Sega appoints new chairman

[axelblazeadam]

Sega have announced that Hajime Satomi, CEO of Sammy is to take over as chairman. Former chairman Hideki Sato is now vice chairman.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page....me=pub&aid=2984

Is this the end of Sega as we know it?

 

[Darsh]

That really gets my nerves going. I knew Sammy had most of the stock now a days but everyone thought it was going to be mutual and NOT like this. Here's more info I found.

http://spong.com/detail/news.asp?prid=6201

 

[mtxblau]

With the mismanagement that's become Sega's hallmark up until very recently, I'm not sure whether to be happy or sad at this predicament.

Strange turn of events, it is... if MS had absorbed them, it would've definetly been for videogame development only.

 

[Alexvrb]

At least MS would have let them do what they do (did?) best. That's what MS does, buys up talent and has them produce games for them. That might not be ideal, but it would be better than this. This could break really bad for Sega fans.

 

[Tagrineth]

I wouldn't predict Sega's doom just yet. As MTX pointed out, mismanagement has been Sega's most notable feature recently.

Someone go look up the history of 3dfx and see what mismanagement did to that company... and then be HAPPY Sega is in the situation it's in now.

Things could be much, much worse...

 

[Darsh]

haha 3dfx I still have Redgaurd that wont run on my computer because it says to go to 3dfx's site and get some file but it's impossible since they're no longer around.

Back on subject though, I think that we'll just have to see what happens and the changes that are made. Hopefuly it wont hurt us fans too bad if any.

 

[reX dart: eskimo spy]

From what I can tell, this will most likely lead to an increase in arcade games by Sega made for the Atomisware. That, by itself, is hardly bad news. I've never been in an arcade that I thought had enough Sega games, and mind you, I've been to Sega World, Osaka.

Taken as a whole however, I can't help but feel depressed about the future prospects of other Sega franchises. My three favorites are Sonic, Jet Set Radio, and Shenmue. With the possible exception of Sonic, it seems unlikely that any of these would be able to make the transition to the arcade well.

Even though Sega has been relatively conservative about online games post-Dreamcast, I was hoping that one of their developers would take the initiative of creating a new online game. Besides their Dreamcast, library, what online games have they released? Two PSO games, Sega GT Online, and Legacy Online (if you count that). Am I forgetting anything? I'm afraid we'll be getting mainly arcade ports by 2005. Not that there's anything wrong with arcade ports, but their console games are what matter most to me.

 

[Alexvrb]

Originally posted by Tagrineth@Feb 17, 2004 @ 08:32 PM

I wouldn't predict Sega's doom just yet. As MTX pointed out, mismanagement has been Sega's most notable feature recently.

Someone go look up the history of 3dfx and see what mismanagement did to that company... and then be HAPPY Sega is in the situation it's in now.

Things could be much, much worse...

Sammy doesn't give a damn about Sega fans. They want to break into third-world countries and dominate the arcades everywhere. Great. So while they assimilate Sega and turn them into Sammy 2, what happens to Sega's franchises? That's what concerns me. They want to use Sega's resources to further their existing goals, that's all.

 

[Darsh]

It seems a lot of this buying out crap is happening as of late. Look at Disney now.

Shares in a company screw everything up, that's only from what I see at least.

Sammy will screw Sega in my mind from what they could have been because look at the games they've made, the only 2 I can think of are Guilty Gear and Some crappy Olympic shooting game in an arcade near my house. Yet when I go into any arcade every cabinet and game is basicly Sega based in some way or form. Just stating the facts.

I'm problably going to be really mad in the upcomming years.

 

[Myname]

Originally posted by Darsh@Feb 18, 2004 @ 04:35 AM

haha 3dfx I still have Redgaurd that wont run on my computer because it says to go to 3dfx's site and get some file but it's impossible since they're no longer around.

I had that game for years and never manged to play it.. Bethesda seems to have a habit of producing practically unplayable games (Daggerfall's bugs, Morrowind's 'optimisation').

Back on topic, Sammy seem to have made it pretty clear that they're only interested in making money (seemingly through cheap arcade hardware in third-world countries). That said, Sega's output in the last couple of years has been pretty poor for the most part anyway. It'll be interesting how it pans out..

 

[it290]

Someone go look up the history of 3dfx and see what mismanagement did to that company... and then be HAPPY Sega is in the situation it's in now.

Not to mention Atari, Commodore, etc... (nearly Apple as well)

Sega's arcade division has been their most profitable for some time anyway. Sammy can bring a lot to that table, and I'm sure they won't object to home versions of the arcade games if they can make money. We will probably be seeing less home-specific projects, but let's face it, titles like Sonic are still gonna be milked. Sega has always been known for their action games, but I wonder what this will mean for future RPG projects, Shenmue, etc.

 

[Darsh]

Indeed, you can't get ride of Sonic from Sega no matter who you are.

I have to agree though that pretty much all the other games will probably be in some sort of jepardy, whether it be the realese dates pushed back or the games completely changed period.

Don't take my Virtua Fighter (amung many others) away from me you Sammy bastards!

 

[it290]

I think it's safe to say that Virtua Fighter will be around for a while yet, seeing as it's one of Sega's most popular arcade titles.

 

[Adrock]

Sega's arcade games are what make me love Sega much.

Living outside Japan sadly means i have to suffer terribly managed arcades.

I think this could be a good move, as people have said Sega have been suffering for a while. I think Sammy may well make Sega more effiecient and im time enable it to be even more secure than it is now. And a secure Sega means the best arcade games still get produced

 

[Cloud121]

Originally posted by Darsh@Feb 19, 2004 @ 12:15 AM

Indeed, you can't get ride of Sonic from Sega no matter who you are.

I have to agree though that pretty much all the other games will probably be in some sort of jepardy, whether it be the realese dates pushed back or the games completely changed period.

Don't take my Virtua Fighter (amung many others) away from me you Sammy bastards!

YOUR Virtua Fighter?! More like MY Virtua Fighter! :lol:

 

[mtxblau]

There's also this: if the devout programmers at Sega don't like the direction that the company is heading, they might jump ship. Start a new company named AGES or GASE or something.

 

[Alexvrb]

Originally posted by MTXBlau@Feb 20, 2004 @ 04:22 AM

There's also this: if the devout programmers at Sega don't like the direction that the company is heading, they might jump ship. Start a new company named AGES or GASE or something.

That wouldn't be so bad, but figure the odds on that one. What if something worse happened, like all the old Sega talent leaves and goes their seperate ways? Maybe they get assimilated by the various other developers. That would suck.

 

[Darsh]

That's what I was thinking too, but still they couldn't take Sonic, VF, Jet Grind, or any of those titles with them. They'd have to make new ones. So the continuation of those games will be left in Sammy's hands.

Like all those developers that went away from Blizzard and made that shitty Samurai Diablo-like game. (Throne of Darkness I think). They need the ideas as much as the talent. It wont be the same without the titles we've grown to love.