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/vr/ - Retro Games

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File: 31 KB, 400x329, 158-Seaman-2.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4554090 No.4554090 [Reply] [Original]

Why didn't Seaman take off?

>> No.4554103

Lack of wings, mostly

>> No.4554118

Because it was creepy, weird, and not made in 1975 when it would have been gobbled up.

>> No.4554125

It was popular enough in its time.

It doesnt need a half dozen sequels if thats what you are implying.

>> No.4554147

>>4554090
It required too much. Stupid tank would freeze if you didn't boot it up once a day and as talkative as Seaman is, you still have to really pry it out of him.

That said I fucking loved Seaman. We had some pretty good convos.

>> No.4554161

>>4554090

It was the best selling DC game in Japan.

>> No.4554169

>>4554090

>my friends come over
>"hey guys, I wanna show you this cool game I found"
>boot up Seaman
>expect to show them some funny quips
>there's two seamans, they immediately fuck, lay eggs and die
>friends are thoroughly freaked out
>"wft why would you want to show us this??"

Amazing game.

>> No.4554248

>>4554090
But it did. Did you learn about it from AVGN or something?

>> No.4554262

because it was weird

>> No.4554336

>>4554090
wow i've actually starting playing this for the first time a couple days ago.
demul can use a mic thankfully
also got a sequel on ps2

>> No.4554341

>>4554090
Sounds too similar to SEMEN

>> No.4554345

Shits weird tbqhf

>> No.4554352

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kwO6cFvInMQ

>> No.4554361

>>4554090
Maybe cause it's weird af

>> No.4554405

>>4554090
Terrible gameplay. Why play this when you can be driving forklifts in Shenmue?

>> No.4555280

>>4554341
>Not whispering to your best bud back in junior high about wanting him to come over after school to play Semen

>> No.4555326

>>4554090
It was novel and interesting, but not actually that fun. It was the most sophisticated life sim/virtual pet at a time when we also had Tamagotchi, Pokémon, The Sims, and some more casual knock-offs like Neopets.

Now, don't get me wrong. I had Seaman when it was new and I thought it was cool. I still think it is. But after you perform every basic function, the game becomes this slog where you're just waiting for the Seamen to reach Frog stage and there's not a lot of wonderment. Plus, you're stuck in a fish tank for the entire game, which means you don't even have anything nice to look at or explore in the meantime. Compare with Creatures, which didn't have the "intelligent" AI but was a far more engaging and exploratory game.

Believe it or not, Seaman had a sequel years later where you raise a Peking Man on an island, which I think is a far better idea.

>> No.4555738

>>4554103
Underrated post

>> No.4557091

>>4554090
the name alone killed it

>> No.4559002

They were walking down the road.

>> No.4559040
File: 1.26 MB, 666x768, 2811.png [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4559040

>>4555326
>It was the most sophisticated life sim/virtual pet at a time

Not even close.

>> No.4559887
File: 10 KB, 275x155, 1512568988172.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
4559887

>>4554090
one of the big mysteries of life. One could say, its as mysterious as life itself!

>> No.4560486

>>4559040
I addressed that.

>> No.4560490

>>4554090
Interesting concept done in a way that was probably too bizarre for most people.

>> No.4560776

It was never supposed to be released in the US or outside Japan. It was one of those weird Japanese things that was going to stay in Japan.

Some magazine, EGM or something, did an article on Dreamcast and described it as a good example of the Dreamcast's capabilities, also pointing out Seaman would likely never be released in the US.

The letters section exploded with newly minted fanboys claiming they would buy the game at all costs. EGM wrote more articles about the game. Other publications jumped on the bandwagon. Sega put up a playable version at E3. The gaming press freaked out. Sega was somehow convinced they should localize it for the US. Unfortunately, Sega found out they were right to not release it in the US all along. I remember finally playing it and finding it pretty underwhelming. It was interesting for like 10 minutes.

This is what I remember from memory.

>> No.4560781

>>4554090
He's the angriest gamer you've ever heard!

>> No.4561204

>>4554090
Does this question even really need to be asked?

>> No.4561213

>>4554161
"In Japan, the Dreamcast version of Seaman sold 399,342 copies as of February 1, 2004, making it the third best-selling Dreamcast game in the region at the time"

https://web.archive.org/web/20090504132503/http://www.japan-gamecharts.com/dc.php

In comparison Jet Set Radio sold 100 000 copies there. It took off, just not in USA and Europe.

>> No.4561965

>>4561213

I will just say I remember the early days of the Dreamcast being really really light on titles. Seaman wouldn't have sold shit if there was some competition at the time.

By the time Jet Set Radio came out, the DC had a much larger library. One of the things Sega really screwed up with the DC was having an incredibly bad launch library. That Seaman sold so well in the early days is a testament to that fact.

This is all from what I remember. I was working in a game store at the time and handled the DC launch. Also went to E3 for the launch that year.

Look, Seaman was at best a niche title. That it was one of the main titles of the DC in early days wasn't a good sign. If you had looked at the PS library at the time, there was some weirdness there, but the also had tons of mainstream fare.

My memory of DC launch day was we had Godzilla and something else godawful. I think we had an import. My memory is failing me here. Titles ended up being impossible to find like look at Panzer Dragoon saga. Seaman ended up being way common on the used shelves so everyone got to try it out.