Sonic the Hedgehog

Game Music

E3 2010: Yuji Naka Reveals His Favorite Game Soundtracks

June 19, 2010 | Jayson Napolitano | 1 Comment Share this

We’re of course huge fans of Yuji Naka. His work on Sonic the Hedgehog is legendary, and even his last project, Let’s Tap, had an amazing soundtrack and very unique gameplay mechanics. For this reason, we’re greatly looking forward to his next title, Ivy the Kiwi?, which is due out on Wii and the DS this year. While our coverage of Ivy the Kiwi? will be coming in the next couple days, we did want to share what Yuji Naka had to say when we asked him about the music in his games.

Oh, and we also find out what his favorite soundtrack is from the game’s he’s worked on. Join us for our brief chat after the jump! (more…)
Game Music, Miscellaneous

Sonic Boom Trio Part 3: Crush 40 Review

May 19, 2010 | Audun Sorlie | 1 Comment Share this Sonic Boom Trio Part 3: Crush 40 Review

Finally we’ve reached the end of the trio of albums released by Wave Master late last year based on the works of Jun Senoue. Earlier we took a look at both True Colors – The Best of Sonic the Hedgehog Part 2 and THE WORKS which both offered both familiar favorites and retooled duds. But even with the occasional bad apple one thing remains a constant, Jun Senoue’s skills.

Therefore we saved the best for last in terms of his showcase of these talents with the review of The Best Of Crush 40: Super Sonic Songs, which is arguably the side of his works he’ll always be most famous for to game music fans. This CD as the title suggests collects the best so far from the hard rocking duo of Senoue and Johnny Gioeli. But is this a collection worth getting?

Crush your doubts by hitting the jump! (more…)
Game Music

Sonic Boom Trio Part 2: True Colors Review

April 7, 2010 | Audun Sorlie | 1 Comment Share this

A few weeks ago, I did my first review of this series of albums which was released late last year over a small period of time. All 3 CDs features the different works and projects of Jun Senoue, one of SEGA’s most prolific composers and more or less the current Sonic The Hedgehog composer, as they have been bringing onto that series time and time again since Sonic 3 in the 90’s. As you saw in the review of Jun Senoue THE WORKS, he has worked all across the board at SEGA, working with AOR stars and Japanese idols and voice actresses, but nowadays he’s back working with Sonic on Sonic The Hedgehog 4, composing the soundtrack for the download title.

So it’s fitting we look at True Colors: The Best of Sonic the Hedgehog Part 2 today. It’s not exclusively a collection of Senoue’s work on the series, but a good chunk of what is featured is by him, and it was released in the album wave dedicated to his works. Sonic is somewhat of a sensitive subject for gamers, as fans either hate the games since it jumped ship to 3D or they dress up as Tails and defend every step Sonic takes in gaming. Let’s see if I will be wearing a furry suit by the end of this.

Hit the jump to read the review! (more…)
Game Music

Sonic The Hedgehog 4 Music Sample: As Good As The Classics?

March 28, 2010 | Audun Sorlie | 4 Comments Share this

So Sonic has had a rough decade to say the least. While some of us (me included) enjoyed a few of the newer titles like Sonic Adventure 2 and Sonic Heroes, most fans look back on these titles in disgust. Awkward camera, bubblegum rock, and Sonic friends all seem to enrage Sonic fans, while they still buy every title as they are released. Trying to please the angry fans, SEGA surprisingly announced Sonic The Hedgehog 4 for the download services across platforms to be released this spring.

Now, SEGA released a sneak peak into how the soundtrack will be. And while it isn’t strictly the good old FM synth of the Genesis, it’s still aims at a very retro style. Nintendo Power revealed that the soundtrack is being handled by non other than Jun Senoue. What do you think of the sample? And what do you expect of the game?

Downloads available at SEGA’s Sonic The Hedgehog 4 Website
Game Music, Reviews

Sonic Boom Trio Part 1: Jun Senoue THE WORKS (Review)

March 19, 2010 | Audun Sorlie | 2 Comments Share this

Over the course of the winter (which can go away now, thanks, and bye-bye), Wave Master released a trio of CD’s based around the works of Jun Senoue, SEGA melodic rocker and game composer. October, November and December had one release each, and we’ve finally gotten down to take a look at these 3 to see what they offer, and what we’ve already been offered in the past, numerous times. Most people associate Senoue with the recent Sonic titles, but he like everyone else has other scores that are well worth taking the time to look at.

The first CD, released in October, is Jun Senoue THE WORKS, which, as the title alludes to, is a collection of his different works on different projects, both game and original. A host of familiar names appear, and so will a few songs you’ve never heard before, at least not in the way they are presented here.

Rock on after the jump! (more…)
Chip Music, Game Music

Thrilling News: Michael Jackson Confirmed As The Composer For Sonic 3!

December 2, 2009 | Audun Sorlie | 31 Comments Share this

French musician and regular member of VGMdb forums, dma, informed the English-speaking population of an article published in Black and White, a French magazine dedicated to Michael Jackson that talks about Sonic 3 and the supposed involvement of MJ. The following quote is taken from the latest issue released this month, in an interview with Brad Buxer:

B&W: Can you clarify the rumor that Michael had in 1993 composed the music for the Sonic 3 video game, for which you have been credited?

Buxer: I’ve never played the game so I do not know which tracks the developers have kept among the work Michael and I did, but we did compose music for the game. Michael called me at the time for help on this project, and that’s what I did. And if he is not credited for composing the music, it’s because he was not happy with the result sound coming out of the console. At the time, game consoles did not allow an optimal sound reproduction, and Michael found it frustrating. He did not want to be associated with a product that devalued his music…

B&W: One of the surprising things in this soundtrack is that you can hear the chords from Stranger in Moscow, which is supposed to have been composed later…

Buxer: Yes, Michael and I had composed those chords for the game, and it has been used as a base for Stranger in Moscow. […]

It’s been a long running myth in the videogame industry that MJ worked on the Sonic 3 soundtrack, and numerous articles with theories, analysis, and investigations have been done over the years. Now we have official confirmation that he actually did participate in the project.

[Via VGMdb. Thanks dma!]
Featured, Game Music

Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing Audio Interview: SUMO Digital Spills The Beans

November 17, 2009 | Audun Sorlie | 8 Comments Share this

Excitement is high for SUMO’s new crossover title, Sonic and SEGA All-Stars Racing. We reported earlier that Ryo Hazuki will return for the first time since Shenmue 2, and old favorites such as Alex Kidd, Sonic The Hedgehog, Super Monkey Ball and Space Channel 5 are represented in this game, making it the wet dream of all SEGA fans out there.

We recently spoke with Steve Lycett of SUMO Digital about the audio direction for this title. Many fans have been desperate to hear more information on what we can expect from this title when it comes to music, voice acting and more.

Find out everything you want to know about the audio in Sonic and SEGA All-Stars Racing right here! (more…)