S-rank & Unleashed (Daytime) vs Generations (Modern) gameplay

One thing I have to give Sonic Unleashed over Sonic Generations is that the grading system isn't so... unrewarding.  Honestly, I wonder why S-ranks were literally handed to you simply for completing a stage within a reasonable amount of time without dying in Generations?  You could S-rank any stage with 0 rings if you reach the finish line fast enough.  Meanwhile in Unleashed, you actually get scored properly and unlike Colors (Wii), it wasn't abusive by spamming wisps constantly.  Hmm... either I've never tagged Sonic Colors or this is the first time I've ever spoken about it in this blog.

About 24 hours ago, I set out to get all S-ranks on all the main daytime stages (did not bother with Eggmanland, I can't stand that stage... yet).  Windmill Isle (Act 2),  Rooftop Run, Dragon Road and Arid Sands were S-ranked, so that left Windmill Isle (Act 1 - for the hell of it), Savannah Citadel, Cool Edge, Skyscraper Scamper, and Jungle Joyride.  Honestly... this is what it's all about.

When I check out Unleashed speed runs on YouTube, very commonly I see comments of on videos of people saying, "C?!  He got a C for finishing THAT fast?"  At first, I didn't understand it either, especially considering I started taking this Unleashed gameplay seriously in Generations.  Grading in Unleashed required finishing the stage while meeting certain requirements, and although I do not have how it's calculated down to a science, you cannot overlook the results screen.  Score depends on:

• time completed
• rings collected at the end
• your speed as you passed checkpoints
• how many enemies you obliterated
• and how many trick rings (the rainbow colored ones) you used

I'm quite certain that if you die, your score is resat, making S-rank impossible from certain checkpoints (if not all).  Every stage seems to have different requirements.  Speed running means:

• points in time will be maxed out
• you will most likely skip a lot of rings if not lose some on accident or purposely if it makes you go faster
• checkpoints might be skipped because of their placement or unnatural shortcuts taken
• you will skip lots of enemies and kill only what's necessary
• you will likely skip various trick rings unless you have to go through them

All in all... this means the game has some replay value in it, and being that this is a grading system that takes your overall performance throughout the stage into consideration, that makes it rewarding.  Unleashed also not an easy game.

So, how'd it go?  Well, I don't play Unleashed a lot, but as of late I am definitely appreciating what it has to offer over Generations, but I'll get to that later.  In spite of a bit of frustration, it was rather quite fun and it's always cool to see Sonic get an S-rank and run through these stages.  It was quite the learning experience, though my LB button on my controller seems to be responding randomly.  The casual approach fortunately was more fun than frustrating but... one stage in particular had me on edge and yeah, you guessed it.  Jungle Joyride Act 1.  Oh, I have a lot to say about Jungle Joyride.

Jungle Joyride Act 1 is... so hard.  It makes Act 1-2 look like icing on the cake and when I compared both levels in my mind, I swear - there are only two areas in Act 1 that are actually easier than Act 1-2 and the first one is the 2D section after homing attacking the springs that switch from springs to spikes and the 2D sections before the last Quicktime ramp where you can get squashed.  There might be more but when I run 1-2, it's always a speed run so I take the fastest route across the water (which is hell due to the intense slowdown).  Everything else in Act 1 is hard.  Honestly, I wonder if these stages were switched at birth and given the wrong act.

Eventually, I got an S-rank...  that time!  If I actually speed run Act 1, hell must have frozen over.

Aaaaand, we're not done with Jungle Joyride just yet.  Not too long ago, Millernusgaming did a speed run of Act 1-2 to where I responded with a question as to how on earth does one get Sonic to 3D->2D glitch the first 2D section. (Actually I asked on sobatsuyu100's video, which is just below.)  Days later, someone by the YouTube name of SONICADVENTURE1999 left a comment in a Sonic Generations videos of mine I've yet to discuss here about with the how-to on the glitch.  I've only done this glitch on accident and it's not like your usual jump in 3D just before 2D switches over to exploit and expel some time off the clock, oh no.  Who would've ever thought that doing this allowed you the opportunity to go through all of that whole section.  The first time I saw a speed run of that glitch was by SHINTARO917 - and that was made in '09, haha.  I'm sure I've mentioned this before.  But yes, I finally  have the power!  But I swear, to this day, I have yet to truly understand the fastest path over the 2nd water section, but when I do, I will try to make a speed run.  That, and of course I have to get better at what's sometimes the trickiest part of the stage - the very beginning.

Not too long ago, sobatsuyu100 ran the stage...

... into the ground... sub-3 minutes?! o_O

And yes, if you speed run 1-2, it will result in an S-rank.  Why?  Noooooo idea.  Rooftop Run 1-2 might be the same?  Dunno, but either way...

Before I close this, I mentioned earlier what it was about Unleashed that has me appreciating it more than Generations?  In a discussion on the official Sega forums (yeah, I haven't been there since after the release of Ep2) talking about how Generations gameplay can be rewarding, I decided to make a comparison between how this Unleashed gameplay over time has become kind of worse.  Basically:

1. Generations is just a condensed version of Unleashed and Genesis gameplay.
2. Generations offers everything Unleashed needed - improved controls, speedy platforming, less automation, some online modes, etc.
3. Generations lacks a lot of key elements that made Unleashed strong such as an involving 2D gameplay.
4. Generations lack of an involving gameplay for casual players leave something to be desired, thus for casuals to earn a sense of involvement, it means they have to learn how to play the game as it is meant to be played: a speedy platformer.  Unfortunately this means they have to play like skilled speed runners and well... I know how that can turn some people off.

It's the same with Colors Wii, which was just an even more condensed version of Unleashed which had a platforming scheme similar to Sonic CD (which didn't allow for much speed) and lacked an involving 3D gameplay.  A lot of people talk about how "linear" Unleashed is because it's 3D gameplay aspects are mostly trapped in narrow hallways, but if you compare that to Generations, you're basically just running and jumping.  Why couldn't Generations have been a bit more like Unleashed by making better use of Sonic's abilities such as side-stepping and allowing better use of the Light-Speed dash?  And why did they nerf the light speed dash in the first place?  From what I've seen, it seems to work better in Sonic 06! (At least in the 3D view.)  The closest you can get to Unleashed-like gameplay in Generations is the Planet Wisp mission called Action Master.  It is probably the best stage in the game.

In spite of Unleashed's broader use of 3D pre-rendered backgrounds, Unleashed may not be the better looking game technically, but it is the better looking game aesthetically.  I mean, everything else about the graphics is about as absorbing as a 3D Sonic could get on a console.  Generations on the PC is very impressive, but Unleashed... you know, if graphics weren't so ridiculously praised these days, I could get away with saying that the work here is quite memorable.   It is arguably the best looking 3D Sonic game ever made.  I really appreciate how much more dynamic the cameras are in this game.  My favorite use of the camera just  happens to be in Jungle Joyride after the last QTE and Sonic is just running down a slant coming out the forest and pretty much the use of the camera through the trick rings.  Why couldn't Generations have been this thoughtful?

The way I see it, Unleashed was still overall a good game, though the daytime segments were great after you come to understand the game more.  The ranking system was a challenge, the stages were a challenge without the need to speed run them, they were more involving, they looked better, most of them were longer.  I mean, just the overall experience from the Daytime levels felt so much more rewarding than Generations.

But the real question is, will the next Sonic game be another nerfed, better safe than sorry version of Sonic Unleashed daytime?  Or will it be another synthetic successor with Ep2-like "improvements?"  Guess time will tell given Sega's budget.