More Mini Madness From Sega

The Japanese publisher reveals a brand-new miniature machine

The Japanese developer is miniaturising its arcade games, from the hits to the rarities

Sega is making the most of its 60th anniversary. Despite the global pandemic, the publisher has been giving its fans plenty to look forward to, including the reveal of Sega Shiro, the son of Sega’s mascot, Segata Sanshiro; the remaster of Alex Kidd In Miracle World we showcased last month; a UFO Catcher that lets you grab all manner of iconic items from the Sega vault, as well as a selection of mini Game Gear consoles.

It would appear that Sega is just getting warmed up, however, as it has just announced a brand-new mini console, and if we’re honest, we’re incredibly excited about the potential of this new miniature beast. We say ‘beast’, because Sega’s latest micro console is hosting some incredibly powerful games (for the time they originally came out at least) and unlike the Mega Drive Mini and Game Gear Micro, it’s choosing to focus on actual arcade games, and some of them are very exciting indeed.

The machine itself is called the Astro City Mini and, as you’ve probably guessed, it’s based on the popular arcade cabinet of the same name. Originally released in 1993, the 750x1445x905mm cabinet was Jamma-compatible and a stalwart of Japanese arcades. Even today, they remain extremely popular with arcade collectors and you’ll often see them on show at various gaming events. They immediately stand out compared to other cabs of the time, thanks to their huge 29-inch screens, white casing and vivid green and pink stick-and-button configurations. Needless to say, Sega is adopting this look for its new miniaturised version, although the size is shrunk down considerably to 130x170x170mm, which means it’s going to be a lot more portable than the original and more on par with SNK’S Neo

Geo Mini. Another nice touch of the Astro City Mini is that Sega is promising that while the new buttons are smaller than those found in the original cabinets, they will be made from the same material, which should please those looking for authenticity.

Of course a mini console is nothing without its games, and this is where things get really interesting with the Astro City Mini as it seems to be cramming a fair amount of Sega’s arcade heritage into its tiny innards. The ten included games only currently

» While the hardware is made by Sega Toys, Yosuke Okunari has revealed that neither he nor M2 are involved with the system.

» [Arcade] Revenge Of Death Adder never got a home release originally, so this is a welcome inclusion.

» [Arcade] Interestingly, no Super Scaler games, such as Space Harrier, have been announced yet.