Microsoft will make its Windows CE Visual C++ Toolkit for the Dreamcast available from Sega of America for Dreamcast developers this week at the Game Developers Conference (GDC). The Toolkit allows game developers to build games for the system quickly and efficiently with the Dreamcast Game SDK.

　　Console developers who will be using the new toolkit include Acclaim, Hudson, Kalisto, Turbine Entertainment, and Sega. Out of all the companies using the toolkit, only Sega has announced an actual game - Sega Rally 2 - that will use the software to be ported to the US Dreamcast in our version of Sega Rally 2. The game also served as a partial testing ground for the software. Interest in the toolkit should be fairly high since it allows PC-game developers a simple conduit to building Dreamcast games.

　　Considering the widespread use of Visual C++ in application development, we wondered if single users would benefit from using Visual C++ and the Toolkit combo to build games by themselves or groups like Sony has done with the Net Yarouze. The idea has been talked about, and Sega hasn't decided if it will try to nurture game development outside development houses. The advantage of using the SDK and the Toolkit is that it could allow independent developers to run their games in software emulation without owning the needed Dreamcast hardware. And that would be a great deal less expensive than Net Yarouze with its US$800 developer's kit. For now, you'll have to sign get a developer's license from Sega to get the kit and start working on your game.

　　Microsoft will occupy a technology booth showcasing the new toolkit to potential developers, and it will show off the power of its latest network-enabled version of Rally 2 on the show floor. While we're interested in the development suite, we'll have to take a spin on the latest Rally.