We did it last year - and fucked up big time. Oh well, let's see if we can do a slightly better job of predicting what will happen for Sega, the gaming scene and the world in general during the year of 1998.

Gary's predictions for 1998:

Sega's new console will have a simultaneous worldwide launch on Saturday November 21st 1998

It won't be called Dural, Katana, Dragon or anything we've heard before

It will cost £199 when released ($199 in the US)

Five games will be available on launch day: Sonic 2000, VF3 Ultimate Edition, Worldwide Soccer '99, Sega Rally 2, Tomb Raider 3

Geri from the Spice Girls will gain 70 pounds in weight during 1998

England will win the 1998 World Cup, beating Brazil 2-1 in the final, (American readers please note - it's a football thing)

VF3 will finally be released on the Saturn during 1998... but only after the 'Dural' version appears so that nobody cares if it's any good

I will win 8.7 million pounds in the UK lottery, and retire to a luxury apartment in Monaco

'Dural' will come with a built-in modem as standard

But Internet gaming will still be rubbish

Elvis will finally be returned by Alien abductors marked "Return to Sender"

Jon's predictions for 1998:

Sega`s new console has a funky colour scheme and some excellent games, but the Euro market is made to wait until 1999, with an expected release price of 279 pounds.

The amazing Daytona 2 is the best of the initial Dural releases.

The Spice girls spontaneously implode and Scary spice is the only one who has a successful solo career in the music biz. The others go on daytime TV shows and tell us how it was a `great time in their lives` etc. Loads of Spice merchandise is dumped in a big hole in the ground.

England make it through the group stages of the World Cup, only to lose in another penalty shoot-out. Teddy Sheringham is the culprit.

I win 15.5 million on the lottery and annoy Gary by getting a bigger boat than him, and mooring it alongside his in Monaco.

UK:R are listed in the credits of at least one videogame.

New Saturn games start to become extremely rare around May, and the magazines frantically try to come up with something to write about because they have nothing to review.

Sega finally wake up and release a `deluxe` version of Sega Rally for the Saturn, featuring 5 new tracks and some new cars.

VF3 is released in Japan in April and it`s on a graphical par with Fighters Megamix, but doesn`t feature the multi-level arenas. Members of the Tecmo `Dead or Alive` team are drafted in to help with the conversion which has been languishing in a half complete state in the AM labs for over a year.