Sega Rally Online Arcade

So with the Saturn celebrating 16 glorious years since it first lightened up the lives of videogamers and Sega-heads everywhere, what better time than now to bring us back a piece of unparalleled Saturn driving glory?

Now, for a mere pittance of 800 microsoft points, you can re-live the magic of the original '95 Saturn Sega Rally Desert stage, only with the beautiful graphic quality of 2007's Sega Rally Revo and the sublime bouncy arcade car physics of Sega Rally 3!

This really is a Saturn fan's wet dream. At the moment the only cars you can race the Desert stage with are the Toyota Celica ST205 or the Lancia Super Delta HF Integrale, with no sign of Sandro Munari's Lancia Stratos HF so far. Whether this, as well as the Forest and Mountain stages from the original will eventually be downloadable or unlockable remains to be seen.

As for now, the joy of this blast of admittedly limited nostalgia is satisfying enough; with the addition of online leaderboards showing the best times worldwide, as well as the ability to race on the famed '95 Desert Stage against online opponents through xbox live - there is some longevity to be had here.

I've played it to death! My best time on the track so far is 2:31.79 with the Toyota Celica (automatic gears.) The handling is superb, plus the right noises and commentary on the soundtrack to really get those Saturn juices flowing!

If you haven't got a 360, it'll be out soon on PS3. Failing that, get your Saturn out and play the original! Despite the pixelllated visuals, the gameplay and handling are as good as ever!

Happy 16th Birthday SEGA Saturn!

16 years ago today the beloved SEGA Saturn hit US stores following the announcement by SEGA of America President Tom Kalinske at E3 that the Saturn was now available in select retailers. While this move was one of SEGA's biggest mistakes ever, we'll not get into that. Instead, we'll celebrate the day as being the day the Saturn entered American homes!

To celebrate this event, SEGA Network partner SEGAbits is spending the entire month (and the week of June leading up to E3) to talk about all things Saturn! Expect to see Saturn-centric weekly features, reviews, videos, podcasts and more. I even plan on featuring some classic Saturn Junkyard articles. Sounds like fun, eh? Check out the Saturn theme I helped apply to SEGAbits:

Expect to see some exciting articles here at the Saturn Junkyard as well! It's a month you won't want to miss.

Guardian Heroes HD Heading to XBLA!

 
Looks like the Saturn is finally getting some rerelease love! The Saturn classic Guardian Heroes is heading to XBOX Live Arcade courtesy of SEGA (and perhaps Treasure?). Check out the press release:

SEGA® of America, Inc. and SEGA® Europe Ltd. today announced the upcoming re-release of Guardian Heroes™, a classic Action-RPG Brawler by celebrated developers Treasure. Originally released for the SEGA Saturn™ in 1996, Guardian Heroes has been re-mastered with enhanced graphics, online co-op and battle modes, all-new modes of play, and more. The game will be available via Xbox LIVE® Arcade for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft this fall.

“Ever since we began to make SEGA’s classic Dreamcast and the Mega Drive titles available for modern systems, the fan response has been overwhelming – and the demand for their favorite games has been pouring in,” said Haruki Satomi, VP of Digital Business at SEGA. “Players have been clamoring for this treasured favorite from the Saturn days, and we cannot wait to show them what we have got for them.”

Guardian Heroes brings the Saturn favorite to life with new HD graphics, presenting Treasure’s iconic fast-paced gameplay on a new generation of hardware, with all of the convenience of purchase via instant download. The game also features:

• Action-RPG Brawling: Choose one of five heroes to level up and guide along a branching storyline with five different endings 

• Friends, Foes, and Fighters: Play the game’s Story Mode alone or with a second player, or challenge Versus Mode with up to 12 players at once
  

• Extended Gameplay: Time Attack Mode, Arcade Mode, Arrange Mode and more allow players to explore every nuance of 45 different fighters 

• Fully Re-Mastered: All-new graphics and visual effects bring the classic to life in a completely high-definition, widescreen presentation

Sounds fantastic! And it certainly will be less expensive than what the Saturn version goes for on ebay.

UPDATE: Head on over to SEGAbits to see Gamespot's preview and interview. Gameplay footage awaits, in both Saturn graphics and HD graphics!

[Source: NeoGAF and SEGAbits]

Nobody should have this many copies of Panzer Dragoon Saga. NOBODY!

In my monthly ebay browsing for SEGA Saturn goodies, I came across this ebay  seller who has WAY too many copies of Panzer Dragoon Saga on his hands. I was actually quite pissed off to see how many he had. Of course, he's selling them now, but imagine how many years these sat unplayed. No great game deserves to sit on a shelf with seven identical copies of itself. Game hoarding at its worst.

Still, if you have $200+ to spare, here are multiple chances to buy a copy of the game.
http://shop.ebay.com/mwerking/m.html?_nkw=panzer+dragoon+saga&_sacat=0&_odkw=&_osacat=0&_trksid=p3911.c0.m270.l1311

Game Scan TV talks about NiGHTS

http://www.blisteredthumbs.net/2011/02/gamescan-tv-ep1/

Puyo Puyo Sun - It's Always Sunny on the SEGA Saturn!

I hit the local retro video game store today, and boy did I get some good stuff! I picked up the Limited Edition Shenmue (complete with the Jukebox CD) for $17, Alien Front Online in box with mic for $15 and a Shenmue strategy guide. But I'm not going to focus on those goodies, this is the Saturn Junkyard! While I only picked up one Saturn game, I cannot wait to play it. It's Puyo Puyo Sun!

The Saturn import selection was surprisingly large, despite many of the games not being priced and sitting in boxes on the floor. Still, I dug about, chose a few games and requested their prices. Puyo Puyo Sun was a very reasonable $8, so into my invisible cart it went!

Japanese manuals, particularly for Saturn and Dreamcast games, are stunning. Full color, tons of artwork, mini comics, developer profiles! It's a shame western releases are so bland by comparison.

The booklet was crammed with tons of little bits of paper. Registration cards, some flyer promoting... something and best of all: glow in the dark stickers!

I couldn't capture them in a photo, but trust me, they glow a brilliant green hue. So far the game has been great, and I haven't even played it yet! I've just been paging through the manual and holding the stickers under the lamp. Good times.

Happy New Year 2011, Go Play Christmas NiGHTS!

Happy New Year, SJY readers! Hoping you have a safe, happy and Saturn-filled 2011. May Segata Sanshiro bless you.

While you're getting over your champagne headache, why not play Christmas NiGHTS? Today you'll be treated to a special intro screen, character costumes and stage music in celebration of the new year! Just make sure that your Saturn clock is correct (mine was thanks to my replacing of the internal battery).
image courtesy of the nightsintodreams.com forums

Radient Silvergun Returns, and Introduces an Awesome Arcade Stick

While it has already been known that the Saturn classic Radient Silvergun will be returning via a release on the XBOX Live Arcade in 2011, it was just recently announced that there will also be a kick-ass arcade stick. Check this thing out! The stick is made by Hori (so it's quality) and will sell for $160. Yikes! Well, if you have that sorta dough, you can buy the stick here. If you do plan on buying one, make sure to buy a second one and send it my way.

Merry Christmas!



[source: Kotaku]

New Yu Suzuki Interview Reveals Shenmue Saturn Info!

If you haven't read 1UP's interview with Yu Suzuki, DO SO NOW! It's an excellent read and reveals many things that were unknown of Suzuki's past work, as well as hints towards what we could expect from a Shenmue 3 (he seems to favor the 360 and would work with just about anybody to get it made). But this is a Saturn blog, so let's stick to Saturn information. Part two of the interview touches on the short lived Saturn version of the game. Check out these cool factoids:

Note: JM is the interviewer, YS is Yu Suzuki and TH is Tak Hirai, Lead Programmer of Shenmue

JM: Shenmue began development on the Sega Saturn. Besides the visual elements, how much of it had changed by the time you began development for the Dreamcast? How long were you working on the Saturn version?
TH: Six months, just on programming.
YS: It's amazing how much we accomplished on the Saturn. It's unthinkable now.
TH: Yeah, it was something. I never want to do that again.

JM: What made you move it from the Saturn to Dreamcast? Was it because the Saturn was dying in terms of sales? Or was it that you realized you needed more powerful hardware to realize the game?
TH: The timing. The Saturn was coming to an end.
YS: Yeah, it was coming to a point where didn't make sense to release a game on the Saturn.
TH: There was also talk that the Dreamcast could handle the sword fight that we wanted to include in the game so we decided to reprogram the game for Dreamcast. We were also able to give input on the development of the hardware to match the game.

They end the interview with a mention of Fighters Megamix:

JM: Final question. Many years ago there was a newspaper advertisement promoting a "Virtua Fighter vs. Tekken." Was that concept ever supposed to become a game? Do you think a Virtua Fighter vs. Tekken game would work and if not, what franchises would you pair up?
YS: A long time ago we did a promotion with Virtua Fighter and Tekken characters. As a promotion and advertisement to get people's attention, I think it was a success and was good. But, it's not really my style and I don't like to mix games. I'm a purist. In my opinion, the only time you mix and match is when there are no new ideas and mixing is the last resort. So, it's not a very good thing. As long as there are new ideas, I'd rather prioritize working on new ideas.
JM: Then how do you rationalize Fighter's Megamix?
YS: [Fighter's Megamix director, Hiroshi] Kataoka likes that stuff.

It has been too long. CGR looks at DOA!

This blog needs a fresh post! Well thankfully Classic Game Room took a look at Dead or Alive on the Saturn. Check out the review and boobies below:



In the comments section, tell me what your favorite Saturn 3D fighter is and why. Mine would have to be Fighters Megamix. Why? Hornet versus Akira.

The Sega Saturn Megamix

Whilst browsing Flickr for Saturn related stuff I found this amazing cover by some dude called Theodore Taylor III (the third?). The unique illustration of something that appears to be "Sonic" really caught my attention. He truly looks like the worn out, abused and resigned character he actually is these days. (Whereas Sonic 4 and Sonic Colors seem to slightly change that but who knows, what Sega comes up with next.)


Anyway. Theodore not only illustrated that very nice CD Cover, but he also made the Megamix himself. And since it's a free download, why not check it out on his blog. Personally I think he could have made some better transitions (or transitions at all?!), but the tunes are still great of course. Check out the playlist on his blog and dance to some Sega Saturn music.

Classic Game Room HD - Sega Saturn PS3 Controller

Forgive me if I'm posting stuff you've seen here before, but I've been away for while. I've been trawling the internet for youtube Saturn videos from the last year or so and this was at the top of the list. Lazy, I know, but I promise to get something posted that's a bit more personal, in terms of Saturn gaming in 2010/11... (that means playing the thing and reflecting on the experience, like I did in the early days of this esteemed organ!)

Hope you find it informative at least!

Saturn tribute in Dreamcast game on the PS3 (!)

Something rather wonderful has happened as a result of my recently accquired PS3. I've just downloaded, played and completed Sonic Adventure in two days! I've had lots of copies of this game on the Dreamcast over the years, but never played it further than the first level. I've always admired it for it's visuals and thought of it as one of the best looking game on the Dreamcast. But it never grabbed me and I've dabbled with Sonic Adventure 2 loads more in the past.

But for some reason, the idea of having Dreamcast games on my next gen consoles really appeals. I've had Ikaruga and Rez off XBLA, (and Powerstone and Crazy Taxi on my PSP) even though I've had copies for my Dreamcast for years. But Sonic Adventure has held me captivated all weekend in way that none of those other ports have.

Sonic and Sega Allstars Racing kicked off the latest Sega revival in my gaming tastes, (not that it takes much for me to get Sega-obsessive, but the strength of my passion comes in waves). Sonic Adventure is the first and only Sonic game I've ever played to completion - although I've dabbled with many of them. Others have been abandoned when they got frustratingly hard, but thanks to the convenience of having this on the PS3 hard drive, and with a bit of free time on my hands, I saw it through to it's conclusion!

The game left me swinging in opinion, somewhwere between feeling it is a masterpiece (visuals and music) and a catastrophe (story, gameplay, camera, voice acting). It had moments of beauty, but it also got me swearing a lot! I loved the soundtrack, most definitely some of the best gaming music ever to accompany a Sega title. Check out the NiGHTs '90s house remix'!

I nearly had an orgasm when I played the NiGHTS pinball machine in Casinopolis. So much Sega/Saturn fan service crammed into one level! It was the first time I had seen the Saturn tribute and I was left close to tears by the beauty of this gesture from Sonic team to it's Saturn predecessors.

As we all know, NiGHTS is now scattered far and wide from titles as divergent as Sega Superstars Tennis, to the Wii Nights sequel, in Sonic Pinball on the GBA, and is probably right now trying to sell his psychedelic concoctions to impressionable minors in a Chao garden near you! But this must have been pure joy to those Saturn nostalgics who had begrudgingly swapped there big black Sega boxes for a slightly smaller off-white one and were patiently awaiting Dreamcast sequels to great games like Burning Rangers, NiGHTS, Clockwork Knight, and Manx TT Super Bike.

I have to say, Sega did as shocking a job of porting the title to it's new incarnation on the PS3, as it did when it rush released it for The Dreamcast. It's flaws are absolutely hideous. No attempt has been made to tidy up the games bugs and glitches, which I would have to admit is slightly annoying. And there's no way to get your Chao onto a PSP or online to race against other owners. Come on Sega!

But I'd reccomend this title to all you Sega junkies with shiny PS3s/360s if only for the Saturn fan service alone!

Game (Not) Over Yeah!

Hi folks, it's your seldom seen correspondent and Saturn Junkyard founder, Father Krishna here! Just popping in to inform all you Saturn Junkies, that there is an exhaustive and authoritative feature in this months Games TM magazine (Issue 101) about every body's, favourite racer... Sega Rally! Now we're not talking Sega Rally 2, Sega Rally GBA, Sega Rally Revo, or the Japanese only PS2 rehash... we're talking the Saturn version.

It was the game that came bundled with my Saturn and the main reason I was unwilling to convert to the PS1. From the initial sound of an ignition key being turned, to the iconic "Game over yeah!", Sega Rally kept it simple and kept it sweet. In short, it's the best driving game I've ever played (to this day) and over-taking an opponent whilst drifting round a tight bend still gets me slightly aroused!

The article itself is six full pages of glossy A4, packed with lovely images, interesting facts about the development, and even a news of a secret feature hidden within the game that has never been revealed before!

I'd re-write it but there is too much to feasibly reproduce. I will try and get some scans of it and get it up here. If you're stuck trying to find it on the high-street you should be able to pick up a copy here.

Meet Segata-chan!

Well... yeah.