Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric (Wii U)

[Willsy]

I think maybe they had to tone the graphics down in order to run the game decently on Wii U. It could be they are currently working on the graphics gradually along with the framerate until they can get a reasonable compromise of graphical fidelity and performance. It's a possibility that what we saw in the reveal was what they wanted to do, but couldn't achieve on Wii U at a good framerate. So they scaled things back later in Alpha and are currently working at it in what I presume is now Beta.

[Celestia]

I think they could easily compromise the issue with the music fading so obviously if they had simple sliders in the options menu for audio. That way individual players could determine if they wanted the music or dialogue to be louder. I doubt it'll be an issue in the final release, in any case.

[LoiLoi17]

The game footage is getting panned so hard right now. Not a good look.

[Willsy]

The game footage is getting panned so hard right now. Not a good look.

I wouldn't say 'panned'. I've seen more mixed reactions than negative.

[Wittymations]

Huge differences from previous games of a series are never liked.

You can add things, yes. But remove them (unless they're absolutely hated to begin with) or completely changed a-new? Almost never favored.

[LoiLoi17]

I wouldn't say 'panned'. I've seen more mixed reactions than negative.

 

Go to Neogaf and go to twitter. Even people who liked the game before now find it boring. That's how bad this footage is. If they can't make a re-reveal like with 3D World, then this game is done.

[Diogenes]

It's all just so...dull. Dull speed, dull combat, dull environments, dull music, dull writing.

 

At least Amy's voice is no longer annoying.

[Enesephus]

Took me like thirty minutes to watch that video, but it was worth it. I'm sure no one is surprised to hear that I liked what I saw. The combat doesn't look half bad, and the dialogue is sounding good. Amy sounds a lot better than she did in Lost World, and Knuckles also sounds really good. 

 

I'm just hoping the game isn't only one liners. I'm liking the little observations the characters make, but I'm hoping they talk amongst themselves more than we're hearing. I mean, at one point Amy says to keep running, and that's it. I was fully expecting Sonic to respond with something snarky, but he didn't say anything, and that kind of disappoints me. 

 

Also, while the music was by no means bad, and in fact fit the levels pretty well, in my opinion, it's not particularly memorable, which, considering the people behind this game, isn't surprising, but still a little disappointing.

 

Other than those little nitpicks, loving the looks of this.

[Willsy]

Even if the Wii U game does turn out to be boring, at least there's still Shattered Crystal. That one seemed to resonate with me better from the get-go and that was the first version I watched footage for.

[Badnik Mechanic]

Is six months not enough to fix said jankiness?

 

This is hard to answer.

 

If this build is the build which is currently being worked on and QA tested. No it's not. 

 

However, we're told that it's an older build. But, this game, like every game will be worked on and tested internally at different portions of it's life.

 

For example, the QA team will likely have an older build of the game which will be very incomplete, it might be missing textures particle effects, stages, sound effects, music game play modes etc. However, it will be playable. It should be possible for the player to get from the start of one level to the other.

 

Very basic explanation incoming....

 

But, another team will likely be working on a more recent build, and even then this will only be part of the game. This is then compiled into another build which is passed onto the QA team. It's a 'new build' for them, but not 'the new build.'

 

By now, in terms of the November release. the QA team should have a build which is almost 'complete' in terms of 'how many levels it has.' It might be lacking textures/particle effects and you might need to use the debug menu to get to some levels and play as specific characters. It may also lack a title sceen and require the use of a Cmd line to access portions of the game or even start it. But the game will be there.

 

So in order to answer your question... I would say 'Yes' it's possible to fix these problems. But whilst you can fix them, you then need to compile that into a working build and then test it. 

 

So even if you QA the hell out of the 'non flashy' version of the game, and then all of a sudden along comes the textures/effects build. You may encounter new problems, these can vary greatly. Is it possible to beat the stage? Is the game stable enough to play? Do the new effects impact on key gameplay moments?

 

To give you an idea as to how this can impact a once 'secure' build. 

 

Little Big Planet 2 had a level where you have to cause an explosion which pops an item balloon... there is no other way to get this item... in a patch they 'enhanced' the particle effects... however, this had an impact over the explosion which made it impossible to burst he balloon and get 100% completion until a future patch fixed it.

 

So it really depends on a number of factors right now that we'll never know, the answer is "Yes, But/If"

 

I wouldn't say 'panned'. I've seen more mixed reactions than negative.

 

Whatever you do... Don't read the topic on Gaf.

[Zaysho]

Having just watched the footage (maybe I should try to get a little more active again...), eh, it looks alright. Strangely, all the recent press surrounding Sonic Boom has made me load up a new game on the first Jak and Daxter... and, yeah, it seems like more of the same. Not a bad thing... but is this really Sonic? I know it's a separate branch and everything, but I would think it should still at least look/feel like the primary brand in some way. I guess the slower running speeds and pace make me scratch my head a little. Combat looks fine, I suppose, but I'm not seeing much in the way of the characters' trademark abilities at use. I see Sonic occasionally use a spin-dash or Knux using his digging abilities, but we've seen all four of them fight before in the main series, and this doesn't exactly scream "Sonic!" to me as it is. Even the Werehog seemed faster paced, even if it occasionally bogged you down with "defeat x enemies to move on!" sort of combat, it had kind of a fast and crazy energy to it that got you going (or maybe it was that battle theme...).

 

As for the dialogue? It doesn't sound bad, honestly. Or maybe I just have an incredibly high tolerance for corny in-game dialogue. I think Willingham and Robinson sound just fine in their respective roles but, shockingly, Roger Craig Smith is starting to grate on my nerves a little. I still think he's a better actor than Griffith or Drummond (no, they can stay far, far away from this franchise now) but this incarnation of Sonic just sounds way more annoying. It could just be the writing, but while Knuckles and Amy didn't make me cringe (roll my eyes, perhaps), all of Sonic's one-liners and dialogue sounds even more annoying to listen to. As someone who could actually put up with the banter in Sonic Heroes, I'm not sure what to make of what we're see here right now. I don't hate it, but I guess I'm not loving it either (strangely, while I've been critical of the premise of Boom in general, I thought the dialogue we've seen for the show at least was pretty entertaining, especially Willingham's performance). EDIT: Knuckles, so far, doesn't seem dumb as rocks. It seems like he just has these weird moments of lapsing into "dumb" ("Hey! There are things inside these things!") before snapping back. It makes me a little curious about where things are going with him considering Rafei's comments on Knuckles's character before.

 

At this point, I'm a little on the fence about the game, but I'm oddly more interested in the TV series now... huh.

 

EDIT: As I'm thinking about it, I seriously don't even remember hearing the music as I was watching this video. Reading everyone's comments about how bland it is... I wasn't even aware it was playing! This seems like a problem for a Sonic game... a series known for, if nothing else, consistently great and catchy soundtracks.

Edited June 9, 2014 by Zaysho

[AdventChild]

Yeah, that dialogue feels like it'll get annoying and old real fast and the music feels less inspired too.

 

Also, now seeing the combat for the first time, I agree that it definitely looks sluggish and kinda clunky. Still, IMO a DMC styled combat system would work leagues better for a Sonic based brawler. Heck, speaking of Capcom games, maybe if it were speedier Power Stone type brawler maybe it would have worked just as good.

 

So overall from what is seen so far, it gets a resounding Meh out of me. 

[Jovahexeon Jax Joranvexeon]

Frost didn't just say it was an early build, he said the whole thing is still in Alpha Code.

Sounds familiar. I know it was confirmed to be much earlier "in-the-middle-of-development" footage shown, but where did he confirm it be that of the alpha type? Pardon my nit-picking.

[Nix]

I don't even care if this game was made for kids or whatever, children deserve better than this.  It's bland, ugly, and uninspired in every possibly way.  

 

I honestly can't say a single good thing about Sonic Boom right now... it just looks like shit.

[Lady Soniko]

Literally earlier in this topic himself, I'm sure I remember reading him saying that to clear stuff up.

[LATER BUDDY]

I can't...tell if I like it.

 

It's weird, it's like a straight up PS2-era 3D platformer on soooo many levels, like to the point where I'm kinda like "woah this is kinda neat, haven't had a good one of these in a long time of this fashion" and the other side is like "ugh this looks bland and something 10 years old." Even the tinier things I'm wish-washy on. Like I'm kinda digging the dialogue most of the time, yet the music is making me wanna throw up. The combat looks like it works fine, but at the same time it looks repetitive and boring at times.

 

Just the whole game seems "off," but at the same time I'm intrigued? I really want to feel how it plays. I don't think it's overall bad from what I've seen/heard, but I guess I'm not impressed either.

 

But seriously, the music is criminal. Generic orchestrated action sequence music is really making the game feel more dull to me. Sonic is about getting your blood going, and the music should reflect that. Yeah it's "actiony" but it's bland as well, and just overall not really "sonic" feeling. Might seem like a trivial thing to be upset about, but music is like a crucial emotion shaper in video games, and when it doesn't fit or feels boring, the player's attitude will reflect. 

[Sami]

There is literally nothing that I like from what I just saw.

 

Wow.

 

Literally nothing.

[TheLaw34]

Stephen also said this isnt a game isnt for people who want a sonic game where you can constantly go fast.

I hope the entire team now realizes what a "Good" idea that was.

 

I will have to repeat the words that people throw around alot. This looks like it could have just as easily been on ps2. 

[Jovahexeon Jax Joranvexeon]

Stephen also said this isnt a game isnt for people who want a sonic game where you can constantly go fast.

Doesn't ring a bell. When did he say that?

 

Though he did say something about "being able to go fast if you want to", if memory serves moi correctly.

[sonfan1984]

Ya know, I didn't really want to believe people when they said that the Sonic Boom videogame looks like a cheap cash in game for the TV show when the game is first announced a few months ago... It's a shame that it's getting so much negativity cause I really want the game to do well in the hopes we get to play as other characters in the main series again. Hopefully they'll still do that even if the Boom videogame turns out to be a flop.

[Dizcrybe]

Ya know, I didn't really want to believe people when they said that the Sonic Boom videogame looks like a cheap cash in game for the TV show when the game is first announced a few months ago... It's a shame that it's getting so much negativity cause I really want the game to do well in the hopes we get to play as other characters in the main series again. Hopefully they'll still do that even if the Boom videogame turns out to be a flop.

 

Don't count on it. Why do you think Sonic-only has been a thing so long in the first place?

[TheLaw34]

Doesn't ring a bell. When did he say that?

 

Though he did say something about "being able to go fast if you want to", if memory serves moi correctly.

 

 

Of course, if you are the kind of person who loves boost gameplay or speed all the time, then this probably won't be your cup of tea. And nothing I say is going to change that

 

But honestly I wont lie if the game looked great I would care a bit less but sadly it just looks bad all around.

 

Now I understand why this is a Wii U exclusive. Because 'second best 3d platformer on ps4 after knack' wouldn't have made much of a box quote.

[sonfan1984]

Don't count on it. Why do you think Sonic-only has been a thing so long in the first place?

 

It's been a thing for so long that some people are getting bored of the games including myself. That's mainly the reason why I was looking forward to this.

[kalion]

Hmm...

 

Y'know the speed stage had great adventurous, pumping music..with it own sonic boom flavour but things went downhill very fast..

 

Really dull, "ambient" music..and here's the thing even if I don't like the combat I can get behind/ tolerate it with some great music... but nope. It kinda starts to feel like a kids' cash-in very very fast. I think it'll do well in that aspect but...

 

And hearing that the combat is worse than the werehog and seeing it just makes it worse and I kinda liked the werehog (A lot more in the PS3 version) since it has platforming elements with battle elements almost down to fifty/fifty..so far this feels combat upon combat with button mashy slow moves. Only knuckles' combat seems to have combos/depth. 

 

Amy;s platforming section has a lot of depth and to me, goes to show if the game had stuck to 3DS' formula we'd have some inspired levels in our hands and not just parts. And the chase seems to be just autoplay at its finest..not much dodging involved..at least Starlight Carnival was fun to look at...I feel like their focus went into the wrong areas...

 

This could be in a sense Nintendo syndrome..they made a game that was in their comfort zone (Jak & Daxter) knowing it had sold before..Can't blame em' after Lost World tho'

 

The lines are... not bad and way more tolerable than heroes. actually..And I feel Sonic Boom's Sonic is the one Roger's always been meant to voice to me..fits him way better than SegaSonic..They almost talk too much but they may just be showcasing the lines in this case..*shrugs* I'm probably skipping this for the 3DS version..and hearing the music is done by a known SEGA composer gets my hopes up.

 

Bottom Line, in a Sonic game if you're gonna screw anything up, at least the music should be good and intact. If you can't even hold on to that..you've lost me..and maybe quite a few of us.

[Shaddy Zaphod]

Now I understand why this is a Wii U exclusive. Because 'second best 3d platformer on ps4 after knack' wouldn't have made much of a box quote.

Oh please, I don't think anything can be that bad.