OK, so Sega has been out of the console industry for roughly 15 years now. And this has both pleased opponents and angered Sega fans. Many of the old Sega fans have moved on to other consoles. Ether finding a new home with the big 3 or just casually gaming on multiple platforms. But, every couple years a hoax is raised about Sega's big comeback. And sure enough, that next Sega console still eludes us. But, this thread is to discuss not if Sega will develop a new console. But instead assumes they are and have done so. Sonic is made Sega exclusive again. Shenmue 3 is coming out. The return of fighters like Power Stone and a new home for Sega cagmes such as Virtua Fighter and finally all of those arcade ports will have a destination. And we will attempt to debate and answer these questions.
What obstacles will the company face coming back into the console market after 15 years of exile?
Who would be their biggest competitors?
Would they be able to regain their former standing and draw in sells and a loyal fan base again?
Would Sonic become a major part of the Sega revival once more as their continued mascot? If not, who would replace him and should Sega even adopt a new mascot.
Which games would be released as launch titles?
What features should Sega include to be competitive?
What kind of marketing strategy should they use?
What lessons should they have learned from their past?
And most importantly, would you purchase a new Sega console?
As side notes, this thread can also serve as a place to discuss past favorite Sega consoles, games, characters ect. What you either love or hate about the company and so on.
First off, on my opinion. I will state, I am a Sega fan. Always have been. My first console was when I was four years old with the Sega Genesis and my favorite game was Sonic the Hedgehog. I stayed loyal with Sega all the way through to the Dreamcast and continued to play my Dreamcast well after support was dropped for it. Not buying a new console until a year or two before the 360, Wii and PS3 were released. And, I got a Gamecube when the new generation arrived a XBox 360. Saying that, I am skeptical that Sega, if they released a new console, it would be successful.
The current market is extremely hard to even stay in and compete with. Let alone break into. The Big Three also all have very loyal fan bases built by now. And few gamers seem to bounce around or experiment too much. Now, I do believe it would get A LOT of hype. E3 would be buzzing, GameInformer Magazine would have a field day. And most every gamer and their mother would talk about it. But, that does not translate to sells. I believe that the small loyal Sega fans would rush to stores and find a new and competent console as I have never known Sega for making bad consoles. It was a myriad of reasons why they tanked. But, they would fail to draw in the support and sells needed. Perhaps they would look very promising at first, as all of the Sega fans go out and buy out shelves, but after that died down, they would be left behind. It is a very sad prediction.
The deal is, Sega does not have much to gain by coming back. And they could lose everything. Right now, as a software company they make and sell games for all consoles. And they make their share of profits. But, it is extremely costly entering into the console war, and another failure after the Dreamcast could possibly destroy Sega for good. And at the end of my prediction, as a Sega Fan, as much as I would love to see a successful comeback. I do not believe it possible.
Seeing the return of potential titles such as...
And many more simply would not be enough for Sega to take on the Big Three and win in my opinion. But enough of my doom and gloom prediction, althout I would most certainly buy a Sega Console, what is the prediction of the gamers of Nation States?!
