 Development of the Saturn began in 1992 , the same year Sega 's groundbreaking 3D Model 1 arcade hardware debuted . Designed around a new CPU from Japanese electronics company Hitachi , another video display processor was incorporated into the system 's design in early 1994 to better compete with Sony 's forthcoming PlayStation . The Saturn was initially successful in Japan , but failed to sell in large numbers in the United States after its surprise May 1995 launch , four months before its scheduled release date . After the debut of the Nintendo 64 in late 1996 , the Saturn rapidly lost market share in the U.S. , where it was discontinued in 1998 . Having sold 9 @.@ 26 million units worldwide , the Saturn is considered a commercial failure . The failure of Sega 's development teams to release a game in the Sonic the Hedgehog series , known in development as Sonic X @-@ treme , has been considered a factor in the console 's poor performance . 
