Originally founded back in June 1960, Sega is celebrating its 60th anniversary this year. To kick things off, the company has opened up a brand new website, along with the reveal of a brand new promotional character.

We don't know which fact makes us feel more old - that Sega has been around for so long or that 1960 was 60 years ago - but we do know that we've been treated to lots of wonderful games as a result of its existence over the years.

Sega Holdings Chairman, Haruki Satomi, has shared the following message to fans of the brand, highlighting the fact that a "variety of special contents" are planned:

This year, sixty years will have passed since Nihon Goraku Bussan Co. Ltd., the predecessor of SEGA, was established on June 3, 1960. We are indebted to everyone who has patronized the SEGA Group for many years, and would like to express our deep gratitude to all of you. We want to astonish the world with breath-taking experiences that no one in the world has ever imagined. We want to be a company that continues to provide inspirational experiences to everyone in the new world of the future.

That is why we must overcome all obstacles and keep taking on new challenges. The key message of the 60th anniversary, “GO SEGA”, expresses such aspirations. The SEGA Group is planning a variety of special contents for this 60th anniversary. Through these special contents, we will deliver the passion of the SEGA Group to the entire world.

Of course, we already knew that Sega has promised to share fresh Sonic-related news every month this year, but it looks like there could be plenty more in the pipeline, too.

We'll leave you with this wonderfully Japanese video starring 'Sega Shiro', a new character who has been introduced as part of the celebrations. Interestingly, he's played by Maito Fujioka, who just so happens to be the eldest son of Hiroshi Fujioka - the man who advertised Sega Saturn in Japan as 'Segata Sanshiro' (thanks, GoNintendo).