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New 2D, HD Sonic Game Coming In 2010

Posted by Soulskill on from the now-with-more-speeding-pixels dept.

Anonymouse writes "Sonic the Hedgehog is going back to his roots, but with a fresh coat of HD paint. 'An all-new 2D side-scrolling High Definition Sonic game is coming with a 2010 release date, according to a new teaser trailer from Sega.' Sega's Ken Ballough had this to say: 'Old-school Sonic fans have long asked to see Sonic return to a more 2D style of gameplay. Many liked the daytime stages in Unleashed but wanted to see a game that plays purely similar to the early games of the Genesis. Project Needlemouse is that critical first step that brings Sonic back to his 2D roots.'"

11 of 123 comments (clear)

  1. Sonic Cycle by TejWC · · Score: 5, Funny

    Before you get your hopes up, I would like to direct your attention to what is called the Sonic Cycle.

  2. Nice! by maroonhat · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I always thought Sonic's transition to 3d was much less graceful than say, Mario's. Maybe it was the high speed and the weird feel of the Dreamcast controller that made me feel like I was influencing Sonic's motions, not controlling them.

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    The more I learn about Windows the more I am surprised it runs at all
    1. Re:Nice! by Shadow+of+Eternity · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Well mario made sense because he was a slower platformer to begin with and even in 2d had a reasonable amount of exploration already built in (mario3).

      Sonic games... if you look at "maps" of the levels, they're ENORMOUS. Doing that in 3d would be almost impossible so they needed to both slow down sonic and find ways to make you feel like you were going faster and farther than you really were. Thus you get lots of grinding and levels that are basically roads floating in the middle of the air. Since Super Sonic basically went even faster still and was invincible except for crushing and falling into pits he had to go out the window too, it'd be impossible to control or map for and remove their carefully planned interruptions.

      Going back to 2d and not on a handheld means there's a chance to get those looooong levels that aren't based on "haha didn't see that coming" tiny screen cheap shots and grinding/rocketing/whatevering level gimmicks back. Along with hopefully the old emerald system.

      --
      A bullet may have your name on it but splash damage is addressed "To whom it may concern."
    2. Re:Nice! by Freaky+Spook · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Sonic's transition to 3D was the same as NBA Jam, confusing and everything that was fun about the game got lost in translation.

      It's good to see it going back to 2D, heaps of 2D Xbox live games have proved to be a huge success with a HD touch up, this should be the same.

      Now all we need is them to do NBA Jam TE in HD and I'll be a very happy person.

    3. Re:Nice! by SlashdotOgre · · Score: 3, Interesting

      I have to agree, although personally I don't think we need to throw 3D all the way out. Something along the lines of what Capcom did with Street Fighter IV would be pretty awesome. I've said it before, and will say it again. I wish these classic series would start sticking to their roots. When will companies realize it's not in their best interest to reinvent the wheel when it comes to classic series? I'm dying for modern remakes of several classic titles (Raiden, Gunstar Heroes, Radiant Silvergun, etc.), and I'm confident that doing them 2D is not only the cheaper approach, but will lead to the superior product.

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  3. A list of what not to include by Haoie · · Score: 5, Insightful

    -Every character except Sonic, Tales, and Knuckles
    -Clumsy, overbearing storyline
    -Rail grinding
    -Furries

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    If each mistake being made is a new one, then progress is being made.
  4. Yeah, right. by Perseid · · Score: 4, Insightful

    This is Sega making a Sonic game in the 21st century. You just KNOW they're going to find some way to fuck it up. It's company policy.

  5. Re:Finally... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Interesting

    This gives me the opportunity to ask about something that I've always had trouble finding info about... cart pulls.

    A cart pull is when you yank one cartridge out, put another one in, and hit reset, based on the fact that the Genesis does not wipe RAM when you hit reset, and some games did not initialize all variables properly. This aspect is well-known in that Sonic 1 lets you get the first chaos emerald, hit reset, play from the beginning of the game until getting a chaos emerald (which will be the second), hit reset, repeat until you have all the emeralds, then play the game straight through without worrying about the special stages (or using level select to jump to scrap brain and just playing the end of the game).

    I read about cart pulls in some gamer magazines back in the 90s. The only problem is I've found almost no references to the subject on the Internet, leading me to believe it could have been just a well-organized April Fools joke by several magazines. However, the sources I have found on the Internet have all looked legit, even giving a few examples...

    Any Genesis history buffs care to answer this for me?

  6. Re:Finally... by Z80a · · Score: 3, Informative

    something like this?

    http://www.sega-16.com/feature_page.php?id=38&title=Cart-Swapping%20Tricks:%20Cheating%20at%20Your%20Own%20Risk

    i seen they do that trick with rambo III once, but never performed it myself.

  7. Re:Let me guess by Lord+Byron+II · · Score: 3, Insightful

    $60 for a good game. Who cares if it's 2D or 3D? Or if it takes 12 hours or 120 hours?

    If your definition of a good game is being 3D and taking forever to complete, then I have a copy of Superman 64 I'd like to sell you.

  8. Re:About time! by TheGreenNuke · · Score: 4, Funny

    Screw Linux, I just want Sonic to open up a Drive-in in the North East close to where I live. I'm sick of seeing their ads with no Sonic within 60 miles, and then its only one, next closest is over 100 miles away, in a different direction.