Graphics look better, but still not as good as Generations, so to the public this will seem a step back, plus, some people were impressed with Sonic 4 Ep 1 screenshots when they were first shown, the real crux is how it handles, not getting caught up this time.
It looks like Eggman's buliding his Death Egg around Little Planet. I could be wrong though. What I'm curious about is that Rocket that Metal Sonic is riding. It looks like its made from parts of the Unleashed Tornado.. yet, Tails is clearly flying the Tornado from Sonic 2. :U
Everything we know about this game so far appears and sounds like it will be a marked improvement from Episode 1; so much so that it makes Episode 1 look more like a Game Boy Advance game or even a petty Flash game. There are only two things I'm a bit concerned about: Obviously, the physics. While I could go on for hours about the problems with the original engine, it had two main glaring issues that, for the most part, snowballed into all the rest. First was rolling: unlike literally every Sonic game that came before it, rolling actually caused you to LOSE momentum and stop really fast. You could be rolling down a hill and come to a dead halt before you hit the bottom. You could hold down the direction you wanted to go, but for some reason they decided that Sonic should only roll for about 1 second after you let go of Down. Seems like this issue is partially because of the next: Sonic will not move laterally without left or right being held down. There is one part I clearly remember in Splash Hill Act 3 with a diagonal spring that is supposed to launch you over to a ledge. If you jump onto the spring and don't hold right while mid-air, Sonic will drop straight down right off the spring after reaching the crest of his bounce. Second is something that far less of you will probably see as an issue, but according to a tweet from Crush 40, Senoue is not doing the music for this Episode. Naturally, I have mixed feelings about this; I know Senoue composes great music that is just completely reminiscent of Sonic, and I'd be heartbroken if he stopped composing for Sonic games altogether, but the Episode 1 soundtrack sucked pretty hard. The only songs I liked were SHZ 1 and MGZ 1, and those (just like all the rest of the songs in the game) were uninspired, uninteresting 30-second loops sprinkled with Sonic 1 snare for that "retro" feel. (I'm still disappointed Generations didn't feature full Genesis chiptune mixes of the original songs for the Classic stages, but that's a separate issue.) I've got nothing but positive feelings towards this game right now. Quick look at how Balough's claims stand up to what we've seen so far: ? All new graphics engine ? Sequel to Sonic CD (little planet, metal sonic, etc) ? Original graphics style (not really "original" in any regard other than "not the way ep 1 looks" but still looks great) ? Tails will "be of assistance" (I.e. playable) ? Only one "throwback" level (the oil ocean level looks sweet as heck ken but you cant tell me that first one isn't aquatic ruin) ? All new physics/engine (while I highly doubt he would lie about a new engine it remains to be seen if it's actually any good) Keep in mind—this is supposed to be a sequel to Sonic CD. While it's very unlikely time travel will be a core gameplay element like it was in CD (the Xbox.com game description boasted nothing of the sort like it does for CD), it's not ridiculous to think that it might be somewhat involved in the story. Maybe Eggman recycles Tails' modern Tornado so they grab his classic one in the past :v:
Looks like there going 3D with the environments this time, a real change from the first episode. I kinda like that.
Aquatic Garden actually reminds me of Hyrule Castle from Brawl. It's the sunrise behind the aqueduct. I'm not too phased by the lack of surreal geometric shapes in the screenshots. Certainly a lost opportunity, I agree, but given the visual improvements, I'll give the gameplay footage a chance to make up for it. Right now the only things that disappoint me are the Bubbles and the fact that Episode 2 is, yet again, just four zones long. Plus a fifth boss-rush stage from Sonic Advance 2. Presently a no-buy from me.
Why the fuck are you people still complaining? From what precious little content we've seen, there's been nothing but massive improvement. I love the idea of merging the Carnival and Ice level tropes. The only turnoff I've seen is Sonic and Tails going crotch to mouth in midair. Man, Sonic 4 brings out the absolute worst in all of you people.
What do you mean, man? That's quality co-op gameplay right there. Speaking of which, co-op! Fucking finally, right? And this time it isn't with Sonic robots. Say, Tails can't homing attack, can he?
No one's complaining, we're being cautious. I bought Episode I and it was extremely underwhelming, so instead of jizzing at the sight of any improvement I'm going to wait until I see gameplay. So far, the only real complaint is the apparent inclusion of Bubbles once again and 4 levels only.
That rocket metal sonic is riding is the rocket Sonic used to get to the final battle in episode 1 correct? Thats why it seems familiar.
I was thinking about it earlier, actually. Did they already have that made when they added it to Episode I, or did they make it during the delay and decide to keep it for Episode II?
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qKRxSjixbw8[/youtube] Of course, this cut scene was added after the PartnerNET leak. Still does its purpose in the cut scene, only in Episode 2 it seems that Metal Sonic is hijacking it to get to the Kinder Egg. Oh, did I say Kinder Egg? Damn you Overlord! Spoiler The final boss is the toy.
Finally, a true breath of fresh air after all this time! I really don't care if the music sounds like feline nails on a chalkboard at this point. I totally called that Sonic 2 type special stage and the ice/snow level. I'm happy to see tropes that haven't been seen in decades! I hope they purposely leave out showing us the last level this time though. I was expecting to be the tornado somewhere during the Sonic 4 saga because it wouldn't have make sense otherwise because of its presence in Sonic 2 and 3K, perhaps there will be a little homage to Sky Chase? (Read as: Finally being able to CONTROL the tornado for the first time since SA1....the SA2 Mecha does not count!). Most of all, turning the Little Planet into the next Death Egg? Who the HELL saw this one coming!? Anyway, we finally got our "Sonic 2 CD"....HA God I hope my laptop can handle this.... BTW, I LOVE kinder eggs.
Mediocrity will always look better than something flat-out bad. But that doesn't equate to something "good".
Hm. It's a genuine Kogen straw man argument. I've seen a number of these in my time. I can tell from the blatantly over the top renditions of an argument Kogen wants to make look bad. This one's a bit poorly manufactured though, so I think it'll have to be recalled... not believable enough. That said, I'm not going to really decide whether this game is good or bad based on how it looks alone. The gameplay is highly important, beyond even physics, in my mind. I didn't hate E1 like some people did, but it was still disappointing—not going to be fooled again. It ain't over until the first videos of actual people playing it drop.
I hope I can go from Act 1 of Zone 1 to Act 3 of Zone 4 again. That was my favourite part of Sonic 4: built-in debug mode. So fun! ^^
I don't think Episode 2 will have that "choose any stage you like" thing because looking at the backgrounds of the stages they look like they all merge together. So it's like a journey through one world not just being free to go where ya like. Plus I'd prefer it if there was some kind of progression feeling rather than being a free for all
