Yeah, Sonic Advance 3 used basically the same system, and you didn't have to replay with multiple characters in general (although you didn't unlock them if Sonic wasn't in the lead). It also had the advantage of much better levels to go through.
I thought Sonic Team was already "solving" this matter, you know Unleashed and Colours hardly have characters, Generations was really just the exception for being a throwback game.
I'd shoot most of them. The Chaotix, to me, are a bit like the various enemies Wario faces in the Wario Land games. They exist in the same universe, but Sonic isn't supposed to run into them all the time. Even Sonic the Comic established this, shoving them in a different dimension for most of the time unless something "big" happened. I don't like their Heroes versions much. Shadow should be dead. Rouge should have been a one-off as she only exists as a "dark" version of Knuckles. Cream serves no purpose other than to make Sonic Advance 2 easy. Blaze (I think?) is supposed to live in an alternate dimension/future/whatever and is another clone. Silver should have been retconned. That's my opinion on the matter.
I think all the characters are great and have something to offer to the plot and gameplay... ...the way they have been implemented is what I think many people dislike. Also SOME of the newer characters that have been created have similar abilities to older ones. Either meaning there are some perhaps too similar and some are even replaced as a result. For example, I like Shadow and stuff, but his backstory in the games is kinda messy and on top of this, his gameplay with the riding slow vehicles and guns that aren;t as powerful or quick as his regular attacks - was kind of strange. On top of this, he basically has the same abilities as Sonic and apparently will never age or whatever...this is kinda raining on Sonic's parade a bit, given that he's the main character. Unlike most people here, I liked silver's gameplay in Sonic '06, but whatever. As I said some characters end up replacing old favourites, like people want see see Fang/Nack return, but Rouge was created and she has the same personality etc. and this was then used as an excuse not to bring Fang/Nack back. Also in Sonic '06 - Rouge uses cherrybombs or somethign similar, wouldn't her missions have been perfect for Bean the Dynamite???
Why do some people insist Rouge is an adequate replacement for Fang? They're both treasure hunters, but one of them is actually evil. The other one is just another friend/acquaintance. The only recurring villains the series has are Eggman and Metal Sonic, and all of the other villains are just giant monster things or recolors of Eggman. My biggest gripe with the cast is there's too many good guys and not enough villains. Instead of Eggman being behind every villainous plot, why not resurrect some old ones such as Fang or the Battle Bird Armada? Anything that isn't just another Dr. Wily plot.
In my opinion, Sonic And The Black Knight handled multiple characters spectacularly. Not too many, and the playable ones were all similar to Sonic in speed and gameplay, but some had different move sets than Sonic. Didn't feel like a chore to play any of them(at least not moreso than sonic :v)
A game with the classic Megaman style of level progression (that is, a level select and obtaining power-ups/alt characters through boss fights) would be a decent way to make use of the multiple characters. The first big problem would be designing each level so that they're fun to play as with Sonic, but also branch off into alternate paths and use hazards that make use of other characters. The second would be to make the friends tolerable and even enjoyable to play as. So, brainstorming time? Sonic [default]: run, jump, spindash, jump-into-run on ceilings/walls Tails: flies, can control machinery/Badniks Knuckles: glides, climbs, punches, burrows (Drill mode from Sonic Colors) Blaze: effectively a fire shield (mid-air dash, fire immunity, nullifies ice, useless underwater) Shadow: time pause/unpause Vector: effectively a bubble shield (bounce, swim/infinite air underwater, useless near fire) Espio: orange shadow clone (Ninja Gaiden 2) Silver: telekinesis Cream: Super Guide
I don't mind the characters, it's the gameplay that pisses me off. I'd love to play as Tails and Knuckles again like I could back in their heyday, basically like Sonic with slight variations. Now, it wouldn't make sense for Tails to have Sonic's "Modern" gameplay, but they could easily give him the Sonic Adventure style and add some variety there. They could do the same for Knuckles. I just don't want to treasure hunt or fish. Now if Sonic 06 was a good game then I wouldn't have mind playing as Sonic's friends but they were all too buggy to find any enjoyment out of. In fact let's list what I think would be good for play styles Sonic: Modern or classic, whatever. Probably a combination of both Shadow: Modern Sonic styled gameplay Tails: Sonic's Sonic Adventure style gameplay with the addition of flight Knuckles: Very platform heavy gameplay with some fighting. Kind of like the werehog, but more adventuring and exploring, less stretchy arms Amy: Sonic's SA gameplay with a hammer That's about it for characters I don't mind seeing playable. I could think of other ones later but I don't really care about the rest of them.
I like how Amy was played with in the Advance series, a somewhat similar feel to Sonic with only minimal speed and agility changes but with a noticable move set change in place of spin attacks. If they could merge that and her SA1 gameplay it may make for an interesting diverse gameplay mode. Knuckles and Tails on the other hand felt too overpowered, or Sonic too underpowered. He didn't even have his crappy insta shield anymore so Knux and Tails, with even MORE moves than the original titles felt much more efficient to play as than the main character. I kinda like the homing attack as it gives a significant edge for Sonic that most other characters don't have. Some other games have experimented with new abilities to make his gameplay more exploitable for finding extra pathways and items others can't (eg. double jump, wall jump). This is why I like more diverse character mechanics, it avoids making a character redundant by another who has their moves but with extras added on to make more efficient (why play as Tails in Advance 2 when you can play as Cream, who has his flying AND game breaking Chao kamikaze attack).
Mario's friends work because they don't scream "O SHT WATCH OUT SONIC ITS A HOMING SHOT! LOOKS LIKE A HOMING ATTACK" every fucking five minutes. Sonic Team tries to involve them to damn much.
I enjoy most of Sonic's shitty friends and I have been missing them since 06. Their roles in the story seem to be close to zero since Unleashed, except Tails got some focus in Colours and Generations. I would like seeing them being more involved in someway, somehow. Although I must say the shitty friends we have of now are more than enough. They don't need to all show up in a single game either. The ones which really have an excuse are Tails and Amy, maybe Shadow if he keeps his arsehole looking for a fight shtick from Generations (but never bring the alien story up again, never). I'd like to see some return to action with different move sets and alternate paths, perhaps as unlock bonus or DLC. I agree that Sonic & Knuckles and the Advance series had the best formats for including playable shitty friends. The same levels, but the characters can go through them differently due to their abilities. However I didn't mind treasure hunting or (poor, I admit these could be better) puzzles like they were handled in SA. Anyway, Sonic, Tails and Knuckles like they were in Sonic 3 & Knuckles, Amy like she was in Advance, Shadow is either a reskin or Sonic with Chaos powers, Chaotix works like a team effort like Heroes or their own game or Advance 3 (or maybe an option for co-op in general). Throw Eggman every now and then, it was interesting to blow up things while he cackles and see the story from his point of view. These could all work out pretty well if handled correctly. If a new series with them could be made just for them? Perhaps... However I'm not so sure divide will conquer in this case. I could see it working if the game cycles are expanded (only Sonic gets one year, Sonic + shitty friends gets the next) and so on). I thought I'd spot him in some obscure place too. :v: I didn't mind this replacement exacly because of that. There was only one female and the rest were all males, which really had no reason to be males either. Tails being a male is required because otherwise it would be pretty awkard and the same for Shadow since he's supposed to be the dark twin and rival, but why is Knuckles / Chaotix / Fang all male? It was a shameless sausage fest and the swapping one of these for Rouge was positive. While I don't give a shit about the gender of the character I'm playing as, seeing a balanced cast is better than only a gender being represented. It broadens the appeal as well. I admit that my opinion on Rouge being swapped for Fang is highly biased since I never played Triple Trouble back then and I have no emotional attachment to him whatsoever. I agree with the rest of your post though. Since Nack that there hasn't been a point to these characters. I might make an exception for Rouge (explained above) and Shadow (since he can be used very differently from Metal) though, but that's about it. Knuckles was never meant to be taken that seriously. Don't forget all of his dumb antics in Sonic 3 & Knuckles cutscenes (his stupid chuckling and Mushroom Hill's frustation are the most memorable) and that he got tricked like a sucker by Eggman.
As of the whole Sonic Adventure 2 character debate I'd have loved to see Metal Sonic replacing Shadow and Fang/Nack replacing Rouge. Also in SA2, if Eggman can fly in his eggmobile, then why does he insist on walking? Knuckles being displaced by Amy upsets me >>
The only thing that I hate about the characters now is that they are all up Sonic's arse... while this may make sense for Amy and Rose, does Rouge really care that much about Sonic? She used to be a cool spy who was smart enough to trick Eggman and who seemed to take control of situations and now she has turned into "U CANZ DO IT SSS-SONIC!". She really didn't need to appear in Generations at all, if Rouge is to appear she either must run into Sonic because she has a life outside of him or with Shadow. Knuckles needs to stop appearing as well - has he not a job to do? The point I am trying to make is, now we have a decent gameplay for Sonic, lets start slowly introducing characters... SONIC HEROES 2.
Actually, Generations was the first time Knuckles made an appearance in a main title since '06 (barring Colors DS, but no one counts that version, anyway :v: ),
I think you misunderstood my post... ...I was saying Fang should be brought back...as well as other forgotten classic characters...
People bring this up every time Knuckles does something that doesn't involve the Master Emerald getting stolen, so I have to ask: Strictly talking game appearances only, how often did we see anyone other than Eggman or Rouge try to steal the Emerald? How often did said characters, and the few others, manage to steal said Emerald while he was standing guard anyway? Guy's either got backup security that takes care of most of the thieves (keep in mind all his traps in Sonic 3) or he shows up to keep tabs on the people who repeatedly steal his shit. Let him leave the damn island once in awhile, he's too much fun to play as.
Mighty and Ray - NEED TO RETURN! And although they just miss the after 1995 thing...BARK and BEAN also - NEED TO RETURN!
