What Made Jet Set Radio Great?

In my very first video essay let's talk about a game that's very near and dear to my heart. Jet Set Radio on the Sega Dreamcast, and what makes it's so great.
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I'm currently writing a few more video essays, but if you have a topic you want discussed I'd love to hear what you have to say.
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Twitch ► /QlvrFox
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Twitter ►@QlvrFox
#JetSetRadio #VideoGames #Sega

[@Exavyas]

My favorite part about the original Jet Set Radio was the strategy behind it. Once you tag a certain amount of graffiti spots the cops come after you. This means it's a better idea to explore the level and find the bigger graffiti spots that take longer to tag, and save the small easy spots for when the cops come. It really encourages you to explore and learn the level and to make a plan. I loved planning out different routes to see how fast I could tag everything.

[@osvaldo8393]

Zachary Bason dude that’s so true It was so hard sometimes Like when you had to skate on top of buildings and find your way around , I was so young so it seemed really hard lol

[@Picnicl]

It's nice to have necessary strategy but I prefer it to be optional to access extra stuff. The Dreamcast game was too hard.

[@Petergonzaleztv]

you just explained this game to me, as a kid I didn't know what the fck was going on

[@Sega_Dreams]

@@osvaldo8393 As a 19-year-old, I thought it was hard! But I loved the challenge.

[@rodjerdankist1125]

100#! I did eventually beat this game as a kid, but it took exactly this strategy. You almost had to get the hard tags first on the later levels. That final boss was intense as well.

[@superswag9861]

*Jet Set Radio for Smash Bros Ultimate*

[@StaticFox64]

That would be sick lol

[@PoboiDraws]

QlvrFox I know it’s not gonna happen but if it did I’d probably cry

[@lightspaceman5064]

Only if they were making a new game. Which would be the greatest set of events of all time.

[@PoboiDraws]

SOLDIER_6 very happy tears

[@blanksheet3404]

I've been repeating "Put JSR on the switch" nonstop for the past three days now

[@kbckj]

When I was young this was my epitome of what being cool was. The way they moved, the music they listened to, absolutly everything blew me away and to this day I hold this game close to my heart.

[@vegasvanga5442]

same, I took up skating because of it, I still skate to this day lol

[@nb4y407]

When I first finished JSRF I was a bit disappointed by the lack of difficulty that made the first game's gameplay so good, but once I thought about it and replayed I''ve come to the conclusion that JSRF is just easier to finish, but that it has its good amount of challenge when trying to 100% complete it, so in the end, I think it's actually the best choice. It gives both a unique open world without the time limit-induced stress and the fun and challenge of the hidden tapes and graffitis.

[@STAXONDECK1]

The characters and general look of original are way better especially Professor K

[@SpeedDemonPowerage98]

NB4Y well JSRF made up for that with the music “cough cough” Concept of Love.

[@EthanBradburyVlogs]

@@SpeedDemonPowerage98 Jsrf improved on every aspect of Jsr

[@Picnicl]

The Dreamcast game has a purer cel shading look and is so crisp. However I prefer the easier difficulty level and increased speed yet more laidback feel of Future.

[@Cakemarvelous]

@@STAXONDECK1 well i think future more shadowy tone give more nuance to the cell shade, also I really like the interpretations of the characters, and i'm a bit sad sega never acknowledge this game

[@EmilXOM]

I pretty much still replay this game every three months or so. It never ceases to be a fun time.

[@cheesewheel]

It's so fun to play, even though the controls can be a pain in the ass sometimes

[@EmilXOM]

@James Brincefield Ha, I already have both on CD ;)

[@cappyanon6086]

Haha, Jetsetradio.live actually had a scrolling message that links to this video. Neat.

[@StaticFox64]

Sweet!

[@marvindavinho]

Jet set radio does so much right, and does so much unique stuff, that even with some flaws. I can't help but say the game is in fact a masterpiece. (not pefect, but amazing.)

[@pedro-paint]

Great video! I'm currently playing Jet Set Radio and even though i didn't experience the early 2000's, I can't help but to fall in love with the game aesthetics and what it represents. Great to see that there are still many others that share this feeling. Keep it up with this great content!

[@Canalbiruta]

The game is fatastic for sure. Is hard not to get full head on in the world of this game, with its aesthetic and ost. Character design is also great (is already 3 years and i still use Gum as my wallpaper lol yeah i love the characters from jsr)

[@NathanA]

@@Canalbiruta yo nice profile pic 🐒

[@Canalbiruta]

@@NathanA i mean... I want something more than banana blitz aushuahaha

[@acidpunk955]

I've honestly lost count of how many times i've beat this game (for refference i beat the game a moment before watching this video) good video man, here's hoping sega does something with jet set in the near future.

[@0utrunner237]

The art and soundtrack. That is legitimately it. Anyone that actually played the games knows the endless horror stories behind the controls.

[@joeill620]

Experiencing that right now 😭 wish I could tell you how many times I messed up jumps

[@serinsarp86]

it is still a fun game if you ask me

[@somejabroni51]

Haven't played future and it is pretty frustrating at the beginning, but hey I actually think its pretty fun when you start to understand all its quirks. It's definitely a flaw for a game to really only become fun by the time you've mastered it, but IMO the music and art carry you up to that point and it is really fun once you're good enough at it. Edit: oh, except for the levels added in the American version of the game. Those fucking sucked. The original 3-4 (I forget how many) are really good.

[@streetrage]

Not JSRF. JSRF had perfect controls and responsiveness.

[@shotbyfabi]

Yeah, I must have been blinded by the music, graphics and my love for inline skating and graffiti. I've tried to play it on PS Vita and on my PC, and it's unplayable.

[@p5rsona]

to this day it is the most creative, unique, fun game imo. what they did with the limitations they had is simply astounding, considering how amazing it still looks and feels. I really wish someone would do an hd remaster of the game.

[@ianlove3217]

Comparing the Jet Set games is interesting because even though the actual gameplay of Future is a lot cleaner and smoother, I tend to prefer the first anyway. I think this has to do with the style and direction; I never could get into the redesigns in Future, and the increased list of stats on each character made trying out new ones unnecessarily intimidating. The colors are also too muted, and the soundtrack varies a lot more wildly in terms of quality (some of the songs are perfect, and some of them are Birthday Cake). I think the one thing presentation-wise that Future did better was DJ Professor K. The redesign is actually pretty good, and even though it's the same voice actor playing him, you can tell that the voice direction he was given was far better. He's genuinely fun to listen to, and the development team must have been aware because you get to hear him during the levels instead of just in between them.

[@pyrolee17]

Birthday cake is the music equlivient of Stockholm syndrome

[@starlitexo]

The HD version was better tbh

[@MagillanicaLouM]

I agree heavy about the tone and aesthetic of the original being my preferred. I just finished my own long comment on why but yeah, I just think it's a better capture of the era the games were made in and just makes me more nostalgic for it. Future is still cool though.

[@cirrostratus7721]

"The movement has been patched in later ports" Me crying when I miss the jump in benten-cho for the 10th time on pc

[@gigisweet6316]

Xbox game of JSRF will always be the best 100%

[@statomic]

When I was around 5 or 6 I remember being OBSESSED with this one game which had super cool skating and nice graffiti everywhere. I played as the guy with yellow t shirt green glasses (I thought he was so cool) and once I moved out of the place I lived in at that time and moved to Canada I always looked for the game that I adored when I was that young. 13 years later I find a scene of the game online with the SEGA logo on it. Today I look up "old skating Sega game" and found the intro to the game (2002) and now I see your video with the man in yellow and with green glasses and start crying, nostalgic of a time I thought was forgotten. To find out this game was the masterpiece I thought it was, thank you. This game shaped my future and personality

[@myriggatony]

It's really crazy to me how I was like 3 or 4 years old when I first played Future and still have the same amount of love for it to this day. I grew up with the game and cherish what it is. It even got me rollerblading again and I painted a pair with graffiti from both games. Sega doesn't even need to do any more than port it to newer consoles and just fix some issues and I'll be happy.

[@tethys17]

Splatoon was the first game to give me a similar feeling as JSR. The music, the art style, it's definitely inspired by it in some way. Also Bomb Rush Cyberfunk is practically a new JSR.

[@1gnore_me.]

I wouldn't be surprised if it was made by a few of the same ppl who worked on this game, once Sega left the console business a lot of developers migrated over to Nintendo.

[@Zyger-xn3df]

@@1gnore_me. i think Bomb rush is from reptile, not Nintendo.

[@1gnore_me.]

@@Zyger-xn3df I meant splatoon

[@Zyger-xn3df]

@@1gnore_me. oh ok lol, my bad

[@pringrings22]

2:14 Ocarina of Time catch me at that one. I think that game's a MASTERPIECE.

[@NihongoWakannai]

Really? You don't think it could be improved at all by modern game design practices or graphics?

[@pbase36]

There are those that play games the for the "challenge." Getting top rankings in online PvP, doing speedruns, etc. Then there are those that play games for the "experience." Open world immersion, exploration, soundtrack... for those of us in the latter, JSRF doesn't fall short in any way, even with the graffiti being nerfed. Not everyone cares about "beating the game." JSRF is more of an artistic experience IMO. I really couldn't care less about the challenge.

[@breakbursttrigger]

It was unlike anything we had played before. To this day, it is still a very unique experience, and JSRF certainly brought a new and different take on that unique experience; making it more special. This video was very well done and informative! Awesome work!

[@37Kilo2]

This is the only Dreamcast game I still own, and it's proudly displayed on my shelf. I was 19 when this released, I bought a Dreamcast for $99 from my local Game Stop, and ended up pirating this game, not knowing what it was. I immediately fell in love, and played this from sun up to sun up. Then I played it some more. This game was miles ahead of everything else, in every department; art, music, style, gameplay. Everything it did was awesome. I enjoyed the sequel on Xbox, but it didn't quite feel the same. I'm not sure if it was because I was a bit older and had moved on, or it wasn't as good. I've since replayed it and love it, though. These games make me nostalgic for a better time.

[@aloofshrug]

JSR//JSRF//Getting Up... Waiting on the remakes, so i can feel alive again.

[@Theprinceofopposites]

Check out Bomb Rush Cyberfunk, it's essentially a new JSR coming out soon. Same game play, art style, and nagamuna music. Looks epic

[@JamalBlakk]

One of my favorite game series. Do you think the holdup on "Future" getting a re-release or remaster is because of music licensing?

[@karabartley]

That's the rumor

[@jcabem]

Nah, it's the soft sales of JSRHD

[@JamalBlakk]

@@jcabem The reason I don't think that's the case is because SEGA could have made the game backwards compatible on Xbox and Microsoft would have done all the work. SEGA had nothing to lose doing that, but they didn't. That why I'm thinking it may be the music licensing. Because doesn't the remaster of the first game not include all the orginal music because of the very issue?

[@jcabem]

Jamal Blakk With how BC works on XBO they list it digitally which would cause for re-licensing. Sega could obtain the licenses easily if they opened up their pockets. It’s more likely they’re afraid of not getting a return on their investment from licensing imo. It’s not like the songs are unavailable.

[@JamalBlakk]

@@jcabem Well, that's my point. It's about music licensing.

[@f4yk8413]

A new game that as been announced for 2022 is Bomb Rush Cyberfunk, a game that keep the essence of Jet Set Radio and I want to play it since 2021

[@mischief_speaker1942]

I have a lot of thanks to these games for giving me my sense of creativity The games soundtrack and artistic view drew me in and made me want to see what it can do after listening to the OST I could listen to nothing except it for 7 months because nothing compared to it. But most importantly the way Jet Set Radio Future’s World was presented it’s obvious it’s a representation and not the actual world which open my mind to what I eventually made my career into, a artist and musician and helped me when I was mentally out of it and allowed me to not lose that childlike creativity Jet Set Radio Future didn’t just burn the streets in graffiti it burned a symbol into us saying “never lose what makes you unique” and I forever hold it in that place for my heart

[@Phillyjoe2]

Fantastic video and a lovely tribute to one of my favourite games of all time. I actually found your video when I was searching JSR's soundtrack as I am currently compiling my own list of favourite video game soundtracks of all time for my channel, and this sits proudly in the top ten! I love this soundtrack so much that I listen to it in the car! Good game too if not great, but as you rightly point out in your video its such a great piece of pop culture, combining graffiti, roller blading and the killer music for that period. Have now subscribed, thank you for this video! Altogether now - JET SET RADIOOOOOOOOOO!!!

[@xman777b]

phenomenal. Best JGR retrospective I've been able to find. And comparing JGR to JSRF was icing on the birthday cake. Thanks.

[@StaticFox64]

xman777b No prob!

[@apexshinbi638]

I don't think I ever played JSR (as I was born around the time of release), but I remember seeing Beat(?) in a racing game or sum and I was like "Damn that guys cool af I wish he had his own game"

[@emongev]

Naganumas new song for Lethal League is incredible!

[@Moocman]

Hey man, thank-you for this video. It's clear you care deeply about this game and you've done a great job convincing me to check it out :^)

[@stickizonline]

For your first video essay, this video was great!

[@mdrstudios7067]

There is also the fact that the voice actors of the game became voice actors for Sly Cooper.

[@KrispyRootbeer]

I honestly had to double take on your sub count it amazes me how you don't have more subscribers with this quality of content keep it up!

[@nSpiraliArchitectb]

Terran you have a real knack for retrospectives. I'd love to see more of this kind of content from you. Either way, thank you for this wonderful look back on a game very close to my heart. It made my day.

[@StaticFox64]

Contrail Thanks! I loved making this video, and I’ll definitely do more of these soon.

[@NTEDOG561]

Thank you for tackling this game I wanted someone to talk about it

[@alloverdaplace2043]

I'll playing this now on my fold 4. What a great nostalgic feeling

[@daphne-blue]

Dude I knew your name sounded familiar! Pretty sure we both went to HCHS. Great analysis by the way; I was feeling nostalgic for JSR and your video hit the spot. Can't wait to see your channel grow ✌🏼

[@jessicagomes4043]

I played this so much in my teens! I was so obsessed 🤩

[@GoutPatrol]

The closest musician that I found that has that "Naganuma" sound is The Go-Team. You listen to that first album made entirely from samples, it feels like it was made just like JSR.

[@chloeg6534]

king

[@juanroaguilo]

most underrated game ever, amen!

[@lucinaburgos2284]

little fun fact: the "viva la revolucion" sample in the song is also used in a song from the cyberia mix in Serial Experiment's Lain soundtrack!

[@peacegawd5192]

Honestly the its cause the soundtrack slapped and the characters all were cool and unique

[@elijahr4848]

This video is great! I hope you get more views on it as it really touches as to what JSR is. Bravo.

[@DBLaury]

I still have my JSRF & Xbox. That’s the only reason why I don’t sell my xbox is because I can play this game whenever . Hard to find anywhere now

[@rascalthecat666]

jet set radio future for life

[@PizzaDad]

Damn. I had a video essay on Jet Set Radio about to come down the pipeline. But I'm glad you beat me to it! This video is really spectacular. I'm glad that someone else has so much love for this game.

[@milindsharma317]

This was a well researched video, great work!

[@C1999]

1:36 in my opinion honestly, beck's "midnite vultures" album reminds me so much of jsr

[@austinmendez3101]

I never knew there was another game that was not "future". So I never knew beat was the og starting character. He was always my fav

[@_Takirro]

Great video man! You deserve more subs. I never played JSR but I’ve played future and I wish sega gave a studio the green light to make another.

[@lCYU81]

Now we just gotta wait for Bomb Rush Cyberfunk from Team Reptile.

[@PhillyCYOSports]

It’s a testament to the game that it is still considered great despite some of the worst controls of any skating game ever. With perfect controls it would be an A+. As is, it’s a B+ cult classic

[@1gnore_me.]

splatoon is probably the closest a game has come to matching the same musical energy as this game

[@lightspaceman5064]

Maybe it's just my taste in art style but this is one of the best looking games of all time.

[@Sega_Dreams]

I think the visual style holds up extremely well. I've been playing it on Steam the last couple days and have been blown away by how good it looks. You might also have great taste. 😉

[@matthewgoodman434]

Who's ready for bomb rush cyberfunk babey!!!

[@chloeg6534]

you deserve way more subs, this was amazing. would love to see more content from you in the future! oh, and hey akali.

[@VolparSwords]

Nice video. Can you make more jsr videos and possibly jsrf content?

[@StaticFox64]

I would love to! Maybe I’ll make a video just about the music. I’d like to make one about JSRF but capturing footage is very difficult

[@Eversence]

Did u beat it with Beat? :~]

[@mr.krakengard5014]

@@Eversence lol

[@Tangrowth_Fan]

This game, along with many other Dreamcast titles like Skies of Arcadia, Sonci Adventure and Sonic Adventure 2 , made my childhood a bliss. The console and games were hand me downs from my uncle and my brothers and I loved this console so much. Beat and Gum made me love rollerscating, Professor K made me love hip hop and so more. The music in this game was so catchy and so early 2000s despite the graphics and gameplay being ahead of it's time. It's such a shame that Sega havent dabbled into their older Dreamcast era titles in modern times and stop milking the Sonic franchise. Perhaps they could release a Dreamcast mini ehh idk I just want Sega to return to the times when they were willing to release original titles.

[@snarkyjay4744]

Great video! Look forward to the next one.

[@le563]

Personally i prefered the streemline nature of Future, the timer and analog griffiti mechanics made the game feel disjointed in my opinion, where future feels like a comprehensible world, not just stages ^^

[@pixelperfect9867]

The fact this guy only has like 400 subs is a crime

[@StaticFox64]

Pixel Perfect you’re nice ❤️

[@nuzzkue9371]

you did great my man. You did Great!

[@sorbet2363]

I wish they would remaster these games

[@indierockguitar6875]

This is an incredible presentation of a game that means a lot to me. Thank you so much. BTW. You have talent, and should have way more subs.

[@StaticFox64]

IndieRockGuitar I plan to make more vids soon. I appreciate that ❤️

[@indierockguitar6875]

@@StaticFox64 Look forward to it.

[@Mittens2317]

The music is basically Big Beat with some Japanese flavour. Though they're probably a little more mature in their sounds (and sometimes arguably darker), I'd recommend you look into Fatboy Slim, Prodigy, and Chemical Brothers. They may not be what you're looking for, but Prodigy in particular are fucking mega.

[@lvideos1398]

12:49 It actually is possible to play JSRF on PC through the CxBx emulator and the shell shading style is beautiful when its scaled up to higher resolutions. I grew up with an og Xbox and JSRF amazing game !

[@shrippie-4214]

0:45 hey i saw that Changing the Volume xD

[@ilovewhatidoforyou]

I don’t feel like this game is dated. I just wish certain mechanics were tighter, like the floaty movement when jumping.

[@Theofficialjaygolden]

Favorite Game of All Time

[@BlueTJLP]

If you miss the music of Jet Set Radio, give 2 Mello's music a listen on KZbin. I've never played the game, but after watching this video, I feel like his style really captures the one of JSR. He even intentionally replicates the style lately!

[@scourgeeditsidk]

I really do love this game a lot! The music was really good to. I'm just kinda sad the difficulty of the first game got lowered down in Jet Set Radio Future. But it's fine. I wish SEGA made a 3rd game. Also the cell shading is really sick.

[@reflectlight1368]

I listen to the soundtracks on youtube but never knew what this game actually was. I think ive misses out!

[@damaster4659]

I started playing jet set radio when I was 5 back in 2012 on my iPad

[@damionnightingale7793]

Did good on the video man. Loved JSRF but didn't play JSR till I found it on steam thinking it was Future. Prefer the freedom of JSRF over JSR but still new to it. Also GO YOYO!

[@jof410]

Daaaaaamn brother! 0:39 started moving my booty inmedtialy with that tune out of nowhere. God dude let me watch the video 🕺🕺🕺🕺

[@lizduarte6255]

Este juego me translada a una epoca mas sencilla, me gusto tanto que me hacia ver lo 2000 en todo, es asombroso :)

[@mariosergio2112]

Love the game so much. I beat it again on ps vita, suffered a littler bit by the dated gameplay. But it is great and people should play it.

[@Kazuma_Drake]

I might be biased since Future was my first game, but future was my favorite rather than the original I also like that Future has free roam

[@WeepingWillow1]

I know this is very late, but a band called Vulfpeck makes music vaguely similar to Jet Set's if your still looking for something like it, that's my recommendation.

[@kibbywitz]

Great job on the video. Jet set radio is like the only game from sega i enjoyed. I think jsrf is a bit more challenging. It makes more sense to paint graffiti faster because of the open world, there is so much you can do, and with cops hunting you down, its a pretty wild ride.

[@andressaenz7434]

That persona 5 background music is great ❤️

[@KrakenG927]

I learned about this game from lethal league blaze and it looks fun

[@tysonasaurus6392]

If you're looking for something that might scratch the JSR music itch, check out 2 Mello's album Memories of Tokyo-to, its definitely different but obviously heavily inspired by JSR, I equate it to being like a modern take on JSR's musical style

[@StaticFox64]

Tyson Williams I’ve heard! Pretty good tunes!

[@knucklesechidna2124]

Played both, love both.

[@kero_drago]

If you’re looking for some songs that match the energy of jsr then I recommend the ost from the anime Flcl done by “the pillows”. Songs like Runners High and Sleepy Head sound extremely similar to jsr, in a good way... check it out!

[@theminecraft2516]

And Sonic Rush 1’s soundtrack

[@kagelynx]

It's about understanding the concept..

[@Drbeckerproductions]

If jet set radio gets rebooted, I hope the Noisetanks take inspiration from Daft Punk

[@cristiangomezmontt6248]

I just hope we get this game ported to modern consoles

[@tankopop1332]

jet set radio was super innovative, check out my Let's Play of the whole game if you're interested!

[@Thatsegadude]

I cried when i saw tails in the sonic movie and i think ill cry if there is a new jet set radio game

[@burritobrosvideos8060]

Jet set radio future was a great game, much better than the original

[@RealRabidRabbit]

Awesome video, man!

[@jonwatts4892]

This video is great! Would it be possible to look into more games Hideki Naganuma composed for? There's some more recent ones that I think don't get as much love as they should.

[@megatechbody3207]

JET SET RADIOOOOO HERE WE GO!

[@alicemoon8126]

Cant wait for Bomb Rush Cyberfunk

[@Pixel-Cheese-Cake]

Jet set multiplayer is a solid continueation if fanmade

[@jinascension7036]

Might be late to say this but if you wanna play a even more multiplayer version of JSRF on pc. Theres a remake of JSRF called Jet Set Radio Future Multiplayer. You can have more than 2 people in a server and theres more game modes and characters.

[@logossmpvods6601]

Pls make more vids this is great

[@CodyVondell]

fav game of all time

[@richwilliams1863]

The unusual physics of the game never felt like a problem to me - after all, it's a cartoon