Naruto lookalike spotted in Wacky World of Sports

Hey, I recognise him!

One of the characters in the recently announced Wii game Wacky World of Sports bears a striking resemblance to a certain anime character.

The character in question in Naruto Uzumaki, from the aptly-named cartoon Naruto. Both characters have similar spiky blonde hair and headbands, although the Wacky version is wearing different clothes from his anime counterpart. No orange jumpsuits in sight!

Naruto Uzumaki, with his many identical twin brothers.

Now, calling two characters similar based on their hair may seem silly. But the character in Wacky World of Sports is called Sasuke Lee, Sasuke and Lee being characters in Naruto. It is therefore a clear reference to the cartoon, not just a coïncidence!

On a side note, I find the pronunciation of Naruto annoying. I assumed it was (emphasis in bold) Naruto, but apparently it's Naruto. It's like how Americans pronounce French words with the emphasis on the second syllable, rather than the first...

Wacky World of Sports will be released in late 2009.

Wacky World of Sports announced

First discovered back in December, the Wii game Wacky World of Sports has been announced. The projected release date is late 2009.

Most of our predictions gathered from the title were indeed true - it is a Wii game, and it is a minigame collection. It is not, however, a Tom and Jerry licence.

The game involves travelling around the world, partaking in ridiculous sports such as Tuna Tossing and, my personal favourite, Extreme Ironing.

Wacky World of Sports sounds rather like Alternative World Games by Gremlin Graphics, released in 1987 for various home micros. This game also involved travelling around the world, playing games influenced by national stereotypes.

See the trailer below.



[Source: Sega Europe]

Sonic Unleashed swastikas removed

Recent patches for Sonic Unleashed seem to have removed the swastikas featured on ice level Holoska. The symbol could be seen on the daytime levels, and was first spotted back in November.

Before...

The swastika, which is a part of a texture in the game, has been transformed into a box by connecting the four points together. The rest of the texture remains the same.

It is not known whether the change was made in the most recent patch, or an earlier one. Whenever it was made, it has only been noticed today.

...After

It should be noted that the symbol has been used in cultures for many thousands of years, not just by the Nazi Party. Their emblem was rotated 45°, whereas most other variants (such as in the game) are not.

On that note, I'll leave you with this. Make of it what you will...


[Source: TSSZ News]

UK Charts: Week Ending 25/04/09

Much to my amazement, Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games is not in the Top 5 this week. It has dropped seven places to #11, narrowly missing the Top 10. That's one less ancient game in the top sellers; others include Wii Play and Carnival: Funfair Games.

Mega Drive Ultimate Collection has made a massive leap up the charts, climbing ten places to #15. Football Manager 2009 has made an even bigger leap, climbing twelve places to #26.

Sonic Unleashed is not doing so well, falling four places to the edge of doom at #40. This is the lowest charting Sega game this week, and will probably follow Sonic and the Black Knight to the chart afterlife very soon.

More charts next week. See last week's here.

Sega made a virtual pet?

I'm sure anyone who grew up in the '90s will remember virtual pets, or Tamagotchis. At the height of the craze, it seemed like every company was producing their own version, Sega included.

Around 2003 Sega Toys produced a virtual pet called "My Sapling", which involved raising a plant that could eventually turn into an animal. What makes it interesting is the fact that it had sensors that reacted to touch, music and light!


This completely spherical toy was aimed at the younger market, and, unlike regular virtual pets, could not die. Just a year after it was released, Bandai starting producing the new generation of Tamagotchis and the craze was reborn.

"My Sapling" certainly is an interesting find. Sega Toys have created some weird things over the years, including a mini karaoke machine and a portable jukebox. What's next? Hopefully a Sonic-themed virtual pet, where you must feed him chilli dogs and make sure he isn't killed by Robotnik. We'll just have to settle for the Sonic mobile screensaver for now.

[Source: Tamenagerie]

Sega Rage Guy #2

Today Rage Guy is playing Streets of Rage on his Mega Drive. Rather aptly, it's his favourite game - that won't stop him from having an angry fit though, will it?

Click to enlarge.

The amount of times this has happened to me. In two-player, when your partner accidentally does this, the excuse is always "I thought A was punch and C was special!". That's just not good enough!

Clues towards future Sonic Unleashed DLC found

Members of the Sonic Community have discovered hidden areas and files in Sonic Unleashed that have not been fully programmed, and may serve as future downloadable content.

Files called "BossHydra.ar" and "BossHydra.arl" have been found, suggesting that a boss was not fully programmed but was left on the disc. People have speculated that the boss may be completed in the form of downloadable content.

The werehog holding an unused javelin item

A hidden area in Empire City contains an unused javelin item, with a target nearby. This leads to the possibility of a javelin-throwing task being present in future downloads. Other hidden areas include a "water room" in Adabat and a canyon in Shamar.

Perhaps in the future these areas will be fully playable, along with the hidden items. A "hard mode" has also been speculated, but we'll just have to wait and see what happens.

[Source: TSSZ News]

Weekly Famitsu: Volume 1065 (08/05/09)

Famitsu's cover this week sports the ever-popular Monster Hunter characters gathered round a fire, roasting some sort of enormous chicken leg. Why do these covers always feature RPGs? Is Necky not sick of wearing knight's armour yet?

Yesterday saw the results of the Famitsu Awards 2008 being revealed, with Sega winning an award. In the "Award of Excellence" category, they won "Best Dramatic Game" with 428. The biggest winners overall were Square Enix and Capcom, the latter winning the "Games Company of the Year" award.

The next game to feature in Famitsu's on-going t-shirt project will be MadWorld. No designs have been revealed yet, but I can guess that they will contain lots of black, white and red. Previous Sega games to feature on Famitsu's t-shirts include Yakuza 3 and 428.

In the Enterbrain Chart, Yakuza 3 has dropped out of the Top 30. Taking its place is Valkyria Chronicles, which has recently been re-released through the Japanese equivalent of the Platinum range, entitled "The Best". It enters in at #30, selling 4,321 copies this week.

More Famitsu news next week. See Volume 1063 here.

[Source: Famitsu]

Child asks Norwegian King's permission to change his name to Sonic X

Just to clarify the ambiguous headline, a 6-year-old named Christer sent a letter to the Norwegian King, Harald V, asking to change his (the child's) name to "Sonic X". Not that he thought "King Sonic X" would sound better, although that would be rather awesome.

Anyway, last year Christer wrote the letter requesting a name change, but his parents were reluctant to send it. A few months later, the letter was posted after Christer wondered why there had been no reply yet.

The King did actually reply to the letter, saying that he was, unfortunately, not old enough to change his name yet. Instead, he can request permission again in twelve years after he turns 18.

Christer told the press he was disappointed, and that the situation "was a bit bad". Sega responded by sending the boy lots of Sonic X merchandise. How thoughtful!

Why a child would want to be called "Sonic X" rather than just "Sonic" is beyond my comprehension. Good job he wasn't allowed the name change - I'm sure he'll think it's ridiculous by the time he's 18!

[Source: Gamezine]

Play Soul Blade and Tekken 2 on your Mega Drive

Over on Sega-16, there is a regular "Hacks and Homebrews" feature, with this edition focussing on pirate fighting games. Not fighting games literally pitting pirates against each other, but bootleg titles.

Some interesting pirate fighting games have been made over the years, including ports of Dragon Ball, King of Fighters '98 and Mortal Kombat: Mythologies. Perhaps the most intriguing of these big-name games to be ported onto the Mega Drive are Soul Blade and Tekken 2.

Soul Blade

Soul Blade is apparently extremely buggy, with character freezing and self-harm (!). The controls also don't work, which is a shame as the graphics are extremely good. The sprites are nice and big, and the backgrounds are very colourful.

VR Fighter vs. Taken 2

Tekken 2 is not a direct port of Namco's fighter, but a very weird "vs." game entitled VR Fighter vs. Taken 2. "VR Fighter" is referring to Virtua Fighter, although the sprites have not been ripped from the Mega Drive version of the game. Instead, all new sprites have been made for both games, which neither look like the actual characters nor animate very well. The pirate Tekken 3 port is actually a more accurate representation of Tekken 2!

Sega-16 recommend steering clear of these bootleg fighting games, except for one: Top Fighter 2000 Mk VIII. This game boasts an impressive roster, taking characters from Street Fighter, Art of Fighting and X-Men. Other characters include Muhammad Ali and Michael Jordan. Indeed...

Anyway, go here to read the entire article.

Sega Saturn could have been Sega 64 or Sega PlayStation!

Reading IGN's "History of Sega", I learned something very interesting - Sega's Fifth Generation console could have used hardware that went on to be the Nintendo 64 and PlayStation. This must be ancient news to some members of the Sega community, but I had absolutely no idea!

Everyone knows the story of how Nintendo's partnership with Sony to produce a SNES CD add-on fell through. This eventually became the Sony PlayStation, but at one point it could have become the Sega PlayStation.

Sega had a good relationship with Sony, working with them on the Mega CD. After the Sony-Nintendo deal fell through, Sega had a go at taking their place. Former Sega of America President, Tom Kalinske, explains:

"We got together with [Sony] and defined what we'd like to see in our next hardware. We had this great idea that it should be a joint SEGA-Sony hardware system. If we had to take a loss on the hardware (which was the norm then), we'd split the loss on the hardware, but we wouldn't split software, so any software they did, they'd get 100% of the profits, and any software we did, we'd get 100% of the profits. It seemed like a fair deal since we were eons ahead of them in terms of software development.

"So we go to Japan, and Sony management liked the idea. Then we went to SEGA, and Nakayama hated the idea. [laughs] So that was the end of that, and the rest is history once again. Those were the specs that became the PlayStation."

Even before Sega's plans with Sony, they had meetings with Silicon Graphics, who went on to produce the Nintendo 64.

"We went down the road to Silicon Graphics and met with [SGI founder] Jim Clark. They had bought MIPS Technologies, and they were developing a chipset for use in a game machine. We liked it, so we called up the Japanese guys to come take a look at it. The hardware guys came over, and they really pooh-poohed the whole effort. The chip was too big; there would be too much waste; lots of objections from a technical standpoint. It was upsetting to us, because we thought it was better in terms of speed, graphics, and audio.

"So after we had this meeting, I had to report back to Jim Clark, who was then Chairman of Silicon Graphics and tell him that SEGA wasn't going to be buying, and he asked, 'Well, what should I do now?' and I said, 'Well, there's this other game company up in the Seattle area. I think their name starts with an N.' And of course, he did. He went up there and sold it to them, and that, of course, became the foundation for the Nintendo 64."

So, Sega turned down hardware for two consoles that would eventually beat their own Saturn. How would the games industry have turned out if Sega had marketed the PlayStation? There are so many things that happened to Sega in the mid-'90s that could have changed their future, this being another thing to add to the list.

IGN's article is very interesting, but there is some false information that they state persistently - Yu Suzuki has not left Sega! He has in fact moved departments a few times over the years, giving the impression that he has left. But remember, you can't spell ignorant without...

UK Charts: Week Ending 18/04/09

Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games continues to be the highest-charting Sega game, this week moving down one place to #4. It is still outselling Resident Evil 5, which is one place beneath at #5.

Mega Drive Ultimate Collection has made a large leap up the charts this week, gaining eleven places to finish at #25. Sonic Unleashed has not been so fortunate, falling four places to #36.

Football Manager 2009 has risen one place to #38, being the lowest-charting Sega game in the Top 40 this week. Sonic and the Black Knight, which was at #40 last week, has fallen out of the chart entirely.

Olympic Games, Ultimate Collection and Football Manager seem to be invincible - most recent Sega games have lasted just two or three weeks in the chart, but those three have been regulars for many months now.

More charts next week. See last week's here.

Sega among the top publishers of original games

Famitsu have published the best-selling original games of 2008, with Sega among the top publishers. "Original game/IP" means a game that is not a sequel or part of a series.

Here is the list of Sega games in the Top 20:

• #8: Valkyria Chronicles - Sold 141,589
• #11: Seventh Dragon - Sold 108,570
• #13: World Destruction - Sold 93,104
• #17: 428 - Sold 64,188

Nintendo had three titles in the list, with Sony Computer Entertainment Japan and Square Enix tying with Sega for top original games publisher.

Some upcoming Sega titles also made the Top 10 for most anticipated original games, as voted for by Famitsu readers. Bayonetta made #2, and Infinite Space made #7. It seems Sega's partnership with Platinum Games has been a massive success!

Famitsu call original games "rookie titles", a phrase that has consistently popped up in translations. Only now do I know what it means!

[Source: DS Hyper]

Get some Sega on your desktop

Sega have been going wallpaper-crazy this week, releasing both OutRun and Sonic images for your desktop.

To celebrate the release of OutRun Online Arcade this week, Sega Europe released some lovely Ferrari-themed wallpaper - one exclusive to the blog and another exclusive to Sega Nerds. I much prefer the latter as it has an F40 on it, the car in Turbo Out Run.

Over on the Japanese Sonic site, the latest monthly wallpaper has just been released. Every month the Sonic Channel gives us a new Sonic-themed wallpaper with a calendar on it, the month of May featuring Knuckles. You can even get the calendar alone to print off!

Interestingly, the Sonic wallpapers feature concept artwork from Sonic Unleashed and Sonic and the Black Knight, which means that one of them has Chip on it. Yuck.

Buy Sonic and Knuckles 5 from Japan!

It's always fun finding pirates and fakery on auction sites. The latest such instance is this Sonic and Knuckles 5 cartridge for the Famicom, found on Yahoo Auctions.


The cartridge has a random smattering of official Sonic art, with the text "Super Sonic 5" at the top. The title screen contradicts this, displaying the words "Sonic and Knuckles 5". I have to say that the title screen is rather impressive for a NES, being ported quite well from Sonic and Knuckles.


The game itself is a rather common pirate, seen under various different titles - most frequently Sonic 3D Blast 5 and Somari (the latter with Mario sprites). The screenshot in the auction is of Spring Yard Zone, although those blocks don't actually move.


Overall the game is quite an accurate port of the original Sonic the Hedgehog, more so than the Master System version. However, it certainly doesn't play, look or sound as good as the Master System version.

The seller has predictably listed the game as "rare", which can be bought now for ¥14,800. That's £101 for all those interested in the UK! I think you're better off hunting down the ROM.

[Source: Sonic Retro Forums]

The Lost Stars and Secret Command released on Virtual Console

Two Master System games have been released on the European Virtual Console this week - Alex Kidd: The Lost Stars and Secret Command.

Alex Kidd: The Lost Stars was released on the North American Virtual Console back in March, and is seen as the last "good" Alex Kidd game before his downfall. The Games Machine gave the game 72% in October 1988, although Nintendo Life wasn't as kind and awarded it 3/10.

Secret Command, released as Rambo: First Blood Part II in North America, fared slightly better in its reviews. The Games Machine gave the game 74% in February 1988, praising the graphics and two-player coöperative gameplay feature. Nintendo Life recommends this over Alex Kidd because of its "mindless fun".

The next Virtual Console update isn't until May, so you'll have to settle for these games until then. Both games cost 500 Wii Points.

[Source: Nintendo Life]

Weekly Famitsu: Volume 1063 (01/05/09)

This week's Famitsu is scarce on Sega news this week, but at least we have a lovely new Necky cover to look at!

The cover this week is based on Final Fantasy XIII and Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, with Necky posing as Cloud, enormous sword and hair intact. Perhaps we could have a game that isn't an RPG on the cover at some point?

The translation of Famitsu gave back some weirdness, but apparently the staff are comparing RPGs. One of these includes Seventh Dragon by Sega, but the other one is a garbled Engrish mess. Oh well.

There is information about upcoming games Shining Force Cross and Bayonetta, with expected release dates of winter and autumn 2009 respectively. End of Eternity also has an expected release date of winter 2009.

The only Sega game in the Enterbrain Chart this week is Yakuza 3, which has risen three places to #27. It has sold 6,378 copies this week, and 466,164 copies all together. The Parallel of Haruhi Suzumiya, which was at #20 last week, is nowhere to be seen in the Top 30.

Generally news from the current issue filters to the West throughout the week, so there isn't much to write about immediately. We'll see what happens as people import the magazine!

More Famitsu news next week. See Volume 1062 here.

[Source: Famitsu]

OutRun Online Arcade released

The eagerly anticipated remake of OutRun 2006, OutRun Online Arcade, was released this week on the PlayStation Network and Xbox Live Arcade. The title became available yesterday on XBLA in Europe and North America, with the PSN version being released a few hours ago in Europe.

There are two competitions being run in celebration of the game's launch. The first is a chance to win a trip to the Ferrari Museum in Italy, which can be won by setting the fastest time on the Time Attack setting. The second competition is a chance to win a retro Out Run t-shirt. To do this, find "Challenge Sega" whilst online and beat them in a race.

At the moment the competitions are only available on XBLA, but should come to the PSN in the near future. To participate you must register first.

The game costs £7.99/€9.99 for the PS3 version, and 800 Points for the Xbox 360 version.

[Source: Sega Nerds]

Michael Jackson's arcade auction cancelled

It was announced yesterday that the auction of Michael Jackson's Neverland possessions has been cancelled. This includes the singer's extensive arcade cabinet collection.

Michael Jackson will now retain ownership of 1,400-plus items, although they will remain on display in Beverly Hills until April 25th.

Jackson's arcade collection was full of Sega titles, including the massive R360 cabinet but strangely lacking Moonwalker. Here is the full list of Sega games, taken from a previous post about the auction:

• R360 Cabinet
• The Lost World: Jurassic Park
• Jambo! Safari
• Crazy Taxi (x2)
  
• F1 Exhaust Note
• Crazy Taxi III: High Roller
• Print Club 2
• Harley-Davidson and LA Riders
• Galaxy Force II
• WWF Royal Rumble
• Sega Saturn Display
• Sega Strike Fighter
• Virtua Racing
• Eighteen Wheeler
• Sports Jam
• Star Wars Racer
• Manx TT Super Bike
• Virtua Tennis 2
• Top Skater
• Sega Genesis/Game Gear Display
• Sega Dreamcast Display

Now you have no chance of acquiring one of these, not even his duplicate Crazy Taxi cabinet. Oh well.

[Source: Kotaku]

UK Charts: Week Ending 11/04/09

Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games has managed to be among the top three selling games in the UK this week, even outselling the likes of Resident Evil 5 and FIFA 09. It has gained six places from last week, now sitting at a comfortable #3.

Sonic Unleashed can barely see Olympic Games from down at #32, gaining five places. Mega Drive Ultimate Collection has plummeted twelve places to #36, despite the fact I received my copy today.

The bottom two places in the Top 40 are occupied by Sega games this week: Football Manager 2009 has risen one place to #39 and Sonic and the Black Knight has fallen two places to #40.

Again, Sega's recent big titles MadWorld and House of the Dead: Overkill haven't charted. Sega still seem to be pleased with their sales though, as they apparently sold their targeted numbers.

More charts next week. See last week's here.

Sonic Chronicles to get a name change in Japan

Famitsu have been anticipating the Japanese release of DS RPG Sonic Chronicles this week, and have just revealed that the game will be released under a different name in their region.

In the West, the game is known as Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood; but in Japan, it will be called Sonic Chronicles: Invaders from the Dark Dimension. Spooky.

The game will follow the great Sega tradition of having a different name in practically every region. Other titles like this include Sonic and Tails, Sonic Chaos and Sonic the Hedgehog Chaos; Sonic 3D Blast: Flickies' Island, Sonic 3D Blast and Sonic 3D: Flickies' Island; and the recent Sonic World Adventure and Sonic Unleashed.

Invaders from the Dark Dimension will be released on August 6th, retailing for ¥5,040 (about £34). Despite being marketed as a DSi game, it is unlikely the game will have any new features. Sonic is all ready blue and "actually looks like an alien", thank you very much (UK readers will know what I'm on about).

The Japanese Sonic Chronicles website, which is due to be updated very soon, will provide us with any extra information.

[Source: TSSZ News]

Sega Saturn to be re-released...

Yes, you read the title correctly. The Saturn, one of Sega's best-loved consoles, is going back into production over a decade after it was officially axed. You'll have a hard time trying to play games on it though, as it is in bag form!

Sorry to disappoint you there, but via Enterbrain's Sega Store you can buy this delicious Saturn-shaped bag. The cartridge slot and CD tray act as pockets, and there is a drinks holder on the side. The main compartment is big enough to hold an A4 magazine apparently, and has two shoulder straps on the back.

"Help! Daytona USA's not working!"

The bag only comes in grey with blue "buttons", the colours of the Japanese console. It costs ¥7,140, which is about £50. That much for a tiny rucksack? NoThankYou.jpg. You could always get the Mega Drive tote bag instead, which is £20 cheaper and is probably more stylish.

Can we have a Dreamcast-shaped bag next? For Sega's smaller consoles, such as the Master System, Game Gear and 32X, we could have pencil cases. Oh, the possibilities!

[Source: Sega Store]

Weekly Famitsu: Volume 1062 (24/04/09)

Sorry about the lack of Famitsu news in recent weeks, but they haven't been featuring much Sega recently. From the translations I can find, Sega has not been mentioned much since the Yakuza 3 sensation died down. Also, one of the main Famitsu scan sources has been shut down so I can't gather much extra information!

No Necky cover this week unfortunately. In fact, the last Necky cover was way back in mid-March! Anyway, Famitsu have featured tri-Ace's new RPG End of Eternity, which is being published by Sega on the PS3 and Xbox 360. The game looks set for release this winter, and is the only RPG where the storyline centres around poisonous gas. Seriously.

Aside from the "powerful tag-team" that is tri-Ace and Sega, Famitsu have been reporting on Platinum Games' upcoming hair-'em-up Bayonetta and the Japanese release of BioWare's RPG Sonic Chronicles.

In the Enterbrain Chart this week, new Wii pirate adventure game The Parallel of Haruhi Suzumiya has entered in at #20, selling 10,330 copies. The only other Sega game in the chart this week is Yakuza 3, which is at #30. It sold 7,741 copies this week, totalling 459,786 copies sold all together.

I don't know if there will be any Famitsu news next week. Let's hope there is, along with a new Necky cover!

See Volume 1059 here.

[Source: Famitsu]

OutRun Online Arcade to be released next week

Finally, after months of wait, it has been announced that OutRun Online Arcade will be released in all regions next week. The title, first announced late last year, was expected to be released in January (thanks to a blurry poster photo). Four months of rocking in a corner since then have certainly payed off.

For Xbox 360 users, the game will be released on the Arcade next Wednesday. For PS3 users (sorry Americans, no release for you), the game will be released on the Network next Thursday. By Thursday, I mean so late on Thursday that it's practically Friday. Europeans will know what I mean.

The game will cost £7.99/€9.99 on the PS3, and 800 Points on the Xbox 360.

Here are the dates and prices in quick, easy-to-read form:

• Xbox 360/XBLA (NTSC and PAL): Wednesday, April 15th 800 Points
  
• PS3/PSN (PAL only): Thursday, April 16th £7.99/€9.99

If you can't wait until then, play the PS2 or PSP versions. Or continue rocking in that corner.

[Source: Sega Europe and Kotaku]

Space Harrier being converted to Atari XE

This is actually quite old news, but Sega classic Space Harrier is being converted to the 8-bit range of Atari computers. Back in the late-'80s, UK software house Elite Systems had the rights to do home computer ports of the game, but unfortunately an Atari 8-bit version was never made.

First started in the early-'90s, programmer Chris Hutt revived his project in 2002 with a release of the first level of his Space Harrier port. It is still in the process of being made, with stages 6 and 7 being completed in February after a year's absence.

Once finished (there are still eleven levels to program), the game will be released on cartridge. The Atari 8-bit range will then finally have Space Harrier after over two decades of waiting!


The port is looking excellent so far, with nice scrolling, great music and even speech! I would love to play this on my Atari XEGS, the console version of the 8-bit computers.

It's always good to see games being ported to systems that didn't originally have the game. My attempts to port Nintendo's Solar Striker to the Commodore 64 have failed so far, with only the graphics being made. Useless SEUCK!

You can follow the game's progress here. For ZX Spectrum ports of Sega games, see here.

Yakuza 3 karaoke insanity

Your guess is as good as mine.

The Yakuza series is well-known for its mini-games, but perhaps the most insane of these is karaoke. Famitsu have released some screenshots today of the mini-game, specifically a duet with characters Kiryu and Haruka.

The song is apparently called "Change Myself", and it is possible to sing along with your BlackBerry (!).

The karaoke minigame was made by United Game Artists, a part of Sonic Team responsible for games such as Rez and Space Channel 5. I don't know if they made the main karaoke minigame or the BlackBerry minigame, however, as the translation is confusing!

Judging from the screenshots the game isn't serious. Just look at that headphone-sporting cat in the corner! Famitsu do say that the characters "sing enthusiastically", though.

There are still no plans for a Western release of Yakuza 3, so you'll just have to sing at the screenshots for now.

[Source: Famitsu]

Cupboard of Awesome: Day 2

Unfortunately, today's Cupboard of Awesome is not as awesome as yesterday. Partly because there are no shiny objects or scary teddies.

Anyway, the first item today is a Let's Tap soundtrack CD. CDs seems to be a staple in merchandising, as demonstrated here. The cover has a penguin on it, reflecting the fact that Let's Tap is so simple that even a penguin could play it.

Sega say they will give these away when the game is released in Europe. Yay?

Technically we could sue Yuji Naka as there is no proof that penguins can actually play Let's Tap. If that was your reason for buying the game, then demand your money back. Or at least a free copy of the next game in the series, Let's Waggle.

The next item is a CD from musician Bentley Jones, real name Lee Brotherton. Some of his music featured on the so-good-they-restarted-the-numbering Sonic the Hedgehog. Yes, the 2006 version.

More tat tomorrow!

[Source: Sega Europe]

Sega Europe's "Cupboard of Awesome"

Yes, it's time to journey to that "rather more British-sounding" Cupboard of Awesome (Gawd bless ya SEGAtastic).

The Sega Europe blog has started their series of finds from their "Cupboard of Awesome", in response to Sega of America's "Awesome Box". ArchangelUK said that the stuff in their cupboard was not as wondrous as in the box, but I beg to differ!

Take a look at these amazingly shiny Sonic 10th Anniversary coins. Aren't they ace? I would love some of these - they look so much better than the UK's new "shield" coins. We should just use Sega promotional currency instead.


If I were to take those photos I would use my star filter to make them look extra-shiny! So shiny in fact, that just by looking at the photos you would go blind. Seriously.


Other items found were some scary Bleach teddies, and a Bleach DS stylus. "Bleach" as in the anime and Sega game, not the household chemical stuff.

There were also some Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games pin badges, and some Sega keyrings. The worst item of all was a promotional copy of PSP game Ghost Rider. Blech.

I can't wait to see what other random filth is uncovered this week! Check back tomorrow.

UK Charts: Week Ending 04/04/09

Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games has managed to claw its way back to its usual home of the Top Ten this week. Yes, it is now at #9, rising seven places from last week. There's just no stopping it!

Mega Drive Ultimate Collection hasn't done as well this week, falling four places to #24. Amazingly, Sonic Unleashed has made a return to the UK chart, entering in at #37. We last saw the game back in February, so perhaps lower prices have caused more people to buy it.

Sitting underneath Sonic Unleashed is Sonic and the Black Knight, falling nine places to #38. Football Manager 2009 is the last Sega game in the chart this week, falling two places to #40.

It's certainly weird that some of Sega's best releases last month, House of the Dead: Overkill and MadWorld, are nowhere to be seen in the charts. People would rather play games from 2007 about last year's Olympics!

More charts next week. See last week's here.

Sega to release Sonic screensaver for phones

Sega's Sonic Channel blog has posted information about an upcoming mobile phone application. It looks like some sort of Sonic screensaver, with screenshots depicting the blue hedgehog in Green Hill Zone.

A translation of the page doesn't reveal much information. Here's what I can gather from it:

"Sonic comes from the game screen to the screen of your mobile phone. He reacts when you get a phone or email, and can do many different things.

Sometimes he will just run around the mobile screen, and can get cranky! There is a variety of entertaining things he can do.

Sonic is an interactive screensaver set to the phone's standby display. He does things depending on the time and season.

Price: Free"

Some of my interpretation could be incorrect. It does sound good, however, and it's free! Apparently the Japanese mobile game company AUone made the screensaver.


Japan has many good Sega games for their mobile phones, most being released via the "Sonic Café" service. This was discontinued a few years ago, and none of the games seem to be available for download anywhere. Oh well.

Now all I have to do is move to Japan and buy a mobile phone to get this! Or just hope someone else offers it for download. Probably the latter.

[Source: Sonic Retro Forums]

MTV's Wii Usage Stats: April 2009

Today MTV posted their monthly update on how often certain Wii games are played. A large percentage of those games are from Sega, so let's see just how popular they are!

Here are the Sega games in order of total play in one month:

1. Sonic Unleashed - 13 hours, 15 minutes
2. Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games - 11 hours, 3 minutes
3. Sonic and the Secret Rings - 10 hours, 11 minutes
4. NEW ENTRY Sonic and the Black Knight - 10 hours, 6 minutes
5. Ghost Squad - 6 hours, 37 minutes
6. House of the Dead 2 and 3 - 5 hours, 37 minutes

Sonic Unleashed remains the most played Sega game, with the total play time increasing by almost 50 minutes. Last month the game's total play time increased by over an hour! Sonic and the Black Knight is a new entry, and sits just underneath its fellow Storybook title The Secret Rings.

Next are the games in order of total play sessions:

1. Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games - 8.35 sessions
2. Sonic and the Secret Rings - 6.97 sessions
3. Sonic Unleashed - 6.7 sessions
4. Ghost Squad - 5.28 sessions
5. House of the Dead 2 and 3 - 4.65 sessions
6. NEW ENTRY Sonic and the Black Knight - 4.41 sessions

As you can see, the total play sessions produce an entirely different chart. Despite Sonic Unleashed being played most, it has fewer but longer play sessions. The more arcadey the title, the more frequently it is played; albeit for shorter periods of time.

Next month will probably see the entries of MadWorld and House of the Dead: Overkill. Or not, due their dire market performance...

More figures next month. See last month's here.

Sega Rage Guy #1

Following the recent meme from 4chan, known simply as "Rage Guy", I decided to attempt some Sega-themed ones. They probably won't be very funny unless you've played the game. In fact, they probably won't be very funny at all!

Anyway, here's the first one. It's Rage Guy playing Sonic 1!

Click to enlarge.

This comes from real experiences playing Sonic 1. I'm sure many of you will have been through this trauma as well!

I just hate those blocks on Spring Yard Zone...

Sega Europe responds to the Awesome Box

Sega Europe have decided to do their own version of Sega of America's Awesome Box, with a rather more British-sounding name - the Cupboard of Awesome.

ArchangelUK of Sega Europe's blog has been rifling through the marketing cupboard, unearthing some out-of-date Haribo and "a few items that will interest you". Exciting!

You can expect to see what they found in the Cupboard of Awesome from next Monday, right after the Awesome Box week has finished.

Speaking of which, here's today's heap of Sega-branded nonsense! First up is probably one of my favourite pieces of tat so far. It's a Phantasy Star Online bouncy ball! Not only does it bounce, but it lights up too. Lovely.

I honestly want one.

Next is this rather strange Shinobi silk scarf, presented in a lockable wooden box. Presumably this is so you can hide it from your friends when they come round.

Other random items include a tiny Sonic toy and some novelty Sonic gloves. Yes, Sonic's gloves actually say "Sonic the Hedgehog" on them so that he doesn't lose them.


Also included in the box today was a limited edition Shenmue instruction book, a 10th Anniversary Sonic soundtrack CD and an original Samba de Amigo maraca.

Tomorrow is most likely the last day of the Awesome Box, but from Monday we will have the Cupboard of Awesome. Joy!

Sega Upcoming Releases: April 2009

There aren't many confirmed releases for this month, so the list is going to be a bit sparse...

• Phantasy Star Portable (PSP) - April 17th
• OutRun Online Arcade (PS3, Xbox 360) - April 2009
  
• Phantasy Star (Wii) - April 2009
• Virtual-On (Xbox 360) - April 2009

Hopefully more release dates will be confirmed soon, especially one for OutRun!

Awesome Box CD overload

We've all ready had a House of the Dead: Overkill tape, but the soundtracks seem to continue coming from Sega of America's Awesome Box. Today we have two CDs, a step up in technology from the aforementioned tape.

The first CD is for the Saturn game Mr. Bones. I have never actually heard of this game, but it is apparently about a resurrected Blues musician with the soundtrack being composed by legendary guitarist Ronnie Montrose. Never heard of him either.


The next CD is one that is more appealing to my tastes. It is a soundtrack CD of various classic Sega games, entitled "Power Cuts 1". Games include Vectorman, Sonic CD (North American version) and Ecco the Dolphin. Nice.


More Sega tat tomorrow!

Awesome Box awesomeness continues

Another day, another set of Sega merchandise from the Awesome Box. Today we have three more items, fresh from Sega of America's Flickr.

T-shirt or long-sleeved t-shirt? YOU DECIDE!

The first item is this Sonic t-shirt, which has a dismembered Sonic head on the front. I can't actually tell if this is a t-shirt or not - it looks like it's got long sleeves. THE UNCERTAINTY!


The next item is another t-shirt, this time for the Saturn classic Panzer Dragoon. I only posted the picture of the back because it was more interesting than the front.


The final item today is a pewter figurine of the Solo Wing from Panzer Dragoon. It looks slightly more tasteful than those enormous dragon figurines found inside tat catalogues and charity shops.

More Sega merchandise tomorrow!