Sonic 4 Episode 1 & 2 being de-listed from mobile stores

[molul]

On 12.1.2016 at 6:31 PM, Idon'tcare said:

Worst sound stage however was the final boss music, a grand 8 second repeating techno tune that felt like ice cold needles getting stabbed into my ears.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaBgb2T1MnA

It makes me weep a bit that SEGA's PR department went with that line. It's like they just wanted to be an extra bit patronizing towards their customer base before closing up shop for the day.

 

Gosh... I didn't even remember that "song". Actually I don't remember most of the game's music. I don't think the problem was that they were trying to emulate the Genesis synth sound, but the composer's talent. If great tunes were composed with Genesis synth, great tunes could be written not with it or something similar to it.

Approaching Sonic 4 as a low budget episodic project was so wrong... Yesterday I was playing New Super Mario Bros Wii (not Wii U's) and I couldn't admire Nintendo more for correctly approaching a game like that. A 2D Super Mario (2.5D) with a really fun coop mode, and all the usual details a Mario game has. Sega could do the same with Sonic or any other character/franchise. They just need talented people.

Why can't Sega open a "classic" branch for GOOD 2.5D Sonic games (Sonic Generations classic gameplay would be a good start, although I think it needs a little polish) while keeping the modern Sonic (or new Sonic Boom) open for those who want it?

 

EDIT: LOL. Tonight I dreamt that Sega opened a poll for fans to vote what kind of Sonic game they would like more, and the winner was "a true sequel to Sonic 3 & Knuckles". Sega even said that they agree and that it would be developed with Retro Engine instead of Sonic 4 Episode 2's 2.5D engine, "because Sonic 1 and 2 Remasters looked perfect on mobile devices, while Sonic 4 Episode 2 didn't look very good on them, and Retro Engine physics are much more appealing to fans". I guess I dreamt that after trying S4E2 Demo in my Android tablet yesterday (it really looked ugly) XDDD

Edited January 20, 2016 by molul
Adding new text without double posting

[JezMM]

On 21/01/2016 at 4:56 AM, SpikySprinter said:

This is probably a greedy move. They COULD sell Episode 3 at the regular 5.99 price, but now they'll bundle Episodes 1 and 2 with it and charge twice as much. Already have Episodes 1 and 2? Well screw you, buy them again!

Please let this not be true. 

SEGA have stated previously that due to poor sales of Episode 2, there are no plans to make an Episode 3.  Until further notice, the Sonic 4 mini-series is over.

[Treacher]

On 1/19/2016 at 5:26 AM, molul said:

Gosh... I didn't even remember that "song". Actually I don't remember most of the game's music. I don't think the problem was that they were trying to emulate the Genesis synth sound, but the composer's talent. If great tunes were composed with Genesis synth, great tunes could be written not with it or something similar to it.

Approaching Sonic 4 as a low budget episodic project was so wrong... Yesterday I was playing New Super Mario Bros Wii (not Wii U's) and I couldn't admire Nintendo more for correctly approaching a game like that. A 2D Super Mario (2.5D) with a really fun coop mode, and all the usual details a Mario game has. Sega could do the same with Sonic or any other character/franchise. They just need talented people.

Why can't Sega open a "classic" branch for GOOD 2.5D Sonic games (Sonic Generations classic gameplay would be a good start, although I think it needs a little polish) while keeping the modern Sonic (or new Sonic Boom) open for those who want it?

 

EDIT: LOL. Tonight I dreamt that Sega opened a poll for fans to vote what kind of Sonic game they would like more, and the winner was "a true sequel to Sonic 3 & Knuckles". Sega even said that they agree and that it would be developed with Retro Engine instead of Sonic 4 Episode 2's 2.5D engine, "because Sonic 1 and 2 Remasters looked perfect on mobile devices, while Sonic 4 Episode 2 didn't look very good on them, and Retro Engine physics are much more appealing to fans". I guess I dreamt that after trying S4E2 Demo in my Android tablet yesterday (it really looked ugly) XDDD

There's also the Egg Engine for a 2.5D Sonic game: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKRuwDiBubU 

But I get the feeling that they're obligated in some way to use Havok and Criware instead, for whatever reason.

[Milo]

2 hours ago, Treacher said:

There's also the Egg Engine for a 2.5D Sonic game: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKRuwDiBubU 

But I get the feeling that they're obligated in some way to use Havok and Criware instead, for whatever reason.

I'm sure it's not so much that the engine they use is wrong, than it is they simply don't want to tweak it accordingly so it does have classic physics. SonicThePlumber's Fixing Generations Forever mod has done a lot to make Sonic play a lot closer to the Genesis games. Rolling is greatly improved (you can actually roll around Green Hill's loops despite the loop size being much larger than it was in the classics), the spindash is massively nerfed, and slope detection is properly adjusted among other things.

Since Generations' level design doesn't allow for much momentum play (which in fairness would be made redundant due to the fact there isn't enough momentum there to allow for classic gameplay), it's a bit difficult to demonstrate it properly. The best video I can find that demonstrates this mod in action is @Tracker 's NVIDIA Shadowplay video capture test.

 

 

[Treacher]

On 1/23/2016 at 4:41 PM, Gabe said:

I'm sure it's not so much that the engine they use is wrong, than it is they simply don't want to tweak it accordingly so it does have classic physics. SonicThePlumber's Fixing Generations Forever mod has done a lot to make Sonic play a lot closer to the Genesis games. Rolling is greatly improved (you can actually roll around Green Hill's loops despite the loop size being much larger than it was in the classics), the spindash is massively nerfed, and slope detection is properly adjusted among other things.

Since Generations' level design doesn't allow for much momentum play (which in fairness would be made redundant due to the fact there isn't enough momentum there to allow for classic gameplay), it's a bit difficult to demonstrate it properly. The best video I can find that demonstrates this mod in action is @Tracker 's NVIDIA Shadowplay video capture test.

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mT3lR9WnTeE

 

I remember the mod, but I also recall the creator saying how the game wouldn't allow for him to replicate the physics exactly and that there were stability issues early on in development due to how it was developed. Wonder how much has changed since then.

[GuyWithThePie]

After nearly four years, Episode 1 for iOS gets an update that resembles the iPad-exclusive HD version released a few years back!

Unfortunately, the iPhone-exclusive idle animation where Sonic talks on his iPhone is gone, but it's a small price to pay!

[TheOcelot]

This new update has also been made available for the android version on Google Play.

"Current Version 1.5.0"

*re-downloads Ep1.* 

[Indigo Rush]

heh

[FriendBot]

Looks like Webber's sense of humor has transcended outside of social media and now onto patch updates!

[Hyp3hat]

We getting this update on Steam, or what?

[Rey Skywalker-Ren]

Those graphics are beautiful!

[Tenko]

When it was more relevant and recent people complained that Sega didn't keep Sonic 4 patched and bug free...now that it's rather dated and had left most people's minds (bar the re-releases on Apple TV etc) it's getting fixed up. Odd.

Is it Sega matching versions because of the recent re-releases, or cleaning ship for the 25th anniversary in case people decide to go back to the older games and give them a replay?

[GuyWithThePie]

Now, while these new graphical updates are great, that isn't to say that this update also caused more minor issues. For example, the sound is now rather off. Some sound effects are too low-pitched, while some musical tracks don't loop properly anymore (Such as the invincibility theme when playing as Super Sonic) and the touch control buttons are far too small now. Hopefully these issues can be fixed soon.

[Chris Knopps]

I'm confused...

How are the graphics any different? Is it just a sharpness thing?

[GuyWithThePie]

The iOS version used to have really blocky models and low-res textures to accomodate older-generation iPhones. They've finally been updated to HD for current iPhones.

[Chris Knopps]

3 hours ago, GuyWithThePie said:

The iOS version used to have really blocky models and low-res textures to accomodate older-generation iPhones. They've finally been updated to HD for current iPhones.

Ah.

You know... I wish the first two episodes would get a total overhaul and have the final episode added in to make one complete "master edition" kind of package that puts the graphics and game play on par with Generations at least.

I'm one of the few who would love to see Sonic 4 get the polish it deserved from the start... An optional "Classic/Modern" skin would be nice as well for fans who want either/or.