E3 2014: First Sonic Boom Gameplay Trailers Released

Source: Sonic Wiki

If nothing else, it can't be any worse than the 2006 next-gen revival, surely?
Big Red Button Entertainment and Sanzaru Games have this week released two gameplay trailers for their Nintendo WiiU and Nintendo 3DS video game tie-ins to SEGA's impending animated TV series Sonic Boom. Titled Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric and Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal, these licensed products will boast storylines that set-up the wider narrative of the show, introducing key characters and plot elements which will take on greater significance over the course of its first televised season.

As if it weren't enough for this pair of up-and-coming development studios to have tinkered noticeably with the traditional Sonic aesthetic (albeit under the orders of SEGA, who are evidently looking to refresh and reboot the franchise somewhat in its latest guise), long-term followers of the spiky blue hedgehog should prepare themselves for a decent few gameplay alterations which crop up in the two preview videos (below). First and foremost, Rise of Lyric will centre on co-operative puzzle solving, with up to four players able to join the action at once this time around, whereas Shattered Crystal will retain the 2D side-scrolling mechanics of its classic predecessors but throws in a few pseudo open-world sections so as to shake things up in an ever so slightly concerning manner. Time will tell if either version of Boom (or indeed its TV counterpart) is destined for greatness, but right now, the signs are less than promising...

Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric and Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal will dash onto Nintendo WiiU and Nintendo 3DS consoles respectively this November.