Months after new logos had been noticed, the creator of Ecco The Dolphin has confirmed the series is returning subsequent yr.
When it was found that Sega had filed new logos for Ecco The Dolphin in January, it was suspected that this was the key announcement Microsoft was teasing for the then upcoming Xbox showcase.
That wasn’t the case, with the shock reveal being for a new Ninja Gaiden instead, however it seems there was significance behind these Ecco logos in any case.
According to Ecco creator Ed Annunziata, not solely is he and the unique group reuniting to remaster the primary two Ecco video games, however they’re engaged on a new sequel as effectively.
Xbox Wire not too long ago posted an article celebrating Asian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, the place it highlighted a number of video games, like Tchia and Ecco, that take inspiration from API cultures.
This included a quick interview with Annunziata about Ecco’s influences and the way it aimed to boost consciousness about ocean preservation, which Annunziata capped off with an announcement for the way forward for the series.
‘Me and the entire original team are going to remaster the original Ecco The Dolphin and Tides Of Time games,’ defined Annunziata. ‘Then we will make a new, third game with contemporary play and GPU sensibilities.’
There aren’t any different particulars, with Annunziata solely sharing a countdown website that’s set to finish in roughly 8,500 hours on the time of writing. So, you’ll be able to anticipate to see a larger announcement round this time subsequent yr.
Curiously, there’s no point out of Sega’s involvement with any of those initiatives, however you must assume it’s since, apart from the aforementioned logos, Sega owns the rights to the Ecco IP.
Original developer Appaloosa Interactive was a Hungarian studio that made the Ecco video games for Sega and was by no means a subsidiary of the corporate.
What is Ecco The Dolpin?
Ecco The Dolphin is a series of extraordinarily difficult motion journey video games for the Mega Drive and Dreamcast, that noticed the titular dolphin discover the depths of the ocean and journey via time to fend off an alien invasion.
Popular with non-gamers on the time, Ecco developed a cult following and has seen a handful of re-releases over time.
However, the series met its finish with the Dreamcast sport Ecco The Dolphin: Defender Of The Future, a reboot that we’re guessing the new Ecco sport will ignore in favour of sticking with the continuity of the primary two video games.
The Dreamcast sport wasn’t a large hit and a deliberate sequel was cancelled, which is the final time Appaloosa Interactive labored with Sega. Although they did make a religious successor in 2006’s Jaws Unleashed, which had many similarities with Defender Of The Future.
It wasn’t a success both and proved to be Appalosa Interactive’s final sport, with the studio shutting down the exact same yr.
Ever since, Annunziata has been attempting to proceed Ecco the Dolphin, having beforehand ran a crowdfunding marketing campaign for a religious successor known as The Big Blue that in the end failed.
In the wake of its failure, Annunziata filed a lawsuit to strive and reclaim Ecco from Sega and in accordance with a GamesBeat report from 2016, the 2 sides reached an undisclosed settlement.
Presumably, this has helped pave the best way for Annunziata to reunite the unique group for the Ecco remasters and sequel.
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