“Reviving Sega will be the greatest achievement in my career”
Sega president Shuji Utsumi on a resurgent Japan, the risks of nostalgia and why he believes in consoles
thegamebusiness.com
“Reviving Sega will be the greatest achievement in my career”
Veteran exec Shuji Utsumi—who’s helped shape PlayStation’s launch, overseen Dreamcast classics like Sonic Adventure, and co-founded Q-Entertainment—has returned to Sega as President and COO hungry to make this chapter his crowning achievement. In a wide-ranging chat recorded at Summer Game Fest’s L.A. hub, he spills on console concerns, leaning into legacy IP, cracking the games-as-a-service code, and why Hollywood and nostalgia matter.
One big takeaway: Sega’s Japan teams now think global. Utsumi flipped the script on a formerly Japan-first mindset by syncing international and domestic launches (across PC, consoles, you name it) and building marketing plans in tandem with development—ensuring every studio treats Western gamers as equals from day one.
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