SEGA Tunes: Rhythm Thief Month, “Claire de Luna”

Welcome to the first installment of a month long Tuesday Tunes Feature: Rhythm Thief Month! It’s been years since we’ve had a new SEGA rhythm game, so Tuesday Tunes is going to mark the occasion with over a month’s worth of the game’s awesome soundtrack!

Featuring this weak is the game’s official music video for the game’s J-pop theme, “Claire de Luna” by Japanese singer/song writer miwa. While not representative of the game’s in-game tracks, which features a wide range of genres, it’s a pretty awesome J-pop track accompanied by a well put together selection of animated scenes from the game’s numerous animated cut scenes.

Rhythm Thief looks like it will be a very special game, something I hope all of our readers will pick up, especially in light of SEGA’s recent troubles. The game has a spectacular track. This is going to be a very fun month! Two more tracks including the Rhythm Thief Main Theme and It’s Show Time are below the fold.

SEGA teases new All-Stars Racing track – Stick Canyon from NiGHTS into Dreams?

Update: It appears this particular image has long existed, as it shows up on a few NiGHTS fan sites. I assume it is a CG render from when the game released, or when it received a PS2 rerelease. So this is not an in-game screenshot. However, that does not discount the possibility that a NiGHTS track or racer will soon be revealed.

SEGA has updated their Facebook page with an untitled image of a desert that is half sand, half metal with cacti and nuts and bolts. Given that Sonic and All-Stars Racing Transformed is SEGA’s big game this year, and that Comic Con is approaching, could SEGA be teasing a reveal of a NiGHTS into Dreams track along with NiGHTS as a racer? It could very well be. In the meantime, I’ll slap the ol’ “rumor” tag on this one just to play it safe, but I’m pretty confident that it is Stick Canyon from the Saturn’s NiGHTS into Dreams. After the break, a comparison video of the original stage.

PSO2 launches on July 4th in Japan, also… launch trailer

If you haven’t been living in a stone cave, then you will know that PSO2 has been in beta for a while now and is way awesome. The game officially launches in Japan on July 4th. Additions to the launch release include an increase of the class level cap to 40, a new snow area, 3rd form of mag, and additional story missions.

If you didn’t watch the trailer above you should, nothing amazing for anyone who has played the game, but it’s still a super awesome trailer. Fingers crossed for US/EU announcement very soon. Would be nice to play this game in English.

Dorkly Bits – Sonic gets engaged


Here is one of those Dorkly Bits videos that people on the interweb seem to be into. In this one Sonic the Hedgehog gets engaged. I’m sure this is the first time something like this has happen, I mean, fan fiction writers take note.

Creative Assembly says SEGA’s restructuring is exciting and they are already seeing benefits


Creative Assembly has been going on a make a sequel to everything frenzy
, now they are speaking out about SEGA’s recent restructuring. So what do they think about all the big changes and people losing their jobs? Their excited…

“It’s a tight family at Sega, so any talk of restructuring and refocusing is always a difficult time in any business and we’re always kind of mindful of that. But as a studio we’re growing to beyond 200 people at the moment and we’re still hiring, and we’re still looking to expand and we’ve got a number of really intense and interesting products on the horizon, both Total War and non-Total War and the refocussing at Sega on the distinct brand IPs, whether that’s Sports Interactive or Sonic or Aliens or Total War itself is really exciting for us as a studio, because we’re already seeing evidence of that improved support, that idea of really getting behind those IPs and really making the most of them.” – Brand director Rob Bartholomew

Creative Assembly does make a point, its always good for a studio to get more support. If only SEGA West cared this much about games like Anarchy Reigns and Rhythm Theft, right?

Rome 2: Total War Officially Announced (Awesome Live Action Trailer)

Rome 2: Total War has been officially announced! Rome 2 has been the most anticipated game in the Total War series since the original Rome released in 2004. The budget for Rome 2 is said to be 40% larger then that of Shogun 2.

I began playing the Total War series with the original Shogun: Total War but it was Rome that really grabbed me and made me a fan of this series. Needless to say Rome 2 cannot come soon enough.

Rome 2 will release for PC in 2013. P.S check out that fantastic live action trailer!

The Weekly Five: Reasons why Sega is failing in the western markets

 

It’s sad to see how bad Sega is doing these days. With the whole restructuring and with many offices closing it’s hard not to worry about our favorite game company’s future. Heck, if I were Kellie, Ken or the rest of the community staff, I’d be dusting off my resume’s right about now. But I feel many of us kinda saw this coming. We promoted and championed our favorite new Sega games (and still do) only to see them poorly marketed and handled like garbage with little promotion outside of Sega’s own website. So why is Sega doing so badly as of late? What are they doing wrong? Read on to see my own personal feelings on the matter. Just remember folks, this is an opinion article.

Hands-on with Rhythm Thief: Find out why this should be on your radar

There’s no doubt about it; there are many games out there, all of them vying for your money and attention in a competitive marketplace. At a time when the industry’s favoring, by and large, a play-it-safe approach to development, it’s always a breath of fresh air when a game surfaces that feels like something truly unique. Judging by its latest demo (now available on the 3DS’ North American eShop) Rhythm Thief and the Emperor’s Treasure is one such game.

Project X Zone releasing the same day as Bravely Default in Japan; Place your bets, ladies and gentlemen!

Looks like RPG fans on the 3DS will have quite a choice to make this October. It’s being reported that SEGA’s mashup with Namco and Capcom, Project X Zone, will be releasing not only in the same month, but on the same day, as Square-Enix’s upcoming handheld RPG, Bravely Default.

Both titles will see release for the 3DS on October 11th in Japan, with no Western plans yet announced for either; given Square-Enix’s localization track record in recent years, however, Bravely Default’s Western release is looking a bit more likely.

Do you think it’s a smart idea to go up against Square-Enix? Or does Project X Zone have the brand name recognition to crush the new IP? Leave your thoughts in the comments below!

Viking: Battle for Asgard Added to Steam Registry

Sega and Creative Assembly’s 2008 game Viking: Battle for Asgard has turned up on the Steam registry and we assume will soon be available for purchase from the Steam store. This marks Viking: Battle for Asgards début on the PC having released exclusively for Xbox360 and PS3 in 2008.

If this is the beginning for Sega’s new digital strategy then I’m all for it. I absolutely loved Viking, Whilst flawed in some areas the game was full of potential and the epic battles were a thing of beauty. If this means we might get a sequel to Viking then I’ll happily double dip.

You can visit the Viking: Battle for Asgard EULA page HERE.

[On another note, I’m back! I’ve been in America for the past three months with limited internet access, hello again Sega fans!]

 

 

Check out the first limited edition run of Project X Zone

Here is the first edition run of Project X Zone. Looks pretty awesome, right? What do you get?

  • A 48-page full color book that includes all the various games, also promotional art and much more.
  • You also get the “Crossover Soundtrack CD” that comes with music from the game.
So how do you get it? Well, its only for the first print run, once the package runs out it will be gone forever. This version and the regular version will cost the same, so if you are planning on importing it, do that now.

SEGA closes European and Australian offices


Another sad day in SEGA land folks, SEGA has announced today that they will be closing their European and Australian offices. Koch Media will be the distribution partner for the European territories, except for Benelux, which will be handled by Level03 Distribution. Australia territory will be handled by 5 Star. SEGA UK will remain open as the European HQ. So it isn’t all that bad.

“SEGA is entering a new and exciting phase that will position the company as a content led organisation maximising sales with strong and balanced IP such as Sonic the Hedgehog, Total War, Football Manager and the Aliens franchise. The company will benefit from a clear focus and realigned strategy for our digital business and packaged goods and we are confident that this will lead to a successful future.” – COO of Sega Europe Jurgen Post

This goes with the rumor they sort of predicted during E3, only that the rumor wasn’t 100% right. Actually still think the guy just guessed and happen to hit some of the mark. What do you guys think? Is this ‘new and exciting phase’ for SEGA or is this bad?

Rhythm Thief demo now available on U.S. 3DS E-Shop

Finally! U.S. gamers can get their hands on a demo of the upcoming rhythm-based game, Rhythm Thief and the Emperor’s Treasure. The demo feature 3 levels to give you a good feel for the game. Here’s a quote from Sega’s announcement this morning.

Good news everyone! The Rhythm Thief Demo launches today across North America in the 3DS E Shop! You play as Raphael, a normal every day kid by day, and Phantom R by night – the heroic thief who is famous among Parisians for stealing paintings only to return them a few days later. There’s a mystery afoot, with full map navigation across Paris, intricate and involved story, and tons of musical mini-games.

Rhythm Thief and the Emperor’s Treasure will be available Tuesday, July 10th.

My Life with SEGA reviews Motocross Championship

I was never fortunate or rich enough growing up to own a 32X. Actually I never meet anyone around the time that actually had one. So its good to see A.J. crack down some 32x reviews, even if the game pisses him off.

“It’s another “classic” episode from the vault. If you thought my review of Cliffhanger was scathing, just you wait until you endure the horror that is Motocross Championship for the SEGA Genesis 32X.”

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Famitsu gives Anarchy Reigns high marks – so can we have the game already, SEGA?

I’m really getting sick of opening articles with a rundown of Anarchy Reigns delay in the west, so I’ll keep it short: SEGA delayed the game again and again, it now looks to be coming in 2013, and it pisses me off. To add salt to the wound, Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu reviewed the game, which releases July 5th in Japan by the name of Max Anarchy. What did they rate it? Straight 9’s for both XBOX 360 and Playstation 3 versions. So it appears the game is very, very good. 9,9,9,9 good. So tell my again why SEGA continues to delay the game? Excuse me while I belt out an old chestnut from Doctor Robotnik: “DUMBOTS!!!”