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SEGA places second in Metacritic’s game publisher rankings

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2018 certainly felt like a great year for SEGA and ATLUS games, and the recently released list of game publisher rankings by Metacritic solidifies it. While SEGA placed 3rd in 2017’s list, 2018’s list sees SEGA moving up a spot to second!

Sega landed in our top 3 for the third time in four years (with the exception coming in a year when Sega failed to release enough games to qualify for our “major” publishers group). That’s especially impressive given that Sega released more distinct titles than all but one other publisher in 2018. Note that all of Sega’s averages and totals include games published by Atlus, a recently acquired Sega subsidiary that (as of 2018) now shares top-level management with the parent company.

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IDW to give Sonic the Hedgehog comic characters Tangle and Whisper their own mini-series

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We’re a dozen issues and one video game adaptation special into IDW’s Sonic the Hedgehog comic series, and now we know what the first mini-series will entail! Via IDW’s April solicitations came the reveal of an issue #0 of “Sonic the Hedgehog: Tangle & Whisper”. The preview issue is said to give a sneak peek at their upcoming mini-series adventure and includes a recap of “season 1” of the main Sonic the Hedgehog comic (since when are comic books seasons?).

This news is notable as it shows IDW is ready to branch out with the Sonic series with mini-series (something IDW is well known for) and that they are willing to give original characters the spotlight. By comparison, it took Archie two years into their Sonic run before they gave Princess Sally Acorn her own mini-series, and that was the first and last time Archie gave a character not derived from the games their own comic book.

After the break you can read the description of the mini-series preview comic. The mini-series is due out this summer.

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SEGA FES 2019 announced for March 30th and 31st in Japan

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SEGA FES returns this year with another fan centric event in Japan where there will surely be some big announcements. This year’s event takes place March 30th and the 31st in the BelleSalle Akihabara event hall in Tokyo, Japan. Last year we saw the reveal of the Mega Drive Mini, SEGA AGES, a new Sakura Taisen game and the Japanese release of Shenmue I & II.

This year? Who knows! My money is on a more concrete date and details of the Mega Drive Mini, a trailer for Sakura Taisen and more SEGA AGES announcements. I know it’s a stretch, but I’m hoping we see more titles from SEGA’s survey of fan favorite franchises. Remember, the only games in the top 5 not to see new titles are Jet Set Radio and Virtua Fighter. A new game for either franchise would be awesome for fans!

Until then, we can only speculate but once the event arrives we will be sure to share the news of what is revealed!

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SEGA celebrates 30 years of Toshihiro Nagoshi with a look back at his career

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SEGA has released a sit down interview video with Toshihiro Nagoshi, chief creative officer at SEGA. SEGA fans know Nagoshi best for Daytona USA, the Super Monkey Ball games and Yakuza. The interview contains some interesting information, including Nagoshi saying that the games where he listened to other people didn’t work too well (Binary Domain, perhaps?). In regards to the Yakuza franchise, Nagoshi notes that the original Yakuza did not sell enough to cover development costs which led to the team having to more effectively use their resources for the sequel. Only a year passed between the first two Yakuza games, and this was an effort to keep the series alive in people’s minds, which meant a very busy and short development cycle. This hard work paid off, however, as Yakuza 2 sold twice as many copies as the first game.

Check out the video for yourself above, and here’s hoping we see more content like this from SEGA’s YouTube channel!

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Street Fighter II: Bloody Edition SEGA Genesis rom hack released

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Remember back in the day when the whole Mortal Kombat vs Street Fighter II school yard arguments? One big knock kids had against Street Fighter II back in the day was its lack of “extreme violence”.  Well, now you can get Street Fighter II: Bloody Edition modded rom created by NinjAkira based on Street Fighter II: Special Champion Edition on SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive.

Street Fighter II: Bloody Edition just doesn’t add blood, it also changes the way the game plays:

Impact animations were replaced with blood sneezing and other improvements:

  • weak attacks have a very slow speed, normal attacks have not been altered and strong attacks have a very fast speed
  • Impact with strong attacks has been increased to give more brutality
  • Special attacks that need reload no longer need
  • The power bar is the same as Super Street Fighter to stay aesthetically better, but now with blood!

You can download it right here.

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Yakuza Kiwami releases to PC on February 19th – pre-orders now open

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SEGA has officially revealed that the long teased Yakuza Kiwami, the remake of the PlayStation 2 classic Yakuza, will be releasing to Steam for PC on February 19th. The game is now available to pre-order and those who get it now will receive 10% off the £14.99 / $19.99 / €19.99 price, as well as bonus content including avatars, wallpapers and a digital manga.

After the successful release of Yakuza 0 for PC, the PC release of Yakuza Kiwami is sure to be a hit. Will you be picking it up? Let us know in the comments below!

Check the full press release out after the break.

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SEGA News Bits: Sonic Adventure Remake Reaction & Discussion

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On this SEGA News Bits, George and Barry cover a topic several viewers wanted us to cover: the possibility of a Sonic Adventure remake. We discuss what Sonic Team said about the idea and share our own thoughts on what a remake could feature.

If you want to support this type of content, you can check out our Patreon!

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.

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Wonder Boy Returns receiving physical release on PlayStation 4 from Strictly Limited Games

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The Wonder Boy franchise has seen a lot of love recently. Between the remake of Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap and Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom, fans had a lot to enjoy. But there was a third game that probably flew under the radar for many. Wonder Boy Returns is a followup to the original game, meaning you’ll be running from left to right. The game saw mixed reviews, with Hardcore Gaming 101 stating the game “straddles the line between a remake and a sequel” and noting a “flat difficulty curve”. Their assessment was that there was “a pervasive sense this was done on the quick and cheap”. The game currently holds a 7/10 on Steam and the Metacritic reviews listed are mixed.

But hey! If you want the game physically, Strictly Limited Games have announced via Facebook that they will be giving the game a limited physical release. They are hinting that January 27th will be when pre-orders open. We’ll be sure to post an update when the game goes up for sale!

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SEGA News Bits: Team Eggman Announced For Team Sonic Racing

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The final(?) team has been announced for the upcoming Team Sonic Racing! Team Eggman brings togehter Eggman, Metal Sonic and… Zavok? On this SEGA News Bits, George and Barry discuss the newly formed team, how the roster looks and what else has been announced for the game in the past week.

If you want to support this type of content, you can check out our Patreon!

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.

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SEGA’s Rieko Kodama being honored with GDCA Pioneer Award

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One of our favorite SEGA developers here at SEGAbits, Rieko Kodama, who has worked on SEGA classics like Alex Kidd, Phantasy Star and even the Dreamcast cult classic Skies of Arcadia. She is set to recieve this year’s pioneer award at this year’s Game Developer Awards.

“The Game Developers Choice Awards were conceived as a way to recognize the all-too-often unsung genius and dedication of game developers throughout history, and this year’s award honors a figure who helped pave the way for countless game creators to follow, after decades spent developing some of SEGA’s most indelible classics, Kodama-san could easily rest on her laurels, but instead has dedicated herself to creating games that transcend gender and generations to give us countless hours of joy. This award is a ‘thank you’ to Kodama-san and all creators who work so hard to achieve greatness.” – Katie Stern, general manager of the Game Developers Conference

THe Game Developer Awards ceremony will take place in San Francisco Moscone Center on March 20, 2019 at 6:30 pm.

[Source: Variety]

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SEGA has officially been in the third party business longer than they were in the home console business

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December 18, 2018. That was the day that SEGA was in the third party business for as long as they had been in the home console business. For the past month we have been living in a new era. From the debut of the SG-1000 in Japan on July 15, 1983 to the official discontinuation of the Dreamcast on March 31, 2001, 6,470 days elapsed. From April 1, 2001 to December 18, 2018 another 6,470 days elapsed. We’re living in an era of SEGA that has survived longer than what many point to as the glory days. Let that sink in.

Interestingly, it seems that SEGA AGES Gain Ground and SEGA AGES OutRun are the first games to release in Japan and the West respectively in this post 6,470 day era. 2019 looks to be a HUGE year for SEGA, and we’re actually very excited. For a full rundown of what to expect from SEGA in 2019, you can check out our SEGA News Bits video.

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SEGA AGES Puyo Puyo to feature obscure English version of the arcade game

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SEGA’s official Puyo Puyo Twitter account has drop some new information regarding to SEGA AGES Puyo Puyo, with the most significant news being that they are officially releasing the obscure English version of Puyo Puyo. This version of Puyo Puyo predates the more familiar localization attempts such as Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine and Kirby’s Avalanche, with the key difference is that it tries to retain the original graphics, with only some minor adjustments to the voice clips and most of the character names and dialogue. It’s been long rumored to have been soft-released somewhere in Europe, based on interviews in the book All About Puyo Puyo Tsu, but until now it’s existence by SEGA wasn’t acknowledged. This created speculation that the English version of Puyo Puyo was a bootleg, further fueled by it being originally found on a bootleg board.

A more minor reveal is a new border being confirmed, a collection of artwork from the Puyo Puyo manuals for consoles, showing off the different characters you face against during the single player mode. But the English version is obviously the more fascinating news, since it once and for all puts down the theory that the English Puyo Puyo arcade game was an unofficial modification. SEGA AGES Puyo Puyo is due out sometime in February in Japan, with a release internationally currently unknown.

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Team Sonic Racing reveals Team Eggman

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We’ve known for a while that Eggman would have his own team in Team Sonic Racing, and now we know who decided to accept his invite. Team Eggman will consist of Eggman, Metal Sonic and Zavok, the leader of the Deadly Six from Sonic Lost World. Zavok is an interesting choice. There are other baddies from Sonic’s recent history that SEGA could have pulled from, like Chaos or Infinite, but when you think about it besides those two and the Deadly Six you’re left with badniks or giant monsters that are way too big for a car.

Zavok has made appearances in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U as a trophy, in Sonic Runners during a special event, in Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, in Sonic Forces: Speed Battle and in Sonic Forces as an illusion created by Infinite. Personally I was hoping for a modern redesign of Fang in his sweet hover bike, but I know that’s not happening.

Team Sonic Racing releases May 21, 2019.

Pre-order Team Sonic Racing today!
PlayStation 4 | Xbox One | Nintendo Switch

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Bayonetta crosses over into Shin Megami Tensei: Dx2 Liberation

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Bayonetta coming to Shin Megami Tensei: Dx2 Liberation was first teased at this year’s Tokyo Game Show but it has now been officially shown off on the 1st year anniversary stream.

While I get why some people are a bit put off with anything that has to do with mobile games, since they are so different compared to traditional games, I think this crossover makes sense and I hope we see more SEGA own IPs make cameos in Dx2.

[Via: Persona Central]

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SEGA News Bits: What to Expect From SEGA in 2019

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Just look at that header! If you were one of the SEGA fans yearning for the “good ol’ days”, we think you’re really going to love 2019. On this SEGA News Bits, George and Barry run through the many games we can expect from SEGA – from first party releases to licensed titles to stuff with a SEGA connection. Check out the video and afterwards in the comments below let us know what you are most excited for and least excited for in 2019.

If you want to support this type of content, you can check out our Patreon!

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.

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