New Sonic game for 2015

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Crazy Penguin
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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

Post by Crazy Penguin »

Some behind the scenes footage of the cartoon/game: http://blogs.sega.com/2014/02/25/go-beh ... onic-boom/

After all the talk of making Amy less of a stereotype, it's a little surprising that they're sticking with the Minnie Mouse-ish voice of the recent games.

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

Post by Esrever »

I hope "alternate dimension" Knuckles has his old proportions and they all make fun of how small he looks.

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

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In that Sonic Boom Behind the scenes video, there's a shot of Taxman & Stealth's port (It says ©2013 and "Touch to start"), but it's in 4 : 3! I wonder if it was an aborted console port of the game. It might seem insane for Sega to do a 4:3 port but it's not without precedent: The original PC version of Sonic Adventure DX was widescreen, but the console port was squished to 4 : 3.

Apparently, SoJ are doing a port of Sonic & Sega All Stars Racing Transformed, making it the first time a Western Sonic game has been released in Japan since Sonic R (Well, Spinball really, since the two Travellers Tales games were co-productions with Sonic Team). It's weird that they would release a nearly 2 year old game, but I wonder if it's a test to see if Western Sonic games can sell well over there.

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

Post by G.Silver »

What are they porting it to?

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

Post by Crazy Penguin »

Transformed isn't being ported to new systems, they're just finally releasing the PS3 and Wii U versions in Japan.

It looks like there will be a few minor alterations. The character voices are Japanese, the blowfish item has been replaced by a junk Puyo and Danica Patrick almost certainly won't be in it. It'll be interesting to see what else is different. Maybe they'll even put Ryo in there, since he's just been added to the PC version.

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

Post by G.Silver »

I wonder if they'll add any other more Japan-centric characters, like anyone from Project X Zone basically, Virtua Fighter, Sakura Wars, etc. I'd assume that they wouldn't but considering how Project X Zone had the entire Sega roster to pull from and yet the ONLY overlap between the Sega cast in that and the one in Transformed is Ulala, maybe they're a higher priority than we'd think?

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

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Crazy Penguin wrote:. The character voices are Japanese, the blowfish item has been replaced by a junk Puyo and Danica Patrick almost certainly won't be in it. It'll be interesting to see what else is different.
I hope they change all the powers ups, as the originals (such as the blowfish and wasps) were very uninspired.

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

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It's strange just how generic the power-ups were, given how jam-packed with fan-service the rest of the game was. The Puyo is a perfect example of giving representation to a franchise that wasn't a good fit for a playable character or a stage.

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

Post by Tsuyoshi-kun »

I would've been content with having one of the clone characters (especially Pudding) swapped with Arle. I think she represents Sega a lot more than a second Space Channel 5 character.

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

Post by big_smile »

You've probably seen this elsewhere by now, but concept art has been leaked:
Boom-Art.jpg
Boom-Art.jpg (407.39 KiB) Viewed 17891 times
Gamasutra also posted an interview with director Bob Rafei. It seems Sega was concerned that Sonic was losing relevance to younger kids and so the new direction is to appeal to them.


I was quite interested in Sonic Boom when it was first revealed. However, the more that I see, the more it looks like it's just going to be an American Sonic Adventure. There's nothing wrong with that, but I was hoping a new team would have a fresh new take (especially as Sonic Team has never really made a 3D Sonic that works properly).

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

Post by G.Silver »

Oh good, a character with tape in her hair.

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

Post by G.Silver »

Bob Rafei wrote:From someone who is the product of a Western market perspective, I've also watched how my kids and their friends play games, from casual mobile “snacking” games to sit-down console experiences. What they want in a premium console experience is different than what our generation of gamers is used to. I think Sega recognizes this and would like to explore how to broaden Sonic's fan base.
I would like to have seen this expanded on. What DO kids today want in a "premium console experience?"
Bob Rafei (emphasis mine) wrote:Character action games are essentially a character's ability to "touch" or interact with their world. These verbs are the building blocks for a game's mechanic. As games have gotten more sophisticated, we're creating more specific and less modular actions, or verbs, that were the norm in preceding generations.

Running, jumping and avoidance remain essential parts of the third-person character action genre, no matter styles and targeted demographics. Look at Assassin's Creed, Uncharted or Arkham. Combat therefore is a natural expansion on basic third-PCA verbs of interaction with other characters, enemies, or NPCs. For Boom, this made sense to us as a place to build further on how we interact and engage enemies. What is the evolution of bonk or spin attack? Combat.
Ah, he really got me here, I thought "this guy gets it" and then he turns around and completely misses. The way characters interact with their world is incredibly important and is exactly what made Sonic games feel so fresh and unique back then if I may (you know I try not to) briefly comment on "what Sonic was/is about." The interaction or "combat" with enemies and objects was so closely tied to basic navigation was part of what was so cool about it, I think the spin attack was even a more natural and "pure" action than Mario's stomp. So to say that the "evolution" (ie, natural progression?) from that is "combat," well come on Bob, you can make this game any way you like, but that justification is complete bullshit. Sonic is not built from a "realistic" simulation the way the other games he mentioned, abstraction is one of its strongest qualities.

I mean look at Mario, in 64 he was punching and kicking stuff like a "real" person, but Galaxy actually went "backwards" and replaced that with a simpler spin attack ala Crash Bandicoot, and 3D World and Land go even further, having finally managed to make a 3D action game where a simple, unassisted stomp is natural and fun to do, and a lot of the time is your only means of attack, and I strongly believe that these are the best 3D Marios yet.

But I guess that only matters if American Children Age 6-11 want it, so whatever right.

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

Post by Dr. BUGMAN »

Mystery of the Tape revealed. So apparently they were caught flat-footed with worn out equipment before their adventure even began? It's heroic to be unprepared is basically what they're saying?

So much for my very mild inkling that Tape Couture was a homage to another Ohshima oeuvre. (Note also the adventurous scarf. Tres chic!)

Also Eggman is no longer egg-like. Progress!

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

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The thing that bothers me most about the tape is that every character from the game cast (even "Marine", if that is her) has it. If the point was to emphasise character personality traits (athleticism, practicality and lack of vanity, apparently), they're not doing it any favours by applying the same design quirk to five characters. It's such an odd decision, given the lengths they went to in order to make Knuckles stand out more.

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

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G.Silver wrote:From someone who is the product of a Western market perspective, I've also watched how my kids and their friends play games, from 3D World and Land go even further, having finally managed to make a 3D action game where a simple, unassisted stomp is natural and fun to do
How did they manage that? I haven't played it.

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

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Popcorn wrote:How did they manage that? I haven't played it.
I'm not entirely certain! One thing is the camera, which is really optimized for the types of locations you're in at a given moment (this often means the game stages are designed to accommodate consistent camera angles, a limitation that I think works to their benefit) so where you are vs the ground is really clear. The other thing is that they changed Mario's handling in the air to allow more control. There's still a definite sense of weight and momentum, it's not so extreme that it was even an observation I made on my own, I read about it in Iwata Asks. The result is that if I try to correct my jump about the moment when it looks like I'm going to miss, I end up making it instead just about every time. I'm pretty sure they've also been generous with makes a successful collision, it sometimes seems as if simply being in the air and above the enemy is enough, a specific height (ie, not running into it from the side) is not necessary. It sounds like it's giving the player some handicaps, but they're welcome ones.

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

Post by Popcorn »

Huh? You mean it's giving the ENEMY some handicaps, right?

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

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Yes, that.

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

Post by G.Silver »

"No one told us they were the wrong color."

http://www.tssznews.com/2014/04/01/soni ... -feedback/

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

Post by big_smile »

The April fools this year have been disappointing. I blame Google - They took things too seriously with their pranks and so now the whole "holiday" has become tired and predictable.

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

Post by Gaz »

Meet the new character: Sticks!

She already seems like one of the most irritating new additions to the series so far.

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

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Wait a minute...

Image

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

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Oh good, her boomerang is wearing sports tape. For a second I thought they'd forget.
"a jungle badger who has spent most of her life living alone in the wilderness"
"as the most primal character in the Sonic universe, she is a force of nature in every way. Sticks is wilder than the other members of Sonic’s team with unparalleled animal instincts and extremely sharp survival skills. She’s a fearsome combatant and a tenacious hunter..."
"Her wildness means that her social skills need plenty of work and she’s not the most trusting individual."
"...helps Sticks adapt to civilization"
I guess they felt they'd benefit from a Knuckles-like character but didn't think the original could fill that role anymore since Sonic Team has so thoroughly mutilated him over the last 10 years.

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

Post by G.Silver »

I think they just wanted another girl character and specifically one well-differentiated from Amy. I wonder if this is really a "core" character or if she'll just be "frequently recurring?"

Also I'm curious, is the tape on her boomerang a "story element" in that maybe Sonic & Co. have fixed it for her (without compromising its aerodynamic qualities! Of course, a cartoon boomerang is magic anyway) or are there maybe plants in the jungle that just grow sports tape right out of the soil?

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Re: New Sonic game for 2015

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G.Silver wrote:I think they just wanted another girl character and specifically one well-differentiated from Amy.
That was probably their primary motivation, but they had existing choices that already have at least some fan love. Cream, Rouge, Blaze - heck, it already looks like a Marine redesign. Maybe it started that way? Maybe they wanted to minimize the number of characters they updated for fear of the backlash? That, or Pontac really thinks they can play off of this personality type and decided it would be too awkward to force any of the available pegs into that hole.

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