If you’re an old school SEGA fan, GameWorks is one place you absolutely have to visit at some point in your life. For those who aren’t already aware, GameWorks is just one part of the great big company that is SEGA, only they exist here in America separate from our publishing branch (where I work), and focus on arcades, parties at said arcades, and very very cool arcade machines.

One summer a couple years back, I took a trip to Las Vegas to visit a friend of mine, and she took me to the Gameworks there. (My first time.) At first, I wasn’t quite sure if I was seeing things correctly. I took another look at the game card, squinted at the SEGA logo, blinked twice – still there. I wasn’t dreaming. Sonic UFO plushies, SEGA arcade games galore, and Outrun! It was almost something like Mecca for SEGA fans, or would have been if there had just been a few Dreamcasts plugged in somewhere.

Now, from this Friday to Sunday, Gameworks at Long Beach is hosting  a special tournament across three games – Maximum Tune 3, Need For Speed Underground, and (The SEGA Fan favorite), Outrun 2 SPD. Entry is $3 for a race, and the winner goes him with $150 in cash.

So, if you think you’ve got the courage and the skills to drive your girlfriend around like no other, head on down this weekend and go head to head against the best of the best. (Or maybe just mediocre, which is still good for your chances.) While you’re there, don’t be afraid to check out all the other sweet stuff that SEGA fans can enjoy.

If anyone here enters, be sure to let us know what you thought! Snap some cool pics of the event and I’ll also get them featured here on the blog.

Good luck, everyone!

The Conduit is nearly here. Tomorrow the game ships to stores and soon players will be online fragging their brains out with what everyone has been calling the best Wii experience to date. I’m excited, I hope you are too.

Special Edition Unboxing Video

Last week I was given access to the final Special Edition box for The Conduit, straight from Gamestop and hopefully what you’ll be picking up in the days to come. With a flip camera in hand, I took a bit of video to show off what the box includes and how it differs from the normal boxed edition. This video is somewhat of a work in progress, we’re using handheld cameras to try and show off stuff in the moment and the quality could definitely be improved. That said, the video does give you a chance to check out the Special Edition a bit early, which is definitely a bonus! Enjoy.

New Trailer – Washington DC Monuments

In addition to the Unboxing video, we also have a new trailer highlighting some of the fun to be had whilst visiting Washington DC in your Conduit travels. First time in the city? Oh, you are in for a treat as the tour covers all the major landmarks, and a few others that have been hidden from the general public.

If you haven’t yet pre-ordered The Conduit, remember that this is the only way you’ll get your hands on the Special Edition. Head on over to Gamestop.com or to your local retailer to get your hands on a piece of Wii history, courtesy of Sega and High Voltage Software.

It’s Monday, everyone! Take a long stretch, get out those yawns, and then let us know who your favorite Tennis player is – did we mentioned the free swag for doing so?

With VT2009 in stores, we’ve teamed up with BuzzFocus to offer you all some rare Virtua Tennis swag, including a VT and SEGA branded jacket! There’s already almost 100 entries – so get yours in before July 5th for a chance to score some of that oh-so-green Virtua Tennis merchandise!

To enter just click here or on the image above. Get to posting, and good luck everyone!

The first downloadable content for Empire: Total War is available today via Steam for $3.49. Elite Units of the West
Features 14 new unit types for different playable factions, this downloadable content will add an extra layer to the already in-depth offering that is Empire: Total War.

In addition to the DLC, we’ve also released a new patch for the game, bringing us to version 1.3. The update includes the implementation of multi-threading, which will significantly benefit players that use multi-core processors. In addition to this, the update greatly improves performance on single core machines. For the full list of updates and features in 1.3, go to the Total War blog.