Wii are very frustrated. (SatSR) [Minor Spoilers Ahead?]

MiraiTails · Post by **MiraiTails** » Wed Feb 21, 2007 5:09 pm

DISCLAIMER: The following are my first impressions of SatSR after only about an hour of play. Take them with a grain of salt.

I am not a happy boy. I'll try to articulate why I am unhappy, but it will be difficult due to my high level of fustration.

1) I'm playing the first level mini mission where you have to not hit the pots. There is this one pot that is directly in your path right after a camera angle change. Fine, I can just remember it's there for next time, but I don't think I have the patience to memorize every little turn in the game. That doesn't seem like fun to me.

2) Couldn't they have made the main missions longer (The first level, at least, seems very short.) instead of having me avoid some stupid pots?

3) If you die, you do start basically from where you died. BUT, if you fail the mission, you start from the beginning. Oops, I broke that same pot again. Time to press start 4 or 5 times through the skill selection menu and start over. I'm not sure how short the mission is, but if it's a decent length, starting over from the beginning will get old fast.

4)The most reliable way for me to perform an attack is to thrust the wii remote forward with both hands. This gets tiring very quickly. Since I'm, left-handed, flicking the remote with my right hand usually doesn't work. (Not quick enough?) Flicking with the left doesn't seem to register. This will probably be irrelevant to most of you, but it sucks for me.

5) I'm only on the first level. I shutter to think of the suicide-inducing difficulty of the later levels.

Incidentally, not losing all your rings at once is good thing because you can get hit quite often.

I haven't really bothered with multiplayer yet.

Am I just horrible at this game? Probably. Still, I'm supposed to be enjoying myself aren't I?

Shadow Hog · Post by **Shadow Hog** » Wed Feb 21, 2007 5:43 pm

I picked myself up a copy today, so I'll probably be able to give more opinions later.

I'm probably crazy, picking up a Sonic game on day one... it's actually sad that this is remotely true, although given the current state of affairs...

Grant · Post by **Grant** » Wed Feb 21, 2007 5:50 pm

Regarding your fourth point, aren't both of your hands on the remote anyway? I can't even picture how you'd try to flick with only one hand.

Anyway, I bought this today and played to the third world (not counting Lost Prologue), completing the Sand Oasis boss (which was cool) but not any of the other bosses. The bosses, by the way, only come after you complete most of the missions in that world.

So far I'm liking the game. The on rails system feels a lot like as if you were playing StarFox 64 with platforming elements. And. of course, a bit faster.

I like the control system for the most part. It doesn't take long to get used to and after you do it's pretty comfortable. I like how the homing attack feels especially.

Some missions are more fun than others. Beat X amount of enemies, collect 99 rings, time attack are all fun, but I could do without the frustrating race mission and stealth attack.

I'll post more impressions later.

Post by **Esrever** » Wed Feb 21, 2007 5:57 pm

This game still isn't on the shelves here, and the fellow at EB told me they weren't expecting it to arrive for another seven days. Amazon.ca and Futureshop.ca aren't mailing out yet, either. I guess maybe the release has been delayed in Canada?

MiraiTails · Post by **MiraiTails** » Wed Feb 21, 2007 6:06 pm

I think the 27th was the US date until they moved it up. Maybe that was only for the US and Canada kept the original date.

I don't know about the attacking thing. It seems like it requires excessive force for it to register. I must be doing something wrong. (Sad, I know.) What's the easiest way to do it?

I probably need to give myself more time to get used to the control scheme in general, too.

Grant · Post by **Grant** » Wed Feb 21, 2007 6:29 pm

The way I've been working the homing attack is just one solid, decisive twist towards the screen. It doesn't take much force.

One thing I have been finding frustrating, especially in the Evil Foundry world, is the brake/reverse system. It's ridiculous to have Sonic keep running in this wall, then backing up and missing this cannon-esque hoop thing and not being able sidestep while you're braked. It might be me, though, it didn't seem like that aspect should be that difficult.

Post by **Esrever** » Thu Feb 22, 2007 5:12 pm

OK, so now virtually every Canadian retailer is claiming they won't have the game until the 28th.

But for whatever reason, Wal Mart has it. And actually, what they seem to have is the American version of the game... there's no French on the packaging!

Anyhow, it's there, and it's five dollars cheaper than everywhere else. So if you're a Canadian looking for the game, you know where to go.

I've got to work on comics for most of tonight so I probably won't get to dig into the game until the weekend.

Post by **Segaholic2** » Thu Feb 22, 2007 5:14 pm

You guys have Wal-Mart?

WW · Post by WW » Thu Feb 22, 2007 5:14 pm

Major spoilers here, folks. The ENDING TO SONIC AND THE SECRET RINGS. MAJOR SPOILERS.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUMDUyukGOE

Just a fair warning.I have to say, this is the most awesome cinema scene, not to mention, ending to ANY Sonic game that I have EVER seen.

Griffith does an amazing job as Sonic, espeically when he's pissed. Erazor's voice is odd, but I think it fits with the cheeseball nature of the game perfectly. And Bella Huddson, as usual, does a wonderful job of the female lead as Shahra.

Sonic has his attitude back.

Post by **Esrever** » Thu Feb 22, 2007 5:50 pm

Sure we have Wal-Mart, 'holic! We also have Sears and Costco and Best Buy (although there isn't a Best Buy in Victoria.)

Do we have Targets? I'm not sure if we have Targets. We used to have K-Mart, but those were all bought out by a Canadian store called Zellers.

I'm not going to watch that ending video because I wouldn't want to spoil my enjoyment of the undoubtedly captivating and well-crafted storyline.

chriscaffee · Post by **chriscaffee** » Thu Feb 22, 2007 6:01 pm

It's hard to believe that these are Sonic games.

Yami CJMErl · Post by **Yami CJMErl** » Thu Feb 22, 2007 6:24 pm

Sonic has a new Super Form? Kind of reminds me of Burning Blaze a bit...

WW · Post by WW » Thu Feb 22, 2007 6:28 pm

Yami CJMErl wrote:Sonic has a new Super Form? Kind of reminds me of Burning Blaze a bit...

The form is called "Darkspine Sonic". Sonic uses the powers of the secret rings, and Shahra's spirit possesses him and brings out his dark side to fight. Unlike Super Sonic, he isn't invincable.

Frieza2000 · Post by **Frieza2000** » Thu Feb 22, 2007 6:56 pm

You know what I miss? Sonic games. Anybody remember those? They had that blue hedgehog who fought robots and the funny egg-shaped villain? Yeah, those were cool. It's too bad Sega got hit by that meteor back in 2000, killing everyone remotely involved in the series and burying all possibility of its continuation. Yep. A real shame, that.

Post by **Delphine** » Thu Feb 22, 2007 7:35 pm

Wow, this game is crap.

Locit · Post by **Locit** » Thu Feb 22, 2007 9:47 pm

Esrever wrote:This game still isn't on the shelves here, and the fellow at EB told me they weren't expecting it to arrive for another seven days. Amazon.ca and Futureshop.ca aren't mailing out yet, either. I guess maybe the release has been delayed in Canada?

Amazon says I won't be getting my copy until March 5, which until recently was a much more reasonable this weekend-ish.

Plorpus III · Post by **Plorpus III** » Thu Feb 22, 2007 10:21 pm

I actually love this game. I was prepared for the worst, but I find it to be alot of fun. It's not the next Zelda, granted, but its a solid game that's fun to play. It doesn't feel alot like a Sonic game, but rather something completely different. That's not a bad thing, though. It's not the seond coming of hedgehog christ, but it's a good game that's worth the money I paid.

Black Rook · Post by **Black Rook** » Thu Feb 22, 2007 10:36 pm

What I want to know is: how would you rate this in comparison to Sonic 360? Is Sonic Team doing a little better or do they still have no idea what they're doing?

theAMAZINGboo · Post by **theAMAZINGboo** » Thu Feb 22, 2007 10:57 pm

This is the best 3D Sonic post SA.

It has a few problems, but you know what? I can overlook them easily and see that this game is fifty times more fun than any 3D Sonic I've played in years.

Completely blows STH06 out of the water.

Hybrid · Post by **Hybrid** » Fri Feb 23, 2007 12:03 am

Everything up to the handkerchief part in the final movie was awesome. Perhaps those anti-4Kids retards will shut the fuck up now Griffith has done some good voice acting.

I'm really liking what I've seen so far. Darkspine Sonic is a little lame, but I'll forgive that since this game actually seems like a lot of fun. I don't think its released here until March sometime, but I'll definitely be picking it up.

Grant · Post by **Grant** » Fri Feb 23, 2007 12:36 am

Delphine wrote:Wow, this game is crap.

Have you played it yet? I know you have a Wii, so I'd be curious if you've been playing it and just flat out hating it. Same question for Frieza too; are you just disappointed with the story of the game or did you not like playing? My roommates and I have been playing this almost nonstop since I bought it.

There are definitely some frustrating things here and there and they almost always involve the braking system. Despite what the IGN review said, I haven't had much trouble with reverse, I think that works fine. But there's some platforming elements, especially in the Pirate level, where you'll die a bunch of times simply because you can't stop Sonic properly. After awhile you kind of realize the best way to come to a sudden halt is to slide, hop and then press and hold the 2 button rather than rely on the skid-brake.

I really don't have many other gripes. The game has just been fun! I like the power ups and EXP points, it definitely makes replaying the old levels enjoyable and purposeful.

In terms of aural sensations, the music is pure ridiculous Sonic rock. It's not as awesome as "Escape from the City" type cheesiness, but the main theme and the Evil Foundry music are funny. As for voice acting, aside from Tails and Erazor, I've actually been thinking that this might be the best Sonic voice acting I've heard in a game so far - it sounds like the actors even know the context of their lines! That said, I haven't played a new Sonic game since SA2, and I didn't watch Sonic X, so I don't know how it's been since then, but it's certainly better than the Adventure titles.

I've noticed a few people are down on Secret Rings' story, but I genuinely like it! True, it doesn't exactly seem like a Sonic story, but then again, Mario 64's story didn't exactly seem like a Mario story and I liked that too. Maybe I'm the only one, but I was pretty tired of the post-SA1 Sonic plots which took themselves a bit too seriously. So although Sonic jumping into a story book doesn't seem right, the silly tone of the story with just the right amount of seriousness fits the character and the series better than, say, Sonic360.

Post by **Esrever** » Fri Feb 23, 2007 1:29 am

DINO!

WIKITTIWAH!

I'm enjoying it so far, too. I was a little worried at first, though. They made some design decisions that really cause the game to drag at the beginning.

First you have the painful mandatory initial tutorial stages, which stink both in terms of their "well duh" stupidity and in terms of how bloody long it takes to get through them. It doesn't help that you have to plow through a bunch of menus between each one, either.

And second, even after those stages, Sonic doesn't really feel "right" until you earn those first couple of skills that improve his speed, acceleration and maneuverability. It only takes about half an hour before you have them all, and I understand that they made those elements "skills" so that you disable them for missions that require you to go slower. But boy, until I got them, I was a bit nervous!

Once you get past that and get into the actual meat of the game, it's surprisingly good. I'm really enjoying all the extra missions so far, which I wasn't expecting to... I'm impressed with how substantially some of them alter the level layouts. There are a few asinine goals like collecting rings and smashing pots, but a lot of the missions are actually just more standard A-to-B Sonic gameplay... only through alternate (usually more difficult) level layouts.

Overall it seems like they've managed to assemble a bunch of pretty fun stages. Unfortunately they've stitched them together with a kind of awkward menu system that makes the experience feel a bit clunky and disjointed, especially when you're playing a bunch of shorter missions in a row.

But the missions themselves are a lot of fun so far. I haven't encountered anything that really pissed me off yet, except the initial tutorial. But hey, I've only been playing for a couple hours. The missions might get more irritating later.

The story is pretty standard saturday morning stuff. It's completely devoid of angst or tude, and it has a certain charm to it even though it's kind of stupid. The English actors all sound "right" for their parts, especially Sonic, but the dialogue they deliver is pretty awful. Of course, you can always switch to the Japanese language track and just pretend they're saying something more intelligent.

Frieza2000 · Post by **Frieza2000** » Fri Feb 23, 2007 9:57 am

That was just my usual jab at the story. Taken as an independent work that ending might not be so bad, but much like Sonic 360 or Sonic X this just isn't a situation I was ever interested in seeing Sonic in. And regarding the acting, I'll say this. I watched that video without sound the first time. I watched it with sound the second time and found it considerably less tolerable.

The gameplay looks fun. I'd enjoy it for a while, but I don't have time for that kind of game anymore. I wonder about its replayability though. I'd be interested in hearing how you guys feel about it a month from now. It seems like the sort of thing that wouldn't last very long.

While I'm posting, I'd like to point out that this appears to be the Buu saga on our list of DBZ parallels. It has fairy tale elements, an evil wizard from out of nowhere, and of course an evil pink monster of pure magic that was released from its prison, etc etc.

Shadow Hog · Post by **Shadow Hog** » Fri Feb 23, 2007 11:17 am

I finally decided to stop playing WarioWare (which I bought simultaneously - insane fun, that), open up the shrinkwrap and start playing. So I did, and thus far, I kinda like it. It's taking its time to get to the "Push Up to go insanely fast" power, which kinda sucks, since although Sonic isn't ALL about speed, his acceleration feels kinda slow even with the "speed up acceleration" skill I obtained.

Also, there seem to be some aspects I haven't perfected yet. Namely, homing attacks (I usually get them, but there's the occasional one where I shoot to early, or it THINKS I shot too early since I was preparing to shoot again a little too abruptly) and rails (seriously, that tutorial stage on rails taught me NOTHING - for instance, how do I switch from rail to rail? If it's tilting the controller, then how do I stop myself from jumping to the next rail and then jumping off immediately? Is there a faster way to get ON a rail, since they seem to go faster than your running speed, than an awkwardly slow jump and/or homing attack? How do I stop from slowing down? The manual says tap 2, but that makes me jump off, et cetera). Other than that, it seems to be fair enough on the control front. I'd be playing it now, but one of my roommates apparently is still sleeping (despite it being about 12:17 PM EST as of writing), and I'd rather be listening to the game than playing it on mute.

Oh, and I'm using Japanese voices, so no comments on the English ones. But hey, "JUSD MEDDIT!" is pretty amusing. That and Erazor's Japanese voice is pretty badass, whereas I've heard his English one... isn't.

Oh, and I think I saw a typo somewhere in there. Something like "darknes" instead of "darkness", or something.

Post by **Esrever** » Fri Feb 23, 2007 2:04 pm

One of the things that is really nice about this game is that it's taken all the fear out of the homing attack.

In previous 3D Sonic games, you have no easy way of knowing if you're close enough to an enemy to perform a homing attack. Will you home in on him? Will you home in on another nearby enemy instead? Will you not home in on anything at all?

Secret Rings does something incredibly obvious that should have been done ages ago. It puts a target on things you can home in on. If the target is green, you know that it's possible to home in on it, but you're not close enough to do it yet. If the target is red, you know you are close enough, and your homing attack is guaranteed to connect.

I can't even begin to describe what a relief the targeting system is. No more hitting the homing button too soon and missing your target, no more homing in on one thing when you thought you'd home in on another. You just wait for the target to turn red, and then POW!