It’s been a very busy day in the world of Sonic so rather than spamming up my twitter account with post after post I thought I’d amalgamate all that’s been going on into one big post.
First off, Sonic Free Riders has got some box art, and a price, $49.99, a little cheaper than a normal 360 game. Still no release date for it though, making me think it’s not going to be avaliable at launch.
Next we have the announcement that Sonic Adventure will be hitting Xbox live on the 15th of September, that’s two weeks from today folks, I have to say I’m really looking forward to this despite the Big levels, it’s certainly going to be holding site updates the back end of this month.
To finish off we have a bit of sad news, Ben Hurst a writer on the SatAM and Sonic Underground cartoon series passed away a few weeks ago due to complications with diabetes. After writing for Sonic Underground he also helped out the community, appearing at the Sonic Amateur Games Expo in 2005 and 2006. A statement from a good friend of Ben can be found here.
We have been long overdue an update on Sonic 4, and so as promised last week a few more bits have trickled out of SEGA.
Today’s big reveal is Lost Labyrinth, with screens, music, and three new badniks being added to the official UK, US, and Japanese website.
All in all it’s very similar to the Labyrinth Zone from Sonic 1, with a graphical upgrade, not that I’m saying that’s a bad thing, from the screens there appears to be a lot more variety in the environment but the true test will come when we actually see how it plays, hopefully with improvements made from the E3 build.
Right I’m back from Summer of Sonic, and low behold what do I find? A brand new trailer for Sonic Colours, and a release date of November 12th for Europe and November 16th for the US.
I’m impressed the footage seem to show SEGA really pushing the limits of the Wii hardware, really looking forward to seeing it. Plus it has Tails so you know I’m happy.
Well it’s been a busy few weeks in the run up to Summer of Sonic (only two more weeks!) so now seems like as good a time as any to have a run down of the recent announcements of what’s going on there.
Firstly we had the big one, Crush 40 will be there to sing, sign and answer all those questions you have been meaning to ask him for the last decade, so yeah I think that’s enough to get pretty much every Sonic fan in the country there, but what if your one of the ones still on the fence? Well there’s plenty more on offer.
Also present will be Nigel Dobbyn, who will once again be signing and drawing sketchs.
Game demos of almost all the new Sonic games coming soon from SEGA, including Sonic 4, and Sonic colours for the Wii and DS. Oh and an Allstars Racing tournament can’t forget that.
Goodie bags! Filled with Sonic goodness galore including a SOS lanyard, a drawstring bag to hide your merch, a Free comic book day Archie Sonic comic, and a brand new First 4 Figures figure in the form of Metal Sonic.
Now with those kinds of offers how can you resist, and lets not forget this event is completely free entry so all you have to do is sign up for a ticket, but do it quickly as places are going very fast!
In a rather hyped announcement, SEGA & Sonic Team have decided that it’s time for your favourite characters to get a new leash on life with a new voice. Since the large majority of fans are STILL arguing about the previous change this could get into a rather heated debate, however we only know of 3 of the Voice Actors at the moment, namely those you’ll see in Sonic Colours:
SONIC – Roger Craig Smith
With a rather impressive set of characters under his belt including Chris Redfield from RE5, Eizo from Assasins Creed 2 and Seigfried from Soul Calibur, he’s also appeared in a few SEGA games including Valkyria Chronicles.
TAILS – Kate Higgins
Yes Tails has always been voiced by a girl I think, Kate may also be recognised from Valkyria Chronicles, more likely however you know her as Sakura from Naruto, but she is also a rather nice Jazz singer, check out the SOA page for a sample track fo hers.
DR. EGGMAN – Mike Pollock
Not everyone got switched, Mike has done such a sterling job that he’s been kept on, which for one I am very glad about because he has managed to live up to a rather difficult act to follow in Bristow, and surpased it to create an Eggman almost universally loved.
How will this new cast fare? Stay tuned… because we’ve yet to hear them.
IF you hadn’t noticed already it’s June the 23rd which is Sonics Birthday, along with Eggman, Shadow, and Rouge. So let me take a moment to wish the fine hedgehog happy birthday, may you have many more.
Now SEGA not being ones to miss a trick have decided to celebrate today in a very special way, by launching a competition to win a trip to Tokyo to meet Sonic team! What do you have to do to win this magnificent prize? Simply create a video demonstrating how much you love Sonic upload it to youtube and then submit it to the competition page for judging.
Now I’d love to enter this, in fact I’m going to have some excellent material shortly… however I’m not going to be in a position to upload it until after the closing date, (2 weeks time) your chances have just improved massively, so get recording and remember try not to come off too nuts!
Must admit to getting quite excited about this game. It seems to play exactly like Unleashed, just minus the Werehog. While Unleashed wasn’t a terrible game and the daytime stages were indeed excellent, the balance and contrast of Werehog to Sonic levels was a little jarring for most. Let’s hope that what we are seeing is reflective of the majority of the game and that there’s not another Werehog-esque gimmick lurking underneath the shiny exterior, yet to be seen by mortal eyes…
As an added bonus they’ve revealed the song for Sonic Colours, “Reach for the Stars” by Jean Paul Makhlour from Cash Cash.
More news as it becomes available.
EDIT: SOA are bringing out all the details, so go to their flicker accountto see some screenshots of both versions. looks like they are using the Rush series as a base for the DS one.
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