Dreamcast $199 on September 9

Remember those rumors about Dreamcast selling for US$199 with a release date of September 9, 1999 (9/9/99)? Sega of America announced Thursday morning, and will reiterate in a telephone press conference later today, that it plans to launch the Dreamcast in the US on September 9 for a suggested retail price of $199. The 33.6k modem of the Japanese system will be upgraded to a 56k modem for the US, and will come with the Dreamcast at the sub-$200 price.

Stolar confirmed that around a dozen games will be available at launch, with 20 more first-party games available for 2000. According to Sega, this could raise the total number of games up to more than 100 next year. The company's Internet strategy will be unveiled at E3 in Los Angeles next month. Launch games from Sega include Sonic Adventure, Virtua Fighter 3tb, SuperSpeed Racing, NFL Football (tentative title), NBA Basketball (tentative title), Geist Force, House of the Dead 2, and Sega Rally 2. Third-party launch games will include Power Stone (Capcom), Ready 2 Rumble (Midway), Castlevania (Konami), and Soul Calibur (Namco).

Sega Enterprises president Shoichiro Irimajiri said in a statement, "We have already proven there is high consumer demand for this technology in Japan, where we have sold nearly one million Sega Dreamcast systems in just four months. Sega is dedicating $100 million in marketing alone to make sure Sega Dreamcast is just as big a success in North America."