You shouldn't have posted that man, you know you're gonna get like 30 people tearing that apart saying how it's wrong!
I was hoping for HD Sprites and a more overall unified art-style, but ever since it was announced, I had expected it to be more along the lines of Sonic 1 and 2 instead of 3&K. And of course, I had hoped for classic physics. And great scott... that Sonic XG looked beautiful. Does anyone have a link to that music?
Wouldn't be surprised haha. I'm just kidding around. In terms of what I'd really want from Sonic 4 art wise, I'd be happy to go hi or low tech. Both directions could produce equally awesome results.
Nothing like this, that's for sure. Something like S3K, maybe with a new playable character (seeing as they introduced one every major game) and just doing what the games did best.
If I recall, it's a mix of the credits theme to Marvel vs. Capcom 1. I remember adding it to my Youtube favorites. I'll PM you. When Sonic 4 was announced, I didn't really know what to think. All I knew from the start is that new Sonic was going to be used. However, I was hoping that it would be completely sprite-based or if nothing else vector based, not pseudo-3D junk. After hearing how it takes place right after Sonic and Knuckles, I was also hoping that we would rejoin Sonic on the beach of Angel Island with Tails in tow. It would make more sense than just plopping him right into GreenEmeraldHill Zone. I'm pretty disappointed with Sonic 4's story direction, but I figure that's because the developers never thought the old Sonic games had much of a story to begin with, the morons.
Thing is, besides Sonic 3 & Knuckles there wasn't much of a story in 1 & 2. There was a little more in 2 than in 1 and 4, but for the most part the game's story is about on par with Sonic 1 & 2's.
Let's take a trip to an alternate 1996... Imagine this game coming out for Saturn exactly how it is now (with different graphics of course...), would your younger self had enjoyed it at the time? I know the 9 year old me would.
Yes, that's very true. Sonic 3K tells a story without words (something I hold in high regard), and even then the story is very realized if you take the time to think about it. My first time playing Sonic 3K I was totally engrossed in it, and loved how the game told it's story through scenery and cut-scenes. (If Sonic 3 or & Knuckles had story excerpts in their manuals, I wouldn't know as I didn't get the manuals as a kid.) But the point is, Sonic 3K HAD a story - Sonic 4 I guess does, but you wouldn't know it unless you were told or read it in a manual, like Sonic 1 and 2, which would be fine if this game took place immediately following Sonic 1 or 2, but it takes place after Sonic 3K which is where my griping comes from. The story here is that Robotnik's retrying some of his older tactics (which isn't exactly a very sound idea, mentally, but that's beside the point). If you weren't told this, you'd just see Sonic 4 as Sonic 1 and 2 mashed together with new levels and a coat of paint. Basically, not what the intent was, for the game to take place immediately following Sonic 3K. I hope Sonic 4 Ep 2 at least manages to get Sonic 3K's story telling right, if nothing else.
Well, ignoring the fact that most people didn't have a Saturn (personally I only knew one person who did), I would probably have trouble accepting it as the sequel to S3&K, because Sonic 4 doesn't present the same kind of evolution that S3&K and Sonic 2 did when compared to the games that came before them. Maybe it would feel more like a spin off, like Spinball and 3D Blast. I would be bothered by the physics for sure, because to me that has always been the strongest point in Sonic games. I would probably have enjoyed the game more than I did in 2010 though.
Having had the game two days short of a month now, I can safely say that it's a pretty sweet game, with different physics that, although different, don't annoy me at all, whereas I thought they would annoy the hell out of me. It's utterly playable, and I'm very much looking forward to episode 2, with 'hope' in mind that they take on board some player feedback regarding booster pads and physics, even though they actually barely make a difference.
All Sonic 4 E1 needed to make it have a story was at least one [logical] act transitions and an opening movie of some sort, just to set the scene. Thats really all S3K did and it was more than enough to give a feel for the setting and situation. Having no zone transitions, disjointed act, nor any opening movie in 4 felt like a step backwards from S3K. I really feel that S4E1 was given just bare minimum effort. Again, its not bad, but it is certainly disappointing. What remains to be seen is did they give light effort because they were testing the market to see how such a game would do and if it was worth more resources (what I hope), or because they don't get it or don't care (what I fear). Only S4E2 will tell.
$15 for 4 levels and one character in one episode? No. No debug mode? No. Special Stages? No. I would also notice that letting go of the dpad would shut down momentum, as there are many a slope in Sonic 2 and 3K where I would spin dash and just hold down for ownage in the event Sonic went off a ledge to the next slope. So no. But I would probably enjoy the level design, despite the fact that the game is clearly not superior to any Sonic game before it. (except maybe Sonic 1. Maybe)
I don't understand why some of you think so little of Sonic 1. I think it's a great game, and much better designed than the mess that is Sonic 2, the game that everyone seems to love. I honestly can't think of a single aspect about Sonic 4 that I consider better than any of the classic games. What the hell, even the GG/SMS games provide a better gaming experience than Sonic 4, IMO. The physics completely ruin it for me, can't get around that.
Sonic 1 was too slow IMO. I'm not saying I support boost boost boost but then you have levels like labyrinth zone and scrap brain that are just slow and annoying, and occasionally cheap. Sonic 2 is far from a mess though IMO, except maybe Metropolis zone. Also I'm not a fan of the 3 act system in Sonic 1 (or this game for that matter). I'd much rather have another 1 or 2 original levels than having 3 acts of the same area.
Sonic 1 lacks the spin dash. That is a very big deal for me, even more so than Sonic 4's bad physics. This is probably because I started with Sonic 2. What makes Sonic 1 a better designed game than Sonic 2? And what makes Sonic 4 provide a legitimately worse gaming experience than Sonic 2 on GG/SMS?
I cannot understand the dislike of Sonic 1 either. I do prefer Sonic 2, but Sonic 1 is sublime. I very rarely look back and think 'I could use the spindash right now' while playing - Sonic 1 was never intended for this move. Getting speed is a reward in this game, and when you get it, boy does it feel good. The spindash may not let you travel at your fastest speed, but you still gain speed for free and the layouts of Sonic 1 aren't designed for this. Sonic 2 is different however, the levels can acommodate the spindash and still be able to reward skill with speed. Oh, and obligatory Sonic 4 sucks comment. + - WHAT ABOUT THE HOMING ATTACK GUYS
I actually don't mind the homing attack. I think maybe Sonic 4 required you to use it too much, but over all I welcome its inclusion. The game had you primarily use it on "normal" level paths, I think it would be better left to primarily being optional platforming to secondary paths. Overall though, I have no qualms about it. Sonic 2 added the spin dash, 3 added the element shields (which the homing attack is in many ways the evolution of the fire shield double jump), and 4 the homing attack. I don't think its a great an addition as the spin dash by any means, but I don't carry any negative objection to it either. I think it have potential to be used in some good platforming.
I was talking mostly about graphics and level design (not layout) when I said this. To me it looks like Sonic 2 was rushed (and it probably was, since it had to be available by the end of the year no matter what), it lacks polish. The level themes look almost random, like they were going with any ideas they had just to have more quantity. Also, the art style varies slightly from level to level (it's not nearly as inconsistent as Sonic 4 though), and a lot of sprites aren't that good. Sonic 1 on the other hand was a true revolution, it blew people's minds. Nothing before it could compare, every bit of detail I discovered was something I had never imagined before. Every new zone I reached was a pleasant surprise, and the settings felt natural. I think that most people who don't think much of Sonic 1 are the ones that started with Sonic 2 or something newer, so Sonic 1 didn't feel like a revolution at all. That's completely subjective, I simply happened to have much more fun playing the SMS games than I did playing Sonic 4. They felt much more authentic and worthy of the "Sonic" brand.
