Sonic and All-Stars Racing Transformed review (All versions)

Date Released: Winter 2012 for most versions
Date Reviewed: February 17, 2013
Genre: 3D Party Racer
Players: 1-4 players locally (up to 5 on Wii U), 10 online
Length: 3-30 minutes per event, 12-25 hours to unlock all content
Replayability: High

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Introduction

Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed is the sequel to 2010’s crossover party racer Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing. Not simply a basic sequel, the game focuses around the concept of vehicles that change during the race to traverse over land, water and the sky with a few courses that even head through lava or outer space. Presented as kid-friendly but designed to be enjoyable for all ages, Transformed is a quality racer for fans of SEGA and the genre. Difficult but not unfair, the game succeeds in making a unique and fun game for groups online or off, but somewhat sloppy direction and awkward marketing attempts keep it from becoming a true classic.

Personal View: SEGA’s March 2012 layoffs – A nail in the coffin or the makings of a bright future?

Last week, news from SEGA of America broke that saw numerous members of staff fired, games canceled and a general downsizing of the entire branch of SEGA of America. Initially, rumors ran rampant and confused a large amount of fans across the globe, the worst of which was that the entire United States branch of SEGA had completely shut down, which of course is not the case.

Immediate reconstruction has taken place going into their new fiscal year. They expect a net loss of ¥7.1 billion ($86.4 million) as part of the reform and news of this dropped their entire company’s stock 4%. However, the day after their stock rose 5% and is showing signs of continual growth.

After the break I discuss the potential cancellations, their effects, observe the negatives and positives of the change and attempt to discover if SEGA truly is in trouble or if the downsizing is the start of a brilliant strategy. The rest of the post should be taken as speculation from a dedicated fan of the company and game industry as a whole and not as a financial advisor.

Out of respect of those whom lost their jobs, any subjects around them will not be mentioned at all.

SEGA USA and Europe to restructure and downsize, several games cancelled and layoffs incurred

It was announced today parent company SEGA Sammy Holdings that SEGA’s USA and European divisions will undergo immediate reconstruction heading into this fiscal year, with an expected net loss of ¥7.1 billion ($86.4 million) as part of the reform. The reform also entails the cancellation of several as of yet unnamed titles and layoffs across both divisions, though it was noted that strong IPs such as Sonic the Hedgehog, Football Manager, Total War, the licensed Aliens film franchise, and possibly others will not be subject to any major changes or cancellations. These changes come as a result of the company’s desire to “create a smaller company positioned for sustained profitability”, by streamlining it’s current divisions and showing greater focus on digital content going forward.

After the jump, you can read the SEGA’s official statement on the matter.

SEGA Sammy Holdings donates 200 million yen in wake of Japanese disasters

The Northeastern coast of Japan has been devastated within the past few days due to the earthquakes, tsunamis and now everything from uncontrollable fires to radiation leaking with death tolls being estimated at over 15,000 people. This is the worst disaster Japan has seen since World War II.

Among the large companies that have shown their support, SEGA Sammy Holdings has donated 200 million yen, which is roughly 2,500,000 USD. SEGA has also announced that they will be donating all of the forthcoming money they will make on the Football Manager and Sonic the Hedgehog franchises (two of their biggest IPs) sold on mobile platforms for the next week.

If you would like to help in any way, please contact your local Red Cross for more information.

[Source: IGN]

Football Manager 2011 announced

Unsurprisingly, Sports Interactive and Sega announced this year’s iteration of Football Manager.  New features of the popular management game include real time contract negotiatons and improved staff interaction and training systems. The 3D match engine, whose technology is based on Virtua Striker’s, also recieved many graphical improvements such as new animations, more detailed textures and lighting.

For a more in-depth view of Football Manager 2011 new features check out SI’s announcement video below.

Source: SI Games Community