Yuji Naka “[Modern Sonic] games have become much easier”

105 Comments

1. Ah boy, fanboy explosions in 3… 2…

   I would love to see Naka-san work on Sonic again. Here’s hoping!

   1. He will. He wants Sega to make another console. I suspect soon after Sega Orbi is officially formed, he’ll rejoin Sonic Team.

2. I can really only agree with him on this one, Sonic games have gotten incredibly easy over the past 10 years, the only things I think have been hard in the Sonic series as of late is Sonic Heroes later special stages and that was 9 years ago.

   1. Unfortunately, the difficulty in those stages were more the controls than the actual difficulty, which is something I am very glad that has escaped Sonic’s recent games.

   2. Don’t forget the 360/PS3 Eggmanland.

      1. I wouldn’t really say eggmanlands difficult, but more so tedious.

   3. Nah I found it easy on PC.
      God damn the Sonic Heroes special stages on PS3, I couldn’t get one.

3. I hope if they do change the formula, It does not change drastically. I kinda like it.

4. Pfft… Special Stage 7 in Ep II is NOWHERE near as hard as Special Stage 7 in Ep I! STILL can’t beat that fucking nightmare…

   At least in the Ep II stages you have plenty of time to react (before you hit a checkpoint with not enough rings), pause, and retry without having to go through a whole stage again with 50 rings, unlike in Ep I where you have barely enough reaction time to save yourself from hitting an EXIT trap by pausing the game just in time and retrying the stage AGAIN and AGAIN until you just weren’t fast enough to save yourself from that damn EXIT trap and have to go through a whole stage AGAIN with 50 rings… I basically have memorized every screen of Lost Labyrinth Zone Act 1 because of all the times I had to keep getting 50 rings and going to the special stage there TIME after TIME… Ughhhhh… *_*

5. I can NOT get these damn emeralds in Ep 2.

   But I guess Naka’s right about the main stages, but believe you me, that’s NOT why Ep 2 was a disappointment.

   1. Ep 2 is good…

6. I really have to agree with this, being that I”m playing Sonic 4 Episode 2 right now and I’ve been tkaing it slow, but I feel like I’m able to breeze though it…having said that, playing the very first stage of Metal Sonic’s is really hard.

   1. I know it’s really hard… beat everything in iPod of Sonic 4 Ep 2, need a few achievments then I’m done and dusted 🙂

7. You know what’s gotten easier in the recent years? Special stages. I was (am) terrible with the classic special stages…good thing I played the Mega Collection versions so I can save the game at any point (yeah, I “cheated”).

   Of course with Sonic 4 eps. I and II, anyone notice the “retry” button still present in the special stage’s pause menu? Sure you have and admit it: you’ve used it too!

8. I had a hard time in Sonic Unleashed. I drowned a lot when i was playing a stage whit a lot of water XD And i hate the last boss in SU to. Go so slow whit the big thing then have to fast get sonic to the eyes of the boss and I get so nervous that i fail XD I had to have a friend to help me whit the last boss! XD

9. Too easy!? Is he kidding!?
   Getting 1000/1000 on Sonic Unleashed WASN’T easy.
   I still havn’t gotten the Untouchable achievement in Sonic 4 ep 1 and I probably never will.
   What about Sonic ’06, that’s an easy game right? pff you’ve got to be kidding me.

   Also, I agree that Special Stage 7 was a bit hard and it took me quite a few tries, but it’s doable,
   Generations was incredibly easy though, but it was the most fun I’ve ever had in a sonic game, so I don’t think difficulty has anything to do with enjoyment, heck getting pissed off at a game isn’t really enjoyable at all.

   1. Unleashed wasn’t too bad from what I remember…

      Sonic 06 is bloody hard, but if you stick with it you can get maximum points…I did it earlier this year…

      And that bloody white emerald caused me no end of hassle, I must have been there at least half an hour retrying…

      I like challenges, and a lot of recent Sonic games haven’t really given me any…I’m ashamed to admit I still haven’t beaten Sonic 2 “legitimately”…yet.

   2. I forgot what the Untouchable achievment was… lol

10. First of all I like this article, Hogfather.

    The seventh stage SHOULD BE FUCKING HARD as you are about to achieve Super Sonic. I have just now completed a new playthrough of Ep2, I got the first six emeralds at my first attempt! Which shows that PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT. I like the special stages. Technique and memorisation is essential.

    As for Mr Naka, perhaps he remembers the gold old days in the early nineties. I think a lot of the modern games have a strong level of difficulty, but that is more due to crap physics.

11. Special Stage 7 in Episode 2 was probably one of the hardest stages I’ve ever played in a Sonic game. I got so pissed off at it, but when I beat it (with just 1 RING above the required amount mind you) I was jumping for joy.

    I can’t explain how satisfied I was and it will be really awesome to experience satisfaction like this more in future Sonic games.

    1. I was really sucky at the Special Stage 7, but for some reason… I was above 400 rings going into the last run for rings… guess I got the hang of the loop! Lol!

12. That white emerald stage was an insane leap in difficulty, but was so relived when I got it…I just hope the game doesn’t corrupt like episode 1 did some how =S

13. I agree that difficulty matters. With the exception of Special Stage 7, Episode II was very easy. I beat the final boss expecting a final super secret stage to unlock, but then the game just ended. I thought “seriously, that’s it?” I think that a boost in difficulty would be nice to see in general. Sonic Generations wasn’t as easy as Episode II, but it could still use a “Hard Mode” DLC pack. Not like Sonic Unleashed Hard Mode (rendered that cruddy game unplayable), but somewhere a few pegs down.

    I REALLY hate Special Stage 7… That can die.

    1. You think Ep 2’s Special Stage 7 is HARD?

       You obviously haven’t played Ep 1’s Special Stage 7… Oh, it was worse… MUCH WORSE…

       1. That’s why I’m not up to it

14. Sonic Unleashed

15. Ehm… Since when are the old Sonic games any hard? Seriously, I don’t think the difficulty has changed at all, it’s just that since Sonic 3 we’ve had savefiles so we don’t need to start all over.

    1. I absolutely 100% agree with your point.

       1. The only game I have trouble with is Sonic 1 personally.
          Sonic 2 and forward I can do with one hand tied behind my back.

16. Personally, I find games with high diffculty more frustrating than I do fun. I’ve never completed the Game Gear version of Sonic 2 because that first boss wasn’t just hard, it was outright unfair.

    1. Ironically enough, the Master System version of Sonic 2’s first boss is piss easy – I was shockingly surprised! But the Sky High boss is irritating if not patient enough!

    2. Ironically enough, the Master System version of Sonic 2’s first boss is piss easy – I was shockingly surprised! But the Sky High boss is irritating if not patient enough!

17. It’s only because of the boosting in modern sonic levels. Bring back the Sonic Adventure engine and tweak it a bit and you’ve got more challenging fun sonic games that don’t require an ENORMOUS amount of time and effort to create maps because sonic boosts through so much in a few minutes. Boosting has taken away from platforming and other fun elements in my opinion. Sonic was like awesome parkour on the dreamcast, now he’s like a racing game almost.
    In my experienced opinion, I think sega should keep the 2d sonic games like the 2d sonic in generations and the 3d sonic games like the adventure series.

    1. at one side i agree with you at the other side IMO they shouldent risk going back to the adventure formula and as much as i would like to see that i dont think its gonna happen but if it was i would be so happy but yes the boost has to go

18. People are mistaking a Sonic games “Intended Difficulty” with poor level design and/or Controls.
    Sad, but true.

    Unleashed was frustrating b/c the formulas were completely new for a Sonic game. Colors and Generations, although relatively easy, had better level design for the most part coz of feedback from Unleashed.

    Regarding Sonic 1, 2, 3&K, 4-Ep1 & 2 Special Stages: They’re supposed to be more difficult with each emerald.
    Admittedly I always have a harder time with the last two emeralds of each game.

19. Whenever an argument of “difficulty” comes up, I always feel compelled to mention one thing:
    When I say I want a difficult game, I mean I want a challenge. Something with a gradual learning curve that feels very satisfying when you complete it flawlessly after tons of practice (Jungle Joyride comes to mind). The problem with a lot of games nowadays is that when they insert “difficulty,” it’s artificial. Cheap deaths do not constitute fun challenge in my mind, and I’d rather have the latter any day.
    Recent Sonic games hold a fair share of this cheapness, in my mind, whereas I don’t recall ever feeling gyped from a bad difficulty curve or stumped on a wonky design to that extent in the classics (outside some bad enemy placement in Oil Ocean and Metropolis). Eggmanland (Werehog, especially) and Planet Wisp (especially the extra missions) have some of the cheapest moments in the series, imo.
    So to interpret Naka’s statement, It’s not that Sega’s making the games easier: they’re just going about it the wrong way. On a side note, I completely agree with Sonicx2218 above me.

20. The levels themselves aren’t difficult to pass, but if you want to find every last hidden item and unlock the game’s full potential, it could take months, if not years.

    Also, SO MUCH WANT for that 20th Anniversary Sonic banner in the background. (*¬*)

21. There’s a big difference between the originals and how the Sonic games play today, you have to understand they’re 2 completely different things, maybe someone likes the modern games another person might like the originals… it’s not that either are bad or anything.

    As for the TSS Episode 2 review.. it can wait, I’m enjoying it too much to read about it being shot down 😛

22. I found Episode II had a lot of challenging bits. The final boss, especially. And there was certainly a “YES!” moment when I finally beat him. I have him down to a tee now, but that’s how it goes.

23. Now, I think Yuji is making an excellent point, the new Sonic games are WAYYYYY too easy, and they’re also severely short, SEGA has added some difficulty spikes (again, difficulty SPIKES) like Special Stages 5-7 in Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode I, Special Stages 6 and most definitely 7 in Episode II, a few dickish moments in Sonic Generations’ mission selection, and hey, Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode II did have some challenging and some dickish bosses… so theres credit… but over-all, all of these games are beaten in under 4 hours… Sonic 4: Episode I being the shortest because to get 100% it just takes like, 2 hours. Yuji Naka is also correct on the statement that the series is not appealing to the universal crowd as much as he hoped… that’s kinda minor because it’s Sonic, but I’m not exactly sure what he’s getting at with Mario & Sonic’s rivalry… the funny thing is how this article is brought up right after I make the point that Yuji Naka or Christian Whitehead should help with Episode III (if there is one.)

    1. I don’t care what anyone says, the Special Stages in Ep 1 were WAY harder and more punishing than the ones in Ep 2.

       As for Generations… Amen, Brother. (Vector’s mission can go eat a dick)

       1. True that on the Special Stages and Vector’s mission… the Special Stages in Episode I were tedious, boring, mind-numbing, they made it so that you’ll never wanna see another bumper in a Sonic game again, the rage you get in Special Stage 7 when touching the bumpers and exits is insane, and there are more bad Special Stages in Episode I than II automatically making them worse. Vector’s mission is just shit. The homing attack is awkward there, they expect you to do serious 3D platforming but Sonic keeps sliding around, the camera is INCREDIBLY zoomed in on Sonic, it goes on forever and you can’t do anything about it… and even if you wanna make it more fun, you can’t… you can’t let it touch the floor, and you cannot change the music because it goes silent once you hit the first note… I HATE that mission. There are other missions that are downright frustrating to me like the Classic Doppelganger in Rooftop Run, the Modern Doppelganger in Crisis City, and I do kinda dislike the mission in Classic City Escape where Rouge is dropping bombs from her tits… it’s cheap and the over-usage of seesaws is the prime example of that statement. Two other cheap parts are the Egg Dragoon on Hard Mode, and the Time Eater… at least in my opinion.

          1. All except for the Time Eater (unless you are talking about the “don’t get touched” achievement, which I had a LIVING HELL OF PURE INSANITY getting! I cherish my Generations Platinum Trophy like a son, let me tell you that! XD), I agree with you 100%. I forgot about those other EXACT missions and how hard they were. Thanks for bringing back those painful memories! XD Glad to know that the ONLY ones (every single mission you mentioned) I had trouble with were also troubling to EVERYONE ELSE! If you scroll a little bit up you can see just why I personally thought the Ep 2 special stages were vastly less annoying than the ones in Ep 1… *_*

             1. Yeah, that’s exactly why I hate them too. XD Those stupid bumpers are annoying. I honestly don’t like the Sonic 1 Edition of Special Stage, and Sonic 2’s Special Stage is WAY overused at this point… the only two Special Stages I found to be fun were Sonic Advance 2’s and Sonic 3 & Knuckles’… only problem is that Advance 2’s were easy, but a bitch to get to.

24. No, Naka didn’t outright bash or slag anything off, no… He did it in his usual smug ‘hinting’ way.

25. I agree, the newer games are way too easy (not to mention short). Perhaps that “Standard 3D Sonic in 2012 and beyond” they mentioned around the time Generations’ release will be more challenging, or at least longer.
    Not that I didn’t enjoy Colors and Generations, that is. They were just a bit lacking, in my opinion.

    1. *Time of Generations’ release

       Sorry, my mistake was bugging the hell out of me.

26. “Be very vary as some people will try to manipulate this one in conversation.”

    Vary? Well, I like to think I’m varied, but… XD

    Do I agree with Naka? YES. Unleashed had some difficulty with Eggmanland, and I just enjoyed it because it was so hard. It was nice. Then you got Colors and Generations, which were pitifully easy and…Well…Yeah. The games need to be a bit harder, and have more length. Sonic is fast, but you aren’t supposed to blitz through a $55 game in about 4 hours.

    Increase length and difficulty, and I’ll be happy 🙂

    1. Ah, I forgot to put in the end HTML tag… |D

    2. The first Sonic game lasts around 45 minutes. I’m sure people payed full price for it back then. How things have changed…

       1. Yes, but the first game could be very difficult. The recent ones…Not so much. Plus, the $60 price tag is a bit too high, for any game really except, say, Elder Scrolls or Fallout merely because those games can last hours and hours and hours (I don’t play them, though. I should try one…).

          Although Eggmanland, I will give credit. That level was a monster. It wouldn’t have been so cruel if the entire game had been similar to that difficult – I think it was the whole difficulty spike which really catches people off guard.

27. The Boost game play vs.The Adventure style game play debate,It never gets old !

28. In my opinion, the boost style sonic games (specifically unleashed and Act 2 of generations) are BY FAR the most fun out of all the gameplay formats. I really enjoy the classic sonic gameplay style too, but it just doesn’t give me the same sense of satisfaction that Naka-san claims the old ones give him.

29. It’s a good thing you mentioned Special Stage 7 in Episode 2. An hour ago, I got all 7 Chaos Emeralds and I couldn’t have been happier. I loved the Special Stages in Ep. 2 than Ep. 1. It may be nostalgia talking, but I never liked Sonic 1’s S. Stages and I felt more accomplished collecting rings while moving at a relatively fast pace… as opposed to falling down and grabbing rings along the way.

    Now, me personally, I’d rather have an enjoyable, relatively easy game than a hard game that I won’t beat. However, that doesn’t mean that I don’t want challenge in my games. I’ve never paid attention to people when they say ‘Modern games are so easy’ because I play video games, now this may shock some of you, “To have fun!” When I reflect on the recent Sonic games (Sonic 4 Episodes, Colors, and Generations), I do see a change in difficulty when compared to the older games. This does NOT mean the quality has diminished; just the difficulty. This also does not mean I don’t feel enjoyment when playing these games, not at all. Yes, I do wish there was more of a challenge in these games, but that does not mean I didn’t have any shred of fun while playing.

    Btw, on a side note, I thought Ep. 2 was much better than Ep. 1 in almost every single way; the graphics, the music (Man I loved the music. Sky Fortress and Episode Metal sounds like something out of Sonic Spinball), the physics, the gameplay, the boss fights, etc. Looking forward to what you all have to say about it.

    1. Special Stage 7 in Ep 2 is a piece of cake compared to the abomination that is Ep 1’s special stage 7…

30. I’ll take Modern Sonic over Classic Sonic any day. Sonic”s modern self is not only faster, but also athletic and flexible.

31. Well there’s a fine line between Good Hard and Bad Hard.

    And I think many of us can agree that BAD hard was collecting chaos emeralds in Sonic 2.

    To this day I cannot figure out what the programmers were thinking

32. Just great you idiots. Secret Rings and Black Knight was hated all the way because of their badass difficult level, Unleashed too (I mean day stages). The main thing is that modern sonic games are made to be played for everyone but ONLY hardcore players can play it as good to get sth like S-rank or mind-blowing speedrun time. Well it wasn’t very good in Generations but for now it’s ok. You remeber the Egg-Dragoon hard level in Generations? It was hard to beat this.

    1. Agreed.

    2. Black Knight fuuuuu- I loved that game. Don’t get me ranting about Lancelot, though.

       Unleashed Day stages were hard because I…Couldn’t…Really control Sonic well…Oops. Oh look, a cliff, I think I’ll drif-*Dies* ._.’

       Generations…You get S ranks left and right. Heck, I struggled to get A ranks back in Adventure 2, and once they added in an S rank I could never get those. Next thing I know in Generations, I’m getting them all the time XD

33. To be honest, the classics are very easy too, most old games are, the only classic sonic game thats turned hard for me weirdly now is Sonic 1 lol. the hardest old school games are classics on the commodore Amiga, i cant beat Turrican 2 without cheats DX

    1. Ecco the Dolphin begs to disagree 🙂

34. Lol special stage 7 was easy, I found ss4 to be the hardest :p

    (derp I have top score for ss7 on 360)

35. If you have a loose definition of difficulty, then making a harder difficulty is quite easy. Thought you could get past Eggmanland? Just make it so you have to do it without dying, suddenly the level’s hard as tits. And I’m afraid he’ll go the Sonic Heroes route, and make fast levels with Adventure controls, which is a big NO-NO. Games are different now. A tutorial is expected with every game even if its unnecessary. Back then, about 50% of games came with no tutorial and they threw you in without any explanation whatsoever, which was half the reason the game was difficult in the first place.

    I’m just saying that difficulty is very subjective. When you have to weave your way through an area by jumping about widely placed platforms and slide with relatively good timing, that’s true difficulty.

    When you have to jump past precariously placed platforms to hit a zipline placed over a sea of spikes, or even in Super Mario 3D Land, when you have to jump over the widest possible holes under a 30 second time limit with instant death LITERALLY following you at a half second delay, that’s not difficulty.

36. What the hell is this? Naka’s comment annoys me and I don’t agree with it. Actually, I’m really friggin tired of hearing the same old stupid argument, “Sonic sucks. Bring him back to his roots.”

    The Genesis/MegaDrive experience can’t be replicated. Why? Because times changed. Balough even confirmed that Episode II couldn’t have the exact same mechanics (picking up speed when rolling down a hill) because it would simply break the game. If you want everything to be the same, go play the classics.

    I have a lot of respect for Sega, and it’s not just because I’m a fan. They’ve always tried to do different things and I feel they’ve tried hard to please their fans. They don’t always get it right. They make some mistakes. It’s fine with me. Can you imagine what would happen if they stayed with the original formula and kept making the same 2D game over and over and over? It would be Sonic 15 in 2012, and everyone would be pissed that there’s nothing new in the series. We’d still wind up with the morons saying “Sonic sux. It’z BORING!!1!one”

    SA1 and SA2 were great games. The end of SA2 was challenging but not in the way the old ones were. It was downright unfair in some spots and completely frustrating (Crazy Gadget and Final Rush, specifically). If you skip over a few years where there was some lull in good console activity and fast forward to Unleashed, I still see these same gimmicks to increase the difficulty. So shut up, Naka.

    Unleashed was NOT an easy game. Yeah, you can fly through it and be done in a few hours.. but you can do that with ANY game. If you spent the time to unlock everything and get all the achievements, you’ll agree with me. Just for an example, if you played any Modern Warfare games in story mode it’s the same thing. I promise you after the last fight in Unleashed, I was absolutely satisfied (and totally relieved. >_>)

    I love how Sonic has grown. I can’t see how anyone could dislike the boost feature. It causes an adrenaline rush the first time you use it. I got it in Unleashed and I sure as hell got it in Generations again.

    So take your pick. Would you rather have Sega do nothing new or constantly try to innovate and bring new experiences to their fans?

    I want to add one more thing. Sonic is never going to be a game that appeals to everyone… just as shooting games, RPGs, etc won’t either. I don’t like Mario. I don’t like Final Fantasy. I don’t like Zelda. The idiots who do the reviews on these game rating websites love the games I just mentioned and always bash Sega endlessly. So screw them.

    Sega needs to keep doing what they’re doing: Innovating, growing, and trying to please their fanbase. As a long time fan, I am completely satisfied and I never feel like I’m screwed over. Capcom on the other hand…

    1. You didn’t even feel screwed over with ’06? You sure?

       1. I don’t bring that up. 🙂 That’s why the part about Sega not always getting it right was thrown in there.

       2. Hey, everyone gets drunk at the keyboard at least once…

          1. Not drunk. Accepting shit happens and then it got cleaned up. How long do people need to keep bringing up 06? Seriously. It happened. We all know it sucked. Okay. I can’t see why we can’t all just move on.

             1. Don’t tell that to me, I was making a joke.

    2. …hates their fans.Sad,isn’t it.

       1. It certainly is.

    3. People like you are who SEGA Orbi wants to be a part of the Sonic franchise brand. They are sick and tired of pandering to ungrateful pro-Nintendo,nickpicky,whiny,controlling, dumass furries like those over at TSSZ(Tristan just won’t leave the already debunked Dimensions hoax alone).

       Sonic is NOT Mario and never will be. SEGA wants to and will continue to try new ideas. SEGA realizes that pandering to Nintendo console owners will make things worse for the franchise(which is why they consider this Dimensions idea completely stupid and idiotic.) In order to continue its experimental approach to the series, SEGA is seeking a new demographic. PS3’s 77 million userbase is the first step considering that about 30% of those were actually SEGA fans 15 years back who had abandoned SEGA during Bernie Stolar’s tenure and refused to come to Dreamcast’s aid. Many of these people will eventually soon abandon Sony and return to SEGA.

    4. Very true, all of it. If the same formula was used like that forever, the franchise would be comparable to things like eating nothing but plain ham and cheese sandwiches for 20+ years, or the newer Mario games.

    5. I do agree, although Naka didn’t say the series sucked. He just commented on lack of difficulty, which, I admit, I agree with. That doesn’t mean there haven’t been difficult levels and fights – Lancelot and Eggmanland come to mind – but I just feel like a little something is missing. I’m glad they’re innovating, and listening to the fans (although they have to be careful not to try to shove ALL the ideas in a single game. Bad things happen XD).

       But, just a slight boost in difficulty would be nice. Although as someone stated earlier, it’s subjective. I suppose I would say I would like to be a little frustrated…Because then when I finally beat it, I’d feel such a great sense of satisfaction (Eggmanland and Dark Gaia, yeah I was thrilled beating them).

       And, uh, I’m not particularly fond of the Boost. It’s not bad, I just sometimes wish it didn’t revolve around them…And that I could explore more XD I love trying to find easter eggs.

37. Naka makes epic games like unleashed and sonic and the blAck knight etc..
    idk im happy with every thing what they make and i agree sega must make a game SONIC VS MARIo

    1. Sonic appearing on Nintendo system(not counting a handheld because they FULLY support 3DS) as rival would make no sense at all.

       He’ll have to appear on a SEGA system in order to become a rival to Mario once again. That’s what Naka is hinting at(Naka has publicly admitted again and again he wants SEGA to make a Dreamcast 2.)

38. Sonuc unleashed is awesome they must make part 2 of it or same gameplay the new games are fun but must be a bit harder satbk was epic one and the classics were to easy so i don,t agree with naka but he maked good sonic game 2011-2012 when nake left they game were easyer

    1. Naka wasn’t a part of the production of either Black Knight or Unleashed. If he was, those games would have been vastly different, or might not have come into existence at all.

39. Yuji Naka needs to fuck off, We all remember it was him that killed the sonic franchise after SA2. Naka does not know WTF he’s talking about when he said the recent sonic games have been much easier, Sonic Colors had it’s share of difficulty levels especially asteroid coaster and starlight carnival , sonic 4 episode 1′s special stages (ESPECIALLY THE LAST SPECIAL STAGE) the later levels of sonic unleashed. Sonic Generations Egg Dragoon Boss Sonic & The Secret Rings later stages and the sonic riders games.

    1. Ep 1’s special stage CAN GO TO HELL!

    2. Seriously? The very man who was involved & was the key guy behind the original series’s engines, should “fuck off”? You need to lay off the drugs mate.

40. Thank you LtH! I have been saying that for ages and I agree completely. Sonic is always trying something different which is why I like the franchise.

    Mario on the other hand(although can be fun) is never different apart from the Mario and Luigi/Paper Mario games. Which goes A) Peach invites Mario. B) Peach gets Kidnapped. C) Mario collects Shiny objects D) Mario fights boss. E) Repeat C and D till final comfrontation. F) Celebrate victory. G) Wait till next game where process starts from A again.

    Sonic meanwhile usually is quite different(both in gameplay and in plot) Sure it’s mostly always Eggman but Eggman never tries the same method twice.

    Sonic has developed over the years and we need to remember that.

    oh as for difficulty, if you think sonic games are too easy now….play kirby epic yarn where failure is just near impossible.

41. Sonic games should have adjustable difficulty settings. That’ll solve the problem.

    1. I understand why the games are made easier but this is in line with wwhat they usually do. Ignore the older audience. Perhaps they should expand the idea of multiple routes. The more difilcult routes should be longer in length.It’s cheap that in Sonic games, teh better you are, the less experience you get in the game. Only by taking expert level routes can you achieve S rank.

42. When you get an S rank in your first run through of a level- or an A rank when you refuse to press “X” and use the boost in your first run-through of the whole game (of coarse because the game is fun enough at the standard running speed and to experience the boost feature as a bonus should increase replay value) you know that the game is TOO DAMN EASY!

43. Furthest I’ve gotten in Sonic 1/2/3 is Labyrinth Zone/Chemical Plant Zone/Marble Garden Zone respectively.

    I’ve completed Sonic Heroes, Shadow the Hedgehog and both Sonic Rush games.

    Make of that what you will.

    1. …dude you just suck.

       1. That ‘s just harsh.

       2. Woah… I was beating 1 2 and 3 by the time I was 4…

          Thank you gramps!! Hail the man who brought SEGA into my hands at such a young age. XD

    2. Chemical Plant? The rest are understandable, but really? Chemical Plant? Smh

44. I think the difficulty is fair, after all, it’s not just teens and adults playing, but a lot of kids are too.
    I do like it in Sonic 06 though, because the levels were challenging, there were different twists with whichever character you played. The best thing though is that you get the challenge to try for an S rank at the end to win free mode. Now that IS hard. I’ve only completed Sonic and Silver’s all S rank, I need to work on Shadow’s now, but finally getting the all S ranks that I’ve got now, it feels awesome!!
    They should do that for the other games. That way you can finish the story then get a challenge after =)

45. Yes they have…yes they have…

46. Sure the Classic Era was hard…when we were children. It’s cake now.

    The kind of tasty, delicious, orgasmic cake that you get sick of eating after your third or fourth piece.

47. All you people hoping for a new SEGA console are grasping at straws. SEGA has said time and time again that they are not making new game systems. They’re content with being a 3rd-party publisher, and I’m fine with that. That means they can bring Sonic to the widest audience possible.

    SEGA was known for making overpriced and useless hardware expansions during the Genesis era. They had very little direction, and the only got things right with the Dreamcast. The Saturn was a complete flop, they rushed it to market, made it difficult to program for, and overpriced it compared to the PlayStation and N64. All of these blunders caused them to lose faith from their fans.

    And the PS2’s impending launch was the final nail in the coffin for their hardware division. People were more excited for the PS2, and SEGA just couldn’t keep up.

    So once again, SEGA has no plans to go down that torrid road again. Plus they’re in great financial trouble, they just cancelled many projects and had to downsize the company. The whole “Sega-Sammy” venture isn’t doing them any good. It would be best if SEGA just went completely independent again.

48. Jun Senoue completely, horribly, utterly, totally, undeniably, sickeningly, disgustingly, irritatingly, revoltingly, SUCKS at making music using classic instruments.

    For Episode 3, simply hire the Dreams Come True musicians again along with the lead composer for Sonic 1 and 2 Naofumi Hataya. Or at least just one of the other. Pay them whatever they want and quit being cheap using some Japanese hillbilly rocker to make such ear bleeding 16 bit techno music.

49. I kind of agree with Yuji Naka. The games had been getting reletively easier since Colours I believe. Generations was surprisingly easy, but it was really fun too. Episode II was a little bit more difficult than Episoide I in my opinion, & that Specialk Stage 7… Holy shit. It was insane, but so damn satisfying when completed – Yes, I did click on the Retry option multiple times, but I loved how it required good memoryu to play through it!

    I wouldn’t mind difficulty/challenge as in Sonic Unleashed (PS3/360 at least) – I remembered a mission I had to do to rescue a young girl in Shamar Day Stage in under 2 minutes! Bloody hell, my first few tries I only got halfway, later on I almost got there but was off by 20 seconds! After so many playthrough, I memorised & found shortcuts that got me to the end. I was so damn satisfied that that mission should’ve had a trophy!

    1. About halfway through the 342 times trying that mission, I kept asking myself “WHY AM I STILL DOING THIS?”, “HOW’D SHE GET OVER THERE?”, and “WHY CAN’T I JUST LET HER STARVE?!”

50. Modern Sonic games are difficult because sonic controls like rusted station wagon that’s way overdue for an oil change. Old school sonic handles like a finely tuned machine. I really miss momentum based speed and none of this “fast foward” button crap.

51. SEGA, try to bring all the old team sonic staff and you’ll probably end up selling just as good as a brand new mario blockbuster, or else you’ll continue with the avarage barely million and a half copy sales..

52. Ok as someone who likes most of the Modern titles (emphasis on most), I do have to agree with Naka here, that’s always been the one thing I’ve seen happen with Sonic titles. When Sonic Unleashed came out, I was hopeful that they would start making them challenigng again, but then Colors came. Don’t get me worng I like it, but it was piss easy, and while Generations was a little more challenging, it still was pretty easy (reached credits in 4 hours and got 1000/1000 gamerscore in two days). Don’t ge me wrong, Gens is easily my favorite Sonic title, but the game would have been even better if it offered a challenge to the player……….and some DLC.

53. As far as gaming goes, its true that difficulty isnt always necessary– however what makes a great game is something that sets challenges to overcome. The basis of Sonic was to get better each time, and clear the stage faster each time, involving progress. We still have that– though a bit dampened to be for a broader audience. As for the current challenging in the games, some do have their exceptions. But heres my experience wit the series so far:
    Sonic 1: Simple, fast, and challenging. You had to think fast at points, move through the stage carefully, and pace yourself. Since the spin dash wasnt invented, timing the roll was your only safe momentum tool on the run. To this day, the hardest special stages to date.
    SONIC 2,3, AND KNUCKLES: the gameplay remained the same, though much more room to run, new sheilds, and the spin dash to boot. Though watching your step and watching where you go was still part of the gameplay. As for those emeralds…. who could hate Blue speres, and the famous “tube” special stages?

    Sonic 3d Blast: Alot hate this game, but im not afraid to admit i enjoyed it when i had the Saturn. Still go back to it once in a while. Its P.O.V and design didnt really serve alot of speed-running, but its music and gameplay was unique. It wasnt too challenging, but did force the player to carefully progress and find the way around. However, its one of the easiest special stages i know, Sonic Heroes being the easiest by far.

    Sonic CD: same gameplay as first 2, but took lots of playtime and playthroughs to master. It was being developed around sonic 2’s time and its style shows. However, the main challenges where the obstacles and the change in difficulty depending on the time zone you were in (past, present, future). Especially the bad futures.
    sp. stages were of a medium challenge.

    ADVANCE SERIES: Game difficulty, not too hard– but not too easy. Special stages were a different story though.
    RUSH SERIES: Fun, fast, but bosses were really strategetic. As for sp. stages….. to cheat in Sonic Rush, it was pause, place stylus to move– unpause.
    SONIC ADVENTURE 1 and 2: Great game, great pace. You still got to go fast, but you DID have to be careful at times. Replay value was there, especially with the new chao. It was around here that sp. stages started appearing less and less (exceptions being ADVANCE series, RUSH series, and other handhelds, and SONIC HEROES) and the emeralds were a part of the stages themselves and the overall plots.
    SONIC HEROES: The team concept and gameplay was refreshing, fast, fun and new. It gave platforming, speed, and strategy all in one. Though the dialogue was cheesy, the game itself was fun, and challenging at times. Bosses actually showed some merit and challenge (and didnt go down in a few little hits). The sp. Stages were ridiculously easy though, but still colorful and fun.
    Shadow the hedgehog: Great game, but lacks in its replay value. Sure, over 300 ways to tell the story, and had a great concept– though the guns were out of place for a sonic game, it was an interesting dark touch in sonic’s world and had a decently fleshed out story. Difficult, challenging, and its fun does wear down after awhile.
    SONIC 06: I actually enjoyed this game. Its concepts werent bad…. but had it gotten more development this game would have been one of SEGA’s best. Its challenge level was great, and fun… however, its physics and glitches were more ridiculous and challenging then the gameplay itself. (walking up a loop, slowly sliding across water, running felt more like a sluggish jog than a sprint).
    UNLEASHED: NOW this game was challenging, as the drift was super hard to handle. And, as fast as boosting was– control was alot to get used to. And the designing of the levels were a challenge to boot, as the drift was needed to perfect a perfect turn if you wanted to avoid going off the trail, or go flying into a drop. AND Eggmanland was brutally long.
    COLORS: I never played colors, but ive heard its challenge was moderate. Lots of platforming though.

    GENERATIONS: While the game was short, and stages were able to be finished in no shorter than 2-3 minutes at the average pacing, the difficulty was obviously meant to range all player’s skill levels to bring in new players and old. Modern was actually easier than Unleashed and his Classic counterpart, but had astounding quality in design that made the game incredibly fun to play over and over. The bosse were hardly a big challenge, and there is little difference in NORMAL and HARD mode, but the gameplay made them still enjoyable.

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