It's finally happened - Sega lowered the price of the Saturn. Effective immediately, gamers can purchase a Saturn core system for US$149.99, a reduction of $50. That now puts the Saturn at the same price level as the Nintendo 64 and Sony PlayStation. (Both of those systems dropped their prices last March.)

Industry analysts contacted by GS News today wondered if the current price reduction will be enough to revive lagging Saturn sales.

The Saturn, packaged with one game, is now priced at $169.99 (the buyer chooses between Sega Rally Championship or NiGHTS).

The Saturn wasn't the only price reduction that Sega announced today: the Saturn Net Link is available for $99.99 (a reduction of $100); and the Net Link Solution Pack - including a Saturn, Net Link, and related accessories - is $249.99 (a $200 reduction).

Sega has also lowered the price of the Genesis to $79.99.

To help out sales on the software side, Sega has also lowered prices on many other Saturn titles. Over 30 Saturn games are now priced in the $19.99-$39.99 range, and no new title will exceed a $49.99 price point.

Sega is expect to debut a couple of Sonic titles for the Saturn at E3, as well as the "first ever console-based networked arcade games."