History MediaNotes / TheSixthGenerationOfConsoleVideoGames

The first out of the gate this time was Creator/{{Sega}}. Things had been looking very grim indeed for Sega after the disastrous launch of the Saturn and its subsequent failure, so the company decided on going for a gamble. Platform/SegaDreamcast was released in the fall of 1998 and was touted for its online features, with online play and downloadable games, as well as reviving the ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'' series that was strangely on hiatus during UsefulNotes/{{the fifth generation|OfConsoleVideoGames}}.[[note]] Aside from the third-party games ''VideoGame/SonicR'' and ''VideoGame/Sonic3DBlast''. Sega had attempted to develop a main-line Sonic game for the Saturn -- ''VideoGame/SonicXtreme'' -- but it had a very TroubledProduction. [[DevelopmentHell Originally slated for release in 1996, its release was pushed back to 1998 before the game was dropped completely]].[[/note]]

** ''1080º: Avalanche''

The first out of the gate this time was Creator/{{Sega}}. Things had been looking very grim indeed for Sega after the disastrous launch of the Saturn and its subsequent failure, so the company decided on going for a gamble. UsefulNotes/SegaDreamcast was released in the fall of 1998 and was touted for its online features, with online play and downloadable games, as well as reviving the ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'' series that was strangely on hiatus during UsefulNotes/{{the fifth generation|OfConsoleVideoGames}}.[[note]] Aside from the third-party games ''VideoGame/SonicR'' and ''VideoGame/Sonic3DBlast''. Sega had attempted to develop a main-line Sonic game for the Saturn -- ''VideoGame/SonicXtreme'' -- but it had a very TroubledProduction. [[DevelopmentHell Originally slated for release in 1996, its release was pushed back to 1998 before the game was dropped completely]].[[/note]]

Knowing that their new console more than anything needed a KillerApp to stay afloat, Sega decided to bank on another gamble, and gave designer legend Yu Suzuki free range to put an auteur project of his own together. The result was the very ambitious and ground-breaking ''VideoGame/{{Shenmue}}'', which with its release in 1999 stood out as one of the earliest entries into the WideOpenSandbox genre. But ''Shenmue'', while celeberated for its very impressive graphics and the scope of its ambition, also failed to become the ace in the hole that Sega had hoped for. While ending up as the fourth best-selling title for the console, its development had been very pricey[[note]]it was at the time the most expensive game ever made[[/note]], and despite the good sales, the game ultimately failed to break even against its ''very'' high budget, and therefore it only ended up adding to Sega's financial woes.

Meanwhile, Sony, who hadn't even broken a sweat in last generation's Console Wars, was gearing up to release the UsefulNotes/PlayStation2. The hype surrounding this console, as well as many dubious or bad decisions on Sega's part in previous generations leaving them with a shaky public opinion, only made sales worse, and eventually Sega had to concede defeat. And as such came the sad and swift end for the Dreamcast as it was discontinued in early 2001[[labelnote:†]] (in the West; like the Saturn, it lasted a little longer in Japan)[[/labelnote]], and the former console maker, which a mere decade before had gone toe to toe with Nintendo, had to drastically downsize and go third-party.

Coming in during 2001 was Creator/{{Nintendo}} with the [[UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube GameCube]] (typically given the acronym "GCN"), their first console to use optical discs, albeit based on [=mini-DVDs=] rather than the standard 8-inch/20 cm size used by the other consoles. Software giant Microsoft made the surprising announcement that they were going to enter the video game industry with a console based on PC hardware: The UsefulNotes/{{Xbox}}. It released shortly after the Dreamcast's demise, in November 2001.

Online gaming for consoles emerged in this era. Online gaming was already prevalent on [=PCs=], and there were some early experiments with online with the Satellaview for the [[UsefulNotes/SuperNintendoEntertainmentSystem Super Famicom]] and the UsefulNotes/{{Nintendo 64}}DD, but this generation saw the rise of online gaming as a standard for consoles. The UsefulNotes/SegaDreamcast was noted for its highly detailed online services that were ahead of its time... but, as mentioned above, the Dreamcast's short lifespan meant that few ever got to experience them. The most successful online system of the sixth generation was Xbox Live, which was supported by several games both first- and third-party because of its ease of setup. Its success spurred Sony to boost support for the [=PS2's=] online features, which didn't do as well as Xbox Live but still did reasonably well. Nintendo also had the intention of entering the online space with the [=GameCube=], using a broadband and modem adapter for this purpose instead of built-in features. Unfortunately, it was discovered rather quickly that the cable could be used to hack into the [=GameCube=], leading to piracy. Nintendo, having a long-standing fear of piracy, responded by quietly ending support for the peripheral and releasing an UpdatedRerelease of ''VideoGame/PhantasyStarOnline'' in order to make hacking impossible. Thus, the [=GameCube=] was rendered as the only console of the generation without online features.

Lastly, on the handheld front, Nintendo's UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance dominated the market, being essentially a portable Super Nintendo. When compared to the non-portable consoles of the era it lagged only behind the [=PlayStation=] 2 in terms of sales.[[note]]This isn't really a bad thing, since ''every'' non-[=PS2=] console lagged behind the [=PS2=] sales-wise, given that it was the highest-selling video game console in history.[[/note]] It would be Nintendo's last 2D system, and the last of the Game Boys (notably backward-compatible to even games for the first Game Boy, at least in its original model), as it would be replaced by the UsefulNotes/NintendoDS.

** ''F-Zero GX''

* UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance (2001-2010)
* UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube (2001-2007)
* UsefulNotes/PlayStation2 (2000-2013)
* UsefulNotes/{{Dreamcast}} (1998-2001)
* UsefulNotes/{{Xbox}} (2001-2010)

* UsefulNotes/SegaDreamcast (1998-2001)

* ''VideoGame/{{Siren}}''
** ''Siren 2''

* [[/index]]''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'':[[index]]

* ''VideoGame/FZero GX''

* [[/index]]''VideoGame/{{Atelier}}'':[[index]]

*** ''[=WarioWare=]: Twisted!''

* ''VideoGame/GhostRecon''

** ''Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter''

* ''VideoGame/ShantaeAdvanceRiskysRevolution''

** ''Densetsu no Stafy 2''
** ''Densetsu no Stafy 3''

*** ''[=WarioWare=], Inc.: Mega Party Game$!''

* UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance
* UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube
* UsefulNotes/PlayStation2
* UsefulNotes/SegaDreamcast
* UsefulNotes/{{Xbox}}

*** ''[=WarioWare=], Inc.: Mega Microgame$!''

* ''VideoGame/BatenKaitos''