After console production declined, Japan’s Sega sought to regain its reputation with nostalgic remakes, movie adaptations, and retail outlets.
The popularity of Sonic the Hedgehog has rekindled interest in Sega, which stopped producing hardware after the Dreamcast shut down in 2001 and concentrated only on software development. Now, a deliberate relaunch has been spurred by record-breaking tourism in Japan and growing interest in Japanese pop culture worldwide.
The opening of Sega’s flagship retail location in Japan this Friday, after a similar opening in Shanghai in May, is proof of this comeback. “Chances grow,” said Chief Operating Officer Shuji Utsumi. After a period of hardship, we are now returning. Sega plans to expand outside of Japan, he continued.
