Arc System Works hints at future Persona Arena Fighting Games


Arc System Works seems to be more popular as time goes on, now known to millions of new fighting game fans due to their work on the ultra popular Dragon Ball FigtherZ. But back in 2012, Arc System Works and Atlus teamed up to do Persona 4 Arena and later in 2013 (arcade) they released the direct sequel Persona 4 Arena Ultimax. Since then Arc System Works has been mostly busy releasing updated versions of their in-house IPs like BlazBlue and Guilty Gear.

Now Arc System Works is advertising their latest fighting game BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle which features cross over characters from Persona, BlazBlue (duh), RWBY and Under Night in-Birth. Kotaku recently got a interview/opinion piece with the director of that game, Toshimichi Mori on the thought process of designing that game, but at the same time he teased the future of Persona Arena Fighting games.

BREAKING: Sonic Birthday Party RUINED – Silver Sonic MIA and ME Shattered

We just learned some tragic news. As many of our readers know, Sonic’s birthday Party was scheduled earlier today. The blue blur himself invited everybody – friend and foe – or so he thought. Unfortunately due to a mixup with the invites, Silver the Hedgehog received two invites and Sonic received one of his own (for his own party). Why is this? The intent was to invite Silver Sonic! Due to the mistake, Sonic’s old foe was missing in action. If this was bad enough, Knuckles arrived late because on his way to the party he tripped and shattered the Master Emerald, which he was carrying.

Another Team Sonic Racing team has been revealed …Froggy, where are you?

Sonic the Hedgehog turns 27 today! And as part of the festivities, the official Sonic social media accounts have revealed a new Team Sonic Racing team. In our many speculative videos we assumed that the game would be following the Sonic Heroes team arrangements. While they do feature Team Sonic and Team Dark, it looks like Team Rose is returning with some changes. First off, Amy Rose is back. Secondly, BIG THE CAT IS BACK AND HE IS DRIVING A FROGGY CAR! Thirdly, Cream the Rabbit got the boot in favor of four Chao in a car, which is very similar to the Chu Chu Rocket car in Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing.

Overall, it’s a nice addition to the game. Amy was all but assured, but I will admit that I was uncertain if Big would be back. While he is a fan favorite, Sonic Team said in the past that the character had been retired. Guess not! As for Cream, I really do not miss her and I think she would have likely been the least popular racer. The real question is, will we see Blaze the Cat? Female representation is low in the roster, and she’s a popular character that would make for a great racer.

Sonic Mania Adventures Episode 4 reunites Mighty and Ray

Sonic Mania Plus releases next month, and leading up to the release SEGA has been posting a five part animated Sonic series to YouTube entitled Sonic Mania Adventures. The last episode featured Knuckles flinging Ray, and this episode sees where Ray ended up. The new music by Tee Lopes and the writing and directing by Tyson Hesse are top notch and expand on what made the Sonic Mania game such a love letter to Classic Sonic fans. Check the latest episode out for yourself and be on the lookout for the fifth and final episode next month!

Job Listing for the New Sakura Wars Game hints on PS4 & Xbox One release.


After SEGA CEO, Haruki Satomi, announced a new Sakura Wars game in the works a few months ago during SEGA FES in Japan, there has been a new job listing for the game that just opened up recently focusing a release on Playstation 4 and Xbox One consoles. New job listings were posted at Creative Job by SEGA that state that a staff is required for the New Sakura Wars game which includes:

  • Background Designers
  • Character Designers
  • Mecha Modelers

Each staff member would also need prior experience with developing on Playstation 3/4 and Xbox 360/One console hardware along with using high-end game engines. The new Sakura Wars game does not currently have any confirmed platforms or release date but SEGA has stated that the game will released by the end of the current fiscal year.

[Source: Siliconera]

VectorMan joins the SEGA Forever mobile lineup

The SEGA Forever mobile lineup has expanded today with the SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive classic VectorMan. As with past SEGA Forever releases, you can play for free (ad-supported) on iOS and Android, or go ad-free for $1.99/€2.29/£1.99. As a bonus the SEGA Forever blog has added a special interview with Rich Karpp, the creator, coder, and designer of VectorMan! It’s a great read and here’s hoping these interviews continue as its always great to learn more about classic games from the people who made them.

Also worth noting, this week marks the one year anniversary of SEGA Forever. Since launch the lineup has hit 50 million downloads. We’re looking forward to seeing what is to come!

SEGAbits at E3 2018: Team Sonic Racing demo gameplay and developer interview

SEGA had a variety of games on display at this year’s E3, and probably the most interesting one (namely because we didn’t have a Japanese version to compare it to) was Team Sonic Racing. Our E3 reps got a chance to demo the game as Omega from Team Dark and Sonic of Team… well, Sonic of course. Following the demo, lead designer from Sumo Digital Richard Acherki was kind enough to take a few minutes to answer some questions we had about the upcoming game.

Yakuza 0 and Yakuza Kiwami joining “PlayStation Hits” budget branding


Growing up and owning the first PlayStation was a huge thing in the USA because Sony had the ‘greatest hits’ budget branding on games, making a lot of great games available for only $19.99. That tradition is now continuing with ‘PlayStation Hits’ brand games that will launch at $19.99 USD / $19.99 CAD / €19.99 / £15.99, the new budget brand hits June 28th in America and July 18th in Europe. In the past, ‘Greatest Hits’ was a badge that meant the games sold over a certain threshold in that specific market (PSone era it was 250k units in 9 months). No idea if they set one for these titles but they all seem to be rather popular games.

Hit the jump to see the full list of games, but Yakuza Kiwami and Yakuza 0 will be joining the new ‘rebrand’ budget title line-up!:

Valkyria Chronicles 4 releases September 25 – new editions announced

SEGA has given an official date for the upcoming Valkyria Chronicles 4! The much anticipated sequel will release in the Americas, Europe and Australia on September 25, 2018 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and PC. Also revealed is a new Launch Edition (MSRP $59.99), which in the Americas will include controller skins (not unlike what Sonic Forces included) and in the EU and UK fans will receive a sticker of the dog Ragnarok. Of course, there will also be the beautiful “Memoirs from Battle” Premium Edition (MSRP $99.99) which includes a collectors box, an art book, DLC and a statue of a freakin’ tank.

Pre-order the Valkyria Chronicles 4 “Memoirs from Battle” Premium Edition
PlayStation 4 | Xbox One | Nintendo Switch

Pre-order the Valkyria Chronicles 4 Launch Edition
PlayStation 4 | Xbox One | Nintendo Switch

SEGA News Bits: Yakuza 0, Yakuza Kiwami & Valkyria Chronicles 4 Coming To PC Discussion

SEGA Europe teased that they had a big PC announcement to reveal during the PC Gamer conference, usually I always assume this would have to do with their in-house titles like Football Manager, Total War series and so forth, but this time we got a massive surprise. SEGA is doubling down on Japanese PC games by releasing not just Valkyria Chronicles 4 but also Yakuza 0 and Yakuza Kiwami. On this video of the SEGA News Bits, we discuss all the information known about the ports and my general thoughts on the announcements.

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SEGA News Bits: Team Sonic Racing E3 Reveals

E3 is over and on this SEGA News Bits, Barry looks back on what was revealed for Team Sonic Racing before and during the conference. Some new details about the roster, tracks and weapons (wispons?) and more are covered! Stay tuned as we have hands-on impressions SEGA News Bits video coming soon.

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If you enjoy our SEGA News Bits segments and want to support us: Give us a sub and give this video a thumbs up so it shows up on more like-minded fans YouTube recommendations. You know, how that YouTube algorithm is.

Shining Resonance Refrain demo hits PS4, Xbox One & Nintendo Switch today


If you have any of the three modern consoles you will be able to play SEGA’s upcoming Shining Resonance Refrain for free! This will let you see if the game is for you, giving you hands-on time early. How early? A month early considering that the full game hits America and Europeans on July 10, 2018!

Sadly there is no demo announced for the Steam or PC version of the game, which sucks if you are a PC gamer only. But three out of four platforms isn’t too shabby by SEGA. Are you going to be giving Shining Resonance Refrain a chance?

Yakuza: Kiwami 2 E3 2018 trailer shows the power of the Dragon Engine

SEGA is really promoting Yakuza games now and it feels great from the standpoint of a long time fan. If you’ve been on here over the years, you are well aware of how I push this series all the time.Now we get a E3 2018 trailer showing off whats new in Yakuza: Kiwami 2!

“One of the most beloved storylines in the franchise’s history has returned in full HD in the Dragon Engine for PlayStation 4. Yakuza: Kiwami 2 features the return of mini games like Cabaret, a revamped clan creator and the original arcade release of Virtual-On, Kazuma Kiryu will have plenty of leisure activities when he isn’t taking on his fierce rival, the Dragon of Kansai, Ryuji Goda.”
As you can tell, Yakuza: Kiwami 2 is a huge leap graphically from the first Kiwami game based on being developed on the Dragon Engine! Yakuza: Kiwami 2 hits America and Europe on August 28!

Catherine: Full Body gets western 2019 release window

Atlus has unleashed a brand new, E3 2018 Catherine: Full Body trailer confirming that it will get a 2019 release windows for us in America and Europe. If you didn’t already know, Catherine: Full Body is a ‘re-imagined remake’ of the orginal that came out last generation. This game is set to add a brand new ‘girl’ to the story, giving you three girls to juggle oppose to two in the original.

Is it a nightmare or a dream come true? A new test of Vincent Brooks’ morality is about to take the stage in Catherine: Full Body! This new twist on the original Catherine, a mature romantic action-adventure puzzle game from the makers of the Persona series, will include a new love interest, “Rin,” with distinct storyline elements for the character, and additional puzzle content. Vincent’s love life has never been so complicated and dramatic!
If you are Japanese, you can play Catherine: Full Body on PlayStation 4 and PS Vita this winter! As for the rest of us, we wait.