Featured

SEGA Tunes: Sonic Adventure’s “Emerald Coast” and “It Doesn’t Matter”

by

Today we’re focusing on two songs represent both ends of Adventure’s soundtrack: cheery and Genesis-esque instrumentals of “Emerald Coast” and the corny rock tunes of “It Doesn’t Matter” that would go on to become more prevalent in many later Sonic OSTs.

Emerald Coast will probably always hold a special place in my iPad for one simple reason: it was the first song I ever heard on a Dreamcast. Seeing Emerald Coast on a Target Dreamcast kiosk is what ultimately made me buy the system, and the graphics and sound played a large part in that decision. I imagine many Dreamcast owners will feel nostalgic over this track for this very same reason.

It Doesn’t Matter was my introduction to Crush40 and its brand of cheese rock. I loved this stuff when I was a teen. Even today, this song always give me a warm feeling because it’s so goddamned optimistic! As cheesy as its lyrics may be, I love the sound, and it continues to be one of my favorite Sonic vocal tracks. Back then I would listen to this a lot whenever I was feeling down, and to my surprise it still has the same effect on me today.

For me, this song is in many ways the theme song of the Dreamcast. This was SEGA’s last shot and they put everything into it. The system’s short lifespan had the greatest concentration of legendary titles in the history of gaming, at least since the onset of 3D consoles. SEGA may have given up the fight, but in many ways the Dreamcast never did. It continues to enjoy one of the most prosperous afterlifes of any console on the market.

Check out “It Doesn’t Matter” below the fold.

Continue Reading ➜

2 Comments

SEGA Dreamcast’s 15th Anniversary – the Life, Death, and Rebirth of a Classic Console

by

dc15
It’s hard to think that the Dreamcast turned 15 years old today. For many of the writers here at SEGAbits, the Dreamcast holds a special place in our hearts, and even though the console was active in retail for less than 2 years, it amounted itself an incredible amount of great games. Let’s look back at the history of the iconic console, its death, rebirth, and its future…

Continue Reading ➜

4 Comments

SEGA Dreamroom 2014 – watch the full 9 hour SEGA Dreamcast stream

by

The SEGA Dreamroom is here! Enjoy live streaming Dreamcast games from 9am ET to 6pm ET – head on over to our twitch channel to chat as we play.

9/10 Update: Dreamroom 2014 was a huge success! Thank you to all those who tuned in. Enjoy the archived broadcast embedded above, and we’ll see you in the Dreamroom next year!

No Comments

SEGA Memories: Owing a debt to the SEGA Dreamcast

by

MondayMemoriesOwingDreamcast

With Dreamcast month currently underway, I thought I’d share my launch memories with all of you. It’s a little different from the launch discussion we’ll be talking about in our next round table, because I already had an import Dreamcast for a little while. This is more about helping a small business out by giving them a bigger launch while helping big business sell out it’s stock. Well…that and paying off some debt.

Continue Reading ➜

1 Comment

SEGAbits Presents: Sonic & SEGA Fan Jam 2014 in Savannah, Georgia

by

fanjam

Calling all Sonic & SEGA fans in the Georgia area, we are happy to announce our big event in association with Savannah, Georgia’s very own The Guild Hall on November 22nd titled “Sonic & SEGA Fan Jam“. We will be hosting a fan event to not only celebrate the launch of Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric/Shattered Crystal but other SEGA games including: Hatsune Miku Project Diva F 2nd, Dengeki Bunko Fighting Climax and more! Another surprise that we have for the event is that we will have Tracy Yardley, penciler/writer for Archie’s Sonic the Hedgehog series, and Tails’ Channel owner Matt as our special guests. We’ll also be featuring some more surprise guests who will drop in and say hi via video. Want in on more details, such as events and location? Be sure to hit the jump!

Continue Reading ➜

3 Comments

Classic SEGA Ads: It’s Evening in America…

by

The Dreamcast had one of the best advertisement campaigns in video game history. Period. Its ads took all of the best parts of SEGA’s Genesis era advertisement and infused it with fun and consistent quality. Every single time I click a Dreamcast ad and expect something ho-hum, I’m surprised by yet another kick-ass ad.

Here we have a parody of the classic Reagan re-election ad, “Morning in America”. With narration by Seaman. And whistling by guys from Quake 3, NFL 2K and NBA 2K. And a bunch of SEGA characters screwing around inside people’s Dreamcasts. And while Seaman gives a beautiful speech about Americans coming together so they can whoop each other’s asses, you’ve got gamers celebrating and raging over victories and losses. You’ve got house fires, decapitated teddy bears and exploding trailers. This ad is a perfect example of a great SEGA ad: well written, well directed, well voiced, plenty of game footage and plenty to get you pumped.

This ad is a thing of beauty. I hope you enjoy it, have a fine Saturday morning and play some Dreamcast.

No Comments

SEGA Import Guide: Cool Cool Toon (SEGA Dreamcast)

by

coolcooltoon

More than eight years since the death of SEGA’s final console, SEGA fans have been left digging deeper and deeper into their console’s libraries, looking for new games to play. Though impressions, reviews and videos for SEGA’s English language releases are typically easy to find, information on their console’s Japanese exclusive selection of games can be quite elusive. That is why we at SEGAbits are launching a new feature focused on the quality and playability of SEGA console regional exclusives. Today, we will be looking at an obscure rhythm game released by SNK exclusively for the Dreamcast in mid-2000: Cool Cool Toon. I’d like to give a special shout out to my niece for getting me this for my birthday!

Cool Cool Toon is a unique game in SNK’s Dreamcast library. A rhythm game made from the ground up for the Dreamcast, it was neither a fighting game nor an arcade port. It is so far removed from what SNK did for the system that it doesn’t even look like an SNK game at first glance. It does share one common thread with other SNK games though: it is very easy to pick up and play.

Continue Reading ➜

3 Comments

My Life with SEGA experiences full-motion video magic in a Digital Pictures double feature

by

It’s a very special episode of My Life with SEGA where A.J. Rosa and his girlfriend Erica Winter play through some tried-and-true SEGA CD “classics” produced by Digital Pictures.

First off, Erica is exposed to the horrifically cheesy 1992 panty-raid Night Trap for the very first time. Can she save the airhead teenagers from the dreaded Augers, or will she have to sit this one out in the S.C.A.T. mobile?

Second, A.J. takes the controls in the SEGA Club oddity Kids on Site. Yes, the full-motion video epic that gave youngsters of the 90’s a taste of the fun and exciting world of….construction?!

Grab your tennis racquets and hard hats, kids. It’s gonna’ be a bumpy game!

Like this video? Subscribe to the SEGAbits YouTube channel!

No Comments

SEGA Tunes: Propeller Arena’s Shaving Your Life

by

I thought it would be best to start out the month with something many of you may have never heard, at least not in a SEGA game. The above track is a little gem from the canceled (and subsequently leaked) SEGA Dreamcast game, Propeller Arena. We’ll be covering the game in more detail later this month, but for now I’d like to talk about the game’s soundtrack.

Propeller Arena’s soundtrack is filled to the brim of punk rock, including nine tracks from five different guest bands. I have to admit that I don’t really care for a lot of it (including many of the AM2 produced tracks), but there are definitely some gems in it that I absolutely love. The above track was composed by a “Mad Caddies”, a band I definitely intend to check out after this. Whenever I’m blasting through the game I usually try to keep it on this and one or two other tracks because it does a great job getting your blood pumping while you’re dogfighting seven other planes over cityscapes, volcanic islands and castle.

Below I’ve included another track that I discovered when I downloaded the game’s OST. I suspect it’s something I need to unlock since I can’t currently find it in the game’s options menu. I also can’t find any info of it online, so I have no idea who made it. Should I ever find out I’ll be sure to give it its own Tuesday Tune, since it is my favorite track in the OST bar none.

Please check out “Welcome to the Promised Land” below the fold.

Continue Reading ➜

2 Comments

The Year of the Console – SEGA Dreamcast month, it’s still thinking

by

YOTC_Dreamcast

In nine days, SEGA’s final console the SEGA Dreamcast turns 15 years old in the United States. The Dreamcast is a rare instance in which the US launch overshadows the Japanese launch, thanks to the memorable date of 9/9 and a stellar launch lineup. While Japan had a paltry four games, the US had nineteen which covered just about every major genre. Racing fans had the most options, with CART Flag to Flag, Hydro Thunder, Monaco Grand Prix, Pen Pen Trilcelon, TNN Motorsports Hardcore Heat, Tokyo Extreme Racer, and TrickStyle. While those who prefer their speed in the skies had AeroWings and AirForce Delta.

Continue Reading ➜

2 Comments

Retro Review: Shadow Squadron (SEGA 32X)

by

StellarAssault_32X_US_Box_Front

Anyone who thinks the 32X was nothing more than a steaming pile of shit has never played Shadow Squadron. If they had, they’d not only know that the 32X had its share of great titles, they’d know it played host to what was quite easily the best space sim available for fourth generation consoles. It may have paled in comparison to PC sims like Wing Commander and the X-Wing series, but it beat the shit out of anything on the 16-bit consoles.

I think there’s no better way to end 32X month then with a look back at one of the platform’s best titles. Known as Stellar Assault in Europe and Japan, Shadow Squadron was one of the closest things the 32X had to a true killer app during its brief lifespan. Check below the fold as we explore what makes this hidden, forgotten gem so special.

Continue Reading ➜

4 Comments

Classic SEGA Ads: Doom 32X helps butchers keep their mind off work

by

 

Alright, we haven’t been too kind to SEGA’s marketing campaign for the 32X, so I thought it would be great to end things on a high note: the Doom ad. The Doom ad is fucking awesome, embodying everything that was great about SEGA marketing in those days.

Is it edgy? Yeah. Does it match the tone of the game? Hell yeah. Does it make you want to go out and buy the game? Fuck yeah. Doom was known for being a gory, violent, bloody game, and on the higher difficulties it could be a hell of a meat grinder. Placing it in a slaughter house, with lots of kid friendly gore and even an actual meat grinder? Having butchers who are surrounded by real gore every day talking about how intense the violence in Doom is? Genius. This is an ad that understood its product and knew how to sell it, easily making it the best 32X ad SEGA’s produced. It’s simple, smart and doesn’t get into any of the distracting weirdness or camera mugging of other ads. Most importantly, this ad didn’t just tell, it showed, something every other 32X ad failed to do.

So enjoy, and be sure to tune in next week, as we start taking a look back at a considerably better advertisement campaign for another, more successful SEGA platform…

1 Comment

Rise From Your Grave: Spot Goes to Hollywood for the SEGA 32X

by

Spot Goes to Hollywood 32X Screen Shot 2014-08-29 02-05-47

Back in 1995, SEGA promised 50 titles for the 32X by the end of that year. Unfortunately, the onslaught of the “true” next gen systems from SEGA and Sony would take its toll on SEGA’s little mushroom, and it died a silent death with only 39 titles in its library. Numerous titles were canceled, many of them notable, including Daytona USA and Castlevania Bloodletting. Some however, were just prettier ports of Genesis titles. Today’s game is one of those titles, a never before seen version of Spot Goes to Hollywood. Dumped to a mere 35 reproduction carts earlier this year, this ROM has yet to be released to the public.

Today, SEGAbits is proud to present a first look at a game only a few hundred people have ever seen before. What is it like? What makes it unique to other versions of the game? Answers lie below the fold.

Continue Reading ➜

1 Comment

A User’s Guide to Darxide for the SEGA 32X

by

darxide

Since the day I joined SEGAbits, one of my goals has always been to shed light and draw attention to some of the more obscure games in SEGA’s history. With 32X month in full swing, it just didn’t seem right to let the month pass without writing some kind of article that sheds light on one of the rarest titles in the system’s small library: Darxide. This is a game that few people have played and even fewer people know how to play, so today I’m not only going to go over the history of the game, I’m also going to explain its mechanics so that if you do ever get to play the game, you’ll know how.

Continue Reading ➜

8 Comments