Sega, Chunsoft collaborating on digital novel
Posted by Chris. Filed under Chris, Japan, Nintendo Wii.
It appears that Sega and ChunSoft aren’t limiting their work together to just the Shiren franchise, as the two companies released a trailer for a new Japanese digital novel called 428 for the Nintendo Wii.
Featuring live footage, the game has you following Achi Endo and Shinya Kano throughout modern-day Tokyo where a series of mysterious events occur within Shibuya.
The game is set to release this year in Japan, but don’t expect to see it ever make it outside of Japan.
Gamestop slashes prices on tons of next-gen Sega games
Posted by Chris. Filed under Chris, Multi-platform, North America. Tagged with Gamestop, Sega Deals.
Wow, this is truly THE Sega sale to end all Sega sales. I’ve been waiting for the official list to drop for Gamestop’s Game Days Sale that will run beginning June 2 to the end of the month, and now it finally has.
All I can say is you won’t be disappointed as just about every Sega title released this generation and some of last have been drastically reduced in price, making them easily affordable for even the most poor Sega Nerds out there. If you haven’t managed to keep up with Sega’s fast pace, this is definitely a great opportunity to pick up some really great games for unbelievable prices.
Hit the jump for the complete list!
[Via CAG]
Beijing Olympics 2008 available for pre-order, priced cheap
Posted by Chris. Filed under Chris, Multi-platform.
Sega sent us word today that Beijing Olympics 2008 is now available for pre-order at both Amazon and Gamestop. While both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 version are priced at $50, Gamestop has the PC version for only $30.
So if you’ve already played Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games to death, you may wanna go ahead and throw down your money to beat the inevitably long lines at the retail stores when the game launches this summer.
Beijing Olympics features more than 35 events, an authentic look and feel, superb online gameplay uniting gamers across the globe, brand new control schemes and a variety of game modes never seen in an official video game of the Olympic Games before, Beijing 2008 will be the new benchmark for the sporting genre and truly allow gamers to experience the “Olympic Spirit,” according to Sega.
[Image via Sega]
Rez HD, Ikaruga best XBLA launches ever
Posted by Chris. Filed under Chris. Tagged with Dreamcast, Rez, XBLA.
It appears that old Dreamcast games ported over to Microsoft’s Xbox Live Arcade are pretty popular as Rez HD and Ikaruga sold the most units in a three-day span and now hold the prestigious title as the best XBLA launches ever, with 25,000 and 22,500 units sold, respectively.
Even more impressive is the next closest game is Penny Arcade Adventures Episode 1 with 16,500 units sold.
So now that we know gamers will happily eat up their favorite Dreamcast games, what should we see next?
[Via Penny Arcade]
Sega wants more Unreal 3 Engine
Posted by Chris. Filed under Chris, Multi-platform, News.
Sega has announced that it has extended its Unreal Engine 3 licensing deal with Epic Games for an unspecified cross-platform game.
“The great capabilities of Unreal Engine 3 make it possible for our developers to deliver incredible gaming experiences,” said Dave Cobb, vice president of development for Sega of America. “Unreal Engine 3 provides superior power and flexibility enabling Sega to bring original and exciting next-generation multi-platform titles.”
“Sega has cultivated some of the world’s most treasured game franchises, and we are thrilled that they have decided to make more games with Unreal Engine 3,” said Mark Rein, vice president of Epic Games. “Epic is committed to supporting Sega with exceptional tools and technologies so it may continue to build upon its successes.”
The Unreal Engine 3’s offers such technological enhancements like dynamic ambient occlusion, destructible environments, an advanced crowd system and much more.
[Via Gamespy]
Stan Lee talks how The Incredible Hulk came to be
Posted by Chris. Filed under Chris, Multi-platform, Video. Tagged with The Incredible Hulk.
When Stan Lee talks, people listen … that includes us Sega Nerds. This week, Stan and others talk about the origins of The Incredible Hulk and what makes this tragic hero so special. It’s actually a pretty insightful video into what makes Hulk, Hulk. Next week, they promise to further explain how the deal between Marvel, Sega and Edge of Reality came to be.
The Incredible Hulk is set to release in North America June 3.
Sega Nerdcast 18: It Came From Japan
Posted by Chris. Filed under Chris. Tagged with Platinum Games, Sega Nerdcast, Sega Rally 3, Shiren 3.
Although we didn’t have quite as much big news to talk about as we did last week, we were still able to squeeze out enough Sega goodness to put together yet another Sega Nerdcast. In this week’s episode, we have Hudson and George joining Graham, Nathan and myself for an hour-long chat where we discuss more Platinum Games information, Shiren 3 and Sega Rally 3.
We follow that up in the second half with our second edition of Name That Tune, but the big question is will the Sega Nerds team vindicate themselves after last week’s embarrassing showing? You’ll have to listen and find out!
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After listening to the Nerdcast, you’ll learn more about how to win a brand new copy of The Incredible Hulk when it ships next month. keep sending your entries to seganerds[at]gmail.com.
Could Ecco the Dolphin be delisted on XBLA?
Posted by Chris. Filed under Chris. Tagged with Ecco, Sega Vintage Collection, XBLA.
You may or may not have heard the recent news that Microsoft plans to remove certain Xbox Live Arcade titles that aren’t performing at an acceptable level. That level is games that have been available for at least half a year, have a Metacritic score less than 65 and have a conversion rate of under six percent.
While Microsoft doesn’t openly share its conversion rates with the public, the other two criteria are easy enough to find out. Mygen has done the hard work for us and has discovered that more than 40 games could possibly be on the chopping block, including Sega’s Ecco the Dolphin.
Ecco was released on XBLA Aug. 15, 2007 and is saddled with a Metacritic score of only 53, which only serves to prove how silly mainstream reviews have become in recent years. While things certainly don’t look good for our underwater ally, we still don’t know what the game’s conversion rate is, which could actually save its life on XBLA if it’s higher than six percent.
It’s truly sad that the game might be axed due to some badly written reviews on Metacritic. It seems a lot of the publications that scored it the lowest, didn’t score the game based on its own merits, but compared it to other games that are available on the platform today. I don’t think I really need to go into detail on why that’s a problem. Ecco is currently available to purchase for only 400 points.
[Via Mygen/Image via Tree Bugger]
Sega Commercial Saturday: Chu-Chu Rocket
Posted by Chris. Filed under Chris. Tagged with Dreamcast, Sega Commercial Saturday.
We here at Sega Nerds have always loved Chu-Chu Rocket and fondly remember the days of our online shenanigans to this day. What makes this commercial great, aside from the disturbingly catchy song, is how cute it is to see a cat chomping on small, unsuspecting mice, and then see a rocket explode through said cat’s body.
Ahh, I miss Chu-Chu Rocket.
See how Empire: Total War comes to life
Posted by Chris. Filed under Chris, PC, Video. Tagged with Empire: Total War.
With all the great console games Sega’s been throwing at us in recent months, it’s sometimes easy to forget that the company also publishes PC games … and good ones at that too.
Speaking of good Sega published PC games, Sega just released this interesting Empire: Total War developer commentary that sheds light in how Creative Assembly motion captures its dueling mode.
Total War is scheduled for a worldwide winter 2008 release.