Author Archives: Barry

Let’s evaluate the Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed track roster, shall we?

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Three months until the release of Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed, and there is still a lot we don’t know. What racers have we yet to see? How does the vehicle mod system work? Is Cream the Rabbit somewhere in the game? Thankfully, we’re not completely in the dark, as Sumo Digital and SEGA have revealed quite a bit since the game’s announcement. I thought I’d write up a short article collecting all we know of the game’s track roster. What has been announced, what has yet to be announced and what SEGA eras are getting represented? After the break, we’ll answer those questions! But not the one about Cream, sorry.

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Hell Yeah! Wrath of the Dead Rabbit gets priced and dated

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The SEGA Blog has revealed the price and release date of Arkedo Studio’s digital title Hell Yeah! Wrath of the Dead Rabbit, published by SEGA. The game will be available to download in North America on September 25 for PlayStation Network, September 26 on Xbox LIVE Arcade, and October 3 for PC digital download for $14.99/1200MSP/$14.99 respectively. In Europe, the game will be available for all three platforms on October 3 for 1200MSP/£9.99/€12.99/AUD$19.95.

After the break, check out the new trailer and “box art”.

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Sumo Digital: We’ve revealed all the Sonic characters we’re going to reveal

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Sumo Digital’s Steve Lycett shared a bit of good news (or bad news, depending on who you are) at the official SEGA forums regarding additional Sonic characters as playable racers in Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed. Steve aka S0L said:

*Dons flameproof suit*

I don’t consider this a deconfirm, but we’ve revealed all the Sonic characters we’re going to reveal that are considered playable.

*Waits for fire to start*

This means that the playable racing roster will be containing no more than seven Sonic characters: Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Eggman, Metal Sonic and Shadow. Interestingly, none of the characters are from post-2001. Also, the roster contains the complete Sonic Drift roster, a near complete Sonic Drift 2 roster (replacing Fang for Shadow) and a near complete Sonic R roster (Tails Doll, Metal Knuckles and Egg Robo are absent and Super Sonic appears as Sonic’s All-Star Move). Steve’s mention of “all the Sonic characters we’re going to reveal that are considered playable” seems to imply we might see other characters by way of NPCs, stickers and vehicle upgrades. Fingers crossed for an Omochao paint scheme. Fans of Big the Cat will notice his absence, but think of it this way: the loss of Big makes the first All-Stars Racing game all the more special.

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Wait! Don’t update Sonic 4 Episode 1 iOS yet!

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Those with iOS devices like the iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch know all about the tempting little update notification that appears on the App Store icon. That little red number stating the number of apps with new updates is often a treat. Perhaps some bugs have been fixed, or new stages have been added to your favorite games. Well in the case of Sonic 4 Episode 1, the latest update deletes the players progress! So before you read on, make sure you’re not about to press that “UPDATE” button for the game, at least if you’re playing on iPod Touch and iPhone. The update itself seems to fix some bugs and improve stability, though I haven’t noticed any difference outside of a Sonic 4 Episode 2 ad that popped up the first time I opened the app. I haven’t seen the ad since, so it may be a one time thing. I did lose my progress, but I knew full well I might and updated anyway for the sake of this article. SEGA has yet to comment on the update, but hopefully an update to the update brings back the save file or a revised update appears that saves those who have yet to download the update. More updates on the update when we’re… updated.

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SEGA says to Disney: “Make my Eggman grow!”

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Rich Moore, director of many classic The Simpsons episodes and director of Disney’s Wreck-It Ralph, shared a funny SEGA anecdote while being interviewed by IGN:

“We did have kind of a check-in process, where we would show them the footage and say, ‘What do you think? Is it good?’ At one point, [Nintendo] said, ‘Bowser’s much bigger than that. He’s way bigger than Zangief.’ We were like, ‘Okay, we’ll make him bigger. How’s that?’ They’d say, ‘Yes, that’s good — but he wouldn’t drink his coffee like that. He wouldn’t make that mouth.’ [Laughs] Of course, then people from Sega said, ‘Well, Doctor Robotnik is bigger.’ [Laughs] They wanted their characters bigger and bigger. We were going to end up with these giants in a room, with Ralph as this little guy… But I think that stuff really helped. I looked back on our original animation before the Nintendo notes, and it was like, ‘You know, he does look more like Bowser now.'”

You can read the full interview over at IGN, though this is the only SEGA mention.

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Sonic 4 Episode II True Blue Initiative video goes live

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When Sonic 4 Episode I released, the SEGA Blog did something quite controversial: they rewarded those who bought more than one version of the game. The nerve! It’s one thing to offer the game on multiple platforms, but it’s quite another thing to reward those who decide to spend their own money on more than one version of the game. The community team is at it again. For Sonic 4 Episode II the offer was: buy two or more versions of the game and get a mention in a video. Buy four or more versions of the game and get a mention and a Sonic 4 Episode II poster signed by those from SEGA of America who worked on the game. Seeing as we here at SEGAbits are true blue, and we like to hear the community team say our name, we sent in our digital receipts and got a mention at 56 seconds into the video. Kellie thanks the site and the entire SEGAbits crew. Thanks Kellie! SEGAbits forum member Kori, who maintains the Website of the Dead, gets a mention in the poster tier. Did your name get a mention? Sound off below.

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Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed Bonus Edition appears on Amazon

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Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk have updated their product pages for Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed with prices, mention of a “World Tour” mode as well as a Bonus Edition. The 360, PS3, 3DS and Vita versions are listed as being a “bonus edition” of the game, but no mention is made as to what that bonus is. Given that the games are listed as “out of stock”, and pre-orders have yet to open, don’t expect a reveal of the bonus until the game is available for pre-order. The price for the 360 and PS3 version is currently $39.99, $10 less than the first All-Stars Racing game. The Vita and 3DS versions are priced at $29.99. As for World Tour mode, this is most likely the story mode in which you island hop and unlock racers. The Wii U version has yet to appear on Amazon, but a listing for it has appeared at Game.co.uk for £49.99.

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SEGA in the Media: “MANOS – The Hands of Fate” fan game pays homage to Alex Kidd

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Fans of MST3K, bad movies and early 80’s film to game adaptations should really check out the iOS game MANOS – The Hands of Fate. Based on a movie that many consider to be the worst ever made, ranked #4 on the IMDb bottom 100, Manos is an 80’s inspired platformer with numerous homages to both classic games and bad b-movies. SEGA fans should recognize the death animation, in which the player turns into a transparent ghost and flies upwards. This, according to the game’s developer, was an homage to the Master System’s Alex Kidd in Miracle World. Nice to see the Master System getting some homages, the Master is pleased.

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Sumo Digital clarifies the All-Stars Racing Transformed roster… again!

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Sumo Digital has yet again commented on the number of racers found in Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed. This time it was Steve Lycett, also known as S0L, leaving a comment on the SEGA forums. Steve stated that over all the various platforms, there are 29 playable choices. However, no platform has all 29. Some platforms have rosters in the low 20’s, others have rosters in the high 20’s. Steve went on to state “Playable choices doesn’t necessarily equal drivers either. Not as we’re talking passengers or hood ornaments, counting those would indeed be cheap, but you know this is game all about transformation, we are doing things with the vehicles that we’ve not shown you, that are going to really surprise you.” Overall, some very cryptic stuff! Steve should really try out for the role of Gollum, because he is quite good at riddles. After the break, more from Steve as well as an assessment of his comments.

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Zavvi product description reveals new All-Stars Racing Transformed gameplay details

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With the release of Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed just four months away, online retailers have started listing the game and revealing new tidbits within the product descriptions. Zavvi has listed the game, and treats potential buyers to a rather lengthy write up that borders on being a full on article. While the product description does not reveal new racers or tracks, it does detail the game’s many modes and expands on things mentioned in past interviews. After the break, a handy bulleted list of the info as well as the full description.

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The Weekly Five: Why Dreamcast fans should be playing Gunlord

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The indie Dreamcast game Gunlord from NG:DEV.TEAM has been out for less than a month, and while I’m sure many fans of indie Dreamcast titles have picked it up and are enjoying it, there are always those who are still on the fence and are either waiting to hear more opinions or for a price drop. I’m sure there are also those who have their Dreamcast stashed away in a closet and need a reason to dig it out. In this week’s Weekly Five I thought I’d share five reasons why Gunlord is worthy of a Dreamcast fan’s collection.

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“Oh, alright!” exclaims SEGA as they reverse their decision on Gamescom

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Okay, so SEGA didn’t really exclaim anything, but they have started to send out invites to a behind closed doors event at the German gaming expo. Back in May we reported that they were not attending the show, due to the release timing of their 2012 titles not lining up with the event (whatever that means). But now SEGA has reversed this decision, as they will be there even if it may be only in a behind closed doors capacity. Possible titles on show include Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed, Aliens: Colonial Marines and Total War: Rome II. Who knows, they might even reveal a public event in the coming weeks. If they do, we’ll let you know.

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Say it ain’t Joe! Shinobi track coming to All-Stars Transformed?

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Courtesy of Kori from The Website of the Dead comes a photo from the title screen of Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed, taken at SEGA’s Arcade during Comic Con. Kori claims that this is a yet to be announced Shinobi track, and we can definitely see the resemblance to Joe’s 16-bit adventures. Sumo Digital has said that tracks will be selected, at least in the story mode, via an world map of floating islands. Each island represents a track, and this island looks very Shinobi themed. What do you all think? Is Joe getting a track to call home?

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Sonic the Hedgehog to cameo in Disney’s Wreck-It Ralph

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We’ve known of Eggman’s cameo in the upcoming Disney movie Wreck-It Ralph, as well as a few other SEGA cameos, but what about SEGA’s mascot Sonic the Hedgehog? At the Comic Con Wreck-It Ralph panel it was revealed that Sonic will in fact appear in the movie by way of a PSA warning video game characters that if they die in a game that is not their own, they will not regenerate and will cease to exist permanently. No word on who will be voicing Sonic, or if he will be speaking at all, but fingers crossed for Roger Craig Smith. It would just be odd to hear yet another voice coming from Sonic. I’d assume that the proper voice would be something SEGA would require when using the character, given it’s their brand and not Disney’s. Wreck-It Ralph, along with a slew of retro and modern video game characters, hits theaters this November in the US.

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