E3 is almost upon us and here at Sega Addicts we have some hopes, dreams, and predictions for what Sega will be showing off at the show. With Sega’s recently released line-up of games that will be on display it’s looking to be a much smaller showing than usual, which, is no surprise after Sega’s recent downsizing. There may be a few things up Sega’s sleeve that they’re waiting to announce, however, so here’s hoping that by the end of E3 many Sega fans will be excited about the future.
Hit the jump to read some of our thoughts and predictions.
Flake: Given the rough year Sega has had, they are going to have to do something innovative enough to get some attention (read: Money) but safe enough to avoid wasting resources (read: Money). Given that this is the last E3 before Nintendo is set to release their new, poorly named Wii-U system, I think we can expect to see at least a good number of Sega launch / near-launch titles announced in a bid to capture that early adopter market. If Sega is very smart, they will go further and announce more joint IP titles with Nintendo. Such a move would benefit both companies and seems like a natural evolution of what we have seen from Sega in the last few years.
Brett Hatfield: I think we’ll get a new mainline Sonic game. Least I hope we will. I’d love to see them keep it in the Generations style, but with minimal gimmicks. It’s time to just see if the current racer playstyle can get over on its own, without werehogs or wisps or classic levels. I’m also hoping we’ll get some news about Yakuza 5 and Anarchy Reigns at the event, as well as more character reveals for ASR Transformed. As for a huge stretch, I’d like to hear about localizations for Project X Zone as well, since it’s the closest thing to a Resonance of Fate sequel we’ll ever get.
Scott Morrison: Well, given this will be the E3 where Sega finally announces the Dreamcast 2, I don’t think we have anything to worry about in terms of awesome games because that will be a given. Seriously though, I am not expecting too many surprises from Sega this year, but I don’t see that as a bad thing at all. I suspect they will show us more information on Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing Transformed, as well as Aliens Colonial Marines. Being that Sonic 4 Episode 2 just released, I don’t see them announcing any new Sonic title, unless they feel Ep 2 did badly enough that they need to reassure people of Sonic’s relevance already. The majority of Sega’s 2012/2013 line-up seems to be digital, so with that I see Hell Yeah, Jet Set Radio HD, and Virtua Fighter 5 Final Showdown consuming a large part of the show. On the topic of digital content, and with the recent exposure of Sonic Adventure 2 avatar items on XBLA, I suspect Sega will announce the re-release of Sonic Adventure 2 on the digital marketplaces. Overall, I suspect Sega will play it safe and remind us of the excellent games they have lined up for the near future.
Stevie Grant: With all this depressing Sega news lately you’d probably expect me to say something along the lines of ‘Sega is doomed and is now a novelty pasta company’. But since I like to keep things positive, I’m thinking that they’re going to reveal a big retro throwback. Something that could be a guaranteed box office smash is always a pleasant idea for a company losing profits. There’s no evidence to back up this so i’d just call this wishful thinking until the actual event.
Otherwise we can probably expect some sort of new Sonic game. Seems pretty obvious but if it’s a hand held or some sort of spin off remains to be seen. Honestly with the way Sonic is going now I would trust them with anything, as long as they keep improving as they have been lately. Who knows maybe we could get a Sonic Generations follow up? No one knows for sure but that’s what I’ll be expecting when this years E3 rolls along.
Josh Newey: I’ll be honest here–I’m really not expecting a whole lot of new on the Sega front. Now that we’ve seen their confirmed list, my anticipation is primarily directed at The Cave. Despite Sega’s current financial woes, they are still participating in some of the most intriguing and exciting collaborations in the industry right now, and their coupling with Double Fine has to be on the top of that list. It’s a shame it was revealed before the big show, but that hasn’t dampened my enthusiasm one iota. Other than that, I’m really just crossing my fingers and hoping to hear something positive regarding the seemingly woeful state of the oft-delayed and now seemingly canceled Western version of Anarchy Reigns. I really worry about Sega’s future relationship with Platinum Games, and I think that losing them could really hurt the company’s potential for solid original IPs. At this point, I just want a goddamn answer. IS IT CANCELLED OR NOT. PLEASE.
Other than that, the only really new news I could anticipate would probably be more rereleases of classic games, whether that be in the form of future Vintage Collections like the ones we just received, or HD rereleases like the upcoming Jet Grind Radio or the all-but-announced Sonic Adventure 2. That’s one place where Sega stands to make quite a bit of extra cash, as even the slightest promise for anything Dreamcast related is almost guaranteed to get a good chunk of the gaming community excited. With the announcement of Vyse in Sega All Stars Racing Transformed, I wouldn’t be too shocked if Skies of Arcadia HD was announced. I’d love to see Shenmue HD announced as well, but really, that’s just a pipe dream.
Tom Kyzivat: Eternal Champions III. This is gonna be the year. I can feel it.
I think sega is going to release a new Icon, maybe a adventure game.
I think it might be a girl character.
That or a cyborge. robots are always good.