Sega contracts a new anime series, but it isn't based on PS.

Official announcement/article link:
http://www.sega.com/news/?n=3336

So the new RPG with absolutely no fan following, yet, is getting its own anime series. Seems a rather bad idea.

A shame the rumor regarding Sega of Japan negotiating with Gonzo Studios to produce a Phantasy Star themed series never came to fruition as anything more than a rumor.

I guess they're banking on the new game being a hit or something? Seems like a questionable idea, I can agree with that.

Apparently this game has been out in Japan for nearly a year already. Maybe it was a big hit over there? Funding a full anime does seem like a rather large risk, if not.

Sega does seem to be putting a lot into anime stuff with RPGs lately, though. Phantasy Star Ø has anime cutscenes and they've got short anime movies for another new RPG, Infinite Space. Perhaps they're relying on anime as a replacement for in-game movies using 3D character models?

You'd think that Sega would jump into the Square Enix wagon and use 3d CG full motion videos, but I guess they prefer anime. It's a gutsy move to make an anime on a new game, but I look forward to seeing the results!

Kinda stupid that it isn't a Phantasy Star anime. But obviously Sega has high hopes for it. Guess I'll have to wait and see how it all fairs out.

Aha, knew I'd made an atricle about this at some point in the past, but was having difficulty remembering where on the internet that was exactly.

So over in Japan, the game and anime series are titled differently than in English. There it's "World Destruction Comittee", or WD for short. Had to be changed for the English translation as Western Digital frequently markets their own products under their own "WD" emblem, and World Destruction Comittee wasn't setting well with various evil organizations.

Sands of Destruction, the entire anime series, is now available from Funimation Entertainment as one of their budget priced "S.A.V.E." edition series sets. I picked up my own copy back in November just after Thanksgiving for a mere $14.99 on sale at F.Y.E..

This is a short series only weighing in at twelve or thirteen episodes (seem to have misplaced my copy), but manages well enough to convey plot and sufficient character development. That aside though it does suffer from the same issue that nearly all half-season series suffer from, that being the feeling of having just rushed through something that could have been deeper and more involving. Clearly this was a well planned marketting ploy by Sega, because the game evidently is exactly those things, deeper, longer, and more involving.

So while we may all still be miffed at Sega for not making PS-theme anime, they did at least manage to put together something worth watching. This lends hope for any future PS anime that could come.

Sands of Destruction can now be had quite inexpensively from just about any online retailer that carries Funimation titles, including this one:
http://store.yahoo.com/animenation/fn01212.html

In regards to the very first post on this topic: Sega making a bad marketing decision? Surely you jest!

From what I've seen on different sites and magazines, Sands of Destruction doesn't seems to be a bad game at all ! I'll try to check it for my DS