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Sega Sammy to cut hundreds of jobs in 'Digital' restructure
Sega Sammy is restructuring to prioritize "Digital Games," a reform that'll see it make job cuts including "soliciting voluntary retirement" for around 300 employees; 120 employees are due to be approached about voluntary retirement next month. Sega of America is among those to be hit by layoffs as it relocates from San Francisco to Southern California. Sega Sammy plans to now pursue growth in smartphone and PC online gaming, an area that's seen rising results for the company in recent years. Despite the success of some packaged games such as million-seller Alien: Isolation, Sega Sammy's consistently reported favorable results from the likes of Phantasy Star Online 2, Puyo Puyo Quest and Chain Chronicle.
Layoffs hit Sega Europe following restructure in US
Sega Europe suffered "a limited number of redundancies" due to a restructuring in Sega of America's Sonic and mobile divisions. The layoffs follow those that hit Sega of America in October 2013 due to another restructure. "Sega is in the process of consolidating certain functions of the Sonic and Mobile departments within Sega of America, where the management and production for those areas of the business reside," Sega told Joystiq via email. "As part of that strategy a limited number of redundancies have taken effect in our European office, based in London." Sega slashed its profit forecasts in February for the fiscal year ending March 31, cutting its expected net income by 36.2 percent to 30 billion yen ($293.5 million). [Image: Sega]
'Sonic Boom' to debut on Cartoon Network in fall of 2014
A new, computer animated television series staring Sonic the Hedgehog and pals will premiere on Cartoon Network sometime in the fall of next year, Variety reports. In Europe, the show will debut on French children's networks Canal J and Gulli. The show, provisionally called Sonic Boom, is being produced by Sega of America and French animation company Genao Productions. The initial production run will produce 52 11-minute episodes (aimed at children aged six to 11) that will chronicle the adventures of Sonic and Tails as they battle Dr. Eggman, natch. No footage of the show has been released, but the above teaser image does at least confirm Amy's presence in addition to Sonic and Tails – we're still trying to put a name to the center-right silhouette. (We're guessing it's Knuckles with a gym membership.) The degree to which chili dogs are involved has yet to be ascertained.
Sega of America confirms unspecified number of layoffs
Sega of America revealed this week that it's laid off a number of employees, although the company didn't say how many jobs were lost. GamesBeat, who confirmed the news with a Sega spokesperson, believes the number of those laid off is "small." "As the gaming industry continues to evolve," Sega told GamesBeat, "Companies must adapt and adjust in order to compete and succeed in an ever-changing environment. As a result of this, Sega of America has recently undergone a restructure that will enable the company to focus efficiently on developing new and existing content across digital platforms as well as continuing to focus on key brands for packaged goods." Sega Sammy purchased Atlus parent company Index Holdings recently for around $141 million, after posting $331 million in fiscal net profit in May. However, over the last 18 months the company endured global closures and layoffs, seeking to drastically reduce operating costs in the face of decreased forecasts.
Sonic: Lost World features competitive multiplayer, off-screen play on Wii U
Sonic: Lost World will have a few platform-specific distinctions on Wii U and 3DS. The former version will support off-TV play and a "two player support mode," while the 3DS game will include "exclusive Special Stages and Color Powers unique to Nintendo 3DS," according to Sega. Both versions of Sonic: Lost World will offer competitive multiplayer modes, though Sega has yet to explain them in detail. Sonic: Lost World will launch on Wii U and 3DS some time later this year as part of a new partnership between Sega and Nintendo.
Rumor: Second 'Sega Pluto' found at a garage sale
So apparently people can just find rare, never-released consoles at garage sales now. That's how the second (and purported final) "Sega Pluto" was found, retrieved at a garage sale for a dollar "five or six years" ago by YouTube user kidvid666.Above, he explains that he didn't know it was a "Sega Pluto" until the first "Sega Pluto" surfaced online last week. His "Sega Pluto" has a damaged disc door, explaining why he has to weigh it down to play games in the video above. Beyond that, it boots up fine and appears to be in working order.The "Sega Pluto" was a prototype Sega Saturn with a NetLink modem built into the chassis. The NetLink modem was eventually released on its own as an add-on peripheral, unlocking web browsing through the console and online matches in Saturn Bomberman, Virtual On, Sega Rally, Duke Nukem 3D and Daytona USA: Championship Circuit Edition.
Platinum creating a fifth game for Sega
In two years, Platinum Games has fulfilled its end of the four-game deal it inked with Sega -- with the release of Vanquish this past October, the all-star development studio completed its contractual run. It appears that the publisher still values the relationship, as executive VP of sales and marketing for Sega, Alan Pritchard, told Game Informer in a recent interview that another title is in the works from Platinum Games, with Sega as publisher. "We have a further title to announce from Platinum Games as well," Pritchard teased, speaking to the publisher's upcoming lineup. Assuming that Platinum isn't working on another new IP or one of Sega's existing franchises, it's choices for a sequel may be limited. Given Pritchard's admission that MadWorld was a financial miss for both parties, it's probably unrealistic to expect a follow-up to that one. Bayonetta, however, sold over a million copies and stands out as the only big success to come from Platinum's four-game run. Last we heard, Sega was "reasonably encouraged" by early sales of Vanquish.
Sega restructures US, European operations, lays off 73
Sega West President Mike Hayes has told IndustryGamers that the company is currently implementing a major restructuring of its North American and European operations. The human cost will be 73 jobs (36 in San Francisco, 37 in London), which represents about 12 percent of Sega West's workforce. It's worth noting that these figures are separate from the recent shutdown of Sega Studios San Francisco. Sega's San Francisco office will now focus on digitally delivered products for mobile, consoles and PC while Europe will continue focusing on "traditional package goods." Hayes stressed this is "very much administrative reorganization, because clearly we want to be very successful with digital globally. Likewise, we want to continue to be successful with traditional goods." So, to recap, instead of Sega's American and European operations running in parallel, working on retail games in addition to digital titles, each now has a specific market to focus on. Whether this strategy will result in better products and increased sales for the one-time gaming giant remains to be seen, but at least Sega's not sitting idly by.
Sega of America taps Maeda for COO
Sega's made some strides in trying to reach the Western market and its choice for the new head of Sega of America would seem to indicate the company wants to keep the progress going. Masanao Maeda will serve as the branch's new chief operating officer, Sega has announced. Though not a Bernie Stollar-level household name, Maeda has helped the company expand into the West from Sega's Japanese HQ, so it'll be interesting to see how effective he can be in the effort stateside. (Psst, Maeda: More House of the Dead: Overkill, please. Thanks.)
Sega's Naoya Tsurumi promoted to lofty new position
The departure of Sega of America president and COO Simon Jeffery to the much happier-looking ngmoco:) has brought more changes to Sega's corporate Tower of Power. The company announced today that Naoya Tsurumi, former CEO of Sega of America, will now "assume worldwide responsibility for SEGA's Consumer Business, incorporating SEGA of Japan, SEGA of America and SEGA of Europe." "This unified organization will better position SEGA for growth across these key markets," Tsurumi said in the press release announcing the promotion. It should be interesting to see how Tsurumi's new position will affect Sega's worldwide strategy, though we don't expect any change will be drastic enough for the company to just tell us what's going on with the Aliens games.(Alternate joke for old-school Sega fans: we don't expect any change will be drastic enough for the company to bring Alex Kidd back to mascot duty.)
Sega of America president leaves for ngmoco
So, the long and short of it is this: Sega of America president and CEO Simon Jeffery is leaving Sega, a longstanding name in the video game industry that has created hits in both hardware and software, for ngmoco, a company known for its iPhone titles, namely Rolando. If that doesn't tell you something about the state of the game industry (or at least the state of Sega), we're not sure what will.According to Gamasutra, Jeffery -- a longtime proponent of the iPhone as a gaming platform -- is leaving in order to run ngmoco's new publishing arm, Plus Publishing. The new group will offer support to developers in areas like marketing and technology, while also allowing them to implement its Plus Network, a social networking service for iPhone games. Says ngmoco co-founder Joe Keene, "Building a community of gamers in these kinds of experience is really core to our future strategy, and one of the things that will be leveraged highly in the work that Simon will be doing."Jeffery says of Plus Publishing that it will have a "fairly open-door policy," adding that he would like to talk to "pretty much anyone" about publishing possibilities, including small independent studios and larger publishers.
Bayonetta gearing up to hair-kick demons in Fall 2009
In Tokyo last night, Sega quietly announced plans for a "simultaneous worldwide release for Fall 2009" of action/hair manipulation game Bayonetta. New screens revealed at the event show the game's heroine battling enemies on the side of a building, unleashing her guillotine on another and fighting a really, really shiny dragon. Would we expect any less from Devil May Cry director Hideki Kamiya? As the press event held in Tokyo was, as you might expect, all in Japanese, we've reached out to Sega of America for confirmation of the worldwide-ness of this announcement. Call us skeptical, but we expect the next time we hear about the game won't be until E3. %Gallery-50067% [Via Inside-Games.jp]
Sega of America layoffs confirmed
Sega of America has let go of 30 employees, a rep for the publisher told Edge. In an emailed statement, the company explained that during this time of "economic recession, harsh retail landscape, and the reality of business challenges to profitability," the company must take steps to reduce "cost structure and ensure long-term success."In the future, it would be nice to see Sega invest in the promotion of its more unique titles (Valkyria Chronicles says hello) instead of focusing so intently on that past-his-prime blue hedgehog.
Rumor: Sega of America lays off 30
An inside source has informed IGN that Sega of America laid off 30 employees today. We've followed up with the publisher, but calls, emails and IMs for confirmation (even about unrelated stories) have been met with an eerie silence.We'll certainly update when more information becomes available.
Sega: More Balance Board and Zapper-compatible games on the way
For those of you with a lot of plastic junk laying around, taking up space (remember, if you bought Wii Fit, you only played it once), there's hope! Sega has plans for your Nintendo peripherals, so you might be dusting them off in the near future.During an interview, SEGA of America president Simon Jeffrey commented that Sega is "fans of the Wii Zapper" and that their game Ghost Squad "keeps selling." As for the future, he stated that the company has "more Zapper games going," with the same "for the Wii Balance Board, although we have nothing announced yet." We wonder if this will tie in to that mystery Leipzig game?[Via Balance Board Blog]
Sega: Don't forget about the hardcore gamers
Thank you.Look, we here at Wii Fanboy love the Wii and often criticize it because, frankly, we expect nothing but the best. If nobody will step up and address certain concerns, then we will. It's our duty to present you with the news, but it's also our duty to be honest and objective with what we see. Considering that, we're not too happy with the amount of "hardcore" games available on Nintendo's latest console.They've never been one to present oodles and oodles of more serious titles on their consoles, compared to their competition, but with recent games that have changed our life like No More Heroes and Zack & Wiki, we crave more long-lasting games that we can sit down with for more than a half-hour and enjoy. It's just how we feel.And it would appear Sega of America president Simon Jeffery feels the same way. He thinks it's a mistake for western developers to ignore the hardcore gamers on the Wii, instead flooding the market with tons of casual titles that appeal to a wider demographic. "There's no reason why [hardcore gamers] should be excluded or excommunicated from the Nintendo world," he commented. We agree.We're excited for Wii Fit and we're happy the console is getting the third-party support it deserves, but we want more. Maybe we're just too selfish?
Phantasy Star Universe expands
Phantasy Star Universe's first expansion pack, Ambition of the Illuminus, launched in the North American market today. The update adds more single and multi-player missions and storylines, new character customization options, a new single-player game mode, some social environments, and retro environments originally from PSU's predecessor, Phantasy Star Online.Sega's PSU, like Square Enix's Final Fantasy XI, is one of the few highly successful console-centric MMOs to date. It has a complete single-player campaign and a persistent online world which can be explored by groups of up to six players.If you're playing PSU on the XBox 360, you can download the expansion pack for 1,600 points. If you're a PC or PS2 player, you'll have to buy the retail game disc. Japanese players have had access to the expansion since September, and Europe will have to wait until January to get its hands on it.
Sega still publishing for PS2
BusinessWeek interviews Simon Jeffery, chief operating officer at Sega of America, about the console transition and gamers' plans to upgrade hardware. Jeffery offers insight into Sega's thought process; he expects the PS2 to continue to sell well for at least another year.Jeffery says that retailers have forced the GameCube and Xbox off shelves to make more room for the new hardware. However, he hasn't seen -- and doesn't anticipate -- the same fate for the PS2; the company will still release occasional PS2 games, although Jeffery says they'll be ports from the newest hardware.Who's buying PS2s? Jeffery thinks they're secondary systems for PS3 and Xbox 360 owners, and the Wii may be competing directly with the PS2. But we wonder how many of those PS2 sales are by gamers who can't afford -- or find -- a PS3.See also: PS2 to outsell newer consoles through next year?
