SEGA News

SEGA’s Rieko Kodama being honored with GDCA Pioneer Award

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One of our favorite SEGA developers here at SEGAbits, Rieko Kodama, who has worked on SEGA classics like Alex Kidd, Phantasy Star and even the Dreamcast cult classic Skies of Arcadia. She is set to recieve this year’s pioneer award at this year’s Game Developer Awards.

“The Game Developers Choice Awards were conceived as a way to recognize the all-too-often unsung genius and dedication of game developers throughout history, and this year’s award honors a figure who helped pave the way for countless game creators to follow, after decades spent developing some of SEGA’s most indelible classics, Kodama-san could easily rest on her laurels, but instead has dedicated herself to creating games that transcend gender and generations to give us countless hours of joy. This award is a ‘thank you’ to Kodama-san and all creators who work so hard to achieve greatness.” – Katie Stern, general manager of the Game Developers Conference

THe Game Developer Awards ceremony will take place in San Francisco Moscone Center on March 20, 2019 at 6:30 pm.

[Source: Variety]

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SEGA has officially been in the third party business longer than they were in the home console business

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December 18, 2018. That was the day that SEGA was in the third party business for as long as they had been in the home console business. For the past month we have been living in a new era. From the debut of the SG-1000 in Japan on July 15, 1983 to the official discontinuation of the Dreamcast on March 31, 2001, 6,470 days elapsed. From April 1, 2001 to December 18, 2018 another 6,470 days elapsed. We’re living in an era of SEGA that has survived longer than what many point to as the glory days. Let that sink in.

Interestingly, it seems that SEGA AGES Gain Ground and SEGA AGES OutRun are the first games to release in Japan and the West respectively in this post 6,470 day era. 2019 looks to be a HUGE year for SEGA, and we’re actually very excited. For a full rundown of what to expect from SEGA in 2019, you can check out our SEGA News Bits video.

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SEGA AGES Puyo Puyo to feature obscure English version of the arcade game

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SEGA’s official Puyo Puyo Twitter account has drop some new information regarding to SEGA AGES Puyo Puyo, with the most significant news being that they are officially releasing the obscure English version of Puyo Puyo. This version of Puyo Puyo predates the more familiar localization attempts such as Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine and Kirby’s Avalanche, with the key difference is that it tries to retain the original graphics, with only some minor adjustments to the voice clips and most of the character names and dialogue. It’s been long rumored to have been soft-released somewhere in Europe, based on interviews in the book All About Puyo Puyo Tsu, but until now it’s existence by SEGA wasn’t acknowledged. This created speculation that the English version of Puyo Puyo was a bootleg, further fueled by it being originally found on a bootleg board.

A more minor reveal is a new border being confirmed, a collection of artwork from the Puyo Puyo manuals for consoles, showing off the different characters you face against during the single player mode. But the English version is obviously the more fascinating news, since it once and for all puts down the theory that the English Puyo Puyo arcade game was an unofficial modification. SEGA AGES Puyo Puyo is due out sometime in February in Japan, with a release internationally currently unknown.

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Team Sonic Racing reveals Team Eggman

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We’ve known for a while that Eggman would have his own team in Team Sonic Racing, and now we know who decided to accept his invite. Team Eggman will consist of Eggman, Metal Sonic and Zavok, the leader of the Deadly Six from Sonic Lost World. Zavok is an interesting choice. There are other baddies from Sonic’s recent history that SEGA could have pulled from, like Chaos or Infinite, but when you think about it besides those two and the Deadly Six you’re left with badniks or giant monsters that are way too big for a car.

Zavok has made appearances in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U as a trophy, in Sonic Runners during a special event, in Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, in Sonic Forces: Speed Battle and in Sonic Forces as an illusion created by Infinite. Personally I was hoping for a modern redesign of Fang in his sweet hover bike, but I know that’s not happening.

Team Sonic Racing releases May 21, 2019.

Pre-order Team Sonic Racing today!
PlayStation 4 | Xbox One | Nintendo Switch

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Bayonetta crosses over into Shin Megami Tensei: Dx2 Liberation

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Bayonetta coming to Shin Megami Tensei: Dx2 Liberation was first teased at this year’s Tokyo Game Show but it has now been officially shown off on the 1st year anniversary stream.

While I get why some people are a bit put off with anything that has to do with mobile games, since they are so different compared to traditional games, I think this crossover makes sense and I hope we see more SEGA own IPs make cameos in Dx2.

[Via: Persona Central]

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SEGA News Bits: What to Expect From SEGA in 2019

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Just look at that header! If you were one of the SEGA fans yearning for the “good ol’ days”, we think you’re really going to love 2019. On this SEGA News Bits, George and Barry run through the many games we can expect from SEGA – from first party releases to licensed titles to stuff with a SEGA connection. Check out the video and afterwards in the comments below let us know what you are most excited for and least excited for in 2019.

If you want to support this type of content, you can check out our Patreon!

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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Blade Arcus Rebellion from Shining’s new trailer reveals more Shining Resonance characters joining the battle

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SEGA has released a new trailer showing even more Shining Resonance characters joining the versus fighting game Blade Arcus  from Shining Rebellion. If you didn’t know, a few years ago SEGA published Blade Arcus from Shining: Battle Arena which was a 2D fighting game featuring characters from the new Shining series. Blade Arcus from Shining Rebellion is a new entry that has been announcing fighters from Shining Resonance joining the battle, this trailer specifically shows off Yuma Iburn, Krika Tow Alma, Sonia Blanche, Rinna Mayfield, Zest Graham, and Excela Noa Aura.

While the last entry got a western release on Steam, it wasn’t published by SEGA. Blade Arcus Rebellion from Shining releases in Japan on March 14, 2019 for PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch. I wouldn’t keep my fingers crossed for a Western release by SEGA.

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Retro-bit Gaming reveals SEGA Nomad styled portable Genesis

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The 2019 Consumer Electronics Show is underway, and Retro-bit (the ones behind those SEGA controllers) tweeted out photos of a prototype of what they call the Genesis Portable System. The handheld resembles the beloved SEGA Nomad, with several differences. Aside from different button shapes and placement, the portable promises HDMI out and has a widescreen display. Based on the photos, there is an NTSC/PAL switcher and a reset button (which made X-Men unbeatable on the Nomad thanks to the “reset the computer” feature). The bottom hasn’t been seen, so no idea if there is a player 2 controller input. Also no promise of an SD card slot yet.

Despite the Nomad resemblance, it is important to note that this is not a Nomad and there is no promise of quality emulation yet. I know the Nomad gets a lot of grief for the battery life, but I have to say as a longtime Nomad owner that battery technology has improved to the point where one can get 6 hours of playtime on quality rechargables. Heck, I had a 3DS die on me in less time than that. Coupled with near perfect sound and the ability to mod the display to modern technology on a Nomad, this Genesis Portable System is no heir to the Nomad throne just yet. We’ll share more as we hear it!

Update: Retro-bit confirmed a player 2 input in a tweet to us.

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The SEGA AGES lineup expands with Out Run for Nintendo Switch

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Yu Suzuki’s classic Out Run (or OutRun) is now available on the Nintendo Switch for $7.99. The SEGA AGES release sports motion controls, a ranking system, music tracks from the 3DS release and new arrangements of songs from the Genesis and Master System releases as well as Out Run 2006: Coast 2 Coast which was released in… well, 2006.

Play the game today and in the comments below, tell us how many times you flipped the car.

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Zillion: The Complete Series anime now available on blu-ray and DVD

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Back in July 2018 we shared the exciting news that the Zillion anime was receiving a blu-ray, DVD and digital release in the west. Westerners know Zillion best from the SEGA Master System games, as well as the five episodes of the anime and OVA Zillion: Burning Night which received dubbed VHS releases in the early 90s, as well as a short run of comics from the publisher Eternity. The series is loaded with Master System references and cameos from our favorite sentient space ship Opa Opa.

Now you can own the complete series of 31 episodes plus the OVA movie Zillion: Burning Night in a box set containing 4 blu-rays, 5 DVDs and a digital download code. As of this article, the set is 40% off on Amazon, which you can order here.

I’ll admit, this release passed us by as the set has been out since October 2018, but better late then never!

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Toot-Toot Sonic Warrior! and a returning track announced for Team Sonic Racing

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SEGA has announced a new track and released a sample of a new tune for the upcoming Team Sonic Racing. It has been previously revealed that the game will have a mix of new and returning tracks, and this time we have Ocean View from Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed (based on Ocean Palace from Sonic Heroes). To accompany the track is a remix of a familiar tune by Jun Senoue who has partnered with artists Richard Jaques & S.A.M.E. You can listen to the remix of Sonic CD‘s “You Can Do Anything” above.

In the comments below, let us know what you think of the track and tune!

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SEGA News Bits Extra: Sonic at the Golden Globes and Catherine Classic on PC

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It’s the first week of the month, which means a preview of SEGA News Bits Extra! Extra is a weekly series for our Patreon supporters where we discuss news not seen on the SEGA News Bits videos.

This week we discuss Catherine coming to PC, the Alien Isolation storyline moving on without SEGA, ATV Slam and Sonic getting a shoutout at the Golden Globes. Thank you to our Patreon community for the support and consider joining the community yourself if you enjoy our content!

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SEGA in the Media: Sonic the Hedgehog movie gets a mention at the Golden Globes

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The Golden Globes happened over the weekend, and surprisingly the upcoming Sonic the Hedgehog movie got a mention in a short back and forth between the hosts and Jim Carrey. In the clip, Jim is told by the hosts that because he is nominated for television that he needs to move from the film seating section. Carrey counters, pointing out that he will be in the Sonic the Hedgehog movie in November. However, host Andy Samberg counters that Jim can sit in the film section next year noting “I’m sure it will be nominated.” Of course, the joke is that the Sonic movie will not be nominated for a Golden Globe and everybody has a laugh at the expense of the movie.

Look, I’ve seen several fans and fan sites defend the clip saying the joke wasn’t about the Sonic movie looking like it will be awful but about Jim sitting in the wrong section. I personally don’t care if people make fun of the upcoming Sonic movie, because I think it looks terrible and Paramount and SEGA deserves the blowback. But to think that the above clip isn’t making fun of the movie is just silly.

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SEGA AGES OutRun releasing January 10th in western territories

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Back in November in Japan, people got the experience the thrill of the drive on their Nintendo Switch with SEGA AGES OutRun. Now people outside of Japan are going to get their chance to experience OutRun once again, as confirmed by SEGA of America. The game will be available on the Switch’s eShop on January 10th, effectively next week as of this writing. This version of OutRun will contain features from the 3DS iteration, such as a 16:9 aspect ratio, the added songs “Camino a Mi Amor” and “Cruising Line”, and the ability to customize your car to handle differently, along with several new features like two new songs “STEP ON BEAT” and “RADIATION”, a ranking system, and optional gyro controls.

So maybe next week take a break from the winter weather for a nice summer drive with SEGA AGES OutRun, whether at home or on the go.

[Source: SEGA Twitter, Nintendo Website]

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SEGA developers talk about their favorite 2018 games and new year messages to fans

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It’s the new years, so that means that everyone is looking back at their favorite things to come out in 2018 and talk about what they want to accomplish for the future. The Japanese site 4Gamer has decided to interview over 195 Japanese developers and ask them what they liked in 2018 and their message to fans in 2019

I’m posting the SEGA and developers responses below:

Continue Reading ➜

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