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All Articles: Sonic Mania
Sega unveils Team Sonic Racing comic and final episode of Sonic Mania Adventures at Comic-Con 2018
Earlier this week, we were promised that Sega had several Sonic-related announcements to make at the mascot’s San Diego Comic-Con panel, “Sonic the Hedgehog’s Way Past Cool Panel.”
In addition to releasing the final mini-episode of Sonic Mania Adventures (which you can find after the break), Sega and IDW Publishing announced that a special Team Sonic Racing comic will be released this October. According to IDW’s official website, the one-shot story will be written by Caleb Goellner (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), with art by longtime Sonic the Hedgehog artist Adam Bryce Thomas:
Sonic and his teammates Knuckles and Tails journey to a new planet and enter a race unlike any other! With a little help from friends like Amy Rose, Big the Cat, and a few other familiar faces, Sonic must race to prevent an old foe from obtaining a powerful new technology in this story by writer Caleb Goellner (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) and longtime Sonic The Hedgehog artist Adam Bryce Thomas.
“I’m so stoked to write Sonic! It’s been a dream of mine ever since my dad surprised me with my first Sonic comic in ’92, so I can’t wait for fans to take this issue for a Spin Dash,” says Caleb Goellner. “It’s been an honor to be on a team working to deliver an issue that’s as fun to read as Team Sonic Racing is to play.”
The Team Sonic Racing game will be available for the PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One sometime this Fall/Winter. And Sonic Mania Plus is available now for the same four platforms. (more…)
Posted in Etcetera, News, PC, PS4, Switch, Xbox One
Tagged Comic-Con 2018, Sonic Mania, Team Sonic Racing
New Retail Releases: Sonic Mania Plus, Adventure Time: Pirates of the Enchiridion, Tempest 4000, More
Gotta go fast… to get your first look at this week’s new retail releases.
Sega is bringing Sonic Mania to retail stores this week as Sonic Mania Plus for the PS4, Switch, and Xbox One. The side-scrolling homage to Sonic’s 90s heyday is a beautiful mix of new and old, and Sega is enhancing the package with new characters, an Encore Mode, and a 32-page artbook.
Also available to purchase this week for the PS4, Switch, and Xbox One is Adventure Time: Pirates of the Enchiridion, which sends Finn, Jake, BMO, and Marceline on a pirate-themed adventure across the Land of Ooo.
But speaking of retro resurrections, Atari is bringing the tube shooter to the PS4 and Xbox One this week with the release of Tempest 4000. Original designer Jeff Minter returns to provide more trippy visuals and intense shooting action.
And finally this week, NIS America will launch Touhou Genso Wanderer Reloaded for the PS4 and Switch. This “definitive edition” of the roguelike dungeon-crawler will include “a ton of new content” for Reimu Hakurei to discover on her adventure.
That’s all for now, but we’ll be back later this week with a look at all the new additions to the PlayStation Store, Xbox Games Store, and Nintendo eShop.
Posted in News, PS4, Switch, Xbox One
Tagged Sonic Mania, Touhou Genso Wanderer
Sonic Mania Plus will be available on store shelves (with bonus content) this Summer
Sega is planning a retail re-release for Sonic Mania, and players who have yet to purchase the side-scrolling platformer will be able to purchase the upgraded Sonic Mania Plus package this Summer for the PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
Announced at the SXSW Gaming Expo (and via Twitter), Sonic Mania Plus will include an artbook and a Genesis-themed reversible cover, as well as new in-game content including remixed levels in an Encore Mode, a four-player Competition Mode, and two additional playable characters (Mighty the Armadillo and Ray the Flying Squirrel). All these extra goodies will push the game’s price to $29.99, a $10 premium over the currently-available downloadable edition.
But fans who already own Sonic Mania will be able to purchase all the new in-game content as a downloadable expansion.
Xbox Store Today: Agents of Mayhem, Conan Exiles, Sonic Mania, more
The future and the past collide in today’s Xbox Games Store update with three new games for the Xbox One…
First up is Volition’s Agents of Mayhem, an open world parody of the superhero boom. Players will protect the city of Seoul and do battle with the evil LEGION. Along the way they’ll crack jokes in Volition’s signature style and playfully mock Saturday morning cartoons as well.
Looking back to the past, yet another developer has taken a crack at a video game based on Conan the Barbarian this week. Funcom’s Conan Exiles is now available through the Xbox Game Preview program, and players will be able to fight for survival in an open world based on Robert E. Howard’s Hyborian Age.
Also available to download today is Sonic Mania, the character’s first 2D side-scroller in over five years. Developed by an outside group of indie developers, Sega’s latest Sonic game includes remixed classic levels and new locales for fans to speed through.
You can learn more about all of these games (and the rest of today’s new releases) after the break. (more…)
Posted in News, Xbox One
Tagged Agents of Mayhem, Sonic Mania
PS Store This Week: Agents of Mayhem, Sonic Mania, Undertale, more
It may be Summertime outside, but you wouldn’t know it after this week’s PlayStation Store update.
Today’s biggest new release is Agents of Mayhem, a new open world game for the PS4 from Volition. Set within the same universe as the Saints Row series, Agents of Mayhem will attempt to parody the current crop of superhero films as well as Saturday morning cartoons from the 80s. If you’d prefer to build big, Paradox Interactive will bring Cities: Skylines to the PS4 this week. The city-building sim will allow players to “manage the city of [their] dreams” as they design and build their own metropolis.
Aksys Games will embiggen one of their games this week with a PS4 re-release for Zero Time Dilemma on Friday. Originally released for the Vita last year, this console-ready version of the game will include high definition graphics.
Sega is also going big this week… but they’re doing it by shrinking down. The publisher has enlisted a team of indie developers to create Sonic Mania, a new side-scroller for the PS4 that pays homage to Sonic’s past.
Speaking of indie developers, a slew of teams got the chance to make the PlayStation Store a cozier place this week. PS4 owners can look forward to finding Undertale (also on the Vita), Tokyo 42, Matterfall, Nidhogg 2, and Night Trap: 25th Anniversary Edition on the digital storefront.
Finally this week, Telltale will check in with Jesse and friends in Minecraft: Story Mode Season 2 – Episode 2: Giant Consequences.
You can learn more about all of these titles (and a few other new releases) after the break. (more…)
Posted in News, PS4, Vita
Tagged Agents of Mayhem, Cities: Skylines, Minecraft: Story Mode Season 2, Night Trap, Sonic Mania, Zero Escape Volume 3
Sega releases Opening Animation and Launch Trailer for Sonic Mania ahead of tomorrow’s release
Sonic the Hedgehog is going 16-bit in his next adventure, Sonic Mania, and the retro-inspired platformer will be available to download for the PS4, Switch, and Xbox One on August 15. To celebrate this momentous occasion, Sega has unveiled the game’s Opening Animation (directed by Tyson Hesse) and a brand-new Launch Trailer.
Unfortunately, the publisher also announced (via Twitter) that Sonic Mania’s PC release has been pushed back to August 29 for “polish”:
Hi everyone,
In Sonic Mania, quality and attention to detail are some of the most important things for our team. We accept nothing but the best for Sonic Mania, and that’s why we want to spend a little more time to polish the PC version of the game’s release, which we plan to complete by August 29th. All other platforms (PS4, XB1, Switch) will still on August 15th as planned.
We know you’re all super excited to play the game on PC, and as a thank you to everyone has purchased the PC Collector’s Editon, pre-purchased the game on Steam, we will be unlocking Sonic 1 for free on your Steam accounts on August 15th. If you already own Sonic 1 on Steam, you’ll be given a gitable version that you can trade or send to a friend.
On behalf of everyone involved with Sonic Mania – thank you very much for your patience. We can’t wait for you to get your hands on Sonic Mania soon, and we hope you enjoy playing it as much as our teams enjoyed making it!
– Aaron
But in the meantime, be sure to check out Sonic Mania’s Opening Animation and Launch Trailer after the break. (more…)
Nintendo Download: Flip Wars, Severed, Sonic Mania (Tuesday), more
Nintendo has made the Switch a very indie-friendly place to be since the console’s launch in March, but things are getting even friendlier with this week’s Nintendo eShop update…
Flip Wars, that adorable tile-flipping game from the Switch’s first Nindies Showcase, is now available to download. Up to four players will attempt to push out their friends by grabbing powerups and flipping tiles in local, online, or single-player battles.
Also available to download this week is Severed, the wild touchscreen-based dungeon crawler from DrinkBox Studios. Severed was originally released for the Vita, Wii U, and DS in 2016, and it can only be played using the Switch’s Handheld Mode.
Elsewhere on the Switch eShop, console owners will find Phantom Trigger, a neon-fused hack and slash from TinyBuild; and Ironcast, a turn-based strategy game from Ripstone.
Finally this week, Sega will release the indie-inspired Sonic Mania for the Switch on Tuesday, August 15. Developed by a “supergroup” of indie developers lead by Christian “Taxman” Whitehead and Simon “Headcannon” Thomley, Sonic Mania will take the Blue Blur back to his 16-bit roots.
You can learn more about all of these titles (and a few other new releases) after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News, Switch, Wii U
Tagged Sonic Mania
Sega and Atlus announced their E3 2017 lineup
Sega originally acquired Atlus in 2013, but the two companies continued to operate separately in the years that followed. But they’ve been growing closer in 2017, and this year’s E3 Expo marks the first time that Sega and Atlus are presenting a joint booth to the industry.
As you might expect, the Sega half of the booth will be anchored by Sonic the Hedgehog… more specifically, this Summer’s Sonic Mania and this Fall’s Sonic Forces. Both games will share space with two upcoming Yakuza games (Yakuza 6: The Song of Life and Yakuza Kiwami), as well as Total War: Warhammer II and a bevy of Atlus-branded RPGs.
“We’re really pleased to see Yakuza and Sonic back on the biggest stage for video games, and having the first public hands-on for Total War: Warhammer II underlines a really strong showing from Sega and Atlus this year,” said John Clark, the Senior Vice President for Sega Europe. “We look forward to welcoming trade visitors but we’re especially looking forward to having the public come and see our line-up this year, it’s great for E3 and it’s great for publishers. We’re confident there’s something for everyone on the Sega stands this year.”
The 2017 E3 Expo opens its doors this Tuesday, June 13, and you can find Atlus and Sega’s full lineup after the break. (more…)