SEGA News

Sonic Mania teases Flying Battery stage from Sonic & Knuckles

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While we know that Sonic Mania is delayed, we got a tease that Flying Battery stage from Sonic & Knuckles will be remixed and featured in Sonic Mania. We got a short clip of the game in action (which you can see the direct footage above). The game will feature a new tune remixed by Tee Lopes who is responsible for the Sonic Mania soundtrack.

What is your thoughts on Sonic Mania remixing old stages like Flying Battery Stage from Sonic & Knuckles? What other stages do you want to see?  Let us know in the comments below.

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Sonic Mania release date moved to Summer, teases vinyl album

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C7Er5AqUwAAxvA9Sonic Mania release date has been moved to Summer 2017, it has been revealed in the SXSW panel. While its not an exact Sonic Mania release date, it is postponed and the reason was to get more time to develop the game. While it sucks that we won’t be getting the game during the spring time, at least SEGA is delaying games to make them a more complete package.

Another thing that SEGA did was tease a Sonic Mania vinyl. He said he wanted to gauge the community and see if its something they want. Seeing the response on the SXSW stream and the fact that they already had mockups (below), i’d say its pretty much confirmed that there will be a Sonic Mania vinyl. As for the game’s digital price point, SEGA isn’t ready to reveal that. Will it be more than $15? Time will tell.

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New Shenmue 3 developer update gives us a peek at the game in action

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A new Shenmue 3 developer diary has finally hit for Kickstarter backers, and as seen above the game is indeed being made! Yeah yeah, I know, there was little doubt that the game is happening but I still have this suspicion that Yu Suzuki’s plan is to run off to a remote island with a luxury car. The latest video tells little but shows quite a bit. We see a developer working on a QTE arcade machine displaying Playstation buttons and arrows. We then see Ryo pushing something and then the player accessing the iconic in-game diary. A peek at a small village is given and the room appears to be littered with concept drawings of NPCs.

During a dialogue meeting, somebody is paging through the Japanese Shenmue 2 guide book and we see more NPC drawings on a white board. Quest test play shows off a messy room covered in dirt and debris. Ryo is seen from behind opening a cabinet and it is noted that all characters are tentative and are from older resources – so don’t judge the back of Ryo’s head! We then go to a meeting with Yu Suzuki where we see him talking with his staff and in the background there is a screen showing off what looks like Ryo outside and then a scene inside a small room with an arcade machine. We again see Ryo outside and a quick shot of a village at dusk with lights lit.

All in all, not much is revealed but it is very exciting to see the game being made! What did you think of this peek at Shenmue 3?

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Unreleased Dreamcast version of Millennium Racer: Y2K Fighters uncovered

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A new Dreamcast game has been recently discovered, specifically a Dreamcast port of the PC game Millennium Racer: Y2K Fighters. Millennium Racer: Y2K Fighters is a racing game created by a company called Creat Studio back in 1999, most comparable to the wipEout series on Sony consoles. The game was found in a Dreamcast devkit, playable and seemingly complete, yet strangely never received any type of publicity. The PC version was released, but the Dreamcast version was quietly cancelled for unknown reasons.

The original finder of the unreleased Dreamcast port of Millennium Racer: Y2K Fighters was a Dreamcast enthusiast named Kuririn84, who found the game in dev kit and distributed the game to two people in order to extract it. Since then another user by the name of japanese_cake successfully got the game to boot and provided a downloadable link for anyone to try out. Full comments from japanese_cake can be found here.

It’s nice to see another game has been discovered and preserved for future generations, and thanks to all the dedicated Dreamcast fans for preserving a small bit of history.

[Source: The Dreamcast Junkyard]

For more screenshots and video from The Dreamcast Junkyard, click below.

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Sonic Mania hitting Nintendo Switch day one, won’t cost more

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It seems a trend for Nintendo Switch games is to cost slightly more on the platform, what with Puyo Puyo Tetris costing ten dollars more physically compared to the PlayStation 4 (and yes, I know it comes with a key chain). But Nintendo fans looking forward to Sonic Mania need not fear, since the game has been confirmed to hit the Nintendo Switch the same day as other platforms and cost the same. Woot.

The news has been confirmed by SEGA and Sonic the Hedgehog social media meme master Aaron Webber during a interview with Nintendo Everything. Sadly SEGA has been mute on the release date for Sonic Mania, but we may soon find out more news concerning it since the SXSW 2017 Sonic the Hedgehog panel will happen in two days.

How many of you will be picking up Sonic Mania on the Nintendo Switch? What do you think about the news of it being priced the same as other versions? Let us know in the comments below.

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SEGA announces A Certain Magical Index / Virtual-On crossover game

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SEGA has announced A Certain Magical Index / Virtual-On crossover game, which is coming in 2018 on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita. The game is being based on the 2016 light novel ‘Toaru Majutsu no Virtual-On’  which was a novel having both franchises crossing over and was created to celebrate Virtual-On‘s 20th Anniversary.  It seems that SEGA loved the idea so much, that they needed to create a full blown game based on the light novel. We don’t know if the actual game will use the light novel’s story, which seems to be highly possible.

Here is the summary for the ‘Toaru Majutsu no Virtual-On‘, which seems to be pretty basic in terms of story.  As for what the game will be and how it will play, SEGA has been conservative on those details. If this is just a Virtual-On game with A Certain Magical Index characters playing as the Virtuaroids, I’ll be OK with that. The last Virtual-On game released was ‘Cyber Troopers Virtual-On Force‘ back in 2010 on Xbox 360. You can watch the A Certain Magical Index / Virtual-On crossover game trailer above.

What are your thoughts on A Certain Magical Index / Virtual-On crossover game? Do you like the idea of SEGA using in-house properties to relaunch franchises?

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Floigan Bros. SEGA Dreamcast DLC available to download for first time in sixteen years

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You may remember Floigan Bros., Visual Concepts attempt at an episodic game for the SEGA Dreamcast that wasn’t the usual sports title expected from the developer. Sadly the episodic nature of the series never saw the light of day, as only the first episode starring Moigle and Hoigle Floigan released. Despite being cut short, what we got in the first episode was a very fun and funny game that combined elements of point and click adventures, a-life and platforming mini-games.

The game also took advantage of the Dreamcast’s internet capabilities with DLC called “FMTs” (Fun Moigle Things) that released monthly and were themed to the calendar month, offering up costumes, mailbox goodies and a new mini-game. Unfortunately, by the time the game’s site shut down, only the January DLC was archived online. However, thanks to Tim Meekins, Nick Jones, and John Elliot of the original Floigan Bros. development team and fansite Dreamcast Live all the original DLC is available to download again! To download the DLC, click on over to Dreamcast Live’s blog post, and in an effort to preserve the DLC moving forward we’ve gone ahead and archived it ourself with links after the break.

You can learn more about the DLC in a video after the break. Also worth noting, the SEGAbits Swingin’ Report Show podcast had the privilege of interviewing Brian Silva, who originated the idea for the game at Visual Concepts (he also voiced Bubsy!) and if you’d like to learn more about Floigan Bros. history we highly recommend listening to the episode.

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New Sonic Mania Green Hill Zone Act 2 gameplay revealed, new badnik introduced

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In the latest reveal for the upcoming Sonic Mania, Sonic the Hedgehog brand social media manager, Aaron Webber, gave a special first look at Green Hill Zone Act 2 and how transitions work between acts similar to Sonic 3 & Knuckles. The second act of Green Hill Zone demonstrates a new mechanic such as the zip line, interactivity with the elemental shields to enter secret routes, and reveals a much closer look of the mountains and waterfalls in the background.

Aaron also noted that the background layout of Act 2 is a reference to the early prototype of the original Sonic the Hedgehog. While the boss for Act 2 cannot be revealed at the time, Aaron has mentioned that are brand new badniks introduced in Sonic Mania known as the Hard Boiled Heavies and Heavy Gunner which have been revealed on the Sonic Twitter account and are detailed in a new article from Game Informer. What are your thoughts on Green Hill Zone Act 2? Feel free to leave a comment below.

For the video without the commentary and artwork of the new badniks, be sure to hit the jump below.

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Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap launches April 18

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WonderBoyDragonsTrapHey SEGA Fans, the remake of Wonder Boy III: The Dragon’s Trap, which is dropping the numerical number will be launching on April 18, 2017 on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch. The company stated that the PC version will arrive at a later date, that its still under production. Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap will include a brand new art style with the ability to switch to 8-bit graphics at the switch (click) of a button.  If you are a PlayStation 4 owner in Europe, the PlayStation Store is offering a 20% off on Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap if you pre-order it.

DotEmu, the publisher released this handy description:

“Boasting beautiful, hand-drawn animations and a re-orchestrated soundtrack, the cult classic returns with a unique blend of exploration, action, and adventure. Play as Lizard-Man, Mouse-Man, Piranha-Man, Lion-Man, and Hawk-Man, and use their unique abilities to uncover the land’s deepest secrets. Switch in real-time between the original retro graphics and the visually stunning modern remake, and input your old Sega Master System passcode to unlock all of your old saves and progression – just how you left them in 1989.”

But that isn’t all, DotEmu has been teasing that there is one more Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap surprise that will be revealed on March 22, 2017. What do you think this surprise is and are you excited for this fantastic looking remake?

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PlayStation Now adds 13 SEGA Games to streaming line-up

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Sony has announced that they are celebrating ‘SEGA & Sonic Month’ over on PlayStation Now by adding 13 SEGA titles to its streaming line-up. If you don’t know what PlayStation Now is, its basically a pay-per-month service that allows you to stream titles on a number of devices including PC, PlayStation TV, PlayStation 4 and other smart appliances. Since the service uses ‘the cloud’, you’ll be able to play on one device and pick up where you left off on another. PlayStation Now is a great concept but I only recommend it if you have really fast and stable internet.

These are the 13 SEGA titles that are now available to stream on PlayStation Now this month:

  • Alex Kidd in the Miracle World
  • Altered Beast
  • Comix Zone
  • Fighting Vipers
  • Golden Axe
  • Revenge of Shinobi
  • Sega Bass Fishing
  • Sonic Adventure
  • Sonic Adventure 2
  • Sonic the Fighters
  • Sonic Unleashed
  • Super Hang-on
  • Virtua Fighter 2

If you think your ISP is fast and stable enough to stream playable games, you can give the service a try with Sony’s seven-day free trial. A bit weird that they added SEGA Genesis titles to the service, I would have assumed they would have tried getting more full fledged games like Vanquish, Binary Domain and other bigger titles. What are your thoughts on PlayStation Now?

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New Initial D Arcade Stage Zero trailer hits the net

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SEGA’s long running arcade series Initial D, which is based off a manga and anime with the same name, is ready to launch its 9th arcade release (give or take due to re-releases under new titles). But this isn’t being called Initial D Arcade Stage 9, it is being titled Initial D Arcade Stage Zero! You are probably asking yourself why this arcade game is being called Initial D Arcade Stage Zero and that’s because its being based on the New Initial D The Movie which a retelling of the early chapters of the Initial D manga. Even the designs in this game are being taken directly for the new movie which is setting to reboot the franchise for a new audience.

Initial D Arcade Stage Zero will also be the first arcade title in the franchise to feature a 6-speed gear shifter and will have completely new background music. You can check out more information about Initial D Arcade Stage Zero on the game’s official website.  While the title does seem to have some pretty low quality graphics, the game play seems fun enough. What is your take on the Initial D franchise of SEGA games? Let us know in the comments below.

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SEGA Europe Community Manager Dan Sheridan leaves company

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It is a sad day for those of us in the SEGA fan community who liked shouting “WOO!”. SEGA Europe’s Community Manager Dan Sheridan, who joined the company in September of 2015, is leaving SEGA today. From reading his tweets, Dan will be taking a job in the world of VR, so it’s not game over. Dan is notable for becoming the face of SEGA Europe and for rebooting the SEGA Central video series following a rocky transition that affected both American and European offices of the company. Thanks for your service to our favorite company and best of luck from all of us at SEGAbits, Dan!

After the break, check out Dan’s introduction video from when he started his job at SEGA.

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Hi-sCool! Seha Girls releasing to blu-ray and DVD on May 30th

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Way back in February 2015 we reported that the popular Hi-sCool! Seha Girls cg anime series was getting a blu-ray and DVD release in the west by Discotek Media. Now, a little over two years later, we finally have the final cover art and a date! The complete series of Hi-sCool! Seha Girls is due out on May 30th, 2017 in a blu-ray DVD combo pack. This was revealed on the Discotek Media Facebook page along with a description of the upcoming release.

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Latest Puyo Puyo Tetris trailer schools us westerners who were held back

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We here at SEGAbits are beyond excited that SEGA is taking a chance on Puyo Puyo Tetris, releasing April 25 to the Playstation 4 and Nintendo Switch in the Americas and on April 28 in Europe. While some of us on the team are seasoned Puyo ploppers (check out our retrospective on Puyo Puyo and Tetris), it is understandable that a majority of gamers don’t know what Puyo Puyo is. Thankfully, SEGA has just released a trailer for the upcoming game dubbed “Back to Basics”. The short trailer gives a basic introduction to how the game is played, and shows off the various game modes.

Check out the trailer above and don’t forget to lock in that pre-order. The more support the game gets, the more likely we are to see other Puyo Puyo games in the west!

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Data Discs releasing Galaxy Force II & Thunder Blade combo vinyl

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Data Discs has announced their tenth collaboration with SEGA of Japan – a combo release of Galaxy Force II (1988) and Thunder Blade (1987)! Featuring compositions by Koichi Namiki, Katsuhiro Hayashi and Tohru Nakabayashi, the album celebrates the two lesser known super-scaler SEGA arcade games that have since seen a resurgence of popularity thanks to the SEGA 3D Classics Collection. Each game’s soundtrack will accommodate a single side of the LP, with Galaxy Force II featuring a bonus arranged track of “Beyond the Galaxy” produced by Hiroshi “Hiro” Kawaguchi (OutRun, Space Harrier) with a full studio band, complete with a brass section and a keyboard solo by Hiro. Thunder Blade, meanwhile, will include three unused tracks.

The vinyl will be available March 4th from the Data Discs website and will be available in the following editions: 180g Frosted Clear & Translucent Yellow with White Splatter (Limited Edition), 180g Translucent Yellow, and 180g Classic Black.

After the break, check out the full track list!

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