Editing Dreamcast (section)

==== Japan ====
Despite a 75 percent drop in half-year profits just before the Japanese launch, Sega was confident about the Dreamcast. It drew significant interest and many pre-orders.<ref name="RetroinspectionD"/> However, Sega could not achieve its shipping goals for the Japanese Dreamcast launch due to a shortage of [[PowerVR]] chipsets caused by a high failure rate in the manufacturing process.<ref name="RetroinspectionD"/><ref name="G4 GM">{{cite episode |title=Sega Dreamcast |url=http://www.g4tv.com/gamemakers/episodes/1259/Sega_Dreamcast.html |series=Game Makers |series-link=Game Makers |network=G4 |location=Los Angeles |airdate=August 20, 2008 |number=302 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081121040744/http://www.g4tv.com/gamemakers/episodes/1259/Sega_Dreamcast.html |archive-date=November 21, 2008}}</ref> As more than half of its limited stock had been pre-ordered, Sega stopped pre-orders in Japan. On November 27, 1998, the Dreamcast launched in Japan at a price of {{JPY|link=yes|29000}}, and the stock sold out by the end of the day. However, of the four games available at launch, only one—a port of ''[[Virtua Fighter 3]]'', the most successful arcade game Sega ever released in Japan—sold well.{{sfn|Kent|2001|page=563}} Sega estimated that an additional {{val|200000|–|300000|fmt=commas}} Dreamcast units could have been sold with sufficient supply.{{sfn|Kent|2001|page=563}}

Sega had announced that ''[[Sonic Adventure]]'', the next game starring its mascot, [[Sonic the Hedgehog (character)|Sonic the Hedgehog]], would launch with the Dreamcast and promoted it with a large-scale public demonstration at the [[Tokyo International Forum|Tokyo Kokusai Forum Hall]],<ref>{{cite web |last=Obuchi |first=Yutaka |date=July 16, 1998 |title=Sonic Onboard Dreamcast |url=http://www.gamespot.com/articles/sonic-onboard-dreamcast/1100-2464382/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170705034437/https://www.gamespot.com/articles/sonic-onboard-dreamcast/1100-2464382/ |archive-date=July 5, 2017 |access-date=December 9, 2014 |website=[[GameSpot]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |date=November 1998 |title=International News: Sonic Rocks Tokyo |magazine=[[Electronic Gaming Monthly]] |publisher= |volume=10 |issue=112 |page=50 |quote=}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |date=October 1998 |title=News: Sonic's Back! |magazine=[[Sega Saturn Magazine]] |volume=4 |issue=36 |pages=6–8 |quote=}}</ref> but it and ''[[Sega Rally Championship 2]]'' were delayed.<ref name="RetroinspectionD" /> They arrived within the following weeks, but sales continued to be slower than expected.{{sfn|Kent|2001|page=563-564}} Irimajiri hoped to sell over one million Dreamcast units in Japan by February 1999, but sold fewer than 900,000, undermining Sega's attempts to build an [[installed base]] sufficient to protect the Dreamcast after the arrival of competition from other manufacturers.{{sfn|Kent|2001|page=564}} There were reports of disappointed Japanese consumers returning their Dreamcasts and using the refund to purchase additional PlayStation software.<ref name="Toy Story and Japanese launch blues">{{cite magazine |last1=Croal |first1=N'Gai |last2=Totilo |first2=Stephen |date=September 6, 1999 |title=Who's Got Game? Beleaguered Sega Hopes to Get Back on Top in the Video Game Wars with Dreamcast, the First of a New Generation of Superfast, Supercool Fun Machines |volume=134 |issue=10 |pages=58–60 |magazine=[[Newsweek]] |id={{ProQuest|214302223}}}}</ref> ''[[Seaman (video game)|Seaman]]'', released in July 1999, became the Dreamcast's first major hit in Japan.<ref name="IGN History of Dreamcast" />{{sfn|Kent|2001|page=577}}<ref>{{cite web |last=Langan |first=Matthew |date=July 26, 1999 |title=''Famitsu Weekly'' Reviews Latest Dreamcast Games |url=https://ign.com/articles/1999/07/27/famitsu-weekly-reviews-latest-dreamcast-games |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141030102441/http://www.ign.com/articles/1999/07/27/famitsu-weekly-reviews-latest-dreamcast-games |archive-date=October 30, 2014 |access-date=October 30, 2014 |website=[[IGN]]}}</ref> Prior to the Western launch, Sega reduced the price of the Dreamcast to {{JPY|19900}}, effectively making it unprofitable but increasing sales. The reduction and the release of [[Namco]]'s ''[[Soulcalibur (video game)|Soulcalibur]]'' helped Sega gain 17 percent on its shares.<ref name="RetroinspectionD" />