If there's one genre that the Dreamcast library has no shortage of, its racing games. Despite this, what may be considered Sega's greatest racing series of all time did not get released on the Dreamcast until the system had been out for 17 months. Now that the wait is over, Dreamcast owners can proudly own the racing game they should have had when the system launched, Daytona USA. It's not just an arcade port though. This is a bigger, better Daytona USA than ever before with a championship mode, internet play, new tracks, and a boatload of new options.

First off, it should be noted that the graphics are better than ever.  Everything in this game looks totally smooth. You'd be very hard pressed to find a jagged edge anywhere in this game. There is no pop-up or draw-in anywhere and the game jumps off the screen with loads of color. Each track has its own unique setting and is overloaded with fine details. The new tracks aren't just quick attempts to add to the game either. All three of the new tracks are just as beautiful as the other tracks and plenty of fun to blast through. Also, the cars are just as pretty as the tracks. Each of the 10 available cars look very detailed and crisp. No jagged edges or blurring at all.

After you get done drooling over the graphics, you'll notice that the new Daytona USA doesn't quite play like its predecessors. The control of each car is a little more touchy this time. This is mostly due to the analog stick used to steer the cars and, fortunately, there is a way to turn down the sensitivity. At its default setting, the sensitivity is too high for most people. It's quite easy to go sliding all over the place and over-steer in the turns, but a quick adjustment at the options screen remedies that.  Once you have that taken care of, the game plays pretty closely to how you remember it from the arcade, only it looks and sounds better than ever before.  

One of the new features that definitely grabs one's attention is the internet play. Players can hop online and race with 3 other people. Racing with only 4 cars on the track is quite a step down from being able to play with up to 40 offline, but when you have players of equal skill, it can get pretty intense. Best of all, the game keeps track of how many races you've entered and your win/loss record. However, there is a slight problem with cars teleporting at times which is due to lag. For example, the car next to you could suddenly pull ahead 20 feet in less than a second. That's due to problems with the connection. This isn't a frequent occurrence though and, when it does happen, it's usually not a big deal at all.  The important thing is that you are racing with Daytona junkies as addicted to the game as you are. Best of all, you can talk with them before and after each race for as long as you want.  

As far as the actual online system goes, it may be somewhat confusing for players at first. If you played Quake III: Arena online with your Dreamcast, you were spoiled with a system that was easy to navigate. With Daytona USA, there are more options to configure and as result, getting started is a bit more tricky. Once you do it a couple of times though, you get it down and its a no-brainer.  

Fans of that classic arcade music will be happy to know that it remains intact on the Dreamcast. For those of you not familiar with Daytona's unique music, you can expect to hear some rather catchy tunes and one ultra-annoying song in there for good measure. The songs played on every track except "Dinosaur Canyon" are a perfect match for the racing atmosphere and you may even find yourself humming them when you're not playing. Be warned though, because the song on "Dinosaur Canyon" is a beast that will make you wish you were deaf. One bad apple is nothing to ruin the experience though. I'm sure there will be a few people out there who will love hearing "Daytona! Its alright!" over and over. If you really want to hear the game's music at its best though, go to the options menu and turn the sound effects down to around 80. At their default setting, they drown out most of the music which is a shame since there are some truly enjoyable songs to be heard. Speaking of the sound effects, there is a lot to like about them despite that they can overpower the music. The pit crew talks to you via radio at times and says things like, "stay low in the turns" or "watch your speed!"  Also, the cars all have wonderful engine noises and their wheels squeal around hard turns. Overall, the audio is top-notch.