SEGADriven is a SEGA news and information source that focuses on SEGA's console history, retro games and new software hitting the shelves. We want to share a love of great, quirky, clever and down-right fun games - something that SEGA have always specialised in. See below for the latest news, reviews and features added to the website.
Japan-Only Releases
- Company of Heroes 3 (PC) TBA
- 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim (Switch) 14/04/2022
- Astro City Mini V (Mini Console) 2022
- Sonic Frontiers (PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Switch, PC) Q4 2022
- Surviving the Aftermath: The Extinct Planet (PS4 & Switch) TBA
- Sonic Origins (PC, Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S) 23/06/2022
The previously released Sonic and Knuckles costumes are returning to Fall Guys this week, and they’ve got company. The recently gone Free-to-Play take on the Takeshi’s Castle format is getting a slew of new content themed around SEGA’s spiky blue mascot, including costumes of Tails, Dr. Eggman and Super Sonic. A new event will also be added to the game, tasking you with collecting rings in… Bean Hill Zone. Now that’s a pun we can get behind.
There’ll also be other goodies up for grabs, such as nameplates and accessories. The Sonic-themed fesitivites won’t last forever though, as the event only runs from August 11th to August 15th; so you’ll have to be quick to score everything, which we suppose is pretty fitting.
We’ve also got some key art to celebrate the event from Epic Games’ PR, which you can check out after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »
The SEGA Genesis Mini 2 is officially confirmed for a North American release on October 27th 2022.
In addition to this announcement we have a few new game reveals in the form of Rainbow Islands Extra, Splatterhouse 2, Rolling Thunder 2, Sonic 3D Blast, The Ooze and Vectorman 2. Sadly, Popful Mail and Magical Taruruto-kun don’t appear to have made the cut for the Genesis Mini 2.
The currently confirmed game list for the Genesis Mini 2 is in its entirety below:
– Sonic CD
– Shining Force CD
– Silpheed
– Mansion of Hidden Souls
– Night Striker
– The Ninja Warriors
– After Burner II
– Out Run
– Out Runners
– Virtua Racing
– Super Hang On
– Sonic 3D Blast
– Shining in the Darkness
– Vectorman 2
– The Ooze
– Bonanza Brothers
– Alien Soldier
– Rainbow Islands Extra
– Splatterhouse 2
– Rolling Thunder 2
– Lightening Force: Quest for the Darkstar
– Fantasy Zone (Bonus Game)
– Star Mobile (Bonus Game)
The SEGA Genesis Mini 2 will be an Amazon exclusive in North America, costing $103.80 and comes with the console itself, a single 6 button controller, power lead, power adapter and HDMI cable.
There is currently no word on whether the mini console is coming to the UK and Europe at this time.
Released July 1st 2022, Sonic and the Fallen Star joins a very small list of Sonic fan games to actually make it to full release. But is it any good? Join us to find out:
As part of the latest Nintendo Direct, SEGA has revealed our first look at Sonic Frontiers’ linear ‘cyberspace’ levels.
Via SEGA PR:
Entrances to Cyber Space made by the ancient civilization of Starfall Islands can be found all throughout the map. Sonic fans will solve puzzles and complete challenges to earn Portal Gears to unlock these entrances access Cyber Space levels featuring the traditional, fast-paced, speed running action platforming. They’ll need to complete the challenges in each Cyber Space level to receive Vault Keys to progress further in the game.
To the joy of probably very few people, one of the cyberspace levels has Sonic revisiting Green Hill Zone for the umpteenth time. Thankfully the other cyberspace level shown seems a lot less derivative, showing a suspended highway branching off in a multitude of directions. Read the rest of this entry »
SEGA aren’t exactly strangers to wheeling out the Classic Sonic games now. It’s a running joke amongst the fanbase that every Sonic fan owns at least 30 different copies of the original game across just about every gaming platform known to man. Hell – I had Sonic the Hedgehog on my chunky old iPod Classic! But after the rather staggering way SEGA stuffed up Sonic Colours Ultimate last year, I don’t think it’s unreasonable that some people were even more wary of Sonic Origins than they’d usually be. The good news is that this isn’t the mess that Sonic’s Wii outing got turned into. The bad news is that Sonic Origins is still a very flawed package, full of glaring errors and mistakes that are made more aggravating knowing they could’ve been very easily fixed.
Grind Stormer by Toaplan is a vertically scrolling shoot-em-up that seems very traditional on the surface, but it hides an extra gameplay style that drastically alters the main mechanics. Join us as we take a look at Grind Stormer for the Mega Drive!
Ivan “Ironman” Stewart’s Super Off Road is a fixed angle racing game where you can see the entire circuit without scrolling. When it made its way to the Mega Drive in 1992, the game lost the Ivan Stewart endorsement and it’s 3 player multiplayer. But is it still worth playing? Let’s find out together!
The first episode of “Sonic Origins: Speed Strats” has been released, a new series of trailers that offers a deeper look into the upcoming Sonic compilation coming to modern platforms.
This edition includes a look at the various modes and options on offer across the entire package, as detailed below (via SEGA PR)
Classic Mode – For a trip down memory lane, Classic Mode features the original game presentation in 4×3 with remastered visuals, finite lives and game overs. Classic Mode is available for all four titles and is unlocked from the start.
Anniversary Mode – If you are looking for something new, Anniversary Mode features a full 16×9 screen display and an infinite number of lives to keep the fun going without any game overs. Anniversary Mode is available for all four titles and is unlocked from the start.
Story Mode – Combines all four games into one adventure. Start with Sonic the Hedgehog 1 and end with Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles.
Animations / Cutscenes – Sonic Origins includes all-new animated opening and ending cutscenes for each game, connecting all of Sonic’s classic adventures.
Boss Rush Mode – Battle Dr. Eggman, Metal Sonic and other challenging foes in Boss Rush Mode.
Mission Mode – Take on various missions in all four games. The better you perform the higher your rank will be.
Mirror Mode – Once unlocked, experience classic levels in a brand new way – backwards.
Coins – Enjoy new rewards by collecting coins in Anniversary Mode or completing missions in Mission Mode. If players fail a special stage in Anniversary Mode, coins can be used to retry the stage instantly. Coins can also be used to redeem content in the museum.
Museum – Check out a ton of exciting music, concept art, videos and never-before-seen content found in the Premium Collection Vault.
Notable points in the trailer include a look at a new intro for Tails in Sonic 3 & Knuckles (we actually see him land the plane this time!), and re-iterating that Sonic CD will retains its original intro and outro cutscenes, fully remastered – in addition to the brand new cutscenes made for the game’s Story Mode.
As a cool aside, this trailer was produced by Strategy Guide PR, and as a result the narration was provided by Evan from our friends over at TailsChannel. It’s nice to see SEGA finding ways to bring fans into the fold, especially given the remasters in Origins started out as a simple pitch from a fan that then exploded into something more as the years went by.
Sonic Origins launches June 23rd on PS4, Xbox, Nintendo Switch and PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store.
In an interview composed with Brad Buxer back in May, Brad Buxer confirms that the majority of the music composed for Sonic the Hedgehog 3 was actually done by him and not Michael Jackson.
Buxer confirms that Michael Jackson had signed on to compose music for the soundtrack, but the actual writing duties fell to Buxer as he was Jackson’s main songwriting collaborator at the time. Buxer confirms he wrote 41 audio cues for Sonic 3 and Jackson only had input on one of them. He does not specify which song Jackson had input on and he does not specify which of the 41 audio cues ended up in the final game. We know for a fact that Ice Cap Zone was written by Brad Buxer because the melodies line-up with Buxer’s own song Hard Times that he recorded with the band The Jetzons.
Buxer also confirms that writing for the song Stranger in Moscow also came from the same sessions that produced the 41 audio cues for Sonic 3. Stranger in Moscow is often compared to the Sonic 3 credits theme as the songs share a similar chord progression. As this song was written separately from the Sonic 3 audio cues, it is more likely a coincidence that the songs sound similar.
5 other composers are credited for Sonic 3’s music: Bobby Brooks, Darryl Ross, Geoff Grace, Doug Grigsby III and C. Cirocco Jones. This means it is highly unlikely that all of Buxer’s 41 audio cues were used in the final game. You can watch an isolated segment of Brad Buxer’s May 2022 interview with Abbey Road Institute Paris below:
SEGA have revealed the home video release of Sonic the Hedgehog 2 will feature a brand new animated short film voiced by Ben Schwartz that will follow the events directly after the movie.
Alongside the reveal of the new animated short film, a whole host of additional content has been revealed. The blu-ray and digital release of the Sonic the Hedgehog 2 movie will feature deleted scenes, bloopers, behind-the-scenes content and some additional featurettes called Rapid Fire Responses, Robotnik Reimagined, Finding Your Team, A Sibling For Sonic: Tails and The Powerful Puncher: Knuckles.
Sonic the Hedgehog 2 will release on blu-ray and digital on August 9th 2022.
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