Articles By True Red

From Gamers.com:

Sega recently held a press conference at the Tokyo Stock Exchange, and the results of the first half of the fiscal year are a little less than stellar.

Tetsu Kayama, COO for Sega Japan, commented on several points, including the performance of the Sega Sports brand. Kayama explained that Sega Sports lost 6 billion yen this half as a result of Sega's overconfidence. For example, only about 400,000 copies of NFL2K3 have been sold from the original shipment of 1 million copies. NBA 2K3, however, showed stronger sales of about 500,000 to 600,000 units.

Counting all ten of Sega's development studios, the company made a net loss of 1.5 billion yen this half. Sega is currently considering a business plan for the next fiscal year that will include fewer titles and genres to hopefully break even at 11 million yen. Projected sales say that 3 of those million will come from the homeland, with 6 million coming from North America and an extra 2 million from Europe.

To cut costs, Sega is considering withdrawing from the NCAA franchise and concentrating on only four major sports. Additionally, sports titles for the GameCube may be cut entirely as a result of lower sales and increased production costs. To increase potential sales, Sega is also considering expanding "Entertainment Titles" (such as Sonic or VF4) to all consoles instead of just one.

Of course, these decisions are pending as Sega debates them internally. Kayama says to expect announcements next month.

Source: Gamers.com

There's a new Sonic cell phone game out in Japan. You can see pics of it at Sonic Team's site right here.

Source: Sonic Team

From XenGamers:

Sega has signed an agreement with RealNetworks to begin offering classic games for the PC through a broadband service entitled RealOne Arcade. For the first time gamers may now download the official versions of four classic titles to their PC with the debut of the Sega Channel on RealOne Arcade (www.realonearcade.com/sega/). Additional Genesis games are scheduled to be offered on a regular basis. Gamers may try free demo versions of each game and may purchase the full version, which will include complete game features and functionality, for $14.99 each to permanently add it to their RealOne Arcade library. The Sega Channel will debut with four titles including Sonic the Hedgehog and Ecco the Dolphin. Sega Classics software lineup will also include: Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine, Columns III, Phantasy Star II, Shinobi III Return of Ninja Master, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Toejam and Earl, Vectorman, and Virtua Fighter 2.

"RealOne Arcade provides new opportunities for the gaming industry to unlock their archives as well as a simple and compelling platform for Sega enthusiasts to play their all-time favorite games," said Ted Woolsey, Business Development Director, Games Division, RealNetworks, Inc. "We look forward to working with Sega.com to launch additional games for the PC and provide a seamless experience for an entire new generation of gamers."

Source: XenGamers

IGNCube reviews the Sonic Mega Collection.

From SwirlVision

SAN FRANCISCO - (November 12, 2002) - SEGA(R) of America, Inc. today announced the release of "Sonic Mega Collection(TM)" for the Nintendo GameCube(TM). "Sonic Mega Collection" is a "must have" for long time fanatics and newcomers to the series alike, featuring seven classic Sonic The Hedgehog(R) games from the SEGA Genesis(R), five additional unlockable games and a Sonic museum filled with art, comics and more.

"Sonic Mega Collection" includes seven of the most-loved Sonic games of all time, including: "Sonic The Hedgehog(R)," "Sonic The Hedgehog(R) 2," "Sonic The Hedgehog(R) 3," "Sonic & Knuckles(TM)," "Sonic 3D Blast(TM)," "Sonic The Hedgehog(R) Spinball (TM)" and "Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine."

"A new generation of fans have recently discovered what us older gamers have know forever - that Sonic rules!" said Mike Fischer, vice president of entertainment marketing, SEGA of America, Inc. "Now old-school gamers like me can relive some of the most influential games of all time, and new fans of the series can experience all the classic games that made Sonic a superstar!"

Loaded with hyper-speed ring collecting fun, "Sonic Mega Collection" features SEGA's mascot and all his friends in some of their greatest adventures ever. The game also includes a collection of comic, concept and cover art and many more surprises.

"Sonic Mega Collection" is rated "E" for Everyone and is available at retailers nationwide for an MSRP of $39.95.

Source: SwirlVision

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #120

Written by Karl Bollers, Romy Chacon and Ken Penders, art by Steven Butler, Art Mawhinney, Jim Amash, Pam Eklund, Dawn Best and Penders.

"She's Gotta Have Him." How far will a woman go to get a man's attention? Sonic finds out when love struck Mina the Mongoose joins the Freedom Fighters. "The Royal Signet." Princess Sally remembers Julayla, her late mentor, in this heartwarming tale. "In the Beginning." Julie-Su and Mighty reflect upon the good old days with Knuckles, and how they met.

32 pages, $2.19, in stores on Feb. 5.

Source: Comics Continuum

As reported previously, the Sonic Mega Collection will be out on November 12 in the US.

Source: Gamespot

From IGNCube:

Sega has established a new supervisory body to oversee its game production and development strategies for both console software and arcade games, reports the latest issue of the Nikkei Weekly. This organization bureau will be composed of four people, led by Hisao Oguchi of the Hitmaker division.

The creation of this body is apparently also to be accompanied by a centralization of Sega's game development, which has for some time been carried out by a series of relatively disparate development teams -- Hitmaker, Smilebit, AM2, and so on. Though those teams will retain their autonomous identity, development will be more closely supervised from Sega's central headquarters from now on.

If Sega's internal shakeups lead to a direct influence on its present and future games, we'll be sure to bring you further news on the story as it arises.

Source: IGNCube

Sega has cemented plans for a series of Game Party events across Japan dedicated to its upcoming GameCube and GameBoy Advance software lineup. Scheduled to begin on November 2, the events will offer Japanese players the opportunity to experience Eternal Arcadia Legend (GameCube), Phantasy Star Online: Episodes 1 & 2 (GameCube), Sonic MegaCollection (GameCube), Super Monkeyball 2 (GameCube), and Sonic Advance 2 (GameBoy Advance), among others. The Game Party events will reportedly be held at participating Ito-Yokado and Jusco retail stores across Japan.

Source: XenGamers

Two reviews of the Sega Smash Pack for the GBA. One review is from Gamespot and the other is from IGNPocket.

Sources: Gamespot & IGNPocket