Exclusive: Sonic Creators Spill Secrets

Sonic Riders sequel headed for next-gen, Sonic Rush 2 a possibility, and 2D is better than 3D.

Creators at Sega's famous Sonic Team development studio have revealed to Kikizo a secret passion for 2D games over the modern 3D style usually found in platform and action games today, and promised more Sonic spin-offs for the future. The full interview will be published later tonight.

Akinori Nishiyama is the charismatic creator behind the highly acclaimed new Nintendo DS title, Sonic Rush. A vocal defendant of 2D gaming, we found that Mr Nishiyama had some interesting ideas about where Sonic should be spinning to next.

He explained: "These days the consoles are becoming much stronger, and on the PS2 it's pretty much entirely about 3D games. But I think there's still space for 2D, especially on the portable systems like DS. I want to keep this tradition going as much as I can for our videogames."

Akinori Nishiyama, Department Manager,
SEGA Global Entertainment Division R&D#1

So-called 2D videogames, which often provide simpler and more precise gameplay design than in many modern 3D equivalents across many gaming genres, still have a devoted following, particularly with fighting titles such as Street Fighter and King of Fighters.

Nishiyama seems to be one such follower: "Personally speaking, I think 2D games would be preferable for many users. I believe that in 2D games, say for example shooting games, you have to be careful of the slightest space on the screen and think in terms of how many pixels of space you have to manoeuvre. 3D games are never going to be like that; they are often very much about more fluid action. I think 2D games are more fun a lot of the time. However, from the graphical point of view, more than anything else, gamers will usually go for 3D. Our best hope is to have both coexisting."

So in that case, fans can expect a sequel to the 2D Nintendo DS game - a Sonic Rush 2, right? "Hopefully! I think users will expect it, so if there's demand, they can make it happen."

Another senior Sonic Team producer is Takashi Yuda, who has been working on the upcoming Sonic racing game, Sonic Riders. Why a Sonic racing game, and why now? "Sonic fans have been asking us to make a racing game for about ten years! So by public demand, we thought it was a good idea."

Takashi Yuda, Producer & Game Design Section,
SEGA Global Entertainment Division R&D#1

But Sonic and friends aren't in Ferraris in this racing game; they're on Back to the Future-style 'airboards'. Yuda explains, "I was not interested in making a conventional racing game. I wanted to make something different and dynamic, and we came up with new ideas this way. We thought things like surfing and snowboarding have more flexibility to allow you to do tricks and things."

With a major new Sonic the Hedgehog game scheduled for release on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 next year (first revealed exclusively by Kikizo) it seems there's still a lot of life in for the Sega mascot as he approaches his fifteenth birthday. So what else is there to look forward to?

Yuda reveals, "Sonic Riders is also going to have some sequels, which will appear on next generation consoles. We're also trying to see if we can come up with more Sonic franchises - not just racing games like Riders - but other ideas as well, something suitable for fans. So, I don't think there will be a Sonic Golf, for example..."

Good news all around, then.

We'll be posting the full interview, which also contains some other stuff, later tonight.

Adam Doree
Kikizo.com