S.L.W. Screenshots (P. 54) "Grammar Errors? This game is a sequel to Sonic's Schoolhouse!?"

[Milo]

Still, I have to wonder how they didn't solve this problem in the five years they've had the engine. They were close in Generations but now have just seemed to of given up. Also, remember that the Wii U is a tad bit more powerful than the 360/PS3. I just can't think of a strong reason why they couldn't of produced something that at least went beyond Generations. I'm all for cartoons and still think SLW is good for what it is, but the whole planetoid approach just seems unnecessarily simplistic. Especially with those dessert and desert levels. This technique wasn't the best route they could of taken.

 

I remember some of us last year about whether Sonic Team should continue use of the Hedgehog Engine. A lot of the people who said nay said that compared to other game engines that other companies are using, the Hedgehog Engine is ?p=586009. Also worth noting that the Hedgehog Engine in Generations is a optimized version of the Unleashed version. By optimized, I mean it has been toned down in it's graphical capabilities, at least compared to the Unleashed version.

Edited July 21, 2013 by Gabe the Grouch

[Blitz 'n Burst]

Still, I have to wonder how they didn't solve this problem in the five years they've had the engine. They were close in Generations but now have just seemed to of given up. Also, remember that the Wii U is a tad bit more powerful than the 360/PS3. I just can't think of a strong reason why they couldn't of produced something that at least went beyond Generations. I'm all for cartoons and still think SLW is good for what it is, but the whole planetoid approach just seems unnecessarily simplistic. Especially with those dessert and desert levels. This technique wasn't the best route they could of taken.

Um, what? They're using the exact same engine, if not a better one. The environments being more simplistic than those of Unleashed and Generations has nothing to do with the lighting engine

[Sega DogTagz]

 Also, remember that the Wii U is a tad bit more powerful than the 360/PS3. I just can't think of a strong reason why they couldn't of produced something that at least went beyond Generations.

 

That doesn't matter as much as you would think for 2 very important reasons.

 

1. Lost World did not begin life as a WiiU title, meaning it can't be as perfectly optimized to run on the console, as something that was designed with that architecture in mind from the ground up. Sonic Team probably had never seen, let alone gotten their hands on a dev kit for the new console before they broke ground on SLW.... which leads us to the second point,

 

2 This is a first effort. Every console cycle will have growing pains as devs figure out the little quirks of the hardware and how to maximize output. Over time, they may well figure out a formula to working with Gens level detail and maintaining 60 fps. Right now, that's not entirely feasible considering what ST has put onto home consoles so far (to say nothing of the interactive nature of the new parkour system).

[Milo]

That doesn't matter as much as you would think for 2 very important reasons.

 

1. Lost World did not begin life as a WiiU title, meaning it can't be as perfectly optimized to run on the console, as something that was designed with that architecture in mind from the ground up. Sonic Team probably had never seen, let alone gotten their hands on a dev kit for the new console before they broke ground on SLW.... which leads us to the second point,

 

Do you have a source for this?

[Bouldergeist]

Well at least you live up to your name TwiceStyle

[Scar]

 

2 This is a first effort. Every console cycle will have growing pains as devs figure out the little quirks of the hardware and how to maximize output. Over time, they may well figure out a formula to working with Gens level detail and maintaining 60 fps. Right now, that's not entirely feasible considering what ST has put onto home consoles so far (to say nothing of the interactive nature of the new parkour system).

 

Shouldn't be too hard with the Wii U, seeing as its just a more powerful Wii. The other two consoles are effectively PC's, but with a unified pool of RAM.

[SilentDoom]

Do you have a source for this?

 

http://www.sonicstadium.org/2013/06/tss-e3-takashi-iizuka-interview-pure-platforming-action/

 

 

 

TSS – What was the reason for going exclusively with Nintendo on these three upcoming Sonic games?

 

Iizuka – When we were first developing Sonic Lost World, the Wii U was not even announced yet and we were developing it on PC. So, the Wii U was the right choice for a couple of reasons. First of all, the second screen gave us extra options and advantages also, we think the Wii U is where fans of action platform games are going to. Plus we’ve had much success with Nintendo in the past.

Edited July 21, 2013 by SiLeNtDo0m

[Milo]

http://www.sonicstadium.org/2013/06/tss-e3-takashi-iizuka-interview-pure-platforming-action/

 

Alright then, just looking for clarification.

[TwiceStyle]

Well at least you live up to your name TwiceStyle

It's actually a very, veeerrrry obscure Homestar Runner reference.

[Bouldergeist]

Never heard of it.....

[Strickerx5]

I remember some of us last year about whether Sonic Team should continue use of the Hedgehog Engine. A lot of the people who said nay said that compared to other game engines that other companies are using, the Hedgehog Engine is ?p=586009. Also worth noting that the Hedgehog Engine in Generations is a optimized version of the Unleashed version. By optimized, I mean it has been toned down in it's graphical capabilities, at least compared to the Unleashed version.

 

Which brings me back to my first question, could they honestly not find a solution to this problem in the five years they've had the engine? In this industry, that's an awful lot of time to work with. While Generations did run off a down graded HE, it still turned up more advanced levels than what we're getting now. I just find it hard to believe that nothing could of been done to fix these issues. Issues that I'm sure other developers are able to power through without such a drastic change.

 

 

Um, what? They're using the exact same engine, if not a better one. The environments being more simplistic than those of Unleashed and Generations has nothing to do with the lighting engine

 

I guess I should make what I'm talking about a bit clearer here. The planetoid approach is an overly simplistic solution that didn't need to happen. It might be the HE running in this game, I don't know... Has that even been confirmed yet? Also, it's hard to even tell how much the lighting has been messed with since the whole structure of the game doesn't lend itself to highlighting it. They might be using a better gameplay engine but as far as graphics go, it's definitely not better than what we had before.

 

 

That doesn't matter as much as you would think for 2 very important reasons.

 

1. Lost World did not begin life as a WiiU title, meaning it can't be as perfectly optimized to run on the console, as something that was designed with that architecture in mind from the ground up. Sonic Team probably had never seen, let alone gotten their hands on a dev kit for the new console before they broke ground on SLW.... which leads us to the second point,

 

2 This is a first effort. Every console cycle will have growing pains as devs figure out the little quirks of the hardware and how to maximize output. Over time, they may well figure out a formula to working with Gens level detail and maintaining 60 fps. Right now, that's not entirely feasible considering what ST has put onto home consoles so far (to say nothing of the interactive nature of the new parkour system).

 

Shouldn't development on PC mean for an even higher goal in output? Even if this isn't the case shouldn't Sonic Team have at least tried to go past what they did in Generations like most developers do (and did)? I'm well aware of the struggles new hardware brings but I hardly think such a downgrade was the only answer.

[Voyant]

Shouldn't development on PC mean for an even higher goal in output? Even if this isn't the case shouldn't Sonic Team have at least tried to go past what they did in Generations like most developers do (and did)? I'm well aware of the struggles new hardware brings but I hardly think such a downgrade was the only answer.

 

Other companies also aren't making Sonic levels that are literally 7 miles long and wide, with incredible draw distances that Sonic can run through in 3 Minutes TOPS at 300 miles per hour. Sonic Unleashed is literally the fastest game ever made in not just execution, but in game feel. 

 

The WiiU isn't much different in power compared to current consoles and its new architecture is different. WiiU doesn't have a PC like architecture, while I'm sure a game developed on PC would be easier to port to the PS4/XBone even more so than current gen. 

 

So the answer is quite simple...current gen consoles cannot handle the engine at its full power. You can't compare the engine to others simply for the fact that its meant to do completely different actions than what Epic or Crytech do. To run Generations on PC  with everything maxed, you had to have a system that could run BF3 just as well at the time. Also remember The Hedgehog engine used in Generations was the TONED down version not the original...the engine is very demanding even when it was weakened for Generations there still was issues.

 

They probably didn't want these problems in performance to translate in the new generation, so they took a different route...targeted 1080p and 60 frames (which is really going to pay off), and went from there. I'm 99% positive that the game that comes out for the PS4/Xbone will please all the "I need my pretty graphics crowd". Considering that those system are far easier to develop for than current gen and the WiiU. The added power and space on disk will help them mold the Sonic Unleashed they really wanted to make without having to cut back. Now that I think about it imagine if Unleashed came out next gen...it would blow people minds away.

Edited July 21, 2013 by Voyant

[KrazyBean]

Other companies also aren't making Sonic levels that are literally 7 miles long and wide, with incredible draw distances that Sonic can run through in 3 Minutes TOPS at 300 miles per hour. Sonic Unleashed is literally the fastest game ever made in not just execution, but in game feel. 

 

The WiiU isn't much different in power compared to current consoles and its new architecture is different. WiiU doesn't have a PC like architecture, while I'm sure a game developed on PC would be easier to port to the PS4/XBone even more so than current gen. 

 

So the answer is quite simple...current gen consoles cannot handle the engine at its full power. You can't compare the engine to others simply for the fact that its meant to do completely different actions than what Epic or Crytech do. To run Generations on PC  with everything maxed, you had to have a system that could run BF3 just as well at the time. Also remember The Hedgehog engine used in Generations was the TONED down version not the original...the engine is very demanding even when it was weakened for Generations there still was issues.

 

They probably didn't want these problems in performance to translate in the new generation, so they took a different route...targeted 1080p and 60 frames (which is really going to pay off), and went from there. I'm 99% positive that the game that comes out for the PS4/Xbone will please all the "I need my pretty graphics crowd". Considering that those system are far easier to develop for than current gen and the WiiU. The added power and space on disk will help them mold the Sonic Unleashed they really wanted to make without having to cut back. Now that I think about it imagine if Unleashed came out next gen...it would blow people minds away.

 

Perfect explanation. He's right...that's why I said that for the people who are really disappointed with the graphics should wait for the PS4/Xbox One Sonic game. That game will surely make your eyes gush, guaranteed.

[Kuzu]

Perfect explanation. He's right...that's why I said that for the people who are really disappointed with the graphics should wait for the PS4/Xbox One Sonic game. That game will surely make your eyes gush, guaranteed.

 

Don't see why this means we can't criticize what we have in front of us right now :\

[Autosaver]

I really hope they don't stick with this art style. Poor Sonic looks so strange in it...

 

 

Looks great to me.

Edited July 21, 2013 by Autosaver

[KrazyBean]

Don't see why this means we can't criticize what we have in front of us right now :\

 

I didn't say you can't criticize it...but, the fact is that it would change nothing, the game is done. All I'm saying is that if you want an extremely pretty Sonic game with no major technical issues, then your best bet is to wait for the PS4/Xbox One Sonic game.

Edited July 21, 2013 by KrazyBean

[TheOcelot]

 

 

Looks great to me.

 

It really does. It has a certain charm to it.

 

I'm so pleased Sonic Team have brought back movesets from previous Sonic games. I was starting to think they never would. The gameplay looks so different from the boost era, which can only be a good thing IMO.  

[MegasonicZX]

I just hope that no ones considering not buying this game because of the visuals alone.

[Stritix]

I'm starting to really like the new art style. It's very charming.

[TwiceStyle]

I just hope that no ones considering not buying this game because of the visuals alone.

I might give it a go, but I'm very judgemental of art and design.

[Bouldergeist]

There are parts which sonic team haven't revealed yet, The other 3 zones, The boss fights, The last zone won't be revealed until you play the game so it doesn't spoil our experience but the 2 other zones will probably be revealed sometime in mid august and september and the story itself we don't know what will happen, hopefully this is a story worthy than sonic generations and colours with interesting parts and not a lot of jokes everytime in cutscenes

[Hyper-Shan]

Looks great to me.

I know I've mentioned that one stage of the forest/owl act reminded me of Majora's Mask a little bit, but now from looking at that 3rd picture... That is one crazy moon (or whatever the purple dude was holding before)! O__O'

[Lady Soniko]

It's a bomb or some form of thrown projectile, that might be from Zazz's actual boss fight, you never know, these screenshots are kinda random in most regards.

[Stritix]

The jungle zone seems to be quite unique. I hope we can get some proper footage of it soon.

[Kareemadeem]

Sonic Lost World Frozen Factory Act One (3DS) Screenshots: