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One of the longest running rumors of the video game community is the claim that Michael Jackson contributed to the soundtrack for Sonic the Hedgehog 3 to some degree -- a claim bolstered by a number of similarities between the game's tunes and Jackson's own body of work. Now, more than 15 years after the game's release, we might have confirmation that the late King of Pop was responsible for the threequel's incredibly catchy ditties.

According to a forum post on gaming music enthusiast site VGMdb.net, the latest issue of French Michael Jackson fan magazine Black & White contains an interview with composer Brad Buxer, who explains that he and Michael "did compose music for the game." However, due to the Genesis' less-than-mindblowing sound quality, Jackson reportedly asked that his name not appear on the game, as he "did not want to be associated with a product that devalued his music."

According to poster's transcript of the interview, Buxer also confirmed that we weren't imagining the aforementioned melodic similarities -- Jackson and Buxer apparently managed to adapt some of their work on the game for later use in their own music. Specifically, Buxer mentioned the melody for the game's closing credits were "used as base for Stranger in Moscow."

Also, "Man in the Mirror?" Totally written about Doctor Robotnik.

No, not from Sonic games! Earlier this year, the fans at The Sonic Stadium held Sonic Relief 2009, an event through which the forces of Sonic fan art were used for good. The group has announced a second Sonic Relief drive for 2010, promising donations to charity for each work of Sonic fan art submitted.

The group is also asking for fans to use their creativity in another way: by planning their own Sonic-related fundraisers and adding the donations to the main total. This is where your "Watch Me Play Sonic Riders" marathon comes in. "Alternatively," the organizers note, "this system will also allow anyone to just simply make a donation should they wish!" This is where the proceeds from selling your copy of Sonic Riders come in.

It's nice to be reminded that fans can band together for something other than boycotts. The drive will run from January to March.

[Via Sonic City Blognik]

The BBFC classification site lists a "Sonic Classic Collection" coming to DS soon. Normally, with these ratings, we'd be left to speculate as to the identity of the games on the collection -- however, the BBFC helpfully provided a list of games on the cart!

According to the rating, it'll feature Sonic 1-3, plus Sonic and Knuckles -- with the ability to virtually "Lock-on" and play as Knuckles in the older games. Also included in the shockingly specific list of in-game content: Sonic Chronicles and "The History of Sonic" video content and the art gallery.

We can only hope it turns out better than Sonic the Hedgehog Genesis on GBA.

[Via Kombo]

We're usually hesitant to spend real-life money on virtual clothing, but you can bet we'll spring at the chance to purchase the recently revealed Sonic the Hedgehog costume pack for LittleBigPlanet. See, if we dress ourselves up like the series' speedy, cerulean protagonist, then play one of the many, many Green Hill Zone stages crafted by the LBP community, we can pretend that we're playing a decent, current-gen Sonic platformer.

We've contacted Media Molecule to try and find out the North American release date and price for this costume pack. We shouldn't let the developer hear us say this, but we'd pay anything for that beautiful illusion.

[Via Siliconera]

According to Sega, the XBLA version of Sonic the Hedgehog 2 will soon become an Xbox Live Deal of the Week. The deal is scheduled to begin November 30 -- just in time for the holidays -- and will see the game's price drop from 400 ($5) to just 240 ($3). That's an absolute pittance for one of the best Sonic games out there, and with Project Needlemouse still a long way out, you'd be hard-pressed to do much better (seriously).

Some folks measure the length of time it takes for a new console to be hacked wide open by how long it takes to display a "Hello, World!" message. For us, that metric is determined by how long it takes to get a Sega CD emulator running on the system. For the PSP Go, that period of time has been finalized: 43 long, lonely, Night Trap-less days.

A YouTube video by "Neon" from "Team Typhoon" (is that some sort of gang?) appears to prove that on some PSP Go, somewhere in the world, one can play Sonic CD. Don't get your hopes up -- the video's annotations repeatedly promise that the hack will not be released to the general public, so for the time being, you're going to have to keep playing that old copy of Wirehead on your clunky, Voltron-esque home console. Still, our heart swells knowing that our wildest dreams are possible -- if not slightly out of reach.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]

Major Nelson has shared with the internet the following facts: Army of Two, Midnight Club: LA and Sonic Unleashed are now available on Xbox Live Games on Demand. Army of Two and Midnight Club are available everywhere except Japan and North Korea, while the madness that is Sonic Unleashed is available worldwide. In North America, Army of Two is $19.99 and Midnight Club is $29.99. Sonic Unleashed will cost you $29.99 and the immediate forfeit of your immortal soul. Prices in other regions will vary (except for the soul part; we're pretty sure that's constant).

Just when you thought he'd finally get around to avenging his father's death, Ryo Hazuki has appended one more thing to his lackadaisical to-do list: "Appear as a playable competitor in Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing." It seems Sega might have a lucky hit (how about it?) on its hands, especially if the compulsion to purchase any new Shenmue-related material -- no matter how tactlessly integrated -- is as strong with you as it is with us.

Of course, one can hope (in vain) that Ryo and his forklift follow a similar trajectory to Rocket Knight, first appearing as an undignified cameo and then a proper protagonist. Expect to make your grudging purchase of All-Stars Racing sometime in 2010, henceforth referred to as the day of the incident.

Among the truckloads of possibly legit megatons included in the alleged leaked minutes from a meeting between Sega of America and Sony Computer Entertainment America, a number of notable gaffes and oddities can be found. Besides wondering if "characters from [the] Rare or Fable universes" should be included in Sonic Racing, it appears that Sega may be interested in assigning all of its properties a PlayStation Home-room. Oh, and a product evaluator thought Alpha Protocol felt "barely RPG" -- final analysis: make it even more Mass Effect-y.

Additionally, the mention of PS2 games as downloadable content on PSN makes us reminisce all the way back to mid-2006 when the idea first popped up on our radar --- surely, this isn't why Sony removed built-in backwards compatibility? And either the person taking minutes was daydreaming or knows something we don't, as reference is made to "Eidos' Batman" featuring "PS3/PSP interoperability" support -- a Batman or related DC Comics PSP game then? Juicer still, that little mention comes right after talk of a project named "Vanquish" and a possible PSP iteration of the currently shelved Aliens: Colonial Marines that Gearbox Software is working on. Also, Sony is eager to check out that hopefully not-so-crappy Thor game soon (suggestion: make it less Iron Man 2-y).

The cherry on top comes in the form of what we've been calling around the Joystiq water cooler: "Sonic and the Inverted Castle." Found under the "Sonic Anniversary" subhead, the note taker jots down, "SCEA would love PSN exclusive power ups/different game modes (like Castlevania's flip it over/backwards)." Actually, we believe that's Missy Elliott who puts the thing down, flips it and reverses it, thank you very much.

Sonic fans are notoriously devoted to Sega's hedgehog mascot, sticking with the franchise in spite of Sega's best efforts to run it into the ground. However, it's arguable that no one is more dedicated to Sonic than Rich Kuta. Why? He's making a feature-length Sonic film -- and paying for it with his own money.

It sounds absurd; impossible, even. However, Kuta has recently released a trailer to prove that he's got the know-how to make it work. The project is currently in the "storyboarding stage," with a planned crew of nearly 60 people. The film will be hand-drawn using a program called ToonBoom, and will be animated by an unnamed studio in Miami. Kuta plans on releasing the film in 2011, in time for Sonic's 20th anniversary, for free. Granted, he may come into a pretty major hiccup, as he admits, "We do not have SEGA's endorsement, permission, or authorization to do so, and it is a clear violation of copyright laws."

Should Sega avoid slamming a C&D on Kuta and co., then this film may become one part of the rebirth of the fastest thing alive. We're going to grab our Sonic PJs and dust off our DVDs of SatAM while we join the legions of Sonic nerds that are now anticipating this film in addition to Project Needlemouse.

The "Project Needlemouse" reimagining of Sonic the Hedgehog has been exclusively revealed on ProjectNeedlemouse.com, and it's more spectacular than we could ever have imagined. It delivers exactly what Sonic fans have clamored for: a brand new, fully 2D sidescrolling Sonic adventure, with appearances only by Sonic and Tails, and an emphasis on pure speed. The best thing about it: you can play the game right now, in your browser.

Okay, so it's a joke created by someone who beat Sega to the domain name, parodying another fan-created "Needlemouse" Sonic game. But that's still less of a disappointment than the real Project Needlemouse will probably be.

[Via GoNintendo]

Just hours shy of Sega Dreamcast's 10 year anniversary comes word that Sega's iconic mascot, Sonic the Hedgehog, is due to make a return to his 2D roots in a new game planned for 2010. Currently going by the codename Project Needlemouse, the game will be high-definition and is "built from the ground up," according to a report by GameSpot.

The site spoke with Ken Ballough, associate brand manager at Sega America, who said, "Old-school Sonic fans have long asked to see Sonic return to a more 2D style of gameplay. Many liked the daytime stages in Unleashed, but wanted to see a game that plays purely similar to the early games of the Genesis. Project Needlemouse is that critical first step that brings Sonic back to his 2D roots."

In late July, Sega America marketing VP Sean Ratcliffe admitted that core gamers have lost a fair massive amount of faith in the Sonic franchise, saying that, "The quality is something that will be fixed over time." Here's hoping that the Project Needlemouse announcement is a sign the repairs will be made sooner rather than later. Check out the teaser (complete with ye olde "SEGA!" chorus) after the break.

[Thanks, Shadsy!]

With Major Nelson taking this day of labor off, we look across the pond for word on this week's Xbox Live Arcade title. As previously noted, it appears Sonic and Knuckles will be this week's release at 400 ($5). The good word comes from European Xbox community manager "AceyBongos," which just doesn't have the same ring as "Major Nelson." Could Microsoft at least make the guy a general or captain?

Update: Joining the hedgehog and the echidna will be the inventor and his faithful companion. Major Nelson brings word that the mischief of Wallace and Gromit Episode 2: The Last Resort will also be available this Wednesday for 800 ($10).

Update 2: Last minute change: No Wallace and Gromit.

Once again, Xbox Live Arcade will be visited by a ghostly vision of Sonic the Hedgehog's good (see: not terrible) old days -- Shacknews is reporting that the Sega Vintage Collection 2 series will draw to a close on September 9 with the release of Sonic & Kunckles. As hinted at when this Sega collection was first announced, owners of the previous Sonic XBLA titles will have access to bonuses in the latest installment -- including the "Blue Sphere" mode (Sonic 1), as well as the ability to play as Knuckles in Sonic 2 and 3.

We've contacted Sega to confirm the release date and get pricing details -- and also to discover whether the Wii version of the game (revealed by an ESRB listing) will be made available simultaneously.