Sonic and the Black Knight

Sonic and the Black Knight is an upcoming video game within the Sonic the Hedgehog series, to be released exclusively on Wii as the second entry in the Storybook series, following on from Sonic and the Secret Rings.

Set in the world of King Arthur, the game combines Sonic's trademark speed with a new swordfighting system, making use of the Wii Remote's motion-sensing functionality in a style similar to The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess..

Plot
A sorceress named Merlina summons Sonic to help free the mystical realm of King Arthur, where King Arthur has been corrupted and is now ruling the realm as the tyrannical Black Knight. Sonic's speed alone will not end Arthur's reign, so he must take up the sword in order to save the kingdom.

Characters
Sonic is the main playable character. While Knuckles, and Shadow are playable characters, they will be optional. It is unknown right now if other characters will be playable. Other non-playable characters include King Arthur (the Black Knight), Merlina, and Calibur. Like Ali Baba and Sinbad in Secret Rings, Sonic's friends will assume Arthurian personas in the game. Amy Rose appears as the princess. Mephiles the Dark appears as a painting in the castle. Silver the hedgehog appears as a playable character.

VOICES-Sonic/Shadow- Jason Griffith Knuckles- Dan Green Silver- Pete Cappela Tails- Amy Palant Amy- Lisa Ortiz Merlina/Blaze- Bella Hudson The Black Knight- Jonathan Todd Ross Eggman- Mike Pollock

Gameplay


Gameplay for Sonic and the Black Knight differs from traditional games in the Sonic series by mixing in the new element of swordplay, along with the traditional Sonic platforming and speed. Swordplay is implemented through the Wii Remote and hence, similar to Sonic and the Secret Rings, however players will no longer control Sonic's movement on rails as the team say they have learned from the biggest criticisms about it. The gameplay will mainly be 3D, but occasionally the camera will shift to a side-scrolling perspective for traditional 2D gameplay.

Swordplay will be implemented so that players can slice through enemies without slowing down, but when faced with more formidable enemies, players will engage in advanced swordsplay, able to thrust, parry, and even perform a buzz-saw maneuver mid-jump. The sword will not be only used for combat; players may thrust it through a wall while falling to slow their descent.

The stages will feature civilians that the player can choose to help or smite; these actions and the player's deeds will be judged at the end of each stage, updating the player's "knight ranking" accordingly. By helping out grateful citizens, players will be able to purchase new items from them, acquiring items such as gauntlets, magical tomes, and new swords. There will be about two hundred items in the game, some of which can be gained by opening treasure chests in the stages. An online mode will allow treasures to be traded.

The game changes the traditional level items, such as springs and speed pads, into "elements". These elements look similar to Chao heads, and come in varying colors; red elements will be used as springs, yellow elements will be used as speed boosts, and purple elements will be used to fill up the "special gauge". This gauge, replacing the previous entry's "soul gauge", is filled by defeating enemies, and is used to unleash a powerful combination attack. Additionally, instead of the rails from previous games, players will fire a ballista and then grind across its rope.

The mission-based system from Sonic and the Secret Rings will also return, but the missions will be easier to complete. Each stage will consist of multiple missions which feature different stipulations. The skill system from the aforementioned game also returns, but will be reviewed to adjust any problems that were present in that game; the skill system is also being designed so as not to interfere with the game's tempo.

Music
Veteran composer Jun Senoue returns to compose music for this installment, mixing familiar Sonic themes with a Celtic style.

Artwork Contest
Sega of America recently stated that they are accepting artwork of Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Shadow, Blaze, and other favorites. The top 20 will be placed in Sonic and the Black Knight, and their artists will win a free copy of the game. You must be a registered user on Sega's website to submit art.