Professor Asobin

Professor Asobin
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First Seen: Borderline (SG-1000) (1983)
Biography
Species: Oryctolagus cuniculus Gender: male Age: Unknown Height: Unknown Weight: Unknown

Professor Asobin (アソビン教授) is a smartly dressed anthropomorphic rabbit who was the first unofficial mascot of Sega.

Although he never starred in a game of his own, Asobin gained attention by appearing in nearly every game manual of early SG-1000 software since the SG-1000's retail launch on July 15 1983. He was replaced briefly by a very similar, but less leporine Dr. Games in 1984, but reappeared for the new range of MyCard software in 1985 and also appeared in a number of early Sega Mark III games as well. Often on the second or third last page, Asobin offered advice to players that was usually helpful and specifically tailored for each game.

His last appearance giving advice was seen in the manual for Makai Retsuden (aka Kung Fu Kid) released on 17th May 1987. He continued to appear in manuals on the page describing the correct care and maintenance of cartridges and cards during the rest of the Mark III releases, although no longer provided his customary gameplay advice.

Professor Asobin was succeeded by Opa-Opa from the Fantasy Zone series of games as the next iconic mascot of Sega

Appearance

File:TheWhiteRabbit.png

The White Rabbit

Professor Asobin bares more than a passing resemblance to the "White Rabbit" character in Lewis Carroll's classic children's story "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland", with a particular similarity to the popular characterisation depicted in Disney's 1951 animated version of the book "Alice in Wonderland." No information is known as to the origins of Asobin or why, or if, Sega chose to mimic these characteristics.

Mascot status

In the first release of Phantasy Star on Sega's Mark III, Professor Asobin appeared in the manual, no longer offering gaming tips, but providing information on the correct care of the Phantasy Star cartridge. He was brought back for the Phantasy Star Fukkokuban Sega Mega Drive rerelease, but only to promote a telephone help line. Scans of both versions of the manuals can be found in Sega Ages 2500 Series Vol. 32: Phantasy Star Complete Collection for the PlayStation 2.

Segagaga cameo

Professor Asobin did in fact make a cameo appearance in Segagaga.

Asobin in SGGG

Manual Appearances

Gallery

SG-1000

Title	Code	Page
Champion Golf	C-05		Monaco GP	C-17	Page11	Zippy Race	C-26	Page13
Champion Boxing	C-33	Page15	Star Force	C-43		Dragon Wang	C-46	Page17
Zoom 909	C-47	Page17	Choplifter	C-48	Page16	Pitfall II: The Lost Caverns	C-49	Page16
Doki Doki Penguin Land	C-50		Drol	C-51	Page23	Chack'n Pop	C-52
Bank Panic	C-53	Page29	Rock n' Bolt	C-54		Elevator Action	C-55
Soukoban	C-56	Page37	Championship Lode Runner	C-57		H.E.R.O.	C-58	Page23
Champion Ice Hockey	C-59	Page19	Hang On II	C-60	Page14	Bomb Jack	C-61
Gulkave	C-63		C_So!	C-64		Ninja Princess	C-65
Super Tank	C-66		Champion Kendou	C-67		Wonder Boy	C-69
Champion Billiards	C-71	Page16	The Black Onyx	C-72		The Castle	G-1046	Page18

Master System

Title	Code	Page
Teddy Boy Blues	C-501	Page14	Hang-On	C-502	Page13	TransBot	C-503
Great Soccer	C-504	Page19	Great Baseball	C-505	Page17	Satellite 7	C-506
Pit Pot	C-507	Page24	F-16 Fighter	C-508	Page34	My Hero	C-510
Comical Machine Gun Joe	C-511		Ghost House	C-512		Spy vs Spy	C-514
Super Tennis	C-515		Woody Pop	C-519
Fantasy Zone	G-1301	Page25	Pro Wrestling	G-1302		Black Belt	G-1303	Page13
World Grand Prix	G-1304		Action Fighter	G-1305		Alex Kidd in Miracle World	G-1306	Page26
Secret Command	G-1307		The Ninja	G-1308		High School! Kimengumi	G-1309	Page15
Space Harrier	G-1310		Astro Warrior	G-1312	Page9	Great Golf	G-1313
Quartet	G-1314		Wonder Boy	G-1316	Page14	Great Volleyball	G-1317	Page14
Sukeban Deka II: Shoujo Tekkamen Densetsu	G-1318	Page11	Rocky	G-1319	Page14	Enduro Racer	G-1322
Kung Fu Kid	G-1324	Page11