E3 is upon us, and with it comes new Sonic Mania details! In this SEGA News Bits, Barry and George discuss the recently revealed Chemical Plant Zone and the reveal of the Green Hill Zone boss. Also discussed is the game’s length, SEGA’s marketing efforts and more!
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Releasing early 2018 to PlayStation 4 and playable at SEGA’s E3 booth, the much anticipated Yakuza 6: The Song of Life has an official E3 trailer!
Kazuma Kiryu, the Dragon of Dojima (and the main protagonist of SEGA’s long-running Yakuza franchise) will find out exactly how much people are willing to sacrifice for family – be those ties through blood or bond – when Yakuza 6: The Song of Life releases in the West. The game is coming to consoles only on PlayStation 4, and thanks to the new “Dragon Engine,” is the most advanced Yakuza title to date. From the unparalleled realism of the new setting of Onomichi, a beautiful, sleepy port town in Hiroshima Prefecture, to the latest evolution of Kamurocho, the biggest red light district in Tokyo, Yakuza 6 is the ultimate iteration the game’s blend of gritty crime story, hyper-explosive combat, and all the vices and distractions those locales have to offer. Yakuza 6: The Song of Life will be localized by SEGA and published in the Americas and Europe in physical and digital formats in early 2018.
SEGAbits is attending E3 2017, so be on the lookout for our impressions on the game soon!
SEGA has revealed another returning classic Sonic stage to appear in Sonic Mania, Sonic the Hedgehog 2‘s Chemical Plant Zone. Often cited by fans as the favorite stage in their favorite game of the series, Chemical Plant is not new to modern gaming as 2011’s Sonic Generations featured the zone in the console version of the game. The Sonic Mania remix features new music from Tee Lopes and several new gimmicks including bouncy goopy rivers, sticky walls and teleporting bubbles. SEGA has provided us with screenshots and additional footage which you can see after the break.
Sonic Mania is now available for digital preorder and is set to release on August 15th for Nintendo Switch, PS4, Xbox One, and PC.
SEGA has now given us a Sonic Mania price and release date. So on this episode of the SEGA News Bits George and Barry discuss the Sonic Mania price and release date, have a first glimpse at Stardust Speedway stage, discuss if the collector’s edition is worth it over the digital only copy, and even rant about those animated cutscenes teased in the pre-order trailer. So give this episode a gander and let us know what your thoughts on the Sonic Mania price and release date are in the comments below. Sonic Mania hits digital store shelves on August 15, 2017 for only $19.99 on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.
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SEGA has released a new video with legendary composer, Yasunori Mitsuda, known for his work on Chrono Trigger and Stella Glow, discussing how he composed the music on Valkyria Revolution that reflects the classic feel of the European industrial revolution era that focuses on a war of liberation between two vastly different nations with Tokyo Symphony Orchestra conducting a live concert-hall recording for the soundtrack and his collaborator Sarah Àlainn, a multilingual Australian-Japanese singer with a voice spanning over 3 octaves, lends her hauntingly beautiful voice to a couple tracks.
With an added bonus, if you pre-order Vakyria Revolution digitally on PS4 and Xbox One, the player will be treated with the following DLC:
The Formation of Vanargand DLC Scenario
The Ring of Contract DLC Scenario
30 ragnite shards
Special Ragnite: Time Flux+
Special Ragnite: Heat Field+
Special Ragnite: Fall Earth+
(Americas only) Special Ragnite: Shine Calibur+
For PS4 owners, they will earn an exclusive “The Princess and the Valkyria” theme featuring Brunhilde and Princess Ophelia. Valkyria Revolution is set for release on June 27th for PS4 & Xbox One with the Vanguard Edition is available for pre-order. Hit the jump to see the exclusive “The Princess and the Valkyria” theme.
SEGA Europe has announced that they have promoted James Schall to vice president of its digital business from previously being director of digital distribution where he increased SEGA’s digital business success across consoles and PCs. As VP of digital business, James Schall will work with a growing number of third party studios to launch SEGA’s upcoming catalog of digital titles.
“James has made a huge contribution to Sega’s growth over recent years and I’m delighted by his promotion. With this appointment we are well positioned to continue our initiatives and further strengthen the fantastic partner and studio relationships we have.” – John Clark Senior VP of Commercial Publishing at SEGA
SEGA’s recent digital game successes include the release of Bayonetta, launching Warhammer: Dawn of War III and Total War: Warhammer 2. SEGA also recently announced that they will be reviving their older IPs on their ‘road to 2020’, but those are set to be packaged games, while I wouldn’t be shocked if some of those are digital.
“I’m excited by the new role as it will enable me to work more closely with our development studios, continuing to focus on delivering our amazing content to our passionate fans and communities.” – James Schall, VP of Digital Games SEGA Europe
I think SEGA Europe’s digital branch has been kicking ass on their releases, my only complaint is that they don’t come fast enough. Though we are getting Vanquish PC port a month after Bayonetta, that’s an improvement. I hope James Schall really does look into what ‘passionate fans and communities‘ want. Maybe look at some sort of list conducted by votes from SEGA fans… Like some sort of Top 100 SEGA games list…
Atlus has shown that you can turn a cult classic game into a massive world wide selling IP if you stick with the franchise and continue making quality releases each time. According to the USA game tracking company, NPD, Persona 5 sold five times more copies than Persona 4 in its debut month in the USA. Its not surprising considering that Persona 4 seems to be one of those titles that got popular due to word of mouth and became one of the best selling titles on the PlayStation Vita. While Persona 5 sold more than ever, April also saw an increase in software sales in the United States compared to last year. An increase of 6%. The reason for the sales increase are due to the massive popularity of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Persona 5 and strong second month sales of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. “The industry drove the highest April hardware dollar sales since April 2011,” said NPD group in their report. Oddly enough all top three huge selling titles are Japanese developed games.
NPD groups’ top ten selling games for April 2017:
Mario Kart 8
Persona 5
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
MLB 17: The Show
Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Wildlands
Grand Theft Auto V
Mass Effect: Andromeda
NBA 2K17
Overwatch
Call of Duty: Black Ops II
Its no surprise that Persona 5 is a massive success for Atlus and SEGA, considering all the rave reviews, fan hype and those dank memes hitting social media. Persona 5 is available now on PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4. Persona 5 sold five times more than Persona 4, did you guys see that one coming? Did you guys pick up a copy? Time for the Persona 5 spin-offs?
Sonic Forces custom character creator was revealed this morning, making this the 3rd game play style in the game. If you guys didn’t know, we discussed a Sonic Forces custom character (mostly as a rumor) in a couple of our past videos and now it seems that its actually true. On this SEGA News Bits we discuss our thoughts on the Sonic Forces custom character game play, talk about the Sonic fan creation community, check out some hidden Easter eggs found in the trailer, and much more. So tune in to our special SEGA News Bits talking about Sonic Forces custom character reveal. What are your thoughts on Sonic Forces‘ using a custom character as its third gameplay? Let us know in the comments below.
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The Yakuza franchise has been the longest running new franchise launched by SEGA since going 3rd party, with the first one being released in Japan back on December 8, 2005. The franchise has received seven main entries, one remake, a bunch of spin-offs, and even a full featured length film. SEGA has made a huge deal about the franchise coming to an end, in the past, but seem to have continued churning out games. Yakuza 6 promises to be the end of Kazuma Kiryu’s story while at the same time SEGA has promised that the franchise would continue after Yakuza 6. On this week’s Round Table we ask should the Yakuza franchise end after Yakuza 6?
Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap, the remake to the 1989 SEGA Master System cult classic will be getting a physical release this summer by Limited Run Games. This physical version of Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap will be exclusive to the PlayStation 4, will come in a standard and regular editions. Limited Run Games tweeted that the physical release will be coming sometime this summer and haven’t given us an update on when we can pre-order.
If you would like to get a physical version of Wonder boy: The Dragon’s Trap, make sure you are ready to pre-order the day it goes live because these releases sell out fast. I mean, look at a list of games they have published that are no longer available. I’m glad that Dot Emu and LizardCube listened to fans who wanted a physical release and made it happen. For those who asked for a physical release, I hope you guys pick up a copy of Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap this summer. But I have a feeling this is going to sell out rather quickly. What are your thoughts on Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap getting a physical release on the PlayStation 4? Are you picking up a copy?
Persona 5 has a ton of paid DLC, which I’m not a huge fan of but Persona 5 will also have FREE DLC as well. This week Atlus posted Persona 5‘s free swimsuit costumes on the PSN store, letting you travel with your team of misfits in revealing summer wear. Persona5‘s free swimsuit costumes are available to download in both North America and Europe regions. But Persona 5‘s free swimsuit costumes isn’t the only thing the update brings, it also has a swarm of paid DLC including stuff inspired by Persona 4 spin-offs and Shin Megami Tensei IV.
Here is all the Persona 5 DLC that is out this week, including prices:
Persona 5 Swimsuit Set (US-PS4, PS3 | UK-PS4, PS3) – Free
Shin Megami Tensei IV Costume & BGM Special Set (US-PS4, PS3) | UK-PS4, PS3 ) – $6.99 | £5.79
Persona 4: Dancing All Night Costume & BGM Special Set (US-PS4, PS3 | UK-PS4, PS3) -$6.99 | £5.79
Persona 4 Arena Ultimax Costume & BGM Special Set (US-PS4, PS3 | UK-PS4, PS3) $6.99 | £5.79
Persona 5: Tsukiyomi & Tsukiyomi Picaro Set (US-PS4, PS3 | UK-PS4, PS3) – $2.99 | £2.49
Persona 5: Asterius & Asterius Picaro Set (US-PS4, PS3 | UK-PS4, PS3) – $2.99 | £2.49
Persona 5: Ariadne & Ariadne Picaro Set (US-PS4, PS3 | UK-PS4, PS3) – $2.99 | £2.49
I will say, I’m a bit grossed out by how expensive all this Persona 5 DLC is, even tho I feel that the base game is worth every single penny they are asking for. Would I complain if this optional DLC didn’t exist? Maybe I just feel like Atlus should have been more reasonable and offered a season pass instead of asking $7 dollars for a set of costumes and background music. What are your thoughts on all this DLC? Do you think I’m being over dramatic?
Hold the presses, Sonic Forces has just showed off extended classic gameplay of Green Hill Zone! Join George and Barry as we discuss what we think of Sonic Force‘s graphical engine, our thoughts on Green Hill Zone returning (once again), the new Sonic Forces‘ music, and game game featuring Sonic Mania‘s drop dash? Like always let us know what your thoughts on Sonic Forces re-using Green Hill Zone, any theories you might have about the game and your overall thoughts on the new Sonic Forces music track being used for Green Hill Zone.
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Well this is a surprise! It has just been announced that Night Trap, the famous (some would argue infamous) FMV game made popular on the SEGA CD and SEGA CD 32X, is returning to the PlayStation 4 just in time for the 25th anniversary. Remastered by Screaming Villains, the game will release digitally and physically thanks to Limited Run Games. What is really cool, and of interest to SEGA fans, is that the Limited Run Games cover art emulates the classic American SEGA CD and SEGA CD 32X box art complete with the blue and yellow candy cane stripes! The physical release should hit the company’s website soon.
Back in 2014 we had the privilege of interviewing Digital Pictures co-founder Tom Zito, the man behind Night Trap. At the time, Tom and a small team were attempting a remaster titled Night Trap ReVamped, though sadly the Kickstarter failed to reach its goal. We don’t know if Tom and his team have any influence in this rerelease, but we’ll reach out and see what’s up.
Update: We just learned that the owners of the Night Trap license – presumably Tom Zito and Night Trap, LLC since they had already bought and paid for the rights prior to the ReVamped project – granted developer Screaming Villains the license after they posted to YouTube a video of the game running on a mobile phone. You can watch what we believe to be the video after the break.
Update 2: Tom Zito plays no part in this rerelease, so it is unknown at this time who the license holder is.
Update 3: The game will also release to Xbox One, though no sign of those SEGA styled boxes from Limited Run Games.
Covering SEGA news for coming up on 9 years now, I have to say that after some really dark times when the notion of no physical releases from SEGA was a possibility, it feels really good to post up simple articles like this one. Puyo Puyo Tetris is now available on Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4 in the Americas, and is set to release on April 28th in Europe. Featuring gameplay from two iconic puzzle games, Puyo Puyo Tetris offers up several single and multi-player as well as online play. Those who buy the Nintendo Switch version at and around launch will receive a special Launch Edition featuring Puyo Puyo and Tetris themed keychains, while the PS4 version comes in a Standard Edition.
It seems that with every new release, the more popular that the Persona franchise becomes and it’s hard to believe that the franchise is now celebrating 20 years of greatness. Now with the release of Persona 5, we take another dip into the velvet room and live the regular life of a Japanese high schooler. I mean, isn’t this how it is over there? Today we review Persona 5 and see if this game was worth the wait.
