Retro Gaming Australia

Golden Axe II is the direct sequel to the Mega Drive version of Golden Axe. It does not stray far at all from the original game, retaining the same characters and basic gameplay – one could accuse the game of being more of an expansion than a real sequel.

Sega Studios Australia is currently putting the final touches on what will be their final game – Castle of Illusion HD, but it was revealed earlier in the week that the studio tried to pitch Sega on making them into a full blown retro revival studio.

The pitch video, which you can watch below, was for a remake of Golden Axe, to be released under a label called Sega Reborn. The crazier part of the idea was that all of the games would take place in the one universe, effectively meaning Streets of Rage would theoretically be set hundreds of years after the events of Golden Axe.

Of course, the last time Sega tried making 3D versions of their classic games, we got the first dozen or so 3D AGES releases, and those were…not so good. Being pre-alpha, this Golden Axe footage looks pretty rough, but there was some promise in there.

Via Segabits

Golden Axe is one of Sega’s greatest arcade games, and one of the headliners of the Mega Drive’s early line up. It loses some of the graphical lustre of the arcade original, but it does add two extra stages at the end to compensate.

You should all be familiar with our next Retro Gaming Theatre participant – Sega’s arcade smash hit Golden Axe. This is the Mega Drive version – one of the first breakout successes on the machine. It’s not as pretty as the arcade game, but it has two extra stages.

I actually got really into this while recording the video and ended up playing through to (and defeating) Death Adder. We had to cut it there due to quota restrictions, which is kind of disappointing. One day I’ll have faster internets!

Sega are pulling out all of the stops with digital distribution this month. Hot off the heels of Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 2 comes the third round of Sega Vintage Collection games for PlayStation Network and Xbox Live Arcade.

Twelve games will be released as part of this run – Alex Kidd in Miracle World, Super Hang-On, Revenge of Shinobi, Wonder Boy in Monster Land, Wonder Boy in Monster World, Monster World IV, Streets of Rage, Streets of Rage II, Streets of Rage 3, Golden Axe, Golden Axe II and Golden Axe III.

The games are packaged differently based on which service you decide to use. On PlayStation Network, Alex Kidd in Miracle World, Super Hang-On, Revenge of Shinobi, Wonder Boy in Monster Land, Wonder Boy in Monster World and Monster World IV will be available May 22nd for $US4.99 each.

Meanwhile, on Xbox Live Arcade, the games will be available in packs of three – Monster World Collection (Wonder Boy in Monster Land, Wonder Boy in Monster World and Monster World IV) and Alex Kidd & Co. Collection (Alex Kidd in Miracle World, Super Hang-On and Revenge of Shinobi) on May 23, while Streets of Rage Collection and Golden Axe Collection will arrive on May 30. All Xbox Live Arcade collections will be 800 points.

It’s been a while since we’ve had a foreign language ad on here, so here you go.

Golden Axe II was the Mega Drive exclusive sequel to Golden Axe. Unlike the later arcade sequel The Revenge of Death Adder, Golden Axe II is virtually identical to the first game, a factor not unnoticed by the media at the time. Sadly, The Revenge of Death Adder still hasn’t seen a home release in any form. This ad originates from Spain.

Search for Golden Axe II on eBay