Sonic 1 and 2 getting the Sonic CD treatment by Taxman and Stealth

I've been playing through Sonic 2 on Android, and was completely blown away when I "discovered" Hidden Palace Zone. Genius transition which I won't spoil for those who haven't found it yet. Retro Sonic has always been my favourite Sonic engine (at the time it came out it was one of the few great engines in a sea of terrible fangames), really wonderful to see it being so successful as the backbone in these remakes.

 

I too have been putting some quality time into Sonic 2 Android again lately. My old Nexus 7's touchscreen was on the fritz, but I got a new one that works a lot better. It's not quite as good as a physical controller, but I can still beat Death Egg in under a minute.

And now, I'm going to spout what I suspect will be an unpopular opinion. I don't really care for the Hidden Palace Zone boss.

It reminds me too much of the Oil Ocean boss, in that there's an extended period of time where you can't hit it, and it's going to take at least two cycles before you can beat it. It's implemented well, the artwork is impressive, and I like the idea. It's certainly better than Oil Ocean, which I'd consider the worst in the game. But between the easily-avoided smaller bombs and the careful timing it takes to get Eggman to come down, it just takes too long. Best thing I'd suggest is maybe making it so the rising water shorts out Eggman's propulsion when the small bombs show up, meaning some good timing could let you get two extra hits in and it'd be possible to beat him on the first cycle.

I know that won't happen, and I'm really just being pedantic, but I thought I'd put it forward anyway, since I haven't seen anyone make similar comments.

 

The only thing I didn't like about it myself is that it's "rules" aren't really consistent with the rest of the bosses in the game. The exhaust flame ain't no thing for every other boss in Sonic 1 & 2, it's only a hazard for this particular boss. But as you said, pedantics, yadda yadda.

 

Thought it felt like it would fit in Sonic CD more, but hey - it's a new boss battle so not complaining />

 

Yeah, the boss differs from all the rest in the game in that you have to wait until a specific moment to attack. It's exactly what I dislike about boss bottles in most Sonic games these days. It's not a bad fight mind you, just a bit of a chore to get through since I replay Hidden Palace so much. The stage itself is still fantastic (insert obligatory comment about how it's better than anything from S4 or Generstions here).

 

Does anyone know why these remastered versions haven't replaced the old 4:3 versions in the Steam Store?

 

Because SEGA have yet to decide to release the games on any other platform. They were announced for mobiles, and so far that's all they've been announced for. Yes, it's a massive shame but that's the way it is for the being. We've no idea if that's going to change.

 

In the meantime, it's not too hard a process to buy and play the games via an Android emulator such as BlueStacks.

 

So I managed to get Chromecast Mirroring (chromecast connects to your android phone, then mirrors the device, and becomes audio source) on my Moto G (not officially supported at the moment, but there are workarounds, PM me if interested), and the first thing I tried out was...

...You guessed it, Sonic 2!

I must say, the game looks beautiful on my 42 inch TV. Now, there is a little delay in communication between the phone and Chromecast (I daresay this could be improved with a little playing around with WiFi settings), but it is VERY playable this way.

Next, I'm going to try the same setup, but controlling the game via x360 pad through USB OTG. I hope it'll be just as, if not even more responsive.

If you have a recent Nexus device and a Chromecast, you can try this RIGHT NOW merely by updating the Chromecast app. As I said, PM me for a workaround for other devices. I'm pretty sure root is a must, and so long as you are running a build of KitKat, you're good to go.

 

Actually, there's a delay between the Cromecast and any device. It's made for watching specific apps (YouTube, Netflix, Hulu, HBO Go, ESPN, etc.) and those apps have no problem being streamed from your phone or computer to your TV , but even mirroring on my Mac via Chrome is slightly delayed. YouTube without using the streaming button comes in choppy. It's the just the way it works.

 

I know this already, I even stated such in my post.

That said Android mirroring works a LOT better than PC or Mac. I've had no end of troubles trying to get the thing to play nice with PC Chrome before the Android app updated. As I mentioned, I daresay delay could be reduced with a little playing around with WiFi settings. I'd try with a "N" Wifi network setup, but unfortunately not all devices in my home support that standard, so I'm stuck with "G".

Android mirroring via Chromecast works for what I need the device for. It's pretty much what I bought the device for. Being able to play Sonic 2 through it is just an added bonus.

 

iOS airplay always has a little delay too, just the nature of the tech and how it's going over wireless, the image will always be a few frames behind no matter what unless you hdmi out directly from the device with a cable.

 

Updates for Sonic 1 & 2 were released on the App Store today. The descriptions are as follows:

Sonic the Hedgehog (Version 2.0.5)

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (Version 3.1.0)

These are quite vague. Does anyone know what has actually changed?

 

Really? What are you on, iOS? I'm getting nothing come up on Play Store.

 

Yes, iOS. Sorry, I should have specified.

 

Nah, it's cool. Hopefully seeing something on android later then

 

It's nothing major really. iOS has added a plist definition that lets you specify that the game supports game controllers. So we added it for some sort of future compatibility thing (I have a feeling it might similar to how moga controllers will show a list of compatible apps on your device when you go into the Moga app).

 

Update on the remastered Sonic series:

This comment made by Christian Whitehead on his Twitter page suggests that Sega is not interested in finishing the project for S3&K.

Fans of S3&K may need to write to Sega and let them know how much they want this game (personally, this is the game I've been waiting for, more than Sonic 1 and Sonic 2 combined!). If licensing the music from the Michael Jackson estate is the roadblock, letters such as these from fans and customers would be needed to convince Sega of that such an expense would be financially worthwhile. I know that I would pay extra for the game. I would even be part of raising money to pay for licensing rights to the music. (This is, of course, assuming music is the issue -- if not, maybe all they need is a gentle push in the form of letters from their customers.)

Another general suggestion -- buying the remastered games wouldn't hurt (Sonic 1, Sonic CD & Sonic 2). I, for one, don't have either iOS or Android. However, the minute it comes to Windows Store, I'd buy it. (P.S., I just want to put here that coming to Windows Store would be even better than coming to Steam, thanks to the new "Universal Windows Apps" Microsoft has just recently announced -- that is, developers can code one app that will run on all Windows products: Windows Phone, Windows RT (tablets), Windows 8.1 computers, and XBox!)