WipEout Receives Unofficial Dreamcast Port by Accomplished Developer
The iconic PlayStation racing game, WipEout, is being unofficially ported to the Sega Dreamcast by developer jnmartin84, renowned for his prior Dreamcast adaptation of Doom 64.
WipEout, originally released in 1995 by Psygnosis, introduced players to high-speed, anti-gravity racing set in a futuristic environment. The game was celebrated for its fast-paced gameplay, cutting-edge 3D graphics, and a soundtrack featuring prominent electronic artists like The Chemical Brothers and Orbital. Its success led to multiple sequels across various platforms, solidifying its status as a classic in the racing genre.
The Dreamcast port of WipEout has been a challenging endeavor. A previous attempt in 2023 resulted in a version lacking sound and music, accompanied by graphical issues. Building upon his experience from the Doom 64conversion, jnmartin84 revisited the project using the latest KallistiOS (KOS) development tools. This updated port boasts functional sound and music, along with a raw PowerVR API renderer tailored for the Dreamcast’s graphics hardware.
In a statement, jnmartin84 acknowledged some persisting issues:
“There are sound level issues in the video. They are recording artifacts. I’m a programmer, not a video editor. It has some real code glitches still though. Music stops working after a few tracks and it sometimes just crashes and dumps out of the game when trying to quit to the menu. I just got it to compile for the first time with music and no graphics 2 days ago.”
Despite these challenges, the progress made is notable, and the community remains optimistic about future developments. Enthusiasts can view the current state of the port in a video shared by The Sega Guru.
As the project advances, fans of the series and the Dreamcast console can look forward to experiencing this classic title on new hardware. Those interested in tracking the development or supporting jnmartin84’s efforts can follow his updates on his YouTube channel.
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