Japanese gamers will pay to play

Gamers will have to pay for online Dreamcast gaming in Japan, Sega Japan have announced. They've also created a new virtual currency for the service called the 'dorimu'.

Each dorimu is equal in value to one yen and can be purchased online by credit card, or in stores in the shape of 1,000 dorimu 'web money' cards.

Sega are certainly risking a lot with this latest announcement - Dreamcast sales are finally picking up in Japan following the price reduction to 19,900 yen (about £100), but how many gamers will be willing to pay per play? Surely it would have been better, if a little sneaky, to start the service at no charge and then introduce the dorimu after everyone became hooked.

It's not yet known whether Sega plan to introduce a similar system in Europe and the US.