BioWare doing Sonic RPG

By Tom Bramwell Published 22 June, 2007

Due out on DS in 2008.

SEGA and BioWare have announced a partnership to create an RPG based on Sonic the Hedgehog for Nintendo DS. It's due out in 2008.

Virtually nothing else has been said about it, leaving us to chew on the prospect while regurgitating a bit of canned excitement - "BioWare is one of the hottest names in RPG development in the world," being a good place to start, thanks to SEGA of America president and COO Simon Jeffery. "Everyone at SEGA has huge confidence that Sonic is in the safest of hands, and that BioWare can create the ultimate handheld RPG experience for gamers of all ages."

For its part, BioWare says it's "thrilled" to be tackling "one of the industry's most enduring and compelling icons". CEO Ray Muzyka added: "As huge fans of Sonic ourselves, we're committed to delivering a truly amazing story-driven experience within the Sonic universe, focusing on capturing the character's broad appeal and placing him in a completely original adventure."

And who knows - having reinvigorated Star Wars with Knights of the Old Republic, you wouldn't put it past them. Look out for more on the as-yet untitled Sonic the Hedgehog handheld RPG in the coming weeks and months.

Picture of Tom.

About Tom Bramwell

Tom is Operations director of Eurogamer Network and Editor-at-Large of Eurogamer.net. He joined the company in February 2000.

Read more articles from Tom by visiting the Tom Bramwell archive page.

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Comments (32) Latest comment 5 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Thamuhacha #1 5 years ago

    I used to love Bioware. And secretly still do.

    But ... UNTIL THEY RELEASE MASS EFFECT I am going to treat all of their other announcements with a "pah".

    So:

    Pah!

  • DrunKao #2 5 years ago

    This is going to be so awesome. I know Sonic games having been too that lately, but a Sonic RPG by Bioware? I. CAN. NOT. WAIT!!!!!

    @Thamuhacha

    I personally feel that Mass Effect is going to blow all of us away. Well, except those of us that don't own Microsoft's evil console. It's going to be a groundbreaking game I feel.
    Edited by 2 at 22/06/07 @ 08:23

  • Thamuhacha #3 5 years ago

    And Sonic games have been shit since we moved onto 32 bit consoles.

    If Sega want to know why: it's because you stopped making high speed platfroming games and tried to move Sonic into other genres. This won't work. And, just to nip it in the bud, neither will a FPS.
    Edited by 1 at 22/06/07 @ 08:22

  • DrunKao #4 5 years ago

    Has there been a Sonic FPS? You never know?!?!?!

  • ZeroAX #5 5 years ago

    actually Thamuhacha Sonic games have been crap cause sega (and people on the net) still think that what made the mega drive ones good is the speed and they only make him faster in 3d. what made them into killer games was the tight controls and pression jumping from platform to platform.

    now I'm thrilled since Mario RPG worked and this is in the hands of a killer developer

  • lambtron #6 5 years ago

    W
    T
    F
    !

  • spazmo #7 5 years ago

    Very interesting news. Please no 3d.

  • Rayn #8 5 years ago

    Well, it worked for Mario RPG....on the other hand the Mario universe has a lot more character than the Sonic one in my humble opinion.

  • GamesConnoisseur #9 5 years ago

    Sorry dont see it working, the franchise itself is in a limited 'universe'. Mario RPG yes but the developer of Knights of Old Republic, Mass Effect and Baldur Gate succeed because of the richness and variety of the material and also the depth of the story and danger/evil.

    How can you make an epic out of limited set of opponents? Robots, more Robots and Eggman? Shadow and what else?

    I may be disillusioned due to pile of craps under name of Sonic the past few years (DS version was good though).

  • TheSnotGoblin #10 5 years ago

    I'm in concurrence with lambtron.

    WTF?!



    And I wish they'd hurry up and finish Dragon Age. I've bought an expensive pair of socks specifically to be knocked off by that one.

  • Steroyd #11 5 years ago

    Well, it worked for Mario RPG....on the other hand the Mario universe has a lot more character than the Sonic one in my humble opinion.

    Mario RPG was done by the then Squaresoft, who whatever they touched back then turned to gold...

    Although the Mario Universe has characters I can actually tolerate, Sonic... not so much.

    And yes I'm looking at Amy, Tails, Big, Shadow... awe hell who am I kidding, all of them bar the main character and maybe Knuckles.

  • Poorandugly #12 5 years ago

    Yes, you could make sonic the rpg. OR you could do Baldur's Gate 3. It's up to you really.

  • Horse #13 5 years ago

    What next? Square do a Sega Rally RPG?

  • bioreit #14 5 years ago

    I'm just wowed by the fact that a Microsoft-centric games developer is teaming up with Sega, to release that company's mascot on a Nintendo system!!

  • spongebob #15 5 years ago

    What's happening with BioWare?

  • varsas #16 5 years ago

    It will be interesting to see what Bioware do with the Sonic world. Imho I don't think that it's particularly weak compared to the Mario one. I guess we'll have to wait and see.

  • UncleLou #17 5 years ago

    What's happening with BioWare?

    Consoles.


    /runs

  • matrim83 #18 5 years ago

    /Agrees with what UncleLou said in jest.

    C'mon you bastards forget about this batshit and get us Dragon age. NOW!

    PS: I love you, Bioware.

  • Les #19 5 years ago

    "I'm just wowed by the fact that a Microsoft-centric games developer is teaming up with Sega, to release that company's mascot on a Nintendo system!!"

    They're becoming less MS-centric. If I'm not mistaken they also got a game or two in store for PS3. Although that'll probably be poor ports... Last time I played a game of theirs was Baldur's Gate. Enjoyed it very much till the last dungeon in which my (melee-based) party was wiped out consistently before I even saw an enemy on screen... Didn't really feel for starting over to create a more balanced party.

  • Arcadiian #20 5 years ago

    As a SEGA zealot, it's difficult for me to say this, but i'm so glad SEGA aren't making it themselves. It at least gives Sonic a chance.

    Sonic has done quite well on Nintendo handhelds though, aside from that weird Battle game.

  • Cannibal #21 5 years ago

    Anyone remember the old Sonic cartoon. There were a few incarnations, but this one was much darker. Robotnik ran a robot city and Sonic lived in a village with all the other animals which Robotnik was slowly trying to crush.

    I remember one great bit where Robotnik turned Sonics Grandfather into a robot and he was trying to kill Sonic being the mindless robot and Sonic was refusing to fight him... Hope the RPG is in the same vein as that cartoon.

  • Arcadiian #22 5 years ago

    I think i prefer the newer Sonic X cartoons, anything based around that would be good.

  • CitizenGeek #23 5 years ago

    A Sonic western RPG? That sounds terrible! :(

  • Caimbeul #24 5 years ago

    Marios RPG worked, maybe bioware can make sonic cool again.

    To all those going on about mass effect:

    3 major issue are still to be addressed prior to its release. Theay are:

    HDR lighting. As in most games with HDR, it creates stupid flickering and jagged shadows that completely detroy the look and feel of a game, oblivion, Virtua Tennis spring to mind. This is a shame especially considering how good the faces look and the concentration on emotion through facial features.

    Tearing. sems to be the bane of most next gen games, enable v-sync for christ sake, all videos thus far look jerky and tear all over the place.

    Control. great game in concept and likely to be a very good game overall but its not the type of game that should be played with a Joypad!

  • Caimbeul #25 5 years ago

    "Yes, you could make sonic the rpg. OR you could do Baldur's Gate 3. It's up to you really."

    Amen brother! although Dragon age is touted as the "spiritual sucessor" to BG2
    Edited by 1 at 22/06/07 @ 15:28

  • smelly #26 5 years ago

    "And Sonic games have been shit since we moved onto 32 bit consoles. "


    Sonic DS was good.

    (and the wii game wasnt half bad either)

  • yagisencho #27 5 years ago

    Release Mass Effect. Then we'll talk.

    (I've never fantasized about a Sonic RPG. I mean, he doesn't have much of a personality, really.)

  • Arcadiian #28 5 years ago

    no character has a personality without good writers.

  • Slamhound #29 5 years ago

    Quoting both The Simpsons, as well as a forumite on the board where I stumbled over this link:

    Nuts and Gum: Together at Last.

    Sums it up, really. The end result could well be a pretty awesome game, but right now it's strange to imagine how this could work.

  • chupachups #30 5 years ago

    "What next? Square do a Sega Rally RPG?"

    The Japanese can make an RPG out of anything. There was a football RPG once, every tackle brought up a turn-based combat screen.

  • onyx_elite #31 5 years ago

    /bangs head on screen, obliterating the remnants of fond Sonic memories left in his brain.

  • gelf #32 5 years ago

    "actually Thamuhacha Sonic games have been crap cause sega (and people on the net) still think that what made the mega drive ones good is the speed and they only make him faster in 3d. what made them into killer games was the tight controls and pression jumping from platform to platform. "

    *Agrees with this*

    I think they actually turned sonic games into the type of thing its critics used to wrongly label it. There was plenty of platforming to go with the speed in the originals.

    Mind you I felt the sonic advance games where alright (except maybe 2)