First released: Dreamcast (2000)
Now Available On: PSN, Xbox Live, PC, iOS, Android
The Sega Dreamcast was an under-appreciated console that was more than capable of innovation - and you only need to look at games such as Jet Set Radio to see that.
Smilebit's skate and paint classic was a unique title that pioneered cel-shaded graphics when it launched on the hapless system in Japan exactly 15 years ago.
It was a work of rare originality that cast players as a member of The GGs, a rebellious skate gang in a near-future version of the Japanese capital called Tokyo-to.
The majority of the game involved jumping and grinding your way across the city, with the police usually in pursuit, spray painting your gang's insignia as you go.
The GGs were on a mission to take back Tokyo-to from the man and liberate each of its districts from the rule of rival gangs - a job they felt was best achieved by emblazoning their logo over the graffiti jobs of their enemies.
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It was the kind of pick-up-and-play fun that is usually associated with arcade parlours, something the Dreamcast excelled at, and there was variety in there too.
When you weren't spraying and tagging, you were locked in a showdown with a rival gang, recruiting new members, or trying to beat your best score in a speed trial.
Jet Set Radio was one of the most playable games on the Dreamcast, but it was also a visual and sonic treat.
The cel-shaded graphical technique it pioneered has been used far and wide since 2000, and the game embraced street art culture, featuring the work of renowned artists including Eric Haze, Edge, Uecho, Higuchin, Enas, Chikpon and K-Chap.
Haze's work features prominently in Jet Set Radio, with the graffiti wizard providing a number of pieces to be used in game, as well as designing its logo.
Smilebit also did a great job selecting an eclectic mix of songs for the game's soundtrack, opting for pulsating tunes that tied in with the fast-paced action and arty visuals.
Its score spanned a range of musical genres, including J-pop, hip hop, funk, dance, rock, trip hop and jazz, with artists such as Deavid Soul, Mix Master Mike, and Jurassic 5 providing contributions.
Jet Set Radio generated a lot of hype when it was first unveiled at the Tokyo Game Show in 1999, and it lived up to the fanfare, going on to feature in many 'Game of the Year' charts the following year.
In arrived in the US several months after its Japanese debut as Jet Grind Radio - renamed due to a copyright dispute - and it continued to innovate, shipping in the West with new online features, including the option to create and share graffiti tags over SegaNet, the Dreamcast's web service.
Although the Dreamcast died a death a short time later, Jet Set Radio did not. A Game Boy Advance port was released by Vicarious Visions several years later, emulating the console edition's cel-shaded visuals laudably, and acclaimed sequel Jet Set Radio Future hit the Xbox in 2002.
A HD port of the original arrived on Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network, mobile devices and PC in 2012, giving the Dreamcast classic a modern-day facelift.
It was a shame the Dreamcast never enjoyed the long lifecycle it deserved, but at least its most memorable games, including Jet Set Radio, are still enjoyed generations later, preserving a small piece of its legacy.
