Sonic R

Sonic R (the R stands for racing) is a racing game made by Sega for the Sega Saturn and PC. It features characters from the Sonic the Hedgehog series. The game is characterized by the same sense of environmental openness in the Sonic platformers. The spin-dash move from Sonic the Hedgehog 2 does not appear in Sonic R.

There are several collectable rings across each of the five racetracks. Each ring regenerates after a short period of time. These rings can serve one of three purposes.

• Stepping on a speed boost will consume all of a player's rings, to a maximum of 100, and boost the player ahead along a preset path. The boost is at a speed approximately three times the normal maximum speed of a character and lasts for a duration proportional to the number of rings deducted.
• Using fifty rings will open one of many special doors. After being opened, the doors remain open for all players for the duration of the game.
• Some characters can perform an attack for 10 rings (see below).

There are also inexhaustable emblem bonuses. Touching an emblem gives the racer one of multiple possible rewards, including a random number of rings and the bubble and lightning shields that appeared in Sonic the Hedgehog 3. The bubble shield allows the racer to walk on water once, after which it disappears. The lightning shield attracts rings to itself, but is eliminated upon touching water.

Racers can run on water for a limited period of time, and can "swim" in it indefinetely, at greatly reduced speed. In addition, each of the ten playable characters has a different speed and a unique set of abilities. Unlike most racing games, these abilities are designed such that certain characters, even among characters that are initially playable, have a clear edge over others. The four characters that are initially playable are Amy Rose, Tails, Knuckes, and Sonic. Below are the characters and their abilities, listed roughly from worst to best.

• Amy Rose drives a car and can hover over water. However, she is extremely slow.
• Eggman, who races in a eggpod, can do a short-range heat-seeking attack at a cost of 10 rings. The attack will eliminate the target's shield if it has one and slow it down if it does not. He is also particularly slow.
• Tails can fly at a fixed level for an unlimited period of time.
• Eggrobo is an improved version of its counterpart, but slow compared to other secret characters.
• Knuckles can glide for an unlimited period of time, gradually losing height. He cannot latch onto or climb walls as in Sonic the Hedgehog 3.
• Sonic is the fastest of the characters that are initially playable.
• Tails Doll can hover on water. Additionally, he can hover indefinetely a certain distance above the ground or water.
• Mecha Knuckles is an improved version of its counterpart.
• Mecha Sonic' is an improved version of its counterpart.
• Super Sonic is the best racer, and also the hardest to unlock. He can double-jump and can "skip" off of the surface of the water. He is also the fastest racer.

There are five racers in each race. The four "best" racers that have been activated are automatically selected as computer opponents. Thus, there is some disadvantage to activating secret characters.

Activating secret characters

Placing first on each of the first four racetracks activates the fifth. Placing first on the last racetrack activates Eggman. If a player collects all five coins on a racetrack and places first, second, or third, the player activates a race against a secret character unique to the racetrack. Defeating this secret character unlocks it. If a player collects a Chaos Emerald and places first in the race, the player keeps it. Collecting all seven Chaos Emeralds activates Super Sonic.

Production Credits

Program Design & Implementation: Jon Burton (Traveller's Tales) Head Artist: James Cunliff e (Traveller's Tales) Lead Artist: David Burton (Traveller's Tales) Game Design Director: Takashi Iizuka (Sega Enterprises Ltd.) Map Design Director: Hirokazu Yasuhara (Sega of America Inc.) Additional Artwork: Kazuyuki Hoshino (Sega Enterprises Ltd.) Additional Artwork & Visual Advisor: Shigeru Okada (Sega Europe Limited) Character Designer: Yuji Uekawa (Sega Enterprises Ltd.) Music & Sound Producer: Richard Jacques (Sega Europe Limited) General Producer: Yuji Naka (Sega Enterprises Ltd.)

Traveller's Tales

Programmed By Jon Burton Polygon Model Design and Implementation: Neil Allen, David Burton, James Cunliffe Texture Map Design and Application: Neil Allen, James Cunliffe Character Animations: David Burton Model and Animation Data Conversion: Andy Holdroyd Terrain System Programming: John Hodskinson Special Effects Programming: Jon Burton Artificial Intelligence: Stephen Harding, Gary Vine Texture Application Software: Andy Holdroyd Additional Programming: Stephen Harding, Gary Vine, John Hodskinson, Andy Holdroyd Development Director: Jon Burton Special Thanks: Helen Burton, Helen Gavin

Sega Enterprises Ltd.

General Producer: Yuji Naka Project Manager: Yoji Ishii Producer: Yuji Naka Game Design Director: Takashi Iizuka Game Designers: Shiro Mukaide, Syun Nakamura Game Advisors: Takao Miyoshi, Katsuhiro Hasegawa Additional Artwork: Kazuyuki Hoshino Character Designer: Yuji Uekawa Graphic Advisors: Naoto Oshima, Hiroshi Nishiyama Sound Advisor: Naofumi Hataya Executive manager: Shoichiro Irimajiri Executive Coordinators: Makoto Oshitani, Jin Shimazaki Overseas Coordinator: Ryoichi Hasegawa Public Relations: Hiroto Kikuchi, Takumi Miyake Manual: Hiroyuki Mitsui, Osamu Nakazato, Takashi Nishimura Special Thanks: Takahiro Hamano, Yukifumi Makino, Takuya Matsumoto, Yoshitaka Miura, Yuichiro Suzuki

Sega Europe Limited

Sound Producer: Richard Jacques Additional Artwork & Visual Advisor: Shigeru Okada Music & Sound FX: Richard Jacques Sound Programming: Thomas Szirtes Vocals: T.J. Davis (courtesy of Freedom Management) Engineered & Mixed By: Matt Howe Digital Editing By: Neil Tucker Recorded and Mixed: Metropolis Studios, Sega Digital Studio Technical Support: Colin Carter, Ed Hollingshead, Tamer Tahsin, Thomas Szirtes, Elton Bird Senior Product Manager: Kazutoshi Miyake Operations Manager: Naoya Tsurumi Product Manager & Public Relations: Mark Maslowicz Lead Tester: Jason Cumberbatch Assistant Lead Testers: Dave Thompson, Roberto Parraga Special Thanks: Jo Bladen, Mark Hartley, Philippe Deleplace, Frederique Ayer, Stephane Petit, Jose Angel Sanchez, Begona Sanz, David Garcia, Hitoshi Okuno, Andreas Von Gliszczynski, Thorsten Moe, Tina Sakowsky, Richard Leadbetter, Paul Davies, Tom Guise, Ed Lomas, Daniel Jevons, Jose Aller

Sega of America Inc.

Map Design Director: Hirokazu Yasuhara Project Coordinators: Jason Kuo, Dave Locke Product Managers: Kristin McCloskey, Terese Russell Lead Tester: Fernando Valderrama Assistant Lead Tester: Jeff B. Junio Testers: Don Carmichael, Michael Dobbins, Arnold Feener, Lloyd Kinoshita, Dennis Lee, Christopher Lucich, Tony Lynch, Marcus Montgomery, David Paniagua, Mark Paniagua, Steve Peck, Maurice Smith, Matt Underwood, Paulita Villatuya Special Thanks: Scott Allen, Sandra Castagnola, Curtis Clarkson, Geraldine Dessimoz, Marcelyn Ditter, Sheri Hockaday, Michael S. Jablonn, Judy Nybo, Paul Sears, Seedy Lounge, Eric Smith, Dan Stevens, Bernard Stolar, Mark Subotnick, Shuji Utsumi, Mike Wallis