Jet Set Radio

Jet Set Radio (known as Jet Grind Radio in North America) is a 2000 action game developed by Smilebit and published by SEGA for the Dreamcast, celebrated as a landmark of cel-shaded visual style. Set in a stylised, near-future Tokyo, it follows a gang of rebellious inline-skating youths, the GGs, who tag the city with graffiti, defy an authoritarian police force led by Captain Onishima, and clash with rival gangs, all to a now-iconic soundtrack fusing J-pop, funk, hip-hop and electronic music. Gameplay combines fluid skating and grinding across rooftops and streets with rhythmic graffiti-spraying performed via directional inputs, blending traversal, style and light combat-avoidance. Jet Set Radio is widely credited as one of the first games to popularise the bold, comic-book cel-shading technique, and its punky attitude, kinetic art direction and music made it a cult classic that profoundly influenced game aesthetics. It spawned a sequel, Jet Set Radio Future, and was re-released in a high-definition version in 2012 for modern platforms including consoles, PC and, as POCG covered, iOS and Android. Beloved by fans, the franchise has remained a frequently requested revival and an enduring symbol of the Dreamcast's creative spirit. Its influence on cel-shaded art and skate-culture aesthetics endures, and fans have long campaigned for a full series revival.