Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric News
May2020
Random Sonic Boom Won't Be Returning, According To Television Show's Executive Producer
"There will be no season three"
One chapter in blue blur's history most fans would rather forget about is Sonic Boom. Although it was considered to be a low point for Sega's long-time mascot, there are some people out there who have been wondering what's happened to the computer-animated CGI television series of the same name. In a recent Sonic...
December2019
News Sega's Director Of Animation Thinks The World Is Ready For Another Sonic TV Show
"There are several discussions"
If you're a fan of Sonic the Hedgehog, you probably already know the official YouTube channel has released multiple animated shorts based on Sonic Mania and Team Sonic Racing. Since the conclusion of Sonic Boom television series though, this has been the only way to watch Sonic on screen. So what else
June2019
News The Sonic Anniversary Nintendo eShop Sale Is Now Live (North America)
Discounts on Switch, 3DS and Wii U eShop games
Sega is running a Sonic anniversary sale in North America from now until June 24th. For owners of Nintendo platforms, this sale includes discounted Sonic games on the Switch, 3DS and Wii U eShops. Take a look at the 12 games on sale in the list below which includes Sonic's latest racing game:...
November2016
News Nintendo Marks Sonic's 25th Birthday With Digital Sale In North America
Save up to 60 percent on select titles
Sonic turns 25 this year and Nintendo is marking the occasion with a sale on selected Sonic the Hedgehog titles, no doubt inspired by the Black Friday madness which is currently gripping the planet. The titles - all digital versions, of course - are: 3D Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (3DS) - $2.99 (no
May2016
Video Learn a Little More About Sonic Boom and The Rise (and Fall) of Lyric
"Oh shiiii...ooot"
Time can be a great healer. Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric wasn't a golden moment for the mascot, but the Boom universe continues to roll on with the animated series and the upcoming Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice on 3DS. Considering all that went wrong with the Wii U exclusive, it's a series that's done well to survive. The troubles of...
April2016
Random Someone Hacked The Original Sonic To Include Sonic Boom's Annoying Chatter
"It's like they're drawn to me!"
Like the vast majority of gaming icons who appeared during the 16-bit era, Sonic the Hedgehog was a silent protagonist. However, his journey into 3D saw him gifted - if that's the right word - with a voice, and in his most recent outings, he rarely shuts up. As if to prove that less is most definately more, hacker...
July2015
Video Enjoy the Glitchy Glory of Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric in This Summer Games Done Quick Speedrun
Don't forget to tune in all this week
As per the reminder we gave at the weekend, Summer Games Done Quick is currently providing round-the-clock entertainment with speedruns and competitions, covering classic games both old and relatively new. At the time of writing it's already raised over a quarter of a million dollars for the Doctors Without...
June2015
News Sega Is Focusing On 3DS For Sonic Boom Because It Wasn't Happy With The Wii U Version
"We totally feel the 3DS was the stronger of the two"
Sonic Boom was supposed to be a big initiative for Sega. Not only was the company pushing two brand-new games to market - one for Wii U and one for 3DS - but it was going to support these titles with a tie-in TV show and a flood of merchandise. Things didn't quite work out that way; while the 3DS...
May2015
Video Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric Blame Could Largely be With SEGA, Not Big Red Button
Seg-ah
Sonic Boom didn't do well on any metric; its sales failed to match those of fellow Nintendo exclusive Sonic Lost World, and it was panned by many critics and Sonic fans alike. Like any project it has its defenders, but many are agreed that it was a major disappointment, with Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric on Wii U being the biggest culprit. It...
News SEGA Records Financial Losses and Aims to Stick With "Mainstay IP" Game Releases
Sonic Boom sales pass half a million
2015 hasn't been a great year for fans of 'classic' SEGA, the company that was once a top player in the video game industry. It still boasts some useful PC franchises and RPG IPs through acquisitions of companies such as Sports Interactive, Creative Assembly and Atlus, but has been struggling with its own games...
April2015
News Sonic Boom Was Originally Called Sonic Synergy, Alternative Character Designs Emerge
Game would likely have still been a bit pants
Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric and Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal are unlikely to be talked of fondly in years to come, which is a pity for the slightly more competent 3DS title. Rise of Lyric on Wii U, however, was particularly poorly received, from the character designs down to the gameplay, but most...
March2015
News Sega Producer Explains Exactly What Went Wrong With Sonic Boom
"Speed is always a Sonic thing, we didn't focus on that"
Sonic Boom was supposed to be a rebirth for Sega's iconic mascot - a cross-media blitz that would earn the company millions and create a whole new legion of loyal fans. Sadly, it didn't quite turn out that way - while the TV series was - and still is - decent enough, the Wii U and 3DS games...
February2015
News Sonic Boom Sales Struggle to Explode as Sega Clarifies Restructuring Plans
Sales are slower than those for Sonic Lost World
At the end of January it emerged that Sega would be restructuring its business at the cost of around 300 jobs; now that it's issued its Q3 financial results it's clarified how that'll take place. New companies will be formed that are managed by Sega Holdings, with Sega Games taking the place of Sega...
January2015
Because lighting matters
Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric certainly received its fair share of criticism when it launched in late 2014, due to a mix of poor design, bugs and a general sense that it simply wasn't finished. A sizeable 1GB update was then deployed in Europe recently, with fans figuring out its changes; the key tweaks were to remove the...
News Sonic Boom Gets a Whopping 1GB+ Update in Europe, and Fans Figure Out What it Did
An update not much smaller than Super Mario 3D World's file size
A few days ago Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric received a whopping big update in Europe, and it's still not available - as far as we can see - in North America; it's likely still going through approval and scheduling in the region. This was a game that was widely panned upon release - and...
December2014
News Sonic Boom is Doing Pretty Well!
As a cartoon
So it's rather well known by now that Sonic Boom: The Rise of Lyric is largely busted (although we think its 3DS counterpart, Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal, fares better). Even so, there may still be a silver lining when the word "Boom" is associated with "Sonic": the cartoon series that ties with the games seems to be picking up an...
November2014
News Sonic Boom Wii U And 3DS Both Stall Outside Of The UK Multiformat Top 40
Beleaguered reboot fails to find commercial success
We don't need to explain the bad stink which has surrounded the launches of Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric and Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal. The much-hyped cross-platform reboot of Sega's famous franchise doesn't seem to have gone as planned, and it would appear that this negative feeling has impacted...
Nintendo Download 20th November (Europe)
Watch Dogs + DLC, Sonic Boom x2, Natsume retro goodies and more
Another week begins, but at least those of us in Europe have the Nintendo Download news to cheer up our day. This week's line-up includes some major retail releases, new download-only options across the board (even DSiWare makes an appearance) and a range of DLC, HOME themes and more...
Nintendo Download 13th November (North America)
Mario Kart 8 DLC, LEGO Batman, Tengami, Sonic Boom x2 and much more
It's Nintendo Download time, North America, and this week is a bumper offering — we have major retail releases and exclusives on Wii U and 3DS, some intriguing new download-only titles, demos, discounts and, last but not least, Mario Kart 8 DLC. Lots to choose from, so let's get...
News Sonic Boom Exploit Allows Players to Skip Large Sections of the Game
Current record for completion already under an hour
As we reported a couple of days ago, a number of game-breaking bugs have been discovered in Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric for Wii U. The plot thickens today with the discovery of an exploit which allows Knuckles to jump infinitely when the game is paused between hops, as shown below in this video by...
News Free Sonic Boom 3DS Theme Now Available For Download In North America
Speed demon
There's still no sign of our review copies of Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric and Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal, but we can at least take some solace in the fact that there's a free 3DS theme available for download right now. We've confirmed that the theme is on offer in North America and Canada, but it's not currently available on either the...
Video Early Sonic Boom: Rise Of Lyric Footage Hints At Game-Breaking Bugs
Wii U title is out this week, looks a bit rough around the edges
Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric hits North American stores this week after the release date was brought forward slightly, yet here at Nintendo Life we're still waiting patiently for our review copy to arrive. This could have something to do with the reaction Sega is expecting the Wii U...
News SEGA Outlines Impressive Plans For Sonic Boom Merchandise
Don't be blue, there's plenty coming
Sonic the Hedgehog is set to race exclusively onto Nintendo consoles this month with a pair of simultaneous new entries in the series. In an effort to re-invigorate Sega's beloved mascot once again, the company is launching an all-out marketing campaign that's hoping to reach a broad demographic of fans old and...
News Watch the Sonic Boom Gang Try to Rescue a Cat
"We're better at this in our world"
We haven't got long to wait for Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric on Wii U and it's 3DS counterpart Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal. They are both out on the 11th November in North America followed by Europe on 21st November. To keep us entertained while we wait the crazy cats at SEGA have put together a TV commercial...
September2014
News Sonic Boom: Rise Of Lyric Speeds To Earlier Release Date On Wii U
Now launching alongside the 3DS edition
Sega has confirmed that Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric will launch in North America a week earlier than originally planned. The Wii U title — being developed by Big Red Button — was given a November 18th release date not so long ago, but this has now been pushed forward to the 11th — the same day that Sega...
August2014
News Amazon Pre-order Bonus Will Light Up Your Sonic Boom Characters
Shine little glow-hog, glimmer, glimmer
UPDATE: This pre-order bonus only seems to apply to the US Amazon shop for now. We will update again if this changes. Step right up, my long-faced friend. Why, I know exactly what you're thinking: "My hedgehog! It spins, speeds, dives, dashes, slices, races, and saves the world but oh, woe is me why doesn't...
News Sonic Boom Games Now Have Their Official European Release Date, Shadow Confirmed
New trailer and character reveals, too
Update: The Sega Blog (thanks Max) has also unveiled a Gamescom trailer for the Wii U entry, and also confirmed appearances in the game for Shadow and Metal Sonic, below. [ Original Article: Both Sonic Boo
News A Pre-order of Sonic Boom Will Bag You an Exclusive Sonic Figurine
3DS or Wii U version, it doesn't matter
Any Sonic fans out there might be interested in this; if you pre-order either Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric for the Wii U or Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal for the 3DS you can get your mitts on an exclusive figurine of Sonic holding the Ancients' Crystal. The model itself looks fairly nicely done, Sonic has...
News Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric Set to Add "Two Fan Favourite Characters"
Developer addresses the 'steroid Knuckles' comments
Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric arrives on the Wii U as an exclusive this November, and it's a game that's had a remarkable and brief history to date. Its announcement earlier this year caused an internet meltdown, with plenty objecting to the character designs, in particular. It's part of a new Sonic...
July2014
News Sonic Boom Release Dates Are Confirmed for Wii U and 3DS
Official box art also released
Though we've known for a good while that the Sonic Boom games would come during Q4 to join an animated show, toy range and comic book series, official release dates have been held back. Sega's now lifted the lid. Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric — developed by Big Red Button — will arrive on the Wii U on 18th November,...
News Sonic Boom To Be Playable At Comic-Con, "Never-Before-Seen" Sega Games to Feature
Sonic and co appearing at Archie Comics Booth
The upcoming San Diego Comic-Con line-up, for this weekend, continues to hot up. Sega has revealed its hand, and confirmed that there'll be playable demos of both Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric on Wii U and Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal on 3DS. The games — and spin-off as a whole — will be at the Archie...
News Archie Announces Sonic Boom Comic Book Series to Accompany Games and Animated Show
And toys, don't forget the toys
Sega is determined to make 2014 the year of Sonic, launching its Sonic Boom spin-off universe with two games — Rise of Lyric on Wii U and Shattered Crystal on 3DS — accompanying a CGI animated series and a range of toys. Ahead of San Diego Comic-Con, Archie Comics has confirmed that there'll also be a comic book...
Feature The Biggest Wii U Games of 2014 - Summer Edition
E3 has shaken things up
You should now be fairly familiar with our quarterly tradition of looking at the biggest games coming to the Wii U. Our Spring edition had some games that have since fallen out of a 2014 release, as it was pulled together at a time when 'TBC' was far too common as a release window on Wii U games — alternatively, some...
June2014
First Impressions Taking Sonic Boom for a Spin on Wii U and 3DS
Lightning Strikes (Not Once But Twice)
Back in May 2013 Nintendo announced that it had entered into a partnership with Sega to bring a series of three Sonic games exclusively to its systems. Sonic Lost World and Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games were the first products of that arrangement, and the upcoming Sonic Boom games —...
News Sonic Boom Titles Given New Names and Gameplay Details
Will be on show at E3
With E3 around the corner, Sega has confirmed that demo builds of its Sonic Boom titles will be playable at the event, and has revealed their final titles — we'll have Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric on Wii U and Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal on 3DS. Each title will have a separate storyline and wildly different play style. To...
May2014
News Meet Sticks, The New Member of Sonic Boom's "Core Ensemble"
She's a jungle badger, by the way
Those that don't want Sonic to make any more chatty friends, look away now. Sega has unveiled Sticks, a jungle badger that will be a new member of the "core ensemble" in Sonic Boom, which takes in a TV show, licensed toy and merchandise range and, of course, the Wii U and 3DS games. Hiroyuki Miyazaki, Chief Content...
News Sonic Boom Producer Explains Recent Silence Over Project
Expect a rush of new info at E3
Sonic Boom made a lot of noise when it was announced in February, but little more than a few peeps have been heard since. Producer Stephen Frost took to the forums of fansite Sonic Stadium to explain the drought in new information. According to Frost, much of the radio silence has come from working alongside the s
News Sonic Lost World Hits 710,000 Sales as Sega Lines Up Significant 3DS Support
Nintendo's portable projected to be Sega's biggest console market this year
Like pretty much every other major Japan-based corporation, Sega — or SEGA Sammy Holdings to be more accurate — has published its financial results. For Nintendo gamers it reveals some interesting, and pleasing, results. To start off with some reasonably positive news,...
April2014
Feature The Biggest Wii U Games of 2014 - Spring Edition
Time for some additions
At the start of this year we continued our quarterly tradition of looking at the biggest games coming to the Wii U, this time considering 2014. Even with an admittedly shallow confirmed line-up for the year we'd like to think that it was a list to give optimism to Wii U owners anxious for exciting games to play. It's now...
March2014
Minus input "the character would have been a lot more alien and different"
When Sonic Boom was announced as a TV show, toy range and — perhaps most importantly — a game for Wii U and 3DS, there was an explosion of interest around the web. Much excitable chatter in those initial hours wasn't so much about the setting of the show of the potential...
February2014
News Sega Unleashes Sonic Boom Behind The Scenes Video
All aboard...
Sega prompted an internet meltdown in early February when it announced Sonic Boom — a new branch of the Sonic universe that'll feature a TV show, toy range and, most excitingly, games exclusive to the Wii U and 3DS. Though the portable version of the game from respected developer Sanzaru Games is something to look forward to, there's...
Talking Point Sonic and the Wii U Both Seek a Boom in Sales
Nintendo and Sega need mutual success
We may be Nintendo fans keen to see as many major exclusives as possible, but we can't help but wonder whether Sega — behind closed doors and in hushed tones — wishes it was free to go multi-platform with the upcoming Sonic Boom. We are aware that Sonic Boom is also coming the 3DS and is in the hands of...
News We Didn't Know It, But Sonic Boom Was First Shown in Spring 2013
Well darn
If Sega needed any evidence that its mascot can still generate buzz and hype, the online reaction to the reveal of Sonic Boom, with Wii U and 3DS games joined by the TV show and a range of toy merchandise, may have renewed the company's faith in the brand. Not all were immediate fans of the off-shoot's designs, admittedly, but Sonic was...
Sonic veteran Takashi Iizuka speaks out
Sonic Boom is the big news in the world of Nintendo at the moment, with Sega's new plan of attack covering TV, toys and games — the latter of which will be exclusive to Wii U and 3DS. Thrusting its most prized possession into the hands of a western developers is risky, and Sega's move has had many fans...
News Big Red Button's Bob Rafei Spills More Details On Sonic Boom For Wii U And 3DS
Reveals Sonic Team is involved and explains THOSE new character designs
Yesterday's news that Sega's next Sonic title would be a cross-media extravaganza complete with re-imagined characters, CGI cartoon series and Nintendo-exclusive video game outings sent the web into overdrive, with the reaction from fans ranging from delighted to highly...
News A Sonic Boom Game is Dashing Towards Wii U and 3DS
The team's sporting a new look
Update: Sega has now released an official press pack regarding Sonic Boom, emphasizing that it's a "new branch of the Sonic universe" that will incorporate the TV show, the games on Wii U and 3DS as well as a new toy range. Below are some key excerpts from the press release: Sonic Boom’s visual identity includes...
