Sonic Forces

Sonic Forces (ソニックフォース) is an upcoming platform video game in the Sonic the Hedgehog series developed by Sonic Team and published by Sega. It is scheduled to be released during Q4 2017 for PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. The game will mark the return of the collaboration between both Classic Sonic and Modern Sonic since the twentieth anniversary game Sonic Generations, and serves, along with Sonic Mania, as a “continuation” of Sonic’s 25th anniversary. Despite initial popular belief, the game is not a sequel to any of the previous games.

Development
Sonic Forces has been in development since 2013, around the release of Sonic Lost World. The title was first mentioned at the Tokyo Joypolis Sonic 25th party on 25 June 2016 under the name "Project Sonic 2017". The subtitle "Forces" were chosen because of the themes of “power” and “army”, with two strong forces (Sonic and co. versus Eggman) facing off one another in the game. The game was announced at Sega's 25th anniversary of the series at San Diego Comic-Con on 22 July 2016, where it was announced alongside Sonic Mania. The game will be developed by Sonic Team, the same team that had previously developed Sonic Colors and Sonic Generations, and will be headed by Sonic series veteran Takashi Iizuka. The presence of Classic and Modern Sonic led some journalists to believe it was a sequel to Sonic Generations, but Iizuka confirmed that it was not a sequel, but a new, stand-alone title. The game will be released for Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in late 2017.

During the Sonic live stream that was held in Japan due to the release of Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice, it was revealed that there will be a new character introduced in Sonic Forces, along with a new component of gameplay besides the regular 2D and 3D gameplay.

SXSW 2017 announced they would be hosting a second Sonic panel for this year’s event, set to reveal news about the upcoming Sonic Mania and Sonic Forces. The latest Nintendo Dream Magazine from Japan also revealed new information about Sonic Forces. The blurb stated that Dr. Eggman will be the main villain, that there will be no multiplayer features, and that the genre for the game is "adventure". Soon after, it was unveiled that the game will be an evolution of Sonic Colors and Sonic Generations and features a new game engine developed for this title called "Hedgehog Engine 2". An interview with Takashi Iizuka by Famitsu later revealed that "Boom Sonic" would not appear in the game and that the game's third character (who will be revealed at E3 2017) would be an "unexpected character" that plays a vital role in the story and "embodies the overall features of the game". On 16 May 2017 (a month earlier than planned), this third character turned out to be a character that the player can customize to their liking.

Plot
Sonic Forces has the primary themes of "forces", "power", and "teamwork". This time around, the unthinkable has happened: Sonic the Hedgehog has failed and Dr. Eggman has won. While Sonic was absent, Dr. Eggman has managed to conquer 99% of the world with his army, thanks to a new power. Now, multiple forces are embroiled in conflict for the control of the planet.

As the Eggman Empire's armies lay waste to entire cities, Sonic joins up with the “Resistance” members opposing Eggman. Classic Sonic, Sonic's past self, appears soon after, having been brought to the present by the same power Eggman used to conquer the world. Now, with the aid of his friends, a new ally, and Classic Sonic, Sonic embarks on a mission to save the world and end the evil reign of the diabolical doctor and his forces.

Gameplay
Sonic Forces includes three playable characters, the first two of which include Classic Sonic (Sonic's original design from the Sega Mega Drive Sonic games) and Modern Sonic (Sonic's revised form in Sonic Adventure and afterwards). Other main characters will make non-playable appearances in supporting roles, offering support and advice to Sonic via radio communication.

The game's third playable character is a new character, referred to as the Custom Hero, whom players can modify to their liking, which is a first for the series. The Custom Hero is created from the base of seven animal species, whose following attributes can be customized: upper headgear, middle headgear, lower headgear, gloves, shoes, accessories, bodysuit, and skin color. While playing through the game, one can unlock hundreds of accessories and costuming options. Depending on what animal species the Custom Hero is, they will gain a unique ability to aid in gameplay:


 * Bear: Blows away enemies with a Homing Attack
 * Bird: Flies high with Double Jump abilities
 * Cat: Keeps one Ring after being hit
 * Dog: Restarts with five Rings after the player dies
 * Hedgehog: Collects Rings when getting damaged
 * Rabbit: Has longer invincible time after receiving damage
 * Wolf: Automatically draws in Rings when near them

The game will feature three different styles of gameplay. Two of these include the gameplay styles of Modern Sonic and Classic Sonic respectively as seen in Sonic Generations. Some stages involve simply reaching the goal, while others will require a stage to be beaten under a time limit. Modern Sonic's stages are based around three-dimensional movement like that of Sonic Unleashed and Sonic Colors, with Modern Sonic having his standard Spin Jump, Homing Attack and Stomp maneuvers, along with a reworked Boost. Classic Sonic's stages meanwhile, focuses on the series' classic 2D side-scrolling action, except this time they will feature a “twist”. The Wisp power-ups from earlier games will also reappear.

The third gameplay style features the Custom Hero. It has a similar gameplay style to Modern Sonic, but utilizes a grappling hook as a means of platforming. The Custom Hero also makes use of new unique gadgets called Wispons, a weapon that harnesses Color Powers in new ways and can be used both as weapons and for traversing through levels. Before a level, the player can choose different Wispons to customize how the Custom Hero controls, thereby allowing access to different parts of the levels.

Items

 * Monitors
 * Invincibility
 * Power Sneakers
 * Shield
 * Super Ring
 * Red Star Ring
 * Rings
 * Wisp Capsule
 * Red Wisp
 * White Wisp
 * Wispon

Playable characters

 * Sonic the Hedgehog (classic and modern)
 * Custom Hero

Non-playable characters

 * Miles "Tails" Prower
 * Knuckles the Echidna
 * Amy Rose
 * Chaotix
 * Charmy Bee
 * Espio the Chameleon
 * Vector the Crocodile
 * Silver the Hedgehog
 * Shadow the Hedgehog
 * Chao

Enemies

 * Buzz Bomber
 * Chopper
 * Motobug
 * Unnamed ostrich Badnik

Bosses

 * Egg Dragoon

Misc.

 * Death Egg Robot sentinels
 * Dr. Eggman

Stages

 * Park Avenue
 * Green Hill Zone

Reception
The International Business Times praised Sega's approach of announcing and releasing the duo of Sonic Forces and Sonic Mania in the same year, stating that catering to the new fans with Forces while catering to the old-school fans with Mania could help repair the series's poor reputation with more recent releases, and in turn lead to a "Sonic Renaissance" era.

Trivia

 * This is one of the first games to be announced for the Nintendo Switch, as well as the second third-party title announced for the system.
 * This will be the first 3D Sonic title to be released for the Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and the Nintendo Switch.
 * This is the first Sonic title to feature the Red Wisp on the main console.

Videos
Debut Trailer = Updated Debut Trailer = Main Theme (Instrumental) = Nintendo Direct Classic Sonic Gameplay (April) = Custom Hero Trailer =