Sonic Team head Takashi Iizuka has no plans to remake or remaster the Dreamcast Sonic Adventure games.
Iizuka, who directed both Sonic Adventure and Sonic Adventure 2, is frequently asked by fans to remake the two beloved games, but he told Shack News the effort required would be better spent on new games.
“I do hear that a lot,” said Iizuka. “I really am appreciative of everyone who likes the Sonic Adventure series, but when I think about what it would take to bring that game up to the standards and expectations of what the modern gaming audience would want, I think it would be about as much time and energy as it would to make a new title.
“So part of me is thinking maybe I should just make a brand new title and that’s why there are currently no plans.”
Sonic Team doesn’t seem averse to remakes and remasters entirely, considering last year it released Sonic x Shadow Generations – an update of the 2011 original.
However, both Sonic Adventure and Sonic Adventure 2 are particularly dated. And as Sonic Team continues to develop its 3D Sonic games, Iizuka previously stated the open zone design of Sonic Frontiers is the “cornerstone of future Sonic games”.
Further, last year Iizuka stated there were no plans for Sonic Adventure 3 or a Chao Garden game either, but said “we’d love to make it”.
Elsewhere in the interview, Iizuka discussed the roadmap for the development team and how they decide which game to make next.
The three core pillars of the Sonic series are the modern 3D action games, the 2D classic games, and the racing games, Iizuka explained.
Looking back, it’s clear the team is seeking to alternate between these each year: last year had Sonic x Shadow Generations, the year before was the 2D Sonic Superstars, and the year before that was Sonic Frontiers. Now there’s Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds following previous racing games.
In addition, Sonic Team is also thinking about what new experiences and games people want in the future. “So when we think about our roadmap for content,” said Iizuka, “that’s what we’re constantly thinking about: what are those long-running series and how can we add new?”
New experiences the developers have recently released include The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog, an April Fool’s joke that turned out to be real – it was quickly downloaded a million times.
Between games and films, Sonic has become a global megastar in the last 10 years, as Iizuka detailed to Eurogamer.
To celebrate the forthcoming release of Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds, Sega has partnered with McLaren Racing in a multi-year collaboration.