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

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!

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

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.

Kickstarter for Night Trap ReVamped launched


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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

The SEGA Five: Why every Sonic fan needs to play Knuckles’ Chaotix

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The 32X gets a lot of shit, and with good reason. The system stands as SEGA’s most abject failure, featuring the smallest library and shortest lifespan of any SEGA platform. It failed to live up to the promises SEGA made to its consumers and is a classic example of SEGA’s mid-90’s mismanagement.

An unfortunate side-effect of the 32X’s infamy is that the system’s better games are often ignored, or even worse, get the same shit that the 32X does. Knuckles’ Chaotix is a game that unfortunately suffers from both of these issues, and after having spent several days playing the game for 32X month, I’ve got to say that it’s a real shame. As far as I’m concerned, Knuckles’ Chaotix is a game every Sonic fan ought to play at least once, and here are five reasons why.

The SEGA Mega Drive/Genesis: Collected Works is approved – book goes to print on August 11th!

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Darren Wall of Read-Only Memory has officially announced that SEGA Mega Drive/Genesis: Collected Works has been approved by SEGA and will go to print this upcoming Monday! In a detailed Kickstarter update, Darren shows off the book’s sexy cover, and details the exhaustive (but necessary) process in receiving approval from SEGA. The book will be 352 pages long, with 8 fold-out pages featuring hardware design drawings and jumbo versions of box art from Space Harrier 2, Alien Storm, Super Thunderblade and The Super Shinobi II/Shinobi III. The book will contain 80 pages of developer interviews, a guide to SEGA logotypes, and a chapter devoted to game art totaling 60 pages. The one downside, which is really not that bad, is that the approval process has delayed the expected shipping date. Darren promises “a firm delivery date from the printer very shortly”. To see hear and see more from Darren, check out the latest update.

A big congratulations from all of us at SEGAbits to Darren Wall! We can’t wait to hold the book in our hands.

Sonic Fights Robotnik Chapter 7 Live Fan Fiction Read

In the tradition of Sonic Amateur Games Expo comes a fan fiction reading of the greatest Sonic story ever told by the greatest Sonic fan in existence, SonicFan. This year InstantSonic, Katzu Niku, GeneHF, Bartman3010, Overlord, OverlyEquipped, Neo Hazard and of course DavidTL bring you a live (Now pre-recorded on YouTube!) read of chapter 7 of Sonic Fights Robotnik!

3D Thunder Blade announced as the next Nintendo 3DS SEGA 3D Classics title

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SEGA Japan has revealed that Thunder Blade is the next SEGA arcade title to receive the 3D remastering treatment. 3D Thunder Blade is set to release on August 20th, 2014, priced at 926 yen (excluding tax), and like other second series 3D Classics releases, there is no Western release planned as of yet. Hey SEGA, we want more 3D Classics! Features include a reproduction of the arcade cabinet experience, gyro sensor gameplay, and a special mode featuring the game’s final stage.

After the break, check out a gallery of screenshots, and while you’re at it let SEGA know (nicely, not rudely) that we want more 3D Classics in the West!

Alien: Isolation’s creative lead states that his game is not Colonial Marines

IGN has conducted an interview with Al Hope, creative lead developer for the upcoming Alien: Isolation.

In it, he specifies a number of different things, many of which should make Alien fans quite happy. His team, he says, from the start set out to create a different Alien game than Colonial Marines was: a true horror experience, something completely unlike the shooter-focused direction its predecessor took on.

Isolation, which according to Hope has been in development for the past four years, has always aimed to take the series back to its roots; the first movie, in particular, where the horror, not the action, took center stage.

“It would be awesome to show Ridley Scott what we’re doing,” Hope said. “I’d like to think he’d really appreciate the care and attention and level of detail we’ve put into re-creating his original vision and original universe and I think he’d appreciate it.”

Alien: Isolation hits stores this November.

Review: Crazy Taxi: City Rush (iOS)

Free-to-play games can be hard to get right. They can either block customers from playing until they pay up or give them too much, making the grinding easy and fun which kills any reason to buy anything. The free to play approach on Sonic Jump Fever and Crazy Taxi: City Rush couldn’t be more different. Sonic Jump Fever is all about the high score by having you follow your Facebook friends and compete with them on the leaderboards. Sadly, the only way to get the best scores is to have that one rare chao that kills all of your enemies, Use your hard-earned in-game currency on items like power ups and more powerful characters, and have an energy bar that depletes super fast.

All of this forces you to pay-to-win, requiring you to pony out dough just to compete with your friends. This may be a free to play game, but I’ve spent $14 on Sonic Jump Fever. Curse you Sonic Stadium’s Adam Tuff and your super-high scores! In Crazy Taxi: City Rush, the “fare” is much more fair and just a better game all around. Read on for why this is one of the better ways to make a free to play game.

SEGA localizing Phantasy Star Nova and Shining Resonance in Chinese

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SEGA has just announced that they will be localizing both Phantasy Star Nova and Shining Resonance in Traditional Chinese. Isn’t that something? I know a few continents that would really enjoy English releases of those two games. Shoot, I think Phantasy Star Nova would do great on the Playstation Vita right now considering they don’t have much original games to play.

I guess the only two options to play these two games is either to learn either Japanese or Chinese.