The Pop-Culture E-Zine
Remember when we told you to vote for the Sonic The Hedgehog (Sonic Mania) Lego set on Lego Ideas back in 2019?
Well guess what, your vote helped, as this creation garnered over 10,000 votes, meaning Lego has approved this set to become an actual product you can buy – woohoo! Lego is tweaking and finalising the set’s design, we just hope it is as close as possible to the original Lego Ideas submission! Can’t wait for this to be on store shelves and build Sonic’s world out of Lego!
On this day [November 30] in 1990, Sega’s 16-bit beast arrived on our shores, which was about 2 years after Japan got theirs, but it was always better late than never back in those days!
Coming from the days of playing games on the Commodore 64 and Atari ST, the Mega Drive felt like we had a genuine arcade system in our bedroom! The Mega Drive was our first day one purchase (the N64 was the other) in 1990, which we paid $399 with the pack-in Altered Beast game. We also couldn’t resist buying Golden Axe on that day too. We still remember unpacking and playing it that day – our mind was completely blown!
Sega stamped their authority with their 16-bit powerhouse, and as history would record it, their most successful console ever. The Mega Drive was the catalyst for converting a generation of micro computing enthusiasts into console gamers, we should know, as we were one of them. Our transition from 8-bit (C64) and 16-bit (Atari ST) computing was quite stark – and as soon as we got our Mega Drive and whacked in the pack-in Altered Beast and then Golden Axe games, we honestly thought we had Sega’s arcade games in our bedroom. We were instantly smitten, and alas, that also rang the death knell on our playing days on the micros.
What were your earliest memories of Sega’s 16-bit beauty? Hit us up on Twitter or Facebook and join in the conversation.
Just in case you have been visiting Mars and just came back to this planet, SEGA is celebrating their 60th Anniversary this year.
Amongst their celebrations, they have designed a heap of retro inspired alternate covers of modern Sega games, like Alien Isolation and Persona 4 on the Genesis / Mega Drive, Puyo Puyo Tetris on the Dreamcast, Valkyria Chronicles on Sega Saturn, Yakuza 0 on Game Gear, and many many more.
Check out the rest of the cool retro inspired alternate Sega game covers here.
image source: Sega 60th Anniversary
Straight from the planet Funkotron comes the funkiest, custom SEGA Genesis / Mega Drive game ever to hit your CRT TV! Complete with light-up LEDs, moving arrow, and sound effects, this brass elevator replica will amaze your friends on the included display stand or played in a real SEGA Genesis / Mega Drive!
You now have the chance to grab this one of a kind creation via the current charity auction on eBay. This charity auction will see 100% of the sale proceeds going to the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. So not only could you win this super funky cartridge, but you can also help a great charity!
Happy bidding!
source: MID49
Nintendo may be grabbing a lot of attention with their Nintendo Direct announcement this week, but we reckon you need to know about this other awesome news too.
So what’s the awesome news? Well, remember when Street Fighter II hit the 16-bit consoles and we were all discussing which version was better? For the record, we preferred the SNES version, but the Sega Mega Drive / Genesis (Street Fighter II: Special Champion Edition) game was no slouch either. The awesome news is, things have changed for the better on the Sega Mega Drive / Genesis version, thanks to coder Gabriel Pyron.
Gabriel has been toiling for 4 years, reworking the Mega Drive / Genesis Street Fighter II: Special Champion Edition game to bring it as close to arcade perfect as possible, aptly titled, Street Fighter II Remastered Edition. Gabriel has injected better/more colours, updated the graphics, animations and art, fixed some bugs and removed the pesky censorship elements to name just a few of his updates.
Head on over here to download Gabriel’s update and apply the patch to play the ultimate (and best) Street Fighter II game on the Sega Mega Drive / Genesis!
image source: Romhacking
Well, well, well, the internet went into a mini meltdown with the news circulating that maybe, and this is a big MAYBE, Sega will reveal a new console next week! If this news is true, then we honestly can’t wait, and neither can our Dreamcast – it needs a rest!
Just in case you think we’ve gone bonkers in self isolation, the news broke this week that Japanese digital technology journalist Zenji Nishikawa had hinted at a “huge scoop” during a YouTube live stream. Zenji’s news is set to be published in the June 4 issue of Weekly Famitsu, so mark that date in your diary.
We wish!
source: nerdbacon
For those of you (and us) that want to know what Zenji said, here is the English translation (via Gematsu):
“My column in next week’s issue of Famitsu is crazy. I got a huge scoop… It’s a world premiere article. And an exclusive. It may not be Nikkei or Weekly Bunshun, but if you want to know if it’s a scoop that big…it totally is! It’s a scoop from a game company that everyone loves. An insane scoop. Last year, Wired got the exclusive story on PlayStation 5, right? Other media didn’t. It’s that level of a scoop. I interviewed a certain company’s executive and technical staff, it’s really revolutionary… really, it’s a revolution.
It’ll be in Famitsu next Thursday. I already sent in my manuscript, so the proofs are being made now. It’s a scoop on a level that when the story comes out, other media will make a fuss to the company like, “Why didn’t you let us cover it?” Maybe people will say, “Who was the first to break that story?,” “It was Zenji Nishikawa, right?” It’s a scoop as major as the PlayStation 5 scoop. I just wanted to say that in advance.
I can’t say [anything more] here, but it’s OK for me to tease it (laughs). I was told that it’s OK to do so at various meetings. It’s being talked about in other places. Just not by the media. It’ll rile up the games industry.”
So there you have it folks. Lots of details to speculate on, so we have our fingers crossed that Sega do re-enter the hardware realm to shake things up (and run some cool ads like they used to)!
We Wish Mk II
source: NationStates
source: Sega 60th Anniversary
As huge fans of the classic Mega Drive beat’em up series, Streets of Rage, this news about Streets of Rage 4 has definitely got us very very excited!
Let’s get straight to it, fans looking forward to playing Streets of Rage 4 next year will be able to do so on their platform of choice, as publisher and co-developer Dotemu (Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap, Windjammers 1 and 2) with co-developers Lizardcube (Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap) and Guard Crush Games (Streets of Fury) today announced that the title will make its way on to PC, Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch – now that is awesome news! Oh yeah, a brand new gameplay trailer released today also introduced the latest character to join Blaze Fielding and Axel Stone: a badass guitar-playing warrior named Cherry Hunter.
source: DotEmu
Cherry Hunter is the daughter of Adam Hunter from the original Streets of Rage. Trained by her father and Axel, Cherry learned self-defense from a young age. Her interest in following in her father’s footsteps and becoming a cop soon faded out, replaced by her love of music. Nowadays, she plays with her electro progressive rock band in some of the most dangerous places in Wood Oak City. She may look young but make no mistake – she is a seasoned veteran of kicking ass and taking names.
The new trailer also reveals several more levels in the upcoming game at different times of day: neon lighted urban rooftops, elevator, seedy airport hangars, dirty sewers, thumping music stage and many more are all yours for the taking – lay the smackdown and don’t look back.
Just in case you have been living in a cave, Streets of Rage 4 will be the first entry to the core series in 25 years, standing as Axel and Blaze’s glorious return to serving up side-scrolling beatdowns. With lush hand-drawn animations, new combat abilities, and fresh tracks from an amazing team of composers, Streets of Rage 4 will be a masterful tribute to and revitalization of the classic action fans adore.
To keep your skull-cracking combo on the latest Streets of Rage 4 news going, head over to www.streets4rage.com, visit www.facebook.com/StreetsofRage4!
image source: Games Press
The Japanese Mega Drive Mini with the Megadora Tower Mini and the Mini Cartridge Framed Set proves yet again that our Japanese friends always get the cool stuff!
The Megadora Tower Mini (complete with a Mega-CD and 32X) may just be an accessory, but we reckon it is damn awesome and we totally need it in our lives!!! Oh yeah, the 22 tiny Mega Drive cartridge framed set also oozes so much awesomeness that we can’t contain our excitement – we are totally giddy and intoxicated with 16-bit Sega nostalgia.
You can try your luck buying this awesome collector’s edition from the official Japanese Sega Store right now (¥25,877 / ~AU$343.00 – excluding shipping)!
So, who is getting this MEGALICIOUS beast?
image source: Sega Store
Let’s start with WOW! How damn WOW is this MegaSD FPGA cartridge from Terraonion?!
Before we tell you what this mega cart can do, we thought we’d let you all know that it isn’t cheap (€232.00 / ~AU$380.00 exc shipping), but then again, there is a lot of cool technology jam-packed into this cart!
So, what can this cart do? Actually, the better question would be, what can’t it do? The simple answer is, it can do everything, bar making you a nice cup of coffee. Check out some of the mouth watering specs and features, and then make your decision to pull the trigger on one or not…..
This is the world’s First Mega-CD/Sega CD FPGA Optical Disc Emulator! Please try not to drool when reading the specs/features:
• Plays both ISOS (bin+cue) and ROMS
• RAM based cartridge for instant boot
• Compatible with all original and region free patched Mega-CD / Sega CD bios
• Supports Mega Drive / Genesis, Sega CD / Mega-CD, Nomad, Master System and 32X games (requires 32X add-on)
• Fully compatible with Analogue Mega Sg!
• Easy to use interface for navigating your collection with screenshots, genre, year and description
• Save State support for Mega Drive and Genesis Cartridge games (8 slots)
• Built in cheat engine for Mega Drive and Genesis cartridge games
• Emulates all different Genesis / Mega Drive / Master System / 32x cartridge mappers.
• Stores all different Genesis / Mega Drive / Master System / 32x cartridge saves into MicroSD card.
• Per game Mega-CD / Sega CD Backup RAM and Cartridge RAM stored into microSD card
• Master System FM Core
• In-Game menu for fast reboot and swapping games (Genesis / Mega Drive and Mega-CD / Sega CD)
image source: Terraonion
Oh yeah, this awesome bit of kit starts shipping in the first week of August 2019 by a strict purchase order system, so act fast! The other morsel you should be aware of is that shipping times will depend on their sales volumes! We are champing at the bit for this mega cart!
Just in case you have been in a cave without any outside contact, get your diary out now and mark September 19, 2019 as the date that the beautiful Sega Mega Drive Mini will be released in the wild to go toe-to-toe with its old foe, the SNES Classic Mini! Oh yeah, this ain’t no Flashback system!
We were amazed to find the following letter, with love, from SEGA:
My Old Friend,
I know it’s been a while. Time moves forward, yet not a day goes by that you’re not on my mind. I, the popular, star-console, you, the shy, unassuming kid, but we found common ground when we played Ecco the Dolphin together. You were so fast, racing through the Green Hill Zone with my pal, Sonic!
You sure knew how to play. The way that CRT hue hit your glazed over face as you spent another hour playing Castlevania: Bloodlines…We both knew things would change and that we’d move on to other great things, but lately, I’ve been thinking about spending time together once more. We didn’t do what we were told, but we made a good team.
I look a bit different now. I’m much smaller. I’m packing 40 games inside my sleek, molded shell, and more blast processing power than ever before.
We lived fast and dangerously, together, playing the games some of the adults weren’t too keen on (but you had the cool parents). We had the games your friends wanted to play, a whole stack of them. Shining Force, Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine, and Earthworm Jim, to name a few.
Sure. there were other distractions (remember pogs?). I was never jealous though because we still had Altered Beast and Gunstar Heroes.
I will try to write more regularly. I hear there is this friendly meeting space called “social media” now where I can share more.
I hope to hear from you soon.
With love,
SEGA Mega Drive Mini @-}–
Wow. We’ve never seen the SEGA Mega Drive Mini express itself like that before. If you’d like to write back, here is some information you may find useful when crafting your reply 😉
When: September 19, 2019
What: Miniature Sega Mega Drive console which will be plug-and-play ready with 40 classic games built-in! Oh yeah, the controllers will have 3 fire-buttons, not 6 (Ed: Oh well, it’s better than nothing)
Price: AU$139.00 / US$79.99 (Pre-orders via JB Hi-Fi or Play-Asia)
Announced titles (and more to come!):
So there you have it. Are you excited? Of course you are! Let us know on Twitter or Facebook which other titles you would like to see make the list of 40 legendary games.
Now, there are no limits with the Sega Mega Drive Mini!
image source: Sega Mega Drive Mini