Update [Thu 30th Mar, 2023 11:20 BST]: It has been announced that Yoko Taro's 404 Game Re:set – which sees some of Sega's most iconic franchises turned into female characters – will also showcase the brands of other companies, including Taito and Bandai:
Since we last covered it, Sega has also released some more footage of the game:
Original Story [Mon 13th Feb, 2023 10:00 GMT]: Yoko Taro, the genius behind titles such as NieR: Automata and Nier: Replicant, is working on a free-to-play smartphone game in which Sega takes over the world (thanks, The Verge).
The game is called 404 Game Re:set, and it's coming to iOS and Android. According to the game's Google Play page, it takes in a world that is "twisted by Sega," and that players will "go back into battle against Sega to restore it to its original world".
According to the game's official site, several key Sega franchises will be represented as cute, anime-style characters. After Burner, Virtua Cop, Out Run and Virtua Fighter are the series revealed so far, but more are to come.
Outside of a teaser trailer, there's not much else to go on. The title will support in-app purchases (because of course it will), so it might be wise to expect some kind of 'gacha' element – which, we imagine, might put many people off.
However, the concept is so strange and Taro's involvement is certain to hook a lot of people in. The setup also calls to mind the cult Dreamcast RPG Segagaga, in which players were expected to aid the company in its fight against a Sony-style rival.
The game is set for a spring launch, according to Sega, but no western release is planned at the time of writing.
Are you keen to see what this is all about? Let us know with a comment.