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Are alternate gameplay styles really a bad thing?


Razule

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My personal thoughts on this subject depend heavily on what one means when they say alternate gameplay.

If they mean that characters feel like they belong in a different style of game, no less genre, then it is inherently bad if it is a Sonic game and there is more alternate Gameplay than Sonic's own. It's hard to call it a Sonic game if it's platforming roulette featuring Sonic on the gameplay side.

On the other hand, if the meaning is more like fighting games where every character shares the same core moves but with different properties and special abilities then there should be no problem. From the get go everyone plays similarly enough that the game feels coherent and like it all belongs together, but ever character feels unique due to their properties and unique abilities.

Of course there can be even more interpretation on alternate playstyles than this, but it is in differing definitions of what constitutes alternate gameplay where the arguments arise and people have a hard time agreeing. As my above examples should allude to though, my opinion is that the fighting game approach is better where everyone has the same core moveset is the way alternate gameplay can be best handled. The other bonus to this method is in simpler games like platformers it makes it easier to control the workflow for the developers who have to worry about things like budget, schedule, and corporate meddling, things fan designers, hackers, and we the fans don't have to directly deal with.

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The thing with the fighting game genre as an example is that it too can be a bit vague because of how even that has some variations in style.

For example, games like Sonic Mania feel more like the first Mortal Kombat game where all available characters have the same exact identical core abilities, with the only difference being a few special moves.

On the other hand, something like the first Sonic Advance is more like Street Fighter II, where despite all characters following the same formula, even their core basic moves could be different, like it was the case of Amy while Sonic, Tails and Knuckles are more like the Ryu, Ken and other similar derivative characters that have the same moves with some variations added.

Personally I prefer the last style since I think that some twists on the core moves without changing the basic rules allow for more interesting variations.

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Actually Balrog and Yuri would have been better examples of what I feel you are trying to get across. Unlike every other character in Street fighter who has LP, MP, HP, LK, MK, and HK they instead have a full set of only kicks or punches but still follow the same rules as everyone else. It's why i complain about Amy lacking the roll because it deprives her of the ability to bump into enemies to defeat them without losing speed. Heck, I'd honestly accept giving her the boost if it cost her rings and resulted in an automatic hammer swings which knocked enemies off the stage if it would give me that aspect of the original formula with her.

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2 hours ago, Sonic Fan J said:

Actually Balrog and Yuri would have been better examples of what I feel you are trying to get across. Unlike every other character in Street fighter who has LP, MP, HP, LK, MK, and HK they instead have a full set of only kicks or punches but still follow the same rules as everyone else. It's why i complain about Amy lacking the roll because it deprives her of the ability to bump into enemies to defeat them without losing speed. Heck, I'd honestly accept giving her the boost if it cost her rings and resulted in an automatic hammer swings which knocked enemies off the stage if it would give me that aspect of the original formula with her.

That’s the problem, they treat Amy as the Balrog of the series, as if it were only Shotos and Balrog. Everyone other than “Balrog” is a shoto in Sonic’s case, excepting Charmy, Heavy, and Bomb. (So does this make Charmy Gen or Ed?)

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22 hours ago, MegasonicZX said:

Not trying to defend them (honestly speaking, they weren't that bad though) but other character styles normally had full campaigns tied to them as opposed to just being singular levels. Lost world had it's gimmicky levels yeah, but they never stayed for any longer than one level (rail stages notwithstanding) so while it wasn't ideal, you could generally be done with them in one go across an entire game as opposed to having to do 5 or 7 stages of them.

They have so little logic or fun factor that just ONE is equivalent to seven of an alternate playstyle. Not only were the alternate gameplays fun, they were also LESS alien until the Werehog came along. They also tied more into the story than the honestly very random gimmick stages. 

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4 hours ago, Sonic Fan J said:

Actually Balrog and Yuri would have been better examples of what I feel you are trying to get across. Unlike every other character in Street fighter who has LP, MP, HP, LK, MK, and HK they instead have a full set of only kicks or punches but still follow the same rules as everyone else. It's why i complain about Amy lacking the roll because it deprives her of the ability to bump into enemies to defeat them without losing speed. Heck, I'd honestly accept giving her the boost if it cost her rings and resulted in an automatic hammer swings which knocked enemies off the stage if it would give me that aspect of the original formula with her.

I really don't see how Amy lacking a roll makes her lose speed when attacking enemies:

Honestly, I really don't see this issue nor any of the others that suposedly makes Amy a chore to play as (and it's not just the video but also personal experience). The character is affected by the physics just like any other character when moving on slopes and loops, can pull of the same trick of performing timed jumps on them to build speed (not to mention, using her hammer jump instead of the regular jump gives her an extra boost of speed), her jumping skills let's her platform better than characters like Sonic without trivializing the challenge of those sections, while her offensive abilities let's her beat bosses surprisingly fast.

For each apparent "con" of not having the same exact abilities as the other characters, the developers gave Amy "pros" to balance her moveset and feature advantages that keep her from being a crippled character. Heck, if Amy had the same speed and acceleration as Sonic, she'd be pretty OP.

Besides, what other Sonic character out there gives me a challenge or the distinct feel that Amy adds to the Genesis formula?

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2 hours ago, Miragnarok said:

That’s the problem, they treat Amy as the Balrog of the series, as if it were only Shotos and Balrog. Everyone other than “Balrog” is a shoto in Sonic’s case, excepting Charmy, Heavy, and Bomb. (So does this make Charmy Gen or Ed?)

Believe it or not but I actually enjoy the Shoto Clones enough that I would actually spend the money on a joke game that only had them in it. The differences between them is a lot greater than people realize and learning all of their individual strengths and weaknesses would honestly be a blast to me. After all, it is my favorite style and it's versatility is fairly amazing. (Charmy I really can't say. I haven't played SFV and Gen seems way to complicated for Charmy's fly and sting style of play.)

1 hour ago, Skull Leader said:

I really don't see how Amy lacking a roll makes her lose speed when attacking enemies:

Honestly, I really don't see this issue nor any of the others that suposedly makes Amy a chore to play as (and it's not just the video but also personal experience). The character is affected by the physics just like any other character when moving on slopes and loops, can pull of the same trick of performing timed jumps on them to build speed (not to mention, using her hammer jump instead of the regular jump gives her an extra boost of speed), her jumping skills let's her platform better than characters like Sonic without trivializing the challenge of those sections, while her offensive abilities let's her beat bosses surprisingly fast.

For each apparent "con" of not having the same exact abilities as the other characters, the developers gave Amy "pros" to balance her moveset and feature advantages that keep her from being a crippled character. Heck, if Amy had the same speed and acceleration as Sonic, she'd be pretty OP.

Besides, what other Sonic character out there gives me a challenge or the distinct feel that Amy adds to the Genesis formula?

In turn how many games besides maybe Advance 2 can I play Amy in the same gameplay style as the era she debuted in? As a fan of that era and the gameplay that accompanied it as well as Amy I don't understand why the two have to be divorced. It's why I argue for exploiting the Classic/Modern divide that currently exists to explore how Amy could have been developed pre-hammer and using those same base moves as Sonic, Tails and Knuckles. Sure it's not distinct enough to where each character can carry their very own unique game, but why should it be? It's a Sonic game so his gameplay should be at the heart of the game.

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