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SEGA FOREVER: WHY SHOULD YOU CARE?

26/6/2017

35 Comments

 
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In case you missed the news... Sega is planning to do this: squirt loads of its old games onto iOS and Android.

Every couple of weeks, Sega will dump a bunch of new-old games alongside those in its debut Sega Forever line-up: Sonic The Hedgehog, Altered Beast, Phantasy Star II, Comix Zone and Kid Chameleon. Though the first games are all Mega Drive titles, Sega is promising titles from across its entire history.... once it figures out how to escape The Red Bathroom (emulate the Saturn and Dreamcast).

Best of all: the games are free, providing you don't mind in-game ads. And if you do mind those, then you can waste your inheritance to play the games ad-free.

Regrettably, the launch has gone down about as well as a fragrant breeze at Stink Con 2017. Reports of bugs and weak emulation, a cloud save feature meaning the games can only be played while you've got a full phone signal or wifi, and the dreaded virtual controls being as achingly wrong as they always are, have marred what Sega clearly hopes will herald an upswing in its fortunes.

To be honest, having had a go on the games, they don't seem that buggy... but the controls are indeed off-puttingly vague. Also: in-game ads are enjoyed only by masochists with names like Ad Adsley and Adadad Addison-Adoodah.

However, having revealed earlier this year that it plans to revive some of its "major IPs", Sega Forever is essentially a test to see which of those IPs is most popular. Indeed; snuck into the games like a secret William are surveys designed for precisely that purpose. 

It's well intentioned, but to be honest it's hard not to feel a little disappointed in the initial line-up. Sonic has been knocking around on smartphones for years, Altered Beast is one of the worst games ever released for the Mega Drive, while Comix Zone and Kid Chameleon are far too fiddly to play on an iPhone. Only Phantasy Star II feels suited to touch screen larks. 

Sega has built controller support into the games.... but most mobile titles are played on the train, on the way to work, or in a subterranean abattoir, where - lest we forget - staying online is intermittent at best.

But! It's a reasonable start. It's easy to be snarky about how Sega has mismanaged its heritage in the last couple of decades, but I want Sega to come back. There are too many classic Sega games that deserve another lick of the berry, so here, for the sheer ruddy heck of it, I waft my hand over those initial Sega Forever games.
SONIC THE HEDGEHOG
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This needs no introduction, though yet another release for the original Sonic feels profoundly underwhelming, given that it has been made available in about a billion different ways over the last decade or so. It remains a classic - let us all pause to consider the impact it had at the time - though obviously it's far from the best, or most interesting, Sonic game that Sega ever made.

Also: we're getting Sonic Mania in August, a brand new retro-style Sonic game, which may well serve as a better reminder of Sonic's squandered potential.

It's actually a good example of why Sega Forever is well-intentioned, but largely irrelevant for now. Most Mega Drive games are freely available to anyone with even a shred of nous. Even then, you can still play most of these games via entirely legitimate means - there are licensed versions of them on most systems, or those retro consoles you can get. 

To really make an audience sit up and take notice, it might've been wiser to go with some less obvious releases. 
COMIX ZONE
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Comix Zone is one of my favourite Mega Drive games, which doesn't translate terribly well to touch-screen phone controls, sadly.

It's a side-scrolling beat 'em up, set within the pages of a graphic novel. It's actually a fairly simplistic and repetitive game, but enlivened by its visuals and clever approach. Also, what you might not know is that the game started life as a demo for the Amiga. And yet: I still like it!

This remains high on my list for Sega games I'd like to see modern sequels to, but I'm not sure I'm going to be playing it on my phone. Actually... I am sure: I'm sure I'm not going to.
KID CHAMELEON
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Put into development at a time when Sega was still flailing around looking for a corporate mascot to compete with Mario - and didn't know Sonic was going to become a phenomenon - Kid Chameleon is basically a Mario clone with the emphasis on the main character's transformations into different characters. You know: like when Mario turns into Fire Mario or Flying Racoon Mario or Raw Meat-Handling Mario.

Average and ugly rather than out-and-out bad, Kid Chameleon was nonetheless overshadowed by the release of Sonic. Also, there's something a bit "Poochy the Dog" about "Kid", with his stonewash demin, white trainers, and sunglasses.
PHANTASY STAR 2
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Sega's very own Zelda, this strategy turn-based RPG still just about holds up today, thanks to its story, and a sci-fi setting that even now feels novel for an RPG. It hasn't aged terribly well, but given its comparatively sedate pace it feels well suited to touch-screen controls.

Amusingly, the main character is called Rolf... though why is the series called Phantasy Star and not Fantasy Star? Because of this: phart reasons.
ALTERED BEAST
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"Riiiiiiiise from your grave!" indeed.

A well-received arcade game upon its release in 1988, Altered Beast subsequently became better known as one of the worst Mega Drive games ever created. What makes this all the more remarkable is that Sega chose it as the pack-in game in initial Mega Drive bundles - ensuring that early adopters were thoroughly underwhelmed.

Amusingly, the backstory has your character - an Ancient Greek warrior who has been "altered" into a "beast" - attempting to rescue his daughter from a demon called Neff, who lives in a city called Dis. 

"New phone. Who Dis?"

"Neff".


It's as basic a side-scrolling beat 'em up as one can imagine, with some truly wonky animation, and leaden combat. Which, of course, are only made all the more awful by virtual controls.

So, in conclusion... it's early days for Sega Forever. Getting people excited about old Sega games, so that they can release new ones, isn't the worst idea in the world... but I'm not sure anybody is really going to care, given the way they're being presented here. Disappointing implementation, a so-so line-up, and touch-screen controls ensuring that these games are hardly shown in the best light. It might strangle Sega Forever out of the gate.

Nevertheless, it's a promising step in the right direction for a company that has, in recent years, turned its back on its past - with the exception of Sonic. Sega was one of the biggest games companies in the world for good reason. I wonder if there might've been more interest in Sega Forever if it had focused more on that history, gone right back to its roots, and started releasing games chronologically.

It would've cost too much to recreate some of those very early mechanical arcade games, but a sort of museum-type front-end, which gave them some historical context - along with playable versions of, say, Heavyweight Champ and Monaco GP, before moving onto Zaxxon and Pengo - might've done a better job of reminding the world of Sega's important role in gaming history. They could've treated it like an interactive documentary series almost - and bundle interviews with developers, and historical documentation. That might've protected the games from the criticism they've received.

But then... what do I know? I'm sat here in the bloody nude, munching on a lime! Goodbye.
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35 Comments
Biscuits the character
26/6/2017 10:03:43 am

It does seem strange to cobble games together willy-nilly, but do people really have the weeks-long attention span required for the retrospective release schedule outlined above? Think about all the very ropey megadrive games from its early days, before you hit Sonic even...Altered Beast and Flicky?

'Groo!'

Bonanza Bros looks great on a phone I'd imagine. This is an article about Megadrive games so I have to mention Dynamite Headdy, and once more insist it is emulated and played by everybody.

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Jol
26/6/2017 11:36:40 am

Dynamite Headdy is indeed flipping brilliant. Another great 2D platformer involving a mascot-type murdering things by smashing his face into them: Ristar.

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Biscuits
26/6/2017 11:54:27 am

Ristar is pretty good, but I only played it as an adult so I don't have any in-built affection for it. I seem to remember a lot of grabbing stuff?

Check this out though: There's another 2D platformer that monkeys with 2D and 3D, is filled with creativity, features a puppet (that can swap his head to take on different powers) as the main character, and this game also takes place on an ever changing stage...yet somehow, it plays almost entirely differently to DH...it's the underrated 'Puppeteer' on PS3

Jol
26/6/2017 12:54:11 pm

Yeah Ristar had long stretchy arms that you'd use to grab enemies and headbutt them, or grab onto various poles and handles to swing around and launch yourself through the air. I remember the movement and jumping felt a bit slow, but that did make it easier to control the mid-air grabs. I never finished it (or DH); not sure if it's because the latter stages of games were just harder in that era or if I was just a bit crap at games when I was 10.

I have Puppeteer through PS+ but have never played it. It's another victim of the burden of choice issue, unfortunately. I should really give it a chance, as it was really well received at the time IIRC.

Biscuits
26/6/2017 01:26:41 pm

That's right, I remember the poles. I never finished that one, but I did finish Dynamite Headdy, albeit as an adult. The difficulty ramped way up towards the end of the game, I could never beat 'Babyface' (he remains one of my favourite bosses from all games). As a 10 year old, I stood no chance

Darren Lock link
26/6/2017 10:29:51 am

They'd have been better suited to releasing a proper Sega-licensed mini Megadrive console a la the NES Mini Classic (not that @Games Shite). But that takes effort and money.

Instead, they release this stuff on a platform that's of no interest to me. Playing games on my phone is as enjoyable as sticking needles up my Jap's eye...

Heigh ho!

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Chinnyhill10
26/6/2017 10:50:13 am

Just buy one of these for a tenner. Handheld, disposable and a load of Megadrive games with dodgy emulation without the pain in the ass of touch screen controls.

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Growly Wedger
26/6/2017 11:26:06 am

I would far rather have games on my phone than have another tacky plastic box sitting about the place - one that is only good for one thing, a thing that my phone can easily accomplish

But I'll just emulate everything anyway! Why would anyone get these OR the NES mini? What a stunted, pointless waste of time and money!

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Spiney O'Sullivan
26/6/2017 11:47:49 am

Possibly because some people think that paying for content is fair?

McCain Wedges
26/6/2017 12:14:03 pm

Even if the content is presented in a way that's far more restrictive/difficult to use than the free version? It's not the customer's fault they produced garbage and another guy working for free nailed it...

I stopped pirating TV shows when they made Netflix good and fast, there just isn't any need, Netflix is quicker and easier now. I'll do the same for old games when they finally figure something out that doesn't provide a sub-par service, or just plain rips off the customer

Spiney O'Sullivan
26/6/2017 12:31:41 pm

I do agree that companies are idiots if they don't make content easily accessible to people who want to pay money for it *cough*Nintendo*cough*. It's a basic failure at marketing.

However, I still think there's something irritatingly entitled about people who seem to think that videogames and TV shows are something they have this absolute right to for free. Videogames aren't particularly high on the Hierarchy of Needs, nor are they featured particularly prominently in the UN Declaration of Human Rights. I don't really care if people steal intangible stuff, but I do hate when they act like it's some moral crusade against those who withhold their inalienable right to play Road Rash 2 on the train, and as if people who don't are somehow wrong.

It's like, mate, you're nicking Revenge of Shinobi for your own convenience, you're not Robin bloody Hood.

Wedge Antilles
26/6/2017 12:47:25 pm

Nobodies giving it that, but this thing from Sega is saying 'Hey, you know that thing you've been using for free for about a decade and a half? Works well, doesn't it? But boo, we're not making any money from it, and it's our thing!' So far, all makes sense.

Then they say 'Please use this version instead! It's free, too! Except there's some adverts in it. And it's a bit laggy. And the controls are really bad. And there's only 1/100th of the catalog you currently have. But we will have some money.'

Here's what I say: Fie! Sell me the thing I have already, it actually works.

Spiney O'Sullivan
26/6/2017 01:36:24 pm

That is literally what you gave it:

"Why would anyone get these OR the NES mini? What a stunted, pointless waste of time and money!"

Plenty of people get them because they just want a simple way to play this content, and not everybody wants to go risking getting nailed for downloading torrents of said content.

Yes, the emulation isn't perfect by the sounds of it, and digital controls are just always crap, but I suspect that the mobile market doesn't give them much incentive to do better. Unlike hobbyist coder types who develop emulators for fun (which is technically impressive, admittedly), Sega is a company that has to keep itself running by actually making a profit and justifying its decisions to a Board that keeps asking "where's the money, and what's the margin on this new plan?". The amount of work that would be needed to develop a Hedgehog Engine equivalent for every game likely wouldn't be made back in this climate, so a generic, slightly wonky emulator will have to do.

The long and short of it is that the situation is a mess, as a probably dying company struggles to adapt to a market that prioritises low entry barriers over quality. There's probably no outcome that will suit everyone here.

Wedgle Wedgle
26/6/2017 03:04:33 pm

I DO think it's a pointless waste of time and money, I don;t think I'm any kind of hotshot for emulating though. Quite the opposite, hence my incredulity that others are not doing the same.

I can only imagine there's some kind of legal caveat in place that prevents them from just buying and using one of the many Sega emulators that work well. It does look bad when a massive faceless corporation can't match the technical know-how of one spotty guy working alone in his bedroom, then charge for the pleasure



Spiney O'Sullivan
26/6/2017 09:15:46 pm

I do wonder why they can't just do that. Probably more insane pride than anything.

Giving the 2D Sonic port reins to Christian Whitehead was the best decision they could have made. Though they did originally put a C&D on his Sonic CD iOS port, and refuse to let him do Sonic 3 for no reason that has ever been adequately explained...

I'll be honest, they don't make it easy to argue their case...

Adadad Addison-Adoodah
26/6/2017 10:34:13 am

I love ads I do, like Ad-am Ant, Ad-amski and 2000 AD! I work as an ad-vertising ad-ministrator for an ad-hesive company. Ad(d) me on Linkedin.

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AcidBeard
26/6/2017 07:38:56 pm

I think you've ad enough son.

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Jim Leighton (Future World Darts Champion) x
26/6/2017 11:23:30 am

Decap Attack!! Get on me phone

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RichardM
26/6/2017 11:32:40 am

Yeah, crap lineup. Controls are dreadful: inexcusably so,given that there are games out there with virtual controls that work well. Not even sure what Mega Drive games I would like to see on mobile. Still vaguely hopeful for the new Sonic game.

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Gaming Mill link
26/6/2017 12:03:25 pm

I'm the only person I know that's got one of those Moga Bluetooth Moga controllers that has a spring-load lift up bit to hold your phone in. I bought it about two years ago and I've used it how many times? Once.

It'd be perfect for all of the upcoming Sega shenanigans, however, it was a stupid thing to buy for a number of reasons:

a) When travelling I drive everywhere and never use public transport.

b) If I did use public transport it'd be a bugger carrying it around with me because it's too big to fit in my pockets and I don't carry a handbag.

3) I could always use it at home but why when I've got a decent PC to play all these Sega classics on it, AND with decent emulation too.

d) I have a hatred to adverts appearing and I'm not really too happy for paying for games again that I still have the cartridges for.

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Chostone Wenkler
26/6/2017 12:34:08 pm

Sounds like you need a Sega Nomad

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RichardM
26/6/2017 01:31:02 pm

All the ads I've encountered so far have had the X to cancel them hidden in the top left or right, only to appear after 30 seconds: but you can press it even though you can't see it. It's like a new mini-game between levels, pressing blindly to cancel the ad as quickly as possible.

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DEAN
26/6/2017 02:05:15 pm

The controls are the biggest problem. Completely insufferable even on something like Phantasy Star II.

The team behind this said that the controls would not be getting an update (complete and utter rethink) for reasons of price and scale.

Now, I'm not very bright either but I know do at least know this - bad idea.

The whole shebang just falls at the first hurdle because even when they get around to releasing Outrun, Thunder Blade, G-Loc, Afterburner, Space Harrier... they're going to be totally unplayable bollocks.

This is a waste of everybody's time and of Sega's credits because these games would have been better off being outsourced to people that know their onions who might very well have implemented a pocket sized control system that was worth a piss. Touch screen gaming only works when done properly - it's so unforgiving.

Never mind - there are genuinely some games that could have worked wonders for Sega but.... not like this, Barry.... you need to kiss me and make me feel like a beautiful woman.

And you can insert your ads up your adsholes.

--------------------------------------------------------------

I take it you don't like getting free Bic pens and tapes, Biffo?! I'm all for integrity but integrity at the price of marketing tat is a level of sanctimony usually the preserve of gods like Bono and Sting.... and Gandalf.
Play (Play.com) once wrote me a letter asking me if I'd write reviews for their mobile phone bits of shit (accessories) on their website. They offered me no money down, but I'd be welcome to keep whatever they sent me. I wrote them a letter back saying that I of course was willing to accept all free stuff - send away!

Not long after that they sold up to that massive Japanese company. And what a stitch up that was! The Golden Goose was well and truly off her tax haven nest by that point. LOL Bidness.

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Spiney O'Sullivan
26/6/2017 02:44:05 pm

I am beginning to become convinced that the only way to make a workable virtual D-pad is to just make a physical one out of some kind of weird flesh-like material to stick on the screen and stick a D-pad over that.

Actually, with companies out there presumably working to produce ever-more realistic flesh substitutes for adult toys and those creepy uncanny valley-inhabiting humanoid robots that we keep seeing in news articles every few years, how has nobody yet tried to corner this niche?

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biScuitz
26/6/2017 02:56:54 pm

I think Cronenberg gave it a go in eXistenz

DEAN
26/6/2017 04:08:02 pm

That's a very intriguing idea, Spiney, but there's one flaw with it - gross.
And then you'd have to go out and buy it and keep it in a little case - fuck that... it's a cool idea but I don't see it as the way forward - I'm sorry, but I'm out.

If there's a way forward then it probably lies with haptic feedback but I can't see that happening anytime soon because fixing the digital D-pad problem is not on any list at Apple and Samsung.... I wouldn't have thought.

Jol
26/6/2017 04:35:45 pm

Whatever happened to those gel-based touch screens that could form protruding keyboard keys? Did they ever show up on a commercially available device? It might be possible to adapt that into something semi-usable.

Spiney O'Sullivan
26/6/2017 09:51:49 pm

DEAN, it's less gross than the alternative, which basically involves grave-robbing or self-mutilation, and a lot of ice packs. Carrying a small piece of a sex robot around in your pocket doesn't seem so bad now, does it?

Jol
26/6/2017 03:09:31 pm

Disclaimer: I've played emulated MD games on my phone. My guilty conscience is eased by having bought the same Sega / Sonic games and collections on about a dozen formats already, and there was nothing out I could buy at the time. Now that there is... I dunno. Maybe if they release something cool and interesting like those Saturn games that now cost £500 a pop, but I'd want them on my PS4 or Vita, not my phone.

I'll echo everyone's sentiments over the controls, because this really is where it all falls down. Frankly touch screen controls for something fast paced like Sonic are a load of dog wank. I don't know if the Sega Forever controls are particularly good/bad compared to your generic Android emulator, but I assume they will be terrible. The big problem is that you've got no tactility whatsoever so you've no idea what you're pressing (and your thumbs block out bits of the screen). Touch screen controls did however work just fine for Shining Force II, which I completed almost entirely on toilet breaks at work. Maybe Sega will spot a gap in the market for 25 year old turn-based JRPGs that can be played while toileting?

The only solution I can think of is to develop bespoke control schemes for each game, and to only release games that can be reworked to feel like they belong on a touch screen device. You mention Space Harrier - say you have auto-fire turned on and you move the guy by dragging him around the screen? Outrun could be motion controlled, with big break & accelerator buttons either side of the screen. Basically arcade games that are pretty simple and can be simplified further.

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DEAN
26/6/2017 03:46:37 pm

"The only solution I can think of is to develop bespoke control schemes for each game, and to only release games that can be reworked to feel like they belong on a touch screen device."

Damn straight, brah.

Outrun in particular would be very welcome - racing games like Asphalt, Ridge Racer have worked reasonably okay on iPhones et al. But Sega's approach of just blowing out a load of free(ish) games but all horribly hindered by hideous controls is low on smarts. All I can think is that they're playing to sheer numbers - If enough people see enough ads then they turn a profit. But that's little picture bullshit because, for example, if they got a bit of hype behind a cool version of Outrun (a not completely faded IP), charged for add-ons like new tracks and then took that approach to Sega Rally, Scud Race... and yeah, those other games like Space Harrier.. then they could offer something worth the time of day.
They could even look at expanding those IPs beyond their genres into things like drag racing; like CSR... they've got a real bona fide brand at their disposal and they piss it away on this short sighted shite.

Outrun is very bankable in its own right - it just needs to be 'handled' properly. Do they not realise the potential they have?! it's like giving a person a fishing rod and watching them swap it for some fish.

Meatballs-me-branch-me-do
26/6/2017 03:08:23 pm

I already hate Nintendo for doing this, now Sega.

Listen, Sega. I own an actual Sonic cartridge. How many frigging times do you expect me to rebuy it so it will run on iOS/XBLA/Wii/etc.

Your first party games are not to the same caliber as Nintendo, and I can't imagine anyone excitedly buying Altered Breasts wanting to relive its norky goodness.

It doesn't help your emulation is bad. I loved - LOVED - Crazy Taxi on the Dreamcast. It was perfect. Those who've seen me play can attest to this. The Xbox Live Arcade version somehow ruined the controls and made the Limit Cut which is absolutely essential to keeping a long play through going, impossible. So get fucked.

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Spiney O'Sullivan
26/6/2017 09:55:32 pm

In principle, if the emulation is good, I don't mind paying the price of a cup of tea for the ability to play those games outside their original format. I do think it's fair to ask for money for that, especially where the port requires some investment.

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Spiney O'Sullivan
26/6/2017 10:02:19 pm

Oops, hit submit by accident.

The caveat is: BUT they need to actually put the effort into a decent port.

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applelemon
26/6/2017 06:44:57 pm

It is a nice idea but the games are laggy and I can't use touch screen controls for the life of me...SEGA have released a lot of their mega drive stuff on the 3DS so I am happy with that

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Kelvin Green, age 11 link
26/6/2017 07:27:56 pm

Oh Biffo, everyone knows Phantasy Star is Sega's own Final Fantasy.

Sega's own Zelda is Golden Axe Warrior or Golvellius, obviously.

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