Retro Gaming Australia

Sega will be releasing a 3D version of the original Sonic the Hedgehog as part of their 3D enhanced re-release program for the Nintendo 3DS eShop.

This updated version of Sonic the Hedgehog will be boasting many enhancements such as the Sonic 2 spin dash, save states, the ability to switch between different regional versions of the game, and even choose between Model 1 and Model 2 Mega Drive sound. These enhancements are completely optional, meaning you can play the game in its vanilla form.

3D Sonic the Hedgehog will be released in Japan this week for 600 yen. Hopefully we’ll hear word of a local release soon.

Sonic Adventure 2 was released to coincide with the 10th anniversary of the series debut in 2001. The 10th Anniversary Birthday Pack release of the game is well worth tracking down. The game itself…well, the Sonic bits are pretty good, but the rest of it…yeah.

Sega announced at GDC that a remastered version of the original Sonic the Hedgehog would be making its way to Android and iOS devices. This new version of the game will replace the one that is currently available.

Previous Sonic the Hedgehog releases earned the ire of fans for being done as fast and as cheap as possible, so in order to prevent fan backlash, Sega has enlisted the help of Taxman, creator of the Retro Engine used in many Sonic fan games and the recent re-release of Sonic the Hedgehog CD, and Stealth, creator of the popular Sonic fan game Sonic Mega Mix.

Changes in the new release include widescreen support, a remapped HUD and touch screen controls.

The remastered version of Sonic the Hedgehog will hit in April for $US2.99. Those who previously purchased Sonic the Hedgehog on these devices will be upgraded to the new version free of charge.

Sonic Adventure DX: Director’s Cut is an enhanced port of Sonic’s 3D debut. It bumps up the frame rate to 60fps, adds the Mission Mode and throws in 12 of Sonic’s 8-bit adventures for good measure.

It’s arguably one of the best games on the Mega Drive, if not of all time, but Sonic the Hedgehog was the recipient of a totally crude PAL conversion. I decided to take the opportunity to illustrate just how slow and sluggish that particular version of the game is in this latest edition of Retro Gaming Theatre.

This video runs through the first four acts of the game, and a couple of special stages.

As part of their evergrowing focus on digital distribution, Sega has announced that it will be bringing a collection of Model 2 arcade games to Xbox Live Arcade and PSN in the coming months.

The slate of titles, dubbed the “Model 2 Collection”, includes Virtua Fighter 2, Virtua Striker, Sonic the Fighters, Fighting Vipers and Virtual On.

Word on the street is that these titles will boast improvements like online play and in the case of Sonic the Fighters, extra playable characters. We’ll have to wait and see. I doubt we’ll see Pepsiman in Fighting Vipers, but one can always hope.

Sonic & Knuckles is alright on its own, but combine it with a copy of Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and you have the best Sonic game ever produced. They were actually intended to be one game throughout most of development until the high cost of production for the large cartridge size the original Sonic 3 project needed forced Sega to cut the game into two – Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and Sonic & Knuckles.

USAopoly has been producing licensed versions of Monopoly for years, with properties such as The Simpsons, Lord of the Rings, Batman and even Mario making the cut. You can now add Sonic the Hedgehog to the list of names with the recent release of Monopoly: Sonic The Hedgehog Collector’s Edition.

It’ll set you back $US39.99 plus shipping.

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 was meant to be Sega’s big game for 1993, but the project proved far too ambitious with the required cartridge size needed to house the game’s content simply being far too expensive to produce. They split the game into two halves – Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and Sonic and Knuckles, and hurriedly assembled a team to develop Sonic Spinball to go to bat in its place, eventually releasing Sonic 3 in March 1994 and Sonic & Knuckles in October 1994.

The Sonic fan game sphere has been known to generate some pretty impressive stuff. One particular game with quite the following is Sonic: Before the Sequel, (which you can check out here) an adventure set between Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic the Hedgehog 2 which boasted over 50 levels and had some really cool boss fights.

A sequel, Sonic: After the Sequel has been in development since the end of last year, with many Sonic fans eagerly anticipating its release. While the full game isn’t finish just yet, the team behind the game have released a demo to give everyone a taste of their next ambitious project. Among the new additions to the sequel are cutscenes and run-along battles like those featured in the first levels of Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and Sonic & Knuckles.