With the announcement of a new 2D Sonic game, we wonder if Sega possesses the ability to redeem Sonic and bring back the glory days for the blue fuzz? Or is this new game destined to be the latest in a string of disappointments? Dave and Paul discuss:

Paul: I can’t see it happening. SEGA have toyed with fans for so long…”We’re going backwards, just you wait!” But I reckon the fans won’t actually appreciate it in the end. I think it’ll remind everyone that Sonic’s 2D games have a lot of nostalgia linked to them, and that can’t be recaptured.

Dave: I’d have to say it can be done, if Sega can just stick to the basics. They need to refrain from adding pointless storylines and new ‘companion’ characters, 2D or not. Sonic Rush Adventure shows a good 2D Sonic game can be made. We admittedly don’t know if Sonic Team is developing the title yet, and therein lies the problem. Sonic Team have lost a lot of their talent to other companies, it isn’t the same team it once was.

Paul: Absolutely, Sonic Team are a shadow of their former selves…literally, they are like Shadow is to Sonic – trying to be ‘street’, have guns, have a car…when Sonic can run really fast and can take on anything. I know who I’d rather want…But regardless of basics or not, I still think they’re gonna struggle to make something. That teaser trailer only increases the expectations to something comparable with the old Sonic games. The hype will fail it in the end.

Dave: Well, I think the ‘hype’ problem is something that we see in a lot of today’s games. Fans build up expectations and when it doesn’t turn out they way hoped they moan and complain. And of course let’s not forget that it’s “cool” to hate on Sega at the moment. Having said that, Sega do have a tendency to mess up their old I.Ps. The Shining series, NiGHTS, Golden Axe etc have all seen mediocre to terrible sequels. Why? Because Sega simply can’t leave well enough alone. They try to appeal to the kids with “innovations” in their titles, but kids aren’t really into Sega all that much anymore. Their fanbase have grown-up and Sega seems to fail to realise this. A 2D game brings hope though, it’s pretty hard to mess up 2D controls, as long as they don’t shove in random bottomless pits and don’t make it all about speed, it should (in theory) turn out well.

Paul: Well, I don’t think SEGA are hated in general. There are a lot of games they publish which are actually quite alright. Okay, by ‘lots of games’ I mean Football Manager 2005, 2006 etc. I have to agree about their classic characters being dragged through the muck. I had the misfortune of playing SEGA Superstars Tennis on the Wii…it’s pretty bad, and made worse by seeing all the classic characters looking quite bad. I don’t think they can win the old gamers back.

Dave: Hmm, they seem to take a lot of bashing around the internet, perhaps it’s from more from continual disappointment rather than hatred. I own SST for the Wii and can’t say there was any major problems with it. The motion controls weren’t quite up to Wii Sports standard but it was a joy to see all of the characters; especially ones such as Gillius and Alex. I’m also pumped for the upcoming All-Star racing game. Sega can win fans back, but it will take an amazing game to do it and, like I said earlier, if Sega can hold back from adding unnecessary gimmicks to it.

When I was playing the recent Sonic Unleashed at uni, I took note of my friends’ reactions (who range from casual to hardcore gamers) of it. I find them to be a good gauge of how a game is perceived by the general public. Unsurprisingly, they thought the same an many reviewers did. They loved the opening intro, the daytime levels (2D parts) but thought the Werehog was the most ridiculous thing ever and were bored by all of the interruptions when trying to play. In fact one friend took 2 hours to get to the second daytime level and kept saying “I don’t care, I just want to play as Sonic!”. Pretty awful. If Sega can make this upcoming game with plenty of fun levels (with platforming parts and not just Sonic speeding along) and have short, amusing cut-scenes in between these levels, then they would have a winner on their hands.

Paul: Well, I do enjoy kart games…so I may enjoy the upcoming SEGA one. But outside of that, I don’t think SEGA and Sonic Team should be forgiven for the way in which Sonic has been treated. In my opinion, they don’t really deserve anymore chances. And as for winning back the old gamers…the titles obviously sell, and that’s because of kids. They need to strike a balance between kids and the older players. For that reason, I don’t think they can hit the highs of the original Sonic games. Will they redeem themselves? Maybe, but I don’t think it will feel quite as sweet as redemption. It’ll be more like finally living up to expectations of a once great character. Something that they should have been doing in the first place.

Dave:  I don’t think a balance needs to be struck. They could cater exclusively for their older fans and the kids will still buy it. They’re all into GTA/Gran Tursimo/Street Fighter etc even though such games aren’t targeted to them. We were the same when we were younger. They will buy it regardless because it’s Sonic. Will this be the game to revive Sonic? Doubtful, though (as always) I remain cautiously optimistic.

We hope you enjoyed the first part of our on going Shogun Showdown feature where we take a topic and debate, giving you guys two different perspectives.  Stay tuned as we bring you another great question next week.

Please gives us your thoughts on whether or not Sonic 2D can redeem a franchise that has seen a down hill battle.  Comments are open with no registration required.

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