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SEGA Saturn’s 20th Anniversary: Celebrating Decades of Arcade Perfection

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The SEGA Saturn turns 20 years old today and I thought it would be a good time to discuss the popularity of the Saturn in the land of the rising sun because if we did this article on its life in America it would be a very depressing and frankly this means I can write about Segata Sanshiro which is always fantastic.

So let’s get to it and if you like this article you might want to also check out a similar article I did on the Dreamcast for its 15th year anniversary.

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LIVE: SEGAbits’ presents Sonic & SEGA Fan Jam 2014

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Welcome to the Fan Jam Zone! Kori here bringing you our first fan convention and the first SEGA related fan event in the US live featuring Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric, Hatsune Miku Project Diva F 2nd, and Dengeki Bunko Fighting Climax.

We’ll be streaming several events during Fan Jam such as fan films, classic SEGA franchises, tournaments, cosplay, and interviews with Tracy Yardley of Archie Comics and Matt the owner of Tails Channel. The stream will begin from 9AM to 6PM EST. Don’t miss it!

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Sonic R – A Soundtrack Story

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Note from the writer: This was originally a forum post I made over on the Sonic Stadium, but since that post I’ve learned even more about the surprising history of this soundtrack, and so I’ve decided to update it to celebrate Saturn month; enjoy! 

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Who loves Sonic R?

Released in late 1997, Sonic R  (ソニックR ) was first released for the SEGA Saturn, the under-appreciated 32-Bit powerhouse amongst SEGA’s console lineup. Sonic R had 10 characters to choose from, and presented 5 tracks to race across.

I gave my thoughts on it in my web series This is Saturn, which you can find here:

So, who does love Sonic R?

…not that many people to be honest. Some see it as an average racer, whereas others such as ScrewAttack see it as the absolute worst Sonic the Hedgehog game of all time.

We’re not here to discuss the game though – you probably could have guessed that from the topic title and the huge bloody banner saying “Sonic R – THE SOUNDTRACK.”

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“Hi☆sCool! Seha Girls” anime Episode 7 is here, Impressions; and hedgehogs!

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Guess what time it is? That’s right: Hi☆sCool! Seha Girls episode 7 is on Crunchyroll, and it brings with it everybody’s favourite blue hedgehog!

The episode picks up where last week’s left off, with Sonic arriving in the nick of time to fend off Eggman. And that he does, as he proceeds to trash Eggman’s mechs, leading to Eggy legging it. The girls, still unable to get out of Border Break, manage to hitch a ride from Sonic, who’s initially none too impressed at the girls grabbing onto his spines.

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Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA F 2nd Launch Trailer!

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Hatsune Miku Project Diva F 2nd is finally in stores. This launch trailer shows a good overview of the game. If you haven’t seen our review you should check it out. Just look at the top of the page or scroll further down.

So, if you haven’t bought this game yet, what are you waiting for? It’s time to get Miku-Miku’d! (For Reals).

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First 4 Figures SEGA All-Stars statue line expands to include Jet Set Radio’s Beat – pre-orders now open!

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Teased late last week, First 4 Figures have now put their Jet Set Radio Beat statue up for pre-order. Like their Akria Yuki statue, it appears that Beat does not have an Exclusive Edition variant. The statue measures 14 inches tall, and retails for $229.99, limited to 1,250 pieces and due to release Q2 2015. One cool feature is the addition of LEDs which give the illusion of sparks shooting out from his skates as he grinds a rail.

After the break, read the full product description!

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Swingin’ Report Show #73: Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal Interview with Mat Kraemer of Sanzaru Games

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This week on the Swingin’ Report Show podcast Barry and George are joined by Mat Kraemer, Lead Designer at Sanzaru Games, developer of Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal for the Nintendo 3DS. Topics covered include the development process of the handheld title, how Sanzaru interacted with various teams including the TV show crew and the team at Big Red Button, what Sonic games Sanzaru looked to for inspiration, and Mat’s favorite classic SEGA games and consoles.

There has been a lot of talk about the Sonic Boom franchise this past week, so it was great to sit down with Mat to learn more about how the 3DS game came to be. Hey! Why are you still reading this when you should be listening?

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

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Watch our live unboxing of Sega Mega Drive/Genesis: Collected Works with creator Darren Wall – Tuesday, November 18th at 6PM EST

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SEGA Mega Drive/Genesis fans listen up – we have something very special planned for tomorrow! We will be unwrapping and paging through Read-Only Memory’s “Sega Mega Drive/Genesis: Collected Works” book live with project lead Darren Wall providing page-by-page commentary.

If that wasn’t enough, we will also joined by Blake J. Harris, author of the book “Console Wars: Sega, Nintendo, and the Battle that Defined a Generation” who is sure to have some stories of his own to share.

The live stream will appear at SEGAbits.com tomorrow at 6PM EST, so keep your eyes open for a dedicated article with the embedded live stream video and keep up with us on Twitter and Facebook for updates.

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This is Saturn goes cross-country with Gale Racer for SEGA Saturn

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Surprise: It’s a This is Saturn double-month!
That’s right, to celebrate 20 years of the Saturn, we’re bringing you a second episode of This is Saturn for November!

Gale Racer, the Japan-exclusive port of SEGA AM2’s Rad Mobile to Saturn, has seen some bad rep over the years, with some going as far to call it outright “abysmal.” But is it really as bad as those folks suggest? Or has it earned that ‘glorious’ title?

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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Review: Hatsune Miku Project Diva F 2nd (PS3 & PS Vita)

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All screens from the PlayStation Vita version.

So, Hatsune Miku Project Diva F 2nd is finally here. My first time playing a Project Diva game was last year when it came out on PS3 in western territories, and I’ve been hooked ever since. So many hours of my time logged into playing Project Diva F. Needless to say, I was looking forward to Project Diva F 2nd and it doesn’t disappoint, in fact, it goes beyond my expectations.

If you have played Hatsune Miku Project Diva F, you have an option of carrying over all the accessories, modules, and items you have unlocked over into F 2nd when creating a new game. Don’t worry if you haven’t unlocked everything, F 2nd gives you a way to unlock items from the first game if you haven’t unlocked them.

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TV Review: Sonic Boom – “Translate This”/”Buster”

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It has been quite a week for the Sonic Boom franchise, with the Wii U and 3DS games releasing and completing the circle of multimedia that make up Sonic Boom. Regardless of your feelings towards the games, the TV show was a welcome addition to the new franchise last week, and this weekend we have two new episodes to watch – “Translate This” and ”Buster”. How do these episodes compare to last week’s premiere? Let’s pour a bowl of Reece’s Puffs cereal, tune in and find out!

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Our new video series “Hit Reset” gives Scud: The Disposable Assassin for the SEGA Saturn a second chance

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On this first episode of Hit Reset, we take a look at a Saturn game that tends to be looked down on as one of the worst in the console’s history, Scud: The Disposable Assassin. As a fan of the comic series it’s based on, I’m going to tell you why I think this game gets an undeserved “bad rap”, and why you should check it out!

Scud: The Disposable Assassin is a run-and-gun/light gun hybrid game, based around the adventures of a robot who becomes a hitman in order to keep his original target alive, as he is programmed to explode as soon as his target dies. This game was published by Segasoft and developed by Syrox Developments in 1997.

Hit Reset is a new SEGAbits YouTube series from Gunstar, of the Gunstar YouTube Channel, which looks back on SEGA games and games for SEGA consoles disliked by fans and critics. Rather than tearing into these forgotten and reviled titles, Gunstar looks at the positive aspects of the games, seeing if there is a hidden gem to be found.

Like this video? Subscribe to the SEGAbits YouTube channel.

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First 4 Figures tease Jet Set Radio Beat statue for November 18th pre-order

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First 4 Figures are expanding their SEGA All-Stars line with a Jet Set Radio statue featuring GG’s leader Beat! The rudie with that uki uki waku waku attitude joins the existing SEGA All-Stars line of statues which includes Shenmue’s Ryo Hazuki, Virtua Fighter’s Akira Yuki, and Skies of Arcadia’s Vyse. While Beat’s price is currently unknown, based on past statues in the line it could range from $170 to $200 or more depending on if there is an exclusive version as well. Pre-orders open November 18th, and we’ll likely have all our details then.

What do you think of First 4 Figures choice? What other SEGA franchises would you like to see in the All-Stars line?

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