No good thing lasts forever, and parties (or festivals, if you will) are no
exemption. The festivities of Sonic Team's ten-day Aki Matsuri (or Fall Festival) wind down to a
quiet close rather than going out with a bang. Still, you can't say it wasn't an exciting (and
eventful) ten days. The Phantasy Star Online page is at long last available in English,
and a Japanese release of December 21 has been set. The crack Latin cast of Samba de Amigo
return to Japanese arcades in mid-November and Japanese DCs on December 14 in Samba de Amigo
Ver.2000. Our lives have been enriched with 20 new glimpses into the mouth-watering world of
Sonic Adventure 2. On top of it all, we've got 10 all-new ChuChu Rocket! puzzles
to sink our KapuKapus into. Most intriguing of all, though, was the live webcam which was placed
at various locations around Sonic Team HQ over the period. We saw staff meetings, we saw Team
members goofing off, we saw one hard-working programmer confined to his cubicle for the better
portion of one full night, we saw giant Sonic plushies with minds of their own, we saw slick &
sexy BR models of Tillis and Chris, and we saw that Sonic Team USA are tremendously camera shy
(either that or they're lazy bastards). But alas, 'tis now but fodder for the pages of history.
While Uncle Yuji and the gang put the finishing touches on PSO and continue production of
Adventure 2, it's back to the doldrums of daily life for we peasantfolk, servants of the gods.
But before we turn our backs and make Sonic Team's Fall Festival part of the past, let's make
sure we grab the last handfull of booty for the road. *reaches for the Tillis model*
The final two Sonic Adventure 2 screens show us the mysterious new face
we've been waiting to see! The new kid on the block is this enigmatic and thus far nameless
hedgehog who looks like a black version of Super Sonic with red lining. And DAMN does he look
cool. Chuck blackie into the bag with Metal Sonic and Knuckles as a new rival for our main man
in blue.
The final eight PSO web cards have been posted, and I don't know about you, but
I have the full collection! The password to access the album is "49880061". I actually
knew this a few days ago, but didn't want to spoil anything. Ain't I wicked?
And here are the last pair of images from the live webcams. Sonic Team Japan
wishes us pleasant dreams with a pile of spiffy NiGHTS swag, and Sonic Team USA sees us off with
a lovely panorama shot of a wall, which is about as much excitement as we ever saw on that side
anyway. (At least we know which side has been working for the past ten days...)
