Author Archives: Barry

Sonic Generations official logo and details REVEALED! UPDATE: Screenshots added

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From the SEGA USA blogs comes information regarding that trailer for that untitled Sonic game. Check it out!

SEGA America, Inc. and SEGA Europe Ltd., today announced details of Sonic Generations, the highly anticipated video game title in development to celebrate Sonic the Hedgehog’s 20th Anniversary. Delivering the definitive gaming experience for Sonic fans old and new, Sonic Generations sees Sonic the Hedgehog playable as both the much loved classic 1991 character, and the modern day video game hero he has become in this exciting new fast paced adventure. Sonic Generations will speed into stores for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and PlayStation3 computer entertainment system for Holiday 2011.

Set across three defining eras from 20 years of Sonic the Hedgehog video game history, the instantly recognizable environments of Sonic Generations have been re-built in stunning HD and are now playable in both classic side scrolling 2D from 1991, as well as modern 3D style found in Sonic’s most recent adventures. Each incarnation of Sonic in Sonic Generations comes complete with his trademark special move, Spin Dash and Spin Attack for Classic Sonic, and the Homing Attack and Sonic Boost for Modern Sonic. An innovative new interactive menu system allows for complete immersion in Sonic’s universe with favorite characters and hidden treasures gradually being revealed throughout the game.

“Sonic Generations will certainly be a fitting celebration for Sonic’s 20th Anniversary,” commented David Corless, Global Brand Director for Sonic. “By having the classic 1991 Sonic that many fans know and love team up with his modern day incarnation, we are bringing back the nostalgia of the early days of Sonic and combining it with the innovation and stunning HD technology of the modern gaming era. Sonic Generations will bring to life the last twenty years of Sonic’s universe in a truly unique and imaginative way.”

Sonic’s universe is thrown into chaos when a mysterious new power creates ‘time holes’ which pull him and his friends back through time. As a result, he encounters some surprises from his past history including Classic Sonic, Sonic as he was in 1991.

Modern Sonic and Classic Sonic must defeat this strange new enemy, save their friends, and find out who really is behind this diabolical deed…

Check out the official SEGA Blog post here. After the break, screenshots!

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If the blue blur’s next game wasn’t already confirmed to be titled “Sonic Generations”…

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If the leaked placeholder box art wasn’t enough for doubters, the websites sonicgenerations.com and sonic-generations.com now take users directly to SEGA’s website, giving the page the address of sega.com/games/sonic-generations. This pretty much confirms the title of the game, and hopefully means that SEGA is getting ready to release a formal press release, title reveal and (here’s hoping) screens and gameplay information.

Sorry to dissapoint those hoping it was going to be “Sonic Adventure 3”, lolz.

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5 SEGA Games Perfect for Kinect

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The Weekly Five is back! And this time it’s personal. Okay, it’s not personal, but it may just be a tad controversial. KINECT! Did reading that make your blood boil? Did it make you think of things like “laggy”, “casual” and “the death of video games”? Well if it did, you need to wise up. The Kinect has been around for almost 6 months now, it sold more than 10 million sensors and the video game industry is far from dead. Kinect may not have reinvented the industry, but it hasn’t hurt it in the slightest.

What more, having owned a Kinect since launch and having played ten titles so far (four of them were demos) I can honestly say that things like “lag” and “recognition problems” are not due to hardware problems, but rather fall on the early software. I’ve found that lag has been nearly wiped out in the main Kinect Hub, and is not a problem in first party titles and second gen releases. As software updates occur, the problems that were hardly problems to begin with have become greatly diminished. Anyway, this sort of discussion can continue in our wonderful forums. My point was that the Kinect is now at a great place, both hardware and software-wise, to support some of SEGA’s great franchises. What sort of SEGA games would be perfect for Kinect?

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Explore the World of Jet Set Radio Future!

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In my regular internet browsing, I came across a blog entitled JSRF Inside. The blog is dedicated to ripping models, textures and environments from the XBOX classic Jet Set Radio Future. What is so insanely cool about the blog is that the owner and model ripper provides a number of amazing images and files detailing every character, NPC, animal and piece of graffiti that litters the world of Tokyo-to.

Check out JSRF Inside and read more here

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Sonic Stories: CrazyTails

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In celebration of Sonic’s 20th anniversary, SEGAbits proudly presents a limited feature highlighting SEGAbits stories from writers and readers of how they got into the franchise and their history with Sonic. Want to share your Sonic story? Check out the dedicated topic in the SEGAbits forum.

Everyone must be aware of Sonic’s 20th anniversary coming closer with each day. I’m sure lots of you are very hyped up! It is the time where fans go ape shit for the smallest tidbit of news, a time where speculation can possibly turn into fan wars. Yeah, great times indeed!

I have pretty much established myself here at SEGAbits, so I feel honored being picked to share my story on how I’ve got to know SEGA’s mascot, SONIC THE HEDGEHOG! I hope ya’ll enjoy reading my story!

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Virtua Tennis 4 World Tour Trailer

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Direct from SEGA comes the latest trailer for the awesome Virtua Tennis 4. This has got to be my favorite trailer, as it shows off my favorite mode: world tour. It looks like the game will follow a board game sort of layout, where you are given a certain number of spaces to move. Some spaces feature autograph signings, while others feature tournaments, mini-games and (according to interviews) random muggings!

Also featured is the character creation mode, which looks pretty deep. You can squash, stretch and tweak the player’s face to resemble your own. I just know I’m going to spend a good hour making the perfect doppelganger. Then I’ll stick myself in tie dyed rainbow shorts, and take on the world.

Want to demo the game before release? PS3 owners are in luck! Details after the break.

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Rumor: Sonic Anniversary to be Titled “Sonic Generations”

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As with any rumor, take this with a pinch of salt, don’t shoot the messenger, etc.

The Sonic fan community is buzzing with word that the upcoming 2011 Sonic game, usually referred to as Sonic Anniversary, will officially be titled “Sonic Generations”. The rumor started when Spanish Sonic website Sonic Paradise reported that a magazine by the name of Hobby Consolas let slip that the upcoming Sonic game will be titled Sonic Generations and will be headed to the 360 (and though not stated, probably the PS3 as well).

To add to the rumor, Sonic Paradise reports that intermediary company EuroDNS SA., the company that had registered the web domains for Sonic 4 and Anarchy Reigns for SEGA, have registered the domain sonicgenerations.com and sonic-generations.com. Currently the sites link to nothing, but I did check their registrants and it’s true! The Sonic Generations domain is registered to the same folks who registered the Sonic 4 domain.

I’d say it’s an apt title. Video games are always grouped by generation, and in his 20 year history Sonic has been through many generations. With the game being rumored to feature 3D recreations of past classic levels, “Generations” fits.

[Source: Sonic Paradise, image created by Sonic Stadium member Hogfather]

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Metacritic Scores Individual Developers

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How annoying is it to get into an argument about how good a game is, only to have somebody throw a link to Metacritic at you? Well gamers can rejoice, as now that same thing can apply to arguing how good a developer is!

Metacritic has recently added the ability to search for individual developers, with each developer given their own score based on the games they’ve worked on. Of course, this is in no way a proper method of scoring how “good” somebody is, as even an assistant co-co-co-producer credit for an amazing game can bring up the score of an otherwise awful person. Also, some great retro games are not rated or credits are not yet given. For example, Morio Kishimoto is at a 69 but is only rated for his work on Sonic and the Secret Rings. He also directed Sonic Colors but has yet to be credited or scored for that.

After the break, check out the pointless numbers now assigned to our favorite (or least favorite) SEGA devs! It’s like in high school, when you’d rate the boys… or girls. I rated the girls. Yeah…

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5 SEGA Things Found on Etsy

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It’s not surprising that Etsy, the popular online shop devoted to selling handmade and vintage items, has a number of video game related things for sale. I mean, the place is basically a hot spot for those trendy kids who like combining their love for Pac-Man and NES games with their creative talents.

In this week’s weekly five, I thought I’d share five SEGA related products that caught my eye. While I could have highlighted the worst ones, I thought I’d go the positive route and show off some of the best items. You never know, you might like something enough to buy it!

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Sonic Stories: Barry the Nomad

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In celebration of Sonic’s 20th anniversary, SEGAbits proudly presents a limited feature highlighting SEGAbits stories from writers and readers of how they got into the franchise and their history with Sonic. Want to share your Sonic story? Check out the dedicated topic in the SEGAbits forum.

Welcome to the first entry of Sonic Stories! I’m one of those fans who was introduced to SEGA by way of Sonic the Hedgehog. Specifically the 1991 original classic. As such, despite now being a fan of many different SEGA franchises, it always comes back to Sonic the Hedgehog. To kick off this series, I wanted to share how I got into the franchise, my favorite moments as a fan as well as open up the article series to other SEGAbits readers and writers.

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Pier Solar Unboxing and Preview

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The latest indie release for the… SEGA Genesis?! That’s right! We’re not talking indie Dreamcast, we’re going way back to SEGA’s 16-bit wonder! Let’s unbox and boot up the Pier Solar Reprint Edition.

After the video, make sure to check out the developers website and order yourself a copy. How often do you get a new Genesis or Mega Drive game? And it’s only $45. That’s cheaper than a Genesis game bought back in the 1990’s.

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Strumwind Gameplay Footage Appears in Destructoid Live Stream

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A demo of the upcoming indie Dreamcast shmup Strumwind, published by redspotgames, appeared in a live stream held by gaming website Destructoid. The Strumwind footage appears at 1 hour and 44 minutes into the stream. Seems the Destructoid folks were bitten by the Dreamcast bug and decided to play a number of titles, concluding with Strumwind. At the startup screen, it is revealed that the game will support VGA, arcade stick, VMU and the jump pack. Most of those were obvious, but it’s nice to hear it confirmed. Ignore the dumb commentary that follows and enjoy the gameplay, graphics and music.

Personally, I’m loving the use of “GET READY”.

Watch the stream here, click ahead to 1 hour 44 minutes for Strumwind

[Thanks to Gagaman of The Dreamcast Junkyard for the tip]

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5 SEGA Games Only on XBOX

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Before I kick off  “The Weekly Five”, I want to say that my thoughts and support go out to our friends in Japan and other countries who were affected by the recent natural disasters. While they might be half a world away, there are still ways to help. Seek out charities or check out relief organizations like the Red Cross to donate. Every little bit helps.

When it came time for me to transition from the sixth to the seventh and current generation of consoles, I made up a list of pluses and minuses. PS3 offered blu-ray, 360 offered a strong achievement and avatar system. PS3 lacked PS2 backwards compatibility (with one exception), 360 lacked Yakuza. In the end, the 360 won out, mainly due to price but also due to the fact that the console could play a number of original XBOX games. I gained shelf space AND could still play JSRF and Panzer Dragoon Orta. Despite this, some XBOX exclusives were left in the dust when it came to 360 backwards compatibility, either due to technical reasons or lack of interest on Microsoft’s part. Today we’re looking at five of the SEGA games only found and only playable on the original XBOX. These cannot be played on a 360, thus excluding Panzer Dragoon Orta and JSRF. You dig?

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‘SEGA PLAY! Baseball’ Officially Launches on Facebook

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The SEGA Facebook game ‘SEGA PLAY! Baseball’ has officially launched for English speaking users! Announced back in February, SEGA PLAY! Baseball allows Facebook users to create and maintain their own baseball team, training them to become major league champions. The game features a large amount of customizable content, from team name and colors to designing your own personal avatar and decorating your stadium. I currently am shooting for a dinosaur and sunflower theme.

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