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Huh boy...apparently I didn't look close enough at previous news, as I have just found out that Sierra reported on Sega.Com a couple days ago. Sorry about that Sierra...and for the rest of you, here's a new story:
If you haven't visited The Fan Games HQ lately, then you may not know that a new Sonic Adventure background has been posted for game creators to take advantage of. Sorry, it's in 2D, but it's better than nothing though. And that is it from me; hopefully this wasn't reported previously as well!
Calling all gamers: You can now become a member of the new Sega.Com network now. All you really need is an E-Mail address, and if you register, you get Pioneer status, meaning special treatment, you lucky person you. If you want to register; head to this link.
The Sonic Saga is now an RPG game; here's Dash with the details: I wanted to wait until I had some screen shots and a demo before I announced this, but because it would take to long for that to happen, and because people have been emailing me nonstop asking me what's going on with TSS, I'm gonna go ahead and tell you what are plans are. I'll just get to the point ... NO, TSS IS NOT CANCELED! But it is no longer a comic, but instead, an RPG game. Here's a message I posted on the Sonic Fan Games HQ Message Board (it'll give you a little more info about it): "Some of you *may* know me. My name is Russell Blakley and I was one of the higher ups at the fancomic "The Sonic Saga," which didn't go so well in the long run due to lack of motivation. Sure, it's just a fancomic, not a fangame, so you may be wondering why I'm posting here ... maybe. Well I'm glad to announce that I myself am working on a sonic 'fan-game' along with a few others. And I must say it's a very neat and fun experience. I guess I could give you a little info about our new project if you'd like :P Well, what we did was take our fancomic idea and move it into a new format. An RPG actually, which is more fitting because the comic was intended to have an RPG type feeling in the first place. The engine we're using is open source, which leaves us endless possibilities of things we could do. A movie intro, transparency effects, layers, 3D models, the works! I'm very pleased with the results thus far and I'm sure everyone here will find it somewhat interesting and good enough to be added to the growing list of Sonic fan game projects. We're trying new things and experimenting with new ideas so this game, which will stay true to the SegaSonic world, should also be very original in a sense of style, story, and gameplay." I will make another announcement about this when a demo is ready. Until then, just wait. Feel free to email me if you have any questions/flames/suggestions about this change of formats. Thanks you. And finally, in SSRG news, Stealth has recieved his beta Sonic MegaCD; and you can find out the differences between it and the final by following this link. And if you're wondering about SSRG Radio; it's at 35% completion. That's it from me for now; I'll see you back here next weekend.
Yes, the Mario Party-esque "Sonic Square" (or "Sonic Shuffle" as it's also known) is available for Pre-Order at Ugo Direct's Game Dealer.com. It gives a description of it (stats, etc.), as well as a release date of September 15, 2000 (which will almost definately change.
Click here to see it for yourself. Odd how they have this, but not a pre-ordering area for Sonic Adventure 2?
My apologies for the mix-ups and the mulitple reports. The Official Site can be found here. This time, the link is right.
Again, sorry for the blunders. The latest issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly (EGM) features a first look at the next Sonic game - a new Sonic the Hedgehog party title by the name of Sonic Shuffle, formerly called Sonic Square. The game is being prepared for a fall release and supports network play. Sonic Shuffle will allow players to control Sonic and crew as well as some new characters in a Mario Party-style game. A new villian character will also be introduced in the game tentatively named "Void". Void, Sonic Shuffle's main villain, has harnessed the power of special crystals called Precioustones. It's then up to you and three other players to compete in several Mario Party-style minigames to get the Precioustones back. Players are required to navigate several themed board-game-style maps by choosing cards. These boards are littered with color-coded and iconic spaces that will thrust Sonic and crew into different minigames. According to the game's producer, there will be approximately 50 minigames in all. Sonic Shuffle features a story mode for one player, a battle mode for two to four players on the same Dreamcast unit, and a network mode for two to four players across the Internet. And the best part about the Internet mode is that there will be no lag. According to Sega, players should not be able to see a difference between the offline and online games. As for the game's graphics, Sonic Shuffle will utilize the same "celshading" routine that is currently used in Jet Set Radio. Early screens show some of the game's great-looking 3D environments as well as the characters' very cartoony looks. Sonic Shuffle will be on display at Sega's E3 booth. Unfortunately my scanner is on the fritz so I can't scan any pictures - BUT check out the latest issue of EGM (Sonic himself on the cover as well as a Dreamcast swirl), which is currently arriving in the mailboxes of subscribers and should be at retailers next week. So what about the heavily awaited Sonic Adventure 2 screenshots that were hyped about? According to videogamers.com (who is in league with EGM): Last month's issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly - the June issue, with Tony Hawk on the cover - promised readers that the next issue would feature the first screens and info on Sonic Adventure 2. Unfortunately, Sega of America decided after the June issue went to press that the timing wasn't right to unveil Sonic Adventure 2 just yet. "It's a bad-news/good-news kinda thing," said Crispin Boyer, EGM's features editor. "We lost out on Sonic Adventure 2 for our July issue, and I apologize on behalf of the magazine for not delivering the screens and info. Sega is promising us that we'll be the first magazine to show Sonic Adventure 2, but when we get those screens is a bit up in the air right now. Thats actually understandable, but so far, rumors are floating around that Sonic Adventure 2 (while the first few levels are playable) may not show up at all in E3. Yes its speculation and rumor, but it is something to note as we won't fully know until E3 comes or if Sega announces. Personally I think it highly unlikely that it wont show up, but who knows? :P Unfortunately - since I CAN'T do any scanning yet (my personal scanner has seemingly gone cuckoo ^___^), I have provided some screenshots of what Jet Set Radio looks like so you can get a gist of how it looks. VERY nice and detailed backgrounds, but that celshading almost gives it a 2D on 3D look. The finished product will be interesting to see nonetheless. The 2 screenshots of JSR are below for you to peruse...  
Apologies from the editor, there has been a slight mix-up. The Offcial Site can be found here.
Sorry for the confusion. Edited for Correction - WB 12:00AM 4/30/00 After a few false-starts and over a year of production, Other-M #1 has been official set to launch on May 1st. Other-M is a new, Archie's Sonicverse-based fan-comic that takes a new twist on all your old favorites. There are two places you can find Other-M #1: The Official Site Other-M promises to be a bold new look into the Sonic fandom. SYOTFS
Needless to say, if you had shopped at Sega.com before, you know what I'm talking about, but here's the scoop from the e-mail I got tonight:
Want a chance to win a hot new Dreamcast game? Want to be one of the first to get your own username and password for the new Sega.com? Of course you do! That's why you gave us your e-mail when you shopped at Sega.com, right? But because of some new laws*, we can't keep you updated unless we know how old you are. So here's the deal: You click on this link ( http://sega.default.net/), give us some quick info and you're all set. What's in it for you? You'll get a chance to win a cool Dreamcast game of your choice, from a list of five of the hottest games. You'll also be among the gamer elite with access to the new Sega.com, to be launched in May. There you can chat with other gamers, fill out your own personal profile and let the world know what you're all about. You'll even get exclusive content for your VMU, Sega news e-mails and even more great contests. And if you sign up now, you can be one of the first to choose your own username and password - making sure you get the cool name you want before some other joker grabs it. So be early, click on this link (http://sega.default.net/), sign up by May 5, 2000, and you could win an awesome Dreamcast game! *All this is because of the new COPPA (Children's Online Privacy Protection Act). It says that for those under 13, we can't use their e-mail address without their parents' permission. So to stay in touch with you, we just have to know how old you are! That's all the info I have. OH! If you register now, you'll be part of a special group of the "pioneer" zone for being among the first to be in the group.
To celerate the Release of Samba De Amigo in Japan, the "Samba Grand Prix" download places a special entrance to Twinkle Circut in Station Square over behind my the place where you would take the elavator to get in Twinkle Park. When you enter it, you are taken to a special Samba GP Mini game! It's a whole new twinkle circut track, with different music from Sonic R, "Everybody's Super Sonic Racing" instrumental version! Download it now at the SA homepage! Once you beat it, your time will be saved and you can register your time on the Sonic Adventure homepage. This is one of the best downloads yet.
 The color comic cover for Sonic #87 was just released! Check it out above! This is the second part of the Metal Sonic Return series that's going to begin in Sonic #86. Also is the second part of the two part (I believe) series featuring Monkey Khan. Here's hoping they actually improve this character. Spoilers below:
Sonic The Hedgehog #87 - 32 pages, $1.99 Writer: Danny Fingeroth Artist: Sam Maxwell Inks: Jim Amash "Heart Of the Hedgehog - Part Two" "Against A Huanted Past - Part Two" The heat is on — literally! — as Sonic desperately tries to save Tails, trapped inside the rim of a volcano by the menacing Metal Sonic! Rescuing his little buddy will be harder than usual… as the new, sentient version of Metal Sonic knows no limits in his hatred of Sonic, and will stop at nothing to ruin his world! All the more frightening since he’s faster and stronger than before! It's Sonic’s biggest challenge yet, courtesy of friendly neighborhood, long-time Spider-Man editor, Danny Fingeroth — making his debut his as a Sonic scribe! Plus: Last month, we revealed the tragic origin of Monkey Khan and the sinister part Doctor Robotnik played in his creation. Now it is the present, and Robotnik has Monkey Khan within his grasp again. Can Mobius survive if Robotnik’s greatest creation is once again programmed for evil?! Find out in “Against a Haunted Past” Part 2 by Frank Strom and Harvey Mercadoocasio. Ahh.... my first successful report in my new position... what a feeling! :) Credit: Worlds of Westfield
On the other side, DCIGN posted their thoughts on the game, a Quictime version of the ad, also that two songs in the game are missing from the Arcade version, because Sony music owns Ricky Martins music,Living La Vida Loca and The Cup of Life are not included, although Sega will try their best to get the songs back in. Also the first of many Downloadable track for the game have been released. Japanese gamers can now download Open your heart - Sonic Adventure as a playable track. they also have a Hardware review of the Samba-only maraca controllers. GameFan - DC exclusive options! GameFan - Samba at E3?? could Samba be coming to America?! GameFan - Samba Desktop theme! Shake THAT Samba - Maraca Controllers Just let out today - in case you've gotten the new EGM then you don't know. Promising that they would have info on a new Sonic game, EGM touts what may be the next title in the Sonic series: Sonic Square! (Known also as Sonic Shuffle). Both names are tentative, but it'll be interesting to see which one stays. Depends on how timely EGM's data was on the game before it went to print, in conjunction with Daily Radar who released the info last week under a different name. :P As speculated, the newest Sonic game is a Mario Party type game with Sonic and the Crew. I haven't read through much of the article yet (I do have work ^__^), but I will post the info when I get back tonight. On the cover is Sonic and "Sega Strikes Back". The issue is full of upcoming Sega games also. Supposedly the characters models in SS (Sonic Square) resemble those of Jet Set Radio. Also, it will have netplay
First of all, let it be known that this is a RUMOR. I usually avoid posting rumors of any kind on here unless I find backup on it, but the source of the article has been known to be right in many a number of times while sometimes hit or miss on others. I found it interesting enough to post nonetheless. So before you get into this - remember it is a rumor. An interesting rumor - but take of it what you will: Concerning the questionmarks concerning the new characters of Sonic Adventure 2, IGN's Segadojo posted this up. An EB representative went to a meeting at Sega HQ and came back with info on various working titles for the post E3 period for DC. This is what was said concerning SA2: I don't know how much this is worth, but today, I went to a 'game discussion' at Sega HQ in San Francisco. And besides their building being pretty sweet, I got to see some pretty cool drawings of some characters from Sonic Adventure 2. There will be a Girl Bat possibly named "Nails" ( I didn't really like that name) and she will be a spy that's sly and she can fly (nice rhyme eh?) And there will be another bad guy, a dark "shadow" to sonic that looks really cool, a couple of the drawings had him with one eye. Another interesting thing I saw is there will be good and evil Chao, the evil ones having devil tails and being black, the good ones still look the same. On the last page that they showed our group had a big several eyed monster, a very human looking floating angelic good like chick (think the last girl in Silent Hill for PSX) and some kind of flying dwarf that looked kinda like Sonic. Pretty cool stuff. They didn't let me take the pages with me, but the game is lookin cool. AGAIN - a rumor. Take of it what you will with a grain of salt, but I thought it interesting enough to post. If there is a "Nails" The Bat kind of character, starts off bad, possibly ends up good, it might seem sorta cool. The name doesnt sound all that hot (Tails anyone?) but this was the most interesting tidbit of the bunch along with the "Evil Chao". E3 is in, I believe, 2 weeks, so I'll look for more news and rumors to leak, and I'll post anything that is of value up here as I find it and we'll see how right, or wrong SD is on the matter. Later peoples! ^__^ Source: Segadojo
Sega of America has finally picked it's new chief operating officer (COO) to run the company in place of Bernie Stolar, who was fired last year. Stolar, as some may know, was very responsible for getting the Dreamcast's start so succesful in the States. Now, Peter Moore, who has already worked for SOA for a while, has been promoted to take the job. Click here to read the full article.
Source: IGN DC
Happy Easter and Passover to all who celebrated it--both landed on the calendar last week. But let's get on with the news, shall we?
The latest issue of Next Generation magazine in the USA has a huge feature on Sega's Internet plans, including games slated to take advantage of the new Sega.Com network. Phantasy Star Online and ChuChu Rocket, as you know, are two of those games, and were mentioned in the article. Also deep in the mag was a quick review of ChuChu Rocket; NextGen gave the four out of five stars. Sonic Team Junior released Sonic Robo Blast 2 Christmas V .94, however, it was re-released today after many complaints about a new control system that was implemented. You can grab the new program here. And Rlan is taking a little break from updating the Sonic Fan Games HQ, he's away for the Easter holiday. He will be back sometime in the next two days, though. Mike of fan game developer Maim Entertainment has been filling in for him the past few days. Finally, in the heat of what could be the big Sonic Comic Crisis of 2000, I thought you might like to know that 21 more STH Comics and Specials are up for auction on EBay. They include several of the 48-page specials, and as of this writing, they are going for 40 US dollars. Find out more info here, but be warned...this auction ends late tomorrow.
Sonic the Comic 179 is on sale, complete with a free pack of Chewits.
OUT OF TIME Tikal whisks Sonic to the ancient past. PLUS KNUCKLES TAILS SONIC THE HEDGEHOG Rampage of Mekanik - part 2
A special feature piece has been added to news site Daily Radar! The piece - entitled Sonic Through The Ages, chronicles Sega's big blue mascot in all his game form, the bond with Yuji Naka, and other stuff as well! Check it out:
Needless to say - these new forums have ISSUES.... Entire posts have vanished at the blink of an eye (the Role Players Forum was in an uproar), the registration is hella nosey, we cant keep outside links to other pages (part of a plan I wanted to try later), and 2 days after its release it does a full 180 and we have to redesign it all over again (With a nice touch, compliments of Vector ^_^) But at the same time several things need to be adressed and we need your help. Vector, Lien (Chainspike), and myself have been conversing on a number of things concerning the forum and needless to say WE DO KNOW of everything that people have been telling us one of us gets at least one to three queries on it a day - problem is we weren't sure how to handle it till now. E.net has its obvious problems and Server Apps (while far superior in some aspects) can't give us everything we want in a forum. This is what WE need to know. This weekend I'm going to try and set up a compromise forum - the first being a board on Network 54, the second an EZBoard. When these two are set up we will be closing down e.net temporarily and using our other two options as tests for a week or two, where you all can post and see which you like better. The Server App forum will be left open during this for comments and regular discussion as is now. When the decision is made we will then relaunch the forums with whichever the forumers like better. But realise that when the decision is made - we will not be using the Server Apps. One forum system only - and its either e.net (currently up), EZboard (UBB like setup with more user options, less customising range for us), or the N54 forum (most like the server apps with more customising range for us than EZBoard) which you'll see this weekend. And if push comes to shove - the main bit will come between N54 and EZBoard, cause I refuse to have the MF split in two any longer and we need to get this sucker out of the way now. And if posts are STILL dissapearing from e.net then so be it. If you know of any problems you have or may have had with ANY OF THESE FORUM TYPES TELL US BEFORE HAND!!! Complaints before hand will be taken in full consideration, Complaints after the final decison will be ignored as this already puts us off of other things we had planned for sonichq.org next week. The Server Apps are still up and linked below. The more we know what you want, the more you tell us what you know - the better you get. Until then - please use the boards up now to the best of your ability and if you are a Mobius Forum poster - use the server apps. Stick with us and give us from this weekend to next week. We're working to the best of our abilities. Get back to you all later Forum: Sonic HQ - The Mobius Forum "Can Brad Huang Save Sega?" Better yet what does Brad Huang have to do with Sonic - or a Sega movie featuring a character? Maybe nothing at all. Maybe something. From IGN.com, this is how a recent article at Business Week Online begins. For those who haven't been paying attention, Brad Huang is the gentleman at the helm of Sega's recently opened Sega.com branch, but as revealed by this recent article, his role in the Dreamcast and Sega as a whole is a lot more than that. Getting to the finer points - this guy is one of the brainchildren of SegaNet, sega.com, his ideas alone have upped Sega's stock and what caught my eye.... He has a penchant for action movies. Huang is apparently interested in action flicks and, 15 months ago, he bought a script for a movie based on one of Sega's games. What this game is is unknown by anyone but Huang and the buyer. Although Okawa has yet to approve of the film, Huang is already making arrangements in the Los Angeles headquarters of Warner Brothers. Now a film based off of one of Sega's games could be ANYTHING. Could it be Sonic? Virtua Fighter? Sarah Bryant? Rent-a-hero? Shinobi? Vectorman? Decap Attack even ***shudder***? In LA at the WB it could either be animated OR live action. So dont get your hopes up though Sonic fans. :O) Just something to note on an Easter Weekend. To read the full article check out the source code below. Source: IGN DC In lieu of the news that Fleetway has gone on full reprint status, we can give you more info now on just what has taken place and more on just what it means. Announced by current STC writer Nigel Kitching, after issue #184 (the end of the SA/Chaos storyline and Mr. Kitching's 10 issue run) the book will no longer be producing new material. Known for having up to 4 stories, the book went 3/4 reprint last year much to the dismay of fans. A sad development in Sonic news, when we asked Mr. Kitching himself on the situation he had this to say: To be honest I don't think this news will come as a tremendous surprise to STC fans - the writing has been on the wall since the comic became predominately reprint a while ago. The decision to remove all of the new material is still not final but the chances are 99% that it's going to happen. Still, seven years is something to be proud of, I think. In Britain there aren't many comics that last nearly this long. I wonder if there are any comics launched in the last ten years that can claim anything like the kind of success we've had. And I've got to work with some great artists over the years. I met Richard Elson through the comic and he's drawn up my scripts like nobody else could. He's pointed out my stupid mistakes and often been the one to come up with new characters - as he never tires of reminding me... Nigel Dobbyn I've know for many years and it was great to help get him work drawing the Knuckles strip, his artwork seemed to bring out the sensitive side of my writing. I also got to work with the great Mick McMahon, I've loved his stuff since the late seventies - how often do you get a chance to work with one of your heroes? And at least I got to write the current ten issue run. I think it's some of my best work and, under the editorial control of Andy Diggle, I've been able to get some of my more powerful ideas into print. All in all I'm pretty proud of the work I've done on STC. It's all over now but at least I got the chance to write stuff I enjoyed for seven years. Not too bad really... Not too bad at all. For those that don't know (unless you've been hiding under a rock) Fleetway has been the comic thats been going on JUST as long as Sonic Archie has. Its developed its own universe and style and not only served as a main platform to Sonic and the Freedom Fighters but was known for its working with Sega created characters or reworkings of them - Knuckles (on his own), Tails, Johnny Lightfoot, Porker Lewis, and Amy Rose - as well as its own noteable FF's Shortfuse The Cybernik Squirrel (a sort of "similar" version of Bunnie Rabbot) and Tekno The Canary (a sort of "similar" in character perspective to Rotor). Will STC go out with a bnag before its reprints - only time will tell. But what is known is that there are PLENTY of fans that are certainly going to remember both the good times and bads. I've had this for a while but couldn't scan it until now. So in case you're interested, you can look at a scan of the article in Issue 5 of the Official Dreamcast Magazine. The text reads: Sonic For Two? With E3 around the corner, the rumors surrounding Sonic Adventure 2 heat up The sequel to Sonic Adventure has been grist for the rumor mill for some time, and as this year's big conventions loom (Spring TGS in March, E2 in May), ODCM's secret sources have been letting the blue fur fly, so to speak. While Sega have yet to confirm any or our suspicions regarding the title, it's highly possible that the game will make its first appearance after E3. So, what have we heard? Point of interest #1: Multiplayer capabilities. The pseudo "Tails as a second player" mode in the original just won't cut it. For the sequel, more than two players may be able to control separate characters during the game. Part of Sonic Team has supposedly been working out of SOA's offices for over a year now, but we're not sure if Naka would allow the game to progress fo far away from home. Will this year's E3 show reveal all? A full report next issue! As if this day wasnt newsy enough - in the break of bad news on Fleetway and good news on Sonic gaming. Now we get "MAYBE/ALERT" news on Sonic Archie. I waited two days to post this news and I'm glad I did because of certain situations...According to a post by Ken Penders that began on the situation concerning his personal book "The Lost Ones" Ken commented on the comics industry in general and said to some extent that the state of Sonic Comics may be heading into dire straits. In other words, a repeat of the Knuckles situation may repeat itself again. BUT THIS DOES NOT mean that the book may be cancelled, but that Archie fans SHOULD be on alert. Due to lagging sales that are due mostly to the rareness of the comic (Wal Mart - a hefty chunk of Archie's sale group stopped selling all comics due to the words of a complaining mother) the publishers are shaking their heads. It may just be a short term problem, but the same thing happened for the Knuckles Comic, and look where that got us. :P Needless to say - amidst the rumors. Things need to be cleared up. This was Ken's exact post (taking out LO comments): In the meantime, I'm continuing to work on Sonic and Knuckles stories for Archie. However, many of the problems affecting my efforts getting THE LOST ONES to the comic stores are the same ones affecting comic sales throughout, including SONIC and SONIC SUPER SPECIAL. Already, I'm receiving numerous letters from many readers reporting what a difficult time they're having getting hold of the latest issues. Even if their is still a strong fan base of support for SONIC (which there is), if readers can't get hold of copies to buy, it still amounts to the same thing towards the bottom line as if they lost interest altogether: less copies being sold. The publishers at Archie won't care WHY the book isn't selling. All they'll see is that the book isn't selling as well as it used to, and that'll be justification alone for them to cancel it. (The ironic part here is that even now the SONIC books still outsell the Archie line. Go figure.) I've hesitated mentioning any of this, because I don't want to be known as the boy who cried wolf here. I also don't want my message misunderstood. I am NOT saying Sonic is about to be cancelled, only that the POSSIBILITY exists if things don't pick up. If the problem is an industry-wide one as I suspect it truly is, there may not be much anyone of us can do anyway, but if you're up for fighting the good fight, you can start by letting your retailers know you want your Sonic comics. On another front, I've been given the go-ahead to begin writing a TOY STORY script for Disney Adventures. I'll have more details once I turn it in and find out if I'll alos be drawing it. (You have to be approved by Pixar Studios first.) As for the website, I plan to upload an unpublished Sonic story that's been sitting around in my files since early 1994. I hope to have it up sometime before next weekend, as well as some other surprises. (No, I haven't forgotten the Sneak peek to Knuckles: 20 years Later! :-) Stay tuned. Needless to say - his post WAS taken out of context by some people. And after some letters and questions on his board AND by Archie officials about the "cancellation" of Sonic. This was his response: I wish people would pay attention. I did NOT say the book was going to be cancelled. I said there's a real danger if current market conditions continue to result in a collapsing of the industry.There's a big difference. I hesitated to even speak about the problem because I knew some people would misinterpret what I was saying, and begin bombarding Archie Comics with letters asking why the book was going to be cancelled. As a result, I received e-mail from one of the Archie publishers asking why I'm spreading around rumors, so in turn I had to explain to him what was happening. Because of this, I'm probably not going to say a thing about the status of the comic anymore. I don't want to be held responsible for declining sales if my news discourages readers from picking up the books. On the flip side, I don't expect to receive any credit for a bump in sales either. Whatever happens, happens, and that's all there is to it. Needless to say - I can understand what he is saying. The book IS NOT being cancelled but that DOES NOT MEAN that readers should not be on alert. What Ken is saying is that the comics industry in general is in the largest slump it has EVER been in. Thats widely known. Whether or not Sonic The Hedgehog is the best selling Archie comic title(above even thier own books) does not matter. If they have to liscense the book out, they still have to pay. And to publishers - its all about them greens. The problem though is still at Archie's end. Because even if we can get everyone on the 'net with issues that want them (which would definitely help), they still have to advertise. And advertising isn't one of Archie's strong points unless it's one of their own characters though. So while Ken isnt saying the book is being cancelled, he is saying stay on alert. AND ABOVE DO NOT take what he said out of context. Hopefully that should clear rumors up. Now - to close this out. People say that they have trouble finding the books anywhere. So where CAN you go to find the comic? Its really not that hard: Later on I'll post these links and hints on the sidebar of news so that it will help. I hope that clears up the rumors and helps a lot of peoples questions. Later!
Soon after the "Save STC" petition was started, another has come to do the same! We recommend that you sign BOTH petitions so they both get maximum signatures! For more info, check out STEM where the story was first reported.
Petition Save Our STC Source: STC STEM Note by WB: I realise that was probaby accidental, but as a note to news post users, please be careful about posting news as you almost erased other news in the process by posting this 5 times. And please do not advertise your site on the newsboard. If you want to link to your page where the news story was posted, please place it in as a source code or the post will be modified if not deleted altogether. Thank you. I wanted to wait until I heard more from the source who emailed before I put this up - but since the person hasnt responded yet, I won't say his name here for certain reasons and I'll be rather limited on what I put here for fear of getting said person in trouble. But I felt this posting pertinent as a petition has already started and I've gotten like 3 emails in my box telling me. And at this point if its sometihing that does affect a large portion of the Sonic community, people who read said item need to know. :P After the current writers 10 issue run on the Sonic comics (currently in the partial SA adaption, #179), Fleetway's United Kingdom Sonic The Comic is going all reprint. This DOES NOT MEAN that the book is cancelled, but this does mean that there will be no new stories at all for the foreseeable future - all of them will be stories that you've already read. Forseen by some readers, the book (which usually went 4/4 new stories back in the day) is currently at the stage where it is 2 to mostly 3/4 reprint. A little more can be explained at the Save STC petition which has just begun and was started by STC fan Caroline Merritt. And I'll go into more detail and post something new when I hear form the source whom I recently emailed. Good luck STC fans. Petition: Save STC  Remember that Sonic Party game we announced a couple of months ago along with the SA2 rumors that we posted yesterday - well today Daily Radar put this little tidbit up that is MOST interesting.... We don't have much in the way of information as yet, but we do know that there are two new Sonic the Hedgehog games headed your way soon. Likely to be the first off the Sega production line is a game now known as Sonic Shuffle. Although details regarding gameplay are scarce, we do know that it's a multi-player event game, not entirely dissimilar in style to Mario Party. We also know that it was formerly known as, or at least code-named, Sonic Party. Expect to see several famous Sega characters, hopefully including Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Vector Man, Shinobi, the Virtua Fighter crew, and others appear in the game. The other game, possibly imaginatively titled Sonic Adventure 2, is a sequel to Sonic Adventure (duh), and promises much more elaborate and attractive Sonic the Hedgehog patented superfast gameplay. Our Japanese spies report that the game is a much more ambitious and less-hastily assembled effort, likely to take full advantage of the cavernous Dreamcast power. Nobody from Sega of America was prepared to comment, but we hope to see one or both of these titles at the upcoming E3 Expo. Now we have what is FINALLY reliable news on BOTH subjects! ^^ And with E3 stuff coming soon and the announcement of a double whammy of Sonic games, its gonna be interesting to see how this pans out... Sonic Shuffle....Sounds a lot better than Sonic Party, but either way it still sounds like a bad dance remix. ^__^ I like the idea of the old school Sega characters. Sorta establishes that Sega hasnt forgotten their classics. But whatever happened to Alex Kidd? ^_^ Source: Daily Radar
From Ken Penders:
I just received word tonight from Image Comics that they're going to tell the printers to start running the presses. The book should be hitting the stores by May 3rd, so I'm asking everyone to please notify their comics retailers to be on the lookout! The book is definitely happening, and it will be released. At this point, issue #2 will be out sometime in June. For there to be an issue #3 and beyond, I need all the support I can get on these first two issues, so please spread the word. Thanks. On an unrelated note, SOA is doing SA2 without ST involvement?!! Ugh...
Some news on SA2, courtesy of Zifei. Yuji Naka has confirmed that Sonic Team is NOT working on SA2. Sega of America is doing that instead. SA2 is featuring a new female character, no details have been released about her as yet, so we can start guessing now, I guess. Also, SA2 will feature full screen bumpmapping, meaning higher graphic quality for the game. That's all for now. Bumper
It's one of the first times I am updating on a weekday this year--and with good reason; I am here to announce the relaunch of the Sonic HQ RA News!!! In our first 2000 edition, it's the Sonic Radio Boom, A DC Mouse Rumor, and a look at Video Game Violence. The full download is here, and this is the streaming version. Enjoy.
It has been a big week for Sonic Internet Radio: Sonic Sages has launched Sages Radio, a new 24/7 music station, and JD Harding of TSC has launched TSC Radio. And, on that particular note, let me be the first to tell you that sometime in the next two days, Sonic HQ is going to be re-delivering something audio-related that might make you very happy. So keep checking back for the next 48 hours... Also, it looks like you'll be able to download new music to Samba de Amigo, says IGN Dreamcast. Starting April 17, Japanese gamers who have Samba will have the opprotunity to take advantage of this. Players will be able to shake maracas to Sonic Adventure, a new Samba track, Sonic R, and Burning Rangers, to name a few. Finally, if you have a ton of cash to spend, you might want to check out this EBay auction. Someone is selling a truckload of STH Archie comics, including the original mini-series, a huge load of the regular series, and almost all of the specials. But the current high bid so far is $155.
Sierra wanted someone to post this, because she is having problems with the news poster. Heres what she said:
"As reported a couple of weeks ago, Yuji Naka had sent me a letter concerning Sonicteam.com. Later that night I found his old e-mails sitting on my old e-mail address. I responded to his e-mails right away and had agreed to give Sonicteam.com to him. Now, today, I have recieved another postal letter from the man, containing documents requiring my signiture for transferrence from me to him. I have signed the documents and they will me sent to him tommorrow. I did ask to keep in touch so that I may hear about upcoming titles from Sonic Team. Included with the documents I have added the URL to my site, SonicUnderground.net, AND SonicHQ! I will keep you posted on this issue as it developes." Also, Zelda fans: Prepare yourself for The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask. Thats right, a SEQUEL(sp?)!!! Heres the link... Also, to all whom have ever been to a site called 'Mute Isle', or 'Mute Island', Its been moved AGAIN! The new URL is http://atlantiscity.net/mi/. I've started a redesign of it, and now it is at : http://atlantiscity.net/mi/. Pleas update your links/bookmarks. Thanks! The lovely people on the forum at www.dreamcast.com.au are holding a petition of Phantasy Star Online. The reason for this petition is the supposed world-wide release of PSO, and having the bad history in Australia of Dreamcast Delays, we hope that this one be on time this time. So what are you waiting for Aussies? Reply to the post now, and hope forthe game on time. Source: The PSO Petition  Wondering what's going on with new Sonic toys? ReSaurus has released new pics of the toys, specifically some production shots of E102 shown above and more which you can view by clicking the picture. The second wave isn't set to hit stores until sometime in June/July. Here we have some early sculpt shots of E-102, the robot who develops a conscience and turns against his boss, Dr. Robotnik, in the game. According to Reasaurus - The final piece looks a bit different, particularly in the head, which was revised before the tooling patterns were sent to the factory. Series Two will include: a new Sonic the Hedgehog (on skis), the ever adorable Amy Rose (pictured below), Big the Cat and the robotic E-102. Each figure comes with it's own unique display stand. Click the source code below to view more of the toys as well as the model bases.  Source: Raving Toy Maniac You read that right! Not one - not two - but THREE full interviews for you on Sonic HQ's Anniversary !!! And who are those interviews per se -  What? You thought I was through? We have LOTS more interviews for you to come later tonight! ^_^ Check back here later as we shoot the breeze with the Master Man of fanfiction himself - Daniel Drazen! and coming soon an interview with Archie Sonic cover artist, Harvo !!!!  Today, a week early, STEM has some previews of STC (UK) #180, this time including Pachacamac (SA) and the Drakon Empire! Click here for the info and the pictures! Source:Sonic the Comic: STEM  Another wave of editorials have set in and this time we got a pretty nice batch! Four as a matter of fact, and THREE of them focusing soley on Sonique's "Why Sonic Is Failing Editorial"! Lets see what we have - Check them out and see what you think!  In other news - today we christen our very own Editorial Board! Due to the popularity of these things, included with the new community mentioned above are several boards where members can post! One such includes the Station Square News And Editorials Board whose link you can find to your right! And what better way to christen it than with April's Editorial Focus! This month, our editorial focus for you all rests on two major Sonic Adventure factions - The Games And Comics. All things SA AND SA2 - What we would like to know for this month is how do you feel the Sonic Adventure adaptions/integrations have progressed under Karl Bollers' (USA) and Nigel Kitching's (UK) guidance? What do you think of Mr. Bollers' overall SA writing on Archie? For the UK visitors, was Richard Elson's redesigning of Chaos a wise move and What do you think of Nigel Kitching killing Johnny Lightfoot in Fleetway? Have the SA Adaptions had success, failure, or otherwise for both countries? For Sonic Adventure 2 - do you think that Archie and Fleetway should tackle these and game wise we'd like to know from you what would you most like to see and NOT SEE in a sequel to the Dreamcast Hit! Post your editorials and comments to SHQ's News And Editorial Board on the link to the side! The best comments and all editorials will be up and running on the next update! Remember to follow the rules for submitting which are a minimum of 2 paragraphs! And now - on to the polls... ^_^ Welcome to the Poll Position April! March's polls were a HOT HOT topic for both our mailbox AND our forum. As some didnt like ONE poll in particular...Lets see what we got:
You people REALLY have it out for Nate....Out of all three polls - this is the one that WASNT screwed around with at any time. ***Slaps head for disabling the cookie checker*** Its good to see theres a low tolerance for Rotor or Sonic's parents or Bunnie and Ant - but geez, is King Max REALLY that bad for 76 votes people? ^_^ Now for The Devils Advocate! :
This poll was....interesting...to say the least. ^_^ Half of you guys wanted Sonic to dump Sally and get a love triangle to start between him, her, and Amy - and the others wanted you all to kill Kingy and replace him with the queen. you morbid bunch you ^___^ Now THIS is the EVIL poll.... :P Let it be known that this poll means absolutely nothing. The question was basically - who do you think makes the better girlfriend, Sally or Amy? And I either got flamed seven ways from Sunday or chewed out for ever putting it up. Namely because my goofus self forgot to turn on the Cookie and IP checker and everyone went willy nilly cheating. I even had one person write an editorial (which you will see above). Needless to say - this sucker was a HUGE WASHOUT. And though I had a point I was going to type here had it went well - I WILL NEVER DO THAT AGAIN. ^____^ Here are the results (OBVIOUSLY grossly tampered). Take for it what you will, I wash my hands of it :O) :
This month we open up a new feature for you all to look at! Not only will there be 2 polls, but now you can review the comic book for the month and place in your comments! When the new books come out, I'll be discussing what people rated the book and placing down specific peoples comments! ^_^ This month - Sonic 83 and SSS 13. And for our two polls we have something new as well! Now you can WRITE IN an entry if you think we missed something or someone! :OD Our polls include - And thats it for March's polls! See you later when we check on reviews for the newest books! WB!
Ladies and gentlemen, although it is a tad late, here are the shorts:
Unfortunately, Damian Grove's ISP is apparently acting up again, according to Stealth or SSRG. And, in case you have heard of a 32X emulator, forget about it; Stealth has also said that Knuckles Chaotix is NOT supported. An SA World Rankings competitor, VRshowdown, has commented on how one can cheat in Sonic Adventure. There is a controller which can be used in particular; it is the Interact Quantum Fighting Pad. For his comments, check out this link. And finally, if you are in the mood for a new Dreamcast, game retailer EB has claimed a special edition Sega Sports black DC for release in the fall. We don't know a lot about it right now, but this might be the first of several SE DC editions. Spoilers for Sonic 87 as well as color previews for #86 and the "Knuckles: Best Of Times" Super Special!  Sonic The Hedgehog #87 Hmmm....This is interesting. VERY INTERESTING. To be quite honest this has been the first Sonic book I'm honestly piqued about in a LONG TIME. If this Danny Fingeroth guy's actual work is as good as the previews sound, I'll take him over Karl Bollers ANY DAY. Here's hoping he STAYS and replaces him as regular writer. IMHO - The sooner the better. >:P Another noteable quip to mention - when looking at this issue it seems like there are a LOT of Sonic Anime parallels in it. Which IMO is good. A sort of "breath of fresh air" especially with a new guy at the helm and a new story focus. A near sentient Metal Sonic, an active volcano. All thats missing is a certain red echidna with a hat and a whiny princess with a cat fetish. ^__^ Check back here during the day or tomorrow during the BIG SHQ Update and I'll post all the information I can find on Danny Fingeroth. Previews For Color Covers Sonic The Hedgehog #86
Sonic Super Special #14 That Spaz Metal Sonic cover looks awesome. Sonic's posing seems a little off, but beyond that the layout is one of the nicest looking from Spaz's "Anime Period" so far. As a closing out: Knux fans - check out that cover on SSS14. Enerjak's back! >;O) And why on EARTH does Snively look like a certain perrenial villian of Dudley Do Right? I guess that means Sonic's trial must be...."Snively Whiplash VS Sally McBeal!!!!" ***Loud groans from audience as tomatoes are thrown at WB***
A new NiGHTS & Sonic Team newsletter has just become available. You can join by e-mailing alblackalblack@hotmail.com
 On today's update of the Japanese Sega site, there is even more Sonic stuff. Click here to view the page! Really cool stuff, sorry I can't give you more information because I can't read Japanese. Source: Sega Entertainment Universe That's right, Tikal makes a guest appearance in the next issue of Sonic the Comic (UK) along with a whole tribe of echidnas! And fans of the Kohenu (from the Graveyard, #69-72) will also be pleased to know that they'll be turning up as well - alive and well! The story is called "Out of Time". For more info and images, click here! IMPORTANT: bad news for all those planning on going to the Comics 2000 convention in a couple of weeks, hoping to attend a Sonic signing. The STC team (Nigel, Lew and Richard) can't make it, so if you thought there would be some big Sonic event I'm afraid you were wrong. And yes, the Comics 2000 web site is also wrong in this case. It's too late to print anything about this in the comic, the team have prior commitments, and the organisers have known about this for months - they simply haven't bothered to do anything about it. But if you want to go to the convention anyway, to see the other non-Sonic comics stuff on display, I'm not stopping you - just don't expect to see any of the team. And you can still get free entry on Sunday with your STC issues. For more STC information, (or if I've got any link/image URLs wrong) see STC: STEM
Cover: Richard Elson
SPLASH-DOWN KNUCKLES: versus the Cybernik TAILS: Fox on the Run (Part 4) SONIC THE HEDGEHOG: The Rampage of Mekanik It's also got Speedlines, great free Sonic stickers and a Knuckles info poster!  I've been sitting on these just for a slow news day Sonic wise - and now that we've hit one its time to begin the next wave of Sonic editorials! We got some good ones in this time and as usual I encourage MANY responses, comments and rebuttals on them both good and bad! So lets get started - Good job on the editorials people, but I still wanna see some more - so get to writing! ^_^ Check back here this evening for new polls, and April's "Editorial Focus!" WB
This is very good news for Dreamcast owners who want to get online and a pretty sweet deal, especially if you don't have an ISP for your Dreamcast/computer. According to IGN DC, a new service called "SegaNet", made by the new "Sega.com" company will offer Dreamcast owners an AOL-like ISP to use on the Dreamcast. But, if you sign up for 2 years of service, you get some good deals. If you don't own a Dreamcast- they will give you one. FOR FREE. And if you do? You'll get your check for $199.99. This is NOT a fake story, as I have read it at multiple sites! Click here.
Source: IGN DC
HELLLOOO EVERYBODY!!!! I just wanted to let you peeps know I wrote an editorial for this page and it's finally up. Go to the editorials to read it! Comments and flames are unwelcome.. hey! I'm being honest... but if it's something really useful, you can email me and I'll take a look at it though there is no guarentee(SP?) that I'll respond or that it won't end up in my wannabes.
Happy belated April Fools Day to all--Here's what some other sites did to celebrate it:
SonicNEXT Ran a story on the Sonic Team's latest title, Sonic RPG. Sonic Team Junior had a 'fake' SRB2Xmas .95 up for download, which was only a joke add-on level, while its parent site, SSRG, ran an announcement stating that the site was sold off to SEGA for $150,000. TSSZ ran a completely ad-libbed, Pokemon-filled, Off-beat RA News. Finally, the Gaming Intelligence Agency ran several fake stories, including one that claimed a man in Newark, New Jersey was the last to download the ChuChu Rocket Japanese commercial. On to serious news, now: The Tokyo Game Show was held this weekend, and Phantasy Star Online and Samba de Amigo were the big hits of the show. We now have some hard facts on PSO, including the facts that the online network will be able to handle 6 billion people, and the fact that the game will never end. As for Samba, we know that there will be new modes in the DC version, and the maraca controllers are slightly lighter and less height conscious than in the arcade. EXCLUSIVE! Stock art for a game called "Knuckles Adventure" has been found on the Sonic Team site! It's not "Sonic Adventure 2", but KNUCKLES ADVENTURE! No information was given about the game that I could read but there were files on the server. I fished as hard as I could to find these. AMAZING NEWS FOR KNUCKLES AND CHAOTIX FANS!!!
This is an April Fool from Chainspike. (Although late; the cgi went down yesterday :P) However, you can check out even MORE Knuckles Adventure stuff HERE! |
Your Daily Dose Of Sonic! Welcome to the best Sonic news source on the net! This page will generally be updated everyday. As a rule, you must give us a link credit if you want to take news reported by us. Click here to post your own news, rumors, and links to points of interest and we'll copy it to the news page if it checks out! SHQ News Editors .gif) .gif) .gif)  
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Samba De Amigo, Sonic Teams wackiest game yet, featuring that Monkey with a large head and huge smile. Has FINALLY hit Japan Dreamcast, and to celebrate, both IGN and Gamefan have brought out the goods on making everything Samba-happy! Gamefan has listed all the Dreamcast - Exclusive options, a cool Desktop theme (would have been better if they included sound bytes though), The Japanese Advert (mpeg) which is quite humorous, unfortunately not as god as the Famous Chu Chu Rocket one, and that Samba De Amigo WILL be at E3, could it possibly come to America?
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hits since Apr 11, 1999.
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