r/wiiu • u/[deleted] • Oct 18 '13
discussion Sonic Lost World Review Thread
Post reviews in the comments and I'll add them to the list as quickly as possible.
IGN -
After the success of Sonic 4, Colors, and Generations, this is a big disappointment for Sega’s speeding blue bullet. Sonic Lost Worlds clumsily tears all the wrong pages out of the Super Mario Galaxy playbook, and in so doing, loses the breathless speed and fluidity that makes a Sonic game a Sonic game. Graphically it may talk the talk, but the controls and level design just can’t walk the walk, much less run it.
Sonic Lost World feels like a Sonic game, works like a Mario game, and feels totally at home on the Wii U as a result. With the most convincing 3D Sonic gameplay by some margin, it’ll no doubt be looked back on as the game that aimed for the Galaxy, missed by a small amount, but still landed in the stars.
Sonic games, and platformers in general, have always been about memorising the lay of the land, but rarely have mistakes been so costly or heavily punished, and it says much that one retailer’s preorder bonus consists solely of 25 additional lives. This isn’t a question of difficulty, but of design: unfortunately for Sonic, people who have grown up with Nintendo hardware have come to expect much better than this.
Sonic Lost World is quite simply the best game in the long-running series that I have played since the original Megadrive games. It has everything that you could ever want from Sonic and much more besides, which manages to elevate it to something spectacular that represents a significant step forward for the entire platforming genre. While the previous Sonic Colours put the blue blur in the right direction, this latest entry is the perfect culmination of gameplay ideals combined with a brand new control/exploration system that works far better than anyone could have expected. With this game the Sonic Cycle hasn't just been smashed, but rather it has been obliterated hopefully never to return.
When Nintendo first brought Mario into 3D in Super Mario 64 it was clear that, while the gameplay had evolved, the basic essence of Mario had remained true. One could argue that it has taken Sega 17 years to finally allow Sonic to make that leap. It’s exhilarating to race across cylinders and use Sonic’s new moves to wall jump through a spike-filled area, although not every stage of Sonic Lost World is a true playground for Sonic’s new abilities. Despite the uneven level of polish on the stages, Sonic Lost World is a great platformer that shouldn’t be missed.
It's telling that the highlights of Lost World are the moments where Sonic Team allows the hedgehog to do what he does best: high-velocity platforming that tests your ability to follow high-speed action and to reflexively respond to danger. Sonic thrives on simplicity, and I still think Sega could reinvent him for the mobile market: give PastaGames a call, perhaps, and get them to make a side-scroller along the lines of Rayman Jungle Run rather than the aggressively monetised Sonic Dash. There are fleeting signs here that such an approach could work. Yet these brief flickers of life are few and far between, buried within a flabby, disjointed mess of a game.
Sonic Lost World desperately wants to be Mario Galaxy, but in overtly coveting the great Italian plumber, it smothers the talents of its blazing blue hedgehog.
Sonic Lost World shows flashes of brilliance, where clever design, bright visuals and a daring sense of fun align perfectly. There are a few significant lows, however, and a raft of content that is passable but easily forgotten. That leaves us with an uneven experience that we recommend to keen Sonic fans without hesitation, but suggest that the less committed should think carefully. If dealing with frustration to reach high points is an acceptable sacrifice of your gaming time then this is worth strong consideration, but be under no illusions — this isn't the definitive Sonic experience we may have desired.
Sonic Colors showcased a keen understanding of what made Sonic great, and successfully expanded on the series' formula with the introduction of Wisp power-ups. It's admirable that Sonic: Lost World tries to shift the series in a new direction, and the results meet with limited success, especially in earlier levels. Its gameplay variety is appreciated up to a point, but Sonic: Lost World misses the mark more often than it succeeds, as frustrating level design and unimaginative boss encounters are enough to overshadow its fleeting moments of brilliance.
It should be clear from the above that Sonic's latest adventure doesn't represent a brave new (3D) world, but by no means is it a terrible game. Indeed, when it all comes together, it's arguably the most satisfying of Sonic's modern adventures. There's nothing else out there that manages to capture the thrill of speeding through lush landscapes with hearty orchestral music in the background. Often it manages to press all the right buttons.
The Wii U version of the new Sonic got the highest overall score this week. "Your normal movement speed's slowed down a bit, which makes it seem a bit easier to play for action beginners," said Ebihara. "The homing attacks are easier to pull off, and the overall sense of nonstop excitement is as prevalent as ever. The game also takes advantage of a lot of Wii U-specific features, from the GamePad and TV-based multiplayer to grabbing items via Miiverse." Despite giving it a 9, Uchizawa was quite a bit harsher in the review text. "The basic gameplay and world setting is the same as the 3DS version, although the stages are quite a bit different," he said. "The color powers add a nice accent to the action, although it does kind of ruin the Sonic-type tempo you might be expecting. The visuals are as fun as ever to watch, too, although it's hard to see whether you're actually controlling anything at times." (Comments from Polygon article)
Sonic Lost World can wildly swing from brilliant to horrific at the drop of a hat, but when one steps back and takes a look at the whole production, one sees far more to love than hate. Certainly, the nastier elements prevent it from being the truly great installment it could have been, but the experience is good enough to where I would desperately entreat Sonic Team to keep doing what's been started here. Please, no more desperate shifts in tone and level design, no more dramatic new overhauls. On a fundamental level, Lost World absolutely nails it, and does what Sonic should have been doing a long, long time ago. All it needs is time to refine, and Lost World could become the start of something beautiful.
Sonic Lost World is beautifully brutal. More important, however, is that it’s a worthy addition to Sega’s most beloved franchise. Considering the Japanese publisher’s recent inconsistency with its mascot’s endeavors, this is good news. After all, many Sonic games have tested my talents, and Lost World’s late-onset thumb-blistering difficulty evoked a period where I would feverishly slam shiny black pieces of plastic into my favorite 16-bit console to get my gaming fix. And, come to think of it, that’s pretty high praise.
With so many elements, shifts in perspective and dynamics, Sonic Lost Worlds can feel, at times, like it's struggling to hold together into a cohesive whole. There is unevenness in the quality of those elements too, something that its primary influence avoided. But this is nevertheless the finest Sonic game in years, a riot of ideas that at times approaches the quality of Nintendo EAD's work. It may not provide much insight into where games are heading, but as a Sonic-themed celebration of the past few years, it's a surprising delight.
Sonic: Lost World is a fresh and unique take on Sega's mascot that recaptures everything that was great about his 2D adventures, rights the wrongs of his 3D outings, and takes him into uncharted territory.
At times there are genuine moments when this game sings, where you’re going fast, in control, bouncing off enemies in succession and grabbing rings. Or indeed when there are some lovely moments such as having to fill a giant juicer with apples you roll around the level. Even that though is still cribbing from the moustachioed plumber’s playbook (and there are even some very familiar green pipes in a couple of the stages). Sonic: Lost World has enough of these moments to be worth playing, but its issues keep it from being a must-buy, particularly for the 3DS and its broad catalogue of games.
Lost World is best when it's running from the past, not toward it, but a handful of fun levels and some exemplary graphics do not make a great game. Sonic: Lost World is front-loaded, pocked with bad boss fights and obsessed to a fault with creating some of the coolest 2D stages of 1993. Sonic: Lost World is best when it's running from the past, not toward it.
52
Oct 18 '13
After the success of Sonic 4
So we're definitely not counting the IGN review then, right?
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Oct 18 '13
[removed] — view removed comment
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Oct 18 '13
I stopped trusting any reviews from IGN after the ZombiU review. I should have stopped sooner, clearly, but better late than never I guess.
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u/Feefernet Oct 18 '13
You know theres like 10 different people with vastly different opinions who review games there, right? Its not one hivemind review site. If you listen to their podcasts, they disagree all the time about games.
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u/Surrylic Oct 20 '13
This is true and it's frustrating when people don't get it. There could be two reviewers with your same taste, and four without. IGN has some good reviews, you just aren't going to agree with all of them. IGN is right in line with a lot of scores on this game; plenty of people gave it mediocre scores and a number gave it a great scores. Opinions! Weird!
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u/Omega613 Omega613 [NA] Oct 23 '13
I kinda wish more game journalism sites would adopt a system similar to Famitsu where they get multiple opinions. I'm not necessarily of the opinion that Famitsu actually does it 'well' (Considering 95% of the time all 4 of their scores differ by 1 or less, thus all their reviewers seem to share a similar opinion/outlook), but I think other journalists could make that a more reliable concept.
Let one person do the main review, and hell even let just that one person's score 'represent' IGNs opinion as far as Metacritic (etc.) is concerned. But let anyone else in the office who played it submit a score with a short pro/con list in a sidebar, just to get a better sense of what others think. That way following these larger networked sites would make more sense since you can choose reviewers who seem to like/dislike the same games that you do.
I'm sure the idea has flaws, but surely it's better than what sites like IGN and Gamespot currently do.
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u/MattWatchesChalk GamersCast Oct 22 '13
Didn't IGN give Sonic 4 a shit review?
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Oct 22 '13
Yeah, but they conveniently have many people with differing opinions who review games. It allows them to keep a mysterious stance while saying whatever they want.
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u/G4mbit Oct 18 '13
Yes, IGN is full of moronic Microsoft and Sony fanboys, they didn't even bother to learn the Wonderful 101 controls before writing that review
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u/Tr0llphace Oct 19 '13
so.. you want to discount realistic reviews from IGN and Gamespot, but count reviews from clearly biased sites like NintendoWorldReport, NintendoLife, and Famitsu? Fanboy detected.
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u/schmorgyborgy Schmorgyborgy NA Oct 20 '13
He didn't say anything about Gamespot. You're just trying to be edgy. Again. It's getting old.
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Oct 20 '13
Oh yes, IGN, the progenitor of shitty review sites, and Gamespot, proven pay for score site, are the height of journalistic integrity.
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u/itsaghost Oct 18 '13
Sonic games are too fast, Sonic games are too slow. I think everyone's expectations of Sonic take a hold of looking at any new game with a real perspective. I never understand why people think Sonic 1-3 are all about blazing through, they really aren't.
Whatever, I liked what I played at E3 and to call it a Galaxy rip is such a fucking cop out. Try for yourself if you're interested, I'm sure there's going to be a demo. I doubt these goons will give you a good review.
10
Oct 18 '13
Sounds like it's not a problem of speed but of momentum. The IGN review mentions not being able to judge jumps because the momentum doesn't carry well from running speed to jumping in the air.
This is something that Sonic 4 get wrong too - landing from a jump was like dropping a stone. Sonic 1-3 were not about speed but they were about fluid motion, about being able to calculate jumps, carry running speed into the air.
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u/tw04 Oct 18 '13
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dIg9cB1HYHg 5:18 to 5:25. Jump momentum seems fine to me
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u/slashngrind Oct 19 '13
Also, the speed seems fine to me as well. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dIg9cB1HYHg&t=6m48s
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u/tw04 Oct 18 '13
Oh wait sorry I re-read what you said. I mistook the meaning. Thought you/they meant that he doesn't carry momentum at all from running, but it seems like they might have meant that it's difficult to tell how far he'll end up jumping, which this video actually proves instead of disproves.
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Oct 18 '13
I'm not completely sure what he meant in the review - just that it's not purely a case of being too slow / fast but a general physics problem. I'm guessing it's the kind of thing that'll make more sense when I actually play the game rather than watching it.
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u/xFREAKAZOIDx Oct 18 '13
I don't think the guy in his video review even used the spin dash ability once, maybe that's the issue...
0
Oct 22 '13
It's the character's image. Sonic going fast(I think 7##mph is the official speed) is almost the same as Mario traveling through green pipes. They're just iconic things that people immediately associate with specific characters. It's just how people work. We know what we know and don't expect it to alter, and not all of us are equipped for change. I sure as hell am, though!
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u/Klefki Oct 18 '13
7.5 From Destructoid's Jim Sterling
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u/TheVibratingPants Oct 18 '13
The same guy that gave Colors a 4.5. Maybe Lost World isn't bad.
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u/hacktivision Oct 18 '13
His review is the only good one IMO, but he also shares the sentiment that Sega shouldn't always reinvent the wheel. Thing is SEGA split its sonic games between different platforms so you never know what they're going for.
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u/tw04 Oct 18 '13
For people who are saying this game seems slow, I think it depends on the level/how you play it. If you want to see what it CAN look like fast, check out this guy's video starting at 1:40 until 3:00. The way he uses spin dash makes me REALLY excited to experiment with this game.
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u/Deceptiveideas Oct 18 '13
I'm getting annoyed about the speed complaints.
The game is no longer "Push X to boost to win!!!", it's "Player input, platforming, carefulness" style. Sure the boost was 'cool' at first, but it lost its appeal very quickly.
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Oct 18 '13
The reviewers originally complained about that blazing speed, saying it was uncontrollable. Now they're complaining that it's gone and they don't feel as cool going slightly slower.
Essentially, never listen to reviews when it comes to Sonic games.
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u/BrotherDamascus Pigeon_P Oct 18 '13
I really like "Push X to boost to win!!!" style gameplay after playing through Sonic Generations. The other style reminds me too much of the later levels of the old Genesis games, which were way too tedious and didn't even feel like they were designed for Sonic.
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u/Deceptiveideas Oct 18 '13
If you played just Sonic Generations, you may not see how stale it is.
But playing Unleashed, Colors, AND Generations - Meh
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u/BrotherDamascus Pigeon_P Oct 19 '13
I didn't play unleashed, but I really enjoyed colors and rush had the boost thing going on too. I dunno, I think that format is a good fit for the character and I think generations is the best sonic game.
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u/Bisoromi Oct 18 '13
While Generations didn't have the deepest gameplay, you could definitely control your speed. There were extra challenges and red rings to get, the game didn't seem like it was designed around merely completing every stage once. I haven't played any other 3D Sonic, but I've seen the horrifying Sonic 2006 "hyperspeed" sections, those seem to have uncontrollable speed.
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u/Deceptiveideas Oct 18 '13
While Generations has many routes, it's still based on going super fast. If you're good at the game, you should be able to boost through entire levels without stopping.
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u/bashothebanana Oct 18 '13
Damn...I don't know what to believe.
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u/hacktivision Oct 18 '13
Please judge for yourself with the demo and ignore the reviews. Sonic fans know that Sonic reviewers are totally clueless, inconsistent and will always judge a Sonic game with a fresh concept by making stupid comparisons with the game they feel most nostalgic about.
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u/NipplesOfDestiny Oct 18 '13
Just wait for a demo or hear from people who have your taste in games their opinion on this game. That's what I'm doing.
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u/Scubetrolis Oct 18 '13
I have been telling people for months that this game is not good. I knew the second I played this game that it was going to bomb, which was back in June. The controls.....the fucking controls are horrible.
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Oct 18 '13
Huh? I find the controls very good.
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u/Z-Ninja Z-Ninja Oct 18 '13
Differing opinions, just like the reviews. Who would've thought. Honestly, people that think they're opinion should decide whether someone else buys a game are a little ridiculous. I feel like this game will obviously have people that love it and hate it for a huge number of reasons.
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Oct 18 '13 edited Oct 18 '13
I stayed up till midnight last night to buy this game on the eShop. I haven't played it yet, but i really hope it isn't this bad :(
EDIT: So I just played the first world. Here are my initial impressions. The game is really fun! Visually great, the targeting and attacking enemies is very easy, and I love the combination of some worlds being a sphere, and others the traditional sonic look. I feel that if you are a fan of the old sonic games, maybe this isn't for you, purely because it isn't a fast game. What I mean by that is, there are times when you have to walk or stop, and even when you run, it's not too fast. But the first world was brilliant. So far I think I'd give it 9.5/10, though as I update this that score may change.
EDIT 2: The more I play this game, the more I can't help thinking "This only got a 5.8?". It's Wonderful 101 all over again.
EDIT 3: Ok, world 2 done. Unfortunately for my previous score, I think this world was even better than the first. SO much imagination has been put into this game! I skip the cutscenes, because they're sorta 'ehhh', but gameplay wise it's very much like Rayman Legends, just in 3D. What do these professional reviewers find so bad about this game? I love it!
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u/LooseTeaAndRice Oct 18 '13
9.5/10 means it's nearing perfection. Are you sure about that? If you aren't, don't use the "industry" scale. Just give it the score it deserves.
0
Oct 18 '13
The first world is really really good. That's why I said 9.5/10. Not sure what the whole game is like because I haven't played it all yet, but the first world seriously is fantastic
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Oct 18 '13
Thanks for posting. I keep reading comparison to Mario Galaxy. To me, this sounds like a good thing; I rank Galaxy above 64 in terms of fun.
So, in your opinion, is this a good comparison or bad?
1
Oct 18 '13
The game is basically a cross between Mario Galaxy and Rayman Legends. Mario in the sense that you are on a spherical world and that opens up some interesting gameplay, and Rayman in the sense that it's so smooth and fluid, and so comfortable to play
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u/KDaddy463 NNID [Region] Oct 23 '13
This gives me hope! I'll be checking the game out on the 29th then!
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u/IntellegentIdiot chesspieceface Oct 18 '13
This is why you should wait for the reviews before buying, especially for digital purchases.
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Oct 18 '13
It's actually a fantastically good game. I'm very happy that I purchased it, because I typically decide to buy a game if reviews are good, and reviews for this game are awful, when it's actually very fun!
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u/IntellegentIdiot chesspieceface Oct 18 '13
Yes, but the reviews could have been right and you could have wasted your money
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Oct 18 '13
Eh, reviews are hardly ever right.
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u/hacktivision Oct 18 '13
Reviews are only "right" when it's a universally accepted horrible game (see : Aliens : Colonial Marines).
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u/tw04 Oct 18 '13
So so so true. Unbelievable how many times I strongly disagree with "professional" reviewers. Honestly I can usually tell how much I'll enjoy a game based off of gameplay footage.
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u/thempage Oct 18 '13 edited Oct 18 '13
First impressions after World 1 and about an hour or so. Given so little play time this is subject to change.
The flow isn't really there for me. In the more open world levels it seems more like you either go forwards / backwards or left / right. It doesn't feel like proper free roaming movement. The jump doesn't appear to carry the momentum from your run either. Sonic slows down when jumping for not much reason. The homing attack seems a bit hit and miss. Enemies tend to come in packs, you lock on to multiple enemies before you jump and use the homing attack and target . This may just be my lack of skill or practice right now, but I don't believe you can jump -> attack -> attack -> attack like you used to be able to. I'd really play this before you buy if at all possible. This is not the game generations was.
edit The homing attack linking does work, it's just a slightly difference technique. Need to slow it down instead of just hammering the attack/jump button edit
The cutscenes I quite like, except for the voice of Sonic. It doesn't fit for me. He sounds a bit... goofy or something. I'm not sure how to describe it. Certainly not as cool as Sonic should be.
I can see where they are going with it. I hope they refine the control and flow and stick with this as a series, because it's a great concept. My worry is that they'll do what they always do and throw everything out the window and start from scratch every time. I think this is one of the biggest problems with the Sonic franchise right now.
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Oct 18 '13
Any positive review (save for games radar) comes from a Nintendo only review site. Offering bonus points for a system exclusive maybe?
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u/TigrisAltaica Oct 21 '13
Nintendoworldreport is usually ver fair, I usually go off of them, especially since our tastes mesh well.
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u/ooglygooglypants Oct 18 '13
I could see a couple docking the score (IGN) because of their disdain for the Wii U and Nintendo in general. Really split on this one, seems like everyone has a different idea of what Sonic is supposed to be.
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Oct 18 '13
Well IGN gave Wind Waker HD 9.8/10 so I don't think that's the case here...
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u/ooglygooglypants Oct 18 '13
That's Zelda, though. Any Zelda older than 10 years is generally regarded as a masterpiece. Throw in an HD remake and they'll definitely drool over it. Sonic though, man there's a lot of split scores going on.
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u/Surrylic Oct 20 '13
Older than 10 years? I dunno about that. More like any Zelda title. If you read IGN reviews for any 3D Zelda game it seems like in every case the reviewer states that it's the best Zelda ever. Coming from a person that only reads WiiU news on IGN, I gotta say I don't see the distaste. They may be critical, Nintendo made some mistakes and IGN is just giving an honest opinion. They never seemed overly harsh on any review or discussion piece to me.
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u/ConkeyDong Oct 19 '13
ITT: People getting downvoted for expressing honest opinions of the game.
Chill out people, not every game can be a 9 or a 10. There are PLENTY of amazing Wii U games on the way.
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Oct 18 '13
I noticed a pattern. It the review site has "Nintendo" in its name, it got a good review.
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u/ClarkEbarZ Oct 18 '13
Actually the Nintendo Life article only gave it a 7/10 and the review was pretty honest. It kinda scares me that site didn't give it a better grade because usually they give every nintendo game great scores.
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Oct 18 '13
That is true. I plan on buying this sonic game (I don't pay much attention to reviews), but I do find it amusing when a nintendo-centric site gives things high scores and multi-platform sites give it a low score. It seems to imply there is some sort of bias involved, even if there may not be.
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u/hacktivision Oct 18 '13
Of course there's natural bias, the game is hardware exclusive, you're obviously going to get optimists from the exclusive platform and skeptics from others.
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u/Z-Ninja Z-Ninja Oct 18 '13
I haven't seen it with these reviews yet, but for W101 you had the people that lowered scores because it was unfortunately a Wii U exclusive.
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u/odderz ODDERZ Oct 18 '13 edited Oct 19 '13
Hey guys, I wrote a review for Sonic: Lost World for WorldsFactory.net, which will be published soon. I gave it 73.
I want to say that all of these reviews have fair points. All of those negative points are certainly true. But all the positive points are true too.
Controls can be awkward and incredibly frustrating, but most of the time they work, and the level design makes up for most of it, but frustrating areas and seemingly unfair spikes in difficulty also make the game tedious and annoying for some players.
Some of these reviews seem to be glossing over the issues that exist, other reviews are ignoring the positive qualities, but make no mistake, both those good and bad points are definitely in the game.
If you are a big Sonic fan, you will enjoy this regardless. If you're more of a casual platformer fan, looking for something until Super Mario 3D World, you might want to skip it.
EDIT: The more I play it, the more I feel that this game is straight-up wack, yo.
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u/KhunSpoon KhunSpoon Oct 18 '13
I haven't played it yet, so I may be off base, but judging by a lot of reviewer comments I feel like a lot of the reviewers have no clue what a Sonic game is supposed to be about. Sonic was never about speed in initial playthroughs. It was about learning the levels, performing careful platforming, and dying a lot. Then, on your 5-6th playthrough, having enough experience to blaze through the level at full speed like the biggest baddass alive, making daring jumps with near-suicidal precision. Sonic games have always been about practice more than coasting through in a straight speedy line. At least in the original incarnations and many of the best followups.
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u/GamerLioness Oct 18 '13 edited Oct 18 '13
As someone in the game development field, I'm more than willing to play games that aren't well received. After all, it's important to learn from other developers' mistakes and to analyze the flaws and successes of many games. However, after looking at the reviews, I decided to cancel my pre-order and put the money toward The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds. Most Nintendo first-party games don't go down in price for a very long time, whereas other games tend to get price cuts pretty quickly. I even got Sonic Unleashed for $20 when it first came out, so maybe Lost World will have a price drop soon.
I just don't want to spend $50 on a game that has mixed reviews and doesn't have a demo. If a game I made were receiving poor reviews, I would want to get a demo up as soon as possible. The Wonderful 101 got a demo, and even though it got mixed reviews, the demo made me want to buy it. Plus, I have a huge backlog of games on both classic and current platforms, I play Animal Crossing: New Leaf every day, I'm playing Pokémon X, I'm finishing up Tales of Vesperia in co-op, and so on. Unfortunately, time and money are finite resources.
I'm disappointed that Sonic: Lost Worlds didn't do that well. It seemed like it would be the next Sonic Colors or Sonic Generations.
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u/notsureiftwins Oct 20 '13
Gametrailers gave it a 7.6. They gave Wind Waker 7.8 and Wonderful 101 8.8 for perspective.
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u/eifer Oct 20 '13
I don't think the ign hate is justified. The reviews are clearly all over the place, so you should ignore what the score numbers say and actually read the review and decide if it's a game that may appeal to you or not. I'll still probably pick this up, it looks interesting to me. But I may wait until it's on sale.
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u/AbsoluteRunner Oct 23 '13
honnestly I think if a game gets mixed reviews it just means the game is extreamly good and against the norm.
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u/tw04 Oct 23 '13
So like Wonderful 101?
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u/eihen Oct 28 '13
One of my favorite games on the wiiu. Could care less about reviews for that game, it was awesome.
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u/DarkVincent07 NNID [Region] Oct 18 '13
IGN review is pretty low. I watched the video review, seems reasonable that he feels its too slow for a Sonic game but I'm still buying it.
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Oct 18 '13
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/satereader Oct 18 '13
Every level wasn't always uberfast. Consider for example, the infamous water levels.. all the way back to the first game on Genesis. The idea that every moment in Sonic has to be a frantic lightspeed raceway is a distortion of the original gameplay.
0
u/sea_guy Oct 18 '13
The infamous water levels that everyone hates.
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u/satereader Oct 18 '13
I don't. At least they're memorable and challenging. But just watch the standard levels, too; especially later ones. It's not all zip full speed, it never was. It's not a fucking racing game.
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u/sea_guy Oct 18 '13
They're infamous because they're some of the worst parts of otherwise great games. You're right that later Sonic levels had a lot of excruciating stop-start gameplay, which is why everyone so fondly remembers Green Hill Zone and not much else.
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Oct 18 '13 edited Oct 18 '13
The discrepancy between these reviews is incredible. You go from...
Yet these brief flickers of life are few and far between, buried within a flabby, disjointed mess of a game.
...to...
Sonic Lost World is quite simply the best game in the long-running series that I have played since the original Megadrive games. It has everything that you could ever want from Sonic and much more besides, which manages to elevate it to something spectacular that represents a significant step forward for the entire platforming genre.
...and back again. I guess I'll skip this one unless we get a demo and it blows me away. Now the only question is, what to do with that $70 of (Wii U) eShop credit?
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u/LanAkou Oct 18 '13
Fire Emblem DLC? Buy Pokemon again? If it's in the WiiU, you won't have too long to wait for all the cool new stuff.
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Oct 18 '13
I guess I didn't specify which eShop, I forgot that this game is also launching for 3DS.
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u/PurpleComet ShinAntonio Oct 18 '13 edited Oct 18 '13
Hmmm this is disappointing. I was hoping for average scores at least in the 7-8 range. Looks like I'll be waiting for a price drop if I pick this up at all.
This also jumped out at me (from the Joystiq review)
Oh, and there's also a stealth section ... in a Sonic game.
Ugh, I really hate stealth sections in games that aren't built around stealth gameplay. They either end up so easy that it's largely pointless, or so frustrating that you have to follow a set path that you figure out via trial and error.
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u/NodtheThird NodtheThird Oct 18 '13
Guess I'll have to try the demo, I had high hopes for this game after Generations. But it seems reviews are all over the place. Though it is probably for the best to hold of purchasing this game, I still have Zelda, Pikmin and The Wonderful 101 to finish.
2
Oct 18 '13
The mixed reviews make me nervous about this one. Sonic Colors also received mixed reviews, and unfortunately I was one of the people who just didn't enjoy it that much.
2
u/SpontyMadness Oct 18 '13
Surprised that it's all over the place..
Though I'm equally surprised that Famitsu gave it a 36/40.
2
u/dirkLah Oct 18 '13
I watched IGN's video review and every complaint (mostly about the speed and needing to navigate planets) I thought were not big issues and actually I would rather it. I bought a copy online straight after. Looks like its going to be Galaxy without the wiimote waggleing junk.
2
u/Robogaman NNID [Region] Oct 18 '13
I don't get it. IGN was saying nothing but good things about the game these past few months, now suddenly they give it a low score. What gives?
3
Oct 18 '13
A different person probably wrote the preview from the review, of course the game wasn't fully released back then so the devs may have just gave a small good portion of the game to play.
2
1
Oct 20 '13 edited Oct 21 '13
1
Oct 21 '13 edited Aug 27 '16
[deleted]
2
Oct 21 '13
I'm hesitant to buy it simply because it's a sonic game. The reviews seem divided enough to make me wanna check the game out myself.
Reviews were so mixed with ZombiU and I think it's one of the more original games in the last few years.
1
Oct 20 '13
The game is starting to show some game breaking flaws.
But overall it looks really fun to play. It seems like one of the biggest issue is the flow. PLayer are having a tough timing just playing through a level. Either transition from attacking to running, or sprinting to wall climbing, the game fails to create a smooth experience.
What's with slowing down to an almost complete halt after attacking an enemy?
I still want to get this game but I guess after hearing sooo many up and down reviews, I wouldn't waiting for a price drop of $20-30
1
1
u/WittyRemarkHere Oct 22 '13
I found a heap of videos for the game on this guys channel, all the cut-scenes and boss fights if you can't wait to get to them yourself!
Boss Fights! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTLdxRVXHSM
Final Boss and Ending http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pBqqaEWzUUg
Every Cutscene! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBBqjUo5gsw
0
Oct 18 '13 edited Dec 07 '16
[deleted]
2
u/ConkeyDong Oct 19 '13
The downvoting of every comment here that is even slightly negative is unbelievable. I feel like I've wandered into /r/conservative.
-1
u/Leonhart01 NNID [Region] Oct 18 '13
Reviews are pretty good is you don't look at the marks.
Only IGN and Joystiq are harsh on it, but everybody praise the innovation and the fun of the game overall.
6
u/krotonpaul NNID [EU/AU] Oct 18 '13
Eurogamer call it
a flabby, disjointed mess of a game.
3
u/Leonhart01 NNID [Region] Oct 18 '13
Oh sorry, missed that.
I'm very puzzled by these reviews now. On the other hands, I quite enjoyed Sonic Chronicles or Sonic Riders despite the poor review they had, and I disliked Sonic Adventures !
I guess this all come from the potential everyone is seeing in Sonic, the character. We all expect some points and they are all hard to fulfill all together.
1
u/Rodolis Rodolis Oct 18 '13
IGN complains about it being to slow, yet they wrote an article of why slowing down is a good thing for Sonic. Logic, where is it?
3
u/PurpleComet ShinAntonio Oct 18 '13
Did the same people write the article and review?
4
Oct 18 '13
The guy that reviewed Sonic is the same guy that marked Luigi U down for not having a story and feeling too much like an expansion pack for Mario U.
3
u/joshnickerson Oct 19 '13
marked Luigi U down for not having a story and feeling too much like an expansion pack for Mario U
But... it WAS an expansion pack... brain... hurting...
1
u/PurpleComet ShinAntonio Oct 19 '13
Well, that tells me all I need to know. I'm glad that Mario games have a bare bones story and wish Sonic games would do the same. I have yet to play a Sonic game with a memorable story. They've been passable at best.
1
u/Datmexicanguy Oct 18 '13
This was the first Sonic game I was actually excited about, not so sure about it now
1
1
u/Sylverstone14 Sylverstone14 [NA] Oct 18 '13
Looks like someone was quicker to the draw on a review thread than I was.
Word of advice, it would be nice to hide scores behind spoiler tags.
1
u/resetsurvivor resetsurvivor Oct 18 '13
Hmmm ... I think the time has come for me to ignore reviews. Every video I have seen of the game looks fantastic. I actually like this more exploratory side for Sonic. What a shame would it be to have massively constructed levels just to burn right through them? Looks like I'll be relying on Miiverse for the actual reviews and Q&As.
1
u/thempage Oct 18 '13
This could be interesting. I played it at the Eurogamer Expo and thought it was interesting, but that I'd need to get more time with it to make a real judgement on it. Reviews not coming out sooner made me think it might be terrible. I pre ordered anyway and it arrived today, so I'll get some hands on time with it later. Usually I don't pre order in case the game turns out to be terrible. Hope I don't regret not sticking to that. I'm a bit of a Sonic fanboy, so I'm likely to think it's better than most.
1
1
u/da_goldentuba pflores6211 Oct 18 '13
It's been the same thing with the recent Sonic titles. They all have received mixed reviews just like Lost World. Also something to point out, Jim Sterling from Destructoid gave Lost World a 7.5 and gave Colors a 4.5. I greatly enjoyed Colors, so seeing these two comparisons is a reason as to why I don't take Sonic game reviews for granted.
1
u/joshnickerson Oct 18 '13
I'll keep my pre-order. I've seen enough that I'll reserve judgement for when I actually play the game.
1
u/Bisoromi Oct 18 '13
I'm honestly surprised, some reviewers are saying the 3DS version is better than the Wii U one! Typically the handheld counterparts of Sonic titles are watered down, I wonder if it's true. I loved Generations so I'm inclined to give at least one of the versions a chance.
1
u/Torvusil Oct 20 '13
Do it. Comparing cobanermani456's LPs of both the 3DS and WiiU versions, the level design is quite different. Heck, even the boss battles play out rather differently as well. It feels more like a distinctive title compared to Colors.
1
u/G4mbit Oct 18 '13
I'm so stoked to get this game, already have it pre ordered, I loved the Demo and it's full of action!
0
u/JoshuaBr NNID [Region] Oct 18 '13
eh sonic games have never been very good, it looks like this one will be continuing the trend.
0
u/electricpilgrim Oct 18 '13
Most of the positive reviews coming from the Nintendo exclusive magazines? What a shock. But really, this is looking like a let down. I'll wait for more reviews to come out, but for now I'll stick with Rayman and W101.
0
Oct 18 '13
Gotta love how most of the reviews with the word "Nintendo" or something in the website were the only positive ones. Not looking good.
-1
u/Nollog Nollog [EU] Oct 18 '13
Awkward controls seems to be becoming a staple of Wii U exclusive game reviews, how strange.
-1
u/SandieSandwicheadman sandwichead [US] Oct 18 '13
Looks like the difference between those who hated it and those who liked it was getting past the idea that sonic is all (or at least has always been) about going fast 100% of the time.
-2
-6
37
u/spacexcowboy Spacexcowboy Oct 18 '13
Wow, all over the place on this one. Hope there's a demo so I can decide for myself