Sonic 4 Episode 2

Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode II joins the SEGA Forever mobile lineup

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Remember Sonic 4 Episode II? It’s back, in SEGA Forever form!

Revealed today, the 2012 console and mobile game Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode II has joined the SEGA Forever mobile lineup. The updated release makes the game free to play, with ads, or $1.99 to remove ads. The Episode Metal DLC, once only unlocked if you owned both Sonic 4 episodes on the same platform, is now unlocked from the start.

Prior to its original release, fans were cautious of Sonic 4 Episode II following the release of Sonic 4 Episode I. But upon playing it, the second episode was seen as a marked improvement over the first episode. Physics were more in line with what was expected from a 2D Sonic game, stages and bosses were more creative, bosses were better and the addition of Metal Sonic (and tie-in to the recently rereleased Taxman and Stealth version of Sonic CD) was fun.

If you want to play the SEGA Forever version of the game, simply check the stores for your iOS and Android devices!

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The Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Island Finally Has A Name

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Sonic the Hedgehog 4 has been previewed, played, reviewed, picked apart, dissected and a whole host of other actions. We’re not here today to do any of those things. This article isn’t about how Sonic 4 Episodes I & II played or the behind-the-scenes politics of how the game came about. This article is about how a few fans with too much time on their hands bothered SEGA enough about silly little details.

Way back in 2010, SEGA revealed Sonic the Hedgehog 4, and speculation ran rampant. How would it play? How would it tie to Sonic 3 & Knuckles? Could we expect a Sonic 4 Happy Meal? These and many more questions were asked. Now, six years later, many of those questions have been answered and with the upcoming Sonic Mania, fans are looking towards the future while Sonic 4 Episodes I & II remain in the past. But one little question has always gone unanswered, and that question is “What is the name of the island in Sonic 4?”. Following the game’s release, I reached out to SEGA for an answer, but I came back with just a few names of the bosses from Episode II. We tried again last year in an interview with Aaron Webber, but aside from his own head canon answer there was no apparent official name.

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Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episodes I & II hitting Xbox One backwards compatibility today

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Larry Hryb aka Major Nelson of Microsoft announced via Twitter that Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode I & Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode II would be hitting Xbox One Backward Compatibility today, meaning you can play the Xbox 360 games on your Xbox One. The recent additions means that Xbox One owners can now play the original Sonic SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive games as well as Sonic CD and the Sonic 4 duology on their Xbox One… as they truly imagined it! For as much flack as the Sonic 4 games get, they’re worth checking out – especially Episode II and Episode Metal.

Then again, with Sonic’s anniversary party tomorrow, we just may see a game announcement that is so amazing it wipes Sonic 4 from our memories (let’s hope!).

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Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode 1 for iPhone and iPod Touch receives graphical update

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Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode 1, that highly controversial 2D episodic game that has since released to just about every platform, has received a long overdue graphical update for the iPhone and iPod Touch version of the game. When Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode 1 first released, there were several different versions out there. Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 received the version of the game with the best graphics and sound while the Wii version was a step below, with less than stellar graphics and sound. Below that was the iPhone and iPod Touch version which not only featured very blocky graphics, but also had stages that existed before SEGA overhauled the game and did away with the mine cart and pinball machine levels. SEGA marketed these as “2 EXCLUSIVE LEVELS!!!”, but savvy fans knew that SEGA likely just didn’t have the time or resources to retool the mobile versions as they did the console versions.

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Xbox LIVE for 360 has huge SEGA sale going on!

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This week is as good a time as ever to save some cash on some great SEGA titles available at a super cheap price for the Xbox 360. SEGA’s got a huge sale on this week on Xbox LIVE for some of their biggest titles such as Sonic and All Stars Racing Transformed, Virtua Fighter 5 FS, Hell Yeah and lots more. Plus, you can save as much as 75% off! Click below to see the super low prices on these great titles. (Geez, I’m starting to sound like an ad)

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IMPORTANT UPDATE! SEGA’s video game ports on Amazon’s Fire TV are a bit disappointing

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IMPORTANT UPDATE: It ends up the Ouya controller WAS the problem of my control woes as I got the Fire Controller from Amazon today and I can say that Crazy Taxi works just fine on it. The drive/reverse buttons are in their proper place and we have brakes! The gas and brakes or on the R and L triggers respectfully, so while still not that comfortable, work much, much better than before. I owe an apology to Sega for blasting their port when it was poor bluetooth controller support that was the main culprit.

Last week, I picked up the new Fire TV as a mini console for my living room. I like the idea of playing some mobile games on a full blown console but sadly, the Ouya just wasn’t what I wanted out in that regard. Fire TV solves that by not only having a ton of video apps, but much more popular mobile games rather than the overload of weak indy games the Ouya consists of. Very fun games like Asphalt 8, Rayman Fiesta Run and Riptide 2 occupy a decent launch library. Those games include some of Sega’s more popular titles. I tried out four of the eight Sega games available and sadly, the porting of those titles from seems to not have gone over as well as hoped. My impressions after the jump.

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SEGA’s launch lineup for Amazon Fire TV

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Amazon’s new Roku/Ouya killer Fire TV was announced yesterday with a lineup of software partners including SEGA themselves. We didn’t really know what the lineup of games were until the system got shipped to the public today. Here’s Sega’s list of games along with their prices.

  • Sonic CD ($2.99)
  • Sonic 1 ($2.99)
  • Sonic 2 ($2.99)
  • Sonic 4 Episode 1 ($3.99)
  • Sonic 4 Episode 2 ($4.99)
  • Crazy Taxi ($4.99)
  • The Cave ($4.99)
  • Virtua Tennis Challenge ($4.99)

Since the Amazon Fire TV doesn’t make use of Google services, some of the games won’t have Google Play Achievements or use Google’s leaderboards. That will also mean that Sonic 2 doesn’t have multiplayer since it used Google’s services. According to Taxman, the developer, Sonic 2 won’t even have a splitscreen mode due to ‘the projects scope’. The Amazon Fire TV is already shipping and you can purchase on here. Gaming controller sold separately.

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Sonic CD & Sonic 4 heading to Ouya

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The Android powered, crowd funded indie console Ouya will be receiving optimized ports of Sonic CD and Sonic 4 Episodes I & II on June 27th, SEGA revealed today. These three games mark the first time SEGA has supported the console, and at the moment these are the only games currently planned for Ouya. When talking to Game Industry.biz, SEGA of America’s director of mobile business David Zemke had this to say about other titles heading to the platform.

“At this time, that’s what we have planned,” he said. “We’re always looking for other titles and there may be some future titles that we’d like to bring over. For us, we’re always trying to bring the best gaming experience to the right platforms. It’s a delicate mix of how and when to do it.”

These games will go on sale for $6.99 each, though it will be possible to download these games for free beforehand and play the first few levels. Will this mark the beginning of wider support from SEGA for the platform? We will just have to wait and see.

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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 Talk #9: Sonic 4 Episode II After Party

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Sadly this episode is a few days late due to E3. But hey, I hope you guys are enjoying all this E3 content that is coming. The main man Ken Balough is back on Sonic Talk this week to talk to us more about Sonic 4: Episode II, now that the game is already out and we all played it, its an interesting talk. Like every week we have your weekly Sonic news, so take a break from all the E3 news and sit back for some Sonic Talk.

[Download]

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Sonic Talk Episode #8: ReDIMPStion

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Welcome to a new episode of Sonic Talk with a subtitle everyone (but me) hates! This week, we talk about the possibility of an Episode 3, F4F’s new Modern Sonic statue, the speed that the summer of Sonic tickets sold, Sonic Universe #40 and why Ian Flynn’s Eggman is the BEST Eggman out here.

After all that, we go into a 1 & 1/2 hour discussion all about Sonic 4 Episode 2. All of us have played it and we give our thoughts on both the game and the Sonic series in general.

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Sonic 4 Episode II launch trailer proclaims “to be concluded…” – Episode III a possibility?

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SEGA has unveiled the launch trailer for Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode II, showing off zones that have yet to be seen in official videos and making the proclamation of “to be concluded…”. So is episode II the end of the Sonic 4 saga? Or will it be concluded with an episode III? I’m assuming they mean once you play episode II, the game is concluded. But seeing as how SEGA likes money, you’d think they wouldn’t be so definite with the end of the episodic releases. Unless Sonic 5 is next…

Update: After watching the Sonic 4 Episode I trailer, I’m now convinced that the Episode II launch trailer actually points towards an Episode III which will act as the conclusion. Episode I’s launch trailer ended with “To Be Continued…”, referring to another episode. So Episode II’s “To Be Concluded…” most likely refers to another episode that will serve as the conclusion.

After the break, all the prices and release dates you could ever want.

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Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode II’s release rollout begins!

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It’s here! Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode II has started to release on the many platforms promised to receive the game. The first to see the game’s release is Steam, the same platform that inadvertently released the game a few weeks back. Those who pre-ordered the game and got the early beta download can now download the completed version. Beta players are reporting that their save file transferred successfully to the new version. American’s on Playstation Network can expect the game to release today. The American XBLA will get the game tomorrow, as will Europeans on XBLA and PSN. Other platforms, such as iOS and other mobile devices, will receive the game between now and July. SEGA has yet to give specific dates. Have you downloaded and played the game? Hit up our forums and share your thoughts! 

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Take a peek at Archie’s Sonic 4 Episode 2 comic adaptation

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I’ve really enjoyed Archie’s video game adaptations as of recent, if only because they don’t try to adapt the Archieverse into the story. Sure they’re short and are mainly meant to be ads for the games, but they’re the closest to what I consider to be the ideal Sonic comic book series (this comment is that of Barry the Nomad and not the opinion of SEGAbits). The upcoming Sonic Super Special Magazine #3 will include a special tie-in comic that will take place between Sonic 4 Episode 1 and Episode 2. Courtesy of IGN comes the first two pages of the Sonic 4 Episode 2 story, which kicks off at the end of Episode 1. After the break, check out the pages!

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