Monday, February 18, 2013

SEGA NEEEEEEEWWWZZZZZZ

Now, about old-ass Sega news that I didn't bring up until now, rofl.

First of all, The 90's Arcade Racer has met its goal of £10,000 ($15,521)!!!  WE DID IT!!!  The Kickstarter raised a grand total of £16,309 ($25313).  By its release in Dec. 2013, it should have:

* A total of eight cars--2 stock cars, 2 F1 cars, 2 McLarens, and 2 "bonus cars".
* Three tracks each with two different layout variations, forward/reverse, and day/night features.
* A drift scoring system.
* Arcade and championship modes for each car type.
* Leaderboards.
* Available on PC, Linux, iOS, Android, and Wii U.
* Possibly more features to be announced in the future...

This list was "confirmed" by an e-mail update I got for donating the £90 ($140) to the project.

Now, when I made whatever limited communication with the guy, I brought up a few things.  I inquired about manual transmission.  I really hope he's able to get that in but with the 6-gear shifter, it might be particularly hard (Daytona USA and Scud Race both used 4-gears).  And then there's the car audio which I think he needs to kick up the bass volume if he can.  Also have the car lean more in the turns and emit more tire smoke.  Basically stuff from Need for the Sense of Speed post...how to get great sense of speed in your game.  And no, I didn't link him to this blog, that would just be stupid of me.

Also I might add that today I'm a lot poorer.  And a lot more depressed because woe is me, all I can do is sit here and watch everyone make Sega racing games besides me.

But I got interesting news...if you happen to be a real-life race car driver AND a playable character in Sega All-Stars Racing (I'm talking about Danica Patrick), then you're happy dancin today.  Cause you qualified on the pole (1st place) for the first time in the history of ANY NASCAR Cup Race (the Daytona 500).



Well, shit.  If Danica actually wins this race and/or many others, I'm going to be kicking my own ass all the way back to Florida knowing that if Danica had only gotten better JUST A BIT SOONER, she could've won the Texas Nationwide race in the Sega Sonic car.  I have nothing against Danica and I actually kind of like her (as a driver, idiots) but her suddenly becoming good post-Sega is just one big WHY???

EDIT: Well to go over more Danica stuff.  Yes, she still has a "Sonic" sticker on her GoDaddy car.  Yes, she just appeared in another Sega All-Stars Racing commercial.  Yes, I would be "happy" for her if she won (though I don't think she will...starting position means next to nothing in NASCAR besides to intimidate the competition).  But talking before about the difference between racing aficionados and gamers who simply like racing games, I don't think Danica (or any real life driver, really) would do a good job promoting Sega All-Stars Racing.  So if she won in the GoDaddy car, well...I don't think Sega has much to gain anyway.

Now for news actually pertaining to Sega.

The big story for all Sega fans...Microsoft admits not buying out Sega post-Dreamcast era due to "lack of muscle."  Okay, I'm not really surprised or offended by this.  Am I supposed to be mad that Microsoft didn't deem Sega worthy of being bought and basically left them to die in the post-Dreamcast era?  Basically, Microsoft got what they wanted out of their Sega partnership and that is the launching of their own console (the Xbox).  Plus they got ex-Sega of America CEO Scumbag Peter Moore (who now works for EA Sports).  Sega has some of the greatest IPs under their belt (Sonic, arcade racers, Genesis/Saturn/Dreamcast stars, etc.) but why Microsoft passed up on them, I don't know.  Because they're not gritty FPSes like Halo, yeah that makes sense.  Besides, judging from where MS is now, was that really a good thing?  Look at Rare, a smaller company bought out by MS but aside from Viva Pinata, they've just sucked recently.  Good riddance, Microsoft.

Speaking of company cannibalism, I remember a while back how Kotaku said that Sega planned to buy out Disney.  DISNEY.  Quick lookup on Wikipedia and right now, Disney's assets equal $75 billion.  I really don't know what Sega's are but after this whole 2012 restructuring, I bet it's less than 10% of that.  What was Kotaku smoking...

And then there's Aliens: Colonial Marines!  Gearbox, what...a...disgrace.  Frankly, I don't give a crap about the game at all--it looks like another linear sci-fi shooter, I'm not too keen on the Aliens franchise, and it doesn't have ANYTHING to do with traditional "Sega-go-lucky-blue-skies" theme (other than the Sega logo on the box).  The only reason I really care is because this is supposed to be one of Sega's big moneymakers for the year and now I hear the game is so bad that people are canceling preorders by the thousands!  Anytime Sega fails, I die a little on the inside.

Right now, there's rumors being spread about how Gearbox dropped the ball on Aliens and this is the best TLDR version I got.  If I'm wrong on some things, feel free to correct me since the situation is rather nonsensical:

* Sega and Gearbox agree to a new Aliens game starting in 2006.
* Gearbox works on Aliens (under the project name "Pecan") for four years.  Game looks "good" but Gearbox is working on other projects at the time such as Borderlands so there's a lot of feet-dragging going on (list of Gearbox games by year here).  Sega is obviously annoyed.
* Gearbox, now preoccupied by the GOTY Borderlands 2, outsources parts of the game to smaller studios, most notably TimeGate which'll handle the game's campaign mode.
* However, TimeGate falls way behind and even removes a bunch of features that Gearbox added previously.  The s*** hits the fan for Gearbox.
* Sega, pissed off that the game has taken over 5+ years, demands it be finished soon.  Gearbox then hastily spits out a final product held together by duct tape and Elmer's glue.
* Reviewers bash Aliens: Colonial Marines to no end.
* Gearbox developer goes on defensive explaining what we know here.  Sega employee teases a lawsuit against Gearbox because they "spent" all the money on Borderlands 1/2 development.

I don't hold Sega culpable for this mess.  Gearbox butchers Duke Nukem Forever, let it slide, now they butcher Aliens: Colonial Marines and that's strikes two & three, you're out.  But Sega IMO really has to cut out these movie IP games.  First it was Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, now Aliens.  None of these games were that good in the first place.  STOP IT SEGA, GO BACK TO DOING WHAT YOU DO BEST AND CHANNEL YOUR OLD CONSOLE-ERA SELVES.  SUPPORT UNIQUE VIDEO GAMES BESIDES THESE GRITTY FPSES THAT DON'T STAND A CHANCE TO THE TEN-TON PURPLE GORILLAS IN THE ROOM.  End of this nonsense.

Was going to talk a bit more about the new video game consoles but this post has gone on long enough.  More pettiness coming your way in about five days, sixteen hours, forty-five minutes, and two seconds (get a stopwatch, I might be off by a few days tho).

5 comments:

  1. Reading that Kotaku article, I didn't get the idea that Sega wanted to purchase Disney, just compete on their level (correct me if I'm mistaken). On the other hand there has been speculation of Disney purchasing Sega but this kind of talk has been going on for years.

    Heard about Microsoft not buying out Sega, and Rare was the first thing to came to mind. From what I read, sounds like they would've bought Sega to increase their odds of competing against Sony and Nintendo, but as we all know Sega's had a problem with appeal in the Western market, which I'm betting was Microsoft's primary focus to begin with. Likewise we know how both XBox systems fared in Japan. If Rare came out the way it did, it was probably for the better. But then again, IMO, I think we saw the last of the old Sega in the early XBox days (GunValkyrie, JSRF, Shenmue II, Panzer Dragoon Orta, OutRun2), with HOTD4, VF5 and After Burner Climax coming a bit later. I consider Yakuza part of the "new" Sega. That said, maybe it could've been like Rare, or not that much different, though I doubt the latter.

    And the Gearbox debacle. Holy macaroo. If it's proven that Gearbox used the money Sega gave them to develop A:CM to instead fund the development for both Borderlands games, they're done for. I know many (myself included) would want Sega to take legal action and bury them alive, but I doubt any publisher would want to work with them again after this. Ponzi scheme of the game industry.

    And for a game that was six years in development, already modders are making this game look a million times better than it is. I read that someone found the list of graphics cards that were supported within the game code, the most recent one being dated 2007. Yikes.

    So it doesn't look good for Sega even though it looks like it might reach decent sales. I was talking about this with a buddy of mine who likes Gearbox's games and the Aliens brand, but he's in agreement that if it's all true, it's a huge dick move. He speculated that if stuff like this continues, Sega will cease to exist, though he's unfamiliar with how they're faring outside America. Nonetheless, it's a perception shared by many. Honestly, I hope this lights a fire under SOA's ass and reconsider their take on western development (if it even is SOA calling any shots).

    But being in a room with people unfamiliar with Sega's history, it made me realize that Sega's best games were usually Japanese, but because western audiences tend to dismiss things they're not familiar with, they struggled. And Sega's attempts to win the western audience with popular licenses just hasn't been successful. Something's got to give.

    And on a personal note, looks like I'm heading off to GDC next month hoping to see if I can get anyone's attention for a job, not fall asleep through self-congratulatory speeches, and probably have someone rip my portfolio to shreds. Who knows? Speaking of which, it's online if you're interested. just remove the underlines. http://_sestrenegade_._wix_._com_/_rcrz

    If the menu looks weird, it's wix. Looks perfectly in some resolutions and my sister's tablet, though.

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    Replies
    1. Correction: Seven years. Oh yeah, and a Spaceballs "easter egg" *rolls eyes*

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    2. Nice comment, I'll reply to it later today since I'm dead tired right now....

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    3. Yeah, I think the Rare story is appropriate for Sega. Though I think Sega could've been more useful to Microsoft than you'd think...after all, the Dreamcast did well in the States. But ultimately, seeing where Microsoft and Sega are now, I don't think they're very compatible, I agree.

      And the Aliens story. Wow, check this out. New story about how Gearbox employees are even admitting that they ripped off Sega:

      http://segabits.com/blog/2013/02/19/rumor-anonymous-gearbox-developer-claims-gearbox-lied-to-sega-sega-temporarily-canceled-the-project/

      Kinda lame that Borderlands 1/2 go on to be Game of the Year while Aliens goes on to be Biggest Disappointment of the Year. It's just traditional dumbass luck on Sega's part. They have a case here if Gearbox deliberately screwed with Aliens. Any respect I had for Gearbox is gone :)

      Also you have neat friends to talk about video games with. Cooooool.....

      And you're going to GDC, crazy man...I think I have a few friends going out there too. Good luck with the job process. And while we're on the subject of portfolio sites, here's mine...http://www.er_ic-fric_hter.com/ (remove the underscores cause I'm lame like that)

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  2. just found out about 90s racer.

    looks awesome. hope it plays well.
    looks like it's in good hands.

    will be interesting to see the progress
    on that.

    also, found out at arcadecontrols.com
    they have a specific racing board now.

    and a competition for racing games going
    on, the first up is indy 500, winner gets
    to pick next game and course.

    i can't seem to register there though.
    will try again.

    later
    -1

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