Sonic Unleashed vs. Sonic Colors Extra Round - Final Thoughts

[JezMM]

I don't understand why people refer to Unleashed and Colours' art styles as separate entities. The art style is almost exactly the same (its the same art director), just applied to different locations. 

 

Essentially, "art styles" here is just shorthand for "aesthetic direction", I guess.

[Your Vest Friend]

While I appreciate the creativity of the level tropes in Colors, I would have to say I prefer Unleashed's art direction. I think the one thing that really irks me about Colors visually, is the choice of Color palettes; the color saturation is too low, causing the colors to look dull and washed out, which takes away some of the appeal of the stages' aesthetics. Unleashed, ironically, was more colorful despite taking place in more realistic environments. Unleashed has better immersion with its level of scale and liveliness. There's even NPCs hanging around in some stages like Windmill Isle and Rooftop Run, yet I see no one hanging around in Colors, despite it taking place in a Space Amusement Park, not to mention everything feels so constrained with its overuse of 2D "blocky" platforming, which takes away from the immersion even more. Basically, I feel that Colors was too static and needed more stuff going on in each level and it would have been nice to see some NPCs hanging around the amusement park, so you can actually feel like you're at a crazy space amusement park.

 

Ah! I was actually going to mention the colour palette but refrained because I thought it wouldn't make sense to anyone. But yeah, I think a big part of why I don't particular warm to the art style of colours is because the saturation of the stages seems pretty faded compared to a lot of other Sonic titles. Sweet Mountain in particular stands out as a stage with some very apathetic colours in its subdued whites, browns, oranges and pink (orange and pink especially can work as a visually interesting combo, but I don't feel it does here).

[Amomynous]

*Huge fricken post *

Verte you gone and did it again, and much agreed, though both very beautiful, Sonic Unleashed is just prettier to me, it's not just the fact it's HD graphics, it helps, but they just kind of look livelier, much more like places you want to visit, Sonic Colours you don't quite get  so much of the feeling that it's the awesome (and beautiful?) theme park Sonic seems to regard it.

 

I find it interesting that you attribute Sonic's slightly quieter demeanor in Unleashed to be partly due to Dark Gaia- even in daylight,  but he does ham his way through levels rather.

[Burnt Ash]

Back when Soniman announced the topic, I thought it wasn't going to end well, and I also thought I'd be praising Unleashed a lot in comparison to Colors. However, this topic has gone beautifully, and Soniman chose a topic that overall gives me a sense of neutrality rather than one or the other; art style.

 

I love both art styles, and think that both of them accurately fit within the games' tone and mood, and that is essential to have for a successful art direction. Furthermore, regardless of the Wii's graphical restrictions or Unleashed being on HD consoles, I thought both titles were brilliant and expressive, and utilized its tech well to create a nice art style. However, I personally do prefer Unleashed's style, but that's mainly due to my my preference on direction than actual quality, as Colors, again, is quite brilliant in its art style. But enough exposition. Without further ado, I present, Sonic Unleashed.

 

Sonic Unleashed

 

Sonic Unleashed is generally a game that I can't get enough of, and that goes for its artstyle as well. From the beginning with great CGI, with a fantastic rendition of Sonic just running, blowing up a ton of stuff, and above all, it looks cool and expressive, and it definitely adds to my first impression of the game. Furthermore, even the game's in-game graphics don't fail to please. Throughout the game, the game gives me beautifully rendered environments that add to the overall realistic spin of the game. For example, Jungle Joyride Day gives us this:

 

 

Here, you can see a brilliantly rendered jungle, which has a variety of vegetation (at least in other parts of the levels) and rock, ultimately creating a visually pleasing locale. Other parts of the level, while not pictured, go on to include things like blazing through bodies of water (which I found to be exhilarating the first time through), or even rail grinding near a massive waterfall. (Edits begin here, since I thought I had a lack of examples in this particular paragraph). Sonic Unleashed also reciprocates this visual quality in almost all of its levels. For example, the already brilliant Apotos sees an evening rendition of it in one of its acts, and this level just looks downright gorgeous. Apotos already looked pretty neat in Act I, but much like the evening rendition of Planet Wisp in Generations, the evening rendition of Apotos is visually impressive, and helps draw me to the game.

 

Additionally, tying back into Aqua's set pieces topic, Rooftop Run Act I has this brilliant (while automated) section that literally has you rail grinding from the top of the clock tower all the way to the ground level, which is a pretty neat look, especially when considering the quality the Hedgehog Engine lighting can provide. Above all, Sonic Unleashed shows to me how and why it's a visually impressive game, and it accomplishes this through the diverse level tropes and environments it provides, in addition to various elements within the environment itself.

 

Sonic Unleashed also creates cool moments like Sonic running/sledding on the back of a giant whale of all things (couldn't find a picture, unfortunately), speeding through the air on firecrackers and blazing through the waters of Dragon Road, jumping up the clock tower in Rooftop Run night, etc. The visual expressiveness and quality of Unleashed, for me at least, adds to all of the overall experience in each of those events. To me at least, it helps make the experience a bit more exciting.

 

Furthermore, the great animation quality. Unlike Sonic 06's puppet-like movements, Unleashed (Colors for that matter as well) goes on to allow the animation to give the characters...character. Each cutscene, along with the visual prowess provided by the Hedgehog Engine, gives each character quality animation to make the character feel more alive (Chip just doing random stuff for example), which contributes to making the cutscenes more interesting. Sonic's animations allow him to express himself within cutscenes better than before, and it also allows for better interaction with other characters like Chip or Eggman. 

 

We've also got the hubworlds. Each hubworld, much like the levels, takes a certain setting from the real world, and manipulates it to a more Sonic-esque style, which is accomplished by the art style given to the decor of the hubworld, along with the various objects (floating rails in Spagonia?) and art style given to the humans. I'll speak about the humans in particular, as one way to describe the art style of the hubworld is to take it more specifically, and discuss the various elements of it, such as the humans. Each human is unique; no two humans in the game look the same. This sense of variety adds more life to the hubworld, and it can also make interacting with the human NPCs interesting as well. Plus, you can't forget Professor Pickle, his assistant with his "whole pack of robots", or Wentos and his "Sandwich?", or Louie.

 

The hub worlds also tend to provide, to some extent, the expressiveness shared by its people. Unlike hub worlds in 06, for example, the architecture isn't generic, and the design of each hub world, to an extent, helps give identity to each hub world, which contributes to the world-building aspect of Unleashed. This, personally, is something I'd like to see in Sonic games, and I thought Unleashed did it pretty well -- I want some kind of universe I can immerse myself in, and the artstyle of Unleashed contributes to that well. Overall, elements such as the human NPCs generally show how Unleashed takes a real-life setting, and as stated before, applies it to a more "Sonic-y" style, in order to create lively hub worlds. 

 

Overall, Unleashed's artstyle is one I appreciate for the overall contribution of world-building or atmosphere the artstyle provides. I also like the realistic approach Unleashed took, and how it sort of manipulated it into a more "Sonic" type setting. Furthermore, the visuals themselves are well done as well, and thus, Unleashed's artstyle overall is the one I prefer for the franchise (with additions and improvements of course).

 

*takes a quick breath* *alright time for Sonic Colors*

 

Sonic Colors

 

As a whole, I never really liked Colors. There's many things that I don't like about it, however, those are for later topics in this thread. There are some things that I praise Colors for, and I praise it highly for it, even though I don't show it at times. One of those things is its artstyle. Yeah, I do prefer Unleashed's, but that comes down to my personal preference for the series direction. Colors, however, does indeed have outstanding qualities about it, much like Unleashed does, and despite Colors running on weaker hardware, in terms of how Colors expresses and uses its artstyle, I honestly would say that Colors's artstyle has relatively the same quality Unleashed does. And without further ado, an explanation of Colors's artstyle!

 

In contrast to Unleashed's artstyle, Colors gives us more of a zany, surreal art style rather than a semi-realistic approach, and considering the game's overall tone and mood, Colors's artstyle is fitting, and it executes it rather well. This is expressed even from the very first CGI cutscene of the game, which sees moments such as Sonic, Tails, and the Wisps running through a brilliantly rendered Planet Wisp, or Sonic and the Cyan Wisp in the section where it shows them in Tropical Resort. However, the use of this more unrealistic artstyle is not simply restricted to the cutscenes. Like Unleashed, Colors also implements in the various levels. For example, take a look at Sweet Mountain! Unrealistic and surreal definitely apply here; the entire stage is made up of food! Partly due to the stages, the style Colors uses certainly adds to the tone and mood it's trying to provide, and that is commendable. 

 

Furthermore, despite being on hardware with less graphical capabilities, Colors manages to take this in stride and utilize what it can, something Sonic Team has been doing throughout development for their Wii games. Colors in particular utilizes a vast array of bright colors in order to create a...flashy experience, to say the least. For example, look at Starlight Carnival in Sonikku_Kiah's post. That level is pure eye candy; there's many lights and bright colors utilized on screen. You can even look at Aquarium Park and the nice, kind of wavy look to the level once Sonic is underwater (the picture section in the bottom kind of shows this), in addition to the background. Considering this, Colors, utilizing the hardware in a somewhat unique way, provides an interesting visual experience that I enjoy.

 

Additionally, Colors, like Unleashed, utilizes several level tropes. While, granted, Colors is slightly inconsistent in this regard (mainly due to a lack of connection between levels, I guess), the variety is pleasing. Colors represents an interesting nature vs. machinery trope in Planet Wisp, foods in Sweet Mountain, and at last, an underwater trope in Aquarium Park not seen since the days of SA2 and S3&K. In this regard, Colors's art direction excels. It lays out a variety of level tropes, and this overall adds to an interesting experience and diversity to the visual aspect of the game.

 

Finally, something that I didn't touch upon in Unleashed, the enemy variety. If Unleashed suffered from anything in its visual department, it was enemy variety. Egg Fighters were the predominant enemy in the day stages, but however, the night stages makes up for this somewhat by adding in Dark Gaia's forces. However, regardless of this, Sonic Colors's enemy variety blows Unleashed's out of the water. It lacks enemy originality unlike Unleashed, but at the same time, the variety is definitely something that adds something interesting to the game. You'll end up seeing the return of classic enemies like the Buzzbomber as well as variations of Sonic Heroes's Egg Pawns. Considering this, the enemies in Colors are definitely diverse, and it also adds a layer of nostalgia on top of it, which is welcome, in my eyes. 

 

Generally, both Colors and Unleashed have a great artstyle, both of which I think could suit the franchise well in the future. Both games have several elements that help add to the game, and both utilize their hardware well, and both have a great sense of variety and diversity, which, personally, I think is great. Ultimately, I do prefer Unleashed's artstyle, but that again, is due to my interests in series direction. With that in mind, regardless of how much I dislike Colors, I can gladly admit that the game's visual direction and style is something I greatly appreciate about the game.

 

Finally, just as a reference, related/relevant images with stuff I referred to in my post:

 

 

I am now excited for whatever topic comes next.

Edited February 28, 2013 by Burnt Ash

[Amomynous]

I think part of why Colours' levels didn't feel quite so atmospheric or so much like 'an awesome theme park'  because you didn't get to see or interact many rides or other buildings, whereas Sonic Unleashed you could run on rooves, smash through windows,ride up fountains or fireworks. Being able to run through and interact with the environment in a similar manner in Sonic Colors would have been great, especially if you have ferris wheels, carousels and such be obstacles and routes through the level,I guess there was an aquarium and roller-coaster though. So it's kind of a art design + level design thing

Edited February 28, 2013 by Mysterics

[azoo]

Colors could've felt more alive with Unleashed-esque hub worlds and NPCs in them (and the story). The lack of people really ruined the idea of this being an amusement park.

[Scar]

Colors could've felt more alive with Unleashed-esque hub worlds and NPCs in them (and the story). The lack of people really ruined the idea of this being an amusement park.

 

I kind of attribute that to limitations in budget and time. After all Generations was being developed in tandem, and Colours was supposedly initially supposed to be a port of Generations.

[Tails spin]

Colors could've felt more alive with Unleashed-esque hub worlds and NPCs in them (and the story). The lack of people really ruined the idea of this being an amusement park.

 I looked at it in the sense that Eggman still had not opened the park publicly. Since Planet Wisp was still being constructed and all.

[Dr. Crusher]

Yeah, I thought it was yet to be officially opened as well.

 

How that explains the PSAs... well that's Robotnik for you. He'll rant even if there's no one else there.

[Vertekins]

Yeah, I thought it was yet to be officially opened as well.

 

How that explains the PSAs... well that's Robotnik for you. He'll rant even if there's no one else there.

 

Of course. Dude even gives orders to non-existent crew on-board the Egg Carrier. Specifically over the Intercom in Sky Deck. Not to mention how he made toilets for them as well.

 

Bonus points for Eggman even admitting that he made the first five robots of the E-100 series to be Egg Carrier crew to Gamma before setting him against Beta.

[SenEDDtor Missile]

Yeah, I thought it was yet to be officially opened as well.

 

How that explains the PSAs... well that's Robotnik for you. He'll rant even if there's no one else there.

 

OT, but one way I think the themepark could have been less barren was to create certain spots within the stages where you would see a bunch of robots doing something themepark related, or even just talking about robot stuff, or how Eggman is delusional and that no one is going to fall for this. If you destroy them, they'll yell stuff like "GLORY TO EGGMAN!" or "I KNEW THIS WAS GOING TO HAPPEN!". It would definitely make things more lively, and it would give the impression that Eggman is so delusional that he has his own robots partake in his themepark in order to feel like it's actually working, and that his plan will actually work.

Edited February 28, 2013 by 743-E.D. Missile

[Nepenthe]

Yeah, I thought it was yet to be officially opened as well.

 

How that explains the PSAs... well that's Robotnik for you. He'll rant even if there's no one else there.

 

It also doesn't explain the space elevator even being open for entry, or the fact that it's implied there are several sites to explore and rides to go on within the story and gameplay (Sonic does ride Asteroid Coaster while Tails visits the sushi place). Also, if the DS version's story is to be taken into consideration, the park is probably a little bit more bustling than directly perceived considering the rest of the cast was there to hang out too.

 

It always seemed like Planet Wisp was the only stage that wasn't actually open to the public due to all of the construction and PSAs specifically warning people to stay away, which isn't out of the ordinary for amusement parks. So it only further raises the question: why is there no one there, or even anything to do in the Wii version? Some little side attractions would've been nice.

[Kuzu]

I just chalk it up to Sonic Team just wanted to make a more streamlined experience considering the criticism of Unleashed's hub worlds and it's "lack of activity" as the critics put it.

[Vertekins]

Doesn't Sonic manage to sneak into the park because someone left the keys inside the space elevator? Makes you wonder if Eggman did it on purpose in an effort to lure Sonic to his park and put him under mind control.

[DarkLight]

Doesn't Sonic manage to sneak into the park because someone left the keys inside the space elevator? Makes you wonder if Eggman did it on purpose in an effort to lure Sonic to his park and put him under mind control.

 

That's what I figured too. Eggman probably knew that Sonic would know (wow that sounds weird) that he was up to no good and investigate coupled with his plan on mind-controlling him first before moving on with the rest of the world.

[Dr. Crusher]

Well he was aiming for Sonic when he first revealed the mind control beam... The only reason Tails got hit was because he jumped in the way.

Edited February 28, 2013 by Dr. Crusher

[Nix]

Is it too late for me to gush about Colors?

 

Of course not, it's never too late to gush about Colors!

 

Now, I'm not saying Sonic Unleashed looks terrible, because by all means it doesn't, but I feel that it owes a lot of that to the superior hardware.  It's probably unfair to judge it this way, but the even shittier shitty version of Sonic Unleashed just looks boring despite sharing a lot of the slightly less shitty HD version's tropes, themes, and aesthetics.  A lot of the things that makes Sonic Unleashed look so nice, like the lighting, just can't be done on the Wii (as far as I know).  Even then, I feel a lot of the HD's areas are boring.  For instance, Rooftop Run never stood out to me until Generations threw in a large variety of colors with its hot air balloons, and I think Empire City suffers greatly from the grey fog that obscures the ground.

 

It's easy to tell that Sonic Team put a lot of love and care into the world they wanted to create in the HD version, but it's a world that I'm not interested in.  I feel like they missed the opportunity to create a truly new and fantastical world in Sonic Unleashed.  I'm not particularly interested in seeing our world with a Sonic-y twist on it, I want to see his world (badum-tish).

 

Now with Colors, I'm given a completely different experience, because Colors is giving us a world(s) that's completely alien to us that's full of color and life.  A futuristic tropical resort, a colorful factory made to look like confectionery, a carnival in space, an alien landscape being overtaken by machinery, a roller coaster ride through asteroids, a more eastern location much like Unleashed's Dragon Road except almost completely submerged in water.  Hell even Game Land is incredibly charming in its simplicity.  My jaw completely dropped when Starlight Carnival started up for the first time, flipping the camera over and sending Sonic careening off into space, and I was completely awestruck when I ran through that first field in Planet Wisp (a feeling successfully replicated in Generations).

 

I'm also a lot more fond of the Wisps' designs than I am the townsfolk in SU.  Mostly because the Wisps are cute and cuddly looking, and are able to convey a lot of emotion using their eyes alone.  There's only a handful of Sonic Unleashed's townsfolk that I remember off the top of my head from their design alone, a lot of them just don't stand out.

 

I just feel like I was looking for something a bit more outlandish and fantastical than what Sonic Unleashed had, and that's exactly what Sonic Colors provided.

[Sean]

I actually have a slight perverse interest in abandoned or empty amusement park settings. I liked that Colors was empty in that regard. Besides, NPC presence in something like Sonic isn't that big of a deal to me. It was suitable in Unleashed due to the theme of traveling around the world, but Colors didn't appear to necessitate it.

 

Also, Unleashed did a good job at representing the real world in a stylized way (quite unlike other Sonic games that came before it), but I think Colors captured what I felt was inherent in the Sonic series to begin with, so I do favor Colors's locales over its precessor's.

[Sega DogTagz]

Even though both were fantastic entries into the series from an aesthetic standpoint. I give the nod to Unleashed because I feel that it did the little things better.

 

We all heap praise on the nature to industrial shift that takes place in planet Wisp. It was a great movement from one phase onto the next. In my book, Unleashed accomplished this with greater consistency within its environments. Again and again and again. There is just such a tremendous scale of distance traveled in Unleashed. Blasting through Arid Sands in Shamar put you from a bustling town, to the middle of nowhere, to a ruin site. Likewise, in Adabat, you blew through a village, through the jungle, across a stretch of ocean into a death trap of ancient structures. Most of the stages were built up in a way to make you feel like Sonic. Covering ground impossible for any other living creature. When you were in the city, you didn't stick to the roads. When you were on the run, you didn't even always stick to solid ground. The stages were designed with a trailblazers mentality. It takes you that much further and immerses you into how Sonic interacts with his environment. While Colors certainly made you feel like you were moving from point A to point B, Unleashed takes it a step further and has stages relocate your Blue Blur by a few area codes.

 

I adore that about the way Unleashed’s stages were designed. Progression dictated by pace and tempo really allowed most of those stages to shine.

Edited March 3, 2013 by Sega DogTagz

[Soniman]

Just a heads up peeps, at 12 AM EST im gonna start the next round, so if anyone who hasn't said their preference wants to do so, the last few hours are the time.

[Soniman]

Round 2: Music

 

Now for one of the tougher match-ups, which game had the best musical score?

 

Sonic games were never slouches when it comes to infectious and well made tunes, but Sonic Colors and Unleashed certainly rank up there with some of the franchises' best, which game comes out on top in terms of musical prowess? Well that's for you to decide, in the mean time here's what I consider to be the best tunes from each respective game.

 

 

 

Quite a study in contrast right? You have the high energy, techno-like, bouncy Aquarium Park Act 2, and the slow, melodic, somber Jungle Joyride - Night. I picked these two because not only are they the best tunes, they are a good representation of what each game had to offer.

 

Sonic Unleashed's music culturally rich and diverse, using a wide array of instruments and styles that very from country to country. You have the spicy saxophones of Shamar, the jazzy explosions of Empire City, to the oriental stylings of Chun-nan. The general tunes of Sonic Unleashed come in two variations, fast paced and high energy during the day, and slow paced and generally atmospheric at night. Both variations do a good job in showing how you can present a specific locale in unique ways. Again I think Empire City shows this the best, both the night and day versions use jazz in their themes, but they are presented in to completely different and unique ways that  they never feel stale, same goes for most of the other variations really. Oh and the hub themes were just beautiful, every one of them. Favorites are Adabat (Night), Apotos (Night), Chun-nan (Night), and Holoska (yeah, night). Endless Possibility was a good theme, especially when it was first shown in the trailer, and Dear My Friend is pretty touching, if not a little sappy.

 

Sonic Colors sounds a lot like what you would hear in a traditional Sonic soundtrack, it also covers a wind range of styles, giving each level it's own unique flavor. You got the bombastic Sweet Mountain, the calming Planet Wisp, the rock centric Asteroid Coaster, the aforementioned Aquarium Park with its techno like beats and the high tension Terminal Velocity. Most of the themes are fast paced and come in variations. A lot of the themes come in normal and quick variations, similar to how it was done in games like S3&K. The vocals themes are fun and infectious, though it's not everyone's cup of tea, I just find Cash Cash charming and their songs show this, yes I know Speak With Your Heart has some infamy, but I enjoy it.

 

In the end both games have excellent soundtracks, but If i had pick though? Id give it to Colors, while Unleashed's cultural diversity is very well done, it's kind of expected in a way. The music you'd hear in Chun-nan's hub for example, is exactly the kind of music you would expect to hear in a China-like setting. Colors gets the edge because due to it having original locales to it's name, the composer can have a lot more free range to what they create, and as a result Colors soundtrack ends up being a touch stronger because of it.

Edited March 3, 2013 by Soniman

[Chaos Warp]

I disagree with that being the best song in Colours. THIS was the best: 

(I'm using this one but insert any act of it here)

 

But anyway, here's another one where I can't decide. They are both awesome in their own ways. Unleashed has great cultural diversity, and Colous was a more classic-styled Sonic soundtrack and they both are awesome.   

[KHCast]

Well first of all, I freaking LOVE Terminal Velocity. Not only is it my favorite song in colors, but probably up there in the entire series. I'm saying this because I don't want this to get in the way of my choice.

So first we have unleashed. Unleasheds soundtrack really is unique. That's something that the series rarely does. Create a entire soundtrack that while sounding like sonic also is able to blend itself with the environment. The fact that unleashed was able to culturally merge itself with the locations just screams out how special this games soundtrack is. Not to mention its main theme "Endless possibilities" is one of my favorite themes in the series. It captures what sonic is spectacularly. I'm trying to pull it back, but I can't. Atmosphere. Yeah, everyone saw this part coming, but it's a big part of this. The music in this game really makes me feel like I'm in these locations. When I think of cool edges music and hub music, I think freezing cold. When I think dragon road, I think culturally mystic and ancient land.

Now we also have colors. Colors soundtrack is more traditional. It's very sonic-y. And I don't take that lightly. The very first acts Tropical Resort soundtrack sounds very techno fast and groovy, something That became pretty catchy to me. This entire soundtrack is very diverse and wacky. I'd compare it to CD Japanese soundtrack. Very cartoony and fun. We got out rock,techno, funk/rock, Old style Japanese,etc. it's very wide in its styles. And the. We have reach for the stars...I'm sorry but as much as I love cash cash, this song has got to be the cheesiest and obnoxious theme in soni games. It's catchy...in a bad way. I just don't like it. Although its orchestrated version is awesome.

So I'll have to say as a whole, unleashed wins it for me. It's something that I just don't see all the time, and what it was going for, it did it. amazingly!

[Celestia]

So I didn't comment during the first round because 1) I rarely post in Sonic threads as it is and 2) I really couldn't choose! But this time, it's pretty easy for me.

 

 

The Game Land remixes are the best. THE BEST.

 

Yup, I have to go with Colours. Don't get me wrong, Unleashed has one of my fave soundtracks in the series, but Colours' music is just wonderful. Not only are there multiple themes for different acts, but I much prefer the boss music (not just the final boss--the one for the Starlight Carnival/Asteroid Coaster boss is BEAUTIFUL). Of course, the main thing I want to talk about ... is the hub area music.

 

 

It is seriously a shame that you probably won't hear the music for the hub areas for longer than like, five seconds. Because they're wonderful. Seriously, I feel bad for whoever put so much effort into these pieces of music that most people might never listen to. I'm not sure what my favourite of the hub themes is, but it might just be Aquarium Park's. Seriously, listen to them in full and you'll find they're pretty amazing. (In terms of Stage music, though, Planet Wisp clearly wins.)

 

Confession: Reach for the Stars" and even "Speak With Your Heart" are huge guilty pleasures.

 

So yeah, siding with Colours on this one, even if Unleashed has a lot of awesomeness too. And Endless Possibility + Dear My Friend were cool, too.

[Tani Coyote]

 I looked at it in the sense that Eggman still had not opened the park publicly. Since Planet Wisp was still being constructed and all.

 

A good take as well, because otherwise it's very possible Sonic indirectly caused quite a few deaths when the whole place fell apart.

 

Makes logical sense though; most of the PA announcements are probably recorded, with some given live.

 

Though, as I recall, you can see a fair share of tourist vehicles in Tropical Resort... one can hope anyone present got out okay.

 

Maybe the park just opened and tourists are mostly contained to the Tropical Resort?