Sonic Lost World - Previews

[Yugi Muto]

the game looks really great and i like the level design also form what i read on the TSS ign preview article sonic gains speed so i guess no boosting that would be great way to get away from the whole boost thing

 

also alot of people for some reason were trying to compare it to super mario galaxy which kinda got me a little angry

I agree with this. There's a lot of innovations Sonic Team has made clear already (still have to try the game but seems promising) that have nothing to do with copying Mario. I want this game to be successful but if all the reviewers say "I like it because it's like Mario LOL" I'm going to be pissed...

[SuperLink]

I suppose, but it might be less.................interesting without twisting. How would they make up for it?  

It would be really interesting in a variety of different design styles, especially if they build on the parkour element and let you run and clamber around buildings and mountains and stuff. To be honest, I don't see what about this gameplay that means it'll only work for twisting, personally?

[Johnny Boy]

Glad to see Knuckles is back! And I hope to God they don't make him the goofball comic relief.

[The Sunheart]

And honestly man there's nothing wrong with you expressing your opinions or concerns.  I merely disagree with them XD  But I respect them nonetheless.

I just feel so negative lol.

 

Everyone's so stoked, even Diogenes, and I'm over here like: "GENERASHUNS HAD BETTUR GRAFIKKS THEESE 1S LUK LIEK MARIO"

And thank you for respecting 

I will respect back.

[Yugi Muto]

Glad to see Knuckles is back! And I hope to God they don't make him the goofball comic relief.

Spoiler alert: 

Knuckles is the first one to get lost, followed by Sonic calling him a Knucklehead.

[CanofEpicSauce]

Love it how IGN says it's learning from Mario Galaxy when it's more like Sonic Extreme

Edited May 28, 2013 by CanofEpicSauce

[Voyant]

OMFG!

 

ABOUT GOD DAMN TIME SEGA! FINALLY A SHIFT SYSTEM!

 

AND THE BOOST HAS BECOME THE SPINDASH!!

 

WELL HOLY SHIT!

Edited May 28, 2013 by Voyant

[Diogenes]

I have one problem though: How will they implement this style into a world that's not the Lost World and not SMG-like with it's gravity and twisting?

I think the gravity tube style is less integral to the gameplay than it might look. If you "unwrap" those segments (like if you cut along a cardboard tube and flattened it) you'd still have largely the same game, just without looping around itself.

The benefits of the gravity tubes, I think, are mostly that it's visually thrilling and it's easier for the designers to mentally break away from flatter surfaces and more rigid locations. If this turns out well and they learn from it, most of it could be adapted to a more "grounded" game.

[Nepenthe]

Wow. I didn't know people hated the Wisps that much. I liked all of their abilities and I thought that they added a lot to the gameplay in Colors, so I'm really happy to see them again. Everything else sounds amazing too. I'm already dying to see more of this game.

 

It's mainly a matter of the Wisps not being first utilized in the most interesting of manners. They all have about one single purpose, for one specific obstacle, which is usually placed right next to them in the level design. It's reminiscent of Heroes' set-up along with the switching gates; it constrains the abilities into specific, repetitive tasks and requires no forethought or puzzle-solving. As I said, it would be much more interesting to be able to use the Laser to burn something, or to use the Cube to break something to get to another area, or to use Drill to spin a contraption. And considering they can fly around in a space, imagine using them in 3D. I don't want them just copied and pasted over from Colors, especially in a more complicated game design as what we're getting here.

[Blue Blood]

I think the gravity tube style is less integral to the gameplay than it might look. If you "unwrap" those segments (like if you cut along a cardboard tube and flattened it) you'd still have largely the same game, just without looping around itself.

The benefits of the gravity tubes, I think, are mostly that it's visually thrilling and it's easier for the designers to mentally break away from flatter surfaces and more rigid locations. If this turns out well and they learn from it, most of it could be adapted to a more "grounded" game.

 

Actually there's another huge one that I've not seen anyone touch on yet.

 

2D Sonic games, especially the Classics, have always had levels that are tiered vertically. You know, an upper route that's harder but generally shorter and more rewarding, with a lower, slower route that you can fall down on to at any time. This kind of design just hasn't been possible in 3D Sonic games to date, as the gameplay has been built for horizontal level design instead. The cylindrical style completely circumvents that. That's the best thing about it.

Edited May 28, 2013 by Blue Blood

[JaidynReiman]

Every bit of new info I learn makes me less and less interesting in the game, whereas everyone else is getting more and more hyped. I just... don't really understand it.

 

The one thing that will probably save this game for me is the gameplay actually looks kinda fun. Everything else has fallen to the wayside. Story, characters, enemies, graphics, just plain everything.

 

The gameplay looks decent, but I hate the highway in the sky feel. I thought they finally got rid of that with Colors/Generations, and here its back again. And people are endlessly praising it? Wow...

 

 

Oh, ONE other thing that kinda interests me. The possiblity that Knuckles may appear in a main game story again (Generations doesn't count). Other than that, there's really not much I have TO be hyped for.

[KHCast]

Every bit of new info I learn makes me less and less interesting in the game, whereas everyone else is getting more and more hyped. I just... don't really understand it.

 

The one thing that will probably save this game for me is the gameplay actually looks kinda fun. Everything else has fallen to the wayside. Story, characters, enemies, graphics, just plain everything.

 

The gameplay looks decent, but I hate the highway in the sky feel. I thought they finally got rid of that with Colors/Generations, and here its back again. And people are endlessly praising it? Wow...

 

 

We haven't seen everything the visuals can do. I would hold off on judging until we see more.(not to mention they still look really good, even if you don't like the art design) As for the story, again aside from a brief summary of what's going down, we don't know how it will be handled actually.

 

I personally am fine with the Highway in the sky stuff mainly because this is giving Sega a chance to experiment with this new formula. More interaction with the world seems like a possibility.

Edited May 28, 2013 by Gonard

[Diogenes]

The one thing that will probably save this game for me is the gameplay actually looks kinda fun. Everything else has fallen to the wayside. Story, characters, enemies, graphics, just plain everything.

Story, it's probably not going to be great given the last few games, but I struggle to think how it could be any worse than Generations. Characters, yeah gameplay's Sonic only but given the last few titles no one should have been expecting otherwise. Enemies look fine, the badniks are solid and I like the new guys. Graphics look pretty slick IMO. So...I don't know what the shocking bad part is?

The gameplay looks decent, but I hate the highway in the sky feel. I thought they finally got rid of that with Colors/Generations, and here its back again. And people are endlessly praising it? Wow...

The problem with the sky-highways was that it made levels that were very narrow and easy to fall off of. The Galaxy-style tubes mean the levels are actually fairly wide, wider than they look (since we've got the full circumference) and we won't be falling off as much since every direction is down. Ideally I would prefer something more physically grounded but I really don't see this as a significant negative.

[Semi-colon e]

I think the highway in the sky style thing will be a lot better than say Heroes, but I was hoping for this sort of thing with a Generations esque thing where it feels more like a cohesive place. The highway in the sky always feels so distant from the background making it feel more like a "game level" and having less sense of place and this is no exception. Maybe there's more that is done with it that isn't seen so far, or maybe next time

 

For a single game gimmick, the rotating tubes could be pretty cool though.

Edited May 28, 2013 by Semi-colon e

[Mr Useful]

 

 

The one thing that will probably save this game for me is the gameplay actually looks kinda fun. Everything else has fallen to the wayside. Story, characters, enemies, graphics, just plain everything.

 

The gameplay looks decent, but I hate the highway in the sky feel. I thought they finally got rid of that with Colors/Generations, and here its back again. And people are endlessly praising it? Wow...

 

 

 

The highway in the sky trope not only seems incredibly bland and generic but it doesn't make you say "Wow" in terms of graphical appeal and just comes off as lazy, I hope this is just temporary and they will work on the background objects/Visual appeal before the game comes out.

 

 

 

[Riverstone]

so this looks amazing. it does look kiddy, but its stylized and pulls back to sonics classic roots. Theyve pulled this off pretty well in my opinion. the guardians still look like balls unfortunetly. loving the new gameplay configuration as well 100% over generations already. looks like this game has great potential.

Edited May 28, 2013 by Riverstone

[SilentDoom]

The highway in the sky trope not only seems incredibly bland and generic but it doesn't make you say "Wow" in terms of graphical appeal and just comes off as lazy, I hope this is just temporary and they will work on the background objects/Visual appeal before the game comes out.

 

Trope's the wrong word really.  It's a variety of level design.  And it's only bland and generic if you make the actual platforming bland and generic.  The Galaxy games proved that this kind of level design can indeed be made extremely interesting and varied.

[Xenos]

I have no idea how this is even highway in the sky, considering it's completely intentional direction to experiment with the gameplay. And I imagine with all of the levels being this flexible it'll be a lot easier to retool it with the entire game like this in mind.

 

Difference between actual highway in the sky and this is, it's actually interesting.

[Shiny Gems]

I like the details that we've been provided.....

 

It is quite a shame that Sonic is the only playable character again, but everything else seems great! I liked the Wisps in Colors, so I won't mind them, and the gameplay mechanics rather look interesting. I'll be picking up both versions on day one.

[Gabz Girl]

First of all, I'm so so so glad Knuckles is going to be in this! <3 True he's not a playable character, but I'm just glad to see his return in the story instead of just Sonic, Tails and Eggman. Nice to see Amy there too, though hopefully she'll be more useful than in Sonic Unleashed. I always thought her presence in that game was pointless.

 

Anyway, I LOVE the idea of the gameplay! Pressing buttons to go faster is different, but I like it. It's so unique and different from other Sonic games in the past. The boost was getting old, so it's always nice to see some changes. As for the story...bit disappointed but not surprised. I hope it's well written and gives the Deadly Six some good screentime and character. Can't wait to see their interactions with Dr Eggman, if there are any!

 

Blimey, I forgot to mention the Wisps! It's sort of strange they're back...I wonder if they have anything to do with the story? As long as they don't disrupt gameplay too much, I'm ok with em.

[Chaos Controller]

I find it odd how people are immediately likening this game to Super Mario Galaxy. When I first saw it, I immediately thought Sonic X-Treme (*cough*myprofilepicture*cough*), the "Lost World" being a subtle nod to X-Treme being the "Lost Game".

Edited May 29, 2013 by Chaos Controller

[Sega DogTagz]

The highway in the sky does eliminate the biggest problem developers had with Unleashed style games. Now with a single vista being the only thing to design aside from the tracks themselves, the devs can shy away from populating the track with architecture that can be seen but not touched and instead put that time into building more of the playable stage itself.

 

Hopefully this will lead to longer, and more stages in general. We kind of had to accept lesser amount of content with the last style, this one has no excuse not to be humongous-ly packed.

[Chili Dawg]

Everything just sounds so good. So, so good.

 

Wisps, Knuckles, Amy, speed, platforming, food desert, nonfood desert, an actual 3D 3DS game, ooooooooh I just cant contain me self!

[JaidynReiman]

Story, it's probably not going to be great given the last few games, but I struggle to think how it could be any worse than Generations. Characters, yeah gameplay's Sonic only but given the last few titles no one should have been expecting otherwise. Enemies look fine, the badniks are solid and I like the new guys. Graphics look pretty slick IMO. So...I don't know what the shocking bad part is?

The problem with the sky-highways was that it made levels that were very narrow and easy to fall off of. The Galaxy-style tubes mean the levels are actually fairly wide, wider than they look (since we've got the full circumference) and we won't be falling off as much since every direction is down. Ideally I would prefer something more physically grounded but I really don't see this as a significant negative.

I'm... not really sure what exactly is wrong with the story in Generations. Yeah, it was a little lackluster and didn't have much depth to it, but I still don't understand what's so bad about it. I especially love how it subverts the whole monster-of-the-week plot by actually having Eggman as the final boss for a change (which was annoyingly ruined in Colors DS).

 

The only really BAD thing I can see about Sonic Generations is the final boss (although epic looking) is completely wretched in gameplay, and especially "That looks like a homing shot!"

 

 

I don't see what the inherently good thing about these graphics are. They're a huge step down from the prior three games graphics. Ignore the art style. So they make it a bit more colorful, ok, I think that Generations, Unleashed, and Colors had it all a lot better, this one goes a bit too overboard on that. But ignore that. The graphics in general just don't look as good.

 

The beauty of the past few games was also the scenery. In here, we have a flat background again that doesn't look appealing at all, and the main graphics of the levels do not live up to the capabilities of the console. Its all a huge step back from the prior game (games, in fact; even Colors looked better) which had gorgeous visuals.

 

 

And despite the "tube" feel on this game, I still do see TONS of bottomless pits. Yes, there is somewhat of a tube feel, but bottomless pits are still numerous like past highway in the sky type of stages. I'd far prefer it to be grounded. Making it grounded doesn't instantly mean they have to do away with the style of gameplay in this title.

 

 

There's really not much in here that appeals to me at this point. I hope that changes, but so far from what I'm hearing I don't like it. I'll probably still end up getting it eventually, regardless of my opinions, but I'm just stating how I feel about it so far. And I'm usually hyped for new Sonic games when everyone else is pessimistic, so this is definitely quite new for me to be on the opposite end of the spectrum for me.

[RK64]

Everything announced so far is great; classic inspired feel and world, a more momentum based platforming, ideas from Sonic X-tream + Mario Galaxy, ect. 

 

I wonder if levels are going to be split like in Generations; two acts are based on the sphere/highway in sky type and two acts having Generations-like speed based levels. 

I'm... not really sure what exactly is wrong with the story in Generations. Yeah, it was a little lackluster and didn't have much depth to it, but I still don't understand what's so bad about it. I especially love how it subverts the whole monster-of-the-week plot by actually having Eggman as the final boss for a change (which was annoyingly ruined in Colors DS).

 

The only really BAD thing I can see about Sonic Generations is the final boss (although epic looking) is completely wretched in gameplay, and especially "That looks like a homing shot!"

 

 

I don't see what the inherently good thing about these graphics are. They're a huge step down from the prior three games graphics. Ignore the art style. So they make it a bit more colorful, ok, I think that Generations, Unleashed, and Colors had it all a lot better, this one goes a bit too overboard on that. But ignore that. The graphics in general just don't look as good.

 

The beauty of the past few games was also the scenery. In here, we have a flat background again that doesn't look appealing at all, and the main graphics of the levels do not live up to the capabilities of the console. Its all a huge step back from the prior game (games, in fact; even Colors looked better) which had gorgeous visuals.

 

 

And despite the "tube" feel on this game, I still do see TONS of bottomless pits. Yes, there is somewhat of a tube feel, but bottomless pits are still numerous like past highway in the sky type of stages. I'd far prefer it to be grounded. Making it grounded doesn't instantly mean they have to do away with the style of gameplay in this title.

 

 

There's really not much in here that appeals to me at this point. I hope that changes, but so far from what I'm hearing I don't like it. I'll probably still end up getting it eventually, regardless of my opinions, but I'm just stating how I feel about it so far. And I'm usually hyped for new Sonic games when everyone else is pessimistic, so this is definitely quite new for me to be on the opposite end of the spectrum for me.

 

Maybe the game has a more basic-style look due to a lower budget; the game is going to be on a system with a low install base and Sega didn't want to do what Ubi did with Rayman Legends (promising a exclusive when its multiplatform).  It could also be from making a more open game as levels in Generations/Unleashed were more basic due to there very detailed envioments