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

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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.

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

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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 ]

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Achievements/Trophies for Binary Domain

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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.

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Binary Domain Developer Diary #1 and more footage

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As SEGA starts to get the hype rolling for Binary Domain, British program Playr TV has uploaded their final 4 videos showcasing their playthrough of Yakuza Studio’s latest action title. The player is guided through the commands of Binary Domain by Big Bo but other videos show the player facing against the Grand Lancer and some of the set pieces encountered in the titles, such as falling buildings. It also confirms for the first time that even Japanese characters will be speaking in English. Also recently released is a new developer diary from producer Toshihiro Nagoshi, who chiefly talks about the world itself and the background plot. See below for the developer diary, or hit the break to see the remaining videos.

Binary Domain Developer Diary #1

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Taking a Look at the Latest Sonic Generations Statue

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The 2013 Guinness Book of Records Gamer Edition better give Sonic the award for most statues produced for a video game mascot’s anniversary. The latest commemorative statue, released by Jazwares in the United States (more territories have yet to be confirmed), may not stack up against the fancy First4Figures release or what was offered in the Sonic Generations Collector’s Edition. The scale is smaller than the other statues released and the paint job is typical Jazwares quality. However, there are a lot of good things to say about the statue, and it is a great addition to any Sonic collector’s shelf!

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Mine eyes have seen the glory of the …Dreamcast TV!

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Just look at this thing of beauty! Looking similar to a MAG from Phantasy Star Online, this 14 inch TV came complete with a built in Dreamcast, controller and keyboard along with some other accesories. The Divers 2000 series CX-1 Dreamcast was only available in Japan back in 2000 and was quite expensive for it’s time. I’d still love to get my hands on one. You can see more of this TV including video of it in action at Kotaku.

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Binary Domain “Bigger Than You Think” trailer released

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It does not seem a day goes by now without SEGA releasing new media for their major release next month, Binary Domain. This latest trailer is a brief recap of the plot with robots ripping off their human flesh but also reveals a showdown in a casino/strip club, escaping from enemies via jet skis and a highway chase scene that has you shooting down flying robots and cars! Mixed with plenty of action and ingame cutscene it seems to indicate all the makings of a another big game from Toshihiro Nagoshi and the Ryu Ga Gotoku studio. The trailer also confirms a short delay, with Binary Domain set to launch in Europe on 24th February 2012 for the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360, expect to be seeing more pieces of media as the launch date draws close.

 

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SEGA Tunes: Skies of Arcadia’s Opening Theme

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When I was taking Appreciation for Music a few years ago, and was asked to send in a modern day example of an orchestration, Skies of Arcadia’s opening theme was the first thing to come to mind. There’s a reason for that. It’s a sweeping, epic track that moves quickly and perfectly exemplifies everything Skies of Arcadia is in a single track. Epic one moment, adventurous the next and a little romantic after that, this song covers a lot of ground in less than two minutes. The use of horns, flutes, and percussion make for a very flavorful song that not only perfectly shows off a beautiful RPG, but also stands on its own as one of SEGA’s best pieces of orchestration ever. I only wish it were a little longer so I could enjoy it a little more, but for the time it does take up, it is an absolute joy to listen to, and the perfect way to introduce one of best JRPGs ever made.

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Sonic 4 Episode 2 Logo Revealed

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When the Nvidia CES press conference was nearing, SEGA of America’s community team was pointing Sonic fans towards the live stream, hinting that something would be shown. After watching an hour of the show, there was absolutely nothing Sonic related to be found. Fans, myself included, felt like they just wasted an hour. Thankfully, the SEGA community team was quick to apologize for the time spent, stating that “there was a last minute switch up during the press conference”, and uploaded the official Sonic 4 Episode 2 logo to the SEGA Blog! I gotta say, it looks exactly like what I expected! Even some fan creations came pretty close. Good on SoA for remedying the situation!

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Check out Binary Domain’s first chapter shown on British TV

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With just over a month away, SEGA has begun to pick up its marketing for their highly anticipated third person shooter from the Ryu Ga Gotoku/Yakuza stuido by showcasing it on British television program Playr. The previews features a look into the first chapter of Binary Domain as Dan and Boi make their way into Japan to begin their mission, taking on hordes of robots whilst interacting with the other characters in the story. Please note that this video may not work for those living outside the UK. Hit the jump for another short video.

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Aliens Colonial Marines: Collectors Edition – Leaked Picture

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Sega and Gearbox Software’s Aliens: Colonial Marines is getting a pretty hot Collector’s Edition. We know this thanks to a leaked shot teasing the collection.

Judging by the leak the CE will come with 3 exclusive in-game multiplayer weapons and an exclusive game mode. (We can only assume these will be available as DLC for anyone who bought the regular edition.) Those who buy the CE will also get an ‘Original USCM Dossier’ and a resin display model of someone piloting the Power Loader. It will all come in a sexy limited edition display case. Nice!

Aliens: Colonial Marines is due this spring for Xbox 360, PS3 and PC.

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Binary Domain gets a 12 minute promotion video for Famitsu

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SEGA has supplied Japanese publication Famitsu with an extensive 12 minute long trailer for their up and coming third person squad based shooter Binary Domain. Unfortunately the entire trailer is completely in Japanese but shows a large amount of the story, the locations and the character itself. For those who would rather check out some gameplay segments can skip to 8 minutes and 45 seconds and take a glace at the various set pieces of collapsing buildings, the huge boss encounters and the multiplayer mode. Binary Domain is set to launch next month on 14th February.

[Thanks to Suzuki Yu for the tip!]

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Sonic Appears in a New Progressive Commercial

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http://youtu.be/RfUsKWyRRm0

Typically when a Progressive insurance commercial comes on the air, I mute the television. But this brand new one requires SEGA fans to crank the volume! For whatever reason, Sonic is now in a Progressive ad. Sonic is shown running about to the Sonic 3 invincible theme looking for savings on insurance, which is smart considering he always has a violent evil doctor out to get him. Flo, Progressive spokeswoman, stops him and yammers on about savings and insurance. The ad ends with Sonic celebrating to the Sonic 3 extra life jingle.

Overall, a very unexpected but awesome ad. The animation is well done, and everybody loves some classic Genesis tunes pumping through their speakers. One note: when the humans get toonified, they look very much like Sonic Unleashed-style humans. Cool to see that SEGA hasn’t dropped this style, despite humans being MIA since 2008 (Eggman aside).

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First gameplay trailer of SEGA’s Shining Blade released

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SEGA has finally shown gameplay segments for their up and coming Playstation Portable exclusive Shining Blade. Starring several characters that have appeared in the recent Shining games, Shining Blade looks to build upon Valkyria Chronicles BLiTZ system with the titles very own Concerto system. The trailer showcases the characters (Ranging from humans to mystical creatures) towns, the battlefields, enemies and even bosses. Unfortunately SEGA has no plans to bring this title over, but for those willing to port the title seem set to play another enjoyable Shining game. The title is set to launch in Japan on March 15th 2012.

[Thanks Suzuki Yu for the tip!]

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