Big-time Sonic gamers will reach the end of Sonic The Hedgehog 4, which launches on iPhone on Thursday, and know exactly where the game's second episode is going, a Sega representative teased to Kotaku this week.
Sonic The Hedgehog 4 has four main zones, each with a few levels and bosses and plenty of content that refers back to earlier Sonic games. It also has a cliffhanger that Sega rep Aaron Webber wouldn't spoil for me yesterday when he showed me the console version of the game. All he'd say is that the first episode ends with a silhouette. When Sonic fans see it, they'll know what the next Sonic 4 episodic release will be about.
There is no release date for the second Sonic 4 episode.
I played a little bit of the Xbox 360 version of the game yesterday. It's a classically-designed Sonic side-scroller. There has been some concern among gamers about the title since early, leaked videos of the game showed some levels that did not look fun (remember that mine-cart level?). Webber said that the game has come along well since then — and said that the person playing those leaked videos wasn't very good, making the game look worse than it was back then.
He also revealed that that infamous minecart level won't be in the Wii, Xbox 360 ad PlayStation 3 versions of the game launching next week. It was made for tilt and, along with a pinball level, are replaced for console with levels that play better with controllers. The minecart bit in the console version lasts just a few seconds and is part of a tricky level that is based on running through darkness, a torch in a Sonic's hand.
Sonic fans, get ready for that cliffhanger tomorrow. Any guesses?