A model of Sega Sammy character ‘Aliyan’ and Sega character ‘Sonic the Hedgehog’ are pictured at its headquarters in Tokyo, Japan. The Sonic game series has a committed, and long-suffering, fanbase in the West, in contrast with other Sega franchises such as Yakuza and Persona, which have a large audience in Japan. — Reuters
TOKYO: Japan’s Sega Sammy Holdings Inc is hoping to ride the fast-moving coattails of Sonic the Hedgehog as the character enjoys a renaissance amid a global scramble for entertainment content.
This year sees the release of a sequel to a record-breaking Hollywood movie and a Netflix series, along with a title that Sega hopes will revive the fortunes of the long-running Sonic game franchise after decades of malaise.
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A model of Sega Sammy character ‘Aliyan’ and Sega character ‘Sonic the Hedgehog’ are pictured at its headquarters in Tokyo, Japan. The Sonic game series has a committed, and long-suffering, fanbase in the West, in contrast with other Sega franchises such as Yakuza and Persona, which have a large audience in Japan. — Reuters
Sega has embraced the Sonic community, in 2017 releasing Sonic Mania, a widely praised retro platformer that began life as a fan-made game before being backed by firm. — Reuters
Japan’s Sega Sammy Holdings Inc is hoping to ride the fast-moving coattails of Sonic the Hedgehog as the character enjoys a renaissance amid a global scramble for entertainment content. — Reuters
Utsumi, who returned to Sega two years ago after founding his own gaming company and working at Disney and Warner Music, says the company is a ‘treasure island’ of content that could be further commercialised. — Reuters
‘Sonic is the face of Sega. If Sonic is doing well, then Sega is doing well to an extent, too,’ Utsumi told Reuters in an interview. — Reuters
A model of Sega Sammy character ‘Aliyan’ is pictured at its headquarters in Tokyo, Japan. — Reuters
Unlike Nintendo’s Mario, who starred in decades of acclaimed titles, Sonic struggled to make the transition to 3D games as Sega withdrew from the console business to become a game publisher. — Reuters
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