Sega: Sonic Quality to Be 'Fixed Over Time'

Actually Sik, not to pick at you, but Sonic 3 and Sonic and Knuckles were meant to be one game, of course you know that. So, if you count both of the games' sales together, sales reached around 3,500,000 copies.

Also, not to backseat mod or anything, but noticing the direction threads go in when the subject centers around news about Sonic (not an actual game), it might be a good idea to discourage people from starting threads like these in the future, especially when it's not good news.

 

So what you're saying is that bad news shouldn't be discussed?

 

Well shit, what the fuck DO we talk about then?

Really though, it's a silly thing to claim. When the franchise is such a terrible state, there's hardly anything good to talk about in recent times. We can have our threads about why Sonic 2 is great, or why we all loved Knuckles, but then we'd be exactly like all the other shitty fansites out there where all they do is make fan characters and say how much they love Werehog, and how their fan characters have werehog versions of themselves.

 

My point.

 

Rumors about the general discussion on Sonic boards are largely exaggerated.

 

I don't think there's a problem with discussing this article, but I do think it's a problem when it turns into another "We Think We Know How To Fix The Series!" thread in which the arrogance of the general fanbase culminates together into a bunch of mangled, thoughtless guidelines that will eventually be seen and considered by SEGA for the next Sonic game. And in case the lot of you haven't noticed by now, this is one of the core reasons that the new games have sucked so bad—they've been listening to the fanbase.

Are there things that need to be improved in Sonic games that will come out in the future? Absolutely. But I severely doubt the majority of the fanbase can truly agree on—or even express, for that matter—what any of those things are. Until then, I suggest we stop trying—it's a futile effort and only gives means through which others stereotype the Sonic fanbase.

 

And yet, so many developers go from nothing to a good game during a single development cycle.

 

You guys need to calm down. I know Sonic games haven't been truly great for years, but...

They're not that bad.

Okay, let me explain. We always compare new Sonic games to Mario games, right? We always say that Sonic's games should be as great as Mario's games. But how many platformers are out there today that are as great as Mario? I don't see any. There was Psychonauts, but that was four years ago. Ratchet and Clank? You mean another IP maintained by a first-party company? You know, like Mario.

The Sonic series is not as bad off as it was three years ago. It's not great, but it's doing fairly well for now. If farily well is still not enough for you, then who says you have to keep playing these Sonic games? You're free to just put Sonic down until the series gets better.

Just saying.

 

Wow, fucking whores, if I ever meet someone who said that in my face I would probably slap them hard.

 

So let me sum up what I got from you here.

Don't compare Sonic games to other high quality games. That's unfair. Instead, we should compare it to shitty games so that they don't seem as bad as they are.

Got ya.

Oh, and just a little fun fact for ya: Insomniac is an independent developer.

 

<a href="http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=Al66YLJSHWhHCwKHa3JBYHQjzKIX;_ylv=3?qid=20090514112652AA2mSA3" target="_blank">If anyone is curious, here is the source.</a>

Notice how the other answers that were discarded repeatedly mention the Genesis games.

 

I asked the same question, but I did specify that Shadow and Sonic '06 were bad.
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qi...03180901AA31Q67

 

I have never agreed more with anyone in my life...

 

My childhood hero is nothing more but a cash cow, and SEGA is only putting in half baked effort to please the kids. They couldn't care about the older generation, and even if they really did they made it evidently clear over time they don't even know what to do with Sonic.

"Fixed over time?" Really? How much more time do we have to give them, despite all the promises and bull we've put up with?

Unleashed was the last decent Sonic game as of now, but since the director high tailed it out of there to Squeenix, I don't see much hope in the series once again since Iizkua will most likely be doggy styling the franchise for another decade or so.

tldr; THIS IS WHY MY HEART BELONGS TO CAPCOM NOW



The real Sonic is probably stuck on an island just chilling anyway.

 

It's okay baby. We won't hurt you.

 

<!--quoteo(post=0:date=Aug 3 2009, 10:08 PM:name=Chimpo)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Chimpo @ Aug 3 2009, 10:08 PM)</div><div class='quotemain'><!--quotec-->So let me sum up what I got from you here.

Don't compare Sonic games to other high quality games. That's unfair. Instead, we should compare it to shitty games so that they don't seem as bad as they are.

Got ya.[/QUOTE]
You think too highly of me.

Actually, that's not it. Sonic games generally reflect the current climate of gaming. Take Sonic Unleashed for instance. Sonic Unleashed has most of the qualities that most high-profile games do. The result is a game that has all the same pros and cons that games usually have today. This includes all the minor flaws that don't break a game but still manage to frustrate gamers anyway. The emphasis on QTEs, the mandatory collecting, the trial-and-error gameplay, all the alternate styles of gameplay and whatnot. These flaws don't make Unleashed a terrible game, but they still prevent the game from achieving greatness. Mario and Ratchet are fortunate enough not to inherent these flaws because not only do they reflect the qualities of most high-profile games, they set the standard, especially for platformers.

Sonic needs to stop trying to be like other games and start setting its own standards, like Nintendo and Insomniac do with their IPs. Until then, Sonic is stuck with "okay, but not great" games.

 

QTE can work.

Slower platforming can work without the werehog gimmick.

Medal Collection can work if it went towards something else than level progression.

Ratchet and Clank has the staple annoying collectibles, however those collectibles are optional and often comes with their own reward or experience that makes collecting actually enjoyable. Compare this to Unleashed medals. You needed to collect them just to progress further, and majority of the time that required backtracking to levels you already cleared. Instead of enjoying the level the way it's suppose to be enjoyed, you have to play explorer and search for that damn medal. That is not fun, that is grinding, an in a platforming game, grinding isn't fun.

The issue here isn't that Sonic games copy off other games, its that they execute everything so horribly wrong that it leaves a bad taste in everyone's mouth.

 

Next one will be a sandbox game where you can steal cars.