Dreamcast Soul Reaver Impressions

Last night, Eidos threw a little bash-o-rama to show off its latest wares and to feed numerous hungry game editors. While the hungry editors for the most part remained hungry, as the limited amounts of Chef-Boy-Ar-Dee went quickly, we were able to feed our need to see Soul Reaver for the Dreamcast along with games like Fighting Force 2 for the Dreamcast and PlayStation.

We also got to hang with Del the Funkee Homosapien. Hip-hop fans will know where we at. While the DC version of Soul Reaver looked really nice (clean textures, 60fps, etc.), it didn't really strike us as anything more than a smoothed-out version of the PlayStation game. Of course, it could be directly compared to the PC version, but we wanted to know what Crystal Dynamics (the developer) was doing to maximize the game for the Dreamcast. We present a list of the groovy things in store for Crystal D's prodigal son. By the time Soul Reaver reaches the DC, you should be able to send your PlayStation versions packing. Here's what you have to look forward to:

* 60fps at least 95% of the time (the PS version ran at an average of 25fps)* Higher-resolution textures on most characters* Higher-resolution textures throughout the environment* Some new special FX to show off DC capabilities* Full use of DC features gives much better look throughout* 30fps Intro Movie vs. 15fps on the PS