Sega

Sega Corporation (also referred to and stylized as SEGA) is a Japanese video game developer and publisher, headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. Originally an arcade-focused company, Sega entered the game console market in the early 1980s, with the release of the SG-1000, but dropped out in 2001 when the Sega Dreamcast, among some of their earlier consoles and add-ons, became commercial failures. Since then, Sega has become a third-party game developer creating games for a variety of systems, including video game consoles, computers, smart devices, and even plug and plays.

Sega is best known for their flagship Sonic the Hedgehog franchise, which was introduced in 1991, to the point of having a subsidiary named Sonic Team. One of Sega's other notable subsidiaries is Atlus, known for the Shin Megami Tensei and Persona franchises.

Rivalry
During SEGA's time in the console business, during the 8-bit and 16-bit eras, the company usually mocked Nintendo's properties in their games. In addition, marketing from the era usually portrayed SEGA's platforms as superior to Nintendo's, even going as far to mention the company by name. An early mockery toward Nintendo can be found in Alex Kidd in Shinobi World, where the first boss was originally going to be named Mari-Oh, a parody of Mario, but was later changed to Kabuto. In the Sonic the Comic series, characters known as the Marxio Brothers appeared, a trio of electricians who were parodies of both the Mario Bros. and the.

To counter these mockeries of Mario, Rare had Sonic make a "cameo appearance" in Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest. His shoes, as well as a weapon from a fellow platforming mascot rival, Earthworm Jim's blaster, are seen next to a trash can during Cranky Kong's contest labeled "No Hopers."

Move to third party game development
The production of Sega's last console, the Sega Dreamcast, was discontinued in 2001 as part of a big restructuring strategy and also because of Sega not having enough resources to compete due to multiple system failures in the past, including Sega CD, Sega 32X, and Sega Saturn. They planned to merge with Bandai when sales of the Sega Saturn began to slow outside Japan, but that plan was scrapped when Sega decided the two companies had "cultural differences".

ChuChu Rocket! is the first SEGA-published game on a Nintendo system, specifically the Game Boy Advance. Since then, both SEGA and Nintendo have collaborated on several projects, including the joint effort between them and Namco in creating the Triforce arcade board. Sega and Nintendo later teamed up to create a crossover game featuring both Mario and Sonic, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games, which generated the Mario & Sonic series. Since Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Sonic has been a playable character in the Super Smash Bros. series.

Home consoles

 * SG-1000 (1983-1985)
 * Sega Master System (1985-1989)
 * Sega Genesis (1988-1997)
 * Sega Saturn (1994-1998)
 * Sega Dreamcast (1998-2001)

Attachments and remodels

 * Sega CD (1991-1996)
 * Sega 32X (1994-1996)

Handheld consoles

 * Sega Game Gear (1990-1997)
 * Sega Pico (1993-2005)
 * Genesis Nomad (1995-1999)
 * Advanced Pico Beena (2005-2011)

Dedicated consoles

 * Sega Genesis Mini (2019)
 * Game Gear Micro (2020)
 * Astro City Mini (2020, published by Sega Toys)
 * Astro City Mini V (2022, published by Sega Toys)
 * Sega Genesis Mini 2 (2022)