Tried the game out yesterday and I agree with everything Sparks and Tweaker have said so far. I love the concept, but the execution has some annoying issues. The pacing is off, there's randomly-placed pits and drop-everything platforming sections everywhere, and it's like the level design is constantly working against you. It's like I'm really playing Sonic Colors Wii. I ran into a few bugs as well (completely frozen/camera-locked Bonus Stages, wtf?). I do like the several nods to the Game Gear games such as Nack and the Special Stage, though. This explains everything. You don't understand the concept of flow, which is crucial to 2D Sonic design. Like it or not, you need a smooth mix in order to have a Sonic game that plays well. I'll give this another try later on to see if I can get more perspective on it.
Not that it matters, as it didnt save my game, despite the facet I checked the administrator thing...what the fuck? There could be a good game here, but seriously, sort out the save system!
So having played up until the final level (That last boss is a bitch) let me just tell you some of the things that I've noticed as far as bugs are concerned: - Some of the Platforms in the special stage have wonky collision, especially Special Stage 6. In fact I don't think that one is beat able unless you exploit: - This glitch, which is that if you pick up a shield in a bonus stage, even if you lose that shield in the level, if you then go into a special stage you will have that bonus stage shield again - Sonic can still use all his powers while invincible except for insta shield - Sonic shouldn't do the hurt animation while losing a shield due to water - A couple of collision glitches. A couple of times when I should have been crushed, I went through the platform - WTF is wrong with the resolution settings? - Reseting the game in game will lock the menu so you'll just have to quit - And save features yadda yadda yadda you know about those though The engine is pretty solid, so I like that, however the collision system against bosses pisses me off. The first part boss of the last level doesn't play like Sonic 2's, which makes me sad D: As for the game itself I really like it, but a couple more things: - Luster Lake is a bitch, it's not even really fun, it's kinda just a pain - Challenge mode. Some of those challenges just seem unfair. I get the fact that they're challenges but seriously, get all the rings in a level? Is that even possible? - The music. I like it, but it's all over the place with varying quality. Like what are you aiming for here I don't get it, sounding like the genesis games, sounding like something Tweaker makes, or sounding like an 8bit game? Take your pick. I like this game. It is pretty fun. It plays nice and over all I'm actually ok with the level design. Good job for finishing a fan game btw. It just needs a bit more polish, and then it'll be done. That's all Oh and question did you ever use the Metal Sonic sprites?
It's a side scrolling Sonic game, a save system really isn't that huge of a deal is it? Or are there that many things to unlock? Anyway, I'm enjoying the game so far. Feels fresh, and closer to the real deal than a lot of a fan projects. I've tried both builds though (with and without music), and both have pretty bad slowdown. I think someone mentioned earlier that every time they collected a ring it dipped a bit, and I suppose that's what's going on here (considering the Lightning Shield slowed me to a crawl). It doesn't seem to happen in the Special Zone though, so who knows? Just gonna keep playing for now, it's a lot better after you fixed the bonus stages. Also, is rank based solely on your time?
Some of your mp3s are running at 320kbps! I converted them all to 96 and cut the filesize in half. 96kbps Music Edit: Oh great now the music doesn't work at least for me. =P
I got really upset at some of the level design choices and quit somewhere in act two of level two. I'll try to give it another shot sometime, because it's visually polished and the physics feel just right.
Yeah, the second Zone seems to be full of those "let's put a trap here because we know everyone will trip over it" moments. There's one bit with a bottomless pit bookended by two crumbling platforms (left one is lower so you have to jump), and if you're going too fast when you jump, that floating ice Badnik, or the fire that pops up when it takes off, will knock you into the pit.
Mmmf... exited a special stage in Gigalopolis in the middle of nowhere, Sonic nowhere to be seen. Rather than wait 10 minutes for the timer to expire I restarted. Not only was there no save, but even the controls had been wiped. I have to reset the controls every time I restart without exiting? Now I have to start again and... I dunno... should I just not enter special stages? So, restarted the game, reset the controls... game wouldn't unpause. ... Ok restart again. Arrghhgh the controls are wiped again. >_< o_O Even a game over resets the controls!
I have to agree with the sentiment that some of the level design choices are dick moves. I understand your sentiment that you're focused more on platforming than speed, but there are too many places where you give the illusion of an area where you can build up considerable speed, only to put a raised piece of land or something right the fuck in the way when you finally get running. Or an enemy. Or a spike. Other than that, I enjoy the feel of the game a lot. Also, the vending machine special stage is super broken.
I really hope this gets fixed somehow regarding the controls. There HAS to be a way to save preferences. Also a tidbit for those pausing with gamepads: Unpause is with Enter, not the gamepad. Must have been an oversight.
If it's an oversight, it might not have been something Hez did. I remember having to do this with a few SAGE demos the last few years. Speaking of which, Hez is going to rape SAGE a new one now, especially if he touches up Classic in his spare time between now and then. And as for the 'dick moves', I don't see them as such, though I'm drawing some parallels between this and classic Mega Man, if you catch my drift. If there are any spots where I almost feel like I'm being a bit...trolled, if you will, it's the Crystal Cavern section I posted about a page or so ago (which isn't really that bad, it only tripped me up once or twice, and that was after I'd played it a few times; Maybe I just got a bit cocky), or when you run/hop/skip/jump off a floating platform to the ground below and just off screen is a bed of spikes right where you're trying to land (and/or a hovering Badnik right next to it).
I can't even change the controls. The game will not recognize any inputs aside from the default ones, and it always resets to the default ones after reseting or closing out. The resolution also needs to be changed everytime. Both of these problems were not present in the beta I tried. The volume on multiple tracks needs to be adjusted as I mentioned before. Tails is still screwed up in cut scenes. Hell, the Tails Partner in general seems like an after thought in general. I've never seen him damage Robotnik and he appears to be invulnerable to a lot of traps and his animations sometimes go out of wack. Luster Lake is also screwed up. I managed to get stuck in area and no matter which of the two switches I pressed I could not get out of any of three tubes in the area. The worst part was that I hit a checkpoint in that exact area. Luckily the entire switch puzzle reset when I died so I could proceed, but that puzzle in general is terrible. You have too many choices. Just leave it on or off, not have it based on multiple colors. The layouts themselves I really don't have a problem with like others have reported. I do have a problem with some of the false sense of freedom you've provided in some levels. Gigalopolis for example, there's a dead end but there's no way to tell because you lead the player on too far to even consider backtracking. The only sign that shows you should go can easily be missed and destroyed because it's a small string of rings. This just leads to overall confusion. Aqua Arena is gigantic mess. You can't distinguish between background and foreground elements at all, and in Act 1 there's a section you're forced to go through no matter what, and if you end up falling, you have to do it all over again. It doesn't help that you seem to design everything around that area to send the player back to the start. Springs, slopes, and confusing art elements just leads to frustration. If there was an alternate route provided I have not found it, but you don't drag out a section of a level even further by tricking the player into going back to it. It's a fun game and holds promise, but I really think you should have held back on releasing it and worked on actually polishing the game. And not just in terms of bug fixes (because there's several) but presentation in general.
Y'know, I really didn't see any. Most of the obstacles I came across were avoidable, or didn't slam-dunk me into a pit. Did I get a different version? + - Obviously not, because I've seen some of the same glitches. :P
I didn't come across any dick moves either. I treat this like I treat any new Sonic game. Slow and steady, and then go back and tear through it. And it's usually when I'm tearing through it that I find some pretty damn good level designs. There's just one or two "WHAT IS THIS BULLSHIT" sections I've come across that I've described before, but I have yet to encounter dick moves.
Just going to start playing right now. Out of interest, why on earth is the manual a DOCX file? Should've converted it to PDF, a format which actually has widespread use.
The worst one is a section in the lava zone that has a quarter ramp then a normal ramp and then right into a wall. Two bomb penguins are hanging out on the ramps for some reason, making the section really difficult to navigate.
I've gotten as far as the Dusty Dunes boss, but died there. I really don't have time to play through the entire thing again right now, though. I'm on administrator, but my game still doesn't save at all. But yeah, the game lacks in polish, it seems, with a lot of little glitches; most are harmless, but I now avoid checkpoint special stages like the plague since the slot machine one seems to break the game. Another nitpick I have is the level order. Nack drops you from Hazel Hills and you end up in Crystal Caverns; since that was really the only level transition I've come across so far, it seems a little... jarring... and Luster Lakes to Gigaopolis was a bit weird as well. Not a deal breaker, though. The levels themselves are brilliant in design, but the aesthetic choices in some of them are baffling. For instance, in Luster Lakes, I have a hard time knowing what is a barrier, what is a platform and what is just scenery. Platforms are the same colors as the walls, leaving me making leaps just hoping that that's where I'm supposed to go; and the pillars look like they would be deterrents, but they're really just scenery. Gigaopolis had this to an extent as well, but not as extreme. Overall, however, I'm having an absolute blast with this game! I got a little frustrated with Luster Lakes Act 1, but not to the point where it stopped being fun. The difficulty is just perfect, you hit that nail right on the head, Hez. EDIT: Bah, replace all instances of Luster Lake with Aqua Arena and it would be correct :P I got the two of them confused :P
