I was disappointed by how in the video the Saturn launch is overshadowed by a Kalinske biography, especially since most of that stuff is in dispute and it takes away from the actual Saturn talk.
Virtua Fighter for Saturn wasn't an improvement at all over the 32X version, because it wouldn't be released for another year and a half. So it wasn't disappointing in comparison to anything, since the only competition was 3DO and Jaguar. The 32X version was a surprise to everyone when it was announced after the 32X had long been considered dead and everything was already discounted. Fighting games were insanely popular at the time and the Saturn was targeting a mature audience like the Genesis, so it was the best killer app from what existed at the time.
The early launch period Saturns came in all kinds of bundles, one of which advertised at Consumers Distributing, included Panzer Dragoon. I actually went down there to buy the PD set, but found out that in my small town, the local outlet only brought in the VF set. They could have ordered it in, but not wanting to wait any longer, I just bought the VF set and got PD not long after. Consumers Distributing had a promotion where they gave you $100(?) off the Saturn if you brought in an old video game console to donate to charity. I brought a table tennis system which they took no questions asked.
The single reason I wanted a Saturn and had no interest in future consoles like the PSX, is Daytona USA. Ever since I first saw it in an arcade in a big city, I was dying to play it every chance I got and the Saturn version was far better than I imagined the upcoming generation could possibly do.
The best game/console commercials I've ever since were pre-early launch Saturn games advertised on Much Music. The were just straight game footage with the music muted. WWS used the up-close camera, so you were looking at massive player sprites running in and out of the screen. The commercials in this style for Panzer Dragoon WWS and Daytona blew my mind and stopped me from buying a 3DO just for SFFIIT. The fact that Sega ran those commercials in advance of the early launch shows how it wasn't as much of a last minute decision as most people believe that it was.
WWS is one of the only sports games I've really enjoyed since Intellivision.
