Initial D Arcade Stage Zero shows off Toyota AE86 gameplay

SEGA has posted a new Initial D Arcade Stage Zero trailer showing off gameplay using the iconic Toyota AE86 car. The cool thing about the Initial D Arcade Stage Zero gameplay trailer is that they also show the player shifting, pumping the gas, slamming the breaks, and turning the steering wheel as you see how it effects the game. The trailer is also pretty long, showing a full race including a in-game track that features some very Japanese ‘Engrish’ vocals. Outside of that, Initial D Arcade Stage Zero is sporting some non-spectacular graphics, but I don’t think that’s the selling point with this game. Did I mention that the drifting looks fun? Because it does.

This isn’t the only trailer Initial D Arcade Stage Zero got, SEGA Japan released two at the same time. The second trailer is rather shorter clocking in at just under a minute and a half. This Initial D Arcade Stage Zero trailer highlights its versus mode, car customization, arcade cabinet, gear shift, and much more. For fans of the series, this game is exclusive to arcades with no plans of it coming to consoles. Yeah, its a bit sad. If you wanna see the second trailer hit the jump.

New The King of Fighters XIV trailer highlights free stages

SNK has released a new trailer showing off the two free stages that will be included in The King of Fighters XIV 2.00 update. The two new The King of Fighters XIV stages are “Transcontinental Railroad and “City Circuit” and like said in our last article about the game they are free. Like free, free.

The 2.00 update for The King of Fighters XIV will also bring fan favorite characters back including Whip, Ryujii Yamazaki, Vanessa, and Rock Howard. Expect the update to hit on April 5th. I really wanna tip my hat to SNK’s team that have been updating this game and really taking fan feedback seriously. Maybe Capcom could learn a lesson or two. Like always, The King of Fighters XIV is already out, so if you haven’t played the game does having free stages make you wanna jump into the action? Let us know.

[Via: Gematsu]

New Initial D Arcade Stage Zero trailer hits the net

SEGA’s long running arcade series Initial D, which is based off a manga and anime with the same name, is ready to launch its 9th arcade release (give or take due to re-releases under new titles). But this isn’t being called Initial D Arcade Stage 9, it is being titled Initial D Arcade Stage Zero! You are probably asking yourself why this arcade game is being called Initial D Arcade Stage Zero and that’s because its being based on the New Initial D The Movie which a retelling of the early chapters of the Initial D manga. Even the designs in this game are being taken directly for the new movie which is setting to reboot the franchise for a new audience.

Initial D Arcade Stage Zero will also be the first arcade title in the franchise to feature a 6-speed gear shifter and will have completely new background music. You can check out more information about Initial D Arcade Stage Zero on the game’s official website.  While the title does seem to have some pretty low quality graphics, the game play seems fun enough. What is your take on the Initial D franchise of SEGA games? Let us know in the comments below.

New Persona 5 English trailer sizzles with excitement

“Its not just Japan anymore, the whole world is waiting to see the Phantom Thieve’s next move.” 

Check out the new Persona 5 English trailer above, showing off the voice cast, characters and other aspects to expect from the game when it launches in North America and Europe on April 4, 2017. That’s less than a month away. Get hyped. For SEGA fans that have never played a Persona game, you can play any of the released main series games without having played a prior version, so its like Final Fantasy in that regard. Along with the new Persona 5 English trailer, Atlus USA also sent out this description of the game:

“Persona 5 is a game about the internal and external conflicts of a group of troubled youth who live dual lives. They have the typically ordinary day-to-day of a Tokyo high-schooler – attending class, after school activities and part-time jobs. But they also undertake fantastical adventures by using otherworldly powers to enter the hearts of people. Their power comes from the Persona, the Jungian concept of the “self;” the game’s heroes realize that society forces people to wear masks to protect their inner vulnerabilities, and by literally ripping off their protective mask and confronting their inner selves do the heroes awaken their inner power, and use it to strive to help those in need. Ultimately, the group of Phantom Thieves seeks to change their day-to-day world to match their perception and see through the masks modern-day society wears.”

Put your mask on, question everything as you watch the new Persona 5 English trailer above. Make sure you pick up your copy of Persona 5 when it hits North American and European store shelves on April 4th only on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 3.

[Via: Gamatsu]

Latest Puyo Puyo Tetris trailer schools us westerners who were held back

We here at SEGAbits are beyond excited that SEGA is taking a chance on Puyo Puyo Tetris, releasing April 25 to the Playstation 4 and Nintendo Switch in the Americas and on April 28 in Europe. While some of us on the team are seasoned Puyo ploppers (check out our retrospective on Puyo Puyo and Tetris), it is understandable that a majority of gamers don’t know what Puyo Puyo is. Thankfully, SEGA has just released a trailer for the upcoming game dubbed “Back to Basics”. The short trailer gives a basic introduction to how the game is played, and shows off the various game modes.

Check out the trailer above and don’t forget to lock in that pre-order. The more support the game gets, the more likely we are to see other Puyo Puyo games in the west!

Dawn of War III’s latest trailer prophecies war

SEGA and Relic Entertainment are marching towards war, especially with the latest Dawn of War III trailer ‘Prophecy of War‘. Dawn of War III is the latest installment in the highly popular series, the last expansion released was back in 2011 with Dawn of War II: Retribution. While Dawn of War and Dawn of War II differ greatly in gameplay, Relic Entertainment has said that they are mixing aspects of both games to create Dawn of War III.

If you watch the trailer, you get a sneak peek at the Imperial Guardsmen, a faction that hasn’t been announced yet. Sadly Dawn of War III still doesn’t have a release date, all we know is that its releasing this year on Microsoft powered PCs.

Puyo Puyo Tetris gets a new trailer and release dates

Puyo Puyo Tetris is going to be released soon on both the Nintendo Switch and Playstation 4, and to help promote SEGA has released a new trailer highlighting several of the game’s modes. This includes the single player Adventure mode, along with the multiplayer modes Swap, Versus, Fusion (aka PuyoTetMix in the Japanese version), Big Bang, and Party mode. In addition, SEGA has confirmed release dates for both USA and Europe. Puyo Puyo Tetris will be released on April 25th in the USA, while in Europe it will be released on April 28th. You can pre-order Puyo Puyo Tetris today on both Playstation 4 and for Nintendo Switch.

For official descriptions for the modes, read on!

SEGA Amusements releases Daytona 3 Championship USA Three-Seven Speedway trailer

In anticipation of tomorrow’s EAG International Expo in London, SEGA Amusements has released a new trailer for Daytona 3 Championship USA showcasing the return of the classic Daytona USA track Three-Seven Speedway. From the trailer above you can see some changes they’ve made to the classic track, including a change from classic to modern Sonic carved into the hillside and the lack of the slot machine – an unfortunate element that had to be dropped so that the game could appear in as many arcades as possible due to gambling restrictions in certain regions. But hey, it has the layout and the iconic music and we can’t wait to play it when Daytona 3 Championship USA begins to appear in arcades later this year!

Latest Yakuza 0 trailer shows off all the fun you can have in 1980s Japan

The Yakuza series handles some pretty heavy themes, and Yakuza 0 will be no different. But that doesn’t mean that the series is all dark and gritty! As evidenced by SEGA’s latest Yakuza 0 trailer, the game will feature many off-the-wall mini-games to distract you. Players will be able to do everything from date, call up girls on the phone, dance, sing, play classic SEGA arcade games like Space Harrier, OutRun and Hang-On, and even bet money on catfights.

If you like the wacky side of SEGA, check this trailer out and don’t forget to pre-order Yakuza 0 for Playstation 4 – the game releases physically and digitally in the Americas and Europe beginning Jan. 24, 2017.

Valkyria: Azure Revolution box art revealed, introduction trailer released

The latest game in the Valkyria, Valkyria: Azure Revolution, has it’s box art revealed, along with an accompanying introduction trailer. The box art for the PS4 and PSVita versions share the same artwork, with a noticeably more depressing color scheme that mixes grey and blue colors and features the character Amleth, a departure from the more vivid colors from past games. Both box art covers can be seen here and here.

Meanwhile the new trailer acts as a prologue to the events that take place in Valkyria: Azure Revolution, about how the titular Azure Revolution helped expand the Rus Empire into conquering the majority of Europe, and Jutland being the only kingdom left that can stop it.

Valkyria: Azure Revolution will release on January 19th, 2017 in Japan. No release outside of Japan has been announced.

[Source: Segalization]

 

Atlus USA/Deep Silver releases Persona 5 “Game Mechanics Daily Life” trailer

Persona 5 is still slated for a western release (By Atlus USA in America and Deep Silver in European countries) Feburary 2017, while Japan had the game since September. However, the official Youtube channels for Atlus USA and Deep Silver have released a new trailer to help tide over the wait. The trailer is a quick game mechanics overview of the recurring Social Link feature in the Persona series, where the player is tasked with having a normal life on their spare time while interacting with others. As the player bonds with friends and allies, the ranking between them will increase, which will provide the player with bonuses that can aid with combat or get new items. It may also lead to possible romance depending on your actions.

In addition Persona 5 shows off a few minigames, such as a pitching machine game and a fishing game. The pitching machine game involves you hitting a ball into a target to get the best score, and the fishing game trying to reel up the biggest catch.

 

SEGA Amusements releases Daytona 3 Championship USA teaser trailer

We’ve been talking a lot about Daytona 3 Championship USA over the past week here on the SEGAbits front page, but now we finally get a look at the game in action thanks to a teaser trailer from SEGA Amusements! As seen above, the latest Daytona USA game features the same joyous music and colorful graphics as the original but upped to modern graphical standards. The music is, to my ear, a new arrangement of the classic “Let’s Go Away” from Takenobu Mitsuyoshi who has been rumored to be returning for the project.

Fans should spot some easter eggs including Sonic carved into the cliff and a sign for Virtua Inn in the Virtua Fighter logo style. Give the video a watch and let us know your thoughts in the comments below or in our dedicated forum topic. Learn more about how the game plays, and some other new details, in the preview from Arcade Heroes.

Via Arcade Heroes preview, Daytona 3 Championship USA is slated for a March/April 2017 release. Expect to see a more complete software package at the AMOA/AAMA Amusement Expo in March or maybe at the January UK arcade expo.

UPDATED: SEGA announces Yakuza 0 “The Business Edition” and reveals new trailer

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SEGA has just announced yet another cool launch edition that will be releasing soon! Due out Jaunary 24th, 2017, Yakuza 0 “The Business Edition” will contain a physical copy of the game, a stainless steel business card holder, double-sided bilingual business cards for Kiryu and Majima and a hostess card. Yakuza 0 will be releasing both digitally and physically in the Americas and Europe. As of this posting, we are unsure if “The Business Edition” will be exclusive to the Americas, or if Europe will be receiving it as well. As soon as we have an answer we will update this story accordingly.

UPDATE: SEGA Europe has since uploaded the same trailer to their YouTube channel, and the trailer lacks any mention of a special edition release. Meanwhile, the SEGA of America trailer, embedded after the break, mentions “The Business Edition” after the trailer. This leads us to believe that “The Business Edition” is Americas only.

You can pre-order Yakuza 0 today on Amazon, saving 20% if you are a Prime member. The listing has yet to update to “The Business Edition”, but SEGA promises that all pre-orders secures fans a copy of the special edition.

After the break, check out the new trailer and additional press release details on “The Business Edition”!

SEGA releases extended Puyo Puyo Chronicles trailer

SEGA has shown off a new extended trailer for Puyo Puyo Chronicles showing off more footage of the upcoming Nintendo 3DS Action Puzzle RPG title that is set to release before the end of the year in Japan. Let me just say that Puyo Puyo Chronicles is looking like the best game in the series and just in time for the franchise’s 25th Anniversary.

While Puyo Puyo Chronicles is set to hit Japan on December 8 of this year, SEGA West hasn’t announced plans on bringing the title over. If you wanna help sway their opinion, go on social media and use the tag #PuyoChroniclesForTheWest, also don’t be scared of letting SEGA know directly.

Puyo Puyo Chronicle Debut Trailer Hits The Net

SEGA has officially released the first details, trailer and screenshots for Puyo Puyo Chronicle, a action puzzle RPG for the Nintendo 3DS. The trailer above is being dubbed the ‘game introduction trailer’ that shows off the game’s new 3D character models debuting exclusively on Puyo Puyo Chronicle.

Puyo Puyo Chronicle will set you off in a world of mysteries as you play as Allie and have Carbuncle as your companion. Expect a lot of quests, towns and dungeon explorations throughout the full game. Oh yeah, also puzzles.

To check out SEGA’s description of Puyo Puyo Chronicles and see more screenshots, hit the jump.