Indie

Kickstarter launches for Xenocider, a 3D shooter for Dreamcast, PC, Mac, Linux & 3DS

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The Kickstarter campaign for Xenocider, a new indie SEGA Dreamcast game, has launched. The game is unique as it is one of the first fully 3D indie Dreamcast games, and the gameplay itself takes inspiration from classic SEGA arcade games including Space Harrier and Nintendo’s Sin & Punishment. The game’s development team Retro Sumus describes themselves as “a small, independent game development team who got together to revisit genres and concepts we felt were underused, or not explored in depth back in their time.”

The small team is a mix of individuals who are both new and old to the indie Dreamcast development scene, including Lead Programmer Daniel Lancha who reprogrammed Pier Solar for modern platforms and developed Hucast’s Ghost Blade. Also involved is Carlos Oliveros who heads up the team’s Communications and who in the past handled Pier Solar‘s Spanish translation. So it should be no surprise that Tulio Goncalves, former president and founder of Watermelon games and creator of Pier Solar, is on the team serving as the Producer. All-in-all, it looks like Xenocider has a solid team with Dreamcast development experience, but if that still doesn’t sway you they have put together a real working demo of the game for the Dreamcast that you can play right now! Just click on over to their campaign page for Windows, Mac, Linux and Dreamcast download links.

Dreamcast isn’t the only planned platform, as the game will also be playable on PC, Mac, Linux and Nintendo 3DS. The team hopes to raise $92,000 to realize their vision. After the break, a full list of what the team plans for the game to make it extra special. Check out the campaign today, and if you like what you see give them your support!

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Swingin’ Report Show #86: Strike Harbinger Game Designer and SEGA Tournament Champion Chris Tang

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On this episode of the Swingin’ Report Show podcast, Barry sits down with game designer and gaming tournament champion Chris Tang at the Galloping Ghost Arcade’s SEGA Week. SEGA fans may know Chris best as the winner of SEGA’s Sonic & Knuckles Rock the Rock competition in 1994, and before that Chris was a finalist in 1990’s Nintendo World Championships. Since then, Chris has worked on games at Atari and Capcom, including Gauntlet IV, Primal Rage, Street Fighter III, Rival Schools and Power Stone. Now, Chris is hard at work on a new game inspired by classic SEGA titles like Space Harrier and Phantasy Star. The game, titled Strike Harbinger, combines the fast paced forward flying gameplay of Space Harrier with the RPG and combat elements of Phantasy Star while utilizing a unique control structure that evokes Virtual On.

Strike Harbinger – developed by Chris’s company HitSparks Games – was revealed Saturday, April 30th at Galloping Ghost Arcade where I had the pleasure to meet Chris and the game’s Senior Artist Kiyoshi Okuma, whose past work includes Gauntlet: Legends, World Series Baseball 2K2, The Sims 2 and Darkspore. I also had the honor to be the first member of the public to play the game, and following that experience I chatted with Chris about his life as a tournament gamer, his career, and his plans for Strike Harbinger. 

Want more information on Strike Harbinger? Stay tuned for an upcoming SEGA News Bits as well as a SEGA Week writeup!

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Racing Apex channels AM2’s low polygon Virtua Racing art style

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Back in the early to mid 90s SEGA and AM2 dominated the arcade racing market with their low polygon racing games including Virtua Racing, Daytona USA, SEGA Rally, and many more. Sadly SEGA has sorta abandoned the racing market in recent years, doesn’t mean that indie developers have forgotten especially the Racing Apex developers.

This isn’t the first ‘SEGA arcade racing’ inspired game we have seen in recent years, do you guys recall Drift Stage and Slipstream? According to the developers Racing Apex will take art styles from late 80s to early 90s arcade titles and add modern gameplay elements like multiplayer. Racing Apex will feature 8 playable racers, over 30 playable vehicles and over 16 tracks to race on. Racing Apex will feature items sort of like a kart racing game that includes stuff like Duel Gatling Guns and Smoke. The game will also have a ton of game modes including Arcade, Cat and Mouse, Bomb Tag, and much more. Check their site for more information.

 

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Play Fatal Smarties, a new scrolling shooter for the SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive

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At this year’s Global Game Jam a group of indie developers had a special treat for SEGA retro fans, a new scrolling shooter called ‘Fatal Smarties‘ made its debut for the SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive.

The game was developed by four students that represent the University of Southampton. The students tried to think out of the box for this co-op game, having an interesting mechanic where one player shoots and the other navigates the on screen characters.

The game was developed on a deadline during the Global Game Jam and seems very promising. Want to try it out on an emulator or flash cart? Get the rom here.

[Via: RetroCollect]

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Indie Dreamcast game Leona’s Tricky Adventures now available to purchase

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The indie Dreamcast game Leona’s Tricky Adventures, a combination RPG/puzzle game that we wrote about back in 2014 on the Dreamcast’s 15th anniversary, has finally been made available to purchase. Initially a Kickstarter project for the Dreamcast and Amiga in 2013, the game’s creator cancelled the campaign. Now, the game is finally available for the Dreamcast. It has been pointed out to us by SEGA Driven’s Sonic Yoda that the PC version has been out for a little over a year and the developer KTX Software accepted PayPal donations, rewarding those who helped with the planned Kickstarter exclusives. The developer had this to say regarding the game:

Leona’s Tricky Adventures is a clever puzzle adventure in a charming retro look. Explore a world of mystery and cutesy residents and recover a lost paradise by solving logic puzzles. With a storyline created by the comic authors Musal M. & B. Samuel and the music of the brilliant
composer Chris Huelsbeck, Tricky Adventures is a perfect treat for connoisseurs.

The release features a manual, jewel case, and printed CD and can be purchased at the KTX Software shop which utilizes PayPal. I should note that if you live outside the EU, shipping is pretty expensive, costing half the price of the game itself. Within the EU the game will cost 35.8 Euros total, outside the EU it will cost around $49 total. If you want a look at the packaging, check out the KTX Software Facebook page.

[Source: The Dreamcast Junkyard]

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SEGA News Bits: First impressions of the indie SEGA Dreamcast game Pier Solar

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2015 sure has been a great year for indie SEGA Dreamcast games! We’ve seen shmups, odd puzzlers, vikings, and now we’re seeing an RPG by the name of Pier Solar and the Great Architects. While Pier Solar released way back in 2010 to the SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive, the recent Dreamcast port features improved graphics, new scenarios, and special extras that take advantage of the Dreamcast’s unique capabilities (VMU mini-games!). As seen in my recent unboxing, the game’s packaging is beautiful. Now, in this latest episode of SEGA News Bits, I talk with George about my first impressions of the game.

If you like what you see, make sure to subscribe to us on YouTube and never miss a video.

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Unboxing: Pier Solar Japanese packaging for the SEGA Dreamcast

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The long awaited Dreamcast release of Pier Solar has started to arrive in mailboxes, and I was so impressed with the packaging that I knew it had to get the unboxing video treatment. This isn’t the first SEGA console the game has released to, back in 2010 the game hit the Mega Drive/Genesis and I shared an unboxing of the reprint edition. The Dreamcast version I present to you today is a first edition in the Japanese style packaging, other versions include US and PAL, but seeing as how most indie Dreamcast releases emulate the Japanese packaging, I went with this style and don’t regret it in the slightest. A lot of effort went into this release, and it really makes modern game unboxings look like crap by comparison. Seriously, who wants to see somebody opening a Wii U game where all you get is a disc and a slip of paper telling you to read the digital manual.

You can buy Pier Solar on several platforms. The Dreamcast and Mega Drive/Genesis versions are sold out at the moment, but more may be available in the future. Check out the official site for more details. Like this video? Subscribe to the SEGAbits YouTube channel.

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Homebrew developers bring Moggy to the SEGA Master System

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It’s not all that often we hear of new games for SEGA’s Master System. While 2015 appears to be the year of the Dreamcast, SEGA’s first Western console effort has received a new game available to play today entitled Moggy Master from homebrew development team The Mojon Twins. The game is a port of Moggy, a ZX Spectrum game from 2005 also by The Mojon Twins. In the game, players control Moggy, a little yellow guy, who is out to save his purple friends.

If you love classic Atari arcade games, this is definitely worth checking out. And why shouldn’t you try it out? The game is free and available to download today! Just use an emulator or flash cart, should you own one. 

[Via RetroCollect]

 

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Fruit’Y is a new indie Dreamcast puzzle game, and it’s available now!

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In the midst of Ghost Blade, the impending release of Pier Solar and the release of Volgaar the Viking comes yet another indie Dreamcast game – Fruit’Y! Developed by retroguru, Fruit’Y is a fruit matching puzzle game featuring 120 levels, pixel graphics and a killer soundtrack. What surprised me the most is that the game is out now to purchase – no pre-orders here folks – and is incredibly affordable. A pressed disc with full color art in a DVD case will only set you back 2.50 Euros or around $2.81. Shipping isn’t too bad, as it only cost around $10.41 total for the game to ship from Germany to SEGAbits Midwest HQ in the United States.

The game is limited to 500 copies, so pick one up soon from Dragon Box Shop! I’ve already seen people receiving theirs in the mail, and hope to get my hands on my copy within the next few days.

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Opinion: Hucast and the Business of Dreamcast

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When speaking of the SEGA Dreamcast “nostalgia” is a word that is often mentioned, and it wouldn’t be an incorrect description of many gamers’ feelings towards the system. Countless articles and blog posts have been written about the prominence of the Dreamcast and how it died too soon. From that love of the little white box, an incredible scene of independent developers and publishers has continued the dream over the past decade with a steady stream of new games and multiplatform releases.

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Indie SEGA Dreamcast game Ghost Blade is now available for your undead console

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Its been a long time coming, but HUCAST Games’ latest release Ghost Blade is now available to purchase and play on your SEGA Dreamcast. Insert the obligatory “a Dreamcast game in 2015!?” here. Described as “an ace shoot ’em up for the Dreamcast with a focus on arcade action and an elaborate scoring system”, Ghost Blade promises three game modes with three player ships too choose from, five stages, a Caravan Mode, and support for the VGA Box, Arcade Stick, VMU and standard Dreamcast controller.

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Dreamcast indie game ‘Ghost Blade’ gets release date

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Indie Dreamcast developer and publisher Hucast games has finally announced the released date for their latest title Ghost Blade. The game will be officially out on September 27th and come in a variety of editions.

What the game features:

  • Beautiful, detailed High-res Graphics
  • 5 Stage with HUGE Boss Enemies
  • 3 Player ships with different gun types
  • Instant Respawn
  • Auto-bomb enabled novice mode for beginners
  • Arcade Gameplay and Addictive Scoring System
  • Incredible Soundtrack composed by Rafael Dyll
  • 2-player mode for addictive fun

Accessories supported:

  • VMU
  • RGB cable (480i)
  • VGA cable/box (480p)
  • Original Pad
  • Arcade stick

You can check out both the regular edition and limited editions (limited to 1,000 copies) of the game. Anyone looking forward to this one?

[Via Retro Collect]

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New SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive game Papi Cammando gets official demo

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A new and upcoming SEGA Gensis/Mega Drive game known as Papi Commando has not gotten a official demo release by the independent developers behind the project. The game takes ques from classics like SEGA’s Alien Syndrome and Lucas Art’s Zombies Ate My Neighbors by delivering a run and gun game with a unlikely protagonist.

The game promises to have 2 player mode, up to 11 zones, with varied units including soldiers and zombies. So if you want to see what the independent SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive indie scene is up to, give the demo a try below.

You can download the bin file of the demo here. Have fun shooting.

[Source: The Forums]

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Pier Solar out today on Wii U, coming to Xbox One on the 21st

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Pier Solar and the Great Architects HD comes out on the Wii U today, so if your reading this go on the e-shop and grab yourself a copy.

As for Xbox One owners, you guys can now expect to play the game on November 21st, which has been approved by the boys over at Watermelon Games. That would mean that the only versions we are waiting on are the Dreamcast and Playstation Vita (unless I missed a platform?).

The game is already out on Playstation 4, Playstation 3, Steam, Ouya and (as of today)  Wii U. What console are you planning to pick this up on?

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Swingin’ Report Show #68: Indie SEGA Dreamcast interview with the Elysian Shadows Team – Kickstarter Edition

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The team behind the indie RPG Elysian Shadows returns to the Swingin’ Report Show following the launch of their Kickstarter. As discussed in early June, the game is heading to the SEGA Dreamcast, but this time the team has many more details and ideas for the beloved SEGA console. Check out our interview to hear the team’s plans for the game, what SEGA titles influenced them, and how far they’re potentially willing to go to support the many Dreamcast features and accessories. You can find their Kickstarter here, or search “Elysian Shadows” on Kickstarter.

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