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Swingin’ Report Show #78: Interview with Sam Mullen, Localization Producer, SEGA of America

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On this episode of the SEGAbits Swingin’ Report Show, we’re joined by SEGA of America Localization Producer Sam Mullen! In his role at SEGA, Sam has managed the localization process of several Japanese titles including Binary Domain, Rise of Nightmares, and the Hatsune Miku titles. Currently he is working on SEGA’s line of 3D Classics titles which include arcade and SEGA Genesis favorites as well as Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai DX for the Nintendo 3DS.

Learn about what the process of localization entails as well as what to expect from SEGA’s upcoming 3DS titles in this week’s show! Oh, and see a surprise cameo from former Brand Manager Aaron Webber who happened to be at SEGA of America HQ while we were recording this episode.

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SEGAbits & Sonic Retro present Boom Talkalaka #3: TV and Comics and Crossovers, oh my!

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SEGAbits and Sonic Retro team up to bring you a podcast focused on SEGA’s Sonic Boom franchise! Hosted by Barry the Nomad of SEGAbits.com and David the Lurker of SonicRetro.org, Boom Talkalaka features discussion of the many aspects of Sonic Boom – from comics and episodes of the cartoon, to the video games and toys.

In this episode, Barry and David discuss an early version of Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric under the working title Sonic Synergy and take a look at concept art of elaborate in-store Sonic Boom displays. Also covered are the latest TV show episodes, the second comic book arc, the upcoming Worlds Unite comic book crossover, and we share our thoughts on the future of the new branch on the Sonic the Hedgehog tree.

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Mobile games that no longer meet SEGA’s standards to be removed from app stores in the coming weeks

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Via the SEGA Blog comes news that a number of games from their back catalog will be removed from the App Store, the Google Play Store, the Samsung App Store and the Amazon App Store in the coming weeks. The reasoning for this is to remove titles that no longer meet their revised standards. While games you have already purchased will be available to download and play again, these select titles will soon no longer be for sale. What are these titles that SEGA plans to purge? We don’t know at this point, but I’d wager a guess that many of the older titles including those that have had issues on the newest devices are on the chopping block. SEGA did state, however, that some titles may return in an updated form.

While it is always a shame to see older titles removed, one of the major downsides to digital titles, it is nice of SEGA to give advanced warning. Also, this could be a sign of SEGA of America stepping things up in the quality department. I’d guess that the axed titles will likely be the old badly emulated Genesis/Mega Drive games and SEGA Columns Deluxe.

Check out SEGA’s full statement after the break and stay tuned to SEGAbits for what these soon to be removed titles are.

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Abyss Odyssey: Extended Dream Edition announced for PlayStation 4

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Atlus just announced Abyss Odyssey: Extended Dream Edition for the PlayStation 4. This new edition of ACE Team’s procedurally generated platformer will include new features that were patched into the PC version, like an online two player versus mode. There will also be various gameplay additions, including new combos and moves, a harder difficulty mode, and new mini bosses including Golem from Zeno Clash 2.

The original game launched for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360, which Bartman reviewed last year. There’s no date yet for the Extended Dream Edition, but when it launches it’ll cost $14.99.

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Get your facts straight: SEGA not having a booth at E3 2015 and what it really means

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SEGA finally confirmed the other day that they will not have an exhibition booth at this year’s E3. Following the news, it came as no surprise that much of the internet have been commenting on news stories being posted by ‘gaming journalism’ websites, spitting false claims that make me wonder if anyone even read the statement SEGA gave Game Informer. So without further ado, we will be looking at the most frequently made statements by internet users and whether these statements are true or false. I hope you guys enjoy.

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My Life with SEGA becomes a Junker in Hideo Kojima’s Snatcher for SEGA CD

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That’s right, SEGA fans! Andrew Rosa is finally reviewing one of the most sought after SEGA CD titles ever produced, Hideo Kojima’s Snatcher! The cyber-punk graphic adventure’s yet to see an English translation since its appearance on SEGA CD, and very few copies were produced, so there’s no denying that Snatcher‘s value to gamers and collectors alike is exceptionally high. Join Andrew as he examines Hideo Kojima’s sophomore effort.

Like this video? Subscribe to the SEGAbits YouTube channel.

Next week on “My Life with SEGA”: the premiere of the short film “Nothing Else Matters”, the follow-up to “Theater of the Eye”. After the break check out a teaser trailer!

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SEGA Tunes: Space Channel 5 resurrects Ken Woodman’s Mexican Flyer

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While SEGA music fans celebrate the likes of Jacques, Naganuma, and Mitsuyoshi who created hours of original tracks for iconic SEGA games during the Saturn and Dreamcast eras, its important to remember that SEGA has also relied heavily on pre-existing music licensed for their titles. Samba de Amigo, for example, used contemporary tracks from the likes of German pop group Bellini, Chumbawamba, and Santana, as well as classic music from the 50s and 60s including tracks from the Gipsy Kings, Perez Prado, and Quincy Jones. Jet Set Radio and Jet Set Radio Future also featured several licensed tracks, so many that subsequent re-releases were once in fear of losing iconic tunes thanks in large part to the fact that Crazy Taxi‘s HD release scrapped the original game’s soundtrack which featured Bad Religion and The Offspring. SEGA learned their lesson with Crazy Taxi, however, as the mobile release of the game reinstated the original soundtrack and Jet Set Radio‘s HD release promoted the fact that the soundtrack was largely intact in their marketing of the game.

Internal SEGA development team United Game Artists, known for Space Channel 5 and Rez, put music at the forefront of their titles. Music not only played a part in enhancing the mood, it was a vital part of gameplay. Sure one can play Jet Set Radio or Samba de Amigo with the speakers muted (why would you want to though?), but muting Space Channel 5 or Rez? You might as well unplug the console. Throughout the month of May, SEGA Tunes we will be focusing on both the original and licensed music featured in United Game Artists games. This week, we’re kicking things off with a classic.

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SEGA confirms they won’t have a booth at E3 this year

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So you guys already know the speculation, SEGA hasn’t signed up for a exhibition booth for this year’s E3. Of course, we thought that it would have meant that they were just going to sign up late, sadly that is not the case as SEGA has now confirmed to Game Informer via email:

“Over the next months, SEGA of America will be focusing on the restructure and relocation to Southern California, and we have decided to not attend E3 with our own booth this year. With the majority of our bigger titles launching later in 2015/2016, particularly those from our AAA studios Relic Entertainment, Sports Interactive and Creative Assembly, we are concentrating our efforts for some of these major announcements after our relocation. Instead, we will be collaborating with our various business partners for this year’s E3 show.”

It seems that them restructuring and moving to Southern California is to blame for their lack of E3 showing this year. Not only that, they will also be showing titles at other ‘business partner’ booths. I assume you can find stuff like Dengeki Bunko: Fighting Climax and Yakuza 5 at Sony’s booth for example. What are your thoughts on SEGA skipping E3 for this year?

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Contest: Win a 3D Fantasy Zone II download code for Nintendo 3DS

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Thanks to our friends at SEGA, we’re giving away copies of 3D Fantasy Zone II for Nintendo 3DS to fans on all of our social networks! The contest is open to fans in the Americas and EU, and we are giving away codes on the following networks:

  • Twitter – Follow SEGAbits and retweet the dedicated contest tweet – 3 Americas and 3 EU codes will be awarded
  • Facebook – Like SEGAbits and share the dedicated contest post, remember to leave a comment on the dedicated contest post telling us your region – 3 Americas and 3 EU codes will be awarded
  • Instagram – Follow SEGAbits and leave a comment telling us your region – 2 Americas and 2 EU codes will be awarded
  • SEGAbits.com (you’re already here!) – Leave a comment below telling us your favorite thing about SEGA’s 3D Classics series and tell us your region, use a valid email address when leaving your comment (fill in the email field, do not post your email in the comment field) – 1 Americas and 1 EU code will be awarded

Fans can enter on any network, and there is no limit to how many networks you enter on. The more networks, the more chances you have to win! Contest ends Friday, May 8th

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This is Saturn Season 2 is here, with a look at SEGA’s 3D Control Pad

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This is Saturn returns after an extended hiatus!

This time, we’re delving back into the world of SEGA peripherals, with SEGA’s 3D Control Pad for the SEGA Saturn. The pad was bundled with copies of NiGHTS into Dreams… and is often something associated closely with the Saturn’s legacy; but has it earned its place as part of the Saturn legend? Find out, as Tracker takes a gander at this old piece of kit.

This is Saturn is a video series created by British teenager Liam ‘TrackerTD’ Ashcroft, aiming to give an alternative and in-depth look at the good, the bad, and the ugly of SEGA Saturn gaming, all whilst maintaining a somewhat strong accent.

Like this video? Subscribe to the SEGAbits YouTube channel.

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SEGA’s Okunari says they are open to do more 3D Classics

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SEGA has just announced they added additional titles to their ‘Wave 2’ of 3D Classics headed to the 3DS. Those titles where 3D Streets of Rage 2, 3D Gunstar Heroes and of course 3D Sonic the Hedgehog 2. So is SEGA planning a ‘Third Wave’ of 3D Classics after these release?

SEGA’s Yosuke Okunari spoke to Famitsu about that and here is his response:

These three titles were put out for download overseas simply as an extension [to the existing series]. This really is the end for the second wave [of Sega 3D Classics]. Of course we want to consider the development of a third wave based on the response to this second wave, but we have no plans at this point in time. We’ll look at the big picture, that is, we’ll look at the sales trends of the physical release of the Sega 3D Classics line that went on sale last year [in Japan] as well as how the upcoming three titles perform in the global market. We’re happy to do this indefinitely if sales are good.

It pretty much seems that these latest three Genesis/Mega Drive added to Wave 2 is to test, see how they do globally and if they do well they could continue the series. I’m personally loving these re-releases, what about you guys?

[Via: NintendoEverything]

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Support for HTC’s Virtual Reality kit could be coming to Alien: Isolation & Company of Heroes 2

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If you didn’t already need new pants after playing Alien Isolation, you might want to order a new pair in advance.

Reddit user “linknewtab” has discovered various titlecards for games coming to Valve and HTC’s collaborative virtual reality project within the Steam installation directory. There’s a pretty vast array of titles there, none more relevant to this article than the SEGA published Alien Isolation and Company of Heroes 2. This is pretty exciting stuff; it’ll be especially entertaining to see more of the reactions to Isolation in VR. The game was demoed with Oculus Rift back at E3 last year, but as of now it has no official VR support. Considering how long the Oculus Rift’s consumer release is taking, it’s likely it’ll be on the Vive before the Rift.

What do you think of CoH2 and Alien Isolation being realised in virtual reality? Let us know in the comments!

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SEGA announce donation drives for Nepal earthquake victims

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In wake of the devastating 7.9 magnitude earthquake that struck Nepal last Saturday, SEGA has announced several of its games will begin donating money earned from in-app purchases to the Japanese Red Cross.

In Phantasy Star Online 2 all profits made from the Cosmo Atomizer item will be donated until May 30th. Profits from Chain Chronicle’s Spirit Stone item will be donated, as will all profits from the Saintly King Stone item in Hortensia Saga. Finally, all profits of the Magic Guiding Stone item from Puyo Puyo Quest will also be donated. The donation drives in these latter three games will only run until May 3rd, however.

In addition to any funds raised by these games, SEGA will be donating an additional 2 million yen (about $17,000) to the Red Cross. Overall, it’s great to see SEGA engaging with the relief effort, as the world comes together to support Nepal through such a tragic event that has claimed thousands of innocent lives.

You can donate to the Nepal Earthquake Appeal here.

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Developer Retrospective: Experience synesthesia with SEGA’s United Game Artists

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This month we are proud to celebrate the unique and musical driven games of United Game Artists (ユナイテッド・ゲーム・アーティスツ). The team was made up of members of SEGA AM6 and headed by Sega AM3’s Tetsuya Mizuguchi. Unfortunately, the team was short lived and only released three titles under the ‘United Game Artists’ banner. Regardless, those three games have made such an impact on us gamers that we are still talking about them over a decade later.

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