Sega are delisting several bundles of 'classic' games from digital stores, along with "select individual" games. On Steam specifically, this adds up to over 60 games in total, including several actual classics including the original Streets Of Rage trilogy, Crazy Taxi, and Jet Set Radio.
The games will be removed on December 6th but will remain playable to those who already own them.
]]>The reboot of noughties gem Jet Set Radio teased with ruthless efficiency during The Game Awards has had a smidge of new information revealed. For being such a small detail, though, it’s a very intriguing - if perhaps a tad predictable - one indeed.
]]>Over the weekend, footage leaked online showing what appeared to be a shiny remake of Atlus’ Persona 3 and the next entry in Jet Set Radio, apparently making Sega the latest company to pursue the remake/reboot gold. Late last year, the publisher emphasised plans to “focus on remaking and remastering existing IPs,” although they haven’t confirmed the existence of either project yet.
]]>Okay, so technically it wasn't until 2012 that PC players got to skate, tag and grind for themselves, but June 29th marked the 20th anniversary of the original release of Jet Set Radio (or Jet Grind Radio, as it was known Stateside at the time). An anti-establishment skating action game with a killer soundtrack, Jet Set Radio was the hippest thing ever to burst onto the scene of the Dreamcast’s short lifespan.
It may have failed to help turn Sega’s fortunes around (but hey, their loss in the console business was our gain) but it remains a beloved favourite that still has an influence on games today. With small but still thriving communities of fans, the time seems ripe to talk about games being developed now that are looking to Jet Set Radio's inline skates for inspiration, as well as dreams of a potential sequel.
]]>For a time, you couldn't avoid games that had cel shading, and arguably it was all down to one little graffiti-tagging game. Jet Set Radio, or Jet Grind Radio for our American friends, has players vandalise the streets with spray cans, all while avoiding getting caught by the authorities.
]]>Jet Set Radio is one of those flawless series that we all wish we Game God would grant bestow upon us with a new entry. While the original game is available through Steam, getting modern versions of the other titles is nearly impossible. So instead we must remember it through the legacy it leaves behind. And with an unbearable amount of heart, 2 Mello has created an album that's a tribute to the spirit of Jet Set Radio, which is available now.
]]>Developers imitate each other, as do writers, musicians and artists, and Blizzard are the best in the business at it. No other company is so good at distilling the sweat of another’s brow and refining it into pure, unadulterated joy. Yet, while it’s easy to see in Overwatch the objective-based gameplay of Team Fortress 2, the team dynamics of League of Legends or the creative movement mechanics of 90s shooters, its various ideas can often be traced back much further, towards older games that the designers at Blizzard may never have played.
I've chosen ten abilities Overwatch's heroes can perform and used them as the starting point for a jaunt through game history. What was the first game to feature grappling hooks, or teleportation, or time-rewinding? Find out below.
]]>This Future Is Disappointing, Part #89: look at Jet Set Radio then look outside your window. Are a colourful cast of rollerbladers grinding down rails wound around your home and spraying neat tags? Of course not. But hey, at least all and sundry can now have a bash at JSR for free, as Sega have made it free for a little while on Steam. Also going free are platformer Hell Yeah! Wrath of the Dead Rabbit and ye olde Golden Axe. Grab 'em now and they're yours for keepsies!
]]>UPDATE: here it is.
Famed skating hipster game Jet Set Radio is getting a fashionable HD re-release on... today. Reportedly, the game will appear on Steam, costing $9.99 / £5.99 / €6.49, but no sign of it yet. Wake up, West Coast America! Wake up, I say.
Jet Set Radio was, of course, famed for its Dreamcast release back in 2000, where it received widespread hi-fives from jubilant games journalists and smiling, happy gamers. It returns now with buffed camera and other tweaks to make it palatable in the dark, cynical times of 2012. Will the PC version be any cop? Toss a coin to decide! Oddly exposition-rich release trailer below.
]]>Sega have announced the tracklist for Jet Set Radio HD (will it be called Jet Grind Radio again in the US?), which will be arriving on PC later this year. There's also a new trailer to celebrate this fact, which you can see below. It's apparently some kind of amalgamation of the tracklisting from the various versions of the game that were released around the world when it first appeared on the Dreamcast.
Man, the year 2000 seems like a long time ago...
]]>The weekend was a little grey, a little dull, although even as an Englishman I can't blame the weather for not trying harder. Instead, I'll lay the blame at the door of the internal imbalance that left me huddled on the couch underneath a blanket wishing I could enter the halls of sleep until waking life became slightly less of a chore. What better way to start a new week in which I am a man reinvigorated than with a trailer for Jet Set Radio HD. That'll put the colour back in my cheeks and onto my monitor. Admittedly, it doesn't look more highly defined than the Dreamcast version from where I'm sitting, but it's a treat for the senses nonetheless.
]]>Jet Set Radio continues to be an astonishingly good looking game, over there on the last of the Segaboxes and wherever else it may have popped up over the years. It'll be looking even better on PC soon enough, with announcement that a high definition digital download version of the game is due on XBLA, PSN and my computer this summer. Maybe it will be on your computer as well, or maybe you're not yet convinced that its scratchy audio treats and cel shaded visuals are for you. Look at this trailer, which is still lovely today several graphical and musical trends after release. This was before all game promotional material legally required use of dubstep or that BWAARRRRR Inception noise.
]]>
