Everybody wants to hear the latest news on the Dreamcast. Based just upon the daily volume of letters this reporter gets proves that it continues to be the most popular topic on the Net. As the Japanese launch date nears, that anticipation is expected only to grow.

　　Fan-run web sites have sprouted up everywhere and now are filled with rumors, news, and discussion of the Dreamcast and its games. But with that have come faked screenshots and hoax announcements related to the machine. Some are no more than PowerVR game screens, which are then turned into "Dreamcast" screens by individuals looking to capitalize on the machine's popularity. One of the fake screens has even made it all the way to print.

　　So why are these fake screens being perceived as real? Seth Collins, webmaster and editor in chief of Dreamcast Extreme, told us, "because we're desperate for news. Some days it seems the most important Dreamcast news that comes along is 'X Company Might be Developing for DC.' When you really get to thinking about it, that's not very newsworthy. So when a supposed picture comes along, everyone jumps at the chance. In your excitement that the picture might be real, you forget the all-important 'might be' and concentrate on 'real.'"

　　One example of these is Silent Trigger, a game that was floated around as being developed by a company called Edge Creations, which later turned out to be a hoax. The screens were nothing more than the PC version of Koei's Enigma, which is PowerVR compatible but isn't currently slated for the Dreamcast.

　　But that's not all. There are a number of pictures making their way around that are not actual Dreamcast images.

　　Sega representative Dan Stevens told us that Sega is actively looking at pictures, screens, and video circulating the Net, and that it is requesting non-Sega-sanctioned images be taken down. However, one webmaster told us that he had only been contacted to take down a video clip of the Tower of Babel demo - and was never contacted about fake or hoax images.

　　"Obviously we want good images running online, and it's flattering that people are looking high and low for images to put online," Stevens told us. "But I can tell you that when we do release official screens, they will look 100 percent better than what you see out there now."

　　One thing that is making it easier for faked pictures to be believed is the simplicity of several officially announced Dreamcast titles like Sengoku Turb, Seventh Cross, and Pen Pen Tri-ice-lon. These still shots are about as impressive as a screen someone could make up on home rendering software packages.

　　More Dreamcast information will be released in the coming months, especially at the system's public showing at the Fall Tokyo Game Show in October. But Brian Gray, editor in chief of Katana Edge, told us, "I'm a bit surprised that more Japanese information hasn't flowed as easily. We're a mere 133 days away from the Japanese launch, and we haven't heard anything about the way the modem will play out in Japan."

　　Collins sees this as all part of the process of building the hype for the system. "Look at the hype has built in this country... and imagine what it's like in Japan where the system is on its way in a few months. Sites that are based solely on the system can get 600 hits per day... and they are covering an unreleased console! Not only that, but one that is a year or more away in this country. With that kind of buildup, once the games are announced, everyone will be ready to kill someone to get their hands on the system. I think Sega planned this just right."

　　So beware of faked Dreamcast images when surfing for information. Many fan sites are already aware that fake screens are circulating, so you'll likely hear words of caution next to nonofficial screens (or those not scanned from Japanese magazines).