SegaWorld
Encyclopedia
SegaWorld is a name referring to one of a number of now defunct theme parks and arcades worldwide, including installations in the United Kingdom
, China
and Australia
. The parks sought to promote Sega
games while providing entertainment based on its licenses, while the Japanese Sonictown (sometimes otherwise known as 'SegaWorld') created an entire world based on Sonic the Hedgehog
alone.
, it featured a number of indoor rides, coin-op arcade machines and a SEGA merchandise shop. It was heavily promoted in the UK's Sonic the Comic
, where competitions were run to win items from the SegaWorld shop, and out on the streets where tokens could often be found for discounted or free entry, and free t-shirts were distributed. The loss-making venture eventually closed and was taken over by a new management and renamed the whole establishment "Funland". Funland was originally the arcade in the basement floor next to the Pepsi Max drop, which shared the same building as SegaWorld.
After taking over SegaWorld, Funland shut their basement arcade and the top floors remained open, along with McDonalds on the 3rd floor until autumn 2002 when the main entrance known as the Rocket Escalator, was shut. At that time the dodgems were moved from the 3rd to the 1st floor and a new lower ground floor was re-opened. The arcade is arguably the largest and most popular in England with recent games including DJMax Technika, Pump It Up Fiesta
, Pump It Up Pro
, Streetfighter IV, Initial D Arcade Stage 4
. and As of 2010, the basement section leading from the London Underground is now an area for b-boys and streetdancers to practice.
The name SegaWorld later referred to the basement arcade in Hamleys
' Regent Street
branch, featuring none of the rides and entertainment of its Trocadero predecessor, as a SEGA-dedicated coin-op den, which then became the Game Zone arcade, and finally stripped and replaced with a franchised 'Game' outlet at the end of 2003. In May 2011, the Rocket Escalator was completely removed during building works for the hotel that will use the top 2 floors of the building.
As of Sunday, the 3rd of July, Funland has been shut down.
This was due to a long running dispute with the landlord over rent. This has been ongoing since 2004 and landlord may well open another arcade directly owned by himself, rather than a third party in the future. The manager of Funland confirmed the dancegame cabinets, including Pump Fiesta EX and Para Para Paradise 2nd Mix are moving to Las Vegas Arcade, in Soho. This was also announced on Coin-Op Community. More than just an arcade to many, a players testimonial was also published.
's SEGA arcade. According to reports sent into Sonic cultist site UK Resistance, the basement arcade in Xu Jia Hui Shanghai still operated a series of UFO Catcher machines and SEGA
arcade
machines long after the demise of its Western equivalents. The arcade was adorned with artworks and fascias dating back to Sonic's heyday, on top of a largely Dreamcast-era look in meeting with some of the newer machines. Games featured in the arcade, identified by photographic records, included OutRun, Time Crisis
, House of the Dead and an installation of the cult oddity Waku Waku Sonic Patrol Car
for younger patrons. Most notably, it has Initial D Arcade Stage
version 4. As of October 2009 it also has Taiko no Tatsujin
12 (Asia version), Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 3, and Mario Kart Arcade GP
despite those being Namco
properties.
As of September 2007, there is another Sega arcade on the 9th floor of the New World shopping mall, despite the recent revamping of the adjacent food court. There are now multiple signs near and in the mall itself in an effort to promote the arcade, a marked contrast from the past where its presence was only known by the noise that emanated to adjacent floors. It is now known as Players Arena (though it retains images of Sonic and many Sega cabinets) and has expanded to two floors (due to the addition of large-scale rides and photo booths). Like the Xujiahui arcade, it also has multiple Namco games due to their popularity. Citing poor sales, it has shut down on February 2011. Many people were disappointed, and multiple suicides were reported following the closure.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. The parks sought to promote Sega
Sega
, usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world...
games while providing entertainment based on its licenses, while the Japanese Sonictown (sometimes otherwise known as 'SegaWorld') created an entire world based on Sonic the Hedgehog
Sonic the Hedgehog (character)
, trademarked Sonic The Hedgehog, is a video game character and the main protagonist of the Sonic video game series released by Sega, as well as in numerous spin-off comics, cartoons, and a feature film. The first game was released on June 23, 1991, to provide Sega with a mascot to rival Nintendo's...
alone.
SegaWorld London
London's SEGA theme park kicked off at the height of its mascot Sonic the Hedgehog's popularity on September 7, 1996. Housed in the Piccadilly TrocaderoTrocadero (London)
The London Trocadero is an entertainment complex in Shaftesbury Avenue, London originally built as a restaurant but most recently used as an exhibition and entertainment space....
, it featured a number of indoor rides, coin-op arcade machines and a SEGA merchandise shop. It was heavily promoted in the UK's Sonic the Comic
Sonic the Comic
Sonic the Comic, known to its many readers as STC, was a UK children's comic published fortnightly by Fleetway Editions between 1993 and 2002...
, where competitions were run to win items from the SegaWorld shop, and out on the streets where tokens could often be found for discounted or free entry, and free t-shirts were distributed. The loss-making venture eventually closed and was taken over by a new management and renamed the whole establishment "Funland". Funland was originally the arcade in the basement floor next to the Pepsi Max drop, which shared the same building as SegaWorld.
After taking over SegaWorld, Funland shut their basement arcade and the top floors remained open, along with McDonalds on the 3rd floor until autumn 2002 when the main entrance known as the Rocket Escalator, was shut. At that time the dodgems were moved from the 3rd to the 1st floor and a new lower ground floor was re-opened. The arcade is arguably the largest and most popular in England with recent games including DJMax Technika, Pump It Up Fiesta
Pump It Up Fiesta
Pump it Up Fiesta are popular coin operated video arcade dance machines. Fiesta 2010 is the 22nd arcade game release in the Pump It Up series, released in Mexico on March 6, 2010, and in January 2011, Andamiro Entertainment released the 23rd iteration of the PIU series, "Pump It Up Fiesta EX"...
, Pump It Up Pro
Pump It Up Pro
Pump It Up Pro is a series of Rhythm games produced by Fun in Motion and published by Andamiro. The product is a spin-off of Pump It Up, and is developed separately from the main series...
, Streetfighter IV, Initial D Arcade Stage 4
Initial D Arcade Stage 4
Initial D Arcade Stage 4 is a racing game developed by Sega Rosso. It is the sequel to Initial D Arcade Stage Ver.3. This version has been heavily updated compared to its predecessors. The game underwent location testing from October 21, 2006 to October 30, 2006 in game centers in Tokyo, Osaka, and...
. and As of 2010, the basement section leading from the London Underground is now an area for b-boys and streetdancers to practice.
The name SegaWorld later referred to the basement arcade in Hamleys
Hamleys
Hamleys is one of the world's largest toy shops. Its flagship store is in Regent Street, London. Major stores worldwide are in Dublin, Dubai, Amman, Glasgow, Mumbai and Chennai....
' Regent Street
Regent Street
Regent Street is one of the major shopping streets in London's West End, well known to tourists and Londoners alike, and famous for its Christmas illuminations...
branch, featuring none of the rides and entertainment of its Trocadero predecessor, as a SEGA-dedicated coin-op den, which then became the Game Zone arcade, and finally stripped and replaced with a franchised 'Game' outlet at the end of 2003. In May 2011, the Rocket Escalator was completely removed during building works for the hotel that will use the top 2 floors of the building.
As of Sunday, the 3rd of July, Funland has been shut down.
This was due to a long running dispute with the landlord over rent. This has been ongoing since 2004 and landlord may well open another arcade directly owned by himself, rather than a third party in the future. The manager of Funland confirmed the dancegame cabinets, including Pump Fiesta EX and Para Para Paradise 2nd Mix are moving to Las Vegas Arcade, in Soho. This was also announced on Coin-Op Community. More than just an arcade to many, a players testimonial was also published.
SegaWorld Brighton
Opened in 2002 and closed briefly in 2006, before reopening as Leisure Exchange. The arcade closed for good in 2007 where the building remains empty.Sega Park Bournemouth
This arcade continues to be in operation however it no longer bears the Sega name and is simply called 'Amusements'. Notable machines are the Daytona 2 4 player link up and a sit down MAME cabinet with Neo Geo and Capcom fighting games.SegaWorld Shanghai
Little is known of ShanghaiShanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
's SEGA arcade. According to reports sent into Sonic cultist site UK Resistance, the basement arcade in Xu Jia Hui Shanghai still operated a series of UFO Catcher machines and SEGA
Sega
, usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world...
arcade
Arcade cabinet
A video game arcade cabinet, also known as a video arcade machine or video coin-op, is the housing within which a video arcade game's hardware resides. Most cabinets designed since the mid-1980s conform to the JAMMA wiring standard...
machines long after the demise of its Western equivalents. The arcade was adorned with artworks and fascias dating back to Sonic's heyday, on top of a largely Dreamcast-era look in meeting with some of the newer machines. Games featured in the arcade, identified by photographic records, included OutRun, Time Crisis
Time Crisis
Time Crisis is a light gun shooter arcade game produced by Namco in 1995 and released in early 1996. It was later ported for the PlayStation in 1997, bundled with the G-Con 45 controller.-Gameplay:...
, House of the Dead and an installation of the cult oddity Waku Waku Sonic Patrol Car
Waku Waku Sonic Patrol Car
Waku Waku Sonic Patrol Car is a children's ride that features the video game character and corporate mascot of Sega, Sonic the Hedgehog. It is unique because it contains a simple video game in the police-car shaped cabinet...
for younger patrons. Most notably, it has Initial D Arcade Stage
Initial D Arcade Stage
Initial D Arcade Stage is a racing game series developed by Sega Rosso, a division of Sega, based on the anime and manga Initial D...
version 4. As of October 2009 it also has Taiko no Tatsujin
Taiko no Tatsujin
is a series of rhythm games created by Namco. The series has seen releases for the arcade, Nintendo DS, PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, Wii, iOS, Advanced Pico Beena, and mobile phones....
12 (Asia version), Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 3, and Mario Kart Arcade GP
Mario Kart Arcade GP
Mario Kart Arcade GP is an arcade-only iteration of Nintendo's Mario Kart series, developed by both Namco and Nintendo. Designed for the Triforce arcade board , players can race as one of eleven characters in twenty-four tracks...
despite those being Namco
Namco
is a Japanese corporation best known as a former video game developer and publisher. Following a merger with Bandai in September 2005, the two companies' game production assets were spun off into Namco Bandai Games on March 31, 2006. Namco Ltd. was re-established to continue domestic operation of...
properties.
As of September 2007, there is another Sega arcade on the 9th floor of the New World shopping mall, despite the recent revamping of the adjacent food court. There are now multiple signs near and in the mall itself in an effort to promote the arcade, a marked contrast from the past where its presence was only known by the noise that emanated to adjacent floors. It is now known as Players Arena (though it retains images of Sonic and many Sega cabinets) and has expanded to two floors (due to the addition of large-scale rides and photo booths). Like the Xujiahui arcade, it also has multiple Namco games due to their popularity. Citing poor sales, it has shut down on February 2011. Many people were disappointed, and multiple suicides were reported following the closure.