Stealth

SEGA announces “End of Service” for Sonic the Hedgehog 1 & 2 for Apple and Android devices

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SEGA has announced an “End of Service” for the 2013 remasters of Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic the Hedgehog 2, available on Apple and Android devices. The remasters got a lot of attention when revealed back in 2013, namely because prominent fan game developers Christian Whitehead (“Taxman”) and Simon Thomley (“Stealth”) were behind the remasters. The two would go on to develop Sonic Mania, which no doubt was a gig they earned thanks to their work on the 2013 remasters.

The remasters were so good that many (myself included) see them as the best way to play the games, even beating out their reissues in Sonic Origins and the M2 versions released on Nintendo platforms. Heck, they were named our favorite SEGA games of 2013! Fans might be having deja vu as SEGA delisted Sonic CD and Sonic 4 Episodes 1&2 in May 2025. 

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[UPDATE] SEGA delisting Sonic 1, 2, 3 & Knuckles and CD from digital storefronts on May 20th

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Update: SEGA Forever has clarified that the mobile ports of Sonic 1, 2 and CD will remain!
SEGA of Japan’s Sonic Channel further clarifies that the following titles will be delisted: Xbox 360: Sonic 1, 2, 3, & Knuckles; PS Now: Sonic 1; PS3: Sonic 1, 2; Steam: Sonic 1, 2, 3 & Knuckles. The Sonic CD port appears to be spared, though given this is the Japanese site, it is unknown if the US and Europe releases will match this list.

SEGA has announced that in the lead up to Sonic Origins, Sonic games found in the collection will be pulled from digital storefronts. In SEGA’s words:

This will include Sonic the Hedgehog 1, 2, Sonic 3 & Knuckles and Sonic CD. There are a couple of exceptions – Sonic the Hedgehog 1 and 2 will remain available via SEGA AGES on the Nintendo Switch and Sonic the Hedgehog 2 will still be playable via Sega Genesis on Nintendo Switch Online +.

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Sonic the Hedgehog 2 remastered joins the SEGA Forever lineup – Happy Sonic 2sday!

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Happy Sonic 2sday! The beloved sequel to SEGA’s Sonic the Hedgehog turns 25 years old today. To celebrate, the 2013 remastered version of Sonic the Hedgehog 2 from Taxman and Stealth (of Sonic Mania fame) is now free-to-play (ad-supported) on iOS and Android devices. Of course, if you already own the game, you can restore your purchase and wipe away those pesky ads.

This version of the game is excellent, we even named it our favorite SEGA game of 2013, and Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is so beloved that it made the top of our Top 100 SEGA Games list. So if you haven’t tried it yet, now is the perfect time to do so!

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Sonic Mania’s Denuvo DRM has been cracked in just 8 days

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As you might have seen on the interewebs, people weren’t too keen with SEGA’s decision to put Denuvo DRM in Sonic Mania for PC. I think the biggest insult for people was SEGA not mentioning the unpopular DRM on their store page (later updated), only having people purchase the game before finding out Denuvo was included. While I understand that companies are scared of their games being massively pirated, especially a title like Sonic Mania which is only a mere 300mb in size, they got to understand that there isn’t a DRM in the world that will keep pirates out long term. For example, Tekken 7‘s Denuvo DRM was cracked in just four days.

People are hoping that now that pirates have cracked Sonic Mania‘s Denuvo DRM, that SEGA will remove it just due to its unpopularity and the fact that its not solving the issue it was implemented to solve. This is something that RiME developer, Tequila Works did when their game’s DRM was cracked. While I personally wouldn’t even know if the game had Denuvo DRM or not without the internet telling me, especially now with the offline fix, its just a bad PR move to include it in your game and hope its removed sooner than later. In the last eight days of release, Sonic Mania on PC still hasn’t reached 100k sold on Steam. Its getting close. But to ask you guys, do you guys think Sonic Mania’s Denuvo DRM actually helped the game’s sales in the last 8 days or hurt it? Let me know in the comments below.

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SEGA Confirms No DLC Planned for Sonic Mania

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SonicManiaDLCNoThe Sonic Mania fever is spreading online and now that fans have finished the game they want more. I would assume that this is a good sign, you always want gamers that complete your game to want more. Its the sign of a fun, well put together package. While some Sonic Mania fans have been asking for DLC, Sonic Team’s Takashi Iizuka finally came out and confirmed that there isn’t any plans for it. That’s right, Sonic Mania is leaving the potential of DLC cash on the table to deliver a complete package for only $19.99. While some might say, if they really want to be like the olden days, why not a physical release? I’m there with you. I hope Sonic Mania is successful enough digitally (which it looks like it might be) to get a physical release. I mean if Shovel Knight, Rocket League and other smaller published games can do it, so can SEGA.

As for as Sonic Mania DLC, if it where to happen, what would you want the developers to add? Personally sold on the idea of having a playable Metal Sonic, what about you guys? Let us know in the comments below.

[Via: GoNintendo]

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Sonic Mania delayed on PC until August 29th

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If you are unlucky person, such as yours truly, then you will probably have to wait until August 29th to play Sonic Mania. That’s right, Sonic Mania on PC has been delayed until August 29th, all other console versions will launch on August 15th as normal. I guess I will have to purchase the game on consoles, digitally, to play it without it getting spoiled. I’m pretty sure SEGA and the people working on Sonic Mania didn’t want to delay it, its just how game development go.

The news was given out during the Sonic the Hedgehog live stream over at Twitch. Another bit of news was that 26 copies of the Sonic Mania Collectors Edition will be signed by Takashi Iizuka and Kazuyuki Hoshino of Sonic Team. Good luck with that one. Aaron Webber did say that all Sonic Mania PC pre-orders will get Sonic the Hedgehog on steam for free, which happens to be the non-Chrisitan Whitehead remake. It sucks, its nice that they are trying to give out a free game but is it enough? Sound off in the comments, what is your thoughts on Sonic Mania being delayed only on PC?

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See the new Sonic Mania stage Mirage Saloon Zone and Tails & Knuckles in action

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SEGA has granted YouTube channel Kinda Funny Games the exclusive reveal of a new Sonic Mania stage, Mirage Saloon Zone, as well as our first look at Tails and Knuckles in action as well as the Sonic & Tails mode. Interestingly, the new zone is very reminiscent of Desert Dazzle, a scrapped original zone that Taxman had planned to include in the remaster of Sonic CD. There are several easter eggs and fun visuals that can be spotted in the new zone, including a Fang the Sniper wanted poster and pinball flippers that resemble bird heads. We also get a look at the CRT filter which, to be honest, I’m not that big a fan of.

Give the video a watch and in the comments below, sound off on the new zone!

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SEGA News Bits: Sonic Mania Hands On Impressions

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We played Sonic Mania, and now we’re going to tell you what we think! In this SEGA News Bits, George and I (Barry) rest our aching feet just hours after the Sonic the Hedgehog 25th Anniversary Party in San Diego to share our reaction to the Sonic Mania reveal and give our thoughts on how the game plays. Do we have another Sonic 4 on our hands or is Sonic Mania the true successor to Sonic 3 & Knuckles? The answers are obviously “nope!” and “hell yes!” in that order.

Special thanks to Neo Hazard for letting us use his footage, you can check out his channel here! Also, thanks to Bartman for being the one to play the game in our footage. You can find Bartman’s YouTube channel here!

If you enjoyed this episode of the SEGA News Bits, make sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel and never miss an episode!

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Take a look at SEGA’s Sonic Mania press materials

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Friday night in San Diego at Sonic the Hedgehog’s 25th Anniversary Party saw several reveals, most notably being a brand new 2D Sonic game titled Sonic Mania. George and I were there, and we shared our thoughts on the event itself in a recent SEGA News Bits, with more videos from the event to come. Unfortunately, as is the case with being on location, it’s tricky to news things immediately. Thankfully, we had our website designer Will on writing duty posting up stories as soon as they hit.

Now that the dust has settled, I managed to obtain SEGA’s press materials for Sonic Mania to offer our readers some more details on the game. Per the press release, seen in full after the break, the game is confirmed to have select returning zones from Sonic, Sonic 2, Sonic CD, Sonic 3 and Sonic & Knuckles. This is excellent news, as fans of Taxman and Stealth know full well that Sonic 3 & Knuckles has been a tricky title, likely due in large part to rights disputes over the game’s music. But given that these reimagined stages will have newly composed music by Tee Lopes, new music means no issues.

While we knew who was developing the game, the press release also lays things out in a more official capacity stating that SEGA of America is developing the game in collaboration with PagodaWest Games, Christian “Taxman” Whitehead and Simon “Stealth” Thomley (of Headcannon). Also confirmed is that this will only be a digital release, and will hit PS4, Xbox One and PC. While at the event, we did ask if a physical release was in the cards but SEGA representatives sounded very iffy. Perhaps if fans make some noise we might see one? Also, additional platforms are also possible, but none are being talked about at this time.

Check out the press release and screens after the break!

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Sonic Mania (Classic Sonic Game) Announced for PS4/XBOX One/PC

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At Sonic the Hedgehog’s 25th anniversary party a new Sonic game was finally unveiled! This game is called Sonic Mania and it seems to be a remix of past Sonic games and entirely new levels, made by Christian Whitehead aka Taxman, and Stealth.

Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles are all playable and the game comes out in early 2017. It was playable at the Sonic the Hedgehog 25th anniversary event, and will be playable at the upcoming Summer of Sonic. We will update this post when we have more info, in the meantime, enjoy the trailer!

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Celebrating Sonic the Hedgehog’s 25th anniversary with 25 great underrated moments

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sonic 25 headerSEGA’s Sonic the Hedgehog franchise turns 25 today, and while we’ve celebrated franchise milestone years in the past, there is something really special about this one. A quarter of a century is a long time, and it is a testament to SEGA’s perseverance and the devotion of the Sonic fanbase that the franchise is still going strong. Sonic Lost World and the Sonic Boom franchise – particularly the games – are often pinpointed as the franchise’s recent weak points and signs that the franchise as a whole needs to be put down or at the very least take a long break. While I am not here to debate the merits of Sonic Lost World and Sonic Boom, I will say that to end a series or take a long break because of either is both incredibly shortsighted and far too extreme a reaction. I would also argue that Sonic is about much more than just the main series games, as fans like to label the major titles, and that there has always been great Sonic things happening even during the franchise’s darkest years.

In celebration of 25 years of Sonic the Hedgehog, join me in looking back year-by-year as I shine the light on great moments in Sonic history that more people need to be talking about.

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Swingin’ Report Show #76: Interview with Stealth, co-developer of Sonic the Hedgehog 1&2 Remastered

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On this week’s SEGAbits Swingin’ Report Show podcast, we’re joined by Stealth, who worked on the official recent remasterings of Sonic The Hedgehog CD, Sonic The Hedgehog, and Sonic The Hedgehog 2 alongside fellow developer The Taxman.

Stealth talks to us about how the remasters began development, the process of remaking classic Sonic titles, the much talked about the remastered Sonic The Hedgehog 3 proof of concept, and what fans can do to try and make Sonic 3 remastered a reality. Also featured is discussion of Sonic The Hedgehog 4 and the recent decisions SEGA has made with the franchise. If you love classic Sonic games and behind-the-scenes stories of game development, this is the show for you!

Also, Barry and George discuss the recently revealed ToeJam & Earl: Back in the Groove Kickstarter by Greg Johnson (who will be joining us next week) and Sonic Team’s mobile release Sonic Runners, which soft launched yesterday.

Support the Sonic 3 Remastered campaign: http://sonic3remastered.com/


[Download] [RSS] [iTunes] [Archive]

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Regarding Sonic The Hedgehog 3 Remastered – Guest Post by Stealth

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[The following is a guest post about the Sonic 3 Remastered campaign written by Stealth, who with Taxman made the Retro Engine versions of Sonic 1 and 2 which can currently be bought for iOS and Android. They had also made a proof-of-concept of Sonic 3 running in the engine on the iPhone. This was originally posted on Stealth’s own blog, so it’s written in a way you can expect from a post on a personal blog.]

Intro

Before I start, I’ll first say that I’m speaking as an individual, and not on behalf of any other party, team, business entity, etc. As such, I will speak only for and of myself, without regard to other parties who may want to remain uninvolved.

With the exception of the anniversary presentation from October, I’ve remained relatively silent on the subject of remastering Sonic the Hedgehog 3. Naturally, this is expected of me as someone who has already contracted with SEGA, would be a part of the Sonic 3 remastering project, and would potentially perform work under contract for SEGA again in the future, however, I no longer feel that it’s appropriate to maintain near-complete silence in contrast to my own personal feelings as an individual and as a fan of classic Sonic the Hedgehog.

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Taxman and Stealth celebrate Sonic & Knuckles’ 20th anniversary with a Sonic 3 & Knuckles proof of concept

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Today marks the 20th anniversary of SEGA’s Sonic & Knuckles, and to celebrate, Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic the Hedgehog 2 remastered developer Christian Whitehead shared a proof of concept prototype from the Taxman & Stealth personal vaults featuring Sonic 3 & Knuckles running on the Retro Engine. Of course, this is presented unofficially, so don’t jump to the conclusion that a Sonic 3 & Knuckles remastered is on the way anytime soon. Still, awesome to see that they’ve done work on the much requested title, even in an unofficial capacity. The Taxman himself shared this link in Sonic Retro’s forums, stating that “this isn’t an official announcement of any Sega project, nor to we intend to work on this as a fan-project. It’s simply a proof of concept from our vaults that has been kept to our chests for some time.”

You can learn more about the technical side of the project in Stealth’s latest blog post!

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