SEGA has officially announced the release date of Sonic Forces, which is November 7, 2017. What more, there has also been announced Bonus Editions for the PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch and Xbox One featuring a controller skin and in-game add-ons of avatar outfits from SEGA and Atlus games. The costumes include: Jet Set Radio glasses and outfit, Persona 5 mask and outfit, Puyo Puyo hat, Super Monkey Ball ears and outfit and NiGHTS hat and outfit.
The SEGA Forever lineup expanded today with the SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive version of Golden Axe, available free-to-play now on iOS and Android devices. Like Ristar, this release features improved emulation, new screen modes, customizable controls and controller support. As an iPhone 7 owner, the game plays much better than the first wave of SEGA Forever titles. No doubt helped by the improvements to the emulator. It’s a shame this isn’t the superior arcade version, as I would love to eventually see the excellent Golden Axe: The Revenge of Death Adder.
SEGA’s remake of the original classic that kicked off the popular Yakuza franchise, titled Yakuza Kiwami, releases today in the Americas and Europe for the PlayStation 4! To celebrate, SEGA has released a special launch trailer which can be seen above. As mentioned in the SEGAbits review, Yakuza Kiwami improves on the original game in almost all aspects and features additional plot points, includes the option to save anywhere and is the first time the game can be heard in Japanese outside of Japan.
[UPDATE] The official Sonic the Hedgehog channel has released a new video of the tag gameplay, seen above. After the break, check out the Japanese stream video.
[UPDATE 2] New screens after the break!
With Sonic Mania released to the masses (well, aside from the PC version) Sonic Forces details have begun to release via Famitsu and Gamescon, and while I expect something from SEGA of America soon, I didn’t want to pass up newsing the new mode revealed for the game. In addition to Classic Sonic, Modern Sonic and the Custom Hero the game will include a Tag mode where players control both Modern Sonic and the Custom Hero, giving players the opportunity to see their creation running alongside Sonic.
At the moment, only a Modern Sonic team-up is confirmed, no word on Classic teaming with the Custom Hero. The Tag mode allows players to use both Sonic and Custom Hero’s abilities, meaning you can speed and boost like Sonic, and use the Wispons. Also, as seen in the video after the break, the duo will have the opportunity to fist bump into a special boost mode in which the vocal theme Fist Bump plays. If you’d like a peek at the controls, take a look at this Twitter post. Nothing too revealing, but it’s worth checking out.
Other details revealed include confirmation that Sonic Forces will be at Tokyo Game Show with special guests and new content and, as confirmed by SEGA, Sonic Forces is set to release November 9th, 2017 in Japan.
SEGA has released a new trailer showing off various aspects of Yakuza 6: The Song Of Life gameplay. Take a look at how cutscenes will play out, epic in-game brawls, menu systems and mini games.
In Yakuza 6, Kazuma Kiryu will find out exactly how much people are willing to sacrifice for family – be those ties through blood or bond – when he investigates a series of shadowy events that involve the ones he holds closest to his heart. Fresh out of a three-year prison sentence, an older and weathered Kiryu comes to find out that his surrogate daughter, Haruka, has gone missing from the orphanage he looks after. The trail leads him to his old stomping grounds in Kamurocho, where he discovers that she has been struck by a car and now lies in a coma. To make matters worse, Kiryu learns that Haruka now has a son that he must look after. With baby in hand, Kiryu journeys to the seaside town of Onomichi, Hiroshima to unravel the truth about Haruka, her son, and a sinister secret that the Hiroshima yakuza are harboring.
Yakuza 6: The Song Of Life is now available to pre-order in two impressive launch editions. The Yakuza 6: The Song Of Life After hours Premium Edition comes with an art book, two drinking glasses, whiskey cubes, coasters and a collector’s box for $89.99. The Yakuza 6: The Song of Life Standard Edition, meanwhile, comes with an abridged art book which doubles as the game case and sells for $59.99. Both are available to pre-order now and release March 20, 2018.
I have no doubt that many reviews released today for Sonic Mania, releasing August 15 to the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch and releasing August 29 to PC, will chart the ups and downs of the Sonic franchise, make mention of the recent Sonic Boom games, and make the assertion that Sonic has not been good for a long time. I also have no doubt that reviews like my own will smugly mention such reviews in an attempt to show how I’m coming at Sonic Mania from a more educated and informed place. Really, I just wanted an intro paragraph and now that that’s done we can get to what we’re all here for: my review of Sonic Mania!
Atlus has announced that Etrian Odyssey V: Beyond the Myth releases October 17 in the Americas, and as previously revealed Etrian Odyssey V: Beyond the Myth will have a launch day edition which will include extras like a physical 24-page art book, six-track CD and a outer box to hold all your goodies including the game. Amazon has the game for pre-order, if you have Amazon Prime the game will cost you $31.99.
In addition to the release date, Atlus has released a new trailer showcasing the Fencer and included the following description:
It just wouldn’t be smart to traverse the Yggdrasil tree without someone who is pretty handy with a blade, so why not have an Earthlain Fencer watch your back when exploring? The Fencer is master of both rapier and shield, and let’s just say that during fights they really like to get straight to the point. Quick on their feet, Fencers excel at evasion, stabbing, initiating defensive buffs, stabbing, chaining together attacks with other party members, and stabbing. They can further specialize in their agility by sacrificing unnecessary equipment for speed or go all in with their swordsmanship to become a whirlwind of pain.
SEGA has announced a new Sonic Mania feature that many classic fans are sure to love: Competition Mode! Players will be able to take on their friends as Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles with the winner determined by different factors: clear time, score, number of items acquired, number of rings acquired when clearing the level, and total number of rings acquired throughout the level. Rules can be adjusted via changing the available items in item boxes and the number of rounds.
Sonic Mania has fast become the most hotly anticipated Sonic the Hedgehog games in years, in large part because it is not only the return of classic Sonic but also the return to the graphics and gameplay that made the series so popular in the early to mid 1990s. While Sonic Mania is releasing to all major modern platforms, the development team has described the game as Saturn-esque with several fans taking things a step further and declaring Sonic Mania the Sonic Saturn game we never got but always wanted.
While we won’t actually be seeing Sonic Mania on the SEGA Saturn or the Mega Drive/Genesis, that hasn’t stopped fans from creating their own custom box art that can be printed out, trimmed and applied to an old Saturn or Mega Drive/Genesis case of your choosing! After the break, check out the fan made box art we’ve found online and in the comments share your own custom box art.
SEGA has released new information about the upcoming Sonic Mania by way of a new trailer showing off the special stages, bonus stage and time attack mode. Special stages see the players chasing down enemy UFOs to obtain those precious Chaos Emeralds. As revealed at Comic Con, the spheres give the players an added speed boost.
Via Sonic Paradise comes news (that we’re labeling as rumor for now simply because it has not been officially announced) that Sonic Forces will have a Day One edition featuring avatar costume DLC. The information comes from Amazon.es and XtraLife listings. The avatar accessories consist of wearables from SEGA franchises which include Jet Set Radio, NiGHTS into Dreams, Super Monkey Ball and Puyo-Puyo Tetris. The pre-order notes that there are six items, but only lists four franchises, so my guess is that some franchises have more accessories than others in order to pull off the desired costume. Super Monkey Ball, for example, might just be Aiai’s shirt. The Day One edition also appears to include four postcards with concept art from the game.
DLC from other SEGA franchises is not new to the Sonic series, as Sonic Lost World included NiGHTS DLC when it first released. More info as we hear it!
Steven Spielberg’s upcoming film Ready Player One, based on the novel by Ernest Cline, had a new trailer released for Comic Con and man does it try to outdo Roger Rabbit and Wreck-It Ralph in the cameo department. While the scale of cameos isn’t huge, they sure are all over the map. Viewers have spotted The Iron Giant, Deadpool, Harley Quinn, Gandalf, the DeLorean time machine and other pop culture easter eggs (with many news sites inaccurately reporting it’s all 80s pop culture nostalgia). Being a SEGA fan site, I frame-by-framed the trailer and found a SEGA reference so that SEGA in the Media may live on!
At the 1:40 mark a futuristic red motorcycle appears sporting several stickers including the Atari and Taito logos as well as Hello Kitty and the SEGA logo. Who knows what other references to SEGA the movie will have, but this is a good sign that there could be more. After the break, check out a screengrab of the SEGA sticker.
Penguin Random House continues to announce books today with the reveal of an adult coloring book titled SEGA: The Official Coloring Book. The description reads as follows: “Altered Beast, Golden Axe, Streets of Rage, Sonic the Hedgehog, and more—all intricately illustrated in this adult coloring book packed with original Sega art. With stunning pages to color, plus all the best action from the classic gaming system, this retro-themed adult coloring book is perfect for any creative gaming fan. Filled with 96 pages of original designs, it will be like you’re playing Altered Beast for the very first time. Power up!”
Sounds great, but you know what is REALLY awesome? All the art is from longtime Archie Sonic the Hedgehog artist Patrick Spaziante. As you can see from the cover, the art is first rate and will surely be a lot of fun to color. Or keep untouched on your shelf, if you are a collector like me. The book is now available to pre-order and is set to release October 17, 2017.
I’ve long had a soft spot for the Sonic the Hedgehog kids books of the 90s, from the look and finds to the junior novelizations. Penguin Random House have just announced three new Sonic books and all three are now available to pre-order! All three books are due out March 6, 2018. After the break, check out full descriptions of the books. I’m especially interested in the junior novelization featuring short stories and color illustrations.
If there are two things I love, it’s weird food promotions and Sonic the Hedgehog. So when those two combine, I’m a very happy man (hey, I even made a YouTube series dedicated to such things). Jones Soda, creator of delicious and decidedly weird sodas, has teamed with SEGA to release Sonic, Tails and Knuckles inspired beverages to promote Sonic Mania. TheLimited Edition Sonic Mania Jones Soda bottles are currently exclusive to Comic Con, but comments on their Facebook demanding a wide release have been met with Jones Soda replying “stay tuned”. It is worth noting that Jones Soda has a robust online store, so perhaps an online exclusive is in the works? As for the flavors themselves, we have Sonic Blue Bubblegum Soda, Tails Orange Cream Soda and Knuckles Strawberry Lime Soda. If you are attending Comic Con, swing by the Futurism Pavilion at the Omni for a chance to win some.
Too bad Jones Soda didn’t release an Eggman Scrambled Eggs Soda. Hey, the company has already made Robin’s Egg Lemonade soda and Egg Nog soda!
