The GHZ Forum

Changing Channels
Updates to Sonic Channel

Two updates have been made to the Project Sonic of Sonic Channel. The ever expanding section now houses a photo gallery of the Sonic booth that was at this year’s Hobby Fair. The photographs lack the humour that found in previous SoJ photo galleries, but they do give a slightly better indication of the size and design of the booth.



The second addition is a link to the Sonic Team Sonic X website, which has been updated with a video featurette on the popular anime.

Gems and Shadow Previews
New information about forthcoming Sonic games

Previews of Sonic Gems Collection and Shadow the Hedgehog have appeared at Gamespot and Gamerfeed, which help to clarify the more ambiguous aspects of these forthcoming games.

A recent article on Sonic Gems Collection in Gamespy only reported that the Streets of Rage trilogy would be absent from the US release of the game. Gamespot’s preview of the title, however, confirms that Bonanza Brothers will also be cut.

More pleasingly, the Gamespot preview reveals that the forthcoming compilation will house a hefty 140 pieces of unlockable art work in its museum section. The hints menu system that was originally introduced in Sonic Mega Collection Plus will also be returning.

A rather optimistic preview of Shadow the Hedgehog in Gamerfeed briefly reveals that the title’s two player mode will allow players to play as not just Shadow, but also Sonic. However, it isn’t clear if Sonic will be able to use any of Shadow’s weaponry.

To the Next Level
Classic Sega license to be reinvented for new consoles

According to Gamespot, San Francisco-based development studio Secret-Level is reinventing a classic Sega franchise for PS3 and X-Box 360. Sega’s statement about the project doesn’t actually reveal which franchise is being reworked, but Gamespot speculate that it may be the Sonic series.

Simon Jeffery, President and COO of Sega, made the following statement:

"Sega will become a leading publisher on the next generation of console hardware by marketing great Western-developed content that includes properties from a rich portfolio of Sega games.

The talented design team at Secret Level has demonstrated innovation in game development and has a history of technical achievements that will help Sega reinvigorate a vintage and highly commercial franchise.â€￾

More details can be found at Gamespot and Gamerfeed.

European Gems
PAL version Gem Collections News

Sega might be promoting Gems Collection as containing the rarer titles of the Sonic series, but European players will be pleased to learn that their rarity wont be reflected in the price, as Play.com are reporting the game will have a RRP of £19.99. Play are offering a further £5 discount on the price, making Gems Collection one of the most inexpensive new Sonic console games to be released in Europe.

There is, however, some bad news to accompany the good, as several retailers are reporting the PAL version will be released on the 7th of October, which is slightly later than SoE’s original vague date of ‘sometime in September’.

European players wanting to know if the PAL release will include the Japanese soundtracks for Sonic CD and the full assortment of bonus games will be kept in suspense for a little bit longer, as SoE spokesman Hicham Rakim told the GHZ Newsboard that European division “currently has no information regarding the release of Sonic Gems on consolesâ€￾.

Unless Secret Level is some new name for Sonic Team, then I kind of doubt this "reinvented franchise" will be a Sonic title. At least, a "main" Sonic title. Could be a spinoff, but then that wouldn't sense with the reinvented franchise line.

I mean, where do people pull this stuff out of? It's about as random and speculative as the rumors that Shenmue 3 is on the way because Gargoyle Mechanics (some company with members who worked on the first two games) announced support for Xbox 360.

Anyways, that leaves guesses as to what the franchise is. I think Vectorman might be a possibility, seeing as it had already been started, then scrapped because it looked like utter shiat. That was the first occasion where I was GLAD a title was cancelled.

Shenmue III is on the way. Just you wait.

I wonder if the Secret Level game might be a new Streets of Rage title. It would explain why all three Rage games are appearing in Gems Collection even thought they don’t even have the slightest link to the Sonic series.

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I guess I should probably mention that this will be the last Newsboard update that I will be making for a while as I am moving house and I don’t know how long it will be before I can access the internet again. I’m hoping it won’t be longer than a few days, but the new home has a few problems with its telephone connection that could take a week or two to correct.

^_^

Streets of Rage would be cool. Except that I'd be worried about the presentation. And the gameplay. And especially the music.

There is a deluge of beat-'em-ups coming out right now, including that new Final Fight. But that might be a bad thing, since I can't see anybody paying full price for more than one beat-'em-up. And both Final Fight and Namco's game look crappy.

I was thinking the same thing about Streets of Rage.

Good luck with the house moving, don't forget to pack your hats.

Crazy Penguin wrote: Good luck with the house moving, don't forget to pack your hats.

Thanks. Hopefully it won’t be too long before I return. ^_^

Wait... what if they're reinventing NiGHTS?

Considering how precious NiGHTS is to Naka and company, I doubt they'd leave a reinvention of that up to some Filthy Gaijin.

And yet they'll give Sonic, their biggest, most important franchise (arguably) to any company, even if they can't make good Sonic games.

*gives cold looks at Dimps and Traveler's Tales*

Do you guys think that Japanese Gems will also include Vector man 1 and 2?

You know, for a minute, I unignored SegaSonic to see if he had anything useful to say.
God damn, I hate being wrong.

Oh stop being a Clown, You know my stupidites are far cooler than yours! :P

I'm sorry, I can't hear you. You're on my ignore list.

Thanks for the warning.

Ill just wait, till The info Arrives then.

Heres another update from Sonic Channel.

They Made a section for Characters Bios ect.. Tails and Sonic for now.

Heres Tails!



I gotta say, that new style they gave him looks great! He looks Younger and resembles the Classic Tails in terms of Cuteness.

Excluding the stubby Sonic Advance-style limbs and huge lemur ears, he looks exactly the same as he has since 1998.

For some reason Uekawa-styled Tails just doesn't look like a fox to me. Maybe if they gave him black gloves, black-colored ears, and a Princess Sally-esque facial mask or something, then it would look more like it.

And Sonic looks so much like a hedgehog, right?

And if Knuckles just had a snout for him to lick up ants!

Y'know, echidnas have beaks, not mouths.

No Cara, that's platypus.

This is an echidna.

Are you sure that's a snout? You have to actually touch it to know.

Yes.

If I had a wang like an echidna's snout then I'd be worried, Cara.