The Spin: What is Going on With Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice?

27 Comments

1. Completely agree; it’s puzzling that we haven’t had any more information. I agree with each and every single thing said in this article completely and have thought as much for a while, so it’s nice to see a post about it. I’d definitely want more information before a purchase, but I had a fairly good time with the first one, so if it were on par I’d likely get it anyways. But how can I know if it’s on par if there is no information? Hopefully we get something, anything, soon.

2. I know I’ve defended SC and F&I a couple times, but don’t confuse that for me having much investment in them or what they introduced. Fire and Ice hasn’t really changed that. Heck, its likely just a licensed game that serves as a minor improvement over the previous title. Its obviously not a main focus and there’s nothing Sega could do to inspire confidence in the title in a gaming community that has already written off Sonic Boom games as automatically crap. Heck, despite having minimal information released, people still think F&I is being shoved down our throats. The best it can really do is try to appeal to parents whose children like the show, and that’s best done through kids toys and television advertisements (which will likely be aired closer to the game’s release). Is that what I want? No, not particularly, I’d much prefer Sega to have a bit of patience and take time to make major improvements to SC. Do I think that it should be treated with the level of offense and insult which this article implies it deserves? Also no.

   To quote Shaddy from SSMB:

   “Honestly, is it really that hard to predict what it’ll be anyway? We know the full plot. We’ve seen the main villain. we can see all the major gameplay changes, and we’ve been told the non-core changes. I see shattered crystal with no medals, more and faster-paced levels, and more bosses (also that fire and ice thing but who cares about that).”

   TL,DR: There’s only so much you can say about a game like Fire and Ice without making fabrications, and its clear that its not much of a main focus for Sega right now.

   Also, before you assume that I hate this article, no, I don’t. This was an interesting read and I understand Hogfather’s frustrations, even if I feel he’s getting more angry than the situation calls for. Ooh, a poll! I have some personal experiences with SA3/True Sonic Spirit, so I’d be interested to see the Hogfather perspective on the matter.

   1. I’m not getting angry. It’s more “I don’t play this ‘trust me’ or ‘it’s too early to tell/judge game'” I need to see this game, I need information about it, being silent doesn’t win me or others over, it’s only going to hurt Sega in the long run since people don’t buy games they know virtually nothing about or that haven’t been promotion.

      Just search something like “Games which were sent to die” and you’ll find tons of examples of this.

      1. Ah I see. You come off as such, what with the Wizard of Oz quote and all. Though thinking with your response in mind, I probably just misinterpreted your frustration. Which again, I don’t blame you for.

         As for the promotion thing, my point was less “Its ok that this kind of stuff is happening and we should all just wait until the game comes out” and more “this is really not weird all things considered and there likely isn’t much more to say about F&I.”

      2. I tried Googling that out of curiosity. The only result was… this page!

3. It’s odd that we had no information but the same with project diva DX,
   Nintendo is in charge of advertisement of sonic boom, project diva and others.
   But project diva just got its first trailer last week and the game gets released next week…
   So something going on in the advertisement department

   1. Who knows what goes on behind Sega’s doors?

   2. I mentioned this a few times now but, I think the SoA relocation has something to do with this.

      1. Yeah probably. I think Sega in general has been busier than we give it credit for.

4. Normally when there’s little informatio about it, it’s always a bad sign. No hype, no press, no big bombastic release like the previous Boom games. So either SEGA KNOWS this game will be shit too and is focusing on damage control like last time or Sanzaru Games wants us to figure out most of it ourselves. Which, to be fair, can work; Scott Cawthon is a master at this type of advertising. But at least he gave us SOMETHING to work with. ANYTHING.

5. I’m honestly excited for this because i do like Boom as well as Shattered Crystal. However i do agree that there should be more info on this game. maybe it’s because they want to show that Boom is not taking over the franchise, maybe it’s because people will just complain just like everything with boom so far, who knows. My thoughts, I don’t think people should be so hard to judge this game and say it’s gonna suck just because the last ones did (Honestly i didn’t think they were as terrible as people say they were, just mediocre) but i do see the reasoning of your article and you did make some good solid points

6. ok i have a feeling that something like this will happen yeah people are not gonna buy sonic boom fire and ice because the first spin off was horrible for the sonic fans and i dont think they will want another spin off for sonic boom so technical i think some fans will be spending there money and buy this game soon as they play it they will think its crap and they will say its a bad game like sonic 06 and they will complain about SEGA saying to stop making sonic boom game because they will say its terrible i dont want SEGA to go downsize again after what happen in februay because of BigRedButton next year i hope SEGA come up with a 25th anniversary title and put it on every console maybe they will call it Sonic Origins instead of calling it sonic generations 2 and sonic colors 2 thats what fans talk about so i was thinking the best title will be sonic origins.

7. Excellent article, Hogfather.

   I’ve been defending this game for a while, but at this point, in September… there needs to be more information. I understand why they may not be showing anything. After all, most of the fanbase is pretty…. let’s say, “ambivalent” on the matter, at best. I understand that they don’t want to further decrease the franchise’s popularity by continuously showcasing the game that fans believe is “shoved down their throats.” But…. at the same time, how are people supposed to be convinced the game is good, and that the Boom label really shouldn’t dictate its quality… if there’s nothing to show this? Yes, I personally trust Sanzaru. Yes, I believe it’ll be “eh” at worst, but good at best. Yes, I am indeed looking forward to what new stuff they have in mind, especially since it’s claimed there are higher production values…. but we need some information. We have gotten no news on the game for several months, and it’s releasing THIS year. That’s an issue.

   To answer your question, Hogfather, yes… I’d buy the game if it came out tomorrow. But that’s because it’s what I do. I buy Sonic games, good, great, awesome, outstanding, or amazing. …. Or awful. But the issue is that not everyone buys these out of fan loyalty like me. I think that it should be ME who decides if I like the game or not, so I pick it up. I don’t like reviewers doing it for me, especially in a world where reviewers are getting less and less credible. However, SEGA isn’t doing a good job in enthusing people to make them believe the game will be good either. I feel faithful that it’ll be an alright 3DS spin-off, but can we at least get some screenshots? I’d like another trailer by now.

8. I think it’s less “we have no confidence in the product” as it is “we are moving and do not have the money to market a smaller budget game aimed at children who watch the cartoon until near release”. Let’s go over a few things here shall we?

   FACT 1 – Sega have not attended E3 or Comic Con or many other shows for ANY of their games this year. Tembo got a release date about a week before release with no advertising. A demo and trailer for the new Hatsune Miku 3DS game just went up a week or two ago and the game comes out tomorrow. Did you know Fighting Climax is coming in October? Because there certainly isn’t any advertising for that one yet either.

   Sega of America has been going through a transition phase. Not only shrinking their workforce, but moving from San Fran to Burbank. They don’t have much in the way of games to show this year, so they haven’t been out in force like previous years. As an attendee to E3 this year, I should know.

   FACT 2 – Sonic Boom is not SegaSonic. It is a spinoff franchise based on a cartoon show. THIS IS NOT IN ANY WAY A MAJOR SONIC TITLE. It has more in common with a Spongebob Squarepants or Pac-Man in the Ghostly Adventures game than it does something like Sonic Rush. It’s a low-budget game meant to be sold more to kids who love the show than old-school Sonic fans. It’s for a different demographic that usually doesn’t have major advertising. It’s meant to be a fun, little platformer for pushing the Sonic Boom brand. Not be the next Sonic Generations.

   And yet, it’s still getting a Carl’s Jr./Hardees kids meal promotion with toys attached because as I said before, KIDS DEMOGRAPHIC. That alone is a bigger marketing push than any other their other titles are getting this year. It WILL get trailers closer to release I’m sure and maybe even a demo the week or two before the game.

   There is no controversy here. None of Sega’s game this year have gotten a marketing push until near release and this game is no different. Do I think this is gonna be the best Sonic 3DS game? No, it’ll probably be just above average at best. But I’m expecting average at most.

   I hated hunting down items through large maps and the stop and go experience of last years Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal, but I thought the game engine was decent and the Rival races were fun. If they are fixing those major two problems with the last game, I think it can still be a solid title.

   In the meantime….HAVE SOME DANG PATIENCE! Lots of games don’t get any marketing until a few weeks before release. Why should this game be any different?

   1. One other thing.

      Sonic Runners is a much bigger Sonic game this year than Fire and Ice and we didn’t even know of it’s existence until about 2 months before it’s soft launch. Even then, we didn’t get a worldwide release date until mere DAYS before they released it! And your surprised Fire and Ice hasn’t gotten a mention since E3? Really?

      1. Yeah, because Runners is a digital only free to play game which costs a fraction of what F&I costs, packaging, worldwide distribution, voice actor fees etc etc.

         Where is the promotion for it?

         Unlike Runners which has a tiny cost therefore can afford to be handled this way, a 3DS game like this can’t, it needs to show itself in order to try and make some money back on development costs.

         Not to mention it’s an outsourced project, Sanzaru are probably equally frustrated about the lack of exposure on the title just because it’s work they’re doing which is being ignored or not being promoted by anyone.

         1. Like most other mobile games, Runners has the opportunity to be far more profitable. You think Fire and Ice costs more to make than Runners? I doubt that. Fire and Ice is going of last years Shattered Crystal engine and working from that, where Sonic Runners is all new, has a ton of new music from Ohtani, has servers up and running for connections to the game and monthly events. Fire and Ice’s biggest expense is probably the voice acting for cutscenes.

            Sanzaru is more famous for Sly Cooper 4 than this game. Try Game Freak. The developers of Pokemon games work on something new and Sega hardly pushes it. As I said before, Sega’s only been pushing their games very close to release and Fire and Ice is no exception.

            1. Am I misreading the second to last sentence or did you really just say SEGA is responsible for marketing Pokemon games?!

9. I know this a bit tangent from the the main topic, but given that I don’t really give a damn about Sonic Steam, My focus was on that Platinum statement about their lack of advertising: I totally agree that Platinum should advertise a lot more and that could of helped with titles like Wonderful 101 or Anarchy Reigns. But I’m not sure that their lack of advertising has to do with ONLY a lack of a marketing budget. After all, when they where with SEGA, they advertised the hell out of Bayoneta and Metal Gear Rising had a decent marketing push.

   Consider the games that they make: hardcore, twitch heavy, difficult action games with a very Japanese taste in mind. Not exactly the same audience that swallows the load from EA, Activision and Ubisoft these days. Western tastes has changed since the days of the PS2 and so fewer Eastern companies (outside of Nintendo) don’t market their games as much anymore. Platinum has instead used their reputation and word of mouth advertising to target their loyal fans to buy their games and attract like minded people. I mean, they still raise awareness through social media and game announcements, but other than for licensed games like Korra and the new Transformers game, I’m not sure Platinum is going out of their way to connect with new and general audiences. They seem to be doing just fine just targeting their niche for the time being.

   1. I was really sad when they didn’t advertise The Wonderful 101 more… I rather enjoyed the game, but it was quickly forgotten by gaming news media and general Nintendo fans.

10. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_5SBio_Sl_c

11. Even with all the confident in the world and having a nice magic trick up their sleeves, the old negative reception will effect this Game’s first impression. This is a hard decision. Saying anything could be bad move. I know the PR probably known this. At this point, minimizing damage is the best strategy….. for now.

12. Regardless of what SEGA does or doesn’t do the “Sonic fans” will hate it simply for not being a remake of Sonic 2 or Sonic 3 and Knuckles.

    1. Well said.

13. Pingback: GameFly lists Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice (3DS) for Dec 31 2016 in NA | The Sonic Stadium
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15. Aaron put a tag that said “its gonna be way better than the first one”

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