IDW Publishing and SEGA announced at San Diego Comic-Con Thursday that they will be publishing a one-shot prequel issue of Team Sonic Racing this October. They didn’t release a lot of details about the plot, other than Sonic and the gang will be racing against time to stop an “old foe” from obtaining a powerful new technology necessary to threaten the planet they’re racing on.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles writer Caleb Goellner will be penning the story, whilst Adam Bryce Thomas will be illustrating this action-packed race.

I’m so stoked to write Sonic! It’s been a dream of mine ever since my dad surprised me with my first Sonic comic in ’92, so I can’t wait for fans to take this issue for a Spin  Dash.

– Caleb Goellner, in a press statement by IDW

Check out Bryce Thomas’s smooth cover art of Sonic and Shadow gunning for first place below.

In other Sonic comic news, Whisper the Wolf will be howling and clawing at Eggman with Sonic and Co. in issue #8 of IDW Sonic. Designed by none other than Evan Stanley, Whisper carries a variable Wispon that can change powers. She’s been described as a “guardian angel.”

SEGA began crowdfunding for the Sonic Toaster on its online store since E3 last month, asking for 1000 pre-orders before July 12. Now, three days before the deadline, pre-orders have surpassed the threshold, selling 1087–and counting–of the limited edition toaster. This fast-blazing appliance costs $35 and will ship out to your kitchen October 1.

Please note that Sonic’s face will be burnt on one side of the bread, whilst the other side will be brown and crispy just like any regular toast.

no, it only has sonic's face and on the other side it's toasted completely pic.twitter.com/lpug2bt8Vo

— Sonisis (@OnniManga) July 9, 2018

Skunk brothers Rough and Tumble are the first set of new villains to be introduced in the new series, and they’ve got tougher skin and ruffled fur compared to their coiffed Archie Sonic counterpart, Geoffrey “Lord Baelish” St. John.

In an interview with Kotaku, David Marriotte, associate editor at IDW, said that Rough and Tumble are “independent agents, and more bullies than masterminds, but they’re tough enough to maybe become someone’s henchmen down the line.”

Mariotte also spoke about the creative process involving new characters like these rancid bad boys and Tangle the Lemur, whom IDW introduced last month.

Ian [Flynn is] pretty much able to come up with folks on the fly and any major characters we run by Sega for approval. There are a few stages, from Ian’s initial paragraph or two description of the character, to getting someone like Tyson Heese to draw up designs and turnarounds for Sega to see the character, to having a final design and solidifying their personality in the script.

In the initial sketches, Rough and Tumble looked frightening enough to give national park rangers skunknophobia and quit their jobs. The final approved sketches portrayed them as garden-variety teenage delinquents.

IDW’s first issue of Sonic the Hedgehog hits stores April 4th. Pre-order now at a comic book store near you!

Source: Kotaku

For those who aren’t sure what a Dreamcast VS Link Cable is, it was a cable originally released by SEGA to allow two Dreamcast consoles together via the serial port for multiplayer on dual screens. A bit like networking two PCs together for multiplayer back in the day.

But only a handful of games were ever made compatible with the VS Link Cable, namely: Ferrari 355 (available worldwide) and the Japanese-only Aero Dancing F, Aero Dancing I, Sega Tetris, and Virtual-On: Oratario Tangram.

Now, I’m sure some of you might be thinking that $40 for a cable that only supports five games is a lot of money, and I guess it is. But for avid Dreamcast gamers/collectors it’s a bargain, as official/original Dreamcast VS Link Cables can go for upwards of $200 these days!

Just to note: DreamcastLive is a small site and the store isn’t setup like most major online retailers, it’s a little old school and to place an order, you need to email Pcwzrd: pcwzrd13@dreamcastlive.net. But don’t worry, several members of the team at SEGA Nerds (myself included) and others in the Dreamcast community have used the store before and (so far at least) we’ve all had good experiences.

Their latest album released this week, and it is pretty fantastic. Most of the album consists of classic Genesis shooters such as Thunder Force IV, After Burner, and more.

You can listen to it on Spotify, Bandcamp, Deezer, and Cdbaby. Check it out below!

Let us know what you think in the comments below!

IDW has revealed Tangle the Lemur as Sonic’s newest ally Wednesday, and she’ll be officially introduced for the first time in Sonic the Hedgehog issue #4 on April 25. Designed by Tyson Heese, the animator behind the opening and ending sequences for Sonic Mania, Tangle possesses the ability to use her tail as an extra appendage to whip or punch her opponents.

In an email interview with IGN, IDW associate editor David Mariotte revealed how the beautiful and feisty Tangle came to be. “Before she even had a name, we knew we wanted her to be like a lot of other great Sonic characters and have a special ability tied to one of her features. Think Tails [with his twin chopper tails] and Knuckles [with his spiked fists],” Mariotte said. (He forgot to mention that Cream’s floppy ears enable her to fly as well.) “So, we were brainstorming animals who could do cool stuff and a ring-tailed lemur who could use her tail alternately like a whip or a fist was too cool to pass up! Throw in her scrappiness, she likes to ‘tangle’ with bad guys, and you have an awesome character!”

The likelihood of Tangle appearing in a game in the foreseeable future lies in SEGA’s jurisdiction.

In other news, Ian Flynn announced on Twitter that veteran artists Jennifer Hernandez, Jamal Peppers, and Evan Stanley are coming back to add the same whimsical colors to IDW’s pages they brought to Archie’s.

Here’s some fantastic Tangle artwork from both Hernandez and Stanley!

Source: IGN

Author’s Note: This article has been revised to replace “Thursday” with “Wednesday” as the day Tangle the Lemur was revealed. I regret the error made in the original post.

First up, IDW announced on their Sonic Facebook group Thursday, Jan. 18, that solicitations for the April issue start later this month. This news came just two days after they revealed the cover art for the first issue of the series, drawn by none other than Archie veteran illustrator Tracy Yardley.

They also teased on Friday that a new character will be joining Sonic and Co., and promoted the teaser not in the form of a full silhouette, but a hand holding Sonic’s. Is it the Avatar from Sonic Forces? Or is it Sonic’s new flame? The new character will be revealed this Wednesday.

Source: TSSZ

However, the speculation about a Dreamcast-mini, or similar console has resurfaced and this time it is down to things that both SEGA and Retro-Bit have been hinting at on social media and, apparently, what has been said to some people on the floor at CES today.

Firstly, one of the videos that came out today by RGT 85 mentions that Julius, the person at the CES show who sent him the screenshots and information, apparently spoke to the team at Retro-Bit about systems and had this to say: “Retro-Bit is planning to do systems as well.” – See the video below 4:24 mark

Now, as exciting as the thought of that is, like going to Betfair promo code, that alone wouldn’t necessarily be enough for us to start the rumour mill going. But something else has been going on today with SEGA’s Twitter account, which made us pause for thought.

If you haven’t seen, SEGA Europe posted out a poll today, asking fans to comment on which of SEGA’s home consoles they like playing the most and their favourite games:

How about a fun mid-week nostalgia fuelled poll? Which SEGA home console did you love playing the most? What game was your absolute favourite? #SegaMemories

— SEGA Europe (@SEGA_Europe) January 10, 2018

Again, alone this isn’t necessarily a definite indicator that SEGA and Retro-Bit will be releasing a console. I mean, SEGA puts out polls quite regularly. But then Retro-Bit sends out something of a teaser tweet in response:

I don’t know about you guys… but I’m interested in so SEGA updates

— Retro-Bit (@RetroBitGaming) January 10, 2018

Now, we’re not sure – but it sounds like they are referring to the previous tweet from SEGA here. And then, a little later in the day they add another tweet about how “It’s only the beginning for SEGA and Retro-Bit…”

It’s only the beginning for #SEGA and @RetroBitGaming – #SegaGenesis Adapters and Cables. Stay tuned because there’s so much more to come this week at #CES2018 pic.twitter.com/gIOo9RnDRh

— Retro-Bit (@RetroBitGaming) January 10, 2018

We don’t want people to get all crazy and start expecting a Dreamcast-mini or a Saturn-mini, but from what we’ve heard was (apparently) said on the show floor at CES and with these two tweets from SEGA and Retro-Bit, it’s hard not to imagine that some sort of ‘new-old’ SEGA console might be in the works.

And it makes sense too. SEGA just needs to look at the success Nintendo has seen with the NES and SNES-mini consoles – when done right, they can be huge sellers.

So, for now, until we hear anything more official, we’re going to be treating this as a rumour – but one we really hope will come to fruition.

What do you all think? Are we reading too much into this? And which, if any, SEGA-mini systems would you like to see in store shelves?

Well, during this week’s CES 2018 in Las Vegas, some images and videos of Retro-Bit’s offerings have been revealed. We’re still waiting on any official images or press announcements from Retro-Bit, so for now we’re relying on photos and videos taken by members of the public at the show.

But, so far, it’s all good stuff – as it looks like Retro-Bit has made good on its promise to bring new Bluetooth controllers to the Genesis/Mega Drive and (excitingly) the Dreamcast and Saturn! Plus, it looks like the company will be releasing a whole batch of new cables for SEGA consoles, including S-Video and power cables.

The Genesis has seen some wireless (infrared) controllers in the past and the Dreamcast has also seen some fan mods to create wireless controllers, but this is the first time all three consoles will see wireless Bluetooth technology controllers. And judging from the videos and images, the quality looks pretty damn good for these devices.

We’re hoping to find out more juicy details from Retro-Bit soon enough (like price and availability), but for now, here’s some photos and a couple more videos!

[Via: RIGG’d Games, Madlittlepixel & RGT 85]

But, before you all get too excited about the prospect of a brand new Saturn or Dreamcast console, calm down!

Right now the full details of what this new partnership entails isn’t entirely clear, however, from reading the press release (full details below), it sounds more like this deal will focus on products like controllers or cables, rather than new consoles, as it highlights in this line in particular: “…a licensing agreement with SEGA of America to produce accessories for SEGA’s gaming platforms…”

However, this is still great news, as it means those of us with dying power chords for their Genesis’, or damaged Dreamcast controllers, will soon be able to replace them with officially endorsed products. What’s more, it sounds like these accessories will be given a modern upgrade, as they promise products such as controllers will feature USB for PC compatibility and Bluetooth technology (possibly for tablet and phone compatibility?).

Also, I wouldn’t necessarily rule out console manufacturing down the line. SEGA has worked with several third party companies in the past to bring new versions of their systems to life, such as Tec-Toy and ATGames (and some others), so maybe Retro-Bit might have new consoles on the cards at a later date. Fingers crossed!

While full product details haven’t been announced just yet, we won’t have long to wait, as they are set to debut at the Innex booth #21023 in the South Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center during CES 2018, in just a few weeks’ time!

Press Release

RETRO-BIT^® ANNOUNCES SEGA^® LICENSING AGREEMENT TO PRODUCE ACCESSORIES FOR SEGA GAMING PLATFORMS

First Products to be Officially Unveiled at CES 2018

POMONA, CA, December 19, 2017– Acknowledging the continual growth of the retro-gaming market, Retro-Bit, a premier publisher and manufacturer of classic gaming products, today announced a licensing agreement with SEGA of America to produce accessories for SEGA’s gaming platforms, including but not limited to the SEGA Genesis, SEGA Saturn and SEGA Dreamcast.

The first products and concepts under the agreement include several accessories that feature the same great quality as their original Sega counterparts like the original console port, but also with modern upgrades such as a USB^® port for PC compatibility and Bluetooth^® wireless technology. These new products are slated to debut in the Innex booth #21023 in the South Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center during CES 2018.

“With retro gaming on an upswing, we are pleased to offer officially SEGA licensed accessories in their original format as well as apply the innovative classic gaming enhancements that have become the hallmark of Retro-Bit,” said Titi Ngoy, President and CEO at Innex Inc. the exclusive distributor of Retro-Bit.  “We’re excited to unveil the first of these new products and concepts at CES, and do so alongside an exciting 2018 product catalog.”

To book an appointment for an exclusive tour and demo of the Innex Inc^® booth at CES 2018 visit: HERE.

[Source: Retro-Bit]