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

[JezMM]

I don't tend to react very dramatically to presentational flaws in Sonic such as storylines and that, and it's VERY easy for me to be more forgiving to a game that I love the soundtrack to, of which Forces is one.  It's definitely a game that frustrates me though, as while I enjoyed 100%ing it enough, when I finally got around to indulging into the benefits of my double-dipping by playing the Switch version on my breaks at work, I realised that even within the month of release, the lack of depth in the level design was making playing it "normally" feel very uninteresting.  I was craving the variety and interactivity of Unleashed or Generations' stage design but the actual gameplay refused to deliver, often even when applying arbitrary rules to myself to force myself down the least automated/shortcut-filled routes.

Ultimately it's a game where, when I want to "re-experience the best of it", I'll probably just listen to the soundtrack.  I'll replay it maybe as part of pre-new-release Sonic marathons (if I ever really have time for those anymore in adulthood), but otherwise it looks like it's going to be another addition to my mental pile of "Sonic games that I desperately want to love and to be good and will go back to hoping I remembered them wrong and be disappointed every time" alongside (just for me personally) Heroes, Colours and Lost World.

 

 

Regarding the "2D as padding" discussion above, I feel "padding" is maybe the wrong word for it, but I'd definitely agree that the high percentage of 2D in Colours was a problem that made the game less fun overall.  I'd take another Unleashed of two halves where the Sonic component is unblemished by puzzley pace-wrecking power-ups and lack of meaningful 3D gameplay over a full game of bland shit that frustrates me in it's blandness whenever I return to it.

[Artsy-Aspie]

The negative press surrounding the game didn't do it any favours either.
I do wish they didn't falsely advertise the game. That promise of Chaos is still going to leave a bad mark on Adventure era fans (such as myself).

[Dr. Detective]

I'll tell you what it won't be remembered for. Living up to it's fantastic concept art. 

This highly industrialized, barb-wired covered den of chains and madness is supposed to be Green Hill. I wouldn't have complained if this is the area we were running through. Spider-webs. Dead grass. Stormy dark sky. It looks awesome. 

I feel like someone's going to come in with some talk about how it's not that different or it wouldn't have mattered much but it does to me dammit. Everytime I look back to this game, I get upset. They wasted this awesome premise on this game. The more time passes the more ideas come to mind about how to make it better and the bigger the shame of the reality comes across.

[SkyGTR]

I guess, in difference of Mania, the game is already forgotten and even Sega left it in the past looking straight to new projects.There's something valuable must be in it for being remembered. Aside from poor character customisation and silly main villian, who got several times kicked by unknown rookie character and simply dissapeared in the end, there is almost nothing notable in the game.
Anyway, I think customisation is the only legacy of this game which may be returned in some forms in the future projects. Or may not, who knows)

[Gabz Girl]

An incredibly forgettable experience with the only unique addition being the Avatar and OC creator. That’s how it will be remembered I think, and rightfully so because I was so, so, SO disappointed with Sonic Forces and I’m worried that Sonic Team has learned jackshit from making this game since it has supposedly sold well. Ugh.

I don’t think it will even get a more positive reaction from gamers and Sonic fans in a decade or so like Sonic Unleashed did. Wanna know why? Because Unleashed, unlike Forces, looks and sounds stunning and has amazing Boost gameplay and level design with a big, epic story. It was a very ambitious game, and Sonic Forces could only DREAM of being as ambitious as that!