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I don't understand how you're supposed to play Sonic games.

jcjimher

Member
I'd have to say Sonic's design as a game always baffled me as well. I think mostly the game just needs a main reason to go fast like a sense of urgency to accomplish something.

Come on, do you really need any extra reason to go fast if you are presented with a slope like this?:

s3-mgz-structureimg1.png
 
This thread is nonsense and you should all be ashamed of yourselves.

-Indeed-

Sonic games aren't games filled with levels like Mario, there are a set selection of stages with unique gimmicks. The games are more towards Mastery and forward based exploration, than backtracking. You rediscover through replays of the game not find everything in a single playthrough, such as faster routes, bonus/special stages, chaos emeralds.

The best way to realize this is to SKIP Sonic 1 and go straight to Sonic 2, then Sonic 3&K because those games are the refined and mastered visions of what a Sonic game should be, as Sonic 1 set the foundation, but design goes against the concept the most.

It's not even confusing.
 

VeeP

Member
What is the benefit of going fast in Sonic? There has to be a reason why you as a player want to bother taking risks. Also why am I collecting a bunch of rings when you can just cheese the game with 1 and only die rarely due to physical contact with something bad?

The first level in Sonic 1 teaches you literally everything about the game in the first like 3 screens and then immediately after throws a large map with several branching paths interconnected in confusing ways. It's a clusterfuck to be honest

The benefit of going fast is.. it's fun? Right? Going through a level and nailing the obstacles, getting momentum, etc etc. I can nail Green Hill Zone in Sonic 1 perfectly. Its a blast.

Your collecting rings because of the reasons you said + they allow you entry into bonus zones, which allow you to get chaos emeralds and power ups, and allow you to get the true ending, and allow you to unlock characters like Super Sonic.

Sonic 1 plays a bit slower than the rest. The zone your referring to is Marble Zone. Just pick a route you like and keep going. Then the next time you play pick a different route. Then the next time you play pick another route. Boom, more replay value. Each route might have different obstacles, different secrets, etc.

Idk what makes it such a clusterfuck? :/ Would you like one straight path?
 
Why do people think sonic is all about speed?
Yeah the 3d games want you to go fast (one reason why they all suck) but the old 2d stuff is just platforming with the potential to move fast.

Genesis/megadrive era sonic is not about speed!
I mean check the level design in sonic 3 & k, so vertical and the are even enemies which hold you back.

You want to collect the chaos emeralds or what? You better slow down.
 
What is the benefit of going fast in Sonic? There has to be a reason why you as a player want to bother taking risks. Also why am I collecting a bunch of rings when you can just cheese the game with 1 and only die rarely due to physical contact with something bad?
You're collecting a lot of rings because 1) at 100 rings you get an extra life, which is useful, 2) the amount of rings you end a level with determines your score for the level, at certain score levels you earn an extra life, which is useful, and 3) having a larger number of rings when you are hit causes a larger amount of rings to fall out of Sonic, making it easier to grab some to protect yourself, making it inherently safer to have more rings than fewer.

You go fast because, again, beating the level with a good time adds to your score, which benefits you by gaining you lives, which are helpful in beating the game. Speed is also a tool used throughout the game, used to clear obstacles by the buildup of momentum and for gaining access to different paths throughout the level.

Really, Sonic is pretty bone dry simple. Collecting rings in Sonic is actually more integral to the central game than collecting coins in Mario but no one really questions that despite lives having long since lost meaning in Mario.
 
So what is the goal of Sonic then? Go fast and complete the level at top speed or find collectibles? The issue is that the two of them are direct opposite design philosophies.

I mean, it's neither of these, just like it's neither of these in Mario.

If you're really good at Mario, you can blaze through the levels. If you're not, you take your time and explore the nuances. In Mario, exploiting all the nuances means breaking blocks, going down pipes, and using power-ups to get to different parts of the level; in Sonic, it means using your speed and momentum to perform feats that get you to different places. But "the goal of Sonic" isn't to "go fast and complete the level at top speed."

And Sonic games don't really follow "collectible" design in the strict sense. They have certain requirements for accessing special stages (usually) "have 50 rings at endpoints/checkpoints), and you need to complete the special stages to get the best ending. But there isn't a checklist of collectibles you need to get in each level, and the stuff you need to access special stages (usually) isn't hidden, so it'd also be inaccurate to say "the goal of Sonic" is to "find collectibles." I mean, is "the goal of Mario" to "get coins"?
 

Verano

Reads Ace as Lace. May God have mercy on their soul
Sonic is easy to play...people are just terrible gamers overall. I've been playing sonic games since the first one came out. So much joy when you gotta go fast 😊
 

farting

Banned
what is wrong with you people? have you never played a platformer? the objective is to complete the level without dying. that's it.

there's other stuff if you want it
 
While I liked Sonic back in the day and played Sonic 2 for the most part, the one thing I remember very well is that I found it frustratingly hard. I could beat Mario easily, but I could never wrap my head around how anyone could possibly beat Sonic.
In retrospective, the large levels might be one of the reasons. The linear level design of early Mario games made it easy to remember each step very well and after failing you had to train that exact part. I remember in Sonic I felt rather lost. If I died I sometimes didn't even know where exactly that was. And if I found it too hard I tried going another route. More often than not I still ended up at the bottom which consisted of some (not many, but enough for me) excruciatingly slow parts. Green Hill Zone was always the most fun part because afterwards it felt like it got significantly harder – and slower – pretty quickly.
So, yeah, for me it also feels like there might be something I just might've missed. Sure, get to the end, but sometimes I couldn't even beat the early levels. Maybe I was just too young and too dumb to learn the levels by heart because everything was so frustrating. Reading here that four-year olds beat is seems absurd but well, guess I just have to admit defeat.
 

ChrisD

Member
Ex/current I don't know actually GAFFER and all around Sonic fan is doing a stream of Sonic Mania, he knows a lot about Sonic so I would assume he knows how to play it

Spoils for Sonic Mania obvioulsy

https://www.twitch.tv/krejlooc

rofl, the second I tuned in he died
I'm a curse

Repeating points already brought up, but Sonic isn't about gotta go fast, it's about being able to go fast. Green Hill Zone in Sonic Generations was one of the funnest stages I've ever played in a Sonic game, as I tried to get the achievement for beating the stage in under a minute. Mind you, the first time through took me something like five minutes -- I had fun doing that, too. And like, sure, all Platformers let you speedrun, but Sonic has the feeling of speed. So even if, say, a Mario level can be finished really quickly with constant momentum, it doesn't have the same camera movement, or character momentum, or... Well, for me it's mostly those two things that make Sonic feel so fun while speeding through stages you've mastered.

Rings shouldn't cause any confusion lol. A form of coins (lives, score) that also carry the Mushroom's function of allowing a hit. If anything, Mario would be more complex.
 

balohna

Member
What is the benefit of going fast in Sonic? There has to be a reason why you as a player want to bother taking risks. Also why am I collecting a bunch of rings when you can just cheese the game with 1 and only die rarely due to physical contact with something bad?

The first level in Sonic 1 teaches you literally everything about the game in the first like 3 screens and then immediately after throws a large map with several branching paths interconnected in confusing ways. It's a clusterfuck to be honest

You go fast as a skill/familiarity thing, or because it's fun.

Rings also give you 1ups.

It's fine to not be into Sonic, but the core design is pretty much fine IMO.
 

RockmanBN

Member
This thread is "not Mario" platformer was never good meme to the next level. Can't wait for new identical threads to show up complaining small deviations of a games genre.
 

Ferr986

Member
Some people in this thread

LWVl8.gif


It's just a fast paced platforming game , guys, it's not friggin rocket science.
 

aadiboy

Member
I've only ever played like two Sonic games and I've never had this sort of confusion. Play the game however you want, even kids can understand this concept.
 
Ah, this is where I would be confused. I only ever played the 8 bit versions which were apparently completely different from the 16bit. Special stages in the 8-bit did literally nothing.
Eww.
I can totally understand this point of view. It’s just that whenever I’m completing a level all the while seeing parts of it that I can’t get to or can’t complete properly, I’m not having fun. And I can’t speak for the OP, but personally when I play the game and am not having fun, I look around and see other people who fervently love these games, and I think maybe I’m missing something.

There are a lot of games that I can play and appreciate while knowing that it’s not a game for me. I don’t like character action games, but I can recognize when a character action game like Bayonetta is good and why people like it. With Sonic I have always felt more like I don’t understand the parts of it that people enjoy. And I’m searching for an answer there.
It's a simple difficulty spike, for some may be a bit more challenging in terms of (Bayo) getting your ass handed to you in a battle vs. (Sonic) Getting lost or not being able to successfully navigate through a stage.... or boss. I think difficulty and spikes are healthy for video games.

Not sure what you mean. I like Sonic 2 and Colors, Colors is in fact the only modern Sonic game I like because it doesn't play itself. It has tons of good platforming, moments where you should take it slow, and it's not boost to win like Unleashed or Generations.

Neither one of those games are boost to win. Colors is probably the most painful of the three to play due to the momentum stopping platforming, where as in Unleashed and Generations, you maintained speed and focused on the jumps along the way. There are plenty of stages to reflect that.

It's kinda like saying Classic games play themselves due to Green/Emerald Hill.
 

Ansatz

Member
The benefit of going fast is.. it's fun? Right? Going through a level and nailing the obstacles, getting momentum, etc etc. I can nail Green Hill Zone in Sonic 1 perfectly. Its a blast.

Your collecting rings because of the reasons you said + they allow you entry into bonus zones, which allow you to get chaos emeralds and power ups, and allow you to get the true ending, and allow you to unlock characters like Super Sonic.

Sonic 1 plays a bit slower than the rest. The zone your referring to is Marble Zone. Just pick a route you like and keep going. Then the next time you play pick a different route. Then the next time you play pick another route. Boom, more replay value. Each route might have different obstacles, different secrets, etc.

Idk what makes it such a clusterfuck? :/ Would you like one straight path?

The first stage is very overwhelming actually, there is a constant flow of new information being thrown at the player which gives you little time to digest each idea and because of the fast nature of the game it's alot for your senses to take in at once. It wouldn't hurt if the first level was slower paced and more linear to get the hang of the basics before introducing alternate paths and stuff.

Yes I know about the chaos emeralds but I don't remember if it's indicated in the game that you need X amount of points to enter the bonus stage, or if it just throws you into it without you knowing exactly what you did to get there. Like does the game provide feedback so that you know what caused the ring to spawn at the end?
 

ckaneo

Member
The first stage is very overwhelming actually, there is a constant flow of new information being thrown at the player which gives you little time to digest each idea and because of the fast nature of the game it's alot for your senses to take in at once. It wouldn't hurt if the first level was slower paced and more linear to get the hang of the basics before introducing alternate paths and stuff.

Yes I know about the chaos emeralds but I don't remember if it's indicated in the game that you need X amount of points to enter the bonus stage, or if it just throws you into it without you knowing exactly what you did to get there. Like does the game provide feedback so that you know what caused the ring to spawn at the end?

Werent there instruction booklets?
 

Puruzi

Banned
Eww.

It's a simple difficulty spike, for some may be a bit more challenging in terms of (Bayo) getting your ass handed to you in a battle vs. (Sonic) Getting lost or not being able to successfully navigate through a stage.... or boss. I think difficulty and spikes are healthy for video games.



Neither one of those games are boost to win. Colors is probably the most painful of the three to play due to the momentum stopping platforming, where as in Unleashed and Generations, you maintained speed and focused on the jumps along the way. There are plenty of stages to reflect that.

It's kinda like saying Classic games play themselves due to Green/Emerald Hill.

Yes they are. Colors has significantly better platforming than the both of them and you can't just boost the entire stage like you can in those two. I think they're shit and I feel like they're boost to win. Only good modern stage in Generations is Sky Sanctuary.
 

JP

Member
I mentioned this in another thread some time ago but I've never enjoyed any of the Sonic games, for what ever reason they just didn't connect with me.

I'd been quite interested in Sonic Mania and after spending time looking into I ended up buying it because I've always wanted to enjoy the games as much as other people do. I can't explain why but for whatever reason, I'm really enjoying Sonic Mania in the way that I was hoping to. Again, I really don't why this is the first time that this has happened but I'm so glad that it has.
 
I bought Mania in the hype but it just reminded me of how I never really got along with Sonic games. There's something about the flow of Sonic; how it's so stop start that annoys me. I find it frustrating that the speed is constantly interrupted.
 

ckaneo

Member
I bought Mania in the hype but it just reminded me of how I never really got along with Sonic games. There's something about the flow of Sonic; how it's so stop start that annoys me. I find it frustrating that the speed is constantly interrupted.

If that's the case, then get good and keep the speed up.

The stop and start aspect allows the levels to be so exhilarating and keep up the variety of things to throw at you.
 

kodecraft

Member
I somehow figured this out at 6 years old...

This. Not sure if this thread is actually serious. Where's the thrill of discovering 'how to play' that video games encourage. Plenty of YT vids of Sonic games in action.

If all else fails, hold right on the dpad/analog stick.


Some people in this thread

LWVl8.gif


It's just a fast paced platforming game , guys, it's not friggin rocket science.
 
Yes they are. Colors has significantly better platforming than the both of them and you can't just boost the entire stage like you can in those two. I think they're shit and I feel like they're boost to win. Only good modern stage in Generations is Sky Sanctuary.

Colors platforming was terrible because your momentum was constantly stopped by wisps and having to unlock them in order to use them, and the wisp gameplay itself was haphazardly painful, not to mention the majority was in 2D with 0 platforming in 3D.

Unleashed and Generations stages had some challenging 3D stage that had some crazy tricks if you were willing to take a chance.

Outside possibly the first stage of both games, the stages had A LOT of platforming that people seem to love to overlook in favor of pushing some concept that those games were just "boost" to win, while Unleashed focused on timing, drift, and speed control, Generations focused on exploration.

Both of these games rewarded players for speed and platforming.

Great examples would be Cool Edge, Dragon Road, Jungle Joyride, Arid Sands, Chemical Plant, Speedy Highway, Splash Hill, City Escape, Crisis City, Sky Sanctuary, etc. All of these stages present a LOT of 3D and 2D platforming, however they do not halt or get in the way of the forward based game design.

Also, Platforming isn't just "jumping on platforms".
 

RRockman

Banned
Yes they are. Colors has significantly better platforming than the both of them and you can't just boost the entire stage like you can in those two. I think they're shit and I feel like they're boost to win. The only good modern stage in Generations is Sky Sanctuary.


Are you serious about that boost to win thing? That would get you boatmurdered in (Generations)Planet Wisp. One of my favorite things to do actually was to just hold boost in that stage and see how far I could get without over shooting where I needed to go. I normally died a 1/4th of the way in.
 
Yep, much worse gameplay and design than Mario games. But...gotta go fast!

Doesn't apply here.

2D Sonic>>>>>>>>>>>>2D Mario.

OP it's pretty simple, like any platformer go from A to B, collect all 7 chaos emeralds for the true final boss/ending. You don't need a guide for this, just experience the game and get better with trial and error.
 

Elephant

Neo Member
This thread hurts me as a Sega kid. My inner child is furious. Although 30 year old me is like, "Well it makes sense after 20 years of bullshit, why these kids hate on him".

Try to understand the hype comes mainly from those Mega Drive/Genesis veterans who have been waiting far too long to have THEIR Sonic back.Not the broken unfinished 3D mess he's known for today.

It' not the Sonic you know, but the Sonic we lost. And it's bloody great to have him back in his former glory.
 

Puruzi

Banned
Colors platforming was terrible because your momentum was constantly stopped by wisps and having to unlock them in order to use them, and the wisp gameplay itself was haphazardly painful, not to mention the majority was in 2D with 0 platforming in 3D.

Unleashed and Generations stages had some challenging 3D stage that had some crazy tricks if you were willing to take a chance.

Outside possibly the first stage of both games, the stages had A LOT of platforming that people seem to love to overlook in favor of pushing some concept that those games were just "boost" to win, while Unleashed focused on timing, drift, and speed control, Generations focused on exploration.

Both of these games rewarded players for speed and platforming.

Great examples would be Cool Edge, Dragon Road, Jungle Joyride, Arid Sands, Chemical Plant, Speedy Highway, Splash Hill, City Escape, Crisis City, Sky Sanctuary, etc. All of these stages present a LOT of 3D and 2D platforming, however they do not halt or get in the way of the forward based game design.

Also, Platforming isn't just "jumping on platforms".

There's actually significantly more platforming in 3D in Colors than there are in the others even though Colors has way more 2D than both of them. Generations outside of Sky Sanctuary DID NOT focus on exploration, no idea how you could even say that. Enemies in those games are also NEVER a threat because you can kill them by boosting and you gain boost constantly. They reward players for speed by making everything piss easy.
 

Greenzxy

Junior Member
With the Genesis games you don't force yourself to go fast. You learn overtime with little nuiances, like double tapping the spin dash to gain more boost, jumping in between loops to gain speed, remebering to duck in between speeding to prevent hurting yourself from enemies, jumping instead of walking to gain acceleration. Etc.
 

JusDoIt

Member
Jump on robots.

Jump on TVs.

Jump on springs.

Don't jump on spikes.

Run through rings.

Run through loop-di-loops.

Run through the spiral bridges.

Keep running until you make a sign spin.
 
There's actually significantly more platforming in 3D in Colors than there are in the others even though Colors has way more 2D than both of them. Generations outside of Sky Sanctuary DID NOT focus on exploration, no idea how you could even say that. Enemies in those games are also NEVER a threat because you can kill them by boosting and you gain boost constantly. They reward players for speed by making everything piss easy.

Because all of the stages in Generations were huge and alternate paths sometimes required risk taking, like jumping off the pipe in the beginning of Chem Plant Zone, or the Helicopter in the beginning of Speedy Highway. Not to mention Unleashed's ranking system actually demanded you to be good. As in a death will result in you missing out on that S. Also that entire list of stages I mentioned dud demand exploration. Hell even in Green Hill Modern you can stomp out the bridge and take a secret route.

Color's platforming was slow and in the way af. That shit was not good.
 

Kwixotik

Member
Thank you, OP, for clearly articulating the reason I never liked Sonic as a kid, and probably part of why I am such a big fan of the SNES to this day.
 

mrklaw

MrArseFace
-Indeed-

Sonic games aren't games filled with levels like Mario, there are a set selection of stages with unique gimmicks. The games are more towards Mastery and forward based exploration, than backtracking. You rediscover through replays of the game not find everything in a single playthrough, such as faster routes, bonus/special stages, chaos emeralds.

The best way to realize this is to SKIP Sonic 1 and go straight to Sonic 2, then Sonic 3&K because those games are the refined and mastered visions of what a Sonic game should be, as Sonic 1 set the foundation, but design goes against the concept the most.

It's not even confusing.

Except I suppose most people posting confusion haven’t played the previous games. Maybe they were SNES kids or whatever. If you aren’t familiar with the games, then everything you see in videos is sonic running you have no other context to help paint a picture.
 

Puruzi

Banned
Because all of the stages in Generations were huge and alternate paths sometimes required risk taking, like jumping off the pipe in the beginning of Chem Plant Zone, or the Helicopter in the beginning of Speedy Highway. Not to mention Unleashed's ranking system actually demanded you to be good. As in a death will result in you missing out on that S. Also that entire list of stages I mentioned dud demand exploration. Hell even in Green Hill Modern you can stomp out the bridge and take a secret route.

Color's platforming was slow and in the way af. That shit was not good.

It was good, and it was better than the other 2 modern games. I don't really care if you disagree and you aren't going to agree with me so it's whatever. Also using Green Hill Modern as an example of anything good is fucking hilarious as you can beat that stage without touching the control stick even once. You can get an S rank on that stage playing it that way too.
 
Some gaffers are painting Sonic like Dark Souls of platformers LMAO

Mario Odyssey is coming guys, just chill out and enjoy Mania meanwhile
 
Except I suppose most people posting confusion haven’t played the previous games. Maybe they were SNES kids or whatever. If you aren’t familiar with the games, then everything you see in videos is sonic running you have no other context to help paint a picture.

I definitely got that vibe. And even still it's kinda weird considering the most possibly confusing 2D games are 1 and CD. Other than that it's pretty simple.

It was good, and it was better than the other 2 modern games. I don't really care if you disagree and you aren't going to agree with me so it's whatever. Also using Green Hill Modern as an example of anything good is fucking hilarious as you can beat that stage without touching the control stick even once. You can get an S rank on that stage playing it that way too.

You asked how was there exploration. I told you, and you're here on some "There's no point in having this conversation -ish."

shrug bruh.

Also, you can hold right to win in any Green Hill stage, but they all still have assets of exploration.
 

Toxi

Banned
I wonder if anyone's ever made a thread asking if you should collect all the coins in a Mario level
I was playing Galaxy a few days ago and raging over Luigi's Purple Coins until I realized there are way more than 100 in the level and I didn't have to collect all of them.

...And then I played the purple coin challenge for Dreadnought Galaxy and raged when I got 99 coins because it turns out there are only 100 coins in that level and I did have to collect all of them.

Man, fuck those purple coins.
 

Lindsay

Dot Hacked
Play 'em pretty much like any other game? Get through level in order ta move on to the next in order ta beat the game. We're talking about "old" Sonic here so frustration and fun will tag each other in and out at points. Unless Mania took a look at the old games an decided to say "no these crappy mean traps aren't cool" an decided ta not replicate them in this homage game.
 
My favorite thing to do in the old Sonic games was to be Tails and just do all the grunt work for Sonic.

Not sure if that's possible in Mania.
 
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