Nintendo and Playboy team up to promote Bayonetta 2

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After Marge Simpson appeared in Playboy, nothing phases me anymore. Which is why when I learned that Playboy and Nintendo of America have teamed up to promote Bayonetta 2, the idea didn’t surprise me. In what looks to be a web exclusive, Playboy model Pamela Horton dressed as Bayonetta for a photo shoot which has been posted on Playboy’s Facebook page (which is SFW) as well as their official site (which is NSFW). The official site contains one photo that didn’t make the cut on Facebook, as it ias the most revealing of the photos. However, none of the images contain full nudity and are likely more toned down that what you can expect from the game itself. The Facebook page urges fans to vote for their favorite photo, though we have no idea what they plan to do with the winning photo. Now if only Playgirl held a Ryo Hazuki photo shoot.

Check out SEGA of Japan’s trailer for the physical SEGA 3D Classics Nintendo 3DS release

Not too long ago, we speculated that a physical release of SEGA’s 3DS 3D Classics was in the works, and shortly thereafter such a release was revealed to be happening! Releasing December 18th, and featuring cover art by Ken Sugimori, the compilation is to include a mix of wave 1 and wave 2 titles: 3D Space Harrier, 3D Fantasy Zone, 3D Outrun, 3D Streets of Rage, 3D Shinobi 2, and 3D Ecco the Dolphin. Also included are two bonus titles, Space Harrier 3D and Outrun 3D which originally released to the SEGA Master System and utilized the 3D glasses.

For a sampling of what to expect from the compilation, check out the trailer above. If you have a Japanese 3DS or alternate means of playing import titles, you can pre-order the game from Play-Asia. In the meantime, I’ll just sit here watching the trailer, fingers crossed for a US release. Tears running down my face.

Bayonetta 2 releases to Nintendo’s Wii U today in the United States, Europe and Australia!

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It’s been a long and rocky road, mainly filled with fans getting over the fact that Bayonetta‘s sequel is a Nintendo exclusive, but the day is finally here. Bayonetta 2 has officially released to the United States, Europe, and Australia! Available to purchase now, Bayonetta 2 has been kicking ass these last few weeks in regards to review scores. As much as I dislike throwing metacritic data around, the game currently has an impressive score of 91.

But you know what? Throw the Nintendo drama, sales, and review scores out the window. Point is, one of the greatest action games of all time just got a sequel and we’re all excited as hell to play it. Join in on the conversation with the SEGAbits community over in our dedicated Bayonetta 2 forum topic which is exclusively for discussing the game. No drama, just good ol’ gameplay talk. Of course, if you feel inclined to talk about drama, review scores, sales, and other topics, there’s a app thread for that.

SEGA pulls Jet Set Radio from the App Store and soon from Google Play

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Jet Set Radio has vanished from Apple’s App Store, and is soon to be pulled from Google Play as well. Don’t blame the Golden Rhinos, as SEGA says the game is being pulled for compatibility issues with iOS 8. I noticed the game disappeared from the App Store a few weeks ago when I attempted to launch the game and it crashed, I navigated over to the App Store to read user reviews to see if crashing was a common issue and the game was nowhere to be found. I assumed the game was temporarily pulled due to stability issues, and it looks like my assumptions were correct. As SEGA told Droid Gamers:

Showed some minor compatibility problems [with iOS 8]. Ensuring that all of our fans have a quality game experience is paramount to us, therefore we’ve decided to take the game off the store. We don’t have yet a fixed date to communicate regarding their return to the App Store and Google Play. – SEGA

Of course, Android does not use iOS 8, so pulling the game from both stores is a bit odd. Perhaps SEGA wants to make additional changes to both games to improve stability? In any case, if you want to snag the game before it is pulled, head on over to Google Play and give it a download before it’s gone.

SEGA’s Initial D: Perfect Shift Online races to 500,000 downloads in Japan

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SEGA has been testing the free-to-play market on the 3DS in Japan, the first title that has been released is Initial D: Perfect Shift Online. SEGA has just announced a landmark for the game, reaching over 500,000 downloads on the 3DS platform.

For comparison the game only had 400,000 downloads last month, meaning that this whole month they have manage to get 100,000 downloads.

SEGA Japan will celebrate its milestone by discounting in-game purchases until November 5th. Nothing has been announced for a Western release.

Shining Resonance promotional movie showcases characters and battle footage

SEGA recently uploaded a new Shining Resonance video to their YouTube channel, called the “Shining Resonance Promotional Movie.” It is a little more than four minutes long, and showcases party members and the game’s various antagonists. The video also shows off plenty of battle footage, include a field-to-battle transition in the latter half of the video. Be sure to check it out!

Shining Resonance is scheduled for a 2014 release in Japan, and is exclusive to the PS3. Were Shining Resonance to be localized for a 2015 release, it would have some company among other JRPG’s seeing a Western 2015 release. Tales of Zestiria is scheduled to come out during the summer of 2015 in North America, and Atelier Shallie is also scheduled to be released sometime in 2015. These first two titles are also PS3 exclusives, to say nothing of PS3/PS4 titles such as Persona 5 and Yakuza Zero, which release in Japan during 2015.

Phantasy Star Online 2 collaborating with slice of life anime YuruYuri

YuriPSO2Phantasy Star Online 2 in Japan is going collaboration crazy, this time announcing a collaboration with the slice of life comedy anime/manga YuruYuri.

The collaboration will feature four of the main characters: Akari, Kyoko, Yui and Chinastu. Also announced to be featured in the game is the series’ heroine, Majokko Miakurun. The collaboration will also have a bunch of exclusive costumes to collect.  You can check some of the items in the image below.

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The update is set to go live the second half of November. As for the West, SEGA has been silent about Phantasy Star Online 2 release date. Here is hoping they stop pretending a 2 year plus wait since it was announced at PAX is reasonable.

“Hi☆sCool! Seha Girls” anime Episode 3 is out, here are our impressions

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Hi☆sCool! Seha Girls is back once again, with the third episode now being available on Crunchyroll!

This episode sees the girls spend more time in the main area of the SeHaGaga Academy, as opposed to being focused on a game like last time. The majority of the episode focuses on the girls chatting about what they’ll do upon leaving the academy, with Dreamcast brainstorming ideas for SEGA Saturn. They eventually decide on Saturn becoming a weather girl, and also become fascinated by the idea of her getting married to a baseball player; this actually results in a reference to the relatively unknown Home Run King! They also try and convince Mega Drive to give the job a go, which results in a surprisingly moving scene, as Mega Drive “bugs out,” and begins discussing… rabbit death. Well, OK then!

Atlus to localize Attack on Titan 3DS game

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Atlus USA is looking into localizing Attack on Titan: The Last Wings of Mankind for the Nintendo 3DS, based on the popular manga/anime. All we know is that Atlus is bringing it to Australia thanks to the Australian Classification Board.

The Japanese publisher Spike Chunsoft has said that they will be re-releasing an enhanced version in Japan this December, this version would include online multiplayer. Since the listings for the Australian version does mention ‘online interactivity’, its safe to say that they are going to be releasing the enhanced version.

Seeing as how Atlus will need to translate the game to release it in Australia, don’t be shocked if a American and European release date are announced as well.

Retro SEGA themed console boxes will hold your trading cards

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Are you a Collectible Card Gamer (CCG)? You know, like Magic: The Gathering or even Pokemon? If so you might be interested in the variety of deck boxes, collection boxes and even card sleeves based on retro SEGA consoles that are offered by Amazon Japan. With SEGA Saturn’s anniversary coming next month, I think i’ll order myself a SEGA Saturn themed deck holder.

They  have them based on a variety of SEGA’s retro consoles, sadly nothing older than the Mega Drive and no handhelds. Hit the jump to check out the gallery.

Alien: Isolation’s first add-on pack set to release on October 28th

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SEGA has announced the first Alien: Isolation add-on pack, titled “Corporate Lockdown”, is set to release October 28th. The first of five planned add-on packs, “Corporate Lockdown”, adds three new maps to the game’s Survivor Mode. Each add-on pack will feature new playable characters, offering a different perspective on the main campaign’s story. In “Corporate Lockdown”, players take control of Seegson Executive Ransome who takes on three new challenge maps: ‘Severance’, ‘Scorched Earth’ and ‘Loose Ends’. After the break, check out an additional screenshot from the add-on pack as well as SEGA’s full press release. Also, make sure to check out My Life with SEGA’s Alien: Isolation video review.

Get a sneak peek at Codemasters and SEGA’s upcoming arcade racer “Showdown”

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Via Arcade Heroes comes early information on an upcoming arcade racer from Codemasters and SEGA Amusements titled Showdown. An Arcade Heroes reader spotted the game during a location test at a local arcade and snapped several photos of the game. The cabinet shares many similarities with GRID Racing, a previous collaboration between Codemasters and SEGA Amusements. It is speculated that this is an arcade port of the 2012 Codemasters game DiRT: Showdown. It looks like the game will have two styles of play: “Wild Racing” and “Demolition”. Also, the game features the ability to enter numeric codes on a keypad to unlock bonus content. The IAAPA trade show is just around the corner, so we’ll likely have more news on this game soon!

Taxman and Stealth celebrate Sonic & Knuckles’ 20th anniversary with a Sonic 3 & Knuckles proof of concept

Today marks the 20th anniversary of SEGA’s Sonic & Knuckles, and to celebrate, Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic the Hedgehog 2 remastered developer Christian Whitehead shared a proof of concept prototype from the Taxman & Stealth personal vaults featuring Sonic 3 & Knuckles running on the Retro Engine. Of course, this is presented unofficially, so don’t jump to the conclusion that a Sonic 3 & Knuckles remastered is on the way anytime soon. Still, awesome to see that they’ve done work on the much requested title, even in an unofficial capacity. The Taxman himself shared this link in Sonic Retro’s forums, stating that “this isn’t an official announcement of any Sega project, nor to we intend to work on this as a fan-project. It’s simply a proof of concept from our vaults that has been kept to our chests for some time.”

You can learn more about the technical side of the project in Stealth’s latest blog post!

Son releases tribute video to remember his SEGA-loving father


The above video comes from the ‘SEGA Channel’, a fan ran YouTube channel. This is a tribute to the uploader’s dad, who was a SEGA Genesis fan. He liked the Genesis so much that he made a home video trying to get his New York relatives to jump to the next level.

This video was released around September 1991, meaning that the SEGA Genesis was ramping up to being the number one sold console in the United States. Esposito, who made the tribute video to his father, who has since passed away. Thanks to Esposito for giving us a nostalgic look back to the early 90’s and sharing a personal moments he shared with his father. An entertaining video, must see.

Sonic & SEGA Fan Jam 2014 Prices and Event Details are here!

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The wait is now over! Our Sonic & SEGA Fan Jam 2014 event prices and details are finally here! The prices for the event for non members of The Guild Hall will be $25 (recommended for those who live out of town from Savannah), $20 for Guild Hall members, and $5 for children under age 12 to experience the full extent of the Fan Jam event as we will have numerous of Sonic & SEGA titles playable along with special guests of the SEGA Community and SEGA fan films made by talented filmmakers.

We will also have tournaments based on the 3 featured games and cosplay contest for everyone to get a chance to win some awesome prizes such as signed copies of Sonic Boom by the producers at SEGA, Hatsune Miku Manga, and more! Sonic & SEGA Fan Jam 2014 will take place at The Guild Hall in Savannah, Ga on Saturday on November 22nd at 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM. For more info on Fan Jam 2014, be sure to follow our event page here and The Guild Hall on Facebook. Hit the jump to see the cool stuff to be featured in Fan Jam 2014!