The Curios Case of AM2

高野和泉

高野和泉

"SAKURA FESTIVAL!"
Joined
Jul 27, 2018
Location
Tomato Convenience Store, Golden Qr.
Why are they not on the radar anymore in the modern gaming landscape? Was Yu Suzuki's creative leadership the driving force behind their avant-garde ideas and outputs? Are they still the AAA and/or state of the art dev studio at current Sega? Who is head of AM2 now? Have they design anything groundbreaking post 2010+(The Post-years of Suzuki leaving Sega)? Why is Sega so silent on their front when they promote all thier other studios/teams and projects? Is there a low-profile stigma going on around about AM2 internally? Why is this studio who's works was once the cream of the crop and envy of many developers suddenly shafted and so underappreciated nowadays?

On another discussion note;

Which of their game break you into the fandom fold? And any Ip's+franchise you wish they revisit to improve/update for the modern era?
 
I don't believe the Dev. Team structure is the same anymore, as it used to be.

RGG Studios appears to be the only one that still goes under the old format.
 
AM2 is responsible for Border Break (link), which has been one of Sega's most successful arcade series over the past decade. It debuted in 2009 and has had five updates/expansions in arcades, and recently a PS4 version came out in Japan.

Their most recent arcade game is Soul Reverse (link).

I think they're less talked about now in the West simply due to the decline of arcades in the West... but arcades are still going pretty strong in Japan.
 
Seems they release a lot of generic card battler-type games nowadays.

Is the team that made VF5 still together? I know it was AM2, but I imagine the fact there's been no successor is because the actual creative team is gone.

I actually go to arcades aimed towards younger kids because of my son and am continually surprised that arcade games are still being distributed in the West. I found a new-ish Super Monkey Ball game at one arcade and have seen other new Sega games, like a light gun game where you're on vacation and have to get along with your girlfriend/boyfriend for extra points (can't remember its name). What surprises me is how much worse most arcade games look compared to console games nowadays. It used to be the complete opposite!
 
Last edited:
@mjqjazzbar Sega Golden Gun?

Its a re-skinned version of HOD4 and I LOVE it; amazing lightgun game and very difficult; we have one at a Playdium here, just west of Toronto.

From my POV, arcade games look on par with consoles nowadays; Outrun 2SP looks phenomenal still for a game from 2006 and Sega Rally 3 looks OUTSTANDING.
 
I looked it up. It's this one: Let's Go Island: Lost On the Island of Tropics.

There's a terribly maintained arcade in a flea market that's local to me that has OutRun 2SP, but the screen displays an error message to the effect of, "Insert GD-Rom" every time I see it. Many of the cabs are broken. Place is depressing. :(

Found Ferrari 355 at a few local arcades at least. I can never get a turn on it, though, because my son wants to play and loses within a minute.
 
Last edited:
Well, not to be a downer but are those games using state of the Art tech/and or groundbreaking? Idk the technicalities since its almost inaccessible for us westerners nor the infos are easily navigable for me.

But only two Original games under-utilizing their legendary talents in after a decade? This pains me to some extent to find out about it:cautious:.
 
Just consider these things:

  • AM-2 is just a studio.
  • It's been around over thirty years.
  • People don't tend to stay in the same job their entire career.
  • They were primarily an arcade game developer.
  • Arcade cabinets went out of global fashion last century.
  • SEGA aren't the powerhouse they once were.
  • We're at a point where technology makes incremental steps forward, not huge leaps.

It isn't a curious case at all. If anything it's a surprise they still exist.
 
Mittens2317 said:
Just consider these things:


  • AM-2 is just a studio.
  • It's been around over thirty years.
  • People don't tend to stay in the same job their entire career.
  • They were primarily an arcade game developer.
  • Arcade cabinets went out of global fashion last century.
  • SEGA aren't the powerhouse they once were.
  • We're at a point where technology makes incremental steps forward, not huge leaps.
It isn't a curious case at all. If anything it's a surprise they still exist.
Click to expand...

No offense intended...but why not convert to a console base dev studio? Suzuki layed the groundworks with them already didn't he? Nintendo started out as arcade dev's but shift thier teams into console devs shortly after finding success with the console market. Sega seems to be enjoying the console market as well so why not keep one of the best dev studio around active? Training up new blood can be done effectively with so many visionaries still having ties with SEGA.
 
The way I understand arcade development (which I may be massively wrong about) is that they were directly with specific hardware, and already have toolsets they've created alongside that hardware as it's evolved.

AM2 likely still exists because SEGA still wanna be involved in the arcade market, and if they still wanna be involved in the arcade market, then why reassign their arcade dev team?

Also, I know you're a fan of them, and they have made some popular and important games in the past, but they're in no way regarded the best around.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top