Since he debuted just under years ago, Sonic the Hedgehog has been
Sega's mainstay mascot. Today, the Japanese publisher revealed that it
working on an all-new reinvention of the titular spiny spinner by
taking him back to his two dimensional roots.The new game, code-named Project Needlemouse, will debut sometime next
year on as-yet unidentified consoles. So far, the only glimpse of the
game has come via a mysterious teaser trailer, which only shows the
outline of the new look of the hero at the end."Speed returns in an all new 2D adventure built from the ground up"
declares the teaser trailer, before showing a blue blur zipping across
the screen scooping up golden rings. Accompanying it is a litany of
sound effects and visual cues from the first Sonic the Hedgehog, who
launched worldwide in the summer of 1991 on the Sega Genesis system.Since then, then character helped launch all of Sega's system until its
last, the Dreamcast, went on sale 10 years ago. In the years since that
console's implosion, Sonic has appeared on all its former rivals'
consoles in dozens of games, and has undergone several high-profile
reboots. The most recent titles to feature him were last fall's Sonic
Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood, and Sonic Unleashed, which was better reviewed on the Wii than PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.Speaking with GameSpot, Sega associate brand manager, Ken Balough
confirmed that Project Needle mouse will feature HD graphics. He also
said the game's concept was a response to "old-school Sonic fans" who
"have long asked to see Sonic return to a more 2D style of gameplay."
For more details, check out GameSpot's full interview with Balough.
Edit: Just click the big link above to see the video. Something is being snippy and won't let me show it here.
Oh sweet lord, this seems out of left field. Now to decide whether to be incredibly excited or incredibly pessimistic about this over the next few months.
EDIT: And about all the other Sonic forums I lurk at seem to have gotten word of this already, lol.
Well, next year would make it two years since a "major" title came out. I'm not expecting it to be more than pretty shovelware for the kiddies.
HMMMMMM...
I hope we don't see : we want to bring fans the classic sonic experience high speed 2d gameplay
And we also want to bring them in a new set of fresh things to enjoy.
Which is why three fourths of the game will be played as Spatz the Oyster,
where you must collect as many sea shells as possible to stop Eggman from taking over Atlantis !
Lawl
Holy ****! "SEGA" being shouted. I got an erection!
But let's get what I'm about to say/show out of the way first shall we? *credit goes to Full Metal Rayzor for some of them*
Ahem
This is Sonic's LAST CHANCE
S3&K was the last good Sonic game
Sonic is ripping off DBZ and/or Mario
Will there be choa in this game?
Chao were the best thing about SA2
Too many Sonic characters
Sonic games should just be in 2D
I hope Super Sonic is playable in this game (even though we ALL do really)
I want my Sonic Adventure 3 (or in this case, Sonic the Hedgehog 4)
Will *insert character* be in this
I hope *insert character* isn't in this
THIS IS SONIC'S GLORIOUS RETURN
Also where's that 3 circle diagram? We NEED to show that again!
Also where's that 3 circle diagram? We NEED to show that again!
We've used that thing so much that our showing it to others needs to be added to it as another phase.
That commercial... would be hard to make by a fan.
This could be Sonic's triumphant return, and it could be a pile of crap, or shovelware for tykes, or another lame gimmick, but from what I've heard this sounds pretty friggin sweet. Im gonna go watch that vid 5 more times.
I'm cautiously optimistic about Project Needlemouse.
Yeah, me too.
(For those who didnt know, though I'm pretty sure you did, in the 1990 SEGA AM8 Research and Development team held a little contest where the employees would send in ideas for characters to replace Alex Kidd as the company's mascot, and when the guy sent in Sonic he was called Mr. Needlemouse.)
That clip looks to f***ing awesome to be fanmade.
YAY! Now we have a new game to talk about! Now go ahead and throw it up amongst the stickies!
Hey you guys! It's that time again!
Yeah! Now our bored selves can talk about something other then how bad the recent games suck!
But i have a feeling this might be something like an enhanced version of the original Sonic game... something like a Wii Port.
We'll just have to wait and see.
I'm trying my hardest not to pass judgement on this. So far...it's way too easy. 
Well, its been the annie of the Dreamcast for an hour and a half exactly. People are mumbling "Dreamcast 2" and "Project Needlemouse as Dreamcast 2 Launch title" but judging by the "success" of the first, thats a highly unlikely possibility.
Sega associate brand manager, Ken Balough, also added "Many liked the daytime stages in Unleashed, but wanted to see a game that plays purely similar to the early games of the Genesis. Project Needlemouse is that critical first step that brings Sonic back to his 2D roots."
Well this sound promising, maybe they finally go--
Sega teases "built from the ground up" HD 2D adventure--codenamed Project Needlemouse--that aims to return to original game's speed-oriented play; teaser trailer inside.
...
Do'h oh yeah Physics be damned
Though they might just be saying that because speed IS what sold Sonic back in the old days. Even if that wasn't entire true. It's what was spoon fed to us as kids.
True. But how many people working on the title will remember this and how many actually believe their own hype?
Reminds me of something else I saw earlier:
Sonic 4 confirm then. If the game download, there better be a retail version. I don't have X-Box Live.
Too early for me to judge, too little to say how I feel. But past Sonic games have left me feeling cold, so it's gonna take a lot to make me have some form of faith.
Too early for me to judge, too little to say how I feel. But past Sonic games have left me feeling cold, so it's gonna take a lot to make me have some form of faith.
I can keep you warm. 
Seriously though...i'm not all that excited yet. I need to see some pics/footage. TGS anyone? What do you guys think?
LOL I found it
So far we're at the first stage (dur)
LOL I found it
So far we're at the first stage (dur)
HAHAHAHH! Whatever dude...i'm nowhere on that cycle, yet. I've learned. xD!
Hedgehog Engine. What a flop.
I was going to post the anti-Sonic cycle but it contains a the "S" word.
I'm going to remedy that cycle now by not getting my hopes up. Besides, I've all the 2D crap I need, classic and new. I highly doubt anything good is going to come out of this.
If this "concept art" is to be believed, with all it's sinister look twisty-spikey bits, instead of Sonic the Hedgehog HD, we may end up with...
...
"Tim Burton's Sonic the Hedgehog HD"
... with Sonic of course played by Johnney Depp!...
...
...
...
...
...
... which'd then make it...
"Tim Burton's Sonic the Depphog!!"
The new game, code-named Project Needlemouse, will debut sometime next year on as-yet unidentified consoles. So far, the only glimpse of the game has come via a mysterious teaser trailer, which only shows the outline of the new look of the hero at the end
....Since then, then character helped launch all of Sega's system until its last, the Dreamcast, went on sale 10 years ago.
*reads between the lines*
NEW DREAMCAST 2 WITH SONIC 4 AS A LAUNCH TITLE!!11111!!111
On another note I expect any and all new sonic games to be s***y therefore have such low expectations ensures I will never be disappointed 
If this is just the Sonic Unleashed 2D sections then its just going to be Sonic Rush prettified. And I will cry.
But if this is a genuine update on the Sonic 3&K style gameplay, then all should be well. I could even tolerate 15 playable characters if the game is actually good.
I think its more likely to be DC2 with SONIC ADVENTURE 3 as the launch title.
Adamis just posted the Anti Sonic Cycle over on STCO. It has a swear.
I'm kinda excited about this...
I can has Spin Dash now?
Look guys! It's Sonic's NEW look!
And lets not forget his new friend!
http://forums.sonicretro....ndex.php?showtopic=10693 Mr Needlemouse "hack"? (also possible content warning).
Instead of making my own comment I'm just going to quote what someone said over at the Italics Forum.
"If you get excited about this, you are a consumer whore. This is PR-101 here. Get the fans excited, and some are bound to buy the product no mater how bad it is."
Ignoring Swanson's pesimism for a moment (and yes I am a consumer whore), I wonder if they are going to keep with Yuji Uekawa's "Adventure" designs, or go back to the Naoto Oshima "Legacy"* designs. The sounds and logo used in the trailer are certainly old-school Sonic, but I wonder if its just because its a teaser trailer, and they're just trying to illustrate to us what they would merely like to do (gee, now I'm the one sounding pesimistic).
*Btw, according to Ken Balough's interview, the new canon compound title for Sonic 1, 2, 3 & Knuckles is the "Sonic Legacy" titles. Get's you all choked up inside doesn't it.
I think maybe,.. JUST MAYBE... Sega's finally listening to the FANS for once. I really hope Sega amazes me this time.
It looks like they're using an entirely new design if that is indeed Sonic in the silhouette. Even for old school Sonic his quills are too short.
My gut's tellin' me it's a new character. You know SEGA just can't help themselves.
'nother possibility is that this is a game with a ... style. Like Paper Mario but not. The teaser site images kind of remind me of AoSTH which was kind of a whimsical take on Sonic's world. Maybe they're just using a stylized Sonic.
For once? The last few years have been unadultarated fanservice, all of which turned out terrible because the one thing Sega aren't willing to do is leave a game in development for over 1 year.
Infact, ever since Heroes, the next game in the franchise is usually a direct responce to complaints from the previous... excluding Shadow... I have a hard time understanding how they could fight so hard to remove Streets of Rage from Gems Collection to keep it PG when they release a PG13/Teen rated game. Though fan opinion polls at that time did peg him to be the most popular character.
Proving not only is the franchise lead by the blind fans, but said fans don't know what they want and Sega don't know how to give it to them.
I'm reserving optimism until I actually see something. Sega promising "back to roots" gaming is nothing new, it's been their war cry since Heroes. 2d is all that's new and still was used for promoing the DiMPS games.
---and let's face it, all we're doing is judging their choice of PR right now. Given that's all we've been given to judge.
Been there, done that, got the t-shirt.
It'll take a miracle to get my hopes up.
But I mean, from the silhouette and the classic "Seeeeegaaaaa" sound, they MIGHT be bringing him back.
By that logic, Brawl 'brought' back Sonic because the classic sounds were there too. =/
My cynical response: It looks like Sonic Fans are finally going to get that rehash of S&3k they've been dying for and then be disappointed because it's a rehash of a game they've been playing for over a decade.
Semi-related pessimistic response: I hope this doesn't mean there's not going to be a Sonic Rush 3. I loved Rush: Adventure to death and rank it as high as Sonic 2 and Sonic3&k, and better than Sonic 3 as a solo game.
Optimistic response: I do like 2D Sonics. Even though I found Advance 1 and 2 to be stale it was still a fun diversion. So there's something to look forward to, at least.
Response to Craig:
Infact, ever since Heroes, the next game in the franchise is usually a direct responce to complaints from the previous... excluding Shadow...
Having the game star Shadow and be more 'mature' themed was a pretty out-there creative decision, but I think I can see how it responds to Heroes. You had the entire Heroes cast return in Shadow but you only played as one character, Shadow, with one style. Shadow was basically all SA/SA2 'speed' levels except with WTF things like guns, cars, and extra emphasis on fighting thrown in.
I enjoyed Shadow, and the maturity level of it. I see it as proof that Sega's AT LEAST trying to keep it from being kiddy shovelware, even though now they arent.
Funny comment on other board:
(copied picture from end of video)
It's Sonic's son.
(reply)
And Princess Elise is the mother, right?
<<I enjoyed Shadow, and the maturity level of it. I see it as proof that Sega's AT LEAST trying to keep it from being kiddy shovelware, even though now they arent.>>
Shadow was anything but mature. It was actually immature in that it tried to hard to please the older fanbase when most of them can see it through the shallow farce of a "mature" game.
Sheesh what make people think Sonic isn't for kids?
The early games was about a fuzzy hedgehog rescuing cute little animals from mean looking machines.
And even the characters themselves weren't mature back then or now for that matter.
lol i always love The Sonic Cycle. There's never been a more accurate representation of where we are and where we are headed.
