The Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Megathread

Do Sega still view the boards? Are they going to read this thread? If so ...

Sega, I know it's tough to juggle with keeping one side of the fence happy and the other side of the fence happy when making a game like this.

This is what happens when you redesign the characters during the character's life time. And although the redesign has been around longer then the classic one, there will always be purists and retro fans, and as time goes on this could even grow more and more. Good example is Mickey Mouse.

So what should you do to appease both groups? Well, how about another redesign? One that both groups will love

As for the game itself:

What the game needs to do more is communicate to US why there are such things like the homing attack, why he has it now and didn't back in his classic days, if you are going with the classic style game play.

There should be a mode to turn off these extras and make the game play MORE like the classics, possibly even an unlockable challenge mode after beating the game. Simple things like removing the ability to spin dash or do homing attacks. Although if the game relies on these gameplay elements to beat a boss for example, that's going to be tricky.

This goes along with the concept of keeping both groups happy, everyone gets to play it how they want to. Thanks to something called options. Games these days are dumbing down the amount of options in their 'options' menu it makes me sad.

So yeah, looking forward to the game. Thankfully I haven't spoiled myself looking at the leaked videos that are on Youtube or whatever. So surprise me well Sega. And Dimps.

 

I'm not following you here. They can't alter how the jump physics feel, I.e. how the upward and downward momentum physics accelerate and so forth, without altering jump height and jump length?

It doesn't seem that impossible to me when I think about it, but then, I'm not a programmer. Still, I'm not understanding how altering jump physics in the way people seem to think they need altering would be impossible.

That said, I'm not seeing the alleged floatiness people are talking about. You're right, it may just be the way his jumping animation looks.

 

I wouldn't be surprised, I can't see there just being one costume. Robotnik would seem to be the next, and only, logical choice, seeing as he and Sonic are the only two main characters listed on the main website anyway.

 

Maybe they're saving these for future Episodes?

 

I'd kind of like a Flicky avatar item, like the Chocobo Chick I got as a Final Fantasy XIII promotion.

 

No, I don't want to play and beat the game so I can have the option to not have the Homing Attack and its entourage of blue Bubbles placeholders. There's virtually no incentive for that because I've already beaten the game. I won't want to play it again. If I can have a game that's not designed to play itself with the press of a button, then make it part of the game from the get-go, not as an unlockable option. That just seems insultingly pointless.

I'm sorry if I sounded a little incendiary, but the more I keep hearing about it, the more it pisses me off. I'm not saying I definitely won't have fun with it and thus be proven wrong, but it just feels annoying and wrong. If Sonic 4 is supposed to be Sonic 4, then I'd rather there be no homing attacks and no level design to accommodate such automatic methods of progression, including the guided series' of springboards combined with speed pads mentioned earlier. It's just—ugh! Stop it! Go full-retro, not halfway. It. Is. Not. That. Hard. I wish they'd stop acting as if it would be so effing controversial and turn away all of the modern kiddy fans, because frankly I think that's pure grade-A bullshit.

I can enjoy stuff like the speed pads and the homing attack well enough in the Advance games, but then those are the Advance games (and they were pretty well made dammit!). It's easier to enjoy them for what they are and appreciate what was fun about them, but I'm not so sure Sonic 4 will be as or more successful. Call it cautious suspicion. I want to play the game, but I don't want to expect I'd ignore the problems I've seen with it so far, because then I just know I'll be disappointed. And I'll have no one to blame but myself.

Anything to balance out this cautious negativity? Well, Super Sonic in stages finally. FUCK YEAH.

Freedom is the only way yeah!

 

That 'unlocking the option to remove abilities' was just some random example. Why not have it at the start of the game then? Play Classic, or Standard style? Maybe even change the Sonic model depending on chosen style while we're at it! :P

 

Assuming Sega/Sonic Team/ Dimps insists on keeping the homing attack in the game, why not assign it to a shield? In other words, you can only execute a homing attack when you have a shield, instead of allowing the player to do it on command, whenever they want.

Then again, that may be asking way too much at this point.

 

Just keep all the shit and call it Easy Mode

You must be insanely delusional not a very optimistic strapping young lad!

This game isn't aimed for you, the purist of the franchise who has stuck by the series since day one and wish for it to return to its glory days.

This is aimed at the people who stopped playing Sonic games at Sonic 2 or 3 and never bothered to try any of the new stuff after it.

Sonic 4 is the Street Fighter IV of the Sonic franchise. And just like Street Fighter IV, this game will sell.

 

We can do without those statements, can't we?

 

I think for someone like you, it's most important to play the game first. I mean, even though I highly doubt it (given SEGA's track record), it could actually be a lot of fun with the new mechanics in. I personally feel we need to at least try these new mechanics first before we throw a monkey wrench at them and consider them heresy.

It's fair to judge how they could be bad, but just going full horned and say they just suck, I feel, is somewhat ignorant without having played the game and seeing if it truly benefits it. Maybe they'll take it out for the sequel if its legitimately hated after users have had the opportunity of trying it out. I wish they'd make the wise decision and send out an early demo of a level, get feedback, then implement necessary changes.

 

In the modern games he hovers 'cause that's all they ever let him do anymore! :specialed:

...But seriously, it's good to have him back. For real, I mean.

 

What I don't understand is people saying the homing attack was encouraged. As we saw, the player abused it, and was (almost) always on the lowest route.

In the last preview by Eurogamer, we were told each level has at least 3 main paths, and the top one is the fastest way to beat the level.

The player we saw wasn't normally on these paths, because he skipped platforming in favor of the homing attack. So it's definitely beatable with the homing attack, but it also makes the levels take longer. That said, we won't know if that's true or not until we see and play all these paths. But considering he missed the breakable walls in SPZ, I have to wonder what else he could have missed.

 

Speaking of EuroGamer... did you catch that sparkling description of the Homing Attack's contribution to the gameplay?

HOMING ATTACK MAINTAINS MOMENTUM! :specialed:

 

...Homing Attack doesn't slow you down when you chain it. Landing does.

 

Did any of you hear?
Eurogamer confirmed there will be superfast load times...

He meant, that if you wanted to restart the level during Time Attacks, because you failed, you don't have to wait a rediculous amount of time (Ahem Sonic 2006)

 

It would be pretty pathetic if this game had any form of load times.

 

"Superfast load times"? That's not a "cool feature", that's a must.

What will be the next "feature" to praise? Stereo sound? Graphics in full color?

 

This. No way should a game with this much pre-rendering need to take extensive time to load the levels.