Welcome to the Archive site of The Sonic Stadium (2008-2023)
Please note that this site is no longer being updated or maintained; as a result, there may be design issues, and links to images and other media may be broken. Links to posts may redirect you to the same article on the current Sonic Stadium website.
Developers Evening Star, made up of the team behind Sonic Mania, have revealed their first novel IP title, Penny’s Big Breakaway!
Showcased during today’s Nintendo Direct, the title see’s the player take control of the title’s namesake Penny, navigating their way through obsticles and tackling hordes of penguins.
While we only have 90 seconds of footage to go off, fans will no doubt see a lot of the Mania team’s DNA in the art direction throughout, alongside some unique gameplay gimmicks and stages.
We can’t wait to find out more!
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Morio Kishimoto, the director for Sonic Frontiers, has been prettytalkative on Twitter lately. In his latest surprise Twitter revelation, he appears to have confirmed that there will be more side-scrolling Sonic games at some point. Eventually. This came from a discussion between Kishimoto and Twitter user @RealJellyLord.
Many (including a few TSS staff members) took this to be a confirmation that a 2D Sonic game was in active development. But RealJellyLord quickly clarified this to not be the case. Of course, we already know that that more Sonic things are coming this year. Whether a 2D game will be among those things remains to be seen, but we’ll know soon enough.
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Sonic Colors Ultimate has hit Steam, and it seems SEGA is celebrating the occasion with sales of Sonic games on both the Steam Store & New Egg. The sales on both stores are a bit different, with different prices and titles available, so we’ve compiled both here.
On Steam, all Sonic games are on sale for as much as 75% off, including:
Sonic Frontiers: $41.99
Sonic Frontiers – Digital Deluxe: $48.99
Sonic Colors Ultimate: $27.99
Sonic Colors Ultimate – Digital Deluxe: $31.49
Sonic Origins: $19.99
Sonic Origins – Digital Deluxe: $22.49
Sonic Mania: $9.99
Sonic Mania Encore DLC: $2.49
Sonic Adventure 2: $2.49
Sonic Adventure 2 Battle DLC: $0.74
Sonic Adventure DX: $1.99
Sonic Generations: $4.99
Sonic Forces: $9.99
Sonic Lost World: $7.49
Team Sonic Racing: $9.99
Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed: $4.99
Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing: $2.49
Sonic 3D Blast:$1.24
Sonic 4 Episode I: $2.49
Sonic 4 Episode II: $2.49
Meanwhile, New Egg is having a more discounted sale for Sonic games with Steam codes. The selection isn’t quite as big, but the discounts are steeper. You can find the sale here. Check below for the prices:
Sonic Frontiers: $39.99
Sonic Frontiers – Digital Deluxe: $43.99
Sonic Origins: $15.99
Sonic Origins – Digital Deluxe: $19.99
Sonic Mania: $7.99
Sonic Mania Encore DLC: $1.99
Sonic Adventure 2: $1.99
Sonic Adventure 2 Battle DLC: $0.59
Sonic Adventure DX: $1.59
Sonic Generations: $3.99
Sonic Forces: $7.99
Sonic Lost World: $5.99
Team Sonic Racing: $7.99
Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed: $3.99
Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing: $1.99
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It happened a little later than I’d hoped, but it finally happened: Sonic the Hedgehog 2 has surpassed $400 million, putting it amongst a rare breed of video game movies to surpass that milestone. Only four other movies hav reached that number: Uncharted ($401 mill), Rampage ($422 mill), Detective Pikachu ($433.4 mill), and Warcraft ($439 mill). It will almost certainly surpass Uncharted, potentially as early as this weekend, but as it stands it is now the fifth most profitable video game movie of all time, and the only one of the 5 to achieve that number without being released in Japan or China.
It’s US numbers now sit at $190,564 million, with it typically making well under $100k daily. Internationally, it’s now at $209,450 million, bring its total box office to $400,015,448.
It’s been interesting charting Sonic 2’s box office success, and seeing it persist in theaters for this long. I have to say, I wasn’t actually sure it could hit this number. Paramount has got to be happy with this. It’s easy to see why they bet big on this franchise before this movie even came out.
This news caught me a little off guard, as international numbers are usually only posted on Sunday, but I guess Paramount wanted to get these numbers out early, given the milestone. This might be the last box office article, at least until Sonic 2 releases in Japan on August 19. If it manages to surpass Uncharted before then, I’m sure that’ll warrant one more. Hope ya’ll enjoyed my game references, I’ve got just three left after this.
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In an interview with Sonic Revolution, Sonic Mania lead Christian Whitehead made several revelations about the development of the 2017 title.
Along with tidbits about the origins of the Hard-Boiled Heavies and the nature of whether or not animals are inside of them, Whitehead also spoke about Sonic Team’s initial concept to include Sonic Forces’ antagonist Infinite in the 2D platformer.
Listen to the answer in it’s entirity below:
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With the first wave of Steam Deck units shipping less than a week from now, it’s a good time to look at what Valve has given the confident thumbs up, the shaky sideways thumb, and the sad thumbs down. Steam has introduced a new page to check your library’s compatibility, so if you’ve got one on order (or plan on getting one), go check it out.
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.
Sonic Mania… mania wasn’t as pronounced this year as it was previous years, but that hasn’t stopped many fans from bending this engine in cool, entertaining ways. The contest and expo have a handful of entries this year using the Mania base, and here’s how they stack up.
Mania as a game wasn’t merely about bringing back Classic Sonic. It felt fresh, surprising, and hard to match without a good eye for detail and willingness to add to the experience. Mystic Cave Zone achieves feeling like an actual Mania stage ripped from some fictional director’s cut, and it does so as a reskin of Press Garden.
MCZ Mania-fied captures the claustrophobic, winding, and threatening feel of the Sonic 2 original while speeding it up with some remixed sections and more opportunities to play with ramps and curves. The stage uses the classic icons of the level such as the lever doors, the spinning boxes, narrow moving platforms, and plenty of spikes, but reinterprets a few Mania elements in novel ways.
The best example of this is in Act 2. Where Press Garden has sprayers that freeze Sonic & company, MCZ Mania-fied has minecart dispensers that take you for a ride until you hit a wall or forcibly break it. Splats, the bouncing rubber stamp that emerge from inkwells, are now burrowbot spawning locations complete with warning sign. Finally, the boss at the end pits you against a giant burrowbot (graphically remixed from Eggman’s octopus robot from Oil Ocean) but with falling stalactite hazard above in place of the sinking floor below.
As a thorough reskin, MCZ Mania-fied is a fantastic remix on the source material and captures the Mania spirit. If you’ve got nostalgia for those purple and green depths, be sure to check it out. Also, hey, it has an Encore version too!
Lost Island builds an original game on top of the Mania framework, fully reskinning levels and characters. Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles have modified spritework, while Ray and Mighty have been fully replaced with Sonic X-treme’s Tiara (outfitted with Sonic 2 GG’s hang glider) and an original character, Millie, who resembles a Minnie Mouse take on Tails (if I’m wrong and this is some sort of established character I’m not familiar with, I’m sure the comments will correct me). The demo spans 7 zones, with 10 acts total among them.
The visuals and level design spark inspiration from a number of other Sonic games, though the strongest point of comparison is probably Sonic 1 for Master System/Game Gear. It even directly pulls the 8-bit exclusive Sky Base into its roster. The level reskins have a basic but still attractive aesthetic. Simple patterns make it feel a bit more flat than you’d expect from a 16-bit game. Not bad, but also not especially iconic or embellished.
I found Lost Island to be a cute but light experience. It trades Mania’s branching, frenetic action for an experience that’s very straightforward. I have a specific nostalgia for the sort of B-tier platformers that dotted the early 90’s landscape, stuff like Bonk and Cool Spot. Lost Island seems to scratch that itch: platforming that is pleasant, even if it’s not fancy or exciting.
Sometimes a mod is just straightforward enough that you don’t have to explain much. Sonic 2 Mania is simply an attempt at recreating Sonic 2 within the Sonic Mania framework, and in that goal, it’s pretty faithful with a handful of additional visual flourishes, and only a couple places where you can see the seams of how X was reskinned to be Y.
The demo features both acts of Emerald Hill, Chemical Plant, Aquatic Ruin, Hill Top, and in interpretation of the beta Wood Zone, Secret Woods. However, this demo does not include any bosses (new or old). Certain elements could not be fully reproduced, such as the growing pillars in Aquatic Ruin, but in the very few places it falters, it makes up in added background animations and remixed music. And you can play as Mania-perfect Mighty and Ray!
Each year it gets harder and harder to stand out as a project whose aim is to reproduce classic Sonic’s preview and beta build elements. Sonic Vintage takes inspiration from other ROM hacks and attempts to bring some of these obscure beta elements to the Mania engine, offering a slightly different take on Green Hill, Chemical Plant, Flying Battery, and Stardust Speedway.
…Sort of. Of the four Mania mods I played this year, this is the only one that gave me technical trouble, and I was only able to play two of the four listed zones without issue. Flying Battery Act 1 would only load if I went to Act 2 (where my character died immediately after the stage loaded), and Stardust Speedway would cause Flying Battery Act 2 to load. I don’t know if this issue is unique to me, but I attempted a number of times in a number of ways, and was unable to access Stardust Speedway at all.
The mod has a couple of neat touches. Most notably, the level design of Chemical Plant was expanded. However, this isn’t a project about immediate noticeable changes. If you’re deep into research on Sonic pre-release builds, this might strike your fancy as a chimera of demos, prototypes, and Nick Arcade variants. But between the technical issues and generally subtle changes, it might be worth waiting another year to see how this develops.
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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 Team figurehead confirms that Sonic’s Classic iteration will “hopefully be a part of the blue blur’s future” in an interview with Retro Gamer Magazine.
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A defining element of the Sonic the Hedgehog series is the superb soundtrack that has accompanied our favourite characters across 30 year’s worth of adventures. Here’s the top 10 of what our resident music maniac T-Bird considers the best of three decades of music featured in the Sonic Universe!
10. Sonic R
Often dismissed as cheesy (but come on folks, Sonic is often super cheesy), the Sonic R soundtrack is the first entry on my list. While not everyone’s cup of tea, very few Sonic series soundtracks come close to being anywhere near as upbeat at this first foray by Sonic into a more contemporary sound, drawing from late 90s dance and Eurobeat. Authored by the one-and-only veteran composer Richard Jacques and embellished with vocals provided by TJ Davis (previously of D:Ream and Gary Numan) Sonic R is packed with plenty of guilty pleasures – not that there should be any guilt of course! We think Sonic R has a solid-gold track listing, and we will always sing Can You Feel The Sunshine at Karaoke, given the chance!
Highlights: Can You Feel the Sunshine?, Living In The City, Number One.
9. Sonic Heroes
Follow in on the coat tails of the Sonic Adventure series, the Sonic Heroes soundtrack continued the tradition of maintaining a thematic landscape, heavily drawing on the rock sound that worked so well for the last two titles. Sonic Sound Director Jun Senoue once again utilises his links to the world of melodic rock to recruit the vocal talents of Ted Poley (Danger Danger) and Tony Harnell (TNT) for We Can, in addition to two belting themes from Crush 40. Employing industrial electronic act Julien-K to provide an angsty theme to Shadow the Hedgehog’s team in the form of This Machine is perfect. There are far too many great stage themes to list in this game, but the fact that Wave Ocean and Bingo Highway have seen so many reworks and remixes since 2003 is testament to the enduring nature of this soundtrack!
Highlights: What I’m Made Of, This Machine, Wave Ocean
8. Sonic Rush
A unique entry to this list are the funky tones of the Sonic Rush soundtrack. Lead by the rather eccentric Hideki Naganuma (if you don’t believe me check out his Twitter), the genius behind the unforgettable Jet Set Radio soundtracks, provides an infusion of funk, soul, drum and bass, and a mountain of samples from every corner of the music industry. Naganuma’s approach delivers something that is seldom replicated anywhere else, and will leave anyone earworms for days to come. From the happy-go-lucky Back 2 Back to the darker tones of Wrapped in Black for the final boss, you won’t believe that something so powerful can output from a DS.
Highlights: What U Need, A New Day, Wrapped In Black
7. Sonic Unleashed / World Adventure
In a tonal shift from most other Sonic titles, sound director Tomoya Ohtani elected to take the soundtrack to Sonic Unleashed down a more orchestral avenue, to reflect the more cinematic qualities of the game, the environment, and the exploratory nature of the game’s hub worlds. What is delivered is a grandiose performance from the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, interjected with fast-paced and floaty drum and bass day tracks, and the cool jazz strings and flutes for night stages, more often than not arranged by an unsung hero of Sonic sounds, Fumie Kumatani. Although the Werehog battle theme finds itself being overused, its hard not to adore this soundtrack for its variety.
Highlights: Apotos Day, The World Adventure, Cool Edge
6. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (Mega Drive / Genesis)
It doesn’t get much more definitive than the theme to Emerald Hill Zone (with the exception of Green Hill of course) and as such Sonic the Hedgehog 2’s soundtrack ranks high in this list. Composed by Dreams Come True superstar Masato Nakamura, the music collection featured on the title is one of the most definitive to have featured on the Mega Drive / Genesis, exploiting the full range of channels available to deliver a soundtrack with depth and character, with catchy hooks and brilliant basslines. The game concludes with a rendition of DCT’s Sweet Sweet Sweet, to bring the feels as you save the planet once again.
Highlights: Emerald Hill Zone, Chemical Plant Zone, Mystic Cave Zone
5. Team Sonic Racing
The most recent entry into this list is the soundtrack to Team Sonic Racing, another titled directed by Senoue-san. Not only is TSR packed with rearrangements and mash-up tracks from previous Sonic games, The SONIC ADVENTURE MUSIC EXPERIENCE, including long-time Crush 40 session bassist Takeshi Taneda and Crush 40 percussionist Akht, drive the heart of this assembly of octane-fuelled compositions, with a massive supporting cast including TORIENA, Hyper Potions, Tee Lopes, and Tyler Smyth (Dangerkids). As such, Senoue and company have delivered what is definitely one of the high-water marks in Sonic the Hedgehog music of the modern era.
Highlights: Ocean View Lap Music, Frozen Junkyard Lap Music, Boo’s House Lap Music
4. Sonic CD
I am going to have to cheat here in that this entry is a two-for-one and include both the American and Japanese soundtracks here (controversial, I know..and not the only time I will cheat either!) for quite different reasons. Naofumi Hataya and Masufumi Ogata’s masterful works are lined with J-Pop sounds, that while might sound a little contemporary and dated, are some of those associated most with Sonic games by the old guard. Spencer Nilsen’s soundtrack on the other hand delivers a much more ambient and darker tone to the game, completely changing the atmosphere; it really goes to show that a soundtrack can completely change the feel of a game. Regardless of which camp you fall into, you can’t deny that both games come armed with a great opening and closing vocal tracks.
Highlights: Sonic Boom, Tidal Tempest (US), Stardust Speedway – Bad Future (US), Comic Eternity (JP), Metallic Madness (JP), Boss!! (JP)
3. Sonic Mania
A modern classic. I probably don’t need to say much more than I have previously, in that Mania’s soundtrack is nothing short of a love letter to Sonic music through the ages. Fan-turned-professional musician Tee Lopes’s universal understanding of the DNA that comprises Sonic the Hedgehog soundscapes is nothing shy masterful, and has set a lofty standard for whatever follows in it’s wake in 2D Sonic titles. Lopes takes the best of the existing material and gives it a polish, breathing new life into well known tracks without detracting from what made them so brilliant in the first place. Additionally, Lopes demonstrates repeatedly throughout that his own compositions are just as phenomenal. Indeed, this is a soundtrack for the ages, and it feels criminal to select just three tracks as highlights!
Highlights: Prime Time – Studiopolis Zone Act 2, Blossom Haze – Studiopolis Act 2, Skyway Octane – Mirage Saloon act 1
2. Sonic 3 & Knuckles
A close call between this and the number 1 spot for sure, but many will hardly be surprised to see this game near the top of the listings. The songs of Sonic 3 & Knuckles are a culmination of tracks that are the very epitome of what makes Sonic soundtracks so good – a completely unique aural experience that has been much emulated but never replicated. Whether it’s the incredible “guitar” licks of Flying Battery, the “steel drums” of Angel Island, or the even the driving basslines of Ice Cap, this game sounds incredible even to this day, and further augments this great game. The calibre of the soundtrack is hardly surprising given that it’s authors include the likes of Senoue-san, Michael Jackson music director Brad Buxer, and in all likelihood the King of Pop himself!
Highlights: Hydrocity Act 2, Flying Battery Zone Act 1, Sky Sanctuary Zone
1. Sonic Adventure 1 & 2
The crowning jewels of the music of Sonic the Hedgehog are the timeless masterpieces that are the soundtracks of the Sonic Adventure series – and yes, I couldn’t pick a favourite. Pulling out all of the stops, Senoue et al. pulled out of the collective minds not one, but TWO massive musical landscapes to embellish the plethora of game environments, with no constraint on musical genre. Songs like the pop-punky Escape from the City and the spectacular power anthem that is Open Your Heart are unmatched in their power, driven home with a triple threat of galloping guitar work, thunderous percussion, and soaring vocals.
Nearly every playable character across the two games have their own distinct theme tune and genre, so their really is something for everyone. This format extends to the stages but is never forced, in fact quite the opposite; breaking into a vault to a jazz soundtrack has never felt so sincere to a 1960’s secret agent film with I’m A Spy…For Security Hall, or the slow Hawaii-esque guitar twangs of sitars that rings throughout Azure Blue World as Sonic adventures across the beach of Emerald Coast. I’m sure many fans will have stopped in Station Square, Mystic Ruins, and even a Chao Garden or two, to just pause and take in the atmosphere delivered by this soundtrack.
A perfect soundtrack for one of the most celebrated games of the series.
Highlights: Too many to list!
Honourable mentions:
Here’s a handful of soundtracks that just missed out on featuring in the top 10:
Sonic Triple Trouble (Game Gear) – there are lots of 8-bit gems that missed out here, but Sonic Triple Trouble is a real diamond in the rough; Sunset Park Act 3 is a real highlight, and Fang the Sniper’s theme exudes a Mexican standoff – perfect for this rootin’ tootin’ sharp shootin’ Wolf. Or Gerboa (who knows!)
Sonic Colors (Nintendo Wii) – A tonally different game once again, Colors deserves a mention here as it’s soundtrack perfectly complements the lighter tone of the game itself, and Tomoya Ohtani gladly provides this in his distinct fashion.
Sonic Forces – Controversial, but why not! Forces, while being one of the poorer outings of Sonic in recent years, has some crackers in the soundtrack, and a smattering of catchy drum and bass-centric vocal songs. Let’s also not forget the heavy hitting Theme of Infinite provided courtesy of the Dangerkids!
Sonic Generations – This has probably missed out on the top 10 for being more of a revisiting of old soundtracks, but is nonetheless brilliant, and there are some phenomenal reworkings of Sonic CD’s Sonic Boom, and a blistering version of Heavy Arm’s theme.
Shadow the Hedgehog – Not to everyone’s taste, but I adore this soundtrack, which is heavier than a heavy thing, and a firm favourite of metal fans for sure. The theme song, I Am…All Of Me, is one of the most powerful Crush 40 songs going, and never fails to get the blood pumping.
Sonic Song Sin Bin:
Sonic Underground soundtrack – Apologies to the Sonic Underground gang, but this falls firmly in the sin bin – and although I am often one for a bit of cheese, this is too difficult not cringe through. Sonic and his band should probably not give up their day jobs! I will make one exception here – and that is the theme song, performed powerfully by Michael Lanning. That rocks.
Wonderman by Right Said Fred – During the advertising campaign in the early 90s, SEGA teamed up with dance-pop act Right Said Fred to create the bizarre Wonderman, which while making tenuous mentions to spin attacking and power sneakers in the lyrics, has little else to do with Sonic. It peaks at number 55 in the British charts, which tells you everything you need to know. Watch the bizarre music video below:
Sonic Jam (Games.com) – Barely a soundtrack, this game features single-channel renditions of stages from earlier Sonic games, that are unrecognisable due to having their tempo reduced by an order of magnitude.
Agree with our list? Don’t agree with our list? Let us know your favourite Sonic songs and soundtracks 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.
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 leaks keep coming! It would seem that JAKKS Pacific has some new Sonic the Hedgehog action figures in the pipeline, including the iconic Death Egg Robot, Mighty, Silver and what looks to be some setpieces from Sonic Mania’s Studiopolis Zone!
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The results for that round were announced in September 2020…except for the Sonic Mania design, which required further review for the team to determine if it could be made or not. This meant an extra four months to wait to find out its fate.
Now the September 2020 results have been announced, and it has also been revealed that the Sonic Mania design has finally been approved! This means that it will go through LEGO’s own designers to see if there are any changes or improvements they want to make to the design before putting it in production, then it will hit store shelves where you can add LEGO Sonic to your collection (especially if you missed out on the LEGO Dimensions level pack way back in 2016).
A huge congratulations to Toastergrl, who I imagine must be chuffed about her idea being made a reality given her history with both Sonic and LEGO. Everyone else might want to leave some money aside to pick this up when this becomes available!
As of now, it is unknown when the finalised set will be revealed and released. But as soon as we get word from LEGO, we’ll be sure to let you know!
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We love to get technical, especially when it comes to some amazing fretwork in Sonic the Hedgehog covers! Guitar virtuoso RichaadEB has set him self the immense task of covering Tee Lopes’ toe-tapping theme to Studiopolis Zone Act 1 – and what an incredible job he has done!
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SEGA’s 60th anniversary website is having a weeklong celebration of Sonic this week, and they’re starting things off with some Sonic avatars and wallpapers. The wallpapers utilize the 30th anniversary render released earlier this year, while the avatars use Sonic Mania stock art. To download them, you can either sign up over 60th anniversary website (which nets you a free copy of NiGHTS for Steam), or check them out below:
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Thanksgiving Week in the United States is here, and so are the big discounts and sales. If you’re into the IDW Sonic comics, there’s a sale for you. If the games are your preference, you can also take advantage of a sale.
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It’s the most wonderful time of the year! No, we don’t mean Christmas – pfft! – but instead Next-Gen Console Day! This month sees the launch of two new platforms in the Xbox and PlayStation family of gaming systems, and we couldn’t be more excited about both. Today, Microsoft formally releases the Xbox Series X and S, and with backwards compatibility a major factor we decided to dig into the archives and check which Sonic the Hedgehog titles you can play from Day One.
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If, for some crazy reason, you don’t already own Sonic Mania, Sonic Forces or Team Sonic Racing on Nintendo Switch, then you’re in for a treat! SEGA is releasing two twin-packs for Nintendo’s console, which will allow you to jump in on all the major Sonic games on the platform at a reduced cost.
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What’s that? You want Sonic the Hedgehog news, sonny? Well, it just so happens that we’ve got a whole LIBRARY’S worth of news stories and features covering the last twenty years! We could tell you when Archie Sonic #117 hit comic store shelves… or we could tell you something interesting instead. How about the biggest Sonic stories to hit the internet since The Sonic Stadium opened its doors in 2000?
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Amazon’s cloud-based gaming service, Luna, launches today and SEGA has shot out a quick reminder that you can play 2D adventure Sonic Mania Plus on there right now.
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Sonic Mania Plus and Wonder Boy: The Dragon Trap are indeed launch games, per Digital Trends and other outlets.
Original news post:
Following in the lineage of Stadia, xCloud, Parsec, and the thing that Sony does that no one remembers, Amazon has pushed its way into the cloud gaming fistfight with Luna, a platform targeting computers, Fire TV, iDevices via browser backdoors, and Android. The service launches today in the US for approved early access users with an early access monthly subscription of $5.99 USD.
Announced titles for the service include Yooka-Laylee, Control, Resident Evil 7, and… possibly Sonic Mania? Promo images show icons for both the 2017 Sonic masterpiece and the Wonder Boy remake. In contrast to the other two, Panzer Dragoon was officially announced.
Details about the service, including international release, remain scarce, but perhaps soon, you will be able to play this modern classic on yet another platform. So if you have permissive data caps and a desire to play Sonic Mania on your phone, your time has come, you hypothetical person, you.
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When Sonic Mania first released, it represented a fresh blast of energy for classic Genesis Sonic. It paid homage as much as it tread new ground. It played into expectations as much as it subverted them. And in the years since, new tools have made it easier for mod developers to recraft color pallets, sprites, music, and stage design. SAGE this year brings a bundle of Mania mods, so grab your Steam copy, download the Mod Manager, and let’s dig into some Mania remade!
Sonic DVD Mod type: Original Game
Status: Demo – Sonic only, 1 Complete Stage, 1 Incomplete Stage, “Encore” variants on both.
Sonic DVD bills itself as a fan sequel to Sonic CD, and it certainly has the menu style down. This (mostly) single stage demo has the player navigate an underwater stage somewhere between Press Garden and Hydropolis with a gemstone aesthetic and chill music. Throwing the player into an underwater stage as your first and only impression is a risky move, but the game maintains pace through ample use of currents, boats, and the occasional running-on-water. The design motif is firmly aligned with those two zones as well, putting Sonic in cramped tunnels and locked rooms that require finding a button to progress.
It’s a solid Mania-style stage, though it doesn’t scream “Sonic CD” (interpret that as a positive or negative as you see fit). It has the density and diverging paths of a Sonic stage, though it leans heavily on simple puzzles, traps, and doors. The game gives an incredibly small taste, but an ambitious one, with professional-looking reskins of the stage features and badniks. I would have liked to see more to gauge the designers’ knack for variety in level theme and structure. It still has a long way to go, but it’s definitely one worth keeping an eye on.
Chaotix Mania
Mod type: Recreation
Status: All Mania characters, 6 stages and final boss, special stage, pinball stage, and 4 “Encore” variants.
I’ll put this up front: I don’t think Knuckles’ Chaotix is a very good game. It has a neat hook and some fun stage gimmicks, but the aesthetics are gaudy and the level design is uninspired, especially when set against characters that control in such unique ways! Thus, I’m put in the awkward position of saying, yes, it recreates the stages of Knuckles’ Chaotix within the constraints of Sonic Mania, allowing you to beat the stages as a single character instead of a tethered team, but I also question if it was a feat worth accomplishing. I feel gross saying that, I want to judge it based on what it sets out to do, but I feel it’s absolutely necessary to reinforce that the things the developers couldn’t recreate within the constraints of Sonic Mania were the specific things that made Knuckles’ Chaotix cool.
As a sprite conversion, you’ll be able to easily identify which Mania stages became which Chaotix stages. I wanted to verify accuracy of the level layouts, but the liberties they took to translate one stage to the other made it difficult to find 1:1 comparisons. It certainly has the look and sound of Chaotix, including a thoroughly customized HUD. However, it suffers from frequently bland level design and occasional bugs. The appeal here strikes directly at the most dedicated fans of Knuckles’ Chaotix. For everyone outside that target, stick to the 32X original.
Sonic Aspect
Mod Type: Recreation
Status: Demo – Sonic only, 2 stages
Aspect Co. was the studio responsible for a surprising number of 8-bit Sega games, including Sonic 2, Sonic Chaos, and Sonic Triple Trouble. Sonic Aspect aims to bring a selection of classic Aspect-developed Sonic stages to 16-bit, and… man, is it a crowded year for that. The demo reskins Green Hill and Angel Island as the two acts of Great Turquoise from Sonic Triple Trouble. Motobugs have been converted to turtles (without springs), and Crabmeats have taken on a two-tone paint job.
The level graphics are simple and bright to match the spirit of the original, and I adore the blocky, chunky checkerboard pillars that form the stage and dot the background. The remixed music has a peppy energy that fits the level perfectly. But despite this, it’s really hard not to draw direct comparisons to rival remake Sonic Triple Trouble 16-bit, a standalone application that feels just as good mechanically, and isn’t constrained by the limits of being a Mania mod. I want to see more of this game. I want to be surprised and impressed by the team’s level interpretations. But this year won’t be the year for that. There’s fun to be had in this demo, but you can’t be blamed if your thoughts stray towards greener hills.
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Do you like Sonic Mania’s various bosses? Then you will probably like this SAGE 2020 mod. One boss after another will show up to defeat Sonic once in for all. This time, we’re taking a look at Sonic Mania Boss Rush+.
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Next up in our SAGE 2020 coverage is another Sonic Mania mod, but with gameplay that will remind you of the old Sonic Adventure days. Knuckles is back to look for emeralds in Knuckles’ Emerald Hunt Mania.
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So this just popped up. It’s been reported that Amazon.com now lists a double pack of Sonic Mania (the vanilla version it appears) and Team Sonic Racing for Switch. There aren’t any listings of the pack for other platforms yet upon checking. Also it’s not clear if this is yet another of those “put two boxes in a cardboard sleeve” type of releases that Sega do occasionally, as opposed to cramming both games into one cartridge/disc.
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Today is August 15, which will be obvious to anyone who happens to be able to tell the time. But what might not be so obvious – unless you’re keen on checking calendars – is that Sonic’s fantastic 2D adventure, Sonic Mania, was released on this day in 2017. That was three whole years ago! Where has the time gone!? Continue reading Sonic Mania Was Released Three Years Ago Today
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Anyone with an Origin Access Premiere subscription now has access to the PC version of Sonic Mania through EA’s Origin storefront. For those unfamiliar with the service, EA Access Premiere is the higher tier version of the Origin Access service. This service provides access to a library of games, discounts to all games bought on the storefront, and “extra content” for new EA games for $15 a month.
It is the vanilla version of the game, meaning that the Encore DLC will still need to be bought separately.
UPDATE: According to twitter user @CodenameGamma, who hacks and reverse-engineers games like Sonic Mania, this version of the game adds the infamous Denuvo DRM back into the game. The Steam release of Sonic Mania originally released with this DRM, before it was removed due to fan outcry. As a result, this version of Sonic Mania will not be supported by the community.
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Yes, seriously. Sonic Generations is 95% off it’s MSRP on Steam right now, so you’d better act quickly! In fact, many other Sonic games are available for a ridiculously low price.
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Microsoft has got an interesting offer for Sonic fans out there, especially if you’re still planning to check out the new Sonic movie. Until June 15th, you can get the Sonic Movie for just $12.99 as part of the Gamer Flicks Sale. Doing so will also net you a free downloadable copy of Sonic Mania.
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If you’re looking to complete your Sonic collection on 3DS or Switch, Sega has you covered.
From May 17th to the 26th, a huge library of Sonic games are on sale on the Nintendo eShop. The games include the following…
SWITCH
Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 – $39.99
Sonic Forces – $9.99
Sonic Mania (Standard) – $9.99
Team Sonic Racing – $19.99
SEGA AGES Sonic the Hedgehog – $5.99
SEGA AGES Sonic the Hedgehog 2 – $5.99
Nintendo 3DS
Sonic Generations – $9.99
Sonic Lost World – $9.99
Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal – $9.99
Sonic Boom: Fire and Ice – $9.99
3D Sonic the Hedgehog – $2.99
3D Sonic the Hedgehog 2 – $2.99
Prices reflect the U.S. Eshop.
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Just as Sonic Mania itself is a fan labor of love made official, Toastergrl’s Sonic Mania LEGO design continues its trek towards becoming an officially licensed LEGO set. Today, 2020’s first period of LEGO Ideas crowd support ends, and Toastergrl’s design was among an unprecedented 26 designs to reach the 10,000 supporters needed for official consideration. LEGO Ideas will announce their final determinations this Fall.
The roughly 700-brick design features a classic take on the Lego Dimensions Sonic minifig facing off against brick-built Dr. Eggman with his Egg Robot mech and Hard Boiled Heavies, all complimenting several iconic Green Hill Zone level features.
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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.
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