Sega Tetris online multiplayer restored through Dreamcast Live

Another Sega Dreamcast classic has just had its online multiplayer modes restored for Dreamcast Live, a new fanmade online connection service for Dreamcast. Sega Tetris (2000) is now back up and running online thanks to the efforts of one Shu, who has restored online features for many Dreamcast games already, including The Next Tetris: On-Line Edition (Also 2000), another Dreamcast Tetris game.

Unlike The Next Tetris, which only released in North America and Europe, Sega Tetris released only in Japan, both on Dreamcast and the NAOMI arcade system. Because of its reliance of Japanese reading comprehension, Dreamcast archivist PCWZRD13, who also made and uploaded the above video, had also taken the liberty of preparing a patch to translate the online multiplayer menus to English. Patched versions of Sega Tetris, as well as a few other Dreamcast Live compatible games, can be downloaded freely from Dreamcast Live’s downloads page.

Drop down past the break for more info on how to get started if you’re interested in trying this game out.

For anyone not in the know, Dreamcast Live is an online network hosting online services for over 25 Dreamcast games, including popular ones like Phantasy Star Online (2001), Quake III Arena (2000), Chu Chu Rocket (2000), and even Sonic Adventure (1999). You can connect using a device they’ve created with Raspberry Pis called a DreamPi, which allows the Dreamcast’s 56K modem adaptor to communicate through broadband connections. You can also use an original Dreamcast Broadband Adaptor if you have one, but most games (including Sega Tetris, sadly) were only compatible with the modem, as the BBA was not released alongside the Dreamcast. Fortunately, Raspberry Pi computers are cheap and readily available, and most versions of it can be used as a DreamPi. Dreamcast Live has a guide set up to help you make your own as well as a shop to buy any special parts you may need or readily made DreamPis whenever stock is available. A full list of compatible games can be found here.

For Sega Tetris specifically, PCWZRD13 warns that you should download the latest version of DreamPi, which is version 1.9 DLE as of this writing, in order to have an easier time getting matches running. It’s a good idea to keep your DreamPi software as up to date as possible anyway, I imagine. He also warns that you will need to come up with a unique login ID in your Dreamcast ISP settings, instead of leaving it as “dream”, which is apparently common for Dreamcast Live players. Sega Tetris will ban people using the same login ID, since it cannot tell whether or not players are sharing the same account. Once you have all that squared away, you’re ready to enjoy some online Sega Tetris.

The last time I talked about Dreamcast Live was when the online modes for Daytona USA 2001 were restored through them. Since then, they have finally added support for the Japanese version of that game, as well.

Have you been playing Dreamcast games online with Dreamcast Live? Are you about to play Sega Tetris online too? Do you own a copy of Sega Tetris? Drop us a line in the comments below.

Ad: