Rumor: Yakuza 1 & 2 HD coming out this December in Japan?


This screen above was from SEGA Japan’s calendar, which now has been taken down. It shows that the company is planning on bringing Yakuza 1 & 2 HD to the Playstation 3. Could it have been a mistake? I think this rumor will come out to be true for one reason. Yakuza makes money. Not to mention SEGA wants to do more digital releases.

Think about it this way, what will sell more? This or those SEGA AGES re-releases?

“NiGHTS into dreams…” to receive an HD rerelease

Seems SEGA’s NiGHTS tease wasn’t All-Stars related after all. It is actually something much, much better: an HD rerelease of the SEGA Saturn classic “NiGHTS into dreams…”! NiGHTS fans have asked for this for years, and they’re finally getting it. The SEGA blog lists the following features:

  • Xbox LIVE Arcade, PlayStation Network, and Windows PC Digital Download this fall
  • Improved HD graphics and a 16:9 aspect ratio
  • Added support for leaderboards, trophies, and achievements
  • An optional Saturn Mode that will let players experience the game with the original graphics intact.

So, who is excited? It’s about time NiGHTS got some love from SEGA, and this rerelease is the perfect gift for fans of the franchise.

Renegade Ops free this week for Playstation Plus users

Sony’s Playstation Plus service barely turned a year old last month and the selection of free games have just gotten better. Like check this out, this week you can download Renegade Ops, Gotham City Impostors and Pacman DX for free. The important game here is Renegade Ops. Enjoy the game, we did.

SEGA AGES PS2 games making their way to Japanese PSN

SEGA has announced that Gunstar Heroes Treasure Box and Dynamite Dekka (Die-Hard Arcade) will soon be making its way to the Japanese PSN. They are part of SEGA’s AGES 2500 line, Playstation 2 remakes of classic SEGA games for the Playstation 2. Now SEGA is pulling a inception and putting them on PSN.

But more people here will be interested in the first game SEGA is going to release on the PSN PS2 archives service, Dragon Force (trailer). That one will hit PSN on July 25th. SEGA West, we want these, please?

Jet Set Radio HD achievements revealed – game to include JSRF tunes?

Achievements for the upcoming release of Jet Set Radio HD have been revealed, and with them comes a hint towards a bonus that SEGA has yet to speak of. At the top of the list of thirty achievements is one titled “Back to the Future” with the description “Unlock all songs in the bonus menu”. To my knowledge, there was never a bonus menu that unlocked songs in the original game. There was a sound test, but that was complete from the start. No unlocking necessary. The achievement’s title mentions “future”, which of course was in the title of the franchise’s second game Jet Set Radio Future. Could SEGA be adding an option to play select tunes from Jet Set Radio Future? Or is it simply a nod to the sequel and nothing more? After the break, the full list of achievements.

Microsoft unleashes Sonic Adventure 2’s product page before announcement


So Microsoft posted the product page for Sonic Adventure 2 earlier this morning, pretty much confirming that the game is almost going to be announced. From what it looks like, it seems that SEGA might have delayed the game a bit? Don’t be surprised if SEGA announces it soon.

Stuff that is now obviously confirmed include widescreen support, chaos being playable and 2 player offline. Click the jump to see all the leaked assets including in-game screenshots.

 

Sonic 4: Episode II is the 5th best selling PSN game last month


Sony has put up their chart for the top 20 best selling PSN games of last month. I actually thought Sonic 4: Episode II was going to at least come in at the top 3, but actually came in at number 5. Recently Sonic brand manager Ken Balough stated that Sonic 4: Episode I actually sold best on PSN, then XBLA and lastly Wii (which this one is not available for).

Want to see the top 20 list? Hit the jump. Note this is from the US Playstation blog, so probably only counts for US PSN.

Sonic Talk #9: Sonic 4 Episode II After Party

Sadly this episode is a few days late due to E3. But hey, I hope you guys are enjoying all this E3 content that is coming. The main man Ken Balough is back on Sonic Talk this week to talk to us more about Sonic 4: Episode II, now that the game is already out and we all played it, its an interesting talk. Like every week we have your weekly Sonic news, so take a break from all the E3 news and sit back for some Sonic Talk.

[Download]

E3 2012: Arkedo Studios talks with us about Hell Yeah!


While waiting in the ridiculously long line for Metal Gear Rising, I let Nuckles87 hold my place in line while I went to speak with Aurelien Regard and Dimitri Pean of Arkedo Studio to talk all things involving Hell Yeah! This is the developer’s first time working with a big publisher and Hell Yeah! looks to be the studio’s most successful game to date. Read on to see what they had to say.

First My Life With SEGA episode online, learn how to win Virtua Fighter 5 for free!

Hey guys, the first SEGAbits episode of “My Life With SEGA” is now up on our YouTube channel. The My Life With SEGA YouTube series will look back at SEGA games we grew up with and review them. This episode is part 2 of A.J’s Italian Stallion game playing marathon. Check out part 1 here.

“Hey, I’m A.J. Rosa and this is My Life with SEGA. The mayhem continues with the Italian Stallion: Part Duex! Today, I’m reviewing Judge Dredd for the Sega Genesis and Demolition Man for Genesis and Sega CD.”

Want to win a free copy of Virtua Fighter 5: Final Showdown? Of course you do! We will be giving away four copies of the game, two on XBLA and two on PSN. What do you have to do? Subscribe to our YouTube channel and comment on the video. Winners will be chosen randomly on Friday. Contest is open world wide. Have fun, if you like the series please share. Want to suggest a game for A.J to do a video of? Contact us.

If Sonic Adventure 2 avatar items are hitting XBLA on June 5th…

… that can only mean Sonic Adventure 2 will be revealed for XBLA and PSN at E3! The Sonic Stadium is reporting that XBLA’s Major Nelson has just posted the latest Xbox Live Marketplace release schedule of all the games and items being released over the next few weeks. Among these new goodies are Sonic Adventure 2 Avatar items with a release date of June 5th. Hey, that’s when E3 begins. This wouldn’t be the first time a Sonic Adventure 2 announcement was made at E3. Back in 2000, we were wowed by the trailer posted above. And last year, we were given the great City Escape trailer for Sonic Generations. If you want to see that, check it out after the break. As for E3 2012, stay tuned to SEGAbits for the impending trailer, assuming there is one.

Sonic Team gives Hell Yeah! their approval


Arkedo Studios, the French developer behind the upcoming digital title Hell Yeah! had a meeting with two main members of Sonic Team, where they played the game and told them what they thought about it. One of the guys was the infamous and lovable Takashi Iizuka.

“They said, not a lot sucks, but you should pay attention to what happens when you’re jumping, the stop and go, the inertia you have when you’re jumping on platforms. You should add this little thing, this little thing… We said, hey yeah, it’s much better. Thank you very much. That’s the craftsmanship. Those guys, they are bright yellow, they glow. Okay, this guy knows what he’s talking about. We loved it.”

Yeah, there are now developers asking Sonic Team what they think about their platforming game. I consider this to be a positive step and I’m glad that Arkedo Studios is so open to feedback. I think this is something that more developers need to do. If something is broken, fix it. Make a great game! Hit the jump to hear more quotes on what they thought!