Karous Released - New Commercial Dreamcast Game

update

Just remember the Dreamcast Homebrew Community refuses to die, check out the DC News Homepage for all the latest Dreamcast News and also the Dreamcast File Archive has hundreds of games, emulators, applications and demos for the Dreamcast

Original Newspost

The Dreamcast still refuses to die, heres the news and release of yet another game released for the DC:

http://image4.play-asia.com/170/PA.83026.012.jpg

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Karou comes from the young Japanese developer MileStone. Milestone has been responsible for two other recently released Dreamcast™ shooters -- Chaos Field and Radilgy. Both titles were also ported to Gamecube™ and PlayStation2™ later on.

Karous - which translates to 'Crow' in English - looks similar to Chaos Field and especially Radilgy, using many of the same gameplay mechanics of both games and featuring some of the cell-shading style used in Radilgy. The game is about a girl born of a union between an angel and a human. She gets firepower by gaining equipments like a sword, shield and guns. The graphics stick to the basics black and white palette of colours to give the game a gothic feel.

An initial shipment of Milestone's Karous / Crow for Dreamcast™ has arrived today, covering approx. 40% of all preorders. We are expecting a lot more supply by tomorrow, shipping at US$ 59.90 only. The Segadirect Edition release will be in stock on Friday.

With Sega shutting down the GD-ROM production, Karous is expected to be the last commercial Dreamcast™ game.

More Dreamcast info from Play Asia:

A number of selected Dreamcast™ releases, still in stock at Play-Asia.com:

Last Hope US$ 39.99
Trigger Heart Exelica JPN US$ 59.90
Trigger Heart Exelica [Limited Edition] JPN US$ 79.90
Under Defeat JPN US$ 69.90
Radilgy / Radirgy / Rajirugi [Segadirect Edition w/ Phone Card] JPN US$ 79.90
Trizeal JPN US$ 69.90
Dennou Senki Virtual On: Oratorio Tangram (DreKore series) JPN US$ 38.90

Official Dreamcast™ accessories available at Play-Asia.com:

Dreamcast Controller Europe US$ 14.90
Dreamcast Visual Memory Card (VMS/VMU) Europe US$ 9.90

Another great release for the Dreamcast Fans of this world.

This sounds like a good game to play. It's a shame that Sega will be packing up GD-ROM production very soon now.

The game will be released in 8th march, not today.

i still cant believ that dc is still in production

Karous: Released or not...

My preordered copy from Play-Asia.com will be at my door tomorrow 07March 2007. :-) (Going by the email Play-Asia.com sent...)

Hopefully, it is not the last SEGA licensed Dreamcast game!

What?! I thought the whole shutting the GD-Rom production thing down was still rumor status, when did SEGA confirm it?

Sega didn't announce it officially

Quote:

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Originally Posted by JKKDARK

Sega didn't announce it officially

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TRUE.

So much for the email I received from Play-Asia.com.

There's always commercially-pressed CDs, though...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Atari

There's always commercially-pressed CDs, though...

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The only way to get official releases is via GD-ROM. Sega will not license games on CD-ROM.

Perhaps later also will leave, takes CD to make the carrier...
^-^

Quote:

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Originally Posted by YZB

Perhaps later also will leave, takes CD to make the carrier...
^-^

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lol you don't know the reason of the GD-ROM end of production? Sega is not getting the money they wanted with Dreamcast and Naomi games.

Just stop it!

The only source of this rumour was Dreamcast Scene. At the moment there is no official confirmation that Sega are licensing any more products to be manufactured on GD rom. There were several new Naomi games mentioned at the recent AOU. These will be on GD rom. So please give up on this usless non fact!

Do you think Sega would annoy all of their business partners by not informing them that GDrom production has stopped, instead by informing them via a rumour on the internet?

Also if you look into the whole CD/GD/DVD manufacturing process , you realise that its actually mastered the same as a CD,DVD etc, just with proprietary software. So anywhere that makes CD's DVD's etc can master GD's.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by qatmix

Just stop it!

The only source of this rumour was Dreamcast Scene. At the moment there is no official confirmation that Sega are licensing any more products to be manufactured on GD rom. There were several new Naomi games mentioned at the recent AOU. These will be on GD rom. So please give up on this usless non fact!

Do you think Sega would annoy all of their business partners by not informing them that GDrom production has stopped, instead by informing them via a rumour on the internet?

Also if you look into the whole CD/GD/DVD manufacturing process , you realise that its actually mastered the same as a CD,DVD etc, just with proprietary software. So anywhere that makes CD's DVD's etc can master GD's.

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I will quote what icepick said on DC-S

I haven't seen anything stating it specifically, but I've been looking over the investor reports on the Sega Sammy Holdings site and although I'm not a financial analyst, it seems that the language of business does not leave room for such specifics as GD-ROM production. I reaffirm that it is very unlikely that they'll make a press release regarding this matter, as they manage things on a much more general scale.

If I'm reading the reports correctly, it seems that the group is, still, not necessarily doing that well financially. They've apparently made a number of "consolidations" (of which our NAOMI and DC media production could easily be a part), and are still posting net income forecasts that are much lower than previous expected forecasts, as well as being lower than the previous operating year. I'm not sure of what that means when accounting for the consolidations made by the group (a smaller company usually generates lower income, but isn't necessarily doing "worse" than a larger company), but I can't seem to pick out how things are going "in general."

One thing seems apparent: Although there is a natural ebb and flow in most all things, it does seem that this would be an "ebb" for Sega Sammy Holdings, which agrees with the shutting down of GD-ROM production. Logically, when it's time for the tide to rise again, they'll come back with something else... but this will almost certainly be something new or different, as opposed to resuming support for the NAOMI and DC.

Nothing's meant to last, but here's the thing: In the reports, I note that while revenue in general is down slightly, Pachinko/Pachislot seem to be down a great deal more than amusement machines (as in "arcade games," I believe). If arcade games are still holding pretty steady, then why pull the plug (no pun intended)? There are a number of reasons, and it's not to be assumed that change is automatically bad... but aside from the tendancy to weigh risk vs reward, it starts to make sense if you look at the "outside customers" (I'm guessing, outside Japan) and "inter segment" (likewise, within Japan) numbers.

The biggest loss in the outside customers was Pachinko/Pachislot, but there was a huge growth (nearly three-fold) in the inter segment. Amusement machines also posted a decrease in the outside, but a minor increase in the inter. This could very well be why they're putting less focus on the amusement machine sector and more on the Pachinko/Pachislot, and indeed, it's very sad for fans of arcade games like us. It seems that eventually, every arcade operator is going to turn into something like this.

I don't even know for sure what these things are. I'm under the impression that they're basically character-themed gambling machines, and if so, that is very sad to me. Agreed, they make sense from a business perspective, but it seems that business is all that everyone is focused on, these days. I'm not going to make this a rant about the "mainstream," though. You've all heard enough about that.

Anyway, consumer business was one area that saw an increase in both the outside and the inter, and it also mentioned that overseas consumers seemed to appeal to the Sonic-branded items. I suppose that this means that we'll be seeing more of those.

Great! that quote says absolutely nothing. Its just idle speculation over a non-fact..

I hate to break any pre-conceptions but Icepick's comments (As decent a bloke that he is) dont add any verification of the whole non-fact. Even he goes to say that nothing is mentioned about GDrom production.

Also Naomi is one of Segas most succesful lines. If they stopped supplying games for it then they loose money. As they make profit from every cab and every title sold. Plus if I owned an arcade and had lots of Naomi cabs in there due to the ability to swap games, I would be a bit miffed if sega stopped producing games for it.

Now you have me speculating! :)

The whole point is that GD rom licensing has not stopped and until SEGA announce it (Or a business partner like milestone) Until then, no matter what a webpage makes up or speculates its just not true.

Anyhows, Thats enough of this subject. Lets get back to the main issue Im really looking forward to playing this game when it arrives in the post :)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by qatmix

Great! that quote says absolutely nothing. Its just idle speculation over a non-fact..

I hate to break any pre-conceptions but Icepick's comments (As decent a bloke that he is) dont add any verification of the whole non-fact. Even he goes to say that nothing is mentioned about GDrom production.

Also Naomi is one of Segas most succesful lines. If they stopped supplying games for it then they loose money. As they make profit from every cab and every title sold. Plus if I owned an arcade and had lots of Naomi cabs in there due to the ability to swap games, I would be a bit miffed if sega stopped producing games for it.

Now you have me speculating! :)

The whole point is that GD rom licensing has not stopped and until SEGA announce it (Or a business partner like milestone) Until then, no matter what a webpage makes up or speculates its just not true.

Anyhows, Thats enough of this subject. Lets get back to the main issue Im really looking forward to playing this game when it arrives in the post :)

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I agree with you 100% about this rumor, but the source is supposedly a leak from a commercial gaming company and that they were told by sega that GD-ROM production was going to be ending. If it is true, then it is supposed to be a private fact between Sega and their licensees (although I don't believe it to be true). I know where the rumor originated (it's actually very easy if you just track the ip of the person who originally edited the announcement on DCS) and they're credible, but I think that it's more likely to simply be a misunderstanding in translations and such than true.

i still have a dreamcast surprisingly

I really have enough of this rumor. It spreaded to all sites and even print media labels it as official. >_<

..............*skims through off-topic remarks and woners why those posts weren't deleted*



Sssso! here's what the gameplay looks like:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CTW5CN8sD08

Quote:

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Originally Posted by kohan69

..............*skims through off-topic remarks and woners why those posts weren't deleted*

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The one big problem is that this off-topic rumor actually is on-topic: PlayAsia decided to use the "information" spreaded by Dreamcast-Scene (and now a billion other "sources") to push the sales for Karous. Something similar has been done with Ikaruga, Border Down and Under Defeat in the past.

People, Karous definitly will not be the last NAOMI or Dreamcast game on GD-ROM. Stop repeating the same old rumor. Thousand sources telling the same thing over and over again doesn't make it more correct.

Karous definitly will not be the last NAOMI or Dreamcast game on GD-ROM.......

Approval
ｂ（￣▽￣）ｄ

Quote:

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Originally Posted by YZB

Karous definitly will not be the last NAOMI or Dreamcast game on GD-ROM.......

Approval
ｂ（￣▽￣）ｄ

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And even if it is, I don't see the what the big deal is about commercial games having to be "official" or licensed anyway. Is it supposed to make owning them "cooler"? Pffft. Not impressed and never will be.

The console itself has been off the market for some time now, and it's still a viable platform for designing and playing some great games. I don't think anyone needs Sega's approval for developing games on the DC anymore. To this day, I haven't seen Sega go after anyone for releasing commercial games for the Dreamcast "unofficially", and it gets more and more unlikely to happen as time goes on.

I am with Quzar on this one, though. Rumors are just that... rumors.

On the other hand (playing Devil's Advocate here)...

I'd hate to see Naomi development stop, though. And it'd be a really stupid move on their part if they did stop GDROM production. Nothing dumber than chopping down a money tree. I don't think that they're THAT dumb.

Official games are the only way to keep a console alive.

Karous

http://img159.imageshack.us/img159/2...g133zj5.th.jpg


Poor quality screen shots:
http://img235.imageshack.us/img235/9...g129xy4.th.jpg

http://img161.imageshack.us/img161/311/img132sl5.th.jpg

Game plays similar to Radilgy and Chaos Field.
I like the crows caws at the start... a nice touch.
:thumbup:



Note: I mention this, not to create a panic, but to see if anyone else experiences this: NTSC-U Dreamcast using DC-X to boot Karous. Once out of three times playing the game it did hang during game start with a black screen.
http://img524.imageshack.us/img524/8...g130gw6.th.jpg
It set like this for ten minutes, then I rebooted the Dreamcast.
Discs are clean, laser clean. Maybe just a one time fluke?

-
RoadWarrior

Can someone PLEASE make a DREAMCAST game that isn't just another Ikaruga??

I have border Down.
I have Ikaruga.

Can I play something else now please?

Is this the only "engine" anyone has?
Can't someone buy a developer setup off eBay and get crackin?

I'll donate time and money and massive visual dev support to the cause.
Sorry... sorry.... I just want to see something come out other than a vert scroller nerd precision shooter.

There are not Dreamcast games using Ikaruga engine

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Atari

I'd hate to see Naomi development stop, though. And it'd be a really stupid move on their part if they did stop GDROM production. Nothing dumber than chopping down a money tree. I don't think that they're THAT dumb.

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I heard this rumor and I've just rolled my eyes. I think it was just a publicity stunt, and nothing else. Why? It's simple.

Sega has the rights and the ability to still produce GD-ROMs. If anyone wants to do it, they have to do it with Sega. No one else.

So, why would Sega say "Well, we are eliminating the ability to make GD-ROMs for you so you can't give us your money to make what you want. Instead, call up Sony and ask them to do it on Blu-Ray or something." They aren't doing that. Just because Sega doesn't have any games in production at the moment doesn't mean that they have a staff of thousands working the GD ROM making machine, tossing all the discs that roll off it, losing them money. No, it means that the machine is sitting idle, waiting to see if it needs to be fired back up.

As a business, you don't throw away any money-making opportunity you have, especially if there is potential for people to want to use it in the next year or two. If there are no new games, maybe in two or three years Sega will dump the pressing stuff, but until then, why get rid of something that is doing nothing but making you some money?

but surely, in a business machines stilling idle, taking up space, is a lose of money? plus the cost of making only a couple of thousand discs, might not cover the cost of (has hassle of) printing them.

just playing devil advocate, + i have no idea what the costs and profits are.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by JKKDARK

Official games are the only way to keep a console alive.

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http://img172.imageshack.us/img172/1151/shhh2lf1.gif

Anyone here bought and played Karous yet? I was just wondering what the verdict is. Is it worthy of a purchase or is it pretty much like Radirgy with gothic tones?

I would assume that it's well worth the purchase even if you bought Radirgy. I preordered it months ago together with Tigger Heart Exelica but I didn't recieve it yet. It probably hasn't passed German customs yet.

A minor bump. Has anyone got this yet?

I was wondering what it was like and only found a handful of stuff on the web.

Grateful if anyone has any opinions to share as it might be worth a purchase.

Got my package recently. My impressions so far:

Karous

The graphics do look very good but I expected the stage backgrounds to be much more detailed. Maybe that changes in later stages, but at least the excellent music makes up for that :)

Your different weapons aren't easy to master and the game seems to be very difficult so it will take quite a while to beat the game. :)

There are obvious similarities when compared to Radirgy, but Karous definitely is the better game.


Trigger Heart Exelica

THE's graphics and music are very nice and the entire game feels very professional with a lot attention to detail. Most people say it's better than Karous but if so, just slightly. I think it's more old-school that's why most people prefer it over Karous. Although the game is not exactly hard to beat.



After all both games are very similar in terms of their qualities. I guess if you really like shmups, you should buy both. If you hate shmups, buy none of them.