While the Dreamcast was SEGA's final attempt to operate within the console market, the technology used was unique. Even today, many people think fondly on what the Dreamcast could do and how innovative it was. Although it was the world's first 6th generation console before the GameCube or Playstation 2, it did not find the success that might have been expected, and it is still up to some debate as to why.
The Dreamcast was far in advance of other systems at the time of its release, and developers took advantage of the power that was available within the SEGA games console. With smoother graphics and more powerful CPU than its closest competitor (at least until the release of the PS2), it is unsurprising that cutscenes within games took advantage of this to the fullest.
10 Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation
Prior to the series' reboot, Tomb Raider used a rather stylistic look for the characters and world that Lara Croft explores. With no significant jumps in the quality of the graphics between game iterations, episode 4 in the series was released cross-platform.
While the quality of the game was closer to the previous games on other systems, the Dreamcast version was able to stand out from the other versions of the game due to the Playstation's relatively recent release. Meanwhile, experienced Dreamcast coders were able to incorporate higher quality into the version released on the SEGA console.
9 Skies of Arcadia
As sky pirates flying on an airship in a world filled with floating islands, ancient ruins and monstrous giant fish, Vyse and his clan engage upon an in-depth story. The game explores the deepest depths to the upper atmosphere and beyond.
The story of Skies of Arcadia is filled with significant detail and lore, but more than that, it is simply a very enjoyable game. Part of what makes it such a pleasure is the quality of the beautiful cutscenes, which add significant amounts of depth to the world. They also develop the characters more than can be seen by simple playthrough.
8 Grandia 2
Some gamers may have missed out on the Grandia series when it was released, but in doing so, they may have missed out on some incredibly detailed and high quality game play of Grandia 2. The RPG focuses heavily on the story element and relationships of the main characters, yet the art does not suffer.
Cutscenes in the game complement the anime-inspired art style, and can be both beautiful and disturbing. Seeing the appearance of Valmar can be just as unsettling as it is impressive to see the sky ship the first time.
7 Jet Grind Radio
The overriding priority of Jet Grind Radio is style, and this applies to the graphics, music and gameplay. The game is focused around everything being done with style, including the cutscenes.
Though not frequent, the inclusion of DJ Professor K and his interactions with the player build the world of this game. While the cell-shaded graphics may not be to everyone's taste, those who enjoy it will always find it a satisfying and stylish game.
6 Resident Evil: Code Veronica
Original incarnations of the Resident Evil series may not have been taken very seriously, with some incredibly corny dialogue and graphics that have not held up as time has progressed. Resident Evil: Code Veronica, however, is a game that takes full advantage of the power of the Dreamcast console.
Multiple cutscenes are provided as they tell the majority of the story outside of documents. They show incredible detail and smooth sprites that are still comparable with the last generation of console games.
5 Sword Of The Berserk
.jpg?q=50&fit=crop&w=1500&dpr=1.5)
Those who are aware of the late Kentaro Miura's work will hopefully also be aware of Sword Of The Berserk: Guts' Rage, which brought the author on board for the game adaptation to his manga Berserk. With the story written by Miura himself, the game uses the highly detailed original artwork of the comic and uses it to great effect.
With smooth, detailed character sprites and disturbing and gory visuals, the cutscenes within this game add so much that unfortunately they overshadow the rest of the game. As fun to play as it is, QTEs populate some of the animation, distracting from the quality. The game itself is also unfortunately short.
4 Headhunter
In the future, criminals can be dealt with through special bounty hunters who use special technology that renders weaponry non-lethal. To that end, Jack Wade, the protagonist of Headhunter, uses these weapons to incapacitate criminals in order to send them to prison, where they potentially have their organs harvested for the wealthy citizens.
While suffering from amnesia, Jack learns more about the world and his former role in it through cutscenes that dazzle and impress. If any of this sounds familiar, it could be that the game takes substantial inspiration from 80s and 90s action films such as Robocop. In addition to the graphical quality, the writing is humorous. Advertisements and news shows add context to the world while also showing the player how dystopian the futuristic world is.
3 Illbleed
This game can be considered somewhat unique. While it did not receive the reception the developers may have hoped for, those who found and embraced the game found it something of a hidden gem on the Dreamcast.
Fans of B-Movie horror films found that Illbleed could be appreciated in a similar way. Over-the-top dialogue and strange graphics complimented the gameplay as Eriko and friends explore the horror theme park, in order to complete it and walk away with the prize money.
2 Ecco The Dolphin: Defender Of The Future
Ecco The Dolphin was a very well-received game on the original Genesis console, and its sequel was released on the Dreamcast. While some series do not manage to live up to the quality of the first game, Ecco The Dolphin: Defender Of The Future managed to only improve on the quality of its predecessor
Smooth quality graphics, excellent audio, and a well-developed concept were all brought into the game's cutscenes. While they can be rather expository, they add layers to the game that could not have been given otherwise.
1 Shenmue
The smoothness of the animation and gameplay in Shenmue is something that gamers have been talking about for some time. The story is very well written and the attention to detail is incredible, but the cutscenes emphasize the already beautiful game into art.
While many cutscenes revolve around the use of martial arts, seeing as this is the basis for the combat within the game, there are also plenty of sweet and beautiful moments within the story. Whether Ryo Hazuki is searching for sailors or taking care of a kitten, the quality of the cutscenes are excellent.