Sonic 4: Episode 1 Impressions, Thoughts, & Help Topic

[Agent York]

Now that Sonic 4 is available on the Iphone and people can actually play it now, this is the topic for discussing game with impressions, thoughts, and help when playing the game. The Wii, 360, and PS3 releases are coming out soon but discussion can start now that it's out on Iphone. I can't say anything for a few days as I have no Iphone, but has anyone bought or buying the Iphone version here?

ALSO should add please put anything with spoilers in spoiler tags (put '[' and ']' around the word "spoiler"). Stuff about Sp ash Hill, Lost Labyrinth, Casino Street, and Mad Gear are free game except discuss bosses (outside of Splash Hill), and other stuff in spoiler tags that have not been officially revealed yet.

Edited October 7, 2010 by Dusk the Wisp Keeper

[DistantJ]

Oops, ya made two topics by accident! Anyway, I have the iPhone version.

Having a great time with it for the most part. Odd thing is that the iPhone version appears to be what we'd have gotten if the game was released back in summer on it's original release date, it doesn't have any of the much-talked-about enhancements, though it seems to be much more solid than the leaked stuff (what I was shown of it anyway). It plays like a cross between classic Sonic and Sonic Advance.

But this is interesting because I can tell you that, at least to my tastes, the game is a whole lot of fun even without the post-feedback alterations, so the console version should be even better.

Since the iPhone version isn't the definitive version of the game due to essentially being the pre-feedback version of the game, I can't give a total verdict of Sonic 4 but this version of the game...As good as the classics? Probably not. The BEST Sonic game SINCE the classics? Definitely.

[DistantJ]

A culmination of some of the stuff I've said in the other topic:

You guys might find this interesting - once you've done Splash Hill Zone Act 1, you're free to do any level you want in any order you want, Mega Man style, except the bosses, which you have to complete all 3 acts in a Zone to unlock. It might be different on the console version though.

Plays really well, music is FANTASTIC, like brilliantly catchy, really feel good stuff. Sonic's model doesn't look great on the iPhone, kinda Sonic Rush looking, low poly and with a few rough edges and stuff. Takes a bit of getting used to but once you get the hang of it it's great. I dunno if physics-hounds will react differently but I honestly can't notice a difference, it feels like I'm playing a Sonic game.

Oh, and, a lot of the speed boosters are gone now. There are a lot of sections where there were speed boosters in the videos I saw, even recent ones, where there aren't any in the game. I could be wrong, perhaps there is some more recent footage with less in but there are places I distinctly remember having speed boosters in videos where they aren't now, so...

There don't seem to be any DIMPS infamous level design problems - the only Advance/Rush style issue I've found are a few unexpected bottomless pits (remember in Advance 2 and 3, where you'd have bottomless pits which stretch all the way from the top of the course downwards? There are a few of those in this game too, but not as many as in Advance 3 (in my opinion they ruined that game).

By the way, I love this game! Can't wait for the PS3 version, because my only complaint here is the 3D models being a little sketchy and a few leaps of faith due to the small screen size.

The people asking about the two levels they've replaced on the console versions - the minecart is pretty fun, but the tilting isn't that responsive. You can change to 'swipe' controls for it (and the special stage) which is much quicker to respond but not as fun. I certainly think that the replacement level for the console version looks a lot better, but hey it's fun. The Casino Street level however, well it's just some tiny pinball machine you have to get a certain number of points in, and it's not much fun or exciting at all, really, especially considering the only real way to get points are the fruit machine and a little points collecting thing above it, and you just do those two over and over.

The only stage I'm not getting along with is Casino Street 3 "Casino Climax" because I keep getting lost and confused, lots of areas where you fall down and have to try it again too, though I get the feeling these parts will be easier to conquer with a gamepad.

I did notice that other changes for the console versions weren't there too, yeah, like it takes Sonic quite a while to get up to top speed and his 'blurry feet wheel thingy' animation doesn't occur as often as you see it in the footage of the console version, but actually considering the game is so fun (at least, to my tastes) without the improvements, the console version will probably be brilliant.

Also, the whole 'crouch on a wall' thing, and the stopping on slopes and stuff, I managed to get it to happen once, but it's really not a common occurrence at all, and this is in the pre-enhancements version so...

[jennytablina]

I'll post quick impressions of iPhone now with the aim of making a better one later (and console vs iPhone next week)

• This appears to be very close to the leaked version
  
• Once act 1 of Spring Hill is done, you are free to pick any act bar the boss
  
• Once you complete a special stage, you can replay it without getting a warp ring
  
• 3 acts are pure levels (bar minekart and casino street points), the boss is standalone ala Sonic 1 8-bit
  
• controls are fine, even if you have long nails like me *girly*
  
• Minekart level isnt that bad, though best kept to iPhone really
  
• Casino Streets bonus level is a bit lame, needed a larger play area
  
• Music is quite nice and works with the games ambience
  
• It "feels" like Classic Sonic, with a slight dash of DIMP's style
  

[nuckles87]

Alright, so I'm playing Splash Hill, and I think to myself "Let's see if I can recreate the whole standing horizontally on a surface thing that people keep complaining about and that I was able to accomplish with ease at PAX."

So I try it, right, and....I can't do it anymore. I spent half of Splash Hill just trying to recreate that physics bug, and I can't. I keep falling off, or sliding back down, the ladder of which NEVER happened in the E3 version. I just stuck to walls.

Anyone else notice this? Anyone else able to regularly stand on walls, or the side of loops? Cause I can't.

Of course, no idea if this is true in the console versions. It'd be kinda funky if the iPhone version had more classic physics XD

Edit: I've played more of it, tried more of the same tricks, even tried rolling down some inclines...I'm not gonna say the physics are fixed, simply because I'm not physics whore enough to really make such a statement. BUT they ARE improved over what I've played at E3 and PAX on the Wii and 360. If you don't have the momentum to do it, you CAN'T conquer a hill. You can't even stand on it's side anymore, you'll simply walk back. In the E3 demo I was able to just sit there and I have to move back myself.

However, rolling is still the same, it doesn't give you any additional momentum by itself, you need to get a running start first, even on inclines. This, I imagine, will be a bit of physics that classic fans will complain about.

[SchemingMinor]

Major spoilers. Read at your own risk:

Robotnik still the fastest thing alive (lol as Sonic still can't out run him) Lots of retro machines come back (Eggbot from Death Egg,) and Metal Sonic appears at the end.

[Shade Vortex]

Hm, sounds like the iPhone version wasn't as bad as many people thought it'd be. Just goes to show if the entire game was released as-is without the delay, it wouldn't have been absolutely horrible.

But I am glad the changes were made, I think the Console versions look much better. And since the iPhone version is already this good, that makes the console versions have the potential of reaching greatness. I'll keep my final thoughts on the matter for until after I've beaten the game on XBLA though.

Edited October 7, 2010 by Shade Vortex

[azoo]

I have been playing it for the past hour. Wow, this is basically the Partnernet build with NO fixes made at all. Rather sloppy job on that part.

I stood on walls at least once or twice already, and my biggest complaint is that I try to keep speed but I can't. Why? Air movement cancels all acceleration when going airborne. It's a major game-breaker. Besides these things though (which are both problems because the friction is too tight), the game plays fine. I've been having good fun with it, besides CSZ2 which is a snoozefest.

This version just looks lazier and less loved than the console counterparts. No world map, no fixed running, no extra effects to Sonic's lighting, no fixes to nearly anything.

All I can say though is that it's still a pretty fun game, although I'm sure the console version is superior. Especially since the touchscreen controls make it all the harder (got used to the D-Pad interface on the other Genesis-iPhone ports of S1 and S2) when they suddenly replace the D-pad with an odd to control "analog stick".

[nuckles87]

I stood on walls at least once or twice already

How and where? I tested that throughout splash hill and I only managed it once, and I'm not even sure how. Standing on slopes was incredibly easy in the E3 build, but I can't do it here.

[Jason Berry]

My impressions.

Cons (Start with the bad, end with the good.)

The Virtual D-Pad, while a bit better than the Sonic 2 version, still isn't precise enough for solid platforming. I'm still stuck on LL Act 3 due to the wall coming fast and the virtual D-Pad not working well enough for me to get a quick spindash where I need it. Most of the problems I'm having with the game are due to this.

This is obviously the old build with no improvements made. This version was probably ready to go months ago. Sonic barely ever gets into full speed mode while the final build on the console shows him going into full speed much sooner.

The tilt during the special stages feels delayed and is not 1:1

Why are they giving me all the stages at once instead of letting me progress naturally?

Carnival Street Zone Act 2 is completely pointless and stupid. I mean, okay. I can understand them wanting to make one level like a pinball game, but it's so short and small and you can get the points so fast just by keeping Sonic near the upper left of the stage. Why not make an actual pinball table level? The new Act 2 looks MUCH better.

Not that big on CSZ Act 3 and the stupid cannons either.

There are some spots where the double jump that can thrust you forward is necessary to get by some platforms. When it's not an HA, it's a boost jump.

There are some parts where tilt implementation would make sense, but are not included. Like in LL when the Water drains, or tilting the cannons in CSZ Act 3

No Leaderboards ruins re-playability. (Although, I did beat Rubyeclipse's time on Splash Hill Act 1)

Pros

While I'm not big on the boost jump, I like HA just fine. It's not so instant win. You do have to time it a little or you can get killed.

While the other two acts didn't impress me much. Carnival Street Zone act 1 Was great and had much better pinball physics than I was expecting. With the exception of slowing down a lot when you touch the flippers. Other than that, it was like classic Sonic.

The games not a cakewalk. Mad Gear is tough and the special stages can be quite challenging. Not only are you rotating the maze to get to the chaos emerald, but you have a time limit and have to collect enough rings to open gates. It's a challenge, but not one that feels unfair.

Still dig Lost Labyrinth and Mad Gear as much as when I first saw them.

I thought the Mine Cart level was kinda fun. Not the best level in the game by far, but not a disaster either.

There's an option for total touch control. No tilt. Works okay for the special stages. Not so well for the Mine Cart.

OVERALL: I would be enjoying this game a lot more with a standard D-Pad. There's no real feeling of progression in this version (Something they fixed in the console ones) because all the levels except boss fights and special zones are open to you from the start. That said, there's still some fun to be had here and there. Especially in the later stages.

By iTunes grading, I give it 3 out of 5 stars. I'd wait until there's a sale on it for at least $4.99 before picking it up. If you only get one Sonic 4, pass this version up. The console versions will control much better and have some improvements.

[Blue Blood]

Ouch, it's the old version on iPhone? Hahaha! Talk about lazy. They didn't even include any of polishing updates like regular stage progression and the new title screen. That's bad.

[DistantJ]

I dunno if anybody can perhaps help me on Lost Labyrinth Act 3... I'm on one of the parts where Sonic spins on the spot and you rotate the labyrinth around him to get the water to spill out, but there are some spikes on the wall and every time I get the water to drain Sonic falls straight into the spikes. Anybody know how to do this?

Edited October 7, 2010 by DistantJ

[Barry the Nomad]

My review of the game is up at the Nomad Junkyard!

http://the-nomad-junkyard.blogspot.com/2010/10/review-sonic-hedgehog-4-episode-1.html

I'm now making a version for SEGAbits. It'll be the same review, but with their letter grade system for the score.

[azoo]

I got used to the controls some, so now that I have I'm noticing the gameplay isn't as bad as I thought it was upon my first impression. This game is really fun, just a little bit tedious in the controls (like air movement and acceleration). Besides that the game runs good, and honestly the dash pads and homing attack aren't too distracting from gameplay (in fact the jump dash is your best friend when playing this game). Sonic really gains speed when running down hills, which makes me wonder why Sonic can't also do that when he rolls.

Edited October 7, 2010 by Azukara

[Barry the Nomad]

Not sure if this was known, but the Art Director is Hideaki Moriya: http://segaretro.org/Hideaki_Moriya?rdfrom=http%3A%2F%2Finfo.sonicretro.org%2Findex.php%3Ftitle%3DHideaki_Moriya%26redirect%3Dno

[-Mark-]

I like it.

To be honest, there's a feeling of 'does what it says on the tin', really. Rather than trying to either directly copy the classics or make something too 'new', it literally feels like a modern spin on classic Sonic. Okay, it's not perfect and there are still a few little physics issues, but that doesn't stop it from being a really enjoyable game.

What I'm hoping for in the next episode is just some levels that are a bit more visually original.

I'm sleepy anyway (was up until 2AM playing it this morning >.> ), so;

I appear to fail at the last boss (it's killed me thirty times already DX )- What the hell do I do when

he breaks the floor? I've got to that point two or three times and just get taken down with everything else.

[Gatestormer]

I dunno if anybody can perhaps help me on Lost Labyrinth Act 3... I'm on one of the parts where Sonic spins on the spot and you rotate the labyrinth around him to get the water to spill out, but there are some spikes on the wall and every time I get the water to drain Sonic falls straight into the spikes. Anybody know how to do this?

You'll just need to make the level tilt very slowly, watch the block move and if you can carefully get the block out of the wall without dragging Sonic to the spikes then you'll shoot out. That got me a few times to slow and steady wins the race, if you do it too fast then Sonic goes to the spikes before the block is out, as you know.

[Tobibrocki]

Can someone here who has beaten the game already perhaps give me a little bit of help with the 6th Special Stage? I´m just getting so incredibly lost there, its driving me crazy!

A hint, a video, anything would help actually! ^^´

[Conando]

I just noticed someone edited the Wikipedia page with "A 'Meh' experience" under the reception tab.

:|

(Goddamn Wikipedia.)

[Kuzu]

Man, I wish Monday would get here already.

Edited October 7, 2010 by Shadic93

[Drunk Michael Myers]

I played the game for a brief moment today on my friends iPhone. Played Splash Hill 1 and 3. Took some time to get used to the touchscreen controlls, but thats just me. Now playing it felt kinda wierd. That's because of the physics, wich i'm not complaining about, i just have to get used to it. But it was fun. Splash Hill 3 was the best part. Fun, fastpased gameplay with energetic music. I had a blast playing that level. I was close to buy it for my own iPhone, but nah, seing the differences between the versions will wait for the console one. But i'm happy to say it was a positive surprise after all the bad talk i've hear about it. Sure, we can nit-pick about the small missing, or added, details...but that does not matter to me. I got used to the spind-dash soundeffects after playing Splash Hill 1.

Since the console versions will be more polished with added extras, i'm really looking forward to play the whole thing on my PS3 on Wednesday.

Edited October 8, 2010 by Michael Myers

[Superstarsmasher]

Can someone here who has beaten the game already perhaps give me a little bit of help with the 6th Special Stage? I´m just getting so incredibly lost there, its driving me crazy!

A hint, a video, anything would help actually! ^^´

Ha! Yeah, it's crazy, isn't it? Just wait till Special Stage 7. Just look at the ring number needed to get the chaos emerald. It may as well have WELCOME TO HELL pop up before it.

Edited October 8, 2010 by Superstarsmasher

[Drunk Michael Myers]

Ha! Yeah, it's crazy, isn't it? Just wait till Special Stage 7. Just look at the ring number needed to get the chaos emerald. It may as well have WELCOME TO HELL pop up before it.

At least it's a challange getting it. Gives the game more re-playability and enhances the length a bit.

[Kuzu]

IT wouldn't be a 2D Sonic game, without having to go through hell getting the emeralds.

[Detective Shadzter]

Ken Balough says the iPhone version is getting an update on October 15th to support Game Center.

Hi Everyone,

Hopefully you guys had a terrific 1st day enjoying Sonic The Hedgehog 4 Episode I on the iPhone!

That said - I'd like to let everyone know that on October 15th, we are submitting to Apple a free update for Sonic 4 that would give it Game Center.

So stay tuned as we add this new feature.

Cheers,

Ken

http://forums.sega.com/showthread.php?t=347308