Fan-Favorite JRPG ‘Skies of Arcadia’ Might Return For Its 25th Anniversary As Sega Renews Trademark For Japan And West
SEGA is doing everything in its power to reignite the nostalgia flame, as it files a new trademark for the beloved JRPG, Skies of Arcadia. The trademark also includes the game’s original Japanese title, Eternal Arcadia, and both were filed on January 16th and made public on January 24th.
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Skies of Arcadia was developed by Overworks, now known as Sega AM Research & Development No. 1, for the Dreamcast. Directed by Atsushi Seimiya and Shuntaro Tanaka, with Rieko Kodama as producer, the game follows Vyse, a young air pirate, and his friends as they try to stop the Valuan Empire from destroying the world.
Skies of Arcadia continued the tradition of JRPGs of the era with turn-based combat and a party of different companion characters, but with an added emphasis on exploration with the player using an airship in 3D space. It received critical acclaim upon release and is a title that can often be found in the best games for Dreamcast.
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While a commercial failure, mostly due to Dreamcast underachieving Sega’s financial plans, the game was given the GameCube port, Skies of Arcadia Legends, which came out in 2002. The Legends port came with new story content and improved graphics, but ever since then, Skies of Arcadia hasn’t seen ports to modern platforms.
Nevertheless, SEGA has repeatedly tried to get things moving, but not much has happened. The recent trademark renewal has certainly sparked hope for remasters. In the early 2000s, reportedly, a sequel entered early planning stages but never moved forward. Furthermore, a Game Boy Advance spin-off was considered but abandoned alongside PS2 and PC ports.
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Then in 2012, brand manager Ben Harborne hinted at a Skies of Arcadia HD remaster for PS3 and Xbox 360 consoles, following the likes of Crazy Taxi, Sonic Adventure 2, and Jet Set Radio among others. Unfortunately, nothing happened.
Despite Skies of Arcadia not making it to modern platforms, the game has earned a cult status within the community. This has certainly influenced its main characters appearing in other SEGA IPs, such as Valkyra Chronicles in 2008 and Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed in 2012.
Back in 2020, one of the former Skies of Arcadia developers, Kenji Hiruta, expressed his desire to make a sequel to the 2000s classic, by taking to X (formerly Twitter) and testing the waters with the intention that SEGA will take note of it and give fans the Skies of Arcadia 2.
-Ms.Itsuki Hoshi is the illustrator of Skies of Arcadia. (and is sooo elegant!)
— 蛭田健司 Kenji Hiruta (@k_h00) January 13, 2020
-She agreed to give this autograph to an oversea fan.
-I'll pay the fee to send it.
-I believe that if this kind of movement expands a lot, SEGA may consider to develop the sequel.
To that end, SEGA’s recent trademark filing has reignited speculation that Skies of Arcadia could finally receive a modern remaster or even a sequel. The Japanese giant is in the midst of revisiting its classic franchises in recent years, with Jet Set Radio, Crazy Taxi, and Virtua Fighter all receiving new projects or remaster treatments. Adding another classic to this remaster pool would make sense, especially Skies of Arcadia’s huge fanbase and the fact that it has been denied a modern port since GameCube.
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