tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-87085479595538158782024-02-05T02:27:30.319-08:00In the Shade of a Waveby the will of the wind,
and in the shade of a wave -
here we standMercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.comBlogger96125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-65678364349392625212013-04-23T16:48:00.001-07:002013-07-09T11:18:09.676-07:00History of Sonic the Hedgehog Book<p><i>Edit: I was contacted by one of the authors as well as UDON and it was requested that I remove this post. I wish to respect the author's wishes, so I have done so.</i>
</p>Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-11211239801134290732013-03-12T03:49:00.000-07:002013-03-12T03:49:28.737-07:00Sonic In Print<p>These are mentions of Sonic the Hedgehog I've found in books over the years.
</p>
<p>One of the most delightful things about these is that there are often glaring errors, sometimes very humorous ones.
</p>
<p>(So, uh, yeah, if this post has any errors itself - which is probably inevitable - feel free to point and laugh.)
</p>
<ol>
<li /><a href="#cyber">Cyber Dictionary – Your Guide to the Wired World</a>
<li /><a href="#rockencyc">The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll (Third Edition)</a>
<li /><a href="#toonencyc">The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons (Second Edition)</a>
<li /><a href="#animDVD">Animation on DVD – The Ultimate Guide</a>
<li /><a href="#airline">From Airline Reservations to Sonic the Hedgehog – A History of the Software Industry</a>
</ol>
<!-- Cyber Dictionary -->
<a name="cyber"></a>
<h1>Cyber Dictionary – Your Guide to the Wired World edited by David Morse (1996)</h1>
<p><a href="http://books.google.com/books/about/Cyber_dictionary.html?id=P6QRAQAAMAAJ">Google Books page</a>
</p>
<p><a href="http://i.minus.com/iP1uhlW0RxDt2.jpg"><img src="http://i.minus.com/iP1uhlW0RxDt2.jpg" /></a>
</p>
<p>This is a dictionary full of "cyber" terms, back when that was a buzzword. It's too old to have "Google", "tweet", or "blog", but golly, if you forget what "IEEE" stands for this is a must-have.
</p>
<p>There's a picture of Sonic next to their definition of "Sega", on page 249.
</p>
<p><a href="http://i.minus.com/iqZAHhShFn1h1.jpg"><img src="http://i.minus.com/iqZAHhShFn1h1.jpg" /></a>
</p>
<blockquote>
<h3>Sega</h3>
<p>Japanese <b>video game</b> company that, together with Nintendo, dominates the worldwide video game market.
</p>
<p>Sega, like Nintendo, manufactures proprietary video game consoles that can only play Sega games. In 1993, Sega released <b>mega-CD</b>, a new format of <b>CD-ROM.</b> The company also provides interactive entertainment for PCs, portable game systems and location-based electronic theme parks.
</p>
</blockquote>
<!-- Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock -->
<a name="rockencyc"></a>
<h1>The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll (Third Edition) (2001)</h1>
<p><a href="http://books.google.com/books/about/The_Rolling_stone_encyclopedia_of_rock_r.html?id=9lYYAAAAIAAJ">Google Books page</a>
</p>
<p><a href="http://i.minus.com/iQ4I5Gvb4bUtz.jpg"><img src="http://i.minus.com/iQ4I5Gvb4bUtz.jpg" /></a>
</p>
<p>Near the end of Long John Baldry's entry, on page 43, they mention his role in AoStH:
</p>
<p><a href="http://i.minus.com/iJcg9w69fsou6.jpg"><img src="http://i.minus.com/iJcg9w69fsou6.jpg" /></a>
</p>
<blockquote>
<p>He has become something of a star to the kiddie set as the voice of Captain Robotnick <i>[sic]</i>, sworn enemy of the popular cartoon hero Sonic the Hedgehog.
</p>
</blockquote>
<p>"Captain Robotnick" indeed! I think <i>Doctor</i> Robot<i>nik</i> would be rather upset about this. =P
</p>
<!-- Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons -->
<a name="toonencyc"></a>
<h1>The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons (Second Edition) by Jeff Lenburg (1999)</h1>
<p><a href="http://books.google.com/books/about/The_Encyclopedia_of_Animated_Cartoons.html?id=H2xfQgAACAAJ">Google Books page</a>
</p>
<p><a href="http://i.minus.com/iBekg8a0vq4c4.jpg"><img src="http://i.minus.com/iBekg8a0vq4c4.jpg" /></a>
</p>
<p>This book (at least, the edition I have) is positively <i>lousy</i> with errors. There's practically one on every page, I'm not kidding. For example, just look at these Sonic entries.
</p>
<p>The one for AoStH, on page 358:
</p>
<p><a href="http://i.minus.com/iV0QDy6VJ4oh.jpg"><img src="http://i.minus.com/iV0QDy6VJ4oh.jpg" /></a>
</p>
<blockquote>
<h3>The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog</h3>
<p>Programmed for daily syndication, this 65-episode companion series to the ABC network series, <i>Sonic the Hedgehog</i> followed the trials and tribulations of the popular video-game star as he tries to save the planet Mobrius <i>[sic]</i> from his favorite enemy, Dr. Robotnik. The series debuted five days before the premiere of the ABC series.
</p>
<p><i>A DIC Enterprises Production in association with Sega of America, Inc. and Bohbot Entertainment. Color. Half-hour. Premiered: September 13, 1993. Syndicated.</i>
</p>
<h3>Voices</h3>
<p><b>Sonic the Hedgehog:</b> Jaleel White; <b>Tails:</b> Christopher Welch; <b>Dr. Robotnik:</b> Long John Baldry; <b>Scratch:</b> Phil Hayes; <b>Grounder:</b> Gary Chalk
</p>
</blockquote>
<p>And the one for SatAM, on page 513:
</p>
<p><a href="http://i.minus.com/icQ8xDFgGqYDP.jpg"><img src="http://i.minus.com/icQ8xDFgGqYDP.jpg" /></a>
</p>
<blockquote>
<h3>Sonic the Hedgehog</h3>
<p>Sonic the Hedgehog (voiced by Jaleel White of TV's <i>Family Matters</i>) encounters famed archenemy Dr. Robotnik as he attempts to free the people of the planet Morbius <i>[sic]</i> in this 26-episode half-hour network series version of the best-selling 1991 Sega Genesis video game. The series premiered on ABC on September 18, 1993, five days after the debut of a second 65-episode syndicated series, <i>Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog</i>. (See entry for details.) Two different versions of the show were produced for ABC and syndication, the latter of which ran six days a week. It marked the first time since the premiere of <i>Slimer! and the Real Ghostbusters</i> that a character had debuted in syndication and on a network at same time. <i>[sic]</i>
</p>
<p><i>A DIC Enterprises/Bohbot Production in association with Sega of America, Inc. Color. Half-hour. Premiered on ABC: September 18, 1993–June 3, 1995.</i>
</p>
<h3>Voices</h3>
<p><b>Sonic the Hedgehog:</b> Jaleel White; <b>Tails:</b> Bradley Pierce; <b>Dr. Robotnik:</b> Jim Cummings; <b>Antoine:</b> Rob Paulsen; <b>Rotor:</b> Mark Ballou; <b>Snively:</b> Charlie Adler; <b>Princess Sally:</b> Kath Soucie; <b>Bunnie:</b> Christine Cavanaugh;
</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Did you catch that? In one entry, the planet is called "Mobrius" and in the other, it's called "Morbius"! What's with the oscillating rogue R?
</p>
<!-- Animation on DVD -->
<a name="animDVD"></a>
<h1>Animation on DVD – The Ultimate Guide by Andy Mangels (2003)</h1>
<p><a href="http://books.google.com/books/about/Animation_on_Dvd.html?id=ZFUGAAAACAAJ">Google Books page</a>
</p>
<p><a href="http://i.minus.com/iZKfJbd7uTF3S.jpg"><img src="http://i.minus.com/iZKfJbd7uTF3S.jpg" /></a>
</p>
<p>Entry for "Super Sonic", a collection of SatAM episodes, on page 359:
</p>
<p><a href="http://i.minus.com/iUTKE3tdZfcvd.jpg"><img src="http://i.minus.com/iUTKE3tdZfcvd.jpg" /></a>
</p>
<blockquote>
<h3>Sonic the Hedgehog: Super Sonic</h3>
<p><b>Trimark, 2002, 85 mins., #VM7919D. Directed by Dick Sebast. Written by Jules Dennis, Pat Allee and Ben Hurst.</b>
</p>
<p>He's little, he's blue, and he's a hedgehog that runs really fast. He's Sonic the Hedgehog, and he's working with the Freedom Fighters to free Mobotropolis – and the world of Mobius – from the tyranny of the evil Dr. Robotnik. First up, Sonic takes an undercover trip to the city to search for a missing microchip. Then, Robotnik clones Princess Sally and sends her to spy on the Freedom Fighters. Later, Sonic agrees to race Speed Bot in the city, but it's all a clever plot to capture Sonic. And finally, Sally takes on a dangerous mission even as the other Freedom Fighters try to reprogram Robotnik's droids!
</p>
<p>Based on the arcade game <i>[sic]</i> by SEGA, <i>Sonic the Hedgehog</i> debuted in September 1993 as an ABC series, and a completely separate (though with the same creative team) syndicated series called <i>Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog</i>. The animation is acceptable for what it is, but anyone over the age of eight will likely be bored to tears by the stories.
</p>
<p>The DVD features four adventures: "Super Sonic"; "Sonic and Sally"; "Sonic Racer"; and "Sonic Boom."
</p>
<h3>Special Features</h3>
<p>Game • Other Title Trailers
</p>
<h3>Technical Features</h3>
<p>Fullscreen (1.33:1) • Subtitles/CC: Eng. • Languages: Eng. dub • Sound: Dolby Digital 2.0 • Keepcase • 1 Disc • Region 1
</p>
<h3>Genre & Rating</h3>
<p>Animals/Adventure • Not Rated (Kids)
</p>
</blockquote>
<p>They seem to think the show was based on an arcade game. But the real mistake is their poor opinion of the show. =P
</p>
<p>Entry for the Sonic OVA, on pages 359-360:
</p>
<p><a href="http://i.minus.com/ixEpaUlAefsq3.jpg"><img src="http://i.minus.com/ixEpaUlAefsq3.jpg" /></a>
</p>
<p><a href="http://i.minus.com/iRNQGWo2W3pxx.jpg"><img src="http://i.minus.com/iRNQGWo2W3pxx.jpg" /></a>
</p>
<blockquote>
<h3>Sonic the Hedgehog: The Movie</h3>
<p><b>ADV Films, 1999, 60 mins., #DVDHH/001. Directed by Kazunori Ikegami. Original Story by Masashi Kubota.</b>
</p>
<p>Sonic is back with more races to run, and the villainous Dr. Robotnik has dastardly plans yet again, starting with Hyper Metal Sonic, a robot version of the hedgehog! But when the Robot Generator is sabotaged, all life on the planet is in jeopardy. Will Sonic be forced to work alongside his archenemy, at the behest of the President's daughter, Sara?
</p>
<p>The "Blue Blue" based on the SEGA game is back, this time with a pair of 1996 Japanese-produced OVAs, combined into a "film" for the U.S. market. There's nothing exceptional about the project, though it does sometimes look a bit better than its television counterpart. If you're a fan of Sonic, here's another helping.
</p>
<h3>Special Features</h3>
<p>Character Bios • Character and Art Galleries • Other Title Trailers
</p>
<h3>Technical Features</h3>
<p>Fullscreen (1.33:1) • Subtitles/CC: Eng., Span. • Languages: Jap., Eng. dub • Sound: Dolby Digital 2.0 • Keepcase • 1 Disc • Region 1–6
</p>
<h3>Genre & Rating</h3>
<p>Animals/Adventure • Not Rated (Kids)
</p>
</blockquote>
<p>"There's nothing exceptional about the project"? >:| To each their own, I guess!
</p>
<!-- From Airline Reservations to Sonic the Hedgehog -->
<a name="airline"></a>
<h1>From Airline Reservations to Sonic the Hedgehog – A History of the Software Industry by Martin Campbell-Kelly (2003)</h1>
<p><a href="http://books.google.com/books/about/From_Airline_Reservations_to_Sonic_the_H.html?id=A-xU69hQ9vMC">Google Books page</a>
</p>
<p><a href="http://i.minus.com/iHYVxhsEepJJA.jpg"><img src="http://i.minus.com/iHYVxhsEepJJA.jpg" /></a>
</p>
<p>Oh, gosh, where to even begin on this one. Even the cover is problematic - there's an airline reservation, yeah, and then there's... a PlayStation controller? It couldn't have been a picture of Sonic? Or even a Genesis controller?
</p>
<p>Okay, let's start with page 284, where it is erroneously intimated that Sonic, like Mario, began as an arcade game.
</p>
<p><a href="http://i.minus.com/irYAFuy96Obgo.jpg"><img src="http://i.minus.com/irYAFuy96Obgo.jpg" /></a>
</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Later, the Mario Bros. and Sonic the Hedgehog made the transition from arcade machines to home consoles.
</p>
</blockquote>
<p>However, a couple pages later (on page 286), there is talk about Sonic being a "secret weapon", launching with the Genesis:
</p>
<p><a href="http://i.minus.com/ib4W35eIeZ32p.jpg"><img src="http://i.minus.com/ib4W35eIeZ32p.jpg" /></a>
</p>
<blockquote>
<p>In any case, Nintendo's time in the sun was coming to an end with the arrival of 16-bit home consoles and Sega's secret weapon: Sonic the Hedgehog.
</p>
<p>Sega introduced its $200 16-bit Genesis console in 1989. Besides the anticipated improvement in computational speed and visual experience, the Genesis came with Sonic the Hedgehog, Sega's answer to Mario Bros. Visually, Sonic was a blue-furred amalgam of Felix the Cat and Superman. Sonic was a worldwide sensation, eclipsing even Mario Bros. and bringing in his wake animated cartoons, comics, T shirts, and lunchboxes.
</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Now, that was worded a tad ambiguously, but it almost makes it sound like Sonic launched with the Genesis in 1989. We all know that's not true - the Genesis was indeed launched in 1989, and Sonic was indeed a pack-in game for the Genesis, but <i>two years later in 1991</i>. Only sloppy journalism would conflate these two things and assume the game launched in 1989 as well. Surely no one could be that lazy, right? Think again; here's page 268:
</p>
<p><a href="http://i.minus.com/i0F6eh8DDvZZc.jpg"><img src="http://i.minus.com/i0F6eh8DDvZZc.jpg" /></a>
</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Sonic the Hedgehog was introduced to American gamers in 1989.
</p>
</blockquote>
<p>There it is in black and white! Holy cow. I mean, this is just sloppy. (And am I the only one who thinks it's super lame to show a picture of an Archie Comic yearbook instead of the actual game under discussion? This is a book about <i>software</i>, you wouldn't think it'd be that hard to <i>show some software</i>.)
</p>
<p>By the terrible logic implied by this author's poor fact-checking, Sonic 2 - also a pack-in game with the Genesis - would have been launched in 1989, on the same day as the Sonic 1. Bizarre! But not as bad as this table on page 282:
</p>
<p><a href="http://i.minus.com/igpo1x3LXkWoJ.jpg"><img src="http://i.minus.com/igpo1x3LXkWoJ.jpg" /></a>
</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Classic Examples (publisher, year introduced)
</p>
<ul>
<li />Mario Bros. (Nintendo, 1985)
<li />Sonic the Hedgehog (Sega, 1985)
<li />Prince of Persia (Mindscape, 1989)
</ul>
</blockquote>
<p>(It's a list of examples of video game in a bunch of genres, accompanied by the publisher and year of introduction for each.) But here the error is even <i>worse</i>, where Sonic is listed as having been introduced in <i>1985</i>!
</p>
<p>If you believed this book, you'd think Sonic started as an arcade game in 1985, alongside Mario Bros., and was ported to the Genesis in 1989. I mean, how can anyone take <i>any</i> of the data in this author's book seriously after this? Wow.
</p>
<p>There's also another pointless mention of Sonic on page 309:
</p>
<p><a href="http://i.minus.com/iDt7yZgCD9Xrp.jpg"><img src="http://i.minus.com/iDt7yZgCD9Xrp.jpg" /></a>
</p>
<blockquote>
<p>The tone of the British committee's "analysis of technological development" was set by the opening sentence: "Software engineering is the application of sound scientific, mathematical, management, and engineering principles to the production of programs, within estimated costs and at a competitive level of performance and price." Try telling that to the developers of Sonic the Hedgehog. This was a statement addressing yesterday's problems. It could have been written in the 1960s.
</p>
</blockquote>
<p>What's that even <i>mean</i>? This paragraph perfectly illustrates what I hate about this book: the author doesn't seem to care (or even know) anything about the things they are writing about, but is perfectly happy to sling nouns around in order to sound more hip and relevant.
</p>
<p>Finally, the index (page 370):
</p>
<p><a href="http://i.minus.com/ifzDkx3Gwuonb.jpg"><img src="http://i.minus.com/ifzDkx3Gwuonb.jpg" /></a>
</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Sonic the Hedgehog, 284, 286, 309
</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The index doesn't mention the pages with the table (282) and the picture (268)... I don't know if that's an oversight or standard practice for books like this. I wouldn't know - I get all my information from the internet, where I can be more <i>confident about its accuracy</i>.
</p>Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-95306176201119952012-11-30T09:42:00.000-08:002012-11-30T16:10:53.635-08:00The First Rule of Criticism<p>As a denizen of forums such as <a href="http://forums.sonicretro.org/">Sonic Retro</a>, I am no stranger to seeing amateur (though often extremely talented) game designers, artists, musicians, and storytellers post a work-in-progress - with or without an explicit request for critique - which is then quickly followed by wildly varying and often contradictory feedback.
</p>
<p>One such example is the <a href="http://www.sonicfanremix.com/">Sonic Fan Remix</a> project, which garnered comments that ranged from 'OMG! So much better than Sonic 4!' to 'Ugh, Sonic 4 is better than this.' You'd be hard pressed to find a broader spectrum, considering that the project managed to straddle the yawning chasm that divides the extremes of opinion on Sonic 4.
</p>
<p>So what is one to do? Surely one cannot please everyone, not amidst calls of 'keep everything but X' and 'I like X but nothing else'. Short of mass brainwashing, getting everyone to agree is an insoluable problem.
</p>
<p>It is tempting, then, to develop the attitude that it's all so much blather, don mirrorshades, and ignore criticism. However this isn't altogether helpful, because it is not uncommon for some criticism to be <i>very useful</i>. Clearly, one must heed some of it and discard the rest, and this is the standard practice.
</p>
<p>But how does one determine the utile from the futile? Most creators have long since developed an intuition about criticism, and feel their way through feedback, managing just fine. But - as with most intuitions - when the brain is feeling stubborn that day and fails to provide a ready-cooked response like 'This guy's complaint is bullshit!', one can be set adrift with no clear path to resolving the anxiety a particular criticism has set abubble.
</p>
<p>When intuitions fail us, rules - rote systems, invulnerable to the pitchings of mood - come to the rescue. And I have a rule, a deceptively simple one, but one which has proved its worth to me many times. I call it 'The First Rule of Criticism.' It has come in particularly useful to me, because my core personality is a volatile and unfortunate mix of extremely egotistical ('Holy <i>crap</i>, I just came up with the best thing ever! I rule!') and extremely empathetic ('I can see exactly why they hate this, even though I love it... what should I do?').
</p>
<p>The rule is this: 'Only take criticism that you agree with.' It seems simple - <i>obvious</i> even - and that's probably because it's been intuition all along. But once it's a rule, you can rely on it to pull you out of nuanced situations that intuition fails to navigate.
</p>
<p>But why should this rule be? What makes you the ultimate arbiter of right and wrong? Isn't the very nature of criticism <i>someone disagreeing with you?</i>
</p>
<p>Well, no. It's not. And here's why: There's no objective truth when it comes to art. You can dig and dig, and you will never find one. Like, never. I meant it; you can put the shovel away.
</p>
<p>And this isn't just some metaphysical relativistic mumbo jumbo philosophy that I'm asserting because I believe in it really hard, because I want everyone to be equal and happy. No, it's a physical reality.
</p>
<p>Leaving aside that no one can even seem to <i>define what art is</i> for a moment (which is a whole other discussion) let's consider art to be 'a form of communication for which the primary purpose is the elicitation of emotions'. (You can contrast this with education, propaganda, and the many other forms of communication and find that it's a pretty solid definition.) And the reality is that different individuals have different emotional responses from the same stimulus. It's a fact about our brains; beyond our shared humanity and the mutable, transient whorls of culture, we have almost nothing in common. I'm the only member of my family that likes Jazz music, for example... and surely some of you have friends who either love Dubstep or are driven by it to grievously harm themselves or others.
</p>
<p>So why make art if the demons that drive you are potentially shadows and smoke to everyone else? Well, the first reason that comes to mind is that - for most artists - <i>they have to</i>. It's not up for discussion. But for me the best reason is that art is both the best way to explore and understand one's own psyche and passions, <i>and</i> to connect with those who have been shaped in such a way as that they are resonant with yours. Art is, after all, a form of communication, and without it you may never discover those who truly understand you.
</p>
<p>This is perhaps why there are "fandoms", communities that form around pieces of art and entertainment, with fiercely guarded borders. They are no mere casual alliance - they are a deep identity.
</p>
<p>Ergo the rule: 'Only take criticism that you agree with.' Art is not about reaching the most people, it's about reaching the <i>right</i> people - and the first and most important person that fits that definition is <i>you</i>.
</p>
<p>So I will leave you with a finer point on the rule, to help put it into practice: When you are confronted with a criticism, e.g. 'I hate the way your character is dressed', the natural response is to view it as a problem to be solved. How do I make this problem go away? (for me, this is almost pathological - as a programmer, I see every bad thing as a bug to be squashed). But that, to reiterate, is a poor response - it will only generate anxiety as you come against an insuperable wall with the lyrics of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garden_Party_%28Rick_Nelson_song%29">Rick Nelson's 'Garden Party'</a> grafittied on it. The correct response is to ask yourself, 'has this criticism identified an actual problem that <i>I have</i> with my art, and has it given me any helpful insight for resolving it?'
</p>
<p>If the answer is no, then it's time for the mirrorshades.
</p>Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-46273943033545242762012-10-29T12:59:00.001-07:002012-10-29T12:59:49.811-07:00Cool Game Music<p>The conversation around classic video game music often centres around the usual suspects, for example the big names who were involved with the Japanese video game industry. But I like to be a little more [puts on shades]... <i>eclectic</i>.
</p>
<p>Years ago a <a href="http://intheshadeofawave.blogspot.com/2010/04/shakii-wolf-music.html">chance encounter with a demo of Shakii the Wolf</a> got me interested in its composer, who I now know to be a member of D.A.C team, the providers of music for many DOS games out of South Korea.
</p>
<p>In the interest of sharing my enthusiasm for these obscure but great tunes, here are links to the OSTs for a pair of those games that I ripped myself.
</p>
<p>Illusion Blaze, a sidescrolling shmup:
</p>
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/MYCA-R4OBJk?list=PLOWKOVHjiKBSB7wnUs61NKQZDiHcf6Yz5&hl=en_US" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
<p>Pee & Gity Special, a sidescrolling brawler:
</p>
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/163QmPKyCdA?list=PL46A8B647AFD3191D&hl=en_US" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
<p>(I may be one of the only legitimate YouTube accounts that has a dozen videos with "pee" in the title...)
</p>
<p>There will be more forthcoming as time permits. Enjoy!
</p>Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-62363806653466330702012-08-15T23:02:00.000-07:002012-08-16T00:05:26.369-07:002012 Sonic Hacking Contest Reviews<p>I was privileged to be a judge for the <a href="http://shc.sagexpo.org/">2012 Sonic Hacking Contest</a>. Now that the official results are in, here are my personal reviews of the submissions. You can read more about them, and download the public ones, <a href="http://sonicresearch.org/forums/index.php?app=downloads&showcat=8">here</a>.
</p>
<p><i>Note: This is the first year that I was able to play any 3D hacks, thanks to my new laptop, but I don't feel like reviewing them. I just don't have that much to say about 3D Sonic gameplay, as it barely interests me.</i>
</p>
<!--Great-->
<h1>Four Fantastic Adventures</h1>
<p>Amongst this year's crop of Hacking Contest submissions, these in particular stood out.
</p>
<h3>Sonic ERaZor</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by Selbi</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/isD1FpbnX6i94.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<p>I really warmed to Sonic ERaZor last year, and this year I like it more than ever.
</p>
<p>Finally, all of the levels from Sonic 1 are represented in some way, each more twisted than the last, rounding out the experience so that it feels like a whole game and not a work in progress. The new tutorial shows you the ropes, neatly sidestepping any confusion the unique mechanics may have caused - and the quirkily written textboxes that impart the pearls of wisdom are an impressive programming feat in themselves.
</p>
<p>The inclusion of a second special stage has me extremely happy, since the first was easily my favourite part of ERaZor last year. The challenge was satisfyingly brutal (yet fair enough I eschewed savestates) and the concept for the stage was novel - not just more of the same gameplay from the first. It couldn't be better.
</p>
<p>In addition to how fun the game is, there are also a couple secrets to be sought, making the replay value not insignificant. In sum, it's one of my favourite hacks not just in the competition, but of all time. <b>Verdict: Way Past Cool!</b>
</p>
<p><i>You can also read <a href="http://intheshadeofawave.blogspot.com/2011/10/hack-attack-part-ii.html#erazor">my review of last year's build</a>.</i>
<h3>Sonic 2 Recreation</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 2 by redhotsonic</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/ib2x2bgyicqmML.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<!-- Partial Private!-->
<p>At first I found the title a little ambiguous, but once I saw the hack in action it made sense; Sonic 2 is being used as a base for a brand new adventure that bears very little resemblance to the original. In fact it's more stylistically similar to the handheld Dimps titles than the classics - though thankfully not in any bad way.
</p>
<p>You'll start in Portal Zone, which contains entrances to zones and an options menu in a way reminiscent of Sonic Advance 3. You can choose to play as Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles in a variety of combinations, as well as Redhotsonic (a red version of Sonic who's significance is best known to the creator of this hack, but is not really that interesting).
</p>
<p>There are four zones in this build, all of which are laid out really well and are fun to play. The bosses are a mix of interesting twists on Sonic 2 bosses and original ideas, both implemented impeccably. The final zone, Chaos Angel, is a paean to its namesake from Sonic Advance 3, complete with the harrowing automatic platform ride. It's far more fun here with the classic physics than the borked Advance 3 engine, I must say.
</p>
<p>But it's more than just a solid core. There's also a tasty shell of cool features, like sound distortion when underwater, and the ability to cancel Tails' flight in a manner similar to Cream's aerial mechanics in Advance 2. Thematically, the hack is not as tight as I would like, but it shows huge potential. With the talent on show in this build I have confidence in its future. <b>Verdict: Way Past Cool!</b>
</p>
<h3>Sonic Classic Heroes</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 / Sonic 2 by flamewing</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/i3JI9YZjYeESz.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<p>Previously known as Sonic 2 Heroes, Sonic Classic Heroes wasn't renamed for a trivial reason - now all the zones from Sonic 1 <i>and</i> Sonic 2 are present in one mega-adventure with Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles racing through them together as "Team Sonic".
</p>
<p>This hack is about far more than just having all three characters at the same time, however. Since you can switch between them, it's basically like having "Knuckles in Sonic 1" and "Tails in Sonic 1" hacks together, plus so much more. Everybody's signature moves are present, as are the three elemental shields from Sonic 3 - and even the Golden Shield, complete with homing attack when Sonic wears it.
</p>
<p>What's more, both Sonic 1 and Sonic 2's special stages are present, each accessible from any zone using the methods of entry from their respective games. (The Sonic 1 stages award you Chaos Emeralds; the Sonic 2 stages, Sol Emeralds.) It adds an interesting new level of strategy to save up 50 rings for Lampposts in Sonic 1 zones, since I'm used to the comparatively easier task of saving them for the end of the entire level.
</p>
<p>(On a side note, I always get a little thrill whenever I notice a hack has applied <a href="http://www.sonicretro.org/2010/08/sonic-1-special-stage-jump-issues-fixed-nearly-20-years-later/">this fix</a> I popularised, especially a hack I like and respect; not necessarily because my code was used, but because it means the creator and I are on a similar wavelength when it comes to Sonic gameplay.)
</p>
<p>Collecting the numerous emeralds allows you to become Super Team Sonic, and Hyper Team Sonic, turning the screen into a psychedelic free-for-all of sparkling, flashing Mobians and Flickies. It's a sight to behold, and you almost feel sorry for Robotnik when the boss fights come around.
</p>
<p>In addition to the cornucopia of features above, there's a cavalcade of tiny fixes, improvements, and other niceties. For example, Robotnik in Chemical Plant Zone now drops Mega Muck on himself when struck a blow, and the little animals in Sky Chase now sport parachutes. There's also a nice surprise tying Sonic 1 and 2 together after Scrap Brain Zone.
</p>
<p>As is to be expected in a hack with the sheer volume of changes that Sonic Classic Heroes boasts, there are a few minor glitches but nothing that takes away from the enjoyment of this must-have experience. I think it will go down in the annals of hacking history as one of the greats. <b>Verdict: Way Past Cool!</b>
</p>
</p><p><i>You can also read <a href="http://intheshadeofawave.blogspot.com/2011/10/hack-attack-part-ii.html#s2heroes">my review of last year's build</a>.</i>
</p>
<h3>Sonic 1 Megahack: Ultra Edition</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by vladikcomper</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/ieGVPXfslTxAm.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<p>This hack is a mixed bag. At first you're presented with ghastly n00b palettes, and the same old Green Hill Act 1, albeit with a homing attack. But when you reach the end of the act, you meet a brilliant, challenging boss. And then the process repeats - barely modified acts punctuated by some of the best boss fights ever in a hack, filled with humour and wacky gimmicks.
</p>
<p>The overall experience is very short, since the zones have been reduced to one act in length. Honestly, I felt even this was too long - I think it should have just been a boss rush.
</p>
<p>Despite the unevenness and weird choices, though, I really took a liking to it. It had Sonic doing some of the weirdest things he's ever done in a hack outside Sonic ERaZor, and it was brilliant. It feels good to be surprised by fresh and interesting challenges in a hack. <b>Verdict: Way Past Cool!</b>
</p>
<!--Terrible-->
<h1>Five Godawful Heaps</h1>
<p>This year there are fully <i>five</i> atrocious hacks, most of which appear to have been submitted with the express intention of nabbing the Big Trophy (for worst hack submitted). At least, I hope that was what motivated these entries. If any of them was in earnest, I would have to feel a deep shame for their creators.
</p>
<p>Even in jest, however, these entries still manage to be embarrassing. At this point it just isn't funny anymore, especially considering the number submitted. Such a joke was barely funny the first time, and it is only diminished with repetition.
</p>
<p>I'm starting to think that even having the Big Trophy in the contest is a mistake - it only seems to encourage this kind of behaviour, leading to competition amongst some hackers to see who can vandalise Sonic 1 the most severely. It's my assertion that this is only unhealthy, and aside from irritating judges it also possibly devalues the artform as a whole.
</p>
<p>I think there should be a "no intentionally bad hacks" rule to go along with the "no simple palette hacks" rule; but since that has not (yet...?) been implemented I'm duty-bound to nominate one of these sorry articles for the Big Trophy.
</p>
<h3>Sonic's Grand Adventure</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by Ravenfreak</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/iZrTjbR0KGTYL.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<p>Ravenfreak is a talented hacker, having distinguished herself with some impressive modifications of and research into the 8-bit Sonic titles, and is also a fellow Tech Member at Sonic Retro - so, honestly, I'm a little disappointed in her submission.
</p>
<p>Sonic's Grand Adventure is essentially a <i>molestation</i> of Sonic 1, offering borked controls, palettes, music, text, and well, everything, really. To be perfectly fair, there are a few changes that got a chuckle from me, despite my impatience with the joke: "Spring Tard", "Tard Light", and "Crapy Brain" Zones, as well as upsidedown text in the HUD.
</p>
<p>It's not worth a playthrough unless one is heavily masochistic, and it's not even as incisive a parody of n00b hacks as it could be. I really expected better. <b>Verdict: Pass!</b>
</p>
<h3>Ashura in Sonic 1 (2002)</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by Sonic Kid (Sotic Team)</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/iblWiGrdX3TLui.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<p>From experience, I've learned to be wary of anything associated with <a href="http://info.sonicretro.org/Ashura">Ashura</a>. This hack only reinforced that habit.
</p>
<p>Technically, there are a few other modifications (to simple things such as the music/level pairings and the text) but this is ultimately little more than a palette hack, meaning it barely qualifies to be a contender in the contest at all.
</p>
<p>It's not so-bad-it's-funny, or even technically clever, for instance by incorporating bits of the Ashura phenomenon in interesting ways. I'd say it's a waste of time for everybody involved. <b>Verdict: Pass!</b>
</p>
<h3>Sonic BUGS</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by GreenSnake</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/iiBvDmBH5e4Pk.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<p>Sonic BUGS appears to have - at least - some kind of theme. It's as if every possible bug the game could have is present simultaneously: the Sonic object fails to collide properly; the wrong amount of Rings awards an extra life; there is egregious lag when Sonic gets hit; Sonic won't even die when he falls off the screen.
</p>
<p>This fails to be interesting, however, considering the end result is just another "purposefully bad hack". It took extremely little if any talent or creativity to create, and I would probably even take offense at its very existence but it's not worth the effort since hacking is all in good fun, anyway. <b>Verdict: Pass!</b>
</p>
<h3>Sonic the Sleeper in: The Nostalgia Dreams</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by Joseakadaman</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/iwinPUI4bjaHZ.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<p>Practically making my point for me, this hack is barely distinguishable from the one before it - judging from screenshots, anyway.
</p>
<p>I had higher hopes for it due to the intriguing title, so I actually felt angry that it was <i>yet another</i> attempt to troll the judges. My capacity for charity is only so great - <b>Verdict: Pass!</b>
</p>
<h3>Gumball the Cat</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by cthboy</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/ijUWqPmRj7r7r.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<p>(I would show off images of levels other than Green Hill, but it's just so perfect for illustrating the truly bad palettes these people come up with, as it's usually the first level that's the most heavily modified.)
</p>
<p>Judging by the earnest imperative to "have fun!" in the readme, and the fact that this is a character hack replacing Sonic with Gumball Watterson from the popular children's cartoon <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Amazing_World_of_Gumball">The Amazing World of Gumball</a>, I guessed this might have actually been a kid's honest attempt to hack Sonic 1. A cursory Google of the creator's name basically confirms this.
</p>
<p>Call me heartless, but it is partly for this reason that I think this is the worst of the worst submissions this year. It's also because it's truly awful, and so terribly incomplete that even using the word "incomplete" feels like employing a euphemism.
</p>
<p>Seriously, you can play vanilla Sonic 1 while squinting and <i>pretend</i> any cat you fancy is running through the levels and it would still be a more polished experience than this. <b>Verdict: Pass!</b>
</p>
<h1>And The Rest...</h1>
<p>Not necessarily the least, however. There are some really good (and really bad) hacks yet.
</p>
<h3>Flickies' Island Defense</h3>
<p><i>Original Sega CD game by bgvanbur</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/itQIYluO9nn4A.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<p>Flickies' Island Defense isn't a hack of any game in particular, but a homebrew game for the Sega CD in its proof-of-concept stage. Posed as a rudimentary tower defense game, the gameplay isn't terribly exciting, but the dedication necessary to implement even such simple mechanics is impressive.
</p>
<p>In the end, though, I wish that the same effort had manifested in a faster, more enjoyable style of play, even with the same level of simplicity. It's only a few extra bytes of RAM and lines of ASM that separate a static point-and-click interface and a field of more dynamic, action-oriented objects. So while I respect the technical achievement, there's nothing here to satisfy the gamer part of me. That's an important part of hacks, too. <b>Verdict: Okay.</b>
</p>
<h3>Sonic 1 CD Special Stage Edition</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by MarkeyJester</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/iT53BBadmJDgL.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<p>This is a proof-of-concept hack, and the concept being proven is having Sonic CD style special stages in Sonic 1, running without the need for the Sega CD at all.
</p>
<p>Collect 50 Rings, jump into the stars that appear over a Lamppost (the only other change in the hack) and you'll be transported to a slightly slower, lower res version of one of the Sonic CD special stages, replete with UFO's, time-sucking water, and those annoying bouncing bumper walls.
</p>
<p>From what little I know of hacking Sonic CD from my brief excursion into manually disassembling it, porting the special stage would be no mean feat. But this isn't merely a copy and paste job - MarkeyJester has created the necessary 3D effect from the ground up in order to recreate the stages. You can get a window into his process from <a href="http://sonicresearch.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=3239&st=0">his explanation</a>.
</p>
<p>I am extremely impressed with this, both from a technical standpoint (it's pretty mindblowing!) and because of what it could mean for future hacks. I'm no fan of the original Sonic 1 special stages, so the idea that 3D stages with custom background and floor texture art with any kind of moving objects on top are possible is really thrilling.
</p>
<p>Everything about it can be gleaned from <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFefE3r8mQA">a video</a>, but you might still want to play it just to feel the magic. <b>Verdict: Way Past Cool!</b>
</p>
<h3>Flicky Turncoat DX</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by GT Koopa</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/iQVTjbXoaYq5K.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<p>The little animals that Sonic usually saves (erroneously all termed "Flickies" in some translations, reinforced as a convenient synecdoche in the title) have all gone psycho and are now harmful to Sonic - even when he frees them from Badniks. As he battles his way through the baseball themed Pocky Field Zone, he must be extremely careful how he destroys enemies, or he'll collide with the escaping animal and take damage.
</p>
<p>I think it's more than my personal dislike of baseball that makes me find this hack unsettling and underwhelming. The core idea of the evil Flickies doesn't seem to add much of value, resulting in what amounts to a mediocre level with a frustrating additional feature.
</p>
<p>The art and music are average, and there's nothing exciting on the technical front, either. But I give it a point or two for creativity. <b>Verdict: Okay.</b>
</p>
<h3>Sonic 2: Flicky Turncoat Edition: Boss Rush Edition</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 2 by GT Koopa</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/ikvBNXjeiVHSb.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<p>Another hack with the Flicky Turncoat brand, this is a brief Boss Rush through Sonic 2, with Flickies in control of the game's bosses, tweaked to kick the difficulty up a few notches.
</p>
<p>I was allowed to select Marine the Racoon in the character select, and of course I had to try her out. I was disappointed to find that the character wasn't fully implemented, and was merely Tails with one or two sprites rather crudely edited to look like Marine. Of course the hacker can hardly be blamed for an unfinished feature, but I do wonder why the choice wasn't disabled in that case.
</p>
<p>Ultimately the changes to the bosses weren't clever or exciting, with a couple exceptions. <b>Verdict: Okay.</b>
</p>
<h3>Sonic 1: Sonic CD Edition</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by Animemaster</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/ioemEsZlYO1Wt.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<!-- Partial Private!-->
<p>Sonic 1 (or at least the first little bit of Green Hill Zone), with Sonic CD inspired features added, including time travel. The second act even has what looks like the beginnings of a Metal Sonic race.
</p>
<p>However, it is woefully unfinished. Not even a single zone/boss cycle is complete. Partial layouts, camera event issues, and dozens of egregious game-breaking bugs make it unplayable. Nothing else demonstrated, like art, music, or even the core concept, is very original or interesting either. <b>Verdict: Pass!</b>
</p>
<h3>Sonic 1 Lunacy</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by Masochistic Maniacs</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/ibzY0bvLFmQRXJ.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<!-- Partial Private!-->
<p>My opinion of Sonic 1 Lunacy has barely changed from last year. It doesn't seem to have changed much at all. The new level is far more complete, yes, but aside from how cool the art for it looks (which we've already seen most of) as a whole it's boring.
</p>
<p>I still don't think I get the point of the whole thing. Normal and Hard modes are just awkward layouts spammed with enemies, and Lunacy mode is a kind of Kaizo Mario insane. It's not for me. <b>Verdict: Pass!</b>
</p>
</p><p><i>You can also read <a href="http://intheshadeofawave.blogspot.com/2011/10/hack-attack-part-ii.html#lunacy">my review of last year's build</a>.</i>
</p>
<h3>Metal Sonic Hyperdrive</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by MKDarkon</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/ib1J6fuT5DIPqk.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<p>Metal Sonic Hyperdrive was submitted last year and this year it has visibly improved. There's neat new title art, a bit of polish on the level art, and some general changes that kick up the professionalism a notch (like the removal of those damn kirbys).
</p>
<p>But it's not enough. It still isn't really that fun to play, due to awkward layouts that don't fit well with the air dash and acceleration physics that Metal Sonic has. Some areas take good advantage of the wall jump, but the ability itself still hasn't been polished - its glitches and drifty feel make using it frustrating.
</p>
<p>I personally dislike a lot of the palette and music choices, too. The ones that aren't tired hacking cliches are still offputting. But I give it a bit of credit for being a playable game with a coherent theme. It's a cut above average. <b>Verdict: Okay.</b>
</p>
</p><p><i>You can also read <a href="http://intheshadeofawave.blogspot.com/2011/09/hack-attack-part-i.html#mso">my review of last year's build</a>.</i>
</p>
<h3>Sonic the Hedgehog 2: A New Adventure</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 2 by Shade Vortex</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/ibtQ4BrHKoQ98J.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<p>Merely Sonic 2 with new layouts (for the early levels, anyway). The problem is, the layouts are <i>terrible</i>. Someone needs to play Flying Battery Zone a few hundred times and read a bunch of Hirokazu Yasuhara interviews. <b>Verdict: Pass!</b>
</p>
<h3>Sonic The Hedgehog AGX</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by Blazer</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/iBfcPmhXMsl1U.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<p>This feels like a hack in the vein of the old builds of Megamix - large new layouts, extensive art edits that still maintain the basic feel of the zones, and super highspeed gameplay with lots of dashing.
</p>
<p>What's there is competent, besides the horrendous wall jump, but it fails to really differentiate itself. <b>Verdict: Okay.</b>
</p>
<h3>Sonic 3 and Amy Rose</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 3 & Knuckles by E-122-Psi</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/ioJRO7owI6JZx.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<p>E-122-Psi, whose character hacks I've praised in the past (Sally in Sonic 1 in particular), has put classic Amy Rose in Sonic 3 & Knuckles. Since the change of character is the whole point, the rest of the game remains the same.
</p>
<p>While it's cool to see a bunch of Amy's hammer abilities from the Sonic Advance series remade, I'm not personally fond of them. Especially since she's also incapable of spinning or rolling, which is just anathema to me. So while it's cool to see it done, I wouldn't ever actually want to play the game like this.
</p>
<p>It's great to see a character hack of Sonic 3 and Knuckles, as they are comparatively rare, and such a complete and competent one at that. The collision for the hammer sometimes feels off and leads to unfair hits, but it doesn't ruin the experience. It's a definitely worth a play for those who like Amy's controls. <b>Verdict: Cool!</b>
</p>
<h3>Sonic 2: Battle Race</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 2 by ColinC10</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/ibyobUECSt36aF.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<p>From the title I had hoped against all reason that this was a hack which finally allowed all of Sonic 2 to be playable in split-screen 2-player mode. But such is not the case. Instead, it turns the standard Sonic and Tails game into what can only be called a "battle race".
</p>
<p>Rather than focus the camera on Sonic and let player 2 taste dust, the camera now tries to keep both characters on screen - up to a point. If one or the other gets too far ahead, the other will "die" and be forced to wait to respawn, gaining the remaining player a point. At level end, the player with the most points wins the round. Wins and losses are kept track of on a scoreboard, so the humiliation of losing 100 games running can be screen captured for posterity.
</p>
<p>While not as exciting as ColinC10's submissions in the last couple years, I would be lying if I said this wasn't hella fun. I played it with my brother, and we had a hooting, hollering good time, not unlike a session of Super Mario Kart. <b>Verdict: Cool!</b>
</p>
<h3>Untitled S3K Hack</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 3 & Knuckles by D.A. Garden</i></p>
<!-- Partial Private!-->
<img src="http://i.minus.com/iSTvC20hcEVbf.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<p>This is merely Sonic 3 & Knuckles with new, authentic feeling layouts. Aside from being at a greater degree of completion, it hasn't really changed from last year.
</p>
<p>The layout for Angel Island (the only one that's polished) is extremely good, but that's all there is to say, really. I'm sad to see the awful (and unnecessary) palette changes are still here, though. <b>Verdict: Okay.</b>
</p>
</p><p><i>You can also read <a href="http://intheshadeofawave.blogspot.com/2011/10/hack-attack-part-ii.html#us3hack">my review of last year's build</a>.</i>
</p>
<h3>Sonic the Hedgehog: Tribute</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by TheBarAdmin</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/ibtYgVL56Tzk1f.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<p>This is two zones, one loosely based on Seaside Hill / Ocean Palace from Sonic Heroes, and the other on Route 99 from Sonic Advance 3.
</p>
<p>The art is a mix of neat original graphics, nicely reworked borrowings, and a few really ugly - though fortunately rare - pieces that leave me scratching my head. As far as a couple of partially original levels go, they're pretty good. <b>Verdict: Okay.</b>
</p>
<h3>Predisposition</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by Team Evanesco</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/ixt2Y1L5TsE9G.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<p>As far as I can tell, this is nothing more than an attempt to recreate a Sonic CD act (Stardust Speedway). Unfortunately a few amateurish-looking changes to the HUD art and palettes makes it feel cheap, and non-functional objects (no plane switchers, wrong behaviour on the enemies and boosters) make the act a shadow of its former self. <b>Verdict: Pass!</b>
</p>
<h3>Sonic 2 Adventure Control</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 2 by MainMemory</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/ibtQLHNfPxDcdS.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<p>A hack of Sonic 2 overhauling the controls to behave like Sonic Adventure. You can even charge up a <a href="http://info.sonicretro.org/Light_Attack">Light Speed Attack</a>, which is pretty neat. I don't really like the way Sonic Adventure controls, but the hack is well done. <b>Verdict: Okay.</b>
</p>
<h3>Sonic 2 Secret Rings Edition</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 2 by MainMemory</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/ibzXdtcCI6U3ec.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<p>Sonic 2 with new mission objectives, such as collect no rings, destroy no enemies, escort Tails, and others. This would be interesting enough on its own, but there's a strange leveling system that increases your speed stats, as well as the obligatory homing attack. Pressing the A button also makes Sonic do some kind of crazy boost that can sometimes break the game. (I'm not sure if this is a debugging feature or not.) While the concept is sound and executed solidly, I can't really get excited about it. <b>Verdict: Okay.</b>
</p>
<h3>Sonic 2 Secret Rings Control</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 2 by MainMemory</i></p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/iAeMYuQ62Xf1Q.png" width="320" height="224"/>
<p>Not to be confused with the previous hack, this doesn't appear to have any missions. Instead, it's Sonic 2, but Sonic seems to have been infected by the brainworms from Limbo - he walks inexorably in one direction, and you're only able to make him jump. Okay, so you <i>can</i> try to force him backward, but he won't be able spin when he jumps back, so he's very vulnerable and also very slow. It's an interesting idea, but not one that held my attention long. <b>Verdict: Okay.</b>
</p>
<h1>My Nominations</h1>
<p>See how my nominations differ from the real trophy recipients! Why do you care? Who knows!
</p>
<h3>Hidden Palace Trophy: Sonic ERaZor</h3>
<p><i>Grand prize / 1st place. This is given to the overall best hack in the contest.</i></p>
<h3>Wood Zone Trophy: Sonic Classic Heroes</h3>
<p><i>2nd place.</i></p>
<h3>Dust Hill Trophy: Sonic 2 Recreation</h3>
<p><i>3rd place.</i></p>
<h3>Big Trophy: Gumball the Cat</h3>
<p><i>Worst hack submitted. Why was this even submitted?!</i></p>
<p>Simply an embarrassing "effort".
</p>
<h3>Green Hill Trophy: Untitled S3K Hack</h3>
<p><i>Hack (or specific level of a hack if non-applicable) that plays most like a Sonic game.</i></p>
<p>Angel Island felt amazingly authentic.
</p>
<h3>Windy Valley Trophy: Sonic the Hedgehog: Tribute</h3>
<p><i>Best art in a hack submitted.</i></p>
<p>Despite a few rough spots, really beautiful. The incredibly smooth slopes are nice, too.
</p>
<h3>D.A. Garden Trophy: Sonic ERaZor</h3>
<p><i>Best music in a hack submitted.</i></p>
<p>The tunes don't feel thrown in, but really suit the mood and encourage playing.
</p>
<h3>Lava Reef Trophy: Untitled S3K Hack</h3>
<p><i>Best level layout in a hack submitted. This was the Palmtree Panic trophy last year, but it has been reverted back to its previous name.</i></p>
<p>Angel Island wasn't just authentic, it was also a damn fine layout on its own.
</p>
<h3>Genocide City Trophy: Scar Night Place (Sonic ERaZor)</h3>
<p><i>Hardest level in a hack submitted.</i></p>
<p>I know Sonic 1 Lunacy wants this trophy, but a challenging level has to also be fun to play, or there's no challenge at all - because the power switch gets hit and the player walks away.
</p>
<h3>11000101 Trophy: Sonic 1 CDSS Edition</h3>
<p><i>Best technical hack submitted.</i></p>
<p>Holy frapping crapstack! That is all.
</p>
<h3>Knuckles Trophy: Sonic 3 and Amy Rose</h3>
<p><i>Best new playable character in a hack submitted.</i></p>
<p>Amy's hardly <i>new</i>, unless we're speaking relatively. But the best implemented character hack deserves the win.
</p>
<h3>Fang Trophy: n/a</h3>
<p><i>Best new enemy/badnik in a hack submitted.</i></p>
<p>Nothing stood out this year that I wouldn't classify as a boss.
</p>
<h3>Eggman Trophy: Evil Rings (Sonic 1 Megahack: Ultra Edition)</h3>
<p><i>Best new boss or miniboss in a hack submitted.</i></p>
<p>Any of the bosses in this hack could have won, but I liked this one especially.
</p>
<h3>Spin Dash Trophy: Gravity Control (Sonic ERaZor)</h3>
<p><i>Best new ability in a hack submitted.</i></p>
<p>The only thing that would make it better is if it was controlled by blowing into the DS microphone. =P
</p>
<h3>Carnival Night Trophy: Underwater Sound/Music (Sonic 2 Recreation)</h3>
<p><i>Most innovative game play feature in a hack submitted.</i></p>
<p>It's cool to see this feature from Sonic Rush / Rush Adventure recreated on the Genesis.
</p>
<h3>Emerald Trophy: Sonic ERaZor</h3>
<p><i>Best Special Stage in a hack submitted.</i></p>
<p>As if there was any doubt.
</p>
<h3>Crystal Meth Trophy: Sonic Classic Heroes</h3>
<p><i>Most replayable hack submitted.</i></p>
<p>This is how I'll have to play Sonic 1 and 2 forever, now. =P
</p>
<h3>Robotnik's Revenge Trophy: Sonic 2: Battle Race</h3>
<p><i>Best new concept based on existing concepts in a hack submitted.</i></p>
<p>It's a tough job to make Sonic an appealing 2-Player game, and while this was far from perfect it was fun as hell.
</p>
<h3>Casinopolis Trophy: Sonic ERaZor</h3>
<p><i>Most entertaining / fun hack submitted.</i></p>
<p>The variety is what makes it really excellent.
</p>
<h3>Vector Trophy: Sonic 1 Megahack: Ultra Edition</h3>
<p><i>Most humorous hack submitted.</i></p>
<p>Anyone who plays it to the end can see why.
</p>
<h3>WTF?! Trophy: Flickies' Island Defense</h3>
<p><i>Most unique hack submitted.</i></p>
<p>It stands apart from the rest as a totally different kind of game. I wonder what will become of it?
</p>
<h3>Christmas Present Trophy: Sonic 2 Recreation</h3>
<p><i>The best hack submitted that no one saw coming.</i></p>
<p>I can't really speak for what everybody else saw coming or not, but I was very surprised and pleased with this, a treat at 4 levels long.
</p>
<h3>Tails Trophy: Sonic Classic Heroes</h3>
<p><i>Most improved hack from last year's contest.</i></p>
<p>I'm so happy that it's nearly doubled in size. =)
</p>
<h3>Generations Trophy: Sonic Melponterations</h3>
<p><i>Best Sonic Generations mod in the contest.</i></p>
<p>I'm impressed by the obscure level choice (rather than something from Unleashed) and the lack of outstanding glitches, and also the classic remix of Sky Troops' music. It made me laugh out loud in a few places, too. =P
</p>
Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-41339710609240036712012-08-10T14:42:00.000-07:002012-08-10T16:45:48.286-07:00Twisted Sister<p>Let me begin by saying how much I love my Nintendo DS Lite: <b>A lot.</b>
</p>
<p>I'm sure it's partly because it's the current vessel for my adoration of handheld gaming in general, having sold my Sega Game Gear years ago. There's something magical about a personal system you hold in your hands - no cords, no mess, no TV to switch to the correct input function. Just you and the games.
</p>
<p>But it's also because it's one sweet little machine, with some of the best software ever. Ghost Trick? Yes, please. The Mario & Luigi series? Most definitely. Professor Layton and the Umpteenth Sequel? Can't get enough.
</p>
<p>Which is why I was more than a little annoyed when I found that quite a number of the first party Nintendo titles and other high profile games were terrible. Not <i>all</i> of them, obviously (I just praised Mario & Luigi a paragraph ago) but enough that I felt my DS high evapourating. Metroid Prime Hunters? Boring. Starfox Command? An insult. Okamiden? Contender for worst game I've ever tried.
</p>
<p>So I began looking in unlikely places for the next DS experience that could recapture the magic. I went through Wikipedia's entire <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_nintendo_ds_games">list of Nintendo DS games</a>. The next great thing doesn't have to be part of major franchise, after all - it could be something obscure.
</p>
<p>Case in point:
</p>
<img src="http://i.minus.com/iDskPjSrulH7R.jpg" />
<p>Giana Sisters DS, a remake of a Super Mario Brothers clone that I'd never heard of, originally for the Commodore 64.
</p>
<p>Let me continue by saying how much I love my Commodore: Also <b>a lot.</b> It was my first computer, where I played my first video games and where I learned to program, so I'm left with a strong nostalgic fondness for software of the era.
</p>
<p>So, despite it being potentially a crappy knockoff, I decided to give Giana Sisters DS a fair chance. If it was even a passably good platformer it would be a good addition to my DS library; better than the bevy of talky, overwrought offerings with poorly designed control schemes that I'd been slogging through, anyway.
</p>
<p>To make a long story short, I was completely surprised when I played it. Far from being merely passable, it was <i>exceptional</i>. With every level cleared, it climbed my personal ladder of great platformers, eventually settling in the top echelon with the likes of Yoshi's Island, Klonoa: Door to Phantomile, and Ristar, as if it had always been there.
</p>
<p>It is extremely rare for me to develop another "favourite game". Since Skies of Arcadia (a decade ago), I had assumed it might not happen again. Maybe I got cynical in my old age or something. But this year it's happened multiple times: first with Ghost Trick, then with Limbo, and now with Giana Sisters DS. (So maybe I'm actually getting soft in my old age. =P)
</p>
<p>Despite being a DS game, I was impressed with how much Commodore flavour it managed to preserve. I know I've never played the original (I plan on it now, though), but I have played countless other games on my Commodore, and spent many happy hours entranced by the warm, friendly glow of their double-width pixels on a CRT monitor. Maybe it's the timbre of the music, maybe it's the lack of dialogue, maybe it's the solid-as-a-rock controls and physics, but Giana Sisters DS captures that transfixing <i>immediacy</i> that those classic games had, that sense of ultimate connectedness of being in a universe that might as well contain only you and the game.
</p>
<p>It was probably amplified by being on the DS, not only because I was holding the experience in my hands, but also the newly added bonus feature of the bubblegum: Giana can blow a bubblegum bubble, step inside it, and fly around (ain't platformers grand? =D). Her altitude is controlled by blowing into the DS microphone, and though other DS games employ the microphone in similar ways, this was the first great use of it I'd encountered. It created a novel, almost intimate, connection with the game world that other methods of controlling intensity - such as tapping a button less or more quickly, or tilting an analog stick - have always failed at. Simply by blowing harder or more softly, intentions are immediately translated into the gameplay; only a psychic connection could do better. And, humorously, it results in one of the few gaming experiences where going "FFFFFUUUUU" might actually help.
</p>
<p>So I liked it a lot. Which makes it all the more happy a coincidence that the team is <a href="http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/project-giana/project-giana">Kickstarting an awesome-looking sequel</a> only a month after the game became one of my favourites.
</p>
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Je_xDGid1hM" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
<p>Their design philosophy behind the game - or at least what bits of it are revealed on the Kickstarter page and <a href="http://project-giana.com/">their site</a> and <a href="http://project-giana.com/forum/">forum</a> - seems to be spot-on, as well, which I appreciate as a budding game designer.
</p>
<p>But don't let me hold you up here. <a href="http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/project-giana/project-giana">Go check it out</a> and consider backing it!
</p>Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-89565557499124048932012-08-07T21:34:00.002-07:002012-08-07T21:34:20.113-07:00AeStHete GM Release Later This Year, Placeholder Site Up<p>For those who don't know, I've been working on a Sonic engine in Game Maker for a long time (read: since 2006). Originally it was going to just be for my own <i>Sonic Freedom</i> project, but as I got deeper into the Sonic community I really wanted to make it open so that others could use it to make their own games as well.
</p>
<p>Thus was born <b>AeStHete</b>, which could best be described as a "template" game. Basically a bare-bones Sonic fangame containing nothing but the engine, a bunch of objects, and a host of level creation tools. Anyone who downloaded it would create their own game by "hacking" AeStHete in much the same way ROM hacks are made - replacing assets and editing engine code.
</p>
<p>However, I got caught up in the draining process of adding features to make it "nicer"; I wanted to make it all things to all people. So I sunk many months of work into the interface. But at heart I just want to make games, so this wound up frustrating me and slowing progress.
</p>
<p>Bouts of sickness, a month's stay in hospital, severe family and financial issues also got in the way. My only way to stay sane was to shelve AeStHete, and work on a focused, specific fangame: Sonic Time Twisted. And after that's finished? Well, I have other games I want to make, also - Sonic and otherwise.
</p>
<p>Now, I've given the source of various AeStHete builds to others who were interested, in the hopes it would help them with their own projects. But I always have to do so with the caveat that I can't offer a lot of tech support: they'll have to figure out the code for themselves.
</p>
<p>What I'd like to do soon is make the latest source of my GM version completely public, since I don't know how long it will be until I can get the ideal C++ version finished.
</p>
<p>Without further ado, here's the <a href="http://www.maruera.com/aesthete/">site where it will be released later this year</a>. More details will be coming soon, so stay tuned!
</p>Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-70009704149338888952012-07-31T05:22:00.000-07:002012-07-31T05:23:02.375-07:00!Science - "Constant"<img src="http://dl.dropbox.com/u/5437265/Images/2012-07-31.jpg" />Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-91350486432432188092012-03-31T23:44:00.000-07:002012-04-01T16:35:51.304-07:00Developer Spotlight: Rieko Kodama<p>Wow, it's been a long time since I last did one of these <a href="http://intheshadeofawave.blogspot.com/search/label/Developer%20Spotlight">Developer Spotlight</a> posts. Actually, it seems I've only ever done one. How embarrassing.
</p>
<p>Anyway, this time our spotlight is on <b>Rieko Kodama</b>, who's played an integral part in both of my favourite game series, <i>Sonic the Hedgehog</i> and <i>Phantasy Star</i>.
</p>
<p>I'm also compelled to spotlight Kodama because of the recent G4TV.com article, <a href="http://www.g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/722190/the-unsung-female-game-designers-of-japan/">"The Unsung Female Game Designers of Japan"</a>, which includes her but <a href="#foot1">misspells her name</a> as "Reiko", as well as getting some information wrong - or at least misleading.
</p>
<p>Like before, I won't give an overview of their career, since others <a href="#links">have done that already</a> (and better than I could do). Instead I will celebrate my favourite examples of their work.
</p>
<h1>Phantasy Star</h1>
<p>She's responsible for the "Total Design" (as the game credits put it) of <i>Phantasy Star I</i>. This includes the design of the world and most of the characters (but not the enemies), as well as the 2D art and battle backgrounds.
</p>
<img src="http://i40.tinypic.com/2mn1v0i.jpg"> <img src="http://i39.tinypic.com/25taw4p.jpg"> <img src="http://i42.tinypic.com/qq4bop.jpg"><br/>
<i>screenshots from <a href="http://www.phantasy-star.net">The Phantasy Star Pages</a></i>
<p>At a time when most console RPGs were your standard medieval fare, she crafted a Star Wars-esque universe with robots, space travel, and cool, credible characters.
</p>
<img src="http://i44.tinypic.com/359lpv9.jpg">
<p>Alis and Lutz have 90% percent of all subsequent RPG heroes beat by miles. And in today's era of overdesigned characters with a billion zippers and chickens in their hair, designers could learn alot from Kodama's strong, economical designs.
</p>
<p>(Tyron and Myau, however, are not her designs. Tyron was actually concieved by Naoto Ohshima, the designer of Sonic.)
</p>
<p>And, contrary to the G4TV article mentioned above, she did not write the game; that job was Kotaro Hayashida's, who Kodama also collaborated with on <i>Alex Kidd</i>.
</p>
<p>She would go on to contribute to <i>Phantasy Star II</i>, and - as the director of <i>Phantasy Star IV</i> - revitalise the series after a weak third instalment and create the best 16-bit RPG in history.
</p>
<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/HR_dtc3xL_c" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
<p><i>FUCK YEAH.</i> I can't even watch that without getting chills.
</p>
<h1>Sonic the Hedgehog</h1>
<p>Not content to help shape <i>Phantasy Star</i> and <i>Alex Kidd</i>, Kodama also contributed to Sega's next hit series, <i>Sonic the Hedgehog</i>. She was a zone artist for the first two games, making her responsible for some of the most iconic levels in video game history.
</p>
<img src="http://i39.tinypic.com/2meo74o.jpg"> <img src="http://i41.tinypic.com/nyl90.jpg"><br/>
<i>sadly, I'm having to guess at which levels are hers from the style, since very little is known about the games' artists' work.</i>
<p>From a brief interview in the January 2007 issue of <i>Nintendo Power</i>:
</p>
<blockquote><cite>Rieko Kodama</cite>
<p>It was still hard to display polygons back then, but the graphics in <i>Sonic the Hedgehog</i> were designed incorporating polygonal styles.</p>
<p>I drew the whole field using CG-like images. We intentionally created the designs as if they were illustrated artificially with CG tools. To tell you the truth, we drew them bit-by-bit because the software for computer graphics had not been developed much at the time. [Laughs]</p>
</blockquote>
<p>So, she had a hand in created both my favourite video game worlds. But that <i>still</i> wasn't enough!
</p>
<h1>Skies of Arcadia</h1>
<p>As the producer of <i>Skies of Arcadia</i>, Kodama is not only responsible for the best 16-bit RPG ever, but also one of the greatest 3D "modern" RPGs as well.
</p>
<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/-Fl3ZwERMgE" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
<p>In a genre where most characters are emo, reluctant, and boring, the exuberance of the cast in <i>Skies</i> is a sheer joy. And I've never played a game that was a better "power trip" - I mean, what other game lets you <span style="color: black">discover that the world is round</span>? A truly awesome experience and an exemplar of what a game should be.
</p>
<h1>Interviews</h1>
<p>Here are some of the best Rieko Kodama interviews and my favourite insights from them.
</p>
<a href="http://web.archive.org/web/20060315154606/http://www.video-fenky.com/features/kodama/kodama1.html">Video Fenky</a>
<blockquote><cite>Rieko Kodama</cite><p>Well, for the ending sequence, I absolutely wanted to include a picture of Alisa and the four-member party, but by that time we had pretty much used up our four megs, so there was no space to put a picture in anywhere. But then, however, Naka squeezed the program code down a little and went up to me and said "I freed up a little space, so get me some art to fill it with," so...</p>
<p>Really, it was a tiny amount of memory, but I wanted to repay him for cleaning up the code, so I stuck in <a href="http://i42.tinypic.com/1ielb8.jpg">this picture</a>.</p></blockquote>
<a href="http://www.g-wie-gorilla.de/content/view/161/18/">G Wie Gorilla</a>
<blockquote><cite>Rieko Kodama</cite><p>Throughout the Phantasy Star series, I have included a story of “fellows” with the same purpose, uniting their strength to fight and survive regardless of their sex, whether they are humanoid type or not, whether they are from the earth or from the other space. So, I feel that Phantasy Star should be a world where everyone can bring out their best.</p></blockquote>
<a href="http://www.the-nextlevel.com/feature/interview-rieko-kodama/">The Next Level</a>
<blockquote><cite>Rieko Kodama</cite><p>I also enjoy reading fantasy books, like The Lord of the Rings. I like the movies, too. I have a particular fondness for Western style-fantasy. </p></blockquote>
<a name="links"></a>
<h1>Rieko Kodama links:</h1>
<a href="http://segaretro.org/Rieko_Kodama">Sega Retro</a><br/>
<a href="http://www.sega-16.com/2004/08/sega-stars-rieko-kodama/">Sega-16</a><br/>
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rieko_Kodama">Wikipedia</a><br/>
<br/><br/>
<a name="foot1"></a>
<p style="font-size: 8pt">I know it seems like a minor thing to nitpick - but if supposed gaming enthusiasts can't get these things correct, when all it takes is a quick check at Wikipedia, what are we supposed to think? It's a pet peeve of mine - I've seen relatively high profile gaming media make mistakes this bad and worse all the time: claiming that Koji Kondo did the music for <i>Sonic 1</i> (he's actually the composer for <i>Mario</i> and <i>Zelda</i>); mistaking Shun Nakamura for Masato Nakamura; G4TV calling Yuji Naka "Yugi" Naka on live television... But what can we expect when <i>Sonic 3</i>'s own manual calls him "Yuju" Naka? I can understand CNN or the WSJ doing this, but gamers should know better.
</p>Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-51456087270473402202012-03-30T00:58:00.000-07:002012-03-30T00:58:44.238-07:00Sonic 2 HD: Huge Debacle<p>So, I downloaded <a href="http://s2hd.com/">Sonic 2 HD</a>, all excited to play the alpha after such a long wait.
</p>
<p>When extracting it, my antivirus, <a href="http://antivirus.comodo.com/">Comodo</a>, threw a hissy fit, quarantining the executable. Even after doing everything in my power to disable Comodo short of uninstalling it, the file would still somehow get quarantined.
</p>
<p>In the end, I wound up specifying the download path for the Sonic 2 HD folder as an exception so the antivirus would totally ignore it, and that worked.
</p>
<p>Game still won't run, though. It somehow fails to find the DLL files that are sitting right there in the same folder. I'm assuming this might still have something to do with my antivirus, but I don't really feel like going through the hell of uninstalling and reinstalling it just to play Emerald Hill with pretty graphics.
</p>
<p>But I'm still a bit steamed at being stymied in my attempts; I don't like feeling left out of such newsworthy developments in the Sonic community. Videos salve the wound a bit, but not completely.
</p>
<p>So I was totally prepared to blame Comodo for this snafu. It's not like it's the first time it's acted like a punkass dickbag. I had to lock horns with it in a bloody, protracted battle just to run Game Maker comfortably.
</p>
<p>But it looks like the only reason why I, and countless others, are having such trouble with running Sonic 2 HD in the first place (due to balking antiviruses or other weird hurdles) is due to the <a href="http://www.sonicretro.org/2012/03/guest-editorial-in-which-I-rain-on-the-sonic-2-hd-parade/">incompetence and general dickishness of Sonic 2 HD's main programmer</a>, LOst, and his insistence on hamfisted DRM.
</p>
<p>Yeah, DRM. In a Sonic fangame. As if the obfuscated code and other anti-hacking measures are going to do a lick of good when a barrel full of Sonic Retro monkeys are let loose on it for a couple months. No, it's only going to hamstring the product, preventing people - like me - from enjoying it. If I would enjoy it, that is... but that's the thing, <i>I don't get to find out, do I?</i>
</p>
<p>What really pisses me off about this is that the first thing I did when I joined the Sonic Retro was take time out of the development of my own project and start the <a href="http://info.sonicretro.org/Sonic_Physics_Guide">Sonic Physics Guide</a>, in the vain hope that it would catch on and be helpful.
</p>
<p>I noticed a lack, and I wanted to fill it. I never really expected it to amount to much, but beyond my wildest expectations the link I added to the wiki was moved to a more prominent location, others contributed to and improved upon it, and now I quite often get messages and emails thanking me for it. And what thrills me the most is when I see others say things like, "why didn't you use the Sonic Physics Guide?", as if it's just <i>de rigueur</i> these days, a basic expectation.
</p>
<p>And why did I bother to do it? For an "altruistic" reason, which - like most altruism - boils down to being basically selfish. I wanted better Sonic fangames! And it's worked - I'm not going to take credit in the sharp rise in quality of Sonic fangames over the last couple of years, but I'm fairly certain that the Physics Guide has at least helped iron out a wrinkle here or there that would have otherwise plagued these games.
</p>
<p>Anyway, I'm not here to toot my own horn. In fact, the opposite - I would never have bothered making a guide without the Sonic Community Hacking Guide as an example of what could be done. The whole point is that, by working together, and building off of each other's new discoveries and ideas, fangames benefit across the board.
</p>
<p>So I'm just really disappointed by this whole Sonic 2 HD debacle. I'm not really that angry that the code is obfuscated - hell, that's the programmer's choice, whether I agree or not. No, what really puts the sour taste in my mouth is that the horrid DRM is preventing people from playing the game, or playing it comfortably. And that it held the game's development back by maybe a year or more(!) And that it's a <i>compromise</i> the team had to settle for, in lieu of some much worse solution. I mean, come on, Yuji Naka idol worship is all well and good, but when it comes to emulating his egotistical behaviour towards the Sonic X-Treme team, it's gone too far.
</p>
<p>You know, I'm the guy who probably broke a few thousand Sonic fan's hearts when I had to step down from the Sonic Fan Remix project because I hated working with 3D. My AeStHete engine which is supposed to be all cool and open and everything is still unreleased, because I'm having more fun working on Sonic Time Twisted than making my engine palatable for a public release. I'm obviousbly not some badass programmer god who can do no wrong.
</p>
<p>But I don't feel I'm overstepping any bounds when I say that LOst is an embarrassment to the profession. Making your team miserable, and your product suck, is <i>not</i> cool.
</p>Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-61558395141167532162012-03-17T08:03:00.000-07:002012-03-19T15:37:55.004-07:00Top 4 Creationist Arguments<p>Creationism has millions of adherents, countless think tanks, and has been around for centuries. By now it should have an unbeatable combo of irrefutable knockout arguments, right?
</p>
<p>Damn straight. Hold on to your pants, folks, 'cos you're about to be rocked by Creationism's Greatest Hits, the creme de la creme of anti-evolution arguments.
</p>
<h1>#1: Complexity!!!1!
</h1>
<p>The universe is beautiful! But it's also <i>really</i> confusing. So God must have made it. I mean, you couldn't make a universe could you? So there.
</p>
<p>In other news, God made Windows Vista.
</p>
<h1>#2: But... you know... <i>God</i>.
</h1>
<p>He is <i>God</i>, you guys.
</p>
<h1>#3: Eeeew, monkeys!
</h1>
<p>They're right, you know. Monkeys are pretty gross. What with throwin' the poop and shit.
</p>
<h1>#4: Lalalalalalala!
</h1>
<p>...There's actually <i>no way</i> to argue with that one. These guys are <i>good</i>!
</p>
<p>I don't know about you guys, but I find all of this really persuasive. If only evolution had arguments like this on its side! All we've got is stupid crap like <a href="http://lmgtfy.com/?q=ervs+and+evolution">evidence</a>.
</p>
<p>And <a href="http://lmgtfy.com/?q=phylogenic+tree">more evidence</a>.
</p>
<p>And <a href="http://lmgtfy.com/?q=fossil+record">even more evidence</a>.
</p>
<p>And... <a href="http://lmgtfy.com/?q=observed+speciation">well,</a> <a href="http://lmgtfy.com/?q=antibiotic+resistance+evolution">you</a> <a href="http://lmgtfy.com/?q=parallels+to+biological+evolution">know</a>.
</p>
<p>How can we possibly compete?
</p>Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-75123039995852060862012-03-11T06:55:00.000-07:002012-03-11T07:13:23.040-07:00Most Astounding Fact<div><p>When reading through my blogroll, as is my wont, I found this video at <a href="http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2012/03/06/neil-tysons-most-astounding-fact/">Bad Astronomy</a>, of Neil deGrasse Tyson telling us what he thinks the most astounding fact about our universe is:
</p>
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/9D05ej8u-gU" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
<p>The fact? That <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RbfhSHVm2Fc">we are all made of stars</a>.
</p>
<p>It's a powerful fact; a beautiful, moving fact. It's also a fact that recently caught Miley Cyrus a fair amount of flak <a href="http://whyevolutionistrue.wordpress.com/2012/03/02/miley-cyrus-tweets-lawrence-krauss-gets-flak-from-the-faithful/">when she called Lawrence Krauss's way of putting it "beautiful"</a>.
</p>
<p>But I don't think it's a very <i>astounding</i> fact - that is, not to me at least. Of course, I have a skewed perception: I've known it for as long as I can remember. It's one of the perks of being raised by a mother who read Carl Sagan books to her kids instead of <i>Dick and Jane</i>. Next to "billions and billions", his most famous line must be <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xaj407ofjNE">"we're made of star stuff"</a>. (It took about 2 seconds to find on YouTube!)
</p>
<p>Anyway, Tyson puts it very well and I think it's a great video. It makes me look forward to the new Cosmos sequel he'll be hosting. But this is my blog, after all, and if you think I'm going to get through a whole post without making it all about me, me, me... well, you'd be overestimating my self-control. =P
</p>
<p>So what is the fact about the universe that <i>I</i> find the most astounding? Well, I'm glad you asked.
</p>
<h1>Googolplexity</h1>
<p>Like a lot of kids, I went through the phase when superlatives were the coolest things ever. Dinosaurs, the biggest land creatures ever! Jupiter, so huge the Great Red Spot could swallow the Earth whole and still have room for afters! Absolute zero, where everything just <i>stops</i>! Any kid who's been through this is surely aware of the stupidly huge number <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Googol">googol</a> (one followed by a hundred zeroes) and its bigger brother, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Googolplex">googolplex</a> (one followed by a googol zeroes). Like the fact that we're all star stuff, or the continent of Pangaea, googol and googolplex are quite familiar faces to anyone who was a kid like me.
</p>
<p>Which makes the hidden power of googolplex all the more astounding.
</p>
<p>Googolplex is so freaking big that it's literally impossible to write out in long form - the number of zeroes wouldn't fit in the universe. ...Well, let me put a finer point on that: it's impossible to write out in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decimal"><i>base ten</i></a>; just declare a "base googolplex" by fiat and you can write it out as 1. That would be sort of unfair, though, wouldn't it? But it's good that I brought up bases (or <i>radices</i>, for the verbose), since the subject is an essential part of the astounding fact I'm on my way to imparting.
</p>
<p>Your computer, for instance, uses base two (more popularly known as binary). The number we sensible people would write as 255 is 11111111 in binary. But even programmers like me, who "talk" to computers on a routine basis, don't often handle a lot of binary. No, base sixteen, "hexadecimal", is the most common way programmers look at raw data. Since hexadecimal needs 16 distinct symbols, and our damn ten-fingered ancestors didn't have the decency to furnish us with that many numerals, we have to borrow a few letters that don't really want to be there (much like your sister when playing <i>Rock Band 3</i>), and 255 looks like FF. (The saddest cases amongst us, when we encounter "fffffff" in forum posts and YouTube comments, will obsessively convert to decimal numbers. We (*koff* <i>they</i>, I mean <i>they</i>) also get bonus points if we remember to factorial when it's exclaimed.)
</p>
<p>So any data on a computer can be expressed in good ol' decimal, as well. It's not convenient for programmers, for a number of reasons, but it can be done. So, technically, any string of data - a program, a file, even (of course) a song or video - is just a really big number; this is just the corollary of the trivial observation that any number can be stored as a string of data on a computer.
</p>
<p>So, what kind of program would googol be? No, it wouldn't be Google's source code (seriously, dude, that's a terrible guess). One followed by a hundred zeroes doesn't represent enough bytes of data even to store this blog post! Even a hexadecimal number with a hundred zeroes (which would represent a significantly greater value than googol, considering hexadecimal 100 is equal to decimal 256) could only represent about 50 bytes.
</p>
<p>But what about a googolplex? It's got a <i>googol</i> zeroes! I mean, that's got to be enough digits to fit a program in, right? Well, I <i>hope</i> so - even if we considered all the storage devices ever manufactured by humanity altogether, we wouldn't even come within ten orders of magnitude of needing a googol zeroes to represent the data. Remember, we can't even write a googol zeroes in the <i>universe</i>.
</p>
<p>So, googolplex is big. Yawn. Anyone can look at a 1TB hard drive on their desk (or Radio Shack if they're unlucky enough to lack one) and be briefly titillated at the thought of how many floppy disks it replaces. (Hint: more than you can carry.) Big numbers can be reduced to mewling kittens simply by giving them names; hell, even infinity can be tamed by giving it a name and a wiggly little symbol. But the thing about a number, when thought of as a string of data, is that by counting down from it to 0 (or by counting up from 0 to it, which makes a bit more intuitive sense when imagining the process) systematically traverses every permutation of data that can possibly be represented by the number of zeroes it has. Try it; count to 100 - there are only 100 possible 2-digit numbers (counting 00, of course).
</p>
<p>So, let's count to googolplex. 1, 2, 3, 4... Well, let's just imagine we kept going. By time we finish, we'll have traveled through every possible permutation of data capable of being represented by the intermediate numbers. Sure, at first we'll have "boring" numbers like 8, 13, and 42. But by the time we reach 10,000, we'll have every 4-digit PIN ever used. And by 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 we'll have every possible 8-digit alphanumeric password.</p>
<p>Does that number seem large? Yeah? Does it fit in the universe? Okay, then. Just to keep things in perspective. We've got a <i>long</i> way to go.
</p>
<p>Before "long", we've got the digital representation of every novel ever written. Or that will be written. Or even <i>could</i> be written. And every possible combination of the first half of one with the second half of another. Also, every novel possible with increasingly bizarre typos. Not to mention the overwhelming proportion of total nonsense. (In fact, we'll get to this milestone much quicker if we don't use ASCII encoding, which wastes a <i>whole byte</i> per letter. That's 256 combinations where only about three dozen are really needed!)
</p>
<p>Lost amongst those novels? Your autobiography. Detailed and accurate to a degree even you wouldn't be able to achieve. Also, your autobiography if you'd lived a thousand years ago, or a thousand hence. Alternate yous that commit unspeakable atrocities or perform amazing feats. Accounts of your journeys to Mars and beyond.</p>
<p>You'd have the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Library_of_Babel">Library of Babel</a> on steroids.
</p>
<p>The concept is so mind-numbing, I've known people to flat-out disbelieve it upon their first encounter with it. But it's ineluctable; it's even demonstrable to an extent (the 4-digit PINs are an example). It's simply a fascinating fact about large numbers.
</p>
<p>But we're still not done. That's just text; we've got so much further to go. Before long, we've got mp3's of every possible song. Digital video of all possible movies. Hell, digital video of <i>everything that's ever happened in history</i>. Always, remember, with a disproportionate heap of total garble, of course.
</p>
<p>Long before we hit a googolplex, we'd have danced throughout the total cultural output of humanity. Indeed, of all the sentient species in the universe. Embedded in the ever-ticking stream of numbers would be videos of alien worlds. Real ones - and fake ones. <i>Alpha Centauri Idol</i>? It's in there.
</p>
<p>Let that sink in. If you're like me, you probably can't. You could literally spend the rest of your lifetime - and our universe's - and you'd still never be able to list the things that you'd create simply by counting to googolplex. All that did, does, will, or <i>can</i> exist. Lurking beneath the surface of a humble number - a number most of us meet as children, throwing our arms wide and saying, "I bet it's <i>this</i> big!", and quickly forget, relegating it to the bin of cool science-y superlatives with the blue whales and blue giants.
</p>
<p>Of course, you could never <i>actually</i> undertake this extraordinary performance. Any computer that could display the results wouldn't fit in the universe (more so if you wanted to store them!) and sifting the <i>Harry Potters</i> from the <i>Graxfasczzaxses</i> would be impossible.
</p>
<p>But that's not the point. The point - the astounding fact, that promised astounding fact - is that this journey, this parade of numbers, can be easily imagined. Like infinity, we've tamed it with a name - googolplex. And though none of us will ever see the destination, we can all of us embark on it effortlessly. 1, 2, 3, 4...
</p>
<p>One simple rule, maybe the simplest possible rule: Add One. Two little symbols: "+1". And from it? <i>Everything</i>, with the full force of what those ten letters can possibly convey.
</p>
<p>Is it any wonder that, knowing a fact like that, another little rule like <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evolution">"copy me"</a> could have created us?
</p>
<p>And after all of this? That's just googolplex's <i>zeroes</i>. The amount it represents is huger still - after all, "100" only has two zeroes. And it's not even the biggest number humans have had the chutzpah to name. There are <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zE-IZynfKM">numbers mathematicians kick around that are so much larger</a> than googolplex that the conventional notation that makes short work of it - 10^(10^100) - can't express them. Like googolplex's zeroes, these numbers would have too many <i>exponents</i> to fit in the universe.
</p>
<p>...610, 611, 612, 613, 614, 615, 616...
</p>
<h2>P.S.
</h2>
<p>Going back to Neil Tyson's fact for a moment, <a href="http://scienceblogs.com/startswithabang/2012/03/the_most_astounding_fact_about.php">Starts With A Bang!</a> posted about it, too, and at the head of the post was a cool quotation from Richard Feynman:
</p>
<blockquote>Is no one inspired by our present picture of the Universe? This value of science remains unsung by singers, you are reduced to hearing not a song or poem, but an evening lecture about it. This is not yet a scientific age.
</blockquote>
<p>Well, sadly Feynman is dead, but I like to think we're now living in the dawn of that appreciative age he dreamed of. This blog's very title is a fragment of poetry I wrote, inspired by the picture of the universe revealed by science. In fact, my "About Me" box says I'm a songwriter (though it's something I never really post about, since I'm in a stage of my life where it's taking a backseat to programming), and well over half of my songs are inspired by science. It's without a doubt my greatest muse. Maybe I'll stop playing <i>Sonic</i> long enough to post some eventually. =P
</p></div>Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-73771976796030512162012-02-23T19:07:00.001-08:002012-04-26T17:08:44.580-07:00Sonic's Narrow Escape<p><i>This post has been updated with a clearer screenshot from <a href="http://www.sonicretro.org/2012/02/the-story-of-the-sonic-beta-with-the-best-shots-youll-see-today/">Sonic Retro's coverage</a> of the subject.</i>
</p>
<p>A few days ago, some photos of the <a href="http://info.sonicretro.org/Game_Development:Sonic_the_Hedgehog_%2816-bit%29#Tokyo_Toy_Show_1990">earliest known prototype of Sonic 1</a> from <i>Beep!</i> magazine were <a href="http://megadrive.me/2012/02/19/early-sonic-screenshots/">posted at megadrive.me</a>.
</p>
<p>The shot that interests me the most, however, is this one:
</p>
<img src="http://i56.tinypic.com/98f4p0.jpg">
<p>That blobby thing to the left of Sonic is <s>almost</s> certainly the butt-chinned baddie from the lower right of this concept image:
</p>
<a href="http://info.sonicretro.org/File:Sonic_Gems_300.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-sQKqz74sJ00sFRA3rk3CgOJQkCPqEdkCwUKVfSl6rlxPnbtflpz4ad4rwg4DDrRczi6Dglnw5TuDKhiUFDLUWL3115UY-3V7EjBJQSUl52PrZ_HQOIq1Z9d8MfTGQ8kSy4CXp3molyqy/s400/Sonic_Gems_300.jpg"></a>
<p>Yes, it's purple with yellow gloves in the concept art but blue with red gloves in the screenshot. But bear in mind this is the matter of a simple palette swap, from line 1 to line 2:
</p>
<img src="http://i39.tinypic.com/ou1w6q.jpg">
<p>There may have been more than one version of the baddie, or maybe they hadn't decided on which colour scheme to use yet. But I digress.
</p>
<p>I find this discovery pretty gobsmacking. Yes, I've been aware of the concept art for a long time, and that it took the team a while to really nail down what Sonic and his world were going to be like. But to see an actual screenshot of the running game (albeit a prototype) that predates the concept of <i>badniks</i> - well, it's awesome, but also sort of terrifying. We came <i>this close</i> to living in a world where Sonic did battle with proctological monstrosities instead of the metal menaces we've come to expect.
</p>
<p>Maybe someone from Sonic Team played Mega Man and was inspired to give Eggman a mad scientist makeover and an army of robots. Whatever the cause, thank goodness they did. Sonic narrowly avoided a long career of being groped and probed.
</p>Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-60914921695336201092011-12-16T05:29:00.000-08:002011-12-16T05:29:50.796-08:00Christopher Hitchens 1949-2011<p>
So I check my Twitter feed to find that Christopher Hitchens has died.
</p>
<p>
I shall miss his courageous voice. Even as - if I may put it so brutally - a sick old man, his appearance at the debates and speaking engagements he so gamely persisted in was like nothing so much as a burning sun that had assumed the guise of a man.
</p>
<p>
With his voice alone, whether spoken or written, he could make you feel as though whipped by a hurricane, or tickled by the gentlest breeze. He was a testament to the explosive power that simple honesty, directness, and steadfast adherence to the principles of freedom, equality, and truth can lend to mere words.
</p>
<p>
Today I mourn the loss of a fellow mammal, and a personal hero. May his memes long persist.
</p>Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-51925119076669569282011-10-21T10:02:00.000-07:002011-10-21T10:12:55.872-07:00Hidden Palace ConclusionNow that the Sonic 1&2 Soundtrack has been released and I've heard it, we can see if it resolves any of my questions about Hidden Palace's BGM. And guess what? Not only is the song not titled Hidden Palace on the soundtrack (it's called "Unused") but it actually has an <span style="font-style:italic;">ending</span> unlike the original game.
That goes a long way to confirming my <a href="http://intheshadeofawave.blogspot.com/2011/09/musical-mystery-still-unsolved.html">theory</a> that the song was <span style="font-style:italic;">not</span> composed as a zone music.
I'd say more, but I'm using a phone to post this. =)Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-31660698021480301152011-10-03T00:56:00.000-07:002016-11-16T00:06:54.118-08:00Hack Attack (Part III)<p>And now for the comparison of my trophy nominations with the official winners. Why? I... I have no idea.
</p>
<p>Hidden Palace Trophy – 1st Place<br />
<strong>The S Factor: Sonia and Silver by Aquaslash & Pals</strong></p>
<p>I had nominated <i>S Factor</i> as well.
</p>
<p>Wood Zone Trophy – 2nd Place<br />
<strong>Sonic VR by ColinC10</strong></p>
<p>For 2nd Place I had nominated <i>Sonic 2 Heroes</i>. <i>Sonic VR</i> got no nomination from me, even though I liked it, because the demo was so limited. I had said "I can't in good conscience let it get high marks for what I'm hoping it will become; it must stand and fall based on what's actually been submitted this year".
</p>
<p>Dust Hill Trophy – 3rd Place<br />
<strong>Sonic 2 Heroes by Flamewing</strong></p>
<p>For 3rd Place I nominated <i>Sonic ERaZor</i>.
</p>
<p>Green Hill Trophy – Hack that plays most like a Sonic game<br />
<strong>The S Factor: Sonia and Silver by Aquaslash & Pals</strong></p>
<p>This was my choice as well.
</p>
<p>Windy Valley Trophy – Best Art<br />
<strong>The S Factor: Sonia and Silver by Aquaslash & Pals</strong></p>
<p>Again, the same. Chaotic Street in particular blew me away.
</p>
<p>D.A. Garden Trophy – Best Music<br />
<strong>The S Factor: Sonia and Silver by Aquaslash & Pals</strong><br />
<em>HONOURABLE MENTION – 30 Day Project: Revisited by PsychoSk8r</em></p>
<p>For this I nominated <i>Sonic VR</i> for it's fitting sample music, and gave <i>30 Day Project</i> the runner up's position.
</p>
<p>Palmtree Panic Trophy – Best Layouts<br />
<strong>Untitled Sonic 2 Hack by D.A. Garden</strong></p>
<p>I gave this to <i>S Factor</i>.
</p>
<p>Genocide City Trophy – Most Difficult Hack<br />
<strong>Sonic 1 Lunacy by The Masochistic Maniacs (Destructiox, SonicVaan, MarkeyJester, Selbi, Spanner) </strong></p>
<p>Nothing else could have possibly gotten this trophy!
</p>
<p>11000101 Trophy – Best Technical Hack<br />
<strong>Sonic 2 Heroes by Flamewing</strong></p>
<p>I chose <i>Sonic 2 Heroes</i> as well.
</p>
<p>Knuckles Trophy – Best New Character<br />
<strong>The S Factor: Sonia and Silver by Aquaslash & Pals – Sonia the Hedgehog</strong></p>
<p>I nominated Sonia, too. I'm glad to see she won, despite the Sonic Underground hate that goes around.
</p>
<p>Fang Trophy – Best new/modified enemies in a hack submitted<br />
<strong>Sonic ERaZor by Selbi</strong></p>
<p>This trophy matches my nomination, too.
</p>
<p>Eggman Trophy – Best new bosses/minibosses in a hack submitted<br />
<strong>The S Factor: Sonia and Silver by Aquaslash & Pals – Team Metallix</strong></p>
<p>Again, the same.
</p>
<p>Spindash Trophy – Best New Ability<br />
<strong>The S Factor: Sonia and Silver by Aquaslash & Pals – Silver’s Telekinesis</strong></p>
<p>I had chosen Sonia's ability to break Spikes. I found Silver to be a bit clunky.
</p>
<p>Carnival Night Trophy – Most Innovative Feature<br />
<strong>Sonic 2 Heroes by Flamewing – 3 Players at Once</strong></p>
<p>Once more, the same.
</p>
<p>Emerald Trophy – Best Special Stage<br />
<strong>Sonic ERaZor by Selbi</strong></p>
<p>I nominated this, too. I'm really pleased to see it win. <i>S Factor</i> has gorgeous Special Stages, too, but this one was SO MUCH FUN.
</p>
<p>Robotnik’s Revenge Trophy – New Concept based on Existing Concepts<br />
<strong>Sonic 2 Heroes by Flamewing</strong></p>
<p>I had picked <i>Sonic VR</i> for this. Really, <i>Sonic 2 Heroes</i> nabbed enough awards and this should have been ColinC10's. <i>Sonic VR</i> is the exemplar of finding new life out of old concepts.
</p>
<p>Casinopolis Trophy – Most Entertaining/Fun Hack<br />
<strong>Sonic VR by ColinC10</strong></p>
<p>I gave this one to <i>Sonic 2 Heroes</i>, because it literally did entertain me the most. The official results give it to <i>Sonic VR</i>, saying this: "Forty challenges await you in this year’s submission from Colin. How long will it take for you to complete them all – if you can do that." A little unfair, considering that all 40 were not implemented in the build evaluated by the contest judges!
</p>
<p>Vector Trophy – Most Humourous Hack<br />
<strong>Yeth by Banoon</strong><br />
<em>HONOURABLE MENTION – Chip McCallihan in Sonic 1 by MainMemory</em></p>
<p>I gave this to Yeth, also. The writing in the manual pushed it over the edge for me.
</p>
<p>WTF?! Trophy – Most Unique Hacks Submitted<br />
<strong>Sonic the Ghosthog by Hanoch</strong> AND <strong>Sonic 1 Misadventure by Arctic Leopard</strong></p>
<p>Same.
</p>
<p>Twinkle Park Trophy – Best 3D Hack<br />
<strong>Mushroom Zone by Dude</strong></p>
<p>I didn't judge any 3D hacks.
</p>
<p>Crystal Egg Trophy – Best 8-Bit Hack<br />
<strong>Sonic Chaotic by Ravenfreak</strong></p>
<p>This was the only 8-bit entry, winning by default.
</p>
<p>Christmas Present Trophy – The hack that nobody saw coming<br />
<strong>Sonic VR by ColinC10</strong></p>
<p>Same.
</p>
<p>Tails Trophy – Best Improved Hack from Last Year<br />
<strong>Sonic ERaZor by Selbi</strong></p>
<p>Same.
</p>
<p>OH GOD WHY Trophy – Why was this submitted?<br />
<strong>Sonic 1 Reinvented by Watsonman</strong></p>
<p>I must have missed this trophy somehow, because I have no nomination for it. <i>Sonic 1 Reinvented</i> has zero going for it, so it certainly deserves it.
</p>
<p>Big Trophy – Worst Hack<br />
<strong>Latios in Sonic 3 & Knuckles by Scott4</strong></p>
<p>I had picked <i>Red the Hedgehog</i>, with <i>Latios</i> as the runner up. In retrospect, it's probably better not to give Dandaman the satisfaction. =P <i>Latios</i> is more legitimately horrible.
</p>
<hr>
<p>That's it for now. Back into the deep I sink!
</p>Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-65264208752950111712011-10-01T00:24:00.000-07:002012-08-06T07:56:44.345-07:00Hack Attack (Part II)<p>This is the second part in a three part series of my reviews of the hacks submitted to the <a href="http://sonicresearch.org/hackingcontest/">Sonic the Hedgehog Hacking Contest</a>.
</p>
<img src="http://i54.tinypic.com/2ewmn21.jpg" width="80%">
<h3>30 Day Project: Revisited</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by PsychoSk8r</i></p>
<img src="http://i51.tinypic.com/fof7sh.jpg">
<p>To fully detail all the changes made to Sonic 1 for this hack would be a whole blog post in itself - the changelog provided with the hack is nearly 700 lines long!
</p>
<p>The hack is so named because PsychoSk8r set a challenge for himself - make as many changes as possible in a 30-day period. Because of this, there's not much focus or coherency, but a bunch of the changes are cool and fun to play around with.
</p>
<p>The art mods are a bit uneven - Marble fares much better than Green Hill - but are certainly more creative than most and I appreciate the humorous "easter eggs" strewn throughout.
</p>
<img src="http://i56.tinypic.com/2nvw37.jpg">
<p>The music mods are one of the strengths of the hack. There are original remixes for each of the 3 acts (for the zones that are modified in this demo, anyway), and the Sound Test includes a treasure trove of ports and conversions that are extremely well done. It's probably worth the download for the soundtrack alone.
</p>
<p>As far as programming mods go, there's a slew of those, too. There are a couple of dash moves and a double jump for Sonic (none of which are really necessary to progress), and you're required to find a Chaos Emerald monitor in each Act in order to gain access to the next - a concept which <a href="http://intheshadeofawave.blogspot.com/p/sonic-one-ring.html">I obviously like</a>, though I do wish they were hidden a little better.
</p>
<p>There are also some fun effects like time of day changes and weather, which may not be terribly impressive at this point in the history of hacking, but I liked the atmosphere they created.
</p>
<p>Overall I'd like to see this hack given more of a point, but I do like the work that's been done on it.
</p>
<hr>
<a name="erazor"></a><h3>Sonic ERaZor</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by Selbi</i></p>
<img src="http://i54.tinypic.com/116l1f8.jpg">
<p>Sonic ERaZor was submitted to last year's contest, as well. When I played it then, I wasn't too fond of it. Something about it felt too edgy and confrontational to be truly enjoyable.
</p>
<p>This year, though, I found that I liked it a lot. I don't know if that's entirely because <i>it</i> improved (though of course it has made a bunch of progress), or because I've just gotten over any hangups I might have had with it.
</p>
<p>Either way, this time I really liked the tone and the "Sonic's having a really weird day" storyline. The challenge level was just right and the concepts for each level, while quite disparate, somehow gelled to create a whole.
</p>
<p>Particularly standout was the Special Stage, which I adore. I like it far more than the original Sonic 1 stage, and I'd gladly play many more - even if they get progressively harder. Bring it!
</p>
<img src="http://i56.tinypic.com/242ftci.jpg">
<p>So I'd recommend ERaZor. I was playing it again while writing this review, and even after the novelty wears off it's still fun.
</p>
<hr>
<a name="lunacy"></a><h3>Sonic 1 Lunacy</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by The Masochistic Maniacs</i></p>
<img src="http://i53.tinypic.com/35ind41.jpg">
<p>"Lunacy" and "Masochistic Maniacs" are incredibly apt terms when it comes to this hack. An example? Everything is out to kill Sonic, even his own jump - pressing the button again while in the air will cause instant death. This game, in Lunacy Mode, must be played extremely carefully!
</p>
<p>The idea, as far as I can tell from this demo, is to make Sonic 1 not just harder, but a <i>lot</i> harder. While there are Normal and Hard modes, it looks to me like Lunacy Mode is the meat of the game. Since the title card for Green Hill is replaced with "Cherry Blossom" I'm assuming that future releases will be using custom art, which I look forward to (especially knowing that MarkeyJester is on the team).
</p>
<p>I'm afraid I don't quite have the stomach for Lunacy Mode, though, and had to battle my through it using savestates. It's not the kind of fair challenge I enjoy that <a href="http://info.sonicretro.org/Sonic_VR">Sonic VR</a> is such a beautiful example of. However the game does tease us with things like this:
</p>
<img src="http://i51.tinypic.com/13zwvpz.jpg">
<p>...so when it's finished it might be worth self-flagellating to see all the content. As it stands, though, it's mostly Green Hill and I wouldn't recommend it unless you're already following the project.
</p>
<hr>
<h3>The S Factor: Sonia and Silver</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by Aquaslash & Pals</i></p>
<img src="http://i53.tinypic.com/s5hh6v.jpg">
<p>Believe it or not, I'm a member of that rarefied species - a Sonic Underground fan. (Just this morning, I had to fend off a cryptozoologist who wanted to stuff and mount me.) So I - <a href="http://forums.sonicretro.org/index.php?showtopic=26487&view=findpost&p=622233">unlike others</a> - have no quibble whatsoever with playing as Sonia. In fact, I tend to think of this game as "The S Factor: Sonia" because I couldn't care less for Silver. =P (Scourge and Shadow are not complete as of this release, but even if they were I don't find the prospect of playing as them very appealing, either.)
</p>
<p>Excepting the less-than-interesting supporting cast, everything about this game - it feels inadequate to call it a "hack" - is brilliant. I've been following it's development as a fan for what seems like years now, and it hasn't disappointed me yet. The hacking contest build was no exception - the new levels were beautiful and won my heart immediately.
</p>
<img src="http://i53.tinypic.com/rlcobc.jpg">
<p>It surely deserved all the trophies it won this year and it was certainly my favourite overall submission. But I've got to stop talking about it now, or I'll wind up killing the rest of the evening playing it again. =)
</p>
<hr>
<a name="us3hack"></a><h3>Untitled Sonic 3 Hack</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 3&K by D.A. Garden</i></p>
<img src="http://i52.tinypic.com/2s1k8ef.jpg">
<p>If you've ever wondered what it would be like to step into a bizarro world where Sonic Team had made different level layouts for Sonic 3 & Knuckles, this is the hack for you. The overall game is intact, but the levels are now completely new while remaining strangely authentic. Keep in mind, though, that the hack is not finished so this is true of some levels more than others.
</p>
<p>Sadly the palettes have also been changed, and they're hella ugly.
</p>
<p>There's nothing else to say, really. It's not going to hold anyone's interest for long. D.A. Garden deserves props for making nearly spot-on level layouts, but the Untitled Sonic 2 Hack (that I reviewed in <a href="http://intheshadeofawave.blogspot.com/2011/09/hack-attack-part-i.html">Part I</a>) had more going for it, I think.
</p>
<hr>
<a name="s2heroes"></a><h3>Sonic 2 Heroes</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 2 by Flamewing</i></p>
<img src="http://i54.tinypic.com/ayrrza.jpg">
<p>When I first heard of this hack, I was very wary of it. The last thing I want is some of Sonic Heroes' poison rubbing off on a classic like Sonic 2.
</p>
<p>Fortunately those fears were unfounded, and only the good elements, i.e. the ability to play Sonic, Knuckles, and Tails at once, switching leader on the fly, have been ported over. There's no nonsense like floating rainbow question marks, character switching gates, or conversions of the Seaside Hill BGM.
</p>
<p>In fact Sonic 2 Heroes reminds me of a time when I was a little kid (and you can be sure I was an adorable one) playing Sonic 3 & Knuckles. When Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles are all present in the Hidden Palace/Sky Sanctuary cutscenes, I would ache for the ability to run around in all the rest of the zones with the complete and total "Team Sonic", having adventures like the glorious second part of the OVA where Knuckles joins the fray.
</p>
<img src="http://i55.tinypic.com/qsm3v7.jpg">
<p>Flamewing has not only fulfilled that boyhood dream, but gone above and beyond the call of duty to polish the project to a level of shine that forces Knuckles to don his shades.
</p>
<p>Not only is there the yearned-for 3-player mode, but there's also every possible combination of 2- and 1-player modes. Sonic and Knuckles, Knuckles and Tails, Tails and Sonic... And all of this is fully compatible with letting a friend pick up the second controller!
</p>
<p>In addition to the "Heroes" mechanic and cool combo moves like Tails being able to carry Sonic <i>and</i> Knuckles around, there is a plethora of other goodies to make one swoon. All the elemental shields are here, and with their complete function set, as well, down to repelling projectiles (and one can hardly exaggerate how cool it is to be able to wear a Bubble Shield when playing the "tricky bit" in Chemical Plant Act 2!).
</p>
<p>Bits of polish Sonic 2 has always needed, such as the underwater distortion effect and victory poses at Act's end, are added in. Sonic has his Insta-Shield <i>and</i> Super Peel Out (yes yes yes!), Tails can fly, and Knuckles' jump height isn't unfairly nerfed. You can even perform aerial actions, such as gliding and flying, from a drop or a spring, rather than just a jump - something the series has always needed!
</p>
<p>Everything, from the in-game text to the Sega screen to the Special Stage, are all modified to match the triple character dynamic. Nothing is shoddily done or overlooked.
</p>
<img src="http://i54.tinypic.com/28rfi54.jpg">
<p>Seriously, this hack is like <i>winning the lottery</i>. It tempts one to delete their vanilla Sonic 2 ROMs and never look back. I'm in love.
</p>
<hr>
<p>Note that I did not review any of the 3D hacks. This is because of my computer's prodigious aptitude for failing to run such things. I will be upgrading soon, so this won't hold me back in future contests.
</p>
<p>Stay tuned for Part III!
</p>Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-25943065833067574552011-09-28T23:03:00.000-07:002012-08-04T12:00:03.480-07:00Hack Attack (Part I)<p>As promised, here are my thoughts on the contenders for the 2011 Sonic the Hedgehog Hacking Contest now that <a href="http://sonicresearch.org/hackingcontest/">the results have been announced</a>. As with my SAGE "reviews", these will be curt because I'm very <del>lazy</del> busy.
</p>
<img src="http://i54.tinypic.com/2ewmn21.jpg" width="80%">
<h3>Sonic Chaotic</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic Chaos by Ravenfreak</i></p>
<p>I'll let Ravenfreak describe this hack in her own words. A quote from the readme file:
</p>
<p><blockquote>It was made because, I believe Sonic Chaos is piss poor easy, and seems to be the easiest 8-bit sonic game, at least in my opinion. ... In this hack, jumping does no good Sonic/Tails doesn't roll into a ball! Instead they are easily vulnerable to enemies and obstacles. To make matters worse, Dr. Robotnik has taken an extra step to make those enemies and obstacles stronger, the second Sonic/Tails collides with them they lose a life!
</blockquote></p>
<p>While it's cool to see a hack of the seldom-modded Sonic Chaos, this doesn't seem like Hacking Contest material. Gimping the jump and removing the check for rings upon enemy collision are great proofs of concept, showing that progress is being made in figuring out the Sonic Chaos code. But they're hardly features that make playing through the game interesting. For that reason I guess I have nothing else to say about it.
</p>
<hr>
<h3>Chip McCallahan in Sonic the Hedgehog</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by MainMemory</i></p>
<img src="http://i52.tinypic.com/1pj6dz.jpg">
<p>This is clearly some kind of joke hack, and unless you know what's being referenced, it's totally meaningless. Since I didn't get the joke (I had to look it up), I can't say anything for or against it other than that it seems unplayable.
</p>
<hr>
<h3>Latios in Sonic 3 & Knuckles</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 3&K by Scott4</i></p>
<img src="http://i53.tinypic.com/209hszm.jpg">
<p>Unless this was being made as a parody of all that can go horribly wrong when a n00b makes a hack, it fails at everything it tries to do. Sonic is replaced with some sort of new character, but it's so poorly drawn and incompletely implemented I can't really tell what it's supposed to be. The palettes and layouts are changed for the worse, and copious Giant Rings lead to Special Stages that seem to consist entirely of blue spheres. A very poor effort.
</p>
<hr>
<h3>Blue Sphere Plus</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Blue Sphere by MainMemory</i></p>
<img src="http://i51.tinypic.com/28imhdh.jpg">
<p>In addition to all the features of the normal Blue Sphere, this hack includes all 16 of the Special Stages from Sonic 3 and Knuckles, a save feature, and the ability to play as Tails, Sonic and Tails, or Knuckles and Tails. In other words, there's basically no need to ever play the original version again.
</p>
<p>Blue Sphere may not be the most exciting thing in the world, but I like this.
</p>
<hr>
<h3>Sonic Loco 2</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 2 by Tamkis</i></p>
<img src="http://i51.tinypic.com/zn7zvn.jpg">
<p>Ugh. Where to start?
</p>
<p>First, the music. When so many hacks merely replace the music with Azure Lake and Isolated Island <i>ad nauseum</i>, it's kind of nice to see all the music replaced with interesting compositions. The problem is they are so poorly converted to the Genesis's sound system that they sound like a buggy mess and one can hardly distinguish between songs. They also seem to bork the sound effects (unless there is some other cause for this).
</p>
<p>Second, the level layouts. There are certainly some interesting constructions, but there are far too many cheap deaths. Also, the implementation is hamfisted - too often springs and platforms are employed to spackle tricky areas, and there are too many broken tiles to count. Overall I'd say it's some of the worst I've seen, almost making me wonder if it's serious.
</p>
<p>For some reason the Super Peel Out is included, but as badly as I've seen it done. I'm also confused by the mix of Sonic 2 and Sonic 3 sprites which looks odd at best.
</p>
<p>Ultimately I'd describe this as a "mess". I had to stop at Chemical Plant in order to preserve my good humour.
</p>
<hr>
<h3>Red the Hedgehog</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by Dandaman</i></p>
<img src="http://i53.tinypic.com/6jd538.jpg">
<p>Described as "a hack with hours of
effort poured into it," I can only hope this is some kind of joke (and judging by the creator's reputation, I'm going on record assuming that it is). There's not a single aspect, from title screen to play control to sound effects to palettes to graphics, that isn't totally ruined. Randomly changing values in a hex editor could make a better hack than this.
</p>
<hr>
<h3>Simple Sonic Hack</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by Glaber</i></p>
<img src="http://i52.tinypic.com/15hfsw5.jpg">
<p>As advertised, this is quite simple. It's just three acts - GHZ1, GHZ2, and LZ1 - plus Final Zone with different layouts. Not anything to write home about, but worth a playthrough.
</p>
<p>I also have to give it some respect for adding Sonic's missing shoe stripe. =P
</p>
<hr>
<h3>Megaman 2: The Robotnik Wars</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 2 by Tamkis</i></p>
<img src="http://i53.tinypic.com/339txsp.jpg">
<p>Tamkis's second effort is, I'm sorry to say, no better than his first. Very shoddily and incompletely implemented Megaman sprites and music are all that's on offer here. Since the sprites are the wrong size for the gameplay, and the music has the same problem as Sonic Loco 2, this has a long way to go before it's even mildly interesting. It shouldn't have been shown to anyone at this stage of completion, let alone entered in a contest.
</p>
<hr>
<h3>Sonic 1 Misadventure</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by Arctic Leopard</i></p>
<img src="http://i52.tinypic.com/actkw4.jpg">
<img src="http://i53.tinypic.com/wqy3vm.jpg">
<p>This is a rather ambitious hack as it attempts to give Sonic 1 whole new zones. Unfortunately it's also a very uneven hack - while some design choices seem inspired, others are like "what?". Despite that, though, it has the most potential of any I've talked about so far, with some nice original graphics and even some new gimmick objects.
</p>
<p>Overall, I have to say I like it.
</p>
<hr>
<h3>Yeth</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by Banoon</i></p>
<img src="http://i54.tinypic.com/b9egs2.jpg">
<p>This might as well be a completely different game than Sonic. Despite how weird it looks, it's actually pretty fun and charming on its own. I especially liked the tongue-in-cheek PDF manual and the clever new challenges in the levels. It's worth trying out for the noir Spring Yard Zone alone.
</p>
<hr>
<h3>Sonic the Hedgehog 1 Reinvented</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by Watsonman</i></p>
<img src="http://i54.tinypic.com/2nrpzwi.jpg">
<p>This is a rather cruddy hack of Sonic 1 with butchered sprites and palettes, a jumpdash, and "harder" bosses (they take more hits). I've seen a million of these, and there's nothing that makes this one stand out.
</p>
<hr>
<h3>Untitled Sonic 2 Hack</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 2 by D.A. Garden</i></p>
<img src="http://i54.tinypic.com/11vgoyw.jpg">
<p>Judging by the title, one might guess there's not much of a theme or purpose to this hack. Basically, the only thing you'll notice is that Sonic is darker (why do people <i>do</i> that?) and that some levels have changed layouts. The ones that are changed (CPZ, MCZ, WFZ) are actually pretty cool, though. Be warned that the new bosses are real hardasses.
</p>
<hr>
<h3>Sonic the Ghosthog</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by Hanoch</i></p>
<img src="http://i55.tinypic.com/1g3m7b.jpg">
<p>An interesting gameplay/layout hack where Sonic turns into a ghost instead of dying outright. While a ghost, he can't interact with items or beat the level, but he's sort of invincible and can fly. I'm afraid, though, that this new method of play doesn't have the right balance to be very fun. Essentially the goal becomes playing without getting hit like some kind of "kaizo" hack, but instead of immediately retrying when you fail you have to tediously backtrack.
</p>
<hr>
<a name="mso"></a><h3>Metal Sonic Overdrive</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 1 by MKDarkon</i></p>
<img src="http://i54.tinypic.com/2d12p92.jpg">
<p>While parts of the level layouts in this are interesting enough to keep my attention for one playthrough, there's nothing real special going on here. Several design choices (such as having 8-bit Kirbys erupt from the ground instead of little animals escape from a capsule) leave me mystified and a little put off. There are also a lot of things that seem to be changed just for the sake of being changed, which is a mark of a low-quality hack.
</p>
<p>The hack makes use of my Wall Jump code, which is nice to see, although it's not implemented perfectly: it only works on tiles, not objects, and it's possible to trigger it even while facing away from the wall. Yer makin' me look bad, people! =P
</p>
<hr>
<h3>Sonic Mega Fusion</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 2 (Nick Arcade prototype) by GenesisFan64</i></p>
<img src="http://i54.tinypic.com/15fhn2e.jpg">
<p>A buggy hack of Emerald Hill with My Little Ponies as enemies? There are some interesting code changes, such as only showing the score counter when Sonic gets score, but the ring counter is missing which makes it feel broken instead of improved.
</p>
<p>I guess I just don't see the point. I prefer hacks with a good solid idea behind them.
</p>
<hr>
<h3>Sonic VR</h3>
<p><i>Hack of Sonic 2 by ColinC10</i></p>
<img src="http://i53.tinypic.com/zv4jyr.jpg">
<p>Sonic VR doesn't even feel like a hack of a specific Sonic game, but like a whole new kind of game. It consists of short mini-zones that are self-contained challenges, all of which take place in a snazzy virtual reality world. The player can select any of these challenges from four main "file systems" (which appear to get increasingly difficult) using a cool interface that harks back to personal computers from the early 80's (you know, the kind that <i>Johnny Mnemonic</i> thought we'd still be using in the future).
</p>
<p>The challenges strongly remind me of the bonus stages from Wario World for the Nintendo Gamecube, which I've always liked. This was easily one of my favourite hacks this year, further cementing <a href="http://info.sonicretro.org/ColinC10">ColinC10</a>'s sparkling reputation.
</p>
<hr>
<p>Stay tuned for Part II, and also Part III where I will compare my trophy nominations with the actual winners in the interest of science.
</p>Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-7278708900486655602011-09-22T23:50:00.000-07:002011-09-23T00:04:17.151-07:00SAGE 2011 Reviews (Part IV)<h3>Sonic Worlds Level Collab
</h3>
<img src="http://i55.tinypic.com/2jdfigx.jpg" width="60%">
<p>A long while back, I recall LiQuidShade of <a href="http://soniczone0.com/home/">Zone: 0</a> and me discussing how cool it would be if there was some kind of project that was like the Little Big Planet of Sonic - you'd be able to play user created zones without all the other rigmarole. Well, the SWLC team has finally brought us something much like that.
</p>
<p>This first release contains 2 full zones and 5 short 1-act challenges. Apparently there will be new packages released twice a year, once for SAGE and once for Christmas. Of course the amount of cool zones we'll get depends on how many folks <a href="http://sonicworldslc.webs.com/">get involved</a>.
</p>
<img src="http://i55.tinypic.com/6qgrpt.jpg" width="60%">
<p>The content on offer right now is quite good, though. The standout of all the zones is definitely Amazing Ocean, with its clever boss, intelligent layout, and character-dependent paths. I played it through many times in order to find all the red rings, and I'm not tired of it yet.
</p>
<p>Collecting said red rings gets you unlockables, such as Super Mode for all the characters and the aforementioned challenge levels.
</p>
<p>The challenge levels are for the most part charming and fun (although the Labyrinth one is a bit spare). The only thing is I wish they were much harder to make up for their brevity. They are called "challenges" after all; I was expecting to be hit with extreme difficulty.
</p>
<p>But it's all worth it for Cheese Hill Zone: =P
</p>
<img src="http://i56.tinypic.com/29wmxcn.jpg" width="60%">
<p>So far I love the concept and the content, and I can't wait for Christmas to see what other goodies the team will have for us.
</p>
<h3>Sonic 2 Retro Remix
</h3>
<img src="http://i51.tinypic.com/3313tyx.jpg" width="60%">
<p>Sonic 2 Retro Remix is an ambitious and pedigreed Sonic 2 hack. It's also a bit controversial, because the gameplay is intentionally more akin to Super Mario 64's search for stars than the standard run-for-the-goal Sonic fare, although a "classic mode" has traditionally been included. When I last reviewed it, I played only the classic mode, and majorly missed the point. This time, classic mode has been removed to encourage playing the game the way it was meant to be enjoyed, so we'll see what that does to change my mind about it.
</p>
<img src="http://i55.tinypic.com/ztbxaa.jpg" width="60%">
<p>Not actually a whole lot, to be honest. I still can't seem to enjoy this game, no matter how hard I try. There's just something about the cramped, overly-technical layouts that puts me off. Even the short overworlds, where you enter acts by way of Warp Rings, are frustrating and difficult to navigate, an aspect of Sonic Advance 3 which I loathed and I can't imagine why anyone would want to emulate it. The zones themselves are huge, confusing, sloppy, and devoid of any sense of flow - to me at least; I've heard others swear that, when played right, they're feats of genius. But as far as I'm concerned they are the epitome of everyone's complaints about Sonic CD's level design, cranked up to 11.
</p>
<p>I'm also not fond of the unnecessarily complicated controls, the busy art, or the music culled from disparate sources. It all feels bloated and aimless, and I can't find any fun in it at all.
</p>
<p>I know this is an acclaimed hack. For all I know it's a quality one. But it doesn't appeal to me.
</p>
<h3>To sum up
</h3>
<p>And that's it for my brief thoughts on SAGE. I won't be going over things like Sonic RealmZ or Super Sonic Knockout, because I'm not interested in, nor qualified to evaluate, such extreme deviations from the standard Sonic formula. I'm also skipping a few embarrassingly incomplete offerings which really should have been kept under wraps for another year or so - you know who you are.
</p>
<p>But this won't be the last of my reviews for a while - I'll be giving my thoughts on the Hacking Contest entries once the winners are announced.
</p>
<p>I'll leave you with a recap of my favourites, which I think should be in any Sonic fan's game collection.
</p>
<ul>
<li>Sonic: Before the Sequel
</li>
<li>Sonic Fusion
</li>
<li>Sonic Axiom
</li>
<li>Sonic Worlds Level Collab
</li>
</ul>
<p>See you at next SAGE! Maybe by then that lazy, opinionated wanker Murky, or Merkin, or whatever he calls himself, will have released his engine.
</p>Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-24276125312806665422011-09-21T22:37:00.000-07:002011-09-27T05:58:52.385-07:00SAGE 2011 Reviews (Part III)<p>It's hardly a secret that I'm not too fond of modern Sonic. I haven't <i>loved</i> anything of the Sonic brand released after 1996, and haven't even <i>liked</i> anything since Sonic Adventure 2 (short segments of Sonic Rush Adventure excepted). Yeah, I'm a grinch. But I'm gonna try to be fair at least to my fellow Sonic fangamers who <i>do</i> like modern Sonic and use those kinds of elements in their projects.
</p>
<h3>Sonic Inferno
</h3>
<img src="http://i55.tinypic.com/ehbqxd.png" width="60%">
<p>Sonic Inferno is a demo of a single (rather short) act, but there are several characters to choose from: Sonic, Knuckles, and Shadow. (Tails and Chaos are present in the select screen, but inaccessible. One assumes they'll be ready in the next demo quite soon.)
</p>
<p>The single act is called "Engine Base", which sets one's expectations up for an original (if a little generic) zone, but those are let down when the title card sweeps away to reveal this:
</p>
<img src="http://i53.tinypic.com/p6kht.png" width="60%">
<p>...It's Route 99, from Sonic Advance 3. Yes, it has a different layout, but c'mon, guys. When we made the Scrap Brain demo for Sonic Time Twisted, at least we had the decency to advertise it as such!
</p>
<p>But I digress. Sonic Inferno's engine is robust and quite a few features are implemented - magnet shield, homing attack, Knuckles' climbing/gliding, Advance-style attacks on a secondary button, etc. It's really quite nice overall.
</p>
<p>But considering how there's hardly anything <i>new</i> (and I use that "hardly" out of charity) and it's shorter than Sonic after touching the shrink laser from Metallic Madness Zone, there's not a whole lot of reason to play this one unless you're already following the project and are interested to see how the it's progressing. For pure entertainment value, look elsewhere.
</p>
<h3>Sonic Fusion
</h3>
<img src="http://i54.tinypic.com/6qb6ev.png" width="60%">
<p>I reviewed Sonic Fusion at last year's SAGE, and was impressed, but was plagued by some control incompatibilities that prevented me from accessing all the features. For some reason it thought the Down button was continually pressed or something, making it impossible to select Knuckles on the character select screen or even perform the Spin Dash.
</p>
<p>All of that's in the past now, I'm relieved to say, and I was able to fully enjoy this year's demo. And there's a lot to enjoy - 8 zones, 3 fully implemented characters, a mission mode, and even online multiplayer.
</p>
<img src="http://i54.tinypic.com/swbct0.png" width="60%">
<p>The story mode is really cool, and feels like playing a 2D entry in the Sonic Adventure series. The zones themselves are expertly crafted and a joy to play, and as I said last year they equal or top the Sonic Advance series.
</p>
<p>Unfortunately the similarity with the Dimps developed titles extends to the physics as well, with a floaty jump and rolling that slows you down instead of speeding you up. Fortunately, while I <i>would</i> prefer classic physics, there's never a moment in Sonic Fusion where these things become a problem. The levels always play smoothly and there's nothing that feels cheap or unfair.
</p>
<img src="http://i54.tinypic.com/dgnpg8.png" width="60%">
<p>This game just has so much polish, so much heart, and so many cool elements all brought together with one of the best overall presentations I've seen in a Sonic fangame. You can tell it's a labour of love, and I urge you to try it out. If this is just the demo, we can all expect the finished game to be one of the coolest ever.
</p>
<h3>Sonic NXT
</h3>
<img src="http://i53.tinypic.com/r90sph.png" width="60%">
<p>Last year, Sonic NXT was hardly more fun to play with than a rabid wolverine juggling poison chainsaws. Since then it has an impressive amount of progress, becoming a respectable engine with a lot of the modern trappings: homing attack targets, combo scoring, boost attack, etc.
</p>
<p>However, it runs with a system-mangling amount of slowdown on my machine so I can't evaluate it all that well. My impression, though, is that there's nothing really that exciting or new, and that it is bogged down with a heapin' helpin' of unnecessaries. I always raise a critical eyebrow when I unzip the archive to find several megabytes of physics DLLs spilling out like so many packing peanuts. If you can't make a 2D Sonic game without relying on PhysXCore, maybe you're in the wrong line of business.
</p>
<p>I guess for this one I'll just go with "no comment".
</p>
<p>Next time I'll go on about Sonic Worlds Level Collab, Sonic 2 Retro Remix, and whatever odds and ends I can scrape together.
</p>Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-34415827185543645262011-09-20T22:21:00.000-07:002011-09-20T22:37:17.068-07:00SAGE 2011 Reviews (Part II)<h3>Sonic and Friends 2
</h3>
<img src="http://i52.tinypic.com/35k205k.jpg" width="60%">
<p>Sonic and Friends 2 is nearly complete with 11 levels, and the first thing I noticed was that those levels are <i>huge</i>. They aren't laid out like a traditional Sonic game, though - they feel a lot more boxy and remind me of the kinds of things I used to see in the earlier days of Sonic fangaming. They are by no means bad, though, and I quite like the first few acts. The readme file indicates that the later levels are less complete, and they are decidedly less fun, with cheaper enemy placement and less to do.
</p>
<img src="http://i53.tinypic.com/2yl07xt.jpg" width="60%">
<p>I'm quite impressed with the engine, too, especially since it doesn't appear to be any of the usual suspects but an entirely original one. It's not 100% accurate (what ever is?) but it's solid and smooth and I encountered no collision bugs. My personal acid test for a Sonic engine is how the ledge balancing and pushing up against walls works, and neither of those features are implemented here, much like in Sonic Advance 2. That kind of bothers me, but the jumping feels right and I guess that's the main thing. I never found any slowdown, either.
</p>
<img src="http://i55.tinypic.com/33m0q6q.jpg" width="60%">
<p>My biggest beef is with the music, which is mostly borrowed, but where there actually are original compositions they are repetitive and pretty grating. There is the feature for custom soundtracks, though, which is nice - so I'm not gonna dock too many points for the cruddy music.
</p>
<img src="http://i53.tinypic.com/8wmcg7.jpg" width="60%">
<p>I'd say give this one a go. It progresses nicely in a sort of Sonic 3 & Knuckles way, and feels like playing through a proper game. The later, imcomplete levels can be a little frustrating, so you might want to stop immediately when you begin to weary of it rather than pushing on. That way you can leave it with a good feeling, and play the final portion when the finished build is out.
</p>
<h3>Sonic Axiom
</h3>
<img src="http://i56.tinypic.com/2nar3td.jpg" width="60%">
<p><i>I love the new title screen; a definite improvement over last year.</i>
</p>
<p>A team of highly trained tapdancing butlers are still cleaning up the jizz from when I played Sonic Axiom last year. The prospect of a completed version at this year's SAGE eclipsed my excitement for Sonic Generations and Taxman's Sonic CD, and was even able to temporarily postpone my pathetic pining for the Sonic 1 & 2 Soundtrack, which is no mean feat.
</p>
<p>Strangely, though, this year I think I've soured on it a little. Probably because I had a whole year for expectations to build and my memories to go rosy, this time around I found quite a bit of it to be, well... lame.
</p>
<p>Firstly I'm really disappointed by the change from Calcified Caverns to Mineral Mine.
</p>
<img src="http://i52.tinypic.com/24ci448.jpg" width="40%"> <img src="http://i55.tinypic.com/2yx1b45.jpg" width="40%">
<p><i>Left: Calcified Cavern; Right: Mineral Mine</i>
</p>
<p>It was my favourite level from the 2010 demo, with its beautiful music, fun switch puzzles, and overall atmosphere. Now it feels like a whole different level, and it's <i>not as good</i>. Waah.
</p>
<p>In addition to that little letdown, I continually noticed other issues with the game that kept the experience from being pure unadulterated fun: everything has huge hitboxes making parts of the game totally unfair; the physics feel really weird causing too much overcompensation; a lot of the objects and animations seem really poorly programmed, jittering and locking up; and (in the nitpick category) the rings don't make sparkles when collected!
</p>
<p>A particularly apt example of a choppy object is the Bonus Stage glowing orb - it's brutally basic and barely does a passable job. It makes me cringe, because I'd made those work in even <a href="http://dl.dropbox.com/u/5437265/Engine%20Test.zip">my crappiest earliest engine</a>, and trying to make SAGE in time is no excuse because I added them in an hour or two. I refuse to believe I'm superhuman, so Sonic Axiom has no excuse!
</p>
<img src="http://i52.tinypic.com/2e2jmg1.jpg" width="60%">
<p>It's not all bad. The levels are still beautiful - easily the best use of repurposed graphics I've ever seen. The layouts are brilliant, giving nods to Sonic CD while still feeling original. The music is pretty good, too, though personally I would have preferred something funkier rather than so mellow.
</p>
<img src="http://i55.tinypic.com/25i29ox.jpg" width="60%">
<p>If I had the free time, I'd jump at the chance to port this to AeStHete. The content here is too good; it deserves better than a choppy framerate and physics that fight you. Like Sonic Genesis, it's a brilliant game struggling to overcome a less-than-stellar implementation.
</p>
<p>I doubt that this is the last revision we'll ever see, so there's still hope for the future. Regardless of what happens, though, Sonic Axiom is good enough to deserve a permanent home in my game collection, and I'd still recommend it for anyone else's.
</p>
<h3>Sonic: Before the Sequel
</h3>
<img src="http://i54.tinypic.com/2md47qb.jpg" width="60%">
<p>Sonic BTS is advertised to take place between the events of Sonic 1 and 2, and chronicle the first launch of the Death Egg. Because of this, I was expecting a game that cleaved to a Sonic 1 or 2 style at the expense of any kind of originality.
</p>
<p>Boy, was that illusion ever shattered.
</p>
<img src="http://i51.tinypic.com/20zd460.jpg" width="40%">
<img src="http://i55.tinypic.com/2132ptf.jpg" width="40%">
<p>Instead, Sonic BTS is far and away the most creative and entertaining Sonic fan game I've played since <a href="http://www.sonicfangameshq.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6645">Eggman Hates Furries</a>. The bosses, enemies, level tropes, gimmicks - all of them kept me guessing and put a huge smile on my face. It even has mildly humorous Flash cinemas, for pete's sake! Who couldn't love that?
</p>
<img src="http://i53.tinypic.com/5wyy5e.jpg" width="40%">
<img src="http://i52.tinypic.com/2vcbbl0.jpg" width="40%">
<p>The game borrows sound effects and music from Kirby, Yoshi's Island, and Ristar, which also makes me smile. The creator (LakeFeperd) must be my kind of guy!
</p>
<p>This is definitely my favourite of SAGE this year, a treat I wasn't expecting at all that really picked my spirits up after the mild disappointment of Sonic Axiom.
</p>
<p>I don't want to say anything else about it, because that would spoil it. Go play it yourself and remember to thank me for pointing you to it. =P
</p>
<img src="http://i52.tinypic.com/w7dbfm.jpg" width="40%">
<img src="http://i51.tinypic.com/4gt2so.jpg" width="40%">
<p><i>Beautiful!</i>
</p>
<p>Next time I'll be looking at some of the modern styled offerings. Stay tuned! (said the barman to the guitar.)
</p>Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-59960297204138977262011-09-19T23:07:00.000-07:002011-09-27T05:59:00.512-07:00SAGE 2011 Reviews (Part 1)<p>And now, INPO, here is the first batch of my reviews of the games on offer at <a href="http://www.sagexpo.org/">this year's SAGE</a>. There will be more over the next couple of days, but don't expect a review of all the showings; I'm only interested in the Sonic ones and even then there are a few that don't catch my fancy.
</p>
<h3>Sonic Small World
</h3>
<img src="http://i52.tinypic.com/35218vn.jpg" width="60%">
<p>I'm impressed that this is actually a complete functioning level with a handful of objects such as a trampoline and moving platforms. But there's nothing here to really blow me away - or anyone else, for that matter.
</p>
<img src="http://i53.tinypic.com/n2bzae.jpg" width="60%">
<p>I don't have much affinity for 3D Sonic engine tests. The effort necessary to make a 3D game even playable, let alone good, usually means that all other departments get neglected. As a result, they are usually very bland and not entertaining, and Sonic Small World is no exception. I'm not going to say it's bad - it's not - but it was probably far more fun for the creator to make, exercising their skills, than it will ever be for an audience to play.
</p>
<p>As basically all of the artworks and other elements are ripped from other sources, there's nothing really new or creative on offer, either. I'd give it a pass if I were you, unless you're a 3D Sonic engine test enthusiast.
</p>
<h3>Sonic Zero
</h3>
<img src="http://i52.tinypic.com/30iatlj.jpg" width="60%">
<p>I reviewed this one <a href="http://intheshadeofawave.blogspot.com/2010/08/sage-advice-part-2.html">last year</a> and it hasn't changed much - but it sure has been expanded! There are now 3 working acts and a boss (albeit an embarrassingly easy one).
</p>
<img src="http://i52.tinypic.com/2vb75vc.jpg" width="60%">
<p>Though I was lukewarm last year, calling it generic, I've warmed to it this year. I really like the mix of elements, from Sonic's new sprite set, to the appearance of the Golden Shield from Sonic 3D Blast, to the Battle Kukkus from Tails Adventure. I was really enjoying myself, and even though I harbour a certain amount of hate for the Sonic Worlds engine (the way it handles corners and edges is just <i>ass</i>) it doesn't seem to mar this game too badly. The level design works around a lot of the issues quite cleverly.
</p>
<p>I am disappointed by some minor changes from last year. The music has been traded out with another remix of Chaotix's Isolated Island (and not a very expert one, at that), which is so overused it makes me groan every time I hear it. And there's a rumble feature that - on my system, at least - makes the identical annoying jolt with every spring and enemy you hit.
</p>
<p>I do really appreciate the highly detailed and user-friendly control customisation screen, though. I am sick of games that leave joypad users high and dry, so the Sonic Zero team deserves commendation for rectifying that.
</p>
<p>And one last thing - why is the intermittent drowning warning (which is traditionally a chime) the Sonic CD drowning countdown sound effect? It's a ridiculous change that makes anyone who's familiar with Sonic CD feel like they're drowning any time they happen to be underwater for a moment.
</p>
<img src="http://i56.tinypic.com/64qnnd.jpg" width="60%">
<p>The good far outweighs any complaints I may have with this one, though, so I definitely recommend you check it out. If this ever progresses beyond the "single green zone demo" stage, it'll be a keeper.
</p>
<h3>Sonic Run 3
</h3>
<img src="http://i55.tinypic.com/2s0i7eq.jpg" width="60%">
<p>This is either a joke, part of a conspiracy to make Game Maker look bad, or made by a developer that needs 5 or 10 more years of practise before they should ever set foot at another SAGE.
</p>
<p>I won't complain about the visuals - they're actually sort of cute - but the gameplay is totally borked. Which I could excuse if there were complicated loops or something - but the whole game is made of simple boxes. Even then, there's a terrible bug upon all horizontal collisions, making each jump a chore that requires you to stop and start.
</p>
<p>This would be better suited to <a href="http://info.sonicretro.org/Really_Amateur_Games_Expo">RAGE</a>, I'm afraid. Don't waste precious minutes downloading it.
</p>
<h3>Madcap Grotto
</h3>
<img src="http://i51.tinypic.com/11qr91u.jpg" width="60%">
<p>Made by two members of the community I've long respected, Dimension Warped and my bud Overbound, and with music by the inimitable Karl "Sonicesque" Brueggemann, this single level demo delivers a veritable Sonic playground. It has more gimmicks than a sitcom with failing ratings, and when it comes to Sonic zones, that's a very good thing. Along with those gimmicks, a posse of clever new enemy types and an impressively animated boss make for a greatly satisfying experience.
</p>
<img src="http://i55.tinypic.com/qxlc2e.jpg" width="60%">
<p>What makes a Sonic zone live and breathe for me is when it has a tonne of original stuff for Sonic and his friends to actually <i>do</i>, rather than the all-too-common "look guys I made Tropical Trope Zone Act 345656frghgjkjkf and the Ring Monitor sound is different!" Be warned though, at least one bit of gadgetry in Madcap Grotto will inspire rage unless you remember the worthy lesson the Barrel of Doom taught us all. =P
</p>
<p>It's not all roses, though. Some of the usual Sonic Worlds issues rear their ugly heads, and there was plenty of slowdown on my machine (which, to be fair, isn't that high-end). Some of the gimmicks had a bug or two, one of which actually forced me to restart, and the boss - as cool as I think it is - is in a large arena making it difficult to keep track of. Wandering around stupidly while a boss shoots you from offscreen happens to be one of my pet peeves - there's a reason Sonic game don't normally do this, you know!
</p>
<p>That aside, I'd definitely recommend this audio-visual and gameplay feast.
</p>
<h3>Project Spikepig
</h3>
<img src="http://i55.tinypic.com/2ljnbz8.jpg" width="60%">
<p>The plaintext manual that accompanied the Project Spikepig executable I found to be incredibly witty, but I'm afraid that's the extent of anything good I have to say about it. The level trope is generic, the level layout is - as the manual admits - "slow, nebulous, confusing, complicated and made by a drunk man", the music is frankly terrible, and the engine is plain vanilla Sonic Worlds at its worst. Give this one a pass.
</p>
<p>...I suppose the graphics do have a certain charm to them, as well. But it's not enough to save it.
</p>
<h3>Sonic Gear
</h3>
<img src="http://i55.tinypic.com/s335s7.jpg" width="60%">
<p>Look at that shot and tell me honestly whether it's an improvement over the original:
</p>
<img src="http://i51.tinypic.com/2ltd9d.jpg" width="60%">
<p>I didn't even bother playing this for more than a few minutes. It was pretty dire.
</p>
<h3>Sonic GML
</h3>
<img src="http://i55.tinypic.com/snja1j.jpg" width="60%">
<p>This is such a clumsy mess I have no idea where to begin. It's weird because there's so much content and so much "completed", it must have been worked on for a long time. But there's absolutely no polish or charm whatsoever.
</p>
<p>A pass, then.
</p>
<h3>Sonic Mobius
</h3>
<img src="http://i52.tinypic.com/hs1ct1.jpg" width="60%">
<p>Sonic Mobius, judging from the material at its homepage, has a lot of potential. This demo, however, is yet another "single green zone demo". As such it would be unfair of me to evaluate it. I'll only say this - I don't think it was ready to be shown off.
</p>
<p>Sorry it's got to be so abrupt. Next time I'll be giving my thoughts on some of the heavier hitters: Sonic Axiom, Sonic and Friends 2, and Sonic: Before the Sequel. Those will be in greater depth.
</p>Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-86961507693319981842011-09-19T02:19:00.000-07:002011-09-19T02:30:06.759-07:00Expo-sition<p>SAGE, a.k.a. the <a href="http://www.sagexpo.org/">Sonic Amateur Games Expo</a>, is now in full swing. Unfortunately it's coinciding with a particularly busy and tumultuous time in my life, but that seems increasingly to be the case with me. Nevertheless, I'm going to try and review most of this year's offerings as I did <a href="http://intheshadeofawave.blogspot.com/2010/08/sage-advice-part-1.html">last year</a>, while they're still relevant.
</p>
<p>I'm also going to review the <a href="http://sonicresearch.org/hackingcontest/">Hacking Contest</a> entries, but since I'm a judge this year I'm going to do that once the results have been comfortably revealed through the proper channels. Anything else would be bad form, doncha know.
</p>
<p>This year, for the first time, I'm actually involved with one of the games on display (Sonic Fan Remix didn't make it to SAGE last year thanks to a poorly timed illness on my end). So do a bloke a favour and visit the <a href="http://timetwisted.sonicstrike.net/sage2011/">Sonic Time Twisted booth</a>. Said bloke being you, of course, because there's sum good eatin's t'be had thar.
</p>
<p>I think the showing this year is phenomenal, and I can't wait to get started.
</p>Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-25159357790577439302011-09-09T10:18:00.000-07:002011-09-09T10:19:45.832-07:00Speaking of Hidden Palace...<p>I made a remix!
</p>
<iframe width="560" height="345" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/_H2bYvhrXjA" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
<p>I wanted to make it sound like the opening to a wushu movie; it could use some more polish but meh.
</p>
<p>Y'all win an internet cookie if you can ascertain where I lifted the drum sample from. =P
</p>Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8708547959553815878.post-79880805627086742662011-09-09T09:14:00.000-07:002011-09-09T10:08:04.256-07:00A Musical Mystery Still Unsolved<p>While <a href="http://info.sonicretro.org/Michael_Jackson">Michael Jackson's involvement with Sonic 3's soundtrack</a> seems to get all the press, the mysteries surrounding Sonic 2's soundtrack by <a href="http://info.sonicretro.org/Dreams_Come_True">Masato Nakamura</a> capture my interest to a much greater degree. With the release of the <a href="http://translate.google.com/translate?sl=auto&tl=en&js=n&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&layout=2&eotf=1&u=http%3A%2F%2Fnews.dctgarden.com%2F2011%2F09%2F121019.html">Sonic 1&2 Original Soundtrack</a> imminent, I'm hoping some of these mysteries will finally be put to rest by the demo material that's promised to be included.
</p>
<p>There are many questions I'd like answered about Sonic 2's music. For example, were the 2-Player tunes originally intended for zones that didn't make the cut, but included in their current capacity in order to avoid discarding Masato Nakamura music for which Sega had already payed good money? But today I want to discuss a single issue in particular: The strange and wonderful subject that is the Hidden Palace music.
</p>
<p>In the interest of full disclosure I must admit that my take on all things Hidden Palace is quite aberrant due to the circumstances of my experience. Back when I first played Sonic 2 the only things I knew about the beta and the removed zones were those titbits which I chanced across in gaming magazines like Sega Visions. Any knowledge of the <a href="http://info.sonicretro.org/Sonic_the_Hedgehog_2_(Simon_Wai_prototype)">Simon Wai prototype</a> and the Sonic hacking scene would have to wait over a decade for me to dip my toes into the Internet. For whatever reasons, I just never encountered any <i>screenshots</i> of Sonic 2's Hidden Palace, but only a brief mention of it by name in the letters section of a gaming mag. The only visual evidence of missing levels I saw was this shot (later <a href="http://info.sonicretro.org/Dust_Hill#Mockup_Image">confirmed to be a mockup made by Sega</a>):
</p>
<p><img src="http://i52.tinypic.com/2ze05ly.jpg" width="256">
</p>
<p>Completing the trifecta was an unused song in Sonic 2's sound test, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khkpopBv9zg">number $10</a> (that's hexadecimal for 16, for all you non-computer-obsessed types). Between the name Hidden Palace, the screenshot of a missing zone, and an unused song, I made the only assumption I could given the paucity of evidence (and the mental faculties of a 7-year-old): All these bits of info were related to the same zone. In my defense, Sonic 3 had a 2-Player level called Desert Palace, which - using logic a conspiracy theorist would be proud of - I thought helped cement matters.
</p>
<p>Once I found the glorious resource that is <a href="http://info.sonicretro.org/">Sonic Retro</a> years later and opened the floodgates of <a href="http://info.sonicretro.org/Sonic_the_Hedgehog_2_(Simon_Wai_prototype)">info on the Sonic 2 Beta</a>, I had to update my mistaken understanding. However, this didn't help erase over a decade of picturing that desert zone with that music and that name. Boohoo for me - I used to pronounce "echidna" wrong, too. Sometimes you just have to change your mind and move on.
</p>
<p>But I was invested for another reason. As evinced by the "about me" box in the sidebar of this blog, my main project is "a Sonic the Hedgehog fan game that retells the story of the original Mega Drive titles in unprecedented detail and depth." (If that doesn't sound bombastic, what does? =P) Part of that unprecedented detail and depth is the inclusion of material from the beta versions of the games - an idea which has been done to death by now but which I still wish to be part of my own project. If I include both the desert zone from that screenshot <i>and</i> Hidden Palace in my remake, I want to give them the right music. I don't want my choices to be influence by bullshit theories, not from my 7-year-old self nor from an internet forum. I want the music for each zone to be as accurate a reflection of the developer's original intent as possible (perhaps mixed with the slightest dash of what I deem to be most apposite as an artist).
</p>
<p>Anyway, this isn't exactly the subject of this article. I've already <a href="http://forums.sonicretro.org/index.php?showtopic=16964">made a thread</a> thinking aloud about whether or not the unused track was intended for Hidden Palace or not. When I was informed that it was indeed the song associated with the zone when the zone is accessed (through hacking) in the retail version of Sonic 2, I was content with that. No, my subject is a different, but related, question about Hidden Palace's music.
</p>
<p>This question arises because of a hack known as <a href="http://info.sonicretro.org/Sonic_2_Long_Version">Sonic 2 Long Version</a>. In this hack, Hidden Palace (among other cut zones) is restored to a playable state, and sound test $10 is the music it's given. Here's a video of it in action:
</p>
<iframe width="420" height="345" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/SecgWxmQfHo" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
<p>As a slavering Masato Nakamura fanboy it pains me to say this, but that song is <i>really</i> inappropriate for that zone. It's heavy, sluggish, boring, and feels detached from the action.
</p>
<p>Such an assertion would fall squarely in opinion territory, if it not for some objective facts. Before I get to those, though, let's just take a look and listen at how Hidden Palace feels in the Sonic 2 beta:
</p>
<iframe width="420" height="345" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/NgMELhdYPGE" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
<p>Here, it has the tune which is known to players of the final build as Mystic Cave 2-Player. I would argue that this song is far more fitting, despite the fact that it is still unusual for a "zone music" from a compositional standpoint (it's a stretto fugue that lacks the emotional dynamism of other zones, perhaps because the bassline refuses to change chord throughout the song's duration).
</p>
<p>Of course one can hardly learn anything from the music assignments in the Sonic 2 beta; Oil Ocean plays the Casino Night 2-Player theme, even though Oil Ocean's theme is present and accounted for in the sound test. If Oil Ocean Zone's music from the final was not intended for that zone from the get go, I'm a doughnut. (Some folks suggest it may have been intended for the desert zone, but that's nonsense - the desert zone is an American desert, replete with cacti and buttes, not an Arabian desert.)
</p>
<p>It's unusual for a Nakamura "zone music" to not be fitting. As stated in <a href="http://info.sonicretro.org/Masato_Nakamura_interview_by_Sonic_City">this interview</a> (and also by Takashi Iizuka in the <a href="http://info.sonicretro.org/Flying_Battery_Zone#Sonic_Team_Commentary_.28from_Sonic_Jam_Strategy_Guide.29">Sonic Jam strategy guide</a>), Nakamura didn't just compose a bag of music which was then alotted to each zone like a jolly neighbour handing out Halloween candy. He took a gander at concept art and even test footage of the zones, then composed themes for each with close attention payed to their pace and atmosphere. These songs need to encourage what Sonic does best: running and jumping. As such they are all flavoured with rock, funk, and jazz with time signatures that drive the action along. None of them do anything <i>boneheaded</i> like being a <i>waltz</i> which suggests endless circular motion; no, that's reserved for the stately rotating Sonic 1 Special Stage where it fits like a glove.
</p>
<p>Or do they? Let's take another look at sound test $10. Yes, folks - it's a waltz. Just like the Sonic 1 Special Stage. Hidden Palace, instead of having a respectable theme that encourages the actions and motions most likely to be found in a zone, it has a slow, dragging theme that - while a beautiful tune - suggests an unchanging environment.
</p>
<p>Yes, this is one of those objective facts I promised earlier. Hidden Palace is a waltz. Say what you will about opinions and bullshit internet theories, but it's pretty incontrovertible. Furthermore, it's the only "zone music" that is (Death Egg's music doesn't count, because it's not a full zone). The only other waltz in the Nakamura Sonic canon? The Sonic 1 Special Stage theme.
</p>
<p>Using this passing similarity (<a href="http://forums.sonicretro.org/index.php?showtopic=16964&view=findpost&p=337647">which has been noted before</a>) as a starting point, I decided to check deeper into the two songs to see if there were any other similarities. Perhaps I would learn something interesting; after all, Nakamura is known to reuse motifs in songs that convey similar themes. You don't have to take my word for it, either. Not only is it well known that the title theme, invincibility theme, ending theme, and Super Sonic theme are all based on the same composition (one might consider it "Sonic's theme"), but there are other examples.
</p>
<p>Robotnik's Sonic 1 theme and Final Zone (here, the arpeggio, melody, <i>and</i> accompaniment are all similar):
</p>
<iframe width="560" height="345" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/_lZR5uqtPwU" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
<p><i>Robotnik's theme and the final boss theme in Sonic 2 also revisit the militaristic percussion and have related structures. Nakamura knew exactly how to evoke Robotnik, in the same way John Williams might reuse instruments and motifs to suggest the Empire in Star Wars.</i>
</p>
<p>Super Sonic's theme and the Sonic 2 Special Stage:
</p>
<iframe width="560" height="345" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/fodwLtj5RYA" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
<p><i>That sound evokes the unbridled power of the Chaos Emeralds. It's no mistake that it's part of Super Sonic's theme and the theme of the stages in which the Chaos Emeralds that power him are collected.</i>
</p>
<p>So are there similarities between Hidden Palace Zone and the Sonic 1 Special Stage beyond that of both being waltzes? Well, yes. They both have similar chords progressions, as well as overall superficial similarities: they're both comparatively short, and are made of a main melody that loops twice before a much shorter coda brings them back around to the beginning (<a href="http://forums.sonicretro.org/index.php?showtopic=16964&view=findpost&p=337739">this has also been noted before</a>). But the most damning evidence is a literally reused motif!
</p>
<iframe width="560" height="345" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/OUI7fLZSTKA" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
<p><i>This is barely audible in the original song with all the other tracks going, but it's really there nonetheless!</i>
</p>
<p>This leaves no doubt in my mind that sound test $10 was written by Nakamura with the explicit intention to hark back to the Special Stages of the first game. I would also bet money that it was never meant to be heard behind a zone with traditional gameplay.
</p>
<p>And that's as far as I'm willing to go... on the record. If I give myself over to speculation, I would say this: What we know as Mystic Cave 2-Player was indeed composed for Hidden Palace. But as development progressed it became clear that Hidden Palace would not make the cut - at least not as a full zone. At some point in Sonic 2's development Hidden Palace was given a makeover, giving it a purpose similar to that of the zone from Sonic & Knuckles with the same name. <a href="http://info.sonicretro.org/Hidden_Palace_Zone">Yuji Naka as much as confirms this</a>. When the zone's new purpose was decided, Nakamura was conscripted to compose a new, more suitable them for it. As the zone was involved with the Chaos Emerald lore, he composed a song which borrowed heavily from Sonic 1's Special Stage. But when it was decided to scrap the zone altogether, the newly madeover Hidden Palace was never included in the ROM, even though the song assignment was updated. The displaced song was given to Mystic Cave 2-Player, because - let's not quibble here - the zone has a very similar feel to Hidden Palace (underground, brown, green, and purple).
</p>
<p>But relying on speculation is unwise. Like Carl Sagan, I try not to think with my gut. For all I know sound test $10 was composed for a rotating Special Stage that never made it into Sonic 2. Or maybe Nakamura had a brainfart and just composed the world's most ill-fitting tune for Hidden Palace. This is why I'm so excited for the Sonic 1&2 Original Soundtrack release. On October 19th maybe some of these long-standing mysteries will be cleared up!
</p>
<p>Until then I will rest happy knowing that I discovered an interesting connection between two songs in Nakamura's Sonic canon. And if it's been common knowledge in the community for years now, well then won't I feel silly! =P
</p>Mercuryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09569022088574033458noreply@blogger.com4