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[Nocturnowl]

I didn't like the desert time stone sections, so SS doubling up on those instead of doing something different with the desert (like it does with the lava and forest areas) made me dislike that area the most.

You actually have an ally in me for this one, clever concept but they abused it to the nth degree, I find the second trip to the desert beats the hell out of the first though with my preferred usage of said gimmick that isn't so switch hitting heavy and Skipper's Retreat which just tickles me in the right way for some reason.

Don't you know, literally can be used as figuratively now (as dumb as that sounds).

You get the idea though.

Spoiler

After constantly re-using the same areas, a dungeon that's la re-use of previous environments and no real boss fight to it doesn't exactly please me.

I'm literally befuddled by this development!

Spoiler

I kind of considered the set of final bosses essentially this dungeons bosses.
Don't mind the whole environment reuse idea for the final dungeon even if the dungeon itself doesn't do a lot for me (mainly because screw sliding tiles).
Now the Wind Waker version of the re-using dungeon areas finale, that's a lacklustre final dungeon in a game of pretty basic dungeons to begin with, I mean holy hell those deadlines obliterated the back end of that game all over the place.

 

[Razzer]

I like the silent realms, I like all of the areas and pretty much all of the dungeons. Maybe it was just because I'm new to the Zelda formula so it was that which impressed me, but when people say such and such dungeon is boring I don't have that problem. Also I found the sidequests to be fun. They were enjoyable by themselves rather than being a way to achieve a goal. That and the bosses were mostly awesome, with only the imprisoned giving me problems, or rather being unenjoyable.

 

[BlackJace]

The Tears of Light and the opening kept me from replaying TP a bazillion times like other Zeldas. I really liked TP in the end though.

 

[Quackula]

There's a lot of things I did enjoy in TP. A lot of things I didn't enjoy as well though. It's a love/hate thing.

SS fixed most of the things I didn't enjoy about TP though and most of the things that tend to bother most people about it didn't really bother me at all, so that one left a good impression on me.

 

[Zen]

This thread is full of so much fail, holy shit. Typing all in caps to be 'funny' is all I could do. Reading things like

"You Sonic fans need to accept the reality that you can't survive without us Mario fans"

Made my blood boil. So much fundamental misunderstanding, arrogance, and entitlement in there.

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=714234

 

[TheOGB]

I'll be honest, it kinda looks like you blew up at the wrong post

 

[qq more]

I really don't like how people want to completely do away reasonable mechanics. I got reminded of that topic where people want to completely do away with lives from gaming forever... or people who wants turn-base combat to go away too.

I posted a neat idea regarding that thread:
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=89623038&postcount=151

 

[Zen]

I'll be honest, it kinda looks like you blew up at the wrong post

Maybe I did, oh well. :\ At worst it will be a temp ban. I should have just multi linked everything that annoyed me.

The OP starting off by calling Rings coins started things off on the wrong foot and brought forth fanboy rage in me that I didn't think could still exist.

 

[TheOGB]

Thankfully though you did eventually calm down and disagree more reasonably. But yeah, next time write down/type/quote what you disagree with, wait until you don't feel like yelling and then look at it and post your response. Sometimes we just need a quick breather.

Totally unrelated, but this is cute

And if you like Uekawa art like I do, this will probably make you sad

 

[Zen]

Thankfully though you did eventually calm down and disagree more reasonably. But yeah, next time write down/type/quote what you disagree with, wait until you don't feel like yelling and then look at it and post your response. Sometimes we just need a quick breather.

Totally unrelated, but this is cute

And if you like Uekawa art like I do, this will probably make you sad

Absolutely, I was intending to write my first post as completely over the top and mostly facetiously but somewhere along the line it got a little blurry, I don't think it reads like I intended it to and I let too much real and silly fanboy rage infect it.

 

[Razzer]

Thankfully though you did eventually calm down and disagree more reasonably. But yeah, next time write down/type/quote what you disagree with, wait until you don't feel like yelling and then look at it and post your response. Sometimes we just need a quick breather.

Totally unrelated, but this is cute

And if you like Uekawa art like I do, this will probably make you sad

His smile is so much better!

 

[Tizoc]

I was hoping it would be something like that the whole time as I was playing through the rest of the game, but nope. As for the game itself, I finished it and now I'm going for the rest of the collectibles and maybe trophies, not sure if I'm gonna do all of them. But I actually enjoyed it. A huge improvement over 2 and 3. I'm even debating on giving it the edge over 1. This game is really everything 2 and 3 should have been. It doesn't drag like 2 and it has the extra incentives for exploring that 3 didn't.

The bosses actually have set phases this time around, although they still suffered a bit from that "start out impossible and gradually adjust to doable as you fail" difficulty, with the exception of the disappointingly easy

Spoiler

QTE

final boss.

The minigames, most of which are still shitty (whack a mole and Guitar Hero-like in 2013? Really?), were only a small portion of the game and weren't frustrating hard (although the Guitar Hero ones did go on a bit too long. Note to developers: Three is the magic number. Don't go past that.).

The ancestors were all pretty cool. They're basically Sly without upgrades, each with their own special abiilties. Salim and Tennessee were my favorites, especially Salim. He has a

Spoiler

magic carpet instead of a paraglider

, his stealth attack is

Spoiler

capturing the enemies in a magic lamp

, his charge attack is

Spoiler

riding a tornado

, and his combo attack is

Spoiler

breathing fire

. Best Cooper confirmed.

All in all, I think Sanzaru did a good job with this effort. They stayed true to the core of the series while keeping the series' bullshit to a minimum. Tbh, I'd like to see them tackle Jak and Daxter, another series with a good first game and two not-so-good sequels.

Glad you liked it. I enjoyed it for the most part as well, but I still find Sly 1 to be the best in the series, with Sly 2 being 2nd place for me.

 

[AniHawk]

The silent realms were quite fun. They were fast, tense, and a good test of your knowledge of the area and terrain navigation. I'd sooner play them a dozen times than WW Forsaken Fortress or TP Tears of Light.

Actually a lot of Skyward Sword was giving you a place to explore thoroughly, then altering it drastically and testing your knowledge and navigation skills. I enjoyed that.

i agree. it was really strong. i enjoyed the tadpole note things too, probably because i can handle a controller well.

 

[TheOGB]

His smile is so much better!

His face in general is much better. Looks as if he's actually motioning for "Let's go!" instead of "Get the fuck outta here."

 

[Pietepiet]

I wish they'd let Uekawa make the official art for these games again, instead of using renders of 3D models. I like the models that they have, but I really miss his art. The stuff he still does for Sonic Channel is so great

 

[qq more]

The renders tends to look weird. I especially do not like his Smash Bros 4's CG render art, it's terrible.

And wow, that drawn version of the Sonic 4 Ep 2 logo looks so much better.

 

[PhantomOfTheKnight]

At least let him work with Archie or something, his talents are really wasted on nothing but calendars.

I also noticed a while ago that Sonic's head and quills are actually bigger in the 3D renders than Uekawa's artwork.

 

[Quackula]

The renders tends to look weird. I especially do not like his Smash Bros 4's CG render art, it's terrible.

Would've been super cool if they'd kept the art style from the official art for the N64 version.

 

[CrimsonCrescendo]

Anyone know anything about tech in here? I chose a laptop with an AMD video card over a NVIDIA video card. Mistake, or not?

 

[BHZ Mayor]

i agree. it was really strong. i enjoyed the tadpole note things too, probably because i can handle a controller well.

I'm assuming by 'well', you mean 'like a normal person'.

Spoiler

99% of motion complaints last gen were pure hyperbole.

 

[Razzer]

I'm assuming by 'well', you mean 'like a normal person'.

Spoiler

99% of motion complaints last gen were pure hyperbole.

There was a video a guy made when SS was released that summed up my experience with motion controls. I can't be bothered to find it but basically it showed how it does what you want it to do as long as you are precise and don't wave it around like an idiot.

 

[Quackula]

There was a video a guy made when SS was released that summed up my experience with motion controls. I can't be bothered to find it but basically it showed how it does what you want it to do as long as you are precise and don't wave it around like an idiot.

On the flipside, I remember this video of a crazy dude who was actually doing backflips and stuff while playing the game.

 

[Sciz]

SonicGAF's Song of the Day - #50

Song: Area ~ Starlight Carnival
Game: Sonic Colors
Composer: Mariko Nanba

Sure, let's have a two-and-a-half minute song for a ten-second map screen. You make the best dumb decisions sometimes, Sega.

Something about bells and chimes suits the series. They were all over SA1, and they're what make this piece. The contrast between heavy electronic bass and light and airy tones sells the idea of a techno space carnival pretty well, as you wander the midway of the stars. Also there's an organ, which I've never known to be a bad addition.

I should note that when this first came up in my playlist, it was the DS version. I listened through the whole thing and didn't even notice. Sometimes the DS versions are really good.

 

[Box of Bunnies]

Another Nintendo Direct, another lack of Shin Megami Tensei IV release date for PAL audiences. I mean, this is still within SMT (Standard Megami Time) I guess, I just thought that maybe things would be different this time.

I suppose I should've known better after the P4 Arena debacle and the other 3DS SMT games.

 

[AniHawk]

I'm assuming by 'well', you mean 'like a normal person'.

Spoiler

99% of motion complaints last gen were pure hyperbole.

i wanted to be kind.

also i am so so surprised that knack isn't being that well-received. i am shocked. shocked.

unlike lost world, it doesn't seem to be a mixed bag of weird fucking ideas an the occasional one that works (among more traditional stuff), but just boring and simple throughout. who would have thought one of the creative minds behind jak ii would create such a pandering experience.

 

[Razzer]

i wanted to be kind.

also i am so so surprised that knack isn't being that well-received. i am shocked. shocked.

unlike lost world, it doesn't seem to be a mixed bag of weird fucking ideas an the occasional one that works (among more traditional stuff), but just boring and simple throughout. who would have thought one of the creative minds behind jak ii would create such a pandering experience.

In fairness I'm not sure that Cerny was all that involved in the design of Jak 2. You could equally bring up his involvement in Sonic 2, Crash, Spyro, Ratchet & Clank... One blip isn't everything.

 

[Razzer]

SonicGAF's Song of the Day - #50

Song: Area ~ Starlight Carnival
Game: Sonic Colors
Composer: Mariko Nanba

One of the best map themes actually. A good track to bob your head to. You sum up the technical reasons for it's success pretty well, it gets the airy feel yet still gives vibes of technology.

Edit: oop sorry for the double post.

 

[ViewtifulJC]

Knack isn't even a platformer, so I have no idea why Anihawk cared about it

It also never looked good, in any way, so I have no idea why anyone ever cared about it.

 

[Box of Bunnies]

It also never looked good, in any way, so I have no idea why anyone ever cared about it.

Because there was nothing else in the PS4/XBOne launch lineups to give a shit about.

Well, Killer Instinct looks okay I guess.

 

[AniHawk]

never said knack was a platformer. it was the face of kiddy games for the ps4 though.

also never really felt crash or spyro. the r&c series was pretty rad though. and of course sonic 2 is a classic. i think this one can be chalked up to cerny having his attention divided. never really cared for the 'we're making this for stupid kids and their stupid moms' angle they took when promoting the game though.

 

[Shadow Hog]

I'm not really surprised that the reviews were middling, given how ultra-linear the level design is. However, what I played of the game still seemed fun, so I'm not really that deterred by the reviews. I am glad, however, that I'm not buying a launch PS4, because that's pretty much the only game I gave a damn about in the entire lineup.

Although, the Joystiq review seemed a little weird to me. That closing paragraph:

There's a danger of these complaints being interpreted as an adverse reaction to Knack's simplicity, style of graphics or wildly oscillating challenge – as a case of "it's just not for you." That, however, would mean that some people are content with slogging through a monotonous, charmless game just because it's pitched at their level. Knack fails to capitalize on its own ideas and structure, and is successful only in acting as a reminder of the shallow, punishing platformers of a time when we really cared about how many bits there were on your console.

Am I just reading too much into this (which is probably the case), or is the reviewer basically dissing the entire platformer genre?

 

[ViewtifulJC]

I read that as "this looks like a first generation PS1 action platformer thing", which fits with the mocking title "32-bit hero" and the fact that it totally looks like a first generation PS1 action platformer thing

 

[Shadow Hog]

But some first-generation PS1 action platformer things are actually pretty good. Jumping Flash or Tomb Raider, for instance. Kind of janky, but still pretty fun.

That said, their jank comes from fairly antiquated, tank-like control schemes, while Knack has a technically competent control scheme from the demo I played. Obviously, the problems are more to do with linearity and a lack of variety...

 

[OMG Aero]

i agree. it was really strong. i enjoyed the tadpole note things too, probably because i can handle a controller well.

I'm assuming by 'well', you mean 'like a normal person'.

Spoiler

99% of motion complaints last gen were pure hyperbole.

Whoa hold up a minute. Is the implication here that the only complaint against the tadtone section is because of motion controls?
I loved the motion controls in Skyward Sword and would be happy if future 3D Zelda games used them but absolutely hated the tadtone hunting. It's the most obnoxious example of padding in that whole game.
While you are looking for the other parts of the song you at least get a unique area to explore for Lanayru, and a different type of challenge where you have to reclaim your items for Eldin, but for Faron you just have to do an underwater collection quest with way too many things to collect. It's also yet another test to prove you are worthy in a game where you have to do that like 10 times.

 

[BlazeHedgehog]

So here's my Sonic Lost World video review that I spent like a week putting together

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iubF1FlKmBM

 

[AniHawk]

Whoa hold up a minute. Is the implication here that the only complaint against the tadtone section is because of motion controls?
I loved the motion controls in Skyward Sword and would be happy if future 3D Zelda games used them but absolutely hated the tadtone hunting. It's the most obnoxious example of padding in that whole game.
While you are looking for the other parts of the song you at least get a unique area to explore for Lanayru, and a different type of challenge where you have to reclaim your items for Eldin, but for Faron you just have to do an underwater collection quest with way too many things to collect. It's also yet another test to prove you are worthy in a game where you have to do that like 10 times.

it goes back to me appreciating the idea of testing your knowledge of previously visited areas. essentially flying through farore was pretty rad. considering the limitations placed on you in revisiting other areas, this one actually freed you up considerably.

 

[CrimsonCrescendo]

So here's my Sonic Lost World video review that I spent like a week putting together

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iubF1FlKmBM

Great review.

 

[Nocturnowl]

SonicGAF's Song of the Day - #50

Song: Area ~ Starlight Carnival
Game: Sonic Colors
Composer: Mariko Nanba

I really want to call this the best map theme in Colours but Sweet Mountain makes it a tough decision, amazing how long these map themes are when you consider how little time is spent on them.
Anyway, as for the one in question the bit where it cools down so to speak at around 54 seconds is pretty sweet. I was oddly elated when All stars racing transformed had a snippet of this map theme before the Starlight Carnival race track is played.

 

[BHZ Mayor]

Whoa hold up a minute. Is the implication here that the only complaint against the tadtone section is because of motion controls?

Not at all. My point was just that the "motion controls ruined everything" rhetoric was stupid. Yes there are some parts of games that would be better served with a stick or button, like swimming in Skyward Sword, or the ball in Mario Galaxy (all of the challenge in that came 100% from the awkwardness of using motion instead of analog), or rolling in DKCR, but to completely dismiss a game for using a light shake or swipe to do something like spin or swing a sword, because you want to act like you have to flail around like an idiot to do so, is just dumb.

 

[Lightning Lord]

I really want to call this the best map theme in Colours but Sweet Mountain makes it a tough decision, amazing how long these map themes are when you consider how little time is spent on them.
Anyway, as for the one in question the bit where it cools down so to speak at around 54 seconds is pretty sweet. I was oddly elated when All stars racing transformed had a snippet of this map theme before the Starlight Carnival race track is played.

Man, last time I played Colors I stayed on the map in Starlight Carnival for a while to listen to it. So good.

 

[BlackJace]

I really enjoyed your review, Sega.

I dunno if it was intentional or not, but the video ending with the "Try Again!" Screen was oddly fitting.

 

[Nocturnowl]

So here's my Sonic Lost World video review that I spent like a week putting together

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iubF1FlKmBM

Watching this made me wheel out Sonic Lost world for another curious look, mainly for the point you made regarding the design of Frozen Factory 3 and yes you can very easily evade all obstacles in FF Zone 3 if you just keep dashing forward jumping the few times necessary.

Anihawk mentioned jarring stage transitions at some point recently and Frozen Factory 4 has the winner, you're outside in the snow in a 3D area, a normal set of springs send you off of the icy tube into the empty air in front almost like you're going to fall to your death, fade to black and suddenly you appear in a 2D factory interior. This poor game manages to have my opinion of it lower with each visit.

 

[Dark Schala]

I'm going to nap/work for a bit, but before I do, Pietepiet and I were discussing the idea of having speedrun "competitions", or posting your times whenever you try to practice to get through a Unleashed/Generations Act or Zone quick enough.

You don't have to compete, but trying to get to the lowest time that you possibly could would probably be fun. Heck, if you wanted to score attack, that'd be nice. The main premise behind it is to discover for yourself how skilled you'd like to get with some of the levels and have fun while doing it. Just post your fastest levels/acts or records. You don't have to get all Kakipi/Paraxade on us, but just have fun playing around and seeing what you can do to learn the level enough to get fast.

It would be akin to people who used to post scores in score attack in Colours back when the Colours thread was flourishing (ex: here: http://neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=24760596&postcount=1602 ... I was lurking then and wished I could've participated, but I wasn't approved yet).

The idea was pretty much born after talking about Blaze's Lost World review/the Uncolourations games in general since Pietepiet was playing Colours earlier. The discussion touched upon that despite the Uncolourations games (or more specifically, Unleashed and Generations) have this tendency to have the "boost to win" criticism stuck to them, there is a moderate amount of challenge associated with them in order to get as good as you possibly could, enough to seamlessly transition and continue learning enough about the level to do that.

Heck, we could probably extend it to trios of games if you all would like to. Like for a few weeks, the Uncolourations games. Another few weeks, the Advance games. Another few weeks, the Classic games, and so on and so forth. That is, if people think the idea is fun.

So how does everyone feel about that?

 

[Pietepiet]

Totes down, especially for Generations. I've been itching to learn a new stage anyway since I'm having a hard time breaking my 1:38 on Speed Highway Act 2 right now.

I feel we should ban glitches, though. There's one in Speed Highway Act 2 where you fall through the level, for example, and that saves like 10 seconds or something. Another is the 3D-Rocket thing in Planet Wisp Act 2.

 

[qq more]

That would be damn fun. Great Sonic games are an absolute blast to replay.

 

[Regiruler]

SonicGAF's Song of the Day - #50

Song: Area ~ Starlight Carnival
Game: Sonic Colors
Composer: Mariko Nanba

Sure, let's have a two-and-a-half minute song for a ten-second map screen. You make the best dumb decisions sometimes, Sega.

Something about bells and chimes suits the series. They were all over SA1, and they're what make this piece. The contrast between heavy electronic bass and light and airy tones sells the idea of a techno space carnival pretty well, as you wander the midway of the stars. Also there's an organ, which I've never known to be a bad addition.

I should note that when this first came up in my playlist, it was the DS version. I listened through the whole thing and didn't even notice. Sometimes the DS versions are really good.

I'm reminded of Blinx the Time Sweeper

Watching this made me wheel out Sonic Lost world for another curious look, mainly for the point you made regarding the design of Frozen Factory 3 and yes you can very easily evade all obstacles in FF Zone 3 if you just keep dashing forward jumping the few times necessary.

Anihawk mentioned jarring stage transitions at some point recently and Frozen Factory 4 has the winner, you're outside in the snow in a 3D area, a normal set of springs send you off of the icy tube into the empty air in front almost like you're going to fall to your death, fade to black and suddenly you appear in a 2D factory interior. This poor game manages to have my opinion of it lower with each visit.

Yeah. If anything, they should have given the game another two months to smooth out level transitions and slip in more tutorial cards.

 

[Razzer]

Only Generations is available to me at the moment but I would be totally down to do that Schala. I enjoy doing it anyway so giving me more motivation will only make me do it more as I love competition.

 

[CrimsonCrescendo]

Sounds good to me, Schala.

 

[Razzer]

I just cracked out Generations for a test run and realized the hard drive that my saves were on broke so I have to complete the game again. I actually like this as it will serve as a good warm up.

Edit: Okay am I the only one who hears the bassline of Echoes by the Rapture in Speed Highway Modern? I swear I'm not imagining this.

Edit 2: I just realized that you are in shallows against Perfect Chaos, so actually it's not 'Sonic can do what he needed Super for before' as he would drown in the original scenario.

 

[Dario ff]

If I may suggest a competition idea, Red Ring Attacks are also a nice idea for Generations, although it's not doable in all stages due to being unable to get all the 5 red rings in a run. I wish Lost World actually implemented them, since it'd make way more sense in that game.

The only problem with the Red Ring attack is that Generations hides the Red Rings after you collect them, unlike Lost World or Colors... but it could work for Colors too.