How Sega Is Getting In On The Nostalgia Fad

There has been a lot of talk about Sega recently, all due to some fine details gleaned from their latest financial report. The company is looking ahead but doing so by taking a few steps back. They have plans on diving into the nostalgia fad in order to rekindle some of the luster they've lost over the years.

Gematsu originally noted that deep into Sega's latest business report there was a mention about them reviving their old IPs. This will be part of Sega's business strategy from here through 2020. So for the next three years we could see a number of Sega classics make a return to form.

There are no details on the games that Sega plans on reviving, nor do we know how far back they're planning on going when it comes to diving into their "old IPs."

This could be games as recent as The Club or as old as Altered Beast. We have no idea how deep into their pool of games Sega will reach, or how far back they're willing to go.

Game Informer, however, spotted a tweet from Obsidian where they made a quip in response to the original Gematsu article.

Game Informer points out that Obsidian developed Alpha Protocol for Sega, and the game was released for home consoles and PC back in 2010. The game had a lot of mixed review scores and a fair amount of technical issues to comb through, but it was highly regarded for being one of the few original games released of its kind. In fact, there are still no games on the market even remotely similar to Alpha Protocol in terms of being a multi-choice, story-oriented, espionage action game.

It was one of the rare games where players were given what the developers called the choice of the "Three Js." You could be stealthy and focus on melee takedowns like Jason Bourne. You could be a marksman like Jack Bauer. Or you could be a tech-wizard like James Bond. No other game has offered players that level of customization in the espionage sub-genre, especially one as story-driven as Alpha Protocol.

Others aren't so concerned about that cult-classic, though. The biggest requests from gamers across most community boards is for the revival of Golden Axe. The game was rebooted nearly 10 years ago for the Xbox 360 and PS3 as a 3D hack-and-slash game. The Golden Axe: Beast Rider game didn't quite leave a positive mark with reviewers or gamers, though. A lot of gamers are hoping for a more beat-'em-up style to Golden Axe if they do decide to revive the IP.

There are also classics like Comix Zone, which was one of the defining platforming fighting games from the 16-bit era. A new-school take on that game could sell gangbusters if it were marketed properly.

Some gamers are hoping for a VR iteration of Afterburner or Harrier, while others are pining for remakes of Phantasy Star and the criminally underrated Skies of Arcadia. A few are hoping that a new entry in the Panzer saga might be possible, but that seems like a really long shot.

There's also a contingent of gamers hoping for more Jet Set Radio and Outrun, but, when it comes to Sega, just about anything is possible. Personally, I would love to see a new Dynamite Deka entry, a new Virtua Cop for VR headsets, and a new Virtua Fighter... and heck, why not a new Virtual-On Cybertroopers game while we're at it?