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Background

The Sega Saturn was a console created by Sega to rival Sony's PlayStation that lasted from 1994-2000 in Japan (1995-1998 in North America, Europe, and Australia), with sales of 9,500,000 units (compared to over 100,000,000 PlayStation systems). While the system was successful in Japan, it wasn't as successful in North America and Europe due to a series of poor decisions done at Sega (such as forcing up the launch of the console to mid-1995 as opposed to the holiday season and Bernie Stolar's infamous "five-star game" policy). While the console has gained a cult following, it is more often remembered for Sega's disastrous choices in marketing it.

Contents

1st Logo (November 22, 1994-December 4, 2000)	2nd Logo (April 1, 1995-December 4, 2000)	3rd Logo (May 11, 1995-1998)

1st Logo (November 22, 1994-December 4, 2000)

Visuals: Over a black background, many glass shards zoom in and encompass the screen. The camera then rotates, and immediately afterwards, some of the shards come together and form the serif text "SEGASATURN", with the "S" in the center having an abstract design and is larger than the other letters, and both "A"s lack horizontal lines. A bright light appears (a red lens flare can be briefly seen), and as it dissipates, it is revealed that the logo is now set on a steel gray background. The "S" also has a red-black gradient. A small blue circle with a black "S" that surrounds it appears on the lower left corner of the screen. Next to it is a copyright stamp for Sega Enterprises.

Variants:

If one presses a button (mainly Start) while the startup is playing, the animation would skip to the flash and the music fades out. This also happens with the rest of the other startups.
On Victor/JVC-made systems (called V-Saturn), the pieces of glass move differently and the logo reads "V-SATURN" instead (with an entirely black "S") in a serif font. It has the same music mentioned below. Also, the copyright stamp reads "© SEGA ENTERPRISES, LTD. 1994, 1995 Ver. 1.01". The V-Saturn was never released outside of Japan, though.

Technique: Real-time CGI.

Audio: Three loud synthesized notes (reminiscent of Also sprach Zarathustra), with the sound of glass breaking at the beginning, and a synth warble (if there's no game disc in the console).

Availability:

This appears when one turns on an NTSC-J (Japanese and Asian) Sega Saturn console.
The V-Saturn variant is exclusive to Japan.

2nd Logo (April 1, 1995-December 4, 2000)

Note: This is an alternate logo that appeared on Hitachi's Hi-Saturn consoles.

Visuals: On a space background, there are two mirrored images of an odd shape zooming in towards the camera, rotating into place as they do so. They pass the camera, but a few seconds later, return, and it's revealed to be the serif text "HISATURN", colored gold. When the logo is in place, a bright flash can be seen, turning the 3D serif text "HISATURN" into a 2D version, and the space background becomes a blue starburst-sky background. As in the previous logo, the small Saturn logo appears on the bottom left, but now, there are two copyright stamps next to the small Saturn logo: "© SEGA ENTERPRISES, LTD. 1994, 1995 Ver. 1.02" and "© Hitachi, Ltd. 1995" below that.

Technique: Again, real-time CGI.

Audio: An ascending synthesized sounder is heard, then a harmonic synth choir plays.

Audio Variant: If there's no game in the console, the same synth warble on the Sega Saturn/V-Saturn plays.

Availability: It appears on the Hi-Saturn line of consoles, which along with V-Saturn only saw release in Japan. While Hi-Saturn and V-Saturn consoles can be found on online auction sites, they are generally expensive due to their limited production.

3rd Logo (May 11, 1995-1998)

Visuals: It's similar to the first logo, but the shards' animation is noticeably different. They instead form the blue circle from before, albeit with a silver "S". Below it are the white words "SEGA SATURN" (which are stacked on top of each other) and a copyright stamp for Sega.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: A 5-note synthesized tune (the first two notes are repeated a second time), followed by a long whoosh, a brief clanging sound, and a synthesized choir.

Availability: This appears when one turns on an NTSC-U (North American) or PAL (European or Australian) Sega Saturn console.

◄	Sega Mega Drive/Genesis Sega CD/Mega-CD

Sega Saturn

Dreamcast

►

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 ===Background===
-The Sega Saturn was a console created by [[Sega (Japan)|Sega]] to rival Sony's [[PlayStation]] that lasted from 1994-2000 (1995-1999 in North America and 1995-1998 in Europe), with sales of 9,500,000 units (compared to over 100,000,000 PlayStation systems). While the system was very successful in Japan, it wasn't as successful in North America and Europe due to a series of poor decisions done at Sega. It has a cult following in North America and Japan, but is more often remembered for Sega's disastrous choices in marketing it.
+The '''Sega Saturn''' was a console created by [[Sega]] to rival [[Sony Interactive Entertainment|Sony]]'s [[PlayStation]] that lasted from 1994-2000 in Japan (1995-1998 in North America, Europe, and Australia), with sales of 9,500,000 units (compared to over 100,000,000 PlayStation systems). While the system was successful in Japan, it wasn't as successful in North America and Europe due to a series of poor decisions done at Sega (such as forcing up the launch of the console to mid-1995 as opposed to the holiday season and Bernie Stolar's infamous "five-star game" policy). While the console has gained a cult following, it is more often remembered for Sega's disastrous choices in marketing it.
-=== 1st Logo (November 22, 1994-December 4, 2000) ===
-'''Logo''': On a black background, we see pieces of glass flying all over the screen. Suddenly, the camera takes a sharp turn to the left, and the pieces of glass form an abstract "SEGA SATURN", with the second "S" being larger than the rest of the letters and the top half is red, and both "A"s not containing a horizontal line between the legs. When it's finished, a bright light flashes, turning the black background into a {{Font color|#43464b|steel gray}} background, and in the bottom left corner, a small {{Font color|blue|blue}} ball with a black S-shaped ring surrounding it, next to a copyright-- "(c) SEGA ENTERPRISES, LTD. 1994 Ver. 1.00" all appear.
-'''Variants''':
-* If you press a button (mainly Start) while the startup is playing, the animation would skip to the flash and the music fades out. This also happens with the rest of the other startups.
-* On JVC-made systems (called Victor Saturn), the pieces of glass move differently and the logo reads "V-SATURN" instead (with an entirely black "S"). It has the same music mentioned below. Also, the copyright reads "(c) SEGA ENTERPRISES, LTD. 1994, 1995 Ver. 1.01". The V-Saturn was never released outside of Japan, though.
-'''FX/SFX''': The glass, camera movements, flash and the metallic background, which are all in real-time.
-'''Music/Sounds''': Three rising synthesized notes, with the sound of glass breaking at the beginning, and a synth warble (if there's no game in the console).
-'''Availability''': Uncommon. This appears when you turn on an NTSC-J (Japanese) Sega Saturn console. Rare for the V-Saturn variant.
-'''Editor's Note''': This is a favorite among Sega fans.
+{{ImageTOC
-=== 2nd Logo (1994?-2000?) ===
+|Sega Saturn (Japan).png|1st Logo (November 22, 1994-December 4, 2000)
+|Sega Hi-Saturn.png|2nd Logo (April 1, 1995-December 4, 2000)
+|Sega Saturn.png|3rd Logo (May 11, 1995-1998)
+}}
+===1st Logo (November 22, 1994-December 4, 2000)===
-'''Note''': This is an alternate logo that appeared on Hitachi's Hi-Saturn console.
+<gallery mode="packed" heights="200">
+File:Sega Saturn (Japan).png
+File:Sega V-Saturn.png
+</gallery>
+{{YouTube|id=https://youtu.be/lw8wZhtj9Do|id2=https://youtu.be/w_NPXDrCJwE}}
+'''Visuals:''' Over a black background, many glass shards zoom in and encompass the screen. The camera then rotates, and immediately afterwards, some of the shards come together and form the serif text "'''SEGASATURN'''", with the "S" in the center having an abstract design and is larger than the other letters, and both "A"s lack horizontal lines. A bright light appears (a red lens flare can be briefly seen), and as it dissipates, it is revealed that the logo is now set on a steel gray background. The "S" also has a red-black gradient. A small blue circle with a black "S" that surrounds it appears on the lower left corner of the screen. Next to it is a copyright stamp for Sega Enterprises.
-'''Logo''': On a space background, we see two mirrored images of an odd shape zooming in towards us, rotating into place as they do so. They pass us, but a few seconds later, return, and it's revealed to be the text "HI-SATURN", colored {{Font color|#d4af37|gold}}. When the logo's in place, a bright flash can be seen, turning the 3D "HI-SATURN" into a 2D version, and the space background becomes a {{Font color|blue|blue}} starburst-sky background. As in the previous logo, the small Saturn logo appears on the bottom left, but now, there are two copyrights next to the small Saturn logo: "(c) SEGA ENTERPRISES, LTD. 1994, 1995 Ver. 1.02" and "(c) Hitachi, Ltd. 1995" below that.
+'''Variants:'''
-'''FX/SFX''': All the animation in the logo, which again is all in real time.
+* If one presses a button (mainly Start) while the startup is playing, the animation would skip to the flash and the music fades out. This also happens with the rest of the other startups.
+* On Victor/JVC-made systems (called V-Saturn), the pieces of glass move differently and the logo reads "'''V-SATURN'''" instead (with an entirely black "S") in a serif font. It has the same music mentioned below. Also, the copyright stamp reads "© SEGA ENTERPRISES, LTD. 1994, 1995 Ver. 1.01". The V-Saturn was never released outside of Japan, though.
+'''Technique:''' Real-time CGI.
-'''Music/Sounds''': An ascending synthesized sounder, then a harmonic synth choir is heard. Again, if there's no game in the console, the same synth warble on the Sega Saturn/V-Saturn plays.
+'''Audio:''' Three loud synthesized notes (reminiscent of ''Also sprach Zarathustra''), with the sound of glass breaking at the beginning, and a synth warble (if there's no game disc in the console).
-'''Availability''': Extremely rare, appears on Hitachi's Hi-Saturn console from Sega. But unfortunately, this is only sold in Japan. You can look on eBay for Hi-Saturn consoles, but the prices are quite high.
+'''Availability:'''
-'''Editor's Note''': This is another favorite of many.
+* This appears when one turns on an NTSC-J (Japanese and Asian) Sega Saturn console.
+* The V-Saturn variant is exclusive to Japan.
+===2nd Logo (April 1, 1995-December 4, 2000)===
+[[File:Sega Hi-Saturn.png|center|frameless|308x308px]]
+{{YouTube|id=3bgxwWMS8S8}}
+'''Note''': This is an alternate logo that appeared on Hitachi's Hi-Saturn consoles.
-=== 3rd Logo (May 11, 1995-1999) ===
+'''Visuals:''' On a space background, there are two mirrored images of an odd shape zooming in towards the camera, rotating into place as they do so. They pass the camera, but a few seconds later, return, and it's revealed to be the serif text "'''HISATURN'''", colored gold. When the logo is in place, a bright flash can be seen, turning the 3D serif text "'''HISATURN'''" into a 2D version, and the space background becomes a blue starburst-sky background. As in the previous logo, the small Saturn logo appears on the bottom left, but now, there are two copyright stamps next to the small Saturn logo: "© SEGA ENTERPRISES, LTD. 1994, 1995 Ver. 1.02" and "© Hitachi, Ltd. 1995" below that.
-'''Logo''': It has the same background and the same pieces of glass as the first logo, but the pieces of glass move differently and form the Saturn logo ({{Font color|blue|blue}} ball with a S-shaped ring), but this time bigger and above the ''SEGA SATURN'' text, and with the ring silver instead of black. "SEGA SATURN", stacked, can be seen below the logo after the flash. Below the text, we see the copyright "TM & (c) 1995 SEGA. All rights reserved."
+'''Technique:''' Again, real-time CGI.
-'''Trivia''': This logo was used at the end of various adverts for Sega Saturn games in the UK in the late 1990s.
+'''Audio:''' An ascending synthesized sounder is heard, then a harmonic synth choir plays.
-'''Variant''': A piece of text would fly by the screen halfway through the logo animation. This text was usually a hint or cheat for the game advertised (E.G. adverts for Sonic R told the player how to unlock Super Sonic)
+'''Audio Variant:''' If there's no game in the console, the same synth warble on the Sega Saturn/V-Saturn plays.
-'''FX/SFX''': The pieces of glass flying around and forming the logo.
+'''Availability:'''  It appears on the Hi-Saturn line of consoles, which along with V-Saturn only saw release in Japan. While Hi-Saturn and V-Saturn consoles can be found on online auction sites, they are generally expensive due to their limited production.
-'''Music/Sounds''': A synthesized "twinkling" chime-organ tune, followed by a whoosh, then what sounds like a jail cell door closing.
+===3rd Logo (May 11, 1995-1998)===
-'''Music/Sounds Variant''': A voice-over saying or yelling "Sega" at the end of it. The VA varied advert by advert, but adverts for any of the Sonic games used the classic "SEGA!" tune.
+[[File:Sega Saturn.png|center|frameless|316x316px]]
+{{YouTube|id=7o6nbyGRBgM}}
+'''Visuals:''' It's similar to the first logo, but the shards' animation is noticeably different. They instead form the blue circle from before, albeit with a silver "S". Below it are the white words "SEGA SATURN" (which are stacked on top of each other) and a copyright stamp for Sega.
-'''Availability''': Common. This appears when you turn on an NTSC-US (North American) or PAL (European or Australian) Saturn console.
+'''Technique:''' CGI.
-'''Editor's Note''': A good take on the Japanese startup, along with its animation and calming theme makes this logo another favorite.
+'''Audio:''' A 5-note synthesized tune (the first two notes are repeated a second time), followed by a long whoosh, a brief clanging sound, and a synthesized choir.
+'''Availability:''' This appears when one turns on an NTSC-U (North American) or PAL (European or Australian) Sega Saturn console.
+{{Chronology|Sega Mega Drive/Genesis<br>[[Sega CD/Mega-CD]]|[[Dreamcast]]}}
-[[Category:Japanese logos]]
+[[Category:Japan]]
 [[Category:Video game logos]]
 [[Category:Japanese video game logos]]
-[[Category:Sega (Japan)]]
+[[Category:Sega Sammy Holdings]]
 [[Category:Console start-up logos]]