We did it. Sonic is finally dead.
At least in the context of this year’s April Fools from SEGA. To celebrate April 1st, SEGA has released a murder mystery game in which players solve Sonic’s murder. Titled The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog, the game is free to download and play right now on PC and Mac platforms! Check it out and let us know what you think of the game in the comments below.
Sonic Origins Plus is due out just in time for Sonic’s 32nd anniversary and developer Headcannon, a software development and publishing business founded and run by Simon Thomley, is confirmed to be working on the updated release. Headcannon famously worked with Christian Whitehead on Sonic Mania, and Headcannon worked alongside SEGA on Sonic Origins last year. However, upon the game’s release Headcannon was not shy in criticizing some of the game’s bugs and performance issues.
Sonic appearing in other Sonic Team games was a highlight of the Dreamcast era, so it was delightful to see the press release from SEGA this morning revealing that Sonic himself will be making a cameo in the upcoming Nintendo Switch exclusive Samba de Amigo: Party Central! Sonic and City Escape will play host to Amigo and his friends as players shake it to two songs from the Sonic franchise: “Escape From the City” from Sonic Adventure 2 and “Fist Bump” from Sonic Forces. Check out the screenshot above and check the press release after the break! We wish SEGA sent a video clip too, but this is the best we can offer.
SEGA has officially announced Sonic Origins Plus, which is an expanded physical release as well as digital upgrade for existing owners of the game. The compilation adds 12 Game Gear games, adds Amy Rose as a playable character in all four Genesis/Mega Drive and SEGA CD titles and adds Knuckles to Sonic CD. Also included will be all previously released DLC as well as a 20-page art book and reversible cover which features a SEGA Genesis design. The collection will be up for pre-order soon on PlayStation 5 and 4, Nintendo Switch and Xbox consoles. After the break, check out the press release and some screenshots!
On this SEGA News Bits Live, Barry takes a look at leaked Sonic Origins Plus news and reviews the latest update to Sonic Frontiers. On the unboxing segment, Burger King’s new Sonic kid’s meal toys are detailed and Shadow finally is a juice bottle.
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Last year, SEGA promised three waves of free Sonic Frontiers DLC content, and the first wave entitled “Sights, Sounds, and Speed” is set for release on Wednesday, March 22 at 5:00 p.m. PDT / 8:00 p.m. EDT across PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, the Nintendo Switch family of systems and Steam. The update will include the following:
New Challenge Modes – After completing the main story campaign, players can access new challenge modes – Cyber Space Challenge and Battle Rush – via the title screen. The Cyber Space Challenge is a time-attack mode where players will compete against the clock to complete multiple Cyber Space stages in a row. Additionally, Sonic Frontiers will offer Battle Rush, a timed-battle mode where you fight multiple enemies, Guardians and Titans in one go.
Photo Mode – To capture memories of their time on the Starfall Islands, players can open the pause menu to access Photo Mode, which will pause gameplay and bring up a camera that is freely moveable.
Jukebox – Players can listen to their favorite Sonic songs all throughout the Starfall Islands with the new Jukebox. With 53 song tracks available, players will have instant access to 13 songs, and can unlock the remaining 40 songs by collecting Sound Memories on each island.
Two additional waves of content are expected for later this year, promising new features, challenges, playable characters and more. Given wave two has content specific to Sonic’s anniversary, a late June release is possible though not yet confirmed by SEGA. After the break, check out a gallery of screens for the content update!
On this EGGellent EGGpisode of the SEGGA Talk Podcast we will dive YOLK first into Elemental Gimmick Gear, a unique action RPG by a small unknown developer named Birthday. We will look at how a small egg model became a full blown Dreamcast cult classic!
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Thanks to the folks at Retro-Bit, I was able to get my hands on their newest SEGA controller offerings: The BIG6 line of SEGA Genesis arcade pads. If you’ve followed retro gaming news you’d know that in the past ten years there has been great advancements in technology to improve the quality of life for fans of classic games. We’ve seen everything from flash cartridges to full on modern rebuilds of classic hardware, and on the controller end we’ve seen various companies and fan funded initiatives set out to improve button mapping, battery life, wireless efficiency or just create crazy controller hybrids. With the BIG6 line of controllers from Retro-Bit, the company has done all these things and in turn created a product I never knew I wanted and one I now cannot live without.
SEGAbits and the Swingin’ Report Show podcast both turn 13 years old this month, making SEGAbits the oldest American SEGA fan site and the Swingin’ Report Show the longest running SEGA fan podcast! Celebrate with Swingin’ Report Show All-Stars Barry, George and Aki as we discuss Like A Dragon: Ishin! and Samba de Amigo: Party Central.
On this episode we dive back into the illusionary world of Mickey Mouse, this time being teamed up with Donald Duck in the World of Illusion! We take a look at this multiplayer take on the Mickey Illusion gameplay, and… do you know SEGA? Watch and find out!
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2023 is certainly shaping up to be the year of the Like A Dragon franchise, formerly the Yakuza franchise, with Like a Dragon: Ishin! releasing this week. SEGA has provided fans with a launch trailer, which you can watch above.
Former SEGA Senior Director of International Product Development and Localization Sam Mullen, who had worked on a bulk of the Yakuza/Like A Dragon franchise as it released to the West, shared his thoughts on the road to Ishin! on Twitter which are well worth a read. Since Twitter is not a very good place for archiving information, we’ve screencaptured Sam’s thoughts. After the break, information about the release platforms and Digital Deluxe Edition content.
Have you picked up Like a Dragon: Ishin!? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
Everybody loves a good dump, especially when it comes to ROMs. Twitter user @iamamazing100 has announced that a rare English version of the 1993 arcade game SegaSonic Cosmo Fighter has been dumped and is now publicly available online. The game is not playable just yet, as it must be added to MAME, however @iamamazing100 has shared the audio files which showcase a very funny Superman style voice for Sonic the Hedgehog as well as Eggman’s voice, which oddly is more befitting for Sonic. It’s great to see that after 30 years we still are seeing new old Sonic content being uncovered!
Once the game is playable on MAME, we’ll be sure to news it!
The teaser site for the mystery SEGA game has unlocked, and as expected it is a follow-up to the original NAOMI arcade and Dreamcast game Cosmic Smash. Titled C-Smash VRS, the game is a VR reimagining of the original game and is set to release on the PlayStation VR2. A demo will be made available on March 23, 2023 and at the moment it is unknown if the game will remain digital or if a physical release is in the works.
A rating for Sonic Origins Plus has appeared on The Game Rating and Administration Committee of Korea website, potentially leaking the existence of an enhanced and expanded (and possibly physical) rerelease of last year’s Sonic Origins. Fans knew something has been in the works for the game, as various updates have been in the approval stages behind-the-scenes with nothing publicly released as of yet. Following the release of the digital-only retro compilation, SEGA sent out various surveys asking players to share their thoughts on the game and what sort of additions they’d like to see in a future update.
Amigo is BACK in a brand new game, and on this News Bits Live we break down who is behind Samba De Amigo’s return and take a look at past games in the franchise. PLUS, what is Sonic cooking?
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