Author Archives: George

Sonic 2 ex-artist shows off unapproved SEGA pitch for ‘Spellcaster’ fighting game

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We have been covering all the SEGA Technical Institute pitches that Sonic the Hedgehog 2 artist Craig Stitt has been posting over at the SEGA Retro Gaming group on Facebook. First he showed off his pitch for Sonic’s partner called Boomer, then he showed off Astropede and now he is showing off a pitch Craig Stitt did with programmer Dave Sanner back in SEGA’s 16-bit days. The game was set to be called ‘Spellcaster’ and was meant to be a two player combat game based around the use of magic. The gimmick would be that the game would have a musical component in that players had to press button combinations to cast a spell but each button would play a musical note.

The idea would be that players would have a easier time doing complicated button combinations if they were based around sound. According to Craig Stitt, the pitch was put together after Sonic Spinball was completed and was rejected, this is when Craig Stitt began working on his Astropede pitch. Check out some of the artwork Craig Stitt did for Spellcaster below:

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Sega Technical Institute’s Canceled “Treasure Tails” For SEGA Genesis / Mega Drive Screenshots Hit The Net

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We have been posting a lot about Sega Technical Insitute’s canceled projects including Boomer an unused Sonic 2 side kick, Astropede a canceled pitch 16-bit game and now we have Treasure Tails which was a cancelled pitch by Sega Technical Institute. While these screens is all we have, at first, it was said to be pitched by Bill Dunn but Craig Stitt has come out and said its not true.

Check out what Craig Stitt had to say:

Continue Reading ➜

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Segapede/Astropede cancelled SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive gets over 12 minutes of prototype footage posted online

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If you haven’t been keeping up, SEGA Technical Institute artist Craig Stitt has been posting quite a bit of lost video game concept art and now prototype footage of a game he pitched SEGA at first called Segapede and later renamed Astropede. Its a very interesting project since it seems Craig wanted this to be a part of the Sonic universe and even used ideas from Sonic 2 with a twist, for example each pod that follows you contained a power and if you got hit you would lose a pod. A very similar gimmick to Sonic’s rings.

Continue Reading ➜

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Panzer Dragoon: Remake heading to PS4, PC, and Xbox One by end of year, also coming to next gen consoles

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It looks like Zbigniew Dębicki, CEO of Forever Entertainment, the company that has created the Panzer Dragoon: Remake and will be doing The House of the Dead remakes sooner than later, has spoken about the game coming not only to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One; but also next generation consoles like PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. In a newly translated chat with the CEO by Panzer Dragoon World, the plan is to release the PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One by the end of the year:

According to the CEO, Panzer Dragoon: Remake is set to be released on other platforms like PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC (non-Stadia version) by the end of the year, but we will also be getting a PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X versions later down the line. I can already hear Limited Run Games salivating at all the different releases (oh, hi Josh). We shall see, Panzer Dragoon: Remake launched on March 10, 2020 on Nintendo Switch.

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SEGA Technical Institute’s Canceled 16-Bit Game ‘Astropede’ Revealed for the First Time

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SEGA Technical Institute had a short life at SEGA with the team being responsible for games like Kid Chameleon, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Sonic Spinball, and a lot of canceled project. Some of these we know about, one that we didn’t know about has made it online for the first time ever. This canceled game was called “Astropede’ and was shared by artist Craig Stitt on the Facebook group ‘SEGA Retro Gamers’

“The only surviving video of ‘Astropede’, a game I pitched and went into production at SEGA (STI) circa 1994. Unfortunately after 14 months it was shelved after being starved to death by a lack of resources. The character had a train of pods with various power ups that would be pulled behind him. If hit, the pods would fly apart similar to Sonic and his rings. (my original intent was to have it be part of the Sonic universe) Somewhere I have a playable prototype… I just have to find it and hope it can be made to work!“

We have some assets that Craig has shared, including this concept art that really makes it seem like a ‘Sonic type’ game (hit the break to see that!), the animation loop on top of the page and he even found a protoype of the game… will he share it online tho?

Continue Reading ➜

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Craig Stitt shares his ‘Boomer the Turtle’ designs that were cut from Sonic the Hedgehog 2

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Craig Stitt has been posting a lot of old video game content on the SEGA Retro Gamers Facebook group, if you don’t know Craig Stitt worked at SEGA Technical Insitute on Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Kid Chameleon, Sonic Spinball, Spyro the Dragon and many more games. He was also one of the artist at SEGA Technical Institute that was part of the competition to create Sonic’s buddy, for the sequel, which we all know was won by a Fox we all know as Tails. But did you know that Craig Stitt designed “Boomer” or as the document called him “Boomy” as competition for the orange fox?

“For Sonic 2 we needed a buddy / player two for Sonic. This little guy was my submission. He would have been tough with the shell, but vunerable, needing Sonic’s help, if he got flipped on his back. He would have helped out Sonic by being able to ‘fly’ if Sonic pushed him up to speed. Then Sonic would jump up and ride on his back over lava, spikes etc etc.” – Craig Stitt

When we did notes for the SEGA Talk Sonic the Hedgehog 2 podcast, we talked about “I wonder what Boomer would have looked like” and I love that Craig Stitt posted these documents so I can rest easy. So what you think of Boomer the Turtle?

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SEGA’s President & Chief Publishing Officer Kenji Matsubara resigns

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It seems that SEGA’s President and Chief Publishing Officer from SEGA has resigned this week as it was revealed via a short press release from SEGA-Sammy. The reason for his departure was listed as “personal reasons”, whatever that means. Matsubara held a few roles at SEGA like initially working as CTO for SEGA Network division before he was appointed COO of SEGA Games in 2017. He was named President and Chief Publishing Officer only four months ago, on April 2020 and has already resigned. Not a great look.

Before this Kenji Matsubara worked as CEO for Tecmo Koei and Zynga Japan, so he will most likely find work easy enough after leaving SEGA. What is your thoughts on the sudden departure of Kenji Matsubara?

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Koei Tecmo’s financials suggest Persona 5 Scramble: The Phantom Strikers is coming west

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You know one thing that companies don’t mess around about, that’s their money. According to the latest Koei Tecmo’s financials presentation, it was listed that Persona 5 Scramble: The Phantom Strikers would be coming to North America and Europe for PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch. The issue? No release window announced.

While Persona 5 Scramble: The Phantom Strikers was published by Atlus in Japan, it was developed by Koei Tecmo’s studio Omega Force.

Would be interesting to see if Koei Tecmo or Atlus publishes this title.

[Via: Gematsu]

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SEGA News Bits: Yakuza: Like A Dragon Gets English Voice Cast, Release Date and More

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Today was a big day for Yakuza: Like a Dragon fans, as SEGA has finally went ahead and given us a big portion of the English voice actors that will be featured, plus we got a release date and several editions of the game being promoted. Check out all the news and catch the conversation as we talk everything Yakuza: Like a Dragon on this episode of SEGA News Bits.

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Waiting for Shin Megami Tensei V? Atlus announces 2021 world wide launch window

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Shin Megami Tensei V was a huge deal to fans when it was announced as a exclusive for the Nintendo Switch all the way back in January 2017 during a Nintendo Direct. We learned that the game was also being developed Unreal Engine 4, which the team said would help with development and lead to less trail in error. I don’t know what happen since then, but the team has been silent until today’s Nintendo Direct Mini.

We also got a new trailer, showing more footage of demons and our team we will be playing as. Atlus has also confirmed that it will get a simultaneous world wide release, meaning we will get it day one with Japanese audiences. Very huge announcement.

“The time for creation has come, follow your will and decide the world’s fate. The newest entry to the classic RPG series from Atlus, Shin Megami Tensei V, arrives exclusively on Nintendo Switch as a simultaneous worldwide release in 2021!“

It looks at least we got a release window for Shin Megami Tensei V, I’m more excited for it. Now, can we get a release YEAR for Bayonetta 3 and Metroid Prime 4?

[Via: Siliconera]

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Shin Megami Tensei III Nocturne HD Remaster heading to PS4 and Switch Spring 2021

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During the Nintendo Mini Direct earlier today, Atlus and SEGA announced that they will be making a HD remaster of Shin Megami Tensei III Nocturne which originally came out on the PlayStation 2 back in 2003.

From the game description:

“Nocturne follows the Protagonist, a high school student in modern-day Tokyo, as he is transformed into a half-demon after the world undergoes Conception, an apocalyptic event triggered by a sinister cult to trigger the world’s rebirth in a new form. With Tokyo transformed into a Vortex World filled with demons, the Protagonist becomes instrumental to the schemes of the Reasons, beings who seek to remake the world in their image, and Lucifer, the lord of demons. The gameplay uses a turn-based battle system based on exploiting weaknesses, and a Demon recruitment system allowing the player to recruit demons found in the Vortex World to fight alongside them. “

I like that Atlus is getting more open to re-release some of their past games that weren’t really popular in the West, now that Atlus and Persona has become a brand name, it seems that Atlus are focusing on selling their older games that might have been overlooked. The game will also get a limited edition release in Japan.

[Via: Siliconera]

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Garou: Mark of the Wolves getting a physical release by Limited Run Games on PS4

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Garou: Mark of the Wolves, along with Street Fighter: Third Strike where both really great fighting games and both ended a ‘2D pixel’ style of fighting games. And boy, did the genre leave in a high note. I still consider these two games to be the best available on the Dreamcast. Not only was it a ‘end of a era’ of these type of stylish fighting games, but it was also the end of an era as a SEGA fan.

But we can still relive those fighting games on PlayStation 4 and if you dislike digital distribution you can get yourself a physical version of Garou: Mark of the Wolves later on this month. Plus Garou also got an update with way better netcode, so differently work supporting

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SEGA News Bits: SEGA Astro City Mini Arcade Revealed

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SEGA has just announced that they’re releasing a SEGA Astro City Mini Arcade machine, watch as George and Barry go through all the news we know so far including size, amount of games, confirmed games, accessories, and much more on this extra sized SEGA News Bits episode. Let us know what you guys think of the SEGA Astro City Mini Arcade  in the comments below.

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If you enjoy our SEGA News Bits segments and want to support us: Give us a sub and give this video a thumbs up so it shows up on more like-minded fans YouTube recommendations. You know, how that YouTube algorithm is.

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SEGA announces Astro City Mini Arcade, To Get 36 Classics

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Out of the blue SEGA Toys has announced the Astro City Mini Arcade via a interview with Game Watch Impress in Japan. You can read the interview where they talk about a lot of the Astro City Arcade cabinet history which was a cabinet released only in Japan so forget about this coming to the States (Hey, Sega!).

Some of the confirmed titles already include:

  • Alien Syndrome
  • Alien Storm
  • Golden Axe
  • Golden Axe: The Revenge of Death Adder
  • Columns II
  • Dark Edge
  • Puzzle & Action: Tant-R
  • Virtua Fighter
  • Fantasy Zone
  • Altered Beast

The cool thing about these titles is that this will be the first time Dark Edge and Golden Axe: The Revenge of Death Adder will get home releases! According to the interview this project started at SEGA back in 2018! It has also been confirmed that SEGA-AM 2 legendary composer Hiro will be making the sounds for this Mini console. There will also be support for HDMI out, microswitch joystick, replaceable balltop and even support for external controllers. The device will be pricey coming in at 12,800 yen ($119 USD), but according to the interview its made out of the same material as the actual cabinet. What do you guys think?

[Edit: Looks like Game Watch took down the interview because it was accidentally shared early. Oops.]

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Persona 5: The Animation Getting Blu-Ray Set This September With English Dub

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During the Aniplex Online Fest which was held during the Fourth of July weekend, we found out that we will soon be getting the Persona 5: The Animation Complete Blu-Ray Set.

If you have been waiting for the physical release of the anime, the Blu-ray will include all 26 episodes and two specials. This version will also have the original Japanese track and include a brand new English dub. The box set will also come with 12 art cards featuring the main characters. But all this will cost you $298.98. Yeah, expensive.

Here are also the voice actors for the English dub:

  • Ren Amamiya: Xander Mobus
  • Ryuji Sakamoto: Max Mittelman
  • Ann Takamaki: Erika Harlacher
  • Morgana: Cassandra Lee Morris
  • Yusuke Kitagawa: Matt Mercer
  • Makoto Niijima: Cherami Leigh
  • Futaba Sakura: Erica Lindbeck
  • Haru Okumura: Xanthe Huynh
  • Goro Akechi: Robbie Daymond

You can pick up Persona 5: The Animation Complete Blu-Ray on September 29, 2020.

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