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Shenmue 3 retail release not guaranteed, only backers guaranteed physical copy

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While we are approaching the final day of the Kickstarter for Shenmue 3, fans are asking if the game will have retail copies after its release and it seems that it might not be the case. According to a e-mail sent to Eurogamer from YS.NET:

“Whether Shenmue 3 will be available for retail or not is currently unconfirmed,”

The only way to secure a hard copy of Shenmue 3 when it comes out is backing the project on Kickstarter. If you don’t care about physical releases, you will always be able to purchase the game digitally.

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Fan launches demo for his Phantasy Star Online Remaster project

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If you had a Dreamcast growing up, you probably had a copy of Phantasy Star Online somewhere. Even you, the guy that bought it because it had an exclusive demo of Sonic Adventure 2 in the case. If you spent hundreds of hours playing the game online, then you will be happy to know that Youtube/Reddit user Glader has been working on a remake project for the original Phantasy Star Online game.

You can click here to check out the demo he has launched, above video talks about the project. It seems that the project is very early in development, right now its just a proof of concept showing off the core features. According to the video, it is being developed on Unity 5. Very interesting project, what do you guys think?

[Via Nichegamer]

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New 3D Sonic the Hedgehog 2 trailer shows off local co-op and new ‘Keep Ring Mode’ gets detailed

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While we haven’t gotten a release date in the west on the 3D Sonic the Hedgehog 2 release, over in Japan the game is being release in less than a week! That means that 3D Sonic the Hedgehog 2 has been getting quite the amount of information released, like the trailer above showing off the local wireless connectivity. It will be required for both 3DSs to own a copy of the game, but if you do you will be able to have a second player control Tails through your single player adventure or you can go head to head in the versus racing mode.

Like most M2 re-releases in their SEGA 3D Classics series, this game will not only have 3D, save states and the ability to save replays; but it will also have a new mode that they are calling ‘Ring Keep’ mode. In this mode you will start a stage with 10 rings, each time you get attacked the amount of rings you lose is halved. I guess we shall see how this will work when we get to play it and how it impacts the way you play the game.

If we had to predict the release date of 3D Sonic the Hedgehog 2 in the west, I would say expect it sometime in August!

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Seaman creator on Iwata, talks about canceled Seaman 3DS game

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We know that Seaman creator and IP right holder Yoot Saito has been trying to get a Seaman game off the ground for a long while. We know that in early 2008 he tried to revive the game on mobile devices with Gabo, where your fish is more evolved into an actual ape, this is a year after Seaman 2 released on Playstation 2 in Japan. The game never got a release. We also know that as early as 2012 that Nintendo had been thinking about reviving Seaman on the 3DS and in 2013 Nintendo even tradmarked ‘Mysterious Pet: Legend of the Fish with a Human Face’, which sounds like a game we all know and love. Yoot Saito finally spills the beans on Seaman 3DS which he admits he was working on for awhile, in his farewell post to late Satoru Iwata.

He also talks about how he first met Iwata back in 1996 and how he gave him the job of looking for different types of games for Nintendo platforms. Saito also talks about how his suggestions lead to the Wii controller’s speakers and how him and Iwata experimented with StreetPass technically back in the original Gameboy days. It is a really a fantastic read and shows you why Satoru Iwata will be sorely missed in the video game industry. He was one in a billion. Read the translated blog post after the jump!

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New Shenmue III trailer, less than 72 hours left in the campaign!

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Last night, presumably to feed off of the hype surrounding the end of Shenmue III‘s Kickstarter campaign, YS Net released a short clip of very early footage of a Shenmue III cutscene running on Unreal Engine 4.

Rather than new content, it seems Yu Suzuki was content with recreating another Shenmue II scene. The game does look quite brilliant in Unreal Engine 4, and can only get better as development continues! Check out the original Shenmue II scene here.

What do you think of the new clip, and how much will it push the Kickstarter in these final hours? Sound off in the comments below.

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BlitWorks tells fans to continue asking SEGA for Shenmue and Jet Set Radio Future HD ports

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Spanish video game website GameSpek recently interviewed the Barcelona, Spain based company responsible for many ports, including SEGA fan favorite Jet Set Radio.

As we all know, before the Shenmue III E3 2015 announcement, the on again/off again Shenmue franchise was constantly surrounded in a wide array of rumors, some concerning ports or high definition remakes of the first two games having been started on, or even fully completed. These rumors never came to fruition, but now we have some official insight into the status of these Shenmue ports. Says BlitWorks:

“Then we thought it would be a good idea to showcase Sonic CD, Jet Set Radio and Shenmue working on the emulators to Sega, with the prospect of a commercial release for the consoles of that time. They showed interest in Sonic CD and Jet Set Radio“.

When asked if they had anything else to say to fans, BlitWorks said:

Thanks to you! We would like to tell SEGA games fans that they don’t cease to ask for ports of great games like Shenmue or Jet Set Radio Future, we are the first ones that would like to port these games. In change.org or similar webs there are several requests about that.

They also discuss Jet Set Radio‘s removal from iOS, and more. Check out the full interview here.

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Phantasy Star Online 2’s new update to feature crossover with BlazeBlue

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If not having Phantasy Star Online 2 released in the west made you bitter before, its going to make you even more bitter now. Especially if you’re a BlazeBlue fan because BlazeBlue is joining the Phantasy Star Online 2 universe this upcoming August.

So what is this collaboration going to have? There is going to be new scratch items, which include costumes to make your avatar look like characters from the BlazeBlue universe. Each character has a male and female variant of their costume.

BlazeBlue characters represented in the update: 

Each character will have their respective iconic weapons unlockable in Phantasy Star Online 2, which are shown in the trailer above. This update is being called ‘Phantasy Star Online 2: Darkness Shrouded Domain‘ and will continue the story in the game as well as add this big crossover. Hey SEGA West, I’d play the crap out of this game if you brought it over. Just sayin’!

[Source: Siliconera]

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This is how Shenmue would play if it was a 8-bit Mega Man game

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Youtuber and animator Peter Sjöstrand put together the above video combining his love for Mega Man and Shenmue into one ultimate fanboy video. The video features iconic moments and locations like the Rush turning into a forklift, QTEs and even a capsule toy machine boss fight.

As a big Mega Man fan growing up, if Ys NET ever made a retro style Shenmue game, I’d buy the crap out of it.

If you want the best possible version of Shenmue 3, don’t forget to contribute via their Kickstarter. Only 4 days left and its nearing 5 million, half the total it needs to become a ‘truly open world’.

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New Total War: WARHAMMER trailer introduces the Demigryphs

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Demigryphs are part lion, part eagle mounts that are used for knights or other high ranking members of the Empire. In this trailer Creative Assembly shows off the base model for the Demigryphs and explains their role in the Warhammer Fantasy universe.

The Demigryphs are known for their strength, massively powerful beaks and viciously sharp claws that cut through armor like butter. Much like everything Warhammer, even Demigryphs have their own lore. One of the biggest Demigryphs ever recorded (in this fictional history) was called Reaper who was the mount of Thedore Bruckner, now I wonder if we will be seeing Reaper in this upcoming game? Should be interesting seeing more about the game, considering how dense the Warhammer universe is.

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SEGA announces Phantasy Star Online 2 anime TV show

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During a event in Okinaway on Sunday, SEGA announced that its 2012 Free-To-Play online RPG Phantasy Star Online 2 will be getting a television anime adaption. The anime, being called Phantasy Star Online 2 The Animation, will have a completely new storyline and take place on Earth in the near future.

During the event SEGA also revealed that Phantasy Star Online 2 has had over 3.5 million registered users. Sadly the only thing we know is that it will be coming out sometime in 2016. Now if we can get a release of the game over here in America and Europe, that’d be great!

[Source:Famitsu]

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Yu Suzuki’s Twitter Q&A Part 2: Shenmue 3 in-game footage won’t be shown until 2017

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Last time Yu Suzuki was answering fan questions on twitter, I searched his twitter to find all the questions and answers to give them to you. This time, someone on Shenmue Dojo beat me to it. So you can check out the answers questions here or hit the jump for the complete transcript.

Some of the interesting bits includes a sketch of Akira in  High School from the cancelled Virtua Fighter RPG, Saying that we won’t see in-game footage of Shenmue 3 until 2017, and even confirmed that the game will be based on reality, unlike what that Shenmue Online trailer lead us to believe.

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Shenmue 3 updates: Interview with new project member Kenji Itoso and new reward tiers

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Shenmue 3 has added a new interview, this time with a new member on the project. Meet Kenji Itoso who used to apprentice under Hayao Miyazaki over at Studio Ghibli and has directed on many different multipmedia projects. He even worked on the popular hit anime Attack on Titan. Showing that YS Net is using the funded cash from the Kickstarter to pick up fresh talent like this is good and I think will further encourage more donations from those people questioning the Kickstarter. Check out the video and hear about his history with the Shenmue series.

The Kickstarter has also added 4 new reward tiers for users looking to upgrade their pledge. One has a guest book allowing you to share a 140 character message that will be displayed forever in-game, a capsule block toy with your beatiful mug and if that isn’t enough a higher award will make you into a chibi capsule toy version of yourself drawn by Kenji Miyawaki! Check it out and #SaveShenmue.

 

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SEGA 3D Classics 3D Streets of Rage 2 delayed a week for global release

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SEGA has announced via Facebook that the much anticipated SEGA 3D Classics release of 3D Streets of Rage 2, which was due out next Thursday on the 16th, has been pushed back a week to July 23rd. No reason for the delay was given, but it was mentioned that it will be a global release. I guess I can wait a week, but man do I want to punch trash cans and eat cooked meat off the street.

Stay tuned to SEGAbits for further SEGA 3D Classics news and our inevitable 3D Streets of Rage 2 review!

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Company of Heroes 2’s stand alone expansion ‘The British Forces’ comes out September 3rd

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Not only did SEGA announce that ‘The British Forces‘ was coming out on September 3rd, it also announced it would come with a ‘major design upgrade’ for the whole Company of Heroes 2 multiplayer. The upgrade will balance out the game’s five factions and further improve animation and graphics.

As for The British Forces, you won’t need a to own a copy of Company of Heroes 2 to play it and if you get The British Forces only, you’ll still be able to access the multiplayer content available in Company of Heroes 2. The stand alone expansion is set to introduce players to 15 new units, 6 new commanders with unique abilities and 8 whole new multiplayer maps.

The stand alone expansion will retail for $12.99, if you pre-order it now on Steam you get 10% off. If you have any other Company of Heroes games in your library you get a additional 10% off (making it 20% off). Pretty good deal for long time fans and a cheap entry point for new comers that want to get into the multiplayer portion of Company of Heroes 2.

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SEGA Japan CEO talks about earning gamer’s trust, learning from Atlus and focusing on quality titles

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[Update: It seems that their might have been some mistranslation when it came to Siliconera’s reporting on the story. While it said it was Hajime Satomi who was interviewed, according to Gematsu it was actually his son and newly crowned president of Sega Games co that was interviewed. It makes sense since he barely got the job in April during the restructure.]

Its easy to see that there have been issues at SEGA that they have been trying to get patched up. One thing is for sure is that SEGA Japan’s in-house gaming studios haven’t delivered titles that have been up to par and it always seems that they are trying to go triple A development and falling short with unpolished titles being released. It seems that long time SEGA CEO and President Hajime Satomi understands fan’s frustrations, he talked to Famitsu about how SEGA Japan has actually been learning from Atlus’ model of game creation:

“As far as the Western market goes, we learned a lot from Atlus. If we can make a title with proper quality, I believe there’s a good chance for it to do well even in the West for players that like to play Japanese games.”

It also seems that Satomi is really eyeing the Playstation 4 as a future console they want to release titles on, while the company has been only focusing on the Nintendo Wii U in the West in the last few years (it seems that might change):

“It may look rough if you look a it from a Japanese standpoint, but on a global scale the PlayStation 4 has a record-selling history, so I believe there’s a good opportunity there,”

While we know SEGA will have a big focus on mobile games, considering that a huge percentage of Japanese gamers are using the platform as its main gaming machine, Famitsu asked him what they are looking to focus more on when it comes to console games. Answer? Quality.

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