Sonic Unleashed?

[One Classy Bloke]

Considering they were just showing off an Alpha build when the release date is Nov 08 suggests that we're gonna see a repeat here of Sonic 2k6. An unfinished, buggy game crammed out of the door in typical Sega fashion as we've all seen, and I've seen unfold before my very eyes.

It's a shame, because I think they've got a good idea here (although not quite the right idea).

[hedgepig]

I'm guessing technically it will be fine and near enough a finished product. It'll probably be the best major Sonic game in years but unfortunately I think it will be the first I give a miss.

I've been suckered into playing through most of the recent titles, but something about this game doesn't do it for me. Ignoring the hogwolf, the levels are nice enough and that, but they're a bit soulless I feel; it could be any old game that happens to have Sonic in it.

So unless the consensus is that this is the best thing to happen to Sonic in a decade, I don't think I'll bother with it.

[Zeta]

Also Rocket, I don't think Eggman is really the main enemy in this game--well, anymore than he was in SA1, SA2, and Sonic2K6. It was mentioned that he unleashed some yet another godly beast into the world and you know what that means...

Yes, one of the earliest leaked images was of a huge dragon made of crystal that is no doubt the real final boss, just like every other kaijuu since Sonic Adventure 1.

[Zeta]

Gay Gamer on Sonic Unleashed:

Another was based on the Greek isle of Mykonos - which is truly weird. Santorini is a much more famed isle and Mykonos happens to be the gay vacation capitol of the Mediterranean. I spent a few days downing ouzo there and believe you me, it rivals Provincetown as a gay destination. It may help illustrate the weirdness of the setting that I kept my usually almost-always-smartass mouth shut during the Q&A - I wanted to ask if they intended to set this new game on the gayest island east of Fire Island, but felt the Sonic Team had enough hassle to deal with.

Well, he already ran through San Fran!

[FlashTHD]

What's this I hear about obscene load times in the Gamespot presentation?

I can't believe i looked past it / was distracted by the talking enough to notice that loading up the china stage took more than 10 seconds. I don't believe this.

[Radrappy]

Considering they were just showing off an Alpha build when the release date is Nov 08 suggests that we're gonna see a repeat here of Sonic 2k6. An unfinished, buggy game crammed out of the door in typical Sega fashion as we've all seen, and I've seen unfold before my very eyes.

It's a shame, because I think they've got a good idea here (although not quite the right idea).

This seems to be absolutely true right about now. I winced when the sega rep said "of course, this is an alpha build so all this slowdown will be naturally fixed by the release date" Which is FOUR MONTHS AWAY.

[P.P.A.]

Considering they were just showing off an Alpha build when the release date is Nov 08 suggests that we're gonna see a repeat here of Sonic 2k6. An unfinished, buggy game crammed out of the door in typical Sega fashion as we've all seen, and I've seen unfold before my very eyes.

It's a shame, because I think they've got a good idea here (although not quite the right idea).

This seems to be absolutely true right about now. I winced when the sega rep said "of course, this is an alpha build so all this slowdown will be naturally fixed by the release date" Which is FOUR MONTHS AWAY.

Let's speed up!

[Shadow Hog]

What's this I hear about obscene load times in the Gamespot presentation?

I can't believe i looked past it / was distracted by the talking enough to notice that loading up the china stage took more than 10 seconds. I don't believe this.

Y'know, 10 second load times are acceptable if it loads the entire stage in one go. It's when it's abused as much as it is in 2K6 when it's not: when it takes 20 seconds to load a single goddamn piece of text, not the level that accompanies it, meaning another 20 seconds must be spent on the level. Oh, and the levels are split up into several small chunks, so you get that 20 second load time at least three or four times per stage.

[RocketPunch]

Considering they were just showing off an Alpha build when the release date is Nov 08 suggests that we're gonna see a repeat here of Sonic 2k6. An unfinished, buggy game crammed out of the door in typical Sega fashion as we've all seen, and I've seen unfold before my very eyes.

It's a shame, because I think they've got a good idea here (although not quite the right idea).

This seems to be absolutely true right about now. I winced when the sega rep said "of course, this is an alpha build so all this slowdown will be naturally fixed by the release date" Which is FOUR MONTHS AWAY.

Four months away? And this is just an alpha build?

Well, that's the other shoe dropping, I guess. See you all in another two years.

[b_boult]

For those of you who like the look of the Werehog sections, can I ask why?

To me, the platforming seems very generic and uninteresting. I'd even argue *dare I say it*, that some bits look too slow, such as the walking over the narrow ledges with a bottomless pit underneath. I like slower platforming segments, but to me alot of this seems too slow.

The hack 'n slash gameplay seems like it might get pretty old pretty fast. I also think the combo moves (such as the hammer) look really silly, even if it is meant to feel lighthearted and comical.

I don't like the idea of putting gemstones into holes in the ground to access new areas, or likewise standing on switches to open up new areas. It seems kind of half-arsed to me.

I also have a problem with how Weresonic moves. It looks a bit awkward when he runs (I like the all fours running animation but not when he's on two legs).

The areas look too claustrophobic. Too small and bitty, with steps in random places too that seem to slow Weresonic down.

Doors seem to take a second longer than I'd like to open. I'm an impatient guy!

Some of these are petty niggles I know, but I'll put them on the table like this so you can persuade me otherwise.

[K2J]

Four months away? And this is just an alpha build?

I might be treading the line too closely to optimisim here, but who says that this build is the most recent one? This could've been made a month ago for all we know while the team continues to work on the game, getting the load time down.

[Radrappy]

Four months away? And this is just an alpha build?

I might be treading the line too closely to optimisim here, but who says that this build is the most recent one? This could've been made a month ago for all we know while the team continues to work on the game, getting the load time down.

You cannot be serious.

[G.Silver]

If my experience working on my own games is any indication, if the game is more or less complete and all they are doing is optimizing, it's surprising how quickly and dramatically that sort of thing can be implemented. But since every major developer says that sort of thing and changes are almost never made, it's not like there's precedent or anything. 4 months is a lot of time, really, and "alpha plus" doesn't really have any indication of how far along the game is. On the other hand, if "beta" is when they begin testing, then that's probably a pretty bad sign. Did I see Sonic launched out of some sort of gimmick cannon and then go straight down a hole in the video?

[(...)]

Considering they were just showing off an Alpha build when the release date is Nov 08 suggests that we're gonna see a repeat here of Sonic 2k6. An unfinished, buggy game crammed out of the door in typical Sega fashion as we've all seen, and I've seen unfold before my very eyes.

You what? A FOUR MONTH alpha to final run is a verylong time for a game.

[One Classy Bloke]

Those who are saying four months is a long time for development, neclect that the game needs to be passed for standards to be licensed for release and then manufactured. This takes around a month in itself.

Beta is when they should be working out all the majority of the bugs and polishing up the implemented content with few additions if at all. You should of seen how much difference there was between betas for Sonic 2k6 (granted, I only saw the first few builds before I left). Also considering we were only given a month to test the game from Alpha to final release (which they had to run through several versions of anyway), I sure Sega has the wrong idea about developing there games at present.

I do hope I'm wrong on this. At least we'd get a working Sonic for once, but Sega's recent outputs of various games shows this trend towards hastiness is more likely.

[Yami CJMErl]

For those of you who are interested, the JPN site is now open, and it continues the precedent set by Riders 2 for "completely changing the name of the game between regions".

[P.P.A.]

For those of you who are interested, the JPN site is now open, and it continues the precedent set by Sonic & Tails/Sonic Chaos for "completely changing the name of the game between regions".

fix'd

Also the Japanese logo is way superior to the western one. D:

[FlashTHD]

Ohh man, now this is just special because it happens to be two words short of the name for a GBA pirate Adamis bought off eBay last month. A-whoops?

[Wooduck51]

Have you downloaded the Hi def trailer from the FTP site? YOU CAN COUNT EGGMAN'S INDIVIDUAL 'STACHE HAIRS! This is an epic day in sonic history.

I think Blur should make the next Sonic game.

[RocketPunch]

I'm confused by the name inconsistencies. "Unleashed" implies some sort of wild, kindred spirit being freed upon the world (aka the werewolf), but "World Adventure" gives no indication of that. It's just sort of "Sonic meets the Adventures of Tintin" or something. I wonder why they bothered with the distinction? Perhaps the name was already trademarked in Japan?

And if this whole "We're in the Alpha stage but we're releasing it in four months" thing is true, then I wonder if Sega even cares anymore. They're like high school seniors, the Spring before graduation. No, they didn't finish reading Macbeth, yes, they're all going to bomb the exam, and no... nobody gives a damn. Summer will come, and they'll just move onto the next thing.

I almost feel stupid for the tiny bit of optimism I dredged up for this game. I guess it could still be good, but not taking into account Sega's track record is just plain ignorance. :(

[Rob-Bert]

What's sad is that this game in it's alpha stage actually looks better than Sonic '06 did in it's released form.

[Yami CJMErl]

I'm confused by the name inconsistencies. "Unleashed" implies some sort of wild, kindred spirit being freed upon the world (aka the werewolf), but "World Adventure" gives no indication of that. It's just sort of "Sonic meets the Adventures of Tintin" or something. I wonder why they bothered with the distinction? Perhaps the name was already trademarked in Japan?

I asked a similiar question on my own forumsite, and this is the response I got:

Sonic World Adventure was the production name for it. The game will still be called Unleashed. AAUK said so and he works for SEGA.

At least, it was something in that wording. *sweatdrop*

[Ritz]

*sweatdrop*

Credibility zero.

[Yami CJMErl]

That's exactly what I was thinking.

Especially since the meathead in question ("AAUK") works for SEGA of Europe anyway, not SEGA of Japan.

[Yami CJMErl]

(I couldn't edit my previous post, so apologies for this dublPost in advance.)

http://www.sonicstadium.org/news/werehog-haunts-e3
^ I feel ashamed in admitting that I would totally BUY something like that if it was ever sold at retail.