Google killed support for the Dreamcast web browser after 25 years

Shenmue protagonist holding dead character grieving

(Image credit: Sega)

I don't know anything about you, reader. You and I are perfect strangers. Except, I do know one thing about you: you did not get to this article from a Google search using the PlanetWeb 3.0 browser on a Sega Dreamcast, the greatest console ever manufactured, because that's no longer possible as of this week.

The browser, which launched in 2001 and came with the console as a pack-in, was probably not a popular way to browse Google. I assume it was mostly a novelty even when the Dreamcast launched, though it was the rare console with an official keyboard peripheral (how else are you going to play The Typing of the Dead?) and even a big MMORPG in its first-party software lineup.

Sad news guys. After over 25 years of support, Google has finally discontinued support for Dreamcast web browsers. ☹️ pic.twitter.com/3FEKtNWtO1December 14, 2025

While perhaps sad, this isn't the result of some anti-Dreamcast campaign within Google. As Tom's Hardware put it, "Google closed a PlanetWeb browser compatibility window that had somehow remained ajar for a quarter-century."

It's hard to pinpoint exactly what happened and when, though users online are stating it's been like this for a while, and that it's impacted similar console browsers (the New 3DS's, for example). In the end, that it worked for this long is more surprising than the news of it shutting down.

If you need to connect to the internet on a Dreamcast or play one of its online games today, none of the homebrew methods for doing so are impacted by this change. It's just a bit harder to surf the web using the console, but I don't see why you'd care about anything the internet has to offer you once games like Shenmue and Space Channel 5 are on the table.

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Justin first became enamored with PC gaming when World of Warcraft and Neverwinter Nights 2 rewired his brain as a wide-eyed kid. As time has passed, he's amassed a hefty backlog of retro shooters, CRPGs, and janky '90s esoterica. Whether he's extolling the virtues of Shenmue or troubleshooting some fiddly old MMO, it's hard to get his mind off games with more ambition than scruples. When he's not at his keyboard, he's probably birdwatching or daydreaming about a glorious comeback for real-time with pause combat. Any day now...

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