Rhythm Thief, Mario and Sonic Demos Hitting European 3DS eShop

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It’s taken nearly a year, but 3DS demos are finally going to be available on the eShop in Europe this week. Of course we don’t care about Resident Evil Revelations and Cooking Mama 4! So, what SEGA games will be made available on the eShop? Rhythm Thief and Maro and Sonic. No word on when these games will be made available, but with both games arriving in stores soon it will hopefully be sooner rather then later.

Update: Mario and Sonic has been confirmed to be hitting the American 3DS eShop on January 26th. No word on Rhythm Thief.

Sonic 4 Episode 2 Comic Adaptation Points to April/May Release of the Game?

Those who bought the second issue of Archie Comic’s Sonic Super Special magazine (available now at most newsstands, bookstores and comic shops) have spotted a preview for the third issue which promises an exclusive Sonic 4 Episode 2 adaptation. The preview refers to Episode 2 as “SEGA’s hottest new game” and features Sonic, Eggman and Metal on the cover. Given that Archie’s Sonic Generations adaptation released the same week as the game itself, and the fact that the Sonic Super Special magazine is quarterly, AND the fact that one quater of the year from January is April/May, one could guess that the third issue containing the adaptation will release in April/May and that the game will also release at this time. This is, of course, speculation.

Rhythm Thief May Be Delayed

According to both GameStop and Amazon.com, Rhythm may be delayed until the end of March. Given that multiple retailers are delaying the game, it would appear that it is indeed happening. No official word from SEGA though, so there’s still hope that the game is still releasing as scheduled next month.

Rhythm Thief is an upcoming rhythm game for the 3DS, with an animation aesthetic similar to Professor Layton and homages to a couple other SEGA rhythm games, including Space Channel 5 and Samba De Amigo.

SEGA shows off new squad member, boss and stage for Binary Domain

For those who were thinking that the five characters that SEGA has been showing since Tokyo Game Show was your complete squad, think again, as today SEGA of Japan released shots of a new character never before seen, Shindo, a Japanese man who seems part of Mifune’s underground network. Also shown was a new stage, set in a car making factory as Dan, Cain and Shindo shot it out with the robots. Click the link for some a lot more screenshots, including a boss character that seems to be a red robotic ape and shots of the story itself.

[Source: 4Gamer] [Note site in Japanese]

SEGA Tunes: NiGHTS into Dream’s Orchestrated Main Theme

Say what you will about Dreams Dreams (I personally love it) NiGHTS has one of the most surprisingly epic orchestrated themes I’ve heard. Unlike the last two themes I’ve posted up, this one is a four minute long musical adventure. Also unlike the last two games, this song was never included in the game in its entirety, but instead used in the much shorter CGI opening. It was included in full on original soundtrack however. Go take a listen!

NiGHTS is not really a game I typically associate this sort of music with. I remember it more for “Message from Nightopia” and Twin Seed’s “Growing Wings” which sounded nothing like the orchestral theme we’ve got here. The most surprising part to me was when the music suddenly became a lot darker in the middle of the piece. You get a real sense that SOMETHING bad is happening. This song is almost like several different songs in one as it moves through several different themes before ending on the epic notes all of us NiGHTS fans remember from the opening!

Toshihiro Nagoshi stars in Black Panther 2 ad, tells all men to play his game

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=327MNKMQyEI
Toshihiro Nagoshi always said that the Black Panther PSP games was about aggression and being a man. He has decided to use the same idea for the sequel, Black Panther 2: Yakuza Asura Chapter. Who better to tell the men at home to play the new Black Panther than the most manliest man Nagoshi knows? That’s right, himself.

ESRB rates Sonic 4: Episode 2 for PC


SEGA hasn’t announced if they will be releasing Sonic 4: Episode 2 for PC, but it seems that ESRB has already spilled the beans early. If you recall, SEGA also kept quiet about the PC version of Sonic Generations, even though there was a ton of proof.

But for those PC players who didn’t get to experience Sonic 4: Episode 1, you might not have to worry. Awhile back we posted that it turned up in the Steam registry. Pretty much means that SEGA has a port of that one in the works for the PC.

Indie Genesis/Mega Drive Game Pier Solar Back on Sale!

Back in March I recorded an unboxing and preview of the indie RPG Pier Solar for the Genesis and Mega Drive. Initially the game released in late 2010 as a limited edition cartridge and enhanced CD for use with the SEGA CD, giving a Genesis game CD quality music. When the limited edition sold out, the developers quickly created the reprint edition. The reprint edition was in a sturdy plastic clamshell case, and featured a full color manual, as well as stickers and a poster, but lacked the CD (though the CD could easily be burned using files from the developer’s website).

After the reprint sold out, nothing was available outside of ebay auctions. But now, over ten months later, the reprint edition is back on sale and what more, there is also a snazzy soundtrack available (sold separately)! If you missed the first or second time, do not miss the third time that this game has been available! It’s a fantastic indie release, and far better a game than some official Genesis RPGs. Visit their shop here, the game is $49, and the soundtrack is $25.

Binary Domain Promotion in Japan gets rather strange with Assult-Kun show

SEGA of Japan has always been known for its more alternate (And sometimes rather effective) marketing campaigns and this one for their up and coming third person squad based shooter Binary Domain is no different. Say hello to Assult-kun, a green humanoid robot working in an office as he deals with the dangers of the working enviroment as every other person.

In the above video him and his co-worker is being scolded by their manager, when the manager leaves, his co-worker writes “Die, Manager!” as she leaves, Assult-kun tries to clean the white board but realises she used permenant ink, horrified that his manager is returning, he turns it over only to realise even more insults on the otherside! Click after the break for a second video and know that SEGA’s (Strange) marketing for Binary Domain is well and truly underway!

A New Super Monkey Ball Banana Splitz Trailer

A new trailer for the upcoming Vita game, “Super Monkey Ball: Bananna Splitz” has arrived courtesy of Sega. The CG traier uses old music from previous Monkey Ball games and doesn’t really give you a clear idea of what the game is about. But best I can tell, there appears to be a a day/night cycle and tilt control.

We’ll know more when Super Monkey Ball: Banana Splitz releases this summer.

The Weekly Five: A Salute to Miles “Tails” Prower

The secondary playable characters of the Sonic series get a lot of flack. Some, like those who veer the series into bizarre directions, deserve criticism. I like Big the cat as a character, I think his design is great, but the fishing gameplay? Ugh. But I believe there are some who wrongfully receive such hate. I have never been a fan of the term “Sonic’s shitty friends” because it gives an undeserving label to a number of good characters. Some cite the center of this week’s weekly five as the one who kicked off the “shitty friends”, but those folks couldn’t be more wrong. Not only did Tails prove that characters other than Sonic could offer similarly fun Sonic-style gameplay, but he also introduced a new way to traverse zones. To honor Sonic’s sidekick, who has his own 20th anniversary this November, we’ll take a look at five of the fox’s best moments from over the years.

SEGA gives Nagoshi a truck to advertise Binary Domain & Black Panther 2

SEGA has already marketed his game with a hummer, so it seems the next logical step would be a truck! That is right, Toshihiro Nagoshi and the Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio are going to get their own truck to help promote their latest two titles, Binary Domain and Black Panther 2 in Japan. The truck will house demos of both particular titles mentioned. With it, players lucky enough to get a ride in the Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio track will not only play the game, but get to meet Toshihiro Nagoshi himself! Click on the link below to Andriasang to check how many people turned up to the original signings for Yakuza 1 in 2005 and another image of SEGA’s newest marketing tool. Perhaps next time they’ll happen to use a bus.

[Thanks to SEGA Portuguese for the tip! Andriasang ]

Achievements/Trophies for Binary Domain

The full list of Achievements/Trophies for Binary Domain has finally been revealed.  For those worried about spoilers, the full list will only be shown on the link below. But don’t worry. Half of the Achievements are secret and the rest are not major spoilers. Also, of note, more videos of this game have been shown and everything is looking better and better. I can’t wait for Febuary.