Sega Sonic Lost World Nintendo Exclusive

Two decades ago, the idea of Nintendo and Sega working together was the stuff of dreams. Before teraflops and gigabytes, before Xbox and PlayStation, there was Nintendo and Sega battling for our time. In 1993 the "bit war" between consoles was reaching epic proportions, and competition between the Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis was far more vicious than that of modern consoles today. Since then Sega is all but out of the hardware picture, and Nintendo is dealing with third-party and financial issues of its own. With this in mind, it comes as little surprise that the two gaming giants are working together, and the fruits of their partnership will be Sonic: Lost World, a new game releasing exclusively for the Wii U and 3DS.

Announced during this morning's Nintendo Direct presentation the new Sonic title will be an action-platformer, but not much else is known. Long-time Sonic fans will know the pitfalls of the franchise in its shift to 3D, but with a new partnership and exclusivity to the Wii U and 3DS, it's likely that Nintendo will have constructive input on the final product. This should ensure the same kind of quality gameplay they are known for. More information is set to release just before E3 next month, which should help Nintendo gain a bit of traction in lieu of a large-scale presentation during the event.

Sonic in Super Smash Bros Brawl
Sonic appeared in 'Super Smash Bros. Brawl' in 2008, much to the excitement of franchise fans.

Of course, this isn't the first time that former rivals Nintendo and Sega have played nice. Their first crossover title, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games debuted in 2007 - albeit to mediocre response, but that wasn't the point. Two of the biggest names in home video game consoles had come together, putting behind them a bitter rivalry (and cringe-worthy ad campaigns like "Genesis Does What Ninten-Don't"). Sega has since released several titles on various consoles, but their exclusive partnership with Nintendo offers a glimmer of hope to many fans of both companies.

Also announced this morning was Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games, which will be exclusive to the Wii U, and will carry forward Nintendo and Sega's tradition of releasing Olympic-themed games in their franchises. Several Sega Game Gear titles are also set to release on the 3DS Virtual Console, with a plethora of Sonic titles, including none other than Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic the Hedgehog 2. All of this is certainly good news for Nintendo, whose most recent console has run into several snags since it launched just six months ago. Exclusive titles are just what the company needs right now, and a Nintendo / Sega team-up might provide the boost necessary for both companies to continue their success into the future.

Ranters: Are you excited to see what Nintendo and Sega have to offer in the coming weeks leading up to E3? Do you think working together will allow them to gain traction in an industry some fear may have outgrown them? Personally, I'd like to see a Sonic Generations with Super Mario characters included!

Sonic: Lost World has been announced by Nintendo and Sega, and their exclusive partnership will continue as more Sonic titles are developed for the Wii U and 3DS systems.

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