Let's discuss what could've been using our imagination; Sonic '06 Wii.

[Hero of Legend]

For those who don't know (don't worry, it was mentioned only twice was it?) by Yojiro Ogawa, the director of Secret Rings that they originally intended to port Sonic the Hedgehog for the Xbox 360 and PS3 (a.k.a. Sonic '06, a.k.a. Sonic the Fresh One) for the Wii.

However, SEGA realized that they would not be able to complete the port that close to the Wii's launch (how much longer, we'll never know), so SEGA thought they could get Sonic on the Wii faster with a brand-new, built for the ground-up game, and to do this, they got a much larger team (larger team from SEGA, or just SEGA/Sonic Team + NOW PRO who did the Party Mode, I'm not sure).

The info mostly comes from Nintendo Power issue 213 which I should have, but having just moved, it's like the one damn issue I can't find, figures huh? If someone has it on-hand, could you transcribe that section if the interview please? It's on pages 32-36 apparently.

Here's the IGN interview with their bit:

http://wii.ign.com/articles/761/761723p1.html

IGN: When was it decided to create a Sonic title for Wii?

Yojiro Ogawa: As a company we have to develop for multiple platforms. So although Sonic was already being developed for PS3 and 360 we were told to release something close to the launch of Wii. I felt that we had to create something very different that felt new.

IGN: Did you considering porting the 360 or PS3 version?

Yojiro Ogawa: If we had done that the game would have been delayed by quite a long time. We would have needed to wait for the PS3 and 360 teams to finish their development. Since we knew that we had to release the game sooner, we realised we had to create something different.

Looking at the Wii remote we saw that we could create a unique game. Also, because the game was coming out near the console's launch we knew that we had to use the Wii remote in a fun and interesting way.

For example, when the DS launched we had a game called Project Rub that used all the different functions of the console to create a fun experience. At one point we were going to release a similar party game-style title starring Sonic but we thought it would be better to create a new Sonic adventure game instead.

But the point of this thread is to discuss would we think could've been, especially after it turned out that playing Sonic '06 as opposed to watching it through playthroughs is a fate worse than death and Secret Rings turned out to be at least okay with a lot of potential (that potential which would not be explored or was even destroyed with Black Knight. (I think it's okay, just think of it as a different, not the usual kind of Sonic game)).

Would Sonic '06 for Wii have somehow been better because it'd have to be adjust for it and maybe much of the problems could've been magically avoided? What if Dimps was called in to do it ala Unleashed Wii (and PS2)?

Keep it clean, but funny remarks about the released version's glitches are always good for a laugh. XD

Shame we have nothing in terms of assets or anything other than the knowledge that it was going to happen and the experience of Unleashed making it to Wii (and PS2) to give us an idea.

Edit: I forgot to add, this is pretending that this came out AS WELL as Secret Rings ala Unleashed Wii and Black Knight, those were only a few months apart, same would've been in this case; that it hypothetically came out Nov '06, and Secret Rings came out in Feb/Mar '07, just for the hell of it so that people don't go "but I like Secret Rings".

Edited August 8, 2010 by Hero of Legend

[Derg]

Seeing as many sources have claimed that the PS3 port of the game was inferior even with more months of development, I think the wii version would have been the worst. The game was rushed, and if they couldn't get the high quality needed in time for the intended consoles, the wii version would be impossible in hoping for anything better. It would have only dragged the HD ports lower while also being terrible in itself, in that they would have needed to sacrifice more people to port the HD ideas and gameplay to a system that isn't as easily as able to port. Seeing as how the Secret Rings was better received and didn't have to be rushed, it at least helped Sonic become popular on the wii, regardless of the dispute of its own merits.

[Saint Nathan]

Please, I don't want too. Seekret Ringz was awesome.

And '06 port would be like drinking raw piss. I can't see how it would be better at all.

oh damn, i forgot to make a wii pun about sucky games and penises.

[Hero of Legend]

Please, I don't want too. Seekret Ringz was awesome.

And '06 port would be like drinking raw piss. I can't see how it would be better at all.

oh damn, i forgot to make a wii pun about sucky games and penises.

There, I forgot to add that we're pretending that both games came out, not just '06.

[PC the Hedgehog]

Considering I enjoyed playing '06 more than Secret Rings...I think it would've been pretty decent.

Plus, I wouldn't have had to shell out the money for a 360 back then.

[Rusty Spy]

A Wii version of 06 would make it the 06 who is to 06 HD what 06 is to Sonic games.

[Saint Nathan]

There, I forgot to add that we're pretending that both games came out, not just '06.

Oh.

It would still be shit and I wouldn't buy it.

oh hold on i have to make the pun now

It'll be a sucky game on the wii, it'll be like sucking a lollypop!

oh fuck. i screwed up.

[Pikachu in a Sombrero]

Hard to say, really. I imagine that it would've had a shorter development time than its HD superior, which might make it even more of a rushed game. However, I guess there's a tiny chance SEGA would've asked Dimps to help them on it, and Dimps has never let me down before.

Edited August 8, 2010 by Pikachu in a Sombrero

[Sega DogTagz]

The only thing I could imagine the Wii adding to 06 would be a point and click interface for Silver’s telekinesis. While it would lead to a much more precise system, it would also pull a Werehog and compound on the already slow nature of Silver’s stages. Not to mention the added precision would allow dev’s to send a few more puzzles in Silver’s direction, which by all accounts would only make people RAGE harder (I swear the stone ball puzzle gets almost as much hate as the Barrel of Doom).

Outside of that, the Wii can’t really do much special in regards to 06. I don’t think Sega is interested in bringing Sonic games to the Wii 1:1 with the HD counterparts though. So for all we know a Wii 06 would have featured different stages and a completely re-imagined setup.

[Speederino]

The only thing I could imagine the Wii adding to 06 would be a point and click interface for Silver’s telekinesis. While it would lead to a much more precise system, it would also pull a Werehog and compound on the already slow nature of Silver’s stages. Not to mention the added precision would allow dev’s to send a few more puzzles in Silver’s direction, which by all accounts would only make people RAGE harder (I swear the stone ball puzzle gets almost as much hate as the Barrel of Doom).

That might have actually been kinda cool, since I thought Silver's story was the only (somewhat) bearable part of the entire game. But I'm glad it never came out on the Wii. The game doesn't deserve to be on three platforms, let alone one.

[Sapphire]

I probably would have gotten 06 much sooner than I did, being that I had a Wii over a year before I got a PS3.

And I would have just experienced the pain sooner than I actually did. And it would have been even more painful with the worse graphics and gimmicky controls.

[Octarine]

I dunno; I'm genuinely curious about this. A down-port to the Wii would probably require so much to be redone from scratch that the result might've been a better game. Definitely unlikely, and it certainly wouldn't do anything to fix the serious story problems, but it's conceivable that the gameplay and loading times could've seen some improvement.

I know we're supposed to assume for the purposes of this exercise that Secret Rings would've happened anyway, but I have to add that my biggest problem with hypothetically getting a Wii '06 in the place of Secret Rings is that it would've shared its soundtrack with soundtrack with '06 HD. If '06 Wii had happened, the place would never have been rocked.

[jennytablina]

I dunno; I'm genuinely curious about this. A down-port to the Wii would probably require so much to be redone from scratch that the result might've been a better game. Definitely unlikely, and it certainly wouldn't do anything to fix the serious story problems, but it's conceivable that the gameplay and loading times could've seen some improvement.

Sonic Unleashed Wii says "lol no"

Had Sonic 06 been a Wii title, it would of very likely been a downgraded port like Unleashed was. It might of had the benefit at least of possibly having less loading screens (we can wish right?) and cutting out some of the really dumb map missions. But I would of been very surprised if 06 Wii had been anything more than that. It might of changed the maps or something but it still would of been a low poly port IMO

That and it would of had added waggle as Nintendo seemed very keen early on to get devs to use it. While I'm more of an advocate for Wii than some, even I think Sonic 06 with added waggle would of made a stressful playing experience WORSE.

[Diogenes]

I can't imagine that an '06 Wii would've made things any better for anyone. They couldn't even manage '06 as it is; even if they absorbed the resources that would've gone into Secret Rings, I still doubt '06 would've been anything more than crap no matter which version you're looking at. And if we're proposing Secret Rings still happened as-is, that would only stretch their resources tighter. I think the only way things could've gone better than what we got, is if it caused '06 to fall behind even more, to the point where even whoever let real-world '06 go out couldn't justify selling a game so blatantly unfinished, and delayed it long enough to fix it up.

Even then, I think '06 had plenty of problems in the conceptual stage, so it'd probably turn out just bad rather than horrible. Arguably that could've made things even worse in the long run; without '06 being such a big stinking stain on the series, they might not have been shaken up enough to try Unleashed and Colors, the latter of which looks like it may be the best 3D Sonic we've had in a long time.

[azoo]

If it would've been for the Wii, it could've been a much better game. Since SADX and SA2B proved the SA engine was working pretty good on the Gamecube (and that the Wii is a little more than just an overclocked Gamecube + motion controls and better games), they would've just ported over the SA1/2 engine for the title, since it would've been its own thing and all and not a port to other consoles (the supposed reason why they stopped using the SA engine). Then, put the control setup like this:

Control Stick - movement

A Button - Jump / Air Action

B Trigger / Z Trigger - Spin Dash / Roll / whatever

shake Wiimote - Attack

control pad - Camera

C Button - center camera

Also give Silver the point and click psychokinesis, and this would've been a pretty awesome game.

Story would've still sucked endlessly though.

[Rusty Spy]

If it would've been for the Wii, it could've been a much better game. Since SADX and SA2B proved the SA engine was working pretty good on the Gamecube (and that the Wii is a little more than just an overclocked Gamecube + motion controls and better games), they would've just ported over the SA1/2 engine for the title, since it would've been its own thing and all and not a port to other consoles (the supposed reason why they stopped using the SA engine). Then, put the control setup like this:

That is assuming Sega would've actually gave a shit to port the engine alongside the game itself, given how they handled the HD versions, specifically how they proved to have been sitting in their offices with their thumbs up their butts between the 360 and PS3 releases, stopping for just long enough to remove the gondolas.

[Tornado]

Porting all of the STH '06 HD assets to the Sonic Adventure engine would have required more effort on their part then they actually put into STH '06 in the first place.

[Aquaslash]

I don't know. I probably wouldn't have gotten a 360 is there was a Wii version. Or maybe I would have, Wiis were SCARCE back then.

Silver would have played a LOT better though. I can see moving with the control stick, and using the remote to point and click.

Oh man, now I want a Silver game for the Wii. Thanks guys :|

[Doctor MK]

Being the sucker for Sonic that I am, I'd probably have bought Sonic 06 if it had been on Wii... heck, I spent ages trying to track down a PC version (which doesn't even exist! WHY WAS I NOT INFORMED SOONER) just to try it for myself.

Having said that, I'm glad they made Secret Rings instead because - despite the undeniable control issues - it's arguably my favourite Sonic game in recent memory. The story, the art style, the soundtrack... it all appealed to me so much. No idea why, I knew next to nothing about the Arabian Nights beforehand. It just felt awesome and it's the kind of game I can go back and play over and over again.

Sonic 06, however, lacked such a charm from what I've seen. But it would've been interesting to see it on Wii, just to see if it somehow managed to fare any better than it did on the HD consoles.

[eXtaticus]

Why is it that no-one ever mentions the cancelled PC version? Surely you all must remember this enigmatic image?

On the topic of what the Wii version probably would have been like: largely the same game as the 360 iteration, only with severely downgraded graphics and nigh-on-redundant motion controls that were obviously shoehorned in at the last possible minute to minimise the use of effort, time and money. What else?

Edited August 10, 2010 by Extaticus

[Indigo Rush]

Why is it that no-one ever mentions the cancelled PC version? Surely you all must remember this enigmatic image?

On the topic of what the Wii version probably would have been like: the largely same game as the 360 iteration with severely downgraded graphics and nigh-on-redundant motion controls that were shoehorned in at the last possible minute. What else?

Competence? The Nintendo seal of quality? The Power Glove?

[SuperStingray]

It probably would've been handled by the same team that did Secret Rings. Without another console port to dilute their attention and their slightly better grasp on physics, odds are it would've been the better version, but I doubt by much.

Edited August 11, 2010 by Hello. Look at my sig.

[eXtaticus]

Competence?

Yes, of course; because another port of Sonic '06, which - remember - would still have to have been fully finished within the unrealistically small development schedule, (which was responsible for the game being so widely hated in the first place) wouldn't be anything but competent. Yeah.

The Nintendo Seal Of Quality?

Oh please; like that aged and over-glorified badge means jack shit anymore...

The Power Glove?

And using an alternative motion-sensitive gimmick which was just as - if not more - useless than the Wii Remote itself would be a great idea because?

[Indigo Rush]

Wait, you think I'm being serious with this game?

[eXtaticus]

Wait, you think I'm being serious with this game?

I did, until you said that.

Now I'm starting to have second thoughts...