Senile Team interview with Roel Van Mastbergen

Senile Team started off in 2003 with the creation of the freeware game Beats of Rage, a popular tribute to Streets of Rage. In addition to being an excellent game itself, its  game engine has been used to recreate classic arcade games for Dreamcast such as Golden Axe and the Final Fight trilogy.

In 2009, the team made their commercial debut with Rush Rush Rally Racing. Today Roel Van Mastbergen sits down and talks with us about GamesCom and their upcoming game Age of the Beast.

[For the Interview we partnered with DC Emulation and Dreamcast-Scene]

PS3: It only does Dreamcast games


If you haven’t been in the loop, the Playstation 3 got jail broken with a USB device. After it was jail broken strange new articles started popping up. One said that jailbroken PS3’s could play PS2 games.

If that wasn’t great, a couple of guys have decided to port NullDC (Dreamcast emulator) to the Playstation 3. Apparently they got the bios running. No YouTube video or pictures have been posted, that is why its a rumor.  Sadly the emulator does not play sound yet. To check out the code, hit the source site.

[Source: Logic Sunrise]

Dreamcast still thinking at Gamescom 2010

Its already 2010 and the Dreamcast just won’t quit, thanks to the guys over at redspotgames. This is their booth at Gamescom, they have a Dreamcast set up with some of their published games on it to play, sitting next to it is a 360 and Wii.

Redspotgames is working on bringing titles to other platforms, but does not mean they will stop supporting the Dreamcast. They have plans and sadly it is too early to know what those plans are, can’t wait.

[Source: Redspotgames]

Is that a SEGA arcade in your pocket?

A little over a month ago I went to my family cabin in northern Minnesota. It had been nearly seven years since I had last been there, and yet when I went back to the same bargain warehouse that I had been to back in 2003 I found the exact same SEGA Tiger LCD handhelds that I had seen hanging on the pegs all those years ago. Guess nobody wanted them.

The Tiger SEGA Pocket Arcade line hit stores during the Saturn years at a time when the clunky old Tiger handhelds were on their way out. Tiger, it seemed, was struggling in a world of Game Boy Colors and was attempting to use the names of big name SEGA Saturn console titles to sell cheap little flip open handhelds. I’m going to assume Tiger failed as a good number of these were found at an overstock warehouse, marked down from $15 to $8 to a final $4.79.

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A N64 in my Game Gear?

A modder, by the name of Evil Nod has put a Nintendo 64 into a Game Gear skeleton. Not only did he get the N64 in there, he also got the controller. So it has full reworking controller and a N64 crammed in there. What else could he shove in? How about a ram expansion pak? Yeah, he put one of those in there too.

Now, can someone do the same thing, with a Dreamcast? That would rock.

[Source: Engadget]

RetroN 3: Play your SEGA and Nintendo in harmony


So you want to play your SEGA Mega Drive/Genesis, but your brother has the Super Nintendo hooked up? Fear no more, now you can play SNES and Genesis off the same console, they even threw in NES as well. That is 3 consoles, all in one. This isn’t the first time a company have done this, but this one looks fairly good.

The console has 2 controller ports for each platform, so you don’t have to use a Genesis pad to play NES games. Unless you really want to. So yes, this will work with your original controllers from the official console. The console already comes packed with ‘wireless’ controllers. If you like that stuff. You get to choose either red or black for the console. Cost? $69.99.

[Product Page]

Cancelled Dreamcast games that looked awesome


When I was in middle school, all I did was read the Official Dreamcast magazine and look at the long list of upcoming games. There is always something about seeing new information about a game before it hits the store shelves, especially when those games you are looking forward to never make it to the shelves. You are stuck wondering what those games could have been, if they came out.

Here is my salute to the most awesome looking cancelled Dreamcast games.

First ever screens of Sonic the Hedgehog


June 7th, 1990, SEGA showed off Sonic the Hedgehog to the public at the Tokyo Game Show.  When they showed it, the game was 2 months into development. So what they showed was very early.

Above is one of the first screens ever shown to the public and you can tell much has changed. First of all the background, from its odd city and mountains was changed in the final product. Though, regardless of stuff being changed, the art style and vision seemed to be there from day one.  The other screen that 1up had was the early title screen, which looks a lot like the original only without the Green Hill Zone backdrop.

[Source: 1up]

SEGA bringing 16-bit classics to Steam

SEGA will be bringing some of its SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive classics to a PC near you starting June 1st. SEGA’s first games released will be Golden Axe, Ecco the Dolphin, and Vectorman.

SEGA stated they will cost $2.99 per title. The games will be coming to Steam and “other platforms,” but lets be honest, we all probably use Steam.

SEGA sent out screens for Gain Ground, Altered Beast, Space Harrier, Crack Down, Sonic 3D Blast, and Shadow Dancer; assuming these games will be coming out as well. I did not upload screens of the games because we already know what they look like.

[Source: Joystiq]

Alpha Protocol features a SEGA Saturn


This is probably the best news piece out of Alpha Protocol, it has a SEGA Saturn! Reminds me of Shenmue and it also having a SEGA Saturn. Not that it made sense in that game, since it was the 80’s.

But who cares, lets all go on youtube now and watch Segata Sanshiro adverts and wonder if the 3-D SEGA Saturn in game lets you play some Saturn games like on Shenmue.

[Source: UK:R]

3D Dot Game Heroes can do Master System

Made by IGN’s Retro devision. 3D Dot Game Heroes is a throw back to retro titles with a weird, cube like graphical effects (3D pixels, if you will). The game has recently been released in the west by Atlus, on the Playstation 3.

Good to see that retro, especially 8-bit focused, get some SEGA love. Usually Nintendo hogs up all the spot light.

If you own the game, you can import IGN’s Master System characters (Opa-Opa and Mick), download here.

[Thanks: Monkeroony]

SEGA Saturn surprise launch announcement anniversary

Oh, SEGA,  just to 1up Sony you guys decided to launch your console early. 15 years ago today, SEGA CEO Tom Kalinske stood in front of the press and announced that the SEGA Saturn would launch early do to “high consumer demand”. The announcement was made at the first ever E3.

“Many Americans have gone to the extent of paying $ 800 and more for Sega Saturn units from Japan,” Kalinske explained. “We’ve decided to bring the product to market earlier than scheduled to meet the high consumer demand, to refine our marketing strategy over the summer, prior to the important fall season, and to get a headstart on the competition.”

The SEGA Saturn launched at the price of $399.99 for the stand alone version and $499.99 with Virtua Fighter (also came with a disc that showed other titles).

Hit the jump to read SEGA’s press release from 1995. It is like going back in time.

Sonic loves drinking Coca-Cola

Being a person that likes odd stuff released by SEGA, especially in the early 90’s, I had to post this badge used by MGM, Cannon Cinemas and obviously sponsored by Coca-Cola.

Very odd stance that Sonic has going on here, it looks like he is giving himself the Michael Jackson cock grab. If you are interested in the badge, you can buy it on eBay (auction).

[Via GoNintendo]