It's over designed imo. To my eye, there is just too much going on, too many transitions just like in Sonic 2 at times with the foreground images (I *personally* prefer Sonic 2). It was too ambitious, and this carried over into the 3D era with a lot of its design hiccups. Say what you will, but their ambitious nature later on stems from their decisions during the 2D era. They didn't know when to stop.
When playing 3, I always felt the art and color seemed so noisy. After a short while, it would feel grating on my eyes and id switch to something else. Not that its a bad game overall, but I for sure didnt enjoy the change.
"To be a fan of something isn't too blindly love it; it's too see it's flaws and see how [it] can improve going forward." Words cannot describe how many fandoms I wish would come to understand this sentiment...
I thought the reason Sonic 3 never got a mobile port was because they couldn't get all the music rights back. There was an old PC remake that needed placeholder music, and nobody wants to repeat that disaster.
You're correct. Billiam is just talking out of his ass, which he does for a lot of this video while holding a "Sonic fans are overly defensive" flame shield to cover himself.
@@wickederebusI'll take option B, where I dismiss stupid teenagers who are replying to a comment I made a year ago. If you can't do basic research for yourself then I see no hope for you.
I remember playing a Sonic game on a friend's Dreamcast. He was telling me how there were more characters than Sonic, Tails and Knuckles. He had such a passion on his eyes and voice. Later on it was revealed that he was my first introduction to furries.
Note: Sonic Adventure 2's story makes a million times more sense in the Japanese version. Unfortunately, a lot of things got lost in translation, and even if you switch the game to japanese, the subtitles are just the english version, so you need to use a mod to restore the original dialogue in the Japanese subtitles, which does not excuse the original game's handling of the story in any way. But it does make the story SO much more comprehensible, and honestly better
@@mr.pendleton7121 well, there's a lot, but one of the biggest things is that the original story explains is that Rouge doesn't work for gun, gun is a private organization not affiliated with the government, rouge works for the president to try and find out what or who the ultimate lifeform is. That's why she can't just ask gun for the emerald
@@Splonton @Baba hey noobs, Quandale Dingle back again. My finger doctor baba mc bibi son has committed identity theft on me and thrown me in jail. I will be breaking out and committing tax fraud under her name. My sister Saundale Dingle is going to break the world record for the most cheese balls chugged in under half a second. Come back next week to see me eat a pound of raw cookie dough while sitting on a tight rope.
Game companies sometimes get famous musicians to perform uncredited or under an alias. The reason is usually the BIEM copyright enforcement society that all musicians that want to have their music on radio and profit from it need to join. Under the contract, any and all music by the musician is under their enforcement for as long as the musician is the member. Every use, like inside a movie, inside a videogame, etc, gets taxed by BIEM, and instead of paying the musician directly, the BIEM pays him, adding not only a lot of management overhead, but a huge cost that adds up, as then even game reviews would be affected, as SEGA would need to negotiate with every TV company worldwide that wants to showcase the game to cover the BIEM fees for broadcasting the copyrighted music. The way around this is a contract with a musician under a fake name and everyone involved keeping their mouth very well sealed, else BIEM will come and collect, even retroactively. Using a likeness of a musician is on the other hand not a problem, you negotiate with the person once, pay them once, and it's done. There have been exceptions where well known musicians have performed under their own name for SEGA, but this always introduces issues, such as lost tracks and replacement soundtrack in re-releases, and lots and lots of overhead.
Sonic Unleashed is definitely my favorite Sonic game. The story and soundtrack are incredible, plus Jason Griffith in that game was the best Sonic voice in my opinion.
Sonic Adventure was originally called Sonic & Knuckles RPG, so it's likely that there were plans to greatly expand the universe's lore through Knuckles' ancestors.
Ooh! I had no idea. So, that means the direction the Archie comic series went is actually kinda close to the original idea, huh? (I mean, the fact that they filled in more of the echidna culture/history stuff in general, not that the actual plot beats are the same.) It's too bad Knuckles' series had to end early--it was easily the better-written one of the two.
@@fatihgul613 as a sonic positive person who's first experiences with the franchise was Sonic Advance which i played so much that i could probably play the game with my eyes closed to this day and Sonic Rush/Sonic Rush Adventure followed a few years after, i can honestly say that they have really colored my expectations for what a sonic game should be to the point that i haven't enjoyed any of the other games nearly as much as the rest of the fanbase thinks i should. Hell, even Sonic Mania was kind of a let down to me. it felt similar to Advance but the level design kind of betrayed that. I still like Mania, but ya know. it didn't feel like the sonic that I grew up with lol
You know, I watched your Sonic retrospective videos separately and I feel like I learned so much about Sonic from them and some about what makes a game good too! Big kudos to you, Billiam! You did a great job covering the main games in the series!
This video popped up in my recommended and I am SOOO glad that I clicked on it and watched. High quality content and I can't wait until you hit 100,000 subs. Keep on keeping on, Billiam!!! - A new fan 🔥
Why didn't Shadow remember Maria's last words? Probably because he woke up from a 50 year sleep. Fk sake man, most humans wake up from a 30 min nap unable to remember their own name.
1:08:15 you mean the retired solders from 50 years ago that would be the only ones who saw him because the room he was in for 50 years was sealed off and never spoken of?
I only played the original sonic trilogy, and some of Sonic Adventure which I never beat any of those. Along with Digimon and Winx these were all shows I remember growing up with but forgot about. You help me remember a simpler time. Thank You for all your work Billiam!
Nice, I'll be watching this in parts. By the way, Sonic 3(and Knuckles) worse than 2? Not quite in my opinion. And if I recall correctly the reason for not having a port of this game it has to do with licensing stuff, not because it's "not casual enough" Great vid though I'll keep watching it later
Maciel Salguero I think that sonic 2 has some more memorable levels than sonic 3, though sonic 3 has better gameplay with the elemental shields. Levels like marble garden, carnival night, and lava reef hold it back
Just got this video in suggested and was just about to type that. The reason why sonic 3 and Knucks is denied alot of proper ports is due to the music and the various licensing. Case in point? The reason Ice Cap was excluded from mania.
Maciel Salguero I’m not a huge fan of Sonic 3. The stages are really boring to me, and I absolutely hate the graphics. Unlike Sonic 2, which has great and memorable levels. I guess I’m biased since I played Sonic when I was younger, and never played Sonic 3 + Knuckles until just recently. But I just enjoy Sonic 2 more. Sonic Mania is the best though.
Sonic fans are quite passionate. Can't say I watched the whole video, but impressed at the length and depth. Didn't have to be this long, but it shows you care for the blue blur.
Don’t know how this video just know made it to my feed since it is 4 years old, but I’m so glad it did. This was a blast to watch. I kept getting interrupted while watching this and instead of just forgetting to finish the rest I kept bringing it back up so I could watch the whole thing. Loved this!
This was like watching a whole documentary and it was such a ride. I can't believe I watched the whole 3 hours in one sitting. Loved your content Billiam!
The reason why Sonic 2 stands out, is because it delivers what every sequel promises, but normally fails, it is better in every way whilst being true and faithful to the original.
Unpopular thoughts: memorization isn’t a flaw of the series, it’s an intentional design that’s been spoken about in multiple making of videos related to the series. Viewing the game through eyes that see this as a flaw means you’re not really enjoying the game the way it was intended, but instead are seeking to gain the feeling of reward gained by other platformers of the time.
While I think this is legit, and other games which have taken inspiration from Sonic do emphasise the speedrunning and replayability aspects (Action Henk is a strong example), there are also things that keep popping up in the design that don't play well with this. For example: finite lives. Why? Surely if you're encouraging players to memorise minute to 90sec-long stages, you should be putting them back at the start of levels as quickly and seamlessly as possible when they die?
I've never played a single Sonic game and attempted to memorize it, I've ALWAYS played reactively and had zero problems. The idea that the games require memorization in the first place is absolute hogwash.
@@OtakuUnitedStudio You have no idea what you're talking about. That's like saying that Soulsborne games aren't hard because you have to learn the patterns of the enemies over being able to run in and destroy them with "skill". In fact, there is no skill without knowledge. Thinking the two are mutually exclusive is insanity.
Musically Sonic and Shadow actually differ. Sonic gets fast rock, Shadow gets dark industrial trance music, or something like that. I want to say tails and Eggman differ, but it's harder to notice. Mr. Unsmiley for Sky Rail kinda messed up Shadow's musical theme a bit, but rumor has it it was originally a Sonic track.
Sonic doesn’t require memorization to play, it can be played by looking at what’s in ahead. Sonic 3 and Knuckles has great level design that is fast with great platforming, and the art style is fine.
Sonic unleashed is actually one of my favorite sonic games and I’d appreciate if Sega made a game with the tone sonic unleashed had. The last few sonic games have been so goofy and light hearted, which I don’t mind but I want something more serious as of late. There was forces but ehhhhhhh.......
The one thing that doesn't make sense to me is in Sonic Adventure when you claimed Amy isn't strong because she needs a weapon and surroundings to defend herself. This doesn't make any sense, it basically implies that a female character isn't strong simply because they use a weapon and not because it requires physical contact. And don't lots of video games have characters use their surroundings to defeat a boss? That's kind of hypocritical. That's like saying Link isn't strong because he uses a weapons. I do agree with the claim however that her age difference makes her crush on Sonic from cute to creepy, however in Sonic Adventure it isn't really the game that shows that, her crush isn't really focused on Sonic in an obsession way, rather she's just a Girl who idolizes him, which are two completely different things. In Sonic Rush onwards then yeah I can agree in that sense (depending on the game anyway) And I think her defeating Zero is fine because she does defeat the person who kidnapped her and didn't need Sonic to save her. Amy is my favorite character in the Sonic series (along with Blaze and Cream) and while I admit her recent portrayal has been subpar (especially in Generations, Battle, Chronicles, Colors DS and especially Free Riders) but her good moments make her my favorite character.
Saying Amy isn't capable because of her weapon is NOT the same as saying Link isn't capable because he needs a weapon. Amy and Link live in two different world with two different set of rules. In the world of Sonic Adventure every character is capable by themselves, Amy is the only character incapable of direct combat. This isn't the only time where Amy has needed assistance, in Sonic R, she's the only animal character who needs a vehicle. Nearly every character in Legend of Zelda has some kind of weapon.
But Amy needs a Weapon as well. And why would one need a weapon but not the other? Even though Link has other feats that make him strong. Its the same thing with Amy! Also in Sonic R by this logic this could be said for Eggman who rides in a machine, or how about the fact Tails needs weapons/mechs to often attack foes? Amy has shown to be capable though. She has to be pretty powerful to lug that giant hammer around everywhere, not to mention swing it all over the place. She can do acrobatic tricks and flips, making her a very agile character. She can create a tornado that moves, not to mention hover in Heroes, giving her a huge advantage over the other speed types. She also can do a full degree angle spin with the hammer. The fact she's able to hold her own and show off some feats meaning she is capable. Also not every character. Big uses a Fishing Pole just to defend himself from enemies. (shown again in Sonic Heroes and Chronicles) Plus Cream needs Cheese to attack, how is that not an issue but Amy needing her Hammer is? (Plus Amy has other combat moves) By this logic Tails isn't capable because he uses a Mech in SA2 even though he can use his Tails to attack and Fly. Or Rouge in 06 needing Bombs, even though she has kickboxing in SA2, Zero actually could have been Eggman's most defensive robot. I mean it's entirely possible that his armor made it difficult to destroy him which is why he could only be defeated by that weak spot on his head.
Alpha Princess yeah, I see your point when it comes to this topic. Tbh when it comes to this stuff you get feminists fuck boys like billiam and have one little piece gameplay from a character who,to be honest never really was important to the plot to begin with or had a large amount developing time with gameplay, they happened to be a girl and we start blooming out bitching because "she can't defend her self" or some load of crap spewing from his mouth. Or because "She doesn't run as fast because she's a girl" even though it was VERY clear that Amy's team was the easy mode of the game it make sense why she would have the "better control"
Imagine if this guy ever made a video covering the TV series LOST. It would probably be long and intense. Which happens to be the complete opposite description of my bedroom romances.
This retrospective was great, but I still think you were too harsh on Sonic Unleashed. Doing side missions and giving the professor souvenirs can give you more medals.
Billiam, I really appreciate your insane video lengths I always pop them on when cleaning / playing video games / cooking I totally appreciate the amount of time you must put into these
as someone who didnt get a chance to grow up with nintendo consoles untill my teens i wasmt much interested and i put this vid on to sleep, but it ended up seeping into my dreams, woke up n finished watching, great work! getting me hyped and nostalgic for smth i didnt experience, that takes passion :)
First time I've ever watched, liked it 👍🏼....Loved it and subscribed. For fans of the Matpat theorist channels (film, tv, GAME) and if a little younger, the super carlin brothers, this channel deserves a spot in your subs. It shares subject matter enough to share an audience but it actually fills a niche in the market and doesn't copy material. I really love the length of your videos, the effort that must take to study, prepare, script, then to film, edit, and the fearlessness of posting it on this platform. Especially because your delivery is so clear, there's no repetition, your points are interesting and succinct. It makes me certain that you care about the viewer coming to a fuller understanding on the subject and not just getting them to click and hoping they are too lazy to click away or fall asleep with autoplay on lol, ME. It doesn't feel like you are looking at a list of the sonic games in order and rattling off what you can remember, you've researched the long, hard way, read up on everything you can, played them through to remind yourself how it feels, which is so important with nostalgic characters like Sonic, I just really appreciate how complete this video feels because it minimises the effort on the viewers part to keep up and frees up space for us to get nostalgic. I feel like I can multitask watching this and sifting through own memories from it and be the one saying "oh yeah this is the one with the wisps, I didn't hate them at all, I didn't like being a laser though" I know it's all about view time with the UA-cam algorithm so long videos like these will do well on this platform from an algorithm angle but when viewers are new to youtube, the longest video we click is about 8 minutes because we come blindly to UA-cam not knowing what it can offer - in order to watch shorter videos, the easy to consume handful of comedy videos in the 4 minute range, but once you are seriously building up your subscription box with content you want to see and using the platforms design to meet your needs, we want LONG videos. This caters to that stage. UA-cam is my tv, my cinema, I always click it before I click on Netflix, 4on demand or iPlayer, I'd much rather feed a conversational, educational, audiobook style hunger. This content satisfies that. SUB NOW before it's too late if you are using this as relaxation/nap fodder and settle in for three hours of memories.
There is no objectivity in gameplay and graphical aesthetics aside from technical issues. It's all subjective. They can pour their hearts and souls into something yet it can still turn people off (*cough* Sonic 06 cutscenes *cough*). There is such thing as "over designed" or "over stylized."
Sonic 06 was one of the first games I played and I think that's where most of not all of my fondness for it came from but looking back, it sucks but I still like it because of nostalgia
Your criticisms on sonic 3 & knuckles weren't really criticisms of the game but rather a very subjective preference which felt very weak. Such as 3&K's art style not being your cup of tea and some of the cinematic moments which actually happens at the end of each zone, and is absolutely not a part of the main game play experience. And what is this about 3&K not focusing on speed? Hydrocity, Marble garden, Flying battery; The list goes on. These levels partially focus on maintaining speed just as chemical plant zone in sonic 2 did. As for Hydrocity with sonic, just use tails to fly him up in a dry path. You then try to back up these personal complaints by saying that's the reason why 3 & K aren't in a lot of compilations which is extremely false. They're in the pc collection, the mega collections, and the various sega collections. And the main reason why they don't have a mobile port is due to the copy right of music, not due to it "loosing the casual audience". This is just as easy, if not easier to pick up and play than sonic 2 due to the save feature. You say this is your favorite classic title, but then go on a bit more harsher on the game than you did with the other classics with the most biased and subjective preference, rather than actual criticism. Other than this poorly done retrospective of 3&k, you did am alright job with the classic series. I'll be sure to watch the rest of the retrospective.
There are no real objective criticisms when it comes to gameplay: glitches and technical issues are the *only* objective things to look at unless there is a fully fleshed out story. There is such a thing as being "over designed" or "over stylized" and it is often associated with film/animation, but is perfectly acceptable as a subjective critique of video games. It also wasn't "poor," he elaborated on everything he said, gave his reasoning, in detail yet was simply biased (like any opinion is). You can be harsh on your favorite franchises, you *should* be as a matter of fact in order to facilitate change and better quality. So calm down, my dude.
@@PathBeyondTheDark _"There are no real objective criticisms when it comes to game play: glitches and technical issues are the only objective things to look at unless there is a fully fleshed out story. There is such a thing as being "over designed" or "over stylized" and it is often associated with film/animation, but is perfectly acceptable as a subjective critique of video games."_ He started off the video saying that he will be "objective as possible" which you can easily tell that he wasn't. Though I admit that was a bit broad to not consider his personal peeves as criticism. _" It also wasn't "poor," he elaborated on everything he said, gave his reasoning, in detail yet was simply biased (like any opinion is)."_ No. He barely went into detail at all, he just stated "this is this way" and moved on to the next since he tried to retrospect the entire main line franchise in under 3 hours. Which is why not only this, but the rest of his retrospective on the classic series feels weak and half baked. _"You can be harsh on your favorite franchises, you should be as a matter of fact in order to facilitate change and better quality. So calm down, my dude."_ And I can be harsh on Billiams criticisms of Sonic 3 & Knuckles. There's nothing wrong with being harsh with something you love, but giving vague criticisms and giving reasons why sonic 3 has no ports (with no evidence, mind you) is more than likely going to be criticized by me.
I’m honestly impressed at how mature this comment thread is of people criticizing without outright insulting. I’d usually see people taking shit way too far and despite this not really adding much to this conversation I’m honestly just happy that people can discuss things like this in a mature manner.
@@PathBeyondTheDark There is no real objective criticism but fleshing out your opinion makes it clear weither it's formed by an understandable but different point of view or misconceptions, misunderstanding, lack of knowledge about the subject or simply getting things wrong, which he apparently did (and I'm not insulting him or anything, we're just talking about Sonic games here and plus it happens to the best of us) Like I could tell you that I really don't like Picasso's paintings but I also don't know much about visual arts and especially cubism so my opinion isn't as informed as someone who works, studies or has a passion for the subject, I'm obviously not saying that this guy doesn't know what he's talking about at all but it's an extreme example
A friend sent me this vid as a way to learn about sonic’s game side and honestly!! As someone with adhd, you covered everything in a way that kept me interested in coming back to watch! I love the critical standpoint you took! I am a bit sad you didn’t talk about shadow’s game but alas, such is life
1:17:50 - "At the end of the day, I think that's more important than being an individually good title". You don't give a game a free pass just because it's part of a franchise you like. If it sucks by itself, then it sucks, period. You might say "well what about sequel stories", but have you ever seen a good sequel that DIDN'T work standalone? A sequel builds on its predecessor while also serving as a standalone product. A good sequel DOESN'T go "we are assuming that you played the previous game, so there won't be a tutorial stage. If you haven't played the other game, go play it right now." That would be outrageous. The only content that does that is DLC, because that _requires_ the base game to run. And DLC didn't even exist back then. Nobody gave Resident Evil 6 a free pass just for being a Resident Evil game. Nobody gave The Sims 4 a free pass for being a Sims game. And I'll be damned if anyone excused the loot box shit in Star Wars Battlefront because "It's a Star Wars game, c'mon!" There's a very good reason that those entries are pretty much universally seen as huge disappointments (if not outright r/assholedesign). So that is why I strongly disagree with the notion that a product being good for its franchise is more important than being good by itself. Because if it's not good by itself, then there is no way in hell it is doing its parent franchise any favors by existing.
Speaking about the 16-bit Sonics, their perceived strengths at the time of release (which were, admittedly, mostly presentational) have diminished over the decades, making their flaws more obvious in hindsight. I remember the Christmas when I got Sonic 2, and my whole family was blown away. We were EXTREMELY happy with the game.
I get having a preference by when you frame the entire Sonic 3 and S&K in how you think it's worse than Sonic 2 by a large margin just shows you clearly aren't in touch with the general opinion as you did be in terms of a retrospective. Like you literally beat the viewer over the head over and over with the same negative opinions. I really don't get the "cartoony" comments. It has more depth, vibrant colors, and faux 3D effects that were the trend at the time. Also the music rights, save system, and lock on technology is why the game is sometimes overlooked in ports and compilations. It has zero to do with the quality of the game.
It wasn't as bad as he was making it seem, but 3 is most definitely a step back from 2 (which is fine, I enjoyed the games regardless). Not visually, but zone design and music never stood out to me. They did some cool things which I appreciate (especially in the first zone with the fire) but zones themselves have never been memorable. I do agree, though. There is far too much opinion in this "retrospective". Also describing the early games as memorization is nonsense. If people are playing the games by memorizing them, they're missing the entire point of the games and not playing as intended.
The Sonic 3 & Knuckles part is so poorly written, not to mention the improvements it had over 2, and just favor 2 for the sake of preference, not even the elemental shields and the advantage they provide in each stage, plus calling the Death Egg Zone Act 2 boss "the final boss" when it's the Doomsday one also a pretty unique one since you have to chase it down and get its own projectiles to hit it plus the linear chase afterwards and it's not hard whatsoever... The level design is also way better than of that seen on 2, better boss battles as well... And the list goes on.
Aaaaaaaaaaaand this comment section is exactly why Sonic fans get such a bad reputation. There is such thing as "over stylized" or "over designed." You might want to look into the concepts and the criticisms of them. That's not "objective", it's "opinion," just like everything said in this video. Stop acting like elitist assholes. It isn't poorly written, it's just biased, like any opinion. I'm ashamed to be a part of this fandom, honestly.
@@MonSuper21 The op makes claims of fact that are nigh more than opinion. It's this attitude that persists between "Classic" and "Modern" purists, or even those who prefer more linear and speed-centric gameplay versus well designed and multi-tiered platforming that makes the Sonic community a laughing stock. What's more is it contributes to the continued inconsistent quality of the games. How are devs supposed to create games that satisfy fans when they are getting mixed signals? Likewise, why are fans even fighting amongst each other when it isn't one side or the others' fault? Between fans and developers, you all need to realize there are ways to compromise such as how other ip's have. Both types of fans need to give a little, while devs need to learn how to weed out the obnoxious complainers and come to some sort of middle ground instead of reinventing everything on whims.
I played Sonic 06 when I was younger just because I thought Silver was cool. My favorite part was running around the overworld with him and using his psychic powers to fling stuff into orbit.
If you ask me, Sonic is way better when it takes itself seriously. Sonic isn't some generic ass Mario character or modern day American cartoon character.
Blaine Alexander I agree with you, but there is a strong difference between Sonic's fun light hearted moments, compared to just horrible use of characters and what they call "comedy". The games before Colors and the Archie Sonic series did the balance perfect in my opinion. They also weren't afraid to brake their boundaries once in a while and tell a darker story. That's how it should be in my opinion at least.
HN Films tell that to the Archie Sonic Comics. I don't think it would have lasted for 24 years if it stayed as a simple comic strip. Very well written stories and characters that are written so you actually like them. No dull ass Sonic Boom character personalities. The only reason they got cancelled was because one of the butthurt writers got sew happy.
I love the original Sonic The Hedgehog Trilogy, cause I grew up Sonic and I have his trilogy on the sega genesis, and Sonic 3 and Knuckles is my favorite Sonic game of all time.
Except two is better. Perhaps your own taste is the thing that's questionable. There's not a single thing about 3 that makes it stand out over 2. Terrible powerups, worse zones, horribly easy, questionably worse music, worse sprites. Hell gameplay is much less fluid as well. I can appreciate what they did with some of the levels, but that's simply fluff, the level design and zones themselves are just a resounding "meh".
I love the boost gameplay, but if they are going to make a SA3 They better replace it with a spindash, fully 3D and they should not be afraid of being darker. SEGA just needs to not cross the line.
They tried going darker, and we got Sonic 06 and Shadow the Hedgehog. We don’t need the series to go uber dark and serious. It CAN have its dark moments when the story calls for it. Like, say, whenever the villain of the game has the advantage we can see the characters despair or be visibly worried and such, maybe a detail can have dark implications, but not go as far as the previously mentioned games did. Sonic should have a tone similar to, say, Avatar the Last Airbender or a typical Shonen Anime. Not try and have this sense of self importance like Evangelion or something
Time stamps: Sonic 1: 0:46 Sonic 2: 7:52 Sonic CD: 17:24 Sonic 3: 24:59 Sonic & Knuckles: 32:41 Sonic Adventure: 40:22 Sonic Adventure 2: 58:30 Sonic Heroes: 1:18:00 Sonic 06: 1:31:42 Sonic Unleashed: 1:57:50 Sonic 4 Episode 1: 2:15:34 Sonic 4 Episode 2: 2:22:57 Sonic Colors: 2:28:04 Sonic Generations: 2:36:58 Sonic Lost World: 2:46:56
Thanks for the video, great listening from one of Sonic's original fans ie the original target audience. Being 40 years-old looking back at the franchise from someone who was 8 years-old when Sonic was introduced is very nostalgic especially looking at the original Genisis titles. Being someone who started from the original Sonic, played Sonic 2 and actually skipped Sonic 3 and went straight to Sonic and Knuckles, Sonic 3 and Knuckles is my personal favorite but the one I replay the most is Sonic and Knuckles. Feel like it's similar reason Sonic 2 is the favorite for others it's shorter and more digestible. Hope to watch more of your videos.
Time stamps: Sonic 1: 0:46 Sonic 2: 7:52 Sonic CD: 17:24 Sonic 3: 24:59 Sonic & Knuckles: 32:41 Sonic Adventure: 40:22 Sonic Adventure 2: 58:30 Sonic Heroes: 1:18:00 Sonic 06: 1:31:42 Sonic Unleashed: 1:57:50 Sonic 4 Episode 1: 2:15:34 Sonic 4 Episode 2: 2:22:57 Sonic Colors: 2:28:04 Sonic Generations: 2:36:58 Sonic Lost World: 2:46:56
No Shadow The Edgehog but yes 06? Can't really call a "complete series" retrospective. Also, Sonic's dialogue at the Green Hill cutscene in Generations mentions Secret Rings, which means they did happen and are cannon, so probably Black Knight is as well. *and they're not here, either.*
Sonic 3 is cartoony?
Well, here I'd agree with the community - it's the most stylish and colourful game in the classic series.
&Knuckles
It's over designed imo. To my eye, there is just too much going on, too many transitions just like in Sonic 2 at times with the foreground images (I *personally* prefer Sonic 2). It was too ambitious, and this carried over into the 3D era with a lot of its design hiccups. Say what you will, but their ambitious nature later on stems from their decisions during the 2D era. They didn't know when to stop.
I'm really impressed with just how much detail they crammed into the sprites, if anything it's more realistic than cartoony.
I'd say it looks good, but the character sprites and some of the stages have a bit of a case of detail overload.
@@AniGaAG
I love how detailed the robots are in Sonic 3. Gives them a threatening aura.
When playing 3, I always felt the art and color seemed so noisy. After a short while, it would feel grating on my eyes and id switch to something else. Not that its a bad game overall, but I for sure didnt enjoy the change.
When Billiam said "It was the end of an era, but it marked the start of a new one" I reactionarily said to myself "Yeah that's how eras work"
*WHEN MOM SAYS ONE MORE VIDEO BEFORE BED
Lmao
Oh so funny NOT
"To be a fan of something isn't too blindly love it; it's too see it's flaws and see how [it] can improve going forward."
Words cannot describe how many fandoms I wish would come to understand this sentiment...
It's why I despise Star Wars fandom 2015-2020. People wrote off the entire franchise because of a few bad things.
I don't care what anyone says I still like sonic till this day
SS 95 so do I, thats why it saddens me to see him fall again and again.
SS 95 me 3
Same
Me 5
But consider this no matter how much he falls he can always stand up again and do better
These long retrospectives are my favorite videos to watch, they never get old to me!
I thought the reason Sonic 3 never got a mobile port was because they couldn't get all the music rights back. There was an old PC remake that needed placeholder music, and nobody wants to repeat that disaster.
You're correct. Billiam
is just talking out of his ass, which he does for a lot of this video while holding a "Sonic fans are overly defensive" flame shield to cover himself.
@@WaddleDee105 wow you just projected REAL hard
@@WaddleDee105 someone sounds overly defensive
@@WaddleDee105 care ti cite timestamps to prove your point? just saying, the option is here to defend and support your claim
@@wickederebusI'll take option B, where I dismiss stupid teenagers who are replying to a comment I made a year ago. If you can't do basic research for yourself then I see no hope for you.
I remember playing a Sonic game on a friend's Dreamcast. He was telling me how there were more characters than Sonic, Tails and Knuckles.
He had such a passion on his eyes and voice. Later on it was revealed that he was my first introduction to furries.
Sounds familiar
Bruh
@@JmMateo933 onnoni
@@JmMateo933 ininnninionnononononninnonnonnonnnononnononononnonnononnonono
@@JmMateo933 nononininonon
Note: Sonic Adventure 2's story makes a million times more sense in the Japanese version. Unfortunately, a lot of things got lost in translation, and even if you switch the game to japanese, the subtitles are just the english version, so you need to use a mod to restore the original dialogue in the Japanese subtitles, which does not excuse the original game's handling of the story in any way. But it does make the story SO much more comprehensible, and honestly better
So what exactly was left out?
@@mr.pendleton7121 well, there's a lot, but one of the biggest things is that the original story explains is that Rouge doesn't work for gun, gun is a private organization not affiliated with the government, rouge works for the president to try and find out what or who the ultimate lifeform is. That's why she can't just ask gun for the emerald
@@mr.pendleton7121 if you wanna know more, there are the original retranslated cutscenes up on youtube
@@Splonton @Baba hey noobs, Quandale Dingle back again. My finger doctor baba mc bibi son has committed identity theft on me and thrown me in jail. I will be breaking out and committing tax fraud under her name. My sister Saundale Dingle is going to break the world record for the most cheese balls chugged in under half a second. Come back next week to see me eat a pound of raw cookie dough while sitting on a tight rope.
To be fair, a total of 11 people made Sonic Adventure II
Why spend 3 hours watching an extended Lord of the Rings movie when I could be watching this instead?
D E A D A S S 🅱️
The Lord of the Rings is Sonic, if you think about it...
yea
If you think about it Sonic is the Lord of the rings
@@connorscorner443 bruh
Definitely didn't just spend the last 3 hours watching this entire video. Nope, certainly not. Hehe...
Best 3 hours ever spent.
7:43
OH MY GOD TEAM APS LIKES SONIC!?!??!
@@epicfusion7635 easily excitable I see
Game companies sometimes get famous musicians to perform uncredited or under an alias. The reason is usually the BIEM copyright enforcement society that all musicians that want to have their music on radio and profit from it need to join. Under the contract, any and all music by the musician is under their enforcement for as long as the musician is the member. Every use, like inside a movie, inside a videogame, etc, gets taxed by BIEM, and instead of paying the musician directly, the BIEM pays him, adding not only a lot of management overhead, but a huge cost that adds up, as then even game reviews would be affected, as SEGA would need to negotiate with every TV company worldwide that wants to showcase the game to cover the BIEM fees for broadcasting the copyrighted music.
The way around this is a contract with a musician under a fake name and everyone involved keeping their mouth very well sealed, else BIEM will come and collect, even retroactively.
Using a likeness of a musician is on the other hand not a problem, you negotiate with the person once, pay them once, and it's done.
There have been exceptions where well known musicians have performed under their own name for SEGA, but this always introduces issues, such as lost tracks and replacement soundtrack in re-releases, and lots and lots of overhead.
51:40 THERE I AM GARY THERE I AM
YEAA
Heyo
who the hell is gary?
+SuperHydrow ikr. (
It was a reference to a Spongebob episode where they made a commercial for the Krusty Krab
1:09:34 Green Hill is unlocked, but not all emblems are collected...
But I must say great job on this video! I really enjoyed it
Wow, this is a really great video. It's insane how much work was put into it throughout the entire year.
Sonic Unleashed is definitely my favorite Sonic game. The story and soundtrack are incredible, plus Jason Griffith in that game was the best Sonic voice in my opinion.
I’m pretty sure he didn’t voice sonic in that game. He started in sonic colors if I remember correctly
@@Alenator-pq9wf I think you’re thinking of Roger Craig Smith, he started voicing sonic in sonic colors.
@@ItzGlitchyy ohhh yeah Jason Griffith is the sonic x guy right
You poor boy. 3D sonic games are all different shades of awful.
Sonic Unleashed is really solid, I like the werehog parts.
I
felt asleep with youtube on and woke up here
Yeah I woke up at 2 AM and he was talking about Sonic colors
Same
Yep, same story
LOOOOL same thing just happened to me. Now I'm actually watching it while awake.
Saaame xD
Sonic Adventure was originally called Sonic & Knuckles RPG, so it's likely that there were plans to greatly expand the universe's lore through Knuckles' ancestors.
Didn't they end up using the Echidnas again in the actual Sonic rpg on DS?
@@zeroattentiongaming820 In Sonic Chronicles, yep
Ooh! I had no idea. So, that means the direction the Archie comic series went is actually kinda close to the original idea, huh? (I mean, the fact that they filled in more of the echidna culture/history stuff in general, not that the actual plot beats are the same.) It's too bad Knuckles' series had to end early--it was easily the better-written one of the two.
Cybershell did a video on Sonic Adventure's NPCs pointing at their dialogue as further evidence for a much more lore-heavy game.
I think the Rush and Advance games should be included here
I'll get to them one day
The Rush games are great. First Sonic game I ever played!
Wait this is the complete sonic retrospective and those games are missing? Im taking my like back.
@@billiam You gotten to them yet?
@@fatihgul613 as a sonic positive person who's first experiences with the franchise was Sonic Advance which i played so much that i could probably play the game with my eyes closed to this day and Sonic Rush/Sonic Rush Adventure followed a few years after, i can honestly say that they have really colored my expectations for what a sonic game should be to the point that i haven't enjoyed any of the other games nearly as much as the rest of the fanbase thinks i should. Hell, even Sonic Mania was kind of a let down to me. it felt similar to Advance but the level design kind of betrayed that. I still like Mania, but ya know. it didn't feel like the sonic that I grew up with lol
FIRST!
:D Enjoy this OMNIBUS collection of my Sonic series.
Billiam Could you make a Table of Contents of some sort so we know when Each Game is?
I pinned a comment to the top of the video
Billiam i have a question, are you ever going to do mario games at some point?
Billiam why didnt you mention sonic forces?
im getting to know the storyline a lot better now. thanks i really appreciate this. (im still watching it)
Shadow: I’m okay with everyone dying
Maria: No
Shadow: Ooooooooooooh she didn’t want me to kill everyone okay
My favorite part of 06’s plot is how it LITERALLY retcons itself out of existence
You should do this again, except with all the other games. I personally love the to Rush games, and hell even Shadow has it's good points
Baku Haku what is your profile picture and where can I get one
just google "alpharad fun cult" you should find variations of it in images lol
M
@@Texaskilljoy mood
1:08:26
AMY'S EYES OMG
how did I never notice that O_O
AAAAAA
To quote Fandub eggman. “WHAT THE ACTUAL SHIT!!!”
I actually played sonic adventure for the first time this year and I really enjoyed it, and in my opinion it has actually aged really well.
The sonic boom cartoons are awesome. A hidden gem of clever writing for the age its aimed at.
You know, I watched your Sonic retrospective videos separately and I feel like I learned so much about Sonic from them and some about what makes a game good too! Big kudos to you, Billiam! You did a great job covering the main games in the series!
This video popped up in my recommended and I am SOOO glad that I clicked on it and watched. High quality content and I can't wait until you hit 100,000 subs. Keep on keeping on, Billiam!!!
- A new fan 🔥
Why didn't Shadow remember Maria's last words?
Probably because he woke up from a 50 year sleep. Fk sake man, most humans wake up from a 30 min nap unable to remember their own name.
I mean, he had time to wake up & get a shower & a cup of coffee or smth
In all seriousness, it likely has something to do with the fact that he has false memories
1:08:15 you mean the retired solders from 50 years ago that would be the only ones who saw him because the room he was in for 50 years was sealed off and never spoken of?
I only played the original sonic trilogy, and some of Sonic Adventure which I never beat any of those.
Along with Digimon and Winx these were all shows I remember growing up with but forgot about.
You help me remember a simpler time.
Thank You for all your work Billiam!
Nice, I'll be watching this in parts. By the way, Sonic 3(and Knuckles) worse than 2? Not quite in my opinion. And if I recall correctly the reason for not having a port of this game it has to do with licensing stuff, not because it's "not casual enough" Great vid though I'll keep watching it later
Maciel Salguero I think that sonic 2 has some more memorable levels than sonic 3, though sonic 3 has better gameplay with the elemental shields. Levels like marble garden, carnival night, and lava reef hold it back
Just got this video in suggested and was just about to type that. The reason why sonic 3 and Knucks is denied alot of proper ports is due to the music and the various licensing. Case in point? The reason Ice Cap was excluded from mania.
Maciel Salguero I’m not a huge fan of Sonic 3. The stages are really boring to me, and I absolutely hate the graphics. Unlike Sonic 2, which has great and memorable levels.
I guess I’m biased since I played Sonic when I was younger, and never played Sonic 3 + Knuckles until just recently. But I just enjoy Sonic 2 more.
Sonic Mania is the best though.
This is a more appropriate way to disagree, rather than accusations of poor writing or implications of stupidity on the part of the Tuber.
Personally I prefer the level design of 2 to 3NK
I so enjoy these long-form in-depth reviews and summaries of series and games. Way better than random podcasts at work. 🦊
Sonic fans are quite passionate. Can't say I watched the whole video, but impressed at the length and depth. Didn't have to be this long, but it shows you care for the blue blur.
Don’t know how this video just know made it to my feed since it is 4 years old, but I’m so glad it did. This was a blast to watch. I kept getting interrupted while watching this and instead of just forgetting to finish the rest I kept bringing it back up so I could watch the whole thing. Loved this!
I love these long form videos, watched this one and the digimon one while at work (I have a lot of free time lol).
Keep it up!
Adventure 2's chao garden is godly.
God that Firefly joke at 13:13 is genius
This was like watching a whole documentary and it was such a ride. I can't believe I watched the whole 3 hours in one sitting. Loved your content Billiam!
Fun fact: I found this by literally typing in: "Sonic documentary". :)
Both Sonic CD soundtracks are incredible and unforgettable.
Thank you for making such a long and high quality video, i really appreciate it! This is incredible content ive found a new go-to channel today :)
The reason why Sonic 2 stands out,
is because it delivers what every sequel promises, but normally fails,
it is better in every way whilst being true and faithful to the original.
Sonic Adventure 2 is loads of fun when playing with friends, probably my favorite Sonic game except for Sonic Riders.
Sonic adventure summary: “it does a lot of things. Does it do them necessarily well? No... but it does a lot.”
"And nothing can kill that fun spirit"
Sonic 06: *evil laughter* Welcome to Tilted Towers
Unpopular thoughts: memorization isn’t a flaw of the series, it’s an intentional design that’s been spoken about in multiple making of videos related to the series. Viewing the game through eyes that see this as a flaw means you’re not really enjoying the game the way it was intended, but instead are seeking to gain the feeling of reward gained by other platformers of the time.
While I think this is legit, and other games which have taken inspiration from Sonic do emphasise the speedrunning and replayability aspects (Action Henk is a strong example), there are also things that keep popping up in the design that don't play well with this. For example: finite lives. Why? Surely if you're encouraging players to memorise minute to 90sec-long stages, you should be putting them back at the start of levels as quickly and seamlessly as possible when they die?
Being intentional and being a flaw are not mutually exclusive. A good challenge is based on skill rather than knowledge.
I've never played a single Sonic game and attempted to memorize it, I've ALWAYS played reactively and had zero problems. The idea that the games require memorization in the first place is absolute hogwash.
@@OtakuUnitedStudio You have no idea what you're talking about.
That's like saying that Soulsborne games aren't hard because you have to learn the patterns of the enemies over being able to run in and destroy them with "skill". In fact, there is no skill without knowledge. Thinking the two are mutually exclusive is insanity.
Unpopular Opinion: This whole video is better than Sonic Origins.
Musically Sonic and Shadow actually differ. Sonic gets fast rock, Shadow gets dark industrial trance music, or something like that. I want to say tails and Eggman differ, but it's harder to notice. Mr. Unsmiley for Sky Rail kinda messed up Shadow's musical theme a bit, but rumor has it it was originally a Sonic track.
Billiam: "I hope they do a he remake"
Sega: "write that down, write that down!"
I don't remember sonic heroes missions being that long? I feel like I need to replay it now.
Man, Billiam is like 8 years old in most of this video it's wild
Sonic doesn’t require memorization to play, it can be played by looking at what’s in ahead.
Sonic 3 and Knuckles has great level design that is fast with great platforming, and the art style is fine.
I’m not sure what he was talking about with that. I disagreed entirely with him on that
Yeah, he's absolutely wrong there. The games NEVER required menorization.
Billiam:-says sonic 3 is flawed-
Classic fans:alright time to get an angry mob
Me:Okay,just one more UA-cam video before i go to bed.
Me at 3 am: **watching Sonic the Hedgehog: Complete Series Retrospective | Billiam**
Sonic '06 is Sonic Adventure 3 and nobody that likes Sonic Adventure 2 wants to admit that.
Sonic unleashed is actually one of my favorite sonic games and I’d appreciate if Sega made a game with the tone sonic unleashed had. The last few sonic games have been so goofy and light hearted, which I don’t mind but I want something more serious as of late. There was forces but ehhhhhhh.......
3 hours well spent. I will add this channel to my subsciptions. Good work Billiam!
With Unleashed, you can easily level up through buying foods
"GIANT FUCKING LIZARD!!!" That's like the best way to describe the Biolizard XD
No
The one thing that doesn't make sense to me is in Sonic Adventure when you claimed Amy isn't strong because she needs a weapon and surroundings to defend herself. This doesn't make any sense, it basically implies that a female character isn't strong simply because they use a weapon and not because it requires physical contact. And don't lots of video games have characters use their surroundings to defeat a boss? That's kind of hypocritical. That's like saying Link isn't strong because he uses a weapons. I do agree with the claim however that her age difference makes her crush on Sonic from cute to creepy, however in Sonic Adventure it isn't really the game that shows that, her crush isn't really focused on Sonic in an obsession way, rather she's just a Girl who idolizes him, which are two completely different things. In Sonic Rush onwards then yeah I can agree in that sense (depending on the game anyway) And I think her defeating Zero is fine because she does defeat the person who kidnapped her and didn't need Sonic to save her.
Amy is my favorite character in the Sonic series (along with Blaze and Cream) and while I admit her recent portrayal has been subpar (especially in Generations, Battle, Chronicles, Colors DS and especially Free Riders) but her good moments make her my favorite character.
Saying Amy isn't capable because of her weapon is NOT the same as saying Link isn't capable because he needs a weapon. Amy and Link live in two different world with two different set of rules. In the world of Sonic Adventure every character is capable by themselves, Amy is the only character incapable of direct combat. This isn't the only time where Amy has needed assistance, in Sonic R, she's the only animal character who needs a vehicle. Nearly every character in Legend of Zelda has some kind of weapon.
She should be more capable.
But Amy needs a Weapon as well. And why would one need a weapon but not the other? Even though Link has other feats that make him strong. Its the same thing with Amy! Also in Sonic R by this logic this could be said for Eggman who rides in a machine, or how about the fact Tails needs weapons/mechs to often attack foes? Amy has shown to be capable though. She has to be pretty powerful to lug that giant hammer around everywhere, not to mention swing it all over the place. She can do acrobatic tricks and flips, making her a very agile character. She can create a tornado that moves, not to mention hover in Heroes, giving her a huge advantage over the other speed types. She also can do a full degree angle spin with the hammer. The fact she's able to hold her own and show off some feats meaning she is capable.
Also not every character. Big uses a Fishing Pole just to defend himself from enemies. (shown again in Sonic Heroes and Chronicles) Plus Cream needs Cheese to attack, how is that not an issue but Amy needing her Hammer is? (Plus Amy has other combat moves)
By this logic Tails isn't capable because he uses a Mech in SA2 even though he can use his Tails to attack and Fly. Or Rouge in 06 needing Bombs, even though she has kickboxing in SA2, Zero actually could have been Eggman's most defensive robot. I mean it's entirely possible that his armor made it difficult to destroy him which is why he could only be defeated by that weak spot on his head.
Alpha Princess yeah, I see your point when it comes to this topic. Tbh when it comes to this stuff you get feminists fuck boys like billiam and have one little piece gameplay from a character who,to be honest never really was important to the plot to begin with or had a large amount developing time with gameplay, they happened to be a girl and we start blooming out bitching because "she can't defend her self" or some load of crap spewing from his mouth. Or because "She doesn't run as fast because she's a girl" even though it was VERY clear that Amy's team was the easy mode of the game it make sense why she would have the "better control"
Woah, i never knew Billiam was a feminist :?
Imagine if this guy ever made a video covering the TV series LOST. It would probably be long and intense. Which happens to be the complete opposite description of my bedroom romances.
This retrospective was great, but I still think you were too harsh on Sonic Unleashed. Doing side missions and giving the professor souvenirs can give you more medals.
Billiam, I really appreciate your insane video lengths
I always pop them on when cleaning / playing video games / cooking
I totally appreciate the amount of time you must put into these
Did you know if you press the A button and then Start when you die in Super Mario Bros you go back to the beginning of the world you died in
uhh yeah but what does this have to do with SONIC
1:18
I actually did not know that.
Man Sonic unleashed was fun I remember getting way back then good times the music, cs and gameplay were a treat.
2:32:26
Sega in 2021:Your wish has been granted
yeah a monkeys paw wish lol
as someone who didnt get a chance to grow up with nintendo consoles untill my teens i wasmt much interested and i put this vid on to sleep, but it ended up seeping into my dreams, woke up n finished watching, great work! getting me hyped and nostalgic for smth i didnt experience, that takes passion :)
These 3 hours sped by! I hope you can make a long video detailing your thoughts on the spinoffs one day.
First time I've ever watched, liked it 👍🏼....Loved it and subscribed.
For fans of the Matpat theorist channels (film, tv, GAME) and if a little younger, the super carlin brothers, this channel deserves a spot in your subs.
It shares subject matter enough to share an audience but it actually fills a niche in the market and doesn't copy material.
I really love the length of your videos, the effort that must take to study, prepare, script, then to film, edit, and the fearlessness of posting it on this platform. Especially because your delivery is so clear, there's no repetition, your points are interesting and succinct. It makes me certain that you care about the viewer coming to a fuller understanding on the subject and not just getting them to click and hoping they are too lazy to click away or fall asleep with autoplay on lol, ME. It doesn't feel like you are looking at a list of the sonic games in order and rattling off what you can remember, you've researched the long, hard way, read up on everything you can, played them through to remind yourself how it feels, which is so important with nostalgic characters like Sonic, I just really appreciate how complete this video feels because it minimises the effort on the viewers part to keep up and frees up space for us to get nostalgic. I feel like I can multitask watching this and sifting through own memories from it and be the one saying "oh yeah this is the one with the wisps, I didn't hate them at all, I didn't like being a laser though"
I know it's all about view time with the UA-cam algorithm so long videos like these will do well on this platform from an algorithm angle but when viewers are new to youtube, the longest video we click is about 8 minutes because we come blindly to UA-cam not knowing what it can offer - in order to watch shorter videos, the easy to consume handful of comedy videos in the 4 minute range, but once you are seriously building up your subscription box with content you want to see and using the platforms design to meet your needs, we want LONG videos. This caters to that stage. UA-cam is my tv, my cinema, I always click it before I click on Netflix, 4on demand or iPlayer, I'd much rather feed a conversational, educational, audiobook style hunger. This content satisfies that.
SUB NOW before it's too late if you are using this as relaxation/nap fodder and settle in for three hours of memories.
"sonic 2 is still better then sonic 3 and knuckles" I thought you were trying to think objectively
Yeah that's a stupid statement.
He said the design looked better.
He said mostly sometimes he says small things like that.
SamVision And you are why Sonic fans get a bad reputation. Implying someone is stupid over a difference in opinion over a video game...
There is no objectivity in gameplay and graphical aesthetics aside from technical issues. It's all subjective. They can pour their hearts and souls into something yet it can still turn people off (*cough* Sonic 06 cutscenes *cough*). There is such thing as "over designed" or "over stylized."
heck yes, this was RAD! Thankyou Billiam you legend. Much love from down under
I cannot figure out how people can praise "Escape from the City" but still think "Sonic Boom" is a poor song...??
Follow me, set me free, trust me and we will ESCAPE FROM THE CITYYYYY.
I know it's crazy, but opinions.
Sonic 06 was one of the first games I played and I think that's where most of not all of my fondness for it came from but looking back, it sucks but I still like it because of nostalgia
Your criticisms on sonic 3 & knuckles weren't really criticisms of the game but rather a very subjective preference which felt very weak. Such as 3&K's art style not being your cup of tea and some of the cinematic moments which actually happens at the end of each zone, and is absolutely not a part of the main game play experience.
And what is this about 3&K not focusing on speed? Hydrocity, Marble garden, Flying battery; The list goes on. These levels partially focus on maintaining speed just as chemical plant zone in sonic 2 did. As for Hydrocity with sonic, just use tails to fly him up in a dry path.
You then try to back up these personal complaints by saying that's the reason why 3 & K aren't in a lot of compilations which is extremely false. They're in the pc collection, the mega collections, and the various sega collections. And the main reason why they don't have a mobile port is due to the copy right of music, not due to it "loosing the casual audience". This is just as easy, if not easier to pick up and play than sonic 2 due to the save feature.
You say this is your favorite classic title, but then go on a bit more harsher on the game than you did with the other classics with the most biased and subjective preference, rather than actual criticism.
Other than this poorly done retrospective of 3&k, you did am alright job with the classic series. I'll be sure to watch the rest of the retrospective.
There are no real objective criticisms when it comes to gameplay: glitches and technical issues are the *only* objective things to look at unless there is a fully fleshed out story. There is such a thing as being "over designed" or "over stylized" and it is often associated with film/animation, but is perfectly acceptable as a subjective critique of video games. It also wasn't "poor," he elaborated on everything he said, gave his reasoning, in detail yet was simply biased (like any opinion is). You can be harsh on your favorite franchises, you *should* be as a matter of fact in order to facilitate change and better quality. So calm down, my dude.
@@PathBeyondTheDark
_"There are no real objective criticisms when it comes to game play: glitches and technical issues are the only objective things to look at unless there is a fully fleshed out story. There is such a thing as being "over designed" or "over stylized" and it is often associated with film/animation, but is perfectly acceptable as a subjective critique of video games."_
He started off the video saying that he will be "objective as possible" which you can easily tell that he wasn't. Though I admit that was a bit broad to not consider his personal peeves as criticism.
_" It also wasn't "poor," he elaborated on everything he said, gave his reasoning, in detail yet was simply biased (like any opinion is)."_
No. He barely went into detail at all, he just stated "this is this way" and moved on to the next since he tried to retrospect the entire main line franchise in under 3 hours. Which is why not only this, but the rest of his retrospective on the classic series feels weak and half baked.
_"You can be harsh on your favorite franchises, you should be as a matter of fact in order to facilitate change and better quality. So calm down, my dude."_
And I can be harsh on Billiams criticisms of Sonic 3 & Knuckles. There's nothing wrong with being harsh with something you love, but giving vague criticisms and giving reasons why sonic 3 has no ports (with no evidence, mind you) is more than likely going to be criticized by me.
that whole section just felt pretty ill informed. I'd like to think that Billiam would do a lot of this better if he did it now though
I’m honestly impressed at how mature this comment thread is of people criticizing without outright insulting. I’d usually see people taking shit way too far and despite this not really adding much to this conversation I’m honestly just happy that people can discuss things like this in a mature manner.
@@PathBeyondTheDark There is no real objective criticism but fleshing out your opinion makes it clear weither it's formed by an understandable but different point of view or misconceptions, misunderstanding, lack of knowledge about the subject or simply getting things wrong, which he apparently did (and I'm not insulting him or anything, we're just talking about Sonic games here and plus it happens to the best of us)
Like I could tell you that I really don't like Picasso's paintings but I also don't know much about visual arts and especially cubism so my opinion isn't as informed as someone who works, studies or has a passion for the subject, I'm obviously not saying that this guy doesn't know what he's talking about at all but it's an extreme example
Man, youtubers who do sonic retrospects are so cool.
Let’s just hope Frontiers finally breaks the cycle.
A friend sent me this vid as a way to learn about sonic’s game side and honestly!! As someone with adhd, you covered everything in a way that kept me interested in coming back to watch! I love the critical standpoint you took! I am a bit sad you didn’t talk about shadow’s game but alas, such is life
1:17:50 - "At the end of the day, I think that's more important than being an individually good title".
You don't give a game a free pass just because it's part of a franchise you like. If it sucks by itself, then it sucks, period. You might say "well what about sequel stories", but have you ever seen a good sequel that DIDN'T work standalone? A sequel builds on its predecessor while also serving as a standalone product. A good sequel DOESN'T go "we are assuming that you played the previous game, so there won't be a tutorial stage. If you haven't played the other game, go play it right now." That would be outrageous. The only content that does that is DLC, because that _requires_ the base game to run. And DLC didn't even exist back then.
Nobody gave Resident Evil 6 a free pass just for being a Resident Evil game. Nobody gave The Sims 4 a free pass for being a Sims game. And I'll be damned if anyone excused the loot box shit in Star Wars Battlefront because "It's a Star Wars game, c'mon!" There's a very good reason that those entries are pretty much universally seen as huge disappointments (if not outright r/assholedesign).
So that is why I strongly disagree with the notion that a product being good for its franchise is more important than being good by itself. Because if it's not good by itself, then there is no way in hell it is doing its parent franchise any favors by existing.
Speaking about the 16-bit Sonics, their perceived strengths at the time of release (which were, admittedly, mostly presentational) have diminished over the decades, making their flaws more obvious in hindsight. I remember the Christmas when I got Sonic 2, and my whole family was blown away. We were EXTREMELY happy with the game.
Sonic will never grow old.
I love and appreciate long videos like this. Thank you for the memory lane! ♥️
I get having a preference by when you frame the entire Sonic 3 and S&K in how you think it's worse than Sonic 2 by a large margin just shows you clearly aren't in touch with the general opinion as you did be in terms of a retrospective. Like you literally beat the viewer over the head over and over with the same negative opinions.
I really don't get the "cartoony" comments. It has more depth, vibrant colors, and faux 3D effects that were the trend at the time.
Also the music rights, save system, and lock on technology is why the game is sometimes overlooked in ports and compilations. It has zero to do with the quality of the game.
It wasn't as bad as he was making it seem, but 3 is most definitely a step back from 2 (which is fine, I enjoyed the games regardless). Not visually, but zone design and music never stood out to me. They did some cool things which I appreciate (especially in the first zone with the fire) but zones themselves have never been memorable.
I do agree, though. There is far too much opinion in this "retrospective". Also describing the early games as memorization is nonsense. If people are playing the games by memorizing them, they're missing the entire point of the games and not playing as intended.
Adventure battle two ate soooo many hours for me
You forgot the Game Gear and Master System Sonic games.
A Sonic Colors remaster... The monkey's paw curls another finger.
The Sonic 3 & Knuckles part is so poorly written, not to mention the improvements it had over 2, and just favor 2 for the sake of preference, not even the elemental shields and the advantage they provide in each stage, plus calling the Death Egg Zone Act 2 boss "the final boss" when it's the Doomsday one also a pretty unique one since you have to chase it down and get its own projectiles to hit it plus the linear chase afterwards and it's not hard whatsoever... The level design is also way better than of that seen on 2, better boss battles as well... And the list goes on.
Raymil Belmont
this comment is hilarious because I actually said I prefer "3 and knuckles" in the video
Saying you like it doesn't make all the stuff you said actually true.
Aaaaaaaaaaaand this comment section is exactly why Sonic fans get such a bad reputation. There is such thing as "over stylized" or "over designed." You might want to look into the concepts and the criticisms of them. That's not "objective", it's "opinion," just like everything said in this video.
Stop acting like elitist assholes. It isn't poorly written, it's just biased, like any opinion. I'm ashamed to be a part of this fandom, honestly.
@@PathBeyondTheDark
There are few that were a bit aggressive but a huge majority aren't. You're also one of those people who should calm.
@@MonSuper21 The op makes claims of fact that are nigh more than opinion. It's this attitude that persists between "Classic" and "Modern" purists, or even those who prefer more linear and speed-centric gameplay versus well designed and multi-tiered platforming that makes the Sonic community a laughing stock. What's more is it contributes to the continued inconsistent quality of the games. How are devs supposed to create games that satisfy fans when they are getting mixed signals? Likewise, why are fans even fighting amongst each other when it isn't one side or the others' fault? Between fans and developers, you all need to realize there are ways to compromise such as how other ip's have. Both types of fans need to give a little, while devs need to learn how to weed out the obnoxious complainers and come to some sort of middle ground instead of reinventing everything on whims.
I played Sonic 06 when I was younger just because I thought Silver was cool. My favorite part was running around the overworld with him and using his psychic powers to fling stuff into orbit.
If you ask me, Sonic is way better when it takes itself seriously. Sonic isn't some generic ass Mario character or modern day American cartoon character.
Chris Joseph -- I like a good balance of drama and chili dog eating
Blaine Alexander I agree with you, but there is a strong difference between Sonic's fun light hearted moments, compared to just horrible use of characters and what they call "comedy". The games before Colors and the Archie Sonic series did the balance perfect in my opinion. They also weren't afraid to brake their boundaries once in a while and tell a darker story. That's how it should be in my opinion at least.
Unleashed had a really good blend of this, in my opinion
serious sonic is worst sonic
HN Films tell that to the Archie Sonic Comics. I don't think it would have lasted for 24 years if it stayed as a simple comic strip. Very well written stories and characters that are written so you actually like them. No dull ass Sonic Boom character personalities. The only reason they got cancelled was because one of the butthurt writers got sew happy.
I love the original Sonic The Hedgehog Trilogy, cause I grew up Sonic and I have his trilogy on the sega genesis, and Sonic 3 and Knuckles is my favorite Sonic game of all time.
Horrible taste on Sonic 3 & Knuckles aside (seriously Sonic 2 better than it? what??), decent retrospective.
i know right :( i felt sad when i heard him talking about s3&k
he said its his favorite maybe he went a little harsh on it because he didnt want to sound like he was being subjective
the sonic sprite in 3 looks terrible
@@jesterssketchbook That doesn't make the game worse than Sonic 2.
Except two is better. Perhaps your own taste is the thing that's questionable. There's not a single thing about 3 that makes it stand out over 2. Terrible powerups, worse zones, horribly easy, questionably worse music, worse sprites. Hell gameplay is much less fluid as well. I can appreciate what they did with some of the levels, but that's simply fluff, the level design and zones themselves are just a resounding "meh".
Sonic Adventure 2 was my childhood
I love the boost gameplay, but if they are going to make a SA3 They better replace it with a spindash, fully 3D and they should not be afraid of being darker. SEGA just needs to not cross the line.
There already is SA3, it came out in 2004 for GBA
They tried going darker, and we got Sonic 06 and Shadow the Hedgehog.
We don’t need the series to go uber dark and serious. It CAN have its dark moments when the story calls for it. Like, say, whenever the villain of the game has the advantage we can see the characters despair or be visibly worried and such, maybe a detail can have dark implications, but not go as far as the previously mentioned games did.
Sonic should have a tone similar to, say, Avatar the Last Airbender or a typical Shonen Anime. Not try and have this sense of self importance like Evangelion or something
Sonic ADVENTURE 3, not sonic ADVANCE 3.
SuperHydrow Pretty sure 06 was effectively supposed to be SA3. Hence, we haven't had a true 3D Sonic game since...
Three god damn hours 😵
YESSSSSSS
Time stamps:
Sonic 1: 0:46
Sonic 2: 7:52
Sonic CD: 17:24
Sonic 3: 24:59
Sonic & Knuckles: 32:41
Sonic Adventure: 40:22
Sonic Adventure 2: 58:30
Sonic Heroes: 1:18:00
Sonic 06: 1:31:42
Sonic Unleashed: 1:57:50
Sonic 4 Episode 1: 2:15:34
Sonic 4 Episode 2: 2:22:57
Sonic Colors: 2:28:04
Sonic Generations: 2:36:58
Sonic Lost World: 2:46:56
Sonic Generations 3DS !!!
"Iblis was sealed into Elise - only to be released if Elise cries, 'cuz young children never cry" lol
I hope Sonic Forces doesn’t result in the next game in the sega cycle...WE DONT NEED ANOTHER SONIC 06
it was
It definitely wasn't another Sonic 06 though. Let's not exaggerate
LuckyDelorean 57 it’s on the same level of 06. Honestly I enjoyed 06 a lot more lol.
Thanks for the video, great listening from one of Sonic's original fans ie the original target audience.
Being 40 years-old looking back at the franchise from someone who was 8 years-old when Sonic was introduced is very nostalgic especially looking at the original Genisis titles. Being someone who started from the original Sonic, played Sonic 2 and actually skipped Sonic 3 and went straight to Sonic and Knuckles, Sonic 3 and Knuckles is my personal favorite but the one I replay the most is Sonic and Knuckles. Feel like it's similar reason Sonic 2 is the favorite for others it's shorter and more digestible.
Hope to watch more of your videos.
"TOO CARTOONY"???????? hahaa jk I know what you really meant but still...
Time stamps:
Sonic 1: 0:46
Sonic 2: 7:52
Sonic CD: 17:24
Sonic 3: 24:59
Sonic & Knuckles: 32:41
Sonic Adventure: 40:22
Sonic Adventure 2: 58:30
Sonic Heroes: 1:18:00
Sonic 06: 1:31:42
Sonic Unleashed: 1:57:50
Sonic 4 Episode 1: 2:15:34
Sonic 4 Episode 2: 2:22:57
Sonic Colors: 2:28:04
Sonic Generations: 2:36:58
Sonic Lost World: 2:46:56
41:36 Hamilton reference XD
U are a SAINTTTT
Jamani Cooke lol ironically just watched it so now I can see George Washington talm bout I need my right hand man😂
no sonic R? unsubscribed
No Shadow The Edgehog but yes 06? Can't really call a "complete series" retrospective.
Also, Sonic's dialogue at the Green Hill cutscene in Generations mentions Secret Rings, which means they did happen and are cannon, so probably Black Knight is as well. *and they're not here, either.*