Last week's Video Game Awards was an impressive games show as various developers announced projects for the upcoming year and beyond. There was a healthy number of indie and "AAA developer" reveals ranging from multiple genres, although the "awards" part of the show felt off. I'm not going to critique the VGAs as this isn't the point of this post, but I feel like the awards ceremony and the game reveals should be kept separate.
This would also ensure those who win awards will have enough time to present their speeches. I'm fairly certain Geoff Keighley could get away with a "Winter Games Fest" as a pre-show to the Video Game Awards. It was because of the weaving of "game announcements" in between award ceremonies that I initially missed the big Sega announcement. And what an announcement it was.
After weeks of hype build-up through sending "calling cards" to various content creators, Sega shocked the world with five game announcements in less than two minutes. The five games that were announced are all revivals of Sega's original IPs identified by their trademarks in a small skit.
Then from out of nowhere I see my boy Beat return in his full glory. I see Professor K. I see Axel pummelling someone with his Bare Knuckles. Even Joe Musashi never looked better before in his white and red shinobi gear. Shinobi. Golden Axe. Streets of Rage. Jet Set Radio. Crazy Taxi. These five games were named one after the other, with "more" on the way, all in development. Even the iconic "SEGA!" yell made its comeback. Nine-year-old me was satisfied.
Over the next few years, Sega is reviving the five aforementioned titles and other legacy IPs that have been dormant for some time. One announcement that fans were expecting that was absent from all mentions was Virtua Fighter. Thanks to the release of Ultimate Showdown in 2021, Virtua Fighter saw a resurgence in players and the possibility of a new entry isn't off the table. As with most projects, careful time and consideration must be given in its development process. Here are the five games revealed in more detail along with my first impressions of each announcement, beginning with...
Jet Set Radio
When I reminisced over Jet Set Radio Future, I bemoaned how Sega should remaster the Xbox-exclusive "soft reboot" of the Dreamcast cult classic. With this announcement, this more than makes up the lack of a JSRF remaster. After twenty decades, Jet Set Radio is getting a whole new game. No more "cameos" in party games and racing games. No more fun costumes referencing the characters and other "Hey remember the glory days of the Dreamcast!?" Sega finally gave fans what they requested for decades. Something that I never thought would be a possibility.
The short trailer shows Beat tricking over the Shibuya scramble while grinding on rails. For a brief moment, Beat is seen climbing on obstacles, something that wasn't possible in either Jet Set Radio or Future. Perhaps the new remake will take cues from games like Bomb Rush Cyberfunk, a game that coincidentally was influenced by the original. It would be cool to give players other options outside of using rollerblades. The graphic choice for a more "realistic" approach as opposed to the classic "cel-shaded" look may be unique at first, but I think it still matches the overall vibrant style of the original. Future's colors felt a bit too muted, but it was intentional to fit the whole "neo-2000s" vibe.
Streets Of Rage
Of the entries on this list, Streets Of Rage is the only IP to have a recent entry, with Streets Of Rage 4 serving as its own "revival." This makes Streets Of Rage the only game with two revivals in less than a decade. Most games barely get a single revival! The choice for a 3D brawler is almost poetic by nature. At one point during the 2000s, there were several 3D brawlers of 2D beat-em-up franchises. Final Fight Streetwise was Capcom's attempt at making Final Fight a 3D brawler. Bandai Namco also had some 3D brawlers around that area as well. It's interesting to see Streets Of Rage finally get the 3D treatment.
I think it's impossible to mess up a simple genre such as this, but I personally think that Sega should have bought back another IP waiting in the wings. A new Rent-A-Hero set in the same engine as Like A Dragon would have been a fantastic idea. Especially if given the opportunity to customize our hero in civilian and hero outfits respectively. I would absolutely be down to support a Yakuza-like Rent-A-Hero game as a part of this Sega "Revival."
Golden Axe
The second beat-em-up on this list that's also getting the 3D action-adventure treatment is Golden Axe. Coincidentally enough, it had a 3D action game in 2008 titled Golden Axe Beast Rider. While the game has been critically panned and was developed by a company that would later go under shortly after, it would be interesting to see Golden Axe have an actual "Action RPG" style game. The original had many early RPG elements including the usage of items, skills, and observing different enemy attack patterns.
Many of the iconic characters return including riding on dinosaurs, a feature that was a staple in the first few Golden Axe titles. I also wonder if there are camp sequences in between levels, like in the original, where the imps steal your gear and you have to fight to get them back. I could never get that theme song out of my head. Overall, Golden Axe is a solid IP choice to revive from Sega.
Crazy Taxi
A Crazy Taxi revival seemed imminent and all signs pointed to Ichiban Kasuga for his role in this. From Yakuza Like A Dragon's Can Quest to Infinite Wealth's "Crazy Eats," there was already a formula for a potential Crazy Taxi to be made. Players can experience an early concept of the Crazy Taxi remake in the Special Demo for Infinite Wealth, featured in Like A Dragon Gaiden. Granted, it's not the same exact thing as picking up customers, but it's not the first time Sega used a mini-game as a litmus test for future titles. The drone racing minigame from Judgement became an arcade racing game due to its popularity. Who's to say this isn't how Crazy Taxi came about?
My only request is for the original bands to make a return. In the arcade and Dreamcast release, Crazy Taxi had a punk rock soundtrack from licensed artists including The Offspring and Bad Religion. Unfortunately in the PC re-release, all licenses and soundtracks were replaced. It wouldn't feel like Crazy Taxi without a rocking punk soundtrack to do "Crazy Turns" in. Guess I have to get the rust out my license plate and start the cabbie business again.
Shinobi
LizardCube, known for their amazing work on Streets Of Rage 4, teased their involvement with the remake via a peculiar post that signaled "exciting things" were coming from the "Video Game Awards" this year. Of the games featured on this list, Shinobi seems to be the one game that developers are ready to at least hint that they are working hands-on for the project. A beat-em-up is different from an action platformer and from the trailer alone, it seems as if no compromises were made. Much like Streets Of Rage, Yuzo Koshiro had also worked on the soundtrack for Shinobi, so it would be awesome to see him make a return.
There have been many revivals of Shinobi, with my personal favorite being the 3D action era. Sega wanted to create their own Devil May Cry action game and had done so with Shinobi and Nightshade. Featuring two new protagonists directly related to the original Shinobi, Joe, it would be nice to see them return in some capacity for this new Shinobi title.
With more information steadily coming in after such an announcement, it seems that 2024, 2025, and beyond will be a very interesting year for Sega. The success of Persona and Like A Dragon has done numbers in reconnecting with their player base and even their latest Sonic endeavors have been fruitful. Here's to a continued successful streak for this video game veteran.