SEGA announces Panzer Dragoon Voyage Record for VR technology


While we’re waiting for the remakes of Panzer Dragoon and Panzer Dragoon Zwei, SEGA themselves has also announced another Panzer Dragoon game in the works. This one though is more of a tech demo for VR technology, called Panzer Dragoon Voyage Record (get it?). Developed by Wildman and published by SEGA, you will revisit the events of past Panzer Dragoon games, with the events of Panzer Dragoon, Panzer Dragoon Zwei, and Panzer Dragoon Saga being currently available. The VR elements will allow players to take on the role of the rider for the dragon, with a first person perspective and the VR controller to emulate the handgun.

No other information such as pricing, platforms, or release date have been announced at this time.

Source: [Cision / SEGA tweet]

Yuzumo Design’s “SEGA 60: Creation is Life” Doujin Magazine coming to Kindle in English this April

Announced in the last few months, Yuzumo Design, a fan publisher in Japan, will be releasing a doujin magazine celebrating SEGA’s 60th Anniversary called “SEGA 60: Creation is Life” this year featuring fan content from 61 Sega fans (including myself) from 8 countries and celebrating 6 decades of Sega! The magazine will include SEGA stories from fans all over the world, comic artwork, cosplays and many more!

The book will be available in Japanese and to the Kindle store in English this April in Full Color with 60 pages for only $6. Here are some sample pages to view in Japanese and English versions of the magazine after the break.

Phantasy Star Online 2 North American Open Beta Starts March 17 on Xbox One


If you are looking to get back into Phantasy Star Online 2, they will be opening up the servers for a ‘open beta’ starting on March 17 at 5:00 p.m. PT. According to the twitter account you’ll be able to use the old ‘closed beta’ client with an update that goes live on March 16 at 10:00 AM PDT. I assume that the new client will go live for anyone that didn’t play it during Closed Beta.

The sad part is that we still don’t know when PC gamers will be able to join the fight, but I guess this is a way to get PSO gamers on Xbox consoles.

Yakuza 0 and Kiwami PC versions get free Deluxe Edition upgrades

Regardless of when you purchased Yakuza 0 and Yakuza Kiwami for PC through Steam, SEGA has upgraded all versions to the digital Deluxe Edition. This means if you take a peek in the game’s “Extras” folder you’ll find a digital manga, wallpapers and avatar icons.

All Yakuza PC games are now on sale through tomorrow, so head on over to Steam and browse the Best of Japan sale!

[Source: Siliconera]

SEGA Talk Podcast #37: SEGA Superstars Tennis (2008)

Grab your racket, because on this SEGA Talk Podcast, George and Barry are discussing SEGA Superstars Tennis! Learn about how Sumo Digital decided on tennis for their first Superstars/All-Stars game, and hear our thoughts on the franchise lineup, gameplay and shift to racing.

[iTunes – Stitcher – YouTube – Play Music – RSS – Download]

If you want to give us feedback, suggest a topic for the next podcast or want to ask a question for us to answer on the next episode you can add  them as a comment below or send theme directly to our email. Make sure you use subject line ‘SEGA Talk’ and as always, thanks for listening!

Yakuza directors look back on Yakuza 3, Yakuza 4 and Yakuza 5 in new Interview

SEGA America got three different Yakuza directors from three different Yakuza games that are included in the Yakuza Remastered Collection. They got Daisuke Sato (Yakuza 3 director), Jun Orihara (Yakuza 4 director) and Kazuki Hosokawa (Yakuza 5 director) to sit down and look back on the series’ PlayStation 3 outings.

I really love these director, behind the scene looks into the games and its something that RGG Studios does a lot in Japan leading up to game releases. Glad we are getting the same treatment for this collection in the West. They did hint in the end that they will be doing a separate video on the stories for these games.

SEGA AGES G-LOC: Air Battle Announced for Nintendo Switch

Today out of nowhere, SEGA Japan announced it was adding G-Loc: Air Battle for Nintendo Switch’s SEGA AGES line-up. G-Loc: Air Battle is the 1990 combat flight simulator arcade game developed by SEGA-AM2 and was meant to be a spin-off of the popular After Burner series.

The game was designed by Yu Suzuki and had music by the legendary Hiro (Hiroshi Kawaguchi) and Yasuhiro Takagi. It should be a interesting port, I do know that the Mega Drive port wasn’t well received but personally I have only played the arcade version. What do you think of SEGA adding a oddity like G-Loc: Air Battle to their SEGA AGES line-up?

Sakura Wars Story Trailer – Introducing the Flower Division

Explore the world of Sakura Wars as SEGA has released a story trailer for the upcoming title showcasing on what players should be expecting in the reboot that retains many of the features that made the genre-defining series such a hit in Japan, including a poetic vision, a strong cast, and a compelling story filled with intrigue, action, and romance!

Here is description of the story, courtesy of the SEGA Press:

“From the large clock tower atop Ginza train station, dominating the city skyline, to the captivating Imperial Theater standing tall at the heart of Tokyo, Sakura Wars exudes a world rich in historical inspiration and enriched with fantastical steampunk technology. The Taisho era represents a time of prosperity and optimism for Japan, an intersection of eastern and western cultures that creates a vibrant framework in which to take on the mantle of Seijuro Kamiyama and bring the Imperial Combat Revue back to glory!

Sakura Wars is set for release in Americas and Europe on April 28th for Playstation 4. You can pre-order a copy on SEGA’s official website for the game and receive a launch edition that will include reversible cover featuring the original Japanese cover art for the game, along with a sticker set featuring the main cast of the game. Click after the break to check out screenshots of the story sections.”

Sonic Forces joins Shadow of the Colossus as free games for PS Plus March 2020

We just talked about how Microsoft is giving away Sonic Generations on March 2020 for their ‘Games with Gold’, now PlayStation Plus has announced that they will be giving away Sonic Forces. Sure the game is newer, but I think a lot of hardcore Sonic fans would agree that Sonic Generations is better.

You will be able to download Sonic Forces if you have PlayStation Plus from March 3rd through April 6th.

The History of Sega Japan R&D Part 5: The Road to 2020 is Complete

It was 2015 when I posted the four part retrospective of Sega of Japan’s game development. 2015 was the year where they announced a new initiative and went as far as to make their previous corporate divisions their own separate companies. Such as Sega Games, Sega Interactive for arcades and so on (which they are already undoing again in April). Sega Game’s new president, Haruki Satomi, promised that he would right the wrongs of the past, gain back the trust of consumers and also shareholders with their “Road to 2020” initiative. Of course this encompasses the evolution of their Japanese in-house studios, which are arguably the core of Sega.

Shin Sakura Taisen the Animation broadcast date announced with First Look Clips

During the Sakura Wars livestream this morning, Shin Sakura Taisen the Animation (translated as New Sakura Wars the Animation) will be broadcasted in Japan every Friday starting on April 3rd on Tokyo MX 1 at 22:00 JST & BS 11 at 23:00 JST.

This season is truly perfect for Sakura Wars with the new game coming to the West on April 28th. I hope we can watch the anime during the same time it airs in Japan. Hit the jump after the break to see preview clips of an episode featuring the character, Clara and ED credits.

New PlatinumGames Title ‘Project GG’ To Finish “Hero Trilogy” started by Viewtiful Joe and Wonderful 101

Oh boy it looks like a Japanese blog, Ryokutya2089, who is famous for leaking video game information early has done just that for the upcoming PlatinumGames announcement we talked about a few days ago. Thanks to Wario64’s Twitter translations we know a few facts about this game:

  • Project GG will be headed by Hideki Kamiya (who directed Bayonetta & The Wonderful 101)
  • Its the last entry in Platinum Games ‘Hero Trilogy’ which started with Viewtiful Joe and The Wonderful 101 (we forgetting VJ2?)
  • Will be a ‘big hero’ action game inspired by Ultraman
  • Will be the first self-published IP by PlatinumGames
  • Targeting all existing platforms: Nintendo Switch, PS4, Xbox One and of course PC
  • PlatinumGames still has two unannounced games and they are new titles; not ports.

Seems like a lot of new information, just surprised we haven’t actually gotten a name for the game. Project GG, well… good game? What do you guys think?

 

Sonic Generations will be free with ‘Games with Gold’ on March 2020

While most of you guys on here probably already own multiple copies of Sonic Generation, you can pick up a free digital version if you own a Xbox console with Xbox Live Gold through Microsoft’s ‘Games with Gold’ program.

Xbox One

  • Available for the whole month – Batman: The Enemy Within – The Complete Season (normally $14.99)
  • From March 16 to April 15 – Shantae: Half-Genie Hero (normally $19.99)

Xbox 360

  • From March 1 to 15 – Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 (normally $39.99) (plays on Xbox One)
  • From March 16 to 31 – Sonic Generations (normally $19.99) (plays on Xbox One)

To be quiet honest, its surprising that we haven’t had a ‘remaster’ or ‘re-release’ of Sonic Generation on current generation consoles. Especially on Nintendo Switch considering that the original never came out on a Nintendo console (handhelds don’t count).

Hatsune Miku joins Space Channel 5 VR as DLC


If you are a huge rhythm music fan, then we got a epic crossover for you. Hatsune Miku will join Space Channel 5 VR: Funky News Flash! as DLC. We don’t know when this DLC will be released but we do know you will be able to play as Hatsune Miku in the game.

The image above is from Hatsune Miku: Project Diva Future Tone, which had a Space Channel 5 costume. Not crazy to believe that this crossover was going to happen since SEGA develops and publishes Hatsune Miku games and owns the Space Channel 5 IP.

We will keep you updated on future news for Space Channel 5 VR. What do you think of Miku making an appearance?

[Source: Siliconera]

Rumor: New Monster World IV remake in the works, will be announced at GDC 2020


While the build up to GDC 2020 has been steady up to it’s March 16th opening, the official website has been updated with a list of exhibits detailing the latest games from different developers. However when browsing the list of developers and games, one currently unannounced title is listed as “Wonder Boy Universe: Asha in Monster World“. No specifics have been detailed on this title, but the name implies that it will be related to the Mega Drive game Monster World IV and is confirmed to be developed by Studio Artdink. Artdink for reference is a development studio best known for the A-Train series of train simulator titles, along with experimental games such as No One Can Stop Mr. Domino and Aquanaut’s Holiday.

We likely won’t get any official word until GDC 2020 officially opens, but in the meanwhile you can play the original Monster World IV on the SEGA Genesis Mini to pass the time.