This information comes from SEGA West CEO Mike Hayes…
“It’s all part of a general strategy with Sonic where we are passionate about getting Sonic back up to the quality levels we’ve had historically. We’ve gone through a major segmentation analysis of Sonic and where it would appeal to the different fans. On the Wii and Nintendo DS, we’re driving those brands to the younger audience. We have our Mario and Sonic brands that are very mass-market. Then we have our brands where we will focus on our SEGA and Sonic loyalists and we made the decision there to listen to what their feedback is. We delayed the launch of Sonic 4 to make sure we got that as right as we could and we’re still listening because as we progress the series we want to make sure we get that right. Where I think we provide Sonic for a younger audience, there we have to take innovation ourselves and try and understand and work out what will be the best game for a more 8 to 12 year old audience,” he said. “For the core fans, we definitely want to hear what they have to say about Sonic. It’s just such a vital brand for us, and the most important thing is to get relevant quality, and that’s what we’re going to spend a lot of time and money doing over the next three or more years to get right. It’s absolutely bang on where we wanted it to be on all the formats. This is the whole part of us moving Sonic up the scale to a much better quality product. Fingers crossed; it’s actually tracking a little bit ahead of where we expected it to be.”
Right now, I have to say that SEGA is making a respectable effort to bring back Sonic to his former glory. Sonic 4, while not perfect, was definitely a step in the right direction. Additionally, Sonic Colors is on the way, and that title is looking great so far.
Course: Maple Treeway
Objective: Get all of the coins
Tournament date: 11/1 – 11/10
Fallout: New Vegas (PS3/360) – 10/9/9/9
Fable III (360) – 9/9/8/9
Radiant Historia (DS) – 9/8/8/9
Do-Konjou Shougakussei: Bon Bita – Hadaka no Choujou Ketsusen!! Bita vs. Dokuro Dei! (DS) – 7/7/7/7
Thanks to Kay and Thomas N for the tip!
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“I think that Mr. Iwata is right when he says that the Wii is more of a holiday purchase, as the core audience has long been satisfied, and the more casual audience comprises the much larger portion of the addressable market. With effective marketing, a slew of great games, and some likely support at retail, I expect the Wii to once again become the best selling console in November and December.” – Michael Pachter
Oh come on, is this really that hard to predict? It’d only be the fourth year in a row that the Wii kills everything in sales for a holiday. I expected more from you, Pachter…
A winner has been declared in Nintendo of America’s nationwide Sin & Punishment™: Star Successor high-scoring challenge. As verified by Twin Galaxies International, the official worldwide authority for all video game high scores and world records, Andrew F. of Milwaukee clinched the title by earning a score of 68,126,154 points in the game’s third level, playing in difficult mode, using the Wii Remote™ and Nunchuk™ controllers.
In recognition of Andrew’s outstanding performance, Nintendo has awarded him a prize package that includes a customized plaque and a selection of Nintendo products. Additionally, Andrew’s score will be submitted for consideration in the Guinness World Records 2011 Gamer’s Edition.
Sin & Punishment: Star Successor is a thrilling arcade-style shooter available exclusively for the Wii™ system. The game’s online leaderboard lets players with broadband Internet access see how they stack up against the competition by viewing top scores from around the globe. Players also have the option of controlling their characters using the Wii Remote and Nunchuk, the Classic Controller™, the Classic Controller Pro™, the Nintendo GameCube™ controller or the Wii Zapper™ accessory.
For more information about Sin & Punishment: Star Successor, please visit http://www.sinandpunishment.com.
Source: Nintendo PR
