As per details in the video as well as a number of lob listings (via Automaton Media), Crazy Taxi is going to be a fully open world game, while, as some prior leaks and reports have suggested, it’s also going to be a live service, “massively multiplayer” experience. As per the video, the game will be set in a large city inspired by cities on the West Coast in the United States. Though the game’s map has been described as realistic, it will apparently also be “theme park-like”.

Players can expect plenty of high-speed racing, dropping passengers off at various destinations, police chases, elaborate stunts, and more. As caught by Insider Gaming, the video also offers glimpses and brief details on vehicle design and customization, while some shots also show various character models being worked on- though whether on-foot gameplay will be a significant part of the experience remains to be seen.

Sega has previously said that the Crazy Taxi reboot will boast a “cheerful feeling of freedom” and combine it with a “fusion of nature and city” in its environments. Read more on that through here.

When another user called them Sega’s “Big 3”, she replied, “This is correct information. Like a Dragon, Persona and Sonic are called the Main Pillar Brands at Sega.” She also clarified that it was Persona and not Shin Megami Tensei in a broader sense. However, “There are plans to expand the Shin Megami Tensei brand, and Sega is confident in the upcoming Shin Megami Tensei 5: Vengeance.”

Each IP will reportedly receive new content yearly, with “other media” referring to crossovers and collaborations with other titles. There are even “early plans” for collaborations in upcoming titles like the Crazy Taxi reboot, allegedly a live-service/games-as-a-service title launching in 2027.

As for its big three, Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio will host auditions for its next Like a Dragon, and indicated that Like a Dragon Kiwami 3 would happen “sooner or later.” Persona 6 is rumored to launch next year and features a semi-open world with more open Social Links. Alongside the recently announced Sonic Rumble, a remake of Sonic Heroes and a Sonic Frontiers sequel are reportedly in the works. Stay tuned for more details and potential announcements in the coming months.

The current plan at Sega is to make Like a Dragon, Persona and Sonic annual franchises through new titles, remakes and remasters, DLC expansions and other media.

I think this is unannounced information.

— みどり (@MbKKssTBhz5) May 10, 2024

This is correct information.

Like a Dragon, Persona and Sonic are called the Main Pillar Brands at Sega.

— みどり (@MbKKssTBhz5) May 10, 2024

Persona.

— みどり (@MbKKssTBhz5) May 10, 2024

But there are plans to expand the Shin Megami Tensei brand and Sega is confident in upcoming SMTVV title.

— みどり (@MbKKssTBhz5) May 10, 2024

There will be new content for each IP every year.

— みどり (@MbKKssTBhz5) May 10, 2024

Yes.

— みどり (@MbKKssTBhz5) May 10, 2024

And there are early plans for main pillar IPs to have collaborations in upcoming Sega GaaS titles including Crazy Taxi.

— みどり (@MbKKssTBhz5) May 10, 2024

Shooting elements are reportedly “planned”, but the classic graffiti-tagging gameplay is intact. It’s an open-world title, as confirmed by Sega previously, and focuses on exploration with a new story and characters. Like Crazy Taxi, there are plans for remaking the first Jet Set Radio before the live service reboot launches.

Sega hasn’t officially announced the same nor indicated when these titles could launch. Rumors claim that Jet Set Radio’s reboot will arrive in 2026, followed by Crazy Taxi in 2027, and both are bound for the Nintendo Switch 2. Stay tuned for more updates and details in the coming months.

Both Crazy Taxi and Jet Set are live service games that are also having remakes before reboots release. Jet Set is closer in gameplay to Fortnite than Crazy Taxi and there are shooting elements planned.

— みどり (@MbKKssTBhz5) February 19, 2024

Jet Set reboot has graffiti and shooting gameplay and open world concept with exploration as focus. There are new characters and story too.

— みどり (@MbKKssTBhz5) February 19, 2024

It’s reportedly “modeled after AAA live service games such as Fortnite” (GTA Online is another inspiration) with plans “for live events, collaborations and customizations.” There’s even a 100-player survival mode allegedly planned for the reboot, which sounds like it covers the battle royale space on the live service bingo card.

Sega allegedly seeks to be competitive in the live service space and wants to use “classic IPs in new ways with new technologies.” Interestingly, there are plans for a remake of the first game. Perhaps it could arrive before the reboot and drum up interest.

Time will tell, of course. Sega hasn’t confirmed platforms for either title, but the reboot is reportedly coming to Nintendo Switch 2. Stay tuned for more details in the meantime.

Yes. It is modeled after AAA live service games such as Fortnite. There are plans for live events, collaborations and customizations.

The current plan is to create a live service GaaS reboot as well as a remake of original Crazy Taxi.https://t.co/eIPM2EUcYr

— みどり (@MbKKssTBhz5) February 19, 2024

There is a survival mode with up to 100 players racing in the GaaS reboot planned.

— みどり (@MbKKssTBhz5) February 19, 2024

Fortnite and GTA Online are some of the main inspiration for the current Sega super game plan. Sega wants to be competitive in the live service scene and use classic IPs in new ways with new technologies.

— みどり (@MbKKssTBhz5) February 19, 2024

In case you were wondering if that is indeed the case, that notion was recently reinforced by Takaya Segawa, senior executive officer at Sega and president of Sapporo Studio, which was established by the Japanese publisher a little over two years ago. Speaking in a recent interview with The Japan Times, Segawa revealed that Sapporo Studio is contributing to the Crazy Taxi reboot’s development, which he described as a AAA production.

“We’re responsible for titles such as Phantasy Star Online 2: New Genesis and Hatsune Miku: Colorful Stage! in cooperation with the bases in Tokyo and overseas,” Segawa said when speaking about the Sega titles that Sapporo Studio has contributed to. “We are also participating in the development of triple-A titles, including Crazy Taxi (a recently announced reboot of the arcade classic).

“At present, we don’t have any titles developed independently by the studio, but we intend to do so in the future.”

Again, given the pomp and flair that Sega announced the Crazy Taxi game with, this doesn’t necessarily come as a surprise- though it should be interesting to see how the company brings the classic franchise back as a full-fledged AAA experience.

Until now, there’s been no official word on what platforms Crazy Taxi is being developed for or when it will release, but a known leaker recently claimed that the game is targeting a 2027 launch, and will also be releasing for Nintendo’s rumoured next-gen console.

Twitter user @MbKKssTBhz5 (a.k.a. Midori) – a prominent leaker who has accurately leaked several Sega (specifically, Atlus) announcements – has claimed that the new Jet Set Radio game is set to launch sometime in 2026, while Crazy Taxi is currently scheduled for 2027. On top of that, Midori also claims that both games will also release for Nintendo’s rumoured next-gen console, which is allegedly due out in the second half of this year.

As per the leaker, both are reboots, not remakes (something Sega has officially clarified as well), though interestingly, Midori claims that both remakes and reboots were in the works at Sega for both Jet Set Radio and Crazy Taxi. Whether that’s still the case or if remakes for both properties have been shelved is unclear.

Meanwhile, the leaker also adds that the Jet Set Radio will tell a completely new story, and will feature both new and returning characters, while Crazy Taxi will supposedly feature “online elements” (which would align with what past leaks have claimed). Meanwhile in a separate tweet, they claimed that it’s being developed on Unreal Engine, which isn’t information Sega has officially shared yet.

As officially confirmed by Sega, Jet Set Radio is going to be an open world game, while Crazy Taxi’s setting has been described as a “fusion of nature and city”.

Sega is currently also working on reboots for Golden Axe and Shinobi, while a new 3D Streets of Rage game called Streets of Rage Revolution is also in the works. As per leaks, at least five additional reboot projects that haven’t yet been announced are also in development at Sega.

The new Jet Set Radio game is not a remake. The game is a reboot that will be released in 2026.

A remaster version of Jet Set Radio was also planned.

— みどり (@MbKKssTBhz5) February 7, 2024

The JSR Reboot will also have new characters. It is a new story with new and old characters.

— みどり (@MbKKssTBhz5) February 7, 2024

Crazy Taxi also had a remake and reboot initiative. And Crazy Taxi is planned for 2027 release right now.

The game revealed at TGA event is a Crazy Taxi reboot with online elements. It is not a remake.

— みどり (@MbKKssTBhz5) February 7, 2024

It is a reboot of the game in Unreal Engine that is not exactly the same as original JSR.

— みどり (@MbKKssTBhz5) February 7, 2024

Sega says the Crazy Taxi reboot will boast a “cheerful feeling of freedom” and combine it with a “fusion of nature and city” in its environments, while Golden Axe will see players defeat enemies “with a variety of attacks with swords and magic”. Meanwhile, Shinobi is set in a world “full of monsters and ninja actions”, and will task players with using the “legendary sword” Oberozuki to “slay Evil once more”.

New screenshots and artwork for the titles have also been shared. You can view them below. Whether or not Crazy Taxi is going to be a live service game as past leaks have suggested remains to be seen.

Meanwhile, Sega has also confirmed that the Jet Set Radio reboot will be open world, and revealed that the next Streets of Rage game is called Streets of Rage Revolution.

“In recent years, Sonic the Hedgehog has forged new paths for Sega, bringing the franchise to life and reaching new audiences in ways we had only dreamed of in the past,” said Co-COO of Sega Corporation and CEO of Sega of America Shuji Utsumi. “Building off that success, we are digging into our legacy and reimagining several franchises to bring these games to more audiences around the globe.”

Utsumi’s statement goes on to talk about how this is only the beginning for Sega.

“Today’s announcement is just the start of our initiative. First and foremost, our ambition will be to create great games with memorable characters and worlds. We hope fans of all ages will look towards our future with anticipation as we release these projects in the coming years.”

During its announcement at The Game Awards 2023, Sega confirmed that new games in the Jet Set Radio and Crazy Taxi are in development. The studio also announced new games for even older franchises, including Shinobi, Streets of Rage, and Golden Axe.

Sega recently released Sonic Superstars, which it had described as a new take on the classic 2D Sonic formula. Released back in October, Sonic Superstars has seemingly seen a weaker start than Sega had anticipated. Previously, the company had released Sonic Frontiers, which was quite successful and saw a host of content being released through post-launch updates.

Crazy Taxi has reportedly been in development for more than a year with Sega aiming for a release two to three years down the line, according to unnamed sources. However, sources noted that both it and Jet Set Radio are still in the early stages and could very well be cancelled. A spokesperson for the company offered no comment on the report.

Interestingly, both titles are apparently aiming for a Fortnite-style model with “recurring revenue sources” and to foster online communities. Though NFTs weren’t mentioned for either, Sega producer Masayoshi Kikuchi did previously say it’s “natural for the future of games to expand by involving new fields such as cloud gaming and NFT. We are also developing Super Game from the perspective of how far different games can be connected to each other.”

Again, time will tell so stay tuned for an official announcement – if either game makes it that far into development – in the coming years.

February is still several days out but Microsoft has announced its upcoming Games With Gold for Xbox Live Gold subscribers on Xbox One and Xbox 360. This is part of a promotion with the service that grants free games, no questions asked. Well, aside from someone asking “Why is THIS the free game this month?”

Games With Gold for February include Shadow Warrior, Flying Wild Hog’s remake of the FPS classic. This one focuses more on hack and slash action, kitschy violence and guns. It’s not quite as good as Shadow Warrior 2 which adds a loot grind aspect and randomly generated missions but it’ll suffice. You can download it for free on Xbox One for the entire month of February.

Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: India is the other free Xbox One title which will be available from February 16th to March 15th. Xbox 360 gamers will get their hands on Split/Second from February 1st till February 15th. On February 16th, Crazy Taxi will replace it until February 28th. With Xbox 360 games being backwards compatible on the Xbox One, that means four free games next month. Thoughts on the selection? Let us know below.