Remember that Sony executive who came out and questioned why people would want to play old games? Fortunately, SEGA has a completely different view on retro gaming.
Announced this morning, SEGA Forever is basically a compilation of iconic SEGA games from the old SEGA console days. Every game will be released for free on Android and iOS with saves, offline play, leaderboards and bluetooth controller support if you’d prefer a more authentic experience.
Five games have been released under the initiative so far: Comix Zone, the original Sonic the Hedgehog, Phantasy Star II, Altered Beast and Kid Chameleon. The website notes that Virtua Tennis – or what looks like Virtua Tennis, at any rate – will be “coming soon”. But with the entirety of the Master System, Mega Drive and Dreamcast era to pick from, there should be plenty more games available.
The games will have ads and in-app purchases, of course, but you can play the game for eternity with cloud save support without paying a cent. If you want to remove the ads and get local save support, it’ll cost you $2.99 per game. (It’s worth noting that you’ll have to watch an ad every time you want to save, if you go the free-to-play route as well.) I’ve only fired up Sonic and Kid Chameleon so far, but both games handle well with touch controls. And having to deal with an ad here and there isn’t a bad tradeoff for not having to muck around with emulators.
The games are available on iTunes and Google Play right now, with new additions added every fortnight. What SEGA classics would you want to see next? I’m keen on another Virtua Tennis, but Out Run would be neat. Hell, I’d take the original Phantasy Star Online, if that’s not impossible.
Comments
7 responses to “SEGA Forever Is Basically Old SEGA Games On Your Phone, For Free”
Man that Youtube video was a throwback to the old days of video game advertising.
Love it.
Gimme OutRun 2019!
That’s actually pretty amazing. Something like Phantasy Star would be alright on my phone.
I wonder if this is a poke at Nintendo’s subscription service. “Hey, you want free games? Well, have our entire collection without paying a subscription! Want to buy a game? Would you expect to pay $10? Maybe $6? Nope, you can own it for just $3.”
Man SEGA are doing so many consumer friendly things lately. Really liking them!
Ya want some links? Course ya do! (Well, for Play store at least)
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.sega.sonic1px
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.sega.PhantasyStarII
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.sega.kidcham
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.sega.alteredbeast
It’s great that they’re doing this, I just wish that they could’ve put this all into one app and you could download and launch the games from that app.
does Anyone succeed to play it using a bluetooth controller ? i could not using my NES30 from 8bitdo. Shame…
I think you have to purchase the game to unlock the bluetooth connectivity. I have a 8bitdo as well and it works on the games I’ve purchased but wouldn’t work on Altered Beast.