Sonic the Hedgehog is a seminal video game character. Who knows what the world of video games would look like today if not for the little blue speed ball. So it is with that respect that the venerable Sonic Team has made the newest and most nostalgia heavy Sonic game short of bringing it back to 16-bits.

Sonic Generations is a love letter to all things Sonic, providing game that takes you through the entire Sonic history. The game revolves around a mysterious being that is disrupting space and time. As a result, modern Sonic comes face to face with his classic self and the two speedy hedgehogs go on an adventure to set right the Sonic universe.

Gameplay:

There are two main gameplay types in Sonic Generations. The first is a classic super speedy 2D Sonic platforming style of level, and the second is a more modern 2D-3D hybrid style that is common amongst today’s Sonic games. The game has a pretty nifty story explanation for the two types levels, making the switch in gameplay between Acts natural. Each Act One is run by classic Sonic in his typical fashion and each Act Two by modern Sonic.

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It’s that time of year again when we all gather together to see our loved ones… that’s right. The Con season has begun. Whether it’s SXSW, Toy Fair, C2E2 or Comic Con in San Diego, if you are a reader (or writer) of the Flickcast, it’s likely you are going to end up at least one, if not all, of the Cons this season. Our first one up on the east coast is Toy Fair. Now while Toy Fair isn’t open to the general public, we made sure to get in and get a peek at some of the hottest new toys of the season.

We got to take a peek at the new models for the Walking Dead action figures alongside our friends from MTV Splashpage as the legendary Todd McFarlane himself explained how the zombie bodies will literally explode in the customer’s hands. We can’t wait to see the final versions in action.

There was a plethora of Green Lantern merchandise that we were unfortunately unable to snag pictures of as well as the brand new Thundercats line which is coming out soon. We were able to sneak a few pictures though of some of the Mezco Green Lantern products though.

The video game world was represented strong with Sonic The Hedgehog, Halo, Deus Ex, Street Fighter, Final Fantasy and Little Big Planet. Activision also announced to the world Skylanders Spyro’s Adventure for the Wii where toys and video games come together in a very interesting new way. Check back later this week for a full post including video of the product in action.

Check out all of our pics from Toy Fair below and keep checking back this week for more from the show (including an appearance on this week’s podcast discussing it with Matt and Chris)!

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9/9/99 is a date that will live in infamy for the video game world. Over ten years ago, the Dreamcast came to homes across the country. Trying to beat out the PlayStation 2, Sega released this groundbreaking system that would be the first home console to attempt online play, which did work though terribly slow due to being over dialup.

The Dreamcast would play host to some revolutionary titles like Shenmue, Jet Grind Radio and Power Stone. It would also boast the title as the best home console to play Marvel vs. Capcom 2 on. With over 650 titles, it is sad to hear that this would be the last ever console released by Sega.

“The Dreamcast is fondly remembered by a large community of dedicated fans as a console that was ahead of its time in terms of graphics, quality and online gaming” commented Haruki Satomi, VP of Digital Business at SEGA of America and SEGA Europe. “There are few things that are more requested from us than making Dreamcast classics available for download in today’s digital market place. We’re very excited to begin offering gamers our beloved Dreamcast titles again on the current console systems.”

In celebration of the 11th anniversary of the Dreamcast, Sega has announced that two of its favorite titles, Sonic Adventure and Crazy Taxi will be released on September 9th, 2010 as XBLA and PlayStation Network games. Though prices have not been disclosed yet, it has been confirmed both games will receive the full Achievement / Trophy upgrade for their respective consoles as well as high def visuals, surround sound and online leaderboards.

Check out the screen shots below of Sonic Adventure and Crazy Taxi which will be playable on the show floor at E3 next week.

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Sega has announced a new direction for the Sonic The Hedgehog series with the introduction of Sonic Colors, set for release on the Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS platforms for Holiday 2010. While the announcement trailer below leaves a lot to the imagination as it doesn’t show any actual gameplay in it, there is always something exciting about the announcement of a new Sonic game. Some of it resembles the Nascar scenario of wondering how bad a crash could turn out while others have nostalgic hope ring through that the game may live up to the early Sonic games we all know and loved, like that of the Sonic The Hedgehog 4 trailer.

Sega tells us about Sonic Colors:

An extraordinary amusement park has been seen orbiting around the home planet of Sonic the Hedgehog, and rumours are spreading that an alien race of Wisps, who have a unique colorful energy, are being held captive there by the evil Dr. Eggman. Soon after arriving at the amusement park, Sonic discovers he is able to use these mysterious alien forces to help the Wisps escape! Sonic Colors for the Wii seamlessly combines both 3D and classic 2D game play perspectives, while the Nintendo DS version takes full advantage of the console’s dual screen.

“In Sonic Colors, players run at supersonic speed through incredible looking planets each with their own unique visual style.” commented Gary Knight, Senior Vice President of Marketing, SEGA. “In addition to the classic Sonic gameplay style, the colorful new Wisp power-ups offer a fresh new way of exploring these worlds and helps make Sonic faster than ever before!”

Take a peek after the jump at the announcement trailer and a few new images from the upcoming game and let us know your thoughts on Sonic Colors.

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As we reported last week, Sega’s “hidden” title, referred to as “Project Needlemouse” has been revealed to be Sonic The Hedgehog 4: Episode 1 and will be coming to the XBox Live Arcade, PlayStation Store and WiiWare.  Included with that announcement was a trailer that showed only a very tiny bit of actual gameplay footage.

Now, a video has surfaced on the internet over at Gamevideos.1up.com with footage of actual game play from a press event. As this footage should not have hit the internet, it is not of the best quality but it does give a great indication of what Sonic 4 will actually play like as it holds true to the series’ original side-scrolling roots.

Notably absent from this game are the cast of Sonic’s best buddies like Tails and Knuckles as well as the entire cast of random extras like Big The Cat and Shadow who piled on to the series as it started to lose quality. While there is still tons of information to be revealed on it, take a peek at just what Sonic The Hedgehog 4: Episode 1 looks like so far.

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It started 19 years ago. A little blue rodent ran his way on to the Sega Genesis system and into our hearts with Sonic the Hedgehog. Since, he has gone through some ups, like Sonic 2 and 3, and some downs, like Sonic Unleashed.

But still, everyone has hope for the little guy who went toe to toe with Mario during the early console wars and just missed. Recently, Sega has been referring to a project under the codename Needlemouse which was revealed yesterday as Sonic The Hedgehog 4: Episode 1.

With a recently launched site, Sonic 4 will make its ways to all the major systems as a downloadable game in episodic format from the XBox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network and WiiWare… and according to the ellipsis on the website, possibly another format as well.

Sonic 4′s website features a variety of countdown clocks, some specific to character reveals and various content like concept art, that will reveal more about the upcoming downloadable title in the following days. But, for now, take a peak at the teaser trailer that brings Sonic back to his 2D sidescrolling glory, the way he was meant to be seen.

Stay tuned to The Flickcast for more information on our favorite Sega mascot and his new game as it becomes available.

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