Hell Yeah! Wrath of the Dead Rabbit is now even more pimped out in a world-wide sale across PlayStation Network & Xbox Live Arcade!

Here’s the details:

XBLA:
Weds 17^th April- 21^st April for 480MSP

PSN:
Weds 17^th April – 15^th May for $5.99/ £4.99/ €6.19/ 10.25 AUD$

Season’s Greetings, SEGA friends! To celebrate the Holidays — where perhaps the depths of Winter make staying in and playing a bit more video games seem like a grand idea — we have for you a very mega holiday sale: behold! Games on Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network, Android and iOS are all going on sale. Here’s a rundown.

PlayStation Network

Date:Dec 18th – Jan 8th Please note that games will be on sale for all PlayStation Network members in North America, and that North American members of PlayStation Plus will receive an additional discount. Both are listed below. Also, please note some of these games are packaged bundles. Check the description for full info! PlayStation Network games are on sale for North America only.

Xbox Live Arcade

Date:December 18th – December 31st All games are on sale worldwide!

Mobile Titles: Android & iOS

Date:December 20th – January 3rd Android and iOS titles are on sale worldwide!

In what has become something of a tradition — wherein we show our thanks, by giving, in the form of a sale, to our fans who support us throughout the year — we are announcing a sale. A sort of “thanks-giving” sale, if you will.

We are having a Thanksgiving Sale!

What does it entail, this Thanksgiving Day sale? It entails all the things. Well, a lot of them: a variety of downloadable games and game packages are discounted on both console and for mobile, across Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network, Android, and iOS.

Also! Members of PlayStation Network+ will receive an additional discount on select products.

Here’s what’s on the table, as it were:

Console Games
(November 20th through December 4th)

Mobile Games
(November 21st through November 26th)  

Some quick notes on these:

• That’s right: The Sonic 1 & 2 bundle will be free for PSN+ members!
• Sale prices will vary slightly depending on currency & region, but all discounts are 30% – 60% off, or more. Check your area for specific pricing details!
• Console sales apply to North America only; mobile sales are worldwide.

In which the funk — in the form of intergalactic aliens with hip-hop style — is returned to Xbox LIVE Arcade and PlayStation Network!

Behold, Earthlings! The — to quote the scriptures — ‘hippinest hoppinest party that’s kicking around the world‘ has arrived for digital download on both XBLA and PSN. That means both of the Genesis/Mega Drive adventures! Here’s, if I may use the lingo of the time, “what’s up”:

PlayStation Network:

• ToeJam & Earl - US$4.99/£3.59/€4.49/AUD$6.25
• ToeJam & Earl in Panic on Funkotron  - US$4.99/£3.59/€4.49/AUD$6.25

Xbox LIVE Arcade:

• Sega Vintage Collection: ToeJam & Earl – 800 MSP
  (Sega Vintage Collection contains both ToeJam & Earl and the sequel, Panic on Funkotron)

The games have been fully updated with achievements and trophies — as well as full multiplayer support! The games are, after all, called ToeJam and Earl: playing with a friend is what I think in the nineties they referred to as groovy. I’m not sure though; it’s been a while.

But let me rap at you a moment. Few games define the Genesis/Mega Drive era of SEGA as adeptly as ToeJam & Earl: a kinetic mixture of gameplay styles, inventive music, imaginative character designs, and yes, nineties attitude.

The original ToeJam & Earl is a totally different kind of game from anything else that was on a console — closer to dungeon crawler than the platformers that dominated the era. You take control of the eponymous aliens on an Earthbound quest to recover the bits and pieces of their spaceship, while dealing with all the sorts of things one might find on Earth, such as gigantic hamsters in hamster balls, hula dancers, and roaming packs of aggressive nerds. And — in what is increasingly marking TJ&E as more documentary than mere video game — you could repel all these things with improvised weapons such as hurled tomatoes.

The nineties were a different time, is all we’re saying. Some of you may not remember, but all these things happened.

And then they happened again in Panic on Funkotron, which ditched the three-quarters scale view of the first game for a more “traditional” side-scroller, but upgraded the graphics and added a ton of endearing gameplay mechanics, including the endearingly bizarre dance-offs. The game sees the duo cleansing their home planet of overly enthusiastic tourists.

And yes: we could not bring up these games without mentioning that the sound and music were absolutely fantastic. I mean … funktastic. Sorry. We are legally obligated to call the sound and music funktastic or funktacular, but that’s okay, because they truly were. Hip-hop styled sounds didn’t always translate well into 16-bits of synthesized music, but somehow — I’m going to guess the magic of the synthesized slap bass — it worked for these games, and the sound effects and music blend together to add a terrific depth and spirit of goofy fun to the game.

Enjoy these classic titles — this was the pinnacle of funk … on a whole new level.

It’s a good day for fans of classic SEGA.

Available now for PlayStation Network — and in just a few days, on October 5th, for Xbox Live Arcade — are two well-loved classics, remastered in HD: NiGHTS Into Dreams… and Sonic Adventure 2!

Both NiGHTS and Sonic Adventure 2 are priced at $9.99/£6.49/€7.99 on PlayStation Network and 800 MSP on the Xbox 360. The games have been remastered in HD and are stocked with unique achievements.

Sonic Adventure 2 also offers players the ability to grab the “Battle Mode” downloadable content for an additional $3.00/£1.99/€2.49/AU$4.25/240 Microsoft Points this Friday, adding in maps and characters from the the Gamecube re-release of the game. Meanwhile, players who buy a copy of NiGHTS into Dreams… will receive free access to the Christmas NiGHTS bonus content, containing levels previously only available through special promotions and SEGA Saturn holiday bundles.

Additionally, anyone who buys a copy of either game on the PlayStation Network will receive a free, exclusive NiGHTS or Sonic Adventure 2 theme for their PlayStation 3.

Last bit of official notice before I pontificate for a bit about each game: both games will also be coming to PC digital download in the coming months, so if you’re a PC gamer (as I am) then you’re in luck — stay tuned for more info!

Sonic Swan Song

As a fan who grew up with Sega in the 1990s (okay, and the 80s) it’s definitely a kick and a trip to see these two games arrive on these platforms on the same day.

Sonic Adventure 2 released in 2001 for the Dreamcast — it was the last and the biggest Sonic game on that system. Introducing Shadow the Hedgehog and combining both the arcade thrills of old-school Sonic with the sprawling adventure made possible by new hardware, Sonic Adventure 2 was a wonderful swan song for a beloved system. Featuring an epic plot and six playable characters — including the he’s-so-bad-but-ladies-couldn’t-you-make-him-change Shadow the Hedgehog, the game was definitely memorable.

And yet it was nearly eclipsed by another feature within the game — to this day we get letters from fans about Chao Gardens, the delightfully ahead-of-its-time ‘battle’ feature that allowed you to raise, evolve, and battle for supremacy with the adorable little Chao. At the recent Penny Arcade Expo I had fans walk up and tell me that they still had their Dreamcast VMU, and still had their Chao saved to it.

Given the game’s critical success and lasting popularity with fans, it was also probably inevitable that it would end up with HD remastering as a digital release.

Dream a Little Dream

Maybe less inevitable was the (ahem) journey that NiGHTS took to get here. The pure definition of a cult classic, NiGHTS was released on the SEGA Saturn in 1996. Part of the middle-child “fifth generation” of consoles (along with the Nintendo 64 and the original PlayStation) released in the 90s, some truly unique and awesome games showed up for the Saturn, as games began for the first time to experiment with transitioning from 2D platformers to 3D spaces.

NiGHTS was and remains unlike anything else that’s been released. Partly, this is the still-dazzling aerial navigation through 3D space and the technical achievement of smoothly pulling off so much wizardly. But technically impressive achievements can always be surpassed and what’s given NiGHTS lasting appeal is that it has a unique and haunting story — there is an ethereal feel of other-worldliness to the game. The game follows the nocturnal journeys in the dream realm of its child protagonists, who use the form of the eponymous purple jester as a sort of avatar to explore the dreamscape and take back stolen dream aspects.

It’s a mythology-heavy and even existential plot that deals with the slippery nature of identity and how our dreams inform our reality and vice-versa — and if that seems kind of heavy for a wild-looking racing/adventure game bursting with color where you play as a magical purple-clad jester, tell that to the legion of fans who are to this day inspired by NiGHTS to create music and artwork. Since arriving at SEGA five years ago I have learned that NiGHTS fans are one of the most tirelessly devoted and best organized groups of I’ve ever encountered. They’ve been carrying the torch for this game for sixteen years, and it’s — ahh, I’ll just go ahead and say it, please forgive me — a dream come true to release this.

If it seems like I’m getting all emotional here, well … games like the enigmatic NiGHTS and the rollicking and ambitious Sonic Adventure 2 are why I love games in the first place, and it’s my pleasure to re-introduce them to our old fans, and introduce them for the first time to new fans.

Attention fans of Sonic and/or surprisingly violent woodland critters! What’s better than a sale? A permanent price drop! It’s like a sale, only forever.

Thus, we have a permanent price drop on Sonic Adventure for XBLA/PSN, as well as the Sonic Adventure DLC, and, on XBLA, Happy Tree Friends! I would just call it a “Sonic on the Dreamcast” themed price-drop, but then there’s the Tree Friends, and if you think the inclusion of Happy Tree Friends is random, then then wait until you play Happy Tree Friends because you don’t know from random.

Here’s the low-down:

PSN:
Sonic Adventure: $4.99 (price reduced by 50%)
Sonic Adventure DLC: $2.99 (price reduced by 40%)

XBLA:
Sonic Adventure: 400 Microsoft Points (price reduced by 50%)
Sonic Adventure DLC: 200 Microsoft Points (price reduced by 50%)
Happy Tree Friends: 400 Microsoft Points (price reduced by 50%)

Enjoy a new, cheaper Sonic Adventure! Enjoy happier, cheaper, Happy Tree friends!

In one corner, we have — a rolling start! In another corner, we have: a rolling hedgehog! Let me untangle that complex web of metaphor:

On PlayStation Network, Dayyyyyytona … er … Daytona USA is at 50% off, for $4.99 — this sale lasts until September 18th.

On Xbox Live Arcade, Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 1 and Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 2 are both on sale — also for 50% off (Episode 1 is reduced to 400 MSP; Episode 2 is reduced to 600 MSP). But you gotta go fast – this sale lasts until September 11th!

A fine vintage, indeed: some great classics and collections are now on their way to both Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network! This selection includes both some all-time favorites as well as a few that have been very hard (or impossible) to come by.

All PSN games will be available individually. XBLA games will be available in several package deals grouped by title. Here’s a breakdown of what you get:

PlayStation Network

Release Date: May 22nd ($4.99 each)

Wonder Boy in Monster Land (Arcade)
Wonder Boy in Monster World (Mega Drive)
Monster World IV (Genesis/Mega Drive)
Super Hang-On (Arcade)
Revenge of Shinobi (Genesis/Mega Drive)
Alex Kidd in Miracle World (Master System)

Xbox Live Arcade

Release Date: 5/23

Monster World Collection (800 MSP)
Wonder Boy in Monster Land (Arcade)
Wonder Boy in Monster World (Genesis/Mega Drive)
Monster World IV (Genesis/Mega Drive)

Alex Kidd & Co. Collection (800 MSP)
Super Hang-On (Arcade)
The Revenge of Shinobi (Genesis/Mega Drive)
Alex Kidd in Miracle World (Master System)

Release Date: 5/30

Golden Axe Collection (800 MSP)
Golden Axe (Arcade)
Golden Axe 2 (Genesis/Mega Drive)
Golden Axe 3 (Genesis/Mega Drive)

Streets of Rage Collection (800 MSP)
Streets of Rage (Genesis/Mega Drive)
Streets of Rage 2 (Genesis/Mega Drive)
Streets of Rage 3 (Genesis/Mega Drive)

If you missed our write-up of some of these titles for the Nintendo Virtual Console, you can check them out here. Here’s some quick notes on what’s available:

•  Golden Axe III was originally available only in Japan and on the SEGA Channel in North America (and never in Europe)! The final entry to the Golden Axe series on console expanded on the gameplay of the previous two, offering a wider variety of moves including blocks, sweeping attacks, unique character moves, and offensive & defensive special attacks.
• Monster World IV has never been released outside of Japan — the game is notable for being one of the first to feature a female protagonist.
• Super Hang-On is the arcade version — while we sadly cannot bring you the actual arcade motorcycle via digital download, we do recommend players rock back and forth on their couch as they play in order to simulate maximum arcade-style value.
• Golden Axe was terrific on all versions — even the Master System had great graphics, if a questionable frame-rate. But the Arcade version is included for a reason, and that reason is the ending — if you’ve never achieved it on your own, you owe it to yourself, as it was one of the great payoffs of the era.
• Lastly, Alex Kidd in Miracle World is representing the Master System: more than almost any other, this game gives an idea of the quirky, experimental, hybrid of adventure/action gaming that SEGA helped pioneer during the heyday of the home console.

Like piloting gigantic robots and smashing the living daylights out of other gigantic robots?

Who doesn’t? Well, if for some reason you’ve been holding off on the XBLA version of SEGA’s 1998 (Arcade) / 1999 (Dreamcast) mecha fighting game, you win! You win half-off, that is: Cyber Troopers Virtual On Oratorio Tangram is 600 MSP on Xbox Live Arcade from now until May 9th.

Featuring leaderboard replays, one-on-one network play, party lobbies, and gigantic battling robots, the mouthful of a game is also one-of-a-kind, and a classic example of SEGA’s arcade technology bringing to artificial life Japan’s love of stylized, gigantic robot warriors.

Strap in and give this game a shot, for half-off!

For more on this game — including some notes about the art styling for the game’s featured ‘bots — check our original write-up here.

 
XBLA Store Links:

Cyber Troopers: Virtual-On Oratorio Tangram (North America)
Cyber Troopers: Virtual-On Oratorio Tangram (Europe)