SEGA Saturn in Film & Television

FILM

FilmRelease dateDescriptionScreenshots
Mallrats1995-10-20Brody is shown playing NHL All-Star Hockey on a Sega Saturn.
First Kid1996-08-30A CD of Sega Worldwide Soccer 97 can be seen in the background.
Black Mask1996-11-09A character is shown playing Darius Gaiden, Virtua Fighter and X-Men: Children of the Atom on a Sega Saturn.
Dragon Ball GT: A Hero’s Legacy1997-03-26Goku Jr. is shown playing a video game console roughly similar to a Sega Saturn.
Paws1997-09-25Protagonist Alex owns a poster of NiGHTS and Reala from NiGHTS into Dreams.[19]
Task Force1997-11-13A character is shown diving and shooting in classic action film fashion, but instead of shooting someone, it turns out he is actually playing Virtua Cop on a Sega Saturn.

Bulworth1998-05-15Characters are seen playing Virtua Cop 2 on a Sega Saturn.

Dead Man on Campus1998-08-21One scene features a character playing an off-screen game with a Sega Saturn Control Pad.[22]
Bio Zombie1998-11-06A white Sega Saturn can be seen early on, which in a later scene the characters use to play The House of the Dead.



Smart House1999-06-26Several Sega Saturn games can be seen Ben’s shelf, including NiGHTS into Dreams…, Panzer Dragoon, Clockwork Knight and Sega Worldwide Soccer 97.
3 Strikes2000-03-01A character is seen playing Virtua Cop 2 on a Sega Saturn.
Pulse2001-02-03A copy of Grandia, as well as a loose manual for Torico, are seen on one character’s desk. Later in the film, a New Astro City is seen in an arcade, playing an unknown game.

Hajime no Ippo: Champion Road2003-04-18Characters are shown playing a game heavily-reminiscent of Fighters Megamix.

Akihabra Geeks2005-12-27Documentary on Japan’s otaku community. One of the girls in the film mentions becoming addicted to Sakura Wars 2, as it was her only outlet for social interaction.
.hack//Quantum201x-xx-xxA Sega Saturn in seen in a character’s bedroom.[32]
Your Name2016-07-03A Sega Saturn is visible in one scene.
Richard Jewell2019-12-13One scene features a Sega Saturn.[38]
Sonic the Hedgehog2020-01-25A Sega Saturn logo can be seen in the opening credits. Another scene shows a baseball game where one team is called Spring Valley (referencing the NiGHTS into Dreams… stage of the same name).

TELEVISION

Television showEpisodeAir dateDescriptionScreenshots
The Drew Carey ShowVarious1996Midway throughout Season 2, a Sega Saturn becomes visible. It is later replaced by a Dreamcast early in Season 5, but the Sega Saturn returns in Season 9.
Bakusō Kyōdai Let’s & Go!!S01E061996-02-12In the episode “Magnum in Danger! The Lightning-fast New Machine!!”, Gou Seiba plays a game which resembles Virtua Fighter 2 on a cabinet similar to an Astro City.[47]

S01E171996-04-29In the episode “Birth of the V-Machines! Betting on Tomorrow’s Victory”, Gou Seiba is once again playing the home version of Virtua Fighter 2 with a Saturn Control Pad, showing off a fight between Akira Yuki and Kagemaru. Gou later references Akira’s famous win phrase, “You’re ten years too early!”[47]




S02E091997-03-03In the episode “The Mysterious Masked Racer! We Soar and Dash”, several children are shown playing Virtua Fighter 2 on cabinets resembling Astro Citys, with Jerry performing a piledriver on Sarah. More children are seen playing a multi-cabinet racing game which seems to be loosely inspired by Virtua Formula and Super Scaler games like Super Monaco GP.[47]






S02E161997-04-21In the episode “The Champion Returns! Shine at the Great Japan Cup”, Gou Seiba again plays a fighting game resembling Virtua Fighter 2, but this time at home, as he is seen using a Saturn Control Pad.[47]

S02E191997-05-12In the episode “Win the Fearsome Death Match! Diospada vs. Cyclone Magnum”, a member of the Italian team named Rosso Strada bumps into a bystander playing Virtua Fighter, causing him to lose the match. The gameplay footage used in this episode is sourced from the previous episode, “The Mysterious Masked Racer! We Soar and Dash”.[47]
Neon Genesis EvangelionS01E231996-03-06In the episode “Tears”, Asuka is shown to play a game with sound effects from Panzer Dragoon on her Sega Saturn. Game discs with similar titles to Puyo Puyo and Virtua Fighter can also be seen.





Choukou Senshi ChangéríonS01E081996-05-22In the episode “Daughter, Pick a Man!”, two characters play Virtua Fighter Remix on a Sega Saturn.
EastEndersS12E941996-08-01Joe Wicks and Bianca Jackson are shown playing Panzer Dragoon II Zwei on a Sega Saturn.
Suddenly SusanS01E071996-11-07In the episode “Golden Girl Friday”, two characters can be seen playing on a Sega Saturn. When Brooke Shields character loses the game, she asks if she can play as Princess Kitana next, implying they are playing either Mortal Kombat 2 or Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3.
Can Can Bunny ExtraS01E041997-03-28Episode 4 of the OVA series Can Can Bunny Extra features a supporting character who uses a mock Saturn Control Pad to control the protagonist.
You’re Under ArrestS01E481997-09-06In the episode “The End of Summer”, a Sega Saturn can be seen being repaired.[13]
The King of QueensS07E162005-03-16In the episode “Black List”, a Sega Saturn kiosk can be seen.
Sayonara, Zetsubou-SenseiS01E072007-08-11In the episode “Confessions of a Pen Name”, Zakuro Chinmyoji and Zakuro Taisen are puns of Sakura Shinguji and Sakura Wars.
Bamboo BladeS01E162008-01-23In the episode “Kirino’s Absence and the Preliminary Tournament”, a Sega Saturn can be seen.
Hayate the Combat ButlerS01E442008-02-03In the episode “Mystery Behind the 120% Acceptance Rate (Temp.)”, Kohan Li from Sakura Wars is a featured character.
Penguin MusumeS01E202008-11-01The episode “Sakura in Trouble!?” is pronounced “Sakura Taihen!?”, a direct reference to Sakura Wars.
Durarara!!S01E222010-06-11In the episode “Declaration of Disbandment”, Celty and Shinra are seen playing a Sega Saturn (equipped with a Extended RAM Cartridge) alongside the jewel cases for NiGHTS into Dreams and a second game.
The World God Only KnowsS01E122010-12-22Protagonist Keima Katsuragi is shown to have an abundance of video game systems in his room, including a Saga Saturn,
Ben-ToS01E012011-10-09Protagonist Yo Sato is a lifelong Sega fan and a reocurring plot point is seeing him play Virtua Fighter 2 on his Sega Saturn.
S01E032011-10-23You Satou talks about how he admired Shinjuku Jacky and BunBunMaru, two real-life Virtua Fighter players who began playing on Virtua Fighter 2.[55]
S01E042011-10-30In the episode “Ginger Fried Pork Bento 852kcal”, Sato’s cousin Ayame Shaga comes to visit him where a Fantasy Zone poster can be seen on his wall. Later, she goes through his Sega Saturn collection and it is revealed Sato owns Virtual-On and Space Harrier.

S01E052011-11-06In the episode “Fish Soup with Hokkaido Salmon 326kcal”, posters of various Sega games can be seen, including Border Break.
S01E082011-11-27In the episode “Jumbo Garlic Chive Hamburger Steak Bento 765kcal”, after Sen loses a Virtua Fighter 2 tournament at school and out of frustation throws Sato’s Sega Saturn out of the window. Sato jumps outside to save his Sega Saturn, and while he is successful, ends up injured and in the hospital.
S01E092011-12-04In the episode “Western and Japanese Food Mix 2910kcal and Warm Porridge Bento 340kcal”, the characters are once again seen playing Virtua Fighter 2 on Sato’s Sega Saturn.[55]
Inferno CopS01E052013-01-21In the episode “The Apocalyptic World,” a “Data Files” segment on Mecha Cop describes him as being constructed with the CPU of a used Sega Saturn.
Assassination ClassroomS02E012016-01-07Karma Akabane threatens to expose the Summer Festival worker for ripping people off if he doesn’t give him the game console, which is the biggest prize. The game console itself is a Wii-like device that has Sega Saturn aesthetics, called the GAES Jupiter.
Sneaky PeteS01E072017-01-13In the episode “Lieutenant Bernhardt”, a character declares the Sega Saturn to be the best console of all time.

Pop Team EpicS01E122018-03-25The episode “The Age of Pop Team Epic” begins with a direct parody of the infamous wireframe introduction sequence from Death Crimson, and is credited for increasing awareness of the game’s existence.[68]
S02E082022-11-20In the episode “Pop Team Epic Battle Royale”, a character is shown cleaning a game for their Mega Drive with the Mega CD and Sega 32x add ons.
Hi Score GirlS01E022018-07-21In the episode “Round 2”, Haruno buys Altered Beast for his PC Engine. Later on, Ono is seen playing Space Harrier.

S01E032018-07-28In the episode “Round 3”, Haruo is shown reminiscing about Golden Axe.
S01E042018-08-04In the episode “Round 4”, Haruo is shown playing Virtua Fighter.
S01E082018-09-01In the episode “Round 8”, the Opa-Opa from Fantasy Zone makes a cameo.
S01E102018-09-15In the episode “Round 10”, Protagonist Haruo buys a Sega Saturn and a number of games early into the anime, which is shown and played as a recurring plot point.[16]
S01E112018-09-22In the episode “Round 11”, the two female leads play Virtua Cop together. Later on, Ono is seen playing OutRun.

S01E122018-09-29In the episode “Round 12”, Haruo shows off his Sega Saturn collection which includes D, Daytona USA and Virtua Fighter.
S01E132019-10-05In the episode “Round 13”, Ono recieves her first video game system: a Game Gear with Fatal Fury Special, Samurai Showdown, Puyo Puyo and Space Harrier. Later, she plays Mortal Kombat on it.

S01E152019-10-19In the episode “Round 15”, a sign for the Sega Titan Video can be seen.
S02E022019-11-02In the episode “Round 17”, the two female leads are fighting over the protagonist and settle their differences by playing Virtua Fighter 2 on Haruo’s Sega Saturn.
S02E032019-11-09In the episode “Round 18”, Fighting Vipers has become the latest craze at the arcade and is shown being played.
S02E042019-11-16In the episode “Round 19”, Haruo turns on his Sega Saturn to play Panzer Dragoon II Zwei.
S02E072019-12-07In the episode “Round 22”, Haruo and Ono play Last Bronx and Die Hard Arcade.

S02E092019-12-21In the episode “Round 24”, the protagonists of Hang-On and Space Harrier can be seen.
S01E202019-07-18In the episode “Reunion”, a game heavily-reminiscent of Virtual-On can be seen.
AmphibiaS03E042021-10-23In the episode “Fight at the Museum”, NiGHTS into Dreams… and a 3D Saturn controller can be seen.
The BlacklistS07E042019-10-25In the episode “Kuwait,” an Arcade Racer is seen inside of a video game store.[70]
Uncle from Another WorldSeason 12022-07-06Anime where the protagonist’s Uncle is a big Sega fan. The opening itself is a montage of Sega homages; including Shinrei Jusatsushi Taroumaru, NiGHTS into Dreams…, Guardian Heroes, a Sega Saturn commercial, Saint Sword, Nonomura Byouin no Hitobito, Golden Axe, Street Fighter Alpha 3, Sonic the Hedgehog, Digital Dance Mix Vol. 1 Namie Amuro, Street Fighter 2, Magic Knight Rayearth and Shinobi.[73]
Season 12022-07-06The eyecatch pays homage to the title screen of Panzer Dragoon II Zwei.
S01E022022-07-13In the episode “Guardian Heroes Shoulda Been Number One!”, the protagonist helps his Uncle buy a Sega Saturn with 20 games, including NiGHTS into Dreams… and Guardian Heroes. Later on, they are seen playing Guardian Heroes.

S01E042022-07-27In the episode “You Helped Me Through Tough Times”, the protagonist’s Uncle mentions Game Gear, Landstalker: The Treasures of King Nole, Puyo Puyo Sun and Burning Rangers – while claiming that the latter is better played on the 3D Saturn controller.







S01E052022-08-17In the episode “That Reminds Me, I Almost Got Assassinated Once”, Alien Soldier and Dynamite Headdy are mentioned. Later on, the “Rise From Your Grave” soundbit from Altered Beast can be heard on a character’s phone.



S01E062022-08-24In the episode “So They Threw Me into the Basement of a Freak Show…”, Mega Drive, Alien Storm and Pulseman are mentioned.



S01E072022-08-31In the episode “As You Can See, SEGA Games Are Very Helpful in Life!”, the title screen of Revenge of Shinobi is parodied. Later on, the characters play Golden Axe on Mega Drive.



S01E082022-11-24In the episode “I Got Through it by Transforming into the Most Powerful Being I Know”, the Uncle credits Shinrei Jusatsushi Taroumaru with teaching him life skills.
S01E122022-12-22In the episode “Names Are Important, That’s What (He/She) Said”, the Uncle mentions his favourite soundtrack to Sega games including Strikers 1945, Sonic the Hedgehog, NiGHTS into Dreams… and Dynamite Headdy.





S01E132023-03-08In the episode “Thanks to Everyone, Thank You”, the series concludes with a shot of the Uncle’s favourite games: a Sega Saturn with NiGHTS into Dreams… and Guardian Heroes and a Mega Drive with Golden Axe.
Love Live! Superstar!!S02E072022-08-28In the episode “UR Ren Hazuki”, an assortment of video game consoles are shown, including the Sega Saturn, Dreamcast, Mega Drive, Mega CD, Sega 32x and Master System.



Koala ManS01E012023-01-09In the episode “Bin Day”, a Sega Saturn can be seen.
The Righteous GemstonesS03E052023-07-09In the episode “Interlude III”, a character mentions he just got a Sega Saturn.