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Dennou Senki Virtual On Oratorio Tangram
Model 3 Arcade Board (Step 2.0) – Dreamcast – Naomi Arcade Board
SEGA AM3
1998
Despite the somewhat ostentatious title Oratorio Tangram, or just Oratan as it’s often called, this was simply the sequel to the 1995 original. The name was originally presumed to mean “grand remix”, due to the respective usage of the words oratorio (a holy opera) and tangram (a Chinese puzzle comprised of re-arranging triangular pieces) respectively, this theory was dispelled by the series creator, Juro Watari, as being false. However, he wasn’t kind enough to explain its true meaning.
In any case, Oratan was quite a shift for the series in terms of gameplay. Not only in terms of the increased control responsiveness but also in the way the manual controls of the original were removed in favor of a more automatic type of function. For instance, the close combat was based around “Quick Steps” now, where the player had no control on the speed or duration of the circle strafing.
However, in place of these restrictions, new gameplay elements were added; most importantly, air dashing allowed the player to fly through the air. Watari dashing allowed you to change direction mid-dash, Turbo Attacks that powered up standing attacks and V-Armor protected the player from longer range attacks. In addition, several new VRs were added to the mix.
  VOOT v.566
Oratan was also the first game to have iterative gameplay modifications. There were a total of four Oratan variants; MSBS 5.2 and 5.4 on Model 3 arcade hardware, MSBS 5.45 on the Dreamcast (which also had the option to play MSBS 5.2 if you completed the game with all the VRs) and MSBS 5.66 which was on Naomi arcade hardware, and had Dreamcast VMU compatibility. Both 5.45 and 5.66 also had a few stages from the original game as well, and in the case of 5.66 a few extra VRs from the sidestory “One Man Rescue” (which was a serialised novel of sorts in Hobby Japan). In addition there was also a bonus disc, allowing players to customise the new VRs on their DC (this was designated as MSBS 5.6).
 
VOOT DC sticks, arcade cab
The Dreamcast port was also incredibly faithful to the arcade original, so much so that Famitsu gave it the near legendary score of 39/40. Sega also went to great lengths to create a twinstick peripheral that would do the game justice, and as such the controller now goes for heady prices in online auctions if you’re lucky enough to even find one. Unfortunately, playing the Dreamcast iteration to its fullest on the pad is simply not possible. It lacks a lot of the nuances of control required for higher levels of play.
  
VOOT DC screens.
Next: Dennou Senki Virtual On Force
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