2nd illustration, Sonic and Koco wearing MegRhythm steam eye masks. What sounds like a VR headset is in truth some kind of beauty product? I dunno, I only know footbaths Here's a tutorial on how to use them. Not a medical device.
Making a game that is appealing to both fans and the public at large is not mutually exclusive, even with Sonic. Games like Mania prove this. The problem is that many Sonic developers either do not know how or care to do so. It’s a matter of competence and prioritization of resources, and Sonic Team has frequently made poor decisions in this regard. If we look at Frontiers, which I am actually looking forward to, there are many aspects of the design that turn off longtime fans but also have no impact on mass appeal. Take the aesthetics for example. If the open zones had a more stylized design and also more naturally incorporated game elements like springs and rails, many fans wouldn’t feel like the environments didn’t fit the character and series. A change like this wouldn’t necessarily turn off casuals as I’m pretty confident no one is looking at these engine test looking levels and saying, “Oh yeah, that’s what I want.” We don’t need to wish for Sonic to be niche to get the games we want. I played the classics for years as a kid without taking proper advantage of slope physics and rolling because the games were incredibly fun even without it.
An interesting example since this is much more complicated than you put it. In my experience, "mainstream" viewers are put off because the open world "doesn't look like Sonic", but you ask them what that means and they point specifically to the idea that it's supposed to look like Green Hill--I know this because of that fan edit that made rounds during June that was literally just Kronos Island but edited to look exactly like Green Hill. Even if the world was more stylized and natural, it would still get the same complaints. The same sort of people also criticize the modern games for being "realistic" as well. A mindset like that is precisely why Sonic Team added in the Cyber Space stages, levels that are quite literally levels from previous Sonic games, in contrast with the "atypical" (which is not that atypical for Sonic) open world, a decision that ironically goes well more with casual fans and people who do not care for the Open Zone at all than hardcore fans. Hardcore fans are, pretty obviously, sick of Green Hill and Chemical Plant. but that's something that appeals to the casual base, who definitely see that as "Sonic." The idea that Sonic Team doesn't know what they're doing in this regard doesn't really has a foothold? It's intentional what they're doing. Didn't they even say they expect people to not get it in the beginning? That gambit is paying off. This is the biggest buzz a Sonic game has had in years, arguably even more than games like Generations and Mania. I'd say Frontiers gets that buzz precisely because it does not look or function like a "typical" Sonic game. People line up in droves just to see what this game is about. If this game does knock it out of the park, it shows that Sonic Team is pretty savvy in this regard! Very few games can do something like this and succeed, especially with a reputation like Sonic's, where even being the game you expect it to be doesn't guarantee anything. In related but hilarious news, apparently the white strings that appears when Sonic is about to be attacked is called... wait for it... "Omen." https://twitter.com/Sonic_Frontier/status/1587391254509326338 One last one last thing, but I found this video of the Italian version of the game. One interesting tidbit is that while he's fighting the rail boss, the player does a neat trick where they immediately cancel the Sonic Boom into a Homing Attack, so that they get a free projectile, which is pretty cool. And in the Sumo boss, you can keep attacking it as a laser and do way more damage when it's stunned, that's also cool.
Sonic has evolved in a way where its modern incarnation only barely resembles its original vision outside of superficial aspects like the characters and "going fast". Its not really a surprise there is a huge split between casuals and hard-core fans over what Sonic is, in a way that doesn't exist in many other franchises. Its not impossible to reconcile this, but I agree with @BlueSkiesAM2 that it requires competence and care on the devs part. Almost none of the staff who worked on the original games are in Sega anymore, and the current staff aren't interested in continuing their work and more into creating their own vision of what Sonic is, that doesn't necessarily coincide with what it used to be. Iirc, the original games weren't that popular in Japan to begin with so I'm not too shocked the current staff aren't really interested in building on that despite how popular those games are overseas.
Okay, okay, one more thing about the video I posted: at 6:49, while the player is fighting the Tower, they cancel their Homing Attack with a boost and it has that "Homing Attack Cancel" property that people mentioned. Sonic keeps his speed / momentum of the Homing Attack when he cancels it, and that's super cool. He can even change the direction.
I loved this! It did a great job combining the adventure and classic era together. His characterisation is perfect in my eyes, there wasn't some silly rock falls on his head "gosh isn't he stupid"... if this tone is at all is reflected in the game's story I would be quite happy. Also totally makes me want a stand alone Knuckles game of him exploring the history of the floating island.
So there's a device in Sky Sanctuary from Starfall Island. Sky Sanctuary is one of the zones in Cyberspace. I wonder if this means those devices can also be found somewhere in Green Hill Zone and Westside Island's Chemical Plant Zone...
That was actually way better than I was expecting to be. Its nice that they let Knuckles be cool, if only for a bit. This is essentially just reestablishing who his character is after a decade of confusion of who exactly he is.
Beautiful animation, as expected. Sky Sanctuary looks breathtaking, and it shows how easily the Chao and Adventure backstory could be incorporated into the "classic" timeline. I'm genuinely a bit upset that the origin of the chaos emeralds is being explored in a modern, 3D game instead of a Mania sequel. I'm interested in the game's story and soundtrack, I don't think I'll be getting it though. Gameplay looks pretty mediocre to me, but I hope it's fun for all of you that are looking forward to it.
Our boy Knuckles is back. Also, getting some Made in Abyss vibes from the shot compositions. That teaser they gave us back in June did not prepare us for this.
I'm ngl, I do very much miss Travis Willingham, but I'm glad David B Mitchell is starting to find his own niche as Knuckles too.
Everyone so hype about the animation that they missed the implication that there's dead Koco on Angel Island Either that, or they wear masks. Hm.
This short is the best thing I've seen from Frontiers so far, it was basically perfect. 2022 is a good year for Knuckles fans. My only gripe is that I'm not a fan of Dave's performance—the voice is too deep, they should have brought back Travis by now, he's still active in the industry. That's what the Japanese version is for I guess.
