2D Sonic the Hedgehog 4 to be Released this Summer

There are few things on this earth that could cause me to squeal like a little schoolgirl, but the thought of a true sequel to Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is one of the rare exceptions. Last fall, SEGA released a preview trailer that hinted at a new Sonic game in 2010, but what made the announcement most interesting was the mention of it being a 2D adventure, not 3D, like most of the games on the market today.

In September of 2008, Capcom did something no one ever expected it to. It followed-up to the original NES Mega Man titles with a true sequel of sorts that brought hardcore fans back to the 8-bit era. The game was polished, and looked just like an NES title. It also had 8-bit music, and it felt like a true Mega Man game that was released in the late 80’s. The difference, was that it was brand-new.

Despite that game being one of the most difficult I’ve ever played, I thoroughly enjoyed it. But the thought of another 3D Sonic title just excites me to the point where I might just explode. I’ve always been into game consoles, and have most of the popular Mario games that were released, but if I had to choose just one game character to swear my allegiance to, it would be Sonic. His spiky blue hair is just… rad.

The best part of Sonic is the unique game world and the sheer speed. Back in the Genesis days, you just didn’t see many games that gave you such fast gameplay, and certainly none that were still easy to play despite it. Because of Sonic’s unique abilities, the gameplay was much different than Mario, and thanks to the fact that co-characters like Tails and Knuckles had their own unique abilities, the games could be played over and over.

Little is known about the upcoming Sonic the Hedgehog 4, but what we do know is that it will be available on all three consoles, downloadable from their respective online services. SEGA has launched a StH4 website that has nothing but two small trailers (there’s literally a total of 1.5s worth of gameplay). There are timers on all other bits of information, so it’s just a matter of time before more is revealed.

One really interesting thing is that the game is set to launch not on just those the three home consoles, but another platform as well. Is it going to be a handheld, or the PC? Hard to say, but I’m really curious to find out. I wouldn’t be all too surprised if Steam had something to do with it… but that’s just me.