One of the biggest players in 3rd party software and publishing, Sega Corp. today revealed details of their plan to reenter the videogame console hardware business which they dropped over 6 years ago. Sega have said that due to recent financial stability found in the dropping of hardware and moving exclusively toward the software side of gaming, they have reached a point where they are solid enough to give it “one last go”.
Details are obviously scarce this early in the game, but we can tell you that the console has been officially dubbed “Catalyst”, which we assume is what they hope the console to be in this risky venture. Sega have even shown what will be the official logo for the console, but unfortunately nothing more could be pried.
“We’re extremely excited to be reentering the hardware business”, said Simon Jeffery, President of Sega of America. “We know our fans have missed playing their favorite Sega franchises on a Sega made console, so it’s very exciting to be able to bring that feeling back to them.”
As far as system specifications go, little is known in what to expect, but Sega have said that the console will in fact feature an HD-DVD drive, and an NVIDIA graphics processing unit.
“I’m very pleased to be working with Sega on their new Catalyst video game system” explains Jen-Hsun Huang, CEO and president of NVIDIA Corp. “We’ve worked well with them in the past on their arcade hardware, and this will only aid in further strengthening our relationship. We’re very happy Sega decided to reenter the hardware business and bring us along in what we know will be a great success.”
Production schedule's for current announced and due to be announced games will remain in tact. Also support for Virtual Console, Playstation Network and Xbox Live Arcade games will continue in hopes that it will drive the Sega brand into a new generation of gamers.
As far as what we can expect to play on the new console, Sega have been very tight lipped, but we have been told to expect versions of Virtua Fighter, Sega Rally and a new Sonic The Hedgehog game. Simon also gave us this very tasty tease, "...[Don't] be at all surprised to see a few "cult" classics in the launch lineup, we've been listening to the fans, we know they want the classics. I can't say much, but you won't be wondering where the kidd inside you has gone for much longer."
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