First up we have a new debut trailer for Hokuto ga Gotoku, which was revealed by SEGA via their live stream. This trailer has about six minutes of gameplay. We get to see a few things displayed in this trailer, including the “Pressure Point Action” system, various mini-games and even shows of Kenshiro racing in customized cars. Just like the Manga (wait, was that in the Manga?). Also, we see a SEGA Mark III console!
Seems that the latest issue of Weekly Famitsu was packed with new information, what a nice surprise before Christmas! Not only did they reveal Catherine: Full Body, but we also got more information on Valkyria Chronicles 4.
Earlier this month we shared the news that SEGA teamed up with The Yokosuka Action Promotion Committee to design a map of Yokosuka, Japan. Why? Well, because Yokosuka was the setting of SEGA’s hit game Shenmue. Since the game’s release, fans have visited the locations from the game, using fan made guides and videos. But now, SEGA has officially put their stamp on the region with this guide! The guide was originally Japanese only, but now we have the English language version, which you can download here.
Have you ever played a rerelease of a classic SEGA game and felt that it just didn’t feel quite right with a modern controller? Well we could be seeing classic SEGA controllers for modern hardware soon, as retro gaming hardware manufacturer Retro-bit has announced a collaboration with SEGA. The official press release states that the plan is to produce accessories for SEGA’s platforms which includes, but is not limited to, SEGA Genesis, Saturn and Dreamcast. The first products to be released will include accessories that match the quality of the originals, made for use on original hardware as well as USB for PC use and Bluetooth wireless. These new products will debut in the Innex booth #21023 in the South Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center during CES 2018.
This is very exciting, as games like Sonic Mania, Jet Set Radio HD and NiGHTS HD all would benefit from the original controllers. Also, the notion of a new Dreamcast pad for original hardware being made in 2018 is just sort of crazy and cool. Also, new USB Saturn pads would be amazing.
Read the full press release after the break
It was just the other day that a remake of Catherine was rumored to be around the corner. Surprise! Atlus has announced Catherine: Full Body for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita. This is being developed by a newly created studio, Studio Zero which is lead by Persona 5 director Katsura Hashino.
If you were a big fan of early Disney games in the 90s, you are in luck because we got two surprise releases on Steam. First up we got Aladdin, this one is actually a port of the Amiga version, which was also done by the same developer as the SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive game. One of the biggest differences between each version is the change in the UI, which is much larger on the Amiga version. I also prefer the sound of the SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive version, including the music since its different. You can check out a comparison here. You can pick up Aladdin here.
The other Disney game we got released was The Lion King, this version was developed by famed Westwood Studios for SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive, SNES, Amiga, and a ton of other platforms. Of course this is the Amiga version, which I do not prefer. I know there are some big Amiga fanboys online but personally think the sound is the biggest drawbacks from these versions. You can check out the differences between each version here. You can get your Lion King fix here. The games are 33% off since they barely launched, deal ends on Christmas.
SEGA and the team behind Phantasy Star Online 2 have revealed that the game will get Virtual-On unlockable items coming this upcoming February. This update is being released to promote the upcoming A Certain Magical Virtual-On crossover game hitting Japan during the same month. The thing is, Virtual-On already had items available in the game, way back in 2014 along with Shining Force Cross Exlesia. Back then it was released to promote the digital only re-release of Cyber Troopers Virtual-On: Force. It seems to be a re-release of the DLC, so if you play and missed it back in 2014! This Virtual-On DLC is pay for content…
SEGA also, according to the badly google translated description of the YouTube video, are celebrating 4.5 consecutive login-ins with SEGA ID. If you don’t know, SEGA ID is a service you have to sign up for to play Phantasy Star Online 2. I have also seen it used for some mobile games, so who knows if its just Phantasy Star Online 2 logins or if they’re counting anyone that just randomly logged into their SEGA ID account.
Yes, I know. I want Phantasy Star Online 2 in the west and no its not going to happen. Yes, it sucks. What else can we do about it besides play on the Japanese server?
The other day Dinosaur Games put out their Jet Set Radio Evolution Visual Proof of Concepts, showcasing what the studio wanted to do with SEGA’s IP. According to the studio, SEGA rejected the pitch without a explanation and they’ve now posted up their pitch online for fans to see. On this episode of the SEGA News Bits we go over all the news details regarding Jet Set Radio Evolution, talk about the team behind the pitch and give you our nitpicks on the pitch trailer. Let us know what you think of the Jet Set Radio Evolution pitch in the comments below.
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Sammy, the division within SEGA-Sammy that does pachinko and pachislot machines, which is why no one is really surprised that they announced a Valkyria Chronicles pachinko machine. SEGA’s console division is reviving the Valkyria Chronicles brand with Valkyria Chronicles 4 in 2018, seems that Sammy finds the IP enticing enough for a pachislot machine. Sammy previously did a Bayonetta pachislot machine in 2015.
As far as when its coming, we don’t know anything outside of ‘coming soon’. I guess no one here will get to or want to play a Valkyria Chronicles pachislot game. According to this tweet by Sammy, they will have a preview tomorrow.
There where many reasons why SEGA picked up Atlus, personally think one of the reasons was how well they did during the last console generation, especially when you consider the size of the publisher. Its not surprising that Atlus is being rumored as to bringing back a popular title from the PlayStation 3 era.
According to the report, this would be a sequel and/or continuation of the franchise in some sort of way. According to the source, there is also a chance that this could be a port of that PlayStation 3 game with extra content (see Dragon Crown Pro). The source also mentions that this title isn’t a numbered title and didn’t receive any DLC when it came out. Another hint in this report was that the title was teased a few months back.
So, what would the most educated guess be? Catherine! Catherine was a important title for Atlus in the PlayStation 3 era, I remember it was one of their first titles that I actually saw being sold in a store like Walmart and was a massive hit even tho the game was very niche in gameplay. According to Siliconera, a new Catherine was hinted at months ago, the title was popular and it didn’t have DLC. I think its safe to say its Catherine related. But a new game or a port with extra content? What do you want?
The YouTube channel for the game developer Dinosaur Games shared this Jet Set Radio ‘Visual Proof of Concept’ that they created, at first it was just models but when Sony saw it at GDC 2017, they said they where interested in seeing it in motion. This is the concept they created. The issue happen when they sent the video to SEGA to approve, according to them, SEGA rejected it. Here is what they posted in the description of the video:
“We made this Visual Proof of Concept after Sony expressed interest in seeing the characters in motion at GDC 2017. We spent a week animating and building the city for this presentation which was ultimately turned down by Sega.”
As for this being a ‘brand new Jet Set Radio‘, I have a few issues with what this Visual Proof of Concept showed. I’m not a huge fan of the ‘light’ outlines around the characters, the over use of green and how slow the speed feels. Though I do feel they nailed a lot of the presentation and ideas from both Jet Set Radio and Jet Set Radio Future. What are you’re thoughts on this ‘Visual Proof of Concept’ by the team?
UPDATE AFTER THE BREAK!
Atlus recently held a Etrian Odyssey 10th Anniversary Closing Talk Show in Japan, where they teased that they have a brand new Etrian Odyssey title for the 3DS to announce sometime in Spring 2018. It was also confirmed that this wouldn’t be Etrian Odyssey 3 Untold (Untold series is remakes of the originals).
We have known that Atlus has been working on another Etrian Odyssey title way back in September. Back then it was confirmed by director Shigeo Komori that it would be a ‘festival-like’ celebration of the franchise. Again Komori at the event discussed the new game as a “true culmination” with “map drawing to the point that its unpleasant”. If you never played a Etrian Odyssey game, drawing dungeon maps on the second screen is a part of its charm. He also teased that there will be unexpected content in this new game. Sounds interesting and it seems that Atlus isn’t close to giving up on the Nintendo 3DS. What are you’re thoughts going into 2018 with brand new Nintendo 3DS game announcements?
[Source: Gematsu]
SEGA and Humble Bundle have teamed up for holiday giveaway. What are they giving away? Company of Heroes 2 keys! What if you already have the game? According to Relic Entertainment’s blog, they want you to pick up a key for your friend and teach them how to play the game.
Get your free Company of Heroes 2 keys here.
According to the blog post, the number of keys are limited and there is also a time limit. I guess it will close either when they run out of Company of Heroes 2 keys or after a day and 20 hours (when this post goes up). If you ever wanted to try a Relic’s Company of Heroes 2 game, this is your chance to give it a go for free!
[Source: CoH’s Blog]
SEGA Japan has just announced that their upcoming Fist of the North Star based game, being titled Hokuto ga Gotoku, has been delayed. The game was suppose to come out on February 22, 2018 and now has been moved to March 8, 2018. Not a huge change. SEGA also issued this apology letter to fans and thank them for their understanding.
As to why Hokuto ga Gotoku was delayed, the apology letter doesn’t say anything specific. I have a few different theories, one being that the game might need extra time for development seeing as the studio just released Yakuza Kiwami 2 on December 5th. The other theory is that they might have moved it to March because A Certain Magical Virtual-On comes out on February 15, 2018, a week before Hokuto ga Gotoku was set to release. As for us in the West, we still don’t know if SEGA America plans on localizing it. I guess we will find out sometime in 2018.
[Source: SEGA Japan]
If you have been excited to try the upcoming A Certain Magical Virtual-On for the PlayStation 4 or PlayStation Vita, the demo is now available. As for sizes of the demos, the PlayStation 4 comes in at 2.37 gigabytes and the PlayStation Vita version hits a much smaller 431.55 megabytes. The demo will feature all 13 playable Virtuaroids from the full game, include a tutorial and CPU battle mode. No online, of course.
SEGA is set to release A Certain Magical Virtual-On in Japan on February 15, 2018. SEGA West hasn’t announced any plans on localizing it. The last Virtual-On title to come West was Cyber Troopers Virtual-On Oratorio Tangram port on the Xbox 360 back in 2009, so its been awhile. I say make a Japanese PSN account, try the demo and if you like it, bother SEGA to release the game West.