3D After Burner II to be delisted from 3DS eShop on December 21st, 2022

M2 has announced that the Nintendo 3DS SEGA 3D Classics title 3D After Burner II will be delisted from the Japanese eShop, along with Sega 3D Fukkoku Archives 3 FINAL STAGE. The delisting is also likely to affect storefronts worldwide, though M2 has not confirmed this. The reasoning? Nothing has been said, but it is likely a licensing issue. Given the eShop will close anyway in 2023, it’s only a few months early, but still worth knowing about so you can grab 3D After Burner II before it’s gone!

[Thanks gosokkyu!]

Sega Blog: SEGA 3D Classics – 3D Super Hang-On Interview with Developer M2

Originally published to the SEGA Blog on Nov 27, 2013 – republished here for archival purposes

We continue our SEGA 3D Classic interviews with Super Hang-On, which appears on Nintendo eShop tomorrow alongside Space Harrier. We’re really excited to get these games out to fans and hope these interviews bring all new insight into not only the creation of the games, but also the finer details inside.

Thanks again to Game Watch and Impress, Okunari-san, and Horii-san for their involvement in making these interviews available to our western audience. Thanks to Siliconera for coordinating with us to help spread the word to SEGA fans across the web. And special thanks to our producer Sam for translating these interviews for everyone’s enjoyment.

If you read and enjoy this interview, please take the time to post a comment and let us know. We’ve got a lot of folks looking on reading the feedback, so don’t hesitate to post!

Sega 3D Fukkoku Archives 3: Final Stage features two unlockable bonus games from SEGA legends

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Sega 3D Fukkoku Archives 3: Final Stage is due out December 22nd in Japan, but leading up to the release we learned of some cool surprises via Famitsu. if your handheld contains save data from Sega 3D Fukkoku Archives, you’ll unlock Girl’s Garden, a 1984 SG-1000 game notable for being the first game Yuji Naka worked on. Sega 3D Fukkoku Archives 2 save data, meanwhile, will unlock another 1984 SG-1000 game: Champion Boxing. SEGA super fans know that Champion Boxing is the first game coded by Yu Suzuki in his first year at SEGA.

Not a bad deal! Two bonus games from two SEGA legends early in their careers.

A User’s Guide to Puyo Puyo Tsu (Puyo Puyo 2)

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3D Puyo Puyo 2, better known under the Japanese name Puyo Puyo Tsu, is one of several games as part of the upcoming SEGA 3D Classic Collection. Puyo Puyo Tsu is considered an arcade classic in Japan, with it being played on a high level even today and setting the standards for future Puyo Puyo games like the concept of offsetting, All Clear, and standardizing four colors. But playing the game might be intimidating since for people this might be the first time playing the game. Luckily this guide will explain how the game works so you can feel more confident.

SEGA News Bits: Fantasy Zone turns 30 years old

2016 is filled with milestone SEGA anniversaries, and one of the most anticipated by us – for obvious reasons – was Fantasy Zone! Join us on this SEGA News Bits as we discuss our thoughts on the franchise’s past, present and future.

Released to arcades on March 28, 1986, the Fantasy Zone franchise has released a surprising amount of games in its 30 year history. Despite the many titles, the story often remains the same: the sentient spaceship Opa Opa traverses the Fantasy Zone, sometimes joined by his brother Upa Upa, battling bizarre bosses and upping his arsenal thanks to a floating Parts Shop. Outside the franchise, Opa Opa has made appearances in both All-Stars Racing games as well as Amusement Visions’ Planet Harriers, a 3D installment in the Space Harrier franchise which also takes place in Opa Opa’s Fantasy Zone.

If you enjoy the SEGA News Bits video formats make sure to like, share and subscribe to our YouTube for more.

3D Sonic the Hedgehog 2 releasing October 8th to the Nintendo eShop

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3D Sonic the Hedgehog 2 was supposed to release at the end of September for the Nintendo 3DS, but when last week came and went we here at SEGAbits grew curious as to what happened to the game’s expected release date.

An hour after we tweeted the question of when the game will be releasing out to the official Sonic the Hedgehog account, SEGA made a tweet announcing that the game would release on October 8th. Coincidence? Probably, but we’d like to think we lit a fire under SEGA for the answer. So expect the last of SEGA 3D Classics wave 2 to release in just 10 days, and in the meantime why not grab the first Sonic game from wave 1 to brush up on your classic Sonic skills?

Trailer releases for SEGA Reprint Archives 2 collection, featuring 3D Power Drift and Puyo Puyo 2

The trailer for Japan’s upcoming packaged release of SEGA 3D Classics has landed, featuring footage from 3D Sonic the Hedgehog, 3D Galaxy Force II, 3D Thunder Blade, 3D Altered Beast, and 3D Fantasy Zone II, as well as new 3D Classics titles 3D Puyo Puyo 2, 3D Power Drift, and 3D Maze Walker. From what the trailer shows, 3D Power Drift has been made to fill the full screen, while 3D Maze Walker and 3D Puyo Puyo 2 retain their original framing. No word yet on if these three titles will make their way to the West. Currently, 3D Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is due for a September release in the Americas and Europe.

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!

Prepare to bare your knuckles: SEGA 3D Classics “3D Streets of Rage 2 ” releases July 16th in North America

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If you own a Nintendo 3DS and live in North America, make sure to “Go Straight” to the eShop to download the latest SEGA 3D Classics title: the bare knuckle classic Streets of Rage 2! 3D Streets of Rage 2 will be priced at $5.99 and will feature the original game fans have come to love as well as new modes including “Rage Relay” (called “Quartet Mode” in Japan) which allows you to use of all four characters sequentially while playing solo. The game is also set to feature local co-op multiplayer.

July 16th can’t come quickly enough! More release information, including other territories, will be posted as we hear it.

SEGA 3D Classics upcoming 3D Gunstar Heroes special modes and features detailed

SEGA 3D Classics for the Nintendo 3DS took a short break after the release of 3D Thunder Blade, but the series will return next month with 3D Streets of Rage 2, followed by 3D Gunstar Heroes in August and 3D Sonic the Hedgehog 2 in September. While it’s fun playing classic SEGA games on the go, what makes SEGA 3D Classics so exciting (apart from the 3D) are the new modes added by developer M2! It has been revealed that 3D Gunstar Heroes will feature a Full Spec Mode, which allows players to arm themselves with any of the 14 weapons in the game, while Mega Life Mode doubles the amount of lives available for an easier experience.

Also supported are wireless multiplayer, which requires both players to own the game, and the option to play either the Japanese or American version of the game. A tube TV filter, seen in past Genesis/Mega Drive titles in the series, is also an option. We can’t wait for the next round of SEGA 3D Classics, what title are you most anticipating?

SEGA 3D Classics Space Harrier and Fantasy Zone themes now on North American Nintendo eShop

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While SEGA has released several awesome Nintendo 3DS themes over in Japan, here in the West all we have are Sonic the Hedgehog themes. Don’t get me wrong, I like Sonic, but what about SEGA’s non-blue hedgehog stuff? Well today things change, at least for North American fans at the time of this article. Via SEGA Localization Producer Sam Mullen comes news that 3D Space Harrier and 3D Fantasy Zone themes release today! Available now for $1.99 each, these two themes feature graphics and sounds from both games and are an excellent way to scrub every hint of Nintendo off of your 3DS. Fill the home screen with SEGA games, pick a SEGA 3D Classics theme, slap on a SEGA branded skin and you’re all set!

No word on Europe yet, but when we hear something we’ll update the story.

Review: 3D Thunder Blade (Nintendo 3DS)

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The final arcade title in wave two of SEGA’s 3D Classics line of games releases this Thursday, and boy is it a special one! While Thunder Blade is not SEGA’s most famous 80s arcade title, eclipsed by greats like OutRun, Space Harrier, and Hang-On, it certainly deserves a spot with the big boys. Perhaps the general public’s neglect of Thunder Blade stems from the game’s home console releases. While other SEGA arcade classics have seen near perfect home ports, Thunder Blade never truly saw a worthy release that stacked up with the arcade original. But now, nearly 30 years later, SEGA and M2 just may have done the original justice with their latest SEGA 3D Classic release. How did they do in porting this 1987 classic? Read on!

Swingin’ Report Show #78: Interview with Sam Mullen, Localization Producer, SEGA of America

On this episode of the SEGAbits Swingin’ Report Show, we’re joined by SEGA of America Localization Producer Sam Mullen! In his role at SEGA, Sam has managed the localization process of several Japanese titles including Binary Domain, Rise of Nightmares, and the Hatsune Miku titles. Currently he is working on SEGA’s line of 3D Classics titles which include arcade and SEGA Genesis favorites as well as Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai DX for the Nintendo 3DS.

Learn about what the process of localization entails as well as what to expect from SEGA’s upcoming 3DS titles in this week’s show! Oh, and see a surprise cameo from former Brand Manager Aaron Webber who happened to be at SEGA of America HQ while we were recording this episode.

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3D Streets of Rage 2 screenshots tell you to trust your fists

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If you missed the announcement, SEGA is set to add three more titles to their wave 2 of their 3D Classics on the 3DS. We already got great titles like 3D Fantasy Zone, 3D Outrun and just last week we got 3D Fantasy Zone II. Now we are set to get Genesis/Mega Drive hit titles like 3D Sonic the Hedgehog 2, 3D Gunstar Heroes and of course 3D Streets of Rage 2.

The screenshots give you a taste of what the game will look like on your 3DS before it comes out later this year. It seems that M2, the developers behind this port will be sticking with the original aspect ratio of the game instead of working on making this titles widescreen. I now expect the same will happen with 3D Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and 3D Gunstar Heroes. Also nice to see Yuzo Koshiro gets that big credit under the SEGA copyright like always. A few other things we know is that the game will support local multiplayer (if both 3DS’ have a copy of the game) and a new Quartet mode that allows you to play a single player mode with all characters.

3D Sonic The Hedgehog 2, Streets of Rage 2 and Gunstar Heroes added to SEGA 3D Classics wave two!

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The SEGA Blog has unveiled more SEGA 3D Classics titles! Just when we thought the series was over with the second wave featuring SEGA arcade classics, SEGA hits us over the head with a trio of Genesis/Mega Drive classics: 3D Sonic The Hedgehog 2, 3D Streets of Rage 2 and 3D Gunstar Heroes. Rather than being a third wave of titles, these new additions are a part of wave two. Though interestingly, their announcement appears to be exclusive to the West at the moment.

3D Streets of Rage 2 is set for July, 3D Gunstar Heroes in August, and 3D Sonic The Hedgehog 2 in September 2015. Also announced are the dates for the already announced 3D Classics arcade titles: 3D Fantasy Zone II (April 16, 2015) and 3D Thunder Blade (May 14, 2015). As with past releases, new modes and features are planned but are not yet revealed. Prices will be $5.99/€4.99/£4.49 and the games will be releasing exclusively to the Nintendo eShop on Nintendo 3DS.