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 in 2003.
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, released in 2021, the game is 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 (Sega ALLS, released February 25th 2021)
Localisation[]
Export versions were made of several of their Initial D arcade games. The American and European markets recieved their own localised version of the first four Initial D Arcade Stage games. These versions featured different names for the characters, likely due to the game only accepting 6 letter names. Many of these match up with the nicknames Tokyopop used in their localisation of the manga.
| Original Japanese Name | Tokyopop Nickname |
|---|---|
| Takumi Fujiwara | Tak |
| Itsuki Takeuchi | Iggy |
| Koichiro Iketani | Cole |
| Yuichi Tachibana | Boss |
| Natsuki Mogi | Natalie |
| Keisuke Takahashi | K.T |
| Ryosuke Takahashi | Ry |
| Takeshi Nakazato | Zack |
| Mako Sato | Maya |
| Sayuki | Simone |
| Kenta Nakamura | Danny (Arcade Stage 2 & 3)
Kent (Arcade Stage 4) |
| Seiji Iwaki | Hawk |
| Kyoichi Sudo | Kyle |
| Wataru Akiyama | Aki |
| Kai Kogashiwa | Caine (Arcade Stage 1 - 3) |
| Daiki Ninomiya | Dice |
| Tomoyuki Tachi | Touch |
| Kyoko Iwase | Kylie |
| Nobuhiko Akiyama | Nobu |
| Sakamoto | Sid |
Trivia[]
- In Version 6 AA til 8, the classic "SEGA!" jingle is heard when the logo appears.
- Sega have also developed several other famous arcade racers, such as Daytona USA, Outrun, Sega Rally, and Crazy Taxi.
- Initial D Arcade Stage mostly competes against Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune series by Namco, similarly based on a street racing manga, though focusing on Wangan racing instead of Touge.
- Fittingly, a collaboration between Wangan Midnight and Initial D would later appear in Initial D The Arcade. The event officially began on April 22nd 2021 and ended June 30th 2021.
- Aside from Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune, Initial D: Arcade Stage has formerly competed against the Battle Gear series by Taito, which also involves Touge racing. The series was formerly called Side by Side. When it was changed to Battle Gear, it had four games.
