“SEEEGAAAA!” Man, do I miss the sound of that angelic voice singing the company’s name. But wait… I can hear it again once more – through backwards compatibility and the Steam virtual games room!
I know, I know, Sega re-release stuff all the time, and you can pretty much play the first Sonic game on any current technological device imaginable – but I don’t care! I love me a piece of Sega any day of the week.
Today Xbox added Phantasy Star II and Sonic & Knuckles to the backwards compatibility list (not to mention, Jet Set Radio, Altered Beast, and Comix Zone just a few days prior).
That brings the grand total of Sega games available on Xbox One to 20 titles, which is second only to Microsoft Studios. This is also awesome for me, because I revisit the Sonic series, Golden Axe and JSR on a yearly basis, so no need to switch consoles anymore! (Yep, I’m officially a slacker!)
In addition, just last month, Sega announced Steam Workshop support for Genesis and Mega Drive games, as well as a virtual game room hub! I love the reinvention of classic games, and now there is a plethora of creative modded Sega games available to play!
Do yourself a favour and check out Sonic Classic Heroes. It’s a combination of the first two games with the ability to switch between playing as Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles in a team – the ultimate retro-style Sonic game, without a doubt!
It makes me think ‘Why all the Sega love lately?’ but then I ask myself again, ‘Why not the Sega love!?’ Sega has an impressive history and vast back catalogue of games that all players should be able to enjoy. NiGHTS Into Dreams is probably one of the most visually beautiful games I’ve ever played, and picking up passengers in Crazy Taxi never ever gets old for me.
There is something peculiar and enigmatic about Sega games, so much that I always seem to gravitate to them more than other game companies. I tried playing Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga on GBA last night and I just couldn’t get invested. It was either because I couldn’t be bothered saving the princess again for the 157th time, or because a fast blue friend of mine decided to tap on my shoulder asking, “Hey Dude, wanna go on another trip to Green Hill Zone?”
“Why yes Blue Buddy, yes I do.”
