In a recent Escapist article by Jordan Deam, certain game designers were metaphorically compared to rock stars, and if it pleases the reading public, I?d like to borrow that metaphor with my own twist. Some games can be compared to film directors. For example, the Halo trilogy could be compared to Jerry Bruckheimer?s works- a blockbuster with lots of action, explosions, and a considered a ?must-see? by most. Ninja Gaiden could be seen as a Quentin Tarantino flick- buckets of violence, gore, but Godammit if it doesn?t look cool with its choreography. And then the Sonic series in general is like George Lucas- once revered by the community at large, now spending its days on shiny graphics and releasing stuffs of questionable quality.
Yes, I am going somewhere with this. For the two of you who?ve been living under a rock since Sega went third-party, let me say it like this: Sonic got way too hammered one day and is still suffering from the worst hangover known to man (or hedgehog). It?s been up to some debate when exactly he went on his drinking binge, but many point the finger at Sonic Heroes and scream hateful words. But is this game the ?Batman & Robin? of this long-venerated mascot?s career, or is it something else?
Sonic Heroes goes back to its roots somewhat this time, channeling more of the 2-D Sonic games than the Sonic Adventure series. It attempts to try something new by allowing you to control three characters at once. This is where many people start to spew bile, but their main point of ire lies with the fact that this is not Sonic Adventure 3. The game isn?t trying the exact formula that Sonic Adventure brought into 3-D and Sonic Adventure 2 refined to a mirror shine. The other thing that most complain about gameplay-wise is that the character-switching mechanism just doesn?t connect well with what the series does best, and to this, I must confess, has a kernel of truth in it.
Taking a cue from Sonic Adventure 2?s Hero and Dark stories, Sonic Heroes has four storylines to it- Team Sonic, Team Dark, Team Rose, and Team Chaotix. The complaint about how switching characters comes into play once you begin the game. You?re still running to the end of the stage unless you?re playing as Team Chaotix, but you must take advantage of your teammate?s abilities to get there. This breaks the flow somewhat, due to the problem that you?ll be switching quite a bit and therefore not running fast- which was the entire premise behind the franchise?s origin.
The game seems to smack of some wasted potential. The character-switching could have worked fairly nice, but at the rate required for switching, it doesn?t exactly mesh well with what people expected from a Sonic game. Playing as all four teams could have been somewhat fun, except you?re always going to be playing almost the exact same stages, in the exact same order. The only difference is the cutscene dialogue and two of the boss fights, turning what could have been an intriguingly intertwining storyline in the vein of the Sonic Adventure games into what feels like character re-skins.
The only real difference in choosing teams apart from aesthetics and maybe one or two abilities is Team Chaotix, who plays the game entirely differently. These three guys usually end up collecting random items or completing stealth missions. You read that right. Stealth missions? It?s a nice change of pace from the monotony of Sonic/Dark/Rose, but these collect-a-thons and stealth missions not only are not nearly as enjoyable, they?re not what Sonic games are.
This game is somewhat like the Brady Bunch movie- a cash-in relying on the appeal of seeing all your favorite characters in the same span of time, no matter how ludicrous the plot. Heroes brought back Chaotix, Metal Sonic, and Shadow (who was SUPPOSED to be dead) for what seemed to be that purpose- a cash-in. The only reason it?s not a complete sell-out is Sega seems to have recognized that E-102 ?Gamma? needed to stay six feet under.
Which brings this whole thing back to the question at hand- is the game as bad as everyone makes it out to be? No. It?s more of a disappointment. People wanted Sonic Adventure 3. It?s a given that the Sonic fanbase is an unpleasable lot and will complain no matter what you do, but it can be stated it couldn?t live up to the reputation Sonic Adventure 2 built. With all last-gen games now at bargain bin prices, there?s not much guilt in saying that you should go ahead and get a cheap copy. It?s not too good a game, but you may still find some fun in it- and isn?t that the point of video games anyway?
Yes, I am going somewhere with this. For the two of you who?ve been living under a rock since Sega went third-party, let me say it like this: Sonic got way too hammered one day and is still suffering from the worst hangover known to man (or hedgehog). It?s been up to some debate when exactly he went on his drinking binge, but many point the finger at Sonic Heroes and scream hateful words. But is this game the ?Batman & Robin? of this long-venerated mascot?s career, or is it something else?
Sonic Heroes goes back to its roots somewhat this time, channeling more of the 2-D Sonic games than the Sonic Adventure series. It attempts to try something new by allowing you to control three characters at once. This is where many people start to spew bile, but their main point of ire lies with the fact that this is not Sonic Adventure 3. The game isn?t trying the exact formula that Sonic Adventure brought into 3-D and Sonic Adventure 2 refined to a mirror shine. The other thing that most complain about gameplay-wise is that the character-switching mechanism just doesn?t connect well with what the series does best, and to this, I must confess, has a kernel of truth in it.
Taking a cue from Sonic Adventure 2?s Hero and Dark stories, Sonic Heroes has four storylines to it- Team Sonic, Team Dark, Team Rose, and Team Chaotix. The complaint about how switching characters comes into play once you begin the game. You?re still running to the end of the stage unless you?re playing as Team Chaotix, but you must take advantage of your teammate?s abilities to get there. This breaks the flow somewhat, due to the problem that you?ll be switching quite a bit and therefore not running fast- which was the entire premise behind the franchise?s origin.
The game seems to smack of some wasted potential. The character-switching could have worked fairly nice, but at the rate required for switching, it doesn?t exactly mesh well with what people expected from a Sonic game. Playing as all four teams could have been somewhat fun, except you?re always going to be playing almost the exact same stages, in the exact same order. The only difference is the cutscene dialogue and two of the boss fights, turning what could have been an intriguingly intertwining storyline in the vein of the Sonic Adventure games into what feels like character re-skins.
The only real difference in choosing teams apart from aesthetics and maybe one or two abilities is Team Chaotix, who plays the game entirely differently. These three guys usually end up collecting random items or completing stealth missions. You read that right. Stealth missions? It?s a nice change of pace from the monotony of Sonic/Dark/Rose, but these collect-a-thons and stealth missions not only are not nearly as enjoyable, they?re not what Sonic games are.
This game is somewhat like the Brady Bunch movie- a cash-in relying on the appeal of seeing all your favorite characters in the same span of time, no matter how ludicrous the plot. Heroes brought back Chaotix, Metal Sonic, and Shadow (who was SUPPOSED to be dead) for what seemed to be that purpose- a cash-in. The only reason it?s not a complete sell-out is Sega seems to have recognized that E-102 ?Gamma? needed to stay six feet under.
Which brings this whole thing back to the question at hand- is the game as bad as everyone makes it out to be? No. It?s more of a disappointment. People wanted Sonic Adventure 3. It?s a given that the Sonic fanbase is an unpleasable lot and will complain no matter what you do, but it can be stated it couldn?t live up to the reputation Sonic Adventure 2 built. With all last-gen games now at bargain bin prices, there?s not much guilt in saying that you should go ahead and get a cheap copy. It?s not too good a game, but you may still find some fun in it- and isn?t that the point of video games anyway?
