Do you want information on Project Needlemouse, the upcoming retro-inspired 2D Sonic the Hedgehog? If so, you’ll have to muster all twelve remaining Sonic fans for a bout of trivia with the overlords at Sega.
In case you aren’t familiar with the idea, I present to you the Sonic Cycle, which generally goes like this: 1.) A new Sonic game is announced, promising a return to the series’ roots and the Hedgehog’s triumphant return from languishing in mediocrity. 2.) Screencaps surface showing all of Sonic’s old friends – who people don’t like playing with as much as the classic Blue Blur (and Tails and Knuckles, naturally) – as well as the new ones, and anticipation begins to wane. 3.) The game comes out, is crap, fans bitterly complain that they will never be fooled again, see (Step 1).
While the secretive Project Needlemouse has Step 1 down pat, it seems as though Sega is taking a different tack on Step 2. On the official Sega Blog, it was announced that the upcoming week would feature multiple reveals for Needlemouse – who the playable characters were, who the figure in the logo was, and all that jazz – as long as fans can answer trivia questions about the past Sonic games.
But the interesting – and kind of hilarious – part is the format in which the “character reveals” will happen: The logo features all the potential playable characters, and if the community meets the collective trivia challenge, the site will be updated with stamps over the names that aren’t in the game. So effectively, the promotion department at Sega is telling us who won’t be in the game, which is sort of amusing given the infamous Cycle.
One can only hope that at the end of the week, there’s only one name left remaining. Well, maybe two – “Sonic’s New Friend Mr. Needlemouse” sounds awfully enticing.
Published: Jan 11, 2010 09:45 pm