Is there a possibility of new 2D Sonic games?

Yesterday, Luke Plunkett of Kotaku had a chat with Sonic Unleashed producer Akinori Nishiyama. One of the things he asked him was the possibility of new 2D Sonic games, whether that be a HD remake or a totally new classic-style title (à la Megaman 9). This is what happened:


Nishiyama: There's always the possibility. Whether it would be viable remains to be seen, but having a new game - or even a remake of the GBA games, which we now can't use [thanks to the DSi] - would certainly be possible. If we made one, would you buy it?

Me: [nods]

Nishiyama: Really?

Me: [nods]

Nishiyama: [laughs] Great! One of our ideas has been that on older consoles, you may have had only 16 colours. One thing we could do is make a game like Mega Man 9; do a new Sonic, but in an old style.

When Nishiyama asked "Would you buy it?", I'm sure that millions of Sonic fans simultaneously screamed, "YES!" at their computer screens. Including myself. I just cannot believe that Sega is so oblivious to what its fans want! Of course we would buy a new 2D Sonic game, none of us want another horrendous 3D one! Even Sonic Unleashed, which is supposed to go "back to its roots", has more forward-scrolling and a terribly unnecessary "werehog" element. Sega insists on ruining its Sonic games, thinking (or rather telling) the consumer what it wants.

In case you're wondering, when the DSi is mentioned it is implying that it does not have a GBA slot, effectively killing the GBA. Therefore remaking the Sonic Advance series is a possibility.

Although a new 2D Sonic would be great, I would rather have one with HD graphics rather than 16-bit. The Xbox 360 and PS3 have so much graphical power that a 2D game which utilised it would look amazing! However I certainly would not complain if Sega did use 16-bit graphics. I just want to experience Sonic again in the second dimension.