Sega

Sega Corporation is a Japanese video game developer that currently produces video games and arcade machines. From 1983 until 2002, Sega created video game consoles and was known for being a competitor of Nintendo when they released the Genesis.

Sega currently holds the rights to distribute Initial D arcade games based on the manga.

Franchise history
Initial D: Koudou Saisoku Densetsu was released for the Sega Saturn in 1998. The game was developed by Genki and was the only game to be released on a Sega console.

Sega Rosso, a development studio owned by Sega, developed Initial D Arcade Stage for the Sega Naomi in 2001. They then developed Arcade Stage 2 and Arcade Stage 3, updated versions for the same system. They also developed Initial D Special Stage, a home console port of Arcade Stage 2 for the PlayStation 2. Sega Rosso would later be merged into the studio Hitmaker.

Sega would then make the Arcade Stage series themselves, starting with Initial D Street Stage, the PlayStation Portable port of Arcade Stage 3. With Arcade Stage 4 in 2007, the series would move to the Sega Lindbergh. It was then followed by Initial D Extreme Stage, a port for the PlayStation 3, and then Arcade Stage 5, also for the Lindbergh.

The series would then move to the Sega RingEdge with Arcade Stage 6 AA, Arcade Stage 7 AAX, and Arcade Stage 8 Infinity. The most recent game, Arcade Stage Zero, was published for the Sega Nu2 in 2017. Their latest game, Initial D The Arcade is set to be released on July 24. However, the game will be separate from the Arcade Stage series.

Games developed

 * Initial D Arcade Stage (Sega Naomi, released 2001 in Japan and 2002 in Europe & US)
 * Initial D Arcade Stage 2 (Sega Naomi, released 2002 in Japan and 2003 in Europe & US)
 * Initial D Special Stage (Playstation 2, released 2003)
 * Initial D Arcade Stage 3 (Sega Naomi, released 2004)
 * Initial D Street Stage (Playstation Portable, released 2006)
 * Initial D Arcade Stage 4 (Sega Lindbergh, released February 2007 in Japan and July 2007 internationally)
 * Initial D Extreme Stage (Playstation 3, released 2008)
 * Initial D Arcade Stage 5 (Sega Lindbergh, released February 2009)
 * Initial D Arcade Stage 6 AA (Sega RingEdge, released March 2011)
 * Initial D Arcade Stage 7 AAX (Sega RingEdge, released November 2012)
 * Initial D Arcade Stage 8 Infinity (Sega RingEdge, released July 14, 2014)
 * Initial D Arcade Stage Zero (Sega Nu2, released March 7th, 2017)
 * Initial D The Arcade

Trivia

 * In Version 6 AA til 8, the classic "SEGA!" jingle is heard when the logo appears.
 * Initial D Arcade Stage is one of the anime-based games to be developed by Sega, with the second being Bleach, and the third being Astro Boy.
 * Before developing Initial D Arcade Stage, Sega even developed other racing games for its arcade machines such as Daytona USA, Outrun, Sega Rally, and Crazy Taxi.
 * Despite making Initial D Arcade games, Sega doesn't put any references to their other games as "Easter Eggs" in the Initial D games, notably their mascot, Sonic the Hedgehog. This is presumably because of copyright issues, as Initial D is owned by Shuichi Shigeno.
 * Initial D Arcade Stage mostly competes against Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune series by Namco, in which it is also based on a manga series created by Michiharu Kusonoki and focuses on street racing on Tokyo's Bayshore Route. It also involves a teenager who enters the world of street racing after being passed by a Porsche and purchases a Nissan Fairlady Z for racing.