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Sonic the Fighters

From Sonic Retro

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  • Arcade (Model 2)
    JP
  • Arcade (Model 2)
    US/UK
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Sonic the Fighters title.png
SonicChampionship Model2 US Title.png
SonictheFightersXBLATitleScreen.png
Sonic the Fighters
System(s): Sega Model 2B CRX, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Now
Publisher: Sega
Developer:
Distributor: Deith Leisure (UK)[1]
Genre: Fighting
Number of players: 1-2
Release Date RRP Code Rating
Arcade (Model 2)
JP
1996-05[2] ¥? ?
Arcade (Model 2)
US
1996-07 $? ?
Arcade (Model 2)
UK
1996-08 £? ?


Xbox 360
JP
2012-11-28[3] 400[3]pts ?
CERO: A
Xbox 360
JP
(Otameshiban)
2012-11-28[3] FREE ?
CERO: A
Xbox 360
US
2012-11-28[4] 400[4]pts ?
ESRB: Everyone
Xbox 360
US
(Trial Game)
2012-11-28[5] FREE ?
ESRB: Everyone
Xbox 360
UK
2012-11-28[4] 400[4]pts ?
PEGI: 7+
Xbox 360
UK
(Trial Game)
2012-11-28[6] FREE ?
PEGI: 7+
Xbox 360
EU
2012-11-28[4] 400[4]pts ?
PEGI: 7+
Xbox 360
EU
(Trial Game)
2012-11-28[7] FREE ?
PEGI: 7+
Xbox 360
DE
2012-11-28[4] 400[4]pts ?
USK: 6
Xbox 360
DE
(Trial Game)
2012-11-28[8] FREE ?
USK: 6
Xbox 360
AU
2012-11-28[9] 400[9]pts ?
OFLC: Parental Guidance (PG)
Xbox 360
AU
(Trial Game)
2012-11-28[9] FREE ?
OFLC: Parental Guidance (PG)


Sony PlayStation 3
JP
2012-11-28[10] ¥762 (800)[10] NPJB-00250
CERO: A
Sony PlayStation 3
US
2012-11-27[11][12] $4.99[11][12] NPUB-30927
ESRB: Everyone
Sony PlayStation 3
EU
2012-12-05[11][13] €4.49[11][13] NPEB-01162
PEGI: 7+
Sony PlayStation 3
DE
2012-12-05[11][14] €4.49[11][14] NPEB-01162
USK: 6
Sony PlayStation 3
UK
2012-12-05[11][15] £3.69[11][15] NPEB-01162
PEGI: 7+
Sony PlayStation 3
AU
2012-12-05[16] $6.75[16] NPEB-01162
OFLC: Parental Guidance (PG)
Sony PlayStation 3
KR
2012-12-18[17] ₩6,000[17] NPHB-00515
GRB: All
Sony PlayStation 3
TW
2012-12-18[18] NT$160[18] NPHB-00515
GSRR: 6+


PlayStation Now
JP
2015-09-16[19] ¥? ?

Sonic the Fighters (ソニック・ザ・ファイターズ), originally released as Sonic Championship in North America and Europe, is a versus fighting game developed for Sega Model 2B CRX arcade hardware by Sega AM2. It was released in relatively small numbers across the world during 1996.

To date, Sonic the Fighters is the only Sonic fighting game of its kind.

Story

Tails' lab during the attract mode intro sequence.
This is the official story from the Gamest magazine, issue 173. Translation by Windii.

A large quantity of robots suddenly appeared on the land where peaceful days continued thanks to Sonic's frequent actions, and laid waste to its surroundings.
"This must be Eggman's doing! But where is this huge bunch of robots coming from..." as Tails muttered to himself, he got an emergency message from Espio.

In the video that Espio sent, there was a huge fortress floating on the satellite orbit. Dr. Eggman was dispatching large quantities of robots from the giant space fortress, "Death Egg 2"!

Sonic decided to get to Death Egg 2 alone using a single-seat space rocket "Lunar Fox" that Tails invented. However, in order to fly the rocket, 8 Chaos Emeralds must be collected to act as a power source. Sonic's friends, who spread throughout the world, were guarding the Chaos Emeralds separately so that they are not misused by Eggman (one of them ended up being stolen by Fang in the meantime, however...).

First, Sonic and Tails flew over to where Knuckles is. "If the rocket is single-seat, shouldn't the toughest guy be the one riding it?" Knuckles provoked Sonic after hearing what's going on. When Sonic, who obviously believed he was the strongest, accepted Knuckles's challenge and was about to fight him, Tails forced his way between the two. Tails proposed fighting fair and square in the ring, and the one who wins against all of their buddies in the world will ride the rocket.

Who will be the one to win against everyone, collect the Chaos Emeralds, and save the world? The gong of fate is now echoing.

Gameplay

A match between Sonic and Bean played during attract mode.

Sonic the Fighters is a one-on-one versus fighting game similar in design to AM2's previous arcade fighting game outings; Virtua Fighter (and Virtua Fighter 2) and Fighting Vipers. Like these games, the objective is to attack the opposing player until a health bar depletes to zero over the best of three rounds. Rounds are also time-limited, meaning if nobody is defeated after a time counter reaches zero, the player with the most energy remaining is declared the winner. If both health bars are at the same value at the end of the round, a "draw" is called and the round is played again.

As one of eight selectable fighters, the player is tasked with completing ten matches in succession to beat the game. There are also three buttons, "barrier" (Block), "punch" (Punch), and "kick" (Kick), which along with a joystick for movement, can combined to perform more complicated moves and inflict more damage. Taking cues from Fighting Vipers, each of the arenas is enclosed by walls, although unlike that game, it is not possible to slam opponents through them at the end of the match.

Like other Sega fighting games from this period, the world is presented in 3D, but characters still fight on a 2D plane (albeit one that "rotates" depending on which moves are used)

Characters

Under normal circumstances, Sonic the Fighters contains eight playable characters, with a further two being controlled exclusively by the computer.

SonictheFighters Model2 Sprite Mugshots.png
Sonic the Hedgehog
Sonic can transform into Super Sonic during the final matches if he gets through the game without losing a single round.
SonictheFighters Model2 Sprite Mugshots.png
Miles "Tails" Prower
SonictheFighters Model2 Sprite Mugshots.png
Fang the Sniper
SonictheFighters Model2 Sprite Mugshots.png
Bean the Dynamite
SonictheFighters Model2 Sprite Mugshots.png
Bark the Polar Bear
SonictheFighters Model2 Sprite Mugshots.png
Espio the Chameleon
SonictheFighters Model2 Sprite Mugshots.png
Amy Rose
SonictheFighters Model2 Sprite Mugshots.png
Knuckles the Echidna

When two similar characters face each other the second player will be replaced with a grayscale copy created by Dr. Eggman. If a character defeats the first eight opponents, he or she will face Metal Sonic and Eggman aboard the Death Egg II.

Move list

Sonic Retro emblem.svg Main article: Sonic the Fighters/Move list

Achievements

Sonic Retro emblem.svg Main article: Sonic the Fighters/Achievements

History

Development

Sonic Retro emblem.svg Main article: Sonic the Fighters/Development

Legacy

From the moment of its announcement it was expected, and later confirmed, that Sonic the Fighters would be ported to the Sega Saturn in the months that followed, however while the game remained in the schedules as late as mid-1997 (with a vague 1998 release date[20]), no such version ever materialised. Sonic and Tails are not present in the Saturn version of Fighting Vipers either, however Bean and Bark would make an appearance in the 1997 release of Fighters Megamix.

Sonic the Fighters would not make it to the home until the 2005 release of Sonic Gems Collection. It was at this point where the "Sonic Championship" name was dropped from international versions and has never been used since. Sonic the Fighters would then be brought to the PlayStation Network and Xbox Live Arcade as part of Model 2 Collection in 2012, with online play and the ability to play as the boss characters, Metal Sonic and Dr. Eggman, as well as unused character Honey the Cat. Sonic the Fighters is also playable at the in-game arcades in 2021's Lost Judgment, with Honey and the boss characters once again playable.

While a fighting game of this style has not been attempted since Sonic the Fighters' original release, Sonic Battle for Game Boy Advance offers an alternative style of Sonic fighting game, and Sonic was added as a selectable fighter in the Super Smash Bros. series, beginning with Super Smash Bros. Brawl for Wii.

Manuals

Production credits

Promotional material

Artwork

Character select sprites

Photo gallery

Physical scans

External links

References

  1. [cvg, issue 174, page 26 cvg, issue 174, page 26]
  2. File:Sega Arcade History JP EnterBrain Book-1.pdf, page 140
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 Xbox LIVE Marketplace (ja-JP; Sonic-the-Fighters/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d8025841129e) (Wayback Machine: 2012-12-03 04:34)
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 http://blogs.sega.com/2012/11/27/round-one-fight-am2-classics-available-now/ (Wayback Machine: 2012-11-30 01:59)
  5. Xbox LIVE Marketplace (en-US; Sonic-the-Fighters/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d8025841129e) (Wayback Machine: 2012-11-29 04:49)
  6. Xbox LIVE Marketplace (en-GB; Sonic-the-Fighters/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d8025841129e) (Wayback Machine: 2012-11-28 15:17)
  7. Xbox LIVE Marketplace (fr-FR; Sonic-the-Fighters/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d8025841129e) (Wayback Machine: 2012-12-15 15:12)
  8. Xbox LIVE Marketplace (de-DE; Sonic-the-Fighters/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d8025841129e) (Wayback Machine: 2018-06-30 00:21)
  9. 9.0 9.1 9.2 Xbox LIVE Marketplace (en-AU; Sonic-the-Fighters/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d8025841129e) (Wayback Machine: 2012-12-29 14:51)
  10. 10.0 10.1 http://www.jp.playstation.com:80/software/title/jp0177npjb00250_00sonicthefighters.html (Wayback Machine: 2012-12-01 01:39)
  11. 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 11.4 11.5 11.6 11.7 http://blogs.sega.com/2012/11/20/am2-fighting-games-headed-to-xbla-and-psn/ (Wayback Machine: 2012-11-28 03:56)
  12. 12.0 12.1 PlayStation Store (en-us; UP0177-NPUB30927_00-SONICTHEFIGHTERS) (Wayback Machine: 2018-04-03 20:34)
  13. 13.0 13.1 PlayStation Store (fr-fr; EP0177-NPEB01162_00-SONICTHEFIGHTERS) (Wayback Machine: 2018-04-03 20:35)
  14. 14.0 14.1 PlayStation Store (de-de; EP0177-NPEB01162_00-SONICTHEFIGHTERS) (Wayback Machine: 2018-12-13 02:28)
  15. 15.0 15.1 PlayStation Store (en-gb; EP0177-NPEB01162_00-SONICTHEFIGHTERS) (Wayback Machine: 2018-04-03 20:34)
  16. 16.0 16.1 PlayStation Store (en-au; EP0177-NPEB01162_00-SONICTHEFIGHTERS) (Wayback Machine: 2018-04-03 20:34)
  17. 17.0 17.1 PlayStation Store (ko-kr; HP0177-NPHB00515_00-SONICTHEFIGHTERS) (Wayback Machine: 2018-04-03 20:35)
  18. 18.0 18.1 PlayStation Store (en-tw; HP0177-NPHB00515_00-SONICTHEFIGHTERS) (Wayback Machine: 2018-04-03 20:36)
  19. http://www.jp.playstation.com:80/software/title/jp0177npjb00250_00sonicthefighters.html (Wayback Machine: 2015-11-01 20:40)
  20. File:SegaSaturnPerfectCatalogue JP 1997.pdf, page 87


Sonic the Fighters
Sonic the Fighters title.png

Main page
Comparisons
Achievements


Magazine articles
Reception


Development
Hidden content


Move list

Sonic the Hedgehog games for the following systems
Arcade
 1991  Waku Waku Sonic Patrol Car     1993  Sonic the Hedgehog | SegaSonic Cosmo Fighter | Sonic the Hedgehog 2 | SegaSonic the Hedgehog     1996  Sonic the Fighters     2011  Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing Arcade     2015  Sonic Dash Extreme‎‎     2016  Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games Arcade Edition     2020  Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 - Arcade Edition    
Arcade
 1992  UFO SegaSonic     1993  Sonic the Hedgehog | SegaSonic Popcorn Shop     1994  Sonic no Space Tours | SegaSonic Wataame Scramble | Sonic Canball | Air Circus | Curling Holiday     1997  Sonic the Hedgehog AWP     2002  Sonic & Tails Spinner     2003  CR Sonic     2007  Sonic Spinner     2008  Sonic Live!     2009  Sonic Hopper!     2010  Sonic Sports Basketball     2012  Sonic Sports Air Hockey | Oh! Ring | In the Barrel     2013  Sonic Athletics | Sonic Ghost Shooting | Sonic Brain Ranking‎‎     2016  Sonic Blast Ball‎‎     2019  Sonic Sports Kids Basketball‎‎    
 Unknown date  CoroCoro Fever (199x) | Darts Shot (199x) | Mogu-Mogu Rush (201x) | Neo Target (201x) | Circles Shoot (201x)
filler
PlayStation 3 PlayStation Network
PS3
 2010  Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode I | Sonic Adventure     2011  Sonic the Hedgehog | Sonic the Hedgehog 2 | Sonic the Hedgehog Anniversary Bundle | Sonic the Hedgehog CD     2012  Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode II | Sonic Adventure 2 | Classic Sonic Bundle | Sonic the Fighters     2013  Sonic the Hedgehog Master Collection    
Xbox Live Arcade
 2007  Sonic the Hedgehog | Sonic the Hedgehog 2     2009  Sonic the Hedgehog 3 | Sonic & Knuckles     2010  Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode I | Sonic Adventure     2011  Sonic the Hedgehog CD     2012  Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode II | Sonic Adventure 2 | Sonic the Fighters