Sonic trailer: An examination
Over the weekend, SEGA fans were treated to a bevy of screenshots showcasing what we can only assume to be the officially unannounced Sonic Unleashed. Though no comment has thus far been given by SEGA, fans of the Sonic franchise have been going to town with speculation, rumors, “insider” leaks, and in some instances, general muckraking.
Today Sega Nerds is going to break it down for you with an examination of the facts - No opinions, no bias, no spin.
We’ll start with the only important question in a situation such as this : What does the trailer show us to be true?
Let’s get into it.
At the beginning of the trailer the camera simply pans through a series of environments. This looks to be more of a technical demo than actual gameplay footage, though these shots are undeniably rendered in the game’s real-time graphics.
Environments
As of yet, the environments in the game are just another facet that remain mostly shrouded in mystery. All the information we currently have is that the stage we’re shown seems to have an African continental influence, as seen in the shot below. Note the African savanna.
Also worth mentioning is the visual presentation here. Take note of the bright blue sky, and vibrant flora. These are certainly indications that we should expect a lively, colorful art style.
As the camera pans further along this road we come to a series of man-made ledges and huts, once again retaining the look of a desert peoples dwellings.
Note the grind-rail. We know from past Sonic games that this is a route Sonic will be able to take during his progression through the stage, and with a second path below we can safely assume that the stages will have multiple routes. This assertion is fortified by later video clips.
At this point the camera pans underneath a series of tent-like awnings. In this seemingly simple shot we can actually gather quite a bit about the game’s graphics engine, though much remains a mystery.
What’s important to note in this shot is the light-source. We see a bright sun beaming angularly through translucent, colorful tents. In the trailer it’s very difficult to see whether these shadows are dynamically shifting, or if the tents are undulating, but the mere possibility of such dynamic shadows is exciting, to say the least.
Moving on past these tents we come to a segment of the stage that changes direction (in more ways than one).
Opening up into a large forested area, the track seems to spiral it’s way up this African Baobab tree. Once again, note the vibrant coloring. Most importantly in this shot is the inclusion of multi-tiered platforming elements. It’s clear to see that there are moving platforms, multiple levels of grind-rails, and many layers of solid running areas.
As the camera pans further we see many more of the iconic trees. Notable in this shot are the many dynamic shadows, and of course, the loop-de-loop. Now this is a subject upon which most Sonic fans are in total agreement. There must be loops. Also worth noticing is the continuation of what appear to be multiple paths. Follow the loop, or take the up-and-downs straight through.
Gameplay
At this point in the trailer we start to see the real important aspects of the game - the gameplay. As we shift back to the beginning of the stage, Sonic runs in at an average pace. The camera follows alongside and in front of him as he runs on an almost two-dimensional plane.
Things to note in this shot are, of course, the camera angle, which people are calling 2.5D. Sonic runs on, collecting rings as per usual, and eventually slopes downwards to run vertically down a wall.
As he comes out of this dive he seems to dash forward with a burst of speed. The background blurs by faster than ever, and speed blooms off him as he runs.
This seems to indicate that Sonic will have the ability to suddenly dash forward at the push of a button for increased bursts of speed, such as fans saw in Sonic Rush on the Nintendo DS. Another assumption that can safely be made is that Sonic’s Ring Energy, which is represented by a gauge in the bottom left corner of the screen, will dictate when and for how long Sonic can speedburst.
The idea has been used in Sonic Rush, and in Sonic and the Secret Rings on Nintendo Wii. In both games a gauge system was used based on collection, or trick execution. Sonic fans are divided over their feelings about game mechanics such as these, but it’s safe to say they will be implemented in this new Sonic game.
Another returning Sonic tradition will be the jump-pads. Since Sonic the Hedgehog on SEGA Genesis there have been spring-pads that allow Sonic to jump extra high. In this shot, he has just launched from one and is hurtling through the air towards a boost ring, another new staple in the series.
Continuing through a loop, Sonic makes his way towards a group of enemies. The camera shifts behind him and he once again uses his dash maneuver. This time, he powers through the group of enemies as the background blurs by in a sort of tunnel-vision.
Passing through here, Sonic makes his way to the previously seen forested area by passing over a wooden bridge. The camera angle has since shifted back to a more side-scroll perspective, indicating that the game will feature a dynamic camera system which travels all around the character as he progresses through the stage.
Following this we get a glimpse of something that seems to show a platforming aspect to the game. Here, the bridge has gaps in it, and simply running forward at breakneck speed will send you to your doom, or at least a slower route. This might show that delicate platforming is required in certain situations.
The next place we come to is an intricate weave of loops, dips, hills, and turns. They wrap around the giant trees, and present obstacles typical to the Sonic universe.
Here Sonic has once again speed-dashed into a loop. As he climbs and turns round the tree he comes to an area filled with platforms and various pathways. In places there can be seen spikes of death, and flame jets looking to trip up the player.
Worth noting are, not only the multiple paths, dynamic shadows, and classic pitfalls, but also the somewhat breathtaking background. The art direction seems to have gone with an idyllic, vibrant palate. This gives the background environment an almost whimsical, painted look, and lends itself nicely to the SEGA lineage of beautiful games.
Finally, Sonic traverses this grouping of platforms and loops, eventually coming to the familiar springy-poles. He jumps atop these and uses them to launch upwards to a grind-rail. He slides off around a tree and the camera begins to fade.
This is the end of the trailer, and while SEGA hasn’t said anything directly, I think it speaks for itself very loudly. We can see what this game is going to include, though we don’t know quite yet what it may exclude. By this I refer to the things that have plagued recent 3D Sonic games.
Those topics I’ll let rest, until another trailer is released. At which time you can be sure Sega Nerds will break it down in as scientific a way as possible, in order to bring you only the facts on this new Sonic game.
Tags: sega, Sonic, Sonic Unleashed, Trailer
23 opinions for Sonic trailer: An examination
Chris
Mar 24, 2008 at 8:18 pm
Great work! BRILLIANT!!!
Aki-at
Mar 24, 2008 at 8:24 pm
A lovely write up James saying all the right words I couldn’t say, nice work!
Ryan
Mar 24, 2008 at 8:48 pm
Nicely done.
Jon
Mar 24, 2008 at 9:17 pm
Nice, nice. Aki 0 James 1
Hudson
Mar 24, 2008 at 9:19 pm
Good stuff!
Also interesting: jumps appear to have abandoned (or at least made optional) the usual ball form based on what we’ve seen so far. I also didn’t see any bottomless pits in the area overviews, though that doesn’t rule them out entirely (and they’re not automatically bad, to be sure). Also present are dash-pads (introduced in Sonic Adventure, and I believe largely absent from Rush/Rush Adventure), which tend to take control away from the player and heavily influence Sonic’s direction.
Interestingly (though perhaps appropriate for a Sonic game’s debut trailer) we have yet to see him come to a complete stop. If the beginning of the gameplay segment is in fact the start of a stage, it seems that the developers have adopted a mindset similar to that of Rush/Rush Adventure, where players start a stage already running at a decent clip.
The camera, it should be noted, seems to be separate from the gameplay in numerous areas judging by its overly-cinematic nature (especially toward the end). It’s probably reasonable to expect a more usable viewpoint throughout in the actual game, like the one seen in the earlier gameplay portions of the trailer.
The camera appears to cut at 0:46, 0:47, 0:59, 1:05, 1:08, and 1:10, meaning there are probably significant segments of the levels in this video that we haven’t seen yet (though some of the cuts do create an impression of longer, more cohesive gameplay segments). The video itself is very smooth with its transitions throughout, but I’m more interested to see (or even play) an entire stage straight through to better get a feel for how the designers will handle layout and flow.
EvilTim
Mar 24, 2008 at 11:13 pm
This seems really cool. But, what they should do before attempting a new game is remake Sonic 1, Sonic 2, and Sonic 3 and Knuckles. All in 2.5D with the beautiful graphics and game play we see from this.
Kijuna
Mar 24, 2008 at 11:42 pm
Beautiful! I could kiss you for that!
Psycho_Echidna
Mar 25, 2008 at 12:21 am
Nice article and objective/neutral as we would expect from Seganerds.
Maybe you should have mentioned the background music as well
Nev
Mar 25, 2008 at 3:39 am
Very nice overview.
Can we expect an indepth look at the screenshots too? In particular, I was very interested in the opening CG (where Robotnik appears to use some kind of device to extract the Chaos Emeralds from Super Sonic - a grey emerald can be seen in one of the images), and also that the latest batch of screenshots seem to indicate a day-night cycle, with the same image shown under various lighting conditions. With the promotional image of “Were-Sonic,” would it be fair to assume that this alter-ego may only be playable at night?
It’s also interesting to note that the levels in the screenshots are shown as a “whole.” If Tails and Knuckles are playable (as rumoured), will they be playing through Sonic’s route, or have free reign over the environment? I’m in two minds about that, but I would certainly appreciate the ability to explore these environments in free-roaming fashion, as it would appear that this would be impossible with Sonic’s play-style as demonstrated in the trailer.
City Hunter
Mar 25, 2008 at 5:48 am
Hope for more free-roam action, like the one seen in the early trailers of Sonic Next Gen.
Maybe the return of a powered version of the adventure field, with day-night cycle etc…
Kogen
Mar 25, 2008 at 9:03 am
Hudson, those dash pads have been around since Sonic 2. Look at Chemical Plant Zone.
The “rushmetre” is what would be deciding the game’s focus. I wish they’d just stick with spindash; it’s the same thing expect more useful and less cheap.
Andreyin
Mar 25, 2008 at 10:14 am
Woot ! This is great ! Now go examine the other pictures ! =D
George
Mar 25, 2008 at 10:44 am
Kogen, the spin dash and rush meter are different. First he Rush meter works instantaneously, while the spin dash makes you stop completely to do. Also, you have a limited amount that you will be able to do Rush Meter. You act like Spin Dash was taken out… .
Kogen
Mar 25, 2008 at 11:01 am
Rushmetres can easily be filled up, making spindash something rare.
It takes less than a second to do a spindash and promotes actually playing the game instead of “LOLOL GO GO GO”.
Aki-at
Mar 25, 2008 at 11:13 am
I agree with Kogen, with spin dash, you had to stop and then take your time to charge up the spindash, with the rush metre it;’s all GO GO GO as Kogen put it, I prefer my spindash (Though I can still do with a rush metre)
James
Mar 25, 2008 at 11:54 am
Rush meter was great in my opinion, in games like Rush, Rush ADdventure and Secret Rings.
City Hunter
Mar 25, 2008 at 12:02 pm
Spin Dash is ine of the symbol of Sonic.
I hope they don’t take it out like they did in the last sonic games.
Aki-at
Mar 25, 2008 at 12:07 pm
“Rush meter was great in my opinion, in games like Rush, Rush ADdventure and Secret Rings”
The thing with the rush metre is that it’s a double edged sword, on one hand it can supply you with constant speed, on the other hand it’ll make you just complete the level ultra fast and the design of the level will compensate for the rush metre instead of the fact of us wanting a really large area to explore.
Though I have to admit, it doesn’t seem to be occurring here, they’ve got plenty of areas that you will use the rush metre just to get passed quickly, but a good few moments when platforming with caution and alternative routes that would be impossible to get to if you constantly use the rush metre.
JOEI
Mar 25, 2008 at 3:10 pm
MAYBE THEY ARE GOING TO REVEAL THE NEW SEGA DREAMCAST @ E3… LOL AND THIS WILL BE A LAUNCH TITLE.. (SORRY I JUST HAD TO! dreams>>>) Anywho, im dieing of excitement, the imagery is pure art, true to the SEGA artistry ive come to admire…
SEGA/SONIC TEAM, IF YOU READ THIS…. PLEASE THE FANS NEED THE HEDGEHOG TO BE RESERRECTED, ALSO PROVE ALL THOSE NINTENDONT FANBOYS WRONG, SONIC IS BETTER THEN THE FAT PLUMBER! (LOL I SOUND LIKE A KID, IM ACTUALLY 22 AND AT WORK! HAHA)
Hudson
Mar 25, 2008 at 3:47 pm
“Hudson, those dash pads have been around since Sonic 2. Look at Chemical Plant Zone.”
You’re right! Speed boosters in a general sense have been around for a while.
The particular iteration I’m talking about (dash pads) really came into vogue in the Adventure series and served to direct the player along a preset path through a 3D space at high speeds. Earlier boosts were used sparsely, though effectively. Dash pads were used much more often, and took some of the fun out of getting to high speeds- you weren’t really in control, and Sonic’s speed for the most part only depended on the last pad he hit. It created a prominent and reoccurring disconnect often multiple times within the same level. This is similar to the “push forward” loops found in most of the 3D games, another good instance of a segment where you weren’t playing by the rules of the rest of the game’s physics.
One area that warrants particular attention in the coming months is how exactly the 3D elements of the Adventure series will be combined with what appears to be the core gameplay style of Rush/Rush Adventure. The dash pads are a good example of this, and may have interesting implications for where the game is headed in the areas of level design and general gameplay.
Aki-at: those are some good points about the rush meter, but I don’t think we’ve seen enough of any level to really get a feel for how they’re laid out. The multiple pathways are encouraging, though!
Aki-at
Mar 25, 2008 at 4:11 pm
“Those are some good points about the rush meter, but I don’t think we’ve seen enough of any level to really get a feel for how they’re laid out. The multiple pathways are encouraging, though!”
True that is, since I did a article on it on the forum. However there was one point that had flamethrowers and you had to stop, I guess what you could really do is use it through out the loops or the fully 3D areas. If you use the rush all the time though you could potentially miss a great amount of the different pathways found in the level (At some instance there are three alternative routes to take) and or found yourself get your head bashed in (Another part meant you had to slide)
But yes, like you said, we haven’t seen enough of the game to make a sound judgement, and the fact a lot of things shuffle around during development, but the level design is vastly different so far to Sonic Rush.
supersonicdude211
Mar 26, 2008 at 6:12 pm
I agree, those are pretty good words and a pretty good description of the enviroment and the gameplay.
Spudgun
Mar 26, 2008 at 9:03 pm
[QUOTE]
Comment by EvilTim:
Monday, March 24th 2008 at 11:13 pm
This seems really cool. But, what they should do before attempting a new game is remake Sonic 1, Sonic 2, and Sonic 3 and Knuckles. All in 2.5D with the beautiful graphics and game play we see from this.
[/QUOTE]
EXACTLY what I’ve been thinking. Hell, it worked for Mario - countless times over. Sonic in 2.5D with nextgen graphics would be totally awesome, providing they keep the gameplay quality of a high standard and don’t bring in lame characters. (Knuckles as a playable char in Sonic 1 HD would be heaven :P)
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