Let’s level here for a second–if you’re a Sonic fan in any capacity whatsoever, you’ve heard of Sonic CD, the tried-and-true cult classic of the original Sonic “trilogy,” as it were. Released in 1993 for the SEGA Mega CD, spearheaded by Sonic’s original character designer Naoto Ohshima and developed by a completely different team than the first Sonic the Hedgehog game, the game has received wildly mixed views as both the best and worst Sonic game–and in some cases, platformer in general–of all time. Sporting surreal and immersive environments, a heavy focus on puzzles and exploration and an absolutely killer soundtrack overseas (courtesy of the collective genius that is Masafumi Ogata and Naofumi Hataya), Sonic CD stands out in a lot of ways from virtually every Sonic title that came after it. This is likely due to the fact that game designer Hirokazu Yasuhara had no involvement in it whatsoever, contrary to the original Sonic and the two sequels that followed it. Still, love it or hate it, Sonic CD has left a longstanding impact on those who played it–both good and bad.
Monthly Archives
December 2011
SEGA of Japan’s official Sonic Generations website has updated with a mini site for the Sonic Generations Original Sound Track, which is set to release on January 11 of 2012. The Soundtrack, titled “Blue Blur”, spans three discs and has over 75 tracks. The track listing is as follows:
On the fifth day of Christmas, Retro gave to me…
…the Korean opening to Sonic Christmas Blast.
Now, I’m sure everyone here has seen the animated special Sonic Christmas Blast at least once in their life. Produced after Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog and the Saturday morning series ended, it is most definitely a continuation of the first, although the pink version of Princess Sally shows up. Sure, she doesn’t talk, but she shows up!
Originally named An X-Tremely Sonic Christmas, it was retitled to match the Sonic game that was actually coming out in 1996. And to be honest, it’s worth watching just because of how insane it is. How often do you get to see Robotnik dressed up as Santa, anyway? The video above is the intro to the special, but as you’ve probably come to notice, it’s in Korean. And while we don’t have a translation just yet, the lyrics definitely are about Sonic the Hedgehog. And Christmas.
[Source: slimer via #retro via naver.com]
On the fourth day of Christmas, Retro gave to me…
…a Christmas story done by Archie Comics.
Now, last year when I started reading the Fleetway Christmas comics, I must admit a small corner of my mind was tickled by the concept. I mean, the idea of the Christmas special isn’t something new. We’ve all seen Charlie Brown buy the saddest tree in existence. We’ve watched the Grinch steal Christmas at least 40 times. And who knows how many times we’ve been forced to watch It’s A Wonderful Life? Now, what all these share is that they are just moments in time, and are always repeated but never changed. Sonic the Comic, on the other hand, tried to make it a yearly tradition to always come up with something new to usher in the holiday season. That’s when a small part of me wondered aloud, “Why didn’t Archie ever do anything like this? They’re a comic book, too!”
So when I started my game adaptation reviews, I was floored to see that, indeed, they had done a Christmas special. One that I completely forgot about.
On the third day of Christmas, Retro gave to me…
…a huge poster scan of Sonic the Hedgehog.
Now, we’ve all seen the cover to the Sonic the Hedgehog promotional comic that came out back in 1991 in the United States. Drawn in that very familiar American artstyle…well, you can argue the pros and cons of how he ended up looking. Either way, you can’t dismiss the fact the image is iconic. But since the most common scan of that cover has a very large crease in the middle, and the fact that it’s a comic book cover so it automatically has all sorts of text and icons scattered about, there hasn’t been any super huge awesome clean scan of it.
Courtesy of Sonic Retro member jlmcr87, this has all changed. Possessing the poster version of the image (which means no text save the Sonic the Hedgehog and Sega logos), you can now download it at the extreme resolution of 4905 x 6956. That’s suitable for framing! If you have the means, you can make a print and hang it in your house, just in time for your most recent Christmas party. Imagine how your guests will swoon over your wall! It could very well be the best Christmas ever. Just go ahead and click on the image above to get the extreme version. Just be wary of the file size. Might not be such a good idea for you to try and view it on your iPhone.
On the second day of Christmas, Retro gave to me…
…the return of Fleetway’s Christmas Sonic comics.
For those who were around last year, you may remember that I started to go through the Christmas issues of the U.K. Sonic the Comic series by Fleetway. I only got through two articles before I realized I didn’t have much time before Christmas, and while I said I was going to do them after…well, this is still after, right? For those who need a refresher course, the Fleetway series was the comic book Europe was able to read, based on the storyline Sega of America came up with about Dr. Ovi Kintobor and the R.O.C.C. Fellow Retro staff member Overlord has been going through how the comic handled its game adaptations, but I called the Christmas issues long ago. So with apologies to the English, I continue on with the third and final part of the series, taking a look at issue 145 to see how Sonic spent his Christmas on the other side of the pond.
Y-You don’t? Well I can’t blame you. After all, it was one of those schemes from the higher ups of Sega who were ready to capitalize on the popularity of their new flagship console of the 90’s. Competing with the CD-Rom technology of the PC Engine, and to attempt to stay above the rest of the competition, Sega was ready to stay among the pioneers of the uncharted fathoms of a disc-based medium. While not as successful as the Core system, the Sega Mega CD still acts as a milestone of game development that would bring the game industry it’s future, today. The add-on brought upon innovative gameplay, political controversy, expanded the possibilities of sound, graphics, storytelling, and of course helped with the transition of a cartridge based format to compact disc as a storage medium. Without a doubt there should be a buzz of excitement around the upcoming re-release of Sonic CD despite not actually coming out on a CD based consumer format. What a shame! On the bright side this is a good of time as any to highlight the add-on’s history and to show that it was more than just ‘The Sonic CD add-on.’
A lot of you have no doubt been enjoying the fruits of The Taxman’s labor now that Sonic CD for Everything is out (we know we certainly have) and we can only hope you’re also spreading the love to those around you that, yes, Sonic CD is not too shabby a game.
But one of the most endearing traits from the game is that the music, be it the American or International version, is catchy as hell! So when I get linked to a remix of the music from the game, you bet I take a listen and every now and then am pleasantly surprised to find one awesome remix, such as the one above by youtuber mattj2217.
Of course, matt’s not the only one to have put together Will Smith’s rapping talents with a Sonic CD song. Enter the Fresh Prince.
Over the past few weeks or so, we here at Sonic Retro have been imploring our userbase to buy the new Sonic CD for Everything this holiday season–not so much because it’s a good game (and don’t get me wrong, it’s fantastic!), but because we really want to support the concept behind the release. From having a port done with care to having one of our own doing the work to paying attention to lesser-known titles, Sonic CD, this release is kind of a big deal.
By financially supporting these sorts of releases, it sends a very clear message to Sega that we want to see more things done right and by awesome people. If the game sells a million copies, for instance, it shows that licensing the Retro Engine is more financially advantageous than just slapping a hq3x emulated version up for sale. It shows that people are willing to support adding features to a port to give it new life. It shows that we’re not all dicks who pirate everything and just have a bone to pick.
Beyond that, though, it lets people who may mock the Sonic series see that yes, there were legitimately good games that made us all fans. Odds are if you read a site as shall we say, dedicated, as Sonic Retro, you’re pretty read up on video games. Your real-world friends know you as that gamer gal or guy. So this season, we want you to share the love.
Give your family, friends, and loved ones who are into video games a copy of Sonic CD. Let your girlfriend see what the big deal about platformers is by getting a copy for her iPhone. Give your FPS-loving bros a copy over XBLA or PSN to show them that the franchise isn’t all Shadow the Hedgehog and the 2006 Sonic the Hedgehog. Call up your childhood friends who you played Sonic 2 and S3K two-player mode with and let them relive the nostalgia with a Steam gift of Sonic CD.
“But Scarred Sun,” you say, “I need to buy Sonic CD, too!”
Well, duh, of course you do. But we’re willing to help you out there. Because it is always more fulfilling to give than to get, we want to give you copies of Sonic CD this holiday season–that’s why we’ve bought a dozen copies to give to our users. We want to hear your stories of giving Sonic CD to others; in return, we’ll pick the best entries and gift you a copy over Steam for your own account (sorry XBLA/PSN people–we haven’t found a way to just gift you the correct amount for the game or else we’d go that path as well.) Leave your story in the comments, and if we hear anything particular heart-touching/funny/nostalgia-y, we’ll hook you up so you can get a copy on Day One of the Steam release.
Besides, there’s nothing wrong with being evangelical about one of the best Sonic titles ever produced. Happy holidays!
On the first day of Christmas, Retro gave to me…
…yes, I’m doing this again. But really, why not? Last year I stumbled into the whole thing and didn’t do all twelve days. And yes, I am quite aware that the real “12 Days of Christmas” actually start on the 25th and continue on. But let’s be honest here. Who actually wants to read about Christmas-related anything after the 25th? I know I don’t. At that point, all you really want to do is try and survive until New Years. So with that said…oh wait, what is Retro giving you? I mean, Sega’s giving you Sonic CD. That’s gonna be way more awesome than anything we can throw out. Or can it?!
…no, Sonic CD is definitely way more awesome.
To be honest, I have no idea who Yoshi1up is, but back for Christmas 2008, he decided to come up with a little animation for Newgrounds called “Sonic: Christmas Greeting.” So what better way to kick off twelve days of nonsense and merriment than to throw up something that has Miles “Tails” Prower go absolutely mental?
…so here we go. 12 days of this. I promise some of these will be way longer.