Microsoft just held their weekly sale and among the games on sale are a bunch of Sonic’s titles for Xbox 360 for up to 50% off. While the games below have their US prices listed, the sale should be available worldwide and presumably the same discounts should apply. The sales for these games below shouldn’t require XBL Gold as well. Continue reading Various Sonic games for Xbox 360 are on sale worldwide for up to 50% off
Sonic Generations Finally Hits Xbox One Backward Compatibility
About friggin’ time!
Microsoft held their second episode of Inside Xbox yesterday, in which they share a behind-the-scenes look at the company’s inner workings, and today’s livestream held a special announcement regarding backward compatibility on Xbox One.
The gaming giant revealed that a handful of backward compatible Xbox 360 games will become Xbox One X-enhanced, a beefy update through which last-gen titles receive a substantial performance boost on the most powerful home console on the market, after the presentation. Among them is none other than Sonic Generations, which also means that the 20th anniversary title celebrating Sonic’s history has also been finally retrofitted for the Xbox One family of systems as of today!
Episode 2 of Inside Xbox also revealed a ton of new original Xbox games being added to the backward compatible library, including SEGA’s own Panzer Dragoon Orta.
Now that leaves only Sonic Unleashed and Sonic ’06 as the remaining mainline Sonic games to become Xbox One backward compatible… I’ll certainly be keeping my fingers crossed.
The Spin: How SEGA is Ignoring the Middle Children of Sonic’s Legacy
2010 was the year Sonic the Hedgehog came back. Yes, we all heard the stories about how the franchise had declined not long after the jump to 3D, how gaming news outlets and critics even now would begin their pieces with some variation of “Sonic has had a rocky history,” and how every new Sonic game released around the “dark ages” period couldn’t shake off the dreaded “Sonic Cycle.” Continue reading The Spin: How SEGA is Ignoring the Middle Children of Sonic’s Legacy
Super Sonic DLC to Remain Free for Sonic Forces Forever
Crisis averted!
Last month, the long-awaited inclusion of Super Sonic had finally come to pass for Sonic Forces, but there was a nasty catch: the Chaos Emerald-powered hedgehog would have only remained free for a limited time.
Continue reading Super Sonic DLC to Remain Free for Sonic Forces Forever
Super Sonic DLC Crashlands into Sonic Forces, Free for a Limited Time
A series staple since Sonic the Hedgehog 2 over twenty-five years ago right up to the recent Sonic Mania, either earning the seven Chaos Emeralds or clearing the game’s story often yielded the highly coveted reward of Super transformation. From there, simply collect fifty rings mid-stage, transform, and blast off with ring-fueled invincibility and faster speeds.
While oddly absent from the game’s initial release over a month ago, Sonic Forces is finally bringing in this long loved franchise staple at long last as free downloadable content… unfortunately, with a catch that is already drawing community backlash.
Continue reading Super Sonic DLC Crashlands into Sonic Forces, Free for a Limited Time
Sonic Talk 49: Unstoppable Forces vs. Immovable Objections
Sonic Forces has come and gone and the Sonic Talk crew of Jason, Alex, GX and special guest (and occasional header artist) Cory Holmes weigh in on the game. We go in and critique every detail of this new 3-D outing from Sonic Team. Is it as good as we’d hoped or as bad as we feared? Listen in to find out. Continue reading Sonic Talk 49: Unstoppable Forces vs. Immovable Objections
Sonic Forces demo now available on Switch and PS4 Japanese Digital Storefronts
If you’re a Switch owner who’s been wanting to try out the upcoming Sonic Forces game, today is your lucky day: SEGA has released a demo on the system’s Japanese eShop.
Continue reading Sonic Forces demo now available on Switch and PS4 Japanese Digital Storefronts
Sonic Team Details Sonic Forces on Switch: 30fps and 720p in all modes
New info on the Switch version of Sonic Forces has emerged from an interview DualShockers did with Sonic Team.
Continue reading Sonic Team Details Sonic Forces on Switch: 30fps and 720p in all modes
Morio Kishimoto is Directing Sonic Forces, No Boom Sonic, Will Be At E3
The director behind Sonic Colors and Sonic Lost World will be taking the helm once more for Sonic Forces, it has been revealed – and if you were hoping for that ‘third playable character’ to be Boom-universe Sonic, prepare to be disappointed. Continue reading Morio Kishimoto is Directing Sonic Forces, No Boom Sonic, Will Be At E3
HQ Gameplay Video and Screenshots of Sonic Forces Released
As promised, Sega have uploaded the HQ gameplay of Modern Sonic that was shown last night at SXSW onto YouTube for all to see. Also we have two high-quality screenshots straight from Sega to share as well!
Continue reading HQ Gameplay Video and Screenshots of Sonic Forces Released
Shun Nakamura is The Producer On Sonic Forces
If Sonic Forces is leaving you with a bit of a Sonic ’06 vibe, what with it’s burning, apocalyptic cities and all, it shouldn’t surprise you. After all, the producer of Sonic Forces is none other than Shun Nakamura, the director on Sonic ’06 as well as Samba De Amigo, Billy Hatcher and The Giant Egg and the well-reviewed, but often overlooked, Rhythm Thief & The Emperor’s Treasure. Nakamura himself posted his involvement on his Twitter account.
This news comes just shortly after the game’s title reveal as well as the announcement that Tomoya Ohtani will be composing the game’s music. An official gameplay reveal video is expected to arrive sometime tomorrow.
Sonic Forces is due on Nintendo Switch, PS4 and Xbox One this holiday season.
SEGA: Project Sonic 2017 Will Introduce a New Character and a New Gameplay “Component”
SEGA held a livestream event to celebrate the recent launch of Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice in Japan, with series director Takashi Iizuka in attendance among others playing the latest Boom instalment and the upcoming Sonic Mania. However, a pair of bombshells has dropped since the event, this time concerning the far-flung Project Sonic 2017 launching next holiday season.
With translations provided by Source Gaming’s PushDustIn, it is confirmed that SEGA has plans to reveal “a completely new character in Project 2017.” We also now have a better idea of the gameplay, which is expected to follow the formula established in Sonic Generations with classic 2D and modern 3D levels – however, a “brand new component” is also going to be introduced.
UPDATE: Sonic CD Becomes Free-to-Play on iOS, Forces Users to Pay to Remove Ads
UPDATE: SEGA has reached out to us with their statement on the error, telling us that the issue has been resolved!
As part of a special promotion, Sonic CD is now free with ads (regularly priced at $2.99) from the App Store. For players who previously purchased Sonic CD, ads were mistakenly added to their game. This was not intended and the issue has now been resolved. Players will need to update to the latest version of Sonic CD (2.0.1) on the App Store. We apologize for the error.
Original story continues below.
Continue reading UPDATE: Sonic CD Becomes Free-to-Play on iOS, Forces Users to Pay to Remove Ads
HoL’s Musings: Sonic’s Future and Potential on the Nintendo Switch
What seemed to be an eternity of waiting since its announcement on March 17th, 2015 has finally passed on October 20th, 2016, as Nintendo had at long last lifted the curtain on the “NX,” or should I say the Nintendo Switch. Even before that day, Sega officially announced that Sonic would indeed be making an appearance on the system. It won’t be just any game, but the even longer-awaited next main game from Sonic Team called Project Sonic 2017, provided the Switch version is the same as the PS4/XBO/PC versions. Continue reading HoL’s Musings: Sonic’s Future and Potential on the Nintendo Switch
Japanese Sonic 25th Anniversary Website Launches
SEGA of Japan have today launched their 25th Anniversary website, and have already begun to populate the page with events and items set to be released for this year.
Continue reading Japanese Sonic 25th Anniversary Website Launches
Scrapped Sonic and the Black Knight Poster Found
The Sonic Stadium has uncovered what appears to be an unused promotional poster for Wii exclusive Sonic and the Black Knight. The poster was created by a company called KJSCoverArt who have designed a lot of album covers for various artists, as seen on their portfolio. We assume this image must have been made pretty early on because you’ll notice Sonic is wearing two of the same gauntlet he wears in the game instead of just one, as well as a helmet, which looks much like Shadow/Lancelot’s. Other changes include slight differences in Caliburn’s hilt and the game’s logo.
What do you think of this artwork? Would you have preferred Sonic to have worn more armour? Speak out in the comments.
Source: KJSCoverArt
Sonic Runners getting worldwide release on June 25
続きまして、ソニック ランナーズの全世界配信が、6/25に決定致しました！ 続報をお待ちください #ソニックランナーズ
— ソニック ランナーズ 公式 (@SonicRunners_JP) June 20, 2015
Sonic Runners, Sonic Team’s first mobile Sonic game, will finally be debuting worldwide on June 25. Just in time for Sonic’s 24th birthday!
This was revealed minutes ago on the official Sonic Runners twitter account. The tweet promises more details in the coming days. Sonic fans have been waiting for a worldwide release of the game since its limited release in Canada and Japan back in February.
Sonic Runners, as the name suggests, is a free-to-play endless running game, where the player tries to get as far as possible before dying. The game will be launching on both iOS and Android.
First direct-feed look at Sonic Runners
A user at NeoGAF named HUELEN10 (thanks!) uploaded a 4 minute video showing a first look at a level and mid-level fights with Eggman being played on an iPad Mini 3.
How you find the game to look so far?
Sonic Runners out now on Android… sort of (Update: And iOS)
Update: It’s also seemingly out now on iOS.
Well isn’t this a surprise. Sonic Runners is actually out now on Google Play in NA (actually was dated for yesterday on February 25th, 2015). However, some phones don’t seem to be supported (my Samsung Galaxy Ace II x GT-S7560M seems incompatible). And some who have got it to download have gotten this error message of maintenance:
The Google Play page has this info:
Play Sonic, the world’s fastest hedgehog, in the all-new side-scrolling endless runner. With all-new mobile friendly controls, just tap the screen to run, jump, and spin your way across lightening fast Sonic world.FEATURESTRUE SIDE-SCROLLING SONIC ACTION
– Run and spin at lightening speeds with mobile friendly controls
– Designed by TEAM SONIC, the original Sonic development team
– Super fast and challenging levels with loop-de-loops, retro design, hidden rings, and classic enemies
– Unleash Color Powers: LASER POWER for hi-speed movements, ASTERIOD POWER for destroying obstacles, and DRILLS Power for burrowing undergroundPLAY AS SONIC AND HIS FRIENDS
– Unlock Tails and Knuckles as player characters
– Master their Speed, Aerial, and Power attributes
– Evolve your character’s powers with collected ringsRUN WITH COMPANIONS
– Run with the power of Companions
– Complete stages and enhance your character’s abilities
– Select the best Companion for the job depending on your character and the levelCOMPETE IN ALL-NEW RANKING BATTLES
– Reign in four ranking categories: Rival League, Friend, World, and Historical
– Fight against your friends and the world for the “Sonic Record”
– Compete with up to 50 players in a white-heat competition in the Rival League
– Win the top of the “”S league”” to claim the supreme honor!COMPETE AGAINST FRIENDS
– Log into Facebook to activate the Friend Invitation and Friend Ranking features□■What’s New■□
[Facebook account] will keep you updated on the app! Some info may only be available on Facebook!!□■App Price■□
Free *IAPs available□■Recommended Devices■□
Android OS2.3 or later *excluding certain devices
—-
We want Sonic Runners to be played by as many people as people,
so we’re planning on increasing the amount of supported devices.
We apologize if you cannot download Sonic Runners on your current device.
Please wait for further announcements.
—-
We’ll update you guys as more info comes!
Tomoya Ohtani is composing music for Sonic Runners
Sonic Runners’ music has Unleashed its inner Colors.
Ahem. Tomoya Ohtani, who most know as the main composer of Sonic Unleashed and Sonic Colors, confirmed on twitter that he will be composing for the game. Now does that mean he is again the main composer remains to be seen.
Thanks to TimmiT at NeoGAF for the heads up!
Sonic Lost World now at 710,000 copies shipped worldwide as of March 31st, 2014
It’s that time again, sales talk! Sega just put out their newest sales data covering data as of March 31st, 2014. Last time I reported their data release as of December 31st, 2013, which you can look at here!
So now we have an updated look at the Blue Blur’s recent performance since then, where as the game had shipped a combined total of 640,000 as of Dec 31st, now has reached 710,000 copies as of March 31st, so that means in the three month span it has added 70,000 copies.
I should take the opportunity to remind people that Sonic games do horrendously in Japan (why this is so is unclear to me, I find it surprising), with games commonly doing only a few thousand in the opening week and are likely never seen again in the charts, with some rare exceptions. And this is no matter the platform, be it Wii U, 3DS, Wii, DS, PS3, 360, you name it!
Proof as shown here at NeoGAF in the first week of sales for Sonic Lost World via Media Create and Famitsu, with only the 3DS version (the leading 8th gen platform in Japan) barely crossing the 5,000 mark, which is very poor for any game. The Wii U version just barely missed the Top 30 where the 30th and above at Famitsu’s chart would show numbers, Media Create only shows numbers for the Top 20.
So Japanese sales barely factor at all into the total. So keep that in mind.
Also, Sega shows a interestingly high amount of 3DS SKUs are on the way, the problem being is that these forecast charts are VERY difficult to decipher, it’s not certain if they do indeed count every regional release as their own SKU, or if they count releases by subsidiaries like Atlus (who have Persona Q: Shadows of the Labyrinth on the way for 3DS and the long silent 3DS version of Devil Survivor 2 titled Devil Survivor 2: Break Record). Right now Sega’s known retail line-up is a bit sparse on 3DS, so far we only know of Sonic Boom for 3DS which is only scheduled for release in North America and Europe. It’s said that the charts do not include digital releases so that leaves out games like their Virtual Console offerings as well as 3D Classics like the recent Out Run 3D.
So who knows what’s in store. What are you hoping is on the way to 3DS from Sega?
Thanks go to Nintendolife for the write-up!
Sonic Lost World Playable at Tokyo Game Show 2013
SEGA Japan has announced their plans for the upcoming Tokyo Game Show that will be held September 19th-22nd and Sonic Lost World will be among the games playable at the event on both its Wii U and Nintendo 3DS platforms. On September 21st Sonic Team head Takashi Iizuka and sound director Tomoya Ohtani will be delivering a presentation titled (in Google translate) “Introducing the charm of “Sonic Lost World” The latest series! ” The presentation is scheduled from 11:00 to 11:45 JST, which translates to 03:00-03:45 BST the same morning for us in the UK.
Saturday 21st September
11:00 to 11:45
Introducing the charm of “Sonic Lost World” The latest series!
[Speakers] Takashi Iizuka (Producer), Tomoya Ohtani (sound director)
SEGA will also be giving away the below Sonic fan and Sonic Lost World sticker sheets. A mug featuring Sonic in his Sketchog form will also be available to buy for 1,500 yen.
Source: Gamer.ne.jp (via Gematsu)
Sonic Team to do Internet Live Stream, February 2nd/3rd
On February 3rd 2013, Japanese online TV show Puyo-Puyo will be hosting a live stream event. Their guests? Sonic Team. The staff members joining the Puyo-Puyo team are as follows.
Tadashi Takezaki/SEGA
Takashi Iizuka/Producer
Jun Senoue/Sound Director
Kazuyuki Hoshino/Art Director
It might not be related. But… February 3rd is a day after Groundhog day, a day which Sega have unofficially called ‘Hedgehog Day’ due to their tradition with making big announcements either on or around it. Could it be?
Continue reading Sonic Team to do Internet Live Stream, February 2nd/3rd
Sonic Adventure 2 Avatar Items Coming to Xbox Live June 5th
Xbox Live’s Major Nelson has just posted the latest Xbox Live Marketplace release schedule detailing all games and other items being released over the next couple of weeks. Among them are Sonic Adventure 2 Avatar items planned to be released June 5th, which, conveniently, is when E3 begins. Could SEGA be planning to unveil an Xbox Live Arcade port of Sonic Adventure 2 soon?
The Dreamcast classic was featured in a leaked list of XBLA games back in early April, and as you may recall, that list outed Harmonix’s Rock Band Blitz game before it was announced.
We’ll keep our eyes open for any further developments.
Source: Xbox Live’s Major Nelson’s Blog
Thanks to kmurphy91 on Twitter for the heads up!
Sonic CD Developer Diary Video
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JEZkrXaBkl0
SEGA has just posted the above Sonic CD developer diary video on their blog. In the video Sonic Team Art Director Kazuyuki Hoshino gives an insight into the creation of Sonic CD‘s logo, characters, enemies, bosses and stages. It’s an interesting watch, and even features some never-before-seen concept sketches.
Source: SEGA Blog
Thanks to StrickerX-mas at the SSMB for the heads up!
Iizuka: “We Will Probably See Sonic Going into Other Genres of Games”
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_l5739EElBc[/youtube]
In an interview with GameReactor.eu, Sonic Team head Takashi Iizuka talks about where we might see the Sonic franchise go in the future. When asked how he sees the next 20 years for Sonic, Iizuka explains that while Sonic Team will keep a focus on Sonic action titles, they would also like Sonic to reach out to a wider audience. To achieve this, Iizuka says “We will probably see Sonic going into other genres of games and also seeing Sonic in different media.”
Source: GameReactor.eu
What genres and media would you like to see the Sonic franchise explore? Let us know in the comments.
Iizuka: “I would like to make a new standard Sonic”
In an interview with Gamasutra, Sonic Team head Takashi Iizuka has explained that he would like to make a new standard Sonic in 2012 and the years ahead. Rather than continue on with the formula built with Sonic Generations, it appears Iizuka would like to develop something fresh in the future.
It seems that as far as current-gen Sonic goes, there have been false starts. The PlayStation 3 Sonic, the first one, was supposed to be a new beginning, and then there was Unleashed, which had good and bad about it. It seems like Generations is yet again starting over; are we at a point where you feel comfortable with the mark you’re making and can move forward?
I wouldn’t say that I think Generations is a new start. Instead, it’s more of the peaks of the past 20 years, is the way we’re approaching this. Generations is about taking the past 20 years of history and rolling it into one really fun product. I think, as a result, I would like to make a new standard Sonic, a modern Sonic if you will, in 2012 and beyond.
You can read the full interview over at Gamasutra.
Would you like to see fresh new Sonic experiences in the future? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
Thanks to RUSSTYBONE and interface for the heads up!
Sonic Generations: Modern Rooftop Run and Hub Videos
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZagLnO3ItlM&feature=channel_video_title[/youtube]
As we reported October 19th, SEGA France and Sonic team head Takashi Iizuka held their Sonic Generations presentation at the Paris Games Week yesterday morning, and thanks to attendee funkyjeremi83 we have video footage of it. The “new” stage shown was Rooftop Run, which had previously only been shown in screenshot form.
As you can see in the video, Rooftop Run has changed greatly compared to its Sonic Unleashed counterpart. The stage has been given a big facelift in presentation and because it’s one of the last stages in Sonic Generations, the difficulty has been increased.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfSUfbq-aGA&feature=channel_video_title[/youtube]
The full 9 stage hub world was also shown at the presentation, and again thanks to funkyjeremi83, you can see footage of that, too.
Thanks to Guito, dbgtsonicx and SSMB member Ryan91 for the heads up!
GameSpot Interviews Sonic Team About Sonic Generations
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEABevfCKlI&feature=feedu[/youtube]
Gaming news site GameSpot has posted up the above video interview with Sonic Generations producer Takashi Iizuka, director Hiroshi Miyamoto and sound director Jun Senoue. The 4 minutes and 52 seconds long interview covers topics such as level selection, music and the set-up for the game’s story.
Source: GameSpot
Thanks to Graham for the news tip and to Woun for the YouTube upload!
Got a news tip? Send it in to thesonicstadium@googlemail.com, shadzter@sonicstadium.org or via Twitter at @Shadzter and we’ll credit you for the find.
Takashi Iizuka Talks About The Past and Future of Sonic
In an interview posted today at Pocket Gamer, Sonic Team head Takashi Iizuka has explained why he thinks Sonic games haven’t fared too well with critics over the last several years. Iizuka says that over time Sonic’s various titles have been shared out across different teams, where each one has their own ideas of what makes a Sonic game. This is now changing, as Iizuka is taking full responsibility and control over all Sonic games going forward and hopes this will improve things.
So originally it was more or less the same team working on all the different Sonic titles, but after a few years, for various reasons, we started to delegate Sonic games to different groups of people.
And everyone in the office has their own idea of what Sonic should be, so we started to see slightly varied, slightly different directions of Sonic games.
I was conscious of this, so I’m now back with full responsibility of all things Sonic. I have control over the direction of not just Sonic Generations, but all the Sonic titles that we will develop in the future.
So I have more control, and hopefully this will provide better appearances for future titles.
When asked about what’s next for Sonic, Iizuka says we can expect more Sonic titles after Sonic Generations. As well as Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 2 in the digital download space, there is going to be “a whole new adventure, of course.”
Sonic Generations sort of acts as the end of one period. After Sonic Generations, we will work on new Sonic titles. There’s going to be a whole new adventure, of course.
For the digital and mobile space, we have Sonic 4 – Episode 1 is already out, and we’ve already started creating Episode 2.
We’re going to continue to explore the reimaginationing of classic Sonic, but at the same time we will also keep looking into the gaming space around modern Sonic games.
To read the full interview, which includes information you may or may not already know about the 3DS version of Sonic Generations, head over to Pocket Gamer.
Takashi Iizuka Attending Gamescom 2011
There’s good news tonight for Sonic fans going to this year’s Gamescom event, with the announcement that Takashi Iizuka will be attending. The Sonic Team head disclosed the news of his attendance just 4 hours ago on his Facebook page with the short message you see below.
これからGamescomに参加するため、ドイツに向けて出発します！それにしても今、朝の6時…眠い…。
I’m going to Germany for Gamescom!
Iizuka has been very busy attending events around the world all year celebrating Sonic the Hedgehog’s 20th Anniversary and it doesn’t look like he’s going to stop anytime soon. We told you last week that SEGA will be going to Gamescom and will be designing their booth in the style of Green Hill Zone from the first Sonic the Hedgehog game on Mega Drive/Genesis. Attendees will be able to go hands-on with both console and handheld versions of Sonic Generations and Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games at the event, too.
Now we have to wonder if Iizuka is attending just to help SEGA with the Sonic 20th Anniversary celebrations and to do the usual interview rounds, or does he have some Sonic announcements to make? I guess we’ll find out this week.
Gamescom will run from 17th-21st August at the Koelnmesse in Cologne, Germany.
Source: Takashi Iizuka’s Facebook page
ONM’s Full Fan Interview With Takashi Iizuka
Following August 5th’s portion of an ONM interview with Sonic Team head Takashi Iizuksa regarding pleasing fans of the older Sonic titles, the magazine has posted up the full interview on their website. The interview is made up of questions from fans about the Nintendo 3DS version of Sonic Generations, but as is the norm so far for the portable edition, there are not really any new details about the game to share that we haven’t known for a while now. Outside of that, Takashi Iizuka expressed an interest in making titles for Nintendo’s new home console Wii U.
You can read the interview at ONM’s website.
Would you like to see a new Sonic game on Wii U? Let us know in the comments.
Old Sonic Fans ‘hard to please’ Says Iizuka
In a portion of a soon to be published interview with ONM, Sonic Team head Takashi Iizuka has expressed difficulty to please old Sonic fans when creating new Sonic titles. Iizuka says the team are always making efforts to build new gameplay innovations, but they then find it hard to please the fans who prefer the gameplay found in the older games. With Sonic Generations, Iizuka thinks classic fans will find some enjoyment, though, and he says Sonic Team is looking into continuing the Sonic 4 series, too.
Check out the interview quotes below:
“Our team are always trying to present new gameplay innovations so it’s hard to please fans who like the gameplay from the older games,” said Iizuka.
“However, we have included the older gameplay as part of Sonic’s 20th Anniversary, so we think the fans of the older games will enjoy it [Generations] as well. We are also looking into continuing the Sonic 4 series which was released on WiiWare, and we’ll keep developing titles so more fans will enjoy the games.”
Source: ONM
Nintendo Power Sonic Generations 3DS Details
As revealed yesterday, copies of the new issue of Nintendo Power have been delivered to subscribers, which unveil a Nintendo 3DS version of Sonic’s big 20th Anniversary game Sonic Generations. Details from the issue have been shared by Sonic Retro forum member Effexor, and it appears this version of the game will be very unique and not just a port.
Here’s all of the main details:
* The Nintendo 3DS version is being co-developed by Sonic Team and Dimps.
* The director of the 3DS version is Tetsu Katano, who directed Sonic and the Black Knight.
* 2D side-scrolling gameplay for both Classic Sonic and Modern Sonic.
* Momentum based gameplay and platforming are fully featured in the Classic Sonic gameplay.
* Modern Sonic plays a lot like the Sonic Rush games and Nintendo DS version of Sonic Colours.
* Nintendo 3DS version will have exclusive stages and boss stages.
* Green Hill Zone will be the only shared stage in both the HD console version and Nintendo 3DS version.
* Casino Night Zone from Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is confirmed for the Nintendo 3DS version.
* Story has some differences between the console and Nintendo 3DS versions, but will be fundamentally the same.
* Console version will have many characters, but the Nintendo 3DS version will only feature the ones who are integral to the story.
* There is no Wii version. Sonic Team head Takashi Iizuka says this is because “The primary goal for the console versions of Generations was reimagining the series’s classic zones in vivid, high-definition graphics.”
* Sonic the Hedgehog 3‘s Launch Base Zone ‘Big Arm’ boss fight is in the game, which suggests that stage is also in the game.
* Classic Eggman appears in the above mentioned boss.
* Exclusive to the Nintendo 3DS version are challenges that you can unlock via StreetPass or Play Coins.
* The game also features an exclusive two-player race mode via local wireless connection.
* Modern Sonic stages take advantage of the 3D feature more than the Classic Sonic stages. An example shown and detailed is a part in the Green Hill Zone where Modern Sonic smashes through the bottom of a giant totem pole. The camera then moves to the front of Sonic and lets you see the rest of the pole collapse behind Sonic as he escapes.
* The 3D depth is also highlighted when Modern Sonic occasionally moves between the foreground and the background.
* Jun Senoue and his music team are working on the music for the game.
* Nintendo Power thinks the handful of tracks they’ve heard so far are “fantastic”.
* Special Stages are confirmed and are designed in Sonic Heroes style. As expected, you earn Chaos Emeralds from these stages. Whether or not Super Sonic will be your reward for earning all Chaos Emeralds is unclear right now.
For more information, screenshots and interviews with Takashi Iizuka and Jun Senoue, pick up a copy of Nintendo Power when it hits retailers later this week.
Thanks to Blue Blood for the heads up!
Note: Links to scans are not permitted, so please keep them out of the comments section. Any comments with links to scans will be edited/deleted.
Sonic Generations Demo Approved For Australia
Australia’s Classification Board today approved a demo for Sonic’s new PS3 and Xbox 360 title Sonic Generations. The board rated the demo ‘General’, which deems it fit for all audiences to play. With the demo being rated now and the full game not due out until the holiday season later this year, could we be getting to download a sample of the game sooner rather than later?
A demo for Sonic the Hedgehog (2006) was released on Xbox Live Marketplace in September, rather than around the full game’s November release, as with most game’s demos. There’s always the possibility that this could just be a rating for a demo being shown to the press and/or public at various events though, so don’t get your hopes too high.
Sonic’s 20th Birthday is June 23rd and we’re sure a demo release around then would be a welcome surprise for fans.
Source: Australia’s Classification Board (via Siliconera)
New Sonic Generations Gameplay Video Confirms Classic Music
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zmN0Z6GAfj0&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]
Spanish gaming website Meristation has posted a new video interview with Sonic Team head in which he confirms other characters will appear in Sonic Generations, but he wouldn’t say whether they would be playable or limited to the story. Plenty of direct-feed gameplay footage is also included in the video, which confirms the original classic Green Hill Zone music will play during classic Sonic’s stage, while a remix of the same music will play during modern Sonic’s stage.
Source: Meristation
What do you think of the game so far? Share your thoughts in the comments.
Thanks to Ferr at the SSMB for the heads up and to Woun at the SSMB for the YouTube upload!
