First Original Genesis Title in 12 Years Nearing Release?

Pier Solar, the first original Sega Genesis (Mega Drive) game in more than a decade, might soon be captivating retro gamers in America, Japan and Europe. Read my post at Gaming Life for more details. I must say, I'm excited!

Or if links scare you, here's the full text:

Pier Solar, the first original Sega Genesis\Mega Drive game coded from scratch in at least a decade, is apparently nearing release.

About two years after Water Melon Development, the team behind Pier Solar, began taking preorders, those who reserved the game received an e-mail Monday asking them to confirm their shipping address. Though no official word has come from the game’s developers, the e-mail hints at a release date in the near future.

Pier Solar began life more than five years ago as “Tavern RPG,” a pet project of the Sega fansite, Eidolon’s Inn. What was meant to be a small undertaking blossomed into a full-fledged, 64 MEG role playing game for the Genesis, complete with “asynchronous turn-based battles,” an enhanced CD soundtrack for Sega CD owners, and at least five selectable languages, including English and Japanese.

“We hope all those who purchase Pier Solar will gain the very same feeling of excitement [and] joy they had from playing the Sega Mega Drive/Sega Genesis for the very first time,” write the developers on the Pier Solar web page. “We want people who play Pier Solar to experience the same level of enjoyment and pleasure [that] we did from creating it.”

Though Water Mellon Development stopped taking preorders for Pier Solar last month – they claim that they sold out of the North American, European and Japanese versions of the cartridge – the game may again be made available in small quantities via the Pier Solar website shortly after all reservations are filled.

Pier Solar shares its initials with the Phantasy Star series, which is often considered the premier RPG franchise on the Genesis.

In addition to Pier Solar, two other role playing games have been released for the Sega Genesis in the last five years by the company Super Fighter Team: Beggar Prince in 2006 and Legend of Wukong in 2008. Both games were translations of existing Taiwanese cartridges released in the territory during the Genesis’s heyday in the ‘90s.

Below is a video of Pier Solar in action, including the Genesis cart accessing the Sega CD for the soundtrack: