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Europeans to get steeper next-gen prices
Sorry European gamers, it looks like you'll be getting the short end of the stick yet again.Atari has dropped the skinny about the pricing of some next-gen titles slated for Europe, and it doesn't look pretty. These higher costs probably won't bode well with gamers, but it wouldn't be a shocker to see similar price hikes all around the market. So just how much will Europeans have to pay?Sonic the Hedgehog on PS3 will be available for around 68 euros (that translates to about $87!). World Snooker Championship 2007 is even higher at 73.99 euros, or almost $95. If you thought that the console alone was going to run you up a pretty penny, then you better keep saving because it looks like the games are going to be a steep investment too.
PSP impressions: Sonic Rivals
When I sat down to play Sonic Rivals next to the subway area of the PSP section at E3, I didn't know what to expect. I'm not exactly the biggest fan of Sonic anymore, to be honest, so with the presence of Shadow in the game, to say I was a bit put off is a big understatement. However, I decided to give it a whirl, and immediately after I was glad I did.Sonic Rivals is a homage to the grassroots Sonic of old; it is a mixture of 2D side-scrolling action that takes place in 3D rendered environments. Essentially, the goal of the game, from what little I could gleam from the single level that was playable in the E3 demo build, was to defeat your opponent in a race from Point A to Point B, with your opponent being Shadow and the player taking up control of Sonic. It felt like the old Sonic, however the inclusion of what appeared to be small vaulting pads brought the game to a halt.These pads, which were small and brown, yet noticeable enough on the map, upon being touched would cause Sonic to do a front somersault over them. In timing your pressing of the X button while he slowly vaults, you can shoot Sonic in any direction, with the ultimate goal of sending him down an alternate, and hopefully faster, path. On my second play through of the demo, I nearly avoided every one of these and kept the speed going, however I was bested by Shadow and realized that however mismatched I felt their inclusion was, these pads were neccesary in order to succeed. Without these pads' presence, however, the game played exactly like the Sonic titles of old.
Wii Virtual Console demonstration
For those of you unlucky enough to attend E3 and see it for yourself, a video of the Virtual Console navigation menu and gameplay from Sonic the Hedgehog have made its way onto the net. Also, behold the tiny size of the Virtual Console's gamepad.
E3 booth props from day 2
We have some more images from the show floor that speak volumes about the energy here at E3 (and the money these companies are spending). I've seen more than one attendee make a strange face at some of these, so hope you enjoy.
PS3 impressions: Sonic the Hedgehog
There probably aren't a lot of gamers out there who think about the blue hedgehog and don't have fond memories. The long and short of it are simple: he's come a long way from his grassroots on the Sega Genesis, but Sonic has never looked so good as he does on the PlayStation 3.
First impression: Sonic the Hedgehog
There probably aren't a lot of gamers out there who think about the blue hedgehog and don't have fond memories. The long and short of it are simple: he's come a long way from his grassroots on the Sega Genesis, but Sonic has never looked so good as he does on the PlayStation 3.
Sonic Wildfire for Wii announced
Hours before the Nintendo press conference, set to take place at 9:00 AM PST time today, Sega announced their latest Wii title, Sonic Wildfire. The storyline has an odd literary twist: the last pages from the book Arabian Nights have gone missing, and "it's up to Sonic to re-create the story -- an odd setting, for sure, and we are hoping to see some impressive landscapes and lush oases as backdrop. The Wiimote will be used in a horizontal fashion: "Hold the controller horizontally with two hands and tilt left and right to steer Sonic on different paths and maneuver deftly from obstacles and enemies. Continue to tilt and fling forward to dash-attack ground and air enemies and to break down barriers." With Nintendo's press conference minutes away, we should find out more soon. Stay tuned.
Next-gen Sonic featuring psychic hedgehog action
Mysterious insider on the E3 show floor news now, with the image of a brand new hedgehog character neatly landing in our lap(tops). According to our informant, the next-gen Sonic game, cleverly entitled Sonic the Hedgehog, features 3 different playable characters - Sonic, Shadow and Quicksilver (not his actual name, just us trying to be clever). Sonic and Shadow do the usual running and jumping thing at ludicrous speeds, but the the silver hedgehog seemingly has telekinetic powers, allowing him to deflect missiles and initiate area-clearing blasts with impunity. If he has mind-altering psychic powers to boot, consider us keen to control this guy as he dashes through a lopp. According to the video footage of the Xbox 360 and PS3 game that recently showed up on GameTrailers, the game features everything from controllable vehicles to deranged and twisting level design--just the way we like it. It certainly is a relief to see an all-hedgehog lineup of speedy characters in the game, as opposed to a rabbit, a fruitbat and a llama with obscenely cute dispositions and equally annoying voices.
Yuji Naka confirmed to be leaving Sega to form Prope
Back in March, we heard rumblings that Sega stalwart Yuji Naka was planning to leave Sega to start his own studio. Today, that rumor's been confirmed. According to Next Generation, Naka's new company is called Prope, which means "'beside' and 'near' future." Prope's web site (not linked on Next Gen) apparently explains that the name was chosen "in the hopes of bringing game entertainment much closer to users, establishing closer ties between users and us, and creating near future entertainment." We're just happy that Naka is retaining some ties to his old corporate home thanks to a 10% contribution on Sega's part to prop up the emerging new independent studio (a concept which Sega seems to support with its developers). Unfortunately, as the firm "will commit to new IP," you shouldn't expect updates of Sega classic franchises from the old hand anytime soon. It will also be interesting to see who's guiding the new Sonic games as well. Prope will open for business on June 1st. [Thanks, Sense; via 8-bit Ninja] See also: Rumor: Yuji Naka set to leave Sega NiGHTS Into Dreams, onto Revolution? Next-gen Sonic to be "re-invented" for PS3 and Xbox 360
Sonic the Hedgehog preview
With the 15 year anniversary of the little blue speed-freak fast-approaching, everyone is anxious to see if the unnamed Sonic the Hedgehog title releasing on the PS3 and Xbox 360 can raise the phoenix from the ashes. If screenshots are any indication, the game is on-track to do just that, showing some apocalyptic urban environments housing plenty of rings. In the spirit of finding out more about this game at the upcoming E3, the show where the first glimpses of the game were presented last year, 1up was able to catch a demo of the game and tie it down tightly so that they may scrutinize it for the public, with magnifying glasses in hand. The preview reaffirms that the focus is to be on speed and that there will be no guns for Sonic.
Rumor: Yuji Naka set to leave Sega
Yuji Naka, the original programmer behind Sonic the Hedgehog and arguably the most influential man at Sega (next to Yu Suzuki, of course), is rumored to be leaving Sega.Citing sources "close to Sega," Next Generation claims that the influential leader "is planning to set up his own studio." If true, this action would mirror those of other game industry greats such as Tetsuya Mizuguchi (who founded Q Entertainment) and Hironobu Sakaguchi (who started Mistwalker).Unfortunately, this kind of rumor is difficult to confirm as you don't know for sure whether someone's leaving a developer until he's actually gone. With all the organizational changes at the company, however (especially since Sammy bought Sega), such a move wouldn't be too surprising. We just hope the next-gen sequels to Sonic are in good hands.See also: Next-gen Sonic to be "re-invented" for PS3 and Xbox 360 Rumor: Sonic coming to Revolution DS: Sakaguchi & Co. working on new RPG Lumines sales top gold status
Rumor: Yuji Naka calls it quits with Sega?
The man most responsible for the rumored upcoming Sonic Revolution could be leaving Sega to form his own studio. Being well-known for his contributions to the Sonic franchise in the past and the creative force behind Nights into Dreams..., this could spell disaster for the supposedly upcoming Sonic title. Next-Gen.biz reports: "Next Generation understands Yuji Naka is planning to set up his own studio. It is possible that the new company will be allied with Sega through some financial arrangement, but details are unknown." [Via GoNintendo]
Top 10 most memorable villains
IGN has posted a list that is sure to generate some grumbling. But that's what's to be expected anytime you try to cram the baddest evildoers into a list of ten. Here goes: #10 - Bowser (Super Mario) #9 - Dr. Robotnik (Sonic) #8 - Dracula (Castlevania) #7 - Evil Otto (Berzerk) #6 - Psycho Mantis (MGS) #5 - Kerrigan (Starcraft) #4 - SHODAN (System Shock) #3 - Wesker (Resident Evil) #2 - Sephiroth (FFVII) #1 - The Nazis ("too many games to count") What?! No Ganondorf? Blasphemy. So how does your list compare?
Sonic the Hedgehog coming to PS3 and Xbox 360
Sega has named the first of the Sonic games to come to the next-gen consoles as Sonic the Hedgehog. Not a very imaginative name, but if it ain't broke... A demonstration shown at the Tokyo Game Show confirms previous rumors on the same topic. The director of the game, Masato Nakamura, demonstrated a real time version of the game at the Tokyo Game Show. The new title brings features like Havok physics, real time shadows and ragdoll enemies to the franchise, which will be 15 years old when this game is released. It's come quite a way since the original Genesis version, which lacked moving clouds or rippling water and featured luscious 16-bit graphics. Make sure to check out the super realistic shots of Sonic at the "read" link below.
Next-gen Sonic to be "re-invented" for PS3 and Xbox 360
Sega has been on a roll of sorts over the past few weeks, showing off next-generation arcade games on its new Lindbergh board one day, then revealing a Sonic racing game for the PS2, Xbox, and GameCube (Sonic Riders) that "integrates extreme sports, high-speed racing and head-to-head battles" another. Late Thursday, Sega surprised us again (perhaps not so surprisingly) with the announcement that the next "traditional" Sonic game would be arriving on both the PS3 and the Xbox 360 sometime next year. Yuji Naka will be holding the reins for Sonic's next-gen debut, a "re-invention" of the franchise that will "create the most intense sensation of speed ever experienced in videogames" with "an innovative combination of art, physics and game design." Sega also mentioned when Sonic Riders and Chromehounds-From Software's online-enabled Xbox 360 mech-combat game-would both be released (i.e., winter 2006 and spring 2006, respectively), but I think we all want to know how much more hardcore Sonic's gonna be to show that other, more violent hedgehog Sega's been touting lately who's boss.
Sonic to spin-dash onto the Xbox 360/PS3?
Gamespot has confirmed that Sega has struck a deal with Microsoft and Sony to bring "a classic Sega franchise" to their respective consoles. They've stopped short of announcing that it'll be Sonic, but that's a given since Sonic pretty much defines Sega. I'm glad they've chosen not to tie the deal into one specific console, although the failure to mention Nintendo is worrying. Hopefully other big names in the gaming industry won't forget the Revolution when announcing possible classic game updates. Another thing to think about is whether this could lead to a PSP version of Sonic appearing in the future. If it'll be coming out on Sony's future flagship console, why not it's current handheld? Either way I'll take any chance I can get to kick Doctor Robotnik's ass!
Sonic Rush on the Nintendo DS is two screens of blue
Some people can't get enough of Mario. I can't get enough of Sonic. It's probably the sneer. I've always wanted to sneer like that. Gamespot got their hands on one full level of the upcoming DS title and seem to like it. They note that the 2D look of the game is a lot like the Sonic games of old, with one exception - two screens. While the touch screen isn't utilized in the current build, both windows are used to give the effect of a larger world. Take a look at the screenie to the right for an idea of how that will play out. Good stuff. This one is now on my E3 must-demo list. Stand aside and let the chubby Jewish Scotsman through.
