Sega unveils new studio headed by 'Phantasy Star Online 2' producer

Sega has decided that Tokyo alone just isn't big enough for Sonic the Hedgehog's menagerie of furry friends, as the former console giant has opened a new studio in Sapporo.

Referred to in a press release as a "second development base in Japan," the catchily-named Sega Sapporo Studio will focus on new software and debugging.

Northern climes — Sapporo is the most populous Japanese city north of Tokyo, and it's well-known as a home for beer and snow. (A winning combination!) The studio will be headed by Takaya Segawa, who is a former chief producer on the MMO Phantasy Star Online 2.

Segawa's statement helpfully describes the city of Sapporo as "attractive." That said, however, Sega will apparently not require its workers to relocate to the city, as the company hopes to hire locally to fill its positions.

Plenty of space — Sega Sapporo Studio is the newest of Sega's many development studios, which include Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio (the devs behind the Yakuza series) and Sonic Team. The company still has a very substantial arcade division, including the legendary AM2, which produced Virtua Fighter and Daytona USA. Sega also owns a number of notable studios that it has acquired over the years, most notably Shin Megami Tensei studio Atlus.

The company recently delayed future certified gaming classic Sonic Frontiers in order to “focus on quality.” Yeah, that’s probably a good idea.