More goodness over at Hardcore Gaming 101, which has an excellent precis of the Virtual On series, complete with rundowns of each of the titles in Sega's twin stick mecha franchise.

It's revealed: "Back in the mid-90's and the days of arcade cabinets, Virtual On was one of Japan's hottest games. Perhaps inspired by the fantasies woven by Yoshiyuki Tomino's excellent storytelling anime Mobile Suit Gundam (the first series, not that Gundam Seed nonsense or what-have-you), Virtual On took players into an engaging control scheme and mind blazing experience as they battled it out in lighting-quick mech battles. It was a cult-classic too, and people willing to forgive its minor shortcomings had a blast, although not everyone got to experience it, as the arcade renditions were somewhat pricey and weren't widely distributed in America. The whole series was created by Sega AM3, who were later renamed Hitmaker by the time they release the final game, Virtual On Marz."

"It was a wonderful time for us gamers, especially those who lived and breathed the arcade scene. Of the most mind-blowing gems from Sega, we got Virtua Fighter, Virtua Cop, and of course, Virtual On. Virtual Fighter had the punches, the kicks, and the throws. Virtua Cop had the shooting. Virtual On had robots - awesome robots designed by veteran mecha designer Hajime Katoki (who worked on various Gundam outings) that blew each other up and delivered a whole lot of bang for your buck. And really, who could ask for more?" Lots more good info if you click through!