Return To Home Page		October 20 2011

Release Date	Distributer	Publisher	Developer
3/11/2011	Sega	Sega	Sonic Team
Offline Players	Online players	Price	Anticipation
1	None	$99.95

Sonic Generations is due out in late 2011.	The game retains 2D gameplay...

... and includes "modern" 3D sections too!

When it comes to video game characters there are two which generally stand out as icons of the industry - Mario and Sonic. While Mario has had some great titles over the last decade Sega's mascot has struggled with the shift to 3D with many gamers wanting a return to 2D. After a decade of begging Sega finally released a 2D sonic with Sonic 4: Episode 1 which looked great, but had a different physics system which alienated players who wanted to experience the game from 20 years ago. Now, Sonic Team are putting the finishing touches on what could be the ultimate Sonic experience...

Sonic’s universe is thrown into chaos when a mysterious new power creates ‘time holes’ which pull him and his friends back through time. As a result he encounters some surprises from his past history including Classic Sonic, Sonic as he appeared in 1991. Modern Sonic and Classic Sonic must defeat this strange new enemy, save their friends, and find out who really is behind this diabolical deed...

You can't tell here but Sonic Generations moves super fast!

Levels in Sonic Generations will be taken from three main eras of Sonic; The Genesis Era, the Dreamcast Era and the Modern Era. Sadly the rotating Chaos Emerald levels won't be appearing on the PS3/360 versions of the game, but the developers are working on some new mini-games for those versions. Interestingly the Nintendo 3DS version of the game will include all different levels, besides Green Hill Zone, but will include the Chaos Emerald maze levels.

There are two distinct gameplay modes in Sonic Generations. The Classic Sonic mode retains the Sega Genesis/Megadrive gameplay and levels, and remains faithful to the original gameplay.

The other gameplay mode is Modern Sonic mode which provides a more immersive experience which often switches to a viewpoint behind Sonic as he runs into the screen. This also includes extra powers such as a boost, quickstep and homing attack.

Sonic races away from the truck in Sonic Generations... due out on PS3 November 2011.

Sadly it has been confirmed that there will not be any co-op or online gameplay in Sonic Generations with the development team instead focusing on the single play experience. The developers have hinted at interaction with friends in some way - however details are to be unveiled (we're guessing leaderboards at least).

Graphically the developers have really improved the visuals in this game which now include full HD visuals, and support for stereoscopic 3DTV support. Indeed this game looks very much updated from the original 16-bit games and, as one would hope, moves along at a blinding pace too.

With Sonic Team developing the game, and most importantly classic 2D gameplay returning we have massive expectations for Sonic Generations and at this stage it looks like Sega will deliver the goods. The game is due for release in early November 2011 so keep an eye out. On June 23 a demo with the first level in Green Hill Zone on the PlayStation Store - it was might impressive although very brief. A second demo, showing some modern "3D" gameplay was released on October 20 2011.