Back in the 90s, when Sonic was the newest, hottest video game property on the block, having a cartoon was always a telltale sign that a game series had truly made it. Mario had a series of them, Legend of Zelda had one, Earthworm Jim had one, and even Bubsy almost had one.
Continue reading Blue Streak Speeds By: Sonic’s Animated LegacyConcept art shows first images from Sonic Prime
From Patrick Horan’s Artstation page comes the first-ever images of Netflix’s Sonic Prime. Patrick was a concept artist on the series. “I was responsible for cleaning up the layouts and color.”
From what we can see from the images below, Sonic’s design adds new gloves and some funky, red shoes. Looks like Sonic will be dealing with a large group (a carton?) of Eggmen, a cavewoman Amy, and a kitsune Tails. Check out the other images below.
Read More...
Sonic Talk Podcast, Episode 76: The Year of Luigi of Sonic
This episode: Sonic on Series S, and Ian Flynn’s 15th Anniversary
Continue reading Sonic Talk Podcast, Episode 76: The Year of Luigi of SonicRead More...
Sonic Prime Producers Share First Glimpse of Eggman Artwork
The producers of Netflix animated series ‘Sonic Prime’ made an appearance at SEGA’s Sonic Central livestream today, and shared a few sneak details about the upcoming show – along with a piece of art that will no doubt whet the appetites of any Eggman fans out there.
Continue reading Sonic Prime Producers Share First Glimpse of Eggman ArtworkRead More...
What Could SEGA Announce At Sonic’s 30th Anniversary Livestream Event?
Finally. We’ve all waited nearly six months for a morsel of information on what SEGA may be planning to celebrate Sonic the Hedgehog’s 30th Anniversary. For a character best known for his lightning-fast speed, updates have been almost-controversially slow. But yesterday, SEGA revealed a special livestream taking place on May 27th focusing on Sonic announcements and news. So, what could they have lined up?
Continue reading What Could SEGA Announce At Sonic’s 30th Anniversary Livestream Event?Read More...
Sonic and the “Super Game” Show Strong in SEGA SAMMY 2020 Investor Briefing
Who likes financial briefings! Now, don’t raise your hands all at once, I know we’re all really excited to get new financial numbers, but for those of you who aren’t already sifting through the 74-page 2020 Results Presentation on SEGA SAMMY’s investor relations site, here are the highlights.
Although several other sites latched onto the “Super Game” mentioned eight times in the report, the way it appears in the presentation suggests “Super Game” might just be a term they use for a game that they can sell to a global audience. It may include new IP considering they have a separate 3-year plan to globalize their existing IP, but it would be very weird for a 5-year plan to include making some sort of global omni-game containing multiple titles. Not impossible, but very weird.
Other notable bits from the report include:
- The Sonic series led traditional software sales with 4.4 million units sold, followed by Total War (4 million), Football Manager (3.8 million), and Persona (3 million).
- Sonic is used as an example of strengthening the brand through media mix, specifically citing the original Sonic movie, the upcoming sequel, and the Netflix series Sonic Prime.
- Games highlighted for release during fiscal 2021/2022 are Humankind, Shin Megami Tensei V, Total War: Warhammer III, Lost Judgment, and Phantasy Star Online 2 New Genesis.
- SEGA’s European studio is working on an unspecified FPS project.
- SEGA is instituting an approach of Remaster-Remake-Reboot in regard to current and past/dormant IP. Examples listed under past IP include Crazy Taxi, Jet Set Radio, Space Channel 5, Rez, Panzer Dragoon, NiGHTS, Shinobi, Virtua Fighter, Altered Beast, House of the Dead, Streets of Rage, and Soul Hackers, all with the asterisk “*Under examination of which IP to utilize.”
- Game software sales stayed strong, and Free to Play titles were really strong throughout quarantine/social distancing.
- SEGA SAMMY reiterates that they were hit hard by the economic effects of Covid, leading them to restructure (voluntary retirement, sale/restructure of arcade divisions). Spaces most prominently affected were the arcade business, arcade machines, pachinko/pachislots, and their resorts.
- If you’ve ever wanted to know how much SEGA SAMMY is worth, they report having 367.6 billion yen in liquid assets as of March 2021 (or roughly 3.4 billion USD, 2.4 billion GBP, or 2.8 billion EUR). This amount is just liquid assets, and does not include the value of property the company owns or the IP it holds.
- SEGA SAMMY acknowledges responsibilities regarding environmental sustainability, diversity, job satisfaction, and addiction prevention.
Oh, and hey, they’re working on a Gamera pachislot machine, which I personally like for esoteric reasons.
Read More...
Sonic Prime Hiring Update: Two Designers Confirmed
Since its official announcement more than a month ago, we’ve slowly begun to learn who will actually be working on Netflix’s Sonic Prime show. Last month, we learned about one of its writers. Today, we learned about a few of its artists, who announced their involvement on Twitter!
Betty Kwong and Nicholas Kole have both been brought on to Wildbrain as designers for the show. Kwong has worked on several shows in the past, serving as senior designer on seasons 11-13 of LEGO Ninjago, as well as a CG designer for the LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special, among other LEGO animation projects. Nicholas Kole, meanwhile, served as a character designer for both Crash Bandicoot 4 and the Spyro Reignited Trilogy. You can check out Kwong’s portfolio here, and Kole’s portfolio here.
There is still a lot we don’t now about Sonic Prime’s production, but we will hopefully be learning more over the coming months. As usual, stay tuned to Sonic Stadium for all the latest.
Read More...
Colleen O’Shaughnessey Isn’t Done With Tails Yet
Earlier today on Twitter, Tails voice actor Collen O’Shaugnessey was showing off her new flocked Tails Funko Pop that she got from Target, when she broke some surprising news in the comments.
As we reported earlier this month, Colleen is one of several voice actors not returning to their previous roles in the upcoming Sonic Netflix show, Sonic Prime. However, as one fan mentioned how much they are going to miss her, Colleen surprised everyone with the following…
So what does this mean for Colleen in the role of Tails? Well, she’s completely out of Sonic Prime. “Still not Canadian, so still not doing prime” she replied to one fan. Whether she’ll be back for the Sonic 2 movie, or if she’s returning to the games, she definitely won’t be leaving Tails and the Sonic franchise behind just yet.
Both Sonic Prime and the Sonic 2 movie will be out next year.
Read More...
Mike Pollock to continue playing the role of Dr. Eggman
He’s still here!! While the Sonic voice-acting talents have changed many times over the years, one actor has managed to consistently keep his role since 2003: Mike Pollock as Dr. Eggman.
Continue reading Mike Pollock to continue playing the role of Dr. EggmanRead More...
Colleen O’Shaughnessey Not Voicing Tails in Sonic Prime
Colleen O’Shaughnessey, Tails’ voice actress for the past seven years, has confirmed on Twitter that she will not be reprising her role in the upcoming Netflix series, Sonic Prime.
Unlike Roger Craig Smith, this does not yet appear to mark a permanent departure from the role, and it appears that Sonic Prime may instead either have a separate voice cast, or only share some cast members from the games. What makes O’Shaughnessey‘s lack of involvement especially surprising is that she did actually voice Tails in last year’s Sonic the Hedgehog movie.
Mike Pollock, the voice of Eggman, does appear to at least be hinting that he is a part of the production. Though he could also just be trolling us for his own amusement:
Turnover in the Sonic voice acting cast is nothing new. Back in 2019, several characters had their voices recast, the most notable of them being Knuckles. The first major voice actor overhaul came in 2005, when every voice actor from the games was replaced with the cast from the recently released 4kids dub of Sonic X. That cast was in turn replaced five years later in 2010.
Read More...
Sonic Prime: An Opportunity To Unite A Multiverse of Fans
Sonic Prime, the latest Sonic the Hedgehog animation due for release on Netflix in 2022, will descend from a long dynasty of animations that reach all the way back from 1993’s slapstick Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog, through to the modern charm of Sonic Mania Adventures. Each show has cultivated its own personality, and legion of Sonic the Hedgehog fanatics to boot. Similarly, there are now a multitude of genre-crossing Sonic the Hedgehog video game titles, that you’d be hard pushed to not find something for everyone in the Sonic the Hedgehog universe.
Continue reading Sonic Prime: An Opportunity To Unite A Multiverse of FansRead More...
Sonic Netflix show officially titled ‘Sonic Prime’, due in 2022
After initially being leaked via a quickly deleted tweet by Netflix, today the company has officially announced the upcoming TV show as Sonic Prime, and will be due in 2022 on the streaming service.
Continue reading Sonic Netflix show officially titled ‘Sonic Prime’, due in 2022Read More...
Ian Flynn Confirms Sonic Netflix Not Based on IDW
Nearly a month after its (now deleted) announcement, we still don’t know much about the Sonic Netflix series. Technically, it hasn’t even been officially announced! Nevertheless, we now at least know one thing it won’t be: an adaptation of the IDW Sonic comic series.
Continue reading Ian Flynn Confirms Sonic Netflix Not Based on IDW