Many would agree that last year’s Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric was a new low for the turbulent franchise. The game’s frequent glitches, strange pacing and poorly structured world lost much of the respect the franchise had regained following the relatively great Sonic Colors and Generations.
Ultimately the Wii U title’s critical and commercial failure resulted in Sega refocusing its efforts instead on the successful Sonic Boom cartoon, a handful of mobile titles and a sequel to the better-received Sonic Boom game for 3DS.
So it seems like Sega has put home console Sonic on the back burner now, but they do have plans for the future. In a recent interview held with Marketing Week, Sega of Europe Marketing Executive Jon Rooke stated:
“Sega has publicly apologised to the fans as the quality of console games in the Sonic franchise hasn’t been acceptable over recent years. It’s been tough translating that iconic side scrolling 2D experience from the 90s into 3D but Sonic is still huge for us so the new games will be more inspired by how it played in its heyday.”
This is pretty promising if it’s a sentiment shared by everyone at the publisher, but Sonic fans will remember a similar nostalgic attitude back when the lackluster Sonic 4 was first announced; just look at its initial teaser image below.
At this point it’s impossible to say if Nintendo platforms will host any of these upcoming console games, but considering the blue hedgehog’s continued appearances in the likes of Smash Bros. and Super Mario Maker it wouldn’t be unheard of.
Are you excited to see a return to form for Sonic, or are you skeptical? Let us know what you think in the comments below.
Leave a Comment
Written by Tom Brown
Whether it’s an exciting new entry in a series long established or a weird experiment meant only for the dedicated, Tom is eager to report on it. Rest assured, if Nintendo ever announces Elite Beat Agents 2, he’ll be there.
