Which parts of Sonic 4 felt like a true sequel?

[GenesisCodeX]

We all know Sonic 4 Episodes 1 & 2 fell short on a number of things, and most people consider them nothing to the unstoppable 3&K, but I wanted to ask if there were any moments in the game that actually felt like a real sequel or evolution of the classics. Here are my moments:

-Lost Labyrinth Act 2:

I thought the torch gimmick was a nice idea as well as the puzzle elements. It kind of felt like a twist on Sandopolis where you were the one holding the light instead of pulling levers.

-Sylvania Castle Act 3/The boss:

-Acts 1 and 2 of Sylvania Castle felt a bit rehashed, but Act 3 set at nighttime had this awesome original feeling to it. As I found myself spinning across the dark moonlit sky with the Death Egg glowing in the background I was immersed in the atmosphere (there were even cricket noises). Then came the boss. At first I thought really Dimps? Another boss rehash? Then the Egg Serpent Flower smashed the Aquatic Ruin set piece and a huge grin came on my face. At that moment it felt like something the old Sega would do and I loved it.

-White Park Zone:

-This Zone felt really fresh with a design that hadn't really been done before, mixing the Carnival look with a winter one. That coupled with the Metal Sonic fight with that awesome Genesis sounding beat made me feel like "this is Sonic 4".

-Death Egg Mk. II

-As soon as the music started I knew things were going to get real. It felt a bit empty compared to the 3&K version but I guess it was just there to host the final fights. Battling Eggman and Metal at the same time was cool, and gave me OVA vibes xD The final boss was completely original and I loved it.

(Now that I think about it I should have just listed all the bosses xD)

Well those are my thoughts. Which parts of Sonic 4 felt the most like a real sequel to you? If you hate the game completely and can't think of anything then this isn't the thread for you xD

Edited September 3, 2012 by DJScriptify

[Jack / Joker]

Well it was certainly CALLED Sonic the Hedgehog 4...

[buba]

Having Tails after you.

[TheOcelot]

Errr...none.

Actually now let me think....still none.

Okay, the game had some orignal gimmicks and level designs, but overall felt far too rehashy. This should never have been named as a sequel in the first place.

[Blue Blood]

Um...

I honestly can't say any of it. Everything that Sonic 4 does, the Classics do better. And then the Classics do a lot more too. Even with the story regarding Metal Sonic and Little Planet in E2, it's so inconsequential it doesn't feel like it's a sequel to SCD at all.

[Wentos]

Which parts of Sonic 4 felt like a true sequel?

It starred Sonic.

Edited September 3, 2012 by Hatsune Miku

[Soniman]

I guess the team attack gimmick. Expanding on how Sonic and Tails can cooperate in the stages from Sonic 3 and Knuckles.

To bad it was ill-used.

[sonfan1984]

Both episode 1 and 2 felt like stand alone games then being a true sequel to me.

Edited September 3, 2012 by sonfan1984

[Autosaver]

The step to 3D graphics.

[Old dead account]

Lost Labyrinth act 2 had an interesting concept, but that's about it. The rest feels like a step down from even Sonic 1.

[Kiovle]

This game is truly the concept of "Hold right to win" incarnate.

I honestly enjoyed playing through Episode 2 the first time through, but it's such a short game it doesn't really matter. After replaying the stages even once I realized that I didn't feel like I was playing a game, I was just holding the d-pad down in the direction I was supposed to, jumping and homing attacking whenever I ran into a wall, and pressing X whenever one of those massive helper screens popped up.

There's just no replay value. It doesn't feel like a Sonic game to me, because every other Sonic game I like even in the slightest I can stand to play the same stage over more than once or twice. I guess in those regards it felt like a true sequel to Shadow the Hedgehog.

Edited September 3, 2012 by Kiovle

[GenesisCodeX]

This game is truly the concept of "Hold right to win" incarnate.

I honestly enjoyed playing through Episode 2 the first time through, but it's such a short game it doesn't really matter. After replaying the stages even once I realized that I didn't feel like I was playing a game, I was just holding the d-pad down in the direction I was supposed to, jumping and homing attacking whenever I ran into a wall, and pressing X whenever one of those massive helper screens popped up.

There's just no replay value.

What about speedrunning?

[Kiovle]

What about speedrunning?

Why would I try speedrunning through stages that I don't even like? They're just all rather boring and dull to play through again, even if I didn't mind the first play through them..

[GenesisCodeX]

Why would I try speedrunning through stages that I don't even like? They're just all rather boring and dull to play through again, even if I didn't mind the first play through them..

Fair point. I enjoyed most of the stages though, but I'll agree it's not as fun to replay as the old games. I still think Sonic 4 is slightly underrated though.

[TheOcelot]

What about speedrunning?

What about speedrunning? The classic's didn't need speedrunning to offer good replay value, unlike the modern games.

I have no desire to play Episode 1 now that Episode 2 has been released. Quite frankly I prefer playing Sonic CD over Episode 2 any day.

Edited September 3, 2012 by MilesKnightwing

[GenesisCodeX]

Well it was certainly CALLED Sonic the Hedgehog 4...

I asked which parts felt like a true sequel. Not "the game is called Sonic 4 so it feels like Sonic 4 by the way which parts felt like Sonic 4?"

Put emphasis on the 4 bro. It's not the same as did Sonic Unleashed feel like Sonic Unleashed? xD

Edited September 3, 2012 by DJScriptify

[Jack / Joker]

I was being sarcasm. I hate this game and the fact SEGA even say this... mess of taking 20 steps backwards is the true follow-up to 3&K? Hah. I thought my jokes were bad!

...but that's just me...

[Jix Hedgehog]

X

Edited August 14, 2015 by Jix Hedgehog

[GenesisCodeX]

I was being sarcasm. I hate this game and the fact SEGA even say this... mess of taking 20 steps backwards is the true follow-up to 3&K? Hah. I thought my jokes were bad!

...but that's just me...

Oh whoops xD Carry on then.

[Stritix]

The music and the name. That's all. It's complete garbage.

[Place]

This is certainly going well.

I suppose if there's one thing that could have possibly been on par with the original trilogy were the Oil Ocean boss and the final boss of Death Egg mk. II. As many have said before, Dimps can pull off bosses very well for the most part but that seems to be about it. I can't Sonic 4 without thinking of it being some kind of mediocre, glossy Sonic Advance game. And the Advance series was able to handle itself better than Sonic 4 could. So what happened between that gap of time? They Just Didn't Care? Executive Meddling? We may never know, but whatever we got sure as hell isn't a damned Sonic 4.

[Balding Spider]

You know I honestly can't count a damn thing that make this feel like a proper sequel to the classics. Looking at both episodes it's like the development team revisited the past games took out stage themes and plot and stitched them toghether, and called it good.

Like the first episode is pretty much the plot of Sonic 2 with some of the stages and some of Sonic 1's. While Episode 2's is literally CD meet's Sonic 3.

[Milo]

Nothing. Each episode had a few good ideas/concepts/intentions, but the majority of them were ultimately screwed over in their respective final products.

Episode I was mostly a blatant rehash of it's predecessors that ended up doing nothing new in an attempt by being a "prolouge/back-to-the-basics" episode. Episode Metal was just an poorly thought-out digital Old Save Bonus that doesn't hold a candle to it's 18-year old physical predecessor. All the wrongs Episode I did could had been redeemed with Episode II, but in addition to doing more of the same of Episode I (including bringing back two much-loved things of the classics -co-op gameplay and Tails- and applying them to the game in a very poor fashion), Episode II also tried to distance itself from the classics, which as shown by it's critical reception and sales, was a bad move that only cemented the uncertain future of not only Episode III, but also the entire Sonic 4 saga as a whole.

Edited September 4, 2012 by ModernHentaiQuillFan

[JezMM]

...Yeah to be honest, even I, one of the few defenders of the game who liked Ep 1 and loved Ep 2, can't say it felt much like a sequel to the classics at all. It didn't give me any kind of nostalgia vibe. It felt far more like a progression from the Advance games (which to be honest, DID remind me of the Mega Drive games in some aspects but...yeah they were inbetweeny. Mega Drive to Sonic 4 is too big a leap).

I mean as said I really like it, it's a great game, but it could have just as easily gone by any name other than 4.

[Tails spin]

You know what sonic 4 felt like, it felt like a cheap a** port of sonic 2