Sega and Microsoft announce strategic alliance to create new titles for Sega in next-gen development environment built on Azure

Sega and Microsoft have announced a strategic alliance that explores ways for Sega to produce large-scale, global games in a next-generation development environment built on Microsoft’s Azure cloud platform. The alliance forms a key part of Sega’s mid to long-term strategy, allowing it to move forward with its “Super Game” initiative to develop new and innovative titles focused on “global,” “online,” “community,” and “IP utilization.”

The companies have agreed upon the foundation for this alliance and will look to build further technological evolutions through mutual cooperation, with areas such as ‘network infrastructure and communication tools required for global online services’ being a key priority. And by shifting to a next-generation development platform, Sega can effectively adapt to diversifying work styles and potential infrastructural changes.

“With the world now more connected than ever following the widespread deployment of 5G and cloud services in recent years, consumers can more easily enjoy high-quality entertainment content at any time,” Sega said in a press release. “Within this highly connected environment, the ecosystem surrounding the games industry continues to evolve and expand as more sophisticated tools and technologies become available. As such, video games continue to grow as a major medium for gamers globally, with access to a vast range of gaming experiences and communities becoming more diverse and attainable. This proposed alliance represents SEGA looking ahead, and by working with Microsoft to anticipate such trends as they accelerate further in future, the goal is to optimize development processes and continue to bring high-quality experiences to players using Azure cloud technologies.”

Find comments from Sega and Microsoft below.

Yukio Sugino, President and COO, SEGA Corporation

“We are very pleased to announce today that we are considering a strategic alliance with Microsoft to help develop SEGA’s new ‘Super Game’ initiative as well as build a next-generation game development environment. By considering a strategic partnership with Microsoft, we seek to further advance our game development so that our titles can be enjoyed by fans all over the world; in this regard, we aim to build an alliance that utilizes both SEGA’s powerful game development capabilities and Microsoft’s cutting-edge technology and development environment.”

Sarah Bond, CVP, Microsoft Corporation

“SEGA has played such an iconic role in the gaming industry and has been a tremendous partner over the years. We look forward to working together as they explore new ways to create unique gaming experiences for the future using Microsoft cloud technologies. Together we will reimagine how games get built, hosted, and operated, with a goal of adding more value to players and SEGA alike.”