Microsoft Unstoppable as Arcade Plans are Revealed
Microsoft and Sega have jointly announced that they will be producing a new arcade system to be released at some point next year.
The new system, as yet unnamed, will be based on Xbox technologies and able to host games too complex for Sega’s latest arcade system, the Naomi 2 board.
No games have yet been confirmed, although famed Sega producer Yu Suzuki has been quoted as saying that several famous Sega games will be revived and popular series will be continues. An update to the Outrun series was hinted at, something that has been missing from the arcades and consoles of the world for too long now.
As to whether Sega will continue to support its own Naomi 2 system remains unclear. The company has reaffirmed that it will, but it seems unnecessary to do so if development of a superior system, funded by Microsoft, has already begun.
Also unclear is how this will affect Sega’s relationship with Namco, a company it has been courting for some time. Namco makes the System 246 arcade board which has been specially designed to be compatible with PlayStation 2, something that Sega’s multi-platform strategy relies upon for future success. This new system will introduce yet another competitor to an already shrinking arcade market.
It is likely that the new system will be Internet-ready, linking up with Xbox consoles in peoples’ homes. Online arcade gaming is still untested but all the major players collectively think that it is the future, and that it will save public coin-operated gaming. Sega’s Naomi 2 system is online and Namco’s 246 is equipped with an Ethernet adaptor, though no online titles have yet been named. It is well known that Capcom is deep into development of online arcade gaming and has established a dedicated department for this very reason.
We will have to wait and see if this will be the saviour and/or renaissance of video gaming.
No games have yet been confirmed, although famed Sega producer Yu Suzuki has been quoted as saying that several famous Sega games will be revived and popular series will be continues. An update to the Outrun series was hinted at, something that has been missing from the arcades and consoles of the world for too long now.
As to whether Sega will continue to support its own Naomi 2 system remains unclear. The company has reaffirmed that it will, but it seems unnecessary to do so if development of a superior system, funded by Microsoft, has already begun.
Also unclear is how this will affect Sega’s relationship with Namco, a company it has been courting for some time. Namco makes the System 246 arcade board which has been specially designed to be compatible with PlayStation 2, something that Sega’s multi-platform strategy relies upon for future success. This new system will introduce yet another competitor to an already shrinking arcade market.
It is likely that the new system will be Internet-ready, linking up with Xbox consoles in peoples’ homes. Online arcade gaming is still untested but all the major players collectively think that it is the future, and that it will save public coin-operated gaming. Sega’s Naomi 2 system is online and Namco’s 246 is equipped with an Ethernet adaptor, though no online titles have yet been named. It is well known that Capcom is deep into development of online arcade gaming and has established a dedicated department for this very reason.
We will have to wait and see if this will be the saviour and/or renaissance of video gaming.
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