How WOULD you make multiple gameplay styles?

[iambitter21]

ok so now that I have seen opinions and hot takes on the multiple gameplay styles that sonic has picked up and dropped for the past 22 years, here's the big question: 

 

How would you make multiple game styles for a sonic game?

1. What philosophy would this style work around?
2. How would it function?
3.  Who would use it?

[Tracker_TD]

I'd turn to the person telling me to put multiple game styles in this hypothetical Sonic game and slap them for making me do something pointless instead of having characters iterate on Sonic's gameplay as a base in fun and unique ways that don't take me out of the fact I'm playing Sonic. 

On a serious note, I do get a kick out of how the Sonic Robo Blast 2 Special Stages are based on NiGHTS into Dreams. I could see it backfiring if it were to be used in an official title - a lot of people just don't get NiGHTS - but I liked the idea, at least. 

[iambitter21]

45 minutes ago, Tracker_TD said:

I'd turn to the person telling me to put multiple game styles in this hypothetical Sonic game and slap them for making me do something pointless instead of having characters iterate on Sonic's gameplay as a base in fun and unique ways that don't take me out of the fact I'm playing Sonic. 

Geez, were they really the bad to you? to ease your pissed off-ness, Your style doesn't NEED to be "not sonic" for it to be a multiple gameplay style with it's own philosophy, and functions like say..... Amy in advance 1, she plays like sonic, but not at the cost of being too same-y. so why not do the same for everyone else. tails can be a tad slower, but with greater acceleration, and an easy mode due to his flight capabilities. knuckles is already that, slower, jumps lower, and can climb and glide. shadow is also a bit slower, but more slippery, and turns at a looser arc (with the drift to compensate), blaze is straight up about speed unlike sonic sooooo…. moves that make her go faster, but not like the boost 'cause that would be too shallow and boring. and cream can be the Hella-easy mode with cheese, and flies longer than tails.

oh and your NIGHTS Idea, ehh… it could work but, not like every other gameplay style, even treasure hunting of all things (which in itself is a different take on the core. So It works, even with it's rocky execution). but nonetheless it could work for a minigame or something, as would treasure hunting, imaging playing an online game in an open world, searching for more emeralds than your friends. 

 

 

[Red Hot Jack]

Very simple, have them be Sonic-y, so fast platforming, basically, it's the only thing Forces had done right, the idea at least. With their own twists gimmicks and different directions, but that would be the base, yes. Instead of being "filler gameplay straight from a different game with few stages.

Also, obviously I wouldn't overdo them with 6 characters, 3 is enough.

[JezMM]

Well there's kinda two schools of thought here - characters who share levels and characters that don't.  If characters aren't sharing levels, we can kinda go nuts on their abilities and make really good use of them - this is kind of essential in 3D if we want flying characters like Tails and Knuckles playable, since they just destroy Sonic's stages unless it's a stage that's entirely enclosed.

If characters need to share levels though, it'd be better to go with a more "Sonicy" selection, something like Sonic, Shadow and Blaze as the playables.  I'd really want each one to have a unique platforming "language" though, not just "Sonic but with different combat" like Shadow was in 2006, nor dumb gimmicks that don't really mean anything, like Silver's context sensitive telekenesis triggers in 2006 where you just stand on an icon and hold a button to make platforms appear.

They need to keep them speedy, but give them interesting movement mechanics that make them feel different to play than Sonic, which like, is no easy feat.  I'd want Sonic Team to look at a game like Shovel Knight (with it's expansions) for inspiration, where each character has moves that make their platforming feel totally different from the other characters.