The MODE from TerraOnion - Review - Game Sack 

"Show yourself, demon!" Joe, you're the best. Actually, in all honesty, I watch Game Sack when I'm feeling down. It has an indescribable way of easing my sadness.

Game Sack still running strong been one of my favorite RU-vid channel for years.

"Sorry for not testing every variant of every game of every region" "If it has a 2, you can go straight to hell" He's saying what we're all thinking.

"Show yerself, demon!" Found my new public restroom stall catchphrase!

I bought one, primarily for my Saturn. Not worth it for me to buy a second one for the DC when I play it so rarely, so I'll just move the MODE over as needs be. I agree about the super slow artwork loading, so I just leave mine in list mode. Haven't had the problem with the question marks in the list, but I am using the most current firmware, so maybe that solved it. Anyway, really happy with the MODE. Totally worth the $200 and whatever that I paid for it.

Ahh! Was actually awesome seeing you on the TO discord. Also, thanks for helping me on Twitter with the Mega-MSU1 stuff, I eventually got it figured out! You're a great dude, and your content is ALWAYS awesome.

To fix the Starting Disc issue, just hold the A button and it brings up a context menu to let you clear what they call the disc queue.

My Dreamcast's optical drive sounds like a washing machine on drugs. I would love one of these.

Damn, I always forget how good the DreamCast is. Those games still looked amazing.

That ending skit had me chuckling Joe. Well done 😂.

How this show only has 248k subs is beyond me. Should have at least 1 million, minimum...

2:00 am baby!

I love it when you do these kinds of tech episodes despite not ever having bought anything like this and having no plans to ever buy anything like this in the future.

This is a pretty good proposition. Think about it: you've got a Dreamcast but you only have a few games for it. You want one or two super rare titles though. For the same price as those two ultra rare games, you can have them and every other game made for the console by getting a MODE. I'll pick one up!

3:04 Ahh....Panzer Dragoon Saga! Truly I can tell you are a man of culture and refinement (and also DEEP POCKETS of you didn't purchase it back in the day like me 😁) One of my top 3 Saturn games. Truly showed what the system was capable of. Some of the rendered cutscenes were just incredible.

Hey, what the hell TerraOnion?! I didn't get my free trip to Jail with my MODE! I demand a refund!

I myself have moved on to emulation, but I love seeing this stuff, my big worry for the disc systems has always been the drives and discs themselves. We are at the point where almost every disc system has a SD or HDD load, and I love it. Almost makes me want to get back into original hardware again.

Still one of the best gaming channels on RU-vid through all these years. Thanks Joe, for putting out this quality content year after year. Your fans appreciate it!

I was specifically looking for a product that will give me a guaranteed jail sentence so this comes really handy cuz pirating is too hard for my tiny brain.

Since I've already got a GDemu for the Dreamcast I'll most certainly pick this up for the the Saturn. Very exciting times to live in. We may be in the Golden Age of gaming right now!

Awesome overview Joe... Looking to get a couple of these myself when they are back in stock!

I am definitely one of those people who likes to play on original hardware, so thank you for showcasing this. I even have a Saturn with a broken optical drive.

Tou are my favorite YT channel. Congratulations.

I can't take my hands into a Saturn but if I can in the future, I will add this for sure ! Saturn is the most amazing computer architecture ever used in a console, all others are quite a different due to their generation but for the era, Saturn was IMPRESSIVE !

Great review Joe! I just installed one into a Sega Saturn. Some info no one seems to mention, you can use a usb extension cable and route it out the back expansion port for hot swapping external drives and usb sticks. I'm only using a usb 2.0 extender and I didn't notice any difference with load times compared to using the sata or micro sd ports.

I bought one of these when they were first announced some months ago, and I just received it last week. As I don't want to put the whole Saturn library on a hard drive, I'm using a micro SD with an extender since you otherwise can't reach that slot without removing the lid. Anyway, it works sooooo well, albeit with some trial-and-error. ISOs from certain, let's say sources, just wouldn't work for me, and the MODE would NOT load them. I've found ripping the games off of a real disc via ImgBurn provides the most consistent results for getting Saturn ISOs that boot every time (except for my Bug! disc for some reason). One minor complaint I have is the size factor of the MODE board itself. On my US Model 1 Saturn, I found that it was a very tight fit vertically, since placing the board too far back would block the cartridge slot, but placing it too far forward would make one of the sticky mounting pegs rest on the ribbon cable that goes from the mobo to the controller port, and this made me incredibly uncomfortable. I hope future MODE revisions can downsize the board if that's even possible, and maybe place the micro SD slot where the unnecessary USB port is.

“Just make sure your dreamcast has a 0 or 1 on the bottom, if it has a 2? Well you can go straight to hell.” 😂

I have one for my saturn and after the fw update beta file its been perfect to play with no issues at all. The multi disc thing may have been you holding A and setting up a few games as disc queue but if not that was a strange thing to happen haha 😆

Gotta watch every game sack video. Even the ones covering stuff I'm not necessarily interested in are must-sees for the humor alone. You're killing it Joe!

Happy Gamesack day

Huge props for using Rayman music in the introduction!

i wish there was such product for PS2 slim!!! (i know there are other ways to play iso on ps2, i just don't like the drawbacks and compatibility)

Funny thing about that ending; I got my Dreamcast (pre-order) at my local Electronics Boutique...on 9/10/1999, since that was my payday. I still have my original DC, though the drive is kaput (I use a spare DC).

I got a Satiator for my Saturn. It's got some drawbacks: it's more expensive, only takes SD cards, more basic menu, fewer features. However, the main reason I got it (aside from wanting to support all of the work that Dr. Abrasive did to create this wonderful little thing) is that it doesn't require any modification of the console. It just slides right into the MPEG slot on the back of the Saturn. I'm no stranger to opening things up and doing modifications. I'm not worried about a difficult install or anything. But like Joe, I do have a bunch of games on disc and my Saturn works perfectly, so I really didn't want to just chuck those parts away for something like the MODE. Additionally, the SD card thing is not that big a deal, as I've already put most of the games I want to play on a 64 GB card I had laying around. I will likely just buy a 128 GB card for it, as that should be plenty of storage space for me. I don't actually want ALL of the games on the card, as there are some games that I will either never want to play or would rather play on a different console. I will likely get a MODE for my Dreamcast. It's also still working perfectly, and I lament having to remove the drive, but at least the install is less complicated than the Saturn's and I will just store the optical drive in a safe place. I like the ability to use a SATA SSD since Dreamcast games are usually a bit bigger. Interestingly there's now an option to use the MODE with the PSX, but the XStation is half the price. XStation also is limited to microSD cards, but it has some cool features like over-the-air updates via WiFi. I will probably eventually get a 512 GB card or something similar for PSX games, which is only a fraction of the size of the full library, but there are likely a LOT more games that I'll never want to play for PSX than almost any other console I own. I like having lots of games to play at my disposal but often find it overwhelming if there are TOO many options, so I'm sure that will be plenty of space for me. Then I just have to get around to buying a Mega SD, an Everdrive 64, an FX PAK PRO, and a bunch of HD Retrovision component cables for all of my different consoles!

That may be my favorite post-credits sequence you've made. It's the exact right kind of silly.

I love that Mr. Bones music near the start of the video.

Of all the consoles I used to own, it's the Dreamcast and the Nintendo Gamecube I miss the most that was such an awesome generation for consoles. I still have my Gamecube but all the cables are missing, but my Dreamcast just vanished I have no idea where it went and that sucks. It was such an awesome system.

"Show yourself, demon!" LMAO! 😂

I've got a GDEmu Dreamcast on its way in the post. I've recently gone in on a GameCube SD2SP2, EZ Flash Omega IV for GBA, and Ever Drives for my Mega Drive and N64. I think they're all amazing products in terms of sheer preservation efforts.

I think it’s pretty awesome. Installation looks easy enough. Even comes with the rubber feet 👍🏻

I have mine coming in the mail soon and can’t wait to put it in one of my spare Saturns! I have a mod chipped US model 2 and a stock JP Hi-Saturn model 1 (both with dead lasers), AND their respective, fully functioning stock consoles. Can’t decide which one is gonna get it! I couldn’t score a Rhea/Phoebe from the maker and was not going to pay the ridiculous scalper prices online for one either. This awesome alternative came in at the right time. Thank you for showing a visual of how a multi-disc game is supposed to be shown in the folder. This takes away a lot of the guesswork. Maybe in the future you can do an ODE comparison video with the MODE, Fenrir, Rhea/Phoebe, and the Satiator (when it’s released). Great vid as always, Joe. This makes mid-weekends special!!

Looks like a quality product and good to have a few different options now for ODE for Saturn and Dreamcsdt. I have a rhea for my Saturn which works great but is a bit fiddly to set up the SD card. MODE looks so much easier to set up and organise your games.

Great episode. I find it fasinating there are modern solutions for these retro systems. I would love to see an episode that shows all of the Sega Saturn hardware variants. I learned that there are several different companies that made them and there are some unique differences between them. I still dont' know why they spent time to change the US Saturn Logo boot-up menu and controller that no-one liked.

Nice choice of background music. Rockman X4 - Magma Dragoon

Loved the ending skit. Maybe your best one yet.

That ending cracked me up. Thanks for the great content and laugh

"Not only am I hearing voices, these voices think it's 1999!?" Dead.

Man.. these ending skits are pure awsome!!!

14:28 Inside your brilliant yet twisted mind, Sir.

God, what a beautiful end skit. Show yourself Demon!!

Pretty funny that they gave a toggle to slow down the speed of the drive emulation (something almost everybody can live without) with something that many people would feel they can't (disabling the sound effects).

The Rhea and Phoebe don't have to boot into Action Replay, then menu, then full boot again. Does basically everything the Mode does and more.

Joe sums up the internet at 12:28: "Or you can just emulate them 4 freeee lolol u r so stoopid". :D Great episode, Joe.

The ending where he screams, "WHAT IN THE HELL!?!?!?!" as the voice is talking to him cracked me up. I always stick around after the credits to see these scenes. :)

Even though it's not for me, I'm really pleased to see these devices. The optical drives will probably be the first thing to break on these consoles given the moving parts, and we'll run out of donors eventually, it's a less intrusive way of keeping an old console going.

I'll keep and enjoy my discs on Dreamcast as long as things work. That goes for both discs and the drive. Once either part dies, I can still start modifying my console. Otherwise, there is ReDream which suffers from the same issue both GDemu and the MODE suffer from, the missing feeling of changing discs.

for dreamcast there is a homemade mod that allows you play from sd cards (not recommended because is not fully compatible and runs too slow) the ide mod is recommended but it can be messy and if you want to make an extra mod you can add a second bios so the dreamcast wont have to run dreamshell from the gd drive.

Pretty cool product. Maybe with future updates Terra Onion will add the option for adding emulators.

Finally I can deck out my Saturn. I ordered a new one 6-7 years ago and waited for a proper SD solution.

I need this in my life and I missed the initial sale like a chump. Now gotta wait on more to become available. Saturn is the last console I don’t have a flash cart or drive for and am stoked this came out.

I'm been interested in terraoinon mode since it was announced.I been thinking about selling off my dreamcast collection and replacing it with a mode.Disc based consoles don't last forever and with the rise of ode devices it's perfect timing.

For anyone wavering, the price of the MODE is like the price of 1-2 popular Saturn games. Well worth it if you don't feel like spending thousands on ebay for a decent collection. I got one, it's pretty damn great so far. Definitely install the optional power though, my games were working, but freezing and had messed up audio until I installed it.

I would love to own this but holy crap, appx. $215.00!? Thats quite expensive!

9/9/99 for $199.99. It was an innovative system, easy to develop for, and had online play. Sega really learned from their mistakes and did everything right. Should have been very successful.

Come on game sack! Almost at 300k subs with over 30k views on the first day. KEEP GOINGGG

This is another awesome episode. The MODE sure is pretty awesome I feel. Thanks Joe

nice to see an alternative to the rhea and phoebe for saturn owners[even if installing it is a bit involved], but it being able to work with the dreamcast is a nice bonus.

As usual great video Joe. Keep up the great work. I usually prefer emulation myself, but I may end up getting one of these because I have a Dreamcast locked away in my closet that I would love to play again. It's awesome you cover stuff like this because I personally would likely never know about it otherwise.

Just been watching this even though I do have a MODE in both Saturn and Dreamcast. And yeah I know I can emulate them (and sometimes still do) by sometimes I like to "unplug" and rock it like it was the 90s again and play on actual hardware. Something worth mentioning though there is a Saturn iso that will allow you to backup the internal savegame RAM to MicroSD and back, this is handy as the Saturns battery lasts for like a week. (Sarcasm) unless you have the solid state memory mod. Either way 100% recommend MODE.

tbh, on the list for next tax season. had no idea this was a thing! I love how game sack introduces us to new stuff, especially for hardcore gamers and collectors! the wry humor and upbeat narration is great, too. :)

That’s an interesting idea, there are tons of virtual disc drive software for PC, and this seems to do just that, it’s really interesting.

Fitted mine to my Saturn, very impressed although getting a 2.5 SSD to work has been so far unsuccessful... despite adding the optional 5v. Still even on a micro SD the load times are impressive, and it's going to keep my Saturn going for decades to come :D

"Make no mistake about it, I WILL be going to JAIL"... lol Never change Joe!!! Love your brand of humor. :) TAAAAAAATE MODE!!!!!!!

That skit at the end was really funny

I have a MODE in my Dreamcast. I also have GDEMU. I prefer MODE cause it can be updated and works well. Since my GDEMU is a clone it cannot be updated, so whatever issues it has cannot be fixed. MODE FOR THE WIN!

Those menu bugs look relatively trivial to fix. It's fantastic that these ODEs exist now. I don't think I ever dreamed of it back in the day.

Can anybody please compile all the instances in which Joe tell us to go straight to hell? That shit's so funny

Still miss Dave :( maybe bring a feature soon? Keep up the great work!

I want to express my appreciation to Joe for actually putting a summary of the video in the description, instead of _SIGN UP FOR SKILLSHARE TODAY WITH THIS AFFILIATE LINK_

Sack still going strong and keeping up the quality. 👊

For now my Dreamcast is still working fine with good ol' regular GD-ROMs but I could see myself getting a MODE somewhere down the line. First I really need to get over my fear of opening up my Dreamcast and give it some of the TLC it deserves.

That ending skit... 🤣😂🤣😂🤣

Looks cool. I love the Dreamcast, but I've had multiple units/CD drives die on me over the years. As much as I love the idea of having physical discs, this looks like the way to go.

I'm glad there's competition in the Saturn ODDE space

I see a sack I hit like...

That ? Mark is probably a hidden file on the drive to see it you have to select 'show hidden files' with your drive hooked up to a PC.

Nice video Joe, this kind of ODE's are cool to revive your consoles but the problem maybe for most of us is the price. I agree that swapping that device every time you want to play force you to keep the console open and that's not OK also in some way they are forcing you to buy 2 devices for each console. I do have gdmenu for dreamcast and hdmi mod and I love it, super fast load times in my opinion and no problems with any game I have loaded. For my saturn I have the '' all in one'' ram cart and the same, no problems reading games and I can just remove it from my USA console and use it on my Japanese saturn and it works the same with any game region. Thanks again for this video.... I wish the menu for this devices looks like the redream emulator for dreamcast on pc, very organized and the software download the cover for you online.

Good review, definitely going to get one of these for both systems.

I bought 2 Modes and I am happy with that, despite the fairly steep price. There are some alternatives but none that I found reliable or accessible enough so I was quick to preorder and I got them a couple of weeks ago. I want to play on real hardware because of the relative ease of use compared to emulation. I already have a couple of CRT TVs so it's just a matter of powering on and getting into a game.

I'm impressed how you always manage to break out of jail after each episode! You should start to call yourself *Jailbreak Joe* ;D

The end skit is Joe in the far future, and the voice is Joe from the past, he uploaded the narration through internet explorer

This is actually pretty cool. I maybe looking to pick a couple of these up later down the road. As much as 416 fro two of these is quite the price to pay. If you're looking to play the actual game on actual hardware, you're going to be out oh so much more. With the increasing cost of keeping optical drives running I would like to see these for several other disc based consoles.

Joe, your folder issues are related to MAC trash files, FINDER on your MAC is creating trash files all over your SSD, so MODE sees you have several files inside a folder, aka thinks you have multiple isos inside the folder so it sees those as multidisc games.

I already have a Mode for my Saturn, its almost a God Sent. I liked it so much I already have another Mode ordered for my Dreamcast.

I've bee using a Pseudo Saturn cart to play burned Sega Saturn games to protect my legit copies. I've been thinking about the MODE, but perhaps after it has been put through its paces a bit. I have the GDEmu and I really like it a lot. I have the clone version, that was only $40 and as long as you get the right SD card, no problems at all. Great show Joe!!!!!! Tell Dave he needs to COME BACK!!! :-)

If I had a ton of money and can order online, I’d definitely order two alongside a Sega Saturn and a new Dreamcast, controllers, memory cards and everything, I’m a sucker for this stuff and these products albeit expensive are well worth the value as they’re helpful in the long run.

If I ever have the spare cash I'll consider one for my Dreamcast. I really wish they would make one for the PS2, as man o man the lasers in those things are the worst.

The beard is looking fantastic!

Huh, I might pick one up for my Dreamcast Kiosk. It is a pain to unlock the case and remove the disc just to play another game on it.

Yes He mentioned Hyperspin! Baaaybaaay!