sega AM2 | Sega | Fighting | Unknown | Unknown | [75] | ||
United States | Daytona USA | Sega AM2 | Sega | Racing | Unknown | Unknown | [76] | |
Mortal Kombat II | Midway | Midway | Fighting | |||||
1995 | Japan | Virtua Fighter 2 | Sega AM2 | Sega | Fighting | Unknown | Unknown | [77][78] |
United States | Daytona USA | Sega AM2 | Sega | Racing | Unknown | Unknown | [79][80] | |
Neo Geo MVS
|
SNK | SNK | System
| |||||
Mortal Kombat 3 | Midway | Midway | Fighting | |||||
1996 | Japan | Street Fighter Zero 2 (Street Fighter Alpha 2)
|
Capcom | Capcom | Fighting | Unknown | Unknown | [81] |
2.1
|
Sega AM2 | Sega | Fighting | Unknown | Unknown | [82] | ||
1997 | Japan | Virtua Fighter 3 | Sega AM2 | Sega | Fighting | Unknown | Unknown | [83] |
Print Club 2
|
Atlus | Sega | Purikura
|
Unknown | Unknown | [84] | ||
1998 | Japan | Tekken 3 | Namco | Namco | Fighting | Unknown | Unknown | [85][86] |
1999 | Japan | Virtua Striker 2 ver. 98 / 99 | Sega AM2 | Sega | Sports | Unknown | Unknown | [87] |
1990s | Worldwide | Street Fighter II | Capcom | Capcom | Fighting | $5,310,000,000+ | $11,900,000,000+ | [88] |
Best-selling home video games of the decade
The following table lists home video games of the 1990s that sold at least 5 million copies.
Best-selling game consoles of the decade
Rank | Manufacturer | Console | Type | Generation | Release | Sales | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Japan | North America | Europe | Other regions | Worldwide | ||||||
1 | Nintendo | Game Boy / Game Boy Color | Handheld | 8-bit | 1989 | 26,670,000[124] | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | 94,360,000[125][126] |
2 | Sony | PlayStation | Home
|
32-bit | 1994 | 17,280,000[127] | 26,390,000[127] | 28,150,000[127] | — | 78,140,000[127] |
3 | Nintendo | Super Famicom
|
Home | 16-bit | 1990 | 17,130,000[125] | 20,000,000[128] | 5,280,000+[f] | 900,000+[129] | 48,980,000[125] |
4 | Sega | Mega Drive / Genesis | Home | 16-bit | 1988 | 2,380,000[131] | 20,000,000[132] | 8,170,000+[g] | 1,000,000+[129] | 31,550,000+ |
5 | Nintendo | Nintendo 64 | Home | 64-bit | 1996 | 5,290,000[125] | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | 29,570,000[125] |
6 | Nintendo | Famicom
|
Home | 8-bit | 1983 | 4,390,000[124] | 12,000,000+[134][135][136] | 7,025,000+[129][137] | 340,000+[138] | 23,755,000+ |
7 | Sega | Game Gear | Handheld | 8-bit | 1990 | 1,980,000[124] | 2,700,000+[139] | 520,000+[140] | Unknown | 10,620,000+[141] |
8 | Sega | Sega Saturn | Home | 32-bit | 1994 | 5,750,000[124] | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | 9,260,000[142] |
9 | Sega | Master System | Home | 8-bit | 1985 | Unknown | 300,000+[139] | 6,100,000+[129][137] | 600,000+[138] | 7,000,000+ |
10 | Micro Genius | Dendy (Famiclone) | Home | 8-bit | 1992 | — | — | 6,000,000[143] | 6,000,000[143] | |
11 | Sega | Dreamcast | Home | 128-bit | 1998 | 1,850,000[124] | 1,700,000+[144] | 500,000+[145] | 4,050,000+ | |
12 | NEC | PC Engine / TurboGrafx-16
|
Home | 16-bit | 1987 | 3,490,000[131] | 450,000+[146][147] | Unknown | Unknown | 3,940,000+ |
13 | Sega | Mega-CD
|
Home | 16-bit | 1991 | 850,000[129] | 1,500,000[129] | 415,000+[129] | Unknown | 2,765,000[129] |
14 | Panasonic | 3DO Interactive Multiplayer | Home | 32-bit | 1993 | 750,000[124] | 185,000+[129] | 15,000+[129] | 5,000+[129] | 1,320,000[148] |
15 | Philips | CD-i | Home | 16-bit | 1990 | 350,000+[129] | 403,000+[129] | 45,000+[129] | 1,000,000[149] | |
16 | Sega | Genesis Nomad | Handheld | 16-bit | 1995 | 1,000,000[150] | — | — | — | 1,000,000[150] |
17 | SNK | Neo Geo AES | Home | 16-bit | 1991 | 800,000+[151] | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | 980,000+[151] |
18 | Sega | 32X | Home | 32-bit | 1994 | Unknown | 300,000+[129] | 65,000+[129] | Unknown | 800,000[152] |
19 | Nintendo | Virtual Boy | Handheld | 32-bit | 1995 | 140,000[148] | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | 770,000[148] |
20 | SNK | Neo Geo CD | Home | 16-bit | 1994 | 450,000+[151] | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | 570,000+[151] |
Other
- In the late 1990s Nintendo released their earliest Mario Party in which players competed against each other to win minigames.
- Fighting games like Virtua Fighter and the more violent Mortal Kombat from Acclaimprompted the video game industry to adopt a game rating system, and hundreds of knock-offs were widely popular in the mid-to-late 1990s.
- The real-time strategy (RTS) genre is introduced in 1992 with the release of Dune II. Warcraft: Orcs & Humans (1994) popularizes the genre, with Command & Conquer and Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness in 1995 sets up the first major real-time strategy competition and popularizes multiplayer capabilities in RTS games. StarCraft in 1998 becomes the second best-selling computer game of all time. It remains among the most popular multiplayer RTS games to this day, especially in South Korea. Homeworld in 1999 becomes the first successful 3D RTS game. The rise of the RTS genre is often credited with the fall of the turn-based strategy (TBS) genre, popularized with Civilization in 1991.
- Final Fantasy debuted (in North America) in 1990 for the NES, and remains among the most popular video game franchises, with numerous sequels, spin-offs, movies and related titles. Final Fantasy VII, released in 1997, especially popularized the series.
- anime series and trading card game, among other media forms. Its popularity remained well into the first decade of the 21st century with several new games and spin-offs.
- Sonic Adventure was a launch title for the Dreamcast. It featured realistic graphics, 6 stories and fast gameplay; this became the best-selling Dreamcast game, selling 2.5 million units.[153]
Hardware timeline
The following gallery highlights hardware used to predominantly play games throughout the 1990s.
-
Galaxian3: Project Dragoon (1990)
-
Game Gear (1990)
-
Neo Geo (1990)
-
Street Fighter II (arcade, 1991)
-
3DO Interactive Multiplayer (1993)
-
Atari Jaguar (1993)
-
PlayStation (1994)
-
Sega Saturn (1994)
-
Virtual Boy (1995)
-
Thrustmaster T2 (1996)
-
Game Boy Pocket(1996)
-
Nintendo 64 (1996)
-
Metal Slug (arcade, 1996)
-
Game.com (1997)
-
Game Boy Color (1998)
-
Dreamcast (1998)
-
Dance Dance Revolution (1998)
-
Neo Geo Pocket (1999)
-
Razer Boomslang (first gaming mouse, 1999)
Notes
- Pokémon Yellow sold 14.64 million.[90]
- ^ Final Fantasy VII:
- ^ 5.34 million for the Game Boy version.[101] 4.85 million for the NES version.[102]
- ^ North America – 5 million as of 1996[update][108]
United Kingdom – 1.4 million+ (1 million in 1992,[109] 400,000+ in 1993)[110]
France, Germany, Spain, Austria – 750,000 as of 1992[update][111]
Japan – 400,000 as of March 1993[update][112] - ^ Resident Evil 2 (PlayStation)
- ^ SNES sales in Western Europe
- ^ Mega Drive sales in Western Europe
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1998 – November 27th: Sega initiates the next generation of game consoles by launching Dreamcast in Japan...
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