My Stance on Sonic Boom

                                                   

            Despite this being a different branch of the brand, the overall concept of the Sonic Boom project leaves me a tad worry. It's been a month since the project's announcement, and I don't expect to hear any more of it till E3 2014, but this hasn't stopped the fandom to heavily discuss the matter. Over the course of weeks, I have watched many interviews with Stephen Frost, producer of the video game, and small tidbits of info has been given from various sources such as the Behind the Scenes video released by Sega of America. 

1. Video Game

            I am going to be honest, I am more intrigued about the game than the television show that will air on Cartoon Network, but that's just my bias towards the mediums. Besides, the game in general just seem to be far more interesting. Big Red Button, the game's developer, are focusing to create a vast new universe, and to expand on established personalities of the characters. Frost explained the main focuses of the game will be exploration, epic storytelling, and the usage of a co-op feature.
            Now some of these elements I have longed for in a 3D Sonic title: a new setting that is not just a rehash of older tropes of past levels for the sake of nostalgia pandering, a bigger storyline (let's face it, Colors' and Lost World's narratives, as fun as they are, are not compelling at the slightest), and multiple playable characters. Also, BRB expresses that speed will be a part of the game, but not the main focus.
            Yes all these elements sound convincing, but just because a team says they know what they doing, doesn't mean they actually know what they are doing. I fear that the core Sonic formula, fast paced platforming, will be lost in development in trying to make some totally different. Due to the history of some of the devs, the game doesn't even look like a Sonic game: it looks like Jak and Daxter or Crash Twinsanity if you will. I am open for new ideas, but I don't want the team to stray away from what makes the series what it is in the first place. I am specifically worried about the co-op feature especially.
            It's just me, but to me it feels like the co-op feature being implement is rather forced. Depending on how the game's mechanics are implemented, the cooperation can feel more like a chore than anything. What if the A.I is absolute trash? What if the flow of the game is completely tarnished just for the sake of a cheap gimmick? The development mindset of this game reminds me of another reimaging of a popular platforming star: The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon. And that scares the hell out of me.

 

Dawn of the Dragon is an awful game. The controls are sloppy, the co-op is ass, the combat is boring, the story is asinine, and platforming is few and far between. I remember following this game's pre-release in 2008 when I was still a big Spyro fan. The other two games didn't insult me that much so I decided to give this one a go and see how the trilogy came to a close, and I was displeased by the result.
            Developers of this game aimed for similar aspect that BRB currently want to pursue in Sonic Boom. Seriously, the behind the scenes of Boom is EXACTLY like Dawn of the Dragon. If Boom goes that route, I fear for what's to come.....
            Do I think Boom looks bad? No, far from it. The game has a lot of potential to be an interesting alternate universe from the main canon, but there is a lot of room for massive mess ups. Big Red Button.....don't let me down.

 

2. TV Show

            The show seems to take a more relaxed approached. According to Sega and other sources, Sonic Boom will have more of an 11 minute episodic storylines akin to Regular Show and Adventure Time, and will have an emphasis on comedy. This doesn't bother me much if the humor is good.....which from the Behind the Scenes video......seems to be hit or miss.

            In the pilot trailer, the banter between Sonic and Eggman about Eggman's decision of the naming of his robot is chuckle worthy. Both Roger Craig Smith and Mike Pollock deliver their dialogue with superb voice acting. More of this please. However,....we hear one of the stupidest jokes in the Behind the Scenes from Knuckles:

"I may look like a fortune cookie, but I don't taste like one."

            .....what the hell does that even mean? The joke is lame, and it implies that Knuckles will still be a idiot in the universe......."sigh" I hope that is not the case at least.

            The animation is pretty decent at least. I love the expressions of the characters, and it suits the art style of the universe.  Other than that....I don't really have much to say about the show. I just have to watch it when it airs during the fall.

            And I don't really want to dwell on this but since this is such a major factor of the controversy, I would be remiss to not at least briefly mention it: the character designs....they don't bother me. Sure I think the sports tape is a bit overboard but it's not that big of a deal. The characters new looks fit well with the new art direction they are approaching, heck I personally think Amy and Eggman look pretty cool. Knuckles doesn't look THAT bad either. Come on guys...it could have been a lot worse.

 

3. Conclusion

            I am neither dreading nor excited about Sonic Boom as a whole. Just skeptical. Of course I am definitely looking forward to seeing where the project leads, but I am still weary whether this will be a success for the franchise, or another stain in the Sonic archives. Plus, we still have much more news to go so maybe my feelings will change during the coming months, whether for better or worse is up in the air.