USAopoly reveals the Sonic Monopoly board!

The USAopoly Facebook page has revealed the upcoming Sonic Monopoly game board. Just standing back and looking at it, it’s a really great looking board! The design looks nice, a ton of zones and stages are represented. And unlike the Nintendo Monopoly game, thought has been put into the renaming of the chance and community chest cards. Seriously, the Nintendo Monopoly was garbage compared to this beauty. Players bought characters like property and built houses on them. How does that work? Gives a whole new meaning to Hotel Mario. Fans have taken note that the Genesis/Mega Drive games really get the shaft with only three properties representing the classics, and all three are from Sonic Generations. Meanwhile, Sonic 4 receives three properties and Sonic Riders, a spin-off title, receives two. If you’re really bothered by the property selection, just use my custom Sonic Hogopoly board.

Sonic: From Video Games to Board Games

Thanks to the Sonic Stadium's resident merch hound Hogfather, it has been discovered that American board game company USAopoly will soon be releasing a line of Sonic the Hedgehog games and puzzles due out in August 2012! Various online toy and game retailers have started posting up pre-orders for games and puzzles, including a Sonic die cut puzzle, a Sonic memory game and... a Sonic Monopoly! The last item mentioned is the most exciting of the three. Many franchises have gotten the Monopoly treatment, including Nintendo, World of Warcraft, Seinfeld, Simpsons and Futurama.

A Sonic Monopoly could be awesome, or it could be a disappointment. USAopoly has a history of some great versions of the classic game, such as the Simpsons version. However, other franchises aren't so lucky. Nintendo Monopoly, for example, features a plain white board with Nintendo characters acting as property. How uninspired! I only hope that some Sonic fans are working on the project, so we get a Monopoly that the franchise deserves. And hey, if it doesn't work out, you can always print out and play the Sonic Monopoly that I'm making!

[Source: Sonic Stadium Boards]

Today is 'Buy Sonic CD' day.

I did a post like this back when the new downloadable port of Daytona USA was released and I'm doing it again now because Sega deserves to be shown when they do something oh so right. Sonic CD is being released for the X-Box Live Arcade and Playstation Network (in Europe anyway, PSN America gets it in a week) as well as iPhone and Android devices (with PC and Windows Phone releases coming early next year) for an absolutely bargain price across all the formats of $5/£3.59, especially considering just what a special re-release this is.

Re-built by programmer extraordinaire Christian Whitehead, previously known for producing some of the slickest fan games in the community  in his custom built Retro Engine, this is how you port a game right (coughcoughbackbonecough) and is now the definitive version of the game thanks to containing both soundtracks, solid 60fps and widescreen support, and extras including an option for the Sonic 2 spin dash and the ability to play as Tails!

So what are you waiting for? It's an absolute steal of a price and is better than ever before. I have another article about Sonic CD coming later in the day, so watch this space.

Daytona USA is finally getting the console port it deserves.

Sega have been doing a lot to keep fans happy lately, especially on the downloadble games front. As of late they have brought us the Saturn classic Guardian Heroes, two more Dreamcast games including the mega-rare Space Channel 5 Part 2, and later this year we will be getting Sonic CD. Best of all, they have actually been putting quite a lot of care and love into these ports unlike those sloppy Mega Drive re-releases from a while back. This trend of goodness is continuing with Daytona USA, announced just yesterday and due for release very soon to XBLA and PSN.

After they released Sega Racing Classic in arcades a couple years ago, a HD re-release of Daytona USA with the licensed name and some of the music removed, it looked as though if we were ever to get a proper port of this game on consoles, it would be without that iconic cheesy music. However they have managed to acquire the license for this download edition and it looks to be an arcade perfect port, which has been around 17 years in waiting!

Daytona USA was and in many ways still is the ultimate arcade game. While most arcades replace old games with those with newer graphics or simply anything with a dance mat on it, Daytona can still be found in many arcades everywhere as people still love to play it. Even people that are not fans of racing games or casual gamers can easily jump into the seat of the cabinet and have fun playing it, it's a timeless classic.

Console wise we got a Sega Saturn port that visually was sloppy to say the least, but still played as close as you could get to the arcade game at the time. They tried to 'fix' this by releasing Daytona USA C.C.E a year later, and although it looked better most of the music was replaced and it didn't feel the same for some reason. Many years later we got Daytona USA 2001 on the Dreamcast that included online play (except here in Europe) and while it looked even better than the arcade game in many respects, the controls of that version were almost completely different. It was still fun, but nothing like the arcade one.

So now in 2011 Sega are giving us the port we always wanted. It looks identical to the model 2 arcade game and they appear to have removed any pop u that that version had. It will have online for up to 8 players, very much like how many of the arcade machines were linked up for 8 player. The achievement list includes many of the easter eggs that were in the arcade including making the Jeffry statue animate by hitting the special button, and there is even a karaoke mode!

What else can we expect from Sega in the future with developments like this? A real dream would be to get some of the arcade-only follows up on consoles, such as Daytona USA 2 and Scud Race, but who knows if that's possible at this point. As a Sega fan prove to them this is a good idea and buy this release. We've waited long enough for a port this good, show them they are doing the right thing and maybe they'll keep this ball rolling!

Sonic Generations Europe Collector's Edition: OH MY GOD.

...

So yeah, would you look at that. Sega have just revealed the European collector's edition of Sonic generations and boy is it something special. Here is Sega's announcement copy-pasted:

Celebrations continue in Europe for Sonic the Hedgehog’s 20th anniversary with an impressive collector’s edition for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation3 versions of the upcoming Sonic Generations game.

The Sonic Generations Collectors Edition combines limited edition collectables based on the upcoming game, as well as assets handpicked by Sonic Team to celebrate Sonic’s 20th Anniversary, which provide the ultimate celebration of Sonic for fans new and old.

Included in the collector’s edition is a collectable figurine featuring both Classic Sonic and Modern Sonic, an exclusive, individually numbered commemorative “Gold Ring”, and a “20 Years of Sonic Art” book, containing never before seen sketches and images from the past 20 years. Also contained in the Collector’s Edition are the ‘20th Anniversary Sonic Soundtrack’ featuring a selection of tracks handpicked by Sonic Team, and the ‘History of Sonic: Birth of an Icon’ documentary, an exclusive collection of interviews and footage charting Sonic’s life from inception through to becoming one of the most iconic characters in videogame history. Limited edition lenticular packaging and bonus additional downloadable content for the game are the final components that make up this unique collector’s edition for Sonic Generations.

So there it is. A statue, a gold ring, a soundtrack, a documentary DVD, downloadable content and an art book! It looks as though this is going to be Europe only for some reason, at least for the moment anyway, sorry Americans.

Take my money Sega, all of it.

EDIT: It has appeared on Amazon UK now for the price of £85. The retail price is apparently £99.

Mega Drive/Master System Stand: I'm nuts.

Chalk this up as one of the craziest Sega related purchases I have ever made. The game shop I bought it from said they paid £600 for this back when the Mega Drive was the best selling format at the shop (15 years or so ago I'd imagine), and I got it for the starting bid of £50 one morning a week ago on a whim on eBay.

Sega of Americas Holy Grail

I'm sure if you browse gaming blogs you will have already seen this by now (most likely at Kotaku where they made up some rubbish about Sega forgetting all about it, either from mis-reading or an excuse to take a pop at Sega AKA gaming's whipping boy), but I can't NOT post about this archive of Sega's back catalog that they store at the American offices. Apparently it holds just about every game Sega has ever made or published, as well as all their consoles and peripherals. It truly is a beautiful sight to behold, and they have even more games stacked behind the ones shown in the photos!

A whole draw full of what look like Dreamcast GD-Rs. They even have a list for them all.

More after the jump!

Boot Sale Season Returns: Megadrive Goldmine

The big car boots sales a short drive away finally started up again recently, and I went today after months of desperately trying to find bargains on Ebay. Anyone who knows me well enough will know of my jammy-git luck with finding some crazy cheap gaming stuff at them, like a game Boy Advance for £1, a Playstation 2 Slim with 16 games for £55 and my Sega Multi-Mega which set me back a measly £6.50, but these kinds of things very rarely happen, between week after week of the same old common shit (Read: Sports games. Anyone would think no ones buys anything else at these places). Oh how I have missed them for awesome shit like this raid I got today..

Here's a big blue box full of Mega Drive junk I bought today. What's in it, then?Find out after the jump!

Sega is sending us a Love letter

(See the trailer in better high-res here.)

I've said it before and I'll say it again: Sega make the best FMV trailers for games out there. I swear more often or not the cut scenes are the best things in their games now a days, just look at the intros to Sonic Next-Gen, NiGHTS Journey of Dreams, and Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games. Even if the games themselves aren't their best (especially in the case of Sonic next-gen, which turned out to be a complete pile of rubbish) but you gotta admit they have clearly hired a brilliant animation studio to do this stuff. Now they've put out a trailer for Sega Superstars Tennis, and inside I cried with joy watching it.

This game has so much going for it it is really difficult to see how it could possible NOT rock my socks off. Check out this info from Eurogamer:

* Playable characters include Beat and Gum from Jet Set Radio, Ulala and Pudding from Space Channel 5, and Alex Kidd. Yes, that's what I said. ALEX KIDD.


* Stages include Green Hill, Scrap Brain, the House of the Dead mansion, and Coconut Beach from OutRun!

* Mini-games based on House of the Dead, Puyo Pop, Space Harrier and Virtua Cop!

* Based directly on the Virtua Tennis 3 engine, and developed by Sumo Digital who have been pretty much the best to happen to Sega for years with their console ports of Outrun 2 and Virtua Tennis 3.

* Unlike those games, this game is going to be on almost every console out there: X-Box 360, PS2, PS3, Wii and even DS! Oddly enough there's no PSP or PC versions, though.

* Legendary Sega musician Richard Jacques has composed the theme music. The game will also feature tons of classic Sega music.

This game is truly Sega giving all us long time fans a great big hug. After all the changes they have gone through in the years since they quit the console market, this shows they haven't forgotten about their roots and what made them so great in the first place. It's coming out in the UK this march, so it's not even that far away! If you're a Sega fan I can't really see there being any excuses not to buy this, seeing as it's on nearly everything and has fan service up the wazoo!

Streets of what? Streets of RAGE!

What, an article that isn’t about Sonic? No, I’m not high, I just felt like being different. Variety is the proverbial spice of life. When I think of the good old days of Sega, one of the first things that comes to mind (once that blue hedgehog gets out the way) is Streets of Rage – or Bare Knuckle if you live in Japan. Which you probably don’t. Now you could argue that SoR was a bit of a copy of Capcom’s Final Fight (which presumably to Sega's dismay, got ported to the SNES). Well, actually you’d be right. But what a glorious copy it was! 

^ And what happens when you fuse these two together? Street Fighter... see what I did there?

More after the jump.

Memorable Moments in Sega Gaming 2

Continuing from where I left off quite a while ago, here's five more installments of my personal most memorable moments in my Sega filled life of gaming. You can see the previous chapter HERE.

#6: Sega Rally - The Instructors

Sega seem to always do things in a way that's makes them more memorable to me than say, games by just about anyone else. Take rally games, or more specifically the voice that instructs you on which turns are coming up in Sega Rally

“Long medium left! Easy Right! CAUTION! Hairpin right! Long easy right, Maybe!“

Maybe? Some help you are. Then as you go around the track a second time, it’s still a “Long easy right! Maybe!”. Surely he can confirm now we’ve been round the track one lap what that part is. Moron. When you play the sequel with the female instructor, she sounds more like she’s saying “Long easy right! Baby!” Heh. Best part about this feature was making them shout “whoa!” every time you bump into the sides. That’ll teach them to be unsure about the next turn. Hang on, I’ve run out of time. Oh well. GAME OVER YEAHHHHHHHHHH!


More after the jump.

Decap Attack

(two heads aren't always better than one - drawing courtesy of me)

In the interest of variation, I’m going to not focus this entry on Sonic stuff. Wild, I know. SEGA had many other glorious moments, some of which are often overlooked. One of my personal favourites would have to be Decap Attack, originally an annoyingly tricky Mega Drive platformer. Apparently an “update” of a Master System game called Psycho Fox, Decap Attack involved you running around as a zombie / mummy hybrid thing by the name of Chuck D. Head, in an attempt to stop Max D. Cap from doing evil things. Or something, I didn’t really pay all that much attention to the plot.

(I never understood the presence of the monkey on this cover)

More after the jump..

Why Sega and Nintendo should collaborate more.

Wow, if there is one thing Sega knows how to do well still, it's making exciting trailers that really pump you up for their upcoming games. Just recently we had a new trailer for NiGHTS: Journey of Dreams and just yesterday the second trailer for Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games, which can be seen above.

If you've found this blog you were probably around for the "16-Bit War" between Sega's Mega Drive and the Super Nintendo, and knowing what the relationship between two companies at the time was, finds this new Wii and DS title to be the most unexpected team up in video game history. Back in the early 90's Nintendo and Sega were seen as bitter rivals, who would constantly slag each other off in their respective commercials, "Sega does what Nintendon't" being the most familiar of these.

As a kid I was on the Sega side and my best mate was on the Nintendo side, but we didn't fight over who was best, we used it as an opportunity to play both systems without having to own them both. I would pop over to his house to play Super Mario World, Yoshi's Island and Donkey Kong Country, and he would visit mine to play Sonic 3, Streets of Rage and Golden Axe. This way we got to see the best of both.

I still remember reading magazines like Sega Power and Mean Machines Sega and getting to the fan art section in which you would be greeted to artwork of Sonic brutally killing Mario in sometimes rather inventive fashion, and this wasn't just going on amongst the "violent loving" Sega fans, as flicking through a Nintendo magazine would bring up the complete reverse. I don't have any of these magazines anymore, but you can probably use your imagination.

Once Sega were out of the console business, they started to insert their fingers into all sorts of pies in an aim to become the world's number one video game publisher. For a short while, Sonic was to be exclusive to Nintendo systems, starting with Sonic Advance on the Game Boy Advance and ports of the Dreamcast Adventure titles on the Gamecube. This soon ended when Sega saw that it would make more sense to sell Sonic on everything, but just seeing Sonic on a Nintendo console was something we could have never guessed would happen back in the 16-bit days, let alone Sonic and Mario starring in a game together like we have now.

Sega's first collaboration with Nintendo was the Gamecube and Arcade title F-Zero AX/GX. This was a match made in heaven: Nintendo passed on their long running F-Zero racing series, which debuted as a launch title for the SNES,
to Sega's Amusement Vision, who were known for Daytona USA of all things. Sega are known by many as the kings of arcade style racing games, and here they were working on a classic Nintendo franchise. Developed with the same engine as Super Monkey Ball (a stroke of genius if ever there was one), the game turned out be like a futuristic Daytona, with instantly additive gameplay and a sprinkle of Sega arcade magic. Simply put, the results were wonderful.

This is why I believe Sega and Nintendo need to collaborate with each other more. The two studios have their own ways of running things and their own disciplines, and I think when they work together something magic happens. It's just like when Warner Brothers and Disney decided to team up on the movie Who Framed Roger Rabbit, and got Bugs Bunny and Mickey Mouse on the screen at the same time. It just worked so well, and I think the two could learn a lot from each other.

For example: It's no secret that Sega has been struggling to find the right direction to take the Sonic series in recent years. Mario & Sonic is being developed by Sega, but supervised by Shigeru Miyamoto, who you should all know is the creative mind behind Mario, amongst many other Nintendo characters. Even Nintendo's own Mario sports series doesn't normally get Miyamoto's attention (they are mostly developed by outside developers), which means he clearly wants this game to as good as it deserves to be. Miyamoto is known to only let games he works on out of the door once they are as good as they can possibly be, as seen with all the delays that went into Zelda: Twilight Princess. Where I think Sega has been going wrong is by sticking so closey to their originally planned release dates. With another year of development, Sonic the Hedgehog on the 360 and Playstation 3 could of been much, much better game, but what we go was rushed mess full of half baked ideas and sloppy programming.


The newly formed Nintendo Tokyo EAD development studio started their production line with the Gamecube bongo based game Donkey Kong Jungle Beat. Maybe it's just me, but this game really felt like a Sega game.maybe it was the simple yet deep control and combo set up, and arcade style game play. Currently this team is working on Super Mario Galaxy, and personally, I think these guys would do a mighty fine job developing a Sonic game. Just imagine the kind of imaginative gameplay these guys could bring to the Sonic series, while also going back to the series' roots which, to be honest, seem to have been forgotten in some of the recent Sonic games. The Nintendo mentality of not putting a game out until it's really ready could really benefit Sega's projects.

At the same time, Nintendo have been struggling to get the Starfox franchise back into gear. Starfox Adventures ended up as a bad move, and the Namco developed Starfox games of recent did nothing to bring the series back to the glory days of the SNES and N64 titles. This is where I think Sega could help. They could get the guys that developed After Burner Climax on this and give us a engaging, exciting Starfox game that we haven't had in a long time, with that Sega arcade magic sprinkled on.

So come on Sega and Nintendo. You've shown you can work together well...let's see more of it!