Hi all,

The past week has been very quiet due to the holiday season. The flow of news and announcements should begin to pick up after the new year. While there were no major announcements, some minor news on various titles has appeared. First off, the Dreamcast version of Sega Rally 2 will support network play of up to four simultaneous players. The online play will use Sega's network and will offer gamers free access to using the network features of the game after one year. The last of this year's Dreamcast games made it out last week as well. A port of the PC shooter, Incoming was released by Imagineer. Overall the game is extremely close the PC version, along with some higher quality graphic effects. Though, when lots of objects are moving around, the game does have some slow down. Not bad at all as an early conversion. Receiving mixed reviews is the Sim/RPG Seventh Cross from NEC. The game is a form of evolution title in which a creature is 'unleashed' on an uncivilized land and allowed to evolve over time. As time progresses, new species evolve and following Darwin's ideals, survival of the fittest takes its course. The game contains over 800 000 different paths so it can take a long time to finish. Overall, it's a title for serious sim fans willing to put lots of time into the game. A familiar title also came out, Tetris 4D is the latest in countless versions of the puzzle game. This rendition offers few changes in game play to make it worth the money for one who already owns a version of the puzzle game. Overshadowing the other three titles was Sonic Adventure. Delayed as a launch title, the game was very well received by gamers and the press, receiving high marks from all. The only minor complaint of the game is that at times, things can go too fast for one to react. But then, is the high speed factor new to Sonic games? The game is simply amazing in terms of sheer speed and graphic quality. Sega needed another 'must-have' title for the DC and Sonic Adventure fills the role magnificently.

Warp will be releasing a new version of their audio only title, Real Sound. Called Real Sound - Kaze No Regret the game will be on two GD-Roms (vs. 4CDs with the Saturn version). The game adds a new visual mode that shows photos of landscapes taken by a well known photographer. The original black screen mode will also be available. Using the Dreamcasts' powerful sound processing abilities the game will have even higher quality audio than the Saturn version. Warp has also hinted at some sort of little extra "bonus" for VMS cards though they haven't given any specifics at this time. Finally initial shipments of the game will also contain a demo disc of the long awaited D2. The demo contains an opening movie, a single scene playable area, a fight against one of the bosses, and a test drive on the snowmobile. Real Sound- KNR is set for a release on February 25th and will sell for ¥4800 (~$41USD).

ASCII has announced a they are working on a 3D action title for the Dreamcast called Beserk. Not many details are available since the game is in the earliest stages of development. The game is based on a manga comic series and is set for release sometime in 1999.

On the site, I've added a few titles to the Saturn release schedule for 1999. Currently, Sega has listed titles through February though, the number of games scheduled is few. They include, Rockman 8 a Saturn collection title from Capcom, and Dungeons & Dragons Collection the last known game that will use the 4Meg RAM cart. One note on D&D collection, the game does have adjustable difficulty settings and unlimited continues so those who were frustrated with the difficulty of the arcade version will find some relieve in the Saturn version. Other games will be coming from Sega, Kamata, NEC, and Media Works.

On a minor note, Sega of America will be moving their headquarters from Redwood City to nearby San Francisco. January 4th SoA, SegaSoft Networks, and Sega Entertainment will move to the Townsend center in SF. The center is home to other companies such as Ziff Davis, and new home to the website gamespot.com. Sega has signed for a ten year lease on a 160 000 square foot (~14.8km^2) section of office space.

That's all for this week, enjoy the new year. I will be out of town for most of tomorrow so don't expect any updates until late in the night or on Wednesday morning. See you next week!

-Greg