Somewhere in an alternate universe there’s a Dreamcast 2 and, presumably, a Dreamcast 3. And, in that alternate universe, our doppelgangers are able to play Minecraft on their console of choice. But for us, stuck here in this hellish timeline, we’ll have to settle with a clever clone for the original Dreamcast, now available for free online.
Over at DCEmulation, forum member gameblabla has taken it upon himself to port a Minecraft clone called Crafti designed for a high-end Texas Instruments calculator onto a vintage Dreamcast. And apparently it works like a charm, albeit a charm without enemies or sound of any kind.
Tom Charnock, founder of The Dreamcast Junkyard, has been to this promised land and returned with a first-hand account.
“Controls take a little getting used to,” Tom wrote, “but once sussed, Crafti is about as close to the real Minecraft as you're likely to get on a Dreamcast. Movement is handled through the D-pad, looking on the analogue and the face buttons allow you to place or erase blocks in the world. You can also jump, and there's an action button for opening doors and pressing switches.
“After 10 minutes playing with Crafti I had already built myself a nice little house, complete with a fireplace and a bookshelf full of leather-bound books. The smell of rich mahogany also wafted through the structure.”
Thanks to Charnock for the tip. We’ve included a few of his screenshots above.
You too can download and play Crafti right now. It’s available for free as an image for CDs and SD flash memory.