SEGAbits at Tokyo Game Show 2016 Preview: Puyo Puyo Chronicles (Nintendo 3DS)

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Going into Tokyo Game Show, this was the one title I wasn’t expecting at least not in the form it took. SEGA have tried numerous methods to keep the Puyo Puyo franchise fresh from new aesthetics, gameplay modes and even mixing it with Tetris but the combination of RPG and the traditional gameplay was something I didn’t see coming. As a fan of the franchise I was interested to see how well the new play style would suit the gameplay we all know and love, hit the jump to read my impressions on latest Puyo Puyo Chronicles!

SEGA News Bits: Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice First Impressions

It’s here, the brand new side-scrolling Sonic game! No, not Sonic Mania. It’s Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice for the Nintendo 3DS! In this SEGA News Bits, Barry shares with George, and our viewing audience, his thoughts on the game. Did SEGA and Sanzaru Games learn their lesson from Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal?

In the comments below, let us know what you think of Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice! Also, don’t hate Barry.

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Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice releases today in North America

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SEGA’s Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice releases today for the Nintendo 3DS in North America, and will release a few days from now on September 30th in Europe. The game is available both digitally on the Nintendo eShop and physically with a special Launch Edition for the Americas which includes a collector’s box and a DVD of select Sonic Boom TV show episodes featuring Metal Sonic and Shadow. While reviews have started to trickle in, expect a SEGAbits review early next week and possibly a SEGA News Bits episode between then and now. I can say that after playing the game for an hour, Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice is an improvement on Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal. Many issues I had with the original game have been addressed, and aspects that I enjoyed have been given more focus. Even as I write this, I’m itching to go back and play some more, which is a good sign.

After the break, check out the full press release from SEGA!

Tokyo Game Show 2016: New Puyo Puyo Chronicles trailer

SEGA at Tokyo Game Show 2016 reveals a new Puyo Puyo Chronicles trailer that talks about varies aspects of the game. Featuring talent Misako Uno and Chiaki Ito, it talks about its RPG elements, collecting items, battling, “Skill Battles,” gaining experience points, co-op gameplay, and other details. While it technically doesn’t reveal a lot of new information, it does reveal the returning Puyo Puyo SUN mode from Puyo Puyo 20th Anniversary that’s based on Puyo Puyo SUN and Mission Puyo that’s loosely based on the past Nazo Puyo spin-offs. It also briefly teases a mysterious dark crystal ball near the end, and (adorably) shows off Uno and Ito in the signature Puyo Puyo art style.

Puyo Puyo Chronicles will release exclusively on the Nintendo 3DS on December 8th 2016 in Japan.

Puyo Puyo Chronicle announced for Nintendo 3DS – just in time for the franchise’s 25th anniversary!

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The latest issue of Japan’s Famitsu magazine has revealed a new installment in the Puyo Puyo franchise, due out later this year. Titled Puyo Puyo Chronicle, the game is described as a puzzle RPG timed to celebrate the franchise’s 25th anniversary. The story involves the franchise’s heroes Arle and Carbuncle entering an alternate world, in which they must work with a girl name Arie to return to their own world. Graphics will be in 3D and players will be able to explore freely – so apparently no sprites or pre-set paths. Outside of the RPG mode, the game will also feature traditional Puyo Puyo play, featuring seventeen different rules found in past games.

The game will also feature a mode called “Boss Fight With Everyone” in which players team up with a party of four via local connectivity to battle a boss. The game also promises over sixty sub-quests. In terms of packaging, a special Anniversary Box has been announced, which will contain a soundtrack, a vocal track, a drama CD and a 25th anniversary theme for your 3DS. The game is set to release in Japan on December 8th of this year. Sadly, no word of an American release, and given SEGA’s Western track record with the franchise it is unlikely. Then again, 7th Dragon III: Code: VFD happened, so never say never.

[Source: Siliconera]

SEGA 3D Classics Collection European release date revealed

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On a special SEGA Central Live, the SEGA Europe community team released the long (too long, in our opinion) awaited release date of the boxed and digital European release of SEGA 3D Classics Collection for the Nintendo 3DS. That date… will be revealed on an upcoming live stream next week! Just kidding, the game will release to Europe on November 4th, 2016.

It was also confirmed that the game is coming to Australia, though no additional information was given.

7th Dragon III Code: VFD E3 2016 trailer sees dragons invading the year 2100

A new trailer for the upcoming 7th Dragon III Code: VFD has released in time for E3! Set to release very soon to the Americas, July 12th to be exact, 7th Dragon III Code: VFD is an internally developed RPG from SEGA for the Nintendo 3DS. If you have been craving a new IP and some RPG action from our favorite company, then you really shouldn’t pass this game up. Our own George has been playing the game for several weeks, and as detailed in our first impressions discussion he has been enjoying it. If that is not enough reason to pick the game up on day one, then perhaps a special launch edition featuring a collector’s box and 28 page art book will sway you.

Expect a review from us soon, and in the meantime enjoy the new trailer.

SEGA News Bits: Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice Launch Day Edition Revealed

After a lengthy delay, Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice for the Nintendo 3DS is on its way with a release date of September 27th in the Americas and a recently revealed launch edition. In this SEGA News Bits, George and Barry discuss the upcoming game, the delay, its E3 showing and the Launch Edition itself. As for the European release, no word yet on a Launch Edition, however the game will be releasing across the pond on September 30th. We’ll know ourselves how the game plays after this year’s E3 and the Sonic 25th Anniversary party.

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Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice Launch Edition announced for the Americas

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SEGA is at it once again with their launch editions. In the past we’ve seen everything from stickers to lanyards to art books. Now, Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice for the Nintendo 3DS will have its own launch edition featuring a collector’s box and a special DVD featuring three episodes from the TV series for $39.99. The episodes include “Chili Dog Day Afternoon”, “It Wasn’t Me, It Was the One-Armed Hedgehog” which features Metal Sonic, and the season one finale “It Takes a Village to Defeat a Hedgehog” which sees the introduction of Shadow the Hedgehog. The launch edition is, so far, exclusive to the Americas. This will mark the Sonic Boom TV series’ DVD debut in North America, as the UK has been seeing volume releases of the series with “Sonic Boom Volume 2: Hedgehog Day” releasing this past week.

Also revealed, though speculated by us for some time now, is that Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice will be playable for the first time at E3 in the SEGA of America/Atlus USA booth. Meanwhile, SEGA Europe will showcase the PC side of things and other games in a meeting room at the Concourse Level at booth OFMR 8413. It’s confusing, we know.

After the break, read the full press release.

7th Dragon III Code: VFD in-game bonuses and DLC revealed

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7th Dragon III Code: VFD hits the Americas July 12th, and accompanying this Nintendo 3DS release is a slew of in-game bonus content and DLC. The Nagamimi doll, pictured above, is a free in-game bonus item that will be available at launch. The item promises unique voice interactions between it and the character you created. The game touts an impressive 40 voice actors to choose from for your in-game player, so there are sure to be a number of conversations to be had with this thing.

Also revealed are seven DLC quests that will help players along with XP and money boosts, unlockable characters or post-game boss rush challenges. After the break, check out the full DLC breakdown as well as prices.

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!

Project X Zone removed from North America & Europe Nintendo eShop

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For reasons unknown, the digital version of Project X Zone has been removed from the Nintendo eShop. Starting around 2012 games produced for the system typically sport a retail and digital version, with a few exceptions that are retail exclusive or vise versa. Typically the digital version would need to be loaded into an SD card, but the main benefit of choosing digital is slightly faster loading times, the convenience of not switching 3DS game cards, and the option to re-download the game at any given time.

Review: SEGA 3D Classics Collection (Nintendo 3DS)

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SEGA 3D Classics Collection is the latest in the long line of compilations that SEGA loves to produce. For years the company has to rereleased various titles in a neat packages for convenience, often times Genesis titles from the golden days. Examples include both Sonic Mega Collection and Sonic Gems Collection, SEGA Genesis Collection, and SEGA Smash Pack. However, few of these compilations were released on handheld systems, and often times arcade games would get the short end of the stick. So SEGA 3D Classics Collection is a bit special in this case since it has several games that you don’t normally see in these compilations like Power Drift, Puyo Puyo Tsu, and Maze Walker.

Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse coming to the Americas summer 2016

Atlus USA has just announced that Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse (Shin Megami Tensei IV: Final in Japan) will be releasing to the Americas this summer. The game is said to overlap with the original SMTIV, with the game’s story focusing on a Hunter cadet who gets killed by one of the demons wreaking havoc on post-apocalyptic Tokyo. Thankfully, the fallen Hunter is resurrected by the mysterious god Dagda and is set on a path that walks the line between good and evil. The game is set to hit Nintendo 3DS systems physically and digitally for $49.99/CA$64.99.

Check out the trailer above, and after the break check out the Atlus press release and some screenshots.

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.

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