My views on the Sonic franchise

[Rey Skywalker-Ren]

NOTE: I asked if I could do this since another user did so and I was told I can however to be prepared for criticism, which is fine. I wanted to put down my thoughts on the Sonic franchise. There will be ALOT of *I* statements since these are my thoughts. Others can feel free to put down theirs or debate mine. I have joined the franchise late, so it's pretty limited but there's alot to learn from here.

To start off, Sonic isn't really popular where I am from. Not alot of people, mostly the young kids, know about Sonic.... but they are mostly into the Pokemon games (though even those aren't much popular either). In short it's mostly popular in the UK or in North America. But the games attracted my attention then. I started getting into the series around 2011-2012 when I played Sonic 06. It was a first for me and when I played it, I noticed Sonic and wanted to know who he was. What attracted me to the series was the character, not the game itself. Though, I had fun with the game and it was a favorite of mine for a while, I was more interested in the character who's name was on the box. I have said it somewhere and I got to quote:

My first Sonic game was Sonic 06, but what made me love Sonic more was when I played Sonic Colors. I saw who the character behind the series was. Sonic was a funny, confident, caring guy on an adventure to save aliens and their planets from Eggman. He expressed that he didnt like that was happening to his friends and he fighted for them. He also pushed Tails in the elevator to protect him, even he put his arm in front of him to not let Eggman get to him. It showed that he had a heart and he wanted was best for those who he cared about while being confident and funny cracking jokes alot.

Sonic has been and always been my favorite character and Sonic character, yeah. So much so that I prefer playing him on his own. When I played Sonic 06, the one thing I hated was that there wasn't enough Sonic. His name was on the title and it took me sometime to realize this was an anniversary game, but I saw more Shadow and Silver than anything. So while I liked the game, I was mildly disappointed at the time.  So I was drawn more to games like Sonic Colors/Unleashed/Generations because for one, I felt the boost was neat and two, I got to see more of the character that became an all-time favorite. It was a cool way to see more into Sonic, y'know? My favorite game did end up being a cross between Generations and Colors. Colors because the boost, the wisps were fun, it had interesting level designs and I really liked the character interactions in the game <-- Still do. 

Getting into 2D games are an entirely different planet. Sonic 4 Episode 1 was my first 2D game. I wasn't around when it was announced but I saw it in the store and wanted to play it. I was surprised. The game ended up feeling alot like the games I would play all the time and this became something I would play all the time as well. I liked the speed of the game and the extra perks of it such as the homing attack and the level design. So I got into the other 2D games. Sonic Rush, I liked the boost but I could never get into it. Rush Adventure was OK, it was better, Sonic Colors DS was a hell of a lot of fun. Sonic 4 Episode 2, I did like it at the time but I still preferred Ep 1.

The classics weren't something I was interested in at the time. I played Sonic 1 and 2 and thought they were boring. Sonic 3 and K was OK but I didn't understand at the time why the extra emeralds and such and why the game was so long. I thought that the Genesis-styled gameplay was tedious for my taste and at times I would argue that these games sucked. I felt that I wasn't going fast enough as in previous games nor did it give me anything to excite me. So I hated those and the Advance games for that reason.

All and all, I loved the Sonic series, I loved the games, the character (ESPECIALLY the character) and the anime as well. I was very hopeful for this series and would actually be the one to say that I know Sonic was gonna get better because I thought it was ALREADY good.

That was back in 2013- mid 2015, when my feelings started to develop and my preferences started to rise. Nowadays? My feelings on the franchise took a different turn. I still love the character, not as much as I used to but I still am a fan. I am open to new ideas involving him. I still am a big big fan of Roger's voice for Sonic. I'm still a fan of Pontaff's writing of the character interactions, more so than before and before I just liked the writing because I felt the characters were more fun and interactive, now it's because the writing is simply good for their interactions. I still really like Sonic Unleashed for the Wii. I still really like Generations though I point out it's flaws. I still have a lot of fun with Sonic 4 as well. So what is the difference?

I got to looking into the series' history.... it's marketing strategy. I looked into how the games became popular and why people disliked and liked certain games and all of their flaws. I took a small break from Sonic as well and tried out other things. I couldn't not play Sonic so I still kinda played the games but not as much. I did realize why the classics were so popular. Because of it's gameplay. The same gameplay I found so boring. I got to playing them again and I started to really like the Genesis gameplay. Also there was someone, who later became one of my best friends, who would attempt to play around with the Genesis gameplay and make his own Sonic games from it. From loop tests so just rolling a ball smoothly on terrain.  It got me intrigued in general and I started to play around with the classics in general..... I ended up loving it. I loved the shit out of the Genesis games (except for Sonic 1 and 2) and it's gameplay. What really got me mesmorised was the way my friend could make this gameplay work in many styles, and how when I played myself, there was so many possibilities to make it work in the 3D world. 

Nonetheless, I fell in love with the classics. I found that I hated them before because I never started with them. I started with the 3D games and expected all games to play like Sonic Colors or Sonic 4. However they didn't and I was very disappointed at the time. But the more I got to know and learn the more I loved them. With that it DID make me look at games like Sonic 4 differently. While it's something I still enjoy, I started to not like the game because of how it was marketed and how it was presented. I felt VERY disappointed though it was years ago that happened and I wasn't there, but still.

I started to pay attention to aspects of other games as well and began to be more open minded. I still love Colors, but find the game to be mediocre. It's still a fun game to me that is. I still love Generations, well modern Sonic only. However one thing I know is that I feel that the boost should be scrapped. I feel that it was worn out it;s stay and should be replaced with something new. Also it is a very shallow mechanic and a cheap way to get speed.  I felt tired of the boost when I played Generations again. I also do feel that other aspects should be let go such as ideas and even characters, especially the unpopular characters.

For Sonic Boom? I love it's cartoons..... well some of them. I do feel that the characters aren't written to what was written in their Boom profiles. However Boom!Knuckles has become a all-time favorite and I think he needs his own show or his own game. I love him because, well ..... not caring about being cool IS cool. I don't really like it's games though. I never played Shattered Crystal but I am NOT a fan of Rise of the Lyric as I found the gameplay clunky and I wasn't too keen on the story.... however I DID love that the character felt alot like friends and Sonic treated the non-Tails characters just as important.  

As for the franchise? I've been around for the newer promises SEGA has made. I feel that with the past statements I've looked up and researched, I am inclined not to believe them.  Having the Genesis-gameplay in both a 2D and 3D world seems like a wet dream nowadays. They DID say they were going to make future Sonic games play like in heyday, however with the Sonic 4 announcement, it can mean anything. I also did find that most games in the modern world have been rather mediocre. Frankly, I'm tired of it. I don't want another mediocre game. I don't want games to have half-asses. I don't want them cherry-picking that the fans want. I want a game that is good and uses ideas what work, I want a Sonic game that reminds me why Sonic is so awesome. 

The more i see the announcements and all the teases, the more hope I loose. Not to say that I am "losing my religion", however, it has become close to that. I still play the games, but I really do not want to be disappointed yet again. I still love the blue blur, I still like his games. But am I excited for the 25 game? Not in the slightest. I'm very fustrated with the series. Until things change, I feel the franchise will go down the pooper. But, I REALLY don't want that to happen. It would break my heart if that happened. Until then, I will keep playing the games that remind me why Sonic is so cool and maybe I will feel happy about it again.

Those are my thoughts. 

[sonicDX]

I really liked the things you wrote. This writing proves that you can be a Sonic veteran even if you haven't played all (or a lot of) Sonic games. My situation is similiar to yours. Sonic is absolutely not popular in my country, everyone just knows him because he is like Pac-Man, you know, a character that everyone knows. I met Sonic in 2007, when the Sonic X series was on TV, and toys were sold in McDonald's and Burger King (I still have a toy from 2007). I really loved the character, so I started to look after him on the internet, and I played a lot of Sonic flash games, such as Ultimate Flash Sonic. I also watched a lot of walkthrough and gameplay videos of the official Sonic video games. My Sonic knowledge was strangely impressive, I mean knowing so much about the franchise just from videos and the internet, not by own experience. My first real Sonic game was Mega Collection Plus, so I started with the 2D classics, and I still really love them. Sonic 1 didn't really get me, but Sonic 2, and especially Sonic 3 are still big favourites of mine.

My second game was the one which is still my favourite Sonic game, and I am sure there will never be an as good game as this one: Sonic Adventure DX. You didn't mention in your writing if you played it, but if you haven't played it yet, you MUST! I think Sonic Adventure is the best Sonic game ever made, where everything is just perfect. I love its graphics, gameplay, levels, and mostly its spirit. That is awesome. I just love every pixel of this game, it has a lot of hidden stories, secret meanings and easter eggs.

The third Sonic game I played was Generations, which was a great leap into the world of Sonic; I really liked that game, although it gets lots of critics too. After that, I tried Sonic Adventure 2, Heroes, Sonic 4 Ep. 1 and 2. I loved them all.

Now I had a new awesome surprise: lately I managed to get a PSP, and I immediately tried ou Sonic Rivals 1 and 2. They are just amazig. Another great story, fantastic 2.5D graphics and gameplay. So now I got new Sonic games, and I didn't have to disappoint in them, I feel like I can forgive any mistake for SEGA. About what's going on now in the world of Sonic... I didn't really like Boom, especially that SEGA wanted to keep it forever, and they were working only on it for two years. But if it's only a spin-off, I have no problem with it. I just read a new interview with Takashi Iizuka, where he said they don't plan to change the character designs in the next 5-10 years, and they want the Sonic Team logo to show quality. Well I think in the past years their logo showed quality, so I have hope and faith in them, and I am sure we will get a lot of more awesome Sonic games in the future. I trust in the makers of our favourite blue hero.

These are my thoughts.

[Rey Skywalker-Ren]

Oh! I've played the Adventure games. At first, I really hated them but now I'm starting to like Adventure DX more because it is so close to the Genesis-gameplay. Polish that up and it would be an amazing game.

[sonicDX]

19 hours ago, Mikyeong said:

Oh! I've played the Adventure games. At first, I really hated them but now I'm starting to like Adventure DX more because it is so close to the Genesis-gameplay. Polish that up and it would be an amazing game.

I think Sonic Adventure doesn't need any polishing, because it is perfect in its whole self. I love its graphics, gameplay, story and style. Also roleplaying was used for the first time in the Sonic franchise in Adventure, and I think it was a great idea. Some people think Sonic shouldn't be this serious, because it's 'just' a platform game, where you should only run and jump, collecting rings, but I think serious stroies really fit Sonic. I am happy that SEGA made a lot of games like Adventure, but I am also a bit sad because they stopped it. Hopefully we will get good Sonic games again soon, and I hope they will be as great as Adventure is!