Sonic and Sega Retro Message Board: Alphaman - Viewing Profile - Sonic and Sega Retro Message Board

Considering Sega's typical hierarchy, would it even matter if a western Sega division unanimously - not as in "some fans complained that..." but rather "almost everybody complained that... and we wholeheartedly share their sentiments" - complained about something? Not only is the game being developed by a different leg of the company (actually, it's being developed by Dimps, a different company altogteher) that may or may not care about this, but also: who knows how far Episode 2 has been developed as of now? I somewhat doubt they spend the half year Sonic 4 Ep1 was postponed just to add the little fixes they did.

But thanks for the story - I guess it was at least a pretty unique experience. I'm just kinda wondering what to make of it - if they were really interested in the fanbase's opinion, less than an hour seems like a total misschedule, and if they weren't, are they just trying to trick people into thinking "oh, but they listened! They will fix it in episode 2; so I will buy that one"?

EDIT: Professional focus group interviews are usually videotaped and analyzed later on, and they actually make an effort to hide the camera so people won't feel uncomfortable. Who knows.

Sonic's dash ability of course allows him to beat some bosses (and stages as well, but that goes without saying) faster than Cream ever could. The invincibility of the bosses after being attack is the same, but the recovery of Cream's Chao attack is longer than it takes for a skilled player to rush towards the boss again and just jump onto his weak spot with Sonic. My record for the first boss was also done with Sonic, although I don't know the exact time as it was in regular gameplay (haven't unlocked boss attack mode yet). I think it was just below 10 seconds. Of course, some bosses are exceptions to this, as they are out of reach for quite some time with Sonic, whereas Cream still can shoot at 'em.

But unless you're speedrunning stages you know inside out, Cream makes things to much easier it's not even funny (actually, that's not true - the boss rush is pretty funny when playing as Cream whereas the bitchslap of doom is just pure ragefuel for me otherwise). Especially the last two stages are both a testament to Cream's superiority and the sometimes just puzzling stage design. About to switch gravity? Better hit B with Cream so your Chao will kill potentially awaiting enemies. You're Sonic? Unless you know where those enemies are gonna be waiting, you better have some rings ready in case you'll just helplessly drop into them.

However, the game is the most FUN with Sonic, since speedrunning stages is where the games excels, and he's tailor made for just that since he has a dash. Plus Sonic games always the most right when playing as Sonic (newsflash I guess).

Not to piss on anybodys parade, but even with how great Colours is shaping up to be, a modern Sonic game might very well be "generally good but not without some flaws" without anybody neccesarily overreacting or being overly critical. I'd rather not risk expecting the second coming of Sonic3k when the past games (and lessons in hype-building) suggest caution in regard to high expectations. Long story short - maybe he is right; it's not like his criticism sounds far off with the typical flaws of the previous titles in mind.

However, the fact that he hasn't played a Sonic game in a long time also makes the overall review, both criticism and praise, pretty much inane. Check out Amazon, there's tons of reviews stating that compare Advance 3 to the classics and such bull. It's not like everybody considers the same aspects of the games to be their constitutional core - case in point are stuff like "they're fast enough not to worry", although this review at leasts mentions the once central aspect of exploring. A lot of gamers just consider "fast pace" to be what makes a Sonic game, the whole concept of various routes is pretty much considered secondary.

And while the dialogue is not exactly great (still trying too hard to be cool when Sonic was in fact the coolest when he didn't say a word and just blazed through Green Hill Zone), it's pretty much on par with all of the 3D Sonics (okay, minus Big's cutscenes). Which further bolsters the assumption that the guy can't really tell us if this game got it right compared to, say, Sonic Heroes. He just heard that Sonic sucks now, and he enjoyed the game. But if I were to review Heroes and were just told that "Sonic sucked recently", I'd also tell you that the game ain't bad at all - 'cause I like it. The specific criticisms I actually somewhat agree on, but he never debates these.

The video-review Dusk Golem posted also mentioned that the Wisps are optional - you won't get to see all the secrets without using 'em, but the game can be completed without their use. This is - IMO - great news, since it allows a no bullshit gameplay as well, if you just feel like playing a level without toying around with the gimmicks.

She also explained the use of the specific Wisps, but I'm pretty sure we knew that already... white ones give speed boost and green ones make you fly - well, I guess you get that from watching the video anyway. The review also closes with the words "finally, a good 3d Sonic" and mentions the slight SMG influence, which "doesn't matter, since Sonic's way faster than the chubby plumber". Either way, it's a generally positive review.

I much prefer the second video. The first one features great playing and all, but since it features more live-instruments, the fact that it is just a home-recording is more audible. Also NOT a fan of the guitar tone, it lacks punch and sharpness - may have to do with the recording, but is also a matter of mere settings and preference.

So, while playing-wise it's impressive, I'd rather listen to the original rendition or a non-live-remix.