I love arcade racing games and no one does them better then SEGA. So it is good to see a inforgraphic, from the good people at Liberty Games, released detailing all the fun and crazy SEGA arcade games that have been huge hits for the company. So what are you waiting for? Hit the jump to see the image!
High Voltage Software is still working on the Conduit franchise, this time around they are working on a mobile entry to their franchised, ironically called Conduit HD. I know the first two Conduit games appeared on the Nintendo Wii in standard definition, most people would think that their first high definition release would come out on Wii U. I guess “you” thought wrong (ba da bing) .
“This project is important for our industry because it proves that not only can we deliver console-quality gameplay experiences on mobile platforms, but we can improve them, from the graphics to the gameplay, The Conduit HD delivers an experience that was only previously possible on consoles.” – High Voltage chief creative officer Eric Nofsinger.
What I hear is this is a remake of the single player (only single player as of now) in the first Conduit. Players will be able to play the first two stages for free, will have to cough up cash for the other six levels. They have two payment options, $2.99 for 3 stage pack or $4.99 for all stages. The game is due to be released March 14th. I didn’t expect to see more Conduit, what do you guys think? Doesn’t seem that SEGA will be publishing this title, so this is the last we will have to talk about it.
The gameplay trailer above is a recreation of “The Battle of Teutoburg”, a battle where the Roman Empire lost. Being ambushed by Germanic cheiftain, double-crossing and all that jazz is present. After the trailer, there is a link to a real-life trailer teaser that was released before.
Even though it isn’t in-game footage, some of the tatics seen here will be usable in the game. I can’t wait for my army to roll those flaming boulders at the upcoming enemy! Rome 2 is set to come out ‘the latter half of the year’. Well, I thought it was suppose to be out April? Nooo! Also hit the jump to see some in-game screenshots!
Shining Ark, the latest Shining game in the franchise came out in Japan today for the Sony PSP. As you would expect, lots of information has started to come out, like the fact that the game will have difficulty settings like ‘Standard’ and ‘Casual’. This has been a new trend in RPGs, hoping to catch audiences that thought JRPG’s where too hard, who now can enjoy the game on casual. The game allows you to pick your difficulty at the start, choosing either won’t affect item drops or storyline. Best part is that you can scale the difficulty back whenever you want from the start menu.
Shenmue. Yu Suzuki’s masterpiece has become something of legend. It completely redifined a genre and showed gamers around the world that Dreamcast was more than just a pretty face….
More than a decade later, the game retains a rabid cult following and fans cry out for a continuation to this incredible series. But is Shenmue truly worthy of all this praise? Should this title be revered? Watch and learn, my dear viewers.
The SEGAbits 3rd anniversary contest ENDS TODAY – win prizes like a SEGA Genesis, Genesis games and brand new My Life With SEGA DVD’s! All the details can be found here.
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If you guys didn’t know, Toshihiro Nagoshi, a developer known for games like Yakuza and Binary Domain was promoted to chief creative officer over at SEGA last year. Now he speaks up on next generation systems, Relic purchase and the future of SEGA games. The Relic buyout was due to SEGA wanting to make games locally, I assume the drama with Gearbox Software has something to do with this decision?
“[The purchase] is based around our objective of getting products locally developed by local studios, but it’s also due to the heavy-hitting RTS titles Relic has. Sega already has The Creative Assembly, which is great at making RTS’, and so we’re becoming one of the best in the world at this genre now. So this purchase was part of our strategy for tackling this genre as well. It’s a well-established one, especially overseas, and having this wealth of experience under our belts makes me really look forward to seeing how the chemistry between the two studios works out. If we have the opportunity to make further purchases that emphasize high creativity, I think you’ll see us aiming for that.” – Toshihiro Nagoshi, Chief Creative Officer at SEGA Japan
He also talked about SEGA’s image, something many readers and even some writers accuse of SEGA of losing.
“I want to think about things from ground zero one more time. That’s tough for our younger staff, but it’s also fun and exciting. That’s what you want the Sega logo to represent: things that seem crazy at first, but really surprise you when they take form. Even if people say ‘Oh, now they’ve done it’ at us sometimes, I don’t want to do away with the expectations that people have had for us since way back. It wouldn’t seem right if Sega acted all firm and conservative, would it? I think I’d like to keep that.”
Read more about next generation and costs of making games over at Polygon.
And so, on a quiet night, the streetlamps frosty amidst the falling snow, the locals warm and cozy inside their apartments up above the city streets, the town of Dobuita continues to sleep….
Shenmue has been lying dormant for an unspeakably long time, with not even a hint of a resolution in sight. Money, enough to have gone a long way towards funding a 3rd installment, was instead carelessly tossed off to to a Texas-based developer named Gearbox Software rather than into the hands of Yu Suzuki. After all these years, is it finally time to accept that SEGA will never allow their fanbase to continue the series that holds so much of their nostalgic gaming memories?
I’d given up hope long ago that Shenmue III would be released. But that doesn’t mean I can’t still appreciate all the great memories it offered, memories which, even over a decade later, still linger. This week’s Tuesday Tunes will highlight a couple of my favorite songs from the Shenmue games’ legendary soundtracks, so sit back and take a listen.
Via the Sonic Stadium comes news that SEGA’s Hardlight studio, the team behind Sonic Jump, is now at work on another Sonic title named Sonic Dash. The news came by way of job advertisements posted by the studio on LinkedIn. Sonic Dash is listed as a recent title, with Sonic Jump also being listed. The title has since been removed, but Sonic Stadium screen capped it to prove that they’re not talking nonsense. The job posting, pre-edit, read as follows:
Hardlight is SEGA’s third UK based studio and is focused exclusively on creating high quality, innovative game experiences for mobile and handheld platforms.
The Studio comprises small, agile teams working on new IP & well-known SEGA IP. Project durations are 5-10 months, building on the success of their first projects on iOS – Sonic Jump & Sonic Dash – Hardlight is now working on some new & exciting projects.
The team follows an ethos of staying compact, agile and focused – combining talent from a variety of game genres and backgrounds, and welcomes applications from candidates of all levels of experience.
More than likely, Sonic Dash will be a sidescrolling endless runner, not unlike the free app released around Sonic’s 20th anniversary entitled Sonic the Sketchhog or the more recent Sonic and Nike game Sonic X Vapor. The job listing appears to be for projects following Sonic Dash, which implies that the game is already finished and is awaiting release. Given that the game’s name came right from Hardlight and SEGA, we’re treating it as news but will slap a “rumor” tag on it just in case.
Even with big budget new titles like Crysis 3 and Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, Aliens: Colonial Marines still takes up a spot on the UK charts coming in #5. Frankly, the game doesn’t deserve to chart at all, but I guess in a perfect world most of these titles wouldn’t chart.
Last week Aliens: Colonial Marines took the #1 spot, beating out Dead Space 3 which took #2. This week it beats that game at the same pace, since Dead Space 3 is #6 on the charts this week. So, at least in the UK, Aliens: Colonial Marines is more successful than the higher rated Dead Space 3. So, in the end, do reviews matter?
Released to home consoles in November of last year, Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed ended up being one of the best games SEGA released in 2012. Marketing for the game was dead-on in proclaiming “It’s Not Just Racing. It’s Racing Transformed!”, as the game was both a huge step up from the previous game and a contender for the best character kart racer around. As the months went on, other versions of the game released with a Vita version in December and a PC version released just last month. The latest, and possibly final version of the game to be released, is for the 3DS. Despite being the most underpowered of the platforms, I was anxious to see how SEGA and Sumo were able to translate the console title to Nintendo’s handheld.
Arkedo studio, the French team behind Hell Yeah! are now out of business according to their blog. They basically stated they won’t be developing anymore games due to the fact that they don’t have anymore employees due to not having enough money. Seems that Hell Yeah! cost the developers too much to make. They also stated that they have two little games completed and might release them later on.
The founders said they are moving on, one of them wants to enter publishing while the other wants to start a new mini-studio. It really sucks when developers go out of business, hopefully SEGA will take some of the employees and start a small digital studio. I mean, why not? I’m sure SEGA liked working together, no? Your thoughts?
This week on the show George and Barry the Nomad sit down with the Sonic Talk duo Nuckles87 and Shigs. Listen to us talk about the new SEGA laptops, whine about Aliens: Colonial Marines and criticize the Playstation 4 announcement. Like every podcast, you can’t get us to shut up about Shenmue.
[MP3 Download] [Archive]
So your at work, can’t install your favorite games? Well, it seems that SEGA has you covered with Godsworld: War of the Mortals browser game. Right now the game is in open beta.
SEGA wants you to be part of the active community, give them feedback and help shape the game. So, do you want to take on the challenge?
Okay, aside from a number of SEGA character cameos in the movie itself, and Sonic, Eggman and Neff appearing on the cover, Wreck-It Ralph news is not entirely SEGA related. But we figured a number of SEGA fans who enjoyed the movie might be picking it up on blu-ray when it releases in two weeks in the US. Courtesy of the folks at Scott (the tissue and toilet paper people) comes a $7 coupon for use with either the blu-ray + DVD combo pack or the blu-ray + blu-ray 3D + DVD + digital. To get the coupon, you’ll need to do the following:
Head on over to Scott Shared Values and sign in or register for an account. Then answer one question and you will get a code for a $7 off Disney’s Wreck It Ralph Blu-ray Combo Pack coupon! To redeem the code, follow the link and log into your Disney Movie Rewards Account (or create an account). There, you can enter the code and you will be able to print. Keep in mind that this movie isn’t released until 3/5, but you may want to print this coupon now as I’m not sure how long it will be available. Also note that this coupon is only valid through Friday, 3/8, so you will only have a few days to use it once the movie is released. And, be sure to let us know if you score a great deal!
Considering early ads have leaked for stores, including Target, one could get the blu-ray + DVD combo pack for a mere $12.99 or the blu-ray + blu-ray 3D + DVD + digital combo pack for a cool $20.99.
Hey, you got $5 bucks and a capable PC? Well, why not pick up Binary Domain? We here at SEGAbits loved the game, check out our review. It even redeems on Steam, so no worries there. What else is on sale for SEGA? Let’s have a look.
Not as much as I would have liked. But it is still quite a nice selection. Though having a nice sell on SEGA & Sonic All-Stars Transformed would have been really awesome. You can check out over 800 games being discount over at Amazon now. Have fun!