Author Archives: Draikin

ATLUS & SEGA of America Are Present at Anime Expo 2016 With Yakuza 0, Project DIVA X and More

Draikin July 1, 2016 Leave a reply

Atlus has sent out a newsletter today, revealing that they’re present at the Anime Expo 2016 together with SEGA of America. You’ll be able to find them at booth #4001. Atlus does point out that there won’t be any merchandise this year, but the following games will be playable:

Yakuza 0
Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA X
The King of Fighters XVI
Sonic Boom: Fire and Ice
Rock of Ages II: Bigger and Boulder

The Anime Expo 2016 started today, and takes place at the LA Convention Center from July 1st to 4th. If you want to join the Atlus Faithful and receive the the Atlus newsletter, you can subscribe to them using the form in the bottom right corner of their website.

[Rumour] Is “SEGA Blast Heroes” a New SEGA Mobile Strategy RPG? (UPDATED)

Draikin July 1, 2016 1 Reply

An interesting piece of news has popped up on PocketGamer.biz, taking a look at what could be a new mobile game from SEGA. Recently, some people have reported seeing a new advert on Facebook promoting SEGA Blast Heroes, a supposedly new SEGA mobile strategy RPG. But curiously, the Facebook page behind the ad is called “SEGA Mobile”, and is listed as a “fan page” for SEGA. The advert in question also links to what seems to be a fake app store page from StoreMaven. The latter is apparently a service that helps test app store conversion rates.

Dragon’s Crown Temporarily Removed from EU PlayStation Store Due to End of Atlus/NISA Partnership

Draikin June 30, 2016 Leave a reply

It appears the first result of the end of the partnership between NIS America and Atlus in Europe has become visible, as Dragon’s Crown was removed from the EU PlayStation Store. Curiously, the game was actually part of the Big in Japan sale which we covered recently, making the removal of the game even more of a surprise. Fortunately, it appears the game will be returning to the PlayStation Store, as Atlus will be selling the game directly. NIS America has issued this statement to various gaming websites:

With regards to our previous statements on Dragon’s Crown for the European PSN, we must extend our deepest apologies to Atlus and European fans regarding the incorrect information about the removal from this store.
The removal of Dragon’s Crown from the European PSN was part of NIS America’s and Atlus’s mutual agreement on this title. We are happy to announce that Dragon’s Crown will be available directly from Atlus in Europe through PSN.
Please look forward to Dragon’s Crown returning to the European PSN soon.

Whether or not more Atlus games published by NISA will be rendered unavailable on the EU PlayStation Store is unclear, as NISA Europe doesn’t appear to have all the information themselves. It also not clear if the game will be back on sale on the EU PlayStation Store before the end of the Big in Japan sales.

Source: NISA Europe Twitter account, via Eurogamer.

Shenmue 3 Kickstarter Celebrates Its First Anniversary with a New Update

Draikin June 30, 2016 Leave a reply

It’s already been one year since the Shenmue 3 Kickstarter was launched, and Ys Net have posted an update on their Kickstarter page to celebrate the occasion. While the video posted with the update uses mostly footage of areas that we’ve already seen before, it does feature Yu Suzuki, who looks back on the work the team has done over the past year.

SEGA and Atlus Games Discounted in the “Big In Japan” Sales on the EU PlayStation Store

Draikin June 29, 2016 Leave a reply

Like last year, Sony have launched another “Big in Japan” sales for the EU PlayStation Store, which sees a bunch of (mostly) Japanese games sold at a discounted price for the PS4, PS3, PS Vita and PSP. Like last year, we made a list of all the Atlus and Sega games featured in the sales, with their discounted price. Worth noting is that the discount applied for the price in British pound isn’t always the same as the discount for the euro prices this time around. The sales ends on July 14th.

Also worth noting: most (if not all) of the Hyperdimension Neptunia games, a franchise which will receive a crossover game with the SeHa Girls, have been discounted as well.

7th Dragon III Code: VFD Demo Now Available on the Nintendo eShop

Draikin June 28, 2016 Leave a reply

SEGA of America have released a demo for 7th Dragon III Code: VFD in the Americas today. You can find it on the Nintendo eShop for the Nintendo 3DS. 7th Dragon III Code: VFD is the latest entry in SEGA’s 7th Dragon series. In the demo you’ll receive a pre-made group of characters with a level cap set to 10. You’ll also be able to transfer the save game from the demo over to the full game. Doing so will give you a head start in the full game as you can carry over characters and you’ll receive some starter equipment. You’ll also be able to refund all the skills points invested in the characters from the demo.

Odin Sphere Leifthrasir Review (PS4)

Draikin June 24, 2016 Leave a reply

The original Odin Sphere is a 2D action RPG developed by Vanillaware and published by Atlus, which was released back in 2007 on the PS2. At the time it was praised for its stunning 2D visuals and intuitive gameplay, but it suffered from a low framerate. 9 years later, Atlus and Vanillaware have once again teamed up to release Odin Sphere Leifthrasir, a remastered version of the original, on the PlayStation Vita, PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4. Taking advantage of the more powerful hardware, Odin Sphere Leifthrasir attempts to resolve the problems with the original game. Below, you can find my review of the game’s PlayStation 4 version!

Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA X Receives USK Rating in Germany

Draikin June 24, 2016 Leave a reply

If there was any doubt that Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA X was heading to Europe after the reveal that SEGA Europe would be publishing the game in Australia, someone on the NeoGAF forums has now pointed out that the website for the German rating system USK (basically the German equivalent of the ESRB or PEGI) now also lists a rating for the game:

Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE Now Available in NA and EU, New Launch Trailer Revealed

Draikin June 24, 2016 Leave a reply

Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE for the Wii U is now available in North America and Europe, and to celebrate the game’s launch, Nintendo have released a new launch trailer for the game, which you can view below. Developed by Atlus and published by Nintendo, the game is a crossover RPG for the Shin Megami Tensei and Fire Emblem series, and it’s probably also the closest thing you’ll get to a Persona game on the Wii U. While we couldn’t secure a review copy for our website, the various reviews that have hit the web in recent days have been quite positive.

On a personal note, I just picked up my copy of the game, and I’ll probably still be writing a review for our website at some point. If there’s any interest in seeing a live stream of the game on Segalization’s Youtube channel, let us know in the comments!

Today’s SEGA Central Features an Interview with Toshihiro Nagoshi

Draikin June 22, 2016 Leave a reply

SEGA Europe have uploaded the latest SEGA Central episode to their Youtube channel, which almost entirely consists of an interview with SEGA’s Toshihiro Nagoshi, the man behind the Yakuza series, but also other SEGA games such as Daytona USA, Scud Race and the Super Monkey Ball series. Among other questions, SEGA Central asked Nagoshi about his most memorable moments of the Yakuza series, and also of his entire career in the gaming industry. They also ask if he has a message for the Yakuza fans. You can view the video below!