Sonic Team legend and Sonic the Hedgehog co-creator, Naoto Ohshima, spoke to Gamasutra about some of his past work, including his time directing Sonic CD and the inspiration for the blue blur’s sneakers.
After discussing NiGHTS Into Dreams, attention turned to Ohshima’s Mega CD project and the reason behind time travel – a theme he has since revisited with Blinx: The Time Sweeper on the Xbox. “I wanted a Sonic where the levels changed on you — where Sonic would go really fast, like in Back to the Future, and bang, wind up in a different place.”
Ohshima also spoke of the time-travelling cutscene, displayed whenever Sonic reaches a speed in Sonic CD that sends him to the Past or Future. The original plan was to have an instant change, following a sonic boom, but apparently it was not technically possible so the loading cutscene stuck.
Ohshima: What I really wanted to do was just have this sonic boom, with a flash, and have the level change on you instantly. We just couldn’t manage it on the hardware, though, so instead there’s that sequence that plays while it’s loading. (laughs) I kept fighting and fighting with the programmers, but they said it just wasn’t possible.
Gamasutra: I bet they probably could have done it.
Ohshima: I know! (laughs) If Naka was doing the programming, I think it could’ve been done.
Speaking of Yuji Naka, the designer also spoke of how his team worked in Japan on Sonic CD in tandem with Naka’s SEGA Technical Institute in the U.S. on Sonic 2.
We exchanged information, of course, talking about the sort of game design each of us was aiming for. But Sonic CD wasn’t Sonic 2; it was really meant to be more of a CD version of the original Sonic. I can’t help but wonder, therefore, if we had more fun making CD than they did making Sonic 2 [because we didn’t have the pressure of making a “numbered sequel”].
Sonic the Hedgehog’s original design came up again, with discussion of how the character was created for the American market leading to questions of Sonic’s iconic blue, red and white colours. Ohshima said that, as we know, the blue was to symbolise SEGA, but what was more interesting was yet another tenuous link between Michael Jackson and the blue blur. Apparently Sonic’s shoes are directly inspired by Jackson’s Bad album cover. “I also thought that red went well for a character who can run really fast, when his legs are spinning.”
Naoto Ohshima left SEGA many years ago to lead Artoon, but now has management duties at sister development studio Cavia, which recently finished Resident Evil: Darkside Chronicles and is working on Square Enix’s Nier. But with this change in approach to more Western, adult-oriented games, does Oshima still have time in his life to go back to the mascot platforming gig?
Ah, well, I’m making a game like that right now. (laughs) I can’t quite talk about that yet, though. In more general terms, the game needs to be something that anyone is able to play, and it needs to have one thing or element that is brand new, that hasn’t been done before.
Shine on, you legend. Shine on.
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
Just a very quick update before I dash out of the house to my day job. ToyGlobe have recently updated their website and added a preview of some Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing figures to be released by Jazwares. The images displayed appear to be mock-ups only but they give an idea of what is to be released in February 2010 closer to the games release.
Two sets of figures are planned. One includes a vehicle and a 5 inch character. The set Includes Sonic, Knuckles and Shadow. The former two are tentativley priced at $13.95 and the latter at $15.95. The full set of three is to cost $39.95 . More interestingly due to covering a much wider group of racers is the 1.5 inch set which includes the above three racers as well as Eggman, Amy, Tails, AiAi, Amigo and Beat. They are set to cost $5.95 each but all six Sonic characters will be released together in a pack at $29.95. All the figures are available for Pre-Order.
No details have been released about any further characters to be added but suggest you watch this space. Personally I want a Ryo Hazuki figure.
A pictures of the mock-ups can be seen on the right there, or you can visit the ToyGlobe website. When pictures of the actual figures are released we’ll let you know.
Thanks Aquaslash of the SSMB for the heads up.
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
British multi-format videogame magazine GamesTM have become the latest publication to take another punt at the Sonic franchise. Each month the magazine has a top 10 list with a different subject every issue. For example previous lists have been about the top 10 ‘Best First person Shooters’, ‘Most Emotional Moments In Gaming’ and ‘Worst Things About Great Games’. Issue 90 of GamesTM counts the top 10 videogame franchises that lost their way placing Sonic in the number one spot.
“Some developers have talet. It’s as simple as that” write GamesTM. “Series like Half-Life, Zelda and Grand Theft Auto have consistently maintained a level of quality with only the most minor of tremors causing concern along the way. It’s a very rare thing, though.” The magazine go on to say more commonly some franchises get things disastrously wrong and ‘jump the shark’ though many manage to learn from their mistakes quickly. Tomb Raider: Angel of Darkness is an example of that. According to them Sonic has failed to improve since the next-gen era began, branding Sonic’s 2006 game his most appalling appearance to date.
“As if a ridiculously overwrought plot, irritating support cast and technically deficient gameplay weren’t enough, Sonic’s relationship and kiss with Princess Elise truly marked the point the series had veered off into absolute nonsense.”
Though the magazine has been hyper critical of Sonic’s next-gen efforts they’ve been much more receptive to the Rush series on DS and even bestowed an 8 out of 10 on Sonic & The Black Knight stating that it “stands out as one of the better Sonic games because of its consistency. What you experience from the start can be expected right up until the end. There are no nasty surprises, no ill-considered gameplay changes and no sense that Sonic Team is ever confused about what the game is supposed to be.” Generally the GamesTM staff seem to genuinely like Sonic but are frustrated with recent entries to the series. Time will tell if the secretive Project Needlemouse can win them and the wider gaming media over.
Issue 90 of GamesTM is out now.
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
One of the last remaining disputes hanging around the Sonic community has been the ‘did he, didn’t he’ surrounding Michael Jackson’s supposed involvement in Sonic 3’s soundtrack. Turns out such rumours have been well and truly confirmed, as a French MJ tribute magazine, Black and White, spoke to fellow composer Brad Buxer about his involvement in the game.
I’ve never played the game so I do not know what tracks on which Michael and I have worked the developers have kept, but we did compose music for the game. Michael called me at the time for help on this project, and that’s what I did.
Brad Buxer is a well known collaborator with Jackson on several projects, and his appearance in Sonic 3’s credits suggested that perhaps the King of Pop had a hand in music creation as well. But Jackson’s name does not appear in the credits, perhaps using an alias or even removing himself from public knowledge at all. Buxer explains:
If he is not credited for composing the music, it’s because he was not happy with the result sound coming out of the console. At the time, game consoles did not allow an optimal sound reproduction, and Michael found it frustrating. He did not want to be associated with a product that devalued his music…
It was also revealed that the links between the Sonic 3 Credits theme and Jackson hit Stranger In Moscow do share the same beat because the former was used as the base for the latter.
Several months after Michael Jackson’s untimely passing, his deep roots with the SEGA of the 1990s has been truly revealed, allowing us to respect a great artist’s work even more. Thanks to Sonic Retro for the posting of this news, and to Silva Rymes for sending us a tip (which we noticed after we posted this – sorry!).
Update: ArchAngelUK has informed us that there is specific mention of Michael Jackson on Sega Mega Drive Ultimate Collection on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, under the Sonic 3 ‘Museum’ section.
Upon inspection, the March 2009 compilation confirms nothing of Jackson’s actual contribution, only that he “was originally going to be” composing. In fact, the exact wording of the phrase implies an outright denial of Jackson’s eventual involvement. Buxer’s comments in the Black & White magazine almost negate the Sega Mega Drive Ultimate Collection reference entirely by confirming Jackson was in fact involved after all.
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
SEGA of America have revealed more on the U.S. version of Sonic Classic Collection on the game’s product page including the U.S. box art which contains a very different background compared with the European artwork. Also on the website is the game’s ESRB rating of E for Everyone and the release date that has been updated from Spring, 2010 to March, 2010 which means the game will hit the U.S. the same month as Europe.
U.S. Press Release
U.S. product page
So, which box art do you prefer? Let us know in the comments.
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
In what appears to be good news for Sega fans who enjoyed Sonic’s GC short “Night Of The Werehog”, Sega recently announced they have created an entire subsidiary designed to create more CG movies. Dubbed “Sega Sammy Visual Holdings” and reportedly set up back on June 1st 2009 the group has the lofty aim of becoming “the number one family-oriented animation studio in the Asia-Pacific region within five years.”, or so Sega’s own industry news paper FunBiz reports on page four.
Existing IP’s are ripe for the picking and considering the popularity of Sonic’s last CG outing it would be no surprise to see the blue blur starring in a similar role sometime soon. The group will be creating “The Best Stories for children Around the World,” so that could rule out a Bayonetta animated short, alas.
So with Sega creating new CG movies what scenarios would you like to see Sonic & friends in and what other Sega IP’s would you like to see get the movie treatment? Let us know in the comments below.
Thanks to Sega Nerds for the heads up.
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
Its all a bit… wrong, isn’t it?
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
Another entry in Archie’s popular series of Sonic Archives, a series of paperbacks which collect the old Sonic comics and reprint them on higher quality paper with improved colors, has been confirmed, given a date of August 4th, 2010 by Amazon.
Amazon has been incredibly reliable with Archives entries in the past, and given the success of the Sonic comic book, a new entry shouldn’t come as much of a surprise. The real news here, is the date. August 4th is a long way away from the next release, Sonic Archives #12, which is scheduled to arrive in comic shops January 27th, 2010.
It should be noted, however, the Amazon’s accuracy in confirming the new Sonic Archives before Archie does, does not extend to the release dates. Archives #12 has always been, and is still listed with a release date of October 29th, despite never actually going on sale. Hopefully, Archie’s planned release for the next Archives is somewhat sooner then Amazon’s projected date.
Sonic Archives #13 will cover issues #48-#52, and will cover the second half of the End Game story arc, and it’s immediate aftermath.
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
The Iron Dominion Saga continues this week, with the Iron King attempt an attack on New Mobotropolis’s power source, in a bid to take down the shield and leave the city defenseless! We get a larger batch of preview pages then usual for this issue, and a confirmation the first name of Antoine’s late father, Armand! Preview pages and the official synopsis can be found below. If you don’t have a comic book store near you, the comic book will be available on newstands next week.
“Blackout”: The Iron King wants the force-field over Sonic’s home city gone, so he heads to its power source: the radioactive remains of Robotropolis! This could spell doom for our heroes – not to mention the surrounding environment! As Sonic races to the rescue, Princess Sally finally comes to a pivotal personal decision.
PLUS: “The Iron Queen:” The second half of this intriguing new villainess’ thrilling origin is revealed!
SCRIPTS: Ian Flynn
ART: Steven Butler
Shipping Date: November 25th, 2009
On Sale at Comic Shops: December 3rd, 2009
Newsstands: December 15th, 2009
32-page, full color comic
$2.50 US
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
Just in time for Christmas Sega of Japan has seen fit to spruce up the Sonic Channel website. While no significantly new content has been added some English has crept onto the site for everyone not fluent in Japanese and everything is looking quite a lot better than it did before.
New content you can check out now include some festive fan art and if you haven’t seen it already Silver The Hedgehog has gotten the Sonic Channel Wallpaper treatment for the month of December. A new Sonic pose has been posted as line art for your colouring pleasure and Sega have also included some great little Sonic scribbles in the form of a letter set and book cover for you to print off.
If you’ve not checked the site for a while of if you’ve never heard of it now’s your chance. I’ll give you a tip though; all the fun stuff is in the ‘Enjoy’ section of the site. Happy hunting!
Credit: Yong of the SSMB (for posting about it first)
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
UPDATE:
Sega of America have also set up a product page for the game and list a release of Spring 2010 for the U.S./UPDATE END
SEGA Europe have officially unveiled Sonic Classic Collection for Nintendo DS, a game most in the community have known about since it’s appearance at the BBFC website we reported on. We also revealed the game was headed for Nintendo DS after it appeared at the OFLC website.
Martin-the fat ninja who works on the Sonic City Blognik with ArchangelUK has revealed a press release and screenshots for the game this afternoon. We have the press release and screens for you below –
LONDON & SAN FRANCISCO (XX November, 2009) — SEGA Europe Ltd and SEGA of America, Inc. today announced that, for the first time ever, the original games from legendary gaming icon, Sonic The Hedgehog™ will be coming to the Nintendo DS™ system early 2010. Sonic Classic Collection™ gathers together the first four Sonic The Hedgehog adventures – Sonic The Hedgehog, Sonic The Hedgehog 2, Sonic The Hedgehog 3 and Sonic & Knuckles – introducing some of the most influential Sonic titles to a whole new generation of gamers exclusively for the DS.
Sonic Classic Collection allows fans both old and new to speed through the much loved zones of the four original Mega Drive adventures, in a bid to collect the chaos emeralds and save the world. Optimised to take full advantage of the Nintendo DS system, Sonic Classic Collection will feature a new save anywhere feature, a first in this original series, meaning that the games can be enjoyed anywhere, anytime! Gamers will also be given the chance to expand their knowledge with a wealth of extras including video and collectable pictures that are sure to be fan favourites.
“The phenomenal successes of the original Sonic games are the pillar of today’s Sonic brand recognition” commented Gary Knight, European Marketing Director SEGA Europe. “Sonic Classic Collection for DS will allow a new audience to enjoy a timeless collection of games, whilst older Sonic fans can revel in the nostalgia of playing their favourite Sonic titles. It’s a perfect amalgamation of heritage and new generation entertainment”
Sonic Classic Collection for the Nintendo DS™ system will hit stores in March 2010.
Thanks to bolt7 at the SSMB for bringing the news to our attention.
SEGA Europe also have the press release at their website and a product page set up with the game’s box art.
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
U.S. retailers Gamestop and Walmart have updated their product pages for Sonic & SEGA All Stars Racing with some new tid-bits of information. If the information is true the game will have 20 characters and 24 tracks total.
Here’s the information as listed on their site’s –
* Party racing fun Battle it out in single player, challenge your friends in 4 player split-screen or compete in 8 player online action! Game modes include Grand Prix, Arcade and Time Attack.
* All your favorite racers Choose from 20 different characters from the Sonic & SEGA universe including Sonic, Tails, AiAi and Amigo.
* High Velocity Vehicles Every character drives their own unique vehicle including sports cars, bikes, monster trucks, planes and even a giant banana to perform special maneuvers!
* All-Star moves Race by a competitor with a variety of pick-up weapons (missiles, mines and other obstacles) or one of the 20 unique character moves such as Tails’ tornado, Samba’s conga line, and much more!
* Stunning visuals Race over medieval castle ramparts, under lush rainforest canopies and through bustling cityscapes as you battle through 24 challenging tracks from the Sonic and SEGA Universe.
The information looks like a legit press release of sorts that SEGA could have passed on to retailers but we’ll wait for a full confirmation from SEGA/Sumo Digital. In terms of the character and track totals, we could hopefully see more via downloadable content though if the leaked box art info is right plus Sumo Digital have previously expressed an interest in it so fingers crossed.
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
SEGA has announced that Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games has already sold 250,000 copies in the UK, with a 24% sales increase last week on the back of a new marketing push, outlined below.
Since launching on the 16th October, the game has held fast in the Top 10 and currently ranks #7 in the Chart Track Official UK Game Charts. SEGA’s Marketing Director John Clark said to MCV that the mascot mashup is a good contender for Christmas #1.
Just like the Summer Olympics before it, SEGA is going for a huge marketing push in the UK to advertise Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games. The blitz will be the company’s biggest ever ad campaign, covering prime time and children’s TV, cinema exposure and physical presence in public spaces.
Hyde Park will receive the most of SEGA’s goodwill, sponsoring the Winter Wonderland that is currently taking place at the venue. A Mario and Sonic branded ice rink will be established and an area to play the game will be nearby to capture passing consumers. Open until 4th January 2010, Hyde Park alone is expected to drive a total of two million visitors to skate and play the game.
Elsewhere, Mario and Sonic will be sponsoring ITV’s breakfast programming bloc, GMTV, and its children’s weekend counterpart, Toonatik, until 10th January 2010. M&S adverts will feature in between these shows, as well as prime time ITV programmes such as The X Factor, Coronation Street and I’m A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here! Thirty second spots continue to appear in cinemas for moviegoers watching Where The Wild Things Are as well.
If that wasn’t enough, SEGA is splashing out on shopping mall marketing as well – this will run up to Christmas and will include posters and HD screens (most likely showcasing game footage).
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
Look’s like someone revealed something they shouldn’t have, namely the above image. After yesterdays revelation of this ‘work in progress’ Sonic & SEGA All Stars box art Chris Lewis’s site has been blocked, no doubt by Sumo Digital and SEGA Europe.
Using the ‘down for everyone or just me’ tool you can see the site is blocked from everyone.
The mysterious disappearance of the website appears to add credibility to the fact that the image is leaked, but as with all things we can never be too sure. We just won’t be surprised if a popular bear/bird combination actually does appear in the game. The question is, WILL YOU?
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
Jazwares just keep them coming don’t they! Wave two of the 3″ figures are reportedly hitting the shelves of Toys R’ Us state-side, with the line-up including Silver the Hedgehog, Shadow the Hedgehog and Sonic the Werehog. If you want to see some pictures of them out of the packet head over to the Sonic Stadium Message board, where SSMB’er Aquaslash has been kind enough to post up some pictures.
Finally, we can now get our hands on a Silver the hedgehog we can play with, rather than having to make our own. Personally I think they’re a little on the chunky side, but there again if you’re going to make figures that size, you’re going to loose detail for posability.
Thanks to Foxwhisker for the heads up!
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
[UPDATE]: We can now confirm DLC will also be in Sonic & SEGA All Stars Racing. Looking at the back cover you can see one Xbox Live feature with 3 words and looking at Xbox Live features listed on the back cover of Xbox 360 games only one feature contains 3 words and that feature is ‘game-content download’. Could Sumo Digital be listening to the fan’s character/track request’s? [/UPDATE END]
The box art for the Xbox 360 version of Sonic & SEGA All Stars Racing has been leaked and on it we can see the rumours regarding format exclusive characters were true. The back cover reveals Rare’s Banjo and Kazooie will be appearing in the Xbox 360 version of the game.
Now we’re left to wonder who will be appearing in the PS3, Wii and DS versions. With Wii and DS both being Nintendo formats it’s likely the same character will appear on both of those formats. So perhaps Mario on Wii and DS? Ratchet and Clank on PS3? There’s no telling who will be in the PC version. We’ll just have to wait and see.
Thanks to Spark from Spindash.de for bringing this news to our attention from Chris Lewis’ Website who is Sega Europes boxart designer.
Chris Lewis’s site with pics
Chris say’s on the page that the box art is a work in progress but this still obviously confirms Banjo and Kazooie.
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PleEZKLvgj8[/youtube]
French gaming website JV247 have recently interviewed Sumo Digital’s Craig Duncan about Sonic & SEGA All Stars Racing which you can check out in the video above.
In the interview Craig reveals –
– His favourite playable character is an unannounced old classic character
– When talking about Sonic Team he mentioned there is an unnanounced IP in the game.
– Downloadable content is a possibility.
– You earn SEGA Miles through in races which you can use to buy music, new tracks, characters and artwork.
– The final character and track list is a combination of what both Sumo Digital and SEGA wanted in. Each of them had to drop some of their choices.
– Alot of attention has been spent to detail on each IP so it’s perfect for the IP owners and the fans.
– Wii Wheel control is quote “excellent and we’ve just got that to the point where it’s starting to feel really good. A big fan of that”.
– Some new Sonic concept art behind him and parts of Tails concept art to the left.
JV247 Video interview link
Thanks to NinMicroSega at the SSMB for the link and thanks to Dusk the Crypt Keeper at the SSMB for converting the video to YouTube format.
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
[UPDATE] Sumo Digital staffer Steve Lycett AKA S0L has just revealed in the comments section that the DS version will have multiple control schemes and the Wii version will also have Classic Controller support. [/END UPDATE]
French Sonic fansites Eversonic.fr and Planete Sonic got to try out all four console versions of Sonic & SEGA All Stars Racing recently. In Eversonic’s preview two control schemes are revealed Wii Remote and Nunchuk and Wii Wheel support, so if your not into motion control at least you have another option. No details on wether the Gamecube Controller will be another option.
In Planete Sonic’s preview it is revealed that the Wii version will not support Mii’s, so those that like a more personal experience and would like to have themselves race against their favourite SEGA character are out of luck.
Planete Sonic also reveal that the DS version will be controlled using the buttons but one odd control choice is that the R button will be used to accelerate which according to them could cause give you a cramp.
Let us know what you think of these developments in the comments.
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
We have had a lot of Sonic 2 stories on TSS lately, what with it launching on new platforms and going on sale. Yesterday, a TSS staffer reminded me that today was the 17th anniversary of the NA/EU release date of Sonic 2. It all made sense then. Let’s take a trip down memory lane again, eh?
With Sonic 1 establishing a rabid fanbase waiting for the next game in the series, the announcement of Sonic 2 made myself and the rest of the gaming world go bananas. When November 24th, 1992 came around, my uncle was one of the first in line (he’s only 15 years older than I am and he owned the Genesis… it was like having a much cooler older brother). Once we got back to his place, “Sonic 2sday” became one of the best days ever.
There was a new character in Miles “Tails” Prower, a new move, a plethora of new stages, new enemies, new bosses, and fantastic music. There was also a 2 player mode that we could not stop playing! We couldn’t ask for anything more. We played it for about three days straight.
Years later, I’d stumble across this dank corner of the internet known as the Sonic community. Prototypes uncovered lost levels and added to the mystique and grandeur of the game. I was playing Sonic 2 all over again to experience what could have been.
In celebration of today, we ask you to check out our recently recovered Sonic 2 section. Videos and screenshots await you.
I’ll leave it at the following video, the famous 3D version of the Sonic 2 ending that we’ve shown here a few times:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yfm1TUCsqFA[/youtube]
Glorious. The Sonic Stadium is interested in your memories of Sonic 2 and “Sonic 2sday.” Please share them with us in the comments below.
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
Hey, my American brosks, I have good news. Sonic the Hedgehog for the X360 is now at a “best buy:” free.
On Black Friday, that famed day after Thanksgiving where mothers kill each other over a laughing muppet, those in the U.S. can head on down to Best Buy and get an X360 Elite and six games, including the infamous Sonic the Hedgehog.
Xbox 360 bundle: Numerically, Best Buy pulled together an even better deal for gamers eying a new Xbox 360. But reviews may say differently. This Black Friday deal includes the high-end Elite console and six games, all for $299. The Xbox itself is a great value, with more online features than the PS3, a larger catalog of games, and a higher install base – so more of your friends are likely to own one. But the six selected games are a little weak. Here’s the list (with review scores from Metacritic): Sonic the Hedgehog (46 percent), Spider Man: Web of Shadows (68), Wall-E (50), LEGO Batman (76), Pure (85), Ghost Recon 2 (86).
So, if you don’t own a X360, want one, and like this game, you can get it at a steal with the purchase of a console. If you don’t own a X360, want one, and are curious to play this trainwreck, then it’s at a reasonable price of zero dollars and zero cents.
[Via Christian Science Monitor]
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
First4Figures continue their onslaught of classic Sonic merchandise releasing three tiny figures standing just two inches high. This most recent batch includes Sonic, Tails and Knuckles in pre Sonic Adventure style. SSMB forum member and classic ‘gent’ Casanova has spotted a batch of the figures released into the wild, or more specifically his local Gamestation.
For all you super high-tech kids who think that physically going into a shop to buy things is thoroughly old fashioned you’ll be happy to know you can also buy the same figures right now from Play.com and have them delivered to your door. Postage is free but the catch is you’ll have to wait a number of days for them to arrive.
Whichever method you choose the figures will set you back £3.99 each. Check out some pictures below but for close up pack shots have a look in the SSMB as Casanova has provided them there.
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
TSS Readers in the USA may be more familiar with Game Informer than I but despite recent troubles the magazine is about to release their 200th issue. To celebrate the milestone they have comprised a list of the top 200 games of all time. With such a large list of games there’s lots of room to debate what came where but being a Sonic site first and foremost it’s Sonic games we’re looking for the most.
The good news is that the blue blur makes the list twice; the original Sonic The Hedgehog for the Genesis at a respectable 34 and it’s sequel Sonic The Hedgehog 2 a little further down but still just within the top hundred at 97. The bad news is that no other Sonic games place in the list at all.
The full list can be found here courtesy of Nintendo Everything.
One last thing of note, games with ‘Mario’ in the title appear 11 times in the list with 4 Mario games being placed above Sonic 1.
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
Media retailer HMV are now listing the PC version of Sonic & SEGA All Stars Racing for pre-orders at just £12.99, currently they are the only retailer listing this version which will be released on PC DVD ROM in Europe and PC Download in the U.S.
Looking at the listed release date, HMV have it down for 31st March 2010 which is a week later than the 26th March 2010 release date listed for the other versions on their site and many other retailers sites.
So could we be seeing the PC version released a week late? If so, why? Only time will tell, we’ll let you know when and if more information becomes available.
HMV
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
In a move that was surely only a matter of time, Sonic costumes are making their way to LittleBigPlanet. All in all five costumes will be making their way to the Playstation Store sometime mid December for your Sackboy to wear. Sonic, Tails, Knuckles and Eggman arefairly obvious choices but the Werehog seems a year too late to make much impact but is sure to please die-hard Unleashed fans. Whats mind boggling is the exclusion of Chip and the inclusion of Knuckles, the spiny anteater never actually appearing in Unleashed.
We’ll keep you posted on the specific release date and prices when they are made available. In the mean time check out the pictures below.
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
SEGA of America’s blog has announced that during the week of November 30th (the week after Thanksgiving), Sonic 2 will be Xbox Live Arcade’s “Deal of the Week.” The classic title will be 240 points, 40% off from its normal pricing of 400 points. Keep in mind that the “Deal of the Week” is available to Xbox Live Gold Members only.
In addition, SEGA of America will be having free giveaways during this week on their blog. We will tell you what SoA will be giving away when the time comes.
Sonic 2 has had quite a week, eh? First, it was released on Blackberry, then it was announced for DS, and now it’s 40% off? Killer.
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
Australia’s video game rating classification database has confirmed what many have been speculating: Sonic Classic Collection is indeed coming to the DS.
This game marks the first time such a collection has appeared on the DS. No word yet on when the game compilation is set to come out, but we’ll be sure to let you know as soon as there is an official confirmation.
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
In a recent interview with the website Original Sound Version, Sumo Digital’s Steve Lycett, aka S0L, has recently confirmed new details regarding the music and sound of the game, which should have both Sonic and racing fans salivating.
First off, he’s confirmed that the game will contain music beyond the Sonic Heroes tracks:
To this end we’ve got classic tracks from many, many games. If we take just the Sonic courses, we’ve got music from Sonic Heroes, Sonic CD, Sonic R and many more. Outside of Sonic, we’ve raided official sound tracks to get new arranged versions of music. We’ve even managed to get a Crush40 track in there!
He also confirmed that there will be an in game shop where new tracks can be bought with the game’s in game currency, “Sega Miles”. In addition to classic tracks, Mr. Lycett also cofirmed that there will be all new material, composed by classic SEGA composers:
We’ve pulled in some familiar names to record us new material. So we’ve got Richard Jacques very much involved. We love Rich, we hope he loves us too! It wouldn’t have that All-Star feel without his involvement, so we’re very happy that he’s recorded new music for the game.
Expect to hear some brand new tracks from other respected artist too, you will spend the next few weeks humming and whistling them!
For those of you who don’t know who Richard Jacques is, he composed the award winning soundtrack for Sega’s Headhunter, and also composed music for Jet Set Radio, Jet Set Radio Future, Outrun 2, Metropolis Street Racing, Daytona USA Circuit Edition, and of course, Sonic R. Overall, Lycett says the music selection will be much bigger in this game compared to Superstars Tennis.
The sound design goes beyond the musc, though. In the interview, Lycett confirms the amount of effort put into the engine sounds, announcer commentary, and character voice overs. Check out the interview to see the rest!
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
Blackberries have been all the rage lately. Here in the U.S., Verizon Wireless had a sale back in September and now everybody here on campus has one. Sonic fans can get in on this Blackberry craze now, because Sonic the Hedgehog 2 has been released for the mobile device.
RELIVE THE SEGA GENESIS NOSTALGIA ON YOUR MOBILE PHONE!
With Dr. Eggman’s return to take over the world and turn the animals into mindless drones, Sonic the Hedgehog teams up with Miles “Tails” Prower to foil his evil plans! With a new Spin Dash Attack, defy the forces of gravity, blaze through 10 unique levels, and dash through half-pipe courses. Race to find all 7 of the Chaos Emeralds before Dr. Eggman uses them to fuel his Death Egg warship!
The Bplay developed port is available for $6.99 (which is about four pounds for all of the UK readers).
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
Seem’s SEGA have another Sonic collection title on the way as if we haven’t been given enough already. SEGA Europe submitted Sonic Classic Collection to the BBFC on the 11th November where the BBFC have today given it a U rating and have made no cuts.
The following content is what they rated –
n/a SONIC CLASSIC COLLECTION
n/a SONIC THE HEDGEHOG (GAME)
n/a SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 2 (GAME)
n/a SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 3 (GAME)
n/a SONIC & KNUCKLES (GAME)
n/a KNUCKLES IN SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 2 (GAME)
n/a KNUCKLES IN SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 3 (GAME)
00:00:45:00 SONIC CHRONICLES – THE DARK BROTHERHOOD (VIDEO)
00:03:05:00 THE HISTORY OF SONIC (VIDEO)
n/a SONIC ART (IMAGE GALLERY)
00:05:15:00 SONIC CLASSIC COLLECTION CREDITS
n/a GAMEPLAY FOOTAGE
With a Sonic Chronicles video features could we be seeing this game hitting the DS? We’ll keep you up to date if and when more information is made available. For now, check out the full rating here.
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
Social Networking site Twitter seems to be in the middle of taking over the world lately. The site allows you to post 140 character messages that can be read by potentially anyone in the world. The huge popularity Twitter enjoys is partly to do with how celebrities have ceased it as a way with communicating with their fans; From the self proclaimed “King of Twitter” Stephen Fry to Zac Effron and everyone else in-between.
It should be no surprise then that companies have also tried to be part of the action as a way of advertising their products. One such company making a better job of it than most is SEGA thanks largely to tireless work of Community Managers ArchangelUK and Martin ‘the fat ninja’ (his words, not mine!). So if you have a Twitter account and you’re not already following SEGA, what are you waiting for?
If you are following SEGA and would like to show a sliver of appreciation for all the hard work being put in by your favourite games company you could always vote for them in the 2009 Open Web Awards run by Mashable’s. This is their third annual award competition and comprises of a whopping 50 categories.
The category that would best help Sega’s Tweets is the “Best Brand Use of Twitter”. You can then vote for as many or as few categories as you wish and you can also vote daily. All you need is a Twitter account to start so now you’ve been enjoying a unique insight into Sega why not show you’re appreciation and vote?
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
Phantasy Star 0, the newest entry in Sonic Team’s long running RPG series, has finally arrived in stores. While it technically shipped on Tuesday, it has only just recently begun arriving in stores over the last few days. The game is an online RPG for the DS, created in the same vein as Sonic Team’s renowned Phantasy Star Online series, featuring four player online co-op, complete with a chat function so you can talk during battles. The launch trailer is posted below:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nku8A4pAp4o[/youtube]
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
Steve Lycett who began his developer diary for Sonic & SEGA All Stars Racing which we reported about earlier has revealed a couple of new screens and a piece of Amy Rose conept art to SEGA of America’s blog where they too have posted the diary entry.
Will we see more in the next diary entries? We’ll keep an eye out, for now here’s the pics –
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
Sonic and SEGA All-Stars Racing’s Executive Producer, Steve Lycett, has written a post on SEGA Europe’s official blog discussing the upcoming mascot racing game. Although mostly an introductory post, Lycett mentions the genesis of the game, which was staged very much like Sonic R as opposed to Sonic Drift.
“We started off with… Sonic running. Yes running. Not in a car. Not Super Sonic, but Sonic running full pelt around a test track.” Lycett revealed on the SEGA blog, “Next we added Eggman, riding in his Eggpod, but with robotic legs attached. He was running too. Then we added Tails. He was in his Tornado, the red biplane from Sonic 2. Next, we thought ‘It’s a racing game, lets try a car’ and dropped in Amy, in a nice bright pink Amymobile.”
Other characters included Gilius Thunderhead from Golden Axe, riding atop a Chicken Leg creature. Despite how awesome this setup sounds, Lycett tells of development difficulties in maintaining the flow of gameplay.
…It wasn’t all that much fun to play. Our main problem was that all the characters were different sizes. Sonic was Sonic sized, but he was really small compared to Eggman and Gilius on their rides. Worse still was Tails’ Tornado – it was huge! The wings made it really wide.
Coders at Sumo managing to make Amy’s car drift threw up even more possibilities, hampered by the difficulty in giving Sonic a drift function on foot. “How do you get a Hedgehog to drift [like Amy’s car]? Worse still, how do you get dwarf in full battle armour on a parrot faced lizard to drift?”
And hence, the result is everyone in a vehicle, as you see here. Lycett humorously asks fans angry about putting Sonic in a vehicle to direct their venom at the creators of Sonic Drift, but also throws down this final nugget of information, hinting at how the planes will handle in Sonic and SEGA All-Stars Racing:
For the flyers we didn’t want them to have too much of an unfair advantage, so we decided to treat these like hovercraft, they wouldn’t be affected by surfaces that slow the other cars down, but they also wouldn’t have high acceleration. As such Tails’ plane needed a re-design.
Interesting stuff. You can read the whole blog entry at SEGA’s Blognik.
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
Archie Comic’s have released a preview of Issue number 10 of Sonic Universe, the 2nd part of it’s 4 part series focused on Knuckles and the Chaotix.
Here is an excerpt, the cover and first 5 pages they’ve revealed –
“Echoes of the Past Part Two”: As Knuckles’ friends try to valiantly defend the Master Emerald against a seemingly never-ending horde of robots, Knuckles delves deeper into the mysteries surrounding him… until he finally finds Dr. Finitevus! Knuckles is bent on revenge, but he’s not counting on the surprise twist that will delay his quest. You can’t afford to miss this exciting, action-packed issue!
Link
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
Sonic is now going to be shooting and scoring in more ways than one. SEGA Amusements USA in Elk Grove Villiage, Illinois will be showcasing the brand new Sonic-themed arcade games at the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions show in Las Vegas later this month. The first two games in the “Sonic All-Star Sports” line will be air hockey and basketball.
“Many people have been wanting Sega to come up with much more traditional redemption sports games such as basketball and air hockey,” said Sega Amusements USA president and COO Paul Williams.
Air hockey features chasing LEDs for when players score and a scratch-free surface. Basketball features varying levels of difficulty and can be linked up with other cabinets for 16-person multiplayer. Look out for more sports arcade attractions in this new series in the future.
Visit SEGA Amusements USA’s official home page.
[Via Vending Times]
The Sonic Stadium may link to retailers and earn a small commission on purchases made from users who click those links. These links will only appear in articles related to the product, in an unobtrusive manner, and do not influence our editorial decisions in any way.
