Promotion image for the Hi-sCoool! SeHa Girls anime series featuring Mega Drive (left), Dreamcast (center), and Sega Saturn (right) in both humanoid and chibi forms.
Sega Hard Girls (Japanese: セガ・ハード・ガールズ, Hepburn: Sega Hādo Gāruzu) is a Japanese multimedia project produced as a collaboration between ASCII Media Works' Dengeki Bunkoimprint and video game company Sega. The project re-imagines various Sega video game consoles as anthropomorphized goddesses who appear all over modern Japan. The project has inspired a light novel series written by Tōru Shiwasu with illustrations by Kei, which was serialized in ASCII Media Works' Dengeki Bunko Magazine between 2013 and 2014, and an anime television series adaptation titled Hi-sCoool! SeHa Girls (Hi☆sCoool! セハガール, Hai Sukūru SeHa Gāru) by TMS Entertainment, which aired in Japan between October and December 2014. A crossover video game with Idea Factory's Hyperdimension Neptunia franchise, Superdimension Neptune VS Sega Hard Girls, was released for the PlayStation Vita in Japan in November 2015, and in North America and Europe in October 2016.
Premise
The project focuses on various anthropomorphised Sega consoles, known as "Sega Hard Girls" or "SeHa Girls" for short, each with their own unique personalities. The anime series follows three such girls; Dreamcast, Sega Saturn, and Mega Drive, who must graduate from Sehagaga Academy, a special school located in Haneda, Tokyo, by venturing into the worlds of various Sega games and earning medals.
A pink-haired cheerful girl who wants to make friends with everyone and to excel in school. She wears a white and orange dress with a Dreamcast controller as her headgear, and can also access the internet using a dial-up modem. In European versions, she is modified to wearing a white/blue dress due to the differences in how the console was released in Europe in real life.
A black-haired serious girl seeking to accomplish great things in life who is the object of several male Sega characters' affections. She wears a silver coat with black dress and a huge black ring hanging on her neck.
A blonde-haired cool and genius girl who knows everything, holding a wealth of knowledge in her 16-bit encyclopedia. She wears black and pink attire, large eyeglasses, and has a Mega Drive controller as her hairclip.
A teacher at Sehagaga Academy. He issues lessons to his students via a monitor and uses a pixelated rabbit, based on former Sega mascot Professor Asobin, as his avatar. His true identity is that of former Sega game designer and programmer Yuji Naka.
Media
Light novels
A light novel series, titled Gendai Nihon ni Yatte Kita Sega no Megami ni Arigachi na Koto (現代日本にやってきたセガの女神にありがちなこと, Sega Goddesses Tend to Appear in Modern Japan), was written by Tōru Shiwasu, with illustrations by Kei. It began serialization in ASCII Media Works' Dengeki Bunko Magazine on June 10, 2013.[3] ASCII Media Works published the first volume on December 10, 2013 under Dengeki Bunkoimprint[4] while the second volume followed on June 10, 2014.[5]
Manga
An anthologymanga series, Chikiu Boueitai! SeHa Girl (ちきう☆防衛隊！ セハガール, Chikiu Defense Force! SeHa Girl), featured stories written and drawn by multiple creators. The series was serialized in Dengeki Maoh magazine in 2014, and was later compiled in a single tankōbon volume in February 2015.[6]
Video games
The Sega Hard Girls version of Dreamcast makes a cameo appearance in Dengeki Bunko: Fighting Climax; the game's updated release, Dengeki Bunko: Fighting Climax Ignition, adds an additional stage based on Hi-sCoool! SeHa Girls. A crossover game with Compile Heart's Hyperdimension Neptunia series, titled Superdimension Neptune VS Sega Hard Girls (超次元大戦 ネプテューヌVSセガハードガールズ 夢の合体スペシャル, Hyperdimensional War: Neptune's Platoon vs. Sega Hard Girls: Dream Combination Special),[7][8] was released for PlayStation Vita in Japan on November 26, 2015[9] and later on released in North America on October 18, 2016[10] as well as Europe on October 21, 2016.[11] A high-definition port of the game for Windows was released on June 12, 2017 via Steam.[12]
Anime
An anime adaptation titled Hi-sCoool! SeHa Girls, which was produced by TMS Entertainment using the MikuMikuDance animation software and directed by Sōta Sugawara, aired in Japan between October 8[13] and December 24, 2014 on Animax and was simulcast by Crunchyroll. An additional OVA was released as part of the DVD box set on November 3, 2016.[14] Sugawara also co-wrote the anime's screenplay with Masayuki Kibe. The CG character designs used in the anime were co-designed by Sugawara and Kio, who based the designs on Kei's original concepts. Shigeyuki Watanabe handled the CG direction.[13] The opening theme is "Sehagaga Ganbacchau!!" (セハガガがんばっちゃう!!) sung by Dreamcast (Mao Ichimichi), Sega Saturn (Minami Takahashi) and Mega Drive (Shiori Izawa). The ending theme is "Wakai Chikara (Sega Hard Girls Mix)" (若い力-SEGA HARD GIRLS MIX-), based on the Sega company song "Wakai Chikara",[15] sung by SC-3000 (Mai Aizawa), SG-1000 (Yū Serizawa), SG-1000 II (Naomi Ōzora), Game Gear (Minami Tanaka) and Robo Pitcher (Haruna Momono). The anime has been licensed in North America by Discotek Media, and was released via a Blu-ray and DVD combo pack on May 30, 2017; the OVA is not included in the North American release.[16][17]
Episode list
No.
Title
Original air date
1
"It'll Always Be 10 Years Too Early for You!" "Itsudatte Jū-nen Hayain da yo!" (いつだって10年早いんだよ!)
October 8, 2014 (2014-10-08)
Dreamcast, Sega Saturn, and Mega Drive get acquainted with each other, discussing what kind of guys Saturn might like. As the classes begins, their teacher, a cybernetic 8-bit bunny named Center, explains that in order to graduate from their academics, they must collect 100 medals. For their first lesson, Center sends the girls into the world of Virtua Fighter, where they are confronted by Akira Yuki.
2
"Connect Your Passions into a Combo" "Konbo de Tsunage Atsui Kimochi" (コンボでつなげ 熱い気持ち)
October 15, 2014 (2014-10-15)
Tasked with winning 100 matches in order to clear the lesson and earn some medals, the girls use each of their abilities to beat Akira. As the matches continue and the opponents get increasingly strange, ranging from giant beetles from Mushiking to palette swaps of Golden Axe enemies, it becomes apparent that Dreamcast's flying headbutt attack can instantly defeat them. Their final opponent is Sakura Shinguji from Sakura Wars, whose steam-powered armor defeats Mega Drive, but Dreamcast once again defeats it with a headbutt. After the lesson, only Saturn receives five medals, as Mega Drive was eliminated and Dreamcast was disqualified for attacking before the "Fight!" announcement in an earlier battle.
3
"Up, Down, Left, Right, and Occasionally, Up Diagonal" "Appu, Daun, Refuto, Raito, Tama ni Naname Ue" (アップ、ダウン、レフト、ライト、たまにナナメ上)
October 22, 2014 (2014-10-22)
After Saturn contemplates her future career and love life and Mega Drive tries her hand at weather forecasting, the girls are tasked with entering the world of Space Channel 5, where they must help improve the channel's ratings and retrieve two of Center's friends. While trying to get the hang of their dancing moves, the girls soon meet up with the game's heroine, Ulala.
4
"We Tried to Dance Space Channel 5" "(Sega Gāru) Supēsu Channeru Faibu (Odottemita)" (【セハガール】スペースチャンネル5【踊ってみた】)
October 29, 2014 (2014-10-29)
While helping Ulala with fighting against the Morolians, Mega Drive slightly less so, the girls find that the ratings are starting to gradually decrease. The girls attempt to raise their ratings by rescuing Center's friend, Jeffry McWild from Virtua Fighter, putting Saturn in a swimsuit for added sex appeal, and getting the cooperation of Center's other friend, Golden Axe's Gilius Thunderhead, who exhibits a dubious affection towards Saturn. They soon end up facing the Morolian Boss, which is defeated by Saturn. At the end of the day, Mega Drive and Dreamcast get five medals each, whilst Saturn gets none after the Space PTA complains about her attempts at using sex appeal.
The girls try to find Saturn an ideal pet, though all of their suggestions involve Saturn having to move to America. Afterwards, Center tasks the girls with coming up with new game ideas that incorporate Puyo Puyo, with medals awarded and deducted based on the quality of their ideas. Mega Drive and Dreamcast earn medals for just reskinning existing games like Fantasy Zone and Roommania#203 with added Puyos, while Saturn's ideas end up costing her medals. Saturn eventually earns a medal for her idea of a Puyo Puyo Waterslide, which the girls get to try out for themselves.
6
"Center-sensei's Center Exam" "Sentā-sensei no Sentā Shiken" (センター先生のセンター試験)
November 12, 2014 (2014-11-12)
Center hosts an exam in which the girls must go into the world of the Border Break robot shooter game, where they can win a large number of medals. Saturn, the only one who has to go on foot, is made into a decoy for the enemy, while Dreamcast struggles with her controls, leaving Mega Drive to take on most of the enemies. Just as the girls reach the enemy core, the game world is hacked by Doctor Eggman, who shrinks the girls and starts wreaking havoc until Sonic the Hedgehog appears.
7
"Eggman vs. Sonic with the Sega Hard Girls" "Egguman bāsasu Sonikku wizu Sega Hādo Gāruzu" (エッグマンvsソニックwithセガ・ハード・ガールズ)
November 19, 2014 (2014-11-19)
The girls team up with Sonic to chase after Eggman through various dimensional warp zones, briefly passing through Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic Adventure. Luckily, upon returning to Border Break, the girls manage to retrieve Mega Drive's encyclopedia and give Sonic an invincibility power-up to defeat Eggman and stop the hacking, also destroying the enemy core and passing the exam in the process. The girls leave the game and, after nearly having Center's true identity revealed, receive 25 medals each.
8
"Shine! The 54th! Shock to the Brain! No Spillage, But We'll Destroy the Barriers of Spillage-obsessed Youth! Sehagaga Academy Culture Festival!" "Kagayake! Dai Jū-go-yon Kai! Nōten Chokugeki! Porori wa Nai kedo Porori Seishun Genkai no Baria o Uchiyabure! Sehagaga Gakuen Bunkasai!" (輝け!第54回!脳天直撃!ポロリはないけどポロリ青春 限界のバリアを打ち破れ!セハガガ学園文化祭!)
November 26, 2014 (2014-11-26)
With the academy's dubiously named culture festival arriving, the girls try to come up with an exhibit to show before taking a look at their competition for a beauty contest. In the end, the girls lose the competition to Bongo from Congo Bongo due to her 'spillage'.
9
"Weapon Enhancement Succeeds at a 50% Rate, but It Sure Feels Like 15% to Me" "Buki Kyōka no Seikōritsu Go-jū%, Taikan de wa Jū-go% Setsu" (武器強化の成功率50%、体感では15%説)
December 3, 2014 (2014-12-03)
The girls are sent into the world of the smartphone RPG Chain Chronicle, despite Mega Drive's dislike of smartphone gaming. They earn 15 medals fighting against various monsters, but have trouble recruiting other warriors to assist them. In the end, Mega Drive barely defeats the boss monster, but the phone runs out of power before they can claim the additional 15 medals.
10
"Broken Jet Set Radio" "Kowarekake no Jetto Setto Rajio" (壊れかけのジェットセットラジオ)
December 10, 2014 (2014-12-10)
With their next lesson taking place in the world of Jet Set Radio, the girls give Mega Drive her first sticker photo booth experience before working towards performing an awesome skate trick and having a race to reach the goal first.
11
"Dream Rappy, Saturn Rappy, Mega Rappy, ?? Rappy" "Dori Rappī, Sata Rappī, Mega Rappī, ?? Rappī" (ドリラッピー, サタラッピー, メガラッピー, ??ラッピー)
December 17, 2014 (2014-12-17)
The girls' next lesson has them enter the world of Shining Force Cross Exlesia Zenith dressed up as Rappies from Phantasy Star Online 2. The three struggle against a large dragon boss, which is ultimately defeated by a real Rappy.
A black rabbit named Black Asobin takes over Sehagaga's network and steals almost all of the girls' medals, challenging them to enter his world and get them back. After battling their way through Black Asobin's tower, Saturn, the only girl with a medal remaining, enters the world of Space Harrier and defeats Black Asobin, who is revealed to have been Center all along. For clearing the 'graduation exam', the girls gain 20 medals each, giving Dreamcast and Mega Drive more than enough medals to graduate. Saturn, being three short, is nearly forced to be held back, but Dreamcast and Mega Drive share their spare medals so she can graduate alongside them.
13
"We'll Always Be Connected!" "Itsudatte, Tsunagatte masukara!" (いつだって, つながってますから!)
December 24, 2014 (2014-12-24)
Attending the graduation ceremony, the Hard Girls recall the fun and adventures they shared together. Center then informs them what it really means for them to graduate: The three of them will disappear from the world, which exists from the ideas of Sega's game creators, and be reborn as Sega hardware consoles in the real world to bring those ideas to life. Mega Drive and Saturn share their goodbyes before entering the real world in their respective time periods, while Dreamcast is encouraged by all of the game characters they encountered before heading off herself. In the real world, a father introduces his young son to the Sega Dreamcast for the first time. The show ends with a Game Over screen and a continue prompt, but the cursor is stuck between Yes and No.
OVA
"The Excessive 54th Annual! Go Give It All You've Got! Only You Can Be the Champion! Surpass All the School Events of the Past! Sehagaga Academy Sports Festival" "Dai Go-jū-yon Kai Hanpa Ja Nō! Zenryoku de Gū~ Yūshō Suru no wa Onrī Yū! Subete no Gakkō Gyōji o Kako ni Suru! Sehagaga Gakuen Taiikusai" (第54回 ハンパじゃノー！全力でグー！優勝するのはオンリーユー！すべての学校行事を過去にする！セハガガ学園体育祭)
November 3, 2016 (2016-11-03)
The girls are joined by Master System, Mark III, Mega Drive 2 and Robo Pitcher as they all participate in the school sports festival. The seven compete in a multi-stage Hang-On race that passes through all the games from their past lessons, aided along the way by the various characters they have met. As they compete, a pair of Hi-Saturn and V-Saturn consoles provide frequent commentary. Though the girls are nearly tied as they approach the goal, they are all defeated in a photo finish by the Hercules Ricky Blue beetle from Mushiking.
