Sega Sammy is reportedly developing reboots for the franchise Crazy Taxi and Jet Set Radio. Each of these reboots are being called “big-budget” and are in the early stages of their development. Sega Sammy is said to be releasing the games within two or three years if everything continues as planned. Although development has started, it is still possible the games’ development is canceled as Sega invests more capital.
Crazy Taxi is a racing game that was originally released in arcades in 1999. The success of the game prompted Sega to develop the game for the Dreamcast. Crazy Taxi quickly became one of the most well-known and most played games that Sega has ever released. As racing games continue to gain popularity, Crazy Taxi will likely be released at the perfect time to create the most excitement.
Jet Radio originally released in 2000 for Sega’s Dreamcast. The game features multiple modes that allow players to travel around Tokyo while spraying graffiti across the city. Although the gameplay is very different from Crazy Taxi, Jet Set Radio also became a hit in the gaming world. Since the original release, Jet Set Radio has been featured on other consoles and gained a relatively large following.
Development of these two franchises is taking place to create more revenue streams, as part of Sega’s Super Game initiative announced in 2021. This initiative will largely rely on Sega’s metaverse and NFTs. Sega is planning to use both Crazy Taxi and Jet Set Radio to hook fans into their games and into their metaverse. With both NTFs and the metaverse becoming popular in the gaming world, Sega has an opportunity to draw a lot of attention to their company with the rebooted franchises. Other games that Sega might be interesting in rebooting include Space Channel 5, Rez, Panzer Dragoon, Nights, Shinobi, Virtual Fighter, Altered Beast, House of the Dead, Streets of Rage, and Souls Hackers.