Sega
| Sega | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Founded | September 1, 1946[1] (as Service Games) |
| FirstSuper Mario game | Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games (Wii) (2007) |
| LatestSuper Mario game | Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 - Arcade Edition (2020) |
| Current president | Yukio Sugino |
Sega Corporation (also referred to and stylized asSEGA and formerly known asService Games) is a Japanese video game developer and publisher that is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. Starting as an arcade-focused company, Sega moved into the game console market in the early 1980s with theSG-1000, later releasing platforms such as theSega Genesis (known as the Mega Drive in Japan and European regions) andSega Saturn. After a string of primarily western commercial failures and profit losses in the later half of the 1990s, Sega quit the home console business in 2001, moving on to become a software developer. Sega is most known for its mascot,Sonic the Hedgehog, who debuted in 1991. The company is currently a subsidiary ofSega Sammy Holdings.
Rivalry[edit]
- “Genesis does whatNintendon't.”
- —Tagline used in Sega commercials throughout the 1990s
During Sega's time in the console business, during the 8-bit and 16-bit eras, the company usually mockedNintendo's properties in their games. In addition, marketing from the era usually portrayed Sega's platforms as superior to Nintendo's, even going as far to mention the company by name. An early mockery toward Nintendo can be found in the final game of theAlex Kidd series,Alex Kidd in Shinobi World, where the first boss was originally going to be named Mari-Oh, a parody ofMario. However, it was later changed to Kabuto. In the BritishSonic The Comic series fromFleetway, characters known as the "Marxio Bros", a trio of electricians who were parodies of both the Mario Bros. and theMarx Brothers, appeared.
To counter these mockeries of Mario,Rare had Sonic make a "cameo appearance" inDonkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest. His shoes, as well as a weapon from a fellow platforming mascot rival,Earthworm Jim's blaster, are seen next to a trash can duringCranky Kong'scontest labeled "No Hopers."
Move to third-party game development[edit]
The production of Sega's last console, theDreamcast, was discontinued in 2001 as part of a big restructuring strategy and also because of Sega not having enough resources to compete due to multiple system failures (Sega CD, 32X, and Sega Saturn).[2]
ChuChu Rocket! marked the first Sega-published game on a Nintendo system, specifically theGame Boy Advance. Since then, both Sega and Nintendo have collaborated on several projects. Their first effort resulted inF-Zero GX andF-Zero AX. The two companies later collaborated to create a crossover game featuring both Mario and Sonic,Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games, which began theMario & Sonic series. Sonic also appears as a playable fighter in theSuper Smash Bros. series starting withSuper Smash Bros. Brawl. Other Sega-owned characters have also appeared as fighters in the series, namelyBayonetta inSuper Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS / Wii U andSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate (as DLC in the former) andJoker (a character from Sega subsidiaryAtlus) inSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate as DLC. By using a Sonicamiibo, players can unlock an outfit based on Sonic inYoshi's Woolly World,Poochy & Yoshi's Woolly World,Mario Kart 8,Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, andSuper Mario Maker.Yoshi's Island Zone is a downloadable level in the Wii U version ofSonic Lost World, which features Sonic onYoshi's Island.
As a third-party developer, Sega currently makes games for a variety of devices, ranging from video game consoles to smartphones. On April 1, 2019, Sega took over technical support forCapcom's arcade machines that were still actively getting support.[3][4] This included Capcom's latest sixSuper Mario–related machines, and Sega's support for them lasted until June 2023.[5][6] Sega's own maintenance service forMario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games Arcade Edition ended on February 28, 2023.[7]
Super Mario games[edit]
- Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games –Wii, 2007;Nintendo DS, 2008
- Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games –Wii, 2009;Nintendo DS, 2009
- Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games –Wii, 2011;Nintendo 3DS, 2012
- Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games –Wii U, 2013
- Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games –Wii U, 2016;Nintendo 3DS, 2016
- Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games Arcade Edition – Arcade, 2016
- Luigi's Mansion Arcade – Arcade, 2017 (outside Japan)
- Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 –Nintendo Switch, 2019
- Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 - Arcade Edition – Arcade, 2020
References[edit]
- ^"Notice is hereby given that on the 1st day of September, 1946, the under-signed entered into a co-partnership doing business under the name and style of Service Games, (...)" – Martin Brombeg, Irvin Brombeg, James L. Humpert (December 28, 1946). NOTICE OF CO-PARTNERSHIP.Honolulu,Hawaii:The Honolulu Advertiser. Page 12. Retrieved January 31, 2026.
- ^"Sega announces drastic restructuring"
- ^"業務用アミューズメント機器のサービス業務移管スケジュールに関するお知らせ". Capcom.
- ^"株式会社カプコン社の業務用AM機器サービス業務開始時期について". Sega.
- ^"弊社取扱い製品のサービス対応終了に関するご案内". Sega.
- ^"カプコン社製品のサービス対応終了に関するご案内". Sega.
- ^"弊社製品保守対応の終了について". Sega.
External links[edit]
 | Wikipedia has an article onSega. |
