The official Sonic themed virtual wallpaper

News from 2020.04.24 
Archived on 2020. 08.17

SEGA prepared various images for people doing telework and need some cool background to show off at your video conferences!

Get your Sonic design backgrounds here!

ソニックモチーフの、テレワークやビデオ会議などでお使いいただける #バーチャル背景 をプレゼントします🎁
ぜひご活用ください★https://t.co/1Jadvutia5#うちで過ごそう #StayHome pic.twitter.com/RyQduEJqRP

— ソニック委員会・ザ・ムービー (@sonic20th) April 24, 2020

🔵Get the official Sonic themed virtual wallpaper for your telework and video conferences here! https://t.co/A9D5zkX1y0

— ●SonicJPNews● (@SonicJPNews) April 24, 2020

Tweets collected by: Tabiki
Texts by: Knuttunk
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TSR developers' video message to fans right before the game release!

News from 2019.05.20
Archived on 2019.05.20

Tomorrow is the day! Team Sonic Racing will be released on May 21st!

Nintendo Dream, who has been releasing the Team Sonic Racing direct interviews every Tuesday
, has released a video today - this time it's messages from the TSR developers to fans!

Listen to the video message by Director Kawarazuka-san, Lead Composer Senoue-san and Producer Iizuka-san's passion towards the game and get ready to boost on!

いよいよ明日5月21日、#チームソニックレーシング 発売!
発売を記念して、開発陣のみなさまからファンの皆様へのビデオメッセージを公開します！
本作と同日に発売となるニンドリ7月号では、お三方のインタビューも実施していますので、合わせてお楽しみください。https://t.co/ik48FrdOaO

— ニンドリくんと編集部の仲間たち (@Nindorikun) May 20, 2019

🔵 Video message from the developers of Team Sonic Racing to fans! Listen to the messages from Director Kawarazuka-san, Lead Composer Senoue-san and Producer Iizuka-san and get ready for the game release tomorrow! https://t.co/rGIfbTPaza

— ●SonicJPNews● (@SonicJPNews) May 20, 2019

Translation:

Naka-san on Sonic Adventure Production Presentation from 1998!

News from 2019.05.08
Archived on 2019.05.12

A few days ago, Kanemaru-san and Naka-san looked back on the unique advertisement for Sonic Adventure with Sonic plush.

Today, Naka-san recalled on the Sonic Adventure Production Presentation, which I also mentioned in the post above.

This exciting Presentation event was held in Tokyo International Forum on August 22nd, 1998.
Official announcement from back then...: http://sonic.sega.jp/sonicadv/info/happyoukai.html

SEGA invited fans and press to this once-in-a-life opportunity to have a sneak-peek into the latest work to Sonic series presented by Yuji Naka-san, the head of Sonic Team himself.

This event was initially planned to have two shows on this day, but since the number of people gathered to join the presentation exceeded the expectation of SEGA greatly, they had to add the third show on spot.
(from a report by MAYON)

The event included real-time gameplay of the product on Dreamcast with Naka-san's explanations, a video documentary on Sonic Team's business trip to mid-south America for collecting materials for ideas and aesthetics of the game, recording of 'Sonic!' call by the audience together with Segata Sanshiro, and live performance of 'Open Your Heart' with Jun Senoue-san.

What does Naka-san remember from the preparation for this memorable event?

ソニックアドベンチャー制作発表会懐かしいです。この時のドリームキャストってチップの開発タイミングの途中だったので実際の50％位しかパフォーマンスが出ていなかったのになんとか実機デモをお見せしたくてみんなかなり頑張っていました。南米の取材旅行楽しかったなあhttps://t.co/eGiog3h3G8

— Yuji Naka / 中　裕司 (@nakayuji) May 8, 2019

🔵Naka-san:
"Sonic Adventure Production Presentation, how nostalgic. Back then Dreamcast was still in development of its chip and had only 50% performance, but we definitely wanted to demonstrate the gameplay so everyone worked very hard. The trip to mid-south America was fun."RT

— ●SonicJPNews● (@SonicJPNews) May 8, 2019

Oh wow, so despite the hardware not having full memory. the Sonic Team did their very best to fit everything in to make the live-demo of the game happen! Hats off to them.

You can watch the summary of this presentation event including 'Sonic Team Story' (documentary of Sonic Team's business trip to mid-south America) in this VHS of the event which was distributed for the members of "SEGA Partners" back then.

Here is one Naka-san mentioned in his tweet & the one you can watch with English subtitles which I helped out a little bit.
Enjoy!




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Satoshi Okano-san is the artist behind Sonic Jam and Sonic 3D: Flickies' Island!

News from 2019.04.30
Archived on 2019.05.01

Long-time confusion over artist behind Sonic Jam and Sonic 3D solved!
Upon a post by a fan who credited the Sonic art for Sonic Jam as Uekawa-san, Satoshi Okano-san, the actual artist who created this cover art, corrected the misunderstandings.

According to him, SEGA held an art competition with participants from public to decide a new style for Sonic as the series was transitioning to a 3D game, and Okano-sanös design was the second best choice - the winner was Uekawa-san.

🔵Satoshi Okano-san cleared up the confusion over the artist behind Sonic art for Sonic Jam and Sonic 3D: Flickies' Island. Okano-san is the one who drew these Sonic, not Uekawa-san.

He explains that SEGA back then held a public competition to decide the artist for -

— ●SonicJPNews● (@SonicJPNews) April 30, 2019

- new Sonic art for SEGA Saturn Magazine cover and for Sonic Adventure, and Uekawa-san won this contest; Okano-san was the second place.

RTs ⬇⬇⬇

— ●SonicJPNews● (@SonicJPNews) April 30, 2019

これは上川祐司さんの仕事じゃなくて私、岡野聡の仕事です。３Ｄのコピーもね。背景の青い３Ｄを作ったのは川村幸子さんです。
This isn't Mr. Yuji Uekawa's work. This work is Satoshi Okano's work. and then,Ms. Sachiko Kawamura was making blue/3D background :) https://t.co/l3dSfNmLbl

— OKN/Satoshi Okano (@okanotion) April 30, 2019

グッジョブです 👍✨ https://t.co/39qnWkL4NN

— 大谷 智哉 Tomoya Ohtani (@Ohtanitter) April 30, 2019

"Good Job!" says Ohtani-san to Okano-san.

これも上川さんじゃなくてぼくなのよね＾＾This is my creation too. It's not Yuji Uekawa-san :) Everyone like him...I Know.I Know ;D　　https://t.co/WUNVbYMpL7

— OKN/Satoshi Okano (@okanotion) April 30, 2019

Thank you very much. I drew this sonic too.'Sonic 3D: Flickies’ Island ' It's a very nostalgic job. I understand you and all. I don't mind. Yes,Uekawa-san is a super cool creator ;D https://t.co/amwReJ9WEo

— OKN/Satoshi Okano (@okanotion) April 30, 2019

There was competition in those days, Sega where a sonic team made "sonic adventure".
The beginning was the argument, "Who did this Sonic of Sega Saturn Magazine draw?" A company invited public participation for new sonic. As for the result, I was the 2nd , and Uekawa-san won :) https://t.co/L3WrVny2yc

— OKN/Satoshi Okano (@okanotion) April 30, 2019

If my memory is correct, I drew it around May 1997. Its the instruction of Kazuyuki Hoshino/Sonicteam's Art Director. https://t.co/iEHkdhZ8fS

— OKN/Satoshi Okano (@okanotion) April 30, 2019

A left illust drew by Uekawa -san,right illust drew by me.Can you understand these difference?The character of SANBA DE AMIGO is drown by two artist😊 pic.twitter.com/FsLux36vIJ

— OKN/Satoshi Okano (@okanotion) April 30, 2019

Otani-san of Sega still uses my illust. SAMBA's characters were designed me & Uekawa-san too.He is a light still now.Then Ｉwas a shadow.But one body. Please understand,I still love sonic teams with Naka-san & Ohshima -san❤️ https://t.co/dvgAyfSFvv

— OKN/Satoshi Okano (@okanotion) April 30, 2019

This is my good comment. "I drew the sonic with a wish to say to want him to be always the provocative image that seems to open up the tip of the Ages". The background made "S" of the initial a mark like a hero. Designer Okano " : ) https://t.co/46FdTjCzwS

— OKN/Satoshi Okano (@okanotion) May 1, 2019

Both of them have unique and easily recognizable styles!
I can see why they chose Uekawa-san's design for the new Sonic, but both styles are cool in their own ways.

Okano-san describes him as the shadow and Uekawa-san as the light - the two worked together and lead to the birth of the iconic style of Modern Sonic. Okano-san appreciates his former co-workers using his art until today, and he still loves Sonic Team!


Okano-san's website
http://www.okanotion.com/about.html

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Naka-san on re-discovered Sonic 2 data by a fan

News from 2019.04.20
Archived on 2019.04.26

Naka-san on Sonic 2 Development Data being revealed by a fan who reverse-engineered Digitizer code to extract data from old disks.

ソニック2の開発データがかなり公開されているのですが、これってセガが出したものでしょうか？サンフランシスコのPalo Altoで作っていた頃が懐かしいです。シリコンバレーで仕事をしていると言うのがとても良かったです。 https://t.co/QjXF1Su1jm

— Yuji Naka / 中　裕司 (@nakayuji) April 20, 2019

🔵Naka-san:
"A bunch of development data of Sonic 2 is being released, but was it done by SEGA? The time I was developing it in Palo Alto of San Francisco is nostalgic. It was a good feeling to know I was working in the Silicon Valley."

— ●SonicJPNews● (@SonicJPNews) April 20, 2019

このソニック2の画像データは久しぶりに見ましたが、懐かしいのと、デジタル化されて残ったと言うのが良い感じですね。僕も持ってないですからね。約30年前に良く考えて作ってますよね。ソニックチーム楽しかったなあ https://t.co/tYOzGSzPmT

— Yuji Naka / 中　裕司 (@nakayuji) April 20, 2019

🔵Naka-san:
"It's been a while since I saw these image data of Sonic 2 for the last time. It's nostalgic, and I also find it good that they remain as digital data. Even I don't have them, you know. It's really well made for them being from ca. 30 yrs ago. Sonic Team was so fun."

— ●SonicJPNews● (@SonicJPNews) April 20, 2019

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Reunion of former Sonic Team members after 28 years!

News from 2019.03.07
Archived on 2019.03.09

A reunion of former members of Sonic Team in Tokyo!
According to Naka-san, one of the 7 members who created the first Sonic the Hedgehog game, sound creator Hiroshi Kubota-san (credited as JIMITA), is now a jazz pianist. 5 of the initial members could gather for a reunion after 28 years, listening to his band's performance and having dinner together.

Naka-san and Ohshima-san posted their pictures from the jazz concert and dinner afterwards. It's heartwarming to see them meet up after decades!

🔵One of the 7 members who created the first Sonic the Hedgehog game, Kubota-san, is now a jazz pianist; 5 of the initial members could gather for a reunion after 28 years, listening to his band's performance and having dinner together.
⬇⬇

— ●SonicJPNews● (@SonicJPNews) March 7, 2019

ソニック1の制作メンバーは7人いるのですが、その内の久保田君がジャズピアニストになって活躍されているので、ソニック1のメンバーで集まって吉祥寺でジャズライブを聴いてから飲みました。久保田君に会うのはソニック1の打ち上げ以来なので28年ぶりです。懐かしいです。今日は7名中5人が集まりました pic.twitter.com/Lu4HV8TU1p

— Yuji Naka / 中　裕司 (@nakayuji) March 6, 2019

I am enjoying jazz in Japan. pic.twitter.com/yszFEYqx4Q

— Naoto Ohshima (@NaotoOhshima) March 6, 2019

Sonic early members+α pic.twitter.com/ggWYmVbTNU

— Naoto Ohshima (@NaotoOhshima) March 6, 2019

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Photo: Naka-san and Sonic Team in San Francisco

News from 2019.03.04
Archived on 2019.03.07

Naka-san looks back on his time in San Francisco as he posted a picture from that time: Sonic Team in CA. It must've been a really good time there.

サンフランシスコにあったソニックチームです。ソニックアドベンチャー2、ソニックヒーローズ等を作っていたメンバーで年間に何回もこのオフィスに行ってソニック最新作を作っていたのは本当に楽しかったです。カリフォルニアの空気がソニックを良くしていると思ってました https://t.co/L0t87NS30k

— Yuji Naka / 中　裕司 (@nakayuji) March 4, 2019

🔵Naka-san on a team photo: "This was Sonic Team in San Francisco. It was really fun to be in that office several times a year with the members who created SA2, Sonic Heroes etc. to develop new Sonic games there. I've thought that the atmosphere of California made Sonic good." https://t.co/xyFD3qSNPe

— ●SonicJPNews● (@SonicJPNews) March 5, 2019

Hopefully Iizuka-san moving to the US is giving more of this 'California atmosphere' into future Sonic games again.

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Translation of Sonic 25th anniversary interview by Famitsu with Sonic Team legends (by Windii)

News from 2016.06.24 
Archived on 2020.12.30 

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Translation by Windii 

https://twitter.com/lesbianmamiya

https://pastebin.com/u/Windii

☕Send coffee for Windii → https://ko-fi.com/windii

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Original interview: https://www.famitsu.com/news/201606/24107383.html

『ソニック・ザ・ヘッジホッグ』誕生・ヒット・新生の真実をソニックチームのレジェンドクリエイターが、25周年のいま明かす　秘蔵資料満載の永久保存版！
The legendary creators of Sonic Team reveal the truth about the birth, success, and rebirth of "Sonic the Hedgehog" on the 25th anniversary: A permanent collection of treasured documents!

Written by: Manami Rei

Photographed by: Nagayama Wataru

"The secrets of the Sonic series, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary"

The 2010s have been a series of anniversary years for various video game titles, but 2016 is also a memorable year for Sonic the Hedgehog, which was released in 1991 for SEGA's Mega Drive, marking the 25th anniversary of its release. Although it was released on the lesser-known hardware of the Mega Drive, it was a big hit, especially in North America, thanks in part to the dramatic speed that hasn't been seen before in previous games and the cool character modeling of its protagonist. After continuous releases of sequels and several rebirths, the number of titles released in the series has now reached nearly 100.

How was Sonic, known around the world as "the face of SEGA," created, and how did it become popular and turn into a series? We invited Naka Yuuji, Ooshima Naoto, and Iizuka Takashi, the main creators of the "Sonic" series, to talk about the birth of Sonic, its hits, and how it has evolved over the years. Since they are old acquaintances who spent their 20's and 30's together, the conversation was very lively, and lasted for an unusually long time, over three hours in total. There are many anecdotes that could be revealed today for the first time, making this interview a valuable "biography of Sonic Team" and not only about the "Sonic" series. We hope that this article will remind not only fans of the "Sonic" series, but also the "SEGA people" who lived through the era from the Mega Drive to the Dreamcast, of their passionate feelings at that time.

Naka Yuuji

Born in 1965 in Osaka, he joined SEGA in 1984 and worked on the SEGA Mark III version of Phantasy Star and Space Harrier as a programmer. He attracted attention as a genius programmer. Since then, he has produced many titles for Sonic Team, such as the "Sonic the Hedgehog" series and "Phantasy Star Online". In 2006, he left and established PROPE. He serves as its president and CEO.

Ooshima Naoto

Born in 1964 in Osaka. After working at an advertising agency, he joined SEGA in 1987. As a graphic designer, he was in charge of character design for Sonic. As a director, he was involved in works such as "Sonic the Hedgehog CD", "NiGHTS into dreams..." and "Burning Rangers". In 1999, he retired from SEGA and became a founding member of Artoon, where he created "Blinx: The Time Sweeper" and other titles. Currently, as the executive vice-president of Arzest, he is also involved in the development of "Mario & Sonic AT Rio Olympics" for Nintendo 3DS.

Iizuka Takashi

Born in 1970 in Saitama Prefecture. He joined SEGA in 1992 and worked on the Mega Drive version of "Sonic the Hedgehog 3" as a planner, then became a director on "Sonic Adventure" and producer on "Sonic Colors", and has been involved in the development of the "Sonic" series almost constantly. He has developed games in the United States twice, and in March 2016, he travelled there for the third time to oversee the Sonic series.

"Shocking confession! Sonic was actually not a corporate character of SEGA?!"