Monthly Archives

December 2011

Game News, Interviews

Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 2 Officially Announced, Return of the Teaser

So, the wait is finally over. Well, the wait for the wait. Exclusively on Gamespot, Sega PR man Ken Balough has decided to sit down and finally talk about the game we all knew was coming at some point: Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 2. Yes, there is a teaser trailer. No, there’s no gameplay footage. But you should watch it anyway, if only to see Ken Balough’s face.

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Miscellaneous

Sonic Generations Now On Sale for About 10 Bucks On Steam

Steam has had one of their big sales again since last week. These sales are known for having great deals for a lot of games, and Sonic Generations is no exception. As one of today’s deals the PC version is now 66% off, meaning you can get it for $10.19 during the next 27 hours. After this the game will still be on sale but only for 25% off until January 2nd. Other Sonic games on sale until that date are Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing and Sonic Adventure DX for both 50% off.

The Casino Night pinball stage should also be released as downloadable content later today on the Steam service. An update for the game also just got released, but there are no details on what changes to the game were made. Though according to users on the Steam forum it made the framerate issues in Chemical Plant Zone less noticeable.

Miscellaneous

Twelve Days of Sonic Retro Christmas 2011 Edition: Day 12

On the twelfth day of Christmas, Retro gave to me…

Once again, Christmas is upon us. By the time you read this, more than likely you’ve already opened up whatever was hiding under the tree, and are now wasting time until you’re forced to go see even more family to reminisce about Christmases of the past. For while Christmas is about giving gifts in an act of kindness to others, it is also about reflection. To look back on the year to think of the highs and the lows, to smile at the memories you created that you will cherish for a lifetime, to remember the ones we’ve lost when we shouldn’t have. The elements that make us who we are, and will hopefully make us wiser come the new year.

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Humor, Miscellaneous

12 Days of Sonic Retro Christmas 2011: Day 11

On the eleventh day of Christmas, Retro gave to me…

…a bunch of videos of kids on Christmas.

So it’s Christmas Eve. Things are winding down, with last minute shopping and Christmas dinner being concocted. If you’re a kid, you won’t sleep tonight, wondering just what Santa got you for Christmas this year. I try to keep myself hip with the kids, with all their electronic gadgets and whatnot, but I don’t know what the hottest toy of the season is. But as a kid of the 90’s, there was only one item you wanted under the tree. That one box, covered in a Sega logo, that would send you into a crazed frenzy. While it may have been a very long time since anyone has gotten this excited over anything Sega related, let us take a look back to Christmases long, long ago, when the Sega Seal of Quality was still around…

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Fan Works, Humor

12 Days of Sonic Retro Christmas 2011: Day 10

On the tenth day of Christmas, Retro gave to me…

…some fanmade Sonic Christmas specials. Yep.

By now, we’re all familiar with the officially licensed Sonic the Hedgehog Christmas stories, even if you’ve only heard of them on the front page. Sonic Christmas Blast. The numerous Sonic the Comic tales. Sonic’s interpretation of A Christmas Carol. That hasn’t stopped some fans from trying to create their own Sonic holiday specials, which all have their own spin to them. They’re definitely not everyone’s cup of tea, and I’m sure more than a few people are going to go “why is this on Retro.” But you know what? It’s the holiday season, and what’s Christmas without some extremely cheesy Christmas specials?

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Merchandise

12 Days of Sonic Retro Christmas 2011: Day 9

On the ninth day of Christmas, Retro gave to me…

…a look at Christmas swag you can’t buy anymore.

We’re hitting the home stretch here. Christmas is only in a few short days, so its quite possible that you’re reading this article on the go, looking for a gift for that special someone. Each store you enter is covered in Christmas, shelves strewn about with an ever-shrinking stock.

One thing that always confused me even as a child, however, was the amount of Christmas-themed gifts. If you’re a kid on Christmas day opening up presents, the last thing I’d think you’d want is something that has Santa Claus on it. Sure, you can use it the day you get it, but what are you going to do afterwards? Are you going to wear a Christmas sweater come July? I don’t think so.

But I guess it’d be forgivable if Sonic was involved.

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Game News

Here’s a Bit of Sonic 4 News

There’s been a bit of news regarding Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode 1 and 2 these past couple of days. First of all, Ken Balough has dropped a hint about the second episode on the official SEGA forums:

If you’re an Episode II fan
I would go back to where the Sonic 4 Campaign first began
In a month filled with presents and Christmas hams
think of the day, the HMS Warrior first swam

If my sources are correct, the HMS Warrior first set sail on December 29th, so it looks like we may see something new on that date.

The second bit of news is that a new version of Episode 1 is now available for the iPad on the app store, which has a better model of Sonic than in the iPhone version but still has the dreaded minecart and pinball stages. A screenshot of this version taken by Guess Who from the forums can be seen above. Also, a couple of months ago the game appeared on the Steam registry, meaning it will also be released for PC on digital download services like Steam or Direct2Drive.

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Miscellaneous

12 Days of Sonic Retro Christmas 2011: Day 8

On the eighth day of Christmas, Retro gave to me…

…Sega’s Christmas push of 1990.

I know that I’m a bit late with this, but hey. It’s Christmastime give me some slack. It’s not like I’m charge of Sega of America or anything.

It’s easy to forget, but there was an era of Sega before Sonic the Hedgehog. They were still in the business of making video games, they just didn’t have that killer app yet that would put them over the top. That didn’t mean they weren’t trying, though. As the Good Morning America clip above shows, they were giving it their all. Sure, it wasn’t enough that year, but the next? Oh ma’am.

Either way, it is a nice look into the very early days of the 16-bit console wars. I wonder how merry Tom Kalinske‘s Christmas was that year. After all, he was the president of the Sega Genesis…

Miscellaneous

12 Days of Sonic Retro Christmas 2011: Day 7

On the seventh day of Christmas, Retro gave to me…

Sonic the Sketchhog: The Retro Review

Now, we’ve seen a number of big releases this year. Sonic Generations. The Sonic the Hedgehog CD remake. But there is one release that has been pretty much ignored here on the front page of Retro, aside from a small blurb about when it was announced. Before the two big releases, iPhone/iTouch/iPad users got an entirely different game to waste the time away. It might not have been the biggest, most in-depth game, and it’s true that it doesn’t have a whole lot to do with Christmas. But you know what? I’m not going to let that stop me. I’m already running late on this, so we here at Retro are going to give you another review for your money’s worth.

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Humor, Miscellaneous

12 Days of Sonic Retro Christmas 2011: Day 6

On the sixth day of Christmas, Retro gave to me…

…some videos that make me want to go the store.

Let’s be perfectly honest here: while we may love Sonic the Hedgehog and Sega as a whole, at the end of the day they are a business, which means they want to sell the public something. It certainly helps when it’s something we really, really, want, of course. And what better time is more appropriate to dwell on consumerism than Christmas? We all know that people buy the most around the holiday season, so why wouldn’t you want to try and advertise the world of Sega while visions of sugarplums dance in your head?

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