Persona 4 Arena Ultimax North and South American releases not region locked, preorder bonuses revealed

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Earlier today, Atlus announced on their website for Persona 4 Arena Ultimax that the North and South American releases of the game will not be region locked. While this news is appreciated, it’s appreciable because the first iteration of the game, Persona 4: Arena, was one of a small number of region locked games on PS3. This was a move that sparked much ire especially from European gamers, who received their release of the game under publisher Zen United and several months after North American gamers had received their copy of the game. The concepts of timely releases and maintaining fan hype are especially important for fighting games; the absence of properly handled releases threaten the development of scenes.

In any case, it seems that European gamers who are unwilling to wait for a European release will be able to import the games without worry of playability. It’s worth noting that there is currently no official news on a European release, though a release may be possible. The Persona Europe Facebook page has made posts for Persona 4 Arena Ultimax among other games recently, and shared an image last September saying “More info soon!” but of course what was meant by that can’t be known for certain.

In that same news posting today Atlus also revealed the preorder bonuses for the game and the spread is thus: a Teddie bop bag, the first of two sets of Persona Tarot cards (the other set to be included with the release of Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth), and the Tohru Adachi DLC pack that unlocks both the character and an accompanying story mode episode. These goodies will also be available to first-run copies of the game

Persona 4 Arena Ultimax releases on Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 in Japan on August 28 and in North America on September 30.

SEGA has ‘no plans’ to bring retro games to the Wii U eShop

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SEGA Japan has been going crazy porting over Game Gear and other classics under their ‘3D Sega Classics’ brand on the 3DS eShop. But so far there hasn’t been any announcements for any Wii U ports.

Seems that Wii U owners can stop wondering because the question has been answered by Yosuke Okunari, a producer at SEGA. He stated that there are no plans on SEGA supporting the Wii U Virtual Console. You can read his tweet after the jump.

First episode of Persona 4: The Golden Animation can now be streamed

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If you hadn’t had enough Persona 4 stuff in the past week or so, the new anime based on the enhanced Vita re-release Persona 4 Golden just started. If you have a premium Crunchyroll account you can watch it on their site right now. If you don’t have one, you can watch the full episode for free in six days or you can watch the first two minutes. Alternatively, you can also watch it on Daisuki.net, though chances are that if you don’t live in the US or the UK you’ll get a region error.

Having watched it, I do recommend only seeing this adaptation if you’ve either played the game or watched the first anime. The pacing is a lot quicker with scenes that were covered in the first anime adaptation being skimmed over or changed. That being said, you might find this fun to watch if you’re a Persona 4 fan.

Phantasy Star Nova getting a Japanese demo this August

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If you have a Vita and access to the Japanese PSN, you should get a bit pumped up since Phantasy Star Nova demo will be coming next month. The demo is set to have a boss fight and some exploration sections, giving the user a feel for the full game that will be coming later this fall.

SEGA will also hold a Phantasy Star events on July 26th and August 3rd at Sapporo Convention center and Port Messe in Japan. Sadly  for us Westerners, there hasn’t been a announcement if this title is coming West.

This is Saturn looks back on the SEGA Saturn Action Replay 4M Auto

In this episode of This is Saturn, I look at something that’s not a video game! Shock, horror!

Rather, we look at the Saturn’s most well-known and most common Action Replay device, the 4M Auto. I was first introduced to this through My Life With SEGA, and made it my goal to get one – and after some delivery shenanigans that involved it being sent to the wrong person, I finally got one! It can do a whole lot beyond the typical cheat device setup of most Action Replays, but is it actually a worthy investment? Watch, as I try and answer that question for you!

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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Alien: Isolation pre-order content reunites the original film cast


 
SEGA’s Alien: Isolation tease has been revealed, and it’s a big one! Fans (or anybody for that matter) who pre-order the game will receive exclusive DLC in the form of two bonus missions starring Sigourney Weaver (Ellen Ripley), Tom Skerritt (Dallas), Veronica Cartwright (Lambert), Harry Dean Stanton (Brett), Yaphet Kotto (Parker) and Ian Holm (Ash, likeness and sound-alike). The missions will place the player in two classic scenes from the movie, allowing fans to relive memories of the original Alien in the first person perspective. The content and the game will be released as the Nostromo Edition, which is a free upgrade for those who pre-ordered – so not unlike SEGA’s recent bonus editions. After the break, read the full press releases and check out a gallery of images from the DLC.

Welcome to the 3D Zone! 3D Fantasy Zone II Double coming to the 3DS in Japan!


SEGA has announced that their 12th 3D project is coming to the Nintendo eShop next week and happens to be none other than 3D Fantasy Zone II Double! The 3D remake will feature two game modes combined.

One is titled “The Tears of Opa Opa” which is the original game and a new game mode called “Link Loop Land” which seems to be a score attack/ endless mode to determine how far the player can go. Along with Link Loop Land comes a unique game mechanic called the LINK gauge. The LINK gauge will increase when you WIN the coin and will continue to decrease over time.

The game is set for release on Nintendo eShop in Japan on July 16th. US and EU dates for the game has yet to be announced. In the mean time, there are a couple of 3D SEGA Classics to check out in the Nintendo eShop for a cheap price to try out now in US and EU territories.

Swingin’ Report Show #66: Interview with Roger Craig Smith, voice of Batman, Sonic the Hedgehog, and many more!


 
This week on the Swingin’ Report Show, hosts Barry and George welcome a guest who has helped shape the sound of SEGA’s speedy mascot – Roger Craig Smith, voice actor of Sonic the Hedgehog! Roger is also well known for voicing Batman, Captain America, Chris Redfield, Ezio Auditore, and more. Recent projects include Batman: Arkham Origins which features the recently released “Cold, Cold Heart” DLC pack and SEGA’s Sonic Boom which spans video games and a television show which release later this year.

Join us as we talk with Roger about voicing Gotham’s Dark Knight and Green Hill’s Blue Blur. Roger also provides details on how he got into the business, and has some great advice for aspiring voice actors. Yes, we even asked him about his work on Valkyria Chronicles and his earliest work as Sonic at Alton Towers.

[Download] [RSS] [iTunes] [Archive]

Project Diva F & SEGA Booth at Anime Expo

So, if you didn’t know, SEGA America was at Anime Expo with a big booth dedicated to Hatsune Miku. This booth looks to be much bigger then the presence Project Diva had at E3. If you watch the video you will see a lot of cosplaying people, people playing Project Diva F, and bits of the Project Diva F tournament. So, if you want to see how the pros play, watch this video. Overall, it looks like it was a fun time!

If you are interested in the official tournament rankings, check out the official tournament brackets.

Alien Isolation on Oculus Rift is just a prototype

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If you guys read all our E3 2014 hands-on impressions, you guys probably saw that we got a chance to try a prototype of Alien Isolation on the Oculus Rift. According to Creative Assembly, the prototype is just that, a prototype. There is no active developement on a full version supporting the Oculus Rift.

“At present, it’s just a prototype and does not represent a game currently in development at this point in time. It’s a truly amazing experience though and brings the game to life in ways we could not have imagined when we started the project. It’s one of the most terrifying demos you’ll ever play.”  – SEGA’s statement to Eurogamer

I have a feeling that Oculus Rift support will come to the title on PC, just not at launch. But you never know, I find it sort of strange that they would show a demo for the Oculus Rift and say its not the game they will be selling the consumer… its not like the last Aliens game was false representation of what they showed at E3 or anything.

Sonic Jump Fever releases worldwide Thursday, July 10th

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SEGA and Hardlight Studio’s followup to the mobile game Sonic Jump, Sonic Jump Fever, has been announced to be releasing worldwide on July 10th. The had a soft launch in Canada back in April, and we went hands-on with the game when we attended E3. From our experience, the game is faster paced and more frantic than Sonic Jump, and it has enough new elements (including Chao gardens!) to make it worth checking out if you enjoyed the original. The game is expected to be free-to-play, so it can’t hurt to download it when it releases in a few days.

First 4 Figure’s Skies of Arcadia statue available to pre-order at 12% discount

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Its no secret that First 4 Figures aren’t cheap and saving any type of cash on these expensive but well crafted figures is a nice relief to one’s wallet. Well, the online shop where I pre-order my comicbooks also does pre-orders for figures, statues and all that jazz; including the First 4 Figure’s Vyse statue.

If you pre-order through DCBS, you just need to pay the shipping (which is like 6 dollars within the United States) on top of their 30% discounted price of $175.96. That may seem like a lot, but consider that the figure is 17 inches tall and originally costs $199.99 on First 4 Figure’s website, that’s a nice discount.

 

SEGA Networks and gumi is bringing Chain Chronicle and other Japanese mobile titles to the West

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SEGA Networks and gumi had recently made an announcement today to form a partnership by bringing SEGA Networks’ Japanese game titles in North America, Europe, South Asia and other territories. Gamers can expect the first batch later this year starting with the launch of the popular Japanese RPG mobile game, Chain Chronicle.

For those who are unfamiliar with Chain Chronicle, Chain Chronicle is a popular Japanese mobile game that allows players to become a soldier who builds an army and fights to protect the imaginary land of “Yugdo” from the menacing Black Army. As the game advances, players begin to unravel each member’s story to create a long chain of chronicles where all are connected.

Both companies are collaborating in order to provide localized support for player preferences, languages and gameplay environments. Hit the jump to view the press release of the game and footage.

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SEGA teasing “HUGE” Alien: Isolation news to be revealed this Wednesday

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The Alien: Isolation Twitter account has begun to tease a reveal for this Wednesday that they describe as “HUGE”. The above image was shared with the hint “Solve, seek and you shall find: http://www.youtube.com/______ ?”. Savvy fans scrambled the message to reveal a YouTube account titled “nostromoedition”. Could Wednesday’s tease be a Collector’s Edition of the game dubbed the Nostromo Edition?

The nostromoedition YouTube channel features a lone video titled “Are You Ready To Play?” and the description “Congratulations for unlocking this hidden Alien: Isolation video. As our Robot friend is telling you, the next reveal happens tomorrow -Tuesday, 8th July at 15:00 PM GMT. Come back and don’t miss out!”. The video itself features a screen from the game and the July 8th reveal time.

What could the reveal be? We’ll have to wait until tomorrow to learn more.

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