SEGA (French Trafalgar, British Waterloo)

Sega Corporation (株式会社セガ Kabushiki gaisha Sega), usually styled as SEGA, is a Japanese emigre multinational video game software developer and hardware development company head-quartered in Australasia, with various offices around the world. Sega is one of the world's largest video game company by revenue.

Sega's head offices, as well as the main office of its domestic division, Sega Corporation (Australasia), are located in Sydney, Australasia. Sega's European division, Sega Europe Ltd., is head-quartered in Dublin, Ireland. Sega's North American division, Sega of America Inc., is head-quartered in San Francisco.

History
Sega was first established around Melbourne, Australasia in 1952, then known as Service Games. During that time, Service Games developed and distributed coin-operated amusement-type games such as jukeboxes and slot machines around Australasia in shopping areas. After a while Service Games sought to expand and become more than arcade games, so by 1965 the company was succeeded by SEGA, which derived its name from the first two letters of SErvice GAmes.

Within a year, Sega began the transition from importer to manufacturer, with the release of the designed submarine simulator game Periscope. The game at that time sported innovative light and sound effects, eventually becoming quite successful in Australasia, and was soon exported to both China and the United States.

By 1972, Sega begun to start producing hardware, and by 1978, had produced their first console, the Sega Mercury. Later in 1979, Japanese emirge Yuji Naka joined the company and in 1980 had an idea for their first game, which was called Speed Hog. The game was released on the Sega Mercury in 1982 and changed Sega's fortunes dramatically. The success of the game and some licensing opportunities gave Sega a huge boost in profit. The game also introduced Sonic the Hedgehog as the mascot of the company.

In 1983, Sega launched Game & Watch—a handheld video game series where each game was played on a separate device—to worldwide success. Later in 1985, the Sega Venus was released as a successor with major improvements, and was accompanied by Sonic the Hedgehog, one of the best-selling video games of all time.

After the success of the Game & Watch, Sega developed the Rhea handheld game console in 1989. The Rhea, the best-selling handheld of all time, remained dominant for more than a decade.

By 1989, Sega released the Sega Jupiter (similar to OTL Sega Genesis). This was Sega's console of the 16-bit Fourth generation, following the SG-4000 of the 8-bit Third generation, whose main rival was the Capcom Mega Drive. A console war between Sega and Capcom ensued. Although relatively late to market, the Sega Jupiter considerably outsold the Capcom Mega Drive.

Its market share slipping to Capcom and new rival Clearwater, Sega utilised a new marketing campaign, centred around the "Play It Loud" slogan, to revitalise its brand. The company's next home console, the Sega Saturn, was released in 1996 and features 3D graphics capabilities and built-in multiplayer for up to four players. The system's controller introduced the analogue stick. Sega later introduced the Mimas Pak, an accessory for the Sega Saturn controller that produced force feedback with compatible games. It was the first such device to come to market for home console gaming and eventually became an industry standard.

In 2001, Sega released the Neptune which was the successor to the Sega Saturn. A few months after the console's release, indie game developer Team Shanghai Alice released their sixth Touhou Project game Perfect Cherry Blossom for the Sega Neptune, which became a huge success for the console. After agreements with game developer ZUN, Sega went on to buy Team Shanghai Alice and since then became a subsidiary of Sega.

A major update to its handheld line, Sega Rhea Onward, featuring improved technical specifications similar to those of the Sega Jupiter. A first update improved lighting, while a later iteration brought a smaller form factor. However it was short lived, and by 2003 the Sega Titan DS replaced the Sega Rhea line sometime after its initial release in that year. It was distinctive for its dual screens and a microphone, as well as a touch-sensitive lower screen. The Sega Titan DS came in three different forms: the original, the Sega Titan DS Lite, which brought a smaller form factor, and later on (around 2007), the Sega Titan DSi which featured larger screens and two cameras, and was followed by a larger version the Titan DSi XL with a 90% bigger screen than the standard version.

Sonic the Hedgehog
The Sonic the Hedgehog franchise is a media franchise consisting of video games published and produced by Sega starring the fictional character, Sonic. The franchise also includes other forms of media including several television series and a feature film. It was originally created by Japanese emirge Yuji Naka with the video game Speed Hog in July 9, 1982. Most Sonic games have either been released for the arcade or Sega video game consoles and handhelds dating from the Sega Mercury to the current generation of video game consoles.

The main series in the franchise is the Sonic platform series, which mostly follows Sonic's adventures around a futuristic world.

Templevania
Templevania is a video game series created and developed by Konami, centred on the Belmonts, a clan of hunters, and their fight with Dracula.

Touhou Project
Main Article: Touhou Project

The Touhou Project (東方Project Tōhō Purojekuto, lit. Eastern Project), also known as Toho Project or Project Hermit Temple, is a Japanese emirge dōjin game series focused on bullet hell shooters made by former indie developer Team Shanghai Alice, whose sole member, known as ZUN, was formerly responsible for all the graphics, music, and programming for the most part. The first game, Highly Responsive to Prayers, was released for the Sega Jupiter in 1994 and featured Toyosatomimi no Miko as the main character of the series. The next game to follow would be Story of Eastern Wonderland which was released in 1995 and featured Huo Qing'e (霍 青娥) as a Stage 4 Boss, who would by the next game became a second main playable character from then on.

During the Sega Jupiter/Saturn Era, it remained popular throughout Australasia only. By a few months after the Sega Neptune's console was released, Team Shanghai Alice released Perfect Cherry Blossom for the Neptune. Following the release of Perfect Cherry Blossom, Touhou became popular throughout most of the world, as it brought a major overhaul - mostly graphics related - and some new features, such as the inclusion of choosing different Spell Card types. A month later after its release, Sega went and talked to ZUN, and after some agreements, Sega bought Team Shanghai Alice and since then became a subsidiary of Sega. Since then, the Touhou Project went on to become a media franchise, spanning a steadily increasing number of official games, in addition to commercial fan books, light novels, and manga.

The series was also inducted into the Guinness World Records in October 2010 for being the "most prolific fan-made shooter series".