Earlier this year Yosuke Okunari, a producer at SEGA, was interviewed by Game Watch. He mentioned there were no active plans for more Sonic titles on the SEGA AGES line but, he was open to have another Sonic title, even a 'SEGA Ages SegaSonic the Hedgehog', depending exclusively on the fan reception of current titles. Conveniently, SEGA's now hosting a short survey! It's there so you can review any title your purchased from the Sega Ages line and at the end, they ask you what game you'd like to see on this series! So, if you have time, please fill the little form below and let SEGA know of your game of choice https://manuals.sega.com/sega-ages/survey/ Ps.: for some reason after clicking 'Next' on the survey, you'll get a blank screen on some devices -- if that happens, just scroll up. Google forms apparently likes to scroll to the white limbo on the bottom of each page lol.
Now that would be interesting, if they can pull off emulation of the trackball, I don't see why not if it's M2 we're talking about. Would give me an excuse to play the game finally.
Or alter the control scheme so that it's a basic isometric on stick scheme. If we get a physical release of SEGA AGES, I'd be down.
I'd love to see a proper release of SegaSonic arcade. Here's hoping that in addition to reworking the controls they'd also translate it (doesn't the game already have the translations in it just not used?) Also the survey is a good opportunity to call them out for not using the taxman ports of Sonic 1/2
SEGASonic getting a rerelease in any form would be a fun novelty, but I've played the game with a trackball a few times and it's just not very good. There are so many other SEGA games, especially non-Sonic ones, that could do with re-releases before it. Will SEGA ever give any love to Skies of Arcadia or Jet Set Radio Future? SEGA's got a huge catalogue of games, but they're so fixated on just the Mega Drive era that everything else gets ignored. The AGES line could do with more modern games in it. They already wasted time creating S1 and S2 when Taxman's remastered versions already exist and should be used as a basis for any enhanced re-releases. I don't want to see more time poured into a very gimmicky, kind of crappy game where there are other things that deserve attention. If they ever want to put out another Sonic game collection and include some of the less common titles in there (like Gems did with CD, R and Fighters), then SEGASonic would be a perfect fit. Otherwise... eh, forget it. It's not appealing to me personally and probably wouldn't be too popular either.
I am also kinda sick of the concentration on the Genesis era only. We get it, it was good, but those games have been rereleased like 9 times each. They should really port over more Saturn and Dreamcast games. I think SegaSonic and Chaotix would make good ports though. They've never been rereleased and they're both unique entries in the Sonic series. Maybe they can be released in a double pack called the "Mighty pack"
It's weird how polarizing reports from people who tried the trackball controls are. From what I've seen some loved them, while others hated them. Well, maybe not so weird, given that trackballs are somewhat unconventional as far as controls go.
Yeah, I'd be down for a new release. However, releasing this game just for the Switch (under the SEGA Ages brand) would feel like such a waste for a 27 year old obscure game which has never been re-released. I'd want it to be ported to every modern console, with decent controls, proper widescreen etc (not that SEGA would ever consider it worth the time and money to do this). It's a shame it hasn't been rereleased. The Info.sonicretro page says Sonic Team wanted to include it in the Sonic Gems Collection but had difficulty emulating the trackball controls. It's about time we got a new collection of the 90's games (like with the Sonic Mega Collection & Gems Collection) - perhaps for the 30th anniversary - which would be the perfect opportunity to include some of the other obscure games; SEGASonic, Eraser, Schoolhouse, Chaotix etc. If they were to do another physical release of Mania Plus, bundle in the Sonic 1&2 Taxman remasters, then it would be kind of fitting to include SEGA Sonic the Hedgehog because of Ray & Mighty.
I put Golden Axe: Revenge of Death Adder as my choice every time I buy an AGES release and the survey pops up. It's more of a no-brainer when it comes to control scheme, release history, and brand awareness than SegaSonic.
It's not the controls that are an issue though. The trackball controls work fine as they are what the game is designed for. The problem is that the game itself isn't good. Yes it's a shame that this game is so obscure and difficult to access, but there are so many better obscure games that SEGA could invest time and money into.
What's wrong with the game itself? I rather enjoyed the non-stop escape sequences, the catchy music and the impressive graphics (for its time). If I had to nitpick, I'd say the only things I disliked were its shortness and its lack of a proper final boss.
It's funny that one of the oldest games in the series has a gameplay style that almost seems to foreshadow modern Sonic. Constant, on-the-move action with big setpieces and minimal platforming. I'm sure the trackball controls could be worked out. Marble Madness has had modern ports where the analog stick works great, in fact in some ways it's easier to control than using the trackball.
There aren't, actually! This is the best choice, commercially-wise, for a Sega Ages release. Sonic Mania is a great love letter to the series, including the SegaSonic arcade, as it's "Plus" DLC features Ray, Mighty and some remixes of its OST. So just by having Sonic, May and Mighty, already makes it interesting to all the kids who played Mania Plus and liked them. Having SegaSonic on the Sega Ages line means we'll have game with most of it's control issues fixed and presented in a stellar package. It's good spot, more sales for the game, more sales for Sonic Mania.
Judging by the context of Blue Blood's post that got cropped here, they were referring to how enjoyable the game is by "better obscure games", not its commercial viability. Which like, it's Sonic, inherently it would sell better than something like G-LOC so of course. I haven't been able to find it, but someone at M2 got tagged when this article was tweeted it and replied with a tweet saying something to the effect of "I'm not sure the author knows how to read..." so that makes me doubt SegaSonic's chances a bit...
I know that. It doesn't really affect what I said, though, as the commercial viability IS what makes these releases possible. It's not just a matter of being a Sonic game -- for example, releasing another game referenced by Mania, like Knuckles Chaotix on SEGA Ages wouldn't be so easy. Plot-wise, it's just more convenient to pretend Chaotix never happened. It feels like a game made to have Sonic, that had it's 'Sonic' removed. I'd be very happy if they did it, though. This case it's a safe bet. It's a harmless runner with little plot content, not as easy to emulate as other titles and has OK gameplay that needs better analog stick support. It's just an easy candidate for M2 to make it a viable commercial title. I recall seeing that too but, wasn't that a comment on how 'We don't have any plans but we're open to' became 'We're considering it'? Of course they are not considering it themselves, but it's possible, since Okunari was the interviewee, to have SEGA come in and say 'Hey can we do this?' It really makes sense and it is worth it. Of course it's not like they are the best strategists, since we have an untranslated, standalone release of SEGA Ages Puyo Puyo Two even though we already got Puyo Puyo 2 included with the Nintendo Online subscription.
Personally I'd like them to do a port of OutRunners. Never had a arcade faithful home release. The Megadrive version is an abomination.
In all likeliness if S3K is indeed out of the question, they will have to start going to the more obscure titles if they wanna keep using Sonic. I get the feeling the Japanese unit M2 won't be going for the western spin offs (though a release of Sonic 3D with the Director's Cut would be a cool package) which mostly leaves arcade or other console titles, if not SEGA Sonic Arcade, then Sonic the Fighters, CD, Chaotix or the 8 bit series. Admittedly I really want to see some rereleases beyond 8/16 bit era. How about some more of SEGA's early 3D titles, you have Model 1 emulation now, how about Virtua Fighter?
I think they should release SegaSonic in a dual pack with Knuckles' Chaotix. IIRC both are somewhat short, so it'd (A) have more to enjoy and (B) be a bargain. Also while they're at it they should finish Tails' data and make him playable (I will literally pay any hacker who does this money).
Thanks a lot for link, filled the survey. Mentioned about the SegaSonic the Hedgehog (in question about "one game, but ONLY ONE"), because why not? Truth be told, I would be happy with proper re-release of it and with control adjusted to gamepads/keyboards/etc. In fact, only two things I would expect were english translation (to understand what they're talking about :P) and control adjusted to normal controllers (gamepads, keyboards etc). One request to everyone - if you wish to support DRM-free gaming, please mention in the open question (where they're asking you about some general opinion etc.) request to consider releasing their games on GOG or other DRM-free digital store. I know that it may have minimal to zero impact, but still, it's another chance to send a message.
The problem comes from this. The game's enjoyment comes from physically rolling the trackball as fast as you can to keep maximum speed. Without it, the game is too easy. Anyone who's played via emulator will understand - all the characters are running at full speed so there's no challenge. Play with a trackball and the game becomes far more interesting as you are using force to keep the ball rolling and then need to adjust for tight corners, etc.
