7th Dragon III Code: VFD Demo now on American eShop

I have been playing 7th Dragon III Code: VFD recently, that we even did a first impressions video a week or so ago and now you can give the game a spin with a demo. The 7th Dragon III Code: VFD Demo was released on the American e-Shop on the Nintendo 3DS. I highly suggest you give the game a try, especially since 7th Dragon III Code: VFD demo saves transfer to the final game:

“Demo saves transfer over to the main game, and are not only encouraged, but rewarded! The demo provides players with a streamlined pre-made group with a character cap of level 10, and once you transfer the save data to the full game, you can refund all the skill points and customize the group any way you want.”

7th Dragon III Code: VFD demo is highly recommended for users that want a new SEGA JRPG. The game has a pretty nice soundtrack composed by SEGA veteran Yuzo Koshiro (Streets of Rage games) and co-produced by Rieko Kodama (Phantasy Star, Skies of Arcadia). Give the demo a go and tell us what you think of 7th Dragon III Code: VFD in the comments below

[Via: TinyCartridge]

SEGA 3D Classics Collection rated for Australia

sega3dclassicscollectionIt seems that SEGA 3D Classics Collection on the Nintendo 3DS will be getting a Australian release, if the newly filed rating by SEGA is anything to go by. SEGA hasn’t officially confirmed SEGA 3D Classics Collection Australian release, but seeing this rating pretty much guarantees an announcement. Let’s hope its physical and not just digital.

SEGA 3D Classics Collection was released in the Americas on April 26th which has been the only other release outside of Japan. Yes, SEGA of Europe hasn’t released it either. Come on SEGA, share the SEGA 3D Classics Collection love!

[Via: Gematsu]

SEGA News Bits: New Sonic the Hedgehog game confirmed for 2017

SEGA has officially confirmed, at Sonic the Hedgehog’s 25th anniversary event in Japan, that Sonic the Hedgehog will be seeing a brand new game from Sonic Team in 2017. In this SEGA News Bits, Barry and George discuss what this upcoming game might be based on SEGA’s recent Sonic the Hedgehog marketing efforts and past Sonic game reveals. We also talk about what we could expect for the rest of the year and what we might be seeing at Sonic’s 25th anniversary party in San Diego on July 22nd. So go ahead and click play to hear us get all hot and bothered over a speedy blue hedgehog.

What are your thoughts on the upcoming game? Is 2017 too far out? Let us know the comments below and like always thanks for watching! If you like our SEGA News Bits videos, make sure to subscribe to us on our YouTube channel.

Archie Comics reveals Sonic the Hedgehog origin story arc – could classic Sonic be making a comeback?

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Over the past few days, the Archie Comics Twitter account has been revealing pieces of a cover for an upcoming issue of Sonic the Hedgehog which features the 25th anniversary logo and classic Sonic doing his iconic Sonic the Hedgehog ending pose. Archie, knowing fans were most interested in the issue number and the name of the arc, kept those two details hidden until the final reveals. But now we have confirmation that following the completion of the “Panic in the Sky” arc, which is the conclusion of the larger Shattered World storyline, Archie will be jumping way back to the origins of Sonic the Hedgehog with issue 288 in the arc titled “Genesis of a Hero”.

Sakura Wars 20th Anniversary event coming to Japan in September

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The Japanese SEGA franchise Sakura Wars is turning 20 years old, and to celebrate it, a special event will be hosted in Japan. Titled “Chisa Yokoyama’s Sakura Wars 20th Birthday Party”, it will feature a total of five talk events from the varies voice actors who have been involved with the franchise in both the games and the special OVA Sakura Wars: The Radiant Gorgeous Blooming Cherry Blossoms. This event will span between September 23rd to September 25th, which is coincidentally a few days before the release date of the SEGA Saturn version of Sakura Wars that started it all.

Sakura Wars has not made a presence for itself outside of Japan, but in Japan it’s one of the most beloved franchises from SEGA. Combining strategy RPG and visual novel elements, the series has had the longevity to produce 5 mainline titles, several prequels, gaiden, and spin-offs titles, and anime and manga. Most games take place in an alternate universe in the early 1900’s after the first World War, with the key difference from our timeline is that it involves advanced steam powered machinery and the concept of spiritual power or reiryoku (霊力).

For information on pricing, talk events scheduling, and location, click the Read More tag.

Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice gets first Japanese trailer

If you have been sitting around wanting to see more direct capture footage of Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice (or as its called in Japan Sonic Toon), then Sega Japan’s got you covered. Above is their trailer for the game introducing each character that will be in the final product.

While the Sonic Boom brand name has been hit hard due to two stinkers, SEGA has delayed Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice almost a year to try and get it right. The game is also being developed by Sanzaru Games which have developed good games in the past, namely Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time. What are your guys thoughts on Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice so far?

SEGA 3D Classics is 30% off on Amazon

sega3dclassicscollectionDidn’t pick up SEGA 3D Classics when it came out a few months ago? Shame on you! But its OK, you can now make it up to us by picking up SEGA 3D Classics for only $21.97 on Amazon (does have Prime shipping). That is pretty damn cheap way of playing classics like Power Drift, Puyo Puyo 2, Fantasy Zone II, and many more on the go. I do know that first print copies came with awesome SEGA stickers, don’t know if that is still the case but most likely it does.

You can buy a copy here. 

If you already have SEGA 3D Classics, good, now you can get a copy for your Nintendo heathen friends. So what do you guys think of the game going on sale out of nowhere? Good price?

The SEGA Five: SEGA Games That Would Thrive in Virtual Reality

SEGAVRWhile not every single gamer is sold on Virtual Reality just yet, mostly due to the fact that it is rather expensive to even get a headset and compatible computer, the people that have experienced it all think its the future of gaming. While this is still open to debate, what I do know is that Virtual Reality has opened the door for older types of genres that SEGA pioneered in their long history to thrive. So today on The SEGA Five we will be discussing five genres that SEGA can revive with the help of Virtual Reality.

Before we get started I just want to say that these ideas are to make the games Virtual Reality compatible and not exclusive. I think this would mean that more gamers will be able to enjoy the games, VR headset or not.  The number of gamers with Virtual Reality headsets is too low to spend money on exclusives right now. So let’s get to it.

Sonic the Hedgehog and Friends concept art revealed

SonicConcept1During the Sonic the Hedgehog 25th Anniversary event over in Japan, Sonic Team presented early concepts for Sonic the Hedgehog and Friends. Some of the weirdest early prototypes included rabbit Sonic the Hedgehog, headband wearing Silver the Hedgehog and scarred up Shadow the Hedgehog. If you are a hedgehog, you started out with some weird designs.

Check out the concept art for Sonic the Hedgehog and Friends below. Tell us what you think of these early concept art prototypes and if they did right with the final designs. Of course, these are just more of the popular Sonic the Hedgehog and Friends designs as they didn’t show a lot of the more niche characters (Fang, please Sonic Team).

[Via NeoGAF]

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New Sonic the Hedgehog game confirmed for 2017

SonicTeamSonicGame2017The Sonic the Hedgehog 25th Anniversary event took place over in Tokyo, Japan yesterday and Sonic Team time lord Takashi Iizuka was there. At the event Takashi Iizuka finally announced ‘officially’ that a ‘new Sonic the Hedgehog game’ will be coming out next year.

While people are freaking out over not having a Sonic Team developed Sonic the Hedgehog game this year, I do want to stress that everyone wait for July 22nd, when the game will be shown off at the Sonic the Hedgehog 25th Anniversary party in San Diego, California. We will be there covering the event live and there will be a lot of surprises that will please fans of the blue blur. I guarantee it. I have seen some crazy conclusions fans have come up, so just relax it will all be shown in less than a month!

SNK shows off cancelled Garou: Mark of the Wolves 2 character roster

Garou 2During an interview with 4Gamer, SNK’s Yasuyuki Oda (Game Director), Eisuke Ogura (System Designer), Hidetoshi Ishizawaka (Battle Designer), and Hayato Watanabe (Battle Designer) talked about their upcoming game King of Fighters XIV. Sure there is a lot of hype in the community for that game but what surprised me was that they showed the character roster for a cancelled sequel to Garou: Mark of the Wolves. Garou: Mark of the Wolves is a 1999 Arcade game that got ported to systems such as Neo Geo, PlayStation 2, Dreamcast and a lot more. It is also one of the most underrated fighting games on the SEGA Dreamcast library and that is saying a lot.

It seems that SNK’s Garou: Mark of the Wolves 2 would have used sprites, as seen above in the character art they recently released which is way different than the 3D look that King of Fighters XIV took. What are your thoughts on Garou: Mark of Wolves 2 being worked on rather recently? Let us know in the comments below. King of Fighters XIV is being published by Atlus in the United States.

SEGA confirms quality a huge emphasis for future titles

SonicBoomFireIceSonicAmy-894x375Sonic the Hedgehog is a huge deal for SEGA, its one of their biggest selling brands. But have they given the series the development focus that it deserved? I would say no, for example even if a game starring Sonic the Hedgehog is good, you can always tell it was rushed out the door. Seems SEGA knows its future survival in the game software industry will rest on how they treat Sonic and they’re making good on their promise by delaying September’s Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice which was mean’t to be out last fall.

MCVUK talked to Sonic Chief brand officer Ivo Gerscovich who had this to say:

“Sega is really – as of this last year – putting a huge emphasis on quality. One of the things about Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice is that we held the title for a year, which is not something Sega has traditionally done, but this focus on quality is really about trying to take Sonic back to where it used to be.”

This is a huge move for SEGA and the Sonic the Hedgehog series, this might finally launch that highly polished Sonic game that all fans have been starving for. SEGA should be happy having such a loyal Sonic the Hedgehog fanbase, considering hundreds of mascot platformers have come, and went while they delivered some of the worse games in the mascot’s history. But hey, here is to the future and the new team at SEGA. Don’t screw this up!

SEGA Channel Retro Livestream Celebrates 25 Years of Sonic

You can check out the archived livestream split into several videos so you can check out which game and which compilation you’d like to see! Check out how you can continue to play the classics and highlighting the pros and cons of each collection showcased.

The past two decades have given us plenty of ways to play through the old classics. We’ll be taking a look at the different game compilations that celebrated the past two decades of the blue blur.

Rez Infinite comes out October 13th for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation VR

maxresdefaultRez Infinite was shown last year, was raved about as one of the most compelling PlayStation VR demos shown at the device’s revealing event. Now developer Enhanced Games has confirmed that the ‘remake’ will be coming out digitally on October 13th on both PlayStation 4 and PlayStation VR.

Rez Infinite is set to run at full 1080p and feature a new level they are calling ‘Area X’. While Rez Infinite got a lot of buzz because of its PlayStation VR support, it is an optional feature and is fully enjoyable on a regular TV. The real question is though, will Rez Infinite get a trance vibrator re-release?

Celebrating Sonic the Hedgehog’s 25th anniversary with 25 great underrated moments

sonic 25 headerSEGA’s Sonic the Hedgehog franchise turns 25 today, and while we’ve celebrated franchise milestone years in the past, there is something really special about this one. A quarter of a century is a long time, and it is a testament to SEGA’s perseverance and the devotion of the Sonic fanbase that the franchise is still going strong. Sonic Lost World and the Sonic Boom franchise – particularly the games – are often pinpointed as the franchise’s recent weak points and signs that the franchise as a whole needs to be put down or at the very least take a long break. While I am not here to debate the merits of Sonic Lost World and Sonic Boom, I will say that to end a series or take a long break because of either is both incredibly shortsighted and far too extreme a reaction. I would also argue that Sonic is about much more than just the main series games, as fans like to label the major titles, and that there has always been great Sonic things happening even during the franchise’s darkest years.

In celebration of 25 years of Sonic the Hedgehog, join me in looking back year-by-year as I shine the light on great moments in Sonic history that more people need to be talking about.