If there’s one game that perfectly encapsulates the rebellious spirit of the Dreamcast, it’s Jet Set Radio. It’s a colorful, high-octane game where you play as a gang of rollerblading graffiti artists tagging local landmarks to strike back at the cops, a mega-corporation and even the military. The premise is silly, but the gameplay is fun and the vibes are immaculate. JSR is a very Y2K-era game. The atmosphere is all about youthful rebellion, but wrapped in cheery optimism. There are lots of characters to unlock, and seeing each new member of the team’s design is just as exciting as their stats. You can collect numerous graffiti tags to add to your repertoire, or design your own. This is such a cool feature, and being able to upload them to the internet was especially impressive for console kids like me back in the year 2000. Despite the simple premise of “spray things while avoiding the man”, there are several mission types to keep the gameplay fresh. You sometimes have to race rivals, impress them by pulling off tricks on your skates, or tagging them personally. It’s a game that can be beaten in a few hours, but there are a few bonus levels for each area and hidden characters to provide lots of replayability. The thing I love most about Jet Set Radio is hard to describe, because it’s the pure soul that pours out of the game. Play it, and I guarantee you’ll feel the love for art that the developers put into it. It was the first major video game to use cel-shaded graphics, and I think the visuals are timeless. The characters and environments are so vibrant and pop out of the screen. The music is also top-notch, featuring a mix of original songs by the brilliant Hideki Naganuma and licensed tracks. I don’t know how you make a medley that includes metal band Cold and hip-hop group Jurassic 5 and have it sound like their music was meant to go together, but this soundtrack pulls it off. The whole game is brimming with artistry and the infectiously fun attitude of the time period, and booting it up instantly puts me in a very happy place.