16-Bit Sonic is back, and he's looking cooler than ever

By Imad Khan Published July 23, 2016

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This story is part of our complete Comic-Con coverage

Sonic Mania - 25th Anniversary Debut

Sonic the Hedgehog is back, and this time around, he’s returned to his glorious 16-bit form. During a San Diego Comic-Con panel, Sega announced Sonic Mania, a new 2D sonic game that could be exactly what fans have been waiting for.

The game is being developed by Sega of America in collaboration with PagodaWest Games, along with Christian Whitehead and Simon Thomley. The inclusion of PagodaWest and Whitehead should ease any concerns fans may have. PagodaWest is an award-winning indie game developer that’s most well known for the mobile game Major Magnet, while Whitehead remastered Sonic 1, Sonic 2, and Sonic CD for console and mobile.

In a press release, Head of Sonic Team Takashi Iizuka stated “Sonic Mania was born out of our fans’ love of the classic Sonic 2D platform games … this type of collaboration is a first for SEGA and we hope everyone will be both surprised and delighted by this title. Sonic Mania has been a passion project for the entire team and we look forward to sharing more details about it later this year.” Iizuka also highlighted the dedication of the team to have a playable game ready for the hungry audience at SDCC.

After a string of less-than-stellar Sonic games, Sega apologized for disappointing the blue guy’s fans. The company has since about-faced and is focusing on creating quality content. Sega is seemingly more forward and direct with consumers now. This is most evident in its Sonic the Hedgehog Twitter account, which is uniquely self-aware and relentlessly memetic. And after the critical and commercial flop of Sonic Boom, the publisher wants to do right by fans. Sonic Mania is looking like a good first step.

Sonic Mania is set to release sometime in 2017 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.

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Imad has been a gamer all his life. He started blogging about games in college and quickly started moving up to various…

Gaming

Ubisoft confirms Assassin’s Creed remakes are in the works

Basim perched on a ledge overlooking Baghdad

In a company interview with CEO Yves Guillemot posted on the Ubisoft website Thursday, the executive reveals that there are remakes of Assassin's Creed games in the works, although he doesn't specify which ones.

"Players can be excited about some remakes, which will allow us to revisit some of the games we've created in the past and modernize them," he says, implying that it could pertain to games made before Odyssey. "There are worlds in some of our older Assassin's Creed games that are still extremely rich."

Gaming

Surfaced patent shows what an Xbox streaming console would’ve looked like

An Xbox Series X sits next to both Series S models.

There have been a few Xbox devices that have never come to fruition, one of which was Keystone, a prototype for an affordable game streaming device you could hook up to your TV or monitor. Thanks to a surfaced patent, we've gotten an even closer look at what it would've potentially looked like.

The patent, first spotted by Windows Central, gives us a more complete view of the device. We've previously seen the Keystone in the flesh. Microsoft Gaming head Phil Spencer is known for hiding teases and interesting collectibles on the shelf in his office. In a 2022 X (formerly Twitter) post congratulating Bethesda on Fallout's 25th anniversary, you can see a small white device on the top shelf that's actually a Keystone prototype. Xbox told Digital Trends that it was a version of the device made before it decided to "refocus our efforts on a new approach.”

Gaming

Wordle Today: Wordle answer and hints for June 28

Someone playing Wordle on a smartphone.

We have the solution to Wordle on June 28, as well as some helpful hints to help you figure out the answer yourself, right here. We've placed the answer at the bottom of the page, so we don't ruin the surprise before you've had a chance to work through the clues. So let's dive in, starting with a reminder of yesterday's answer.
Yesterday's Wordle answer
Let's start by first reminding ourselves of yesterday's Wordle answer for those new to the game or who don't play it daily, which was "ORDER." So we can say that the Wordle answer today definitely isn't that. Now, with that in mind, perhaps take another stab at it using one of these Wordle starting words and circle back if you have no luck.
Hints for today's Wordle
Still can't figure it out? We have today's Wordle answer right here, below. But first, one more thing: Let's take a look at three hints that could help you find the solution, without giving it away, so there's no need to feel guilty about keeping your streak alive -- you put in some work, after all! Or just keep scrolling for the answer.

Today’s Wordle includes the letter D.
Today’s Wordle uses two vowels.
Today's Wordle can refer to a large number of animals, particularly livestock like cattle or sheep, that are moving together in a group.