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Sonic Boom 3DS demo now up on EU eShop

Peff

Member
In case anybody else is feeling adventurous tonight, it's 944 blocks. Can't be worse than Dimps, can it?
 

Malyse

Member
A little shocked they are doing this, but then again most sonic games have at least one good level.
 

Peff

Member
Welp, this game is... weird. Super long levels, super slow, tons of collectables (Crash Bandicoot crystals, heh), the four playable characters slow the game even further... controls are a bit awkward and not nearly as smooth as the Japanese games, but if the level design gets elaborate enough, this could be a fun little exploration platformer. If you're looking for a Sonic game, though... well, I hope you liked Sandopolis.
 

trixx

Member
this is very different from your traditional sonic game. Seems like a pretty cool platformer though

^levels are quite long. Seems exploration heavy, so may go through levels more than once as there are multiple pathways(?)

There's lots of collectables as well. Agree with Peff with the crash reference as when you complete levels there are some objectives to complete as well. Like 5 shattered shards, 150 rings etc..

This is off the first level btw
 

Santiako

Member
Ok, demo played. What a strange game. It's slow, boring, the level is way too long, it doesn't control very well, it has pointless touch screen interaction. It looks nice enough. It doesn't feel like a Sonic game at all.
 

Camjo-Z

Member
Some positively glowing impressions so far. Going to have to grab this over the weekend so my continued whining over the game can be justified!
 
The first level in the demo is really long but plays okay aside from inexplicably using every face button, which just seems overcomplicated for a Sonic game. It's super slow, too.
 

gerudoman

Member
I appreciate complex level design with well hidden items and sections, but this game takes it too far, to the point where you don't know if you're taking an alternative route or simply progressing through the level.

Other than that, the game doesn't look or play specially well, it's generic and clunky. Oh, and 20 minutes levels in a handheld 2D platformer? Just no.
 

Sophia

Member
This... is not a Sonic game.

It's not bad by any means. I played through what appears to be the whole demo. But it's more like Crash Bandicoot or Sly Cooper than Sonic. It's insanely slow too; about the same speed as the original Sonic on the Genesis. Maybe even slower at times?

I don't really know what to think about this, honestly.
 

Spinluck

Member
Platform explorer, with a Sonic skin. I expected it to be far worse, but I actually got a bit of enjoyment out of the exploration.

- Game is slow as hell (don't really care about this)

- Controls are awkward and all over the place. (Can controls be remapped? Feels like spring button should be one of the shoulder buttons).

- There's a sprint button. I think every Sanic game needs with this or a boost button. The more control over Sanic the better.

- Music sucked.

- Enemies look generic and boring as hell. Taking them down yields little satisfaction.

- No momentum, you can stop on a dime. However, there's a little something there when you sprint (momentum carries into jump).

- Level exploration mechanics seem a bit repetitive, kind of fun at first, but I would hope they switch things up later.

- Didn't care to use anyone else but Sonic, the other characters seem kind of cool though.

- The demo showcases 3 types of stages? Boost stage, racing stage, and exploration platforming?

Decent, but not day one material for me, not even close. Seems like a 6/10 or a 7/10 at best. Not absolute trash though. I think it will be better than the Wii U version though lol. They don't seem to be releasing a demo of that.
 

MrBadger

Member
I liked the soundtrack. It wasn't amazing but it was pleasant and kind of nostalgic. It reminded me of 3D Blast on the Saturn.
When a game makes me want to play 3D Blast instead, we have a problem.

Other than that, it was crap. Level design was just as annoying as it looked in videos. Why even have 4 playable characters if you're going to have big blue "Sonic only" blocks everywhere? It also really didn't feel like Sonic. I'll be giving this a miss, but I'll pay attention to when the music's uploaded somewhere.
 
This demo is an odd one. Nothing is bad about it, but it feels like a 2D Ratchet and Clank game. It feels like they just added in the Sonic characters. Gameplay is not bad though. Just not Sonic...
Edit: Why do they have Sonic 2 special stage as a level?
 
It wasn't bad at all. Surprised that there's not that many impressions here.

It definitely doesn't feel like your regular Sonic game, though.
 

PKGaming

Banned
I just...I just don't know. The demo was incredibly boring to me. If this is supposed to be an exploration platformer, there are plenty of other games that do it better. It's slow, the controls feel clunky, none of the characters feel like they should, and I think the biggest problem is that there are very little enemies. It makes the levels feel very barren and lifeless. There's a better balance of enemies in Super Metroid, a game where you're SUPPOSED to feel like you're stuck on a lonely planet...
So far, I think I'm gonna skip on Sonic Boom. I was disappointed in Sonic Lost World, but I feel like I had more fun with Lost World than this.
 

Lijik

Member
Long legged sonic looks so doofy running on the loading screen
The main stage kind of reminded me of the 2d levels in Lost World on 3DS. I have mostly the same complaints about it too; controls feel slighty off, and the levels are way too long and uneventful. I didnt really understand what the purpose of knuckles was since I wound up never using him, maybe i missed a path hes needed for. The extra characters in general feel tacked on. Its 90% Sonic and ocassionally youll switch to get past some bland obstacle only Tails or Sticks can do. Maybe its more cohesive in the final game.
I also didnt really like the worm tunnel level, felt like it was missing an extra mechanic to keep things interesting. The racing stage was pretty alright though

I thought the music was pretty good
 
The extra characters in general feel tacked on. Its 90% Sonic and ocassionally youll switch to get past some bland obstacle only Tails or Sticks can do. Maybe its more cohesive in the final game.
Yeah, Gameplay felt good but I did not expect Sanzaru to make a game that played bad. It is disappointing that it is not like Thieves in Time where each character felt unique. It was pretty much Sonic and you switched to other characters to get past obsticles. Worm Tunnel is a great first level though. I am sad they brought back races from Sonic Generations 3DS.

That being said, this is probably a 6/10 and Wii U version will be 4/10.
 

RK128

Member
I don't own a 3DS (so I can't try the demo :(), but it is disappointing to hear negative reactions of this....expected Sanzaru's game to be the stronger compared to BRB's game :(.

Guess it was just simply the fact they cant design Sonic levels :l? I mean, they know how to make great platformers (if Thieves in Time proved anything :D), but they never made a Sonic game before.....so the levels playing less like Sonic and more in the vain of a Sony platformer, makes a lot of sense.

Granted, this is only a demo (so the full game has a shot at being great :D), so I hope that peoples views of this change :).

The game clearly is a homage to the Genesis Sonics (playable Tails and Knuckles, the game is in 2D, focus on exploration (even if the mix of speed is somewhat missing here :(), and even some speedy sections via rival races and tube levels), so they do have respect for the Sonic IP and it is clear that this was built as a 'Sonic' game, not a Jak or Ratchet game with a Sonic Skin (*cough* Rise of Lyric *cough*).
 

TheOGB

Banned
It's the wack handheld version of a new Crash game I've been missing for 5 years

No but seriously, it's really boring. All three levels are basic and bland. Stuff appears to happen and it all basically amounts to nothing. Exploring and grabbing the collectibles doesn't feel rewarding, it's just more stuff to do in a game I don't want to keep playing. It's not actively terrible or anything, but it's definitely not engaging enough to hold my interest.
 
The exploration level is too long and each character felt unequal. Use Tails for this obstacle, use Sonic for this obstacle, Knuckles is the only one to get through this obstacle, etc.
Pretty much turned out just as I expected. A meh demo with meh gameplay.
Also, why does Sonic have to make a grunt sound every time he sprints.
 
Guess it was just simply the fact they cant design Sonic levels :l? I mean, they know how to make great platformers (if Thieves in Time proved anything :D), but they never made a Sonic game before.....so the levels playing less like Sonic and more in the vain of a Sony platformer, makes a lot of sense.
My guess is taking a developer who specializes in 3D platformers to make a 2D game is the main issue. The one 3D stage in the demo was fun.
That being said, a poor man's Ratchet and Clank > a poor man's Jak. I will wait for reviews honestly. I can see myself getting it for 50% off during the Best Buy sale.
 

Hale-XF11

Member
I can't get past how lethargic the characters feel. It doesn't feel like a Sonic game, just a generic platformer using the Sonic name.
 

trixx

Member
Yeah, Gameplay felt good but I did not expect Sanzaru to make a game that played bad. It is disappointing that it is not like Thieves in Time where each character felt unique. It was pretty much Sonic and you switched to other characters to get past obsticles. Worm Tunnel is a great first level though. I am sad they brought back races from Sonic Generations 3DS.

That being said, this is probably a 6/10 and Wii U version will be 4/10.

Nah i actually think the wii u game will be better than lost world lol

So long as you don't expect a sonic game
 

Hale-XF11

Member
Just got done playing all 3 available levels. What a total dumbed down bore fest. That rail boss with the context sensitive shit is so fucking played out. Bleh.

Give me a Lost World or Adventures sequel, stat!
 

rjc571

Banned
After playing the demo, all I could say was

6cDDeB8.gif
 
Clumsy controls, slow awkward pacing and dodgy collision detection. Also had four completely automatic running sections in the space of five minutes. I never thought I'd miss Dimps.
 

Foffy

Banned
That demo sucked pretty hard. I was also surprised that the game looked rather bad. There's no shading on anything? It even looks unfinished.
 

Ataru

Unconfirmed Member
I can't get past how lethargic the characters feel. It doesn't feel like a Sonic game, just a generic platformer using the Sonic name.

I kinda have to wonder what Sega was thinking when they decided to make a SLOW Sonic game.
 

HUELEN10

Member
3 gripes from the demo.

1. No D-Pad option.

2. Awkward forced touchscreen use to traverse the level.

3. Sonic's eyes aren't green in-game, they are actually fairly gray; he looks like shit without the right eyes.

That being said, i wasn't hyped to begin with about the 3DS game, but after playing this demo, I'm sold (with the Target sale).
 

BocoDragon

or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Realize This Assgrab is Delicious
I kinda have to wonder what Sega was thinking when they decided to make a SLOW Sonic game.

They listened to all those armchair Sonic experts who were pleading "Sonic is not all about speed okay!!!"
 

Gunstar Ikari

Unconfirmed Member
Painfully bland level design, nearly-pointless character mechanics, auto-running stages, forgettable music, lifeless everything.

At least the offensively bad Sonic games are amusing. This demo is thoroughly dull.
 
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