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PSO2 Live Event with new info on Episode III & Nova plus a live performance from Takenobu Mitsuyoshi

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During a live event for Phantasy Star Online 2 in Japan, SEGA announced more information regarding features for the upcoming Episode III update and Phantasy Star Nova. One of the newest features happens to be called “Ultimate Quests” which will launch in winter and new Wopel field, Ascended Facility, will be included in a update this fall. Episode III is still slated for release on August 27th, 2014.

PSO2 vol.3 Soundtrack has been announced for December 14th release with a 4 CD set for 5000 yen with Mining Base Defense included. A collaboration crossover was also announced for Phantasy Star Nova featuring main characters from PSO2 as long as the player has the game data stored on their PlayStation Vita. Phantasy Star Nova will also be playable at this year’s Tokyo Game Show.

For more information on other upcoming updates for PSO2, be sure to click this link on the entire live stream recap and for the awesome live performance of Burning Hearts performed by Takenobu Mitsuyoshi, hit the jump for video footage!

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Classic SEGA Ads: Are You 32X’n it?!

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To answer the question posited by the article title: no. No. I may be playing 32X but I am certainly not “32X’n it” nor will I ever. Stop saying that, please.

So, this is an infomercial SEGA put together for the 32X, and boy-howdy is it a step down from that SEGA CD infomercial SEGA Europe put together a few years earlier. It’s like SEGA’s marketing team couldn’t come up with a single ongoing theme worth filling in five minutes, so they just took every random idea they threw against the wall, stitched them together and made an infomercial out of them.

This ad is all over the map in terms of tone, themes, music, and what have you. One moment we’re sitting in a living room filled with failed child actors, the next we’re sitting through a mercifully brief phone-line psychic segment. The commercial tries to be both edgy and quirky all at once, complete with SEGA’s trademark face-in-the-camera lens shots and it only succeeds in failing spectacularly. The only segment that made me chuckle in the way I was supposed to was the brief TSA safety video bragging about the 32X’s tech.

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Sonic dies in this new Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric trailer, also Metal Sonic and Shadow return

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This new trailer for Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric skips right to the point: Sonic dies. So there we go, franchise finished, I’d say it had a good run but every series has to stop sometime I guess. I mean, when was the last time Sonic got revived after dying? Probably in some game that never existed.

Also there are some new screenshots for this and Shattered Crystal and some concept art that reveals that Metal Sonic and Shadow are in this game with their designs unchanged, which you can see after the jump. SEGA also confirmed that both games will come out in Europe on November 21st.

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25 years ago today, the SEGA Genesis ushered us into the next level of gaming

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While we’re in the midst of 32X Month here at SEGAbits, we’re momentarily removing the black plastic mushroom to pay tribute to the console that changed how SEGA was perceived in North America – the SEGA Genesis. While the Master System failed to make a dent in the US market, SEGA’s Genesis (known as the Mega Drive outside of North America) hit the scene with jaw dropping graphics and impressive stereo sound capabilities. In the early days before Sonic the Hedgehog, marketing highlighted all the things Genesis did that Nintendo did not – more eloquently phrased as “Genesis Does What Nintendon’t!”. Rather than focus on their stable of characters, early Genesis ads featured celebrities such as Michael Jackson, Pat Riley, Buster Douglas, and Joe Montana – all who appeared in their own Genesis games.

When SEGA of America leadership made the transition from Michael Katz to Tom Kalinske, emphasis returned to in-house characters with the establishment of Sonic the Hedgehog as the company mascot, relaunching the Genesis with a new campaign and video game star. From there the console wars heated up, and thanks to the efforts of SEGA employees, SEGA attained 65% of the market in North America for period of time, making Nintendo number two. If you’d like to hear the story of the console wars from the men and women themselves, we urge you to watch the Console Wars panel that we had the honor of attending and recording at this year’s San Diego Comic Con.

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Sonic Boom GameStop US pre-order bonus revealed – an exclusive Sonic the Hedgehog action figure

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SEGA’s Sonic the Hedgehog Twitter account has revealed that those who pre-order Sonic Boom for either the Wii U or 3DS will receive an exclusive action figure. The figure, released by Tomy, features Sonic Boom‘s Sonic the Hedgehog with a “The Ancients’ Crystal” accessory. I assume the crystal accessory is what makes the figure unique, as we’ve already seen figures of Sonic and other characters on display at SEGA’s E3 booth.

This isn’t the first time we’ve seen a Sonic action figure as a pre-order bonus, as the UK saw a Sonic Colors Colours figure as a pre-order bonus. At the moment, however, the Sonic Boom figure is US only.

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My Life with SEGA goes back in time to play BC Racers on the SEGA 32X

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Welcome back to the 32X birthday celebration! This week, A.J. Rosa and Mickey Mac burn….ummm, rubble? Yeah, on the mean streets of “Bedrock”, or wherever the Hell it is, in BC Racers for the 32X! Developed and published by Core Designs and first released on the Sega CD, or Mega CD for those across the pond, though it was later ported to the 32X. While it does take place in the Chuck Rock universe, the narrative is virtually meaningless to our dim-witted duo….

It’s all about that need. The need….for SPEED! Sure, we’ll go with that.

Like this video? Subscribe to the SEGAbits YouTube channel!

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SEGA Tunes: 1, 2, 3, GO! Virtua Racing Deluxe’s Replay

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This week on Tuesday Tunes we have a look at Virtua Racing Deluxe‘s song ‘Replay‘. Not only is this 32x port one of the best ports of the game to a console, it also has a pretty catchy soundtrack to boot.

Here we have an epic build up to a nearly nine minute song that is filled with nice dancing beats and epic saxophones that will put your ears’ in a 90’s nostalgia mood.

This is one of my favorite Virtua Racing tracks. Have you got a favorite of your own? Let us know in the comments!

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SEGA agrees to pay $1.25M in Aliens: Colonial Marines suit, Gearbox will continue to fight

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Aliens-CM1As you know there is a class-action suit that has been brought against both SEGA and Gearbox Software for falsely advertising Aliens: Colonial Marines by using  fake demos at trade shows such as E3. Gearbox recently filed a request to get dropped from the lawsuit.

SEGA submitted their settlement agreement for approval on Monday for the class action settlement agreement. We won’t find out till September 17th if the courts will approve it.

Want to know how SEGA’s $1.25 million will be split up if this is approved? Hit the jump.

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Kickstarter for Night Trap ReVamped launched

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We told you before that there was going to be a Kickstarter to bring back the FMV ‘classic’ to a new generation. The game was originally released on SEGA CD then later ported to 32x, 3DO and DOS/Mac. The project is asking for $330,000 dollars to remake this game in HD.

A minimum pledge of $20 dollars will net you a copy on either PC, Mac, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360.

You can check out their Kickstarter here. If you want to check out a sample of the HD footage from the game, check out this video.

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SEGA announces Hero Bank 2

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Morning reports from Japan have confirmed the 3DS exclusive Hero Bank, SEGA’s latest new IP aimed at children, will be getting a sequel later this year. For those following the SEGA in the Charts articles I post, people will remember Hero Bank originally entered the charts with below average numbers, debuting with disappointing sales of 15,060. But unlike most titles, Hero Bank did not simply end up leaving the charts the next week, infact the title continued to sell over the course of the next few months and eventually managed to garner over 50,000 sales.

It seems that was enough to convince SEGA to move forward with not just an arcade game but a full blown sequel.  I think we can chalk down Hero Bank as another IP from SEGA that would be left in their native land without any announcement of localising either the anime or the game. Hero Bank 2 will be releasing later this year on 27th November and helps to stack up a very busy Q3 period adding to heavy hitters like Alien, Sonic Boom and Phantasy Star Nova.

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Hatsune Miku: Project Diva F 2nd gets a release date and pre-order bonuses

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It looks like Miku will be joining Sonic Boom when it comes to SEGA games that will be released in November. With Gamescom coming up, SEGA has just announced that Hatsune Miku: Project Diva F 2nd will be releasing on November 18th in the US and on the 21st in the rest of the world.

Besides that, if you pre-order at select retailers you can get extra costumes. At select retailers around the world you can get an America-themed Miku module with red, white and blue colors. Meanwhile at Gamestop you’ll also get an extra character pack featuring Akita Neru, Yowane Haku and Kasane Teto. Finally, if you don’t like Gamestop and/or pre-order bonuses in general, you’ll also be able to get these characters for free if you own Project Diva F and the Extra Character Pack DLC.

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Classic SEGA Ads: Identify your dead console at the morgue in this SEGA 32X commercial

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Last week’s SEGA Saturday Morning Ads was pretty harsh on the 32X’s misleading commercial, but this week I have nothing but love for this featured 32X commercial. sh

The ad begins with a teenager, a cop, and a mortician in a morgue pulling a slab out of refrigeration. A droll narrator says “For those who purchased something other than a SEGA Genesis…”. On the slab sits a mystery video game console under a sheet, however the identity of the console is vague. It resembles a Nintendo 64, but given the N64 didn’t release until 1996 (assuming this ad aired in ’94 or ’95), it’s more likely a shot at the SNES or simply a no name console that is meant to be any Nintendo or Sony product. The shocked teenager identifies the mystery console as his as the narrator concludes “…our sincere condolences.” Didn’t buy a SEGA console? Sucks to be you.

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Beggar Prince to be reprinted on SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive to celebrate game’s 20th anniversary

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Beggar Prince was a Chinese RPG that was only released in that region in 1996. In 2006 Super Fighter Team decided to translate the game to English and manufacture them on the SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive carts, touting that it was the first SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive made since 1998. They sold out and now the $40 dollar game has been highly sought after. This will be the fourth release of the game (counting the 1996 original) and 3rd reprint by Super Fighter Team.

From the team:

“The prodigal son has returned! Beggar Prince, our first commercial video game, will be put back into production in the form of a special twentieth anniversary edition. Originally released in Taiwan in 1996, this fabulous role-playing adventure game was first published in English by Super Fighter Team ten years later. Ever since the game sold out, countless fans have written in to request that we put it back into production. Well, here it comes! Don’t miss this chance to own one of the most stunning games ever produced for the Sega Genesis / Mega Drive!”

As a person that has the 3rd release of the game, the cart doesn’t use SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive screws and the feel of the box isn’t the same as an actual SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive box. It has a different feel. You can pre-order your copy here for $55. Game isn’t set to ship till sometime in 2016.

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