Fans Seek NiGHTS into Dreams Re-Release for 15th Anniversary

David Oxford — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 00:44:28 +0000

NiGHTS fans can be a persuasive bunch– just ask Sumo Digital Executive Producer Steve Lycett, who engaged them during the development of the fan-friendly combat-racing game Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing. Though not appearing as a racer, the Nightopian jester appeared as the game’s flagman through their efforts.

And, as Lycett revealed earlier today through his Sumo Digital Twitter account, they are at it again.

Known as the “NiD15″ campaign, these fans have set up a website so that fans can unite and make their voices heard as they reach toward a common goal: a re-release of the original SEGA Saturn title, NiGHTS into Dreams, on the current generation of video game consoles to mark the game’s 15th anniversary:

…since the late 1990′s a huge majority of those people have been unable to play the game again due to the title being available on the SEGA Saturn. A PlayStation 2 remake was made however was only ever released in Japan. The high praise for the original Saturn game garnered enough weight that eventually a second game called ‘Journey of Dreams’ was made and released on Nintendo Wii, however the style of the game had changed too much and fans of NiGHTS into Dreams felt it was too different to the original.

On July 5th 2011 NiGHTS into Dreams will be celebrating its 15th Anniversary. SEGA do not have anything planned to celebrate that date. We have created this page to ask SEGA a year in advance if they would please allow us to return to the dream once more.

To celebrate NiGHTS into Dreams we ask that SEGA port NiGHTS into Dreams to this generation of consoles in time for the games 15th birthday, as a download title. SEGA will be notified of this page and will be checking on it.

You can read more about their campaign and their hopes and– ahem– dreams here.

Will this happen? Though SEGA seems to currently be caught up in letting us relive the short-lived glory of the Dreamcast years this September, Lycett comments that it is a “good idea” which “makes sense.” And if nothing else, SEGA seems to be making genuine strides to listen to their fans lately.

Can this happen? Well, they did get the character into All-Stars Racing…

Top Ten Developers – #9 SEGA

James Fleming — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 23:13:07 +0000

SEGA is a Japanese company, right? Of course they are…aren’t they? Well, you would be surprised to learn that when SEGA was started in 1940, they were actually from the other side of the pacific.

Born as “Standard Games” in Hawaii, the company would get its start the way a lot of companies did back in wartime America, by entertaining American servicemen. There was a lot of money to be made in that industry, and Standard Games wanted a piece of the pie. So much so in fact, that they changed their name to Service Games in effort to connect better with their new client base.

The coin operated electro mechanical games that they toted would become very popular to the boys in green, keeping “SE”rvice “GA”mes (or SEGA) in the black. SEGA would enter the video game market by producing games such as Frogger, Zaxxon. When the video game market crashed in the 80′s, it affected many companies including SEGA, and would lead to SEGA’s Tokyo assets being bought out by a Japanese conglomerate. Re-titled Sega Enterprises Ltd., the company would buckle down for the video game resurgence of the late 80’s and come out swinging. Sega wanted it all – Arcade as well as console dominance. Some goals would be achieved and others would prove disastrous.

The arcade was the place for new developers to shine, and SEGA built a name for itself over the years. Classics such as Altered Beast, Hang-On, OutRun, and Afterburner would lay a lot of the bricks that would become the foundation for the company’s own console launchers. Golden Axe was another popular entry at the time, and lead to the development of six subsequent games that fleshed out the series. The games were loud, colorful, and addictive – just what young audiences were looking for in their next electronic vice.

SEGA would have a few early pieces of hardware, but its first real entry into the console war was the Sega Master System. Released less than a year after Nintendo’s unbelievably successful Nintendo Entertainment System, the Master System had some tough competition. In order to combat this, Sega created the game Alex Kidd in Miracle World. The game was meant to compete with the great success Nintendo found with its Super Mario Brothers franchise. While the game’s presentation and gameplay were sound (good enough to lead to the creation of a sequel) it wasn’t until five years later, that SEGA would finally give birth to a character able to go toe-to-toe with the mushroom munching plumber.

Sonic the Hedgehog was first introduced in 1991 on both the Sega Genesis and Sega Master System. The games reinvention of the standard platform was evident at first view. Speed was your new best friend, rings were to be collected instead of coins, and loop-de-loops were commonplace. The spiky blue smart mouthed mammal would help SEGA become a major contender in the 16-bit era of gaming, and ended up replacing the tried and true arcade smash Altered Beast as the bundle game for future Genesis consoles.

Sonic would continue his ascension to the video game mascot hall of fame in a blue streaked blur, with TV shows and plush dolls to boot. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 would be released a year later, and prove to be faster and sleeker than its predecessor. A success that would result in it becoming the best selling 16-bit cart of all time. Other games of varying quality would follow, but Sonic’s earlier adventures stand out as his best (including the excellent Sonic the Hedgehog CD for the SEGA CD).

While success in the land of hardware hasn’t favored SEGA in recent years, the company does standout as a game developer. Originality is something that has thrived in SEGA titles. Nights into Dreams, a game that revolved around two 14-year olds entering the dream worlds of Nightopia and Nightmare to battle for both the real world and it’s sleep induced parallel universe, offered new and interesting gameplay mechanics, maintaining a very artistic approach, complemented by whimsical graphics, and sensational storytelling.

Another shinning example of originality was Shenmue, a Dreamcast title directed and produced by the talented Yu Suzuki. The game, told the first part of a layered storyline which followed the path of young martial artist named Ryo Hazuki as he vowed to avenge the murder of his father. As arguably one of the best titles the Dreamcast had to offer, it stood out with richly developed characters, brutal open ranged fistfights, and “quick time event” triggered mini-games. Sadly though, the conclusion to young Ryo’s story may never be known, as SEGA has yet to announce any continuation of the series, as it never became the huge seller the company had envisioned.

While SEGA has had a rocky history, they are a company that maintains their credibility and quality within the gaming community. They continue to churn out Arcade benchmarks in the form of the trigger yanking House of the Dead, and strategic button mashing Virtua Fighter series. Shenmue’s legacy has been maintained with the addition of new franchises, like the totally immersing bruiser, Yakuza. As a company that’s seen a World War, million dollar mergers, and staved off a possible bankruptcy, SEGA knows how to survive.

Armed with exceptional amount of industry knowledge, and a commitment to creating quality games, SEGA continues to stay the course, compass held firmly in hand.

Must Haves:
Shenmue (DC), Sega Genesis Collection (PS2), Virtua Fighter 5 (Multi), Streets of Rage 2 (XBOX Live)

Have Nots:
Sonic the Hedgehog (XBOX 360, PS3)

Top Ten Developer List: 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1

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Fans Seek NiGHTS into Dreams Re-Release for 15th Anniversary

Top Ten Developers – #9 SEGA