Short film celebrates 35 years of Sonic the Hedgehog

Sega announced the Sonic the Hedgehog: Memories and Beyond 35th anniversary short film on Saturday at Anime Expo 2026. The company revealed a sneak peek video of the film.

The full short will debut this fall.

Sega describes the film:

Dr. Eggman’s new evil scheme is to upgrade Metal Sonic into the ultimate fighting machine by stealing Sonic’s life-data and harnessing the power of the Chaos Emeralds. Sonic and his friends realize that to defeat Metal Sonic they must rely on the friendship they built through their adventures.

Sonic art and animation team members Takashi Iizuka, Austin Keys, and Jasmin Hernandez were present at the Anime Expo panel celebrating 35 years of Sonic the Hedgehog.

The live-action Sonic the Hedgehog 4 film is scheduled for a March 19, 2027 release. The franchise is also receiving a fifth film in 2028.

Yūki Imada launched the Sonic to Yūki no Tsurugi (Sonic and the Blade of Courage) manga in Shogakukan‘s Monthly CoroCoro Comic magazine in June 2025.

The Sonic the Hedgehog franchise has crossed a combined total video game sales and downloads of 1.51 billion units as of 2022.

Source: Email correspondence

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Aksys Games announced new upcoming game releases at its panel at Anime Expo on Friday.

The announced titles include:

Title: Another Eden Begins
Release Date: 2027 (physical version only)
Consoles: Nintendo Switch, Switch 2
Developer: Wright Flyer Studios
Summary: Embark on an epic adventure beyond time and space in a new time-traveling RPG from the mind of Masato Kato. Journey through multiple eras, past, present, and future, in a richly woven tale featuring a fully voiced main story and unforgettable music from Yasunori Mitsuda and Procyon Studios. Complete the main story and take your powered-up characters through New Game+ where you’ll find over 10 different endings that unfold based on your actions!

The game will debut digitally for Nintendo Switch, Switch 2, and PC via Steam on September 17.

Title: Bounty Sisters
Release Date: Fall 2026 (physical and digital)
Consoles: Switch
Developer: PIXEL Co., Ltd.
Summary: A brand new vertically scrolling shoot ’em up takes off with Bounty Sisters! Welcome aboard this slapstick adventure that pits three bounty-hunting sisters against a band of villains!

Title: Cthulhu Mythos Adventures
Release Date: Holiday 2026 (physical and digital)
Consoles: Switch, additional platforms to be determined
Developer: Gotcha Gotcha Games
Summary: A two-in-one game collection, immerse yourself in the captivating world of the Cthulhu Mythos with this 2D visual novel game featuring a thrilling TRPG-based experience where dice rolls will decide your fate! Do your best to escape the abandoned hospital in Lunatic Whispers! Break the curse that’s been put on you by a mysterious entity in The Isle Of Ubohoth!

Title: Illusion of Itehari -trail-
Release Date: Spring 2027 (physical and digital)
Consoles: Switch
Developer: Broccoli, TIS Creation
Summary: The walled garden in the sky that has withstood centuries of isolation. Now, a new dawn breaks on this utopia of falsehoods, and with it the next chapter of the dramatic love adventure! Illusion of Itehari -trail- is the sequel to Illusion of Itehari, featuring characters old and new brought to life with Live2D® in the familiar visual novel format. With the After Story picking up after the True Ending from the first game, and a collection of short stories, Illusion of Itehari -trail- delivers a rich narrative experience distinctive of a sequel. Itehari faces tides of turbulent change…and her people must find their own answers while the line between right and wrong is blurrier than ever before.

Title: Olympia Soirée -Catharsis-
Release Date: Spring 2027 (physical and digital)
Consoles: Switch
Developer: Idea Factory
Summary: A new romantic fantasy unfolds as a sequel to “Olympia Soirée.” Two and a half years after the rainbow rainfall, under the rays of the true sun, the island has begun to change thanks to the younger generation, led by Akaza. As only daughters are born to the precious White, Olympia’s wedding ceremony has been long anticipated. She, too, is sure she will be united with her soulmate. One day, an Outsider washes ashore on Tennyo Island—a man bearing the hair color of the White. Why has the ocean brought this man? And what does his existence mean for the island? And so, the seeds begin to sprout.

Title: Undergrounded
Release Date: Fall 2026 (physical version only)
Consoles: Switch
Developer: Game Studio Inc, room6
Summary: A puzzle adventure game that takes you through nostalgic landscapes of America’s past. Help a young man look for his ring as he ventures through an underground maze right below the streets of Manhattan using his mysterious power of… retro games.

Title: Over Requiemz
Release Date: August 20 (physical and digital)
Consoles: Switch
Developer: Idea Factory, Kogado Studio
Summary: You have wandered into Oz, a faraway kingdom ruled by four witches and the king, after being caught up in a terrifying tornado. But you are not welcome. Sentenced to death upon arrival, you are ordered to investigate mysterious ruins along with four murderers on death row and a secretive supervisor of the condemned. Your only choice is to escape the death sentence and discover a way home. In a dark reimagining of the classic tale, high school student Yuhiru is swept up in a mysterious tornado and finds herself lost in Oz. There, she is unjustly sentenced to death and ordered to travel with four convicts on death row and their supervisor. Their goal? Mysterious ruins that look like home, only dilapidated and infested with monsters. At the mercy of her fellow travelers, Yuhiru will face many hard decisions along the way. But there’s one thing she must bear in mind: No one is lost forever, no matter how far they’ve strayed.

Title: Tristia: Chronicles
Release Date: September 17 (physical and digital)
Consoles: Switch
Developer: Kogado Studio
Summary: An upcoming bundle for the Nintendo Switch that combines two popular invention shop simulation games by Kogado Studio: Tristia: Legacy and Tristia: Restore. The collection follows the adventures of genius young inventor Nanoca Flanka as she works to revitalize the floundering marine city of Tristia.

Source: Press release

New visual also revealed for anime debuting in October

The staff of Tempal: Item no Chikara (Tempal ~The Power of Items~), the television anime of South Korean webtoon studio REDICE STUDIO‘s Overgeared webtoon, revealed the anime’s first key visual, first promotional video, and more cast members on Saturday. Crunchyroll revealed the promotional video at Anime Expo on Friday, and also stated it will stream the anime.

 

 

 The new cast members include Saya Fukuzumi as Euphemina and Shuntaro Takayama as Huroi.

The anime will premiere in October.

The cast includes Tatsumaru Tachibana as Grid and Asami Seto as Yura.

Ayako Kōno (Sword Art Online the Movie -Progressive- Aria of a Starless Night, Sword Art Online The Movie – Progressive: Scherzo of Deep Night) is directing the film at J.C. Staff, with EGG FIRM producing the anime. Kenta Ihara (Saga of Tanya the Evil, Uncle From Another World, Blue Miburo) is in charge of the series scripts, and Kenta Ihara (Demon Lord 2099, I Want to End This Love Game) is designing the characters. Yoshikazu Iwanami is the sound director, and Yoshiaki Fujisawa is composing the music. Pony Canyon is credited for music production.

Yen Press publishes the webtoon in English under its Ize Press label. Yen Press describes the story:

Youngwoo Shin is a deadbeat in real life, working odd jobs to barely pay off his loans. Even his family has written him off as a hopeless video game addict. But when he logs in to the massively popular VR game Satisfy, Youngwoo becomes Grid the Warrior…who is also painfully mediocre. Everything changes when he stumbles across a tome containing the lost knowledge of a legendary blacksmith. The catch is, using it resets all his levels! In order to survive after being forced back to square one, Grid will need to hone his skills and gather reliable allies…or not! Who needs all that when you’re decked out in god-tier items?!

The webtoon is based on a web novel by Park Saenal. Dong-Wook Lee is writing the webtoon, and Team Argo is drawing the art.

Yen Press released the 10th volume of the webtoon on May 19. The webtoon is also available digitally on Tapas.

Sources: Tempal anime’s website, Comic Natalie

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