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Sonic 2 speeds onto XBLA
There was a time when Sonic the Hedgehog 2 -- now available on Xbox Live Arcade -- was accompanied by much fanfare and bizarre commercials. Alas, that time is gone and we are left only with tiny little announcement posts like this one. Still, the quality of the game hasn't been diminished. Actually, in light of Sonic's more recent console endeavors, the quality may actually have increased. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 improves on the first game in a number of ways. It introduces Sonic's bosom buddy Miles "Tails" Prower, split-screen multiplayer, and Sonic's trademark spin dash. It's definitely one of the best games in the series and worth checking out.
Achievement lists for a bunch of retail and XBLA titles
Over at Xbox 360 Achievements, there are a slew of new Achievements listed for retail and arcade games alike. They have Two Worlds, Skate, which came straight from EA, Fatal Inertia, NHL 08, & Medal of Honor: Airborne. On the XBLA side of things, there is the cheaper of the two Arcade games that came out today, Space Giraffe, Fatal Fury Special and we're especially happy to see Sonic 2 make it there as well. A cool little reveal about Sonic 2 is that it will have online multiplayer, derived from the splitscreen multiplayer found in the Genesis version. So, those are plenty of lists for you to examine for your next target of 1000 or 200 Gamerscore. Retail: Read: Two Worlds Read: skate. Read: Fatal Inertia Read: NHL 08 Read: Medal of Honor: Airborne XBLA: Read: Space Giraffe Read: Fatal Fury Special Read: Sonic 2
VC Friday: Is it sequel day?
Hope you're in the mood for sequels today, because if you're itching for a new retro title, that's what Nintendo's offering up, at least when it comes to Sega. A couple of today's titles were also released in the U.S. this week, which means you can check out the video wrap-up for a little game footage. Also, for some reason the format of the releases on the Nintendo Europe site seems to have changed, so let us know if these costs are not correct -- we're basing this off past VC pricing. Dragon Spirit -- TurboGrafx -- 600 Wii points Ecco: The Tides of Time -- Sega Mega Drive -- 800 Wii points Golden Axe II -- Sega Mega Drive -- 800 Wii points Sonic the Hedgehog 2 -- Sega Mega Drive -- 800 Wii points
Virtual Console adds Sonic 2, Golden Axe 2 and Lode Runner 1
This Virtual Console Monday highlights not only gaming's underlying obsession with golden objects, but our disgusting habit of putting painful puns in paragraphs where they don't belong. Indeed, golden weapons, golden rings and golden nuggets have combined to provide one Au-some selection of retro titles: Lode Runner (NES, 1-2 players, 500 Wii Points): The Runner being some sort of crazed kleptomaniac with a shovel, as best we can tell. Grab the gold, avoid the robots and scream in agony as you plummet into your own hole. Again. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (Genesis, 1-2 players, 800 Wii points): A true platforming classic, Sonic 2 takes the 'hog to space and back. Note: Playing this game may cause the Chemical Plant Zone theme to become permanently lodged in your brain. Golden Axe II (Genesis, 1-2 players, 800 Wii points): With names like Ax-Battler, Tyris-Flare and Gilius Thunderhead, is there any question as to why your band of heroes would need to defeat someone called Dark Guld? We think not.
ESRB: Sonic the Hedgehog 2 rated E for Xbox 360
While not quite as exciting as the news that Lara's latest adventure is coming to the Xbox 360 (in some capacity), the ESRB also let another cat out of its poorly guarded bag today. Well, it's more like a pair of cats. Actually, it's a hedgehog and a two-tailed fox but they're both coming out of that bag with the revelation that Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is destined for not only the Wii's Virtual Console service -- no big surprise there -- but the Xbox 360 as well. We're speculating that the title's co-op gameplay and split-screen races were enough to convince the fat cats at Microsoft that Sonic 2 deserved a plot inside Xbox Live Arcade's walled garden.[Update 6/10/07: Good thing we snagged that screen grab of the ESRB's listing because, whaddya know, the Xbox 360 is no longer listed as an upcoming platform. Thanks for the note, SSUK!]
Sonic 2 prototype now playable
Known only as "drx," some mysterious mage has resurrected a Sonic the Hedgehog 2 prototype cart and promptly dumped it (for emulation). It's an early build of Sega's sequel that's more akin to the first game than to the final version of Sonic 2. Can you spot the differences? It's been suggested that this prototype is the same alpha build that was featured in several episodes of Nick Arcade. Another early build, often referred to as Sonic 2 Beta, was stolen from a toy show in New York back in '92. The cart was pirated and sold as a final version in parts of Asia and Brazil, despite only featuring four semi-playable levels.
Sega to demonstrate Blast Processing on GBA
The anthropomorphically inclined folks at Sega sent out a press release over the weekend reminding us of the great things their spiky blue mascot has accomplished in the 15 years since his debut (quite a lot, actually). Though much of the celebratory confetti is being heaped upon Sonic's forthcoming PS3 and Xbox 360 adventure, Sega is also busting out the nostalgia champagne and pouring the original blast processed game into the GBA's tiny frame. It was this bit of news that implanted a rather disturbing image in our minds -- that of Sonic standing on a dimly lit street corner, slowly inhaling the ill effects of a cigarette and inappropriately adjusting a pair of fishnet stockings that, if we're being completely honest, were never a very good fit to begin with. The $20 GBA version of Sonic the Hedgehog will no doubt be quite alluring to avid hedgehog fans, but we're very interested in seeing how many gamers will actually approach the game with a clean slate. Not having played the game in some form by now is quite a feat, one that requires either an uncanny ability to avoid consoles or an untimely death approximately 20 years ago. If you've been keeping track at all, you would realize that Sonic the Hedgehog is already (and officially) playable on the Genesis, Sega Saturn (via Sonic Jam), Playstation 2, Xbox, Gamecube and PC. Within a few months, you can add the Wii and the Xbox 360 to that list. It's only fair that the GBA gets its share of an absolutely fantastic game, but with an excellent string of Sonic Advance titles under its cap and the excellent Sonic Rush available for its dual-screen sibling, it seems like the least necessary piece. Just like Sega's decision to add Sonic's Spin Dash (from Sonic 2) into the game. That one's going to upset a lot of people (see: "Let's give Mega Man 1 his floor slide!"), though at least they can all take comfort in the fact that Sega resisted the urge to give a hedgehog some Magnums, a controllable vehicle and an Urkel-powered in-your-face attitude. Oh, wait. [Thanks to everyone that sent this in.]
Sonic 2 mobile exclusive to Panasonic P902iS, for now
Sonic Team has announced that Sonic 2 will be going mobile as a preinstalled addition to the Panasonic P902iS cell phone. While a standalone release has not yet been confirmed -- judging from the current success of the original Sonic on the mobile platform -- it would seem to be the next logical step. But for the time being, to get your Sonic 2 fix (on a cell phone) you'll have to purchase the Japanese P902iS when it's released.Anyone else suspicious of the link between 'Sonic' and Pana'sonic.' Think Sonic Team's playing favorites?
