Wisps

[Rey Skywalker-Ren]

They are so cute and awesome. Look at them!

 

 

and they are also in lost world. these guys are very powrful they have hyper go ones that make them power up. There are so many with different powers.

 

white - boost

yellow - drill

cyan - lazer

blue - cube

green - hover

pink- spikes

purple - fenzy

violet - black hole

orange - rocket

red - fire

indigo - orb float

crimsen - eagle

magenta - music notes

ivory - lightning bolt

gray - earthquake

black - bomb

 

some wisps are only to a certian version to the game. I wach the playthroughs on Lost World 3DS and I have Sonic Colors DS and Wii and Sonic Lost World Wiiu.

 

My opinion? I hope they come back. I really like the wisps. Because they allow Sonic to expend his moves. He can drill, hover, eagle, spike and alot more. He can also turn into a black hole to suck enimes. A grey gem to send the shockwave through the walls. He can turn into a thunder bolt. Sonic can also be an eagle and a fireball! How awesome is that! I can explore with my favorite character and see moves I didnt think he can do but he can do them. Some wisps are unessary like eagle and hover they are both the samething. take out hover and keep eagle.magenta i never understand but I like the fun they put into ablity. Spike is good because he can stick to walls and it helps me out ALOT! Overall this gameplay make my favorite character amazing and hes powerful. I hope they come back and that they are Sonics thing only.

 

What do you think?

[RustyRick]

I thought the Wisps worked well enough for Sonic Colors to serve as a Sonic version of the Mario-themed temporary item powerups to allow him to overcome obstacles in order to clear a stage or to get extra stuff, but I hardly see much point in making them return frequently in any future games because they were a major key focus in the storyline of Colors. So while they might have been a nice addition in Sonic Lost World, unless they might come up with a convienent reason for them to be there, I'd rather prefer Sonic Team going back to the traditional abilities Sonic has like trailing across a line of rings in the sky by himself, which if I recall correctly was one of the abilities the Wisps gave him. Or to use different variants of the shield barrier powerups for my idea.

[Soniman]

I was so bummed by how they dropped the ball with the wisps in SLW. What was a decent enough gimmick that added some depth to Colors ended up turning into annoying distractions that didn't really add anything. It sucks because I was on the pro-Wisps side when they were announced for SLW (after a lot of people were burned on the Wisp concept due to Generations' terrible use of them), but now that it's clear Sega kinda missed the point of what made them fun in the first place I'm not sure if I ever want to see them again, not because I hate them, but because I don't think they can be pulled off as well as they did with Colors or hell even better then that.

[RustyRick]

I was so bummed by how they dropped the ball with the wisps in SLW. What was a decent enough gimmick that added some depth to Colors ended up turning into annoying distractions that didn't really add anything. It sucks because I was on the pro-Wisps side when they were announced for SLW (after a lot of people were burned on the Wisp concept due to Generations' terrible use of them), but now that it's clear Sega kinda missed the point of what made them fun in the first place I'm not sure if I ever want to see them again, not because I hate them, but because I don't think they can be pulled off as well as they did with Colors or hell even better then that.

Wait a second, they were in Generations as well in the form of powerups? (I've yet to fully play it, but I assume they would be in the Planet Wisp stage?)

And I think the whole point that they feel redundant now is because they don't actually serve a real purpose in the Sonic continuity now aside from serving as a new source of abilities for Sonic to use in the stages.

[Jin.]

Wisps were good enough in Colours.

That's it.

 

I don't want them anywhere at all in the other Sonic games, it's not only a plothole, since the Wisps left, but it's also redundant and a stupid gimmick. They serve no purpose in the slightest.

[Blacklightning]

Most of my distaste of Wisps is that I find it hard to look at them in action and not imagine that they're some kind of crutch - a means to enable Sonic to do things that could have just as easily been handled by a larger playable cast and differences in skill set between them. Another is that they're essentially Sonic 3's shields, only they don't protect you and you can only use them once. It's like they made these things to substitute for a number of things people have been asking for and managed to satisfy the wishes of none of them. And the fact that they're now being thrown into games without care for narrative context (and in some cases even basic gameplay flow) just strikes me as "Knux in Sonic '06" levels of utter apathy.

 

For the purposes of Colours they were good enough. But I'd like to start seeing games that don't have to rely on them, because frankly I'm sick to fucking death of Sega essentially dodging niches they should've filled by now by dreaming up seperate mechanics in their place.

[Gabz Girl]

Thought they were a good gimmick in Sonic Colours and made the gameplay more interesting rather than boost2win. IMO.

In SLW they felt like a last minute addition. Not only was there no explanation given to why they were back, but the controls before the update on most of these Wisps was terrible and felt awkward as hell. Not to mention how some of these Wisps HAVE to be used to traverse a bottomless pit or whatever, the Music Wisp being the worst.

I would rather not see the Wisps return, unless they find a better way of implementing them into gameplay and story. Can't deny they are really cute though.

[Splash the Otter]

I kind of like the Wisps, but I only want them to come back if other characters can use them too. Otherwise I'm not interested.

[spinny]

Wait a second, they were in Generations as well in the form of powerups? (I've yet to fully play it, but I assume they would be in the Planet Wisp stage?)

 

Indeed, they're in Planet Wisp in the HD version and Tropical Resort in the 3DS version. Classic uses Spikes in the former and Burst in the latter whilst Modern uses Rocket in the former and Laser in the latter.

 

As for my opinion on the Wisps? I was cool with them in Colors, they were a tiny little addition that you could use to improve your score. But now with Lost World's reuse (along with, as others have said, little to no reason), I feel like Sega's just using it as an excuse for no more playable characters. Hover is Tails, Drill is Knuckles, Cube is Amy, Burst is Blaze, etc.

 

Plus, the pre-patch controls for the Wisps in Lost World were honestly god-awful, and I still think it's one of the main reasons for my overall dislike of the game. It really felt like a last-minute slap-on.

 

I was okay with them... but really, I'd rather not see them back.

[Soniman]

As for my opinion on the Wisps? I was cool with them in Colors, they were a tiny little addition that you could use to improve your score. But now with Lost World's reuse (along with, as others have said, little to no reason), I feel like Sega's just using it as an excuse for no more playable characters. Hover is Tails, Drill is Knuckles, Cube is Amy, Burst is Blaze, etc.

 

 

Okay, now those are vague connections at best. Maybe you could note the similarities between Tails and Hover but Knuckles' dig and Drill function completely differently not to mention that isn't even the main feature of Knuckles' character. Blaze and the Burst are fire based but the similarities end there and how is the Cube anything like Amy??? I'm drawing a blank on that one.

[Blacklightning]

Okay, now those are vague connections at best. Maybe you could note the similarities between Tails and Hover but Knuckles' dig and Drill function completely differently not to mention that isn't even the main feature of Knuckles' character.

This is just arguing semantics - the point is not that they're identical but that the latter is a function that the former could've accomplished and it still would've made sense in-universe. Hell, I'm willing to bet technical limitations was the only thing originally preventing Knux's dig from functioning like that in the first place. Though admittedly even I have to say linking Amy to Cube is kind of a stretch, not a connection I would've made personally.

 

Speaking of Knux's "main feature":

 

[Rey Skywalker-Ren]

 

I feel like Sega's just using it as an excuse for no more playable characters. Hover is Tails, Drill is Knuckles, Cube is Amy, Burst is Blaze, etc.

I disagree. But ....

[Fletch]

I still like the Wisp. I think they were used best in Colors because for me they added a bit more to the overall gameplay experience. I really don't have much of a opinion of them for Generations since I literally forget that they were in the game. Maybe if there was a few other Wisps in the Planet Wisp stage, or in different missions in Generations, then I would probably remember they were in the game. In Lost World, I don't really really mind that they were in the game without any story reasons (their power ups, simple as that). I just...didn't really care much to use them in Lost World. It didn't help when the game came out that you could only control the majority of them using motion controls (thankfully SEGA patched that to include stick control). Wisp really just came off as meh, and I found myself completing levels without using them to be a bit more fun. 

 

I'm not really sure how I'll feel if they came back again. 

[Tails spin]

I still like the Wisp. I think they were used best in Colors because for me they added a bit more to the overall gameplay experience. I really don't have much of a opinion of them for Generations since I literally forget that they were in the game. Maybe if there was a few other Wisps in the Planet Wisp stage, or in different missions in Generations, then I would probably remember they were in the game. In Lost World, I don't really really mind that they were in the game without any story reasons (their power ups, simple as that). I just...didn't really care much to use them in Lost World. It didn't help when the game came out that you could only control the majority of them using motion controls (thankfully SEGA patched that to include stick control). Wisp really just came off as meh, and I found myself completing levels without using them to be a bit more fun. 

 

I'm not really sure how I'll feel if they came back again. 

 

I found it interesting that Lost World 3DS used the wisps in the final boss. Each of Eggman' s attacks corresponds to a wisp power up. And they give sonic power near the end of the fight

[FriendBot]

The Wisps were pretty fun to use in Colors. In the DS version, I enjoyed finishing off bosses using the Color Powers ( dat Void w/ Frigate Skullian finisher). In Generations HD (haven't played the 3DS version yet), the level forces you to use the Color Powers to get through the level and it is not very fun to use since you were forced to use them to complete the level. In Lost World, the Wisps were optional but it didn't lead you to special areas or hidden items and they were not needed overall. Overall, the Wisps usage in the games got worse and worse. If I wanted to see the Wisps again, do it like in Colors again, at least they used the Colors Powers well.

[Chaos Incarnate]

They're an interesting gimmick that could be really fun if utilized properly. The Wisps had their fair share of fun moments in Sonic Colors, that's for sure. Frenzy is a blast to use in the 2D sections, it's just so satisfying to destroy everything in your path with that cute little abomination. Hover is great too, I love being able to light speed dash in the air.

 

I haven't played the Wii U version of Lost World, but good god, I could not stand them in Lost World 3DS. Half of them were gyro controlled, making them a real pain to use, and we were forced to use the Wisps to complete level sections, which gets old really fast. I won't tell you how many times I had fallen to my death with Asteroid in the casino trope act of Sky Road.

 

Overall, I'm fairly mixed about the Wisps. I'm not ecstatic over them in Sonic Colors like everyone else is. They can be fun if you know exactly when and where to use them, but it seems like some of their abilities could have been better suited and be used as a testing ground for other playable characters. My main issue with them is that they over power Sonic too much, and when they're mandatory to complete level sections. I highly disagree with Iizuka that the Wisps should become a series staple. They're a decent gimmick that were enjoyable the first time around, but devolved into unnecessary fluff and baggage that didn't do anything for me at all. I'm afraid Sonic Team will just continue to play the Wisp card and keep having us play as Sonic solo, but whatever. At least I can turn to Sonic Boom for other playable characters.

[Sonictrainer]

I found it interesting that Lost World 3DS used the wisps in the final boss. Each of Eggman' s attacks corresponds to a wisp power up. And they give sonic power near the end of the fight

 

That Boss Battle is pretty much the same as the Nega Wisp Armor in both the Wii and DS version

 

It's still a fun fight though.

 

 

As for the Wisp Color Powers:

Cyan Laser

Use: Pick a direction and launch yourself off walls and ceilings. It can also be used to reach exclusive areas through Optical Cables and Prisms. Pretty Simple, quick, and easy to use.

Weakness: Be careful when and where you launch yourself

 

Yellow Drill

Use: Going underground and swimming fast underwater without worrying about getting air. It can also do through pipes to reach secret areas. Another useful Wisp.

Fusion: If combined with Green Hover or Orange Rocket, it can drill through the air too.

Weakness: Sonic dies if the Color Power ends when he's underground. Also, it can't drill through everything and obstacles such as Bombs and Spiked Balls hurt it

 

Orange Rocket

Use: Shoots Sonic high into the sky. Once it ends, Sonic skydives back to the ground. Its course could be changed by the Rings in Starlight Carnival in the DS Version.

Weakness: Spiked Balls and other obstacles can hurt it

Red Burst

Use: Sonic becomes a exploding Flame Shield, that can go through fire, touch bombs, fly, and power up and release a massive explosion that destroys all enemies on screen.

Weakness: Besides accidentally setting things on fire, touching water turns Sonic back to normal. Also, once again, Spikes can hurt it

Green Hover

Use: Allows Sonic to fly and Ring Dash

Weakness: Slow and its only attack, that drill spin move only works when you're close enough to an enemy

Blue Cube

Use: Allows Sonic to do a Power Stomp and turns Blue Rings into Blue Block and Vice Versa. It's also the only Color Power where Sonic can stay in his regular form

Weakness: I think it can also be hurt by spikes….

 

Pink Spikes

Use: Allows Sonic to move along walls, ceilings, and anything with Spikes. Also, allows him to Spin Dash

Weakness: Spin Dashing uses up a lot of Color Power energy

 

Purple Frenzy

Use: Allows Sonic to become a Magnetic Shield that eats almost anything and grows at least times bigger depending on what he can absorb.

Weakness: His movements are delayed and he's one of the hardest Color Powers to control. He can also be hurt by Spikes

 

Violet Void

Use: Similar to Purple Frenzy except now he can fly and use Fans to get around

Weakness: Once he reaches a certain size, he gets stuck in small areas when there's no fans around

Indigo Asteroid

Use: A combo of Violet Void and Green Hover, but without the Ring Dash. It can enter secret areas through small pockets of space

Weakness: It's Jump is weird...

Ivory Lightning

Use: Sonic becomes a Lightning Shield that controls electricity, that can be used to switch across rods and power machines. It can also Grind Rails.

Weakness: Use it quickly before Sonic becomes electrocuted

Grey Quake

Use: Similar to Blue Cube, except it can actually move around and destroy anything in its path

Weakness: …except Spikes. Also, it can't turn very well or come to a complete stop.

Crimson Eagle

Use: A faster alternative to Green Hover

Weakness: Transformation doesn't last very long, so you have to grab more Crimson Wisps to stay airborn

Magenta Rhythm

…I got nothing...

Black Bomb

Use: Get as close to an enemy as possible and wait for the resulting explosion.

Weakness: It's very slow and the 1 Star Black Wisps make it very small

[Nepenthe]

I recently booted up Colors again because me and a friend wanted to essentially Game-Grumps it, and my opinion has barely changed: Wisps felt like meandering, disengaging distractions even in their debut. They're used less to solve interesting problems and act more like key cards to kind of get past things tailor-made specifically for them. It's a thoroughly mediocre way of doing power-ups because there's no real thought or twists to either the act of using them or the way they affect their environment, and on top of that most of them can't even claim to survive on superior controls. Why they were brought back nearly unchanged in form, function, and depth beyond pandering is beyond me. They're just the poster child of boring, arbitrary design.

[Semi-colon e]

I liked them a lot in Colours, it was one of very few times there was a gimmick that didn't completely take over the gameplay or get cornered off in it's own style a la most of the other characters, and almost all of them (I didn't like Cube) were fun and had little things going on with them and really helped differentiate it from Unleashed. Even the DS version used them pretty well, but both versions used them for points and exploration, and the gradual unlocking of them all meant you could go back and find new things in the levels, somewhat like a Metroidvania gone very wrong The fact it was part of the plot was good too. While Colours didn't have an amazing story, at least there was a reason for the wisps to be in the game.

 

Generations Planet Wisp kind of spammed the same ones over and over again, but I liked the flexibility of being able to stop Spikes at any time and charge the Rocket. The 3DS version looks like it uses them better, but I've not played it. I didn't mind their very presence though, because the Wisps were a key gameplay element of Colours. I see why people didn't like them or Generations Planet Wisp as a whole, but I don't really any major issue with it myself.

 

While I won't comment much on Lost World as I've not played it/them, I don't really like any of the new wisps, they seem really pointless (why are Hover and Eagle in the same game), and I feel like they were just added in because "people liked Colours", and I was hoping Lost World would try and do more new things. The fact that there's literally no reason for them to be in the game is also lame as hell. Gameplaywise, it looks like the Wii-U ones are just kind of there and the 3DS version is Generations Planet Wisp up to infinity.

 

I kind of dislike how they're a staple now, it's just taking away from Colours thing only forgetting what made them good in the first place.

[SlickEvan]

I think wisps were/could have been a one time thing like for Colors only, to make the game special and/or unique. They were okay but as others pointed out, just "Multiple Characters the Sonic". It essentially over powered him, which I'm fine with, but keeping them around only gives Sonic Team more reason to dodge our problems with lack of characters in-game. Now I know some people like Solo Sonic, but it also isn't hard to add extra characters that DON'T HAVE to be played. But wisps when used incorrectly are essentially what no one wants. Forced characters. In Generations and Lost World they could qualify as such. Did you really want to dig- I mean drill to defeat Zom Zom? And thats almost the same argument as I don't wanna play Knuckles in this get the freaking lights on section. So it's like Sonic Team not going anywhere. 2 steps forward 2 steps back.

I'd personally like to see them switched out (replaced) with classic monitors that give you powers.

[Adorkable]

Wisps? I think they're okay. I only played Colours once, and Lost World used them pretty well.

However, I wish they wouldn't have designed the Wisps the way they did in Lost World, because of them you had to use the gamepad instead of being able to use the Pro Controller, which I really wanted to do. But I liked how they worked, just not how they were the only things keeping me from using the Pro Controller. Overall, I think it's cool that SEGA wants to keep using the Wisps for future Sonics, because at least it's something new, right? As long as they don't go overboard with it. ^^"

[Dizcrybe]

Wisps.

 

Good in Colors, not so good in Gens, even worse and downright unnecessary in SLW.

 

Yeah, Wisps can go to hell from here on in. They were good for one game (two if you count Generations) and that's it.

[Rey Skywalker-Ren]

The cute little aliens. They add so much to Sonics amazing gameplay. For example:

White - this wisps lets you boost. I use to not like that I need them to boost. But I dont mind it because Sonic is already fast and the wisps are in alot of places. I like this alot.

Orange - this wisps lets you rocket and get to those high places and sometimes break boxes. This one is fun especially in planet wisps because there is alot to explore and it allow me to do that.

Yellow - this wisps let you drill. I love this one because i get to explore under the ground and sand and i can pick up rings and items. And its fast and fun.

Green - this wisps let you hover. its like the light speed dash but with a wisps. i think it is very intresting because going through the rings is awesome and it allows to explore.

Cyan - this wisps let you be a lazer. I love this one because you bounce all around the stage and you can take out a line of ememy robots. it allows o exlore if you use it right with the floating dimonds.

Blue - this wisps let you cube. Its intresting because you can make a path to explore or go somewhere or you can take the blocks out of you way and turn them into rings.

Pink - this wisps is a spike ball. I love this one because not only to you spindash but you can stick to the walls and its a life saver for me and those bottom less pitts. it also allows for exploring.

Purple - the frenzy wisps! its intresting and fun! Sonic is a giant frenzy wisps and he chomps on everything to get through. also allow to explore if you use right.

I love these wisps because they allow Sonic to expend his moves. He can drill, hover, spike and alot more. It offers me to explore with Sonic places I want to go. they along with Sonic make me want to explore the levels and play the game alot more. All and all, Sonic is amazing on his own and his wisps powers make exploring fun.

[Linkie]

I think that in Colors they were used pretty well because most of them were fun to use and they were easy to use. In Generations, I felt they weren't used in any sort of interesting way and just felt like a chore to use, while in Lost World, they totally screwed up what made them fun in Colors and added those gimmicky controls to them.

[Vertekins]

They were initially a welcome gimmick but have outlived that welcomeness nowadays IMO.

 

The problem with Wisps is that to me, they always came-off as a means to enable Sonic to do very temporary things that could have been potentially much better well done by other characters in the series.

 

They feel like something akin to an asspull in that respect, substituting truly clever level design for underwhelming puzzles and what exacerbates it is the fact that a good 8 or 9 times out of 10, Colours, Generations and Lost World expects you to utilize the Wisp pretty much the moment you receive one and so they come-off more as a mediocre distraction than a truly well thought-out and entertaining gameplay addition. It’s akin to being presented with a block with a square hole in it and then being handed a square peg to put into it.

 

I also felt that over half of them being strictly confined to the 2D plane in Colours and the same being true of Rocket and Spikes in Colours epitomizes just how fixated with 2D those games were in relation to them as well as how overly-simple and contrained they are by the overuse of that plane.

 

Yet another issue with the Wisps is just how half-assed their relation to narrative was. I simply could not care about their plight in Colours because it doesn’t have anywhere near as much focus as it required because, yes, the writing is mainly centered on unfunny cringeworthy Sonic shenanigans and Eggman hardly even did anything with them outside of converting them in a single cutscene, which still didn’t have the dramatic oomph it could have had due to to near-complete lack of development of the Wisps character-wise. It's really genuinely bad when the instruction manual elaborates on the quirks of these little guys and they're even shown as being perfectly sapient in Colours DS' ending yet they have no compelling focus in the game when the story centers or is supposed to center on their oppression. And...errr....why are they in capsules again in Lost World?

 

In SLW, they really did detract from the experience because they have practically the same issues as Colours and because the controls prior to the patch were so bad. Which really let down my first experience of the game.