Contest: Tweet and win a Sonic related shirt from Insert Coin Clothing


Today we are giving one lucky twitter follower a Sonic related t-shirt from Insert Coin Clothing. You can either pick the bright blue Team Sonic shirt or be a bad guy with the Eggman inspired t-shirt. I have to say, that Eggman shirt sure does look nice. So how do you enter and win one of these bad boys? Simple, follow us and retweet the message below:

Follow @SEGAbits and retweet this message to be entered to win a Sonic shirt from @insertcointees. More details: http://bit.ly/y2VXMo

A winner will be picked in random and notified by twitter that they won. The winner will be picked on Thursday at noon. Happy tweeting!

CONTEST IS OVER, WINNER HAS BEEN ANNOUNCED. 

SEGA Japan launches Sonic tweeting game


SEGA Japan launched another web app for Sonic’s 20th anniversary. This strange little app is called “Sonic ★ Tweet“.

I guess the way the game works is that you have to use the twitter client to unlock 500 cards that feature characters from Sonic’s history. How do you unlock the cards? Defeat Eggman by using some wit in your tweets.

Basically the game takes your tweet, breaks down the words and each one has assigned points. Depending on what words you use, in one tweet (and what others online are using) you rank in combos, giving Sonic’s attack more damage.

After you take down Eggman’s health to zero, you will get exp and a card. Cards can be used to bypass a cooldown phase (you have a limit to how much you can attack).

Sadly this game is only up for our Japanese readers, the rest of us either have to learn Japanese or pretend we know how.

[Source: Sonic Wrecks]

Yakuza Week Final – Of winners and deals!

Yakuza Week draws to an end. Yesterday was the final day of the competitions and today all that is left to do is announce all winners!

Day 6 winners are:
Of the Yakuza 4 game (signed) and the Yakuza art book is – EricJamesRice
Of the Yakuza Yakuza branded bowl and chopsticks – dyeknom

Day 5:
Day 5 winners are:
Of the Yakuza Yakuza branded bowl and chopsticks -sakanakami
Of the Yakuza Yakuza branded bowl and chopsticks -skrammas

Day 4:
Of the Yakuza 4 game (signed) and the Yakuza art book is – Vittoriogiorgi

Day 3
Of the Yakuza 4 game (Signed) and branded Chopsticks! – Stinkdeken
Of the Yakuza 4 Art book and branded bowl! – Krup213

Day 2:
Of the Yakuza 4 game (signed) and the Yakuza art book is – jegarcia

Day 1:
Of the Yakuza 4 game (signed) and the Yakuza branded bowl -Hibikirush
Of the Yakuza 4 Art Book and Yakuza branded Chop Sticks – D12W

Congratulations to everyone who won and thanks to everyone who entered!

Final words!

Well, I’ve run out of reasons (good) for why you should purchase Yakuza 4! All I can do at this point is recommend it one final time.

Yakuza 4 is a genuinely really fantastic game, it is also really underrated. It has that unique Sega feel to it, it’s original and it has provided me and many here at Segabits staff hours and hours of fun. It’s the perfect game to jump in!

Oh and if that isn’t enough, it’s only £17.98 on Amazon UK!

For you American types, it’s only $44.99 with free shipping at Buy.com

Yakuza Week – Day 6 of Ultimate beat downs… and Fishing


Not for the squeamish!

TWITTER GIVE AWAY – Day 6 of 6

Today is the final give away and we have two great prizes for you to win!
PRIZE 1: Yakuza 4 Game (Signed by YAZ) & Yakuza 4 Art Book
PRIZE 2: Yakuza branded Bowl + Yakuza branded Chopsticks

All you have to do to have a shot at winning these awesome prizes is follow us on twitter, CLICK HERE follow SEGAbits and simply retweet this message;
“RT & Follow @SEGAbits – YAKUZA WEEK – DAY 6 – CONTEST! Retweet to win Yakuza prizes! Info: http://www.segabits.com/?p=12277“

We’ll pick a winner at random!

Day 5 winners are:
-sakanakami
-skrammas

You’ve both won a set of Yakuza branded chopsticks and a Yakuza branded bowl!

Congratulations!

Why you should own this game – Day 6 –Reason 6

There are no other games like it! Yakuza is a one of a kind game, in fact it is a game made up of multiple games. Besides the fantastic main story driven game you can easily spend hours doing the sub-games found all over the city. Be it running the Hostess bar, training your fighters or heck even just playing darts or in the batting cage. There is even an arcade in the game where you can play slot machines, claw machines and a Shoot-em-up! Every game is fleshed out and a full game in its own right.

If there is one game that is close to Yakuza, it’s the master piece that is Shenmue and even then they are worlds apart.

Do yourself a favor and look at our side bar, over there on the right. We’ve made it easy for you to buy! Just click on that BUY NOW button!

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Yakuza Week – Day 5 of Bowls & Babes


“Practice for your first date!”

TWITTER GIVE AWAY – Day 5 of 6

We have two prizes today, winners can finally fulfill their dream of eating like a Yakuza with these bad boys!
Prize 1: Yakuza branded Bowl & Yakuza branded Chopsticks
Prize 2: Yakuza branded Bowl & Yakuza branded Chopsticks

All you have to do to have a shot at winning this awesome prize is follow us on twitter, CLICK HERE follow SEGAbits and simply retweet this message;
“RT & Follow @SEGAbits – YAKUZA WEEK – DAY 5 – CONTEST! Retweet to win Yakuza prizes! Info: http://www.segabits.com/?p=12235“

We’ll pick a winner at random!
If you don’t win, don’t fret, there will be another chance tomorrow!

Day 4 winner is:
Of the Yakuza 4 game (signed) and the Yakuza art book is – Vittoriogiorgi

Congratulations!

Why you should own this game – Day 5 –Reason 5

Any long time Sega fan will notice that there is something uniquely ‘Sega’ about the Yakuza series. It’s hard to put your finger on what makes something a ‘Sega styled game’, you could be playing Panzer Dragon Saga or Jet Set Radio, two completely different games, and yet you’ll know both have a very Sega feel about them. Weird!

It could be down to the music, one of the things Sega rarely fails to impress with. Or it could simply be that the Yakuza series has game play elements reminiscent of other Sega series. I wouldn’t blame you for being reminded of the Shenmue games or even Streets of Rage whilst playing Yakuza. Not to mention Yakuza games are littered with throwbacks to other Sega games, like music tracks, that only the most hardcore of Sega fans would spot. Or… Perhaps it could be that Sega characters have a disproportionate hand to face to ratio? The hands are always massive. (Anyone else noticed this?)

But whatever it is, Yakuza is undoubtedly a Sega game, and if you’re a Sega fan (and I suspect you are as you’re on Segabits.com) then Yakuza 4 is simply a must.

Do yourself a favor and look at our side bar, over there on the right. We’ve made it easy for you to buy! Just click on that BUY NOW button!

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Yakuza Week – Day 4: Of Demon Ninja Turtles!


“Well, isn’t that strange!”

TWITTER GIVE AWAY – Day 4 of 6

We have just one prize to give away today, but it’s a good one!
Today’s prize is; Yakuza 4 the game, signed by YAZ and the Yakuza 4 Art book!

All you have to do to have a shot at winning this awesome prize is follow us on twitter, CLICK HERE follow SEGAbits and simply retweet this message;
“RT & Follow @SEGAbits – YAKUZA WEEK – DAY 4 – CONTEST! Retweet to win Yakuza prizes! Info: http://www.segabits.com/?p=12213“

We’ll pick a winner at random!
If you don’t win, don’t fret, there will be another chance tomorrow!

Day 3 winners are:
Of the Yakuza 4 game (Signed by YAZ) and branded Chopsticks! – Stinkdeken
Of the Yakuza 4 Art book and branded bowl! – Krup213

Congratulations guys!

Why you should own this game – Day 4 –Reason 4

It’s very rare that a game can be ‘laugh out loud funny’ I find more often than not the attempts to inspire laughter in videogames fall flat and more often then not are pretty cringe worthy.

The Yakuza series is one of the very few videogame series that have got a real, hearty laugh out of me. Whilst the main storylines are a serious affair, just below the surface there is always something to make you chuckle. Be it the often crazy revelations, some over the top heat moves or side missions like outrunning a cross dresser that wants to have his/her way with you. In Yakuza 4 you’ll also encounter some great look-a-likes and Cameos too; such as Dr. Emmett Brown from Back to the Future. Yeah, this game has it all!

Do yourself a favor and look at our side bar, over there on the right. We’ve made it easy for you to buy! Just click on that BUY NOW button!

YAKUZA WEEK – DAY 3: Of Punching Tigers in the Face!

TWITTER GIVE AWAY – Day 2 of 6

Today, like day one we have 2 prizes to give away!
Prize one: Yakuza 4 Art book & Yakuza 4 branded Bowl!
Prize two: Yakuza 4 game signed by YAZ & Yakuza 4 branded Chopsticks!

All you have to do to have a shot at winning these awesome prizes is follow us on twitter, CLICK HERE follow SEGAbits and retweet this message;
RT & Follow @SEGAbits – YAKUZA WEEK – DAY 3 – CONTEST! Retweet to win Yakuza prizes! Info: http://www.segabits.com/?p=11998

We’ll pick a winner at random!
If you don’t win, don’t fret, there will be another chance tomorrow!


Day 2 winner:

jegarcia
Congratulations!

Why you should own this game – Day 3 –Reason 3

That story!

I love my fair share of Japanese games; in fact, looking at my collection I tend to prefer Japanese games than western games. That said one thing I find the Japanese are trailing behind the West with is really good stories in games. Whilst I’m a firm believer in game play before storyline when it comes to videogames if a game has both it’s always a plus!

Story driven Japanese games are often made for a Japanese audience, (and rightly so) but that often means they’ll be littered with the kind of clichéd characters and plots I’ve seen a hundred times by now are wearing thin. Yakuza games are right on top of the game when it comes to interesting mature plots and compelling, likeable characters and it’s easily as good as any of the top story driven western games I’ve played.

Whilst Yakuza 3 lost a bit of its flair and became quite tame and monotonous at times, Yakuza 4 took the series back to the top of its game with four playable characters each with uniquely thrilling stories and backgrounds.

Do yourself a favor and look at our side bar, over there on the right. We’ve made it easy for you to buy! Just click on that BUY NOW button!

YAKUZA WEEK – DAY 1: Of Underwear Theft and Contests!

Video of the Day: Yakuza 4 Revelations – Essence of Triple Strike


Why you should own this game, Day 1 – Reason 1: There isn’t a bad time to jump in!

Every time a new Yakuza game is about to release I see the same question cropping up in every forum I visit; ‘Can I buy this game now or do I have to play the series from the start to understand the storyline?’

You can jump in RIGHT AWAY; Each Yakuza game has its own story arc with a beginning and an end. If you don’t care to know about the series history you can play right off the bat and you won’t feel lost at all.

However if you are one of those kinds of people who just needs to know all the history of the game and the characters, Yakuza 4 has you covered. At the start of every Yakuza sequel so far there’s the chance to ‘reminisce’, which is a fancy way of saying ‘watch videos of the events of the previous games’ and they go really in-depth too!

Do yourself a favor and look at our side bar, over there on the right. We’ve made it easy for you to buy! Just click on that BUY NOW button!


TWITTER GIVE AWAY – Day 1 of 6

Prize 1: A Yakuza 4 Branded Bowl & Yakuza game signed by YAZ
Prize 2: A Yakuza 4 Art Book & Yakuza 4 branded chopsticks

All you have to do to have a shot at winning these awesome prizes is follow us on twitter, CLICK HERE follow SEGAbits and retweet this message;

RT & Follow @SEGAbits – YAKUZA WEEK – DAY 1 – CONTEST! Retweet to win Yakuza prizes. info: http://www.segabits.com/?p=11634

We’ll pick a winner at random!

If you don’t win, don’t fret, we’re here all week!

Yakuza twitter app: In a world of nobodies, tweet like somebody

SEGA has teamed up with Genesix to deliver a Yakuza themed iPhone app. This application will allow you to do what most other apps already allow: tweeting, posting photos and sharing shorten links in the twitterverse.

[Icon: Check]

The app is free and comes with 6 themes to toggle between. You can download it here. Now I wish I had an iPhone so I could use the app to update our twitter…

[Source: AndriaSang]

Yuji Naka, Naoto Oshima and Takashi Iizuka hanging out


Those god damn hooligans. They are up to no good, with their blue spikes and their loud rock n’ roll music. Actually these photos where posted by Yuji Naka on his twitter, who was ‘chillaxing’ with Naoto Oshima (original designer for Sonic) and Takashi Iizuka (current boss over at Sonic Team).

Can you imagine what they talked about? Whatever it is, I hope its all three getting together for a game. Takashi Iizuka most likely has great ideas that evolve Shadow and aliens.

[Via: Sonic Stadium]

Bayonetta 2!? – Hideki Kamiya hints on Twitter!

While Platinum Game / Mikami’s 3rd person shooter ‘Vanquish’ seems to have bombed sales wise. (If you didn’t buy it then it’s your fault and I’ll never forgive you.) Hideki Kamiya’s Bayonetta on the other hand did very well for Platinum and Sega.

Easily two of my favorite games this generation, so at least one of them is looking up in regards to a sequel. Kamiya has hinted today on his twitter account that Bayonetta 2 might be on the way!

The teaser comes from a twitter convocation between Kamiya and another guy going by the name ‘Grecco’. Grecco asks Kamiya if it is possible to get the prototype version of Bayonettas character model from the recently released footage of a Bayonetta prototype released as DLC for Bayonetta. Kamiya replied “Perhaps in Bayonetta 2” to which Grecco replied, “So are you confirming Bayonetta 2?”. Kamiya reluctant to give anything away replied simply with. “Oh you think so?”

So not exactly a confirmation, but not a denial either and considering the pretty good sales. I think it’s only a matter of time.

VF5: Final Showdown to support Twitter


I thought SEGA was going to be the only company to totally ignore Twitter integration, I was wrong. If there is any game I would would ‘freely promote’ to my followers, its Virtua Fighter.

Users that are playing the arcade version will be able to link their Twitter accounts to their VF.net accounts via PC or cellphone. You will be able to follow players on twitter, without needing to leave the arcade.