Your character direction

[goodone121]

^^^^^topic^^^^^

I would bring back Chip, and turn him into a "Buddy Tails" expy.

Did you just say Light Gaia will be stealing the fox's thunder?

No worries, as I would also make Miles more like ''Chronicles''-being a leader, perhaps launching an attack for the first time.

(Of course, inexperience and nervousness will mean he makes novice mistakes, maybe falling into an obvious trap.)

Dicuss, or explain.

[Thirsty Pocket]

I have always been against the idea of Fang coming back... but if he did come back...

I would want him to be nothing like the cold blooded selfish villain they portray him as in the comic books. He's just too cold hearted. I mean, it's fine to make him greedy and selfish, but he's gotta have a soft spot someplace. He's not a monster.

He should bring a touch of comedic relief, and that gun had better not be using real bullets. I'd like to see him use all kinds of gadgets and traps as well. And of course, non playable is always best, depending on the situation.

Other than that, I don't see any problems with the characters as they are now... well... okay.

Maybe Dr. Eggman should be the one to upstage the monster for a change.

[Diogenes]

Limit the characters in the story to a reasonable level, and only put them in if there's a legitimate reason for them to be there (no more "o hay Knuckles is tagging along too for some reason"). Rotate the characters from time to time, so no one gets worn out and no one gets forgotten. New characters are alright occasionally, but learn to write a story without having to prop it up with new characters every time. Make characters that don't show up in the story unlockable skins from time to time. Bring in more villainous or ambiguous characters, and don't let them just turn into heroes or die by the end of the game they're introduced; we could use some recurring antagonists besides Eggman (Fang plz). Also make Metal Sonic have a larger role.

[sock fox]

Other than that, I don't see any problems with the characters as they are now... well... okay.

Maybe Dr. Eggman should be the one to upstage the monster for a change.

I thought he did a pretty good job upstaging Whisker in Rush Adventure. Of course, he was sorta upstaged by Nega afterwards...

[SuperStingray]

I loved Chip, but I wouldn't bring him back. Remember the last time a great resolved character was revived?

That said, I think the most important thing is not whether or not the secondary characters exist but their appeal, necessity and focus. I think a lot of this has been fixed since after 06. Appeal is subjective, but before Unleashed, there was less focus on Sonic than there should have been and extraneous characters were used without purpose. For example, Knuckles had no reason to be in Heroes, Shadow or 06 storywise, and it even contradicts his character and purpose, but he was there just for the sake of being there. And from Sonic Adventure to Sonic 06, too much attention has been diverted from Sonic himself, at least in the mainstream games.

For the future of the series, I'd keep Sonic as the main focus and most other characters optional unless they have a real reason to be in the story other than fan service. I'd also avoid introducing new major characters and even reintroducing old ones for a while. The franchise has a lot of characters on its plate right now, and I think it would be best to gradually deal with, improve and develop the ones we have now before bringing in anyone else.

[Thirsty Pocket]

I thought he did a pretty good job upstaging Whisker in Rush Adventure. Of course, he was sorta upstaged by Nega afterwards...

Well dern. I haven't got the true ending yet.

[lounge]

I'm fine with all the character's personalities and direction. I wouldn't change anything. Sega created these characters and they know what they're doing with them.

[Mega]

I would want him to be nothing like the cold blooded selfish villain they portray him as in the comic books. He's just too cold hearted.

You can have cold-hearted and comedic at the same time.

Frankly, I'd rather Fang be portrayed with little to no redeeming qualities. Slimy, selfish, money-obsessed, clever, and cunning, but with his shortcomings as well, such as failed traps, etc. The reason why I wouldn't want any redeeming qualities because, really, just about every villain in the series has a soft spot. :/ It's always bugged me, personally.

[libertyernie]

Very true. I'd like a villain who is actually a villain.

[Dr. Mechano]

Very true. I'd like a villain who is actually a villain.

Well, Nega's all about the fear and chaos. He's like Eggman sapped of all his redeeming qualities, resulting in an eerie yet charming psychopath bent on nothing but destruction.

Of course, as much as I like Nega, I prefer the far more morally-complex and lovable original Dr. Eggman.

Edited March 15, 2009 by El Gran Gordo

[Thirsty Pocket]

You can have cold-hearted and comedic at the same time.

Frankly, I'd rather Fang be portrayed with little to no redeeming qualities. Slimy, selfish, money-obsessed, clever, and cunning, but with his shortcomings as well, such as failed traps, etc. The reason why I wouldn't want any redeeming qualities because, really, just about every villain in the series has a soft spot. :/ It's always bugged me, personally.

Well there are plenty of purely evil villains, but most of them are gone for good ( Black Doom, Mephiles, ect. )

But I guess I what I really mean is, I don't want to see him actually shooting to kill. I want him to be just about as much of a threat as Wario and Waluigi is to the Mario Brothers.

[libertyernie]

If I were Fang, I wouldn't shoot people because if I did, they would be dead, meaning they would never have anything else I could steal.

[Rusty Spy]

I'd like to see the gameplay focus to be on Sonic mostly, but I see no reason to exclude other characters from the game at all. It's really only a problem when they play a part in the game for no reason.

I feel that characters shouldn't be excluded from the game just because they don't play an important part. I totaly wouldn't mind having a bunch of side characters in the game as town people and the like.

[goodone121]

I loved Chip, but I wouldn't bring him back. Remember the last time a great resolved character was revived?

That said, I think the most important thing is not whether or not the secondary characters exist but their appeal, necessity and focus. I think a lot of this has been fixed since after 06. Appeal is subjective, but before Unleashed, there was less focus on Sonic than there should have been and extraneous characters were used without purpose. For example, Knuckles had no reason to be in Heroes, Shadow or 06 storywise, and it even contradicts his character and purpose, but he was there just for the sake of being there. And from Sonic Adventure to Sonic 06, too much attention has been diverted from Sonic himself, at least in the mainstream games.

For the future of the series, I'd keep Sonic as the main focus and most other characters optional unless they have a real reason to be in the story other than fan service. I'd also avoid introducing new major characters and even reintroducing old ones for a while. The franchise has a lot of characters on its plate right now, and I think it would be best to gradually deal with, improve and develop the ones we have now before bringing in anyone else.

Mine could still fit in the "develop old characters" bin- this just creates a vacancy filled by LG/Chip.

Edit: I am also a believer in "Workable Idea, Bad Execution" cause of failure in reviving the darker hedgehog. Also, to preempt a possible refutation, while this may not prove we can keep a character "dead" (best wording I could think of), it can be done in a manner demonstrating we can execute revival at least decently.

Edited March 15, 2009 by goodone121

[SuperStingray]

Mine could still fit in the "develop old characters" bin- this just creates a vacancy filled by LG/Chip.

Yeah, but I think Chip was developed enough. Any more would most likely be extraneous to his character.

Edit: I am also a believer in "Workable Idea, Bad Execution" cause of failure in reviving the darker hedgehog. Also, to preempt a possible refutation, while this may not prove we can keep a character "dead" (best wording I could think of), it can be done in a manner demonstrating we can execute revival at least decently.

It could have worked, but I still think it was a bad idea either way. Not only does it take away from the drama of the scenario, but it also gives the developers the feeling that if a character was likable enough to return, they should exaggerate his or her most likable traits, which usually just ends up for worse.

[Ryan Brown]

If I were Fang, I wouldn't shoot people because if I did, they would be dead, meaning they would never have anything else I could steal.

Just move on to the next victim.

[whatagreatview]

I'd cut down the cast drastically, or at least not use all the characters at once. For instance, in Rush 3 I'd use Sonic, Tails, Blaze, Knuckles, and Eggman. In the next Main Series, I'd use Sonic, Tails, Amy, Eggman, and Fang. Kinda like what Diogenes said, basically.

[goodone121]

Yeah, but I think Chip was developed enough. Any more would most likely be extraneous to his character.

Being a "Buddy Tails" expy can be done with a minimum of development.

It could have worked, but I still think it was a bad idea either way.

This seems to self-contradict.

Edited March 15, 2009 by goodone121

[123654]

I'd only let characters appear where they were relevant. I'd also write them better. There's nothing wrong with the characters we have; the writers just do a bad job at portraying them.

[Satan]

What I'd do:

-Knuckles turns into an eighties-era Dave Mustaine (like he hasn't already)

-Tails always had rad parallel 3rds or 6ths guitar harmonies playing whenever he's onscreen

-Sonic acts like he does in chronicles, when I pick the thumbs down dialogue option and make Amy cry

-Amy dies, Rouge goes back to fucking france where her name came from, Blaze dies in a fire

-Big does more psychedelic mushrooms and fishes and sings duets with his frog and accidentally sits on Cream and crushes her to death

-Eggman stays the same

-Marine only shows up once in a blue moon and says more ridiculously Australian things but ditches the ego and irrational fears

-remaining characters use a time machine to somehow prevent Shadow from becoming a character

-Chao's get poached into extinction, except the evil ones, who act like Isz and just hang out in Hell or crazy homeless peoples' fantasies

-Jun Senoue, Ted Poley, Johnny Gioli and Victor Wooten become supporting characters who high five each other all the time

-Add a character who's supposed to be a debugger but just gets fucking drunk instead, just like real life

[Serperior]

Well pesonally for character portrayal I'd have Sonic act like he did in the OVA simply because he was alot more laid back and didnt care about much and I really liked that for some reason. As for Knuckles for a start I would say that he should go back to the way he was in S3&K. A moody person who dedicates his life to the protection of the master emerald. Also I personally think that they can keep his gullible trait without being overly stupid but Sega doesnt seem to realise this (However SR:ZG was going in the right direction with this). As for Tails I'd say that he isnt too bad however he should've kept the confidence he had at the end of SA1 and not resort to always needing Sonic. Also for Amy I think it would be better if she was in the games for reasons other than chasing Sonic around. Thats all she does nowadays and I think its the only reason shes kept in. She could do it sometimes but not all the time and not have her storyline in the games centered around it. The last one I'm going to mention is Eggman. My only problem is nowadays he seems to be nothing but comic relief for the whole story and then gets slapped away by the monster of the week. I'd say change that. He can still be a comic relief from time to time but he needs a bit more of a villanous side as well.

[mikeblastdude]

I'm fine with how most of the characters are, I would say Sonic needs his attitude back but after Unleashed it seems like that's finally happening. I just never want to hear him say "Let's show him the super power of team work!" again. >_<

Other than that, I agree that Knuckles should have more of a purpose in the games (like, he should only be in the games if the Master Emerald is involved), and I also agree that Eggman needs to be a bit more villainous and less of a comic relief (but still a little bit, that's part of his character).

Oh, and one more thing, I would have whoever came up with the dialogue for the Sonic Rivals games fired. Ugh, everyone was just out of character in that one (except maybe Eggman). I mean, come on. "Duhh, Eggman's up to no good again, so let's just race and beat the crap out of each other instead of working together or anything crazy like that".

[edge.]

I would at least alternate between which character should be playable according to the plot they are trying to go on. And I agree with having Metal Sonic with a larger role. And maybe bring back a couple of old characters at a time or at least every three games. And bring back Fang cause he would kick total ass as a villianous character.

[Ryan Brown]

What I'd do:

-Knuckles turns into an eighties-era Dave Mustaine (like he hasn't already)

-Tails always had rad parallel 3rds or 6ths guitar harmonies playing whenever he's onscreen

-Sonic acts like he does in chronicles, when I pick the thumbs down dialogue option and make Amy cry

-Amy dies, Rouge goes back to fucking france where her name came from, Blaze dies in a fire

-Big does more psychedelic mushrooms and fishes and sings duets with his frog and accidentally sits on Cream and crushes her to death

-Eggman stays the same

-Marine only shows up once in a blue moon and says more ridiculously Australian things but ditches the ego and irrational fears

-remaining characters use a time machine to somehow prevent Shadow from becoming a character

-Chao's get poached into extinction, except the evil ones, who act like Isz and just hang out in Hell or crazy homeless peoples' fantasies

-Jun Senoue, Ted Poley, Johnny Gioli and Victor Wooten become supporting characters who high five each other all the time

-Add a character who's supposed to be a debugger but just gets fucking drunk instead, just like real life

What the heck are you on? Seriously.

[SuperStingray]

Being a "Buddy Tails" expy can be done with a minimum of development.

And that's exactly why I don't want it to happen.

This seems to self-contradict.

What I meant was that it could at best only work short term.