In the lead-up to E3, we’re counting down with our most anticipated titles. You can find out when all the press conferences are taking place in Australian/NZ times HERE.
After years of floating aimlessly in the market, the developers at Sega have begun to realise the value of Sonic The Hedgehog. With retro games being all the rage in the modern day, and some quite lacklustre titles inheriting the name of Sonic in recent times, could we finally be seeing a ‘Sonic Renaissance’?
Headed by the team that delivered Sonic Generations, Sonic Forces sees Classic Sonic and Modern Sonic joining forces to take the world back from the evil Dr Eggman who, for the first time has finally managed to take over the world.
Sonic Forces was announced at San Diego Comic-Con on July 22, 2016 during Sega’s 25th anniversary on the series. Alongside Sega’s other upcoming game Sonic Forces, it has been in development since 2013, shortly after the release of Sonic Lost World.
Since Sega don’t have their own showcase, it will likely appear during one of the major conferences of Sony, Microsoft or in Nintendo’s Direct. The obvious choice points towards Nintendo, since it was one of the first games to be announced for the Switch.
No set date as of yet, but the title is scheduled for release in Q4 of this year. With Sonic Mania scheduled for an August release, Sega have an open spot in the holiday season which would also coincide with Christmas sales of the Switch.
Sega’s biggest problem is trying to branch too far out with game mechanics, effectively forgetting what makes Sonic great. Since there is no multiplayer, a focus on refining control elements for both Classic and Modern Sonic would be priority, and backing that up with a decent narrative that draws in both new players and long-time fans of the series.
Sonic Generations got so far but left players wanting more; if Sega can recapture the heart from the classic Sonic games, the game is sure to be a hit.
