• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Sonic the Hedgehog Community Thread |OT3 & Knuckles|

Dark Schala

Eloquent Princess
I think both Unleashed's daytime stages and Colors both make for fun Sonic games.

*shrug*
Same. That's where the pinnacle was a few years ago and I miss it.

But let's never forget that I like Unleashed as a whole, haha. I still want another game like that because it felt genuine.

lets all hope for a good sonic game this year

but at this point I'll take a above mediocre one
While Beef is banned? I dunno, man. This doesn't bode well.

Where have you been T.T
I had a 50/50 year :)

Jan-April was school times. Like hardcore school.
Then summer, I kinda didn't feel like posting much. Noi got me into FF14 and I mostly played that.

Also Noi and I are together. I'm happy.

Then I started my internship at the local hospital while juggling it with school and my hours are so dumb that I just come home and want to not think, haha. Plus family stuff happened in October (a few people know what's going on, but I'd rather not mention it on GAF) that destroyed most of my free time up to now, so I hope things get better. So juggling the personal stuff with school with work, and then trying to fit all the stuff in-between is tiring.

2016. {Please assist.}
 

OMG Aero

Member
Same. That's where the pinnacle was a few years ago and I miss it.

But let's never forget that I like Unleashed as a whole, haha. I still want another game like that because it felt genuine.
If nothing else Sonic Unleashed feels like a game that had a lot of heart (and money) put into it.
They really nail the feeling that you are travelling to different parts of the world between the art styles and music. Even with the dumb werehog stuff it's still probably the 3D Sonic game I feel most strongly about and if I had to pick my favourite Sonic soundtrack it would certainly be in the running.
 

Falk

that puzzling face
First of a series of weekly reminders that it's now been as long to Sonic Generations (5 years) as Sonic Generations was from Sonic 2006.
 

Sami+

Member
I... I just want an Epic Sonic again.

Remember the intro and all the Unleashed cutscenes? The production values? The hubs? The music?

It was an Epic.

I feel its the last one Sonic Team put a ton of heart into. You can tell every single little detail was given into the game and the game feeling the most polished & complete (still feels the most complete next to Colors) in comparison to Sonic games prior.

I would love another Unleashed-caliber production out of Sonic in the future and while I don't expect this upcoming Anniversary game to fit that bill, I feel we will see another one in the future. Maybe it might tie into the upcoming film? Maybe it might even be the Anniversary game after all.

All I know is that this year I can finally be excited about Sonic again, and I haven't felt that since 2011.

I still gotta give that game another go. I wish they would rerelease on PC or something because the PS3 performance is atrocious and I really don't want to get a 360 to replay a game I already have but not as bad.

We don't even know for sure if we are getting a big game though.

What if it is mobile?

There's no way the Sonic Team that made Unleashed and Generations holed up in their office for four years so they could release a fucking mobile game lol
 

Owari

Member
So a (non-boom) 25th Anniversary Sonic game is all but confirmed, eh? I wonder if we can expect an announcement at E3?
 

ShadiWulf

Member
So a (non-boom) 25th Anniversary Sonic game is all but confirmed, eh? I wonder if we can expect an announcement at E3?

Probaby before E3.

April 1st seems to be the day if Ruby's tweets are anything to go by. Also the Japanese Sonic Adventure music concert is on April 2nd (japanese time) so. So April 1st is really seeming like it's the day the internet implodes.
Big's Fishing Adventure 3
 

BlackJace

Member
I mean, something tells me that an HD Remake of any or all of the OG trilogy is coming.

Would probably prefer a new game, but then again, could SEGA really mess up putting a shiny coat of paint on old, actually good games?

Dunno man
 

Dark Schala

Eloquent Princess
Ooooh, hey ShadiWulf.

I mean, something tells me that an HD Remake of any or all of the OG trilogy is coming.

Would probably prefer a new game, but then again, could SEGA really mess up putting a shiny coat of paint on old, actually good games?

Dunno man
Never forget.

At least they don't have Backbone doing their ports anymore?

If nothing else Sonic Unleashed feels like a game that had a lot of heart (and money) put into it.
They really nail the feeling that you are travelling to different parts of the world between the art styles and music. Even with the dumb werehog stuff it's still probably the 3D Sonic game I feel most strongly about and if I had to pick my favourite Sonic soundtrack it would certainly be in the running.
Same. Honestly, if I had to make a list of ten soundtracks I liked from last gen, Unleashed would definitely be on it because of the sheer effort.
 

Sciz

Member
SonicGAF,

I have, over the years, never really sunk my teeth into SA2. Some scattered Sonic levels out of context and battle mode matches at a friend's house, speedrun videos on Youtube, the music via the soundtrack, but never have I properly played it myself.

A couple days ago, I finally decided to fix that and see what the fuss was about personally, since I still quite like SA1. Having just wrapped up the hero story, my impressions are as follows:


This game is a fucking disaster on every level.


I am continuing with it, at this point, simply to see how much worse it can get, but I fear that my imagination is insufficient to prepare me.

edit: Pandora, upon opening the box, at least found hope left inside after all the evils came rushing out. I am not so lucky.
 
The Dark Story is even worse since Shadow only has 4 levels. I hate this game whole package so much that I can't even put it into words.
 

Sciz

Member
A4vV5AZ.png


This is Shrug Tree. It has more charisma than anything else in this goddamned game.

"Why does anyone like Sonic Adventure 2, Shrug Tree?"

IoupZaL.png
 

WillyFive

Member
I've tried.

I tried looking at individual components.

I tried looking at the overall product.

But I just can't find any reason someone would like SA1 over SA2 that is not nostalgia.

SA2 is like the perfect sequel in what a staggering improvement over the original it was.

Sure, a game where Sonic doesn't fall through the ground at random moments would have been an improvement already; but Sonic Team went all the way.
 

Village

Member
Like i cannot even play sonic adventure 1 anymore.
Sa2 is way better.

I don't even understand how you are like I still like sonic adventure 1 and calling 2 a disaster with those shit ass sonic levels. How you fuck up the sonic levels, no sonic stop stop during this ice level and shimmy around icicles.
 

TheOGB

Banned
SA1 I could at least give a 'you tried' sticker to. A ripped sticker that doesn't stick anymore.

But SA2 is just like 'no fuck you, you failed'
 

Sami+

Member
SA1's got a way better story, hub worlds, and feels a lot smoother to control. I personally prefer the art style too- the only thing I'd say is straight up better in the sequel is the decreased bugginess and the cutscene direction. Everything else naaaaahhhhh.

Really hate SA2.
 

Sciz

Member
I'd need to replay it to be certain, but I now suspect that Heroes is a significantly better game than SA2. It commits some of the same level design sins, but it's much less stuck on autopilot, the camera actually kinda works, and it's down to only a quarter of the game being absolutely godawful.

edit: Heroes also doesn't map light dash and "dive into pit" to the same button.
 

Anth0ny

Member
I'd need to replay it to be certain, but I now suspect that Heroes is a significantly better game than SA2. It commits some of the same level design sins, but it's significantly less stuck on autopilot, the camera actually kinda works, and it's down to only a quarter of the game being absolutely godawful.

it's probably more enjoyable than the mech and emerald stages

but the sonic/shadow sa2 stages are still GOAT. stages in heroes are similar, but you... throw your friends at enemies instead of homing attack. or use homing attack but it's weird and weak. SA2 always felt better to play.
 
Strictly speaking, I think SA2 plays better than SA1. More polished engine, twice the framerate, a little bit more thought into what worked and what didn't from the first game. Obviously some missteps were made, with Knuckles's/Rouge's radars being half-locked-off from the onset instead of all-active like the original game, but by-and-large I think it plays better between the two.

...although, that said, the mood of the first game is soooo much better. Much brighter and cheerier. Granted, we're still talking about a game where an entire city is flooded for the climax, but I still find it more appealing than a game where Eggman starts doing irreparable damage to local stellar objects as a warning shot.

Heroes better than SA2, though? Nah. In mood, certainly, but I felt the controls were so much looser in that game that it became unfun. And said loose controls then became the standard for the series going forward.
 
Like i cannot even play sonic adventure 1 anymore.
Sa2 is way better.

I don't even understand how you are like I still like sonic adventure 1 and calling 2 a disaster with those shit ass sonic levels. How you fuck up the sonic levels, no sonic stop stop during this ice level and shimmy around icicles.

For me, it breaks down like this: Sonic Adventure 1 is an adventure. It's got a sense of mystery and exploration but it maintains a pretty lighthearted, fun attitude. It's a buggy, broken game where rubbing up against the wrong wall can make Sonic clip through the floor and fall to his death, but it's got heart and soul. It is the embodiment of a new frontier for the franchise, for better or worse.

Sonic Adventure 2 was almost assuredly rushed in its development. So was Sonic Adventure 1, but in SA2 there are suggestions that major portions of that game's structure were uprooted, retooled, and shifted around. SA2 wanted to be dark, edgy, and mature, themes that were walked back at least a little bit before release (it's a long story, I won't go on about it in this post).

It's different types of messes, I guess. SA1 is a mechanical mess; it is weird, and experimental, and its pieces don't fit together quite right. It's the videogame equivilant of a 14 year old on the tip of the iceberg of puberty.

Sonic Adventure 2 is a mess of content. Sonic Team had a game idea, were working towards a goal, and then somewhere in the last 50% of production decided for one reason or another to rework what they had in to something similar, but slightly different. Story threads got shifted around, levels got shifted around, new playable characters materialized and others were made obsolete, and none of it really had a time to completely solidify before the game shipped.

Sonic Adventure 2's story as we know it is nonsense. It was so nonsense that Sonic Team had to publish a separate article, included in the official Japanese Sonic Adventure 2 strategy guide that explained what the fuck Shadow and the Biolizard and Maria really were. Without it, almost everything related to Shadow in SA2 proper is an empty void of non-information.

If SA1 is a 14 year old on the precipice of puberty, then SA2 is the greasy 17 year old scribbling angsty poetry in their sketchbook. They think they're deep and mature but it's really just unintelligible and embarrassing.

And that's not even touching on the huge, comical amount of asset re-use in SA2 (Prison Lane and Iron Gate are totally different levels, we swear).

I could actually keep going.
 

TheOGB

Banned
Strictly speaking, I think SA2 plays better than SA1. More polished engine, twice the framerate, a little bit more thought into what worked and what didn't from the first game. Obviously some missteps were made, with Knuckles's/Rouge's radars being half-locked-off from the onset instead of all-active like the original game, but by-and-large I think it plays better between the two.
I want to agree that it plays better (engine is undoubtedly better), but goddamn do I hate actually playing SA2. Most of the levels are just not fun. SA1, despite its jank, is still mildly amusing to mess around in.
 

Sciz

Member
Heroes better than SA2, though? Nah. In mood, certainly, but I felt the controls were so much looser in that game that it became unfun. And said loose controls then became the standard for the series going forward.

SA2 does not strike me as controlling particularly better than any of the other games of the era. It's still floaty when you jump and twitchy when you run and stiff when you do anything but jump and run, and commits the additional sin of mapping like six different commonly used contextual functions to a single button in a game that is composed primarily of narrow highways in the sky and only sporadically bothers with OSHA compliance.
 

Village

Member
I could actually keep going.

Interesting explanation , but to be quite honest. I feel like sonic adventure 2 is way more of an actual adventure and mystery than sonic adventure 1 is. Thematically when I first played the thing, it grabbed me, who's shadow, whats going its all these robots and cool shit. Chaos was never an interesting mystery ... ever. He was a water monster, he wasn't that cool. How you sell a mystery, is making the actual mystery cool. And shadow was a really cool mystery, so cool that he still exists.

Aside from all that, just on a gameplay level. I joke about this , but in all seriousness the I really... really hate the levels in sonic adventure 1. For a few reasons , one they do not do a good job of re-purposing assets, and levels to make stuff feel unique. Everyones levels are just sections of sonic's levels. I hated that, It made it feel less like an adventrure for everyone else. IN sa2, while there is asset reuse... aot of it, the levels are changed and formatting technically and thematically as such as things feel unique to the character. That everyone was going on their own adventure, solving their own mystery. it got me way more invovled and engaged , even as a Kid tails's levels in sonic adventure 1 being race sonic, just didn't jive with me. The airplane parts were neat though. I was fond of tails getting like mech situation , I really thought that was interesting played with the fact that he was a smart kid.

Along with that, on a sonic level stand point sonic adventure's 2 sonic and shadow levels are just better, sonic adventure one does this thing were some levels are so damn large were you need loading screens to load up the new sections of the levels. I have never been fond of that, and sonic 06 does the same things, because ussually it breaks the flow where that level just should have just ended. And in sonic adventure 1 and ins sonic 06 it comes with " well now you have to stop going fast and play this different way" I don't want to do that, I want to go fast.

I could go into more stuff like the music, and like the over all tone of the story ,

But you compare sonic adventure 2 to some 17 year scribling in a note book,

Sonic adventure 1 was them trying to be classic sonic as well as this new sonic

Sonic adventure 2 was like " fuck it, lets make a video game. Ooops, we accidentally a made memories and the most popular non sonic character in the entire sonic series wooops"

"They think they're deep and mature but it's really just unintelligible and embarrassing. "
I think this statements a little ironic is all.
 
I think Sonic Adventure 2 controls okay, as long as we're talking about playing as Sonic and Knuckles. It can be a bit too twitchy as Sonic but it's not uncontrollable.

Sonic Heroes feels really sluggish and slippery, and I'm speaking as somebody who just played Sonic Heroes a few weeks ago. It feels sort of like they tried to implement classic Sonic physics in 3D but something about it is really... "off." Once you get up to speed you feel unresponsive.
 

Falk

that puzzling face
For me, it breaks down like this: Sonic Adventure 1 is an adventure.

Yeah, this, so much. I won't ever forget the time teenage me got to a different hub for the first time, did Mystic Ruins and then hallucinated female recolor Knuckles.

Also part of the reason I really, really wanted 2006 to be good. I loved the whole adventure feel.

Unleashed scratched that itch, but when the locales are all based on real-world locations (which had its own amazing perks, mind you) it wasn't quite just the same, even if the narrative was pretty damned good as far as a Sonic game went.
 

Sami+

Member
Yeah, this, so much. I won't ever forget the time teenage me got to a different hub for the first time, did Mystic Ruins and then hallucinated female recolor Knuckles.

Also part of the reason I really, really wanted 2006 to be good. I loved the whole adventure feel.

Unleashed scratched that itch, but when the locales are all based on real-world locations (which had its own amazing perks, mind you) it wasn't quite just the same, even if the narrative was pretty damned good as far as a Sonic game went.

Yeah I agree with this.

I really want them to give it another go. Sonic Adventure has rough, ROUGH edges but I had a genuinely good time going back to it a few weeks ago. There were a lot of moments where I thought "this could very easily be done better today with better tech" despite still having a good time and that really just told me that the game was a little bit ahead of its time and needed more time to cook.

If the Werehog wasn't such a drag I think Unleashed would be proof the style still works, and I really wish they go back to it. The current trend bores me.
 

Sciz

Member
And in sonic adventure 1 and ins sonic 06 it comes with " well now you have to stop going fast and play this different way" I don't want to do that, I want to go fast.

I don't know how you can possibly give SA2 a pass on this with a straight face.
 

Village

Member
I don't know how you can possibly give SA2 a pass on this with a straight face.
Yeah because the levels general continue with a nice flow. Unlike sa1 who regularly just stops.

The only level like that in sonic adventure 2 is the worst level in the game. Where you stop to do a damn room sized gravity block puzzle. Instead of running to the end like you should. Temparary slow downs in sonic adventure two are momentum redirection,
"You are done on the snowboard, there is no loading screen, go left"

Not
" you are done on the snowboard platform in this tight eclosed space and shimmy on icevles"

Sonic adventure one fails at momentum redirection, and actively stops regularly. Sa2's levels being whole things and generally speed oriented does a great deal more than sa1.


"Hey stop sonic you have navigate this shifting airship, that isn't fun."
" hey stop you have fuck around in this casino, and shower for some reason"
"Hey stop now you have, while super visually interesting because of the south american styled ancient architecture, you gotta climb on these walls"
 

Sami+

Member
Those level gimmicks were fun.

Well minus the icicles those were lame but I know you're know hating on Casinopolis, cmon now bro. Besides, SA2 has literally zero flow. You just go level by level. Oh, goal ring. Time to hunt for treasure or clunk around in a robot. It's total bullshit lol.
 
The correct way to play Casinopolis is to deliberately get dumped in the trash so you have something resembling an enjoyable level to actually play.
 

Anth0ny

Member
I think Sonic Adventure 2 controls okay, as long as we're talking about playing as Sonic and Knuckles. It can be a bit too twitchy as Sonic but it's not uncontrollable.

Sonic Heroes feels really sluggish and slippery, and I'm speaking as somebody who just played Sonic Heroes a few weeks ago. It feels sort of like they tried to implement classic Sonic physics in 3D but something about it is really... "off." Once you get up to speed you feel unresponsive.

Exactly.



3D Sonic controls have been off ever since SA2 :(
 

Village

Member
Those level gimmicks were fun.

Well minus the icicles those were lame but I know you're know hating on Casinopolis, cmon now bro. Besides, SA2 has literally zero flow. You just go level by level. Oh, goal ring. Time to hunt for treasure or clunk around in a robot. It's total bullshit lol.

They weren't

And the thing you describe as the no, flow is the flow and is the problem with sonic 06 actually.

When a new level starts, you are generaly playing a new character, with a new objective in mind, get to the end running, find the emerooods, navigate this area with mech. You start the level, you finish it. New objective, I like that. One tight compact thing, And if you don't wanna do the next level quit, start again another time. No bad hub worlds, just go. SA2 got rid of alot of unneeded bullshit.

Sonic adventure 1 like sonic 06 is " no man, stop what you are doing , do this now "

to which my response is, why isn't this another level? What happens is, either the area is bad because it was designed for regular sonic like in sonic 06. Or, in sonic adventure 1 , everyone's levels are cut out ares of sonic levels designed for them, so the flow gets super messed up trying to make some connected world, because level was designed for knuckles at you can't climb on walls. And is visually dissatisfying because, you are seeing the same shit. Sonic adventure one suffers from bunch of shit, trying to be like the classic game.

Sa2 did its own thing in a lot of ways, and was way better.
 
Top Bottom