SHQ News - Year 2003

Kikizo just sent me a link to their Sonic Heroes Hand-On: All-Revealed article, which features a ton of new screens, videos, and info. Many stages and bosses are revealed here, so those who want to be surprised may not want to read it.

Bazil at the SonicAnime.net forums has the entire Sonic Heroes soundtrack for download. Keep in mind that the track names listed at this link may contain spoilers.

The webmaster of http://www.johnnygioeli.com/ has made some MP3s of the full versions of the Sonic Heroes themes. You can get them on the Sonic Heroes page.

The official Japanese Sonic Heroes site has updated with some new screenshots, boss and enemy info, 2 new character CGs, and some voice clips on their characters page.

IMO, Sonic, Tails, and Charmy sound better in English, and Omega, Amy, Cream, Big, and especially Rouge sound better in Japanese. Knuckles, Shadow, Vector, and Espio are pretty even.

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #136

Written by Romy Chacon and Ken Penders, art by Ron Lim, Jim Amash, Steven Butler and Nelson Ribeiro.

"The Infiltrator." Sonic looks forward to a well-needed rest after a strenuous, nerve-racking adventure, but gets anything but rest. As he sleeps, his life is in grave danger, and his father, Jules Hedgehog, does what any father would -- at a heavy price. "Knuckles in "Patience." Knuckles decides to disobey the King and take matters into his own hands by freeing Angel Island on his own. Will his lack of patience be his own downfall? "Girl Talk." The latest in a series of tales depicting "Mobius: 25 Years Later" finds Queen Sally and Julie-Su trying to figure out a way for their husbands and kids to get along during an upcoming visit. Easier said than done!

32 pages, $2.19, in stores on April 28.

Source: Comics Continuum

Archie's Sonic The Hedgehog #131 goes on sale in comic shops starting today.

Source: Diamond Comics

The second annual Sonic Comic Convention (SCC or SVTcc as it's commonly called) will take place December 24th, 2003 - less than TWO days away!

"We promised to put on a better show, and I think that's what we're going to do!"

With the re-schedulings that delayed the convention for more than three months, SCC looks like it's finally ready to show it's pretty self off at an end-of-year holiday treat! The future of SCC after 2003 seems secure, however it will be something rather different in 2004.

Sonic Comic Con 2003 (Open December 24th!): www.sonicverseteam.com/comiccon OR www.svtcc.cjb.net

Source: SonicVerse Comics

Presenting a special Christmas issue of Sonic the Comic...

SONIC THE COMIC #228
http://www.stconline.co.uk/

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from the STC Online humes!

New Sonic Heroes info on Stage 6, 5, and the badniks! Read on!
*WARNING : CONTAINS SOME MINOR SPOLERS*

Sonic Heroes Vocal CD

A CD containing the theme songs of the teams from the new upcoming game, as well as bonus tracks from Sonic DX. Released 2/4/2003 (Feb 4th). Spiff.

Source: Sonic Team

THQ has shown the North American box art of Sonic Battle; this may be just tentitive artwork, however.

Sonic Battle boxart

Source: THQ

According to THQ UK, Sonic Battle will be released on the 27th February '04.

On a fairly unrelated note, it appears that Sonic the Hedgehog the Movie (the Sonic Anime) will be re-released on DVD on the 15th December '03 (According to Amazon.co.uk, Play.com et al).

Source: THQ UK (Sonic Battle), Various online retailers (Sonic the Movie)

http://www.sonicanime.net/cgi-bin/yabb//YaBB.cgi?board=sonicx;action=display;num=1071025282

Episode 39: Chaotix Detective Agency

Looks like there will probably be a Sonic Heroes adaptation in Sonic X.

On Sonic Central it lists Sonic Battle for release on Janurary 6th 2004

Source: http://www.sega.com/sonic/

Recent rumors weather SatAM have been airing in Michigan have now been clarified. I contacted FOX33 and heres what they had to say.

"Richard,
Thanks for your email. Nice to know we've been noticed all the way out in California. The Sonic we air is Sonic Underground and just started airing on this station 12/8.
Thanks for asking.
Julia
WFQX/Station Operations"

Oh well, at least its Sonic so that somewhat cool.

ELSPA, the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association, and ComputerAndVideogames.com, the UK’s leading multi-format video games website, today published the results of a unique poll seeking to find the most popular 30 games of the last 30 years.

The top five games voted most popular by the public are: Sonic the Hedgehog, Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Pac-Man, Tomb Raider and Space Invaders.

Go to that link for more infos: http://www.elspa.com/about/pr/pr.asp?mode=view&t=1&id=389&ref=home

It has been announced today via the Associated Press that Sammy will buy a 22.4% stake in Sega, although the reasons behind this decision have not been explained.

Recent talks between the two companies over a merger fell through earlier in the year, as did talks with Namco. Now, Sammy will be required to spend $419 million on purchasing the 22.4% share of Sega.

Financial commentators are already expecting Sammy to launch a takeover bid once their share reaches the required 33%.

-- Andrew Burnes

Source: IGN Cube

New Screenshots of Sonic Heroes and a new preview @ Gamespot

To my suprise today while at the local Best Buy they have a stack of soming attraction DVD's that come free with any Music, Game, or Movie purchase. This DVD has trailer for all types of games and music and movies. Among them is a high quality DVD trailer for Sonic Heroes showing off all the teams and some gameplay. I can make a DVD RIP later.

Sonic battle is now avaliable in Japan.

http://www.sonicteam.com/sonic_battle/chara_chaos1.html

Seems Chaos in getting in on the action as well, and he also seems to have the ability to melt into a puddle of water. Who knows what other Sonic characters are going to be added next?

If you have digital cable network G4: TV for Gamers then on Thursday, December 11th you can catch a special dedicated to Sonic Team and Yuji Naka.

I didn't catch the times though. Check www.g4tv.com for local listings.

I was browsing TV Guide's website, and when I searched for Sonic the Hedgehog, I was shocked to find Sonic the Hedgehog (SatAM) airing at 7AM (EST) this coming Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday on WFQX (for Dish Network users. Not sure exactly what channel it is)! I also found Sonic Underground is starting Monday, to air every day on WB at 8:30AM (EST)! Seems weird, the shows just popping up like that...

Additional notes: WFQX is Fox 33 in Michigan. No idea (yet) if SatAM is on anywhere else. Check for the DiC Entertainment block, which is on various stations--usually a WB or UPN station--to find out when SU comes on (if it does come on) in your area.

http://media.cube.ign.com/media/552/552385/vids_1.html

IGN has posted 13 new videos of Team Sonic in several levels, including a boss battle.

Sega's New Sonic Heroes Site

Sega.com has a new Sonic Heroes site up with videos, screenshots, wallpapers, and more detailed info on each team's characters and story. Unfortunately there doesn't seem to be a way to turn the music off while still playing the videos with sound.

Most of it (besides the wallpapers) we've seen before, but the site has a new theme song and some new character info, which are summarized in the link below.

NOTE: The Team Sonic movie is now mirrored on SHQ's Sonic Heroes page, so you can hear it without the background music interfering.

http://media.cube.ign.com/media/552/552385/vids_1.html

IGN has videos featuring Team Dark, Team Rose, and Team Chaotix, WITH their theme songs. (Note: The Team Chaotix video is listed under Team Rose and has the same filename; notice that Team Rose has more than 1 video at each resolution.) Click below to see the lyrics and some highlights.

Japan:
December 30th, 2003-PS2/GCN/XBOX

America:
January 5th, 2004-GCN
January 27th, 2004-PS2/XBOX

Australia:
Febuary 6th, 2004-PS2/GCN/XBOX*

Europe:
Febuary 20th, 2004-GCN/XBOX/PS2*

*We do not know if the Nintendo three-week deal is also in effect for anywhere outside America.

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #133

"Home Part 4: Finale": The final chapter of Sonic's eventful return home! His family and friends thought he was dead but now he's back - and in the fight of his life with Robotnik's mysterious henchman, uh, woman, Mecha! Are the Mobians in danger losing Sonic again?! Meanwhile, Knuckles and the Freedom Fighters make their final stand against the Warbots on the wasteland in front of Robotropolis! SCRIPT: Karl Bollers. ART: Steven Butler (pencils) and Jim Amash (inks). ALSO: "Mobius, 25 Years Later" continues with future Knuckles and Rotor having a serious summit over developments on the planet! SCRIPT: Ken Penders. ART: Steven Butler (pencils) and Ken Penders (inks).

Sources: Westfield Comics & ComiX-Fan

Sega and THQ released a joint press release today announcing that Sonic Battle would be released during January of 2004. The release also indicated that a third installment in the Sonic Advance series would be released for the Gameboy Advance before the end of the upcoming year.

Click below for the full-text of the release

Planet Gamecube has new screenshots of Sonic Battle. They are available here.

Source:Planet Gamecube

Figured this might be of interst to the people here. Just stumbled across a post which has some news and examples of Spaz's work on the next Megaman comic (#4) out in December, by Dreamwave. My apologies if it's been mentioned before.

With any luck we might see him doing a few of Dreamwave's Capcom related posters. Fingers crossed for Bass and Treble.

PSM's Holiday Buyer's Guide is out today with a DVD of Sonic Heroes(and other movies) at the current prize of $7.99 (US) and $9.99 (CAN).

On amazon.com you can now order the Sonic Christmas blast dvd ^^.

In Sonic battle, Sega has added another character to our "We now know" list. E-102 Gamma

Source:Sonic Team

Archie's Sonic The Hedgehog #130 is on sale in comic shops today.

Source: Diamond Comics

Memory Card

This is coming out in Japan; releases in other contries or similar cards for other systems have not been confirmed.

Sonic is nominated for the Spike TV video game awards. Sonic advance 2 is nominated for best hanheld game. Vote at www.spiketv.com. The awards start at december 4. See ya!

Sega of Japan finally release the Trial Demo of the PC Version of Sonic Adventure DX

Source: http://www.sega.co.jp/pc/sonicdx/trial.html

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #134, ships 3/3, 32-page, full color comic, $2.19 US
"Home, Epilogue: Say You Will" : The poignant aftermath to this epic tale's climactic finale. With the present crisis abated last issue, Sonic finally has the chance to catch up to those near and dear to him, especially one Princess Sally Acorn. SCRIPT: Karl Bollers. ART: Jon Gray (pencils) and Michael Higgins (inks). ALSO: "In Transit": the "Mobius, 25 Years Later" series continues as lord Rotor returns to the Kingdom of Knothole, while Knuckles consults with the Brotherhood of Guardians at Haven II. SCRIPT: Ken Penders. ART: Steven Butler (pencils) and Ken Penders (inks).

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #135, ships 3/31, 32-page, full color comic, $2.19 US.
Three titanic tales in one issue! "Anonymous": Dr. Robotnik has a new enemy to contend with, and it isn't Sonic. This enemy has left a special present for Robotnik and signed it... you guessed it... "Anonymous"! SCRIPT: Romy Chacon. ART: Art Mawhinney (pencils) and Jim Amash (inks). "Agent from K.N.O.T.H.O.L.E.": Sonic receives a mysterious message prompting him to travel incognito to meet someone in the middle of the Eggman Empire... someone who should be dead! Can this be a trap? SCRIPT: Romy Chacon. ART: Ron Lim (pencils) and Nelson Ribeiro (inks). "Dealing With the Devil": The next exciting installment of our popular series of tales depicting "Mobius: 25 Years Later" continues! SCRIPT: Ken Penders. ART: Steven Butler (pencils) and Ken Penders (inks).

Congratulations to Jon "WB" Gray (former co-web of Sonic HQ) for joining the ranks at Archie. ;)

Source: ComiX-Fan

Sonicteam has posted an updated Sonic Battle website.

It seems that Emerl (the new robot character) is related to the plot, and is capable of earning the other character's attacks through experience points.

The website also features information on Sonic's moves. It seems that the ring-toss from the ill-fated Sonic Xtreme has made an appearance.

There are also some icons and wallpapers to download.

Source: Sonicteam.com

Sonic Heroes boxart for Gamecube, Playstation2 and xbox.

Shadow of a Hedgehog conducted an interview with Mike Pollock, the voice actor for Dr. Robotnik in the 4Kids dub of Sonic X. You may read the interview by clicking here.

The Sonic Comic Con has confirmed it's launch date and will begin December 24th, 2003 - January 2nd, 2004. A whole list of info on registration details for participants are available on the SVT messageboard. You may be required to register/login to view the topic.

Sonic Comic Con Registration Details

Source: SonicVerse Comics

Planet Gamecube is reporting that the U.S. Release date for Sonic Heroes is now January 6th, 2004.

Source:Planet Gamecube

The Japanese release date has been pushed from December 12 to December 30th.

Source: Sega of Japan

New screenshots for Sonic Heroes have been released, featuring the levels Power Plant and Grand Metropolis.

Source:Gaming Chart

http://games.kikizo.com/news/200310/035.asp

New SH piccies, courtesy of Kikizo. New level spoilerish stuff inside.

Source: Kikizo

Now Sonic X will air twice a week. Check the schedule for the times.

Source:Fox Box TV Schedule

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #132

"Home, Part 3 - A.D.A.M. & Evil": Sonic, Knuckles and the entire Kingdom of Acorn launch a two-pronged defense against the forces of Eggman's Empire. As usual, Dr. Robotnik (a.k.a. Eggman) has a few tricks up his sleeve to keep his foes from winning the day. And then there's Shadow and a stash of deadly weapons... SCRIPT: Karl Bollers. ART: Dave Manak (pencils) and Jim Amash (inks). "Mobius: 25 Years Later - The Unveiling": Our popular look at the future lives of Sonic's friends and foes continues! This time, Lara-Su undergoes the female echidna coming-of-age ceremony. As Knuckles' daughter, this is a very big deal - everyone on the island is invited. Will Lara-Su be able to deal with her insecurities? Also, if he's not here for the ceremony, just why has Rotor come to see Knuckles?! You won't want to miss this intriguing installment! SCRIPT: Ken Penders. ART: Steven Butler (pencils) and Ken Penders (inks).

Sources: ComiX-Fan & Westfield Comics

Sonicteam has posted some information regarding the PC release of Sonic Adventure DX Director's Cut. The page mentions that the game can be run in 640×480 or 1280×1024 resolutions, and will consist of 2 CDs. The (Japanese) release date has been set at the 18th December 2003, the same day as Sonic Heroes.

Sonicteam has also released the specifications for the game (translation here).

Source: Sonicteam

I'm gonna be on the news :D !

Saw this while checking out the TGS report. It's the SH boxart for the GCN, PS2, and X-Box! I think it looks pretty cool, nice background and stuff. Scroll to the bottom of the page to find it. Here's the link:
GCN: http://www.sega.co.jp/ngc/sonichr/
X-Box: http://www.sega.co.jp/x/sonichr/
PS2: http://www.sega.co.jp/ps2/sonichr/

Archie's Sonic The Hedgehog #129 is on sale in comic shops today. Also being re-released are Parts 2 and 3 of the Tails mini-series.

Source: Diamond Comics

Sonicteam speak at TGS

I dont feel like giving details....except it shows new footage on the new games, some stuff on Sonic X and perhaps Sonic Heroes

(Typing this up as I am watching the video)

It's pretty long, but it's well worth it. Definitely worth a look.

Source: Sega.co.jp

Sonic Pinball Party is to be released in Europe this Friday, the 31st October. The publisher, THQ, apparently announced the date just yesterday.

Source: THQ UK

SEGA has posted the Japanese box art for Sonic Battle.

Source: SEGA of Japan

Presenting a very special Hallowe'en issue of the Sonic the Comic...



SONIC THE COMIC #227

http://www.stconline.co.uk/

STC Online is created by and for the Boomers of the original magazine, which ran from 1993 to 2001.

Sonic Central has updated their site big time.

Sonic Heroes Sega Page is Up:

GC Link
PS2 Link
X-Box Link


Werd.

Source: SEGA

If you have TechTV, today it will re-air an X Play episode about Sonic Adventure DX.

Source: Yahoo! TV

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #133, ships 2/4. 32-page, full color comic, $2.19 US.

"Home Part 4: Finale": The final chapter of Sonic's eventful return home! His family and friends thought he was dead but now he's back - and in the fight of his life with Robotnik's mysterious henchman, uh, woman, Mecha! Are the Mobians in danger losing Sonic again?! Meanwhile, Knuckles and the Freedom Fighters make their final stand against the Warbots on the wasteland in front of Robotropolis! SCRIPT: Karl Bollers. ART: Steven Butler (pencils) and Jim Amash (inks). ALSO: "Mobius, 25 Years Later" continues with future Knuckles and Rotor having a serious summit over developments on the planet! SCRIPT: Ken Penders. ART: Steven Butler (pencils) and Ken Penders (inks).

Source: ComiX-Fan

We have a ton of new screens of the Ocean Palace zone from Sega. You can see them on the Sonic Heroes page in Game Info. This would've been up sooner, but the Sonic Heroes server wouldn't let me upload.

Source: Sega

http://ngage.ign.com/articles/453/453820p1.html

Basically, it's a port of Sonic Advance, but with a reduced screen width because of the shape ofN-Gage's screen. Supposedly it's hard to tell where you're going. Yikes.

Sonic Heroes puts a new spin on the legendary platform series of games by offering team-based gameplay and allowing players to control 4 teams of 3 characters, making for 12 characters in all. Sonic Heroes will be released on the PS2, Gamecube, and Xbox platforms. Until then, Gaming Chart has posted 10 outstanding new screenshots just released by Sega which include a first look at the game's special stage: a bonus round not seen in a Sonic title since the Saturn era:

http://www.gamingchart.com/screenshots-79.php

Thanks for any linkage.

Adam Corsetti
Editor-in-Chief
Gaming Chart.com

Sonic Heroes is confirmed on the Mario Kart Double Dash Demo Disk. Gamestop has a list of the demos on it but here is the SH snippet:

Sonic Heroes playable demo featuring 2 levels and 3 characters
Go check this out it's great news!

Source:
Gamestop

Thanks to Adamis, Soly, and Nemesis! Dream Avenue has a copy of the Sonic Heroes alpha and has kindly taken a ton of screenshots.

Possible Zone List, New Pics
More New Pics
New Zones & Menus (Character Select, Sound Test, etc.) Directory
Team Blast & Special Stage Directory

The zones confirmed so far:
Seaside Hill / Ocean Palace
Great Metropolis
Power Plant
Casino Park
Bullet Station / Rail Canyon
Jungle (Unknown name)
Sky (Unknown name)
Mad Express (a level on top of a train, may be 2p only)

Sonic Heroes has 7 multi-player modes, including racing and bobsleds.

The Team Blast moves of Team Sonic and Team Rose are pictured.

There is a special stage and it looks like a cross between the Chaotix and Sonic 2 special zones, with a race with a chao hot air balloon thrown in.

Starting with episode 27 there is a new opening for Sonic X.

TV Tokyo has recently put up a new clip for the first episode of Rockman.EXE Axess. Axess (not a typo) is a new anime starting October 4th in Japan centering around elements from Battle Network 3 and the upcoming 4.

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #131

Two titanic stories in one action-packed issue! "Home-The Gathering" Part Two (of Four): Continuing the saga of the four-part epic begun last issue. The threat of nuclear annihilation by Dr. Robotnik and his new minions looms large, so Sonic and the citizens of the Kingdome of Acorn AND Station Square must ready themselves to strike the Eggman Empire before its too late! With stakes this eye, everyone joins the battle lines. Don't miss this nail-biting installment-it could be the last! SCRIPT: Karl Bollers. ART: Ron Lim (pencils) and Andrew Pepoy (inks). PLUS: Due to the overwhelming popularity of the visions of the future that have graced our pages in the past (pun intended), we proudly present a new regular feature: "Mobius: 25 Years Later." This far-flung-futuristic feature fast-forwards you to the future of our favorite characters... and their kids! What fates await our esteemed champions? The first installment gets off to a thrilling start with a future character most readers are familiar with: Lara-Su, Knuckles' daughter... and she's preparing for a special ceremony! Pick up this issue and find out just what she's preparing for. SCRIPT & INKS: Ken Penders. ART: Steven Butler.

Sources: Silver Bullet Comic Books & Westfield Comics

Archie's Sonic The Hedgehog #128 is on sale today. Also, being offered in some places are the following specials:

Sonic: In Your Face
Sonic & Knuckles
Knuckles' Chaotix
Sonic & Knuckles: Mecha Madness
SSS #1--Sonic vs. Knuckles: Battle Royal

Source: Diamond Comics

Spoilers originally posted here.

Source: Comics Continuum

The following information comes from C21media, an international entertainment news website.

"DIC polishes Sonic for Mipcom"

DIC Entertainment will bring new digitally-enhanced episodes and a 'directors cut' version of animated series Sonic The Hedgehog to Mipcom to coincide with the launch of a new Sega video game.

Totally Sonic is a 91 half-hour series which features a private collection of new episodes and enhanced versions of the originals, including a new director’s cut Secret Sonic episode.

The release of Totally Sonic! coincides with the launch of the new Sonic The Hedgehog videogame from Sega.

The convention mentioned in the news item called Mipcom is an anual entertainment convention in Cannes, France.

No other information other than stated in the above press release is known as of this time. Stay tuned to SHQ for the latest developements on this story.

Source:C21 Media

Hey, gang!

I just found a new interview by Karl Bollers at:

www.comicon.com/pulse/

He talks about Sonic and other stuff, plus #130's cover is there in color.

Image 1
Image 2
Image 3 New!
Image 4 New!
Image 5
Image 6
Image 7 New!
Image 8 New!
Image 9 New!
Image 10 New!
Image 11 New!
Image 12 New!
Image 13 New!
Image 14 New!

Source: Gamespy.com

Thanks to Rlan for this...

Japanese page with the news and the images.

Source: IGN


Sonic and heroes made their Sonic Heroes debut in Japan earlier today as the Tokyo Game Show kicked off just outside of Tokyo. Sonic Team's latest take on the Sonic franchise was first shown at this year's E3 through a demo of a single level that showed off the game's cooperative play mechanics. The Tokyo Game Show version of the game featured the same level and its team of Sonic, Tails and Knuckles, but also had another level featuring Shadow, Rouge and E-102.


We first tried out Sonic, Tails and Knuckles' level and were very much impressed. The level moves fast, has lots of sections to show off the series' trademark blazing speed, and offers up good chances to make use of each character's abilities. We honestly can't think of a single complaint about this level, aside from a few times where controlling the characters can become difficult. Camerawork, in particular, seems to be superb, with the occasional difficulties from E3 having apparently been cleared up. If the entire game ends up being like this level, we'll be in Sonic heaven later this year.


The other level was a different story. We're pretty sure it was just early, but the level had lots of camera problems and control issues. We kept on falling to our deaths in this level, sometimes because we made stupid mistakes but more often because the rough camera work and twitchy controls got in the way. Despite some cool sequences in this level, there's definitely room for improvement, and we hope Sonic Team can polish this level and all other levels to the same state as featured in the first level.


Sega has Sonic Heroes on display at the Tokyo Game Show running on the Xbox, PS2 and GameCube. Control-wise, we didn't notice much of a difference between the versions. Looking strictly at graphics, though, the PS2 version is lagging way behind the Xbox and GameCube versions right now. The PS2 version of Sonic Heroes has poor image quality, slowdown and occasional collision breakdowns, all of which seem to be missing from the Xbox and GameCube versions of the demo. Once again, we hope Sonic Team is able to clean up the PS2 version so that all three versions sparkle at time of release.

Source: Gamespot

A whole bunch of Sonicteam stuff. Being the Japanese-game website surfing whore that I am, I stumbled on some more Sonicteam stuff featured in TGS. Nifty.

Source: Sonicteam

If you got the recent Nintendo Power which is OCT 2003, then you'll notice that Sonic AdventurE DX: Directors Cut placed 2nd place as the top selling game for the Gamecube :) Zelda: Wind Waker was in first.

Also, for the top selling Gameboy Advance games. Sonic Advance 2 placed 10th for the 3rd month in the top ten "top selling games" for the Gameboy Advance.

Source: Nintendo of America

See it on the forum. Nintendo Dream Magazine has 5 new screenshots and some (slightly) more detailed info on each team's story. Cheese's brother's name is Chocolate. Thanks to the person who posted this!

Picture 1
Picture 2
Picture 3
Picture 4
Picture 5
Picture 6

Source: Sega Direct

That's right, ladies and gents. Today is the day that (hopefully) all of the Sonic fans everywhere celebrate the 10th Birthday of the Sonic the Hegehog (commonly referred to as SatAM), which debuted today in 1993. Hard to believe, isn't it?! :)

Well, that's it on that. Peace out!

Before the previous headline about this was posted, I also e-mailed Fox Kids asking when Sonic X starts.

Look what I found!

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #132, ships 1/7. 32-page, full color comic, $2.19 US.

"Home, Part 3 - A.D.A.M. & Evil": Sonic, Knuckles and the entire Kingdom of Acorn launch a two-pronged defense against the forces of Eggman's Empire. As usual, Dr. Robotnik (a.k.a. Eggman) has a few tricks up his sleeve to keep his foes from winning the day. And then there's Shadow and a stash of deadly weapons... SCRIPT: Karl Bollers. ART: Dave Manak (pencils) and Jim Amash (inks).

"Mobius: 25 Years Later - The Unveiling": Our popular look at the future lives of Sonic's friends and foes continues! This time, Lara-Su undergoes the female echidna coming-of-age ceremony. As Knuckles' daughter, this is a very big deal - everyone on the island is invited. Will Lara-Su be able to deal with her insecurities? Also, if he's not here for the ceremony, just why has Rotor come to see Knuckles?! You won't want to miss this intriguing installment! SCRIPT: Ken Penders. ART: Steven Butler (pencils) and Ken Penders (inks).

This was posted at:

ComiX-Fan

Capcom has recently announced Mega Man Anniversary Collection for the PlayStation 2 and GameCube to celebrate the series' 15th anniversary. Mega Man Anniversary Collection will feature Mega Man 1 through Mega Man 8 from the Nintendo Entertainment System, Super NES, Game Boy and PlayStation. The disc will also include two never-before-released-in-the-US Mega Man arcades games, Mega Man the Power Battle and Mega Man 2 the Power Fighters. Additionally, players will be able to unlock hidden content including original artwork, producer interviews, footage from the original television commercials, 30 minutes of anime videos, information about the franchise and more.

The game is scheduled for release in February.

Source: *ign.com*

I emailed Fox Kids to find out when Sonic X would be shown in the UK. [Since they have bought the rights to it]

I have the answer,,

Sonic X's second ending theme is now a CD single.

Aya Hiroshige's New CD Single (Sonic X 2nd Ending Theme)

...and Lo and Behold a new CD single is out! This features the new ending theme to 'Sonic-X', that plays in the new sequence with Amy and what not.

Now, I know darn well yer gonna buy it off of CDJapan when it become available or import it else-where, right?

Better learn how to speak Japanese...not one bit of English to help ya on her page.

Source: Sonicteam's Sonic-X Page

Sega have signed a deal with THQ to publish upcoming GBA games in Europe. The games mentioned in the press release regarding this deal include Sonic Pinball Party, Shining Soul II, Shining Force and Sonic Advance 3. This is the first mention thus far of such a game from any official source.

Source: Computer and Video Games.com

Sonic X DVD and VHS volume 2,3, and 4 are now available at CDJapan.co.jp They're in japanese though.

The Adventures Of Sonic The Hedgehog premiered today in 1993. So Happy 10th Anniversary for the fans of AoStH.

Just a reminder that Sonic X airs this weekend on Fox Box. Check Fox Box's TV schedule for when it airs in your area.

From Diamond Comics:

PLEASE NOTE: Due to the Labor Day holiday, U.S. (including Puerto Rico) and International accounts will receive their product on Thursday, September 4. Canadian delivery of shipments will be made on Wednesday, September 3.

Depending on where you live, you can get Archie's Sonic The Hedgehog #127 starting today or tomorrow.

Source: Diamond Comics

That's right folks, and for a limited time only. :P
Well anyway, Sega of Japan has a new video that includes Sonic hanging with Billy Hatcher. http://www.sega.co.jp/ngc/giantegg/

To save you the trouble of looking I've posted it on a site.

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #130

Writer: Karl Bollers. Artists: Steven Butler, Michael Higgins, Jim Amash, and J. Axer.

"Home-The Blue Blur Returns" Part One (of Four): The first entry in a four-part epic finds Sonic back from his adventure in outer space-and just in time, too, as the Kingdom of Acorn and the Empire of Robotnik are about to collide head-on in their monumental struggle to control Mobius! How will everybody react to Sonic's "return from the dead?" How will Sonic react to all the changes that have occurred during his absence? If you read only one Sonic comic in this lifetime, make it this one!!!

Preview page from ComiX-Fan's interview with Karl Bollers.

Sources: Westfield Comics, Silver Bullet Comics, & ComiX-Fan

Announcing the latest issue of STC:

SONIC THE COMIC #226
http://www.stconline.co.uk/

Late last night, Sonic fell at the hands of Cloud. No Sonic characters remain now.

FKE has acquired all TV and home video rights for the world excluding North America and Asia, to 52 half-hour episodes of Sonic X from TMS Entertainment Limited. Sonic X is the first animated adaptation to be created in Japan about the iconic video games character. The action comedy series features Sonic and his new best friend Christopher and their adventures.

You can read the full article here.

Source: Fox Kids Europe

Ok, neeeow. Time to put some rumors to rest. I'll start off with Sonic X. That's the new Sonic The Hedgehog anime from Japan that is coming over to the U.S., premiering very soon on the Fox Network. Now, a whole lot of you wrote in asking if I was going to be providing Sonic's voice for this project. Sorry I didn't get back to many of you yet, for a while there I was getting around 20 Emails a day asking that question and I just couldn't keep up. But now I'm going to answer the mystery once and for all.

For those of you who are wondering, Sonic the Hedgehog will battle Cloud
Friday, August 29th at 12:00 EST. Vote for Sonic!!

Acid posted this on the forum and I thought it should be copied to the news page. - Vec

Sonic defeated Aeris in the Gamefaqs character contest. He goes on to face Cloud from Final Fantasy 7 in the next round.

Source:Gamefaqs

Sonic Heroes puts a new spin on the legendary platform series of games by offering team-based gameplay and allowing players to control 4 set teams of 3 characters, making for 12 characters in all. Sonic Heroes will be released on the PS2, Gamecube, and Xbox platforms. Until then, take a look at the 10 outstanding new screenshots just released by Sega.

On the GameFAQs Battle today, Sonic is battling Aeris. Stop by at GameFAQs and vote today!

Source: *GameFAQs*

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #130 ships 11/12. 32-page, full color comic, $2.19 US.

"Home-The Blue Blur Returns" Part One (of Four): The first entry in a four-part epic finds Sonic back from his adventure in outer space-and just in time, too, as the Kingdom of Acorn and the Empire of Robotnik are about to collide head-on in their monumental struggle to control Mobius! How will everybody react to Sonic's "return from the dead?" How will Sonic react to all the changes that have occurred during his absence? If you read only one Sonic comic in this lifetime, make it this one!!! SCRIPT: Karl Bollers. ART: Steven Butler (pencils) Michael Higgins, Jim Amash and J. Axer (inks).

Source: Silver Bullet Comics

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #131, ships 12/10. 32-page, full color comic, $2.19 US.

Two titanic stories in one action-packed issue! "Home-The Gathering" Part Two (of Four): Continuing the saga of the four-part epic begun last issue. The threat of nuclear annihilation by Dr. Robotnik and his new minions looms large, so Sonic and the citizens of the Kingdome of Acorn AND Station Square must ready themselves to strike the Eggman Empire before its too late! With stakes this eye, everyone joins the battle lines. Don't miss this nail-biting installment-it could be the last! SCRIPT: Karl Bollers. ART: Ron Lim (pencils) and Andrew Pepoy (inks).

PLUS: Due to the overwhelming popularity of the visions of the future that have graced our pages in the past (pun intended), we proudly present a new regular feature: "Mobius: 25 Years Later." This far-flung-futuristic feature fast-forwards you to the future of our favorite characters... and their kids! What fates await our esteemed champions? The first installment gets off to a thrilling start with a future character most readers are familiar with: Lara-Su, Knuckles' daughter... and she's preparing for a special ceremony! Pick up this issue and find out just what she's preparing for. SCRIPT & INKS: Ken Penders. ART: Steven Butler.

Source: Silver Bullet Comics

It finally happened....this solves the SegaToys link mystery for me...
Anywho, check out The Sonic-X Goods page to see figures, plushes,
etc.,etc....anything possibly Sonic-X related. I'm pretty sure you can order
outside of Japan.

Source: Segatoys

I'm sure a few of you will have heard about the Sonic chocolates that House of Brussel have been working on... well now, see the pics! ^_^
http://www.brusselschocolates.com/Our%20Chocolates/SONIC%20THE%20HEGEHOG/SONIC%20THE%20HEGEHOG.htm
New info about 'em... ^_^

Source: Brussels Chocolates

The Sonic Underground, Mario and Zelda DVDs will have bonus Sonic episodes.
Here is the list.

Sonic Underground - Dr. Robotnik's Revenge Episodes:
Beginnings
Hedgehog's Home is her Castle
Modoboon

DVD Bonus - Super Mario Bros. - Do You Princess Toadstool, Take this Koopa

Sonic Christmas Blast Episodes:
Sonic Xmas Blast
Three Hedgehogs and a Baby
Price of Freedom

DVD Bonus - Mummy Dearest

Super Mario Bros
DVD bonus - Sonic Underground - Sonic Tonic

Legend of Zelda Episodes:
DVD Bonus - Wedding Bell Blues, To Catch a Queen


Don't forget to check out The Sat-AM Network

For you people who missed the Sonic SATAM DVD, its still on sale at Deepdiscountdvd.com. It comes with free fast shippimg, i shop there all the time, and the DVD cost $9.99. I suggest getting it before their supply runs out.

http://www.deepdiscountdvd.com/dvd.cfm?itemID=VDM007919

Note: As of Aug 16th, it currently isn't in stock, but they'll ship it when they get it

Knuckles got his butt kicked by Snake. That only leaves Sonic. He's going up against Aeris, so support your favorite blue rodent!

Early this morning Shadow lost to Mario in the GameFAQs Great Character Battle II in the South Division's first round. The Final Results were 59756/48694. Shadow and Tails may be out, but the true Red & Blue still remain in the standings. Knuckles will be going up against "Snake" next. Don't forget to vote!

Source: *GameFAQs*

Due to lack of preparation among participants in the SVTcc event, the convention has been postponed from August 20th to December (the exact date will be posted later). Although the original plan was to have a triannual event, SVTcc will only take place once every year.

Source:: SonicVerse Comics

Sonic won his match against Zero! He goes on to Round three now.

Today's match has Shadow against Mario, and Shadow's already losing 60% to 40%. Go to Game FAQs and support the Black Hedgehog! Voting ends at 2 a.m. on August 11 for that match. Source: Game FAQs

Today, SEGA released their quarterly earnings report. The report stated that in the period between April and June of this year, the company made a profit of 1.89 billion yen($15.8 million).

SEGA executives are claiming that this profit is thanks to strong sales on the recently released "Sonic Adventure:DX" for the Nintendo Gamecube, along with other titles.

Source: Planet Gamecube

SEGA's in-house sound and music production department, "Wave Master", responsible for producing the sound and music for Sonic games, has announced that they are creating two record labels.

Wave Master Entertainment will release music CDs that come out of Sega's studios, such as game, anime and movie soundtracks. The other new label, Wave Master Artists, will pursue popular Japanese artists and handle their new CD releases. This second label has already signed on Avex, who has done music for some Sega games in the past.

Source: Planet Gamecube

Sonic Is Up Against Zero Today so vote for him. He's one of the only characters left in the Gamefaqs battle!

I went to the offical FoxBox site, where they had previews of the new shows. In there, they showed the English opening for Sonic X.
Well, first thing to note, from what little memories I had of watching the japanese intro (it's been a while), they pretty much left the entire japanese opening alone. I think they altered the end a bit, but I can't remember.
The music is not rock like the japanese version and there are no vocals. Rather it's very dramatic and the music isn't all that good in my opinion. The music doesn't quite match with the action going on screen. Go to the offical site and check it out.
Here's the link:

http://www.foxbox.tv/promotions/comic/videopreviews.php

It seems like FoxBox WILL show the entire first espiode of Sonic X. Check this article out:

"Fans of the FOX BOX do not have to wait until September 1 to see the television block's new programming offerings. Instead, the network will air special "sneak previews" of their three new series throughout August. Sonic X, Funky Cops and Shaman King will all having special airings during the month before their official debut on September 1.


Sonic X
Episode #101 "Supersonic Hero Appears"
(Saturday, August 23--10:00 a.m. ET/PT)
In this premiere episode, Sonic and Eggman fight over the possession of the seventh Chaos Emerald, the legendary stone that is said to give its possessor the power to rule over the entire world. With the support of his friends, Tails, Amy, Cream and Cheese, Sonic storms into Dr. Eggman's base. Meanwhile, all seven Chaos Emeralds are brought together, causing a large-scale Chaos Control warp in space, blowing away Sonic and his friends, who land in a world of humanoids setting the stage for a series of exhilarating and elaborate adventures."

Source: Animation Insider

Archie's Sonic The Hedgehog #126 is out in comic shops today.

Source: Diamond Comics

The SU DVD has been released! You can order it at Amazon at this link and at Animated Bliss at this link, and ... that's it for now I guess. Now I know everyone didn't want SU and they wanted SatAM but I urge you to buy this. Sales can only help the possibility of a future SatAM DVD box set. My theory is that if the SU DVD sales do good, DiC can go to Disney and say "Hey they really like Sonic, let us release the SatAM one" and they will to make themselves a few extra bucks. At least that's the plan until we come up with a better one.

Karl Bollers recently talked to ComiX-Fan (formerly just X-Fan) about Sonic's Archie series. Most of it has been heard before, but there is a preview page for #130.

Source: ComiX-Fan

According to this page, there's going to be a sneak preview of Sonic X on August 23rd.

Quote from the page: "The video game superstar is now the star of his own cartoon on the Fox Box! Sneak Peek - August 23rd! Season Premiere - September 6!"

Source: Fox Box

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #129, ships 10/15. 32-page, full color comic, $2.19 US.

"Space Gamble": Move over, Nascar pros - Sonic is putting the pedal to the metal by entering a racing competition! Not the best thing to do with a damaged ship, but he can always use the prize money to fix it. Winning won't be that easy of course-he's only up against fastest beings of the universe! Will Sonic's ship hold together long enough for him to cross the finish line? SCRIPT: Romy Chacon. Art: Dawn Best (pencils) & Jim Amash (inks).

"Welcome to Wheelworld": The new world Sonic finds himself in offers the best opportunity for to get back home to his family and friends. Too bad he's landed there right in the middle of the trial of the Bem scientist last seen in #118. Why is this trial so important and what does it have to do with Mobius? This must must-read tale features several surprises, including of Tails' parents! SCRIPT: Benny Lee. ART: Art Mawhinney (pencils) and Michael Higgins (inks).

Sources: Previews & Westfield Comics

In the latest issue of Sonic(#126),it's revealed by Ken Penders in the letters page that Mobius:Twenty Five Years Later(originally Knuckles:Twenty Years Later)will start in Sonic#131. The arc will start it's focus on Knuckles and then gradually move on to the other characters in the Sonic universe. More tidbits:

-Sonic returns to Mobius in Sonic#129 and will be explained over the course of this issue and #130.
-Knuckles returns in #130 and begins to get more involved in the affairs of the Kingdom of Acorn.

Note: Unless you are a subscriber, Sonic #126 is not out yet, so don't go rushing to find it.

Details on studio mergers and name changes have been released.

Sega has revealed the structure and names of its development studios after its planned reorganization. Under Sega's new studio structure, there will be seven development studios--Hitmaker, Sonic Team, Amusement Vision, Smilebit, Sega-AM2, Wow Works and a new studio named Cinematic Online Games.

Sega Rosso (Sega Rally, NASCAR arcade) will be merged and absorbed into Hitmaker (Virtual On, Crazy Taxi) , and United Game Artists (Rez, Space Channel 5) will be merged and absorbed into Sonic Team (Sonic the Hedgehog, Phantasy Star Online). Smilebit (Jet Set Radio) and Amusement Vision (F-Zero AX, Super Monkey Ball) will not be merging as previously reported, but a part of Smilebit's operations will be transferred to Amusement Vision. Sega-AM2 (Virtua Fighter series, Shenmue series) will stay intact without any changes. Overworks (Shinobi, Sakura Wars) will merge into Wow Entertainment (House of the Dead, Vampire Night) and Wow entertainment will change its studio name to Wow Works. A new company tentatively named Cinematic Online Games will be established. Cinematic Online Games's president will be Yu Suzuki, and 50 employees are scheduled to be present at the studio launch planned for October 1.

Paperwork for the merger will be signed on August 18 and given approval in the stockholders meeting on August 19. The mergers are scheduled to take place later on October 1. Sega does not plan to lay off any employees in the reorganization, meaning that 191 employees will be switching studios in the merger (Sega Rosso: 45 employees, United Game Artists: 40 employees, Overworks: 96 employees). Sega will release more specific details on the studios at a later date.

By Hirohiko Niizumi

Source: Gamespot

From cube-europe.com

While Sega's official website can only project a first quarter 2004 release for the multi-platform Sonic Heroes, Gamespot has revealed an estimated time of arrival (ETA) of January 15th, 2004.

Source: Gamespot

Today on the 26th, the 2nd match in the West Division 1st rounds polls begins. #8 seed Knuckles the Echidna squares off against #9 seed Yuna of Final Fantasy X fame. Support the Great Red now!

Source:GameFAQs

PlanetGamecube broke the story on Sega's upcoming reorganization. Several of their developement studios are being merged together to create new studios, while others are being axed completely. Sega is doing this in an attempt to slim down.

As a part of this reorganization, Sonic Team is being merged with the studio "United Game Artists", makers of such games as Space Channel 5, and Rez. No details yet on what the new studio will be named, or when this merger will take place.

For fulltext of article, click link below.

#9 seed Shadow the Hedgehog faces #8 seed Wario in the Great GameFAQs Character Battle II today. Also, #2 seed Sonic the Hedgehog defeated #15 seed Ken Masters a few days ago in voting.

Edit: Shadow won

Source: *GameFAQs*

The STC Online staff proudly presents:


SONIC THE COMIC Issue 225
http://www.stconline.co.uk/

Archie's Sonic The Hedgehog: The Beginning trade paperback is on sale in comic shops starting today. It's a re-print of the original Sonic mini-series, Sonic #0-3, with a forward by Michael Gallagher. I don't have the original mini-series but it seems unlike Sonic Firsts, which changed the coloring of the characters to their "modern" forms, this is completely faithful to the original stories. Since this has been asked a few times on the message board, if you are a subscriber, you will not get this issue unless you buy it separately from a store (or when--going by their usual history--Archie offers it in the Sonic comic itself). It is not part of a subscription.

Source: Diamond Comics

Today, Sonic is up against Ken of Street Fighter fame in GameFAQs' Character Battle. Go vote!

Source: GameFAQs

Zero Is Up Against Scorpion Today, Zero Is Leading 35465 Votes. Source: GameFAQs

I just recieved the new Mario & Zelda DVD. On The Mario DVD, it contains "Sonic Tonic" and on the Zelda DVD it contains "To Catch a Queen" & "Wedding Bell Blues" (I seen these episodes and they did a quick transfer to the point they didnt fix the problems with the episodes but still watchable)

As for the new Sonic Underground DVD, it hasnt been released yet but the boxart of it is on the back of both dvds. What episodes, i dont know but all i know is the Title of the DVD, "Sonic Underground - Dr. Robotnik's Revenge". *sigh* I wish for SATAM instead :/

WARNING: LARGE SPOILER ALERT!

Tails Had Lost To Auron Today. The Only Sonic & MegaMan Characters Left Are: Knuckles, Shadow, Sonic, MegaMan, Zero.

Source: GameFAQs

Nintendo of America has, we think accidentally, revealed that an all-new Sonic the Hedgehog title is currently in development at Sega HQ. The news appears to have been leaked at the recent Nintendo Gamer Summit.

Miles "Tails" Prower is up against Auron today in GameFAQs' Character Battle.

Source: GameFAQs

There are some new Sonic Heroes videos up at IGN. The first video especially looks like we're back to an insanely fun old-school feel. And was that 3 different routes to travel? Nice music. Great Camera. I can't wait!

Source:IGN

Archie's Sonic The Hedgehog #125 is on sale today.

Source: Diamond Comics

I found out Sonic Heroes Release Date in Europe

Sonic Heroes makes a nice easter gift, apart from chocolate. It comes out on the 5th of March.

Source: Amazon.co.uk

Today there was a sweepstakes promoting Sonic X,the new Sonic cartoon going to the Foxbox. In this contest,you were to watch the fb(foxbox)all morning to spot how many times Sonic ran across the screen.

The prize is if you submit your answer+info(name,email,etc.) to foxbox.tv, and are chosen out of 100 winners,you win a free copy of Sonic Adventure DX:Directors Cut.

Source: Foxbox.Tv

According to the article (it's in Japanese), he died of "brain blockage" and was 70 years old.

Source: Anime Fan

I would like to say that the Great Gamefaqs Battle 2003 is happening right now at Gamefaqs.com. How does this concern Sonic? Well, Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and Shadow are in the competition. Sonic came in #10 last year after losing to Samus Aran by a few thousnd votes (which was the closest match of last year). Tails came in at #34, Knuckles #16, and Shadow is new this year. So come on! We need votes! With 4 members of Team Sonic, I expect someone to get the top 3. Link must fall this year! (sorry Link fans). Stop reading this and go vote.

Note: Different characters are up on each day. You have to check daily to see who's up.

Searching through Amazon for Kirby games I found...this?

Go to www.amazon.co.uk and seach for 'Sonic Battle'. If you're too lazy, hit here.

It's a Sonic game for GBA Coming sometime in November...did anyone know about it before me? If so why wasn't I, ultimate Sonic Otaku informed?!

Here is the lowdown:

Fast gameplay and furious battles
Starring Sonic, Tails, Shadow, and more
Eight playable characters and one mystery fighter to unlock
Multiple special attacks for each character
Team-based cooperative attacks
3D battles for up to four players, either solo or in teams
Single player mode lets you create and train your own AI fighter
Additional Party Game lets up to four players compete with one cartridge

Strange thing is, I haven't heard about it anywhere, not even here at Sonic HQ!

True Red edit: That means you haven't kept up with the news unfortunately. Sonic Battle has been headline news previously here, here, here, here, and here. Thanks for a more specific European release date though. :)

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #128

Benny Lee, Dawn Best, Jim Amash

"Starmada" - Sonic hooks up with a fleet of alien mercenary starships banded together to find and destroy a space being of incredible power that has left a trail of galactic destruction in its wake. It turns out to be a nemesis from Sonic's past, namely: "E.V.E III," originally Robotnik's creation! E.V.E. was set free by Sonic way back in issue 22. Now Sonic finds out what she's been been doing with that freedom...destroying whole planets. Sonic feels responsible and sets out to find her first. Can he put an end to this "eve of destruction"?

Sources: Previews & Westfield Comics

I know! many people will say that the title of this new is wrong, place new features of Sonic only, but who says this is deceived...(dawn you altavista!!!confused traslation!!!)

It has a new on Sonic ^^, in the international attractions of the event will be here Akira Kushida, Hiroshi Watari AND Hironobu Kageyama, we need more?!

need more details,visit the site http://www.animefriends.com.br (NOTE:keep your best traslator...you will need...)

Sega has updated Sonic Central again!! The downloads section is now available with wallpapers, screensavers, and a checklist of all Sonic games for all platforms.

Source: Sonic Central

IGNCube's review of SA:DX can be seen here. Gamespot's review of SA:DX can be seen here.

IGNPocket's review of Pinball Party can be seen here. Gamespot's review of Pinball Party can be seen here.

Sources: IGNCube, Gamespot, IGNPocket

Sonic Team Jr was just released Sonic Robo Blast 2, the first every 3-d Sonic game released by a fan group. The graphics look very similiar to Doom, but in the 3rd person. Although the characters are made of sprites, they are still very good looking sprites. You can download the game at:

*Sonic Robo Blast 2 website*

The following comes from swirlvision... Sonic: The Hedgehog and Super Monkey Ball will be racing to McDonald's in the form of Happy Meals, starting this June 27th. This is the first time in the industry where a quick service retailer will be offering handheld electronic games to consumers. Six different games will be available, providing lots of hours of playtime fun!

Archie has re-released Sonic's Friendly Nemesis Knuckles #1, Sonic's Friendly Nemesis Knuckles #2, and Sonic's Friendly Nemesis Knuckles #3 today. Not all places order old comics, so you may not see it where you get comics.

Source: Diamond Comics

SEGA Europe has launched a website promoting Sonic Adventure DX (released 27th of June in Europe), which features screenshots, wallpapers, information on the 12 unlockable Game Gear games etc. The website is here.

Source: SEGA Europe

gamesradar.com have posted some pinball party screenshots as well as the hilarious japanese commercial. The game will feature a Chao Garden to link up with SA:DX as well. Read all about it here.

Source: Gamesradar.com

Sonic's first exciting 3D adventure is released! The gameplay is a little similar to Sonic Adventure 2: Battle. Get ready!

Source: Gamespot

Sega has updated their official Sonic website, "Sonic Central".

The update includes a 2 part interview with Yuji Naka(Click on "World of Sonic" at the top and then on the Yuji Naka graphic), which talks about Sonic as a character and mentions the possibility of an upcoming Sonic movie.

In addition, SEGA has added a "Sonic Web Developement Kit" to their website(click "Community" at the top, and then on "Fan sites"). This zip file contains a large amount of official Sonic Team art that can be used on fan webpages, so long as the SEGA copyright is mentioned. SEGA is also calling for the URL's of fan websites for a "Sonic Site of the Month" competition.

Source: Sonic Central

The last Mega Drive Sonic game has been released on RealOne Arcade. It's on this page. The full version costs $14.99.

Source: Sega.com

On Sega's Sonic Central site there is a preview of Sonic X which shows more clips--probably future clips on future episodes. We see more of Rouge and Shadow in action.

Check it out here: www.sega.com/sonic/globalsonic/sonicxmovie.jhtml

I'm guessing this is the same movie that was shown in the World Hobby Fair months ago in Japan only that probably had a Japanese narration.

Source: Sega

According to IGNpocket, it seems that Sega has signed an exclusive deal with Target to only sell the just released Sonic Pinball Party for Gameboy Advance there.

According to Sega representatives: "Target has been a phenomenal retail partner in regards to the Sonic series as a whole. And we wanted to utilize that history and momentum to maximize sales of Sonic Pinball Party, specifically at Target stores."

Officially, Sonic Pinball Party will only be available at Target retailers in the US.

Thats what the article stated. I don't know about you guys, but don't you think it would make more sense for Sega to sell their games in more stores to make them money?

Source: IGNpocket

It's Ken Penders! He cancelled future Sonic DVDS!

Nah, im just kidding =P
It WAS actually Disney >:( Imagine that! I really didn't think it would be

Sonmanic (some of you know him) just posted this on my site:
--------------
JUST GOT OFF PHONE WITH SOME INTERESTING NEWS!

Ok, after i was transfered a few times, i spoke with this british woman thats in charge of distribution. Sonic Underground is being released firt, cause it was produced in a low budget company that worked with DiC. Theres a possibility that SatAM WILL be released sometime after Sonic Underground, cause DiC is trying to resolve this issue with Third Party Rights. And what are the Third Party Rights? Well, after a few minutes of building a steady repore with this woman, she spilled the beans about who is preventing them from releasing Aosth and SatAM. Ever heard of a company called Beuna Vista? Thats right, Disney's little company is holding back the release since DiC released the first DVD without their consent. The other issue is that DiC transfered to a different distribution company from Lions Gates to a DVDtoons. Its a company that was just started so theres nobody to talk to yet. Now this you will find a shock to. Since SatAM had 26 episodes, it was going to be released as a box set. So rest assure people, DiC isnt the enemy, its Beuna Vista cause their claiming rights on show when it was affiliated with Disney. The only piece of optimism this woman gave me was that they are doing everything in their power to release Aosth and SatAM. Surprising enough, she said DiCs been getting a lot of responses regurding SatAM, so we might have a chance still. Here is that website she told me about. http://www.dvdtoons.com/

Im glad i was able to solve this mystery
--------------
Well he did what several other FUSers included me could not, which is get info on this damn third party, so we all owe him a HUGE thank you. Now here's their website

http://bventertainment.go.com/

Now Im not sure if writing to these people or Disney will actually help, since it's a coorperate matter. They don't care much about individuals >< but for thsoe who want to see this box set, it certainly can't hurt. As for the SU DVDs, it's a way to show Disney that they actually released a whole Sonic seires to the public, and hopefully that'll get the bar rolling with Disney. So as mch as I hate to say it, BUY THE SU DVDs and help support SatAM when they come out. That is all ^_^;

Source: FUS - Fans still United for SatAM

Archie's Sonic The Hedgehog #124 is on sale starting today.

Source: Diamond Comics

Sega PR has posted a 17 minute Sonic Adventure commentary. In it Sonic Adventure director Takashi Iizuka explains the origins of many of the new characters, Sonic Adventure's origins, and it's design philosophy.

Source:SEGA Public Relations

If ya haven't already heard the news, Fox Box has been playing 6 second teasers for Sonic X all morning. If you'd like to see it, check out the link below, but the video requires the DivX 5.0.3 codec, availible at DivX.com

Sonic X Teaser (710kb)

Source: SonicAnime.net

The madness begins again as GameFAQs revitalizes the Character Battle for Summer 2003. Out of the many combatants participating are Sonic the Hedgehog, Shadow the Hedgehog, Miles "Tails" Prower, Knuckles the Echidna, Megaman, and Zero. Support your hero! ^_^

Source: Gamefaqs

McDonalds and Sega are auctioning off a special collection of Sonic memorabilia on ebay. All the proceeds from the auction will be donated to the Ronald McDonald House charity.

The items included in the collection are...
-Two complete sets (six games in each set) of the SEGA/McDonald's premiums: one standard set, and one special silver-plated set created specifically for this auction (one of only two silver-plated sets available to the public!)
-A copy of the upcoming "Sonic Adventure DX Director's Cut" for Nintendo GameCube - before it launches - as well as a copy of the newly released "Sonic Pinball Party" for Game Boy Advance
-A framed picture of SEGA's official mascot and the world's favorite speedy blue hero, Sonic The Hedgehog, signed by his creator and president of world-renowned SONICTEAM development studio, Yuji Naka
-One beautiful Sonic crystal paperweight to add a little bit of fun to any workplace or home office.
-One sterling silver Sonic ring - one of 500 in existence!
-A one-of-a-kind Sonic The Hedgehog statue - one of only 250 available!

Source: *Planet Gamecube*

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #127 Cover and blurb- (Lee/Lim/Tomas & Pepoy)

Sonic's space odyssey continues as he crash-lands on a strange planet... a planet that evolves faster than Sonic can even run. What can Sonic do while whole civilizations rise and fall around him.? More importantly, what do the inhabitants of the planet think of our trespassing hedgehog? It's sci-fi with a Sonic spin.

PLUS: Sonicspy vs. Knucklespy (by Michael Gallagher & Dave Manak): It's humor in a jugular vein that will drive you mad with laughter as we skewer one of our favorite cartoon strips.

Source: Westfield Comics

Now, you can enter to be a part of the Sonic Comic Con! Yaaaay! Here's how:
1) Send in an e-mail with the following info:
-Your name
-Your booth's name
-Your booth's URL (You can leave this blank, just make sure you e-mail it to me when ready. OR you can make up a url that you plan to use when it's done)
-Booth description (No less than 10 words, please)
-Banner (any size banner is acceptable. Just make sure it's a standard banner, meaning the width is greater than the height.)


Send it to: sonicadventurer2002@yahoo.com

2) Keep in mind that there will be another "Booth Babes" poll running, so if you want another chance at winning an award, give your booth a...babe, lol.

That's all for now. Remember that SCC begins August 20th, 2003 and you can visit the website at either www.svtcc.cjb.net or www.sonicverseteam.com/comiccon

Source:SonicVerse Team Comics

According to IGN, "Sonic Pinball Party" has been shipped by Sega of America. The game is available for the Game Boy Advanced entertainment system.

Source: IGN Pocket

Ten years ago today, Sonic the Comic was launched. Since then we were thrilled by its continuing adventures until it recently disappeared...

But no longer!

Sonic the Comic: Issue 224 http://www.sonicthecomic.tk

Back in May 1993, the UK's Sonic The Comic began it's run of 223 issues. So Happy 10th Anniversary for the fans of Sonic The Comic.

Today SEGA issued a press release stating that the upcoming game "Sonic Heroes" was being developed using Criterion Software's video game developement software "Renderware".

Source: *Planet Gamecube*

Sega is currently in talks with the North American publisher Electronic Arts to develope a "sales alliance" to help boost their sagging North American sales.

Source: *Reuters*

The CD Single of Sonic Drive is now available at CDJapan. Details are here.

Source : CDJapan

New Japanese Sonic Adventure DX: Director's Cut and Sonic Pinball Party movies can be found at the Sega of Japan website (Click here and here).

Sonic Adventure: DX
The SADX page appears to suggest that the name 'Adventure Field' has been abbreviated to 'ADV. Field', while 'Action Stage' has been abbreviated to 'ACT Stage' (Could the ACT be a reference to the MD games? Maybe/Maybe not - I'm not sure! ^_^).

Sonic Pinball Party
After watching the SPP movie, I am more excited about the game. It appears to have lots of minor references to elements of the old Sonic games (such as Classic Sonic music) and should be a real treat for Sonic Team fans.

Source: Sega of Japan

Ken Penders reccently announced the following auction on his message board. The auction is for the original cover art for the upcoming tenth anniversary issue of Archie's Sonic the Hedgehog #125.

This particular auction is unique in that the original pencil art by Patrick Spaziante, the inked version by Nelson Ribiero, and a colorred version also by Patrick Spaziante are all being sold together. According to Penders, this is the only piece of pencilled cover art for the Sonic comic in existence, since the inker usually inks write over the pencils and then then erases them.

The starting price of the auction is $1,000.

Source: *Ken's Comic Book Stories and Art*

From Kikizo Games:

An update to our earlier story - Sega confirms that the 'new Sega console' talk with Yuji Naka was down to translation issues.

Following our earlier news from E3, which pondered over comments regarding 'new Sega hardware' made by Yuji Naka in our interview - Sega has clarified that the comments were inaccurately translated, and categorically stated there is no such hardware in development.

The story, which took extracts from the forthcoming interview, featured Naka-san's words as spoken through his Japanese interpreter. While there's no deniying the arousing nature of the comments on the surface, Sega have contacted us to clarify that these were purely inaccurate in translation. Sega states that Naka was clearly speaking hypothetically about "working hard to realise" new Sega hardware.

Thinking logically it is fairly obvious that there could be no new home entertainment hardware from Sega, for a variety of reasons - but it would still be uber-cool if there was. And before Naka's comments were clarified by Sega today, we feel we were justified in reporting exactly what was said, specifically stressing the likelihood of the translation's wider meaning being inaccurate.

Look forward to the rest of the interview in our post-E3 coverage, which has tonnes of new info on Sonic Heroes and Billy Hatcher.

Adam Doree
Editorial Director

Source: Kikizo Games

Xbox.com has posted an interview from E3 with Yuji Naka and Takashi Iizuka (the director). They mention some interesting points about how the different teams play and how they each have their own stories.

Source: Xbox.com

Fox Box has released the new Schedule for the '03- '04 season, which includes Sonic X in their lineup.

Kikizo Games has also posted a Hands-On article for Sonic Battle. No new screens are shown, but it explains the game from an E3 show experience. The article can be seen here.

Source: Kikizo Games

The Megaman EXE TV sow is now being aired on Kids' WB.

Kikizo Games has posted an interview with Sonic creator Yuji Naka that was conducted during the recent E3 exhibition.

One of the things mentioned in the interview was how Naka misses developing for a sole SEGA console and that he is attempting to encourage SEGA executives to make another foray into the hardware business.

Source: *Kikizo Games*

The latest issue of Comic Shop News contains a rather large article on the upcoming tenth anniversary of the Archie Sonic the Hedgehog Comic. Featured in the article is a long interview with writer Karl Bollers. The article talks about Bollers' experience writing for the comic and contains some spoilers for issues #124-129.

In addition, the article contained a better colored version of the cover for Sonic #125.

Click below for the full-text of the article.

Sonic Team now has an E3 SEGA page covering games such as Sonic Heroes and Sonic Battle as well as others.

Twelve Heroes
All New Team Action
Three Platforms
Here We Go!

Rlan as ever found it all first.

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG SPEEDS, SPINS AND ZIPS INTO THE FOX BOX

4Kids Entertainment's FOX BOX Adds All-New SONIC X Animated Series To Saturday Morning Line Up Beginning Fall 2003

NEW YORK, NY (May 14, 2003) - 4Kids Entertainment (NYSE:KDE) and SEGA® today announced that the fastest hedgehog in the universe is speeding into the FOX BOX! Continuing its drive to make FOX BOX the Saturday morning destination for kids, 4Kids Entertainment has signed SEGA's Sonic The Hedgehog® as the network's newest mega-star for its Saturday morning line-up beginning fall 2003.

4Kids Entertainment has teamed with award-winning animation studio TMS Entertainment Ltd. of Japan to produce 52 all-new animated episodes of the SONIC X cartoon. The show will star the speedy blue superstar whose video games have sold more than 32 million units globally. SONIC X takes its place on FOX BOX alongside such popular shows as TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES, KIRBY: RIGHT BACK AT YA!, ULTIMATE MUSCLE, and THE CRAMP TWINS.

Since his debut role in SEGA's "Sonic The Hedgehog" game in 1991, Sonic has grown to be one of the most enduring game characters and franchises of all time. Sonic The Hedgehog has appeared in numerous video games across multiple console, handheld and wireless platforms over the past 10 years. Consistently a top-selling franchise, Sonic The Hedgehog continues to be a popular icon worldwide in 2003 and beyond.

"Sonic is one cool sassy hedgehog that kids will instantly be rooting for as he takes on the evil DR. EGGMAN and his robot foes," said Norman Grossfeld, president of 4Kids Productions.

"SEGA is thrilled to be bringing Sonic to another generation of fans," said Mike Fischer, vice president of marketing, SEGA of America. "Our speedy blue hedgehog is a video game icon, and SONIC X captures all the excitement and thrills of his interactive adventures. FOX BOX is the perfect place for this great new series."

Program Synopsis:

Accidentally transported by Chaos Control, Sonic finds himself on a strange planet inhabited by humans and teams up with his newest friend, Christopher. Together, Sonic and Christopher embark on a series of exhilarating and elaborate quests as they search for the "Chaos Emeralds," precious stones delivering the power to conquer the world to whoever possesses them. Through their adventures, Sonic and Christopher must battle Sonic's archrival, the evil Dr. Eggman, a robotics authority, who wants the "Chaos Emeralds" for himself so that he can establish his own empire to dominate the world. Known for speed, power and energy, Sonic helps Christopher overcome his boyhood fears as they meet-up with long-time friends Knuckles, Tails and Amy, and encounter new pals Cream and Cheese. In a distant galaxy, the confrontation between Sonic and Dr. Eggman begins once again!

About 4Kids Entertainment, Inc.:

Headquartered in New York City, with international offices in London, 4Kids Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE: KDE) is a global provider of children's entertainment and merchandise licensing. 4Kids, through its wholly owned subsidiaries, provides domestic and international merchandise licensing; product development; television, film, music and home video production and distribution; media buying and planning; and Web site development. For further information, please visit the company's Web site at www.4KidsEntertainment.com.

About FOX BOX

Saturday morning kids TV has taken on a whole new shape with the Fall 2002 launch of FOX BOX. From 4Kids Entertainment, the company responsible for some of the biggest names in children's entertainment, FOX BOX is the TV network home for the all-new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Kirby: Right Back at Ya! , Ultimate Muscle: The Kinnikuman Legacy, The Cramp Twins, Ultraman Tiga, Fighting Foodons and Pirate Islands. FOX BOX airs Saturday mornings 8:00AM-12:00PM (ET/PT) on Fox Network affiliates nationwide.

About SEGA

SEGA® of America, Inc. is the American arm of Tokyo, Japan-based SEGA Corporation, a $3.5 billion corporation by market capitalization, recognized as a worldwide leader in interactive entertainment both inside and outside the home. The company develops, publishes and distributes interactive entertainment software products for a variety of hardware platforms including PC, wireless devices, and those manufactured by Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. SEGA of America's Web site is located at www.sega.com.

This press release contains forward-looking statements. Due to the fact that the Company faces competition from toy companies, motion picture studios and other licensing companies, and the uncertainty of public response to the Company's properties, actual results or outcomes may differ materially from any such forward looking statements.

IGNPocket has some screens and a video of Sonic Pinball here.

Source: IGNPocket

I grabbed these pics from SEGA's Sonic Heroes movie, and Dub edited and hosted them. They're grainy, since they're from the movie, but they get the point across.

A new character, apparently based on E-102 and named "Omega." (There's an Omega on its shoulder.) Check out those claws!

Rouge's new look.

Chaotix running.

Besides the change in gear, Vector's bulked up a lot.

The first close-up look at Espio's new design. You can see the spiked gloves more clearly here, and he has amber yellow eyes.

New look, but at least Vector's not totally different. ^_^

It looks like Sonic has picked up Mighty's wall kick.

A giant red & black robotic dragon spirals around the rails.

WB: YOU!!! GO AND BRING ME SOME MORE PUDDING !!!!

WB: THIS NEEDS to be a higher quality so it can be made into a Wallpaper. :)

These next 2 pics aren't by us, but they speak for themselves!

Sega has put up a special flash E3 website with descriptions and media of all the games they are showcasing at the Electronics Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles.

Of particular note is a movie of Sonic Heroes in action in the Sonic Heroes section.

Source: *Sega E3*

Archie's Sonic The Hedgehog #123 is out in stores today.

Source: Diamond Comics

Gamespot has Sonic Battle screens that you can see here.

Source: Gamespot

Sega.com have released new Sonic Adventure: DX and Sonic Pinball Party Pages, which feature some of the new images.

The Sonic Adventure: DX page doesn't really feature anything new, but the Pinball Party features the western logo and information on the games various modes.

Sonic Adventure DX page

Sonic Pinball Party page

IGN.com offers a very tantalizing clip of the game in motion with Sonic/Tails/Knuckles. Honestly, this game can't arrive soon enough!

Source: GC IGN

Rlan was kind enough to zip up some new Sonic Adventure DX and Sonic Pinball Party screenshots.

New Pinball Party Screenshots

New Sonic Adventure DX Screenshots

Pinball Party Logo

A few things to note about Pinball Party -

Lots of new screenies!!! The NiGHTS boards looks very pretty. There seem to be more than one board per game which IMO is a plus. Two Nights boards are shown here as well as two Sonic boards and one Samba board. there also seems to be a tournament option as well. The Tiny Chao Garden is accessible from these screenshots. There also seems to be a Memory game and a "Sonic Roulette" game as well. The minigame section here is hosted by Cream and Cheese too.

As far as DX goes - same ol same stuff. Newer screens of stuff we hadnt seen previously, but I will say that in these shots the characters don't look as "super shiny plastic" as they did before.

Source: Rlan of Sonic Fan Games HQ

We brought you last year's Sonic Comic Convention, showing off many talented artists who branded together to make this online event possible. You had the chance to look at many Sonic fan comics such as Other-M, the premieres of Ultimate Sonic AND 3B, Sonic::Epilogue, A Bright and Shiny Future, Shadow and Light, and Sonic HQ & Agnes Studio's very own Butterflies. You saw who won, then you went home, happy.

Get ready for a better show...

The Sonic Comic Con 2003 will open August 20th and will run for two weeks, approximately. Also, there is a now a new way to get there: www.sonicverseteam.com/comiccon

The Sonic Comic Con will feature a host/hostess from now on. Each character will be related to Sonic in some way through the comic books, both fanmade, Archie and maybe even Fleetway.

Details will develop soon, but if you would like more information, or begin registering early, send an e-mail to: admin@sonicverseteam.com

Source: *Sonicverse Team Comics*

From Kikizo Games, E3 2003: Sonic Heroes Hands-On:

Detailed hands-on impressions of Sonic Heroes - everything you want to know, including co-operative play functionality, and our thoughts on how well it works. First screens included.

Gamers.com has pictures of sega's E3 booth including a few sonic ones and PROOF that shadow is back! Also, one of the pictures of the booth contains a large Sonic X poster, possibly indicating the anime will be arriving in the U.S. shortly.

Source: *Gamers.com*

Hopefully I am the first to post these here:

I just found me some Screenshots featuring the new Sonic game for all major platforms!! Click the link below!

SONIC HEROES SCREENS

Source:GamesAreFun

From Gamers.com:

In another surprising turn, Namco has withdrawn its offer to merge with Sega, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun reports today. After Sega was unable to give a specific answer to its offer, Namco has dropped its proposal and Sega has announced that merger talks have concluded.

At the same time, of course, Sega officially announced that it had also broken off its merger negotiations with Sammy. It appears that Sega would have continued to consider Namco's offer, but Namco, which had asked for an answer by the end of the week, apparently considered that response unsatisfactory.

Namco said that it may consider a merger in the future at Sega's instigation, but Sega responded that it will not pursue such a course. Thus, it appears that Sega will no longer merge with anyone, at least in the near term. At a press conference announcing Sega's current course, president Hideki Sato declined to comment on any other potential future deals -- including a rumored capital investment by Electronic Arts.

Source: Gamers.com

EBgames.com has listed a release date of May 19th for the Nintendo GameCube Preview Disk. For those of you that do not know this Preview Disk will feature a Sonic Adventure DX Demo.

Source: *Electronics Boutique*

GameSpot recently put up this article... it shows a fairly good opinion of the game. In fact, it seems that all they feel is off right now is the graphics (surprise, surprise...).

Anyway, LOADS of new screens, including a few from the Chao Garden (Mystic Ruins one)! Check it out.

Sonic Spinball has been released on RealOne arcade. You can download it for free (for one hour), and the full version costs $14.99. Sonic 3D (most likely the Genesis version) will also be released in May 2003, according to Sega's RealOne page.

It seems that the option to lock onto Sonic 2 and 3 was not present in the RealOne version of Sonic & Knuckles, as this information was just copied off the box sleeve onto the information page, and not actually present in the game.

The palmtop Sega games, including Mean Bean Machine and the 8-bit Sonic the Hedgehog, will now be available for download on Zire 71 and Tungsten C palmtops, in addition to the Tungsten T.

Source: Sega.com

IGN has posted some great SADX movies. I gotta say...the game looks MUCH better in motion. Screens don't do it justice.

Source: IGNCube

According to Gamers.com, Sonic Heroes and Sonic Battle are scheduled to be released in Winter 2003 in Japan.

Gamestop is now taking pre-orders for "Sonic Adventure DX: Directors Cut". They are quoting a prerelease date of June 17th, and are selling the game for $39.99. They also have posted the American box art(pictured below & confirming the original box art that some people didn't believe to be true) which appears to be the same as the Japanese box art, minus the Japanese characters.

Source: *Gamestop*

A preview cover for Sonic #126 was released today. Apparently Archie has returned to the old action style covers and has ditched the newer magazine style. Also released was a larger preview cover of the "Sonic Begginings" trade paperback.

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #126 "Tossed in Space, Part 1": After last issue's pulse-pounding events, Sonic finds himself on a strange planet on the other side of the universe. While seeking a way home is his initial priority, his heroic instincts soon take over as he helps defend an alien race from their aggressors. By issue's end, Sonic will be forced to fight the last person he ever expected to face! You'll have to read it to believe it! SCRIPT: Benny Lee. ART: Steven Butler (pencils), Jim Amash (inks). ALSO!: the Off-Panel strip graduates from the letters page to become its own five-page story in "Better Read Than Dead": Read in awe as Sonic and The Editor face the evil of... Deadline! Can they get the issue done on time before Sonic is erased from existence? SCRIPT: Mike Gallagher. ART: Dave Manak (pencils) and Josh and Aimee Ray (inks).

The larger size Sonic the Hedgehog: The Beginning cover

Sources: *Westfield Comics* & Silver Bullet Comics

Today, Sonique posted the following e-mail from DiC at Ken Pender's message board.

Yes, we are currently working on releasing a number of DiC titles this year. Unfortunately, we were unable to release Sonic the Hedgehog because of third party rights, but we will be releasing Sonic Underground in its place. This will be part of our Games releases along with Super Mario Bros III and Legend of Zelda.

The message seems to indicate that the SatAM DVD's may not have been cancelled by SEGA as previously thought, and that there are now Sonic Underground DVD's on the way.

Source: *Sonique*

Here is the art:

Source: Sega of Japan

This from Gamespot, is follow-up to this earlier report:

Sega has announced that it will be releasing a series of interactive toys that will be packed in with McDonald's Happy Meals. These games will be based on the Sonic the Hedgehog and Super Monkey Ball franchises. One of them, Sonic Speedway, will put players in a simple race to the finish line, while the other, AiAi Banana Catch, will have players catching bananas that fall from the sky.

"The characters of the Sonic the Hedgehog and Super Monkey Ball franchises are some of the most recognizable icons in video games today," said Mike Fischer, vice president of marketing, Sega of America. "This relationship with McDonald's allows Sega to further reinforce those character brands with the younger gamer through a never-before-seen premium vehicle."

Look for the toys this summer.

Source: Gamespot

Gamespot has released two Sonic Battle screens with guess who.... Shadow!!! Apparantly the game will use Sonic Advance sprites...

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG: THE BEGINNING

In 1993, Sonic the Hedgehog sped his way from video games to comic books. Hundreds of issues later, &quot;the blue blur&quot; can lay claim to having the most successful comic book career of all video game heroes! Now you can enjoy his earliest comic book adventures with this special edition that reprints his first, difficult-to-find mini-series, Sonic #0 through #3. Collected together for the first time are the first appearance of Tails, Princess Sally, Antoine, Rotor, Uncle Chuck and Muttski. Put on your favorite pair of sneakers, grab a chilidog and see where the legend began!
SCRIPTS: Michael Gallagher. ART: Scott Shaw! and Dave Manak.

Sources: Diamond Comics & Silver Bullet Comics

Sega Revealed their E3 lineup today. The press release contained the first information on the next generation of Sonic games, "Sonic Battle" and "Sonic Heroes". In addition to this, "Sonic Adventure DX" and "Sonic Pinball Party" will be there as well. The press release revealed that there will be new content in Sonic Adventure DX.

Source: *Planet Gamecube*

Just wanted to let you know that on Sega.com, they list release dates for Sonic Spinball PC (May 1) and Sonic Pinball Party GBA (May 27).

Preorder at CD Japan for the CD Single of the Sonic X Outro Theme "Mi-rai"

http://www.cdjapan.co.jp/detailview.html?KEY=ESCL-9107

Song is composed by "Run & Gun"

Price: 777 Yen(US$ 6.40)

First Press : Bonus extra (detail unknown)
(All details, including bonus features, are subject to change by publisher without prior notice.)

It comes out 5/21/03

Just 1 Week earlier before the Opening Single comes out, plus its 2 bucks cheaper then the other single.

More Sonic Adventure DX screenshots have been put up at planetgamecube.

Source: *Planet Gamecube*

Preorder at CD Japan for the CD Single of the Sonic X Intro "Sonic Drive"

http://www.cdjapan.co.jp/detailview.html?KEY=UMCK-5099

Song is composed by Hironobu Kageyama, Hideaki Takatori

Price: 1048 Yen(US$ 8.69)

Here it is:



Source: Sega of Japan

Sega's released Sonic & Knuckles on RealOne arcade. You can download an hour free trial of it via this page, which also shows the system requirements you'll need to run the game. If you don't have RealOne arcade, it gets downloaded onto your hard drive. You can buy the game for $14.99, which gives you unlimited access. According to Sega.com you can get the lock on extras for Sonic 2 and 3, but this may be only by the paid version, or not actually a feature of the RealOne version of the game.

Sonic 1, 2, 3 and Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine are already available on RealOne arcade, and Sonic Spinball will apparantly be released later this month.

Sega have also released some Game Gear games for the Tungsten T palmtop, including the 8 bit versions of Sonic 1 and Dr. Robotniks Mean Bean Machine. This page has all the details.

Source: Sega.com

Sega has an upcoming new section dedicated to Sonic. You can see it here. There will be a Global Sonic, Games, McDonald's, Downloads, and Community areas once it's completely up.

Source: Sega

From Gamespot:

Both companies comment on the possibility of a merger.

Yesterday, Namco and Sega officially commented on the news of a possible merger between the two companies. Namco confirmed in its statement that it has requested a reopening of merger talks with Sega. Namco said that the two companies formed an alliance in the arcade field in September 2001, which led to talks of a merger last year. However, the talks have been halted since then, at Sega's request.

Sega said that it has received the proposal from Namco and will begin examining the offer carefully, especially since it is already in merger talks with Sammy. Sega hopes to come to a preliminary decision on April 23, when the company will hold its executive meeting.

Sammy, which hopes to close its proposed merger deal with Sega in May, said that it was not aware of any talks between Sega and Namco. Sammy has not finalized any merger plans with Sega as of yet, but it hopes to do so in May and merge in October.

Namco also added that the merger of the two companies would be highly beneficial in all fields of its business. Investors seem to agree: Since the Nikkei Journal broke the news, Namco's stock has risen 1.3 percent and Sega's stock has risen 15.72 percent. On the other hand, the merger of Sega and Sammy has been widely debated among investors, and when the merger talks were first announced in February, Sega and Sammy experienced a rapid decline in stock value.

The Nikkei Journal's Web site, Nikkei Net, reports that Namco hopes to begin the merger as early as the beginning of 2004. The Nikkei also reports that Namco proposed a stock merger ratio to Sega, and even said that Sega could be the surviving company brand. Namco has not commented on any details given by Nikkei Net, stating that no specific points have been decided on as of yet.

By Hirohiko Niizumi

Source: Gamespot

From Gamespot:

The two arcade giants are apparently in talks over a possible merger.

According to the Nihon Keizai Shimbun, Namco has reportedly engaged in talks with Sega over a possible merger. A merger between Sega and Namco would result in the largest video game company in Japan, with sales totaling 350 billion yen ($3 billion), topping Konami's sales figures, which are currently at 250 billion yen ($2 billion). Namco said that the merger would be necessary in order for the company to remain competitive and that a merger would let Namco consolidate many of its current facilities as well as improve its business in international markets. In addition, Namco believes that combining the intellectual properties and development teams of the two companies would also be highly beneficial.

Sega is scheduled to hold a meeting to discuss mergers with three of its current suitors, including Sammy and Electronic Arts, which are reportedly interested in investing in Sega or at least doing some sort of tie-in with the company. Sega's board members are reportedly less interested in merging with Sammy due to its focus on pachinko machines, which has delayed talks with that particular company. Sega is expected to make an announcement as soon as the end of this month.

We'll have more as it develops.

By Giancarlo Varanini

Source: Gamespot

Archie's Sonic The Hedgehog #122 is out in comic shops today.

Source: Diamond Comics

You can now read a translated script of the first episode of Sonic X here.

Source: *clan-vs.net*

Capcom has released a new movie from the up-coming Megaman X7 for the PS2. Unlike other games in the seires, this one is totally 3D. Enjoy. http://www.capcom.com/megaman/clip_04_hi.html

For anyone who speaks English that's interested in ordering the first Japanese Sonic X DVD, you can find it here at CD Japan

It's price is 3800 yen, or $31.39 in US dollars. A pretty reasonable price for an import anime DVD. That is, so long as you have a Region 2 or Region-free DVD player.

Source: *CJ Japan*

According to Neowing.com (which is a Japanese site) Sonic X's volume 1 is scheduled to be released July 23rd, 2003.  Since Neowing's a Japanese site, I got this from Natsumemaya.net

Source: Natsumeya.net

According to Electronics Boutique, Sonic Adventure DX has a June 10 release date.

Source: EBgames.com

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG: THE BEGINNINGS
Ships 7/2
96-page, full color squarebound paperback
$10.95 US; $15.95 CANADA.

In 1993, Sonic the Hedgehog sped his way from video games to comic books. Hundreds of issues later, "the blue blur" can lay claim to having the most successful comic book career of all video game heroes! Now you can enjoy his earliest comic book adventures with this special edition that reprints his first, difficult-to-find mini-series, Sonic #0 through #3. Collected together for the first time are the first appearance of Tails, Princess Sally, Antoine, Rotor, Uncle Chuck and Muttski. Put on your favorite pair of sneakers, grab a chilidog and see where the legend began!
SCRIPTS: Michael Gallagher. ART: Scott Shaw! and Dave Manak.


SONIC THE HEDGEHOG #126
Ships 7/23
32-page, full color comic
$2.19 US.

"Tossed in Space, Part 1": After last issue's pulse-pounding events, Sonic finds himself on a strange planet on the other side of the universe. While seeking a way home is his initial priority, his heroic instincts soon take over as he helps defend an alien race from their aggressors. By issue's end, Sonic will be forced to fight the last person he ever expected to face! You'll have to read it to believe it!
SCRIPT: Benny Lee. ART: Steven Butler (pencils), Jim Amash (inks).

ALSO!: the Off-Panel strip graduates from the letters page to become its own five-page story in "Better Read Than Dead": Read in awe as Sonic and The Editor face the evil of... Deadline! Can they get the issue done on time before Sonic is erased from existence?
SCRIPT: Mike Gallagher. ART: Dave Manak (pencils) and Josh and Aimee Ray (inks).

Source: Silver Bullet Comics

From Swirlvision:

Sega has revealed the Japanese release dates for two of their highly anticipated Sonic games. Sonic Adventure DX: Director's Cut for Gamecube will see release on June 19th for 6,8000 Yen. Sonic Pinball Party for Gameboy Advance will see relase on July 17th for 4,800 Yen.

The U.S. release dates for both games will be around the same time frame.

Source: Swirlvision

From Swirlvision:

Sega's annual GameJam event will be held this weekend (April 4th - 5th) in Japan. To be held at the Ariake Hall, this year's exposition will be broadcasted live and be seen across many of Sega's various amusement locations, such as Club Sega (Hokkaido), GIGO (Ikebukuro), High Tech Land (Shibuya), and many more. In addition, this broadcast will also air over the Internet at specific times.

This year's GameJam Storm will give Japanese gamers the opportunity to sample some of Sega's recent and upcoming console titles. Among them: Initial D: Special Stage (PS2), Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution (PS2), Virtual-On: Marz (PS2), Sonic Adventure DX: Director's Cut (GC), Panzer Dragoon Orta (Xbox), and dozens more.

Source: Swirlvision

Acid Bunny has discovered that Sonic X isn't the only Sonic cartoon in the works! An American animation company has obtained the rights to produce another series starring the blue hedgehog.

In tune with the recent revival of "baby" cartoons like Baby Looney Tunes and Baby Felix, and the popularity of classics like Rugrats and Muppet Babies, the new show will introduce the newest generation of youth to Sonic and friends, as babies raised in the ARK's nursery by Grandfather Gerald Robotnik. The tots all learn good wholesome morals, use their imagination, and sing happy and fun songs.

Let's take a look at the production sketches and profiles of the cast shall we...

Sonic

Sonic is known as the leader. He is the most adventurous of the group and is known as everyone's friend--even Eggy's. Sonic is known for his speed and tries to be the fastest thing alive...without tripping over himself. He likes to wear goggles because he thinks they are lucky and it makes him braver.

Tails

Tails, also known as Miles Prower is the second youngest of the babies. He is smarter than he looks, but even he doesn't know it. He wants to be like Sonic so he follows him around everywhere. He like toy planes and some robots Eggy has.

Amy

Her full name is Amy Rose, but she is also known as Rosy the Rascal by Grandpapa Robotnik since she likes to get into all sorts of mischief. She is a sweet and energetic hedgehog that is in love with "Sonie-poo". She like all kinds of games and her favorite is Whack-A-Mole.

Knuckles

Knuxie to his friends, he is the strongest and the shyest of all the babies. He likes to guard a lot of shiny things and he's not really talkative. He seems pretty awkward when trying to talk to the other babies and he secretly wishes is talkavtive like Sonic, but that's okay. They all love him anyway.

Cream

The youngest of the babies she is the smallest. She also can't talk yet and she can only say "myu myu". The babaies don't know what that means, but that's okay. They all love her anyway. She always carries a stuffed Chao with her that the babies named "Cheese".

Rouge

She likes shiny things even more than Knuckles and she wants to be the greatest treasure hunter in the world. She also wants to be the most glamerous in the world so she always play "Movie-star" with the babies once in awhile. None of the babies including her can fully pronounce her name, so the call her "Roo" for short.

Eggy

Ivo Robotnik is is full name, but all the babies call him Eggy because he loves eggs. He also like robots and looks up to his grandfather a lot and he is also competing with almost everyone in the Nursery--whether it's Sonic for popularity, or Tails for brains, or Shadow to be closer to his older cousin Maria. He really want to be Sonic's best friend ever since he found out he and Sonic are the same age and has the same birthday. He can be pushy, but that's okay. they all love him anyway.

Shadow

Like Eggy, too also compete with Sonic to be known as the leader. He is the second oldest in the nursery, almost as fast as Sonic, but not quite fast enough. He always like to be with Maria and constantly follow her which makes Eggy jealous. He is always up to any challenge and is currently facing his biggest challenge yet, Bladder Control.

Maria

Maria Robotnik is the oldest of the children is the oldest at age 4 so everyone looks up to her. She is also Eggy's cousin. She is a know-it-all and claims to know it all, but she really doesn't know it all. She is usually good and kind-hearted, but sometimes she uses her age as an advantage to get things she wants. But that's okay. They all love her anyway.

Grandpa

Gerald Robotnik is his name, taking care of kids is his game. Known as Grandpa to everyone in the nursery, he is a kindly-old man who likes to invent things. He is Eggy's and Maria's realy grandfather, but he thinks of everyone as his grandchildren. He teaches all the tots (and yours too) good morals and good clean fun.

Expect more babies to make guest appearances, including Tikal, Big, Fang, Mighty, and all the rest of the Sonic gang!

1st Season Episode List:
1.Meet the Babies
2.The New Kid
3.Rainy Day Fun
4.Don't Make Fun of Tails
5.Girls Can Do it Too!
6.Eggy Learns a New Word
7.Sonic's Afraid of Water
8.Don't Eat and Spin
9.Don't Make Fun of Cream's Ears
10.Crybaby
11.Knuckles is Afraid of the Dark
12.Sharing and Caring
13.Happy Fun Fun Sing Along
14.Let's Make a Cake
15.Peek-A-Boo
16.The Mystery Thing
17.Summer Time Fun
18.Happy Birthday Sonic and Eggy!
19.Babies' First Halloween!
20.The Sleepover
21.Babies' First Christmas!
22.Little Big Fun
23.Winter Time Fun
24.Valentines Day
25.The Real Chao
26.Babies vs. The Potty
This is a hoax, based on a creation of Acid Bunny's.

Tv Tokyo's website has a promo video up for Sonic X. There is a download for both narrow and broadband.

Source: *TV Tokyo*

Sega is offering a deal through RealOneArcade where you can play free 60 minute demos of classic Sonic games on your PC. The games being offered are Sonic 1, Sonic 2, Sonic 3 and Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine. Other Sega Genesis classics are being offered as well. It does require that you install RealOne Arcade however.

Source: *Sega.com*

On the main SEGA.com page, there is a list that has Sonic & Knuckles, Sonic Spinball, and Sonic Adventure DX. According to this, Sonic & Knuckles and Sonic Spinball are coming out in April for PC. More details are expected soon.

Source: *Sega.com*

Guess you didn't see this one coming. Yuji Naka has stated that the upcoming enhanced port of the original Sonic Adventure, Sonic Adventure DX: Director's Cut, for GC will include a bunch of classic Sonic Game Gear titles. Most of these titles were released in the U.S. during the Game Gear's heyday during the early 90's, but some were seen only in Japan. The 12 Game Gear titles are:

1. Sonic: The Hedgehog
2. Sonic: The Hedgehog 2
3. Sonic & Tails
4. Sonic & Tails 2
5. Sonic Labyrinth
6. Sonic Drift
7. Sonic Drift 2
8. G-Sonic
9. Tails' Sky Patrol
10. Tails' Adventure
11. Sonic Spinball
12. Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine (aka Puyo Puyo)

Sonic Adventure DX: Director's Cut is scheduled for Japan and U.S. release this June.

Source = Swirlvision

Theres a small mini-site dedicated to SADV2 by SEU here.

There info,pics and wallpaper for your PC.

Source: *Sonic Advance UK site*

From Gamespot:

Sega Europe announces that it is setting up its own publishing operation with offices in both London and Paris.

Sega Europe has today announced that it's making a return to publishing, and is currently in the process of setting up the operation with offices in at the company's headquarters in London and in Paris. In addition to European countries, Sega Europe is responsible for other PAL territories such as Australia and New Zealand for which the company is currently negotiating distribution deals.

"Sega Europe is now in a position to get closer to the European games market, with its own publishing operation," said Naoya Tsurumi, president and COO of Sega Europe. "The transition from hardware manufacturer to software publisher is now complete, and we see the next few years as an incredibly exciting time for growth for Sega Europe."

The first game to be self-published by Sega Europe will be Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II in May, closely followed by Sonic Adventure DX and Virtua Fighter 4 Evolution, which are both scheduled for release in Europe in June. New screenshots of all three games released today can be viewed by clicking on the above links.

Source: Gamespot

TMS has now a whole section dedicated to Sonic X. It has mostly the same thing as TV Tokyo's site only this site:



Has production sketches!

You can see the rest of them by clicking links on the left sidebar right here: Sonic X Sketches

And the main site can be accessed here: TMS Sonic

TV Tokyo, the station that will broadcast the upcoming anime Sonic X this April has updated their Sonic X section of the site with tons of new info including the Japanese voice cast and profiles of the characters.

The main site is here: www.tv-tokyo.co.jp/anime/sonic_x/main_index.html

Japanese voice cast here: www.tv-tokyo.co.jp/anime/sonic_x/staff_cast.html

Character profiles here: www.tv-tokyo.co.jp/anime/sonic_x/character.html

More info can be found at the site.

Extract from 'Computer And Video Games'.

Excerpt from N-philes:

Sonic Team's Yuji Naka, who has worked on games such as NiGHTS, says that Sonic Adventure DX for the GameCube will contain every Sonic Game Gear title (full versions). He jokingly commented that he was tempted to call it Sonic Mega Collection 2. In related news, Sega is working on at least one entirely new game to be revealed in mid April.

The European release date for Sonic Advance 2 has been put back from today, 21st March, to next Friday, the 28th. This is so the game coincides with the GBA SP's release.

Source: GAME, Amazon

Sonic Team Has updated their website on Sonic X

Source: Sonic Team

Gaming age have a preview of Sonic Adventure DX (Now subtitled Directors Cut) along with new screens. More interestingly, these screens contain Tails in a location not found in the final Dreamcast version, but often seen on 'missing levels' websites. Also Knuckles, Amy and Tails seen to be playable in Emerald Coast.

Source: *Gaming-age.com*

Here is the official cover:

Following up the first report, some more details about what to expect have been given.

Archie's Sonic The Hedgehog #121 comes out today.

Source: Diamond Comics

Note: This is just a follow-up to this report.

Sonic's going as big as the pokemon craze. Sega's releasing multiple items ranging from toys, to the new series, which is US bound this fall. Here's the article:

From Kanshisha:

DiC Entertainment has been informed by Sega that they refuse to allow the release of another Sat-AM DVD. This is a shock as UAV Entertainment Corp was near completing the DVD along with Super Mario Bros and Legend of Zelda.

I will keep you updated on any future developments.

http://www.sonic.lightspeed.cx - The Sat-AM Network

Here is an article somone posted on the GHZ message board.

((On March 18th (Today), Sega and TV Tokyo held a small press conference on the new television show, 'Sonic X'. Sonic and his friends will be running through your television starting April 8th, at 8:30am, on TV Tokyo!

In the exhibition held today, we saw Mr. Sasaki and Mr. Yuji Naka (Creator of Sonic), The Producer of the Sonic Project, An Animation Supervisor, Mr. Masato Matsumoto, and Mr. Keisuke Iwata of the TV Tokyo Orginization office. It quickly became clear that this was every fanboy's dream of seeing a Sonic Television show since 1991.

Infact, despite Sonic the Hedgehog having two television shows in the United States, this is the first time Japan has seen a Sonic TV show. Mr. Naka, wearing a Sonic the Hedgehog necktie, greeted everyone joyfully; 'I am very glad that, at last, after twelve years, Japan will finally be seeing a Sonic animated show.'

By the first 'Japan Sonic' animation, Mr. Naka notes, 'There are no ties to the game. I am a fan of the games, and we created this show with the games in mind, but outside of that is a completely new world.' (I hope bits of that last line don't mean we'll be seeing games patterned after Sonic X, though)

'By using an alternate dimension, it gives the writers a chance to do some really interesting things using 'a different Sonic'', Mr. Naka speaks specifically about the 'X' in the show's title.

'Moreover, the element Sonic fans over the years enjoy is here in this new Sonic show, as well. There are hints of.. (I have no idea what this says, it just starts spitting out random words; I'm gonna try peicing it together) previous enemies from Sonic's past making an appearance; and wether that is a good thing or a bad thing has yet to be seen. Let us hope that it is interesting!

The music, as well, is very Sonic-esque. The opening theme was done by Hironobu Kageyama and Hideaki Takatori, and a live concert is also held! Mr. Kayama of Sega tells us, 'This animation is very important to Sega, and we've already gotten requests from North America, Europe and Asia for rights to air the show.'

After 'Sonic Adventure DX', announced Mr. Naka, is said that there are two more games being prepared to show at E3 besides 'Sonic Pinball Party' (There will be an announcementat E3). 'I see Pokemon as a Rival of Sonic', Naka said with a smile. 'Here's to another 12 years!'))

Sources: ZDNet Japan & The GHZ

With the upcoming "Mobius:20 Years Later" saga being pencilled completely by Steve Butler, there have been some questions as to Dawn Best's role in the comic. Ken Penders had the following to say about this on the message board.

Dawn is working on some Sonic stories now, and while I did discuss Mobius: 25 Years Later with her, I've also been discussing other projects as well, which I chose not to talk about publicly at the moment until things are a done deal. She's got a lot of talent and I hope to be seeing her broaden her horizons as a result.

Source: *Ken's Comic Book Stories and Art*

From XenGamers:

Sega has cemented plans for its upcoming "GameJam Storm Expo" in Japan. Scheduled for April 5-6 at the TFT Hole in Tokyo, Sega plans to have kiosks featuring games scheduled for release this spring and summer in Japan including: Initial D: Special Stage (PS2), J-League Pro-Soccer Club 3 (PS2), Sonic Adventure DX (GameCube), Sonic Mega Collection (GameCube), Sonic Pinball Party (GameBoy Advance), Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution (PS2) and Virtual On: Marz (PS2), among others. It's currently unknown whether upcoming arcade titles such as F-Zero and Virtua Cop 3 will be on display at the event. For reference, the GameJam Storm event will be open to public with free admission.

Source: XenGamers

Ken Penders has made an announcement regarding the previously cancelled Sonic Super Special "Knuckles: 20 Years Later". The project has been reborn with the name "Mobius:25 years Later". The series will run separate of the main Sonic continuity in the back pages of the comic and will be pencilled by Steven Butler. The first story will be eleven pages, and the preceding ones will be six.

Source: *Ken Pender's Comic Book Stories and Art*

*throws stuff* I can't believe someone beat me to some SatAM news... err wait, I mean

There are Sonic X plushies for preorder on Ufo Catcher.com. For some reason Cream and Cheese are $20 each but the others (Including Chris) are only $12.99. These are for pre order and should ship around July/August 2003.

I received an Email from John Stewart of Dic Entertainment with info about the new Sat-AM DVDs.

Flash Star (a Brazilian Video company) released the first Sonic DVD in Brazil.

From XenGamers:

THQ has begun shipping Sonic Advance 2, the latest installment in Sega's handheld platform game series for the GameBoy Advance, to retailers in America. In the game, Dr. Eggman is up to his old tricks again, and the world's fastest hedgehog must put a stop to it. Sonic, Tails and Knuckles are back with new character Cream the Rabbit, racing through new environments and battling new foes. Sonic Advance 2 features multiplayer play for up to four GameBoy Advance systems using the Game Link Cable. Players can raise their favorite Chaos and play mini-games within the Tiny Chao Garden. Players can also play with their Chaos in Sonic Adventure 2 Battle on Nintendo GameCube, by connecting a GameBoy Advance to the Nintendo GameCube console.

"We are delighted to publish this sequel to the 2002 smash hit, Sonic Advance," said Alison Locke, executive vice president, North American Publishing, THQ. "Sonic Advance 2 exemplifies Sega's talent and devotion to the Sonic brand and THQ is thrilled to be bringing this triple-A Game Boy Advance title to North America."

Source: XenGamers

On March the 9th Sage, Sonic.Amateur Games Expo, returned. Up for a while, all the sonic fan gamers show of their products and get them rated, and available to all us public.

Many returned products, not just Sonic but fan games are available. From Sonic team Junior, Blazefire and Poulto all return alongside several new Sonic, Mighty, Metal Sonic and many fan characters in the fan gaming event of the year.

Check it out, its good, link is here: http://www.sagexpo.org/

Sonic Cult and Sonic Hacking Community are having a contest for a universal hacking program. Here are the details:

We are looking to develop a fully functional universal studio tool for hacking Sonic games. With the current status of hacking guides, we feel it's time to develop more universal tools to hack Sonic games. We are looking for a SINGLE program. Not multiple programs. This tool should be based on the 16-bit Sega Genesis/Megadrive games. But the further you branch, the more score you receive. So if it edits Sega CD, 32x, SMS, Game Gear, and other games, the more you receive. Current programs and editors are allowed to enter, however they will be stripped of 15-30% of their final score, due to the head start they receive and depending on what they do to begin with. The prize awarded to the best tool will be a Sonic Adventure 2 store display, signed by Yuji Naka himself!

For more information visit Sonic Cult

N-Gage Sonic

An excerpt from the IGNPocket article:

Sonic the Hedgehog, or Sonic N, is just a scaled down version of Sonic Advance. The levels are pretty much exactly what GBA owners can already play. What's more, the Nokia version is severely letterboxed, squashed, and distorted when it's fit on the vertical LCD screen, making the text and score very, very hard to read. The game's speed is equal, but the refresh is not...and this limitation is noticeable when Sonic blazes at top speed, and the screen's refresh makes the scrolling look a bit choppy.

Source: IGNPocket

From XenGamers:

Sammy president Hajime Satomi recently revealed preliminary details regarding the proposed structure of his company’s merger with Sega. Under the terms of the deal, both companies would retain their own brand identities. However, the merger would call for the integration of properties held by both Sega and Sammy. Specifically, Sega would support Sammy's low-cost arcade platform AtomisWave with several of its popular brands of software. Likewise, Sammy would release Pachinko products that would be branded with Sega characters. The ideal scenario, according to Satomi-san, would be a merged company that allowed for a fusion of product lines and retained brand identity. For reference, Sega's proposed merger with Sammy is expected to be complete by October 2003.

Source: XenGamers

Writers: Karl Bollers, Benny Lee(?), Ken Penders Artists: J. Axer, Conor Tomas, Steven Butler & Jim Amash Aliens known only as the Xorda surround the planet of Mobius and another Knuckles story in "Afterlife, Part 4."

Source: Westfield Comics

From Swirlvision:

Sega's annual GameJam show will play host to a bevy of titles this year. To be held at the Ariake Hall in Tokyo, Japan, Sega will displaying such titles as Initial D: Special Stage (PS2), Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution (PS2), Virtual-On: Marz (PS2), F-Zero (Arcade/GC), Sonic Adventure DX (GC), Panzer Dragoon Orta (Xbox), and many more which will be playable.

In addition, Sega will hosting competitions for some of their arcade titles, like Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution, Initial D: Arcade Stage - Version 2, World Club Championship Football 2, and more.

The GameJam Storm event will be held from April 5th to April 6th.

Source: Swirlvision

There are new Sonic Adventure DX screenshots available at Next Level Gaming's website.

Source: *Next Level Gaming*

For some reason spoilers for Sonic #124 weren't released, but if you want to know the story for #125...

According to an article on *Toonzone*, the anime series based on Mega Man Battle Network (Megaman.EXE, Rockman.EXE) is coming to Kids WB! this summer! No news has been given on what the series is about. But, according to *The Megaman Home Page*, the series is very good! I'm looking forward to it!

Sorce: *Toonzone*

From XenGamers:

Sega has reportedly signed a deal with TV Tokyo to develop a new animated series entitled 'Sonic X' in Japan. Scheduled to debut on April 6, the storyline of the series will follow Sega's Sonic Adventure game series, in which Sonic and his pals battle the evil Dr. Eggman for control of the legendary chaos emerald. According to Sega representatives, the half-hour show will be broadcast weekly at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday mornings. Promotional advertisements for the series including television commercials are scheduled to begin airing early next month. It's currently unknown whether the new animated series will be distributed outside Japan.

Source: XenGamers

Sonic Team have just updated their site with now info on the new animated series, Sonic X. There are some high quality pictures and a little bit of info on new merchandise. Check it out here:

Sonic Team: Sonic X

And lookie here folks, merchandise: www.sonicteam.com/sonicx/goods.html

Source: Sonic Team

Archie's Sonic The Hedgehog #120 is out in comic shops today. The shipping list has a notice for those who live on the East coast that comics may be delayed because of the blizzard earlier this week.

Source: Diamond Comics

Beggining this summer, SEGA and McDonalds Fast Food are going to release a series of Sonic the Hedgehog and Super Monkey Ball themed toys to go inside McDonalds Happy Meals.
Full Press release is as follows:

SAN FRANCISCO - (February 18, 2003) - SEGA(R) of America, Inc. today announced it has entered into an affiliation with McDonald's(R) Corporation, the world's largest quick service restaurant to create a new line of McDonald's Happy Meal(R) premiums. Based on two top-selling SEGA franchises - Sonic The Hedgehog(R) and Super Monkey Ball(TM), the premiums will come alive this summer at participating McDonald's restaurants throughout North America. "Sonic The Hedgehog and Super Monkey Ball are two of SEGA's most popular video game franchises," said Mike Fischer, vice president of marketing, SEGA of America, Inc. "SEGA's affiliation with McDonald's affords us the opportunity to generate increased exposure for these properties among a growing universe of gamers."

"We believe consumers will have a great reaction to the innovative Sonic The Hedgehog and Super Monkey Ball premiums found only in McDonald's Happy Meals this summer," said Karlin Linhardt, senior director, U.S. marketing, McDonald's Corporation. "SEGA's properties are extremely popular and we look forward to bringing them to McDonald's consumers through this unique Happy Meal offering."

The premiums will be supported by significant marketing campaigns from both companies. Details on the premium items and marketing plans will be announced at a later date.

Source: *Planet Gamecube*

From Swirlvision:

THQ have a page regarding Sonic Advance 2 with these wimpy screens and some info. Click here to check out said page.

Note: Check the article or THQ's site for the screens.

Source: Swirlvision

From Swirlvision:

Knuckles Wallpaper, Next Right

Nintendo provides the Sega goodness

February 13, 2003
Nintendo have provided everyone with a great Knuckles wallpaper. Click here to check it out.

Source: Swirlvision

Sammy Corporation, makers of games such as Guilty Gear, has announced that they will be merging with SEGA effective October 1st. The resulting company will be led by Sammy president Hajime Satomi. Expect more information shortly, as the two companies will be holding a briefing sometime soon regarding the details of this merger.

Source: *Planet Gamecube*

Sonic Team updated their Japanese Sonic Mega Collection page. You can see screens of all the games and glimpse at the extras in the Japanese version as well as download some wallpaper.

Source: Sonic Team

An excerpt from Computer and Video Games article:

Sonic N
"N" for Nokia, one presumes, Sega's N-Gage launch title seems to be a version of GBA's Sonic Advance. There were frequent framerate issues, but the game certainly looks and feels like a Sonic title, and should make an excellent addition to the launch line-up.

Apparently, Sega and counltess other companies are supporting Nokia's new handheld called N-gage. Sega will be making a sonic game for the handheld called Sonic-N which will enable you to use Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and Amy in the game. The other games that Sega is planning on developing are Virtual Tennis, Puyo Puyo, Super Monkey Ball, and Sega Rally. This obviously shows that Sega is planning to be in the cell phone inustry for a while.

Source: *Gamespot*

Even more screens of Sonic X can be viewed *here*. Most of the website is in Japanese however.

Source: *http://www.seimu.com*

Planet Gamecube has some new Sonic Adventure DX screens up.

Source: *Planet Gamecube*

Sega released the following press release today, announcing that both Sonic Adventure DX and Sonic Pinball Party will be on the shelves in North America this summer. The full press release is as follows.

SAN FRANCISCO - Jan. 31, 2003 - SEGA® of America, Inc. today announced that two new Sonic The Hedgehog® games are currently in development and will be released in the U.S. this summer. "Sonic AdventureTM DX"(working title) will be released in May exclusively for the Nintendo GameCubeTM, and "Sonic Pinball PartyTM" will ship in June for the Game Boy® Advance.

"Sonic Adventure DX" is Sonic The Hedgehog's third blazing-fast quest on the Nintendo GameCube, and the ultimate version of one of Sonic's biggest SEGA DreamcastTM blockbusters. Featuring enhanced graphics, sound and Game Boy Advance connectivity, "Sonic Adventure DX" pits Sonic and his pals against the dastardly Dr. Eggman and his wicked plans for world domination.

"Sonic Pinball Party" for the Game Boy Advance challenges gamers to shoot, tilt and flip their way through Sonic the Hedgehog, Samba de Amigos and Nights-themed pinball tables and party games. The game supports up to four players with one Game Pak via the Game Boy Advance Game Link® cable. "Sonic Pinball Party" will also connect with "Sonic Adventure DX" via the Nintendo GameCube Game Boy Advance Cable.

"SEGA's Sonic The Hedgehog is back just in time for summer in two new action-packed games for the Nintendo GameCube and Game Boy Advance," said Mike Fischer, vice president, SEGA of America. "To date, Sonic has proved to be phenomenally popular on the Nintendo GameCube and we're excited that Sonic is resonating with a whole new generation of gamers."

SEGA® of America, Inc. is the American arm of Tokyo, Japan-based SEGA Corporation, a $3.5 billion corporation by market capitalization, recognized as a worldwide leader in interactive entertainment both inside and outside the home. The company develops, publishes and distributes interactive entertainment software products for a variety of hardware platforms including PC, wireless devices, and those manufactured by Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. SEGA of America's Web site is located at www.sega.com.

Source: *Planet Gamecube*

From Westfield Comics:



Spoilers for the issues can be seen again here.

From Swirlvision:

Sega held a strategy conference last week, outlining their future plans and setting new guidelines to cut costs and to develop new software. Tetsu Kayama, Sega's CEO, emphasized their "5-tier" approach concerning what types of games will be produced. New titles will now fall under one of 5 categories: Standard, Series, Spectacular, Sports, and Arcade.

Kayama-san stressed the importance of their Sports line. He stated that Sega would use new marketing strategies and bold campaigns to bolster their sports division and thoroughly compete with the likes of Electronic Arts by the time the newer generation of consoles are on the market.

The Standard line of games, which include such titles as Sega Rally and Virtua Fighter would see further continuations and support.

The Series line of games, which include such long running staples as Sakura Taisen and Sonic: The Hedgehog will see extensions in the forms of side-stories and spin-offs.

The Spectacular line of games will be reserved and used towards new and original content.

And finally, Sega still believes in the Arcade line of games, and that there is still a market in the Arcade sector for a variety of entertainment.

This new focus will be overseen by key individuals, including Yuji Naka (Sonic Team), Yu Suzuki (Sega-AM2), Hisao Oguchi (Hitmaker), and Toshihiro Nagoshi (Amusement Vision). Collaboration projects between Sega's studios are expected to fuel and expand this new strategy.

In addition to the home software market, Sega will also continue dwelving into mobile phone and Internet-related sectors. Different media, such as movies, animation, television programs, etc. are further ventures Sega will be tapping into as well.

Source: Swirlvision

SEGA and THQ Interactive issued an official press release today confiriming that Sonic Advance 2 will be released in North America this Spring. The press release is as follows:

CALABASAS HILLS, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 30, 2003--THQ® Inc. (NASDAQ:THQI) and SEGA® Corporation today announced "SONIC ADVANCE(TM) 2," the sequel to "SONIC ADVANCE(TM)" -- one of the top-selling Game Boy® Advance games of 2002. "SONIC ADVANCE," released in February 2002, has sold through more than 500,000 units in North America alone according to NPD TRST data. "SONIC ADVANCE 2" is scheduled to ship in spring 2003. "With sales in excess of a half-million units, we are delighted with the success of the original `SONIC ADVANCE' on Game Boy Advance," said Alison Locke, executive vice president, North American Publishing, THQ. "SEGA's famous Sonic brand has been a breakout hit on the Game Boy Advance platform and we look forward to the release of `SONIC ADVANCE 2.'"

"`Sonic The Hedgehog' is one of the most widely recognized video game characters of all time," said Shinobu Toyoda, executive vice president of content strategy and business development, SEGA of America, Inc. "Sonic titles have consistently been top-sellers for SEGA, and we expect continued success with `SONIC ADVANCE 2' on the Game Boy Advance platform."

About "SONIC ADVANCE 2"

In "SONIC ADVANCE 2," Dr. Eggman is up to his old tricks again, and the world's fastest hedgehog must put a stop to it. Sonic, Tails and Knuckles are back with new character Cream the Rabbit, racing through new environments and battling new foes. "SONIC ADVANCE 2" features multiplayer fun for up to four Game Boy® Advance systems using the Game Link® Cable. Players can raise their favorite Chaos and play mini games within the Tiny Chao Garden. Players can also play with their Chao in "Sonic Adventure(TM) 2 Battle" on Nintendo GameCube(TM), by connecting their Game Boy Advance to their Nintendo GameCube console.

Source: *Planet Gamecube*

Check out the Sonic Team website. It appears that Amy is an unlockable secret character in Sonic Advance 2.

Source: *Sonic Team Japanese Website*

The new Sonic anime series, Sonic X, premieres in Japan on April 3, at 6:00 PM, and from that point every Thursday at six. It will be airing on TV Tokyo.

Source: *The Sonic Foundation*

Source: *TV-Anime.info*

I just got a brochure of the new sonic tv series today! All i have to say this series is gonna kick! japanese style sonic means fast and a lot of action! so far there are 26 episodes each 30 minutes long produced by TMS

Archie's Sonic The Hedgehog #119 is in comic shops today.

Source: Diamond Comics

From Sonic Dimension:



More pics at the link above.

For the lucky folk with a copy of Sonic Advance 1 and/or 2 who can attend the World Hobby Fair, Sonic Team has some rare Chao and nice merchandise for you, as well as a contest and photo op...

Anyway, is this Super Sonic? A fusion? Shadow? A new hedgehog?

I'm sure we'll find out soon, since the rest of the text suggests the anime could be airing as soon as 'Spring'.

Source: Game Watch (in Japanese)

From Swirlvision:

Peter Moore, Sega of America's president and chief financial officer, resigned today after 4 years with the company. Because of company policy, the reasons for his resignation remain undisclosed. The press release:

SEGA of America Announces New President and CEO
Friday January 17, 4:20 pm ET

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 17, 2003--SEGA® of America, Inc. today announced that Peter Moore, president and chief operating officer, has tendered his resignation. Effective immediately, Tetsu Kayama, chief operating officer of SEGA Corporation, will assume the expanded role of president and chief executive officer of SEGA of America, Inc.

"We thank Peter Moore for his four years of service at SEGA and wish him well in his future endeavors," said Tetsu Kayama, chief operating officer, SEGA Corporation and president and chief executive officer, SEGA of America, Inc.

Press Release Source: SEGA of America, Inc.

Source: Swirlvision

From Swirlvision:

New information regarding Sega's upcoming pinball game for Gameboy Advance! Sonic Pinball Party will feature the familiar cast from the Sonic universe, like Tails, Amy, Dr. Robotnik (Eggman), and even Chaos! Also, characters from Sonic Team's other hits, like Samba (from Samba de Amigo) and Nights himself will be making an appearance.

The game will even have music variations from familiar titles: Phantasy Star Online, Samba de Amigo, Burning Rangers, and more!

Link-up compatibility with Sonic Advance 2 and the upcoming Sonic Adventure DX for Gamecube round out the goodies.

Sonic Pinball Party is due for release in Summer.

Source: Swirlvision

From Planet Gamecube:

Sonic Adventure DX
Sonic Adventure was Sonic the Hedgehog's first 3D game on Dreamcast, a pretty major event. Combining speedy platform gaming with exploration with characater-interaction, Sonic Adventure allowed you to play as Sonic and his many friends in a game that was simply huge. As of yet, there are no details on if/how much the game will be updated for the GameCube.
Screenshots

Sonic Pinball Party
Do you like Sonic? Do you like pinball? Well Sonic Pinball Party is set to offer up a host of different pinball levels based on Sonic characters, and NiGHTS is making a special guest appearance.
Screenshots

Source: Planet Gamecube

Note: Do not confuse this with the possible Sonic movie as they are two entirely different things.

From Swirlvision:

Sega of Europe has issued a new Dreamcast bundle. Up until recently, the package included a Dreamcast console, one controller, one VMU, Virtua Fighter 3tb, Metropolis Street Racer, and Jet Set Radio. MSR and JSR (not JGR- Sega of Europe stayed with the Japanese title) have been dropped and replaced with Confidential Mission and Phantasy Star Online along with the Dreamkey 3.0 which is still available for free from SoE.

Both bundles are still available. The older one is GBP 105 (about $150) and the newer one is GBP 100 (about $142). Considering how difficult it is to come by new Dreamcasts these days, this is a fantastic deal. You can pick them up from most online European stores however, some, will not ship outside of the EU. Be sure to ask before ordering.

Source: Swirlvision

From Ken Penders:

How Would You Like To Be In The Sonic Movie?

This one is being batted around, but if all goes according to plan, we could end up with a contest where some lucky guy and girl will each win a small part in the Sonic film.

Not only that, but we may also do a runner-up contest where a character designed by a fan may end up in one of the Robotropolis segments. Needless to say, any drawings submitted would become the property of the production, waivers would have to be signed, especially if we wanted to include them on the eventual DVD release.

At this moment, do not submit anything at this time. I will post all the information once all the details are ironed out. This is more or less to let you guys know the fans are being listened to, and we do want to involve you guys where we can.

Oh, yeah, one other thing: Amy Rose, Rotor and Antoine do appear in the script. They're just not major characters this time out.

Source: Ken's Comic Book Stories & Art

On www.amazon.co.uk you can pre-order Sonic advance 2 & Sonic mega collection now.

The long-rumored Sonic Adventure 1 remake for GameCube is finally happening, according to *Nintendophiles*.

News: Sega Confirms Sonic Adventure DX For 2003

Sega has once again updated their schedule today. Sonic Adventure DX, originally on the Dreamcast, is being confirmed for the GameCube in 2003. This remake should have the same type of changes that we saw for Sonic Adventure 2 Battle. While it is being called a port by Sega, it should include many additions and changes. Sonic Pinball Party for Game Boy Advance is now being named for 2003 as well. With both games being scheduled for the summer of 2003 in Japan, it is safe to assume they will also arrive this year in the U.S.

That makes the grand total of new Sonic games for 2003: 4! The games announced so far are: Sonic Advance 2, Sonic Pinball Party for Gameboy Advance, and Sonic Adventure DX, and an unknown Sonic title(To be announced in May by Sonic Team)for the Gamecube(Possibly other systems, as well). Looks to be a very grand year, indeed!

Source: *Nintendophiles*

According to Diamond Comics, Archie is selling the following issues again:

• Sonic Super Special #8: Zone Wars
• Sonic Super Special #9: Sonic Kids 2
• Sonic Super Special #10: Crossover Chaos
• Sonic Super Special #11: Girls Rule
• Sonic Super Special #12: Turnabout Heroes
• Sonic Super Special #13: Sonic Adventure
• Sonic Super Special #14: Best of Times, Worst of Times
• Sonic Super Special #15: Naugus Games

If you want them, ask for them to be ordered for you if you don't see them in your comic shop.

Source: Diamond Comics

Sources: Silver Bullet Comics, Ken's Comic Book Stories & Art, & Westfield Comics

Source: Comics Continuum

Good news every one. The website The Sonic Foundation is back online at www.sonicfoundation.org.

Source: *Sonic Foundation*