This year marks the 30th anniversary of the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise, and while Sega has announced all manner of tie-in merchandise, such as a series encyclopedia and an 80-page comic book, there has been very little information on any new video games. Fans have been desperate for a game announcement since last year, but it looks like the wait for news is finally almost over.
Earlier today, Sega announced that it will be holding its own virtual event called Sonic Central this Thursday, May 27th at 9am PT/12pm ET. It will run on both the official Sonic the Hedgehog YouTube and Twitch channels and will not only feature members of Sonic Team but unnamed special guests as well.
As for what will be shown at the event, Sega only says that it will provide a first look at upcoming projects, partnerships, and events for the franchise. So, it's safe to assume that there will be at least one video game-related announcement, especially since Sega is also at E3 this year, which is taking place in only a few weeks. Fans suspected that Sega was waiting until then to make new Sonic game announcements, but this seems to no longer be the case.
While Sega has been relatively secretive about its plans, fans may already know about some of them thanks to leaks. Most recently, a listing for something just called Sonic Collection was spotted, which suggests that Sega is releasing a bundle of past games, similar to Nintendo's Super Mario 3D All-Stars for Super Mario's 35th anniversary. There have also been rumblings of a remaster of Wii title Sonic Colors.
It's also possible that the event may share something for the second live-action Sonic movie that's releasing next year. There has yet to be a proper trailer for it outside of the original teaser, so perhaps Sega will share a first glimpse at that. While Tails has already been confirmed to appear, there have been reports that it will also feature Knuckles. The main plot has apparently been leaked and it suggests that the movie will essentially be an adaptation of Sonic the Hedgehog 3, with Knuckles being tricked into teaming up with the returning Robotnik.
To get fans excited for the event, Sega has also released a short celebration video. Aside from various games in the franchise's history, it also highlights the movie, the comics, and the animated series – even showing a brief clip of the old Sonic X anime.