Gamertell

It looks like 2008 is going to be the year SEGA fans start buying lots of cell phone games. In a recent press release, SEGA announced six new cell phone games, most based on existing SEGA properties, that will be released this year, starting with SEGA Columns Deluxe in May 2008 and ending with Crazy Taxi in December 2008. Prices and carrier availability have not yet been announced for any of the games.

Of all the games announced, it seems like the ones based on true SEGA classics may end up being the most fun. SEGA Columns Deluxe comes with both Columns and Puyo Pop, two amazing puzzle games. In June, Beijing 2008 - the Official Mobile Phone Game of the Olympic Games and Sonic at the Olympic Games will both be available for sports loving Olympic fans looking for a portable challenge. Samba de Amigo and Medieval: Total War, the former being an adaptation of the maracas music game and the later a strategic rpg, will both be released in September. October will bring with it the pinball title, Sonic Spinball, and a classic shooter, Zaxxon. The year will end with a port of action-filled Sonic the Hedgehog 2 in November and the crazy driving challenges of Crazy Taxi in December.

I have a feeling the SEGA Columns Deluxe will end up being SEGA’s best seller. Puzzle games are great for cell phone gaming, because they usually have fairly simple control schemes and don’t require a lot of involvement. You can just pick one up, play for between five minutes to half an hour, and then put it back down again. You don’t have to worry about saving or interruptions, they’re just great.

One thing bothers me though, the title for the Beijing 2008 game. I don’t think it really needs the whole extra The Official Mobile Phone Game of the Olympic Games tacked on to the end of it. I think Beijing 2008 does a pretty good job of describing what the game’s about. The rest of the title is dead weight. Nobody’s going to be convinced to buy the cell phone game because the title declares it is the official game for the 2008 Olympics.

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