Over The Top Soccer Dreamcast and its prototype: when SEGA was considering creating its own FIFA or Soccer 2K2.
Let’s discover Over The Top Soccer (Soccer 2K2), a mysterious Unreleased Dreamcast title, long thought to be lost. We’ll also look back at its history, its cancellation, its repurposing, and explore an early prototype that offers a brief glimpse of what the game was meant to become. Unknown to most, SEGA was planning to release a licensed football game under the SEGA SPORTS brand on its 128-bit console. Alas, the project never came to fruition.
While in the United States, sports fans were enjoying Dreamcast titles such as the NFL 2K series (American football) and NBA 2K, which challenged Electronic Arts’ dominance in sports simulations, nothing managed to satisfy European players and their passion for soccer.
Let’s be clear: from its very launch, the ‘White Lady’ suffered greatly from the absence of a Konami ISS or an Electronic Arts FIFA, and this was felt throughout its entire lifespan. Quite an irony for a company like SEGA, which invested heavily in Europe by sponsoring football clubs across four of the continent’s major leagues, including Arsenal F.C. (England), AS Saint-Étienne (France), U.C. Sampdoria (Italy), and Deportivo La Coruña (Spain).
Michael Rhinehart: « There was a lot of discussion around this, however. Even, talking to Konami about Winning Eleven (now Pro Evo). »
Over The Top Dreamcast Prototype trailer
Nevertheless, a handful of football titles were released on SEGA’s sixth-generation console, though none proved particularly exciting: SEGA WORLDWIDE SOCCER 2000 (1999) - SEGA WORLDWIDE SOCCER 2000 : EURO EDITION (2000) - VIRTUA STRIKER 2 VER. 2000.1 (2000) - UEFA DREAM SOCCER (2000) - 90 minutes (2001) - Giant Killer (2001). Despite their entertaining aspects, their many shortcomings (too arcade-oriented, too slow, etc.) never lived up to expectations. Dreamcast aficionados generally agree that their beloved console was not — and never truly was — meant for football fans.
Michael Rhinehart: « And there was also Virtua Striker 3 Ver. 2002 which ended up on Gamecube, but was likely running on Dreamcast at some point. »
To meet the demand for higher-quality football games, SEGA was considering taking on EA and its FIFA series, aiming to gain market share in the genre by developing a football video game modeled after the popular 2K titles from Visual Concepts: realistic football match simulations - local or online multiplayer modes - team management - the use of real names of both current and legendary players - world or regional championships. Exactly the kind of game European players had been longing for.
Edoardo De Martin: « Those types of games take about 12 months to develop because they are required to launch every year. First on maybe 18 months but then after they have to be 12. »
Soccer 2K2 sounds better
Behind the scenes, Visual Concepts entrusted Black Box Games—an already proven collaborator on NHL 2K—with the task of developing the much-desired football game. This new addition to the SEGA SPORTS lineup was called Over The Top Soccer and was positioned as the Dreamcast’s Soccer 2K2, as suggested by the advertising boards lining the pitch. At the dawn of the new millennium, few magazines or news websites mentioned it. According to Tips & Tricks, a Dreamcast release was planned for November 2001, while GameSpot described it as another SEGA title that had yet to receive a definitive name (25 years later, the two would ultimately prove to be closely connected).
Edoardo De Martin: « Our job was to build the game. VC was the publisher and they were to come up with the licence deal. They told us they would get the license so we started the project with them. »
Development of Over The Top Soccer on Dreamcast, which began in 2000, did not last long. SEGA was never able to secure the ‘Fédération Internationale de Football Association’ license needed to bring the project to fruition. Among other factors, SEGA’s transition into a third-party publisher also prevented Soccer 2K2 from ever taking off. These unfortunate events led Black Box Games to reconsider its plans. Nevertheless, eager to remain in the world of football, the developers reworked Over The Top Soccer for Dreamcast into Sega Slam Soccer, which was released in 2002 on Xbox, PlayStation 2, and GameCube. Running on the same engine as NHL 2K, OTTS can be seen as the early groundwork for BBG’s offbeat football title.
Wooden puppets
Edoardo De Martin: « We could not get the licence. Then the Dreamcast was canceled. We went to E3 and saw the GameCube demos from Nintendo and they looked so good. We decided to go with stylelized characters and launch on the GameCube. Make more of a GameCube game. That was the birth of Soccer Slam. »
SEGA was well aware of its console’s weaknesses, particularly the lack of significant football titles, and sought to address them—ultimately without success due to unfavorable circumstances. At the very least, they cannot be faulted for never having tried.
The Over The Top Soccer prototype from September 1, 2000
Analysis of the prototype indicates that this build of Over The Top Soccer for Dreamcast—a Milestone phase, as noted on the GD-R and the accompanying loose paper—dates back to September 1, 2000, at 15:52:30. Unfortunately, interaction with the game remains extremely limited, as the player can only control a free camera without any real ability to move the characters. Nevertheless, from a historical perspective, the prototype reflects SEGA’s ambitions and desire to deliver a high-quality football game on Dreamcast, comparable to the 2K titles. At present, it is impossible to determine whether more advanced versions of OTTS ever existed…
This beta from Black Box Games, developed in collaboration with Visual Concepts, opens directly to a title screen displaying the game’s name, Over The Top Soccer, highlighted in bright green with a distinctive font. Additionally, a photo of two football players in action and the SEGA SPORTS logo—indicating that OTTS belongs to this renowned game lineup—appears on the startup interface. With development of Soccer 2K2 barely underway, this title screen was already visually striking!
There is no doubt that a developer at BBG was passionate about the German football league, going so far as to use the Over The Top Soccer title screen image as a Placeholder. Judging by the sponsor visible on the white-and-green jersey, Werder Bremen faced Uerdingen (Krefelder Fußball-Club Uerdingen 05) during the 1994/1995 Bundesliga season. Vladimir Beschastnykh of Bremen challenged Helmut Rahner (red jersey) of KFCU 05 for control of the ball. The caption accompanying the original photo on some websites reads: ‘Helmut Rahner of Uerdingen finds himself facing Vladimir Beschastnykh where no one wants to be hit’.
Title Screen (Prototype)
Original Photo
The Main Menu includes the following options: Friendly Match – Tourney – World Championship – Locker Room – Options. Regardless of the choice, the player will always access the same default game setup as determined by the prototype.
A draft of the Menus
The documentation accompanying the prototype
The Pause Menu, on the other hand, offers the following options: resume the game (Resume) – select a preferred stadium from the two available (Choose Stadium) – change the pattern at the center of the pitch between the Black Box Games logo, the Over The Top Soccer inscription, or nothing at all (Choose Field).
A stroll with the Free Camera offers the chance to take a closer look at the advertising boards around the pitch and identify the brands they promote: ‘Sega Dreamcast’ on a white or black background – ‘SEGA’ on a white or blue surface – ‘Soccer 2K2’ on white. The last one, the most surprising, carries a significant meaning.
This build does not include any audio. It’s a shame not to hear the sports commentary of Thierry Roland and Jean-Michel Larqué, a popular French commentary duo.
GOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL for EA! SEGA loses its match in the Dreamcast Cup against Electronic Arts, 0-1!
Game and Free Camera User Guide
Regarding gameplay, this version of Over The Top Soccer on Dreamcast is limited to using the Free Camera and primitive movement of the 10 players on the pitch. It holds little interest for those hoping to experience realistic football in a video game. Here are some controls to master in order to ‘enjoy’ the game:
Analog Stick: Rotate and orient the camera around a fixed point
Right Trigger: Zoom in according to the current camera angle. Note: the camera will not move beyond the fixed point described above
Left Trigger: Zoom out according to the current camera angle (infinite movement)
X + Analog Stick: Move horizontally (side to side) and forward/backward relative to the current camera position
X + Left or Right Trigger: Move vertically (up or down)
A + Analog Stick or Left/Right Triggers: Slow camera movement
Y: Reset the camera to the center of the pitch
These button combinations work during gameplay, in the Main Menu, and in the Pause Menu.
The Analog Stick on the controller plugged into Dreamcast port D will control one of the 10 players on the pitch. Pressing A will switch the prototype to a different player. It is crucial to reset the camera to the center of the pitch using the Y button on Controller A, otherwise these controls will not work. Nevertheless, the camera remains fixed and will not follow the player being controlled.
With the Free Camera option, the player can imagine themselves as a football match cameraman, capturing the action with close-ups, specific angles, or high shots for an overview. Over The Top Soccer on Dreamcast: a football simulation or a cameraman simulator?
Download Links: Homemade cover for Over The Top Soccer Dreamcast and its prototypes in GD-I or CD-I format
No matter its completion percentage, the discovery of an Unreleased game deserves to be celebrated—to pay tribute, give it a second life, and, above all, thank all the people who worked behind the scenes on its creation. To commemorate the release of Over The Top Soccer for Dreamcast to the community, Benedikt Scheffer created a homemade cover for the Visual Concepts and Black Box Games title, ready to be printed at home.
Homemade cover for Over The Top Soccer, created by Benedikt Scheffer, available for download:
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Download the archive containing the Over The Top Soccer Homemade Cover
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Open the PDF file and print it at 100% scale
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Cut out the front and back covers along the white dotted lines
You can download this build of Over The Top Soccer for Dreamcast below in GD-I format (primary format):
Over The Top Soccer in GD-I (Sep 01, 2000 Dreamcast Prototype)
If you want to burn Over The Top Soccer for Dreamcast onto a CD-ROM, download this version of the game in CD-I format:
Over The Top Soccer in CD-I (Sep 01, 2000 Dreamcast Prototype)
Dreamcast enthusiasts love to burn and craft the boxes for their Unreleased games themselves, then proudly display them in their collections.
This article is dedicated to the prototype of Over The Top Soccer (Soccer 2K2) for the Dreamcast. It serves as a supplement to the article focused on the work of Visual Concepts, covering the making-of of their iconic titles, with exclusive testimonies that put them into perspective, as well as the Dreamcast prototypes of: Floigan Bros.: Episode 1 - NFL 2K1 - NCAA College Football 2K2 - NBA 2K - NBA 2K1 - NBA 2K2 - Fantasy Prototype (Proof of Concept) - NHL 2K - NHL 2K2 - World Series Baseball 2K2 - Over The Top Soccer (Unreleased) - ToeJam & Earl III Mission to Earth (Unreleased) - Ooga Booga. Discover the entire preservation project dedicated to this talented SEGA-affiliated studio on following page: [The Rise of Visual Concepts in the SEGA Era: Prototypes and Behind the Scenes of the Making of Their Dreamcast Classics]
I would like to thank, for their availability and kindness, everyone who was involved, directly or indirectly, with Over The Top Soccer Dreamcast (Soccer 2K2), including Edoardo De Martin (Producer), as well as people at Black Box Games, SEGA, and Visual Concepts with whom I spoke. Their recollections give us a deeper insight into SEGA’s attempt to deliver a truly worthy football game on its final console.
Special thanks to:
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Sadako Playerone.tv for proof-reading the French text
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woofmute for the English correction of the article
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Benedikt Scheffer for designing the cover
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Megavolt85 and LemonHaze for analyzing the prototype
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Japanese Cake for creating the Over The Top Soccer Dreamcast prototype in CD-I format
Similar prototypes (Unreleased): Agartha (DC) - Emulateur officiel Megadrive (DC) - Castlevania Resurrection (DC) - Half Life (DC) - Dalforce XOP (DC) - Flinstone (DC) - 4 x 4 Evolution PAL (DC) - Ring : L'Anneau des Nibelungen (DC) - Ecco 2 (DC) - Kyskrew (DC) - Propeller Arena (DC) - Geist Force (DC) - Scud Race Tech Demo Dreamcast - Shenmue 2 US (DC) - The Red Star (XBOX) - Heaven's Drive ( version japonaise de Burnout 1) pour PS2 - Jekyll and Hyde (DC) - The Grinch Jap (DC) - Worms Pinball (DC) - Quake 3 Arena version japonaise (DC) - Vectorman (PS2) - Fear Effect Inferno (PS2) - Over The Top Soccer (DC) - Fantasy Prototype (DC) - ToeJam & Earl III (DC)
Feel free to try out [The Dreamcast Unreleased Games to Download] that I found. For the more curious among you, I also wrote [The List of Cancelled Dreamcast Games], which references all of them along with information about each title.
