Pooky
October 23rd, 2011, 08:02 AM
So now I've had a chance to play the latest Sonic Generations demo quite extensively, I thought I'd give my impressions of it. I'm one of those kids who had a Genesis (Mega Drive) growing up rather than a SNES, and I was really into Sonic. I had all the games, the toys, watched the shows. I played those games so extensively that I already knew just about every glitch that I discovered on the Internet years later. Even as far in as Sonic Adventure 2 I was still playing and enjoying these games. So I think it's fair to say I know Sonic pretty well.
On that note, here's my impressions of the Sonic Generations demo.
Classic Sonic:
Issues
-Runs too fast
-Jump is too low and oddly sticky
-Sonic can't maintain the spin move, always goes back to running
-Can't transition into a spin at any time
-The godawful 'rings are health' system from Sonic Heroes
-Some physics feel a bit off
-Too many 'scripted' sections where you just watch Sonic bounce around springs and such with no player interaction
-Motion blur in a sidescroller
Good points
-A purely sidescrolling Sonic game with true HD graphics
-Excellent remix of the old theme
-Gameplay is simple, adrenaline pumping fun
I know, I just called a Sonic game 'too fast', but hear me out on this. If Sega are trying to recreate the 'classic' feel of the Genesis games here, Sonic really needs to slow the fuck down. Genesis Sonic could never run this fast, and the speed just feels too high for the levels themselves. Half the time I couldn't even tell what I was doing and just held down on the D pad in the hopes I'd spin attack anything in my way. Of course this isn't helped by the excessive motion blur, which seems very out of place in a sidescrolling game.
As far as the spin attack itself, it's been nerfed pretty heavily compared to the classics. In Genesis Sonic, you could transition into a spin at any time as long as you were on the ground, and doing so was often vital so you could barrel through any enemies in your way. It seems Generations Classic Sonic isn't quite as agile as his 16-bit predecessor, as now you can only spin attack at certain times, which no apparent explanation as to when. Furthermore, Sonic always comes out of the spin whenever you enter a loop or other 'scripted' section. Personally, I don't get why the loops need to be scripted at all. The Genesis games got by just fine with purely momentum based gameplay and no scripting. But whatever. The physics are at least an improvement from Sonic 4 or Sonic '06, with no more ability to stand still at the top of loops or sideways on walls.
The jumping is also an issue for me as it felt way too low and 'sticky'. That is to say, tapping the A button only yields the slightest upwards hop, while holding it down gets you a jump that feels like about half of what Genesis Sonic could do. Considering the high emphasis on platforming in many sections, it's odd that the jumping feels so unintuitive.
As for the level design, it's certainly not that similar to Genesis Green Hill Zone. Honestly, it feels more like a modern Sonic level put into sidescrolling than anything. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I miss the multi-layered complexity of ye olde Sonic levels.
Finally, Generations brings back the 'rings as a health bar' bullshit from Sonic Heroes. Which would be fine for Modern Sonic, but they actually put it in the Classic Sonic levels too. This means that there's basically no chance of ever dying from enemies, so say goodbye to the challenge factor. Not that enemies in Sonic games were ever especially threatening, but come on.
Modern Sonic:
Issues
-Level design is completely 'on rails' with no exploration whatsoever
-No spin dash??
-Hardly any enemies, feels more like an obstacle course than a battle
Good points
-Incredible sense of speed, better in fact than most racing games
-Actually feels less scripted than other 3D Sonic games
-Controls are tight and intuitive
I came into this demo expecting to enjoy the Classic Sonic gameplay more than Modern Sonic, and was surprised to find that it was actually the other way around. Modern Sonic's gameplay just feels more polished, with more thought put into the level design and physics. Where Classic Sonic feels like a modern Sonic game put into sidescrolling, Modern Sonic feels like... well, a modern Sonic game in all its glory. Modern Green Hill zone seems to take everything good about 3D Sonic games and put them into one. While the 'on rails' level design is a bit annoying at times, it does mean that there's no more constant frustration of falling off the edge of the level. And while there are few enemies to be found, they're at least placed pretty well, often serving as a springboard to alternate pathways.
The spin dash is nowhere to be found in Modern Sonic's mode. In its place we have a slide maneuver, which while functional doesn't seem to do anything the spin dash couldn't do just as well. Given that the spin dash is Sonic's signature move, its exclusion feels awkward to say the least.
The sense of speed bears mention, as it's done extremely well here. Simple things like adding a 'sonic boom' effect to the boost, well done motion blur and excellent sound effects all contribute to the experience of running impossibly fast. It's done so well in fact that I can safely say it trumps any racing game I've played for pure adrenaline. And that's what Modern Sonic is, just pure adrenaline gameplay through and through. Sure, you can say that the whole level is basically just an extended quick-time event, and it kind of is. I didn't mind that though, as it was so much fun to play and watch.
Overall:
From all this, you might think that I want to crucify Classic Sonic and have Modern Sonic's babies. Neither of those are the case. I found both modes to be highly enjoyable, however I do think Classic Sonic needs more work before it can feel truly 'classic'. We'll see what happens when the full game comes around. Personally, I'm greatly looking forward to it, and I recommend to everyone here to play the demo and let me know what you think.
On that note, here's my impressions of the Sonic Generations demo.
Classic Sonic:
Issues
-Runs too fast
-Jump is too low and oddly sticky
-Sonic can't maintain the spin move, always goes back to running
-Can't transition into a spin at any time
-The godawful 'rings are health' system from Sonic Heroes
-Some physics feel a bit off
-Too many 'scripted' sections where you just watch Sonic bounce around springs and such with no player interaction
-Motion blur in a sidescroller
Good points
-A purely sidescrolling Sonic game with true HD graphics
-Excellent remix of the old theme
-Gameplay is simple, adrenaline pumping fun
I know, I just called a Sonic game 'too fast', but hear me out on this. If Sega are trying to recreate the 'classic' feel of the Genesis games here, Sonic really needs to slow the fuck down. Genesis Sonic could never run this fast, and the speed just feels too high for the levels themselves. Half the time I couldn't even tell what I was doing and just held down on the D pad in the hopes I'd spin attack anything in my way. Of course this isn't helped by the excessive motion blur, which seems very out of place in a sidescrolling game.
As far as the spin attack itself, it's been nerfed pretty heavily compared to the classics. In Genesis Sonic, you could transition into a spin at any time as long as you were on the ground, and doing so was often vital so you could barrel through any enemies in your way. It seems Generations Classic Sonic isn't quite as agile as his 16-bit predecessor, as now you can only spin attack at certain times, which no apparent explanation as to when. Furthermore, Sonic always comes out of the spin whenever you enter a loop or other 'scripted' section. Personally, I don't get why the loops need to be scripted at all. The Genesis games got by just fine with purely momentum based gameplay and no scripting. But whatever. The physics are at least an improvement from Sonic 4 or Sonic '06, with no more ability to stand still at the top of loops or sideways on walls.
The jumping is also an issue for me as it felt way too low and 'sticky'. That is to say, tapping the A button only yields the slightest upwards hop, while holding it down gets you a jump that feels like about half of what Genesis Sonic could do. Considering the high emphasis on platforming in many sections, it's odd that the jumping feels so unintuitive.
As for the level design, it's certainly not that similar to Genesis Green Hill Zone. Honestly, it feels more like a modern Sonic level put into sidescrolling than anything. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I miss the multi-layered complexity of ye olde Sonic levels.
Finally, Generations brings back the 'rings as a health bar' bullshit from Sonic Heroes. Which would be fine for Modern Sonic, but they actually put it in the Classic Sonic levels too. This means that there's basically no chance of ever dying from enemies, so say goodbye to the challenge factor. Not that enemies in Sonic games were ever especially threatening, but come on.
Modern Sonic:
Issues
-Level design is completely 'on rails' with no exploration whatsoever
-No spin dash??
-Hardly any enemies, feels more like an obstacle course than a battle
Good points
-Incredible sense of speed, better in fact than most racing games
-Actually feels less scripted than other 3D Sonic games
-Controls are tight and intuitive
I came into this demo expecting to enjoy the Classic Sonic gameplay more than Modern Sonic, and was surprised to find that it was actually the other way around. Modern Sonic's gameplay just feels more polished, with more thought put into the level design and physics. Where Classic Sonic feels like a modern Sonic game put into sidescrolling, Modern Sonic feels like... well, a modern Sonic game in all its glory. Modern Green Hill zone seems to take everything good about 3D Sonic games and put them into one. While the 'on rails' level design is a bit annoying at times, it does mean that there's no more constant frustration of falling off the edge of the level. And while there are few enemies to be found, they're at least placed pretty well, often serving as a springboard to alternate pathways.
The spin dash is nowhere to be found in Modern Sonic's mode. In its place we have a slide maneuver, which while functional doesn't seem to do anything the spin dash couldn't do just as well. Given that the spin dash is Sonic's signature move, its exclusion feels awkward to say the least.
The sense of speed bears mention, as it's done extremely well here. Simple things like adding a 'sonic boom' effect to the boost, well done motion blur and excellent sound effects all contribute to the experience of running impossibly fast. It's done so well in fact that I can safely say it trumps any racing game I've played for pure adrenaline. And that's what Modern Sonic is, just pure adrenaline gameplay through and through. Sure, you can say that the whole level is basically just an extended quick-time event, and it kind of is. I didn't mind that though, as it was so much fun to play and watch.
Overall:
From all this, you might think that I want to crucify Classic Sonic and have Modern Sonic's babies. Neither of those are the case. I found both modes to be highly enjoyable, however I do think Classic Sonic needs more work before it can feel truly 'classic'. We'll see what happens when the full game comes around. Personally, I'm greatly looking forward to it, and I recommend to everyone here to play the demo and let me know what you think.