Sega is delisting tons of its classic games
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Sega is set to delist a huge swathe of its classic back catalog games from digital storefronts in December, including the Sega Genesis Classics collection and several much-loved games from the Dreamcast era. According to a FAQ on the Sega support website, the games will become unavailable for purchase just before midnight PST on Dec. 6.
Sega Genesis Classics will be removed from sale on Steam and the Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo Switch stores. A further 11 games will be delisted from the Xbox store — all Xbox 360 versions of classic titles which are available to play via backward compatibility. These include Crazy Taxi, Sega Bass Fishing, Shinobi, and Sonic Team’s surreal Saturn-era platformer Nights into Dreams.
Over 60 games will be delisted from Steam, where games from Sega’s Classics range are unavailable to buy both individually and in Genesis Classics and Dreamcast Classics bundles. Titles impacted include Ecco the Dolphin, Jet Set Radio, Treasure’s immortal action game Gunstar Heroes, ToeJam & Earl, and Space Channel 5: Part 2.
Sega pointed out that the catalog of classic Sega Genesis games included in a Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack subscription will remain available to play. It also reassured users that games they already own will remain in their libraries, available to download and play, past the delisting date. It also seems the Sega Ages series of high-quality Nintendo Switch rereleases, developed by port specialist M2, is unaffected.
Sega’s FAQ did not give any reason for the move or lay out any future plans Sega might have for keeping its classic games available to play. Polygon has contacted Sega for comment.
As it stands, the delisting is a mystery. Licensing issues, often the culprit for game delistings, are unlikely to be behind the mass removal of so many wholly owned Sega games from sale.
Sega is currently pursuing a revival of some of its classic properties, with new Crazy Taxi, Jet Set Radio, Shinobi, Golden Axe, and Streets of Rage games in development; Sega is even considering developing some of these as movie and TV projects. That makes the decision to remove some of these classics from sale all the more puzzling — although it might also provide an explanation for it, if Sega wants to change how its older games are presented and marketed.
The emulation in Sega Genesis Classics is far from perfect, the Xbox 360 ports are showing their age, and the Dreamcast-era ports on Steam are rather functional. Perhaps a wholesale revamp is underway; the continued availability of the excellent Sega Ages releases suggests the delisting might be a quality issue. If that’s the case, hopefully Sega will move quickly to keep this large section of its legacy available to buy and play.
