First Person Sonic

[NoirSuede]

Before I became a Sonic fan (Classic Sonic you adorable basstard) I was (and still am) a huge fan of 90s FPS like Doom 1/2, Quake 2/3, UT 99, and Tribes. Unlike say CoD, these games don't have regenerating health, and are really fast.

So, since it's proven that first person games can be fast without inducing motion sickness, I wonder if Sonic can work in first person ?

[Marcello]

It's not first person, but Sonic Robo Blast 2 was made in the Doom engine. I enjoyed it myself, although it's been years since I've played it. I'm not totally sure, but I think may have had some first person modes.

[Polkadi~☆]

It's not first person, but Sonic Robo Blast 2 was made in the Doom engine. I enjoyed it myself, although it's been years since I've played it. I'm not totally sure, but I think may have had some first person modes.

[Blacklightning]

It does, and still has it. But it's only in the multiplayer modes, where it's basically a Sonic-styled Doom (well, duh).

[Wraith]

I could see it working. A lot would have to be changed, but it's possible. It can't be from Sonic's exact view since that would make for the most disorienting game ever, 

 

It could basically be a faster, more over the top version of Mirror's Edge. That's something I'd fucking love to see.   

 

[NoirSuede]

You can actually trigger first person mode in singleplayer through commands, for what it's worth. I even preferred playing it that way back in the day because it makes lateral-based platforming and fighting (rolls and spindashes especially) a lot easier to aim and control.

 

Anyway, back to the topic at hand, the crux of the problem is assuming the camera is always 100% aligned with Sonic's viewpoint, which no sane developer would ever be stupid enough to do. It's funny you should mention Unreal Tournament as an example actually, because it's a clear case of player animations being completely independent of their camera - they hold big-ass miniguns one handed while they're strafing (in gangsta style, to boot) and perform forward flips with most front dodges just to name a couple of examples, but your viewpoints remains consistently static throughout. It's a pretty reasonable assumption that the camera would remain equally static in a Sonic game while say, rolling or jumping, relying on other visual cues to tell you that you're spinning, like spin trails or... I dunno, some analogue of Doomguy's face that represents your current animation.

 

 

Of course, the next biggest problem is assuming you have a control scheme that can handle both moving fast and guiding precisely as a first person game requires - so if you're using a gamepad you're automatically fucked on both counts. Much as I'd like the idea of a Sonic game with FPS controls, unless you're honest to god suggesting it as a PC exclusive I'd say just making a standard 3rd person platformer work properly would be a much better idea.

[sonicDX]

I think Sonic couldn't really be an FPS game, because it's a platformer. Just think of it: how it would look like when you jump? The whole screen would be spinning? And what about homing attack?

But the fast running would look like good, I guess. If there would be an FPS Sonic game, then I think it should focus on the graphics, because the gameplay wouldn't be so practicable.

[NoirSuede]

I think Sonic couldn't really be an FPS game, because it's a platformer. Just think of it: how it would look like when you jump? The whole screen would be spinning? And what about homing attack?

But the fast running would look like good, I guess. If there would be an FPS Sonic game, then I think it should focus on the graphics, because the gameplay wouldn't be so practicable.

 

Focusing on graphics always end up ruining the game, just look at Ryse and The Order 1886.

 

Again, to make this work you need to adjust everything into first person. So, now whenever Sonic jumps he doesn't curl, and the homing attack can be replaced by a flying kick (like Liu Kang's) that needs to be manually aimed and kills badniks by knocking them over.

[NikoS]

www.youtube.com/watch?v=52kJfy2Iz2g

 

 

come on, who wouldn't like to play this game? , just for omochao being there it would be a 10/10 must buy

[NoirSuede]

www.youtube.com/watch?v=52kJfy2Iz2g

 

 

come on, who wouldn't like to play this game? , just for omochao being there it would be a 10/10 must buy

A first person Shadow 2 with Doom 4 style gameplay (+wall running maybe) would kick ass though.

[sonicDX]

Focusing on graphics always end up ruining the game, just look at Ryse and The Order 1886.

 

Again, to make this work you need to adjust everything into first person. So, now whenever Sonic jumps he doesn't curl, and the homing attack can be replaced by a flying kick (like Liu Kang's) that needs to be manually aimed and kills badniks by knocking them over.

Hm. Not bad idea...

[Diogenes]

I can't imagine having much fun ramming my face into things at high speed in first person. Even without any spinning I'd think getting a screen full of robot ass every time you attack would be too disorienting, and platforming in first person is always a fiddly thing, which doesn't mesh well with going fast.

[NoirSuede]

I can't imagine having much fun ramming my face into things at high speed in first person. Even without any spinning I'd think getting a screen full of robot ass every time you attack would be too disorienting, and platforming in first person is always a fiddly thing, which doesn't mesh well with going fast.

 

Just have Sonic kick things like in Mirror's Edge and F.E.A.R then :

 

[Polkadi~☆]

Y'know, now that my occasional "idea throwback" kicked in, there was this idea I had.

It's an FPS Sonic game that is a four player class-based co-op. There'd be all different kinds of characters like Sonic (melee based), Shadow (melee and weaponry), and for the fun of it, Omega (FULL BLOWN GUNPLAY BRO). The characters would be like the Sonic Sim clones, so there would be a reason for them to respawn. And you battle against hordes of Eggman's robots.

It's not very well cleaned up or thought out, but it's a good brainstorm.

[JezMM]

The thing about platforming gameplay is that it's all about spatial awareness.  Sonic gameplay as we know it just simply would not work with having a good 50% of the player's view chopped out.  Mirror's Edge works I think coz you're still making fairly realistic actions, parkour is a real thing after all.  But Sonic goes VERY fast, jumps VERY high, collides with obstacles that would obscure your entire view in first person frequently.

 

 

Thing is, with a third person view, the camera can be programmed to show all your movement options at once.  You're in mid-air, do you stomp down that line of rings hinting towards something below, or do you homing attack that enemy in front of you, or do you let your flight path play out as is?

 

In first person, your options are limited to what you can see.  You'd have to look ahead to see that enemy, or down to see a potentional landing point, but you're likely only going to have time to do one or the other.  Most first person games use that viewpoint because "aiming" is an integral part of the gameplay, whereas that is not the case in Sonic.  Imagine a Sonic game that had no camera programming, you have to move it yourself to see everything a stage has to offer at all times.  That's what a first person Sonic would feel like to play unless they really dumbed down the speed and acrobatics that make Sonic so fun.

 

 

It's not something I see working for a whole game - perhaps as a bonus unlockable feature, with specific levels designed for it, or as some kind of toggle in a "replay" function of your playthroughs.

[NoirSuede]

The thing about platforming gameplay is that it's all about spatial awareness.  Sonic gameplay as we know it just simply would not work with having a good 50% of the player's view chopped out.  Mirror's Edge works I think coz you're still making fairly realistic actions, parkour is a real thing after all.  But Sonic goes VERY fast, jumps VERY high, collides with obstacles that would obscure your entire view in first person frequently.

 

 

Thing is, with a third person view, the camera can be programmed to show all your movement options at once.  You're in mid-air, do you stomp down that line of rings hinting towards something below, or do you homing attack that enemy in front of you, or do you let your flight path play out as is?

 

In first person, your options are limited to what you can see.  You'd have to look ahead to see that enemy, or down to see a potentional landing point, but you're likely only going to have time to do one or the other.  Most first person games use that viewpoint because "aiming" is an integral part of the gameplay, whereas that is not the case in Sonic.  Imagine a Sonic game that had no camera programming, you have to move it yourself to see everything a stage has to offer at all times.  That's what a first person Sonic would feel like to play unless they really dumbed down the speed and acrobatics that make Sonic so fun.

 

 

It's not something I see working for a whole game - perhaps as a bonus unlockable feature, with specific levels designed for it, or as some kind of toggle in a "replay" function of your playthroughs.

If you compare Mirror's Edge to Mario, you'll notice that in Mirror's Edge they toned down the platforming and instead made the levels to be obstacle courses with obstacles that are mostly harmless (except for the armed SWAT team which almost forced you to shoot them since they have hitscan guns and you can't dodge bullets). So, with a first person Sonic you can design the levels in a way that emphasizes path-finding more than platforming (since even when you're going so fast you can still make out viable paths/entrances from a distance), you can't get insta-killed no matter what and place badniks in a position that doesn't blindside you (like right below a cliff)

With not being able to see all of a stage, you can just design the start of a level to give a vista of the entire level, so that you can know the general layout of the level. Also, with every limitation of a genre (like FPS having way less vision than TPS), you always the design the game around that limitation.

[Wittymations]

It'd be interesting as an unlock mode just to retry the game in a different view point. Though, I believe you'd probably want to only include it in a game without spinning, since, well... imagine that.

I do suppose there'd be a way to have a spinning animation effect (like the aura spins for spindash) while the camera sits in mid air, as you charge up. But that may feel a bit... odd.

This would probably just be tacked on at the end. Neat, but tacked on.