How will Sonic Forces be remembered in the years to come?

[Nicky Nicardo]

Given the middling and 'meh' reviews it's gotten from the general consensus and the far more negative response it's garnered from the online Sonic fanbase (based on what I've seen), I do wonder how the game will be viewed down the line, once a good amount of time has passed. Will it be looked upon more favorably, more negatively, or will it barely even be remembered?

I wasn't involved in the Sonic 'fanbase' for all of the other Modern Sonic titles, so I don't know 'how it was' back then when they came out. From what I've seen though, it seems like the majority of them were considered mediocre or just okay when they came out, but as time passed, the outlook on them became more and more positive. Exceptions of course being Sonic Boom and Sonic Generations. Even Sonic 06 seems to have more people nowadays thinking that it really wasn't THAT bad, which came as quite a surprise to me. I DO remember when Unleashed came out, all I heard and saw on the internet was hatred and bashing of the entire game because of the Werehog stages, and it seems like that has shifted or lightened up significantly at the very least.

This is coming from the perspective of someone who, like I said, wasn't really involved in the fandom back during the release of all of the other modern games, so I could very well be missing some vital information.

Personally I hope that once some time has passed and the fact that Forces came out right after Mania (which, even though I haven't played and don't have any interest to play, I'm fairly sure IS a better-designed game) isn't as fresh on people's minds, maybe some of the bile and hatred that the game has garnered will have died down. I can see that happening.

Do I think that's what's most likely to happen? Probably not - chances are that most people, besides the people who genuinely loved the game, will forget about Forces and only remember Mania. That seems a lot more likely to happen. But I don't know - people get very attached to Sonic games, even ones that aren't considered good according to the general consensus.

A lot of the negativity seems to be fueled by emotion, at least from what I've seen. Maybe after enough time has passed, people will look at the game with clearer & cooler heads and their opinions on it will shift towards the middle (just okay and 'meh'), or even towards positive.

What does everyone else think? And please, PLEASE, try to keep things civil.

[Eurisko]

You're right about Unleashed , it has been remembered more fondly as time has gone on. I'm playing through it at the min and it's got a lot of atmosphere and still looks really pretty. I think a lot of the criticism I remember for it originally was the length of the Werehog stages. They are very very long and unforgiving.

I liked Forces I really really did. It looks fantastic , crammed full of fan service and is bright and vibrant. But I think it's 'Meh' factor comes from the mediocre levels with the exception of a handful of well thought out ones but most feel very basic and not to mention classic Sonics strange physics. With that being said , Forces comes alive AFTER the story is finished and I reckon that's where a lot of mainstream reviews missed out. Collecting everything like the red stars etc takes quite some time  and the missions to complete especially the time attack style ones are very challenging.

I think it will be remembered similar to 'Lost World' - You either loved or hated it. 

[Dee Dude]

To be honest, it’ll be most likely just be known as that one meh game that ended up boring but could’ve been better.

Atleast how I see it.

[tailsBOOM!]

INFINITE (Aka the edgiest Sonic character to date.

[Diogenes]

I hope it's remembered as a big mistake, as I'd rather not see a game like Forces ever again.

I'm sure the rawest feelings will dull with time, as they always do, but this shouldn't be a game that fades into the crowd as "just another disappointing Sonic game". This is a particularly and notably bad game and failing to remember it as such sets a lower standard of quality for the series.

[NegaMix]

I wouldn't be surprised if it's just seen as "that Sonic game with the OCs" in the future, but I think it depends on what we see next from Sonic. For example, if we see them return with a different gameplay style, then there's a possibility that Forces may be also seen as "the game that 'killed' the Boost formula". But we don't know for certain.

For me at least, I'll remember it as the game that left me feeling apathetic towards future Sonic games going forward. (Well, barring a few exceptions, that is...)

[BaronGrackle]

In terms of world-building, it was the first mainstream game to try incorporating classic era geography (e.g. Green Hill, Metropolis) and anthro communities instead of human ones.

Part of me is actually excited about that, if the universe builds from it.

[Strickerx5]

Probably as what it is, a meh game through and through that's not really worth hating nor loving. It did nothing so awful to warrant such spite and nothing amazing to warrant such praise. Imo, people would probably find their efforts more rewarded with propping up the games that really deserve it (Mania, Generations, ect.) and never forgetting/ downplaying the games that were actually damaging to the series (RoL, 06, ect.).

So I basically expect this to fall right alongside LW and possibly Heroes.

[Soniman]

9 minutes ago, Strickerx5 said:

Probably as what it is, a meh game through and through that's not really worth hating nor loving. It did nothing so awful to warrant such spite and nothing amazing to warrant such praise. Imo, people would probably find their efforts more rewarded with propping up the games that really deserve it (Mania, Generations, ect.) and never forgetting/ downplaying the games that were actually damaging to the series (RoL, 06, ect.).

IMO Forces was very damaging to this franchise internally and externally. It ruined whatever good will Sonic made with Mania with most caasual gamers, and internally its a culmination of all the terrible ideas and practices Sonic Team have made over the past 15 years, the absolutle worst version of a gameplay style theyve been refinining since Unleahsed, it really is the 06 of the Boost era from my point of view and the fact that it was a sucsess and Sonic Team might continue in this awful direction is more horrifying then ever to me

[MetalSkulkBane]

I will remember it as a game with too many topics. "Forces opinion", "Why Forces is let down", "Anything good about Forces" "When Forces Lost you" Shouldn't one topic cover it all?

Anyway about the question. "Shrug". Some people will say it was terrible (because every Sonic games has some haters), some will say they kida liked few things (becasue every Sonic game has defenders), bur ultimately most will say t was not 06/Rise of Lyric bad.

[Strickerx5]

2 minutes ago, Soniman said:

IMO Forces was very damaging to this franchise internally and externally. It ruined whatever good will Sonic made with Mania with most caasual gamers, and internally its a culmination of all the terrible ideas and practices Sonic Team have made over the past 15 years, the absolutle worst version of a gameplay style theyve been refinining since Unleahsed, it really is the 06 of the Boost era from my point of view and the fact that it was a sucsess and Sonic Team might continue in this awful direction is more horrifying then ever to me

Not from where I'm standing. Most people are already starting to forget about it as most did find it to be a meh title overall. Not to mention the overall mediocre reviews it got. Again, I think saying it's the 06 of our time is underselling just how terrible of a game 06 was. Quite frankly, most series die off after a game like that. Multiple series can survie a meh game.

Of course you could argue the lasting effects it could have on ST with its "success" but that still remains to be seen.

[Penny]

It depends on the next couple games. If the next couple of games are good, then I hope it's remembered as the straw that broke the camel's back; as in, the bad game that finally knocked some sense into Sonic Team and Sega, and kick-started a new era of actually good Sonic games. Obviously, that probably won't happen, because if sales of Forces really were ok, then more than likely, they'll just continue making soulless, lazy games that only do the bare minimum to be playable and look/feel like a Sonic game. Because that's what Forces is. It's not the worst Sonic game to play (Secret Rings) or the most broken (06), but it's just as bad as those games because of just how lazy and soulless it is. It tries to recapture the magic of Generations, but it doesn't even come close. It completely neuters the boost formula by removing any sort of depth or interesting level design (which is especially bad in a formula that is lacking for depth in the first place), and they somehow made the classic formula from Gens demonstrably worse! Even the new things about it (the Avatar and the story) are lacking; the story is dumb and tells more than it shows, and the Avatar is essentially just a dress-up simulator whose levels end up being better than Modern Sonic's only by virtue of the multiple wispon paths.

 

After 4 years between games, we needed a great Sonic game. I thought Sonic Team was taking that extra time to do just that. I had faith. But they rewarded that faith with this bland, lazy pile of crap. I felt (and still feel) insulted and betrayed. My fault for having any faith in them to begin with, but at least I learned my lesson. However, while I don't trust ST anymore, I still hope that this was the shitty Sonic game that finally got Sonic Team to clean up their act. I don't expect it, but if that happens, then that's how Forces will be remembered.

[mikeblastdude]

Outside of the Sonic fanbase, Sonic Forces probably won’t be remembered much at all, except for maybe as “that game with the Sonic OC creator”. It’s not bad enough to achieve a high level of notoriety like Sonic 2006 and Sonic Boom: RoL, but also not good enough to stand out and pique the interest of gamers who normally don’t care too much about Sonic, like Sonic Mania did.

As far as how it will be remembered among Sonic fans down the line, well, I have absolutely no idea. I see Unleashed get a lot more praise now than it did around the time of its release, while I also tend to see Colors and Generations getting absolutely trashed in discussions when they were both pretty highly acclaimed by fans upon their releases. This is just from what I’ve observed, at least. So, it seems impossible for me to predict how Forces will be looked at by fans in 10, or even five, years down the line. I personally don’t see it being seen as an overlooked gem or anything myself, but, who knows. It definitely didn’t leave much of an impression on me the same way that the Adventure games, the Advance/Rush games, Heroes, Unleashed, Colors, Generations, and most recently, Sonic Mania, did, I can say that much.

[Meta77]

Depends on where you look. As I've said multiple times here and other game sites people need to stop thinking their mindrepresents the entire fanbase saying many will forget mania for forces newness. It all depends on what sites you follow and who. I've seen tons of fan art and people sharing their ocs. I've seen YouTube comments saying the game was short but that they had fun. Ice seen praise for the music.ive seen people enjoy some let's players enjoy the game. I've also seen the opposite to all that. As always even in the comic here the sonic fandom is split harder on things than a atom. Granted seeing the latest dyk only confirms it's segas fault we got what we did again

[TheOcelot]

Forces will be remembered as a totally unremarkable entry in the franchise with yet another embarrassingly low meta-critic score, which highlights just how incompetent Sonic Team are at creating fun games with good design.

To rub salt into the wound; the previous game (a 2d 32-bit retro Sonic title made by fans-turned professional game developers) received critical acclaim, pretty much cementing Forces as a title which in time will be largely forgotten, lacking any of the popularity of better received games like Gens and Colors. 

[Polkadi~☆]

Enjoyable and good for a laugh, with many frustrating bits that can ruin your enjoyment.

But overall forgettable.

Like Heroes, basically.

[Wittymations]

7 hours ago, Dee Dude said:

To be honest, it’ll be most likely just be known as that one meh game that ended up boring but could’ve been better.

Atleast how I see it.

So, Heroes?

 

I thought Lost World was the Heroes of modern times.

[Razule]

One of many mediocre games, but where SEGA embraced the memes

[Indigo Rush]

"That weird Sonic game that let you build your own character"

That's really all it'll be remembered for outside of the fanbase, I feel.

[Blue Blood]

15 minutes ago, Indigo Rush said:

"That weird Sonic game that let you build your own character"

That's really all it'll be remembered for outside of the fanbase, I feel.

I agree with this. That's the lasting image that Forces will leave. As much as I may dislike Forces, it's not a broken and unplayable mess like '06 and RoL, nor is it offensively bad in design like Black Knight. Forces is wholly unremarkable at a glance and only really starts to suck when you take note of the underlying mechanics and finer aspects.

It'll also be remembered as that official game that was worse than a fan game. And nobody will remember that Classic Sonic was a part of it either. 

[Splash the Otter]

I was hoping it would be remembered as the game that removed the stigma against OCs, but I guess that won't happen...

[Blue Blood]

4 minutes ago, Splash the Otter said:

I was hoping it would be remembered as the game that removed the stigma against OCs, but I guess that won't happen...

Remove stigma? With this?

Surely you jest?

Hopefully SEGA will never do a character creator in a Sonic game ever again. I haven't got faith in that though.

[Badnik Mechanic]

By people outside of the fandom.

Basically by around... June of this year...

"Oh yeah Sonic Forces, that wasn't that great"

[Splash the Otter]

2 minutes ago, Blue Blood said:

Remove stigma? With this?

Surely you jest?

No, I mean with Avatars that aren't made to look as ridiculous as possible.

2 minutes ago, Blue Blood said:

Hopefully SEGA will never do a character creator in a Sonic game ever again. I haven't got faith in that though.

What's so bad about the character creator? To me it's one of the best ideas they've had in years. I want them to expand on it in future games.

[Blue Blood]

On 27/02/2018 at 8:44 PM, Splash the Otter said:

What's so bad about the character creator? To me it's one of the best ideas they've had in years. I want them to expand on it in future games.

I've never been interested in making my own character. As a child or as an adult, putting myself into the Sonic universe is not something I've wanted. I care about the actual characters, not a nameless avatar so I can be Sonic's new best friend. It's just something I never wanted SEGA do, and is so much more suited to a spin-off where players can interact in a multiplayer scenario and be the centre of attention.

This isn't the subject of discussion though. Forces is going to remembered for that part of a not very good game that let you make your own character.