SEGADriven is a SEGA news and information source that focuses on SEGA's console history, retro games and new software hitting the shelves. We want to share a love of great, quirky, clever and down-right fun games - something that SEGA have always specialised in. See below for the latest news, reviews and features added to the website.
Watari was involved with a number of games during his time at SEGA, including L.A. Machineguns, Dengeki Bunko Fighting Climax, and 7th Dragon III Code: VFD. But by far his crowning achievement at the company was becoming the defacto creator of the Cyber Troopers Virtual-On Series, SEGA’s beloved mech arena fighting game.
In recent years, Virtual-On has seen a surprising crossover title with the Index light novel series, and a fresh collection for PlayStation 4 in Japan, as well as a bizarre collaboration with healthcare company TANITA to make new controllers for modern iterations. Sadly, the series has been dormant in the West for years now; the PS3 release of the original game’s HD port remained Japan-exclusive, as did the Index crossover and PS4 Masterpiece Collection. On a brighter note, Virtual On: Oratorio Tangram is available on current Xbox systems via backwards compatibility.
It’s a shame to see Watari depart, but nearly 30 years at the company is a staggering run. We wish him the best with whatever comes next!
A new SEGA 60th soundtrack release is on the way courtesy of SEGA music maestro Hiroshi Kawaguchi. This new ‘Go SEGA 60th Anniversary Album’ will feature 4 discs of classic SEGA music and 108 songs, all chosen by Hiro himself.
The CD boxset will be available from the 24th of March 2021 in Japan only. It will retail for 6,460 yen which currently converts to around £43.45 in British sterling.
The full tracklist is featured below:
Disc 1
01. Amazing SEGA ~ New Corporate Identity ~ (Top Ver.)
02. SEGA Sound Logo (SEGA Call)
03. Company Song (Young Power / 135)
04. Head on (play sound) | AC
05. Monaco GP (play sound) | AC
06. Tranquilizer Gun (play sound) | AC
07. Pengo (Main BGM / Popcorn) ｜ AC
08. Super Locomotive (Main BGM / Rydeen) | AC
09. Congo Bongo (Title-Odd side-Odd side clear-Even side-Even side clear) | SG
10. Flicky (Theme-Clear) | AC
11. Teddy Boy Blues (Teddy Boy Blues) | AC
12. Zoom 909 (main BGM) | SG
13. Hang on (Main Theme) ｜ AC
14. Space Harrier (Main Theme) ｜ AC
15. Fantasy Zone (Opa-Opa!) ｜ AC
16. Quartet (FM Funk) | AC
17. Enduro Racer (Main Theme) ｜ AC
18. OutRun (Magical Sound Shower) ｜ AC
19. Alex Kidd in Miracle World ｜ MKⅢ
20. Space Harrier (HAYA-OH) ｜ MKⅢ
21. UFO CATCHER DX (Greensleeves-arm operation) | AC
22. SDI (System Down) | AC
23. Super Hang-On (Sprinter) ｜ AC
24. After Burner II (After Burner -With Melody-) ｜ AC
25. Thunder Blade (Type II) ｜ AC
26. Phantasy Star (Dungeon 1 -FM Ver.-) ｜ MKⅢ / MS
27. Galaxy Force II (Beyond the Galaxy) ｜ AC
28. Power Drift (Like the Wind) ｜ AC
Disc 2
01. Gain Ground (Primitive-Ki–Theme of Heroes-) | AC
02. Turbo OutRun (Rush a Difficulty) ｜ AC
03. Phantasy Star II At the end of non-return (Rise or Fall) | MD
04. Golden Ax (wilderness) | AC
05. THE SHINOBI ｜ MD
06. Columns (Clotho) ｜ AC
07. R360 [G-LOC] (Earth Frame G) ｜ AC
08. Sonic the Hedgehog (Star Light Zone ~ Mega Drive version ~) ｜ MD
09. Mega CD (startup sound)
10. Virtua Racing (Waiting Your Entry) ｜ AC
11. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (Sonic –You Can Do Anything) ｜ GG
12. Streets of Rage II Requiem for Death Fight (Go Straight) ｜ MD
13. Soreike !! Cocologie (Soreyuki! Kokorojin -1993- / Takenobu Mitsuyoshi) ｜ AC
14. Virtua Fighter (Beginning -Advertize-) ｜ AC
15. Phantasy Star At the end of the millennium (The end of millennium) | MD
16. Daytona USA (Let’s Go Away) ｜ AC
17. Rail Chase the Ride Hero Revival (Suite) | ATP
18. Virtua Cop (Gang Headquarters) ｜ AC
19. Virtua Fighter 2 (Beginning -Mai-Beginning of a new challenge-) | AC
20. Sega Saturn (startup sound)
21. AM2 (sound logo)
22. Virtua Racing Deluxe (Replay)
23. Panzer Dragoon (Flying ~ Episode 1 -Orchestra Version-) ｜ SS
24. Sonic Drift 2 (Emerald Hill) | GG
25. Fighting Vipers (Armstone Town Day) ｜ AC
26. Sega Rally Championship (Desert Replay) ｜ SS
27. Cyber Troopers Virtual-On (In the Blue Sky) ｜ AC
28. NiGHTS into dreams … (Dreams Dreams) ｜ SS
28. Sakura Wars (Imperial Combat Revue / Chisa Yokoyama (Sakura Shinguji) & Imperial Combat Revue) | SS
Disc 3
01. Scud Race (Flight in the Dark / Hiroko Hamano) ｜ AC
02. Sega Saturn / Segata Sanshiro ~ CM Song ~ (Sega Saturn, Shiro! / Segata Sanshiro [Hiroshi Fujioka,])
03. Burning Rangers (Burning Hearts ~ Flame ANGEL ~ / Takenobu Mitsuyoshi) ｜ SS
04. SpikeOut (Theme of SPIKEOUT) ｜ AC
05. The House of the Dead 2 (AMS Agent -Arranged From THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD 1-) ｜ AC
06. Dreamcast ~ TV / CF Episode 4 Reservation Campaign Song ~ (Dreamcast / Managing Director Yukawa)
07. Sonic Adventure (Open Your Heart / Crush 40) ｜ DC
08. Space Channel 5 (mexican flyer (Original)) | DC
09. Shenmue Chapter 1 Yokosuka (Shenmue ~ Kagi ~) ｜ DC
10. StarHorse (first Starhorse Medley) | AC
11. Phantasy Star Online (The whole new world -Lyric Version- / LOREN) ｜ DC
12. Sakura Wars 3: Is Paris Burning? Yoshino (Kitaoji Fireworks)) | DC
13. Segagaga (Segagaga March -Vocal Version- / Tsuyoshi Kaneko) | DC
14. Super Monkey Ball (Jungle Stage) ｜ GC
15. Beetle King Musiking (1st Musiking Sound) ｜ AC
16. The Key to Avalon (Vive Memor Mortis ~ Live without forgetting death ~) | AC
17. Dragon Treasure (Dungeon -Mountain-) ｜ AC
18. OutRun2 (Shiny World) ｜ AC
19. Sonic Heroes / Crush 40 ｜ PS2 / GC / Xbox
20. Quest of D (vs. Black Knight) ｜ AC
21. Fashionable Witch Love and Berry (Re-Born / Rabbi ☆ min) ｜ AC
22. DARTSLIVE (startup sound)
23. I’ll die for you (I’ll die for you [Complete Edition] / Kenichi Tokoi & Rub Rabbits) ｜ DS
24. Sangokushi Taisen (Marvelous Brave) ｜ AC
25. Ryu ga Gotoku (Receive You / MAKOTCH) ｜ PS2
Disc 4
01. Sega Rally 2006 (Temptation of Speed) ｜ PS2
02. Sega Network Taisen Mahjong MJ4 (Default BGM) ｜ AC
03. DERBY OWNERS CLUB 2008 feel the rush (Feel the Rush Special) ｜ AC
04. UFO CATCHER 8 (UFO Ondo / Asami) ｜ AC
05. Phantasy Star Portable (Save This World -νMIX-) ｜ PSP
06. WORLD CLUB Champion Football Intercontinental Clubs 2006-2007 (Main Theme) ｜ AC
07. Puyo Puyo 7 (Puyo Puyo no Uta / Ando Apple [CV: Asami Imai]) ｜ DS
08. BORDER BREAK ｜ AC
09. Sonic Colors (Reach For The Stars / Jean Paul Makhlouf of Cash Cash) ｜ Wii
10. Rhythm Phantom Thief R Emperor Napoleon’s Legacy (Invasion of the Louvre Museum) | 3DS
11. Yakuza 5 Dreams, Realizers (Idiot [Taxi Driver Edition] / Kazuma Kiryu [Takaya Kuroda]) ｜ PS3
12. Puyo Puyo !! Quest (It’s been a while since I crossed time and space! -Puyo Que Ver.-) ｜ iOS / Android
13. Holka x ToruCa (The Great Journey -Original Ver.- / Takenobu Mitsuyoshi) | AC
14. Chain Chronicle (Battle For Justice II) Android / iOS
15. Wonderland Wars (Battle In Wonder Forest) ｜ AC
16. maimai ORANGE PLUS (welcome to maimai !! with My Maimer / Hiro feat. Takahito Koshida & Beat Mario) ｜ AC
17. CHUNITHM AIR PLUS (Beyond Chaos, Praise Our Holy Tuner) | AC
18. Sonic Forces (Fist Bump / Douglas Robb [Hoobastank]) ｜ PS4 / Switch
19. Mega Drive Mini (Menu Music -Original Ver.-)
20. New Sakura Wars (Kai! Imperial Huadan / Ayane Sakura (Sakura Amamiya), Marei Uchida (Hatsuho Shinonome), Hibiki Yamamura (Azami Mochizuki), Ayaka Fukuhara (Anastasia Palma), Saori Hayami (Claris)) ｜ PS4
21. Game Gear Micro (Good Gear Next Level -Menu Music A-)
22. Game Gear Micro (Which one do U play today? -Menu Music B-)
23. Astro City Mini (Menu Music)
24. Sega Moba & Sega Store ~ Image Song ~ (I want to see you again … / Takenobu Mitsuyoshi)
25. Sega Shiro (Shin Fujioka) (~ I want you to know now. 60th Anniversary Sega! ~)
26. Amazing SEGA ~ New Corporate Identity ~ (Last Ver.)
The Total War YouTube has given us our first look at the Fates Divided chapter pack coming to Total War Three Kingdoms of March 11th 2021. The new chapter pack brings “significant improvements to several existing mechanics” as well as the following features:
– The tumultuous 200 CE start date
– A new cross-generational faction playable in 190 CE, 194 CE, and 200 CE
– Over 20 new units, including formidable Northern Army units
– Unique missions and narrative events
– Additional mechanics added to your favourite factions
– New systems and mechanics to improve overall gameplay
You can watch the gameplay reveal trailer below:
Total War Three Kingdoms Fates Divided from The Creative Assembly launches on PC on the 11th of March 2021.
A new update is now available for Puyo Puyo Tetris 2, adding yet another batch of characters to the roster. In particular, we get some real fan-favourites in this wave; Yuu & Rei, Possessed Klug, Serilly, and Rafisol. They bring with them 3 new music tracks, and 20 icons for your online profile.
In addition, you can now adjust colour options including saturation, as a means of improving accessibility, and the previously single-player only Challenge Modes can now be played in multiplayer too! While not specifically mentioned on SEGA’s end, we’ve also been informed that some of the game’s lag issues have been cleared up now too, which is much appreciated.
After a couple of years garnering support and going through a slew of approval processes, the final verdict from LEGO themselves on Viv Grannell (also known as toastergrl)’s concept for a LEGO set based on 2017’s Sonic Mania is here; and it’s happening!
Via the latest LEGO Ideas submissions review, the house of many colourful bricks has confirmed they are now working with SEGA to make a full LEGO Sonic set a reality. This is right on cue for the 30th Anniversary, and hot on the heels of the company’s collaboration with a certain plumber last year, so the timing is perfect. It’s really great to see all of Viv’s effort and patience pay off, and you can bet that we’ll be first in line to pick up one of these sets for ourselves once it’s released.
From LEGO themselves:
The review board has given Viv Grannell’s (aka toastergrl on LEGO Ideas) Sonic Mania – Green Hill Zone the green light. We’re excited to collaborate with SEGA and Viv to bring one of the most iconic game characters and brands to life via LEGO bricks on the basis of Viv’s colourful and fun creation. Congrats Viv!
Obviously there’s no timeframe for the product just yet, but we can’t wait!
Tags: lego, merchandise, sonic mania Posted in News | Comments Off on “Sonic Mania: Green Hill Zone” LEGO Set Concept By Viv Grannell Receives Official Greenlight, Will Be Made Into Commercial LEGO Set
SEGA’s detective-based Yakuza spinoff Judgment is making its way to modern platforms, with an upgraded release including all DLC content.
The game will now boast a 60fps framerate, which will represent a far cry from the somewhat iffy performance of the original PS4 release. In addition, there’ll be improved load times across the board.
There’s a catch though. While PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X owners get to sink their teeth into the remaster, sadly the PC version will be restricted to Google’s streaming platform Stadia for the time being. To make matters worse, SEGA has confirmed to RPG Site that there’s no plan for a conventional PC version, nor an upgrade path for owners of the PS4 version. It’s certainly a shame to see, as even back when the game launched, RGG Studio said they’d be interested in doing a PC conversion.
At any rate, there’s not long to wait; the remaster will launch on April 23rd, worldwide.
Netflix have officially announced Sonic Prime, a new animated series coming to to the service in 2022 from Wildbrain Entertainment.
Wildbrain have released a press release, with the following summary:
The 24-episode animated adventure for kids, families, and long-time fans draws upon the keystones of the brand and features the “Blue Blur” of video game fame in a high-octane adventure where the fate of a strange new multiverse rests in his gloved hands. Sonic’s adventure is about more than a race to save the universe, it’s a journey of self-discovery and redemption.
The series will be animated at WildBrain’s Vancouver studio, and SEGA and WildBrain will jointly participate across production, distribution and licensing. Man of Action Entertainment, creators of Ben 10 and the characters and team in the Academy Award-winning feature Big Hero 6, have been brought on as showrunners and Executive Producers for the series.
It’s certainly an interesting premise, but it remains to be seen what this show will actually look like. More recently, Man of Action dipped their toes into the video game pond with Mega Man: Fully Charged, which… didn’t go down particularly well. Hopefully we’ll see some bits later this year.
SEGA is having yet another organisational shift, as the start of the new fiscal year looms. From April 1st, corporate functions will be integrated between the SEGA SAMMY Holdings group (aligning the operations of SEGA and Sammy more, from what we understand), and there’ll be some staff shifting about too. Perhaps none more eye-catching than Yakuza creator Toshihiro Nagoshi, who’ll be stepping back from his role as SEGA’s CCO (that’s Chief Creative Officer) and into a Creative Director role.
The corporate changes aren’t anything surprising and are fairly normal around the start of a new fiscal year, and it might not even mean a whole lot to the average SEGA fan; but SEGA’s getting it out of the way quite early, and Nagoshi stepping back is at least somewhat of a surprise. He’s certainly had a bumpy couple of years; with his revelation in 2019 that he’d had heart surgery, and the furore he kicked off in 2020 after managing to insult a pro Puyo Puyo player live on air. Either way, we do wonder if this could mean Nagoshi gets closer to the games being developed at SEGA again, because that would obviously be no bad thing.
Tags: sega japan, sega sammy, Toshihiro Nagoshi Posted in News | Comments Off on SEGA Reshuffling Management And Structure Again, Toshihiro Nagoshi Steps Down as CCO And Becomes Creative Director
Roger Craig Smith’s tenure voicing SEGA’s beloved mascot Sonic the Hedgehog has come to a somewhat abrupt end, as he’s announced through Twitter that after 10 years, he’s moving “onward to new zones.”
It’s certainly a surprise; for the past decade, Smith’s voice has become synonymous with the hedgehog for an entire generation of young fans. The older generations couldn’t seem to agree, but for our money he was probably the most consistently solid English voice Sonic’s had to date.
Should this mean we won’t be hearing Smith in the next Sonic game, it’d mean his final role as Sonic wasn’t actually a Sonic game; he recently voiced the blue blur in Puyo Puyo Tetris 2, as part of a recent content update.
It goes without saying, but we wish Smith all the best in whatever’s next for him. For many Sonic fans, now the question is – who’s next? Unsurprisingly, Ben Schwartz is a name popping up quite a lot on Twitter right now, after his stellar perfomance as Sonic’s movie counterpart – but only time will tell.
If you’re unfamiliar with the Sonic Cafe line of mobile games they were a series of i-Mode titles released exclusively in Japan between 2001 and 2007. The service is due to be discontinued which has sparked Japanese YouTuber Ruwa into action. Ruwa is currently capturing as many i-Mode games as possible and among them are direct feed captures of various Sonic Cafe titles like Sonic Darts, Sonic Golf, Sonic Jump and Sonic Kart 3DX. It makes for some truly fascinating viewing for Western SEGA fans as these games never made their way across the pond.
There’s also a number of SEGA i-Mode games like Out Run, Pengo and Monaco GP in there. Here’s an incomplete list of SEGA i-Mode games captured by Ruwa. I would list them all but there’s honestly just too many for me to list here. Check out the channel to browse more of his i-Mode captures by clicking here:
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After 28 years, Juro Watari has announced he’s departing SEGA as of today (February 28th). The announcement came via a thread on his personal Twitter page.
