You probably thought that most of the Sonic Team Old Guard don’t really get on. Well, today Yuji Naka proved that this was not the case, as he posted photos on his Twitter account about an encounter with Sonic the Hedgehog designer Naoto Oshima! The artist, who left Sega shortly after Sonic Adventure to form Artoon, visited Naka’s PROPE studio and brought with him a little gift.
I think it’s fair to say we all want that picture. Yuji Naka then posted a Tweet with the following photo, adding that current Sonic Team boss Takashi Iizuka joined the pair for some dinner in a local grilled chicken restaurant. Beers in hand as well, it seems like. The Japanese work hard and dine hard as well, it seems.
This funky meeting of minds most likely served absolutely no purpose other than to have old friends sit down and have a few drinks – but no doubt the topic of Sonic will come up. We can just imagine Naka-san asking Iizuka how work is like, with Iizuka throwing his hands up and jovially exclaiming “oh you know, the same old. That crazy fanbase, eh?” followed by chuckles around the table.
All three developers have had a big hand in shaping Sonic into the gaming icon he is today – Naka-san programmed the original Sonic games, and led Sonic Team during the Dreamcast era, while Naoto Oshima designed the Sonic characters themselves. Takashi Iizuka, although he largely oversees development on modern Sonic titles, began his tenure at the studio working as a level designer for Sonic 3 and Knuckles, and was the lead game designer for NiGHTS into Dreams.
Yuji Naka’s Twitter
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Fellow merch-hogs like myself love our Sonic themed merchandise, and Summer of Sonic has over the past few years been the source of exclusive items both sold and given away, including archie comic page originals, Crush 40 merchandise and goodie-bags. But from what we have heard from you guys is that you can’t get enough – we couldn’t believe how fast we were wiped out of nearly all of our merchandise this year!
So, we want to hear what you guys want to see at Summer of Sonic next year! But please guys, realistic ideas are much more helpful! In order to submit your ideas, head over to the Summer of Sonic website and let Mr. AAUK know!
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Sonic Team bossman Takashi Iizuka is a lovable chap in person, but gosh does he say the darndest things. He’s like an adorable grandpa that sometimes spouts politically incorrect slurs that would only be acceptable in the 1970s.
Recently, he demonstrated this again in an interview with Nintendo Power, where he was asked to elaborate on the rather wonky physics of Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 1. Take it away, Papa Iizuka:
NP: We enjoyed [Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 1], but the physics felt a bit off compared to the Genesis games. Is that something you’ll look to tweak in future episodes?
TI: In this title, we have not done a straight port of the gameplay [from the Genesis games], but rather updated it with actions which could not be done in the previous titles, like ceiling-running. These changes probably made for a different feel to the longtime Sonic fans. We’re happy for feedback like this, and we’ll make sure we can improve the quality even further in upcoming titles.
Make of that what you will – all I’ll say is “Keep on shinin’, Iizuka. Keep on shinin’.”
Source: Nintendo Power (via Aeropause) / Image Credit
Discuss on the SSMB Forums
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With two full weeks of sales behind it, Sonic Colours has proven it has what it takes to stay relevant in the UK chart results for last week released by Chart Track today. Since last week Sonic’s latest adventure climbed two places to number 16 in the all formats chart and achieved similar success in the individual units chart by rising from 29th to 27th place on Wii and jumping four positions to number 31 on DS.
On the Wii only chart Sonic Colours rose up one rank to number 6 and beat out popular shooter Goldeneye 007, which placed at number 7. In the DS chart Sonic Colours remains seated at number 4, while Sonic Classic Collection drops one spot from 16th to 17th. Finally, in the Xbox 360 chart Sonic Free Riders stays put at number 19, but beats out some of the Kinect competition this week and interestingly places one position higher than SEGA’s well received third person shooter Vanquish.
Source: Chart Track
Top 40 All Formats
Top 40 Individual Units
Top 40 Wii
Top 40 DS
Top 40 Xbox 360
Share your thoughts on this weeks results in the comments.
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Well, we’re nothing if not truly grateful for the number of people who pass through The Sonic Stadium and take the time to enjoy the content we offer you guys. But I never expected such an awesome response to our 10th Anniversary – you can see some creations already submitted to us right here and the banners at the top of each page have been created by someone in the community too.
I’ve been sitting on these other fantastic submissions for a while now, so it’s time I gave these guys some love!
Tobibrocki has drawn some fantastic art pieces for us in the past, but this one surely takes the cake. Tails is more than happy to engage in reckless vandalism in the name of TSS, and Sonic’s celebrating the occasion by wearing some Way Past Cool threads. Sally’s gone and had our site name sketched on her boots, and Amy is admiring the reaction on Dr. Eggman’s face. If only we were called The Eggman Stadium, eh? Bonus points for random bird in the background. Thanks Tobibrocki!
‘Sonicismyhero’ took the time to do this brilliant sketch of Sonic partying next to a 10th Anniversary birthday cake. With the submission he wrote; “Though I am more of a lurker than a commenter, I browse almost every article you write up, and am always there for the latest news you post. Thank-you for all your hard work, and dedication you’ve put in through the years. I can remember the sites early years like it was yesterday.” Aw, well thanks for all the hard work for doing this awesome drawing, Sonicismyhero. I hope we can kick it for years to come.
This lovely picture was sent to me by CTOONfan1, who felt that the event was best marked by showcasing some of the most popular characters in the Sonic franchise. I’m not sure if Shadow really wants to wish TSS a happy anniversary – he looks like he wants to punch our heads in. Bad moods aside, we love this picture, so thank you CTOONfan1!
Kjeld told me that he went for a “new sort of [art] style” with this one. The result is above, and it makes me laugh for reasons unexplained. It might be the absurd stickman nature of the characters, or it might be Knuckles’ absurd grin, or it could be Tails’ absurd face. Either way, it’s delightfully absurd, and you’ll notice that Kjeld made a banner for TSS in this style too. Thanks for this mate.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KxFcHELJlB8[/youtube]
Finally, TYoshi created this short video using Sonic Advance sprites to congratulate us on a successful ten years of existing. Blink and you’ll miss it, but it’s a great message and we really appreciate the time taken to make an animation for us. Cheers!
UPDATE: ProjectZuel was kind enough to create another image to celebrate TSS’ 10th birthday, and it features none other than Dreadknux himself, proudly standing tall with the =TSS= flag. I haven’t used the Dreadknux avatar in quite some time, so it’s pretty cool that someone remembers my neon green online persona. Many thanks, ProjectZuel, and we also wish you another 10 Way Past Cool Years. Erm, not that you’re not likely to see them, or anything… er… what I mean is, thanks.
We’ll be celebrating/catching up on more TSS content from the past over the coming weeks – particularly before the end of the year as it would cease to be our 10th Anniversary.
… it’ll be our ELEVENTH ANNIVERSARY, which is even COOLER! Aw yeah. Screw our 10th. Can’t wait for our 11th. Everyone knows 11 is the new 10. Thanks once again for all the well wishes from everyone – whether you made something to celebrate the occasion or not – and we’ll keep trying to be the best fansite we can be! Much love!
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SEGASonic Radio is gearing itself for another Project 24 event (Sunday 5th December 2010), and to celebrate I’ve finally found time to update the podcast feed to The Sonic Hour, the radio station’s flagship live show. Presented by myself (Dreadknux) and Roareye Black, TSH has been going for something like 6 years now – almost as long as The Sonic Stadium itself!
Since our very first episode in Christmas 2003, we’ve recorded a total of 93 episodes and at least 3 specials. We’ve had several presenter line-ups to join the ‘Dread x Roareye’ tag team, from Anarchy Rat in the early days to Jemnezmy most recently, and all kinds of special guests inbetween.
Project 24 will also mark the first episode of Series 6 of The Sonic Hour. As always, we will be live on air between 6pm – 7pm GMT every Sunday (please check your timezones for your area), with #601 broadcasting on the 5th December.
A sixth series, and the 100th episode right around the corner?! How in the hell did we ever get this popular? Is it our randomness? Our lame attempts at humour? Our insistent Sonic music playlist of awesome? Police Lieutenant Smith? Lyle the Bear? Rory’s Monologue? Dodgy Dread’s Emporium of Sonic Chintz? WongWatch? Or was it just Sonic Pants?
Either way, you can now catch up with every single episode of the show! Subscribe to us on iTunes (US Link / UK link, or you can simply crack open iTunes and search for “The Sonic Hour”), hit the raw XML feed here, or just download each individual track on our Media portal. If you’re already subscribed to us on iTunes, right-click the podcast and select “Show all available episodes” and the older ones will appear.
Due to popular demand as well, all Series 4 and Series 5 episodes have been re-encoded into AAC-HE format, cutting down filesize dramatically with just as much sound quality. The m4a files can be read in almost every music program – or at least, every music program worth using that’s for sure. If you’re struggling, use either iTunes or VLC.
If you’re new to the delights of the very first regular radio broadcast in the Sonic community, why not give The Sonic Hour a spin? I warn you right now though: it’s NOT for the faint of heart, and it’s pretty explicit in content. You will most definitely lose several brain cells as well.
Hit the jump for a shortlist of all 23 episodes added to The Sonic Hour’s archive: Continue reading The Sonic Hour: All Episodes Online, Series 6 Next Sunday!
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A combo pack of games has been quietly released in the U.S. over a week ago on November 19th at popular video game retailers GameStop and EBGames. Released by COKeM International Ltd, the pack contains 2010’s well received kart racer Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing and 2008’s not so well received (half of the game at least) Sonic Unleashed. This duo retails at the discount price of $34.99, saving you $5 on the RRP they both sell for separately, and could be a great gift idea for PS3 owning Sonic fans this Christmas.
Grab it now at GameStop and EB Games.
Source: PS3Stuff
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Ok, ok, bad puns aside – if you want to hear a small clip of Crush 40‘s version of “Free”, the title track to Sonic Free Riders, pop over and see our friends at JunSenoue.com and have a little goosey. Its very good.
Follow the link to have a listen!
The track will be available on the Sonic Free Riders Album, “Break Free”, due for release on the 8th of December 2010, for the handsome sum of ¥1800.
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In the last few hours SEGA has completely reset the Xbox 360 version of Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 1‘s online leaderboards. Announced at the SEGA Forums late yesterday by SEGA of America’s RubyEclipse, the move has been made to clear the huge amount of cheating times/scores, which consisted of impossible 0″00″00 times and 99999990 scores. The downside to this wipe however is that all of the legitimate players times and scores have been removed from the boards too, meaning those players will have to upload all of their records again.
Will this reset help the situation? It appears the answer is no, as already someone has uploaded a 99999990 record to Splash Hill Zone Act 2’s Score Attack leaderboard and taken top place, so it may be only a matter of time before the boards are ruined again. No announcement has been made by SEGA regarding whether the other versions of the game will receive a leaderboard wipe.
Do you think this is the correct way to deal with the leaderboard cheaters? Share your thoughts in the comments.
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If you have Microsoft’s new Kinect device for Xbox 360 and you’re on the wall about whether or not to purchase SEGA’s first Kinect title Sonic Free Riders, then you’ll be glad to hear that a demo for the racer has been released today on Xbox Live Marketplace. The demo, which weighs in at 401.4 MB, lets you play through the game’s first track Dolphin Resort as Sonic the Hedgehog or Jet the Hawk and is currently exclusive to Gold Members, but will likely be available to Silver Members (or Free Members as they’re now called) next week.
Thanks to Yong at the SSMB for the heads up!
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Chart Track has released the UK chart results for last week and with a full week of sales behind them compared to last week, we can now get a good idea of the UK’s response to Sonic Colours and Sonic Free Riders. In the all formats top 40 chart, both versions of Sonic Colours have together risen from 36th to 18th position, while Sonic Free Riders has dropped out of the chart completely after ranking 38th last week with only 4 days of sales behind it.
In the individual formats top 40 chart Sonic Colours placed at the lower 29th position on Wii and 35th on DS. In the top 40 Wii only chart Sonic Colours rose from 11th place to 7th, 2 places higher than popular shooter Call of Duty: Black Ops and 1 rank lower than old rival Mario’s universally acclaimed title Super Mario Galaxy 2. As for the top 40 DS only chart, Sonic Colours climbed from 12th position to 4th, being beaten out of the top 3 by Art Academy in 3rd, New Super Mario Bros. in 2nd and popular puzzler Professor Layton and the Lost Future in 1st.
Sonic Classic Collection has jumped 4 places from 20th position to 16th, proving Sonic’s Mega Drive titles still have sales power today. Finally, Sonic Free Riders has descended in the top 40 Xbox 360 only chart from 16th place to 19th. Other Kinect launch titles in the chart have also dropped positions compared to last week, but still beat out SEGA’s mascot racer.
So, with a full week of sales behind the game, Sonic Colours has shown some positive momentum after last weeks disappointing first 2 days, while Sonic Free Riders hasn’t seen the same benefit of more sales time. Will both games improve from here? Check back next week. Meanwhile, share your thoughts in the comments.
Source: Chart Track
Top 40 All Formats
Top 40 Individual Formats
Top 40 Wii
Top 40 DS
Top 40 Xbox 360
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So, who’s got Colours DS? Playing it right now? If you are, then stop what you’re doing immediately.
Mahzes over at the SSMB was happily swimming running (this ain’t the Wii version, kid) through Aquarium Park 2 when he discovered a horrifying side-effect of respawning Wisp powerups.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVI3C7xpffw[/youtube]
Misjudged the angle of a Laser Wisp. Instead of bouncing off the angle, I hit the vertical wall and bounced back… into the same Laser Wisp power-up I just got. I kept bouncing. And bouncing. And OH GOD WHY WON’T IT STOP?! D8 D8
This act of revenge in retaliation for absorbing them into your body so disturbed poor Mahzes that he immediately sought to warn his friends at the SSMB. And now I do the same for you, dear reader.
You can thank me using your Paypal account.
(Thanks to Mahzes, and to Gnasher for originally exposing the Wisps’ agenda to the world.)
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Sorry for the messy header. Kinda hard to put that all in.
While on my break at work, I headed next door to Toys R’ Us to look around. Found out there is a two day sale going on. Including some Sonic stuff.
First off is a $15 gift card when purchasing Sonic Colors DS.
Second is 25% off all Sonic merchandise in the store. (Not including games and DVDs.) For those interested, this also applies to Mario and Pokemon merchandise. This includes Sonic toys, walkie talkies, MP3 Players, Digital Cameras and Earbuds.
Sale is U.S. Only and is only good through Saturday so hurry!
Sale Ad can be found here.
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UPDATE: Zavvi has raised the Wii version back up to £29.95. DS version remains at £17.95, but is still temporarily out of stock right now. /UPDATE END
UK online retailer Zavvi.com has heavily discounted both versions of Sonic Colours after only just over a week of being on sale. Both editions are now being sold for just £17.95, though the DS version is currently out of stock (no doubt due to this offer), but the Wii version is still available as of the time of this article, so grab it while its there.
Source: Zavvi
Wii
DS
In other news, another UK retailer Argos, who you may recall has been causing fans some bother since Sonic Colours‘ release day regarding an action figure pre-order gift, has answered some complaints about the gift missing from their orders. Some of our readers and members of our forum called Argos every day to try to get the issue resolved and now Argos is finally coming through by offering customers affected by this problem their long-awaited figure or a £15 gift voucher (the price Argos charges for the figure when sold separately).
SSMB member jennytablina said an Argos representative she spoke to on the 16th November told her the whole situation was because of a system error:
I called Argos today and asked about this. The attendant said the call center got an internal email about this today and checked, it said Argos had a system error and EVERYONE who preordered Colours did not get a figure (computers eh?). They apparently were trying to reach customers yesterday via email and phone. Though I had no call or email in my inbox.
The official word seems to be that everyone WILL get their figure delivered separate in the post in the next few days, currently waiting on the assistant to call back with details about my own delivery (she was having trouble getting the entertainment side to respond)
Link
jennytablina got a call back the next day and was offered the figure or the £15 gift voucher and opted for the voucher:
Argos called me, and they offered the figure but all the local stores are out of stock. I took the £15 gift voucher instead, because I simply don’t believe the figure is worth the price Argos is trying to shell it for (and mentally it makes Colours £16 in my head, automatically making it an absolute steal instead of a total rip off)
It’s a bit of a shame because I would kind of liked to have had the figure but eh, maybe it’ll be on ebay sometime.
Link
Tomnomnom0607 at the SSMB said:
Well I just got a call from Argos. The person said that they can either send me the figure itself, or £15 worth of Argos vouchers. I took the figure of course! They said I should get it in 5-7 working days.
Looks like they have indeed sorted it out. Hopefully they’ll get in contact with the rest of you shortly!
Link
TSS reader BlastedPinata said:
Okay this has been resolved for me, the woman on the phone placed a reservation for the £15 Sonic figure for me and has paid it for me via Argos. I just need to go down to my local store and pick it up using my reservation number. What a hassle!
SSMB member Gnasher (who provided the photos of the figure) said in a post at the forum:
Well it took 3 nights, 3 argos customer service advisors and 3 phone calls… but finally I have my figure.
I got a redemption code to my email and phone. Took it into my store and got the figure.
I don’t think it’s worth 15p let alone £15 (if you buy it separately), it should be free and nothing more! It’s such a poor figure that even the Argos staff in the shop wanted to check they’d gotten the right one.. to quote one of their staff “It looks like it should come free in Corn Flakes…”
My advice… try to get a redemption code from their call centre and go pick one up in the store. I suppose it’s good if you wish to keep it in the packaging, but certainly DO NOT BUY it separately, it’s not worth it at all!
Yes this is the £15 price, it doesn’t come in a classic Jazzwares style box, it is just a ‘bagged’ figure, regardless as to if you buy colours or not.
Link
In that last sentence, Gnasher is referring to SSMB member Mahzes’ £15 purchase of the figure separately on Sonic Colours‘ launch day, which he said came in a plastic bag and not the usual packaging that retail Sonic figures are sealed in.
I bought the figure in-store at Argos for £15.
It doesn’t even come in a proper package, just in a clear plastic bag with a folded card strip stapled through the top. As such, the figure was (quite understandably) all mashed up, twisted and bent in the bag.
When I opened it, noticed a tiny crack on the right knee-joint (from being mangled in the bag). Took it back, got a replacement, which looked fine. A bit later, on closer inspection, there are two cracks on his right arm joints. *facepalm*
Still, they’re not ‘arm going to fall off’, so I’m just sticking with it. Dunno about anyone else (or if anyone else here has even got it yet), but the joints don’t seem to allow for much movement on the figure. The arms are jointed horribly, too.
And he has no mouth. His nose also bends upward at a pretty steep angle. D:
Overall, the figure is just ‘okay’, but definitely not worth £15. The ‘packaging’ (if it can even be called that) is just ridiculous.
Link
If you take a look at the above picture of the figure, you’ll spot the words “Not to be sold separately” on the cardboard packaging, something we know Argos is definitely doing at £15 per figure. Clearly the figures were intended to be a pre-order gift, which Argos initially advertised them as, but come release the retailer hadn’t given them away and continued not to until nearly a week later after many pre-order customers complained, and even now they’re still selling them.
Is SEGA even seeing any profits back from the sales of this merchandise we assume the publisher gave to Argos for free? We’ll probably never know, but we do know that this has been quite the mess for Argos and their customers. At least now the problem has been solved and Sonic fans should be getting their figure or voucher shortly.
If you pre-ordered with Argos and haven’t received a call/e-mail from them, we suggest you contact the retailer and they should hopefully offer you the figure or gift voucher they’ve offered everyone in this article, but if you go for the figure, be sure to take print-outs of your order/receipt, e-mails to and from Argos about the issue and anything else of relevance, in case you experience the below situation that SSMB member Gnasher has reported in the forum.
On friday I was told by the person who picked up the figure (as I couldn’t get to the store on time) what the staff tried to do. Despite having a redemption code in the form of a mobile phone text, and as an email print out. Argos staff still wanted the person to pay for the figure!
Yeah, the code wasn’t a ‘free code’ it was a ‘on hold’ code. Meaning had I not made copies or my order in the form of print screens, or copied that screen shot you took of the listing, chances are I wouldn’t have gotten this figure as Argos did NOT want to give it out for free regardless of what my code said.
So if you get a redemption code, take all prints and evidence that the figure it should be free with you.
Link
Good luck!
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Had your fill of Sonic Colours yet? No? Good, because Archie is planning to bring you another helping with the upcoming Sonic #219, which features a comic book adaptation of the intergalactic adventure.
The Sonic Colours adaptation will serve as a five-page back-up story introducing the premise of the game and teasing some elements of the game’s plot. Archie fan favourites Ian Flynn and Tracy Yardley will be writing and penciling the strip respectively. For Flynn, it will be his seventh Sonic video game adaptation.
“It’s true to the source,” Flynn said. “We were provided with some awesome early concept art and rough cuts of some of the gameplay, which offered us the ability to make the transition between comic book and video game much smoother – I think the fans are really gonna dig this one!” Yardley added by speaking of his joy in covering stories from the SEGA games. “The game looks incredible and I’m pleased with how our adaptation turned out.”
Obviously the Sonic Colours strip won’t be the only thing to keep you hooked on issue #219, otherwise it’d be a very thin book – the released cover, above, teases the lead story titled “In Service to the King,” which marks the build-up to Archie’s 20th Anniversary celebration for Sonic.
Sonic #219 will hit stores on the week of the 6th December – all signs are pointing to the Wednesday (8th).
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Beating the Sonic Colors soundtrack to its release is the official Sonic Free Riders Soundtrack, Break Free, which will be hitting Japanese shelves on the 8th of December. Standing at a modest 12 tracks long, the soundtrack will also feature unsurprisingly a cover of the main theme tune to Sonic Free Riders, “Free”, performed by Crush 40, as well as the original version performed by Chris Madlin.
For a full track listing, head to the Video Game Music Database.
If you’ve got a spare ¥1800 and you’re mad on your Sonic music, you’ll want to ask for this in your stocking this christmas!
If you’re like Bob Cratchit, and are too poor to purchase a copy this year, tune in to T-TIME on Sunday the 5th of December during Project 24 on SEGASonic:Radio (4:00PM GMT), to be in for an opportunity to win yourself a copy of the soundtrack (along with loads of other goodies!).
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It’s time for another episode of The Sonic Show. This time around, we hit the road and visit SEGA of America in San Francisco, California for their second annual community event. We’ll play some PSP, talk to the employees at SOA and drop dimes on Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 1. Joining me on this trip is none other than America’s favorite doppleganger, Ben Kalough, SEGA of Antarctica’s best PR man.
For the Sonic 4 feedback session, I cut down the 30 minutes into about 10. There are moments where I started to speak and cut the camera, because I didn’t feel like rolling on what I was saying for those initial discussions about physics and level design. I spoke at length and since I gesticulate a lot, it would have been a mess. I wanted to focus on making a good, concise point instead of worrying about filming. As a substitute, I’ve cut in abridged versions of what I said to Aaron and Ken, set to the Sonic 3invincibility theme.
Note: they wanted feedback and we gave it to them professionally. Anybody who says, “oh my god complaiiiiniiiiing” needs a reality check. Any comments like this one will be deleted and you will be banned. I don’t even want to deal with the Sonic Defense Force today (or ever, really). Sonic 4: Episode 1 has major problems, so we aired them to make Episode 2 better. Sonic 4: Good Edition.
Enjoy the video and for a more detailed report of the event, I wrote one up this past Sunday. Feel free to ask questions about the event and I will be more than happy to answer them for you. Thanks again to all of the SOA employees and to all the guests who were featured in the video. I had an absolute blast this past weekend and I think it shows!
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[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kvlU5JZQrk&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]
UPDATE: SEGA of America has released the above trailer for the U.S. launch of the game on their blog. /UPDATE END
After hitting Australia on the 11th November and Europe the very next day, the wait is finally over for U.S. Sonic the Hedgehog fans, with Sonic Colours on Wii and DS now available at retail. The game has been receiving a great deal of praise from AU and EU players and mostly high review scores from critics, but now U.S. gamers can grab the game and judge it for themselves. If you didn’t see the launch trailer for the European release on Friday, we have it for you below, complete with American ESRB rating and launch date, because we’re cool like that.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xD2bqbLj1Z4[/youtube]
SEGA of America has put out the below press release to mark the occasion, too, and if you missed it, the company also released a U.S. TV commercial for the game.
SAN FRANCISCO – (BUSINESS WIRE) – SEGA of America, Inc. today announced that Sonic Colors , the new title offering a high-speed and colorful adventure, has shipped to retailers across North America. In Sonic Colors , Sonic the Hedgehog is back in an interstellar adventure with new powers, exciting moves and bold, colorful worlds to explore. Along for the journey are the Wisps, an alien race whose energy Sonic can absorb to access never-before-seen powers and unlock exciting gameplay features.
“We are thrilled for consumers to finally experience Sonic Colors,” said Alan Pritchard, Senior Vice President of Sales & Marketing, SEGA of America. “Sonic Team created an incredible game that not only balances the classic 2D side-scrolling Sonic the Hedgehog gameplay with new 3D action, but also adds a new and colorful twist using the Color Powers to create an experience unique to the Sonic franchise.”
Sonic returns to Wii and Nintendo DS in Sonic Colors, where he finds himself racing through incredible theme park-inspired worlds to rescue the colorful alien race, Wisps, from the clutches of the evil Dr. Eggman. Sonic Colors contains co-op and competitive local multi-player massive levels with multiple paths and over 40 single-player stages designed to provide a new experience with every play. Sonic Colors features eye-popping graphics at a high frame rate, new worlds exclusive to Sonic Colors and all new powers that gamers can harness to access hidden areas.
Sonic Colors is available exclusively on Wii and Nintendo DS systems and is rated E for Everyone. The game retails at $49.95 and $29.95, respectively, and will be available at all major retail outlets today, November 16, 2010.
For more information please visit www.soniccolors.com. For press assets, please visit www.sega-press.com
About SEGA of America Inc.:
SEGA of America, Inc. is the American arm of Tokyo, Japan-based SEGA Corporation, a worldwide leader in interactive entertainment both inside and outside the home. The company develops, publishes and distributes interactive entertainment software products for a variety of hardware platforms including PC, wireless devices, and those manufactured by Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. SEGA of America’s Web site is located at www.sega.com.
Will you be picking up Sonic Colours? Are you enjoying the game? Let us know in the comments.
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SEGA America has been epic enough to put up the surprisingly awesome American Sonic TV spot. Kind of reminds me of the SA2 and Mario & Sonic TV spots.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGkgyDtiuyc[/youtube]
Source
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Sonic Colours was released last Friday (in Europe – officially, the US gets it tomorrow but it’s clear that some retailers across the pond just couldn’t wait to sell it early), and it’s a proper corker as well. TSS will be publishing its in-depth review shortly, but until then you can enjoy this exclusive wallpaper to jazz up your desktop.
You may remember that Sonic Wrecks and Sonic Retro have also posted up exclusive Sonic Colours wallpapers, and TSS’ offering differs in that it features Sonic, Tails and Yakker leaping against the colourful game’s title card design. Cool, isn’t it? You can download the European version here (which has the name spelled as ‘Colours’) and the North American version here (‘Colors’ – shudder).
Both wallpapers are in a 1920 x 1200 resolution, and can also be picked up in the Wallpapers section of the site should you miss this post some weeks later. Enjoy! Many thanks to SEGA for sending these to us!
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You may recall an offer at UK retailer Argos’ website we reported on back in September (seen in the screen cap above), which promised that customers who pre-ordered Sonic Colours on Wii or DS would be delivered a free Sonic & Wisps figure with their copy of the game on release day. The game has been out since Friday and there have been many reports at the SSMB from members who pre-ordered with Argos that they have received their game, but NOT the figure, including The Sonic Stadium’s own, T-Bird.
Here are a few of those reports:
jennytablina said
Are the figures being posted separate from the game? I was a tad miffed that my copy of Colours Wii didn’t come with them (only a little, I was pretty happy with the game but y’know )
Though I was pretty impressed with the fact Argos actually got the game to me on release day despite pre-ordering only a few weeks before.
Link
Blue Blood said
Yup, same. I’m waiting on two figures (totally separate orders for each version), and if they don’t deliver then plenty of rage will ensue.
Link
FTA said
Those sneaky bastards. Last time I shop with them.
Link
and
Dear Argos, I don’t like what you’ve been doing to my friends and I who pre-ordered. It’s messed up, so now I’m gonna mess you up.
Link
SSMB member CobraRoll on Friday said they didn’t get their figure, but after speaking to Argos they were told that the figure will be sent out at a later date:
Well, my order from Argos arrived this morning and I can confirm that it is NOT the special edition that Australia has been getting. I called Argos again about it today and they said give it a few more days for the figures to arrive and they should do. I’ll be chasing them up again though if it doesn’t arrive.
Link
and
Yeah pretty much what they said to me. When they looked the catalogue number for it up, they did comment that the number is the kind which coincides with some kind of deal. They just say to wait for a bit and get back to them if they don’t deliver.
Link
SSMB member Gnasher, who also hasn’t received a figure, has contacted Argos today in hopes to resolve the issue. In a post made at the SSMB, Gnasher says he was told that Argos claimed no such offer existed.
I just got off the phone with the Argos people and least to say I’m far from happy at all with what I was told. Argos used every excuse in the book to try and explain why there was no figure with my pre-order. They included but where not limited to.
* Did you enter the offer code when you went into the final purchase?
* The offer is no longer on the website.
Now… correct me if I’m wrong, but a pre-order offer typically ends after the game is released, and as reported on TSS Argos pulled down their listing shortly before the game came out, yet did not notify any of those who had pre-ordered that this had changed.
There was also no offer code to enter, it said in the description that the figure was included in the order, no additional code had to be entered.
Then we moved onto the issue of the game in question….
Did you open the game from the packaging? If yes, no refund or figure.
So anyone that opened their game, and was told that it would be sent out later, you’re not getting a figure anymore.
This is despite explaining to the lady, that I had screen prints of my orders, including the offer itself, and several reports from other people who had pre-ordered (you guys) that they had no received their figure. It was then that she claimed that there had been no other reports or complaints about missing figures, or that there was even an offer on this particular item.
Because there is no listing on the argos website it means that it didn’t exist… again… despite the fact that many people print screened [the above] image!
Gnasher was so furious with this that he’s going to be contacting BBC Watchdog and Trading Standards, in hope that they will be able to help everyone affected by this.
I am going to be writing to them with the above, and BBC watchdog as well as trading standards will be CC in the letters, if you guys are a bit pissed at this I suggest you do the same.
Link
Blue Blood says he ordered both Wii and DS versions from Argos and neither version came with the advertised figure, so he will be calling the retailer tomorrow.
I’ll phone them tomorrow. Better still, I had two separate orders. I bought the DS version and my Mum bought the Wii one, so that’s twice they fucked this house over.
We will let you know how the situation pans out and if we hear of any solution given to this problem.
Did you pre-order with Argos? Did you receive the advertised figure? If not, have you been in touch with Argos and heard anything we haven’t? Let us know in the comments.
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Chart Track has revealed the UK sales chart rankings for last week and new Sonic releases Sonic Colours and Sonic Free Riders just barely broke into the top 40 all format chart. Released on Friday, Sonic Colours on Wii and DS placed at 36 and Sonic Free Riders, which released on Wednesday for Xbox 360 Kinect placed just two positions below at 38. In the top 40 Wii chart, Sonic Colours climbed higher, but just missed the top 10 at 11th place and didn’t perform any better in the DS top 40 at 12th place. As for Sonic Free Riders, SEGA’s Kinect racer placed 16th, the lowest ranked of the Kinect titles to make the chart, with Kinect Sports being the highest at the number 2 position.
With mostly positive fan and critical reception, this is a bad start for Sonic Colours in the all format department. With a full week of sales behind it in next weeks chart, could the game perform better? Check back next week and we’ll let you know how Sonic Colours and Sonic Free Riders fare.
Source: Chart Track
Top 40 All Formats
Top 40 Wii
Top 40 DS
Top 40 Xbox 360
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Tyson Hesse who does the hilarious strip Boxer Hockey has put together another another hilarious Sonic comic. This one dealing with Sonic Colors. Where does he get the ideas for these drawings?!
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Part of of Treasure Team Tango continues, as Team Hooligan – Nack, Bean and Bark – join in on the hunt for the Sol Emerald! Preview pages and solicitation are posted below.
SONIC UNIVERSE #22
“Treasure Team Tango: Part Two”
Blaze joins Team Rose as it faces off against Team Dark for the Sol Emerald! But as fire and fists fly, a third team sneaks in to add to the chaos! Who is “Team Hooligan,” and will they be the ones who come out on top? The laughs and mayhem continue in this latest story arc!
SCRIPT: Ian Flynn.
ART: Tracy Yardley, Jim Amash, Phil Felix, Jason Jensen
COVER: Tracy Yardley, Jim Amash, Ben Hunzeker
Shipping Date: November 3, 2010
On Sale at Comic Shops: November 10, 2010
Newsstands: November 23, 2010
32-page, 40 lb glossy stock, full-color comic
$2.99 US
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[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tUO7zZdXhJA[/youtube]
UPDATE: The video is now on YouTube, thanks to user UkCollecterOStuff. /UPDATE END
Summer of Sonic 2010 attendees may remember seeing Nintendo Europe staff filming at the convention and by now wondered whatever happened to their coverage. Well, if you own a Wii and have it online, you can now check out their video from SoS on the Wii Nintendo Channel, together with some footage from Gamescom 2010. Nintendo caught plenty of fans in their video and spoke to some familiar faces in the Sonic community at SoS, so see if you can spot yourself. You’ll also hear from SEGA Europe’s Michelle Dix about the Sonic fandom and newly released game Sonic Colours, as well as from special guest Jun Senoue about creating Sonic game music. Finally, SEGA’s David Corless speaks from Gamescom about evolving the Sonic brand and keeping it fresh.
Check out the video on the Wii Nintendo Channel and share your thoughts in the comments.
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The long wait is over, as Sonic Colours is now available at retail across Europe for both Wii (modelled above by Sonic & Tails) and DS platforms, with the U.S. release soon to follow on November 16th. The game has been mostly performing well with critics and currently holds a 78 overall score on Metacritic for the Wii version and 82 on DS at the time of this article’s publication, but will the game be well received by fans? We’ll gather opinion over the next week or so.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8bKGSTNhrxI&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]
To mark Sonic Colours‘ release, SEGA Europe has released the above trailer showing plenty of new gameplay footage, including the various Wisp powers in force and some co-op play action.
For more on Sonic Colours, check out our archive or the game’s official website. If you’re interested in buying the game, don’t forget to check out our UK cheap deals article.
Have you picked up the game? Share your thoughts with us and other fans in the comments.
Thanks to Woun at the SSMB for uploading the trailer to YouTube!
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[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8humriMDsgA[/youtube]
Since the first screenshots and gameplay footage was shown of Sonic Colours on Wii there have been some fans craving an HD version of the game. While that doesn’t seem to be happening, we can at least now have a glimpse at what Sonic Colours might look like with high-resolution 1080p graphics thanks to screenshots and video from JADS, who ran the game through the Dolphin emulator and shared the images and video at NeoGAF.
What do you think of the pics and video? Share your thoughts in the comments.
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[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PvjLf21n9no[/youtube]
Sonic Colours for Wii and DS was made available to purchase in Australia today, the first official release for the game, with Europe receiving it tomorrow and the U.S. on the 16th. With the first official release has come many story mode spoiling details and media in the Sonic community for both versions, which we won’t relay here, but some interesting news you may want to hear is that more characters make non-playable appearances in the DS version than first thought. Joining already confirmed Amy & Knuckles are; Shadow, Blaze, Silver, Rouge, Cream, Vector, Espio, Charmy, Big and Chao.
You can hear some voice clips of the new voice actors portraying the characters in the video at the top of the page, courtesy of YouTube user MidniteWv4. The clips are played in the following order of characters: Sonic, Tails, Yacker, Eggman, Cubot, Orbot, Knuckles, Shadow, Blaze, Amy, Silver, Cream, Big, Espio, Charmy, Vector, Chao, Rouge, Omega and Wisp.
In other news, more reviews have been published across the net for both versions of the game, some scoring the game high and some scoring it low. British newspaper Guardian, along with Gamekult have given the Wii version its lowest scores of 3/5 and 6/10 respectively. Guardian cite dull presentation, lack of polish and an untidy interface as their reasons for an average score.
Eurogamer put their review of the Wii version out today and it was a positive one, with an 8/10 score awarded. The game received positive marks for its controls, simple storyline and replayability. Videogamer are equally positive in their review, where the Wii version got another 8/10. Videogamer’s Jamin Smith says “The controls are tight and simple, and even the camera is on its best behaviour throughout.”, the latter being something most modern console Sonic games are often panned for.
As for the DS version, Game Informer gave the portable outing an 8.5/10 for its fluid high-speed, the Wisps adding interesting gameplay and the addictive special stages. Elsewhere, the DS version was given a 7.9/10 by GameTrailers, a higher score than the 6.4 they gave the Wii version. GT’s reviewer appears to have really enjoyed the multiplayer modes of the DS version and the Wisp abilities that encourage exploring and replayability, but they say the game can get frustrating, because of the gap between the two screens resulting in you losing sight of Sonic from time to time.
You can check out more Sonic Colours Wii and DS reviews at Metacritic.
What do you think of the critics impressions of Sonic Colours? Have you picked up or will you be purchasing the game? Let us know in the comments.
Thanks to Woun at the SSMB for first revealing details about the cast of characters in the DS version!
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[UPDATE] Due to a large number of DJs being unable to broadcast next Sunday, Project 24 has been postponed to December 5th. We apologise for any inconvenience caused. To make up for this, T-Time will be filling your stockings early with bumper prize give-aways throughout the show! Stay tuned for more details! [UPDATE END]
Back by popular demand! SEGASonic: Radio‘s day-long event returns for the second year running on November 21st! This year’s 24-hour LiveCast includes a whole host of regular and one-off shows hosted by SS:R DJs old and new, bringing you the best of Sonic the Hedgehog music as well as a whole host of prizes to be given out over the course of the day!
Continue reading [UPDATE] SEGA Sonic Radio Project 24 Returns! Postponed to Sunday 5th December 2010
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[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3NKs8CNR0Mg&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]
We’ve seen quite a few trailers for the Wii version of Sonic Colours, but what about the DS version? Well, SEGA put out a trailer yesterday to give us a good look at the portable version of the game in action, featuring gameplay from a variety of stages. Wisps powers are shown in force too, including the DS exclusive Burst and Void Wisps, who also get their own gorgeous CG footage at the end of the trailer.
Source: Sonic City Blognik
Sonic Colours will be launching in the UK on Friday, so you may be wondering where the cheapest place to grab the game from is. On both Wii & DS, ShopTo.net appear to be the cheapest at £24.85 for Wii and £19.85 for DS, with free delivery available on each.
You can view a list of cheap deals for both platforms below. Prices are correct at the time of this article’s publication.
Wii:
£26.99 at 365games.co.uk
£27.50 at Coolshop.co.uk
£28.99 at Base.com
£28.99 at DVD.co.uk
£29.54 at Amazon.co.uk
DS:
£20.99 at 365games.co.uk
£22.99 at Coolshop.co.uk
£22.99 at Base.com
£22.99 at DVD.co.uk
£22.99 at Gameplay.co.uk
£22.99 at Amazon.co.uk
£23.70 at Tescoentertainment.com
If you find any cheap prices/deals we’ve missed, please share them in the comments.
Will you be picking up Sonic Colours?
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[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zm5gOQUWjgQ&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]
Xbox 360 Kinect is now available in European territories and one of its launch titles is SEGA’s Sonic Free Riders, the third game in the Sonic Riders series and one that takes full advantage of Kinect’s abilities. To celebrate the European arrival of their first Kinect title, SEGA Europe has put out a new launch trailer with the return of the beautiful people from the earlier trailers to remind you how the game is played. More gameplay footage from the game’s various tracks is included, too.
Have you bought the game today? If so, share your thoughts on it in the comments. If you’re yet to buy it and plan to, Amazon appear to be the cheapest offer in the UK, with a price of £29.93. If you see a cheaper price, let us know.
Source: Sonic City Blognik
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Well, it’s here! The final part of our Sonic Colors adaptation interview. Tonight, we interview Tracy Yardley!, the penciler for story. We’ve also got some never before seen art straight from the story, courtesy of Archie and SEGA.
TSS: Hello Mr. Yardley, thank you for taking the time to talk with us. When were you given the Sonic Colors assignment?
TY: The script was emailed to me on July 15.
TSS: How much time did you have to work on this adaptation compared to a typical Sonic story?
TY: I wasn’t given a specific deadline. Paul just said as fast as possible.I sent back scans of the pencils on July 23. I know it didn’t take me seven days to do though. I was almost certainly working on another issue at the time.
TSS: What sorts of materials did SEGA give you to make a proper adaptation of the game?
TY: They gave us much more than they usually do. I was given many many screenshots from the game, as well as pre-production art and an unfinished game trailer.
TSS: What are the differences between working on a game adaptation and working on a regular Sonic story?
TY: Mostly that Sega is much more particular about matching the visuals as closely to the game material as possible. And it usually seems to be a rush job. The Sonic and the Black Knight story was completed from script to finished colors in something like 3 or 4 days if I remember correctly.
TSS: Did you run into any unique challenges when working on this story?
TY: Not anything too bad. The game stories are always fun for me. The only real difficulty was with the first panel on the first page. It called for this planetary elevator, and there was no very clear shot of it in the art reference I was given. I did the best I could with what I had and I’m pleased with how the whole thing turned out.
TSS: Thank you for your time, Mr. Yardley
Finally, here’s the art we promised:
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The sales are in for Sonic 4’s first month on the market, and they are mixed, though largely positive.
Sonic 4 has become a top seller on two services so far: PSN and WiiWare. According to SEGAbits, Sonic 4 was able to beat every other game available on the service during the month, including Sonic Adventure, which took the fourth spot itself. Check out SEGAbits for the full list. On WiiWare, Sonic 4 has become the most popular game on the service. The store has a function that allows you to sort WiiWare games by their sales. The game has been at the top of this list since it came out.
Meanwhile, Sonic 4 has failed to even break the top ten in the Apple’s App Store, for either iPhone or iPad. In fact, Sonic 2 was actually able to crack the top ten twice during the first two weeks of the month, though it’s much cheaper price point may have had something to do with that. To see the sales charts for yourself, check out FingerGaming.
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Those of you lucky enough to be resident in Japan might want to head over to Tokyo’s SEGA JOYPOLIS amusement park at Odaiba at the end of this month! Not only will you be able to play Sonic Free Riders at the Park, there will be tournements running from the 20th of November through to the 23rd, where you will have an opportunity to nab yourself an XBox complete with a Kinect and a copy of the game.
One snag though; you’ve got to pay for a Day Pass (¥3,500) in order to enter. For more details (in Japanese!), head to the Official Joypolis Page for the event.
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Reviews have been slowly trickling in for awhile now, and so far we’ve yet to get anything less than an 8. IGN joins the club with it’s review today.
Closing Comments
Sonic Colors is a dizzying combination of the distantly familiar memories of the first few Sonic titles combined with thoughtful new abilities and mostly well executed level design. There are a few issues that mar an otherwise awesome experience, but those shouldn’t stop Sonic fans and Wii owners from grabbing the best Sonic game in 18 years. As a blueprint for the future of SEGA’s star, Sonic Colors delivers, and then some.
7.0 Presentation
While Sonic Colors’ story is forgetable fun, the menus and level menus are pretty rough, and don’t match the great visuals found elsewhere.
9.0 Graphics
Sonic Colors is one of the best looking games on Wii, with great animation and detail, and some awesome lighting and level variety.
8.5 Sound
Sonic’s new voice cast is much less annoying. Meanwhile, the music is universally great.
8.5 Gameplay
Sonic Colors features tight controls with great level design; all of these things lead to a game that’s a joy to play. Except when it REALLY ISN’T due to some puzzling stage design later on.
8.5 Lasting Appeal
While the main game itself will probably clock in around 11 hours or so for most gamers, levels are more fun after beating the game and the challenge levels will also keep players busy for a while.
8.5
OVERALL
Great
(out of 10)
I highly recommend you read the full review here. For those of you who are finally off the fence and intend to buy the game, check out our guide to Sonic Colours’ release.
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Whole bunch of new covers have been released over the last week. Figured I’d group them all together for a weekend post. Some of these you’ve seen before from our exclusive NYCC coverage, but not in this kind of quality. Here are the covers and the story synopsis.
SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #221
“Changing Tempo”: Sonic’s eager to hear the new sound of Mina and her band – but will he like what he hears? Tensions are running high, and that’s before an evil presence starts lurking in the shadows! Then, in “Second Impressions,” Nicole and Espio deal with the fallout from the Iron Dominion invasion- along with a surprise third party!
SCRIPT: Ian Flynn
ART: Ben Bates, James Fry, Terry Austin, John Workman & Matt Herms
COVER: Ben Bates
Shipping Date: 1/19/11
On Sale at Comic Shops: 1/26/11
Newstands: Week of 2/8/11
Comic, 32 pgs, 40 lb. glossy stock, Full-Color
$2.99 US
“Treasure Team Tango” Part Four: The wild grand finale to our craziest story yet! Four teams vie for the precious Sol Emerald! Will Team Rose help Blaze save her world? Will Team Dark beat them into submission? Will Nack’s “Team Hooligan” cash it in, or will the Babylon Rogues beat them to it? You can’t miss this blockbuster conclusion!
SCRIPT: Ian Flynn
ART: Tracy Yardley!, Jim Amash, Phil Felix and Jason Jensen
COVER: Tracy Yardley!, Jim Amash & Ben Hunzeker
Shipping Date: 1/5/11
On Sale at Comic Shops: 1/12/11
Newstands: Week of 1/25/11
Comic, 32 pgs, 40 lb. glossy stock, Full-Color
$2.99 US
SONIC SELECT #3
The highly acclaimed Sonic Select series of graphic novels returns with a vengeance! Inside you’ll find three epic tales: “Battle Royal,” where the Freedom Fighters throw down against the Chaotix, “Brave New World,” the series changing fan-favorite, and “Return of the King,” the story that set off the “World Tour Saga”! All that and more!
SCRIPT: Michael Gallagher, Ian Flynn
ART: Patrick “SPAZ” Spaziante, Sam Maxwell, Dave Manak, Nelson Ortega, Jim Amash, Rich Koslowski and Barry Grossman.
COVER: Patrick “SPAZ” Spaziante
Shipping Date: 1/5/11
On Sale at Comic Shops: 2/9/11
Soft Cover, 6″x9″, pgs, glossy stock, Full-Color
$11.95 US
Also, the following Sonic Selects are now up for pre-order on Amazon. Sonic Archives #14 are expected to cover issues 51-54 and 55-58 respectively. #14 will be released on December 28th of this year, while #15 is currently listed for June 7th, 2011.
Archie’s Sonic Comics can be ordered internationally from their website, here.
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