Back in the early 1990s, the home video game wars were dominated by two rival Japanese companies, Nintendo and Sega. Nintendo followed up the success of their first console, the Nintendo Entertainment System, with the release of the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. Sega would rise to dominance with the release of the Sega Genesis that hit North American shores in 1989. By 1994, both companies were working to release new and powerful home video game consoles while a new and worthy rival was waiting in the wings. Newcomer Sony would enter the North American video game market in 1995 with the release of their powerful Sony Playstation video game system. Sega was running high on ego and confidence due to the success of their Sega Genesis, which was running neck and neck with Nintendos Super Nintendo system. By 1994, they had already released their powerful CD-ROM based system in Japan, known as the Sega Saturn. The 32-bit Sega Saturn garnished a large following upon its release in Japan due to the fact that Sega promised to release a bevy of their most popular arcade games on the system. Virtua Fighter was one of the first of these prominent arcade titles to be ported to the Sega Saturn directly. Unfortunately for Sega, Sony was entering the home video game console wars as well with its powerful new Playstation system. Both Sega and Nintendo incorrectly assumed that Sony would market the Playstation at an extremely high retail price, but Sony had other plans. Rather than price themselves out of the market like earlier competitors of Nintendo and Sega did, Sony secretly made favorable deals with third-party software publishers and garnered a large following of support when they announced that the Sony Playstation would launch in the U.S. for $299 in September of 1995. With Nintendo ready to launch the Nintendo 64 for $199 just one year later in the U.S., Sega was preparing to launch the Sega Saturn in North American stores for $399, and, worse yet, the system was vastly underpowered when compared to the 3D effects of the Sony Playstation. Gamers were immediately attracted to the lower price and ergonomic look of Sonys 3D system, while Segas Saturn system looked dated and clunky. Making matters worse, Sega initially agreed to launch the system in the U.S. in September of 1995, but due to Sony generating all the buzz, they underhandedly cut a deal with a few select retailers and announced that the Sega Saturn would launch in May of 1995 instead in order to beat Sony to the market. Unfortunately, this meant that certain retailers would be cut out of the loop and, even worse, third-party developers wouldnt have most of their games ready until September of 1995, if not later. This was a major mistake on Segas part, and to this day, it is still seen as one of the most vital mistakes in the business of video gaming. For $399, U.S. gamers would get the Sega Saturn console, one controller, and a copy of the hit arcade game Virtua Fighter. Very few other high-profile games were available at launch, but some exclusive surprises were in store for gamers who took the plunge. Panzer Dragoon was an awesome shooting game created by Sega set in incredible 3D environments. Daytona USA was also another popular arcade game released for the system. The system would enjoy early sales, but once gamers got a look at the Sony Playstation system and its September release drew near, the Sega Saturn was already starting to teeter on the edge. By 1996, the Sony Playstation was already outselling the Sega Saturn by a two-to-one ratio, but all was not lost just yet. Sega was actually doing fairly well with the system in their home country of Japan. Many more games were being released in Japan as a result, but even in Japan, the Playstation was gaining momentum. By the time the Nintendo 64 was released in the U.S. in September of 1996, it would be become clear that the video game wars would be fought by Nintendo and Sony and Sega would be lucky to hold on to the number three spot in both North America and Japan. Today, the Sega Saturn is looked back upon fondly by collectors and vintage video game enthusiasts. The system had a very Japanese feel to it, and some of the most popular arcade games released by Sega in the 1990s graced the system in one way or another. The most popular and hardest to find games for the system can be seen selling for hundreds of dollars or more, especially if they are complete and in excellent to near mint condition. By far, some of the most coveted games for the system in the U.S. are the late release Sega exclusives or role playing games that were hard to find even when the system was readily available in stores. If you have any of these games in your collection, you have a collectible that has the potential to be worth several hundred dollars, even in used but excellent condition: Panzer Dragoon Saga, Burning Rangers, Magic Knight Rayearth, The House of the Dead, and Shining Force III. All of these games are well worth owning, and some are still to this very day considered to be masterpieces. Panzer Dragoon Saga alone can usually be seen selling for well over $500 on the secondary market due to the fact that it is an incredibly hard to find action role playing game. The game has never been released on any other platform either, meaning that if you want to play the game, you have to own a Sega Saturn to do so. Collecting the Sega Saturn in the U.S. can be rewarding and frustrating. Common and even uncommon games for the system are not usually worth much, but some are well worth owning. As with all vintage video games, speculators should use caution collecting the Saturn for long-term investment potential. Most younger gamers are not being exposed to Sega games anymore since they exited the hardware business in the early 2000s after the failure of their Sega Dreamcast system. Still, Saturn is a very nice place to visit, but much like most of the planets in our universe, I wouldnt want to live there for very long. In an upcoming article, I will discuss the popularity of collecting Segas follow-up to the Sega Saturn. Until next time. Shawn Surmick has been an avid collector since the age of 12. He currently resides in his hometown of Boyertown, Pa., and is a passionate collector of antiques and collectibles. His articles focus on various topics affecting the marketplace.