"To Be Continued" - Will Sonic 4 Continue?

[goku262002]

[media=]

As you already know, these 2 pieces of assets were found in the -Beta 8- build. they are an unused sfx that ranges to 35 seconds long and a "TO BE CONTINUED" text. We were all thinking that since -Beta 8- was a beta that maybe there was an unfinished secret ending that they were not done with yet (even though in reality that Sonic 4 Episode 1's secret ending was in tact as early as the partnerNET build).

Welp, come release day yesterday, we all come to realize that there was no secret ending even after collecting and 100% the game. yet the assets still remain in the final version of the game.

So it begs the question, What was the secret ending supposed to be? and Do you think the Sonic 4 series will continue? or will

No, I didn't spoiler btw. Beta 8 has been out since last month and the game released yesterday, knowing us most of this infomation is well known fact by now.

[Komodin]

At this point, I think the better question is, "Should they continue Sonic 4?" I mean, whatever ideas they have for a possible Episode 3 would most likely be better off executed in a Sonic 5, or something; at least then, they'd be starting off on a more-or-less clean slate, free from whatever negative associations that Sonic 4 has.

[Chooch]

Will it continue? Of course it will. Especially when some people honestly have the nerve to buy multiple copies for the sake of getting a signed poster. Man, I'm still not entirely over that nonsense.

Should it continue? Only under the pretense that the next episode is much better. Episode II is better than the first episode, sure, but it's still not particularly good as far as I'm concerned.

Edited May 16, 2012 by Chooch

[Tori Himemiya]

If it sells like hotcakes and has raving reviews then they might consider episode 3.

Though they might forget that episode 3 will never happen.

[Jetronic]

It'll be a bit sad if that sound is just a bad ending telling you to get the emeralds.

Although I'm pretty sure an episode 3 will happen, if not a new Sonic game exploring what will happen now that little planet truly is taken over the way it is now, or not...

[goku262002]

It'll be a bit sad if that sound is just a bad ending telling you to get the emeralds.

Wasn't already confirmed that emeralds or not, it ends the same way?

[Barry the Nomad]

I think sales are all SEGA are concerned about. Their promise to only release games that get positive reviews is nonsense. The three Mario & Sonic games and Free Riders say hello. Really, if episode 2 sells well and at least gets an average of 7/10 or above or gets high star ratings from consumers (not critics), then we'll see an episode 3.

[Ming Ming Hatsune]

Wasn't already confirmed that emeralds or not, it ends the same way?

Yeah, completed it 100% on the final version, and I never encountered the "TO BE CONTINUED" text. It's safe to say it has been removed from the game

[speedfreak]

Don't know and honestly don't care. Even if future episode are much better it won't matter much to me because Sonic 4 as a whole was planned so poorly. From the awful physics/rehashness of the first episode to the fact that we can't even lock the fucking episodes together. Sonic 4 will always be a poorly planned pile of shit to me.

[Tornado]

No offense, but I'm struggling to see how this topic will give anything but the same incredibly obvious answers (which basically amount to "Hell could freeze over and the game will still sell well enough for them to make another") that the Iizuka thread came up with.

Edited May 16, 2012 by Tornado

[SuperLink]

If their marketing pulls off and it sells well they'll probably make an EpIII... oR they could listen to all the shitloads of feedback, a lot of it relatively disappointed, and scrap the project. This seems like a decent place to end it, even though the plot ended up being little more than "Sonic 2 with Metal Sonic in it".

Things I would love to see:

• Sonic 4 released as one seamless game with feedback taken on board and the game heavily edited (i.e. the whole thing to be Ep2 standard or higher with Tails in Ep1 as well)
  
• Sonic 5 to start again from the ground up, maybe using sprites instead, or just overall different groundwork, more solid philosophy, progressive more than trying and failing to be Sonic 2.
  

I really would love to see a Sonic 5 done right.

That's just my wishlist.. eh, personally I kind of doubt EpIII will happen, it's had less attention than EpI from the getgo and people disappointed by the first likely won't be returning once they see the impressions.

[---]

Personally, I really don't think they should continue Sonic 4. Sonic 4 was fucked from the start, and anything they do now won't really do much good. Just let it die and fade away. Like Komodin said, maybe they can have a clean slate with Sonic 5. Just keep Dimps the fuck away, and have Sonic Team develop it, like they should have with Sonic 4.

Personally, I really don't think they should continue Sonic 4. Sonic 4 was fucked from the start, and anything they do now won't really do much good. Just let it die and fade away. Like Komodin said, maybe they can have a clean slate with Sonic 5. Just keep Dimps the fuck away, and have Sonic Team develop it, like they should have with Sonic 4.

EXACTLY, gosh 100% right here.

[Cyrus]

Ken Balough said that if Episode II gets good reception, they'll consider making episode 3. Judging by the what people think so far, it's almost inevitable.

[Detective Shadzter]

Well, the launch trailer did say "To be concluded", like it's a teaser for Ep III, just like the launch trailer for Ep I hinted at an Ep II.

Just found this at the SEGA Forums:

Ken, as you know Sonic 4: Episode II came out on PlayStation Network and Steam yesterday. I got it on day one, and I really liked it. In my opinion, it was a MAJOR improvement over Episode I, with noticeably better physics and even smoother graphics. While I thought it was a great game, I was a little disappointed and confused at the ending.

When I beat the game without all of the emeralds, after the credits a "TRY AGAIN" message appeared. But when I beat it again with all of the emeralds, nothing happened after the credits.

I don't get it, why didn't anything happen? Why wasn't the Death Egg II destroyed and Little Planet freed? Why wasn't there a hint for an Episode III after the credits like at the end of Ep. I? Is this the end of Sonic 4 or something? When the Launch Trailer for the game went online yesterday, it said "To Be Concluded" at the end of the trailer. What was the meaning of that?

Please explain all of this to us.

http://forums.sega.com/showthread.php?411246-Ken-please-explain-this&p=7322984&viewfull=1#post7322984

Huh - it would appear thats a pretty good question about the DEII- maybe we will have to answer it

http://forums.sega.c...l=1#post7324012

An Episode III hint?

[Jetronic]

Nothing special for not getting emeralds, just wanted to make sure.

[SonikkuForever]

I want them to continue it, because I hate unresolved cliffhanger endings (I'm looking at you, Sonic Chronicles).

[Blue Blood]

I want them to continue it, because I hate unresolved cliffhanger endings (I'm looking at you, Sonic Chronicles).

Work Little Death Egg Planet into an all new game, Sonic 5 or otherwise, that's set after Generations instead of before Adventure. Afterall, Little Planet isn't always around.

[Nintendoga]

Do-

Do you guys think maybe

possibly

They were dumb enough to forget to put the ending in there?

I mean it is Dimps after all, just saying.

Wouldn't be too surprised if we got a patch update that gave us Tails leader and an Ep. 3 hint.

Edited May 17, 2012 by Nintendoga

[Cortez]

Haha oh wow, that would be the funniest thing ever if they actually did forget to put the ending in!

[Blue Blood]

lol, except there's nothing to indicate it was forgotten. There's no almost nothing in the way of lost graphics, just a a glow effect and the TBC text. No animation, no scripting for a cutscene etc etc. It all looks like regular cut content.

[Komodin]

Wouldn't be too surprised if we got a patch update that gave us Tails leader and an Ep. 3 hint.

Hm, imagine the sheer outrage that would almost certainly occur if they were to actually charge for such a DLC...

[Barry the Nomad]

Could just be that they figured its easier to show nothing and leave their options open then to say "to be continued" and have a Shenmue III on their hands. Not to say that Sonic 4 eps 1&2 = Shenmue 1&2, but its the obvious "there WILL be another game" that they were probably wanting to avoid.

The "downloadable content" selection is interesting. Yeah, it just points towards avatar items, and that might have been the intent. But it makes me wonder if that means they're thinking of DLC? I would be down for free Tails DLC which tacks on an ep3 teaser.

[SuperLink]

Maybe depending on initial feedback and sales they'll get a decent idea of how the future will look for the game success-wise - and they'll decide on possible patches/dlc/teasers. Their approach to Ep2 seemed a bit.. hesitant for a while? Maybe they'd be as glad as us (har) to be done with the game.

The main problem with offering Tails as the leader is bits that require Homing Attack to get through (unless Tails can get past all those by flying I haven't tested it yet) but otherwise yeah I'd like that too.

[EXshad]

I'd like an Episode 3, but I want it to definitely end there. Episode 1 was pretty bad, and Episode 2 was very good, but not exactly great.... but still, it's inarguable that it was a vastly better game as a whole. Dimps truly did improve and come closer to making this the game we've all been waiting for. Sure, speed-boost/spring clusterfucks and 69 combo boosting did really put a damper on things (as well as the sheer fucking laziness of designing the game so Sonic had to be the primary playable character), but beyond that, I truly did enjoy the game. And if Dimps improved this much from Episode 1 to Episode 2, imagine how good Episode 3 could be.

Also,I liked how the game took the mythos from the classic trilogy and Sonic CD and tried to do something creative with it. I mean, yeah, it wasn't fucking Shakespeare or anything, but it still used plot devices that we thought were long gone. Plus, I wanna find out what's next. I mean,

the Death Egg 2 didn't exactly break apart or anything, it's still just floating there... so what, are Sonic and Tails just gonna let the planet stay encased in Eggman's giant metal face?

It must be an eyesore having THAT reappear every year.. plus, what's going to happen to Metal Sonic, since apparently at the end of Episode 2,

he's just back to where he started - on Little Planet once again, deactivated. Are they gonna wrap up his story arc, perhaps by showing that he's rebelling against Eggman because Eggman's plan always end with him defeated?

Finally, we already know each Episode references the classic game that its number corresponds to in some way. For example, Episode 1 was Sonic only and had the special stages from Sonic 1, Episode 2 has Tails and builds off of the co-op mechanic from that game, and also has special stages inspired by Sonic 2, etc. And really like to see them conclude that pattern with an Episode 3. Plus, maybe they could build off of the co-op mechanic by giving Knuckles his own co-op partner or something, or rather, maybe you could make your own team of characters out of a roster with Knuckles, Tails, and Sonic or something, I dunno. They could do a lot with it. Plus, dem blue sphere special stages. Come on.

But yeah, I just wanna see ONE more episode, but not any more than that simply because at that point, since it'd almost feel like they were whoring it out. Plus, fan response is probably going to be a collective moan and hoping instead for a Sonic... 5... for some godless reason... I mean really, if the fans hated Sonic 4 so much, what's to say a Sonic 5 would fair any better?! There's still going to be people who will nitpick it to death because no matter how good it is, since it probably won't live up to the standard established by the classic games, no matter how good it is, and will just further end up "tainting the legacy" for some people. The constant complaining is just grating on my nerves.

Edited May 17, 2012 by EXshad

[SuperLink]

Random li'l theory my brother and I just came up with, I quite like it.

Has anyone noticed how the Egg Serpentleaf resembles Perfect Chaos? Even the way it moves and the sounds it makes are things Perfect Chaos does..

So what if as early as Sonic 3 or 4 Eggman has plans involving Chaos? Maybe this was like some sort of attempt at replicating Chaos in one of his machines because his plans on Angel Island in Sonic 3 were, well, botched.

Idk it's pretty interesting to think about, maybe it'd be further alluded to in EpII's inevitable sequel? Be that Episode III or Sonic 5.