May 30, 1996
Sega Announces New PR FirmAfter parting ways with longtime PR firm Goodby and Partners, Sega has announced that it has reached a decision on which firm will work with Sega on the next round of Sega television spots. Ingalls Moranville was selected from six potential contenders for the coveted account. The other agencies were Bozell/Salvati Montgomery Sakoda, Foote, Cone & Belding, Ground Zero, McCann Erikson, and Dailey and Associates. Despite the changeover, it is expected that the next round of TV commercials from Sega will feature the return of the trademark “Sega scream.”
information from IG Online
WWF Arcade to Arrive in Stores TodayWWF Arcade will arrive in stores today, May 30, 1996 for the Sega Saturn.
May 26, 1996
Shining Wisdom release dateShining Wisdom is currently scheduled for a June 17th release.
May 25, 1996
Lunar 3 NewsContrary to rumors that have been passed around the ‘net, there
WILL be a Lunar 3. It is currently being worked on and will be released after the releases of the Lunar 1 & 2 Director’s Cuts. It should be out in late ’97 or early ’98.
May 24, 1996
Daytona Remix InformationAccording to Next Generation Online, Sega has stated that Daytona USA Champion Circuit Edition will contain the same four camera angles used in the original, include a two player option (link or split screen not specified), and will be available this fall for a retail of $49.99. Sega has not confirmed the track editor.
information from NG Online
PIE’s Skeleton Warriors ResponseThe following reason has been given by PIE for the delayed release of Skeleton Warriors:
The reason the Saturn version has been delayed is because Sega of America had trouble trying to burn the cd’s. We apologize for the inconvinience. The game will be released at the end of May.
May 22, 1996
Bottom of the 9th announced for the SaturnKonami has officially announced Bottom of the 9th for the Sega Saturn for a late Summer release.
information from next generation online
May 21, 1996
Mystaria–Riglord Saga–Blazing HeroesMystaria’s new name is now Blazing Heroes. As previously mentioned Sega had problems with Copyright violations with the name Mystaria, they were forced to pull the game off of store shelves. It turns out that the Japanese name Riglord Saga also posed some copyright problems, so they’ve come up with a brand new name. Please note:
as reported earlier Sega and TSR came to an agreement that is allowing Sega to sell off their remaining stock of Mystaria
information from IG Online
Yu says VF3 can doYu Suzuki has stated that the Saturn can do VF3, even without any hardware add-ons.
May 19, 1996
Sega and TSR make a dealSega of America and TSR have made a deal that will allow Sega to sell the rest of their copies of Mystaria. Mystaria had been pulled off of store shelves due to a copyright violation with the title ‘Mystaria’.
Earthworm Jim 2 has been ReleasedApparently, Earthworm Jim 2 has been released (5/17). I’ve seen it in two different stores, and have received email’s that support this.
May 17, 1996
Saturn Now $199.99Sega has responded to Sony’s price drop with a price drop of their own. The price of the Sega Saturn has been dropped nationwide to $199.99.
pic of Sega’s new analog controller
Sega Sports 1996 LineupSega has announced its 1996 Sega Sports Lineup. The lineup includes
World Series Baseball II, World Wide Soccer II, Daytona USA Championship Circuit Edition, NBA Action, NFL 97, and Manx TT. NBA Action is scheduled for a June release and the rest sometime in the Summer or Fall.
Sega’s Arcade to Saturn TranslationsSega has announced that they will be bringing home their hot arcade titles Manx TT, Virtual On, Fighting Vipers, and Virtua Cop 2. Virtual On should arrive this summer, with Manx TT following it this fall and V-Cop 2 and Fighting Vipers this winter.
May 14, 1996
Saturn InternetSega will showcase an Internet peripheral for the Sega Saturn at E3. It will have capabilities for network play, email, WWW browsing, and other online services. It will be priced at $450 with the a Saturn and $200 alone. It will ship this fall, and their are currently 12 games in development for release by the end of 1996.
May 13, 1996
News CorrectionsSonic: The Fighters does not run on the ST-V Arcade Board, like I previously reported, but runs on the Arcade Model 2 Board. Another rumor that was going around was that AM2 was working on a Virtua Fighter Playback, but that has been proven to be false.
May 12, 1996
Komami’s Saturn E3 LineupKonami has announced it’s E3 lineup for the Sega Saturn. The games included were Bottom of the 9th, NFL Full Contact, Broken Helix, Pinky the Brain, Contra, Project Overkill, Kumite and Policenauts.
I can’t believe it, we are actually getting Policenauts – so cool :^)
May 8, 1996
Daytona Remix —> Daytona DeluxeSega has decided to change the name of Daytona Remix to Daytona Deluxe. The reason for this change is that Daytona Deluxe will be much more than a graphically improved version Daytona, but will include other upgrades, as well. Daytona Deluxe will feature the original three tracks as well as three new tracks, and a track editor. It is said to be equal to or better than Sega Rally in terms of graphics.
information from various sources
May 7, 1996
Sonic: The Fighters on ST-VAccording to Dustin, Sonic: The Fighters runs on the Saturn compatible ST-V Arcade board.
info from Dustin’s Sega Saturn Page
Breath of Fire 3Capcom has announced Breath of Fire 3 for the Saturn (and Playstation). Its tentatively scheduled for a 3rd Quarter ’96 release
May 6, 1996
Quake for SaturnAccording to Greg from Digital Extremes, Id Software has confirmed Quake for the Sega Saturn to be released around the same time as the PC version. They say it won’t be just a direct port.
information from Mall Media
May 4, 1996
Working Designs NewsIron Storm should ship this Monday, May 6th, and should be on store shelves around Wednesday or Thursday (May 8th or 9th). Shining Wisdom should be released around the first part of June.
Saturn SonicSega will be show casing a 3-D Sonic for the Saturn at this years E3. The working title is Sonic X-Treme and the game should be released by Christmas.
information from IGonline
Sega signs on new 3rd party DevelopersSega Enterprises has announced that it has entered into third party agreements with Taiwanese software developers Softstar Information, King Formation, Dynasty International, Computer & Intertainment and Intersub Multimedia Communications. Mirroring deals with Japanese third party developers, Sega will be adding its development and sales support to the Taiwanese companies. The companies will introduce between three to five games within the next year, and from then on, seven annually. It is likely that some of these will eventually make their way to the states. These five companies make up over 50% of the Taiwanese software market. This is the first time Sega has entered into such an agreement in Taiwan, and it is believed that other console companies will follow their lead, since the area is ripe with similarly advanced software houses.
information from EGM online
May 3, 1996
Wipeout will be in Stores TodayWipeout will be in stores today, May 3, 1996. It has been released in some areas and should be out everywhere today.
May 2, 1996
Sega of America gets help from Sega EnterprisesIn a recent interview with Nikkei English News, Sega of Japan president Hayao Nakayama revealed that Sega Enterprises will swallow some of Sega of America’s promotion and distribution costs into itself. Seeing this as a long term strategic investment in the North American market, he believes this will allow SoA to put more promotion behind upcoming big titles and the lower cost Saturn machines. Hypothetically, up to 10 billion yen ($100 million in U.S. dollars) can reportedly be invested, though the official hopes the company can meet its goals within about 5 billion yen ($50 million in U.S. dollars). Nakayama expects that SoA will turn profitable in the next fiscal year or after, when the Saturn console sales climb to a satisfactory level.
Even with building up its foreign subsidiaries in such a way, Sega Enterprises alone expects to make 33-34 billion yen ($330-340 million in U.S. dollars) in operating profit within this current income statement. With its arcade machines alone (the company’s main line), Sega feels it can make a goal of 40 billion yen ($400 million in U.S. dollars), as well.
information from EGM online
Langrisser 3 and Working Designs is only a RUMORIt was previously announced that Working Designs had picked up Langrisser 3, but that is only a RUMOR. In fact, according to Vic Ireland talks are not even close at this point.
