How 1up.com would save Sega

[Tetsaru]

Not sure if this is in the right section, but supposedly Rants is also for "serious discussion," so what the hell...

I found this article (http://www.1up.com/do/feature?pager.offset=0&cId=3179125) on 1up's site just a few minutes ago, and they make some very valid points. Read it and tell me what you think.

And for the love of God, if anyone gripes at me for posting something about Sega again, I won't hesitate to report them this time around.

[Outrider]

Oh snap, it's Jeremy Parish writing an excellent article. What a big surprise.

Honestly, the easiest point for them to jump on is their ability to take advantage of casual gaming. Chu Chu Rocket could make it big.

Still, I'd say that it's unlikely some of these will happen anytime soon. In particular, Sega has always had major issues with acting like a global company. Just take a look at the fiasco surrounding the development of Sonic X-Treme. (In addition to that, I seem to recall reading about how Sega of America and Sega of Japan were each tasked with building a 32-bit console. SoA's was cartridge-based and ultimately cancelled in favor of SoJ's cd-based Saturn.)

And off-topic: You realize that calling you out for constantly whining about Sega isn't against the forum rules?

[SStrikerR]

I haven't read the link yet, but sure, I think this topic belongs here. And since you haven't put in your opinion this time besides agreeing with the article, I don't think anyone's going to mind. I didn't even notice you were the OP till you said that.

Although, the threat of a report isn't all that..well, threatening. But whatever. Time to read the article.

[amtalx]

There are some good ideas, but it's basically three pages of "do stuff that makes money". Running a company is a little more complicated than that.

[Outrider]

There are some good ideas, but it's basically three pages of "do stuff that makes money". Running a company is a little more complicated than that.

For some reason, when I first read your post, I thought you said "Ruining a company is a little more complicated than that.[/i]"

Which is still true.

[Tetsaru]

You realize that calling you out for constantly whining about Sega isn't against the forum rules?

Yes, but neither is constantly putting down Sega, iirc. :razz:

Flame-baiting, however is against the rules, of course; but no harm, no foul. I'd just rather avoid it altogether and just discuss the topic I've posted. I'm sure that's what you guys would like too, right? :wacko:


I haven't read the link yet, but sure, I think this topic belongs here. And since you haven't put in your opinion this time besides agreeing with the article, I don't think anyone's going to mind. I didn't even notice you were the OP till you said that.

Although, the threat of a report isn't all that..well, threatening. But whatever. Time to read the article.

My opinion of the article is simply, "I agree with it." I guess the general wall-o'-text that tends to be prominent in most of my posts didn't apply this time. :wacko: But, I'm about to head over to a friend's house soon, so I don't really have the time to elaborate atm.

[KodiaX987]

There's not much I can add to this. I've been in the "dammit just take your franchises that worked and do them right" camp for a while now and I've seen a few titles that were close to it, but nothing ever got it exactly the way I could've wanted it.

Outrun 2006 was perhaps the most classical-oriented Sega game I've seen coming out lately (apply it loosely) and even then, I couldn't see myself taking it for a little spin once in a while. I was in a get-all-the-achievements mood and my sessions were a grueling 2+ hours long.

Meanwhile, I can pick up Outrun for the frickin' Master System, do a 10 minute game, and then I'll get the urge to play it again the following week. I keep coming back to the sheer simplicity and pick-up-and-play factor of it, in contrast to the involvement in the titles of now.

[Powder Keg]

The funny thing about 1up is that they couldn't even get something right about a game they sponsored. See: Mag Feeding.


I seem to have lost the link to the article. Perhaps someone else can find it, or I will post it here if I do.

[Kent]

"I'd work up an exclusive deal with Microsoft to create a Game Room-type feature that specialized in Saturn and Dreamcast games,"
Dammit, I've been wanting this sort of thing for years. Let me put my Saturn and Dreamcast discs in my 360 and play them, too, while you're at it. 'Cause that'll totally happen.

Where Sega went astray, I think, is the direction they took all of their core franchises. Specifically, the fact that they dropped a lot of them in favor of just being a third-party publisher in lieu of Activision and EA. There's a lot of untapped potential in Sega's old franchises, but some of them don't need "re-imagining" like what we saw with Golden Axe and Phantasy Star.

Some modernization is good, as is forward-thinking, but it's important to realize that not every aspect of the games really need that.

I also think that disbanding and assimilating SmileBit was a big mistake, simply because their games for the original Xbox remain some of the best renditions of both classic Sega IPs and brand new ones. Design like that - design that takes a real understanding of what made those games great in the first place and actually makes it even better - is what the company needs in their games.

[Delete]

Shenmue 3.........DO IT plz :sad:

[Tomeeboy]

Thought this was an interesting read as well, so I posted it on the front page:
http://www.pso-world.com/news/02266-1up-thinks-sega-needs-saving-heres-how-they-would-do-it

It wasn't until today that I realized it was posted here as well :D

Definitely some valid points made throughout the article. I think some of the views were contradicting, but that was likely a result of having multiple people giving their input.

I would really like to see Sega take one of their big franchises (preferably Phantasy Star :D) and really hit a home run with it. The series hasn't really had much mainstream success since PSO and I think the 1UP article touched on some of the reasons for that.

[AnnabellaRenee87]

Heh, I'm going to turn over a 10 year old stone here, If only the Dreamcast had a DVD drive we may be playing with our Dreamcast 2s right now. At the end of the article the guy joked about how they did better when they had their own hardware, I hate to say this but they where right. When your a 3ed party developer you have to go with what the console developer wants, so we see this happen,

Sega: We have a Sonic Game in the works and its going to be the best yet, it may even go GOTY.
Microsoft/Nintendo/Sony: (thinks to their self) Will this game take away from Halo/Mario/Uncharted sails.
Microsoft/Nintendo/Sony: Lets see the Beta version
Sega: Here is our New 3D Sonic, it still needs A LOT of work but should be ready my fall, (blockbuster release dates.)
Microsoft/Nintendo/Sony: (Thinks to their self) this has the potential of surpassing Halo/Mario/Uncharted sails
Microsoft/Nintendo/Sony: Its fine the way it is, go ahead and ship it the way it is, I'm sure it will sell great.

Sure my story was thrown together and may not make since I was trying to make a story how a console manufacture can pick and choose the games they want on their console to pad the sails numbers on their own in house games.

I used my Dreamcast up until I was not able to buy games anymore from Wal-Mart and Gamestop without going online and at 14 years old I did not have a way to get games online and new games was not coming out anymore for it I just had to go to XBox after that. (and I went XBox because the controller reminded me of the Dreamcasts controller. Three weeks ago I finally unplugged my Dreamcast as I was not playing it as much as I use to so I could make room in my AV cabinet but it is a 9-9-99 launch unit and is still working perfectly 10 years later. (lets see my Xbox 360, PS3 and Wii do that)

Sega was not afraid to take chances on strange new games (seaman) break new ground (who would have thought of a MMORPG on a console (PSO).

I could go on and I think I may have went off topic so but to put everything I would like to say shortly, Sega as a brand is dead, I doubt PSU gets updates, I doubt the next Phantasy Star game will be anything to write home about, (started to die once PSU came out anyways), and Sonic will continue to be used in crappy games until his name is as notorious as ET on the Atari 2600.