Generation Star Wars

LEGO and SEGA announced a new LEGO Sonic the Hedgehog collaboration during Sonic Central 2023.

“We’re a little over 30 days away from LEGO Sonic hitting shelves, and we’re thrilled to reveal Dr. Eggman’s Death Egg Robot as the fifth entry in our fantastic range of building experiences,” said Frédéric Roland Andre, Designer at the LEGO Group. “Sonic Central is the perfect setting to introduce LEGO and Sonic fans to this amazingly villainous new set, and we can’t wait for Sonic fans of all ages to get their hands on the blue blur in LEGO brick form this summer.”

This ties in with the hotly-anticipated Sonic Superstars video game later this year!

“After the Sonic Superstars reveal, we wanted to share more details around the game and the upcoming LEGO-themed integration on Sonic Central,“ said Ivo Gerscovich, Chief Business and Brand Officer at SEGA of America. “Through our continued partnership with the LEGO Group, Sonic fans will be able to experience Sonic Superstars in brick form and also recreate favorite scenes with the recently announced Dr. Eggman’s Death Egg Robot.”

Sonic vs. Dr. Eggman's Death Egg Robot is available from LEGO AU, CA, UK and US (affiliate links).

Looking forward to more LEGO Sonic and Sonic Superstars? Let me know in the comments below.

The definitive mini console of 2019, the Sega Mega Drive Mini, has been completely revamped! Its improved hardware is tucked away in a new, compact design based on the Sega Mega Drive 2!

Sega fans (myself included) may have hoped for a Dreamcast Mini, but given the cost of living crisis, this is a smart move for the upcoming holiday season.

Sega has announced 60 titles including the following games:

Fantasy Zone
Golden Axe II
Night Trap
OutRun
Space Harrier II

The Sega Mega Drive (Genesis in the US due to a copyright issue and at the suggestion of Atari before a distribution deal fell through because Jack Tramiel wanted to focus on the Atari ST) ignited the 16-bit console wars and pushed incumbent Nintendo off the top spot with its futuristic looks and edgy marketing targeted at the cool kids.

As a college student, I remember flicking through the pages of Dark Horse Comics and eagerly awaiting the UK launch of the console in 1990. This would be my first new console since the Atari VCS, and the 8-bit computer era, dominated by the Commodore 64, was at an end. Near-perfect arcade ports of Sega titles, including Space Harrier and Golden Axe, were too irresistible.

Sega's 16-bit machine was a hot seller in the winter of 1990 and, as a Michael Jackson fan, I coveted, nay, obsessed over Moonwalker (Sega America had signed a deal with the pop star to develop a video game based on the movie of the same name). The console conversion did not disappoint and the music samples taken from Jackson's Bad album deserve special mention. The 'synth sound' lent itself to the medium perfectly.

I sold my Sega Mega Drive to a college classmate and switched to the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) in 1992. So, I played the Mega-CD titles (including the infamous Night Trap, which ignited a moral panic in the conservative media) on their console.

The Sega Mega Drive Mini 2 is available to pre-order (affiliate link).

Whilst I failed to add the Sega Mega Drive Mini to my classic console collection in 2019, I've pre-ordered the Sega Mega Drive Mini 2 available exclusively from Amazon this October.

Did you own a Sega Mega Drive/Genesis back in the day? What are your memories and will you be getting the new mini console? Let me know in the comments below.

My earliest memory of playing Mortal Kombat is during a gap year in the early nineties. I would visit a local seafront amusement arcade to play the newest releases and share a KFC bucket with friends.

Mortal Kombat instantly captured our imaginations with its lurid digitised animations.

The video game franchise’s signature fatalities - sparking a moral panic - a gory alternative to Street Fighter II in arcades and on Nintendo and Sega 16-bit home consoles. The Sega Genesis/Mega Drive was the cool kid on the block and the console of choice for an uncensored experience.

The latest Mortal Kombat live-action movie adaptation arrives in cinemas and on HBO Max. Nick Smith, our US-based stellar scribe, returns from Victorian times for a bloody showdown.

Guest post by Nick Smith

In the illustrious and diverse history of movies, we’ve seen epics based on the works of William Shakespeare, Charles Dickens and The Wiggles. Simon McQuoid’s Mortal Kombat is not a literary adaptation. Spawned by a video game, it has pretensions to be something greater – a Hollywood blockbuster with a Chosen hero, a comedic sidekick, people spinning impossibly through the air and an unsympathetically evil bad guy. It does not achieve that greatness.

Mortal Kombat isn’t as facile as last year’s Jui Jitsu, which was a string of skirmishes calling itself a movie. But it still lacks the depth to make it a stand-out flight flick. The humour helps; the hero Cole Young (Lewis Tan) is fallible, Kano (Josh Lawson) is a splendidly despicable loudmouth and there’s even a joke about the spelling of the title.

Mortal Kombat follows a Hollywood action formula without really understanding why. The archetypal hero has a family so that the audience can relate to him. Here, Cole’s family is an afterthought. The Chosen One should be reluctant, otherwise what’s special about him being chosen? The prophecy should be deep-seated in the life and culture of the Outworld, not a couple of lines of dialogue that are present because, hey, that’s what other, successful movies do.

This new take on a 29-year-old franchise is entertaining, there are some satisfying salutes to the original games and the actors are likeable. Jessica McNamee stands out, doing her best to give token tough girl Sonya Blade some edge. The most novel aspects are the gory deaths - a crushed head is particularly memorable - and the redemption of amputee veteran Jackson ‘Jax’ Briggs. He learns to overcome his depression and live with prosthetics. Now that is a successful adaptation.

Watch Mortal Kombat (affiliate link).

What are your Mortal Kombat memories? Let me know in the comments below.

Tomb Raider celebrates its 25th anniversary this year.

Crystal Dynamics has announced a new video game and Netflix is producing an animated series adaptation both of which follow the story of the rebooted trilogy, which began in 2013.

Camilla Luddington (Grey's Anatomy) provided the voice and motion capture reference for Lara Croft in the rebooted trilogy. Hopefully, she's reprising the role for the upcoming game and Netflix series.

The multimedia action-adventure franchise became synonymous with PlayStation but premiered first on Sega's ill-fated Saturn in October 1996. The success of the original video game spawned sequels, comic books, films (starring Angelina Jolie and most recently Alicia Vikander in the titular role) and more. I still have an extensive collection of merchandise.

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Game director Will Kerslake explained that the new game will 'unify' classic and reboot timelines:

"[Crystal Dynamics'] origin trilogy back in 2013 told the story of Lara's early days [...] while the classic games featured a seasoned and confident adventurer, travelling the world, unlocking its secrets, often standing alone against cataclysmic forces. We envision the future of Tomb Raider unfolding after these established adventures, telling stories that build upon the breadth of both Core Design and Crystal Dynamics' games, working to unify these timelines."

Are you excited for a new Tomb Raider video game and series, and what are your memories of playing as Lara Croft? Let me know in the comments below.

25 years ago today, the original PlayStation went on sale in the UK. I wouldn't own Sony's upstart console with a copy of Tomb Raider until 1996. However, I first played a friend's Japanese import PlayStation and then commandeered a university housemate's for a daily dose of Destruction Derby, Ridge Racer and WipEout when I should have been writing my third-year dissertation. Because reasons.

I'd taken my 16-bit Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) to university where it played genial host to Super Mario Kart tournaments, with housemates and friends, until the PlayStation was launched in 1995 at the peak of the console wars between Nintendo and Sega. Incidentally, the console wars will be explored in an upcoming documentary on Netflix.

Without the SNES, there would be no PlayStation. Sony's 32-bit console began life as an aborted SNES CD-ROM add-on in 1988. However, Nintendo shunned Sony at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) and partnered with Philips in 1991. The rest is gaming history.

PlayStation 5 (PS5) (affiliate link) launches this November, and it's all too easy to overlook the disruptive impact the brand has had on popular culture for almost 3 decades. The PlayStation popularised 3D visuals with landmark titles such as Tomb Raider and Resident Evil. Capcom's survival horror was nightmarish played in broad daylight at a friend's sadly defunct independent video game store.

Tomb Raider, originally released on the ill-fated Sega Saturn, became synonymous with PlayStation in the mid-nineties, and I feverishly followed the franchise for several years, collecting all manner of merchandise in the process. Lara Croft was a female protagonist possessing the chutzpah of Indiana Jones.

In the mid-to-late nineties it was fashionably cool to say you owned a PlayStation during water cooler conversations at work (in my case as an online journalist at Reuters) and the console was featured on newsstands everywhere, from Edge to FHM, nudging Nintendo and Sega off the top spots forever.

What are your favourite PlayStation memories? Let me know in the comments below.

It's the autumn equinox, heralding my favourite season of all, in the northern hemisphere and Microsoft began pre-orders for Series X and S (affiliate link) with selected retailers this morning.

Having successfully pre-ordered a PlayStation 5 (PS5), I was ambivalent about a Series X on day-one (currently own an Xbox One X) until yesterday's surprise announcement Microsoft had bought Bethesda's parent company ZeniMax Media for $7.5 billion dollars, eclipsing Disney's purchase of Lucasfilm. The latest acquisition brings Xbox Game Studios first-party total to 23 developers working on current and next-gen titles.

"As a proven game developer and publisher, Bethesda has seen success across every category of games, and together, we will further our ambition to empower the more than three billion gamers worldwide,” Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said in a statement.

Bethesda has a storied history with Xbox beginning with The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind. This will further bolster Game Pass, which was already a great value with the addition of EA Play later this year - I can't wait to play The Sims 4 Star Wars: Journey to Batuu expansion. Doom, Wolfenstein, The Elder Scrolls and Fallout will now become Xbox Game Studios franchises.

“This is a thrilling day for this company, our employees, and our fans," said Robert Altman, chairman and CEO of ZeniMax, in a statement. "We have enjoyed a close partnership with Microsoft for decades, and this deal is a natural progression of those years working together."

What impact (if any) this has on the future of multi-platform releases and PS5 timed-exclusives remains to be seen. Microsoft was previously linked with buying Warner Bros. Interactive from AT&T and there were fervent denials regarding approaching Bungie. In related news. From today Destiny 2 joins Game Pass and major expansion Beyond Light will be playable from launch on 10th November.

Unlike the chaos of PS5 pre-orders, Series X and S was a relatively leisurely experience in comparison. The Redmond-based company had announced global pre-orders would begin at 8:00AM local time.

My Alexa alarm woke me early and, as I drank my first cup of tea of the day serenaded by a robin in the garden, I was able to order a Series X via the Amazon app with ease. However, some sites crashed including Xbox All Access partners Game and Smyths Toys. Both retailers stopped taking online orders and urged customers to order in-store. This may not be an option for everyone due to coronavirus and the threat of a second wave this winter.

The Verge and IGN have reported a surge in Xbox One X sales. Microsoft's confusing nomenclature may mean some gamers could be left disappointed when they realise it's not a Series X under the Christmas tree this holiday season.

Microsoft's purchase of ZeniMax Media doesn't mark the end of the company's acquisition trail. Rumours suggest Sega, the Japanese publisher famous for ending Nintendo's dominance during the 16-bit console era, is next. Only a few months ago there were suggestions of a Sega-branded Series X and S being released in the territory. The stunning Shock Blue wireless controller has only added to the speculation ahead of Xbox at Tokyo Game Show 2020.

Did you try pre-ordering an Xbox Series X or S? Let me know in the comments below.

Apple Arcade is coming to macOS, iOS, iPadOS and tvOS beginning on iOS 13 devices 19th September in 150 countries.

The Cupertino-based company's new offering is akin to Xbox Game Pass and is not a direct competitor to Google Stadia launching in November. Incidentally, I recently upgraded to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate (with an extra 12-months free), for Gears 5 early access, so cancelled my Stadia Founder's Edition pre-order.

Apple has signed deals with third-party developers including Lego, Konami and Sega. The fine folks at Sega contacted me to announce ChuChu Rocket Universe. ChuChu Rocket was originally released for the Dreamcast, twenty years ago, and was a free mail-away:

"20 years after ChuChu Rocket! invaded the Dreamcast and became the very first online multiplayer experience, the ChuChus are back in a brand-new episode. The storyline is new, but the objective for players remains the same: help all the ChuChus escape by placing directional arrows that lead them to their space rocket. In multiplayer, the objective for players is to help more ChuChus escape than their competitors. Using very creative methods to win is absolutely compulsory.

ChuChu Rocket! Universe will be available exclusively on Apple Arcade."

Confirmed titles for Apple Arcade include:

Atone: Heart of the Elder Tree
Ballistic Baseball
Beyond a Steel Sky
Cardpocalypse
ChuChu Rocket Universe
Doomsday Vault
Down in Bermuda
Enter the Construct
Exit the Gungeon
Frogger in Toy Town
HitchHiker
Hot Lava
Kings of the Castle
Lego Arthouse
Lego Brawls
Lifelike
Monomals
Mr. Turtle
No Way Home
Oceanhorn 2: Knights of the Lost Realm
Overland
Pac-Man Party Royale
Projection: First Light
Rayman Mini
Repair
Shayonara Wild Hearts
Shantae and the Seven Sirens
Shinsekai: Into the Depths
Skate City
Sneaky Sasquatch
Sonic Racing
Spidersaurs
Steven Universe: Unleash the Light
Super Impossible Road
The Bradwell Conspiracy
The Enchanted World
The Pathless
UFO on Tape: First Contact
Various Daylife
Where Cards Fall
Winding Worlds
Yaga

Apple Arcade will cost £4.99/$4.99 per month with a free 1-month trial for new members.

Will you be subscribing? Were you hoping for the AAA titles available on Stadia? Let me know in the comments below.

Konami is joining Nintendo, Sony and Sega by announcing its own range of official mini consoles at E3.

The PC Engine Core Grafx mini, the PC Engine mini and the TurboGrafx-16 mini will be released in three different regions to mark the 30th anniversary of the TurboGrafx-16's launch in the US coinciding with the Sega Genesis.



Confirmed games so far include:

R-Type
New Adventure Island
Ninja Spirit
Ys Book I & II
Dungeon Explorer
Alien Crush

Simultaneous five-player gaming with multitap (sold separately) for compatible titles. The Japanese version will include Dracula X: Rondo of Blood, a regional exclusive which was only available on CD-ROM. Let's hope Konami makes it available for all regions.

The PC Engine was an expensive import back in 1988 and I would leaf through the pages of The Games Machine and drool at the prospect of playing a near-perfect port of arcade classic R-Type. I was given the choice of a PC Engine or Sony Discman as a reward for successfully getting into college that summer. I decided on the latter which included 5 free music CDs.

Are you excited about the PC Engine mini (affiliate link)? Let me know in the comments below.

This isn't an April Fools' Day joke. The Sega Mega Drive Mini (Sega Genesis Mini if you're in the US) has been officially revealed with a price and launch date.

Sega's following the success of Nintendo, and hopefully avoiding Sony's PlayStation Classic faux pas, with its own mini console, which has been developed in-house in the wake of concerns regarding previously licensed Mega Drive/Genesis consoles from third-parties, later this year. M2, the developer lauded for Sega Ages, is handling emulation. The £69.99GBP machine will include 2 control pads and 40 games (regions vary).

Sega has announced the following games for the Western version:

Altered Beast
Castlevania: Bloodlines
Comix Zone
Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine
Ecco the Dolphin
Gunstar Heroes
Shining Force
Sonic the Hedgehog
Space Harrier II
ToeJam & Earl

The Sega Mega Drive (Genesis in the US due to a copyright issue and at the suggestion of Atari before a distribution deal fell through because Jack Tramiel wanted to focus on the Atari ST) ignited the 16-bit console wars and pushed incumbent Nintendo off the top spot with its futuristic looks and edgy marketing targeted at the cool kids. As a college student, I remember flicking through the pages of Dark Horse Comics and eagerly awaiting the UK launch of the console in 1990. This would be my first new console since Atari VCS, and the 8-bit computer era, dominated by the Commodore 64, was at an end. Near-perfect arcade ports of Sega titles, including Space Harrier and Golden Axe, were too irresistible.

Whilst I already own Sega Mega Drive Classics for Xbox One, I'll be adding the Sega Mega Drive Mini to my classic console collection this September.

Did you own a Sega Mega Drive/Genesis back in the day? What are your memories, will you be getting the mini console and which games would you like to see? Let me know in the comments below.

The Sega Mega Drive Mini is available to pre-order (affiliate link).

Ever since the launch of the Nintendo Classic Mini: Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) in 2016, retro video game fans (myself included) have hoped Sony would release the original PlayStation, which started life as a CD-ROM add-on for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES).



From 3rd December, to mark the 25th anniversary of the release of the PlayStation in Japan, gamers will be able to get their hands on an official classic console just in time for Christmas.

The £89.99 machine features 2 classic controllers and 20 pre-loaded games including Final Fantasy VII, Jumping Flash, R4: Ridge Racer Type 4, Tekken 3 and Wild Arms.

The PlayStation Classic will take pride of place alongside NES and SNES mini consoles. Sorry SNK, I'm skipping the NEO GEO! Because too expensive and no bundled controllers.

In related news. Sega is delaying the launch of the Mega Drive/Genesis mini console announced a few months ago. The publisher is working with a new partner on the device, which is expected in 2019.

You can pre-order the PlayStation Classic from Amazon (affiliate link) today.

Will you be getting a PlayStation Classic? Would you prefer PlayStation to focus on backwards compatibility to rival Xbox? Why not have classic mini consoles and backwards compatibility? Let me know in the comments below.

Many video game enthusiasts (myself included) missed out on the Nintendo Classic Mini: Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) due to severe stock shortages last November.

So, when the company announced it was following up with the Nintendo Classic Mini: Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) this September. I was determined to secure a pre-order from Amazon.co.uk. The 16-bit console represents peak Nintendo.

The successor to the NES captured my imagination whilst flicking through the pages of defunct games magazine Mean Machines. The sleek-looking console was released in its native Japan in 1990 with Super Mario World, F-Zero and Pilotwings. When the machine reached UK shores in 1992 it did not disappoint. Featuring Super Mario World as a pack-in, the 16-bit powerhouse had pride of place under the TV that Christmas. Super Mario World and Super Mario 64 remain my favourite franchise installments.

The "SNES", as it was pronounced on Bad Influence! a weekly tech magazine show hosted by Andy Crane and Violet Berlin in the early 1990s, introduced me to the wonders of Hyrule in The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. A game I treasure to this day.

Whilst last year's NES included 30 games, the SNES will feature 21 and it represents a stellar genre line-up including the unreleased Star Fox 2:

Contra III: The Alien Wars
Donkey Kong Country
EarthBound
Final Fantasy III
F-Zero
Kirby Super Star
Kirby's Dream Course
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
Mega Man X
Secret of Mana
Star Fox
Star Fox 2
Street Fighter II Turbo: Hyper Fighting
Super Castlevania IV
Super Ghouls'n Ghosts
Super Mario Kart
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
Super Mario World
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island
Super Metroid
Super Punch-Out!!

From ALIEN³ (loaned to a friend and never returned) to Super Star Wars, Nintendo's 16-bit console never failed to delight with Mode 7 and Super FX technological trickery. That said, the cartridges were expensive. Street Fighter II Turbo cost £70!

I took my machine to university where it played genial host to Super Mario Kart tournaments with housemates and friends until the PlayStation was launched in 1995. Without the SNES there would be no PlayStation. Sony's console began life as an aborted SNES CD-ROM add-on in 1988. However, Nintendo shunned Sony and partnered with Philips in 1991. The rest is gaming history.

Nintendo is putting the "n" into nostalgia with these classic mini consoles featuring childhood callbacks for fans.

"Our long-term efforts are focused on delivering great games for the Nintendo Switch system and continuing to build momentum for that platform, as well as serving the more than 63 million owners of Nintendo 3DS family systems. We are offering Super Nintendo Entertainment System: Super NES Classic Edition in special recognition of the fans who show tremendous interest our classic content."

In a statement to USgamer, Nintendo said: "We aren't providing specific numbers, but we will produce significantly more units of Super NES Classic Edition than we did of NES Classic Edition.

"Super Nintendo Entertainment System: Super NES Classic Edition is currently planned to ship from 29th September until the end of calendar year 2017. At this time, we have nothing to announce regarding any possible shipments beyond this year."

Pre-orders sold out within minutes on Monday. I secured mine after following a link on Eurogamer.

Nintendo's 16-bit era arch-rival Sega has recently launched Sega Forever for iOS and Android devices. Sega plans to release games from the Master System to Dreamcast. However, it's off to a stuttering start and there isn't a first-party classic console product of the calibre offered by Nintendo. Personally, I'd love a mini classic Genesis/Mega Drive comparable to SNES with excellent emulation.

Did you manage to pre-order a Nintendo Classic Mini: Super Nintendo? Which games are you excited for? Is it bittersweet because of stock shortages? Let me know in the comments below.

Today Sony will announce pre-order details for its limited edition 20th anniversary PS4 during the company's keynote at the PlayStation Experience.

The console, in original gray to commemorate the brand that obliterated the Nintendo and SEGA duopoly, is limited to 12300 units. Most fans (including myself) will have to settle for the free classic PlayStation theme, which is downloadable from PSN. Pro-tip: disable Key Tone (found under Settings) to keep it old school.

The 20th anniversary PS4 will be available to pre-order from the Sony Store worldwide.

Will you be pre-ordering one? Let me know in the comments below.

When SEGA officially announced Alien: Isolation, and its survival horror ambitions, I was left cold! The Alien franchise hasn't had the most auspicious history in video games.

Alien³ on SEGA's Mega Drive and Aliens vs Predator on Mac and PC came closest to distilling the tension of James Cameron's Aliens. Whereas Aliens: Colonial Marines was met with derision by gamers and the gaming press.

However, reading this month's Edge magazine may have rekindled my enthusiasm! This is an excerpt from an interview with Creative Assembly (the studio tasked with putting the bite back).

After finishing Viking: Battle For Asgard, Creative Assembly’s Alistair Hope and Jude Bond worked together with a small team to develop a survival-horror prototype designed to sell Sega on the notion of letting them play with the Alien brand it had recently acquired. “Not that we were really prepared to make it,” Hope says. “We were in a position to make it, but we didn’t have the team or the tools.”

In six weeks, a “handful of guys” put together a proof of concept, which in its very earliest forms had a player-controlled xenomorph in place of the complex decision-making tree that would eventually dictate its behaviour. The decisions made by the alien player in those miniature games of hide and seek would later form the basis of the creature’s AI.

“In a way, that was just us being fanboys, just having a chance to build some alien environments,” Hope explains. “But that little tech demo went a bit viral within Sega, and suddenly it seemed like this pipe dream of making a game based on the original Alien [film] started to get some momentum.”

Alien: Isolation follows Amanda, Ellen Ripley's daughter, as she attempts to discover what happened to her mother and the crew of the Nostromo.

You can pre-order Alien: Isolation today.

Has it really been 20 years since Sega first unleashed Sonic the Hedgehog onto the Genesis/Mega Drive and started a videogame war with Nintendo that would rival Coca-Cola vs Pepsi!

The cool kids only had eyes for the hedgehog...

Sonic was a brash, slicker, upstart and upended Mario within the space of a year with uncredited assistance from Michael Jackson both musically and in the design of Sonic's footwear, which was inspired by the Bad video.

Sega bundled every Mega Drive with a Sonic the Hedgehog game pack-in from day one! A business decision that would be anathema in today's market. With the console's reduced price point, the company was giving away its killer application in an effort to overthrow Nintendo.

Sega - with Sonic as its mascot - dominated the early 1990s and had to do nothing to maintain an unassailable industry lead. Instead the company imploded as told here.

Nowadays Sega is fair weather friends with the likes of Nintendo and Sony. This is all to the good and gamers everywhere can play the Sonic franchise on their platform(s) of choice.

What better way to mark this anniversary then with these Sonic titles on the App Store!

Sonic the Hedgehog (iTunes)
Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (iTunes)
Sonic The Hedgehog 4 Episode I (iTunes)
Sonic and Sega All-Star Racing (iTunes)

If you buy only one Sonic game from the Mega Drive era; choose Sonic the Hedgehog 2!

SEGA's Shining Force (iTunes), a classic turn-based RPG from the 16-bit era, arrives on the App Store with my unreserved recommendation!



SEGA's Genesis/Mega Drive emulator for iPhone has met with controversy from enthusiast gamers, and I've eschewed all the releases until now! Shining Force runs perfectly on my iPod touch (2G). However, is it too much to ask SEGA to release special editions with hi-resolution graphics?

How about Phantasy Star next?

Shining Force should satiate RPG fans until Secret of Mana is released!

US App Store: Shining Force
International: Shining Force

Long time readers will already know that I'm a self-confessed Sega fanboy! There's really no more eloquent way to express it!

Since the 8-bit home computer era, Sega has held me enthralled with the likes of Congo Bongo and Zaxxon! From playing Space Harrier, in a Clacton Pier arcade, to Virtua Fighter, in SegaWorld Bournemouth, Sega has been synonymous with most, if not all, of my favourite video game franchises. To use an overused soft drinks analogy: if Nintendo is Coca-Cola then Sega is its cooler competitor Pepsi, which I've always preferred!

The last few months have witnessed the exponential growth of Twitter and, with it, a surge of internationally recognised brands establishing a substantive presence on the social media service. Sega has been quick to embrace Twitter, both as a broadcast and conversational medium, and started following me prior to the end of last year.

To be honest, I wasn't even sure that it really was Sega until I'd undertaken some detective work! Rest assured Sega is officially on Twitter and, if you truly care about video games, you should be following @Sega too! Followed, good, lets continue...

Fast forward to last Friday and, in the midst of twittering, the offer of reviewing Sega's video games came straight from the horse's mouth. Double take.

Over the coming weeks expect to see my review of Sega's Madworld (Wii) and, hopefully, many more illustrious titles from Sega's stable...

SEGA on Facebook

You should follow me on twitter here.

Late last night I removed the shrink wrap from FIFA 09 (PS3) and loaded the Blu-ray disc with a mixture of excitement and trepidation! The last time I bought a copy of FIFA was during the heyday of the Sega Mega Drive in the 1990s! Would FIFA 09 rekindle a long lost love and steal me away from Konami's upstart Pro Evolution Soccer (PES)?

FIFA 09 is closer than ever to the pick-up-and-play prowess of PES, without detracting from the franchise's trademark realism, and looks even more attractive. Premier League players move and act like their real-life counterparts. However, lower league players look like zombies leftover from Capcom's Resident Evil franchise!

The online component of FIFA 09 has been bolstered by the addition of adidas Live Season. adidas Live Season, an optional premium service, is activated once you've linked your Playstation Network (PSN) gamer profile with an EA Master Account, which can be set-up directly from within FIFA 09! You are entitled to free updates, for the league of your choice, using an exclusive redemption code found on the back of the manual. Naturally, I've chosen Barclays Premier League in order to follow the fortunes of my beloved Manchester United. Should you wish to subscribe to all supported leagues, additional charges will apply.

Even without WAGs, FIFA 09 is an irresistible football video game package that's almost impossible to beat! I'm looking forward to another friendly between Exeter City FC and Manchester United at St James Park, Exeter!

How on Earth did this slip past my radar? Back in the late '80s Michael Jackson signed an endorsement deal with Sega America, which produced the arcade and Mega Drive smash hit Moonwalker (1990). A fact that I've covered in a previous post.

With the success of Sonic The Hedgehog (1991), Sega's blue mascot, reaching its zenith with the release of Sonic The Hedgehog 2 (1992) (an essential Virtual Console purchase), Michael Jackson approached the Sega Technical Institute (STI), at one time an elite organisation within Sega America that developed acclaimed titles such as Kid Chameleon and Comix Zone, about scoring the soundtrack for the upcoming Sonic 3 (1994)!

Purportedly the completed score, composed, arranged and performed by Michael Jackson and the musicians who worked on the Dangerous (1991) recording sessions, was axed, at a very late stage of Sonic 3's development, due to the first public allegations of child molestation against the singer in 1993.

However, there's compelling evidence that some, if not all, of Michael Jackson's arrangements remained in the original release of Sonic 3 on the Mega Drive! Certainly the 'Dangerous sound' is unmistakeable and there's a hint of future projects HIStory (1995) and HIStory In The Mix (1997). It is worth noting that whilst Michael Jackson's official involvement was removed from all publicity and in-game end credits, his album session musicians, predominantly keyboard programmers, provided the final Sonic 3 score.

Bobby Brooks - engineer for Michael Jackson. Sequenced synthesizers and drums on Blood on the Dance Floor and mixed HIStory.

Darryl Ross - vague, ill-defined resume credit: "Darryl Ross is an accomplished producer, musician, songwriter, arranger and vocalist. Artists he worked with are Michael Jackson...".

Geoff Grace - arranger for Michael Jackson. Credited for arranging the music for Jackson's Dangerous tour.

Brad Buxer - performed arranging, keyboards, sequencing and more for Blood on the Dance Floor and Invincible.

Doug Grigsby - unknown credit on HIStory.

Of all Michael Jackson's keyboard virtuosos, Greg Phillinganes is notable by his absence! He has toured with Jackson and was a session keyboardist on his Sony solo albums.

Latterly Michael Jackson makes a cameo appearance in both Sega's Space Channel 5 and Ready 2 Rumble Boxing: Round 2.

The PS3 continues to be left on UK shelves to collect dust whilst the all-conquering Wii is nowhere to be seen!

Substantial discounting, by retailers such as WH Smith (no double points for Clubcard members!), Play.com and DVD.CO.UK, has given little or no incentive for consumers to part with their hard-earned cash during the Easter Bank Holiday weekend.

Reuters has invested its considerable journalistic might in an article that posits whether or not Sony's in a race against time? Their salient points are:

• To succeed, the PS3 needs to hold onto third-party titles. (We may add... timed exclusives would be best)

• The demand for HDTV's is skyrocketing -- that will hold a major advantage over, say, the Wii in the living room of the future.

• The PS3 launch almost mirrors the PS2 launch -- initial supply troubles, lack of impressive titles, complaints about the difficulty to program for... but look at how the PS2 turned out.

• Cut the PS3's price! (Discounting has already started in the UK)
  

• Have a strong, stable series of games!

You can read the full article at Reuters. What say you dear reader? How much would you pay for a PS3? Or is Sony's third act tantamount to a rerun of Sega's 32X debacle? The best 5 posts will receive a Joost invite.

Excitement continues to surround the speculated appearance of Sega Saturn on Nintendo Wii's Virtual Console! Ironically this is generating, in some quarters, more interest than Friday's infamous release of Sony's PlayStation 3, which is still available for pre-order.

I'm interested to know what Virtual Console titles readers have bought (if any) and want? Here are my Wii Points purchases:

Golden Axe
Gunstar Heroes
Super Castlevania IV
Super Mario Bros.
Super Mario World
Donkey Kong Country
Mario 64
Mario Kart 64
R-Type

I'd like to see the following added to Virtual Console (in no particular order):

Dracula X: Rondo of Blood (Turbografx-16)
Castlevania 2: Simon's Quest (NES)
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (SNES)
Panzer Dragoon Zwei (Sega Saturn)

Don't forget to equip yourself with both Wii Classic Controller and GameCube Wavebird Wireless Controller (my all-time favourite controller). And link your Wii with Nintendo VIP 24:7.

Almost overlooked to quote Sony boss Howard Stringer on the Wii:

"Wii is a wonderful device, but has a different target audience. If we fail, it is because we positioned PS3 as the Mercedes of the video game field. PS3 is after a different audience and it can be whatever it wants -- a home server, game device, even a computer."