It’s been a busy news week for the Saturn scene, so let’s take a look at a few of the odds and ends from the last several days.
Main MiSTer build gets Saturn update
On Sunday, some code concerning the Saturn was added to the beta branch of the MiSTer FPGA. It was then accepted into the main MiSTer build Thursday.
The code was added by Sergiy Dvodnenko, the developer of the Saturn MiSTer core. The update’s notes say that it’s to fix the CD audio buffer reset.
The update doesn’t actually do anything from an end-user standpoint until the Saturn core is updated to make use of it. So this portends future developments, if anything.
Still, it’s an encouraging sign that Dvodnenko is working on his Saturn core’s audio, as that’s been one of its major weaknesses, with everything from glitchy sound to nonfunctioning music.
The core last was updated June 30.
Saturn BT is delayed
On Monday, Humble Bazooka, developer of the Saturn BT dongle, announced that his Bluetooth receiver for using modern controllers on original Saturn hardware is being delayed.
In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Humble Bazooka said that he’s run into an issue with several boards during testing that needs to be corrected. He estimated that it’ll delay the release by a few weeks — its launch had been set for this week.
When asked about the issue, he clarified that a component in the device was not working as it should and he’ll have to replace it.
Check out SaturnDave’s hands-on impressions with the device and our previous reporting on the Saturn BT’s specifics.
Retro-Bit breaks silence on new Saturn controller
Licensed peripheral manufacturer Retro-Bit responded Thursday to a customer question on X about how its long-in-development analog Saturn controller is coming along.
In the post, Retro-Bit said it’s been “carefully making tweaks” and will have more to share on it later this year.
It’s been nearly a year since Retro-Bit showed off a working prototype at the Portland Retro Gaming Expo last October, where SHIRO! was able to go hands-on with at it. At the time, it was slated for release in the second quarter of this year, which has come and gone. The company has been developing it for several years.
Peter Moore blames Saturn for Dreamcast’s failure
Peter Moore spoke out on X on Monday, calling the “financial trauma created by the Saturn debacle” responsible for “the downfall of Sega’s hardware reign.”
He was responding to a story that IGN published earlier that day headlined “How Dreamcast Killed Sega’s Hardware Reign.”
Moore was president and COO at Sega of America for much of the Dreamcast’s short lifespan — May 2000 until his resignation in early 2003.
“Sad to reflect, even 24 years later, what might have been for the Dreamcast,” he said in the post. “We were truly taking gamers where gaming was going.”
Of course, we know now thanks to the Fiscal Year 1997 Brand Review documents that leaked last month that the reasons for Sega’s exit from the console business were a bit more nuanced than “the Saturn debacle,” including massive amounts of unsold stock of Genesis and 32X games, hardware and peripherals that eventually had to be written off or possibly sold for scrap.
And as Shiro reported yesterday, the podcast They Create Worlds broke down the many factors and personalities that were at play within Sega leading up to the Dreamcast’s launch and eventual discontinuation.
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