Fan art for NiGHTS into dreams... 30th Anniversary

Hello friends, I hope that you are doing well. In the past few blogs I talked about working through my art block. Drawing skateboarding skeletons, led to drawing Disney characters, led to drawing Disney illustrations for news articles. The next thing that I drew was in celebration of my favorite game of all-time. NiGHTS into dreams… for the Sega Saturn was celebrating its 30th anniversary on July 5, 2026. I was so happy to grow old with the character that I had to create an illustration on the day.

That drawing lead to a lot of new people following me on Bluesky, and even a few more reading the blog. I did an updated version of my Metal NiGHTS illustration featuring all the robot characters that I had created previously. I shared this illustration that day too. It made a lot of fans happy. It made me start thinking that I had to create the missing Nightmaren bosses in robot form; Puffy, Clawz, and Gillwing. I might eventually get around to them, and share them here.

The last thing that I shared on the anniversary was a photo. It was the first time I actually spread out the items that I had been collecting over the past three decades. I didn’t include the comics, games, plush, or my wedding ring in the photo, but you could tell that this game, and especially this character meant a lot to me. The massive NiGHTS object on the right side was actually a pillowcase. It was an early present from my wife after we got married. It is a super rare item for collectors. It hardly comes up in US or even Japanese auctions, the fact that she got one absolutely blew me away.

My art block was improving little by little. My love of skateboarding, Disney, and NiGHTS were helping me break the cycle. I’d like to know if there was anything that inspired you to create art. Tell me about it in the comments section. If you enjoy this blog there are several ways you can support me. You can sponsor me directly on Patreon. Or like and subscribe to my videos on YouTube. You can even subscribe to the Pink Monorail Podcast featuring my wife, and myself. 

 

Bookmark This Page; Becoming a Sonic Team fan, and playing some rare Sonic games

I am a huge fan of the classic Sonic Team games. If you want a deep dive on some rare Sega titles then Bookmark This Page.

Making a Sonic Team fan, part 1…

Making a Sonic Team fan, part 2…

Making a Sonic Team fan, part 3…

Making a Sonic Team fan, part 4…

Making a Sonic Team fan, final part…

Sonic Superstars and beyond. Sega makes up for lost time, part 1…

Sonic Superstars and beyond. Sega makes up for lost time, part 2…

Sonic Superstars and beyond. Sega makes up for lost time, part 3…

Sonic Superstars and beyond. Sega makes up for lost time, part 4…

Sonic Superstars and beyond. Sega makes up for lost time, part 5…

Sonic Superstars and beyond. Sega makes up for lost time, part 6…

Sonic Superstars and beyond. Sega makes up for lost time, part 7…

Sonic Superstars and beyond. Sega makes up for lost time, final part

A rare Sonic Team items pops up, plus showing my favorite game character some love

Do you have a favorite Sonic Team game? Tell me about it in the comments section. As always if you enjoyed this blog, and would like to sponsor me please visit my Patreon page and consider donating each month, even as little as $1 would help make better blogs and even podcasts!

A rare Sonic Team item pops up, plus showing my favorite game character some love

Heya friends, I hope that you are having a great week. I managed to find a rare Burning Rangers item on a Japanese bidding site. There wasn’t much tangible goods from Sega when the game came out. I did pick up magazines featuring interviews with Sonic Team, and some rare screenshots from early builds of the game. Yet past that I didn’t really have any sort of merch. That was why I was surprised to see a mousepad pop up. The art was fantastic, so I had to pick it up.

As long as I was on a Sonic Team kick I was inspired to do some art featuring my favorite game character NiGHTS.

At the end of 2025 I was also inspired to do a piece for Christmas.

It had been a long time since I drew Reala, the rival to NiGHTS. I had to rectify it before the end of the year.

NiGHTS heard you wanted a bike for Christmas. Good luck getting it back!

Turned the best illustration I did this year into a holiday celebration. I'm wishing you, and yours the very merriest of holidays!

At the end of 2025 I was also inspired to do a piece for Christmas.

Of course 2025 was the 29th Anniversary of NiGHTS into dreams... this meant that I had to create a new illustration in 2026 to celebrate its 30th Anniversary. I'll be posting that at the end of the year. Were there any rare games, or favorite characters that you loved to draw? Let me know in the comments section. As always if you enjoyed this blog, and would like to sponsor me please visit my Patreon page and consider donating each month, even as little as $1 would help make better blogs and even podcasts!

Sonic Superstars and beyond. Sega makes up for lost time, final part

In the previous blogs I talked about how much fun I had playing through Sonic Lost World on the Nintendo Wii U. The game from 2013 had stage designs, and game play which I felt were perfect for the Sonic franchise. Sadly those things weren’t revisited by Sega in the following titles. I had no sense that the ideas explored in Lost World would ever be seen again. That really bummed me out. Almost a decade later Sega announced that they were going to explore a completely new adventure for Sonic and company. One which would have hints of the Lost World stage design. I was happy with the news until I found out that Sonic Team would not develop it. Not only that but it would be exclusive to the Apple Arcade. As somebody that didn’t even have a subscription to Apple Music I was skeptical that it would be any good. I held Sonic Team in high regards, and didn’t think anybody else could do the series justice.

The developers at HARDlight had created a slew of mobile hits based on console Sonic titles over the past 20 years. I didn’t doubt their track record for adapting hits. I was skeptical that they could develop an original Sonic game. To say that it blew away all of my expectations was a severe understatement. Sonic Dream Team was not only a great Sonic title, it was arguably the best game ever created for the iOS / Apple Arcade. The game debuted on December 5, 2023, and had a few updates following its release that only made it deeper, and more rewarding. The inclusion of Shadow the Hedgehog had elevated it into a Top-5 Sonic game in my opinion. I was happy that many of the elements from Lost World were revisited. If this was the only thing that HARDlight did then I would have been very happy, but they improved upon everything that Sega explored previously. The goal of the HARDlight developers was to get audiences into a state of flow. The comparisons of their stage designs to a roller coaster, or skatepark were valid. We were able to enjoy a sense of speed, and freedom to explore the dream world in every dimension without the use of traditional controls. To be fair I played it on my computer with an Xbox controller.

When it came to boss encounters I absolutely loved what the studio produced. Since everything was set in a dream world then HARDlight had the freedom to push the encounters that Sonic, and his friends would have. We were already familiar with the robots that Eggman created. However the game made everything more surreal, more cartoonish. The world was fluid, malleable. The bosses could be mechanical, organic, or a combination of the two. For example the very first boss was a giant inflatable crab called Dr. Crabulous. In any other Sonic game this character would have been metal, and not much different than a dozen other bosses. Since this was a dream then it made sense that Dr. Eggman was building weird challenges. You could actually find the weak points of Dr. Crabulous, and let the air out of it as it bounced around the stage. The subsequent levels, and bosses were equal parts dreamlike, and memorable. The second and third boss encounter was an evolving battle. The Factory Foremen were a trio of more traditional Eggman robots that could team up against you. When the larger fourth robot showed up it would combine like a Transformer and become The Four Man.

The enormous robot not only had a punny name, but was such a clever design that it made me want to buy a 3D printer just to recreate it. Seriously Sega, how do you not have these bosses in toy stores? But I digress… each battle helped pull us deeper into the dream world. HARDlight studio had a unique approach for their game. The stages they created were designed to allow Sonic, and his allies a chance to shine. Not only that but you could swap between characters in the middle of the stages. By comparison we could use any character in Sonic Superstars, but only one at a time. In Sonic Dream Team only certain characters could fight the bosses to let them shine. For example the Four Man encounter was meant for Cream the Rabbit, or Tails. This approach allowed every location, and every boss fight to contribute to the story. Each character was important, they all helped push the plot along. None of the new bosses was more bizarre than the Guardian Hunter. Dr. Eggman had created a dream construct capable of trapping Ariem. He let the multi-limbed monster loose in the dream world. The alien-like creature was one of the creepiest monsters that had ever appeared in the series. It would be up to Knuckles the Echidna, or Rouge the Bat to stop it.

Ariem was thankfully rescued from the Guardian Hunter. Dr. Eggman did not give up even when all of his bosses were defeated. He refused to abandon his pursuit of the Reverie. The diabolical doctor had spent so much time in the dream world that he had learned how to shape it through something called the Dream Core. In a last ditch effort to beat the heroes he mutated into the final boss. Unlike other Sonic games where Eggman chased Sonic in a giant robot, this time around he became the giant. This new persona was called Nightmare Eggman. At this point Sonic Dream Team felt exactly how the Sonic universe would crossover with NiGHTS into dreams… The cameos of the Nightmaren bosses in Sonic Lost World were fantastic, but I’m referring to how the dream world would work in the Sonic universe. Ariem could be seen as the surrogate for NiGHTS. Nightmare Eggman mirrored Wizeman, the final boss in the classic Saturn game. The all-powerful monster could shape reality. The only way he could be defeated was a head-on battle where the heroes faced their own fears.

Nightmare Eggman was enormous, and omnipresent in the last stage. His head alone could fill the entire horizon. He grew additional arms while attacking the team. This was similar to his appearance in opening animation. Players had to use every trick that they learned from previous stages in order to navigate through the continually shifting final stage. The mountainous villain had the same imposing presence, and disembodied hands of Wizeman from NiGHTS into dreams… and even the successor NiGHTS journey of dreams. His colossal gloved hands appeared out of thin air, trying to strike down our heroes. As I was going through the battle I kept commenting to my family how much it felt like a crossover with NiGHTS. I was so impressed with everything that went into it that I said I 100% supported the studio if they were to develop a new NiGHTS game.

The entire final boss battle was a collaborative event. The game kept jumping between the main characters as they raced against the clock. They were united in an effort to get Ariem to the Dream Core so that she could expel Dr. Eggman from the dream world, and allow our heroes to return to their own universe. In this way Sonic, Tails, Amy, Knuckles, Rouge, and Cream could each share in the climax of the story. I was amazed with how everything was handled. The last time I saw an all out battle of heroes against a single villain was during the end of God of War Ragnarok. The Playstation 5 hit from 2022 was a cinematic experience. Sega managed to capture the same all-or-nothing energy but in a mobile game. I had waited a lifetime to see that many Sonic cast members get equal billing. I was not let down. The thing that never let me down above all else was the challenge. I was happy to revisit each stage and try to get an S-Rank after beating the game. It never suffered from technical issues. It never suffered from balance issues even when using different characters. It was difficult in some places but never left me feeling cheated. Unlike Sonic Superstars this title rewarded me for playing efficiently. 

The nightmare level design, and skyscraper-sized bad guy became one of the most memorable challenges in series history. I loved everything that went into the game. All of the previous stages, all of the previous boss encounters were wonderfully done. It was the final battle that elevated my opinion of HARDlight studio. I could tell that the studio members had grown up on a steady diet of all things Sonic. They proved it countless times through all of their releases. I sincerely hoped that Sega would give the studio even more creative freedom in subsequent games. In the last few years there had been no news if Sonic Dream Team would get ported to consoles. It was a shame that Sega seemed to ignore the popularity of the title. Perhaps it had something to do with being exclusive to Apple Arcade. Maybe Sega were prohibited from releasing it on a different platform. HARDlight seemed to be the heir apparent to Sonic Team. The love, and understanding that they had of every Sonic Team game was on full display. They had proven their worth on the mobile titles they developed over 20 years.

If there was a western team that Sega could trust the blue blur to then it should be HARDlight. As much as I enjoyed Sonic Superstars I felt that the spikes in difficulty broke the otherwise classic gameplay. Sonic Dream Team was sort of the opposite. They made the modern 3D experience even more accessible, while still honoring the established game play elements. The developers knew how to take a classic idea, and bring it to a new generation of players. With most of the original members of Sonic Team now retired, or working at different studios then perhaps it was time for a new Sonic developer to take over. Similar to how Sega chose the person that would reboot the Virtua Fighter franchise. Yu Suzuki was the father of the Virtua Fighter series (along with Shenmue, After Burner, OutRun and a dozen other gems). Mr. Suzuki mentored Toshihiro Nagoshi. The creator of the Yakuza games learned the ropes by following almost everything that Mr. Suzuki produced. When Mr. Suzuki stepped down it was obvious that Mr. Nagoshi should be the perfect new leader. I would argue that HARDlight had earned similar consideration for the next Sonic console project.

The best I could do was steer the visitors of my blog to Sonic Dream Team. The more that people played the game, and shared info on it the more Sega might consider porting it. I would do my part to keep it relevant. I would create fan art of Ariem, and Nightmare Eggman to share on social media. I would write about my favorite Sonic games when I had the opportunity. It was the least I could do. Did you play this game? What did you think about it? Do you think the people at HARDlight would come up with a great console Sonic title, or perhaps a reboot of NiGHTS into dreams…? Tell me about it in the comments section. As always if you enjoyed this blog, and would like to sponsor me please visit my Patreon page and consider donating each month, even as little as $1 would help make better blogs and even podcasts!

Sonic Superstars and beyond. Sega makes up for lost time, part 7...

In the previous blog I talked about how the 2013 game Sonic Lost World was the Sonic Team’s counter to Super Mario Galaxy series. There were a lot of fun ideas in the game, and unique elements that I thought should be revisited. Things like playing through floating satellite stages in all three dimensions, as well as crossing over the enemies, and game play from NiGHTS into dreams… These things were executed wonderfully. Unfortunately the game came out just before the Sonic Boom animated series, and games for the Nintendo 3DS, and Nintendo Wii U. Those introduced different play mechanics into the series. The subsequent games like Sonic Forces, Sonic Frontiers, and Sonic Mania further mixed up the formula, while trying to honor the Sonic Team legacy. The idea that we would ever circle back to the things that worked in Lost World seemed impossible.

The entire time that Sega was experimenting with the Sonic mechanics on the consoles they were also publishing a series of mobile games as well. The most prolific of their developers were HARDlight studios from England. They wrote the book on mobile Sonic gaming. Starting with Sonic Jump in 2005, then a slew of other hits over the next 20 years. You might have heard of, if not played one of the following; Sonic Jump Fever, Sonic Dash, Sonic Dash 2: Sonic Boom, Sonic Forces, Sonic Racing, Sonic Dash+, and Sonic Prime Dash. They also created mobile versions of other Sega classics including Crazy Taxi: City Rush, and ChuChu Rocket! Universe. It would be an understatement to say that the studio was familiar with Sonic. Multiple generations of developers outside of Japan had grown up on the franchise. They not only played the games, but they watched the animated shows, and followed along with the comic books as well. Each of the HARDlight games reflected the same things that made the Sonic Team titles work. The mobile games well received by critics, and audiences. This was no accident. They understood the characters on an individual level. They understood how the stages, or zones evolved through the years. They understood the dynamics of the heroes, and villains. Many times they seemed to know what to do with Sonic better than Sega themselves.

After 20 years there was no doubt that HARDlight were great at developing Sonic adaptations. The question was whether or not Sega would allow them to develop their own original Sonic title. That was answered at the end of 2023 when Sega published Sonic Dream Team for Apple Arcade. It would be one of the best games not developed by Sonic Team, DIMPS, or Headcannon. The bar for a franchise game was already high, if HARDlight flubbed it then they might not ever get another chance. I knew that their previous efforts were good, but wasn’t sure how a game designed mainly for mobile devices would work out. The plot itself was something new to the franchise. This time Sonic and his closest allies; Tails, Amy Rose, Knuckles, Rouge, and Cream would be going through a dream world. As a massive fan of NiGHTS into dreams… this announcement got my attention.

The game would introduce a new ally to the series, a magical sheep-like character named Ariem, as in R.E.M. Sleep. She was called the Dreamweaver, the Guardian of the Reverie. The Reverie was central to the plot. It was a magical portal that allowed dreams to become reality. This portal would open once every 1000 years, but could only be accessed by a pure soul. Dr. Eggman kidnapped Cream the Rabbit, easily the most innocent soul in the cosmos. He created a device that could allow him to slip into the dreams of his victims. He intended on locking Cream out of her own mind so that he could command the Reverie. Dr. Eggman had always wanted to take over the world, if not the entire universe. He was a prolific inventor, and had come close to ruling over everything on many occasions. The idea that he could now instantly bring his twisted ambitions to life was terrifying. Thankfully when the game began his creations were still stuck in the dream world.

Once Dr. Eggman entered the dream world thanks to Cream he locked her away, and then went after Ariem. Sonic and his friends went searching for tiny rabbit. When they found her Dr. Eggman’s machines made them all fall asleep, and enter the dream world as well. This was explained in the animated introduction. Ariem was able to reach Sonic in his mind. She explained what was happening, and that she needed his help to break them all out. Ariem could weave the dream worlds together using “Dream Orbs.” The missions in the game required you to get the orbs back to her. With them she could reunite Sonic with his friends, and ultimately banish Eggman from the Reverie. Looking at the character I couldn’t help but draw parallels between her, her powers, and NiGHTS. The plot in the older Sonic Team title was very similar. NiGHTS was trapped by the master of the dream world, a character called Wizeman. The only way that NiGHTS could escape his prison was by collecting Idea crystals from the human dreamers Elliot Edwards or Claris Sinclair.

The stage designs were very much focused on continuous movement. Many of the stages was the type of multi-branching path design that was a speed runner's playground. They were filled with springs to connect elevated satellites, rails to grind on, and even halfpipes that Sonic could leap out from. It turned out that it was no accident. HARDlight had created a bunch of memorable running stages in their earlier mobile games. They knew how to balance the challenge of an endless runner, with the rewards of modern Sonic game play. If you’ve ever played through their Dash games, and fell into the rhythm of the stages then you knew that it felt like you could run forever. It was the feeling of entering a “flow state” that Sonic Dream Team perfected. This was one of the goals from HARDlight studio creative director Dan Rossati. In an interview with Eurogamer he said “The vision was to make a game that allowed players to get into an exhilarating flow state. Early on, I was waving my hands around, emulating rollercoasters and halfpipes, while enthusiastically trying to communicate what I meant by flow," he said. "On top of that, we knew that we'd be catering to both touchscreen and controller, so the controls had to be as accessible as possible while allowing the player maximum control at high speeds."

He continued: "To achieve this, we considered skate parks and bobsled runs with rounded corners so you can easily transition from floor to wall, keeping your flow. We also added in the boost, which, if you find a good line through the levels, you should be able to chain them to get some amazingly fast run-throughs.” As I went through the game I picked up on the skatepark elements that Mr. Rossati had described. The stage designs reminded not only of the best elements of Sonic Lost World, but also of a much older Sega arcade game called Top Skater. The further I went the more I saw that even Jet Set Radio Future had a hand in shaping the freedom of movement that Dream Team presented. HARDlight absolutely nailed what made up the best Sega stages. They formed environments that helped direct players to a goal, while allowing them the sensation of continuous movement.

When the game began we found ourselves in the Scrambled Shores a dream world that was a mix of bouncy houses, and the beach. This was easily the types of things that a kid like Cream the Rabbit would dream about. As the stages progressed through the Dream Factory, Nightmare Maze, and Ego City we got to see more, and more of Dr. Eggman's corrupting influence into the universe. It was precisely the world building that I loved about the classic Sonic Team games. The more I played, the deeper I wanted to explore the world that HARDlight had created. The boss encounters themselves left me much more impressed than what I had experienced in Sonic Superstars. I want to talk about them on the next blog. Until then I’d like to know if you’ve ever played a mobile game that blew away any expectations. Tell me about it in the comments section. As always if you enjoyed this blog, and would like to sponsor me please visit my Patreon page and consider donating each month, even as little as $1 would help make better blogs and even podcasts!

Sonic Superstars and beyond. Sega makes up for lost time, part 6...

Sonic Team forever changed my life. I had been playing video games since the late ‘70s through the ‘80s but didn’t become aware of specific developers until the ‘90s. Sonic Team made me take notice that a studio could create greatness. They made me more aware of all the elements that went into video game development. They changed the way I played through games. They changed the way I listened to games. They changed the way I approached art, and design in my personal work. The studio was a creative nexus for me. The thing that made video games (especially the Sonic Team ones) more influential to me than say a comic book, movie, or song, was the interactive element. Video games required a level of engagement, they were not a passive form of entertainment.

Books required a large chunk of imagination to bring to life. A well written story could appeal to all of our senses, and allow us to inhabit the world that the author had created. Comics, games, and movies made it a little bit easier for people that didn’t have vivid imaginations. The other forms of entertainment had a certain visual tone presented to us. The creators still wanted us to live in the worlds they dreamed up. Gaming took it a step further because we got to interact with these locations. In the early days Sonic Team jumped across the map, and pulled us Zone to Zone. Each place had a different look, and feel. We could see how Dr. Eggman had corrupted the natural world, and turned fertile landscapes into industrial wastelands as the game unfolded. In 1991 I could tell that Sonic inhabited a place with more color, and personality than the Mario titles I had enjoyed through the ‘80s. I was hooked from that point on. Almost 20 years later when the studio created Sonic Colors we were now traveling across the cosmos. I was giddy with the possibilities. The studio didn’t just build us a playground, they built us entire planets to play in. We were able to speed through expansive 3D worlds rather than a short 2D stages. The new environments gave me the same sense of awe as the original Sonic Zones.

This was not to say that Nintendo, and the other AAA mascot developers were sitting still. Nintendo went head-to-head with Sega on many fronts. The rivalry between Mario, and Sonic was genuine for most Gen-Xers. The leap from Super Mario 64 (1996) to Super Mario Galaxy (2007) was as profound as Sonic moving from 2D to 3D with Sonic Adventure in 1998. Sonic Team, and DIMPS took elements from Galaxy when they created Sonic Lost World in 2013 for the Nintendo Wii U. The game had a foot in the tone of Sonic Colors, and the gravity-defying platforming of Super Mario Galaxy. Fans were split on the game. Reviewers were arguing that this was poaching game play elements from a rival studio. Some thought that Sonic was adding new ideas, making it unique in its own right. I believed that there was a little bit of both things happening. Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto was said to have been greatly impressed by NiGHTS into dreams… which was released a month after Super Mario 64 in 1996. I always saw Super Mario Galaxy as his way of poaching NiGHTS game play ideas for his own series. To me Sega was returning the favor.

Visiting a diverse set of planetoids wasn’t the only bold thing that set Lost World apart from the other 3D Sonic titles. The studio introduced new villains to set it apart from other sequels. Sonic would be facing a new alien menace called the Deadly Six rather than the traditional Dr. Eggman, and his robotic hordes. These colorful aliens were oozing with personality. Sonic chased them all over the planet, through all sorts of unique environments. They each had different types of attacks that required their own strategy to defeat. There was an ancient martial arts master named Zik, the gloomy goth Zor, the vain Zeena, the punk Zazz, the massive glutton Zomon, and the leader of the group the devilish Zavok.

Previously I mentioned that the Sonic cast was built on the classic mascot cartoon template. The Deadly Six reflected a more modern 3D cartoon aesthetic but somehow they still complimented the older characters. The villains not only worked in the game but would be kept alive in the Sonic comics by IDW. There was something special about the game, and level design that I thought worked better than Super Mario Galaxy. Most of it had to do with Sonic’s established speed, and game play. Yet it also seemed to be missing something to elevate it past the earlier sequels. The seeds for something truly special were revealed when a new DLC area was released for the game. Sonic Team would crossover their two greatest hits in the magical Nightmare Zone. The Deadly Six would be accompanied by the villains from NiGHTS into dreams… NiGHTS would help Sonic break out of Wizeman’s cursed dreams.

I had always wondered what if the games crossed over, how would the mechanics work? After all NiGHTS was an on-rails free flying 2.5D game. The classic Sonic the Hedgehog mechanic might work with that type of game play. The only problem was that modern audiences has been conditioned to play Sonic in 3D ever since Sonic Adventure. This type of open game play did not really fit the NiGHTS mechanic. Sonic Team was able to find a balance by having Sonic battle the Nightmaren bosses in the format that audiences were used to. At the same time they honored the uniqueness of the villains, and how they balanced the Deadly Six as well. The magic of flying would be recreated as Sonic dashed through rings on floating platforms between the fights. There was something special about the Nightmare Zone that I wish that Sonic Team did more with. Sadly the idea seemed abandoned almost immediately after.

Just one year after Lost World came out Sega released the Sonic Boom animated series on Cartoon Network. It was a sort of retelling of the Sonic mythos. It featured slightly redesigned characters, and existed in its own continuity. Sega released a 2.5D game based on the series for the Nintendo 3DS called Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice, and a traditional platformer for the Wii U called Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric. The cartoon series, and the games were well done. They were fresh takes on the characters. They had their own unique game play that mixed up the format. Other 3D titles followed that also played with the formula, Sonic Forces in 2017, Sonic Mania in 2017, Sonic Frontiers in 2022, and Sonic Superstars in 2023.

Sega was bouncing back, and forth between 2.5D, and 3D titles. It felt like Sonic Team was on the cusp of something really special, but they were missing something. It turned out that a new studio saw what that element was. They were able to put together a new challenge that hit all the right beats. I’ll talk about this game in the next blog. Did you play any of the 2.5D or 3D Sonic games after Sonic Generations? What did you think about them? Tell me about it in the comments section. As always if you enjoyed this blog, and would like to sponsor me please visit my Patreon page and consider donating each month, even as little as $1 would help make better blogs and even podcasts!

Sonic Superstars and beyond. Sega makes up for lost time, part 5...

In the previous blogs I looked at Sonic Superstars, and the things that the developers at Sonic Team, and Arzest did great. I also talked about the technical and design choices that I think really hurt the game. While I played through it I was reminded of all the wonderful things that I enjoyed in the franchise. It very much felt like a continuation of the elements that made Sonic Mania work so well. The art direction, level, and enemy design fit in the classic 2D style, even though the models were in 3D. The introduction of a new character named Trip, plus using individual Chaos Emeralds to change the game play was inspired. When I struggled with some boss encounters it showed that there were cracks on the facade. Trying some encounters over and over lent me to discover what type of gamer I was. In the end I had a favorable opinion of the game that gave me a lot of insight into myself. It allowed me to realize that the Sonic series was one of the rare titles that was globally appealing for a number of reasons. The first thing that drew me to the franchise was the character himself.

I stated previously that I loved the art, and design behind the hero, and his friends. I never cared much for Knuckles though, but that was besides the point. I was a huge fan of the mascot style of character art. The cartoon star that created the movement was Pat Sullivan, and Otto Mesmer’s Felix the Cat. He debuted in 1919, almost a decade before Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, and Mickey Mouse. The large head, big expressive eyes, and animal features set a template that would be copied for the next century. The early US cartoon stars like Donald Duck, Bugs Bunny, or Flip the Frog wouldn’t have made it big without Felix. Sonic the Hedgehog, Tails the Fox, Knuckles the Echidna, Mighty the Armadillo, and Ray the Flying Squirrel all followed in the footsteps of Felix the Cat. They were descended from one of the greatest cartoon traditions the world had ever seen.

Although they were created by a Japanese team the Sonic art reflected my favorite form of American cartooning. The “rubber hose style of animation was the oldest form used in the US. The name was because the arms, and legs of these characters weren’t hinged as if they had bones. Instead they flexed like rubber hoses. Additionally the bodies on these characters were fluid. They could be pulled, stretched, and twisted like a rubber balloon. There was a sense of freedom in these cartoons that was liberating for artists. Although to be fair I was never good at drawing in a rubber hose format because my style was very rigid. It didn’t matter because I thought those early cartoon stars were so amazing. They could do the impossible, while still making their actions plausible. That tradition was rarely seen in modern cartoons, rare in video games, but not as rare in comic books.

The Mickey Mouse comics illustrated by Floyd Gottfredson in the 1930’s set a standard for adventure storytelling featuring cartoon mascots. His comics kept the animated icon alive outside of the movie theater. Mickey would hang out with his friends in some stories, having fun with the other Disney stars. Then he travel the globe on an international mystery for longer arcs. A decade later Carl Barks raised the bar in the Donald Duck, and more important, the Scrooge McDuck comics. Comic books were the perfect format for expanding on the animated shorts. We could get to see the characters develop a personality. The writers, and artists presented a universe that was much deeper than could ever be shown in a cartoon. For the longest time I assumed that these stories were for children until I actually sat down and started reading the collected volumes. I was not only amazed by the art, but by the storytelling. It worked on multiple levels There was action for the kids, great character development for teens, and mystery for the adults. They truly were books for all-ages.

Comic books in the USA were mainly superhero titles. Often mature in tone, and not really created for all-ages. However overseas the Disney comics were still popular with families, and even adults. They were an institution in Italy, where the Mickey comics (Topolino) had been in publication for over 90 years. I believe that they were the greatest run of all-ages comics ever published. Multiple generations were raised on stories that were every bit as good as those created in the USA. I would argue that the elite Disney cartoonists cut their teeth drawing on the pages of Topolino. The best of these stories were serialized and translated to multiple languages. I did a deep-dive on the Italian comics many years ago. The reason that I brought them up was because they were critical to keeping the characters popular. More than that they were important to spread the cartooning art form. You could only do so much in an animated short but the comics allowed the characters to live, and grow. They did more for audiences than the parent company did in the parks, television, or movie screens.

A similar thing could be argued for comics based on video games. Comic books could take a relatively short game, and give readers a cinematic experience. Udon was known for the Capcom books they published. Street Fighter, Mega Man, and Vampire / Darkstalkers were just some of the titles they released. Audiences got to follow the main, and side characters across a variety of story arcs. They allowed audiences to learn the dynamics between the stars, and any new faces introduced. As a fan of the mascot titles I was happy to see Sonic in publication. Granted not every editor, writer, or artist understood the games. This was especially true for many of the oldest issues. It seemed that the creators liked to make up stuff as they went along. The quality of the first comics didn’t matter to fans because they made the blue blur relevant. Whether in manga from Japan, or comics from the UK, and USA, Sonic had developed an international following. The most recent US comics from IDW were by far the best Sonic had ever appeared in print. The writing was amazing, and the stories stayed true to the games. Best of all the various artists captured the spirit of cartooning. They made young fans understand why the character appealed to older audiences, just as much as the Topolino comics helped kids understand why Mickey Mouse was beloved by their parents.

The creators at IDW were also able to expand the Sonic comic books to include new faces that were interesting in their own right. For example Lanolin the Sheep, Whisper the Wolf, Tangle the Lemur, and Jewel the Beetle were citizens-turned-freedom fighters. Their story arcs, and contributions in the comics made them very memorable. They were adventurers, sometimes with a tragic past, all rising to meet the challenge. They complimented all of the established heroes, and added their own unique dynamic to the stories. For long-time fans like myself I thought that these were characters that would be amazing to follow in a game. More than anything the Sonic comic books managed to remind audiences that the universe covered in the game series was far more expansive, and serious than we sometimes thought. Sonic Team managed to create a world that seemed straightforward, and easy to digest. Sonic was the good guy, and Eggman was the bad guy. He kidnapped animals to power his robots. It was up to Sonic to set them free. The formula hadn’t changed much in over 30 years, yet the stakes had always been incredibly high. Without Sonic, and his friends, then there was nothing preventing Eggman from conquering the world.

The threat that Dr. Eggman presented was epic in scope. He didn’t just raise an army of minions, he created an entire armada of war machines. He had a fleet of flying warships, giant robots, autonomous factories, laser satellites, and space stations with enough power to take over a planet. The fight had to be taken to Eggman to prevent him from ruling the world. There was nothing easy about the threats that Sonic, and his friends faced in every encounter. At the same time the designers at Sonic Team didn’t want to make the game feel heavy-handed. Yes the characters were fighting against impossible odds, but at this world was also a cozy place to live. The studio made sure to show audiences what Sonic was trying to protect. Sega wanted to remind us that this world was a beautiful place filled with loving characters. There were friends that wanted to enjoy a picnic with our hero, or perhaps do some fishing with him. These gentle characters were set against a backdrop that was quite serious. Being the protector of the innocent was the heart of several IDW story arcs.

Sonic Team created different types of innocent creatures that Sonic, and his allies had to protect. In most games the animals trapped within the robots were the obvious ones. As the games evolved we were introduced to the Chao in Sonic Adventure, then the Wisps in Sonic Colors, and most recently the Koco in Sonic Frontiers. Those minor characters were adorable beyond description. However when you placed them within the context of the stories they were also tragic figures. Each of the characters had survived catastrophic trauma. An entire planet of Wisps were enslaved by Dr. Eggman for his cruel experiments. The Koco were the memories of the ancient aliens that brought the Chaos Emeralds to the planet. Sonic had to complete their memories, and reunite their ghosts so that they could have some closure. The Chao were the de-evolved descendants of those alien refugees. They were also nearly wiped out in a raid by the Echidnas a millennia ago. Even the cutest characters in the franchise were important to the story.

Felix the Cat started the tradition of cartoon mascots more than 100 years ago. Sonic the Hedgehog helped bring the art form to a new generation through video games. The creators at Sega, Sonic Team, and at IDW helped it evolve across multiple formats. Whether it was an animated short for social media, a live-action movie, or an award-winning comic book run. There was no doubt that cartoons were alive and well. The lore of the game series was already robust, and the comic books went much deeper than casual fans could have ever known. The characters they introduced in the past decade could still look cute, and universally appealing, but they had now grown to include shapeshifting assassins, psychic madmen, and even sentient AI. Heroes, and villains in the Sonic canon were colorful, memorable, and awe-inspiring. The games they were featured in evolved in unique ways. I’ll trace it out in the next blog. Until then I’d like to know if you have a favorite mascot character. Or if you even like cartoons at all. Tell me about it in the comments section. As always if you enjoyed this blog, and would like to sponsor me please visit my Patreon page and consider donating each month, even as little as $1 would help make better blogs and even podcasts!