Could Forces Have Been Separated into Two Different Games?

[Underground123]

Forces really has come out with 2 'interesting' concepts: Eggman Wins Plot & Character Creation 

However, one thing that has been a worry for me, despite the admittedly limited footage we've seen, is that these two concepts may clash with each other, and significantly hinder the potential of either of these concepts. The CaC concept seems not only out of place, but potentially fragmenting what could have been an engaging ( not necessarily  gritty and convoluted ) story. Meanwhile, what could have been a fun and heavily customisable CaC is hindered by a linear, high stakes storyline that prevents the developers from playing around with the concept and confining them to little more than slower versions of sonic's levels. 

For me, I probably would have used these as two, wildly different games

- The Eggman Wins game:

- Similar Length to Sonic.....Next Gen

- Boost levels in the vein of  Unleashed and Colours,

- Branching paths akin to Shadow the Hedgehog with good and bad endings  

- Unlockable, short, non-mandatory side-stories during the game where other characters are playable in tribute to the Adventure series OR just make them unlockable at the end of the game to add replay value (just give them same gameplay as Sonic , but instead of boost each gets their own special ability)

. The main villain is solely Eggman, and could involve some time travel aspects as Eggman uses foresight/ability to manipulate time to become unbeatable, also justifying Classic Sonic and Silver's presence, and possibly make all the endings canon. (collecting all Emeralds gives the best ending?)

CaC game

-  An action RPG (think kingdom hearts style)

- Player travels to certain locations/zones (many new and many old) to collect whatever MacGuffin is needed in an open-world environment

- CaC levelling up and learning moves from characters in the franchise, and players getting to choose what they excel in (much like Dragonball Xenoverse) 

- No need to 'Go Faaaast' because its a spin-off

- If successful spawn a sub-series like Boom?

 

Again, maybe this is me blowing things out of proportion, we do not know what the full game has in store, but honestly I'm getting '06 vibes, with so many good ideas ruined by messy execution and uncertain direction. The inclusion of classic sonic levels and infinite's reveal has well only made me worry more, and would only be topped with the Boom universe somehow being involved :') (I don't hate the Boom universe admittedly, I think it still has potential) 

I'm not really sure if this can warrant discussion, but opinions from you guys would be greatly appreciated , not necessarily on my awful ideas but whether Forces is looking kind of messy at the moment or anything else regarding its direction.

Tl;dr 

Split Forces into two games. Make one game about Eggman winning with time travel shenanigans and a somewhat higher stakes  plot, and the other an open-world create your character RPG with a more light-hearted plot

[Wraith]

I agree with the general idea that a character creator makes more sense for a spinoff and Forces's scenario needs more room to breathe.  
yu wou
A Sonic rpg with a bit more choice would make more sense to have your own character in. I remember Chronicles having dialogue options but people complaining that they were out of character, so you could fix that problem easily. It'd also fit the slower pacing of an RPG more since you won't have to suddenly escalate this player character to a major role like forces does. It could feel more natural if it was gradual. 

[Red Hot Jack]

Nah, I think that your own character being part of the resistance when Eggman has taken over makes sense.

[Salamander]

I think this is going to be difficult to judge before the game has come out.  We still know very little about the game.

I am inclined to think that, thematically at least, the idea of a create-a-character custom hero makes a lot of sense in a game of this premise; with Eggman's victory so complete, it's the right time for all sorts of new heroes to come crawling out of the woodwork, people who were previously just normal individuals but now must become extraordinary.  (Granted, I absolutely think the role was originally Boom Sonic, but that's immaterial now.)  At the same time, I think the arguments about the strength of a custom hero in a spin-off game are valid.  Having to fit a custom hero into the same format and mechanics as a game which already has two Sonics in it will only limit the character's abilities.

[Diogenes]

I'd say there's a more sensible division to be made between "Eggman wins, a resistance forms" and whatever Infinite's deal is. But it's a little hard to judge exactly where the most effective split would be without knowing what all is going on in the game. It's definitely bloated, though.

[Kuzu]

I like the idea and it cuts the fat of the game. A CaC is honestly not a bad idea, but not for this type of game. Because either your character is just going to be an accessory to Sonic's story of fighting Eggman's  resistance, or you're basically going to be a literal self-insert and the story revolves around you and Infinite, with all of the other characters just being secondary to it. It feels like two games in one.

[Wittymations]

There's a lot I would have changed in this story, all around, really. But I don't mind the general idea of a CaC coming into a main game. If it were told that Eggman was actually so powerful that Sonic and his team of super powered friends weren't enough to best the doctor, that the group took to training new heroes equipped with batman-style tools, that'd been pretty coolio.

Still, the main thing the CaC needs is playing similar enough to Sonic and... Sonic, to not divide on a gameplay level.

[DonWaffleleven]

Nooo, not an RPG!. Sonic RPG's can never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever work! Are we forgetting Sonic Chronicles already? Won't somebody PUH-LEASE think of the children!?!?

All joking aside I like these ideas. The non-mandatory part especially. Means that traditional games media will have no leg to stand on when they claim that "Sonic's shitty friends are hijacking the game".

[knuckles20]

I would like Sonic's friends playable but do not just shove them at the near end of the game. Make them available from the start but optional to complete the main story. That way Sonic-only purist can't complain about it and people who have been wanting other characters for the longest time can have them without getting bored with Sonic as the only option.