SEGA America and Europe president Shuji Utsumi confirmed that SEGA is not looking into making new mini consoles, according to an interview at The Guardian. This means that fans shouldn’t expect a SEGA Dreamcast mini console to come out any time soon.
Utsumi also commented on SEGA’s legacy and their willingness to demand innovation from its developers, even when making games from old IPs.
“Gamers loved Sega because we showed a new style, attitude and lifestyle to gamers,” Utsumi said in the interview. “I want to bring that feeling back. But we are not just a nostalgic company, we need to be innovative. We need to appeal to modern gamers, too. We respect the old IPs but I’m also demanding that the developers think about innovation in each of the projects.”
“I’m not going for the Mini direction. It’s not me. I want to embrace modern gamers. We are not a retro company. We really appreciate our legacy, we value it, but at the same time, we want to deliver something new – otherwise we’ll become history. That’s not what we’re aiming for.”
Utsumi also spoke with BBC, confirming that SEGA is “evaluating some opportunities” involving a potential subscription service. SEGA is “thinking and discussing something,” but there are no concrete plans about what this could entail.
Nonetheless, the future of SEGA looks exciting, thanks to the company’s many revival projects. These SEGA revival projects include Crazy Taxi, Jet Set Radio, Shinobi, Golden Axe, and Streets of Rage: Revolution. Like a Dragon developer is also working on a new Virtua Fighter project, and the next Sonic the Hedgehog game from Sonic Team is undoubtedly in the works.
