14 DAY TRIAL // BioWare is best known for developing Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and Jade Empire. However, the company has recently made the surprising announcement of teaming up with SEGA to create a new DS title, based on the classic Sega flagship icon, Sonic The Hedgehog. All that was known so far is that this exclusive Nintendo DS game has been confirmed for a 2008 release. More recently though, Wired's Game|Life discussed with BioWare's CEO Ray Muzyka and President Greg Zeschuk about the upcoming RPG game. Some interview excerpts, below.
GL: "BioWare's previous efforts have been for the PC and the Xbox (and now the 360 with Mass Effect). What is the appeal of designing for the DS?"
RM: "The handheld group at BioWare is certainly very excited about the innovation that can take place on the DS platform. We're really innovating what a BioWare RPG is with this title - we're looking forward to offering new and unique ways to enjoy a fast-paced, story-driven experience with tons of exploration, customization and progression. We're very excited by the opportunity to use all the cool features on the DS, and to make BioWare's first handheld RPG, one with a lot of action too, since it's based in the Sonic universe!"
GL: "Given BioWare's wealth of RPG experience, what have you learned not to do for this project?"
RM: "With this project our team will be crafting an RPG that is still rich in story but which also has awesome pacing, full of those "wow" moments that keep you wanting to find out what happens next. Sonic is perfect for that, since the Sonic universe is full of very cool characters and is already very fast-paced to begin with. Also, people don't tend to spend quite as many hours in a row on the DS as they would when playing a BioWare game for console or PC, so gamers can expect the Sonic RPG to not only be fast-paced, but very easy to pick up and play at length or in shorter bursts - whichever they prefer!"
Is there any developer/publisher that doesn't want a piece of the DS? I think that's the real question here, but yes, it is true that Sonic has the perfect universe for a fast-paced RPG and who else better to develop a new Sonic game, if not RPG expert, BioWare?