Watch sexy Asian girls audition to be in Yakuza 5

SEGA has now launched the Miss Yakuza 5 auditions for all those women that want to be in the game as a hostess. SEGA is ready to crown a ‘Miss Yakuza 5’ from each of the game’s five cities. Yes, Yakuza 5 will have five cities. Did you miss the news? Read up here.

Each city will have 3 girls, so people will get to vote for one girl in each of the five cities. You can play vote on the audition campaign site.SEGA will also do a new promotion where the girls, over the coming weeks, will introduce internet viewers to each cities. Showing people local cuisine and other activities.

SEGA West delays Anarchy Reigns despite the game being completed


Platinum Games has said that SEGA has delayed Anarchy Reigns in Europe and North America, even though the game is all finished. Its release date was changed from July to  TBC (To Be Confirmed). This is what a Platinum Games representative said:

“That means ‘to be confirmed’, not ‘to be cancelled’. We worked really hard to make sure everybody could get the game on time. The game is fully localized. If you buy the Japanese version or any version, it’s going to have all the languages in it. We really wanted everybody online around the world to play together at the same time, but unfortunately that’s not going to happen. In the West, Sega is looking for the best time to put it out. It will still be out in July [in Japan]. There will still be ways for you to get it if you know where to go. We’re still 100 per cent behind the game and we still want to connect with you and play with you and have a good time. So let’s make sure that happens no matter what bad news we get.”

This is one of the few times I have seen a representative from a developer openly suggesting to import their game. How are prospects looking for a Western release? I don’t know, if ‘summer’ isn’t a good time to release this niche title, then when is a good time? Fall?  Not to mention SEGA West is acting like the game doesn’t exist. Anarchy Reigns comes out in Japan on 5th of July. Get your import pre-orders in.

New Project X Zone screens show off field and event scenes

There has been a new batch of Project X Zone screens released today, these screens show off roaming and event scenes. Not only will the game be using characters from SEGA, Namco and Capcom franchises; they’ll also be using areas from their games. One that stands out to me is Peacock’s Cyberspace from the Mega Man series. If you want to see the latest list of franchises in the game, click here.

Saw a few people point out that some of the character art released was actually re-used from Namco X Capcom, a game they made during the PS2 era. Yes, this game is basically the sequel on the Nintendo 3DS.

Yakuza 5 announced: 5 playable characters and a brand new engine


Yakuza 4
was the first game to allow new playable characters outside of Kazuma. They actually had 4 playable characters since it was the 4th game. Seems that SEGA is continuing that gimmick with Yakuza 5 , since they have announced 5 playable characters. Who are they?

  • Kazuma Kiryu
  • Taiga Saejima
  • Shun Akiyama
  • Haruka
  • Tatsuo Shinada

So we have two new playable characters and one of them is Haruka? Yes, the little girl you rescue in the first game and take care of throughout the series is now a playble character. Intresting? Hit the jump for more details on the title.

SEGA Japan files trademarks for Veil of Dark and The Shooting Coaster

SEGA Japan have filed two new trademarks that could be anything. The names they trademarked? Veil of Dark and The Shooting Coaster. To me Veil of Dark sounds like a horror themed game and The Shooting Coaster a simple arcade game. Who knows, they could both be arcade games we will never play.

Still sort of exciting knowing that SEGA is still working on new IPs, despite a bad year for them.

Project X Zone gets more characters and is being developed by Xenoblade Chronicles developers


Famitsu has announced lots of new details for the upcoming 3DS crossover video game called Project X Zone. Project X Zone will include characters from Capcom, Namco, and your favorite publisher, SEGA, in a tactical RPG game. The developer for the title has been announced as non other than Monolith Software. At first you will be excited since they created the Xenosaga franchise and the new(ish) Wii RPG Xenoblade Chronicles, but they also developed Namco x Capcom on the PS2; which wasn’t that great of a game.

Hit the jump to see new gameplay details, Famtisu scans and a full list of confirmed characters!

Flick of the Dead released to the Japanese iOS app store

Flick of the Dead, which was trademarked in early April, has released today in Japan to their iOS store. The game is, as many guessed, a Typing of the Dead for iOS devices. This iteration is said to have added over 25,000 words, a boss rush and a drill mode. Unfortunately, the game is exclusive to Japan at the moment, however given that Miku Flick released to English app stores, it is possible we’ll see this getting a wider release at some point. The game is currently free to download, so if you can download it, do so. After the break, screens!  “I don’t want to tap!”

New Project X Zone screens shows off Resonance of Fate characters

Famitsu.com has updated with a ton of new screenshots showing off the newly announced characters for Project X Zone. If you missed the announcement it has been confirmed that Resonance of Fate‘s Leanne and Zephyr would be appearing as a pair in the upcoming 3DS game. Click here if you never heard of Project X Zone.

To see all the screenshots released, hit the jump. Enjoy!

SEGA to start location testing for Initial D7 next month

SEGA is getting set to start testing their long time racing series Initial D, this one titled Initial D Arcade Stage 7 AA X. Some people think this is a SEGA franchise but it is actually a licensed game based on the manga by Shuichi Shigeno.
Even though some of the titles in the franchise have made it over to America, I wouldn’t hold my breath for this one only because of all the cut backs at SEGA. But if you live in Japan you will be able to test the game next month in select locations. The Japanese game page for the title does give details on new things including a new tag mode, revival courses from Initial D Arcade Stage Ver. 3, a new boost and more.

SEGA bringing Fist of the North Star slot machine game to Playstation 3

I was not aware that SEGA had the license to Fist of the North Star, but it seems they do and for their first (Actually they released some PS2 games and also a 2D fighter last generation) title with the license they want to do a port of Sammy’s First of the North Star slot machine.  SEGA is getting ready to release “Fist of the North Star Pachislot” in Japan May 31st.

The game will feature a production mode and let you see in-game art and watch Kenshiro punch the screen if you are into that. I’m a Fist of the North Star fan and this seems like a rip off compared to the game that Koei released.

Resonance of Fate characters to appear in Project X Zone

Seems that SEGA isn’t going to let the Resonance of Fate franchise die out just yet. In the latest Famitsu magazine (scans above) they confirm that there will be a Resonance of Fate team made up by Leanne and Zephyr. They also revealed other characters from Capcom and Namco-Bandai that will be joining the full game.

  • Alisa and Soma from God Eater franchise (Namco-Bandai)
  • Lei-Lei (aka Hsien-Ko) from the Darkstalkers franchise (Capcom)
  • Frank West from Dead Rising franchise (Capcom)

Seems that the roster will just keep growing and growing at this rate. But do you think that the Resonance of Fate franchise deserves to go first instead of a classic franchise like Phantasy Star?

SEGA to open a ride based on “The Ring” horror franchise


If you didn’t watch the American adaptation of the horror movies known as the Ring franchise (sequels had different names etc), then you probably don’t know that it’s about people finding a tape, watching it, then dying. VCR no less. A ghost haunts those that watch the tape, and throughout the movie you find out more and more about the girl ghost. Even though the franchise is dead in the States, it isn’t in Japan. They are getting set to release Sadako 3D and SEGA is ready to team up to create a ride.

SEGA’s ride will be based on the upcoming film and be called Sadako 3D: Cursed Tour. It is set to open on July 14th. It is rumored that there is a video of someone who commits suicide and that viewers will ‘follow the leader’ if they watch the tape. A bit morbid if you ask me, especially knowing that Japan has such high suicide rates. SEGA says that Sadako 3D: Cursed Tour is going to be a seven-minute test of courage. You want to experince the morbid ride? You will have to go to SEGA’s Joypolis in Japan.

Project X Zone website updates with character voice samples

 

[SPACE HARRIER AND OPA-OPA!!!]

If you go here you will see the official Project X Zone website. right away you will be treated to the game’s theme song. Wow, isn’t that a catchy song? Now that you are finished rocking out, you can click on ‘Entry Title’ to view character voice samples. If you look on the left you will see company logo with Japanese lettering beneath it. Those Japanese letters are list of characters. Click randomly for random voices.

If you haven’t seen our article on characters that have been revealed yet, then check that out here.

Some direct screens of SEGA/Capcom/Namco’s Project X Zone


Namco-Bandai has released direct screenshots of their latest crossover game featuring characters from their franchise and also SEGA and Capcom. The game is called Project X Zone, which was revealed the other day via Famitsu. The game definitely has a budget look, using older 16-bit looking graphics.

Namco and Capcom have teamed up before for a game on the Playstation 2 called Namco x Capcom, which seems to have the same exact concept as Project X Zone. Sadly this title didn’t make it out of Japan. I wouldn’t expect this one either.