September 2, 1999 - Issue 43

Euro Dreamcast shocker!

Dreamcast launch drops back to October 14

The Dreamcast will launch in the UK on October 14 and not September 23 as was originally mooted. Sega announced the news on their website but neglected to give any reasons as to why the launch has been delayed for three weeks. The 128bit machine is probably Sega's most important console ever and could make or break the company. Sony and Nintendo have stolen their thunder of late, particularly the former with the hugely successful PlayStation.

Whether the problems are with the machine's Internet capabilities remains to be seen, but Sega are determined that the console will launch without any complications. Certainly, Future Gamer's PAL Dreamcast works a treat, but we haven't got the Internet link yet.

"Dreamcast involves the most advanced technology ever incorporated into a games console," said Sega chief J. F. Cecillion. "Our free Internet access is an industry first and BT have been key in its creation across Europe."

This news story, unsurprisingly, caused a bit of a stir. Other big news this week included the story that 50 million Hotmail account holders had their private emails available for the world to see after the site was hit by hackers. Yikes.