figmaPLUS SEGA Consoles collection now available for pre-order – tiny accessories for your Figma action figures!

If you’re unfamiliar with Figma, Figma is a Japanese action figure line produced by Max Factory and distributed by Good Smile Company. Various anime, movies, video games and even the occasional celebrity have Figma figures, what what’s so cool about them is that they are all the same scale, are super articulated and can mix and match accessories. The figmaPLUS line focuses on accessories and playsets, and of interest to SEGA fans is the figmaPLUS SEGA Consoles collection, which is now available for pre-order!

Picross S: Mega Drive & Mark III Edition coming to Nintendo Switch

The developer of Picross S, Jupiter, has announced Picross S: Mega Drive & Mark III Edition would be coming to Nintendo Switch via teaser at the end of a commercial for Jupiter’s April-released Picross S4 and the newly released Working Zombie.

“Picross” is a picture crossword puzzle game that uses numbers as hints to complete an illustration. Further details on the title have yet to be announced. We will let our readers know when more details are announced.

Source: Gematsu

SEGA Talk Podcast #47: Alex Kidd in the Enchanted Castle (1989)

Barry and George return to the world of Alex Kidd with the franchise’s 16-bit Mega Drive/Genesis debut Alex Kidd in the Enchanted Castle! On this episode we discuss the game’s crazy story, the return to the platforming roots of Miracle World and investigate whether the game was ACTUALLY a SEGA Genesis launch title or not. You’ll be SHOCKED by what we learned!

Support us on Patreon! Get early access, tell us what games to cover, and have your SEGA memories read at the end and more!

[iTunes – Stitcher – YouTube – Play Music – RSS – Download]

If you want to give us feedback, suggest a topic for the next podcast or want to ask a question for us to answer on the next episode you can add  them as a comment below or send theme directly to our email. Make sure you use subject line ‘SEGA Talk’ and as always, thanks for listening!

Unreleased ‘Breach’ port for SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive has been unearthed

The site GamingAlexandria has posted some assets from the unreleased SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive port of Breach. This whole project was compiled and preserved by David Ashley.

Thankfully if you wanted to try out the beta port of ‘Breach’ on your original hardware, you can download the rom and assets here. If you didn’t know Breach was the first installment of a trilogy of sci-fi strategy games developed by Omnitrend Software who are mainly known for their 1983 text adventure game ‘Universe’. Lots of people would describe Breach as a early version of X-Com. You can read more about this ports development via GamingAlexandria’s in-depth post. According to our sister site, SEGA Retro, the game was last seen again at Winter CES 1993.

 

Madou Monogatari I for Mega Drive gets an English fan translation


A new English translation for the Madou Monogatari series has been released, this time for the Mega Drive version of Madou Monogatari I. Like the other versions of Madou Monogatari I, you play as 6 year old Arle Nadja, who was chosen to climb up a monster infested tower to pass her exam at Magic Kindergarten. This version also adds extra plot elements, such as the inclusion of the two characters Camus and Lulu who occasionally appear throughout the tower, along with a secret boss fight against a mysterious foe implied to be Satan, who can only be fought once certain criteria is met. Another major change is the battle system, which has been overhauled to now play in real-time, using button combinations in order to execute spells or to dodge attacks.

This fan translation as expected translates the entire game into English, complete with a title renaming to “Sorcery Saga I”. For extra authenticity, you can mod your SEGA Genesis Mini to play this game, doubly so if you have a Japanese Mega Drive Mini on hand and want to properly play Madou Monogatari I in English.

[Source: ROMhacking.net]

SEGA Talk Podcast #31: The Revenge of Shinobi (1989)

The SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive action classic The Revenge of Shinobi is the focus of this SEGA Talk episode. Barry and George discuss the game’s development, the difficulty, the various revisions and the impact the game made on the Shinobi series as a whole. While not available on the SEGA Genesis Mini, the game was included on the Japanese and Asian models and is available in the west via the SEGA Genesis Classics collection for PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and Xbox One.

Note: Due to a setup error, George is speaking through his computer mic. Please forgive us for his audio quality.

Support us on Patreon! Get early access, tell us what games to cover, and have your SEGA memories read at the end and more!

[iTunes – Stitcher – YouTube – Play Music – RSS – Download]

If you want to give us feedback, suggest a topic for the next podcast or want to ask a question for us to answer on the next episode you can add  them as a comment below or send theme directly to our email. Make sure you use subject line ‘SEGA Talk’ and as always, thanks for listening!

Disney Classic Games: Aladdin and The Lion King gets Nintendo Switch ‘Retro Edition’ and iam8bit ‘Legacy Cartridge Edition’

It looks like the upcoming Disney Classic Games: Aladdin and the Lion King publisher Nighthawk Interactive has decided to go all out in terms of limited edition versions. The game will feature two Nintendo Switch Limited Edition box versions, one in an actual box and the other clamshell which will be packed with goodies. More on that after the jump.

There is also the iam8bit ‘Legacy Cartridge’ edition, which will both be limited to 4,500 units. One of them is Aladdin on a SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive cartridge in see-through red (and 1-in-8 random orders will get the even rarer Rare Purple Gem Glow-in-the-Dark) and the other is The Lion King on a SNES cartridge in yellow. If these upcoming limited editions are too much for your wallet, you can pick up Disney Classic Games: Aladdin and The Lion King on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC on October 29 for $29.99.

Pre-orders for these fancy new editions will be open tomorrow (October 24th) at 10 a.m.PT/1:00 p.m. ET on either Best Buy or iam8bit.

SEGA Talk Podcast #26: Castle of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse (1990)

On this SEGA Talk, we celebrate the launch of the SEGA Genesis Mini by covering a very important game included on the plug and play console: Castle of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse. We discuss our memories of the game, the development process the many sequels and the recent remake!

Support us on Patreon! Get early access, tell us what games to cover, and have your SEGA memories played at the end and more!

[iTunes – Stitcher – YouTube – Play Music – RSS – Download]

If you want to give us feedback, suggest a topic for the next podcast or want to ask a question for us to answer on the next episode you can add  them as a comment below or send theme directly to our email. Make sure you use subject line ‘SEGA Talk’ and as always, thanks for listening!

16-bit classics The Lion King and Aladdin receiving remastered collection

Information has leaked from a GameStop conference which revealed that Disney plans to release an Aladdin and The Lion King collection featuring various versions of the games including the SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive titles from Virgin Interactive. The full collection includes Aladdin‘s Sega Genesis, Game Boy, and Super Game Boy versions and The Lion King‘s Sega Genesis, Super NES, Game Boy, and Super Game Boy versions. For those keeping track, this means the Capcom Aladdin is not being included. Other versions include what is being called a new “final cut” of Aladdin and a 1993 trade show version of the game.

SEGA Talk #20: Comix Zone (1995)

With all the buzz of the SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive Mini, we thought we’d discuss a game featured on the upcoming plug and play console! On this episode, George and Barry discuss the comic book inspired adventure game Comix Zone. We talk about the development history, the gameplay and the sequel that never was.

Make sure to leave us a positive five star review on iTunes, it always helps!

Support us on Patreon! Get an exclusive pre-show, early access, your SEGA memories played at the end and more!

[iTunes – Stitcher – YouTube – Play Music – RSS – Download]

If you want to give us feedback, suggest a topic for the next podcast or want to ask a question for us to answer on the next episode you can add  them as a comment below or send theme directly to our email. Make sure you use subject line ‘SEGA Talk’ and as always, thanks for listening!

Classic Disney Mega Drive Platformer Cold Shadow Returns on Steam and GOG

Disney threw a surprise today on PC digital download services by bringing back two of their classic platformers today. One being the PSOne/PC adaptation of Disney’s Hercules the other being the PC version of a classic Mega Drive game starring private investigator with a secret ninja alter ego, Maui Mallard played by Donald Duck. Or just Donald Duck. Whatever you call him in your region, Maui Mallard in Cold Shadow a.k.a. Donald in Maui Mallard returns on Steam and GOG.

The PC version, built off of the original Mega Drive/Genesis version, was enhanced with increased sound quality including Michael Giacchino’s soundtrack presented in CD redbook audio. Trying to run the PC version as-is today from an original copy will be impossible without the use of Virtual Machines as this version was made for Windows 95 before graphics libraries such as Direct X existed. Luckily this digital release has been reworked to run on modern Windows operating systems and plays exactly as it did back in 1995.

It joins Disney’s previous efforts to re-release it’s catalog from 3 years ago. This release is especially great for those in the US as the NTSC version of Cold Shadow never saw release on the Genesis due to a console exclusivity deal with Nintendo at the time.

Download it today on Steam or GOG.Com.

Game Freak’s Pulseman illustration video now Western friendly with English subtitles

If you’re a regular visitor to our little SEGA corner of the internet, you probably like to revisit some titles that you might have missed in the 90s and it seems that Game Freak’s Pulseman was pretty slept on in the 90s.

The video above has Pulseman director Ken Sugimori drawing Pulseman as he gives details into the character’s creation, what inspired him and why they made him as a direct opposition to Sonic the Hedgehog‘s design. Kind of funny that Ken Sugimori says that Sonic the Hedgehog had a ‘western look’ when I felt like Sonic the Hedgehog was a mix of classic Mickey/Felix the Cat mixed with a Japanese twist. But I guess Ken is right, its quite obvious that Sonic was inspired by early American mascot cartoons.

Love Ken Sugimori’s Mega Drive jacket. Very cool.

[Source: Siliconera]

Analogue Mega SG to Include Unreleased Title Ultracore from Battlefield Developers

Analogue’s FPGA Mega Drive/Genesis console, the Mega Sg is giving would be owners an additional bonus built into the console. A pack in title! Hardcore, a side-scrolling shooter in the vein of other European shooters such as the Turrican series, was developed by Digital Illusions who have since changed their name to DICE. (Who went on to become famous for the Battlefield series.) Due to the impending arrival of disc based consoles in 1994, the publisher of the game, Psygnosis decided to cancel the title despite being slated for release on Amiga, Mega Drive, Genesis and SEGA CD, with the Mega Drive/Genesis version being nearly ready for shipment. However due to legal issues, Analogue states on their website the game will be renamed to Ultracore. The game content will remain the same.

SEGA’s Hideki Sato talks about creating the Mega Drive to beat Nintendo

It seems that SEGA Japan’s former President (2001-2003) and hardware designer Hideki Sato is getting quite a bit of attention from the media lately. A few months ago he discussed what it was like going against Sony and the PlayStation brand, now he is talking about the creation of the SEGA Mega Drive/Genesis, which he reveals was created to beat Nintendo (no, duh?). If you didn’t know Hideki Sato was behind the creation of the SEGA SG-1000, SEGA Master System, SEGA Mega Drive/Genesis, SEGA Saturn, and the SEGA Dreamcast.

The Famitsu interview seems to be exclusive to its magazine but Siliconera translated some important bits where he discusses the SEGA SG-1000’s rough launch and how it helped the Mega Drive’s early development.