Sega planning a full force return back into 1st party?

[MrSega]

Hello everyone, I think that with E3 only days away it might be a good time to start speculating on SEGA's plans regaurding the new direction of the company, it's decision to bow out of the 3rd party market, to go digital, thier strange behavior regaurding you guest it? The RINGEDGE hardware.

This topic is pure speculation, I hope everyone understands that. You don't have to believe it if you don't want.

Over the past year, I've learned alot. I've learned how patents work, how of company I'll never understand. We don't know what they're thinking or what thier true intentions are, but we do know that SEGA is the type of company that will suprise people, "Sonic Colours" proves that.


I wish I knew why SEGA won't discuss the RINGEDGE hardware. And why not to believe everything reported about thier R&D, that SEGA has been extremely secretive about the RingEdge hardware and that SEGA is a type they issued so many patents for development. Over the past year, when asked about a new console, SEGA has consitantly dodged the question and refused to anwser, also they have explained all these patents. Normally, they'll deny a new console, but this time they won't say.

So what's in store for SEGA at E3? We are already aware of a Sonic 4 Ep tralier", "Sonic Colours", "Vanquish"( Naoya Tsurumi says its thier last 3rd party effort) and DC games on XBLA and PSN(not suprised since Mike Hayes said that they planned on doing that last fall.) but could there be more suprises? Probably not, but if SEGA is quiet and if asked about a new console refuses to anwser, than there's reason to get excited.

Let's take alook at some of the patents, the 2009 ones and some the recent and more interesting ones:


Here's the Feb 2009 controller patents Its believed the that Genesis-like one is being used for PlaySega however I'm not so sure of that:

http://www.patentgenius.com/patent/7488254.html (The Saturn 3D-Pad-like one, the one where folks at Sega Forums desperately tried to debunk by pairing it to the 2005 PS2 re-release of Nights. Thier logic made no sense. Just because it was filed back in 2005 doesn't mean it has anything to do with Nights. Okay, then why was it issued and trademarked then? It it was abandoned it wouldn't be trademarked


PatentGenius isn't working very well so I'll use FreePatentsOnline for reference( Both controllers are actually in the same document!)http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7488254.pdf


Now to the July 2009 patent for USB drives,harddrives and card reader:
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7556197.html


Here's two of the "streaming device" patents issued November 17,2009, still active and still in development: http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7556197.html


http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7618320.pdf


Here's the more recent and very very interesting patents
This one issued May 25,2010 coudl be some sort of motion sensor or gun peripheral or something: http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7722465.html


Another May patent a DVD-ROM or something: http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7721116.html


The most recent one: http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7731589.html

Could this be part of SEGA's digital or wireless plan?


So yeah, all we have is patents. That's because SEGA is very very strict regaurding thier amusment R&D department and go through great lengths to prevent anything exciting from being leaked out. I've got it through my head that the normal gaming press will never leak anything out SEGA hardware wise, meaning mockups and blueprints are unreachable unless your an SEGA insider that doesn't work for them.


What we do know is this. Sega is pulling out of publishing 3rd party boxed games, is going digital, is dead serious about Sonic 4 and hopes to become a household gaming name again.

We also know that since it was unveiled last year, SEGA has not dicussed the RingEdge or revealed anything about it other than 3 test run arcade games with still no word on the board's lineup or first use commerce date and we also know that SEGA offered the development kit to other Japanese 3rd party publishers and has had no update on this report. Also they haven't explained why its been trademarked for use outside of Japan. No words on plans to support On-live either so they could have thier own device.

We also know that SEGA's developing yet a another arcade board that might be called "SEGADRIVE"( an unused arcade trademark filed in 2006.) Coudl it be a console in several years? I don't know.

[Bob Dobbs]

I really hope the thing gets released and will support Dreamcast games.

[MrSega]

Things have just gotten alot more interesting.

A Europeon Xbox website is now speculating on new SEGA console:

http://www.xboxic.com/news/6241

[Barrys_Bapz]

True! But it may not be for a new console, there talking about for the arcades.

http://www.imgtec.com/corporate/newsdet ... ?NewsID=83

[MrSega]

True! But it may not be for a new console

http://www.imgtec.com/corporate/newsdet ... ?NewsID=83

The source that you provided dates back way too long ago. That was when Lindbergh was in development.This has nothing to do with a that article you posted, SEGA doesn't spend more than 2 to 3 years working on a new arcade board if they have no console planned, then the board will be used fairly quickly and will only undergo less than a year of development.

I also have a Russian url:

Two europeon sites have leaked out information that SEGA has teamed up with Imagination Technologies to provide thier next arcade system with a 3D stereoscoptic chip.

Qoute: "A Russian website has revealed information claiming that SEGA have signed a new deal with UK Based technology firm: Imagination Technologies, to work on a chip set for a very graphically high-tech next generation games console."

http://www.kaldata.com/comments.php?catid=4&id=55129

Also, you need to keep in mind that SEGA always bases its consoles off of home arcade boards.


Sega Master System Mark II/ is to SG-1000/Z80(different converter)

Sega Genesis/Mega Drive/ is to System 16 B

Sega CD/Mega CD/ is to System 24 CD-ROM

Sega Saturn/ is to System 32 Model 2

Sega Dreamcast is to NAOMI/NAOMI GD-ROM

[MrSega]

One of the sources tells me that when asked about a Sega console rumor, Mike Hayes gave a very nuanched and hackeyed denial about it, first not only refusing to explaining these sources from Europe but he didn't deny thier accuracy. He just insisted almost suspiciously that "SEGA is a software company".

He didn't even mention like Tsurumi has that SEGA West is moving toward DLC.

He also didn't explain why SEGA has signed on with IM. Something doesn't sound right.

[MrSega]

Someone at twitter fired off an email at Imagination Techonologies asking about the rumor and they REFUSED to comment or even deny it!

http://www.ubergizmo.com/15/archives/20 ... again.html

Something funny is going on here.

[K_I_R_E_E_K]

Can you please use the edit button?

I would have said earlier, but you keep posting so i tought i would say something now.

[MrSega]

You know I was just thinking about how Sega comes up with names for its console.

The Dreamcast was named in 1998. Sega planned several names besides DC. "Naomi" and "Dural" were the two names Sega wanted to use. But looking toward the new millenium, SEGA had ambitions for internet broadcasting and media so they got the name "Dreamcast" from the hybrid "Dream" and "Broadcast.

So if what these euro sites are reporting about Imagination Tech is true about SEGA contracting them to design a 3D stereoscopic graphics chip does anyone think SEGA could call thier next console "3D Dreamcast"?

And how many of you think that would be a cool name? I'm just wondering.

[MikeStutzzzz]

3d cast is what it would be called