Sonic's legions of loyal fans will no doubt state otherwise, but the Blue Blur's 3D career has been a somewhat bumpy one. Sure, he's starred in some enjoyable three-dimensional romps, but there are just as many - if not more - terrible 3D Sonic games, leading many to suggest that the character is better suited to dashing through a 2D world.
A 2.5D solution - which has been employed in the past to decent effect - is a much better choice in our eyes, and the following video demo from pipocaVFX is an illustration of where the series could go from this point onwards.
As you can see, the action remains 2D, but the visuals are 3D - and via some clever camera movements, give the whole experience a solid feeling of depth.
Like we said, Sega and Sonic Team have experimented with 2.5D visuals before, but usually on handheld systems or download releases. We'd like to see this approach rolled out to next big-screen domestic outing - something that could tempt back old fans rather than create a whole generation of players who think Sonic sucks.
What about you? Sound off in the comments section below.
[source kotaku.com]
Comments 75
No just no those camera angles and the shifting camera itself are just annoying as hell.
I don't know. I have been pretty happy with Sonic's latest offerings. Especially Sonic Lost World, so I'm not really feeling like I'm missing out on this potential game. But then again, I usually enjoy everything related to Sonic for the most part besides the spinoffs.
No....
I am not interested in 2D Sonic. (I preferred the 3D Levels in Generations).
Its annoying they moved on from it so quickly when I think they had the formula great but I did enjoy Lost World.
looks nice but I'll stick to sonic generations, thank you.
Why are there no adorable little critters escaping when the Badniks are destroyed?
Hm. I liked it. Kinda interesting but we've already got that in the form of classic sonic generations.
So just a regular 2D game but with a camera just on the loose? No thanks
No thanks. Sonic fan games don't interest me in the slightest.
There was Sonic World at one point, but I stopped playing it when it's creator made it clear that he was a jackass.
yuck
Loving the OOT explosions and soundtrack. Good work by the creator
Pretty much every Sonic game since Sonic Unleashed has incorporated 2.5D elements, actually. Generally about 50% of the game.
Horrible!
Don't like it. It makes the sprites look like Mr. Game & Watch in Smash Bros compared to the 3D background.
that camera is horrible - sonic generations is excellent if they stick with that formula no-one (or very few) will complain.
A 2.5D game using sprites? No thanks, I'll stick to Generations and Lost World.
What even looks good about that? 3D Sonic games are much more fun than the 2D or 2, 5D games in my opinion.
In my opinion they should have two main series for Sonic, completely 2D and completely 3D games. 2.5D should not be attempted because it always looks bad or cheaply made. Think Sonic 4.
I'm a fan of the original series - and by now, am entirely convinced Sega have no idea what they're doing. It's not hard to work out, if they want Sonic to do well, give the fans a true 2D Sonic 4 and Sonic Adventure 3.
Yes people dont realise i think that EASILY the best Sonic game in 3D is Sonic Colors for the Wii can be had for cheap and is one of the best looking Wii games that it ever put out.
It's not that Sonic can't work in 3D, it's that it hasn't--at least much of the time, and was has worked has still fallen short of Sonic's potential.
This guy explains it very well: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-AK3n-srj5E
Give me that on 3DS. Though Sega would still find a way of ballsing it up with wonky physics.
How about SEGA make a Sonic based on rewarding players for blitzing through the level perfectly after mastering the ins and outs of the game mechanics and the levels themselves like they did with the first Sonic game.
This video misses the mark on a lot of things, I mean it simply cannot compare to the famous 3D Mushroom Hill Zone video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZxXycBv3Rlk
If the camera stop shifting around then I would be interestee
It's not the 3D Sonic game I want although I get where you are coming from.
For me, Nintendo (ironically enough) has actually got closest to realising Sonic in 3D, at least the look, in it's Smash Bros game: http://img1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20080218123628/ssb/images/b/bf/Green_Hill_Zone.jpg although still not quite perfect.
Just make it look (and play) basically exactly like the classic original http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/c1/SonicTheHedgehog1.png and http://www.digital-polyphony.com/green-hill.jpg but with 3D polygons and it would probably be the best Sonic game yet imo. So yeah. Nintendo's probably got the closest to that in terms of creating the closest 3D representation of the original 2D Sonic look and style of the levels at least.
I mean, in all fairness, Sega's 3D Classics range is about the closest we've got to the perfect modern Sonic game because it literally is the original, with a couple of worthwhile tweaks, and it also has proper 3D parallax depth. Not quite proper 3D, as in everything is made of actual polygons, but it looks better than basically all the actual 3D attempts anyway imo; especially with the original Sonic character design.
Though I do kind of like it, it seemed kinda cheap looking, with Sonic not matching the environment. Hate to sound like a broken record but, Generations and Lost World are the best most recent Sonic offerings. Wish they'd port generations to Wii U. Maybe Sega made Sonic Boom only to drive us all back into the arms of Sonic Team lol.
No. Far from the 3D Sonic games I've always wanted...
Sonic is hailed as some great classic series. I don't know what game you played but the one I played seemed to focus on having you go fast, but then threw poopitypoopin your way to slow you down and require precision. It wasn't a well designed game and was made for no other reason then to cash in on the Mario craze.
@Quinnsdaddy11
Try watching this video and you will understand what I mean
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2HEO9h8_Eg
@CreativeWelshman It's amazing just how good this game still looks
I mean just skip through the various levels in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-yg7cQp3LWI It's just gorgeous. It's amazing no one seems to be able to replicate it basically exactly but just in 3D (2D gameplay, 3D graphics)
Edit: I also just discovered today that the Jap version of the game has even more layers of parallax that the US version; in the sky on many of the levels for example: https://youtu.be/DK95bbwZXbg?t=501
Also; check out how much better the green water at 37:22 in the Japanese version looks compared to the US equivalent (everything under the water actually sways around): https://youtu.be/DK95bbwZXbg?t=2242 God knows why they removed most of that stuff from the American release as it made it looks even more techincally impressive
I think the next Sonic game should be a strictly 2D platformer for consoles with light inspiration from the Classic titles. Just a new 2D Sonic game that has new things like the Sonic Advance and Sonic Rush series, but I don't want it to be obviously inspired by the old Sonic games. Sega seems to have the most success with the 2D Sonic games.
@CreativeWelshman right. Wont hate on the work, still amazing they did that, but it's certainly not the sonic game we want OR need.
Sonic should stay 2D, all the 3D games have been god awful, style over substance. I remember wanting to play the Sonic Adventure games so much as a kid. When I got a Gamecube, one of the first games i rented was Sonic Adventure 2. I hated it so much, even as a kid. It controlled like absolute crap, and don't get me started on the other characters stages. I had never been so let down with a game ever! Especially coming from the N64 with such classics like Banjo, Mario 64, etc. Games with actual depth, decent controls & substance. 3D Sonic should be thrown off a cliff and never spoken of again.
Ah excuse that, been wanting to get that off my chest for a long time!
What gives with the lack of e shop releases for the week ahead guys?
Or Sega could just give Sonic to Nintendo, who would probably find a successful 3D formula for Sonic in about 10 minutes and treat him way better than Sega has since the early 2000s.
@Quinnsdaddy11 You could say that about ANY video game, that its some type of "cash in". Aren't they ALL, in some way, shape, or form? The original Sonic games were a great change up from "the Mario craze" because it looked and felt completely different. The early Sonic games highly encourage/taunt the player to run and complete stages fast, and yet, if you want to find hidden items and special zones you have to slow down and explore. The simplicity of the concept was somewhat genius, for the time. Its not for everyone, obviously.
Feels kinda bland at best, I still think the one for Sonic Generation is way better.
The camera actually made me feel a little queasy.
I don't like the camera angle in this. Meh
You lot should check out their Pokemon origin video, it's very funny.
@Ichiban It's not that it isn't possible to make a 2.5D Sonic game that is as great as the original. It's just that everyone is failing to do so I mean some of the 2.5D Sega games have come pretty close but they always just add in that one little gimmick or superfluous element that ruins the overall experience ever so slightly.
Personally; I know the best ever Sonic game could in fact use fully 3D graphics but locked in a 2D perspective during the normal level gameplay, with maybe the bonus sections going a bit more 3D (although still technically 2D in terms of the control plane) and obviously the little cutscene segments at the end of levels etc could use full 3D too (although I'd still use in-engine graphics for this), but people would only believe me if it existed in the first place to see what I mean lol
I love this! Reminds me of when the Sega Saturn was filled with great 2.5D games like Clockwork Knight and such and with some polish I think Sonic would fit in very well in a 2.5D world. I'd buy it
@Byron-3D Well Damien is a big time Sega fan and seeing as this site originally covered all that old school stuff anyway, or one of the original sites that combined to make Nintendo Life as I recall, I think we can give him some leeway
You know one team that I think could genuinely do a Sonic game justice in proper 2.5D...
HAL.
I mean their work on say Kirby: Triple Deluxe* is just stunning and I imagine they'd be able to near perfectly capture the look and feel of Sonic in full 2.5D; if their work with putting classic Kirby into 2.5D is anything to go by.
*https://youtu.be/sX_bnIskGR4?list=FLPRNNGLAaYqhvf_xmif5RiQ&t=243
I loved the direction of Sonic Lost World on WiiU, and Sonic Generations on other consoles. This would be a mistake to go in this direction.
The sound effects and music are awful!!!
The thing about Sonic games is they should position sonic towards the far left side of the screen to allow you more reaction time. That was always my biggest complaint.
Sonic shouldn't revert to what it was, it should keep what made it good, change what makes it bad and try something fresh...also get rid of the Super Saiyan rip offs
I like the sonic adventure gameplay, It is sonic's true 3D gameplay
@Kirk You should check out Sonic Mega Collection on the Gamecube, you can use a code to play the JP2 revision of Sonic, or the US version, plus the PAL version has a 60hz mode!
This video looks nice, but not 'better' than the original. Sonic 4 episode 2 showed a great improvement over the first, I dont know why SEGA forgot about episode 3, I guess sales...
"Like we said, Sega and Sonic Team have experimented with 2.5D visuals before, but usually on handheld systems or download releases. "
Did you look at recent main entries? Unleashed in 2008 had the first major use of 2.5D game play, continued on in Sonic Colors (2010), Sonic Generations (2011), and Sonic Lost World (2013). Unleashed and Generations in particular incorporated a 2.5D effect combined with high speeds for a very exhilarating experience, no offense to the tech demo creator but it's just way too over the place (but is a nice concept).
"Sonic's legions of loyal fans will no doubt state otherwise, but the Blue Blur's 3D career has been a somewhat bumpy one."
You're much more likely to hear them tell you there are tons of awful games, let alone how stale an intro this is for any Sonic-related article. This article just seems under-studied and is possibly borderline click bat. Meh.
Sonic is done. Sonic Boom was his parachute not diploying. All we have now are 3DS remakes and fond memories.
I disagree that Sonic doesn't work as well in 3D, I actually think he works better in 3D because in 2D you can't see as far ahead in the level and react in time, detracting from the speed element. The Unleashed/Generations formula worked pretty well, the problem is that SEGA experiments with their gameplay far too much, we haven't had a single gameplay style show up for more than 2 or 3 games. Put Sonic in the hands of someone competent and I guarantee you that he'll see more success.
Anyway, the camera in this game is really disorienting, which is even less conducive to speed.
This makes the Sonic the Hedgehog 4 game look like a masterpiece.
It may be the 3D Sonic you want, but it definitely isn't the 3D Sonic I'd want.
Nice for an intro or TV ad but not for a game. I stick with Sonic 4 and Generations. If Sega would do this, it would probably be the final nail in the coffin.
Uhhh...I already have this. It's Sonic Generations 3DS and it looks (and sounds) a lot better than this, too.
I like pretty much all the sonic games. Except sonic and the secret rings, sonic boom: rise of lyric, and sonic the hedgehog (2006).
@Ristar42 If only I had a GameCube
I like the detritus effects for killing enemies and the bridges.
One should not rest in the past, or one will miss the future. Sonic 2D was fun at it's time, but now, 3D is given and most of the 3D Sonic Games are good. Therefore, I don't need this or a game like this.
That doesn't even look fun to play.... It looks kind of ugly.
@Byron-3D Have you not noticed that Sonic only really appears on Nintendo systems these days?
@BLPs So what you're saying is I should pretend all those terrible Sonic games didn't happen and give it a positive spin?
That camera would really annoy me if this were an actual game.
Even though sega not yet doing wii u vc(which I don't understand) here's hoping they port all the gba and DS sonics to wii u if we can't have the Genesis originals. Cmon sega!!
Nah I saw the HD thing. Nope the problem with 3d Sonic is that it would be too cartoony to do and would not be what you would expected at all.
Nice video.
@XyVoX Sonic Generations never came out for Wii. Are you referring rather to Sonic Colors?
It looks nice, but from the looks of it the gameplay would feel loose and slow. Maybe WayForward should work on a pixelart/handdrawn version of a new Sonic game, or Sega should let the poor guy rest for a few years and release something else cool.
Oh, and maybe 'finish' a game for once.
So sick of 2D platformers.. So sick of crappy sonic games... Make Sonic Adventure 3, make it not suck, if you're going to include treasure hunting levels or other characters make it actually enjoyable. Honestly, to this day I find Sonic Adventure 2's Sonic and Shadow levels to be pretty enjoyable. But they still had that focus on speed and precision, sort of like the classics. But I won't go back to Sonic if they do another 2D platformer, the market is saturated with 2D platformers. Plus Sonic 4 sucked really bad.
Pretty much Sega has proven that they can't do anything successful with Sonic. Best sonic game in years is Super Smash Bros for Wii U.
I'm all for it. 2D Sonic and 2D Metroid then I'll be a happy camper.
I'd have some interest in the 3d classics range if they did them this way.
"This is the Sonic game we all truly want"
Riiight... it looks ugly. I'll stick with Sonic Colors.
I don't like the camera.
@TheSonicdude97 My bad always get those 2 confused yes i meant Sonic Colors its an incredible Sonic game.
@XyVoX It's okay. Also I agree that it's a really good game.
Show Comments
Leave A Comment
Hold on there, you need to login to post a comment...